章 45: Money Troubles
Tang Miaoyi: "..."
The most unsettling aspect of any situation is the eerie silence that ensues. It's akin to being trapped in the eye of a hurricane, acutely aware of the impending storm surrounding you. It leaves one's mind spinning and places immense pressure on all parties involved.
Tang Miaoyi loosened her grip on her phone, her face a mixture of confusion and bewilderment, unsure of how to proceed. What on earth was happening? Bankruptcy? No, it couldn't be true. How could this have happened?
It was her first encounter with such a predicament, and if it were a stranger on the line, she might have instinctively hung up. But there was a reason why Tang Miaoyi didn't hastily terminate the call. She was well aware that the person on the other end couldn't possibly be a scammer.
A protracted silence lingered on the line. After a moment of hesitation, Tang Miaoyi mustered the courage to speak, her voice trembling slightly, "Are you still there? It's me, Yiyi."
"I... I'm here," Tang Miaoyi regained her composure, taking a few deep breaths before responding, "What did you just say? Is the company facing bankruptcy?"
Tang Miaoyi needed confirmation. Despite not having a particularly close relationship with her mother's company, the suddenness of the revelation was overwhelming.
"Well, it wouldn't be entirely accurate to say we're already bankrupt, but we're teetering on the edge. It might happen soon... I'm sorry, but we might not be able to provide you with your monthly allowance. While we'll do our utmost to minimize its impact on you, we may need to exercise strict control over any remaining funds in the future." The voice on the other end sounded helpless, and Tang Miaoyi detected a mixture of resignation and desperation in the tone. "Uncle wanted to ask for your opinion on something... Can you find the time to meet your mother and me? It's been a year and a half since we last saw you, and every time we try to visit, you avoid us."
"Um... Can I inquire about the reasons behind the company's current predicament?" Tang Miaoyi instinctively skirted the topic of a face-to-face meeting and skillfully redirected the conversation back to the company.
"It's a result of low market demand and poor investments," the man replied with a soft sigh. "Yiyi, you needn't worry about all this. Your mother and I will..."
"Wait a moment," Tang Miaoyi's body shivered as a chilling realization set in. She sensed that he was deliberately avoiding something, which unnerved her. Nevertheless, she found herself embracing a frightening sense of calm. "Do you have any outstanding debts?"
There was no response from the other end, only a faint sound as if a lighter had been flicked, barely audible through the phone's microphone.
"Does the company... Are you in debt?" Tang Miaoyi maintained a composed tone as she repeated her question.
"Yes..." The man's voice lacked any magnetic quality, and his response was tinged with hesitation.
"So all your investors fell through, huh?" Miaoyi's voice remained calm, and unless you were in the room with her, you wouldn't notice anything amiss from her tone alone. However, anyone present would feel the air noticeably chill around her.
But this situation was somewhat troubling. She had always seen herself as a wealthy second-generation young lady, a small affluent woman, but now she realized she had become a "negative second-generation."
On the other end of the phone: "..."
Miaoyi's words seemed to have struck a nerve, leaving no room for a response.
Miaoyi asked, "How much debt do you currently have? It shouldn't involve any high-interest loans, right? You wouldn't resort to those exploitative loan sharks."
"No, it's all regular debts," the man replied. "But that's not important. Your mom and I just want to see you."
"How can it not be important? Any difficulty is a difficulty, and the situation is definitely not optimistic right now; otherwise, you wouldn't be in this state," Miaoyi's tone conveyed a hint of disappointment as her genuine emotions slipped through for a second. "How much do you owe?"
"Six million..."
"How much??" Miaoyi thought she had misheard, nearly choking on her own saliva. "I didn't hear clearly just now. Can you repeat it?"
The voice on the other end repeated, "Six million..."
"Six million." Miaoyi silently retrieved her phone and checked the date... Hmm, it was October 13th, and the next payment from Light Cloud was due on November 1st...
However, besides Light Cloud, Miaoyi remembered there was another god-level sponsor supporting her. Tianyou Entertainment had financed the production cost of the theme song for "Street Dance" with five million yuan, and the payment was scheduled for the 14th... just one day away!
Thinking of that insane amount of money, Miaoyi honestly had the impulse to end the call, unwind, take a relaxing bath, and maybe spend some time playfully teasing An Qiuying.
Six million yuan of debt...
That was likely why the company's investors had withdrawn their support.
Perhaps several million yuan of debt was considered normal for a company, especially since Miaoyi knew her mother's company was not small... But when you placed that amount in a personal context, it was an astronomical figure. Let's just say many people may never encounter that much money in their entire lifetime, let alone have direct contact with it.
The same applied to Miaoyi.
Despite the impression that she had made a lot of money in a short time with a few songs, up until now... she had only received the first little piece, which was the signing bonus of 1,000,000¥, plus 250,000¥ for royalties on "Fox." While she couldn't be considered poor anymore, 6,000,000¥ was well beyond her means.
In the end, it was all because the time was too sudden.
She hadn't even had a moment to process it. Tang Miaoyi quietly ran a quick calculation in her mind...
There was the payment for "Solo Dance" from Tianyou Entertainment, five million yuan per song, and it was even before taxes. Tianyou hadn't explicitly mentioned whether it was after taxes...
Shortly, there would be additional payments from Light Cloud as well.
Among them, there were the royalties from "Fox," the negotiated bonus for "Solo Dance" at 2.7 around million yuan, and "Closer" was 3 million yuan, a significant increase compared to "Fox."
Considering Light Cloud Music's share, which could exceed five million yuan, plus "Fox," Tang Miaoyi might end up receiving around six or 7 million from Light Cloud, including the royalties for the new songs...
"It's not... What exactly does your company do?" Tang Miaoyi resisted the urge to hang up and asked directly, somewhat frustrated. "How did it end up in such a massive loss?"
"It's a literary publishing house, don't you know, Yiyi?" The man paused for a moment. "It's a publishing house that focuses on publishing youth literature."
"A publishing house?" This time it was Tang Miaoyi who was taken aback.
"Now, your mom and I are planning to find an opportunity to sell it off at a low price. It's best to eliminate this burden as soon as possible." The male voice didn't pay much attention to Tang Miaoyi's question. "The market has been declining, and it has been running at a loss for several years. It barely managed to sustain itself by depleting the reserves, but now it can't continue any longer. Small publishing houses generally struggle."
"A literary publishing house?" Tang Miaoyi's mind suddenly sprang to life upon hearing this, and she pondered for a few moments before deciding.
After a long pause, Tang Miaoyi said, "If money is your only problem and you can save the business with an investment, I might be able to assist you..."
Perhaps, driven by the word "mom," Tang Miaoyi was destined not to let this go, especially considering her other motives now...
On the other end of the phone: "?????" Tang Miaoyi felt a cascade of visible question marks coming her way.
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