Chapter 186 Now, He Truly Has Nothing Left

Morning.

The long dining table was laid out with an exquisite breakfast: crystal shrimp dumplings, scallop congee, omelets…

But no one touched their chopsticks. The servants tactfully retreated to the kitchen.

Lu Er’s face was pale, with dark circles under his eyes. He placed a stack of documents and several bank cards onto the table.

“Mom, brother, sister-in-law—these are all the assets under my name that belong to the Lu family. I’ve already signed the share transfer agreement.”

“The money in these cards is the dividends I’ve received over the years from the family trust. Not a single cent has been touched.”

Lu Chen shot to his feet. “Xiao Er, what are you doing?!”

Leng Qinghua slowly lifted her bowl of porridge, scooped up a spoonful, blew on it, and put it into her mouth.

“Have you thought it through?”

“I have.” Lu Er unconsciously rubbed the ring on his ring finger.

“Xiao Er!”

Lu Chen stood up. “Don’t act impulsively. If there’s something to talk about, let’s talk it through.”

Lu Er looked at his brother, his eyes reddening. “I know you mean well, Brother.”

Then he turned to Leng Qinghua. “You’re right. Without the Lu family, I’m nothing. But Song Jingmo can’t live without me—and I can’t live without him either.”

With that, he walked out without looking back.

“Xiao Er!”

Lu Chen chased after him.

“Let him go.”

Leng Qinghua’s voice came from behind—cold, devoid of warmth.

Lu Chen turned back, staring at his mother in disbelief. “Mom!”

“I said, let him go.”

Leng Qinghua set down her spoon; it struck the rim of the bowl with a crisp sound.

“His wings have grown strong—if he wants to fly, then let him fly. I want to see just how far and how high he can go.”

Luo Bingbing opened her mouth as if to speak, but seeing her mother-in-law’s expressionless face, she swallowed her words.

The sports car drove out of the villa. Lu Er’s hands trembled slightly as he gripped the steering wheel.

He was just about to call Song Jingmo when his phone rang.

Lu Er was surprised. “Brother Jiang, so early?”

“Lu Er,” Jiang Qingyan’s voice was urgent, “where are you right now?”

“What’s wrong?”

“Something’s happened.”

Jiang Qingyan spoke quickly. “Several brands have simultaneously sent legal notices, demanding to terminate your endorsement contracts.”

Lu Er slammed on the brakes, pulling over to the roadside. “What?”

“All five of your luxury endorsements are demanding termination.”

Jiang Qingyan was panicking. “They say you’ve seriously violated contract terms—your personal image now carries major negative risks and affects their brand image.”

“They’re demanding compensation and want to reclaim the endorsement fees already paid.”

Lu Er’s mind buzzed.

These five endorsements were his top-tier resources, with a combined annual fee close to ten billion.

The contracts were signed for eight years. If terminated, the penalty would be astronomical.

“Why would this suddenly—”

Halfway through his sentence, Lu Er suddenly understood.

“It’s your mother.”

Jiang Qingyan’s tone darkened. “I’ve looked into it. President Leng personally contacted them, saying there are issues with your sexual orientation.”

“More importantly, she said you abandoned your family for a man, making you a high-risk figure unsuitable to represent luxury brands.”

Lu Er gripped the phone, his fingertips turning white.

He should have seen this coming.

“Come to the company immediately. The legal department is already in a meeting. Senior management is furious—if this isn’t handled properly, things will spiral out of control.”

“Okay.”

Lu Er hung up, restarted the car, and made a U-turn toward the company.

At 9 a.m., the moment he entered, he could clearly sense something was off.

Department heads hurried through the corridors, their expressions grave.

He pushed open the meeting room door—it was already full.

“Sit.”

President Li gestured to an empty seat.

The legal director adjusted his glasses and got straight to the point. “The situation is very serious. Multiple brands are attacking at once.”

“According to the contract terms, if the artist causes damage to the brand image due to personal reasons, the brand has the right to unilaterally terminate the contract and demand triple the contract amount in compensation, as well as recover all payments already made.”

He flipped open a folder. “Preliminary estimates: the total penalties for the five endorsements, plus recovered payments, come to around 20 billion.”

20 billion.

Dead silence filled the room.

Lu Er stared at the number, his mind going blank.

He knew it would be a lot—but not this much.

Even selling himself wouldn’t be worth that price.

“And that’s not the worst part. Right now, three of the top five trending topics on Weibo are related to this.”

“‘Lu Er endorsement termination,’ ‘Lu Er sexual orientation,’ ‘Leng Qinghua of Lu Group.’ Public opinion is extremely unfavorable. Many netizens are cursing you… very harshly.”

President Li finally spoke. “Lu Er, the company has cultivated you for years and given you the best resources—not for you to destroy the company.”

“President Li, this matter—”

President Li took out a document. “This is a termination agreement. Due to your serious breach of contract causing enormous losses to the company, we are hereby terminating all management agreements with you.”

“You are required to compensate the company for all losses incurred, including claims from brand partners, as well as all training, promotion, and other costs invested in you.”

Jiang Qingyan abruptly stood up. “President Li, this is too much. Lu Er is the company’s top artist—he’s made a lot of money for the company over the years.”

“And now that something’s happened, you’re just kicking him out and making him pay? That’s completely unreasonable.”

“Jiang Qingyan,” President Li barked, “sit down. This isn’t your place to speak!”

Lu Er picked up a pen and signed his name swiftly.

“This is fine. At least I won’t drag you all down.”

He stood up. “Once the finance department calculates the compensation, send it to me.”

With that, he turned and walked out.

Jiang Qingyan chased after him. “Are you insane? That’s so much money—how are you going to repay it?”

“Slowly.”

Lu Er wanted to smile but couldn’t. “Thank you for everything these years. You still have other artists—don’t let me drag you down.”

“You…” Jiang Qingyan’s eyes reddened. “I know a few independent studio bosses—I can help connect you.”

“Your acting skills and fame are still there. You can make a comeback even if you go solo.”

Lu Er nodded. “Thank you.”

Just as he finished packing his things, Bai Zhi rushed in. “Brother Lu, are you really leaving?”

“Yeah. Find another artist to follow. I’m no longer a top star—and I’m drowning in debt. There’s no future sticking with me.”

Tears streamed down Bai Zhi’s face. “I’ve already earned enough these years following you to live comfortably. Even without a salary, I’m willing to stay with you.”

Lu Er’s heart warmed. He reached out and hugged her. “Silly.”

“I’m serious.”

Bai Zhi wiped her tears. “Wherever you go, I go!”

“I can be both assistant and manager—handle negotiations, coordination, anything.”

Lu Er smiled. “Alright, then help me with something first.”

“What is it?”

“Check all my current assets—my savings, investments in stocks and funds, and those properties.”

Lu Er took a deep breath. “Liquidate everything. Sell whatever you can.”

Bai Zhi froze. “You’re going to…”

“Repay the debt.”

Lu Er’s voice was calm. “From today on, I’m a penniless man buried in debt.”

Now, he truly had nothing left.

Family, career, wealth…

All gone.

All that remained was an astronomical debt.