Chapter 348

Chapter 348: Chapter 348

Chenyang did need the assistant’s help to clear his name.

But this was not a one-sided need.

Because the assistant also needed to use him to get her revenge on Lin Jiji.

Given that they both had something to gain, he had to be the one in control. He couldn’t let her use him as a pawn. Otherwise, he’d be facing a new wave of problems before he’d even solved the first one.

To make this bottom line clear, Chenyang’s tone was forceful and resolute, projecting an air that left no room for doubt or negotiation.

Seeing this, a complex expression crossed the assistant’s face.

She had underestimated Chenyang.

She’d once thought Chenyang was just some doctor she could easily manipulate.

But now she understood. His social standing might not be as glamorous as others, but when it came to intelligence and strategic thinking, he could probably rival the cunning Sister Rose.

And on top of that, he had powerful figures like An Xiaoqing and Yan Rongrong on his side.

In this situation, the assistant was left with only two choices.

The first was to give up on cooperating with Chenyang and find someone else to help her get revenge on Lin Jiji. But a suitable candidate wouldn’t be easy to find, and it would take a lot of time and effort to prepare.

She wasn’t afraid of putting in the work to get revenge on Lin Jiji, but she didn’t have much time. Lin Jiji was leaving Yang City by noon tomorrow at the latest. Once she was gone, the assistant would lose her chance to use the scandal surrounding Chenyang to strike back at her.

That left only one option.

To compromise with Chenyang.

She didn’t want to compromise, but she wasn’t in a position to refuse. 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

With no other choice, the assistant could only nod. "Mr. Chen, we’ll do it your way. As for your conditions, I assume you’ve already decided on them, so you might as well state them. As long as they aren’t too outrageous, I’ll agree to them."

Chenyang had indeed thought it all through. He got straight to the point. "Three conditions. First, I want all the dirt you have on Lin Jiji."

"No problem. I was going to give you that anyway. What you do with it is your call."

"Second, you need to add me to all of Lin Jiji’s official fan groups. For any groups you manage, you have to give me admin privileges—the highest level, preferably."

"I can agree to that too!" The assistant paused, then frowned. "I just don’t understand your reason for doing this."

"You’ll understand my reasons when the time comes."

"All right. And the last condition?"

"Third, clearing my name will require media intervention to control the online narrative. Getting the media involved costs money, and you’re going to be the one to pay for it."

"I have to pay?" The assistant’s brows knitted. After a moment of thought, she gestured to the side. "General Manager Yan is your friend, and the owner of that media company is her friend. Can’t you just ask her to put in a good word for you?"

Chenyang countered, "The media company’s owner is General Manager Yan’s friend, not mine. Besides, even if they were my friend, do you think getting them to launch a campaign to quell the rumors and turn public opinion around is free?"

The corner of the assistant’s lip twitched. "But that’s not a small amount of money."

"That’s not my problem."

"Mr. Chen, I genuinely want to work with you. How about... we split the cost? Rest assured, I won’t just have the media company quell the rumors. After your name is cleared, I’ll have them promote your medical skills as well, to help your career."

Chenyang shook his head. Just as he was about to speak, Yan Rongrong cut in, "You don’t need to worry about making a name for Chenyang. I can handle that. Right now, you should be thinking about your own situation."

The assistant looked troubled. The scale of the public backlash was huge.

Making it go away wasn’t something that could be done for a few thousand, or even tens of thousands.

Based on her experience with these things, quelling it completely would cost at least a hundred thousand, maybe more.

Although she was a major celebrity’s assistant and had skimmed some money off the top from Lin Jiji over the years, most of it had been spent back on Lin Jiji herself.

After a moment’s hesitation, she bit her lip and asked pleadingly, "Is there no room for negotiation at all?"