Pretending to Cultivate in Kindergarten-Chapter 138: The Biggest Problem and the Simplest Solution

"What?"

Jiang Jingshi and Lin Zhengran exchanged glances, both thinking the same thing—Already? That fast?

She immediately got up and opened the door. "Come in and explain!"

The man outside, seeing that it was Jiang Jingshi, wasted no time reporting the situation.

"President Jiang, it’s like this—the music studio where Jiang Xueli works shut down this morning. They put up a sign saying they were ‘temporarily closed,’ and her song has been taken down."

"Temporarily closed, and the song was removed?"

Lin Zhengran pulled out his phone and checked the New Star Ranking. Sure enough, the song was still listed, but its title had turned black, indicating a copyright issue. It was marked as ‘unavailable due to licensing adjustments.’

The comment section had turned into chaos.

Some were confused as to why the song wasn’t playing. Others speculated about what had happened.

Jiang Jingshi reassured Lin Zhengran, "Don’t panic. Let’s figure out what’s really going on first."

She turned to the man and asked, "Do we know why they shut down?"

He shook his head. "Not yet. From what we’ve gathered, the studio’s owner, Ms. Wang, looked off when she left work last night—like she had just received some bad news. Then, this morning, the studio was closed."

"Bad news… could it be that they already have something on her?" Jiang Jingshi thought for a moment. "Has there been any negative news about the studio online today?"

"No, I checked. Nothing yet."

Lin Zhengran added, "Then it’s just like you said, Sister Jiang. Their goal isn’t to destroy the studio—it’s just to take Jiang Xueli. If they had dirt on Ms. Wang, they’d use it as leverage but wouldn’t expose it publicly right away."

Jiang Jingshi nodded. "That seems to be the case. I just didn’t expect them to act so fast. If they found leverage this quickly, it means Ms. Wang must have made mistakes in the past that gave them an opening."

She turned back to the man. "Any other updates?"

"Not for now, President Jiang. We’re still investigating."

She waved him off, signaling that he could leave, then closed the door and turned to Lin Zhengran.

"Zhengran, I’m shutting down the New Star Ranking temporarily. Otherwise, if Jiang Xueli’s song is taken down and others rise in the rankings, the entire chart will become distorted."

Lin Zhengran was surprised. "You’re stopping the ranking? But it’s at peak popularity right now, and the song sales are linked to it. Won’t this cost you a lot of money?"

Jiang Jingshi smiled gently.

"Not too much. And while I’d love for my team to win and make money, I already told you—winning unfairly is meaningless. Besides… I’ve already changed my mind about running a team alone. Just now, on the couch…"

She trailed off, but Lin Zhengran understood.

Jiang Jingshi was different from other businesspeople. Making money wasn’t her sole purpose. Despite her belief in his talent, she didn’t know exactly how capable he was.

Yet, she was still willing to take a gamble on him.

And in truth, this deal was entirely in his favor. Running a company required both skill and the right people—he couldn’t handle everything alone.

"President Jiang, what you proposed earlier has no downsides for me," Lin Zhengran said. "How about this—once we resolve this situation, we’ll discuss the new studio in detail. I’d be happy to partner with you."

Jiang Jingshi’s eyes widened in delight, as if she had just made millions. "Really?! Zhengran, you’re willing to start a business with me?!"

Lin Zhengran had never seen her this excited before—she was grinning from ear to ear.

"Yeah, really."

"That’s amazing! Once this situation is settled, I’ll handle all the foundational setup for the company. You’ll just need to make key decisions and train our team."

Lin Zhengran nodded.

Even without a formal contract, his experience already far surpassed most so-called experts. He’d have no trouble leading a team.

Jiang Jingshi had more to say, but then she realized she had gotten a bit carried away. Her face turned slightly red. "Alright, let’s focus on the current issue first. We’ll talk about the studio later."

"Yeah. First, we need to find Ms. Wang and at least figure out why she shut down the studio."

Without wasting any time, they got into a car and headed to Ms. Wang’s residence.

With Jiang Jingshi’s connections, tracking down someone’s address was a simple task.

Soon, they arrived at the residential complex where Ms. Wang lived.

Her apartment door was locked.

Lin Zhengran knocked. "Ms. Wang? Are you home?"

There was no response.

Jiang Jingshi spoke up as well. "Ms. Wang, I’m Jiang Jingshi from the Jiang Group. I know you’re in trouble. Please open the door—I’m here to help you."

At last, they heard movement from inside.

A hesitant voice came from behind the door.

"President Jiang…? You’re really here to help?"

Jiang Jingshi’s reputation carried weight.

"Open the door first. We can talk inside. Staying in here won’t solve anything," she said firmly.

The door slowly opened.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

Even though it had only been one night, Lin Zhengran immediately noticed how exhausted and haggard Ms. Wang looked.

Inside the apartment, there was another person—a young and good-looking man.

The young man greeted them politely, "Good afternoon, President Jiang, Lin Zhengran."

Lin Zhengran recognized him right away. He was one of the male singers from the studio, probably around eighteen or nineteen—a university student.

Jiang Jingshi also noticed him and instantly understood the situation.

The two of them were clearly not mother and son.

Inside, Ms. Wang’s apartment was not overly luxurious but was still spacious and well-equipped. After all, despite years of struggling financially, she had managed to keep her music studio running, proving that she had some level of success.

She invited Jiang Jingshi to sit while she hurried to pour water. When she saw Lin Zhengran, she hesitated.

"Zhengran, you’re here too…"

She had seen Jiang Jingshi and Lin Zhengran talking at the last competition, but she never expected them to be this familiar—enough to visit her together.

Before Lin Zhengran could say anything, Jiang Jingshi casually spoke from the couch.

"I’m Lin Zhengran’s fiancée."

The room went dead silent.

Ms. Wang and the young male singer were both stunned. Even Lin Zhengran turned to look at Jiang Jingshi.

She smiled sweetly. "What’s wrong, Zhengran? Did I say something incorrect?"

Lin Zhengran chuckled. While it sounded a bit exaggerated, technically, she wasn’t lying.

Meanwhile, Ms. Wang and the young man were completely shocked.

The famous heiress of the Jiang Group—Jiang Jingshi—was actually engaged to Lin Zhengran?

More than that, they had known each other for a long time, yet no one had ever suspected he had such a powerful connection.

Ms. Wang's entire attitude toward Lin Zhengran shifted. "Please, Zhengran, have a seat—I’ll get you some water!"

Lin Zhengran waved his hand. "No need for that, Ms. Wang. We’re here today to ask about what happened to the studio. Why did it shut down? And why was Jiang Xueli’s song removed from the ranking?"

Ms. Wang hesitated, glancing between Lin Zhengran and Jiang Jingshi.

Jiang Jingshi spoke up. "Just be direct. Since I’m the one reaching out, you should already know I’m here to help. As for why—I think you understand by now."

Ms. Wang nodded. Jiang Jingshi was clearly implying that she was doing this for Lin Zhengran’s sake.

After a brief pause, Ms. Wang glanced at the young man, who then went into the room and retrieved an envelope, handing it to Jiang Jingshi.

Ms. Wang explained, "This arrived last night from Pan Cheng Electronics. I’m not sure how familiar you are with their company, but ever since Jiang Xueli gained popularity, their people have approached me—just like you did, President Jiang. But I turned them down."

"Then, after I refused, I received this package. Inside was a phone containing two videos and an audio recording. Because of these, I had no choice but to shut down the studio."

Jiang Jingshi opened the phone and played the videos.

Lin Zhengran leaned in to watch.

As expected, both videos showed Ms. Wang and the young male singer in various intimate settings—going on dates, kissing, and more.

Then, there was the audio recording.

[Recording]

Ms. Wang, I assume you’ve seen the two videos. A studio owner harassing her young male singers—just that alone is enough to shut your company down and end your career.

On top of that, there’s the copyright issue. I’ve discovered that your studio released several songs three years ago that bear a striking resemblance to tracks from our artists. We’re planning to sue you, and I’ve already sent a legal notice with the claim amount. As professionals in the same industry, I’d rather not go to such extremes, but the compensation figure is quite large—I doubt you can afford it.

However, there is a way to settle this.

All you need to do is sell your studio to us. Don’t worry, we’ll still pay you for it. With that money, you can start over and open a new studio elsewhere, even if it’s on a smaller scale.

But if you refuse, we will pursue legal action. Also, please take down Jiang Xueli’s song immediately—otherwise, we will assume you’re unwilling to negotiate. After removing the track, I’ll give you three days to consider your options. Think carefully.

After listening, Jiang Jingshi skimmed through the legal notice. The compensation amount was astronomical—far beyond what this small studio could afford.

Even if they somehow managed to pay it, they would be left bankrupt.

Moreover, Pan Cheng Electronics was a much larger company. Fighting them in court was impossible. And with the intimate videos as well…

Jiang Jingshi asked, "What’s this copyright infringement claim about?"

Ms. Wang quickly explained, "It’s not real copyright infringement! Early on, our contracts had some loopholes, and they used that to poach two of our singers. Then, they manipulated the situation to falsely accuse us of plagiarism. It’s all a setup!"

"And what did your lawyer say?"

Ms. Wang hesitated. "I consulted a lawyer last night… legally, they do have a case. It’s all because our contracts were too weak at the time."

She sighed. "As for the harassment claims—it’s not true! I…" She motioned toward the young singer. "He and I are in a real relationship. He was the one who pursued me."

The young man nodded. "Yes! I was the one who chased after Ms. Wang!"

Jiang Jingshi sighed internally. Whether it’s real or not, public perception won’t care.

A middle-aged female studio owner dating a young male singer? The outside world would immediately assume she was taking advantage of him.

And as for the copyright issue—small companies often suffered from contract loopholes. It was just a matter of whether someone chose to exploit them.

She turned to Lin Zhengran. "This situation is trickier than expected. It’s going to take a lot of money to resolve."

She deliberately left her sentence unfinished, but Lin Zhengran understood her meaning.

From a purely practical standpoint, this wasn’t their problem.

If Pan Cheng Electronics succeeded in forcing Jiang Xueli to leave, it wouldn’t be an issue. She could easily terminate her contract by paying a fee—far cheaper than rescuing the entire studio.

In fact, Lin Zhengran had personally reviewed Jiang Xueli’s contract before. Ms. Wang had never imposed strict contractual restrictions on her, so she had complete freedom to leave.

However, if they didn’t intervene, the studio would collapse, and Ms. Wang’s career would be ruined.

And Ms. Wang had always been good to Jiang Xueli—she was a genuinely kind employer.

That said, spending a fortune to save the studio would be playing right into their opponent’s trap. The cost was simply too high.

At first glance, it seemed like an impossible problem to solve.

But then, Lin Zhengran suddenly smiled.

Because in reality, the solution was far simpler than it seemed.

He just had to take matters into his own hands.

After all, he wasn’t exactly an ordinary person.

And by ‘ordinary person,’ it wasn’t about having powerful connections—it was a more literal meaning. He was fundamentally different.

Ms. Wang, still distressed, noticed his expression and asked anxiously, "Zhengran, why are you smiling?"

Jiang Jingshi was also curious. She had no clear solution—the evidence was in their opponent’s hands, and the only way out seemed to be paying a hefty sum.

"Zhengran, do you have an idea?"

Lin Zhengran handed the phone and documents back to Ms. Wang.

"Not really. But now that I know what’s going on, I’m sure there’s a way to fix it."

With that, he and Jiang Jingshi temporarily left.

In the Rolls-Royce downstairs, the driver waited outside while Jiang Jingshi turned to Lin Zhengran and admitted, "If I were to handle this, I’d need at least two days to gather the funds. The amount is just too large to pay all at once."

To her surprise, Lin Zhengran responded, "No need, Sister Jiang. It wouldn’t be right for you to pay for this alone. Besides, this isn’t your responsibility."

She smiled warmly. "Of course it is. If it concerns you, then it concerns me—after all, we’re partners now."

Lin Zhengran paused before saying, "Let’s give it a day. By tomorrow morning, this problem might just solve itself."

Jiang Jingshi blinked. "Wait… what? You had a plan back at the apartment, didn’t you? What are you going to do?"

"You’ll find out tomorrow morning," he said with a grin.

After returning to school, he requested leave for two evening classes.

Then, as he stepped outside the campus once more, he glanced at the system panel.

"The hardest problems can sometimes be solved in the simplest way. All I have to do is erase those videos and get the two stolen singers to withdraw their lawsuit. Easy."