016 The restaurant owner definitely slipped something into the dish.

After running through the scene about four or five times, Yan Li suggested ending the rehearsal.

In truth, the scene wasn’t particularly difficult from a performance standpoint. The main challenge lay in finding the right balance and easing the embarrassment of acting alongside a female lead. Once those two were managed, the rest was straightforward—after all, Yan Li had practiced alone before and wasn’t starting from scratch.

There was another reason as well: Yan Li sensed that Qin Lan’s mood was becoming increasingly off, and perhaps due to the sweltering heat, he himself was struggling to keep his temper in check.

They weren’t very close yet; after all, he had asked her for help this time. If things got out of hand, it would be awkward to meet again in the future.

“Is that it? How about we practice a bit more? It’s still early, and since I promised to help, I want to see it through.”

Qin Lan seemed reluctant to stop. She thought Yan Li was hesitating to bother her and took the initiative to suggest extra rehearsals.

“No need, no need. I think I’ve got the feel for it. Better not to overdo it; I need time to digest it on my own.”

Yan Li shook his head and drained the half bottle of mineral water in his hand, finally feeling less parched.

Qin Lan was also drinking water but not as greedily. Seeing how thirsty he seemed, she offered him the small half bottle she had left.

“You drink this.”

“Thanks.”

Yan Li took it and gulped it down, leaving the bottle empty. Qin Lan noticed his direct approach and smiled slightly before playfully tapping him.

“How can you? I just finished drinking, and you go straight for the bottle’s mouth.”

Yan Li squeezed the bottle playfully. “It’s okay; I don’t mind you’re dirty.”

“Pah.”

Qin Lan spat at him. “If anyone should be disgusted, it’s me.”

After some light teasing, they sat under the shade of the small grove, chatting. Qin Lan brought up the rehearsal and joked with Yan Li.

“You’re pretty good at acting—so convincingly bad that you scared me. Is that just you being yourself?”

Yan Li curled his lips. “If that was me being myself, would you still be talking to me like this?”

“Scoundrel.”

Qin Lan threw some weeds at him. “Even if it’s not your real nature, you’re no good. Judging by how you acted just now, you’re clearly not trustworthy. Did your ex-girlfriend dump you because of this?”

“That’s unfair.”

Yan Li protested. “I’m known at the Beijing Film Academy as a clean and upright young man. I don’t even speak to other girls.”

“Sure.”

Qin Lan was clearly skeptical but still curious about why Yan Li broke up with his ex. He dodged the question.

“That’s all in the past. Why bring it up?”

“Is it really over?”

Qin Lan looked unconvinced and finally asked the real question: “Are you still holding feelings for your ex?”

Yan Li smiled but didn’t answer, instead changing the subject casually. After being gently rebuffed twice, Qin Lan didn’t press further, but inside she wrestled with her thoughts.

Had he truly moved on, or was he still entangled with that pale-faced ex?

After chatting for nearly half an hour and seeing the time, Yan Li prepared to walk Qin Lan back to the hotel.

She might have a scene that evening, so she needed enough time to shower, eat, rest, and do makeup.

On the way back, they passed a lottery shop. Yan Li greeted the shopkeeper and went inside to buy several sports lottery tickets.

Qin Lan followed, curious. “You bet on sports?”

Yan Li replied, “Just joining the World Cup excitement.”

Qin Lan understood. The sports lottery had only officially launched last year, and this year, with the World Cup in full swing, it had become popular. There was even talk of “patriotic tickets.”

These “patriotic tickets” meant blindly betting on China’s team to win, regardless of whether the opponent was Brazil or Costa Rica.

China lost all three matches, and nobody knew how much the lottery had profited.

With the World Cup heating up, many places in Hengdian followed the trend, including the cast and crew of “Princess Pearl 3.” Qin Lan had even overheard some crew members angrily blaming the South Korean team for match-fixing.

That piqued Qin Lan’s interest. “I’ll buy a couple of tickets too.”

“Sure, but don’t go overboard. I’m just playing for fun.”

Yan Li bought tickets for two matches. Now, only two games remained in the World Cup: the third-place match between South Korea and Turkey, and the final between Brazil and Germany.

“I don’t know much about soccer. Which team do you favor?”

Qin Lan didn’t watch soccer and planned to follow Yan Li’s picks. He didn’t hesitate to say:

“South Korea will definitely lose the third-place match. As for the final, I’m rooting for Brazil. Ronaldo’s been amazing this World Cup.”

Yan Li wasn’t a big soccer fan either but had his system to rely on.

Before today, he had already played the lottery once. With World Cup news constantly around, his intelligence system had triggered related alerts.

Some were about coaches’ tactics, some about players’ health—mostly useless to Yan Li—until the semifinal between South Korea and Germany.

[Daily Intel X: FIFA is under pressure from various parties regarding referee favoritism towards South Korea in the World Cup. FIFA demands referees officiate fairly in the semifinals without bias.]

Without referee support, South Korea faced traditional European powerhouse Germany, which had conceded only one goal so far in the World Cup. The result was predictable.

Unfortunately, the odds weren’t high, and Yan Li, being cautious, bet modestly. The winnings were just enough to improve the meals for himself and Sailong and buy a couple of good cigar boxes.

Still, that was a decent outcome. Yan Li never expected to get rich from gambling.

Greed is the enemy of gambling.

The more you chase big wins, the harder you might fall. It’s a risky business. Better to be steady and earn a little.

The same went for today’s bets. Though he favored Brazil and Turkey, Yan Li kept enough money for daily expenses, only using a small portion of his cash on hand.

Qin Lan was even more generous, betting a few hundred yuan outright. Yan Li couldn’t help but comment:

“So you’re a little rich after all.”

Qin Lan snorted proudly. Having acted in several films, she wasn’t wealthy but was definitely better off than Yan Li, a recent graduate and poor student.

Near the hotel, Qin Lan declined Yan Li’s offer to walk her the rest of the way.

She had been avoiding Huang Xiaoming these past days. Though slow to realize, he had caught on to Qin Lan’s intentions. He hadn’t harassed her further but seemed unwilling to give up. If Yan Li and Qin Lan ran into each other under such circumstances, trouble might arise.

“Alright then, see you later.”

Yan Li waved goodbye without fuss. Qin Lan stayed behind, watching him walk away before turning back to the hotel.

———

After returning to the hotel and taking a shower, Yan Li was about to go downstairs and enjoy the air conditioning while watching TV when his phone rang.

“Hello, Brother Wang?”

The voice on the other end was assistant director Wang Decai.

“Little Yan, are you free now?”

“Speak, I’m free.”

“The investor has arrived. The producer asked me to arrange for the crew to accompany them for dinner and drinks. I know you can hold your liquor, so come help out. I’ll introduce you around and help you expand your network.”

“Thanks for thinking of me, Brother Wang. I’ll get ready and come over.”

The entertainment industry was full of such social drinking events. Yan Li neither liked nor disliked them.

As a minor actor, he didn’t have many choices. If an opportunity arose, he went. Making contacts was a bonus; otherwise, it was just a free meal.

He left quickly but returned much later, around 10:30 p.m., his steps a bit unsteady.

Yan Li had a good tolerance for alcohol. Being from Shandong Province, with a family running a small restaurant, he’d grown up around liquor. Beer never phased him, and he could handle two jin of baijiu without falling.

Normally, at these gatherings, he wouldn’t push himself too hard. Once he’d had enough, he’d start pretending to be drunk, so nothing interfered with his schedule afterward.

But tonight, two investors tried to force drinks on the actresses. Yan Li couldn’t stand it and helped them out of the situation. With Wang Decai’s cooperation, they put those two down. Yan Li himself ended up drinking more than usual.

Back in his room, he took a quick shower and immediately fell asleep, waking only late the next morning.

Luckily, he had no scenes scheduled for the morning. He lingered in bed a while longer, then opened his system to check the day’s intel.

[Daily Intel 1: Actresses Tong Lei and Bao Yujing (Princess Xiao) from “Heroes of the Sui and Tang Dynasties” are very grateful to Yan Li for his help last night.]

[Daily Intel 2: Producer Li Silin of “Heroes of the Sui and Tang Dynasties” was impressed by Yan Li following assistant director Wang Decai’s recommendation.]

[…]

[Daily Intel 5: At this moment, Qin Lan, asleep in her hotel room, is having a passionate dream involving Yan Li.]

[Daily Intel 6: At the same moment, Yan Li is also dreaming of Qin Lan and…]

Yan Li closed the system page, rose, and headed to the bathroom. After relieving himself, he pulled off his underwear, tossed it into the basin, poured in detergent, and scrubbed vigorously.

That restaurant owner definitely slipped something into the food!