Chapter 239: Me, Bai Liang, Send Money!

Three parts shy, three parts awkward, three parts nervous. The remaining ninety-one parts are all blarney!

Bai Liang rested his chin on his hand, watching Guo Fan—this cyber succubus—and before the guy even opened his mouth, he could tell he was about to spout nothing good~

Because whenever he himself wanted to tell a little lie or do something shady, he generally had that exact same look on his face.

The smile was always extra radiant.

Sure enough, after laughing, Guo Fan didn't dive straight into the main topic, but first asked about Bai Liang's recent filming life.

"How's it going on set? They've been concentrating on filming your parts nonstop—has the workload been a bit too intense?"

Bai Liang was happy to play along. He waved a hand first. "I'm fine, actually. The people acting opposite me have it tougher."

"Nothing for it, Brother Liang—you're top-tier, your schedule's tight, so of course they have to prioritize your scenes." Guo Fan said with an apologetic smile.

Good lord!

Bai Liang felt a bit wistful~

With that face, just how much money was he trying to fleece out of him?

Zhao Jinmai, who had been working on a test paper nearby, heard Guo Fan's exaggerated tone and couldn't help pricking up her ears.

After that, Guo Fan asked about Zhao Jinmai's studies, and caught up with Bai Liang about Uncle Da's health.

As they chatted on, he himself started feeling a bit embarrassed.

An artist of Bai Liang's caliber hadn't charged him a cent to play the male lead, and on top of that was helping him resolve all sorts of issues on set.

The work he was doing had long since gone beyond his original job description.

If it were someone with a thinner skin, they probably wouldn't have been able to bring themselves to say certain things.

But people who accomplish big things—almost none of them have thin skin. They're all thick-skinned, one more brazen than the next.

Without that kind of ability, you simply can't get anything done.

So Guo Fan sighed and said to Bai Liang: "Wanda's pulling their investment. Our movie might not have the money to finish."

"That serious?"

"Yeah~ I really don't know what to do now. So much heart and soul from so many people—Uncle Da is already in his sixties, throwing himself into this with me; Mai Mai is barely a teenager, exhausted from filming; and Brother Liang, you're at the peak of your fame and still willing to join this movie—"

A handful of bitter tears~

The effect was outstanding!

At least as far as Zhao Jinmai was concerned, she took it in.

A hint of worry immediately showed on her face, but all she could do was worry along—this whole thing had nothing to do with a little girl like her.

Even if she wanted to chip in two hundred, Guo Fan couldn't possibly take money from a little girl.

Oh right, two hundred yuan, not ten thousand.

An underage little girl—where would she even have money? It's all with her parents.

And Guo Fan's main "target of attack," Bai Liang, wore a faint smile, his expression utterly unchanged.

Guo Fan:. Why is it like this again?

When he'd sweet-talked Bai Liang into joining the movie before, the guy had worn that exact same expression, leaving him completely unable to read what was going on in this kid's head.

The two stared at each other for ten-odd seconds. Guo Fan didn't speak, and Bai Liang didn't pick up the thread.

It was as if they were "standoff-ing" right there.

Zhao Jinmai tensed up nervously too, not knowing what was actually going on.

She was even worried the two might suddenly start fighting.. This sense of déjà vu really has that flavor to it.

In the end, it was clearly Guo Fan who couldn't hold it in any longer. He scratched his head and decided to give up playing it cool.

He went straight for a Care Bear shrug: "I, Guo Fan, send money!"

Bai Liang couldn't hold it together. "Wouldn't it have been fine if you'd just said that from the start?"

"Heh, I was just thinking, maybe lay a little groundwork first~" Seeing the change in Bai Liang's expression, Guo Fan finally breathed a sigh of relief inside, thinking to himself that this was in the bag.

Brother Liang is righteous!

"Your groundwork was pretty mediocre. Skip it next time."

"Okay, okay, okay, so, uh, shall we just get down to business?" Guo Fan rubbed his hands together, unable to wait.

"You haven't even said how much you want yet."

"Not much, a few tens of millions. Best if you can do sixty or seventy million. If you want to throw in more, that's fine too—if this movie blows up, Brother Liang, you'll be rolling in it too."

"Sixty or seventy million really isn't much.."

"Mai Mai, you see that? When you grow up, you've got to find a boyfriend this generous!"

Zhao Jinmai gave Bai Liang a shy little glance, then said: "Anyway, definitely can't find one like you, Director. You look a bit like a creepy uncle."

Guo Fan:. Hey! What does a little kid know about love.

Oh wait, at fourteen or fifteen, that actually is exactly the age when the first buds of love are sprouting~

So he kind of regretted why he'd had to drop that line of crap, and hoped Bai Liang's character would hold up.

Then at that moment Bai Liang said: "Guo Dao, if I'm willing to give money, will you be very happy?"

"Of course!"

"Then you're happy too early. My being willing to give is one thing, but the problem is.. I don't have that much money."

"Huh?!"

Guo Fan looked as if struck by lightning. He clutched his chest and took two seconds to recover. "How much do you have?"

"Cash on hand is still a little over nine hundred."

"No.. You're top-tier!"

"I've been spending a lot lately."

"A little over nine million.. That works too."

"This nine million-plus can't go to you either, I still need to use it. Student Mai Mai's snacks can't be cut off, right? She's growing. How about you wait until my next paycheque lands? It shouldn't take too long."

Zhao Jinmai: Actually, I don't have to eat that many snacks—even if I ate myself into a little pig, I couldn't eat nine million-plus!

Besides, she felt Guo Fan was about to fall apart, and he looked so pitiful.

Actually, Bai Liang is currently at a strange juncture of "having money but also not having money."

First, he has to set aside all kinds of operating funds for the studio, just like Yanjing cash king Boss Lei—still eighteen months of payroll sitting in the account.

On Bai Liang's side, beyond wages and bonuses, he also has to keep all kinds of marketing and PR expenses set aside—these are what Sister Yanzi needs.

Second, as luck would have it, he's been spending money especially hard lately.

If Guo Fan had come to him two months earlier or two months later, he wouldn't only have this much on hand.

While spending a lot, Bai Liang is also genuinely earning a lot—even after paying taxes in full, what's left is still an astronomical figure.

It's mainly a matter of timing.

Guo Fan gave Bai Liang a live demonstration of what it looks like when hope slowly drains from someone's eyes.

In his head, he was already calculating which scenes to cut so he wouldn't have to film them—otherwise, the money really wouldn't be enough.

Just then, Bai Liang suddenly said: "But I can borrow it."

Guo Fan instantly perked up: "Elaborate!"

Bai Liang didn't tease him any longer, pulled out his phone, and began to "show off his connections."

What counts as connections?

There are many standards, but anyone who can lend you money is definitely a high-quality connection.

For Bai Liang, he has plenty of connections like that!

"Guo Dao, could you repeat that line you just said~"

"Which line?"

"The one about sending money. I want to learn from it."

"I, Guo Fan, send money."

"That's right~"

The first call, Bai Liang placed to Dilireba.

The very first line after the call connected was: "I, Bai Liang, send money."

Reba on the other end first let out a bewildered "Huh?", then suddenly burst out laughing and asked casually: "How much do you need?"

"How much do you have?"

"Need a lot? On my side I can pull out twenty million for you right now—is that enough? If not, I'll think of something else."

"Enough. Send it."

"Mm, okay~ I'll transfer it to you in a bit, it'll definitely arrive today, but I have one small request."

"What request?"

"That little crocodile you brought to the Weibo Night—it accidentally fell on the ground and broke. Buy me another one."

"Crocodile? Sure thing."

After hanging up, Guo Fan couldn't help asking, "She keeps a crocodile?" "A crocodile plushie."

"How much does that thing cost?"

"Fifteen."

"Ten thousand?"

"No ten thousand."

No ten thousand—then it's yuan?

Good lord, fifteen yuan leveraged twenty million in cash.

Guo Fan listened, dumbfounded. This is how you borrow money?!

Still, twenty million works too, although it's a bit short.

Bai Liang shot him a glance. Look at you, so clueless~

The next call, he placed to Big Sis Xiao Zhao, but Big Sis Xiao Zhao had just bought a luxury home and didn't have much cash on hand lately—she chipped in five million.

At the same time, unlike Reba who didn't ask anything, after agreeing, she asked what the money was for.

Learning it was for a film investment, she didn't press further.

An older sister always thinks more. The fact that top-tier Bai Liang was short on cash made her instinctively imagine some not-so-great bad habits.

No errors, no duplicates—every chapter, every update—only on this one site!

Still, even with a few extra questions, this call didn't last more than two minutes.

"Twenty-five million." Guo Fan muttered to himself.

Bai Liang misread him: "Don't worry, there's more."

The next call naturally went to Yang Mi. Big sister is great, big sister has plenty of money!

Yang Mi was a bit tougher to deal with, because she thought Bai Liang was coming on to her.

"I just said on a show that I don't lend money to others. You little brat, doing this on purpose?!"

Hearing Yang Mi's somewhat "annoyed" voice, Bai Liang hadn't reacted yet, but Guo Fan, who was already getting worked up, looked disappointed first.

This one seems like a no-go~

"Show? What show? I didn't watch."

"You're playing the rogue with me, aren't you?! Just you wait—how much do you need?"

After huffing on the other end for a while, Yang Mi finally said this line.

"As much as you have."

"Pfft! You came begging at my door? Name your price, or I'm hanging up."

"How about eight million?" Bai Liang figured that Meng Jie had a kid to raise after all, so he'd ask for a bit less.

"Whew! You really have the nerve to open your mouth."

Though her words were merciless, Yang Mi finally said that key word in the end.

"Card number."

Guo Fan: Liang-ge is awesome!

However, upon seeing that Bai Liang still hadn't stopped, Guo Fan's expression management gradually began to slip.

Bro, no way

Something's off!

"Call me 'big sis' and I'll give it to you." Jing Tian on the other end of the line huffed.

"Hmph, you actually want to negotiate with me?"

"You're asking for twelve million! That's so much money!"

"Big Sis!"

"Card number."

Jing Tian was easier to deal with—one 'big sis' and the money was borrowed.

Truly worthy of being called the Flower of Worldly Wealth!

As for why twelve million? Purely because Bai Liang's OCD was acting up; he wanted to make it a round number.

"How much so far?" After hanging up the fourth call, Bai Liang looked at his temporary bookkeeper Guo Fan.

"Forty-five million."

"No wait, fifty-five million."

"Huh?" Guo Fan thought to himself that he couldn't have miscounted.

In response, Bai Liang showed off his WeChat chat history.

Turns out, while he was on the phone just now, he'd casually asked Na Zha for ten million on WeChat.

Normally speaking, Na Zha shouldn't have that much money on hand either.

She'd bought property in Shanghai one after another, draining her savings hard, and later invested some money in Wu Jing.

Although *Wolf Warrior 2*'s box office was terrifyingly high, the revenue split didn't come in that fast—it's not like a big hit this month means you get paid next month.

Fortunately, Na Zha was more diligent than Bai Liang, working like a little bee, running to events whenever she had time, and her little treasury gradually filled up again.

But Bai Liang also considered that she'd just refilled her little treasury, so he only asked for ten million.

As for how much was in Na Zha's little treasury, he knew it inside out.

She often showed it to him~

"There's more?!"

Seeing Bai Liang pick up the phone again, Guo Fan really couldn't hold it in anymore—no way, if anyone dares say he's some kind of succubus again, he'll fight them!

The way Bai Liang shamelessly asked women for money—something he'd never learn in his lifetime.

Too ruthless!

Uncle Da: He's got the flair of Cao Dahua, the Tiger of the Major Crimes Unit.

Damn, isn't this just another form of "inheritance"?

Zhao Jinmai: Is this what the adult world is like?!

Although she didn't quite understand it yet, she just felt... kind of "scary."

However, Bai Liang's next target for borrowing money was a bit of a small hassle.

"Scammer! I'm telling you, don't even think about tricking me! Your voice sounds pretty similar to hers—I warn you, watch it, or I'll call the cops and have you arrested!"

Guo Fan: Damn, he finally hit a Waterloo.

At this moment, Bai Liang also slapped his forehead—he'd accidentally forgotten that Li Xin had once been scammed before.

That was three years of work down the drain! She probably has psychological trauma.

So he switched methods—video call.

"Oh wow, it's really you, sorry."

"No problem, send the money."

"Oh~ okay~"

Don't be fooled by Li Xin not being that famous—what people call "not famous" is only relative; she's also a top-hundred contender on the Forbes Celebrity List.

Casually forked over another five million to Bai Liang.

After that, it was just bits and pieces.

One million, two million—every little bit adds up.

Bai Liang also took into account the ladies' financial situations—for example, Meng Jie, who was still living off her parents—he didn't bring it up with her.

He went straight to her mother, Sister Qian, and borrowed two million.

Cutting out the middleman to avoid Meng Jie skimming off the top.

And for Li Yitong, who was so eager to act she'd practically pay to do it, he borrowed less too.

Guo Fan beside him carefully jotted everything down, but he had one question he'd never voiced.

Until the total had accumulated to seventy million—if this were illegal fundraising, that'd be an especially huge amount!

Guo Fan really couldn't hold back: "Liang-ge, don't you have any male friends you can borrow from?"

That "Liang-ge" was called out with genuine feeling, no technique, all emotion.

Full of respect for Bai Liang's "connections"!

From today onward, Guo Fan is willing to call him the number one succubus of the entertainment circle.

Being able to sleep with a Miss is no real skill — being able to make a Miss blow through her gold coins, that is true strength!

Hearing this, Bai Liang patted his own forehead. "Forgot about that, let me rustle some up for you again."

This is purely a matter of habit, a leftover problem from history.

But it doesn't mean he can't borrow it. Come on, today we're pushing past a hundred million!

"No, no, no, I was just saying that off the cuff — the money's enough, enough!"

Honestly, even Guo Fan got a little scared by Bai Liang's move here — is this guy seriously planning to borrow from half the entertainment circle?

(End of chapter)