Chapter 421: Capybara Summoner

A play needs actors, and I happen to be one.

Upon hearing this, the media were all stunned.

Damn, we almost forgot this guy actually went to school—and aced it.

It's no wonder they were stunned; they've interviewed far too many nine-leak fish.

Though it doesn't quite reach the level of "famous quote" material for essays, it's still an entertainment industry catchphrase.

Just like Bai Liang's earlier "young and accomplished" story at the Golden Eagle Awards, sometimes a single well-spoken line becomes a label everyone remembers.

It's somewhat similar to Huang Bo's: "This era won't stop you from shining, but you can't cover anyone else's radiance."

It directly cemented him as a high-emotional-intelligence persona with a label.

But this time, Bai Liang's line had even better results.

Because it's short.

The shorter the sentence, the more memorable it becomes.

This phrase, at first glance polite, civilized, and refined, carried a shockingly powerful punch at this moment.

Immediately, Wu Mofan's Weibo comments section was flooded with it.

Every single comment was identical: "A play needs actors, and I happen to be one."

After a long gap, Bai Liang struck him with another casual blow.

In a way, he's helped Wu Mofan "secure his legacy."

From now on, whenever someone mentions Bai Liang's line, online searches will automatically link it to Wu Mofan and Yang Zi's battle over roles.

All the time he spent fighting Yang Zi over roles never hurt him as much as this.

It felt like being nailed to the pillar of shame.

"Is he targeting me?! Is he targeting me?!"

Hearing Wu Mofan's bitter, whiny muttering, one member of his team couldn't hold back and spoke a hard truth.

"It does objectively target us, but subjectively, there was probably no need."

His team still had some pragmatic members—back then, they could match Bai Liang because their status and lanes were similar.

But now, have you ever heard Alibaba go through so much trouble just to target a small-town convenience store?

Wu Mofan:???

That blow from his team member cut deeper than Bai Liang's damn one!

What does "subjectively no need" even mean?

So I don't even have the qualifications to be his opponent anymore?!

Well, under normal circumstances, Bai Liang really has no interest in paying attention to Wu Mofan anymore; the two are now like parallel lines in the industry.

They're unlikely to have any direct interaction again—Bai Liang's resources are beyond the reach of the other, not just in competition, but even in the ability to glimpse or sniff them.

As for Wu Mofan's resources, Sister Yanzi's side doesn't even find them worth a second look—what's a few scraps? Do you even qualify to be targeted or outmaneuvered by our Xiao Bai?

Go play by yourself~

But then.

Two days later, iQIYI's web variety show "Trend Partners" was about to begin filming.

The host and trend partners would travel to Tokyo, Asia's fashion hub, to run the "fourtry" fashion collective store, promoting Chinese original design and exporting youth trend culture through their interpretations and clashes of fashion.

The guest lineup was still quite strong; although Wu Mofan was on a downward spiral, this domain was still his comfort zone.

Added to that, Yang Tianbao's presence ensured the show's attention level wasn't low.

At the airport, preparing to depart for Tokyo to film the show, Zhao Jinmai was half-listening to her agent's rambling while zoning out.

She was zoning out because she knew Bai Liang had entered a drama shoot; if he'd entered a shoot, he probably truly had no time to come to the show and play with her.

Although Bai Liang had already told her he was unlikely to make it, little girls are creatures who always cling to even the tiniest hope.

What if? ~

Plus, he seemed to have a bad relationship with the show's main star, Wu Mofan.

"Jinmai, what are you thinking about?" Her agent chuckled and patted her.

"Oh, sorry~"

Nowadays, Zhao Jinmai was no longer the family-run operation she once was; after "The Wandering Earth" released, as the female lead, many companies had extended olive branches.

In the entertainment industry, family-run operations simply don't work well—many things require professional teams to manage.

Even Bai Liang's original partnership with Sister Yanzi had a slightly unprofessional vibe, but Sister Yanzi's progress was too fast; she built him a team on the spot.

And Zhao Jinmai suffered some setbacks in this area earlier this year, so she signed with a company called "Dongde Culture."

Her current agent was assigned by the company; they were still in the adjustment phase, so the girl still felt a bit intimidated by her agent.

So now, after being reminded for zoning out, she sat up straight like a primary school student caught daydreaming by the homeroom teacher.

"Don't be so tense—we're just chatting casually. But Jinmai, you really have good luck."

The agent's "good luck" referred to the show's positioning.

Originally, Zhao Jinmai's screen time on "Trend Partners" would have been far less than Wu Mofan's and Yang Tianbao's—she was essentially a supporting cast member.

But Wu Mofan had proactively suggested creating some sibling-CPU interactions with her.

That way, her screen time could increase.

Hearing this, Zhao Jinmai nodded slowly, then instinctively asked: "But I already have an older brother~"

"An older brother isn't a boyfriend—that doesn't matter," the agent still smiled, then casually asked: "Who is he?"

Zhao Jinmai blinked, opened her mouth to answer, then closed it again.

"No one~"

Agent: Huh?

Little girl, you can't be falling in love, right? Is your brother still your sweet brother?

Girls her age do have a real chance of wanting to fall in love; the agent decided she'd better give a gentle reminder later.

But she's still just a girl, so she thought she should handle it with some tact, not stir up rebellion.

The company still clearly favors Zhao Jinmai, given her association with *The Wandering Earth*; they wouldn't treat her too harshly or strictly.

But because of Zhao Jinmai's remark, the agent had originally planned to add one more warning—about Wu Mofan.

Now she felt it wasn't necessary to say anything yet.

Even if she had some ambiguous "sweet brother" figure, Wu Mofan, though somewhat fallen from grace, still had an excellent appearance.

Let's just counterbalance it for now.

By the time they reached Tokyo and filming officially began, Wu Mofan indeed behaved exactly as he claimed—treating Zhao Jinmai like a little sister.

Upon meeting, he showered her with warm concern, his tone and demeanor overwhelmingly gentle.

It left Zhao Jinmai feeling slightly uncomfortable.

She had seen gentle people before, but this was different.

"You're too enthusiastic—you're making Student Mai Mai nervous," Yang Tianbao said, walking over and taking Zhao Jinmai's hand to speak to Wu Mofan.

"My fault, my fault. Let's take things slowly."

Looking at Wu Mofan's radiant smile, Zhao Jinmai couldn't help comparing him to her other "brother."

No matter how she thought about it, Capybara was far more natural—his smile only brought comfort, with zero aggression or discomfort.

Back on the set of *The Wandering Earth*, when Bai Liang was daydreaming, she'd dared to sneak a hand out and pat his head.

Even when Bai Liang scowled at her, forced her to do homework, and tattled to her parents—thinking back, Zhao Jinmai realized he was actually so "annoying!"

So annoying~

Yet you couldn't truly dislike him.

Here, facing what seemed like the same kind of smile—from another tall, handsome big brother—she instinctively hesitated to get close.

By mid-filming, this feeling reached its peak.

Zhao Jinmai, who had been sitting together discussing fashion, suddenly noticed Wu Mofan staring fixedly at her—watching, smiling with deep meaning.

She instinctively averted her gaze, lips slightly pressed together.

Finally unable to dodge any longer, she glared right back.

Trying to project an air of "I'm rebellious," "Don't mess with me."

But the little girl's glare had no bite—it was like a kitten hissing, not intimidating at all, only making her seem cuter.

So he didn't look away; instead, he smiled even more "radiantly."

Yang Tianbao, who had noticed all this, frowned slightly and gave Wu Mofan a meaningful glance.

Too bad—it was useless. The guy didn't even spare her, this "old woman," a single glance.

In the following filming sessions, the situation only grew worse.

Wu Mofan even tried pulling Zhao Jinmai away on camera, claiming he wanted to take her with him.

Even while driving, he wanted her to sit in the front passenger seat.

At first glance, these actions seemed like a big brother's excessive affection for a little sister—no major issue.

After all, who doesn't love a cute little sister?

Everyone else on the show treated Zhao Jinmai well, as if she were the group's cherished darling.

But initially, Pan Weibo and Fokes—the two other male guests—also interacted quite a bit with Zhao Jinmai.

Later, however, their interactions gradually decreased.

It wasn't because they stopped caring for the underage girl.

Yang Tianbao gave her assessment: tagged, claimed territory!

As someone who'd entered the industry underage herself, she understood this situation all too well.

She might not fully grasp acting, but she understood these men deeply.

It's common among men: when one guy shows interest in a girl, if others aren't particularly invested or competing, they'll voluntarily avoid her to steer clear of suspicion.

They reduce interaction with the girl to signal they have no romantic intentions.

How they sensed it was obvious—like wild animals marking territory with urine.

According to Yang Tianbao's observation, the other two men reduced their interaction with Zhao Jinmai after Wu Mofan took off his necklace and put it on her.

This act was an unconscious claim of ownership.

After Yang Tianbao figured it out, and considering what else she knew, she sat there thinking for a long time.

Finally, she couldn't hold back: "Student Mai Mai, come over here."

"Okay, Baby sis~"

After calling her over, Yang Tianbao casually chatted for a few moments, then asked offhandedly, "Do you have any close friends you could invite as a guest star?"

"Uh… can we pick them ourselves?"

"Dumb. If it's a big name, the production team would beg for it," Yang Tianbao thought she'd hinted enough—she'd done her part.

Little sister, if you're interested yourself, I won't interfere—it's mutual.

But if you're not interested, shouldn't your "great Buddha" behind you make a move?

Even if he won't move himself, at least let me help protect you a bit more—couldn't he at least call to owe you a favor?

It's the world of fame and fortune~ Sure, she genuinely liked this cute little girl, but why not earn something if you can?

Of course, there was another possibility—that Zhao Jinmai's relationship with that person wasn't as close as Yang Tianbao imagined.

After all, over the past half-year, the two hadn't had any special interactions.

Shooting a drama together didn't mean they were close—many people never spoke again after filming ended.

Yang Tianbao was just saying that, offering a possible solution~

"Big Shot."

Zhao Jinmu wasn't a stupid contestant; she naturally understood what Yang Tianbao meant.

She definitely knew Big Shot—someone incredibly powerful, more formidable than everyone on this show combined. Their relationship? Excellent!

But he's busy~

Thinking of this, a strange sense of grievance rose in her heart.

Yang Tianbao: This little girl is really stubborn!

But then again, it made sense—girls her age tend to overthink everything.

Her face is still too thin-skinned.

Sometimes she likes to get stuck in her own head.

"Hey, where's your necklace? Did you switch it for something else?"

While Zhao Jinmu was hesitating, Yang Tianbao spotted that her necklace had changed style.

Zhao Jinmu pulled it out from under her clothes—a small stone carved into a necklace, engraved with a little sheep.

"This was given to me by one of my brothers."

Yang Tianbao: Wait, your brother isn't Big Black Ox, is he?

Luckily it wasn't a heart shape, or she'd have burst out laughing.

But seeing Zhao Jinmu's serious, earnest expression, Yang Tianbao's smile faded quickly.

Wait, no way…

Sheep Talisman: Here you can call me another name—Capibara Summoner.

The gentle sheep, turns your dreams into reality~

"Ouch!"

Wu Moufan nearby suddenly shivered, then muttered, "Why's the wind so strong all of a sudden?"

At that moment, Pan Weibo walked over and reminded them, "The production team mentioned earlier—there's a typhoon coming to Japan; we'll be recording the next episode when it makes landfall. It's supposed to be Category 16."

"Category 16 typhoon? That's insane! No wonder I felt a chill."

Now that he knew the cause, Wu Moufan relaxed—he wasn't worried. They were indoors, safe from the typhoon.

It won't affect them.

And at this moment, under Yang Tianbao's goading and encouragement, Zhao Jinmu finally made an international call.

(End of Chapter)