Chapter 407: One hundred million yuan!

It was probably on the seventh or eighth kick that the door finally gave way.

The door lock let out a "clang" and deformed.

Lu Yan He was the first to rush inside. He didn't need to waste any effort searching; he immediately saw Zhao Laoshi Dezhong on the living room floor.

He was lying on the ground with his eyes tightly shut, a truly frightening sight.

At this moment, Lu Yan He was exceptionally grateful that he had gotten his driver's license while filming *Road to Glory* and that he had driven here with Chen Siqi today.

He and the sixteen-year-old son of Zhao Laoshi's neighbor carried Zhao Laoshi downstairs, drove like the wind to the hospital, and got him into emergency care.

About ten minutes later, Chen Siqi and the neighbor's eldest daughter also arrived.

The daughter said, "I've already called Zhao Laoshi's son and daughter. His son is rushing back immediately, but since he works in Jinkou, I don't know when he'll arrive."

Lu Yan He was still panting heavily.

"I just called my counselor. Zhao Laoshi is a teacher in our academy; the academy will take charge and arrange for people to come over soon," he said to the neighbor. "Sorry for the trouble."

"We're neighbors, don't talk like that," the woman said. "Zhao Laoshi has helped our family a lot. This brat has had his essays tutored by Zhao Laoshi I don't know how many times, and they're still a mess."

The sixteen-year-old boy hadn't expected to be scolded by his mother at a time like this.

"It's a good thing you two came today. If he were living alone and collapsed like this, no one would have known. Oh, it's truly a stroke of luck in the midst of misfortune. Heaven bless him," the neighbor said.

Lu Yan He felt a sense of relief as well.

If they hadn't come today, the consequences would have been unthinkable.

"Sigh, Zhao Laoshi is just like that. Living alone, his children are worried and want to hire a nanny to look after his daily life, but he insists he isn't old yet and hasn't retired, so he doesn't need one. Look at him now, his high blood pressure flared up at home alone and no one knew," the neighbor muttered.

Chen Siqi asked, "What about Zhao Laoshi's wife?"

"His wife passed away several years ago," the neighbor said. "His children are very successful—one is an executive at a company in Jinkou, and the other is a doctoral student in the United States. They're just too far away to rush back in an emergency."

Lu Yan He and Chen Siqi finally understood the situation.

It really left one at a loss for words. It was quite a sigh-inducing situation.

Soon, a vice dean of the academy and Chen Shiqiu arrived together.

Although Zhao Dezhong wasn't the type of teacher loved by many students, his academic status was very high, and he was a very important professor to the academy.

Upon learning that Zhao Dezhong had nearly collapsed at home alone with no one to discover him, and that it was only thanks to Lu Yan He that he was found, the vice dean patted Lu Yan He on the shoulder and said, "Yan He, we really owe you today."

Lu Yan He said, "We just happened to run into it; we had an appointment to meet Zhao Laoshi."

Once the academy leaders arrived, Lu Yan He and Chen Siqi didn't need to stay any longer.

They couldn't help much by staying anyway.

However, worried about the professor's condition, neither Lu Yan He nor Chen Siqi mentioned leaving.

They just waited with everyone else.

They didn't breathe a sigh of relief until the emergency treatment ended and Zhao Laoshi Dezhong was out of danger, at which point they left with the neighbor.

By this time, it was already evening.

To be precise, the sunset had almost completely sunk below the horizon, and the sky was nearly dark, leaving only a sliver of white, as if struggling not to be dragged away.

Lu Yan He said to the neighbor, "Let us drive you back."

"Oh, no need to trouble you. We can just take the bus back; there's a stop right at the hospital entrance."

Lu Yan He: "It's so cold out, and waiting for the bus is a hassle. Since we have the car, it'll only take ten minutes to drop you off. It's no trouble, let's go together."

Seeing Lu Yan He insist, the neighbor smiled gratefully and said, "Then I'll trouble you."

"No trouble at all."

After the incident with Zhao Laoshi Dezhong, Lu Yan He felt inexplicably exhausted.

Not physically, but mentally.

They dropped the neighbor and her son off first.

After they had walked inside, Lu Yan He didn't release the handbrake, but instead let out a soft sigh.

Chen Siqi asked, "Tired?"

"A little," Lu Yan He nodded.

"How about we find a restaurant nearby, eat something, and relax for a bit? You were tense all afternoon; you must be tired now that you can finally relax," Chen Siqi said.

Lu Yan He agreed.

Chen Siqi took out her phone, searched for nearby restaurants, picked one, and said, "Let's go. There's a home-style restaurant a hundred meters away, let's just grab a bite."

Lu Yan He nodded and got out of the car with Chen Siqi.

As soon as they stepped out, Chen Siqi grabbed Lu Yan He's hand without a word and tucked it into her own pocket.

Lu Yan He was stunned and looked at Chen Siqi in surprise.

Chen Siqi smiled at him and said, "The way you kicked that door down today was actually quite handsome."

Lu Yan He suddenly felt a bit embarrassed.

Damn it.

When would he ever get over this habit of getting shy when complimented? -

The news that Lu Yan He had saved Zhao Laoshi Dezhong spread quickly through the academy, and then to the rest of the school.

It was winter break, so everyone was active online, and few people were on campus.

Once the story broke, every group chat was discussing it.

The incident soon spread to the internet as well. The news of Lu Yan He and Chen Siqi saving their teacher was naturally reported by various media outlets, becoming a highly compelling news event.

Lu Yan He was genuinely worried that with this level of buzz, Zhao Laoshi Dezhong, who was still in the hospital, would be disturbed.

He immediately sent a message to Chen Shiqiu: Chen Laoshi, I didn't expect this to spread online. We might need to take precautions at the hospital to prevent media from disturbing Zhao Laoshi.

Chen Shiqiu replied: Understood. I will communicate with the hospital and ask the security guards to be more vigilant.

Lu Yan He: Chen Laoshi, has Zhao Laoshi woken up?

Chen Shiqiu: Not yet. I am here keeping watch. I will let you know if he wakes up.

Lu Yan He: Okay. But, Chen Laoshi, are you the only one keeping watch there?

Chen Shiqiu: Several teachers from the academy have set up a rotation. Another teacher will come to relieve me at 10:00 PM. Zhao Laoshi's son should also arrive around 10:00 PM. I'll brief him on the situation before I head back.

Lu Yan He: Understood, thank you for your hard work, Chen Laoshi.

Chen Shiqiu: You should get some rest early too.

Lu Yan He: Will do.

Putting down his phone, Lu Yan He let out a breath.

Encountering Zhao Laoshi Dezhong's situation today left Lu Yan He feeling quite reflective. He thought of his parents—his real parents. He wondered how they were doing since he had transmigrated into this world. Would they miss him? Would they be devastated by the grief of a parent burying a child? When they grew old, would they also end up like Zhao Laoshi—sick and uncomfortable, with no one to care for them?

As he thought about it, Lu Yan He's eyes turned red.

Uncontrollably.

"Knock, knock!"

Someone was knocking at the door.

Lu Yan He snapped back to reality and quickly composed himself.

"Who is it?"

"Your father," Li Zhibai's raspy voice shouted.

Lu Yan He: "... Get in here."

Li Zhibai opened the door, stepped into the room, leaned one hand against the doorframe, and asked, "Is your teacher doing okay?"

"He's out of danger," Lu Yan He stood up and sighed. "Luckily, nothing major happened."

Li Zhibai stared closely at Lu Yan He's eyes. "Holy crap, Lu Yan He, are you serious? Were you crying?"

"Crying my foot." Lu Yan He pushed past Li Zhibai, who was blocking the doorway, walked out, and poured himself a glass of water. "When is Yan Liang coming back?"

"Not until tomorrow. He's busier than both of us right now. The second season of *Friends* is on the trending list every single day—either this person is getting roasted or that person is getting roasted. Only the original veteran actors are doing slightly better and aren't getting roasted. The buzz is incredible, and everyone is trying to book them. They're flying around like human airplanes." Li Zhibai clicked his tongue and looked at Lu Yan He. "Why didn't you arrange a role for me in that show earlier?"

"No money," Lu Yan He said bluntly. "Based on the first season's rates, we couldn't afford your acting fee."

Li Zhibai said, "Uh."

"I didn't invest in that show either, and you don't need to lower your fee for a Jingtai show; they'd just be taking advantage of you."

"True," Li Zhibai realized and nodded. "Yan Liang has already accepted the role in *The Gold Rush*. Both of us will be out filming in March or April. Do you have any plans?"

Lu Yan He said, "There's a movie that's been looking for me for a while. I'm still hesitating whether to take it. I haven't decided yet, so no other plans for now."

Li Zhibai: "Rare to see you idle."

"I'm not idle," Lu Yan He immediately said. "I'm just not acting in anything, but I've been busy. Like I said, I'm writing a script for the three of us, and I plan to film it next year."

"That's still over a year away."

"Yeah, but I need to get the script finished this year and find the production team and investors," Lu Yan He said. "Can't be scrambling to find them at the last minute."

"True," Li Zhibai nodded.

Once Yan Liang returned, the three of them officially began rehearsing for the *Green Apple Paradise* program.

Because they already had a mature stage performance, they didn't need to prepare for too long; they just needed to get back into the groove.

On January 27th, the three of them went to the filming set of *Lost on Journey*.

They were going to make a cameo appearance in the movie together.

The scene they were cameo-ing in was the one from the original where Wang Baoqiang and his fellow workers squat together to discuss the IOU and figure out how to get their money back.

That scene was also very funny in the original.

Since director Jiang Lu started filming *Lost on Journey*, he had been seeing celebrities he had never seen before every few days.

They were all coming to cameo in the movie.

A "country-bumpkin" style road comedy movie had turned into a lineup worthy of a New Year's blockbuster.

The brilliance of this lineup made Jiang Lu suspect that this movie would end up being a "star-counting" film.

And when Lu Yan He and the other two appeared, Jiang Lu became even more certain of this thought.

He had known for a long time that the three of them were coming to cameo, but there had been many others who promised to come and then couldn't for various reasons.

And this scene... Jiang Lu had originally thought that these idol-level stars wouldn't be willing to act in it.

Because the image was truly unattractive and very "earthy."

If it were for a very important role, sacrificing their image would be one thing.

But this was just a cameo for a single scene.

Jiang Lu thought they wouldn't agree to it.

But once Lu Yan He and the other two knew they would all look like this, they didn't say a word and just agreed.

When they arrived at the set, Lu Yan He didn't expect the first person he saw to be Li Bi.

Li Bi was carrying a camera and said with a smile, "Boss, didn't expect to see me here, did you?"

"What are you filming?"

"Filming behind-the-scenes footage for promotion when the movie is released," Li Bi said. "This series of yours is called 'Before and After.' I'm using your current handsome footage to contrast with how you'll look after changing costumes and getting styled."

"..." Lu Yan He was speechless for a moment. "How do you come up with so many ideas?"

"Mainly because the boss taught me well," Li Bi said with a goofy grin.

Lu Yan He said speechlessly, "I never taught you such things."

"You're not my only boss," Li Bi continued with his goofy grin.

Lu Yan He: "..."

Li Zhibai and Yan Liang were listening to their conversation from the side, both laughing so hard they were slapping their thighs.

"Oh, you three finally arrived!" Jia Long walked over wearing a suit.

"Hello, Jia Laoshi!" Li Zhibai and Yan Liang greeted him.

"Cough, what teacher? Just call me Brother Long," Jia Long greeted them warmly.

Director Jiang Lu said with a smile, "Jia Laoshi doesn't have any scenes today; he came specifically because he knew you were coming."

Lu Yan He hugged them and asked, "How is the filming going? Is everything smooth?"

"Smooth. This kid Wang Dashan looks dull and quiet, but he's truly full of talent when acting," Jiang Lu said. "Plus, with Jia Laoshi here to hold down the fort, any issues on set are solved directly by him."

Jia Long laughed, "Get out of here, making me sound like a mountain bandit king."

After some pleasantries, they went to get styled.

Jia Long pulled Lu Yan He aside.

Seeing this, Lu Yan He knew Jia Long must have something to discuss with him.

"What's up, Brother Long?"

"Wanted to ask you something," Jia Long said. "Have you thought about signing this kid Wang Dashan to your own company?"

"Huh?" Lu Yan He was taken aback.

Jia Long said, "I know you and your agent opened a company, but I don't know if you've signed any artists. If you don't have that intention, I'd like to sign Dashan to my agency. The kid has a talent for acting—not just ordinary talent. It's fate that I'm filming this with him, and I'd like to mentor him."

Lu Yan He nodded and said, "Brother Long, it's a good thing you're willing to mentor him. I don't have the energy to do artist management right now, especially since the company I started with Sister Ziyan is really just a shell company for convenience. Why does everyone think my company does everything?"

Lu Yan He was also quite helpless.

Jia Long smiled.

"Dashan is a kid you discovered and recommended, so I couldn't just bypass you and sign him directly," Jia Long said. "Since you don't have that intention, I'll go talk to him about it. The kid doesn't have an agency yet and has been filming all by himself."

"Go ahead," Lu Yan He nodded.

Jia Long's approach—even though he wouldn't have been wrong not to do it, and Lu Yan He couldn't have said anything—made Lu Yan He feel comfortable that he had proactively checked in with him first.

As for managing artists...

Lu Yan He thought to himself, don't be too greedy for now.

He had so much on his plate already; trying to do too much would only lead to failure.

Once he grew bigger and stronger, he wouldn't have to worry about artists wanting to join.

Lu Yan He and the other two put on white hats and work uniforms, stuffing cotton-padded jackets inside to make their figures look even clumsier. When they walked out and saw each other, they were stunned for two seconds before pointing at each other and laughing.

It wasn't just the clothes; each of them had been made up and styled to make their hair look less fashionable and spirited, even appearing a bit greasy. Their faces also had uneven skin tones. Once done up like this, they didn't look like stars at all.

The three of them had undergone very authentic makeup treatments, unlike many celebrities who, when playing such characters, look as perfunctory as possible.

Li Bi's camera was already there.

The three of them stood together and struck the most "cool and wild" pose with the most "earthy" styling.

Jia Long watched from the side and laughed, "Oh, sacrificing a lot for a cameo, aren't you?"

Wang Dashan appeared out of nowhere and stood next to Jia Long, looking very reserved.

"Dashan!" Lu Yan He saw him and greeted him happily.

Wang Dashan gave a very reserved smile and called out, "Boss... Boss Lu."

Still the same.

Lu Yan He sighed helplessly.

"Just call me Yan He, brother!" Lu Yan He sighed.

Li Zhibai slapped Lu Yan He on the shoulder, looking serious, and said, "What are you saying, Boss! You're our boss, how can we call you by your first name!"

Yan Liang followed up instantly, looking serious and nodding, "Exactly, Boss, you're our sugar daddy."

Lu Yan He gave them both the middle finger without hesitation, then introduced them to Wang Dashan.

"Li Zhibai, Yan Liang, they're both my good friends."

Wang Dashan looked at them with surprise and longing, his posture even more reserved. "H-hello, I'm Wang Dashan."

He reached out his hand, seemingly wanting to shake theirs.

Li Zhibai laughed, reached out his right hand, but instead of shaking Wang Dashan's hand, he grabbed his wrist, pulled him toward himself, gave him a hug, and patted him on the back with his other hand.

"I'm rooting for you."

Wang Dashan looked at him, flattered.

Yan Liang shook his head and remarked to Lu Yan He, "Li Zhibai, the social bandit."

Lu Yan He said, "A bandit skill we'll never learn in a lifetime."

The few of them filmed the scene together, and it was very easy.

Jiang Lu had thought the three of them would have idol baggage and wouldn't be able to blend into the movie's overall style. He didn't expect that as soon as the three of them stood and squatted in front of Wang Dashan, the state of small-time characters struggling at the bottom of society came out directly.

Li Zhibai found a toothpick from somewhere and started picking his teeth.

Yan Liang squatted behind Wang Dashan and Li Zhibai, his face full of unease, confusion, and helplessness, as if saying, "What are we going to do now?"

Lu Yan He held his hands together, shivering and blowing into his palms.

Jiang Lu turned to Jia Long and said, "These three are truly amazing."

Jia Long laughed, "Don't underestimate the three of them. They've all had roles that people loved over the past few years. No matter the role, if you can be loved by the public, you definitely have your skills. Plus, the three of them have a great relationship. Acting in this kind of scene together is like performing a stage play with friends, making them even more uninhibited than usual."

That was indeed the case.

If any one of them had come to cameo in such a role alone, they might have felt embarrassed, thinking such actions were unattractive, and would have had idol baggage.

Now that the three of them were together, there was a feeling of "if we're going to do something bad, we'll do it together," and if it was embarrassing, there was someone to share it with. Instead, it felt like a liberation of their nature—the more they could mess around, the better.

After they acted out one version, Jiang Lu couldn't help but say:

"Everyone, hold back a bit. We aren't performing a stage play."

The three of them looked at each other and couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Wang Dashan looked at them blankly, having no idea what they were laughing about.

This scene took two hours to film, and finally, it was done and passed.

Jia Long said, "Let's grab a meal together? When are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow. We thought we'd be filming until night," Lu Yan He said. "Brother Long, where are you taking us to eat?"

"A local restaurant around here. The taste is really good," Jia Long said.

Lu Yan He nodded.

The movie filming continued, and Director Jiang Lu and the others had to stay on set and keep eating boxed lunches.

Jia Long took Lu Yan He and the other two to the place he mentioned.

The three of them removed their makeup, changed back into their own clothes, and turned back into young, handsome guys.

On the way, Jia Long asked, "Zhibai, I heard you changed agents?"

"Ah, yeah," Li Zhibai said. "Just changed. Brother Long, you're very well-informed."

"I heard it from my agent too. Zhou Ping'an was also Yan He's agent before. It seems everyone is talking about it, saying your agent has lost two popular artists in a row, and they're curious when you'll leave, Yan Liang."

Yan Liang didn't expect this to involve him, so he laughed helplessly, waved his hand, and said, "I haven't thought about leaving him for now. I haven't even established a firm footing myself."

"That's good," Jia Long said. "Although I haven't dealt much with Zhou Ping'an, my agent says Zhou Ping'an's ability is quite strong, especially his eye for picking scripts. He always manages to pick suitable roles for his actors. He also mentioned Zhibai, saying that the roles Zhibai has acted in over the past two years were all picked by Zhou Ping'an?"

"Yes, that's right," Li Zhibai nodded frankly and admitted, "He really did pick them for me."

"Do you usually pick scripts yourselves? Or does your agent and team pick them for you to take?" Jia Long asked.

Yan Liang said, "Only Yan He looks at scripts himself. Li Zhibai and I used to just do whatever Zhou Ping'an told us to do. Anyway, I didn't have the autonomy to choose roles before."

Jia Long was curious and asked, "Then *Friends* was also picked for you by Zhou Ping'an?"

"I have to thank Yan He for that," Yan Liang looked at Lu Yan He, smiled, and said, "He was the one who persuaded Zhou Ping'an. At first, because this show was a sitcom, everyone wasn't very optimistic about it, and he wasn't either. Plus, the production budget was very low at the time, and the fee they could offer me was also very low, so Zhou Ping'an was even less willing for me to act in it. But Yan He told him that as long as I acted in this show, by the second season, my fee per episode could add a zero, which persuaded Zhou Ping'an."

Jia Long couldn't help but laugh upon hearing this.

"Yan He, you're really something, painting a big picture for him right off the bat," Jia Long said.

Lu Yan He: "Zhou Ping'an is the type of person who looks at everything through the lens of profit. Telling him about a good script or how it suits Yan Liang is useless. You have to tell him decisively how much profit return Yan Liang can bring him by acting in this show to truly move him."

Jia Long: "That shows you see him clearly."

"The three of us have been managed by him since we debuted, so how could we not understand him?" Lu Yan He couldn't help but feel a bit dispirited when talking about this.

"He can also be considered a legendary figure, having managed so many popular stars like you."

"But everyone has had an unpleasant breakup with him," Lu Yan He said.

Jia Long said, "Then you can't measure other agents by Chen Ziyan's standards. Besides her, I haven't seen many agents who can break up with artists pleasantly."

"That's true."

"Can I ask why Zhibai suddenly decided to change agents?" Jia Long asked.

"Nothing inconvenient about it. He gave resources that were meant for me to Ma Zhiyuan. Ma Zhiyuan and I were already rivals and didn't get along, and he still did that. I couldn't tolerate that no matter what," Li Zhibai said. "I can tolerate other things, but not betrayal."

Jia Long nodded.

"Ma Zhiyuan is also a pretty popular guy, right?"

"Yeah," Li Zhibai nodded. "Pretty popular, very good at that marketing stuff."

Jia Long couldn't help but laugh at Li Zhibai's comment.

Li Zhibai asked, "Brother Long, you've been in the entertainment industry for so long, are there any people you don't like?"

"How could there not be?" Jia Long smiled. "Wherever there are people, there will be disputes and conflicts. It's just that sometimes people don't show it on their faces and try to maintain a sense of decency."

"Well, I can't maintain that decency with Ma Zhiyuan. We're basically at the point of never speaking to each other again."

"You're all still young, don't say such things too early," Jia Long smiled.

They arrived at the restaurant.

The restaurant was in a small courtyard.

Jia Long introduced, "This small courtyard belongs to the owner himself. Look, they even have a plot of land where they grow some vegetables and fruits."

"It seems like these private restaurants grow their own produce."

"The main selling point is that it's all-natural and additive-free," Jia Long said. "Actually, I really want to have a plot like this at my own home, where I can grow some vegetables when I'm free. It's quite interesting."

"Then you should forget it, Brother Long. You're so busy and away from home all the time, where would you find the time?" Li Zhibai said.

"I can do it when I retire."

"That's probably difficult. In the acting industry, it seems there's no such thing as retirement," Lu Yan He also laughed. "Even if you want to retire, the audience won't want to see you retire."

Jia Long: "That won't do. I don't plan on acting for my whole life. It's so tiring; I need to have a life of my own."

"It seems many people say they want to have a life of their own, but very few are actually able to return to real life in the end," Yan Liang said.

"Sometimes it's true. Now I think there will always be a day to retire, but if I really retire, can I really endure the state of never doing what I love again? It's also risky. Maybe I won't be able to help but come out and act again."

Jia Long laughed self-deprecatingly and added, "You guys debuted so early, do you still have a sense of freshness for this industry?"

"Yeah," Li Zhibai said immediately. "I love acting and performing on stage, otherwise I wouldn't come here to suffer."

Jia Long: "That's great. I often encounter child stars who debuted very early. Perhaps because they entered the industry too early, they lost their passion for it very quickly. You must protect this passion well. Once you lose your passion, you just become someone doing a job."

"If I lose my passion for this industry, I'll just quit," Li Zhibai shrugged.

Jia Long: "I've heard many people say that, but I've rarely seen anyone actually quit."

"Mainly because many people think that if they stop being artists, they can still make a lot of money and live well doing other jobs, only to find out that they were just reaping the benefits of this industry. Once they leave, they're nothing," Li Zhibai bluntly stated the truth. "Many people around me are like that, all thinking they're extraordinary. If you ask me, if they stop doing this and still want to live the life they have now, there's only one way."

"What way?"

"Either become a prostitute or a gigolo."

Lu Yan He spat out a mouthful of water.

Although he had witnessed Li Zhibai's shocking remarks many times, at this moment, he was still shocked by Li Zhibai's directness.

Jia Long also opened his mouth, then closed it, rarely at a loss for words and not knowing how to respond.

However, what Lu Yan He didn't expect was that two days later, a very hot topic appeared online that was very similar to what they had discussed that day.

And it brought an unprovoked disaster to Lu Yan He, almost affecting their program on the Spring Festival Gala.

"Is there really anyone in this world who doesn't want to be a star?"

"If you had the chance to be a star, would you?"

"Being a star is so great, you can make so much money..."

A media outlet conducted a project called "If you were given a chance to be a star, would you?" and interviewed passersby.

Everyone's reactions were basically the same.

There were no people who didn't want to be stars; only a very small number said they had more passionate careers, so they didn't want to be stars.

"It's not like every star is tired and works hard. If you asked me to be a star like Lu Yan He, I might struggle. First, I don't have that kind of talent, and second, I can't be as diligent and hardworking as him. But some stars only work four or five days a month, take photos, record shows, say shocking things, and do eye-catching actions, and they can have buzz, have advertisers pay for them, and make a lot of money. If I have the chance, why wouldn't I do it?"

"Yeah, many idol artists now have no culture, no talent, and not even a good-looking face. They can't even be vases, but they get packaged by capital and seem to have high popularity, making money easily."

Regarding the income of stars and artists, the public had been unhappy for many years due to the huge income gap.

"It's not that I want to be a star, I just envy their income. When I work hard from early morning to late night every day, earning a few thousand yuan a month, I envy them," a girl sighed with a smile. "Sometimes I joke and complain to my parents, why didn't you give birth to me prettier? Then I could be a star too. No matter how tired it is, it wouldn't be as tiring as working now."

"I know such jealousy is unreasonable, but I'm just jealous," another person said directly. "If I didn't know, that would be one thing, but knowing they have such high incomes and still complain that filming is tiring, dancing is tiring, and the pressure is high, I just want to say, why don't we swap lives? Let me experience their tiredness too."

This interview video was edited and played online, and to everyone's surprise, it caused a huge reaction.

The issue of the wealth gap is an unavoidable problem in any society. And when it's concretized into the income of stars and artists, it's even easier to arouse dissatisfaction in people's hearts.

As people discussed it, they mentioned Lu Yan He. There was no way around it; Lu Yan He was the most representative of the young artists now.

Someone calculated Lu Yan He's income from the past year. With this calculation, someone came up with a very exaggerated number, saying Lu Yan He's income last year was conservatively estimated at one hundred million.

This number was, of course, fake. Lu Yan He didn't make that much money at all. But the person spoke with such conviction, listing numbers point by point from acting fees to magazine income, from endorsements to other business income.

Many people online felt it was true.

Because Lu Yan He was indeed very popular last year.

The topic of Lu Yan He's income exceeding one hundred million last year hit the trending list.

A high-quality artist with a perfect image, who is hardworking and diligent, suddenly became "unworthy of his position" because of his high income and started being attacked by some people.

—Only twenty-one years old and can make one hundred million a year, truly terrifying.

—No wonder everyone wants to be a star, who wouldn't want to be a star?

—Not targeting Lu Yan He, just feel it's unfair. Lu Yan He has talent and works hard, but is he the only one in this world who has talent and works hard?

When the questioning of Lu Yan He emerged, Lu Yan He was rehearsing at CCTV with Li Zhibai and Yan Liang.

After the rehearsal, Lu Yan He and the others discussed some modifications to the stage details with the director team again.

Chen Ziyan, Zhou Ping'an, and Lin Suyang, the three agents, were standing by waiting. Because it was the Spring Festival Gala, they all took it very seriously and came to accompany them to the rehearsal.

Once the discussion ended, the three of them were taken away by their respective agents.

Zhou Ping'an and Lin Suyang ignored each other.

Li Zhibai and Yan Liang said goodbye with normal expressions.

This scene was also quite something.

Lu Yan He didn't know what had happened yet. As he walked out with Chen Ziyan, Chen Ziyan told him what was going on.

Upon hearing that his income last year had exceeded one hundred million, Lu Yan He was astonished and asked, "Really? Do I have that much income?"

"Of course not. I know how much income you have," Chen Ziyan said. "They say your acting fee for *Late Spring* was ten million. You can see how unreliable their data is; they just say whatever comes to mind."

At the time, the movie *Late Spring* didn't have much of a production budget, and Lu Yan He's fee was only one million, far lower than his market rate. Now, this marketing account just says ten million... The production cost of the movie was only about ten million. They saw the box office of *Late Spring* was good and naturally assumed Lu Yan He's fee was also very high.

Chen Ziyan said, "But it's hard to respond to this kind of thing. If we respond by saying it's not that high and state an accurate fee number, more people will come out and say, 'Isn't one million a lot?' and it will be a new trouble."

Lu Yan He asked, "Are there many people attacking me online now?"

"Some, but they aren't mainly attacking you; they are criticizing the fact that artists have high incomes. You just happened to be used as a target," Chen Ziyan said.

Lu Yan He sighed.

"This is really..."

Chen Ziyan said, "I'm just telling you about this first. When you go out later, there will be many media outlets waiting. They might ask you about this. Don't answer these questions; just say it's fake and that it's all false reporting. I need to talk to the PR company about how to handle this public opinion later."

During the Spring Festival Gala rehearsals, there were always many media outlets waiting outside because they knew they could meet many stars there.

Lu Yan He nodded.

As soon as he went out, sure enough, many media photographers and reporters came over.

And as Chen Ziyan expected, many people asked about his income.

Lu Yan He answered according to the script Chen Ziyan had set.

"One hundred million? If I had made that much money last year, why would I be working so hard this year?" Lu Yan He shook his head helplessly. "How could it be that exaggerated? It's fake, it's fake."

"Then how much money did you make last year? Can you reveal it to us?" someone asked immediately.

"How could I reveal that?" Lu Yan He shook his head.

"Why can't you reveal it? Is it because although you didn't make one hundred million, it's close to that number?" someone asked maliciously.

Lu Yan He was stunned and looked at that reporter.

Seeing Lu Yan He suddenly look over, the reporter retreated behind the camera.

Lu Yan He sighed, thought for a moment, and responded sincerely:

"First, I don't know exactly how much money I made because I didn't look at the specific contracts; my management team handled them. But I am very clear that I did not make that much money."

"Second, it's because I did make a lot of money, but that's because when I was an artist, I also started a business. Thanks to everyone's support, *Jump Up* magazine and the self-media are very successful, bringing me a very generous income. But why don't you ask other company bosses and entrepreneurs how much money they make, but ask me? Our ancestors have summarized that 'wealth should not be exposed,' and you're asking me to expose it, making me suspect you have ulterior motives."

Lu Yan He pointed at him jokingly.

"Third, whether I make a lot or a little, as long as I didn't evade taxes, and as long as every cent was earned on the basis of abiding by the law, there's no need to be judged by everyone, right?" Lu Yan He said helplessly. "If that's the case, how can I make my business bigger and stronger in the future? Siqi wants to publish *Jump Up* overseas, and I also want to sell my scripts overseas and produce more versions of film and television dramas."

Chen Ziyan suddenly stepped forward, blocked in front of Lu Yan He, and said, "Everyone, it's getting late, we need to go back and rest early. You should all go back and rest early too."

She and Wang Biao escorted Lu Yan He through the media encirclement, got into the car, and left.

"You said a bit too much," Chen Ziyan said to Lu Yan He. "Although you said it well, saying too much makes it easy for people to use it against you."

Lu Yan He nodded and admitted his mistake, "Sorry, I was stimulated by that reporter's question just now and couldn't help it."

"Don't think too much, get some good rest. I'll handle the public opinion," Chen Ziyan said. "I hope to resolve this public opinion as soon as possible."

"Mm," Lu Yan He nodded.

However, things went against his wishes. The next day, the director team hinted somewhat obscurely that if the heat regarding Lu Yan He's high income could not be lowered in the short term, in order to ensure the broadcast effect of the Spring Festival Gala, they would remove the *Green Apple Paradise* program first.

Hearing this news, Lu Yan He was stunned; he hadn't expected it.

General Director Liu Yang specifically found Lu Yan He to explain.

"Yan He, please understand us. This is the Spring Festival Gala; it has great significance, and not a single mistake can be made," Liu Yang said. "No one wants to see such a public opinion event happen. I personally know that you are not at fault in this matter, but we must consider the overall situation."

Lu Yan He was at a loss at this moment.

Sometimes, it might just be like this: the fault is not yours, but you have to bear the consequences of this matter.

Liu Yang said: "You are a very excellent artist and also a representative of young artists. We really hope you can appear on the stage of the Spring Festival Gala."

Lu Yan He composed his emotions, stabilized his rationality from the chaotic thoughts, and said: "Director, if in the end everyone evaluates that I cannot be on the Spring Festival Gala, please keep the *Green Apple Paradise* program and let Li Zhibai and Yan Liang complete this program, okay? Don't implicate them because of my affairs. They also put in a lot of effort to prepare for this program."

Liu Yang sighed and said, "I'll try." ===== CHAPTER 408 =====