Chapter 1693: The Hero Saves the Damsel in Distress

Not long after the New Year, before the Lantern Festival, the final exam results and the CET-4 outcomes were released one after another, filling the class group chat with jubilation.

Although they hadn't passed the CET-4, everyone had basically passed their courses, failing only one or two subjects at most. Moreover, according to seniors in the same major, make-up exams were even more lenient than the formal ones; teachers wouldn't be overly strict, making it very easy to pass.

Mainly, this was everyone's first time in university, so they still held a sense of awe toward the examination system because they knew they hadn't studied. At the same time, not knowing what the atmosphere for university exams was like made them feel uneasy at heart.

Added to this was the presence of Xiao Haiyang, a figure who had been held back two years, which further heightened everyone's apprehension.

With the grades released and the results settled, there was naturally no more anxiety or worry, and they could happily enjoy themselves again.

Just as in the original drama, Xiao Haiyang ranked second to last and was overjoyed, sincerely thanking Lu Qiaochuan, who ranked dead last, for taking over the throne he had occupied for two years.

Wang Yan, unsurprisingly, ranked first and smoothly passed the CET-4. Bi Shisan was indeed impressive, losing by only a few points to take second place, while Li Shuci, who had always studied diligently, came in third.

After the results came out, Bi Shisan, Li Shuci, and Lin Luoxue all sent him their congratulations, while Yu Hao, Xiao Haiyang, Jiang Yunming, and others also chatted with him privately.

It is worth noting that while Lu Qiaochuan and Zhong Bai did not chat with Wang Yan, Ren Bao Yifan did strike up a casual conversation with him.

Ren Bao Yifan was a very smart person; he did not draw a clear line just because of the slight friction between Wang Yan and Lu Qiaochuan or Zhong Bai. Instead, he maintained considerable interaction, always offering a cigarette when they met and chatting very warmly...

"Old Wang! Old Wang!"

"What are you doing?"

"Come out quickly to receive guests!"

The studio's main door was pushed open amidst a lively clamor. Yu Hao, Xiao Haiyang, and Ren Bao Yifan left their luggage on the first floor, took a brief look at the rearranged layout, and then headed straight for the third floor.

When they arrived on the third floor, they saw a large long table set up with computers, while Wang Yan, a cigarette dangling from his mouth, was rising from his chair.

"There's still a week before classes start; you've arrived way too early."

"We were just afraid you'd be lonely, so we came early to keep you company." Ren Bao Yifan grinned as he approached, picking up a cigarette from the table to light for himself.

"Yixin, you see that? Old Wang is still very virtuous for a man, waiting alone in misery for you to come warm him up."

Yu Hao chatted with Gu Yixin for a while, then hung up the phone. "You must be wondering why the three of us gathered together, right?"

Immediately after, Yu Hao and Xiao Haiyang explained to Wang Yan how unbearable it had been staying at home during the break, how they had gone to Lu Qiaochuan's place to hang out with Zhong Bai and Ren Bao Yifan for a few days, but since both Zhong Bai and Lu Qiaochuan had matters to attend to, they decided to come early to bring warmth to Wang Yan.

"Then I thank you; you're paying for dinner later."

"No problem, no problem; it's just after the New Year, so my wallet is bulging. But your changes are huge; you've been busy non-stop this month. I saw downstairs that everything is set up; are you about to open for business? Let's get one thing straight: I'll handle the lighting for you; I'm growing to love lighting more and more." Yu Hao volunteered eagerly.

Xiao Haiyang, who had been bending over to look at Wang Yan's computer screen, straightened up: "Trouble you to open your eyes wide and look carefully before you speak. It's not that we're about to open; we're already open. Old Wang has already taken on wedding jobs. It's documentary style, and he's editing right now."

"Let me see, let me see."

Yu Hao eagerly sat over, and Ren Bao Yifan also leaned in close to see what kind of wedding footage Wang Yan, who had the best photography skills, could produce.

Documentary photography is just like a documentary: real and steady, without such frequent jump cuts, simply narrating slowly and straightforwardly, gradually permeating the emotion.

"They haven't even taught us videography yet, and you're already shooting this well. Shooting this well, you must be charging at least twenty thousand, right?" Yu Hao asked bluntly.

"Two thousand." Wang Yan slowly shook his head. "Luan Mengyu came to help me shoot the groom, so I gave him a thousand. We finished shooting the day before yesterday, and today we should be done editing; that's three hundred yuan a day."

"Wait, you had four camera positions and two people following them for most of the day, and it's only this little? This doesn't match the market rates I know." Xiao Haiyang sighed. "If 'Third' knew about this, how disappointed he would be."

Ren Bao Yifan couldn't even bear to listen: "Just think about it; Old Wang is still a student and didn't have any presentable work before. Probably, there were just too many weddings, and they were short-staffed, so they outsourced; by the time it got to Old Wang, it might have been outsourced several times over."

"Three times."

Wang Yan said with a smile, "Indeed, there's no help for it; we've just started and don't have much reputation yet. Only after accumulating a portfolio and building a certain reputation can we slowly raise our prices. For now, we can only rely on low prices to take on some odd jobs."

Yu Hao patted Xiao Haiyang: "What do you have to sigh about? Old Wang's skill level is right here. Without needing much more time, just over a year, his quote for shooting a single wedding can increase tenfold to twenty thousand. And that's just for basic services, without add-ons; if we really do the full package, how could it be less than thirty or fifty thousand? Isn't that right, Old Wang?"

"But we also have to consider spending power; thirty or fifty thousand sounds easy to say, but the customer base is still too small. Moreover, we can't do wedding photography forever; there are many other directions to explore. We should try to form a team, develop in multiple directions, and earn through multiple channels. And..."

Wang Yan spoke with a touch of vision, "After all, we studied television photography; the classes we took were all about film history, art, aesthetics, and the like. Who knows, maybe someday we'll find a good story and shoot a movie."

"Then you definitely have no problem, Old Wang." Ren Bao Yifan grinned. "Low-budget movies only cost a few hundred thousand; you've already spent the funds of an entire movie on this studio."

"I'm talking about the level of photography skills and the issue of having a good story. Making a movie isn't about taking a few hundred thousand and impulsively shooting; it's not that wasteful."

"Oh, so you know about being wasteful, do you, Old Wang?" Yu Hao made a face of disdain like an old sister-in-law. "You rented such a large shop; although we talked excitedly, none of us truly supported you. You are wasteful enough already."

Wang Yan laughed heartily: "Thank you for your concern, but since we've already reached this step, what's the point of saying so much? Let's just do it and see how it goes. Since you two are back, there's another job tomorrow morning; you two go with Luan Mengyu to give him a hand."

"What about me? What about me?" Ren Bao Yifan volunteered eagerly.

"Aren't you going to chase girls?"

"It's already over." Ren Bao Yifan looked desolate. "Ask the world what love is... Right now, I need to do something to numb myself, to help me move on from my last failed relationship, so I can welcome the next one after classes start."

"Then come with me to shoot the bride and assist."

"Why aren't we shooting the bride?" Yu Hao voiced a different opinion.

"I know." Xiao Haiyang looked at Wang Yan uncertainly. "Is it because, relatively speaking, brides care more about these details than grooms? Since your skills are good, if you shoot the bride well, as long as the bride is satisfied, it doesn't matter much if the groom's footage is a bit worse."

Wang Yan nodded with a smile: "That's the reasoning."

With matters settled, even though they were working for free, they worked with great enthusiasm and high motivation. The driving force was naturally novelty; they were all studying this, had previously thought about shooting weddings, and doing it for the first time, their mixture of unease and fresh excitement made them radiant.

The content of their chats after returning from the job was quite interesting: overexposed shots, forgetting lens caps, poor audio recording, bratty kids causing trouble—they just listened to Yu Hao pinching his fingers like an orchid while complaining. Xiao Haiyang chuckled beside him, laughing happily.

After everyone had been lively for a few days, Gu Yixin also returned early, so Wang Yan stopped joining in their merrymaking.

As the saying goes, once one tastes the marrow, one knows the flavor; having been together for only a short time initially and then separated for a month, their longing could no longer be contained and gushed out fervently; Gu Yixin did not leave the third floor of the studio for three days.

After classes started, apart from the first week when everyone was very lively, the enthusiasm faded, and things returned to how they were before. Everyone laughed and joked together, skipping class, sleeping in, dating, playing games, and so on.

On this day, Wang Yan was routinely carrying his camera outside taking photos near the school, when in front of a hotel, he saw a man and a woman pulling and tugging at each other. It seemed the male student wanted to get a room, but the female student disagreed. The female student only struggled and resisted, neither shouting nor making a scene, looking dazed; if it wasn't Li Shuci, then who could it be?

"What are you doing? Snatching a commoner's daughter under the bright sun?" Wang Yan shouted.

"Wang Yan~" Li Shuci looked as if she had seen a savior.

The male student, wearing glasses, looked at Li Shuci, then at Wang Yan: "Who is he? This is my girlfriend; what does it have to do with you?"

"Seeing injustice on the road, I draw my sword to help." Wang Yan smiled. "Can't you see she doesn't want to go to the hotel with you? Isn't this forcing her?"

"I am her boyfriend! Do you understand 'boyfriend'? She's just shy; she'll be fine in time. What business is it of yours to meddle? Scram! Get as far away as you can, or don't blame me for beating you up!"

With an eternal smile on his face, Wang Yan raised his hand and slapped him back and forth.

"You dare hit me? Damn it..."

The scene shifted, and the three of them were sitting in the mediation room of the police station.

"Officer, look at how he beat me! If you hadn't arrived so quickly, he would have beaten me to death! You must enforce the law impartially, arrest him, and sentence him severely! He also needs to compensate me! This won't be settled without 100,000 yuan, I'm telling you."

Wang Yan sat opposite her nonchalantly: "Are you crazy for money? These are just minor injuries; not a single patch of skin is broken. It'll be fine in two days. At most, I'll get fined 500 yuan and detained for seven days. I don't need your forgiveness, Officer. Just detain me. When I get out, I'll slap him again. Then I'll go back in, come out, and slap him again."

"Shut up!" the police officer glared and shouted furiously, feeling that Wang Yan was scorning his authority.

"Did you hear that, Officer? Did you hear what he said? He doesn't put you guys in his eyes at all..." Li Shuci's friend spoke with a fierce exterior but a timid interior.

Because he was already afraid.

After all, he had resisted, but he hadn't landed a single hit on Wang Yan; instead, he had been beaten by Wang Yan until his whole body ached. Listening to Wang Yan's words now, he sounded extremely experienced; looking at Wang Yan's demeanor, he appeared completely fearless.

Since Wang Yan was confident, he naturally became weak-hearted.

Wang Yan showed no sign of yielding, admitting he would get out of detention just to fight him again; then he finally understood the situation.

Even if he had an uncle who looked very much like a gangster, it would be of no help. This kind of thing depended on who had weaker endurance. Let alone the fact that Wang Yan could fight; even if he couldn't, if someone willingly offered themselves up to be beaten, people would still fear him, unable to withstand his harassment and entanglement...

"I'm sorry, Wang Yan, for causing you trouble." Li Shuci apologized profusely.

Wang Yan waved his hand: "Shouldn't I be the one saying sorry to you? After all, you two just broke up."

Li Shuci pressed her lips together, shook her head slightly, and said nothing.

Li Shuci's boyfriend wanting to take her to a hotel room was nothing new; he tried this every so often. Each time, Li Shuci refused, yet she did not break up with him.

In the original drama, Xiao Haiyang happened to encounter this, beat the man up, and afterward, the man proposed the breakup. Now, Wang Yan had stumbled upon this incident earlier, beat the man up, and afterward, the man proposed the breakup.

Click—Wang Yan took a photo of Li Shuci.

"I'm not good-looking, Wang Yan."

"Be more confident; you are the most beautiful in our class. Otherwise, why would I have sat next to you when school started? I was lust-driven right from the beginning."

But back then you had a boyfriend, and later you became intimate with Lin Luoxue, and then you were with Gu Yixin... Li Shuci didn't know what to say; she only lowered her head in silence, fiddling with her hands.

Then she immediately lifted her head: "Wang Yan, let me treat you to a meal. Thank you for your help today."

"Sure."

"What do you want to eat?"

"I'm not that picky. Whatever you want to eat, I'll eat too."

Li Shuci thought for a moment: "Then let's go eat Sichuan cuisine. There's a restaurant nearby that's very authentic; you probably haven't tried it."

At the restaurant, Li Shuci specifically ordered alcohol to drink.

She talked to Wang Yan about her past with her boyfriend during their school days, describing her feelings at the time. Then she spoke about entering university, mentioning how Zhong Bai had told her not to let anyone take advantage of her.

"Wang Yan, I feel he has changed... somewhat... I don't want to be with him anymore, I just haven't known how to tell him. So you don't need to feel sorry; breaking up is what I wanted."

Li Shuci's cheeks were red, her eyes blurred; unknowingly, she got drunk and passed out.

When she woke up, it was already night. Finding herself in Wang Yan's studio, her face flushed red. Only after checking her phone and reading Wang Yan's message did she feel relieved. She stayed on the third floor for half an hour, helped clean up, and then closed the door before leaving.

Returning to the dormitory, she faced questions from the other three roommates; she simply made up an excuse and got away with it...

Day by day passed; everyone laughed and played every day, worrying not at all about the future.

Since the matter of Bi Shisan liking Gu Yixin was absent, Bi Shisan had no intention of showing off to attract attention. However, Lu Qiaochuan was infatuated with Lin Luoxue and constantly wanted to prove his excellence.

Thus, he still seized the opportunity to drag Bi Shisan into causing trouble, just as in the original drama, painstakingly making the Walking Club explode in popularity while simultaneously marketing the concept of the great expert Bi Shisan.

Afterwards came the school's May commemorative event, holding a short film awards competition within the campus. They invited Lu Qiaochuan, who had just made a huge splash, to help stir up the hype, getting more people to pay attention and participate.

This event was likewise a great success, making Lu Qiaochuan even more heady with pride.

He claimed he disliked showing off and liked pretending to be an ostrich, but in reality, everything he did was the opposite...

When June arrived, the school organized a Midsummer Night event for the freshman students, scheduled right after the CET-4 and CET-6 exams but before the final exams. This task fell once again into the hands of Lu Qiaochuan, the class monitor.

Just as before, Lu Qiaochuan, as if his brain had been kicked by a donkey, thought of organizing a proper band performance.

So on this day, after the second period of their major-specific class ended and just before the lunch break, he clapped his hands, stood on the podium, and voiced his idea.

Everyone began buzzing with discussion.

But Lu Qiaochuan had experience; he first asked for Wang Yan's opinion. A smile of assured confidence rested on his face as he looked at Wang Yan with burning eyes.

Wang Yan returned a polite smile: "You play yours; I won't participate."

In an instant, the classroom fell silent...

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