Chapter 80: Li Yitong

As soon as the words left her mouth, she felt a pang of regret.

She had meant to say tonight, so why did she push it to tomorrow? This novel is originally published on Daily Novel Reading, where you can enjoy flawless, properly ordered chapters at ttks. tw.

But she knew full well that with her current state—limp limbs, heart pounding as if it might leap from her throat—if she changed it to tonight, she wouldn't be able to swallow a single bite of food.

Zhou Jin paused, surprised that Chen Duling had come all the way to his door late at night just to invite him to dinner tomorrow.

He grinned and nodded readily: "Of course."

Hearing this, Chen Duling exhaled in relief.

Then, to his astonishment, she blushed deeply, bowed low to Zhou Jin, stiffened her body, turned around, and hurried away in flustered haste.

Zhou Jin watched her retreating figure, unable to suppress a faint smile.

He'd met plenty of beautiful female stars in the entertainment industry, seen all kinds of scenes—but a girl as pure and innocent as Chen Duling, like a blank sheet of paper, was something he'd never encountered before.

Just accidentally covering her mouth and lightly steadying her waist had made her blush and tremble so intensely.

Zhou Jin shook his head, closed the door, and walked into the bathroom to continue showering.

When he finished showering, wrapped in a towel, and was drying his hair, his phone on the bed rang.

Zhou Jin walked over and saw it was Li Yitong calling; he answered with a smile: "Yitong, how did your audition with Director Yu Zheng go today?"

From the other end of the line came Li Yitong's sweet, unmistakably excited voice:

"It went perfectly! Today, Director Yu showed me two scripts—one is 'Half-Demon City,' planned to start filming next year."

"The other is 'Above the Clouds,' which starts shooting immediately this year. The director made the decision on the spot: I'm to film 'Above the Clouds' first—and I'm cast as the female lead!"

Hearing the name "Above the Clouds," Zhou Jin felt a flicker of understanding.

He had some memory of this drama—it was one of Yu Zheng's major projects, with Chen Xiao cast as the male lead, and the female lead originally supposed to be Yuan Shanshan, who later betrayed Yu Zheng.

But Zhou Jin hadn't expected that "Half-Demon City," which was supposed to begin preparation only at the end of 2015, was already being discussed and had its script presented by Yu Zheng now.

It seemed his earlier suspicion was correct: Yu Zheng truly had immense faith in Li Yitong, absolutely certain she would become a huge star.

Otherwise, how could Yu Zheng possibly entrust the lead role in "Half-Demon City" to Li Yitong, a complete newcomer with no experience?

Now he's acting swiftly, removing Yuan Shanshan entirely and promoting Li Yitong directly to the female lead of "Above the Clouds."

Although "Above the Clouds" didn't explode in popularity like "The Return of the Condor Heroes" when it aired,

for a debutant like Li Yitong, being cast as the female lead right away was an unparalleled opportunity to gain experience.

On the phone, Li Yitong teased sweetly: "Zhou Jin, hey, if I remember right, you've never played the male lead in a TV drama, have you?"

Zhou Jin couldn't help laughing: "True, I've never played the male lead in a TV drama."

Li Yitong had only been joking, but hearing him admit it, she immediately defended him:

"But you've been the male lead in two movies! Making movies is way more prestigious than TV dramas—I'm envious, I really am."

They chatted and playfully bantered for a few more minutes, when Li Yitong suddenly fell silent.

"What's wrong, Yitong?" Zhou Jin asked softly.

Li Yitong spoke in a wistful tone: "Zhou Jin, do you remember when you called me before boarding, saying that next time we met, you'd prepare a surprise for me?"

Zhou Jin smiled faintly. He knew Li Yitong had already checked his flight schedule to Hengdian—her call at the airport had been deliberate teasing.

But he didn't mind this little flirtation; on the contrary, he found it delightful.

"Of course I remember. So what kind of surprise do you want?"

Li Yitong giggled softly, then lowered her voice: "Zhou Jin, do you still remember… the photo I sent you of the flight attendant uniform?"

Zhou Jin's heart flared hotly; without hesitation, he answered: "Of course I remember."

Li Yitong's voice grew even softer, more alluring: "Before you give me your surprise, I want to give you one first."

Hearing this, Zhou Jin's eyes lit up, his inner heat instantly ignited.

Bold and flirtatious as Li Yitong always was, for her to voluntarily say she'd give him a surprise late at night—what kind of intoxicating surprise could it be?

On the phone, Li Yitong laughed lightly: "Zhou Jin, turn on the TV and switch to 'The Return of the Condor Heroes.'"

Though puzzled, Zhou Jin obeyed, picked up the remote, and found "The Return of the Condor Heroes."

Li Yitong's voice continued from the phone:

"This episode is just reaching the part where my character, Guo Fu, appears."

Zhou Jin looked at the screen—there, indeed, was Li Yitong portraying Guo Fu.

Though her acting was still a bit raw, her natural charm shone through; her delicate, endearing demeanor was simply stunning.

Even in costume, she outshone the "Little Steamed Bun" version of Little Dragon Girl.

Li Yitong cooed playfully into the phone.

Zhou Jin watched Guo Fu on screen while listening to Li Yitong's deliberately teasing voice through the phone, his skin prickling with desire.

Li Yitong purred: "Do you think my Guo Fu looks good?"

Zhou Jin answered without hesitation: "Beautiful. Of course beautiful."

Li Yitong pressed: "Then who's prettier—me, or 'Little Steamed Bun'?"

Zhou Jin smiled: "Do you even have to ask? Obviously you're prettier. If I were the director, I'd risk paying the breach penalty just to replace her with you as Little Dragon Girl."

Li Yitong burst into giggles: "Then if I play Little Dragon Girl, who would you play? Yang Guo?"

Zhou Jin smirked and replied offhandedly: "I won't play Yang Guo. I'll play Yin Zhiping. I'll be the Dragon Knight."

Hearing this, Li Yitong laughed even harder.

After calming down, she no longer called him by his name; instead, she lowered her voice, dripping with seduction: "Jin-ge… do you really want to be the Dragon Knight?"

Hearing this heavily suggestive remark, Zhou Jin's body flushed hot, his breathing quickened.

Could it be?

Before he could think further, Li Yitong's clear voice rang again from the receiver: "Jin-ge, go open the door. Your surprise is right outside."

Zhou Jin's eyes widened sharply, his heartbeat surged, his breath grew even more ragged.

Could it be...

There's a surprise!

There's fortune to enjoy!