Chapter 18

Small inn, nearing midnight

After bathing, Yan Li changed into clean clothes, pulled out three incense sticks he'd taken from the set, lit them, bowed toward his hometown, then stuck them into a box of rice he'd bought that night, murmuring under his breath.

"Ancestors, grant me some good intel."

Monthly intel is, in theory, significantly more valuable and substantial than daily intel, but that doesn't mean every piece is powerful or useful to Yan Li.

Yan Li had previously encountered two subpar monthly intel entries, which led him to turn to mysticism.

But this only applied to monthly intel—and even his guessed annual intel; daily intel came every day, so he lacked the energy and patience for it.

The three incense sticks burned past halfway, finally reaching midnight; Yan Li, timing it precisely, took a deep breath.

"System."

A sci-fi-style light screen unfolded, displaying eight pieces of intel, some long, some short.

Not a full ten, but acceptable—he'd once received only four monthly intel entries, just one more than the minimum three, and that had left him feeling bitterly disappointed.

Yan Li focused his thoughts, and the monthly intel unfolded one by one.

【Monthly Intel 1: In 2005, CCTV broadcast the drama "Bright Sword," which maintained its momentum throughout, securing the top ratings spot with an average viewership of 10.3%... The actress Tong Lei, who portrayed Tian Yu in the drama, was dubbed the "Bright Sword Goddess" and deeply beloved by audiences】

Is this 2005 news?

Yan Li's eyes lit up; among the monthly intelligence, he considered this type of "suspected future information" the most valuable.

He called it "suspected" because he currently lacked sufficient evidence to confirm it was truly "future information."

But based on the few intelligence entries he had verified and confirmed, the issue was minor—adding "suspected" was merely a precaution.

Among the future information he'd encountered, a significant portion appeared in news form, seeming more authentic and authoritative.

Seeing Tong Lei's name, Yan Li understood how the intel was triggered, but more than that, he was curious about the drama "Bright Sword."

According to the intel, this drama was the 2005 CCTV ratings champion.

Hmm, this isn't just popular—it's huge.

Last year, CCTV's two annual ratings champions were "Da Zhai Men" and "Qing Shen Shen Yu Meng Meng," with other top-three dramas including "Kangxi Dynasty," "The Smiling, Proud Wanderer," and "No Trace of Snow."

Several of these dramas launched countless stars; for "Bright Sword" to achieve this, its star-making power must be exceptional.

Yan Li filed this intel under 【Important Intel】, planning to look into the "Bright Sword" production team soon and see if he could get a share.

【Monthly Intel 2: In the 2004 European Cup final, the Greek team emerged victorious...】

Greece won the 2004 European Cup?

Yan Li was stunned; though he didn't watch much soccer, he knew Greece wasn't among the usual strong teams—was this a massive underdog win?

Though puzzled, he still placed this intel under 【Money Tree】.

If the intel was authentic and nothing went wrong, this could bring him a fortune.

Looks like he'd better watch more soccer—there's gold on the pitch!

【Monthly Intel 3:... The provisional list of the new leadership is as follows:......】

Yan Li: "..."

I just bragged over lunch with a few actors yesterday—do you really have to give me something this big?

【Monthly Intel 4: Century-old secret braised meat recipe... Finished product: vibrant color, exquisite flavor, rich braising aroma, tender meat that falls off the bone, fatty but not greasy】

Yan Li scratched his head; how was this intel triggered?

Was it because he'd complained about the braised dish he'd eaten with Qin Lan?

Or because his father back home had mentioned him while experimenting with a new dish?

He had experience with the latter—he already possessed a recipe from the system: 【Ten Simple and Delicious Side Dishes】.

Based on his phone call with his hometown, he suspected it was linked to his parents discussing him while cooking at home.

Still, getting a braised meat recipe wasn't bad.

Having grown up in his family's restaurant, Yan Li had decent cooking skills; with this recipe, he could cook for himself, or give it to his parents to boost their business.

Hmm, or he could open a small shop in Jingcheng himself.

Yan Li had been immersed in restaurants since childhood and still held some culinary sentiment.

Besides, he'd once considered: if his film career stalled and he couldn't land roles for a while, he couldn't just sit idle—he needed a fallback livelihood.

But this wasn't something he'd decide on a whim; he hadn't settled on it yet—he'd wait and see the situation after returning to Jingcheng.

Still, he was very interested in this braised meat recipe, but the conditions in Hengdian were limited, otherwise he would have braised a pot right away.

【Monthly Intel 5: Actor Tong Lei from "Heroes of Sui and Tang," born January 13, 1980, Capricorn, native of Ning City, Zhejiang Province, graduated from Shanghai Drama Academy's 1999 Performance Department, height 1.65 meters, weight 98 jin, blood type A, bust-waist-hip measurements... Home address: Ning City, Zhejiang Province, xxx; current residence: Shanghai, xxx; phone number: 135xxxx...】

Oh, character intel!

Yan Li hadn't expected that after the system gave him Xie Junhao's info, it now delivered Tong Lei's details.

Though both were character intel, the content wasn't identical—each had different emphases and varying levels of detail.

Possibly due to it being monthly intel, Tong Lei's data contained far more information than his previous character intel—roughly estimated at no less than ten thousand characters.

It even clearly listed how many bankbooks she had, how much money was in each, and even the passwords.

If Yan Li wanted to pursue Tong Lei, with this character intel and the goodwill he'd built up over these days, it would be as easy as reaching into a pocket.

But Yan Li had little interest in Tong Lei—he only wanted to build his career.

Even if he felt lonely, he'd prioritize Qin Lan and his ex-girlfriend, who better matched his taste.

So this intel was useless to him—he'd rather have another recipe or medicine formula.

The next two intel entries were useless to Yan Li; he skipped them, until the final one, which snapped his attention back.

【Daily Intel 8: Producer and director Cheng Lidong founded Zhejiang Yongle Film & Television Company in 2004; the company grew rapidly, producing numerous films and TV dramas, including "The Legend of the Condor Heroes: Phoenix Sings at Qishan"...】

Cheng Lidong?

Isn't that the director who had dinner with Zhou Yi the day before yesterday?

Damn, he'd been so quiet then, and Wang Decai hadn't mentioned him—Yan Li had assumed he was just tagging along for a free meal; turns out he's a hidden expert.

Yan Li recalled for a moment, yes, he had treated the man with proper respect at the time.

After all, even if they weren't close, he was still a director, and a friend brought by a guest—how could he afford to neglect him?

"By the way, I think I gave him a business card back then."

Yan Li rummaged through his pockets and pulled out several business cards, one of which was Cheng Lidong's.

With a phone number, it's easy—tomorrow I'll ask Old Wang to dig up some background, see if I can trigger any related intel, and try to establish a connection; it might become a useful path later.

In the film and television circle, it's all about connections; for most people, it's not that they fear praying to too many gods—they fear not finding the real temple, wasting their efforts in vain.

This Cheng Lidong has no reputation in the circle—he's probably still unknown. Burning incense at a cold temple yields better results…

(End of Chapter)