Chapter 21: Qin Lan: How Did You Know Today Is My Birthday?

Inside and outside the city, cries of battle filled the air.

Yuwen Huaji, clad in a dragon robe, looked panicked and turned to Yuwen Chengdu: "Chengdu, the rebels have broken in—what do we do?"

Yuwen Chengdu's face was also tense; hearing the battle cries grow louder, he roughly dragged over two guards: "I'll hold them off—you protect my father and get him out first."

Saying this, Yuwen Chengdu strode out the door; Yuwen Huaji reached out and shouted a few words.

"Chengdu! Chengdu!"

…

"Good, cut."

Director Hu Mingkai called out, and Yan Li, who had just exited the palace, came over specifically: "Thank you, Director Hu."

Hu Mingkai smiled and patted his shoulder: "No big deal—you did great."

This scene wasn't in the original script.

But because Yan Li and Yang Shulin, who played Yuwen Huaji, had deliberately added subtle father-son emotional details during character development, the Yuwen father-son relationship in the drama came across as filial and loving.

Under these conditions, when it came time for the Yuwen father-son exit scene, Yan Li and Yang Shulin convinced the director to add this extra scene.

Though just one scene, in a moment of life and death, Yuwen Chengdu stepping forward to block the enemy and protect his father elevated the character slightly.

And this change didn't deviate from the original character's essence.

First, Yan and Yang's earlier efforts had already established the Yuwen father-son bond, making the motivation clear.

Although Yuwen Chengdu was cowardly, lustful, and brutal in the drama, he never wavered at key moments—he'd previously saved Yang Guang and Yuwen Huaji too, but as a villain, his brilliance was overshadowed by the protagonist's group.

Second, Yuwen Chengdu never intended to fight to the death; both his lines and the plot design showed he only meant to delay, then find a way to escape.

After all, even if Yuwen Chengdu's abilities in the drama were far inferior to the original, he was still among the top fighters—once he decided to run, no one could stop him.

But his plot luck turned bad: halfway, he ran into Li Yuanba, who specifically came to "challenge" him, and was promptly killed.

After chatting a few minutes with Director Hu, seeing the crew was busy with real work, Yan Li wisely slipped away.

Today, after Yan Li's scene wrapped, he had nothing left to do—the rest was the rebel kings fighting over the imperial seal.

Yan Li still had one scene left—being killed by Li Yuanba—depending on the crew's outdoor shoot schedule, it'd be either tomorrow or the day after; once he was "killed" by Li Yuanba, he'd officially wrap up in *The Heroes of Sui and Tang*.

Back in the makeup room, Wang Xiu removed his makeup, working as she asked: "When's your ticket?"

Yan Li was engrossed in a magazine; he replied: "Tomorrow or the day after."

Wang Xiu's expression turned gloomy, her tone plaintive: "Once you leave, I won't even have anyone to talk to."

Yan Li's skin prickled; he snapped: "Stop bullshit. If you flirt again, I'll punch Big Liu from the camera crew—he won't stop me."

Wang Xiu was stunned: "How do you know Big Liu likes me? I never told anyone… Was it Sha Sha, that bitch?"

Yan Li smiled: "Give me a cool hairstyle today, trim my eyebrows, use your fancy makeup stuff on me—and I'll tell you."

"Pfft."

Wang Xiu scoffed, but after removing Yan Li's makeup, she obediently shaved his beard, trimmed his eyebrows, cared for his skin, and meticulously styled his hair.

Yan Li's historical drama required a wig; his own hair was short.

Wang Xiu had solid styling skills—he shaved the sides and back flat, leaving subtle layers on top.

Paired with Yan Li's sharp facial features, his natural masculinity now carried an extra edge of ruggedness and wildness, radiating pure manliness.

"Perfect!"

Wang Xiu stared at Yan Li in the mirror, thoroughly satisfied: "If you ever go broke, call me—I've met a few rich older ladies and aunts through side jobs; they love guys like you."

Yan Li forced a smile: "Thanks a lot."

After changing into his costume, Yan Li stepped out; Wang Xiu called after him: "You still haven't told me how you knew."

Yan Li tapped his temple: "Intuition."

Wang Xiu fumed: "Fine—I'll introduce you to some ugly, old hags."

————

Back at the small hotel from the makeup room, Yan Li changed into clothes he'd bought in Hengdian, tidied up neatly, and walked downstairs.

First, he strolled around Hengdian's pedestrian street, then reserved a table at the restaurant he suspected of drugging customers.

Although Yan Li doubted the food's "safety," the ambiance and taste were decent—perfect for a group meal.

After that, Yan Li went to Qin Lan's hotel and called her.

"Are you in the hotel?"

Qin Lan's voice, pleasantly surprised, came through the phone: "Yes, what's up?"

"Come down—I'm taking you to dinner."

"Ah… okay… wait five—no, ten minutes."

Yan Li checked the time, used to this, found a seat, lit a cigarette, and waited calmly.

If you think a woman saying "ten minutes" means you wait ten minutes, you're naive.

Sure enough, nearly half an hour later, Qin Lan hurried down, dressed in a black tailored business suit, clutching her bag.

"Sorry I kept you waiting—I had something come up."

Yan Li glanced at her still-damp hair and full makeup, wisely said nothing about what she'd been doing, and simply said:

"Let's go—the table's reserved."

Yan Li slowed his pace for Qin Lan in her dress; she walked in half-heeled sandals, curiously asking:

"Why the sudden dinner invitation? And why so handsome?"

Yan Li explained: "You complained I didn't invite you to the farewell dinner—I'm making it up to you."

"That's it?"

Qin Lan's cheerful expression faded slightly at his words.

Yan Li said nothing more; when they reached the restaurant and were seated, he nodded toward the birthday cake he'd bought earlier on the pedestrian street and smiled.

"By the way, let me also celebrate your birthday with you."

Next to him, Qin Lan, who had just spotted the birthday cake, was already clutching her mouth in excitement, her beautiful eyes glistening with tears; after a moment, she playfully punched Yan Li and scolded him.

"You're so annoying—do you think it's funny to trick me?"

Yan Li smiled brightly: "You have to build up the tension before the release—otherwise the surprise won't be big enough."

Qin Lan rolled her eyes at him, then eagerly examined the cake's design, her big eyes filled with delight—she clearly loved it—but soon she couldn't help sighing.

"If only I had a camera, I'd take a photo."

"Do you know what foresight means?"

Yan Li snapped his fingers, then walked over to the counter and took the Sony digital camera that had been stored there from the owner.

Qin Lan was both startled and delighted as she took the camera: "Where did you get this?"

"I begged for ages and gave away a few packs of Yuxi—finally the set photographer agreed to lend it to me for one night."

Yan Li told her where he got it, then warned: "Be careful when you use it—it's expensive. If you drop or bump it and break it, I'll have worked for nothing for over a month."

"Don't worry."

Qin Lan replied, then happily pulled Yan Li to take photos.

First she took pictures with the cake, then photos of her blowing out the candles and making a wish, followed by having the owner take pictures of her and Yan Li together—she took at least dozens before finally stopping.

After putting the camera away, Yan Li signaled the owner to order dishes: "I'll study it when I get back—see whether I should print the photos and mail them to you, or email them."

"Mm-hmm."

After taking photos, Qin Lan was in high spirits, eating the cake Yan Li had cut for her, her beautiful eyes fixed on him, her voice softer and sweeter than usual.

"How did you know today was my birthday?"

Even the cast of "Huanzhu Gege 3" barely knew her birthday; she couldn't understand how Yan Li had found out.

Yan Li remained calm: "You told me yourself."

"When did I say that?"

"The first time we ate here together, when we talked about age—you said you were born on July 17, 1979. I remembered it."

"Really?"

Qin Lan felt a little dazed—they had indeed talked about age, but she didn't think she'd mentioned the exact birthday. Hmm, maybe she'd just forgotten.

Regardless, she'd casually mentioned it, and Yan Li had remembered—and gone out of his way to prepare and celebrate her birthday with her. Qin Lan felt a sweet warmth in her heart.

Seeing Qin Lan believe him, Yan Li quietly took a bite of cake.

He'd actually forgotten whether Qin Lan had ever mentioned her birthday—he only remembered she was born in 1979.

As for how he knew her birthday, of course, it was thanks to the Intelligence System.

【Intelligence System x: Today is July 17, Qin Lan's 23rd birthday… She's currently filming far from home, with no one aware of her birthday; Qin Lan feels deeply lonely and desperately wishes someone would celebrate with her…】

They were friends—how could he ignore such a wish…?

(End of Chapter)