Chapter 50

Qin Lan was a bit petty, but her anger came fast and faded fast.

Without waiting for Yan Li to soothe her, she showed up at Guanghua Li the next morning as if nothing had happened, bringing him breakfast.

This also had to do with Yan Li leaving Jingcheng to shoot a drama in just a couple of days!

After finally reuniting, they'd be separated again in mere days—there wasn't enough time to nurture their feelings, let alone waste it on sulking or cold wars.

I'll write it down in my little notebook; once I've won over this jerk, I'll have plenty of time to settle the score.

Yan Li, who had just been reading at home, opened the door for Qin Lan, then set the book aside and prepared to wash his hands and eat breakfast.

"The soy milk's a bit cold—I'll heat it up."

Qin Lan felt the temperature of the soy milk bag, went to the kitchen to turn on the stove and warm it, and when Yan Li returned after washing his hands, he didn't eat right away—he peeled a tea egg and waited for her.

Once the soy milk was heated, they began eating; Yan Li, tall, strong, and young, had a big appetite and finished a fried dough stick in no time.

Qin Lan wasn't hungry—she drank some soy milk, ate two tea eggs, then picked up the book Yan Li had set aside and flipped through it idly.

"'Records of the Grand Historian'? Why are you reading this?"

Qin Lan was puzzled—had he become addicted to watching 'The Great Han Emperor' these past few days?

Yan Li bit into the fried dough stick: "A production team might be holding auditions soon—I want to try out, so I'm doing some prep work."

"Production team?"

Qin Lan froze—she was a non-professional newcomer with limited connections in the industry and hadn't heard of any production team related to 'Records of the Grand Historian.'

But given Yan Li's enthusiastic preparation, it must be a highly sought-after major production.

Could they be making 'The Great Han Emperor 2'?

Uh—didn't he already steal her away, and now he's going to steal Huang Xiaoming's lead role too? That's just too ruthless.

"What are you thinking about?"

Yan Li was utterly speechless—was he really that kind of person? Besides, when had he ever stolen her? It was her who didn't like Huang Xiaoming—he was just being a helpful friend.

"But if I get into the 'Emperor Wu of Han' production team, I might actually have a chance to play the young Liu Che."

Still…

Yan Li recalled the information he'd received from the system—compared to the young Emperor Wu of Han, he was more eager to portray the two legendary Han generals: Wei Qing or Huo Qubing.

Especially Huo Qubing—Yan Li had only known him as an incredible general from history books.

But his knowledge came mostly from middle school history, and he only had a vague understanding.

After reading 'Records of the Grand Historian' and online materials these past few days, Yan Li had studied Huo Qubing's military achievements more deeply—and was utterly awestruck by this Marquis of Champion.

This made Yan Li extremely enthusiastic about the role!

Especially since the director of 'Emperor Wu of Han' was Hu Mei, who directed 'The Yongzheng Dynasty,' and the major production company was China Film Group, with a solid, reliable behind-the-scenes team—currently one of the top historical dramas in the industry.

After experiencing the ordeal of auditioning for Yuwen Chengdu in 'Heroes of Sui and Tang' and seeing how the script of 'The Treasure Basin' vilified Zhu Yuanzhang, Yan Li took this matter very seriously.

The Han Marquis of Champion who sealed the wolf's lair at Langjuxu!

If he could be lucky enough to portray such an unparalleled divine general and become the version most recognized by audiences, it would mean Yan Li hadn't wasted his time as an actor.

"I'll ask my agent to keep an eye out too—maybe we'll end up in the same production."

Qin Lan wasn't particularly interested in 'Emperor Wu of Han' or 'Emperor Guangwu of Han,' but she really wanted to shoot a drama with Yan Li.

Mainly because if they shot together, they'd be in the same production team, giving them more private time together.

Unlike now—after just a few days apart, they'd be separated again; by the time Yan Li returned from shooting in Suzhou, she might already have left Jingcheng to shoot elsewhere.

Thinking of this, Qin Lan grew even more reluctant; Yan Li sensed her mood, leaned over, and kissed her.

"Good girl, wait till I finish eating—I'll take you out."

Qin Lan was delighted, but she pushed him away with a mock complaint: "Ew, your mouth is all greasy."

The less she said, the better—he kissed her harder: "Jingcheng's air is dry—I'm just greasing you up to protect against the wind."

"Nonsense."

Qin Lan spat at him, but didn't struggle much—she let Yan Li play around.

…

Qin Lan wasn't a professional graduate; she had studied at Shen Yang University of Technology, majoring in accounting.

According to Qin Lan herself, she chose this major because of her mother—Qin Mu was an accountant at a state-owned enterprise and believed the field was stable.

But after entering university, Qin Lan grew uninterested in accounting.

By 2000, when she was in her third year of university, she joined a classmate in a modeling competition, stood out, and was signed by a Hunan Provincial Broadcasting company.

After graduating in 2001, Qin Lan came to Jingcheng and became one of the Beijing drifters in the acting world.

But before she'd drifted long, she was chosen by Qiong Yao to play in 'Return of the Pearl Princess 3,' and the gears of her fate began to turn slowly.

Now, returning to Jingcheng with Yan Li by her side, her state of mind was entirely different.

"First, let's go to Tiananmen Square—I want to take photos."

Qin Lan had lived in Jingcheng for a while and had certainly visited Tiananmen before, but back then, her future was uncertain and her pockets were empty—she'd only rushed through it briefly and left.

This time, knowing Yan Li had borrowed a camera and planned a proper outing with photo-taking in mind, she was excited.

Yan Li had no objection—he'd take her wherever she wanted today.

Come to think of it, besides taking a photo at Tiananmen during his freshman year and mailing it home, it had been over two years—he might as well document how he'd changed.

They set out in the morning and played until dusk, the camera nearly out of battery before heading home.

"You've worked hard."

Qin Lan had enjoyed herself thoroughly today, and her gaze toward Yan Li—who had patiently catered to her—grew tender and sweet; before getting out of the car, she kissed him goodbye.

Seeing that the mood was right, Yan Li felt a surge of daring and tentatively said, "I'm a bit thirsty."

"Then do you want to…"

Qin Lan pursed her lips, her beautiful eyes hesitating; Yan Li thought he had a chance and was about to press further—when, while he was distracted, she slipped away from his embrace, swiftly opened the car door, and jumped out with a playful laugh.

"If you're thirsty, go home and drink."

Having said that, afraid Yan Li would catch her and deal with her, she scurried off. Yan Li shook his head.

On the surface this girl seemed muddled, her defenses retreating again and again, but at the critical moment she was still very clear-headed, biting down on her bottom line — wouldn't release the hawk until she saw the rabbit.

But precisely because of this, Yan Li now actually rather enjoyed this feeling of back-and-forth tugging; every assault brought a little surprise.

But the grudge of being played could not go unrevenged!

The next day, when Qin Lan came to Guanghua Lane again, Yan Li grabbed her and bullied her thoroughly, and in the end, going from bad to worse, helped her moisturize and care for her two hands.

"So gross."

After washing her hands, Qin Lan was utterly disgusted, clamoring that her hands were sore, not even wanting to touch breakfast — she had to have Yan Li hold the food and feed her before she'd eat.

Yan Li's expression turned odd. Little girls just couldn't handle it — Dong Xuan was the same; last time, after their lips touched, she'd quit milk and soy milk for several days.

Not like big sister Jiang Shan, older and knowing how to live, not wasting a single drop…

(End of chapter)