Chapter 97: Balancing a Bowl of Water and the Future Starlet

Late June, the World Health Organization lifted its travel warning for Jingcheng and removed it from the list of SARS-affected regions.

This meant Jingcheng's battle against SARS had ended, and orderly restoration of normal life was beginning.

Yan Li and Qin Lan's secluded two-person world had to return to reality.

On their final night, Qin Lan, evidently spurred by this news, acted wildly, adopting a do-or-die posture—only to be thoroughly subdued by Yan Li, leaving her groaning and reluctant to rise the next day.

Yan Li, however, was full of energy, resuming his morning exercise routine, buying breakfast, and sitting by the bed calling out to Qin Lan.

"Get up. Eat, then we're moving today."

Previously, Qin Lan had rented a single apartment in Nongguangli, hoping to delay Yan Li's advances and control the pace.

Now, after living together for two months, there was no need for separate apartments.

Qin Lan had no interest in preserving any personal space or nonsense—she only wanted to live with Yan Li.

So she suggested canceling the Nongguangli lease and moving into Yan Li's larger apartment in Guanghua Li, saving on rent.

Yan Li hesitated slightly, found no suitable excuse to refuse, and agreed.

Though he was a womanizer, he wasn't entirely without conscience.

This girl had given him her whole heart, her love deep as the sea—how could he remain unmoved? Though he hadn't yet decided what to do, he could never abandon her.

For now, just keep going. Maybe over time, a way forward would appear.

Qin Lan refused to get up, so Yan Li pulled back the thin blanket, slipped his hand inside, and tickled her—unable to endure the torment, she reluctantly dressed and rose.

The moving company had been contacted, belongings were mostly packed; after breakfast, they called the landlord to arrange the move.

The two apartments were close; one trip sufficed to transfer Qin Lan's possessions to Guanghua Li.

Then they began tidying the new place—mostly Qin Lan did the work.

It wasn't that Yan Li was lazy—he simply deemed most things useless or outdated and wanted to throw them out and replace them.

Qin Lan had her own ideas; aside from the kitchen, she was dissatisfied with everything Yan Li had touched.

So, unable to watch any longer, Qin Lan shoved Yan Li aside and enthusiastically took charge herself, carefully integrating her personal items harmoniously into the new home.

Indeed, Guanghua Li's apartment had been lifeless before—Yan Li rarely visited, and it had little warmth—but after Qin Lan's touch, it instantly became cozy and lived-in.

Already physically unwell, Qin Lan collapsed completely into Yan Li's arms after finishing the move.

Though exhausted, her spirit remained high; she counted off on her fingers what the home still needed, planning to buy them in the next two days.

Then Qin Lan's mood turned slightly melancholy.

Though they now lived together, with SARS over, both must resume their careers—and separation loomed.

Yan Li was about to join the cast of "Han Wu Di," while she would be tied up with promotional work for "Huan Zhu Ge Ge 3"; this separation meant at least one or two months before they met again, possibly longer.

When they weren't together, even this long apart had been painful.

Now, after two months of inseparable cohabitation—right in the heart of their honeymoon phase—even Yan Li leaving for breakfast made her miss him; how much worse would this long separation be?

Yan Li, too, felt reluctant to part.

Previously, when dating Dong Xuan, though they often clung together, it was campus love—they'd never cohabited this long.

For over two months, Yan Li woke each day to Qin Lan, ate every meal with her.

This SARS period, aside from the occasional frustration of being trapped and the triumph of "Zheng Fu," most of Yan Li's memories were tender, sweet moments shared with Qin Lan.

Even heroes fall for beauty!

Beauty truly eroded his willpower; Yan Li decided he would abstain from sex for three months.

Hmm—Dong Xuan and Qin Lan didn't count, nor did Huang Shengyi; and if someone threw herself at him, he couldn't be blamed…

"By the way."

Yan Li remembered something, rose, reached into his bag, and handed Qin Lan an item.

Qin Lan looked: "Passbook? 500,000?!"

Yan Li sat back down, wrapped his arms around her, and explained: "This is the money you gave me—I added some of my own, rounded it up. Keep it with you. Business is risky; you need a safety net."

He couldn't bear to take Qin Lan's money, and buying property risked complications, so he invented this excuse.

Giving the money to Qin Lan to hold, he'd later find a suitable moment and reason to turn this "safety net" into her personal stash.

"This money… I'm keeping it?"

Qin Lan hesitated, unsure whether to accept it; Yan Li kissed her and urged:

"Take it. I wouldn't trust anyone else."

Those words convinced her; clutching the passbook, Qin Lan, moved and happy, pressed a tender kiss to his lips.

He entrusted her with so much cash—he trusted her, he loved her deeply, and she loved him just as much.

He'd finally fooled her, and Yan Li exhaled in relief; kissing her cherry lips, his desire stirred again.

Separation was near; next meeting would take time—better to savor every bite now.

"No."

Qin Lan shook her head vigorously, gripping him—last night had been too wild, her body still recovering, she simply couldn't take more.

Yan Li knew this; he hadn't expected anything serious—other methods could still soothe him.

So he grasped Qin Lan's soft, smooth ankle; she understood at once, blushing faintly and lightly spitting at him.

Pervert—why do you always fixate on feet…

————

Yan Li joined the set of "Han Wu Di" at the end of June, but a few days early, he packed his bags and left Guanghua Li.

He then moved into Beiying Village.

Although Beidian still restricted student outings, the rules weren't as strict as before.

At least, for Beiying Village next door, Dong Xuan couldn't stay overnight—but she could slip out before dorm lights-out, pretending to rehearse or return to her dorm.

If anything went wrong, Guan Yue would warn her; with time to dress, she could be back at school in under fifteen minutes.

It had been over two months since they last met, and Dong Xuan was just as wild as ever.

Only Yan Li's strong body could handle her easily; otherwise, Dong Xuan would have immediately sensed something was off.

The wind ceased, the clouds scattered; Yan Li held Dong Xuan's soft, smooth, pale body in his arms and pulled out another passbook.

"Three hundred thousand?"

Dong Xuan stared blankly at the passbook: "Why are you giving me so much money?"

"Business is risky. I'm leaving some with you as a backup—I don't trust anyone else."

Yan Li stroked Dong Xuan's shoulders, reciting the same excuse he'd used with Qin Lan.

He understood Dong Xuan: if he told her it was for living expenses, that she could spend it freely and so on, she might refuse—or at least not take so much. He needed a reason she'd accept.

True enough, after hearing Yan Li's explanation, Dong Xuan stopped refusing and quietly took the passbook, saying firmly:

"I'll make sure this money grows."

Yan Li winced at that and urged: "I'll keep depositing more later—it's just insurance. Spend it as you like, don't be too frugal."

"Got it."

Dong Xuan gave a half-hearted reply, then gazed happily at the passbook in her hand and added:

"You've given me a lot of money before, and I still have my own acting fees and allowance—why not combine them all into one passbook? Let's make it… our family's passbook."

"Do as you like."

Yan Li had given up. He'd given the money; he wouldn't ask for it back. Whether she saved it or spent it, he didn't care.

Seeing Yan Li accept the phrase "our family," Dong Xuan kissed him happily, then began pondering where to hide the passbook.

Yan Li leaned back on the bed, watching her mutter to herself, his mind drifting slightly.

Of the five hundred thousand he gave Qin Lan, part was her own money—Yan Li's contribution was roughly three hundred thousand.

Since he'd given money to Qin Lan, he couldn't favor one over the other and shortchange Dong Xuan, who had been with him longer—so he gave her three hundred thousand too.

No matter what happened later, for now he'd keep things even.

In the following days, aside from a few social obligations, Yan Li stayed mostly in Beiying Community. Dong Xuan couldn't stay overnight due to strict dorm curfews, so she skipped class during the day to keep him company.

If not for the SARS outbreak delaying the summer break at Beijing Film Academy, this girl would have wanted to join him on set.

When she filmed "Snow Goddess Dragon," Yan Li had been on set with her—acting as her agent by day and teaching her acting by night.

So Dong Xuan planned to join the "Emperor Wu of Han" set as Yan Li's assistant—carrying bags and fetching water by day, warming his bed and keeping him company by night.

Lin Jiachuan: "..."

How could someone even dare to intrude like this?!

Yan Li refused Dong Xuan's proposal. On "Snow Goddess Dragon," he'd gone along because he didn't trust her to be alone.

He had a good relationship with the producer, Li Peng, who turned a blind eye—and he hadn't stayed long anyway.

But on "Emperor Wu of Han," he wouldn't get that treatment.

The set was full of people; many had left their families behind to work. A beautiful young girl coming and going around Yan Li daily would look bad.

So being an assistant was out—but they agreed: when summer break came, Dong Xuan could visit the set.

Bringing a girlfriend or family/friend to the set while filming was similar in action, but entirely different in concept.

Yan Li himself might not care, but he still had to protect Dong Xuan's reputation.

…

The day before leaving Jingcheng, Yan Li finally remembered Huang Shengyi and spent half a day hanging around Zhiqiang South Garden.

Huang Shengyi's resentment over his long absence melted away quickly under Yan Li's forceful "persuasion," and she softly told him about her situation.

"Zhou Xingchi's movie casting?"

Yan Li looked at Huang Shengyi strangely—if he remembered correctly,

one of the monthly intelligence reports from the future had mentioned Huang Shengyi was a starlet who later broke with Zhou.

"Yes, the assistant director said the crew was pleased with my photo. It's a great opportunity—I want to go to Shanghai for the audition, but flights and hotels are expensive..."

Yan Li understood Huang Shengyi's meaning and pulled out two stacks of cash from his bag.

"Take this for now. If it's not enough, call me again."

"More than enough, thank you, Senior Brother."

Huang Shengyi was delighted; Yan Li felt satisfied. Now this was what he called being sensible—take the money, spend it, ask when you need more.

Yan Li had been burned too many times by Dong Xuan and Qin Lan; he wouldn't dare easily get entangled with girls like them again—they were too easy to trap you.

Huang Shengyi, by contrast, was much easier.

Together for profit, apart for profit—no debts, no hassle.

Yan Li guessed that once Huang Shengyi became a starlet and saw the glitter and noise of the entertainment world, he, her so-called senior brother and small boss, would naturally fade out.

Thinking of this, his hands grew restless again, gently tracing over the future starlet's backside.

The trial pass was counting down—he had to experience everything before it expired, or he'd be losing out...

————

At the end of June, Yan Li and Lin Jiachuan boarded a flight to Hengdian.

Yan Li had flown before, but never in first class.

Yet his current composure far surpassed his past self—he didn't fidget like Lin Jiachuan, who excitedly touched everything and stared around in wonder. Yan Li simply closed his eyes and meditated.

Before leaving, he took time to meet Qian Yanqiu, director of "Detective Di Renjie."

The "Detective Di Renjie" crew was open to outside investment!

Compared to "Conquest," a modern drama with fewer episodes, the historical drama "Detective Di Renjie," planned for thirty episodes, had a much higher production cost—roughly eight to twelve million.

Though CCTV was wealthy, it couldn't guarantee a profit on a historical drama with no big-name stars.

Now that someone was stepping forward to share the risk, there was no reason to refuse.

However, as a CCTV project, it would likely air on CCTV anyway, naturally granting it platform advantages, making it more dominant in partnerships.

A 40% share requires Yan Li's investment of five million yuan.

Distribution rights can be negotiated, but only a 10% distribution split is supported.

The contract was not overly harsh, but it definitely squeezed Yan Li's profit margin; still, Yan Li agreed.

First, Yan Li believed this drama would make money—even if he earned less, it was still profit.

Second, Yan Li now needed to build his reputation to attract investment and projects; even if this project didn't turn a profit, as long as it became popular, he was willing to invest.

Third, Yan Li wanted to see if he could leverage this project to establish ties with CCTV—even just building good relations would suffice.

At this stage, CCTV was the largest financier and platform in the television market; the dramas with the highest annual sale prices and best ratings were mostly produced by CCTV.

All television dramas took pride in airing on CCTV, as it represented the greatest returns and the greatest fame.

Since Yan Li worked in the film and television industry, how could he not want to cultivate good relations with CCTV?

Yet, given Yan Li's personality, failing to gain an advantage was a loss.

So after careful consideration, he accepted CCTV's demands but insisted on becoming the rights holder of "Detective Di Renjie."

Investing in film and television does not mean acquiring the rights!

Often, investors only enjoy profit splits and have no say over the rights themselves.

Especially in this period, most production teams didn't care about this—many couldn't even guarantee profits after filming, so who cared who held the rights as long as they got their cut?

Thus, if investors didn't understand or ask, they generally assumed the rights belonged to the production side.

Only when explicitly co-producing or co-filming, and jointly registered with authorities, could one claim rights without a clear contract.

Yan Li knew "Detective Di Renjie" would have sequels, so he intended to hold the rights and later see if he could claim a share.

CCTV gave "Detective Di Renjie" little importance and didn't take it seriously.

Thus, they merely required Yan Li to sign a unanimous action clause ensuring he wouldn't cause trouble, then agreed to Yi'an Film & Television becoming the co-producer and rights holder of the drama.

Yan Li agreed readily—unanimous action was no problem; he would fully cooperate with CCTV.

Likewise, once this clause was signed, any future development of sequels would also require unanimous action with Yan Li—at minimum, his consent would be needed…

(End of Chapter)