Chapter 17: First Meeting with Liu Yifei

Zhang Jizhong accompanied the three of them as they left, leaving only the composed Lu Kuan and the curious-as-a-kitten Liu Yifei in the dance studio.

She was always brisk and poised, smiling as she reached out a hand to greet him: "Hello, my name is Liu Yifei, it's a pleasure to meet you!"

Lu Kuan took her fingers with a gentlemanly touch, raising an eyebrow with a hint of mischief: "Little Liu, didn't your mother tell you to cover your mouth when you smile?"

Liu Yifei clamped her mouth shut instantly, recalling Liu Xiao’s frequent instructions not to show her gums, and shot a fierce glare at the little Daoist priest.

You don't insult someone by pointing out their flaws—how dare you ignore this young lady's beauty!

However, looking at the fresh and refined Liu Yifei before him, with her elegant neck and graceful posture, and comparing her to the nauseatingly common "snake-face" and "bamboo-leg" internet-celebrity beauties of the future, he had to admit that the young girl's natural beauty was truly formidable.

Her forehead was full and her skull perfectly rounded to a degree that felt like cheating, and her youthful, unadorned face was far more fresh and elegant than any heavy makeup could ever be.

She was entirely clean and clear.

Liu Yifei saw his expression and felt secretly smug—that’ll teach you to steal my spotlight in front of Mr. Feng!

"What are you looking at!"

Lu Kuan touched his nose, feeling slightly awkward, and tried to smooth things over: "Little Liu, there’s a little bug on your neck!"

Without the expected panic, Liu Yifei simply reached up and swept her hand across her fair neck in a carpet-search motion: "Where?"

"Oh, I was mistaken, that’s a mole."

Unable to tease her further, Lu Kuan changed the subject: "My name is Lu Kuan, I was invited by your mother to tell your fortune."

"You?"

The young girl was somewhat incredulous; Lu Kuan’s appearance was a far cry from the stereotypical image of a charlatan waving a banner and shaking a folding fan.

Furthermore, having lived in the United States for four or five years, she was hardly one to believe in such things.

The little Daoist priest spoke profoundly: "I hear you intend to become an actress; perhaps we shall meet again soon."

The young girl curled her lip, noncommittal, ignoring his hocus-pocus.

Lu Kuan was naturally referring to *The Noble Family*.

Setting Liu Yifei aside for the moment, this timeline should remain unchanged.

His own Feng Shui and divination business would soon expand to *The Noble Family* production crew, and perhaps he could pick up some extra cash by plagiarizing the theme song "Dark Fragrance" or something similar.

After all, making movies required massive amounts of capital.

Looking at the young Liu before him, the public relations company boss felt a surge of "covetous" thoughts—this young girl had high economic value!

If you, Big Beard, can be on the shareholder list of Red Star Dock, why can't I, Lu Kuan?

It was just a matter of figuring out how to further lure Big Beard, who already trusted him implicitly, into the trap.

Liu Yifei’s reputation as the "number one blood-cow" of the future Chinese entertainment industry was not unfounded; her mutual success with numerous classic roles made her a uniquely independent existence that transcended the "post-85s flowers."

Just after playing Wang Yuyan in *Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils*, her domestic endorsements reached the two-million-yuan level.

Even in the future, she could still produce a hit drama every year; *The Tale of Rose*, which aired before Lu Kuan’s transmigration, had once again swept the ratings.

As for the negative news that she herself didn't even care to address, to him, it was as easy to handle as child's play.

Especially since in this life, he would set out to build an internet public opinion front starting with blogs.

Once he had capital in one hand and public opinion tools in the other, with the referees, the sideline judges, and the organizers all being his people, who couldn't he make a star?!

In all fairness, although Liu Yifei’s acting skills were often criticized, in the eyes of Lu Kuan in 2001, this was not some incurable disease.

If he could replace her amateur family managers, Liu Xiao and Cheng Jing, and not plan her development path with such aggression and utilitarianism, she could absolutely polish and improve her professional skills and walk a path of both critical and commercial success.

"Xixi, you're covered in sweat, go take a shower and change your clothes immediately!"

Liu Xiao instructed her daughter, feeling somewhat exhausted; she was deeply distressed by her failure to keep Feng Yuan, who had firmly resigned, and was worried about next year's art school entrance exams.

"Oh."

The young girl curled her lip and obediently took her coat and left.

Zhang Jizhong and Cheng Jing invited Lu Kuan to continue their chat in the living room; the former recalled the suggestion Feng Yuan had made just before leaving and looked at this little Daoist priest, whom he found increasingly difficult to fathom.

"Master Lu, I didn't expect you to actually understand acting! Mr. Feng just suggested that you take over from him to tutor Little Liu in the basics of acting, haha."

Zhang Jizhong had produced his first work, *A Century of Worries*, in 1987 as a producer.

Before that, he had always aspired to be an excellent stage actor, but due to historical reasons, he had repeatedly been blocked by political background checks when applying to professional institutions like the Military Art Academy and the Central Academy of Drama, which was a great pity.

He still had a deep understanding of acting theory, and combined with Lu Kuan’s performance in *The Legend of the Condor Heroes*, he highly valued Feng Yuan’s assessment of him.

Lu Kuan laughed dismissively: "I'm not qualified; it would be better for you to find a professional teacher."

Hearing Cheng Jing call him "Master" repeatedly made him feel a bit weary: "You all can just call me Lu Kuan, no need for such formalities."

Acting instruction often involved some physical contact, and Liu Xiao was not particularly keen on a handsome young man like Lu Kuan being her daughter’s teacher.

Moreover, considering his identity as a Daoist priest, Feng Yuan’s suggestion seemed far too unreliable.

Yet, she couldn't help but worry about her daughter: "Little Lu, do you see anything to be mindful of regarding Xixi’s future development..."

She hesitated, neither fully believing in these supernatural claims nor wanting to pass up a chance for some psychological comfort.

She was just like the typical Chinese person, who was sometimes superstitious and sometimes scientific:

Left eye twitching means wealth, accurate!

Right eye twitching means disaster, to hell with that!

Lu Kuan smiled: "Little Liu has a great look, and her personality is lively and bright. I just saw her working hard to learn and polish her basics, so I imagine there won't be any problems."

"However, I do have a suggestion."

Cheng Jing asked curiously: "Please, go ahead."

"I have a friend who heard that a production crew is casting for a Republic-era drama called *The Noble Family*, adapted from a novel by Zhang Henshui. You all might want to keep an eye on that."

(End of chapter)