Chapter 644 So-called Small Film Crew Beef Jerky

Lu Yanhe looked at Wu Chi, who had suddenly come to find him, with great surprise.

He had dinner with Chen Siqi and they planned to watch a movie together at the house and then go for a walk.

Then, the doorbell rang.

Wu Chi was both excited and exhausted, like a marathon runner who had traveled a long way.

"Mr. Lu, I need to talk to you."

Lu Yanhe looked at him, puzzled.

I just saw it a few hours ago.

Why didn't you tell him sooner if you needed to contact him?

When Wu Chi sat down and excitedly expressed his new ideas about the script, and about Kong Fanyu and Jiang Yue, with almost frantic gestures, Lu Yanhe understood.

"Changing the script at this time..."

Lu Yanhe showed a hint of surprise and hesitation.

Chen Siqi poured two glasses of juice and placed them in front of them. She then sat down to the side, with her thermos in front of her.

Wu Chi: "I know that doing this might cause a lot of problems, but with this script change, there won't be any major adjustments to the shooting schedule. I won't go over time. I'm just making some adjustments to Kong Fanyu and Jiang Yue's scenes and adding a few more. With these changes, the show will be even better."

"Director Wu, can you tell me why you insisted on making such big changes to the script after filming started?" Lu Yanhe said, "The character played by Jiang Yue is a girl that Kong Fanyu likes and is attracted to. However, for Kong Fanyu, her existence is just an image, an image that every boy has during his adolescence. At least that's how I understand this character."

“But that’s too cliché,” Wu Chi said. “When I saw Kong Fanyu and Jiang Yue bickering back and forth today, I suddenly had a breakthrough. I don’t want this movie to be one of those typical coming-of-age films. It’s not necessary to go through a fruitless unrequited love to grow up. A chuunibyou, hot-blooded, and slightly dim-witted boy can also have a happy, funny, and playful experience of adolescence. There’s no need for those painful plot twists. I just want to make a noisy movie, exaggerated from beginning to end. Not everyone’s growth involves so much pain.”

"Then why did you write it that way back then?"

“Because…” Wu Chi was a little embarrassed, “I’ve seen many movies where the male protagonist always has to experience some emotional failures and family changes before he can transform and grow.”

"If you make these changes, will other parts of the movie also need to be changed? What if his parents get divorced? What if he gets expelled from school?"

“Change the divorce into an argument, film it as something trivial and comedic, so that when the divorce happens in the end, everyone feels a sense of relief and peace,” Wu Chi said. “As for the school expelling him, I… I wanted to add a scene where he does something heroic. Just when the school is about to expel him, he receives a call from the police station to present him with a banner recognizing his heroic act. Then the school immediately changes its mind and starts to regard him as a model student, praising him highly.”

"Isn't this becoming rather ironic?"

"Yes, but the focus is definitely not on satirizing the school leaders' attitudes, but on a kind of absurdity," Wu Chi said. "The focus is on using Kong Fanyu's series of chaotic events to portray a boy's spirit of cursing life."

“If you do this, a lot of people might criticize your movie, saying it's unrealistic and superficial.”

Wu Chi paused for two seconds and said, "But I think that making a movie is something where 'those who know me understand my worries, and those who don't know me wonder what I seek.' I finally have the opportunity to make a movie, and I don't know if I will have the opportunity to make another movie after this one. So, at least with this movie, I want to make something that I really want to make. I hadn't thought it through before, but I have today."

Lu Yanhe and Chen Siqi exchanged a glance.

When Chen Siqi saw Lu Yanhe's glance, she knew that his attitude had definitely softened.

"You should know that although many directors have said after they became famous that they had many legendary stories in the past, such as changing the script at the last minute, changing actors, or running out of money halfway through filming and having to sell their houses to continue filming, and still succeeding in the end, these are all stories of success. Most of the time, the reason why a movie cannot be filmed according to the plan is because the director does not have the ability to control it, or because the director is too unconventional and messes up the movie. In the end, what is made only moves himself."

“I know,” Wu Chi nodded.

"If I told you that if this movie goes over budget, Linghe won't give you a single penny of the extra cost; you'll have to cover it yourself. And no matter how much you pay, the film's investment share won't change, and your salary won't increase. Would you still be willing to do that?" Lu Yanhe asked.

Wu Chi nodded without hesitation.

“I’m willing,” Wu Chi said. “Mr. Lu, to be honest, I never dreamed that one day I would have the opportunity to make a movie. I’m very grateful that you can give me two million to support me in making this movie. Before, I even had to ask others to invest 600,000 to make this movie, but no one was willing.”

Lu Yanhe: "I like the kind of really hot-blooded and youthful spirit in your script that you can't see in current Chinese youth films. I also like your editing style, the perspective and rhythm are unique, and it has a very dynamic feel. But, to be honest with you, if this movie fails, I won't consider you as the director for the next movie I write."

Wu Chi was taken aback.

“Originally, there was a movie that I wrote, and I wanted you to direct it after you finished filming it,” Lu Yanhe said frankly. “The filming of this movie was just to give you some directing experience.”

Wu Chi looked shocked.

Even under these circumstances, do you still want to rewrite the script?

"If I follow the script from before and still fail, will I still have the opportunity to direct the next movie you mentioned?"

"No." Lu Yanhe shook his head.

Wu Chi said, "I still want to revise the script. After I know how to make this movie better, it just feels awkward to shoot it according to my previous ideas."

"Okay." Lu Yanhe nodded.

"Huh?" Wu Chi was taken aback.

Lu Yanhe: "Then go and change it."

Wu Chi's expression was one of disbelief and surprise.

"Really?"

“Really.” Lu Yanhe nodded. “Director Wu, I actually believe in you. I believe you have the talent to make movies, which we have all seen before. But after all, making movies is an industry that requires a lot of investment. We can’t keep giving you money to experiment with. So, you only have this one chance.”

"Okay." Wu Chi nodded.

Wu Chi said, "I will do my best to make this movie."

Lu Yanhe nodded.

After seeing Wu Chi off, Chen Siqi looked at him with a smile.

"So, it's not just art-house film directors who are so capricious, huh?"

“Using art films and commercial films to distinguish film genres is outdated,” Lu Yanhe said. “I now think that films are actually divided into auteur films and non-auteur films. Commercial films can also be very auteur-style, and art films can also be made in a very formulaic way.”

Do you think Wu Chi is a director with a very distinctive personal style?

“Look at Chinese-language films nowadays, who understands a film in the way he just described?”

"The film market is so bad this year. In my own understanding, the biggest problem is that film companies think that they have racked their brains to shoot all kinds of innovative themes, creative perspectives, and even exotic areas, and should attract a lot of audiences to watch the movie. But things didn't go as planned. It's because, no matter how exotic, innovative, or creative something is, if it's still the same group of people making it, it's like cooking. If you're from Northeast China and you're making Hunan cuisine, what you make will be Hunan cuisine with a Northeast flavor."

Chen Siqi chuckled.

“Movies can no longer bring new experiences to people. The themes are different, but the ingredients are all the same,” Lu Yanhe said. “They look all different, but after eating them, you find that the raw materials are all the same thing.”

What Wu Chi said was something quite different from the mainstream understanding of film in the film industry today.

It's not realistic, it's overly dramatic and exaggerated, noisy, it doesn't depict the growing pains of adolescence, and it doesn't follow the classic "syllogism" structure; instead, it features plot twists.

What came to Lu Yanhe's mind was an old movie he had watched when he was very young, before he transmigrated here—a movie whose name didn't do it justice.

"The Song of First Love".

It was a completely unconventional movie, but when Lu Yanhe saw the ending, he found himself excited and trembling. Even though he knew he would never get on that small boat with them in real life, in his mind, he did.

It was a spiritual resonance and a thrill.

Movies are about taking a safe distance from reality and then adventuring, experiencing, and resonating in the spiritual world.

Chen Siqi: "But Wu Chi may not have the ability to realize what he wants."

“But he moved me,” Lu Yanhe said. “I know that statistically speaking, the probability of him failing is very high, but as a creative person, I still stick to one thing.”

"What's up?"

"Don't look at the success rate, look at the person. Don't believe in past experience, believe in your own feelings," Lu Yanhe said. "Whether a creation can succeed or not, there really is no rule to summarize. The reality is that hard work may not be recognized, but a casual doodle can become an overnight sensation, and something perfunctory can take off if it catches the right trend. Good things may need to stand the test of time to remain fresh and new. So the only thing we can believe in is our own feelings."

Chen Siqi: "Okay."

“Although I still don’t think this is a reason for a creator to arbitrarily change the shooting plan, one thing you said convinced me: the only thing we can trust is our own feelings,” Chen Siqi said. “In that case, what if we really go over budget? Are we really going to make him pay for it himself?”

Lu Yanhe: "Let's see how well he films it. If I think the result is good, then we'll increase the investment. If he really... misjudged it, and he's just talking a good game, then let this filming go down the drain and we'll just stop filming."

Chen Siqi: "Well, you're actually still rational."

"Don't say that, I was being too irrational." Lu Yanhe sighed with a smile, "Sister Ziyan is definitely going to scold me."

“Sister Ziyan will never scold you,” Chen Siqi said. “Now, Sister Ziyan will seriously consider and study every choice and decision you make, and she will reflect on why you are the way you are and what she has not thought of.”

"No way?"

“You underestimate your influence on Sister Ziyan now,” Chen Siqi said.

-

The sudden decision to revise the script for "Pah! The Sea" was surprisingly approved by Lu Yanhe.

Li Chao was disillusioned.

The people of Linghe are also disillusioned.

Why did you agree?

Everyone was completely baffled.

Was it because Wu Chi had displayed so much talent that Lu Yanhe felt Wu Chi truly had a bright future, leading him to trust him unconditionally? Or was it because Wu Chi had once saved Lu Yanhe's life?

The entire crew of "Pah! The Sea" was immersed in a thick, unbelievable atmosphere.

However, Wu Chi was like he was on steroids, and he revised the script that very night.

The next day, Wu Chi gave the revised script to Li Chao. With dark circles under his eyes, he couldn't stay awake any longer, so he pulled out a cot, covered himself with a blanket, and fell asleep on the spot.

The work of dealing with and communicating with various departments, as well as the execution of on-site filming, was largely delegated to Li Chao.

Li Chao was the assistant director of this film, so it was only natural that he was assigned these tasks—in fact, in a sense, Li Chao should thank his teacher for giving him so many hands-on opportunities. A director has far too few opportunities to actually direct.

It lasted until 11 a.m.

Wu Chi opened his eyes.

He sat up, looking like a wilted eggplant, barely breathing.

Before he could even fully regain his senses, a girl suddenly rushed up to him.

"Director Wu!"

She is the female lead in this movie, Liu Guanxian.

Wu Chi was stunned when she called his name. "Huh?"

Liu Guanxian's eyes were red-rimmed, and she clenched her fists, saying, "Are you going to cut my scenes? Are you going to make Jiang Yue the female lead?"

Wu Chi: "What the hell?"

Liu Guanxian said, "Everyone is saying that you changed the script and made me the second female lead! How could you do this? You're lying to me. If you had cast me as the second female lead from the beginning, I wouldn't have taken this role!"

Liu Guan made his accusations while shedding tears.

There were people watching nearby.

Wu Chi stood up and scratched his messy hair.

“No, who said they were going to cut your scenes?” Wu Chi frowned and said, “I did change the script, but I changed the character of Jiang Yue, not anything else.”

Liu Guanxian looked at him in disbelief and asked, "Really? Am I still the female lead?"

“Yes,” Wu Chi said.

Liu Guanxian stopped crying, choked up, and said, "Alright then."

She turned and left.

Wu Chi felt as if the world before him was fading away.

Li Chao ran over.

"teacher."

“Oh, Chao ah—” Wu Chi raised both hands and grabbed Li Chao’s shoulders.

"Let me help you for a while."

Li Chao looked at his teacher in surprise.

"Teacher, what's wrong?"

"I feel like my legs are going to give way."

"Slow down, slow down." Li Chao quickly supported Wu Chi's shoulder.

"Did you film the scenes this morning?"

“It’s filming normally,” Li Chao nodded.

Wu Chi was relieved.

"Who is spreading rumors that I'm going to cut Liu Guanxian's scenes?"

"No, I didn't say that, but many people know that you changed the script. Maybe it's just a rumor."

"That damn mouth of his has a liar's mouth," Wu Chi groaned. "My head hurts."

"Why don't you rest a bit more?"

"No, we can't rest now, we have to get it done quickly, otherwise if this show isn't finished on time, I'll have to pay out of my own pocket." Wu Chi's mouth trembled as he mentioned this.

Li Chao: "..."

"Let's go see what you took first."

-

Half an hour later, Wu Chi sat in the computer room, remaining silent for a long time.

Li Chao looked at him with a slightly nervous expression.

"Teacher, how is it?"

They just quickly looked at some of the things Li Chao filmed last night and this morning.

Li Chao didn't know how good his photos were.

Although he felt that his photos were no worse than his teacher's.

The technical staff on site said they understood what he was saying better.

"Not bad," Wu Chi nodded. "Much better than I expected."

Li Chao breathed a sigh of relief.

Wu Chi: "It can be used."

Li Chao chuckled.

“So, for the following scenes—” Wu Chi hesitated for a moment.

Li Chao looked at him somewhat nervously.

Wu Chi said, "You are better at communication than I am. You know what kind of movie I want to make. You will be responsible for communicating with people in various departments from now on."

Li Chao nodded: "Okay."

Wu Chi: "For this movie, I first need to take the already shot footage and cut out a three- to five-minute clip. Otherwise, I feel like they don't know what kind of style I want, and they always give me conventional shooting options to choose from."

Li Chao: "Actually, that's what I feel too, teacher. But the people Linghe introduced to us are all quite skilled. Look at these two scenes, after I explained my ideas to them, they were immediately able to find a solution that could actually achieve the desired effect."

Wu Chi: "This is Linghe after all. Lu Yanhe's requirement for people is that you have real skills."

Li Chao: "Mm."

He thought to himself, "But I actually agreed to let you revise the script..."

Based on this incident alone, Li Chao felt that Lu Yanhe was not actually that reliable.

Wu Chi: "Jiang Yue doesn't have any scenes this afternoon, right?"

“No, didn’t you say that all of Jiang Yue’s scenes were moved to the back?” Li Chao said.

Wu Chi nodded.

“Then have Jiang Yue come to me and have her try acting it out for me according to the script I’ve revised. I want to see how it goes,” Wu Chi said.

"Okay, I'll talk to her agent."

-

Throughout the entire morning, countless people came to congratulate Jiang Yue, who had suddenly become the female lead on her second day in the production.

Jiang Yue's own people were all bewildered.

She kept asking Shen Yicheng.

Is this true?

Are they kidding me?

"Can I really play the female lead?"

"Huh? Does that mean I have to memorize the lyrics all over again?"

The situation is still unclear.

Shen Yicheng said, "I don't know either. They only notified us yesterday that your scenes will be temporarily suspended. I was nervous all night, thinking they didn't want your role anymore and were going to fire you."

"Huh? You still think that way?" Jiang Yue was taken aback.

"So what do you think?"

"I thought it was just a change in the shooting plan, and that I should shoot later. I thought the director was not satisfied with me and wanted me to practice more."

"Quite optimistic." Shen Yicheng smiled slightly at her.

Are you mocking me?

"I don't."

"I felt it!" Jiang Yue glared at Shen Yicheng.

"Lu Yanhe and Chen Siqi are treating our entire crew to dinner tonight," Shen Yicheng changed the subject, saying, "You'd better behave yourself tonight, and don't speak without thinking, okay?"

Jiang Yue: "When have I ever spoken without thinking?"

Shen Yicheng: What do you think?

“I don’t think I spoke without thinking,” Jiang Yue said. “You’re targeting me.”

Chen Yicheng took a deep breath.

-

That evening, Lu Yanhe and Chen Siqi booked a restaurant and treated more than forty people from the "Pah! The Sea" crew to dinner.

Because it was a low-budget film, apart from the four main actors being allowed to bring one staff member to the set (with the production team covering the related expenses), everyone else stayed on set alone.

The actors who came to film this movie were basically all unknowns, none of them famous yet. On the technical side, thanks to Linghe's connections, the cinematographer and lighting technician departments both had seasoned technical experts on staff.

Lu Yanhe knew the cinematographer for this film; it was Wu Zhou, with whom he had collaborated on "Love Letter." Wu Zhou even won the Best Cinematography award at the Jose Film Festival for this film, achieving instant fame.

He was also one of the highest-paid people in this movie with a budget of only two million, earning 25 million, which was more than the director Wu Chi and the lead actor Kong Fanyu.

Normally, according to the industry's established practices, Wu Zhou would never take on such a low-budget film. However, since he became a contracted cinematographer with Linghe after filming "Love Letter," and this happened to be a free period for him, and "The Sea, My Pah" was a film produced by the company, he accepted the role.

Wu Zhou was quite shocked to see Lu Yanhe.

I thought nobody cared about this movie, but I didn't expect Lu Yanhe to bring Chen Siqi along.

When Wu Zhou greeted Lu Yanhe, she whispered, "Director Lu, is it true that you promised Wu Chi you could revise the script?"

Lu Yanhe nodded, "Yes."

He asked, "What's wrong?"

“Oh, everyone is shocked,” Wu Zhou said. “I didn’t expect to be able to ask him privately why. I was even a little regretful about making this movie before. Director Wu Chi… he’s so hard to understand. I often don’t know what he wants. It was only these past two days, when Li Chao helped him communicate, that I was able to roughly understand.”

Lu Yanhe said, "Because I talked to him about this film, I felt that he had ideas, and I think that if his ideas were made into a movie, it would be an interesting filming experience."

“But this could easily cause problems during filming,” Wu Zhou said. “This is his first film, and he made such major changes to the script, so people didn’t have much trust in him to begin with…”

Lu Yanhe laughed.

“That’s his business,” Lu Yanhe said. “However, from my perspective, I think this movie is meant to support Wu Chi and let him make a movie according to his own ideas. Only in this way can we see the true quality of his work and what kind of movies he can make, and what kind of projects we can entrust to him in the future.”

Wu Zhou understood somewhat.

He nodded.

Lu Yanhe asked, "What are your plans after you finish filming this movie?"

"Yes." Wu Zhou nodded. "The company doesn't have any other projects starting up for the time being, but they've helped me get a role in an external film, a sports-themed movie."

Lu Yanhe nodded. "Who directed the film?"

“Xin Yuanqing,” Wu Zhou said.

"Oh, he's quite a famous director," Lu Yanhe said. "But I remember he mostly directed disaster films before?"

“It’s because disaster movies aren’t popular anymore,” Wu Zhou laughed. “This movie seems to have been started just to promote the male lead; he and I were just there to work.”

Lu Yanhe nodded.

"All right."

Not long after I finished talking with Wu Zhou, Kong Fanyu, the male lead of the movie, came over.

His agent was with him.

"President Lu, President Chen, this is Kong Fanyu."

He was holding a wine glass filled with wine.

"Thank you for giving me this opportunity to play the male lead." Kong Fanyu seemed a little nervous, and swallowed hard as he spoke, "I've never played a male lead before."

Lu Yanhe said, "You performed the best in the audition, so it should be yours."

Kong Fanyu's agent, Liu Wang, also respects Lu Yanhe.

“There are very few companies like Linghe that actually select actors based on their audition performances.” Liu Wang had probably had a few drinks by now, and his face was flushed. His tone was also a bit sincere because of the alcohol. “Fan Yu has met with no less than a hundred production teams in the past two years. He’s actually quite talented. He’s been in talks with many productions until the very last minute, but he’s always just a little unlucky.”

Starting with Kong Fanyu, several actors and their agents came one after another to offer a toast.

Chen Siqi quickly replaced Lu Yanhe's wine glass with Sprite.

Otherwise, we wouldn't be able to handle so many people coming to toast us.

Of course, no one cared whether Lu Yanhe was drinking alcohol or Sprite.

As long as Lu Yanhe is willing to give me face and have a drink, that's fine.

The atmosphere on the set of "The Sea" is incomparable to that of other production crews.

Here, Lu Yanhe clearly sensed that most people had a sense of anxiety.

It's the anxiety of not having made a name for yourself yet.

This applies to both actors and other staff members.

Everyone seemed to be under immense pressure, feeling lost and uncertain about the future.

What impressed Lu Yanhe the most was that later, Kong Fanyu's agent, Liu Wang, quietly pulled him aside and asked, "Mr. Lu, I wonder if you are interested in signing Fanyu? If you are willing, I would like to sign Fanyu's film and television contract with you. This kid really has a talent for acting, but following me is a waste of his potential, and I can't provide him with any resources."

Lu Yanhe was extremely surprised.

Logically speaking, Kong Fanyu has finally landed a leading role, so his future should be bright.

Liu Wang, the agent, was at the point where he could reap the rewards, but he took the initiative to offer to give Kong Fanyu's film and television contract to Linghe.

Lu Yanhe felt quite emotional.

“We at Linghe don’t sign actors; we only handle film and television production,” Lu Yanhe said. “I myself am signed with Shihuo, and Shihuo acts as my agent.”

Liu Wang showed a hint of disappointment.

To him, this was a polite refusal.

Lu Yanhe said, "No need to rush, maybe Fanyu's drama will be completed."

Liu Wang: "Thank you for your kind words. I also hope that Fan Yu's drama will be a success."

-

Why doesn't Linghe sign actors?

Because Linghe doesn't have such a business segment, and also because Lu Yanhe wants to maintain the purity of the production.

Everything comes at a price.

What about companies that sign people up but then abandon them, leaving them to fend for themselves?

Lu Yanhe couldn't do it.

But after signing him, will a movie be tailor-made for him?

Unless someone like Huang Feng already has a complete idea in mind to implement, Lu Yanhe doesn't have the spare energy to create a play for an actor he doesn't know at all.

There are too many unknown actors like Kong Fanyu and Jiang Yue in this industry.

Everyone is desperately looking for opportunities, waiting for the moment when they can leap over the dragon gate.

However, the lucky ones are always a tiny minority.

Lu Yanhe couldn't possibly help everyone he met.

It's already quite remarkable that he can make his films so that these actors can get roles through normal auditions, based on their skills and suitability for the roles.

Kong Fanyu auditioned for so many roles, but ultimately couldn't get any. Was it really just bad luck?

Lu Yanhe knew that it wasn't true.

It's because too much capital has entered this industry now. If you're an actor and don't have a financial backer, you're directly excluded from the game.

The so-called "capital background" doesn't mean you need someone to put in a good word for you to compete with others who do. It means that without a capital background, you're essentially starting from scratch, and your priority is at the bottom.

This show also has investors. And those investors have bosses and parent companies behind them. This isn't just about a character; it's also a financial game.

If you, as a nobody, are used, the money you earn and the opportunity to become famous are yours alone. But if you use an actor with a different background, the dots can connect. Many things don't necessarily require a clear, open relationship of mutual benefit to form an alliance; some things are simply unspoken rules, whether you're inside or outside the circle.

Lu Yanhe's approach is to disregard whether you are in or out of the industry; you are you, and it doesn't matter whether you are the most suitable person for the role.

-

"So, do you really think that Director Luo Yuzhong gave Lu Yanhe such a prominent supporting role in 'The Golden Era' because of Lu Yanhe himself?"

"Have you all forgotten who the female lead of 'The Golden Era' is? It's Jiang Yuqian! Which company does Jiang Yuqian belong to? It's Xingyu! Director Luo held a special event at Xingyu to select actors for this role. What does that mean? It means that he only wants male artists from Xingyu to play this role. No matter how well or how suitable someone from another company is, they have no chance!"

"Do you really think Lu Yanhe is the kind of person who can break all the rules with his acting skills? How could that be?"

In Ma Zhiyuan's live stream, a young, chubby girl next to him spoke with great enthusiasm.

"Do you really think Lu Yanhe made his way up all by himself? That's ridiculous. The entertainment industry has never been a clean place. Even Lu Yanhe has to abide by the rules of the game. How many well-known actors have he used in all his productions? Yes, I admit he used a lot of newcomers, but so what?"

"Li Zhibai and Yan Liang are so popular now. You all say Xingyu, oh no, it's Woodpecker now. Woodpecker can't provide them with any help at all, so why do they still renew their contracts? Are they stupid? You fans always think your idols are the best. To be honest, unless you reach the top, like Lu Yanhe who is now a capital, no matter how glamorous you are, you will always need to stand in the capital camp to continue playing the game."

Ma Zhiyuan patted her.

"Okay, don't get too excited."

He took out a packet of beef jerky and ate a piece.

"Delicious, this beef jerky is delicious."

"Hey! I was just saying, and you're telling me beef jerky is delicious!" The chubby girl glared at Ma Zhiyuan impatiently, picked up a piece, took a bite, and her expression changed drastically. "Wow, this is so delicious!"

Ma Zhiyuan: "It's really good, isn't it? Here's a link for everyone, you can place your orders directly. It's link number 1. While you're enjoying the gossip, you can also have some beef jerky. Trust me, you won't regret it."

"Indeed, I highly recommend it, this beef jerky is so delicious! Wait, I still have something to say, right? What else do you want to hear me say? Oh, don't let Ma Zhiyuan say it, he's an insider, what can he say? Just listen to me!" The girl spoke with conviction, crunching the beef jerky with gusto.

-

I recommend the older book, "I Became the Leading Lady of a Scandal Overnight".

(End of this chapter)