Chapter 159: Narrow Escape

Bai Jie pondered for a moment after Li Yan finished speaking, then suddenly smiled seductively, "What about you?"

"Huh?" Although she wasn’t harassed just now, she was on the verge, left feeling unhappy—be it frustrated, depressed, helpless, or regretful, Li Yan could understand. But when she suddenly laughed and said such things, it made him frown.

"You said it, I could try to fight for it. But even if it’s an unspoken rule, you have to find someone with some influence. This cameraman can’t really offer you much. So what about you? You’re the general manager of a movie company now. If I’m willing to be your woman, would you..." Bai Jie said with a hint of seduction. Anyway, she had already tried with Li Yan before, so she wasn’t afraid of embarrassment.

Looking at her face, Li Yan said expressionlessly, "If you’re willing to be my woman, of course I wouldn’t refuse, I’d be delighted."

"Really?" Bai Jie was a bit surprised, puzzled by why Li Yan would say that. He had rejected her last time; could it be because he saw there was competition and realized she was attractive too?

"Why not?" Li Yan smirked slightly, "Besides, you know I’m a manager, not an owner. Obviously, I can’t splash out money to promote a woman. If I’m going to spend, might as well nurture a few starlets, right?"

Bai Jie’s face turned a bit pale. His words were blunt and quite harsh. But she just stayed silent for a moment before returning to her usual self. "Honestly... I’m repulsed and resistant when it’s someone else. But if it’s you, I wouldn’t refuse. However, what I said just now, I was just kidding."

"..." Li Yan remained silent. He didn’t believe Bai Jie was joking; maybe she was testing him—it seemed easier to believe.

"Hehe," Bai Jie had regained her natural poise, laughing, "Between us, if it happens occasionally, it can be considered mutual interest, a friendly match. Actually becoming your woman in exchange for a leading role, that’s a transaction, isn’t it tantamount to selling myself? As you said, you’re a manager, not the boss, and even then, you can’t get what you want."

Li Yan frowned. Regardless, just because they used to be classmates, he didn’t want to see Bai Jie go down that path. Frankly, even if she skyrocketed to fame that way and people knew they were classmates, he’d find it embarrassing.

But seeing Bai Jie speak so lightly about ’wholesale’ and ’retail,’ he felt it seemed more like a joke.

In fact, Bai Jie was deliberately joking. Li Yan had seen her in that state just now, and she’d tried to seduce him before, so she had no face in front of him; she also wasn’t afraid to speak harshly. By saying so, she wanted to step out of the shadow just now.

Doing embarrassing things is like that, best if no one knows. If someone knows and it’s already awkward, throwing everything out makes it easier to accept the situation.

Seeing him speechless, seemingly startled by her words, Bai Jie felt slightly regretful and smiled again, saying, "Actually, last time... He Zhexia pretty much understood my intentions and created an opportunity for me. He even inquired afterward if anything happened between us."

"Ah?" Li Yan sweated a bit, recalling that He Zhexia might have placed something in his pocket, but he hadn’t thought much of it. After sending Bai Jie home, he called Li Jie, asked around for information on Yu Xiaodi; at that time, separated from Zhang Yurong, and dealing with Rose, he didn’t have the mind to check.

Thinking back, he neither saw that item nor remembered throwing it away... Could it still be in the pocket of his coat?

Considering further, Li Yan felt a bit awkward. At that time, living with Duan Haibo and others without a washing machine, he was too lazy to do laundry. Outerwear and such, Lv Jiajing and Lv Lijun sisters had enthusiastically helped wash for him.

Carrying such items with him, his image in their minds had surely changed... Li Yan chuckled to himself. Fortunately, he maintained a respectful distance with them, keeping them as friends’ wives, ensuring no misunderstandings.

"Hehe, don’t be upset. He Zhexia himself is a lecher; he prepared things for you based on his own proclivities. Rest assured! I didn’t speak rashly. I said we’re clean; you gave me an opportunity for our classmates’ sake." Bai Jie finished, and seriously added, "Don’t mind me, no matter what, I’m grateful to you, and I won’t cling or do anything to shame you. I’m self-aware, not dreaming of stardom!"

Li Yan gave a wry smile, "I understand."

"But..." Bai Jie jokingly, yet half-seriously, said, "Back in the day, many girls liked you, had good feelings. If it’s occasionally sneaking around without involving transactions, I wouldn’t mind."

"..."

Li Yan was speechless; you don’t mind but I do! If this was a year ago, or even earlier this year, he wouldn’t have minded such a non-emotional, non-transactional partner. But now, things were different; as the saying goes, "When alone, it’s easy to waste, but with many wives and concubines, one learns to cherish."

Now, he had been involved both physically and emotionally with Yu Xiaodi, Qiao Huanxuan, Li Jie, and Hai Fu.

...

When leaving the set, Li Yan briefly told Qiao Pan about the situation, asking him to handle it, and fire that cameraman. Qiao Pan agreed immediately, promising to take care of Bai Jie, ensuring she had no more danger! As for that Tian cameraman, he wouldn’t give it a second thought. With at least two more weeks of shooting, they could easily find someone else to take promotional photos.

Zheng Yixuan arranged to meet at a restaurant in a certain five-star hotel, which specialized in seafood and Wudong cuisine. Due to its great reputation, the prices were always high. But the hotel itself already had high rates; the cheapest room, even with booking discounts, was close to 2000 a night, with deluxe suites much higher, mainly catering to the wealthy as locals often visited, making it pricey and hard to book.

Of course, for Zheng Yixuan, booking a table was no problem. Whether it’s him, Li Yan, or Lao Shi, they could all afford it.

Upon arriving, Li Yan called Zheng Yixuan, learning he hadn’t arrived yet, and was asked to wait a while. Li Yan didn’t mind, considering Zheng Yixuan’s status, he naturally wasn’t as free as him.

After parking, Li Yan entered the hotel and waited in the lobby. He never wore name brands, but modern service industries maintained good attitudes; as long as operations were open to the public, high-end hotels, restaurants, and clubs wouldn’t reject for ’inappropriate attire.’ Security, greeters, and doormen didn’t show any discrimination. Naturally, whether they felt it internally was unknown.

Li Yan picked up a newspaper to pass the time. Previously, the antique robbery was major news; police had reportedly made progress, but no specific outcomes were mentioned.

Before long, he sensed a wave of hostility directed toward him. Looking up, he saw a few young people entering. One was familiar—Liu Yuyang, whom he’d just met yesterday.

Liu Yuyang—through his attire, speech, and vehicle—exuded signs of wealth, not just individually, but from a wealthy family. Some demeanor is nurtured from a young age, beyond what self-made or nouveau riche possess. Hence, his presence there didn’t surprise Li Yan. For rich folks, dining at pricey restaurants is typical. Seeing him at a food stall or street vendor would be odd.

As he continued reading, Liu Yuyang and his group stood for a moment, then approached him. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"Isn’t this... Li... Right! Li Yan, my memory!" Liu Yuyang greeted Li Yan with feigned surprise and delight after seemingly struggling to recall his name for a while.

Li Yan glanced at the posturing Liu Yuyang, nodded, "Liu Yuyang, right; my memory’s good."

"Brother Li, are you... staying here? My friend owns shares in this place, so I can get you the best deal..." Liu Yuyang enthusiastically said.

People with him, briefed on yesterday’s incident, and mentioned by Liu Yuyang earlier, examined Li Yan. Seeing him outclassed by Liu Yuyang in attire, demeanor, and looks, they felt disinterested, suspecting Zhang Yurong found someone at the last minute to excuse herself from seeing Liu Yuyang.

Liu Yuyang didn’t introduce them, and they had no intention of knowing Li Yan, who similarly had no interest in mingling. "Why would I be staying here? Waiting for someone, dining." He returned to his newspaper.

"Oh, waiting for someone to dine... Well, without Yurong here, how would you pay?" Liu Yuyang said feigned innocently, then generously suggested, "Why not join us upstairs? We’ll tell the staff to combine your bill with ours. You’d make a good impression in front of Yurong without waiting here." (To be continued, visit www.qidian.com, read more Chapters, support the author, support legitimate reading!)