“Junior Brother!”
Liu Yifei called out again after only a few steps.
“Sister, what’s wrong now?” Wu Chen said helplessly. Has she gotten addicted to calling him “Junior Brother”?
“Hehe, nothing, I just wanted to ask if you guys have time during the winter break. I’d like to invite you to visit the set, would you like to come?”
Liu Yifei said with a beaming smile, her eyes curved into crescents, her fingers secretly intertwined behind her back, and her eyes sparkled with lively light, as if filled with stars.
“Where?” Wu Chen raised his eyebrows and asked casually.
“Xianling Island in the Xiandu Scenic Area!”
“No time, not going, too far.” Wu Chen blurted out the six-character mantra without hesitation.
“Hmph, if you don’t want to go, then don’t. It’s not like I’m begging you. We haven’t even settled the score from last time when you tricked us into calling you Senior Brother.” Hearing this, Liu Yifei immediately pouted angrily, puffed up her cheeks, and pulled Zhou Yang to take two quick steps.
“Do you know how long it takes to get from the capital to Xianling Island?” Wu Chen could barely suppress a laugh. This sixteen-year-old girl was a bit tsundere.
“It only takes over two hours by plane, it’s not like I don’t know that.” Liu Yifei snorted delicately.
“It is two hours, but one round-trip economy class ticket costs over a thousand. The average monthly salary in the capital is only 2,000 yuan right now, so a round trip is one month’s salary.”
Hearing this, Liu Yifei was about to say something, but Wu Chen immediately interrupted her with a raised hand.
“Alright, I know you want to say train, right?
A train is cheap, probably three or four hundred yuan will do, but taking a train takes a whole day, and during that time, you can’t even doze off, and you have to hold onto your personal belongings tightly…”
“Ah, why?” Liu Yifei was a bit confused.
“Naturally, if you don’t take good care of them, someone else will help you take care of them,” Wu Chen shrugged and replied with a smile.
Liu Yifei was merely naive, but not stupid. She looked at Zhou Yang, seemingly seeking confirmation.
Zhou Yang nodded slightly.
“Alright! No, wait, I can reimburse you! As long as you come, I’ll reimburse you, won’t that work?”
“Senior Sister, could it be that you believe friendship can be bought with money?” Wu Chen suddenly stopped, his gaze fixed forward.
Pu Songri looked confused.
The Wu Chen he knew wasn't the type to get upset over such things.
“Ah, no, Junior Brother, I didn’t mean it like that.” Liu Yifei panicked and quickly explained.
“Junior Brother, Xixi didn’t mean it like that,” Zhou Yang also chimed in to help.
“I have to say!” Wu Chen paused, looking at Liu Yifei, “Senior Sister, you’re really good at judging people! Can you reimburse me a few more times?”
“Dong dong dong…”
Wu Chen, who had been playful for a moment, instantly received Liu Yifei’s little punches, and this time she really put some force into them.
“Stop, stop, stop!” Wu Chen quickly raised his hands in surrender, “Just kidding, but I really can’t go. I have something to do during the winter break.”
“If you make a joke like that again, I’ll flatten you!” Liu Yifei turned her head arrogantly, “What exactly are you doing during the winter break? You’re being so mysterious!”
“You’ll know later.”
“Then remember to notify me on Penguin.”
“Why should I?” Wu Chen pouted.
“I’m curious, and you’ve tricked me twice…”
“……”
……
At the entrance of “Old Beijing Lamb Hotpot,” the old wooden sign was not very noticeable in the night, but the restaurant was steaming hot, and the window glass was covered with a layer of white mist, vaguely revealing a bustling crowd inside.
Wu Chen and the others didn’t linger, pushing open the door and walking straight in. The rich aroma of lamb, mixed with sesame paste and chili oil, immediately assailed their nostrils.
“Which private room was it?” Zhou Yang held her cell phone, checking the messages in the Penguin group, then her eyes lit up, and she pointed, “Here…”
“Uh!”
Wu Chen looked at the familiar private room in front of him, exchanged a glance with Pu Songri, and sighed.
Goodness, they didn't even change the room.
“What should we do, Chen Ge? I’m nervous. Besides the two Senior Sisters, I don’t know anyone else.” Pu Songri was a bit awkward, muttering softly.
“Eat quietly, retreat quietly.”
“Got it!” Pu Songri made an OK gesture.
“What are you two muttering about?” Liu Yifei took a step back and looked at them suspiciously.
“Nothing, Songri just said he was hungry,” Wu Chen bluffed.
“Then hurry up, I’m hungry too!” Liu Yifei urged.
In the private room, the copper hotpot was bubbling with steam, and white mist rose gracefully. Wang Jinsong sat at the head of the table, glancing around, “Oh, haven’t Yifei, Zhou Yang, and Wu Chen arrived yet?”
“How about I go check!” Zhu Yawen stood up, about to go out and look.
Just then, the private room door was pushed open, and Liu Yifei, Wu Chen, and the others arrived late.
“Speak of the devil, and he shall appear!” Wang Jinsong chuckled, “Come sit down, we can start cooking the meat.”
Seeing this, Zhu Yawen quietly sat down, and everyone began to pick up lamb slices and throw them into the pot, which immediately sizzled.
“Wu Chen, Songri, although you’re not from the Performance Department, everyone should talk more and get to know each other when you have the chance. Maybe in a few years, we’ll all be on the same set.
When you’re out and about in the future, you should help each other…”
Wang Jinsong said with a smile while eating.
He had given them the opportunity; whether they could build good relationships was up to the students themselves.
He could see that with Wu Chen’s current skill level and Mu Deyuan’s support, it wouldn’t be long, perhaps one or two years, before major production teams would be scrambling to get him. And according to the tradition of the Photography Department, who knew, he might even become a director someday.
Only friendships made during humble beginnings are the most precious.
“Thank you, Junior Brother, you’ve been a great help these past two days! With your and Junior Brother’s photography skills, you’ll definitely join big production teams in the future. If you have the chance, please help your Senior Sister…”
Jiang Yiyan was the first to speak, smiling gently. She picked up a glass of juice and walked towards Wu Chen and Pu Songri.
As expected, Pu Songri shyly lowered his head.
What a useless fellow.
Wu Chen looked at Pu Songri speechlessly.
“Junior Brother, we’ll also toast you!”
“Yes, Junior Brother…”
Led by Jiang Yiyan, the others also spoke up one after another.
Zhu Yawen then specifically walked over last, meeting Wu Chen’s gaze, “Junior Brother, a drink?”
“Hmm?” Wu Chen was slightly surprised, but seeing his peripheral glance towards Liu Yifei and Zhou Yang, he immediately understood.
The two glasses gently clinked, and nothing else messy happened.
After eating his fill, Wang Jinsong found an excuse and left.
With him gone, the private room became even livelier, with people gathering in small groups of two or three to chat freely.
Wu Chen finally had some free time.
“Were you very happy just now? Everyone was toasting you, the future great photographer…” At this moment, Liu Yifei rested her small head in her hand, turning her face towards Wu Chen and asking with a smile.
“What’s there to be happy about?” Wu Chen sat down, shaking his head with a calm expression.
“Ah, Chen Ge, why?” Pu Songri had also been toasted many times just now, and he had been beaming happily, but now he reined in that hint of pride.
“They were toasting the future, not the present. The future is unpredictable; only the present can be held in your hand…”