Chapter 2

As the luxury car drove away, the diners who had just acted as if nothing had happened immediately became lively.

“What kind of car was that just now? Looks very expensive!”

Ordinary people may not be able to name every brand of car, but the difference between a regular car and a luxury car is visible to the naked eye. The luxury of a luxury car lies in the fact that even if you don’t recognize it, you can tell at a glance that it must be extremely expensive.

“The Bat series.” Someone who understood cars immediately chimed in, “And it’s a limited edition, at least twenty-five million.”

“Wow! Twenty-five million!”

“Someone with that much money still eats pancakes.”

“It’s the unique taste of the wealthy. It could also be a nouveau riche, but to reach this level of extravagance, that’s quite impressive.”

For them, the fact that the owner of a car worth over twenty-five million came to eat pancake fruits was a good topic of conversation. After all, it had nothing to do with them, and after today, they would probably forget about it.

But for Yan Hui’s family, this was an uplifting event.

Once back home, Yan’s mother eagerly urged him to rest in his room, “I don’t know when they’ll call you for the audition. Don’t work night shifts these days, adjust your condition well, and what about the face mask? Shouldn’t you put on a face mask too?”

Yan Hui returned home without a break. As soon as he arrived, he immediately went to the kitchen to wash the utensils. Hearing this, he just smiled, “Maybe they’re just saying it. Mom, don’t get your hopes up too much.”

After ten years of ups and downs, he had seen many opportunities arise from whims, and while he would initially be excited and hopeful, in the end, they would always turn into disappointment. Over time, he had become indifferent.

Actors thrive on youth, and at the age of twenty, he failed to make a name for himself. Now at thirty, his hopes were even slimmer.

“How can there be no hope? You’re so talented, and I heard that girl, although young, is quite wealthy. They said that car costs over two million. With someone that wealthy, why would they deceive you? It must be genuine.”

Yan’s mother knew better than anyone how much her son loved acting. After learning about the situation at home, he insisted on coming back. She didn’t say it out loud, but deep down, she felt sorry for him. Rarely did such an opportunity arise, and she hoped he could seize it.

Seeing his mother’s increasingly sad tone, Yan Hui knew she was once again feeling guilty for burdening the family. Helpless, he sighed inwardly, but put on a smile on his face and reassured her, “Okay, if they call me, I’ll definitely go for the audition and try to get a role.”

Only then did Yan’s mother cheer up again and repeatedly urged her son to rest.

Yan Hui didn’t listen to her. Their house didn’t have hot water throughout, and although the weather wasn’t cold, it was still uncomfortable to deal with cold water. So he would take care of the washing himself and not let his mother lift a finger.

Deep down, he also felt guilty. At thirty, he had achieved nothing, and his parents were still worrying about their livelihood, unable to afford his father’s medical expenses.

Yan Hui lowered his gaze, allowing the cold water to flow over his palms, diligently washing the utensils.

Deep down, he rarely regretted it. Maybe he shouldn’t have entered the entertainment industry in the first place.

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“Feels great!!!”

Sheng Quan, with a face mask on, plopped onto the comfortable oversized bed, feeling completely satisfied.

As soon as she entered the hotel, the specially assigned guest room steward had thoughtfully prepared a set of full-body massage services for her to relieve the fatigue of the day. During the massage, freshly cut fruits and freshly made desserts were placed on the side for her to enjoy at her leisure. If she wanted soothing music, it was there; if she wanted a cinema-like movie experience, that service was also available.

The masseuse massaging her had soft hands, just the right amount of pressure. Wherever Sheng Quan’s eyes glanced, another staff member would immediately hand her what she wanted.

But what made Sheng Quan the happiest was that all these services were free because she had booked the most expensive top-floor suite for six months, so she had been directly upgraded to the hotel’s gold card membership, and these services were included in the membership.

The life of the wealthy is truly joyful.

Immersed in this gentle paradise, Sheng Quan didn’t forget her plan to make money. After looking at the remaining balance in her account, she immediately called the guest room steward, expressing her desire for Director Wan Bao’s contact information.

The steward asked her to wait for a moment. Three minutes later, he called her back, providing her with Director Wan Bao’s phone number and expressing his willingness to assist her.

This was another benefit of being wealthy that Sheng Quan experienced. In high-end hotels like this, with prices that ordinary people wouldn’t dare to dream of, their network resources were actually not inferior to banks. As long as the guest’s level was high enough, trivial matters like contact information were things they were very willing to help with.

That’s why Sheng Quan had spent most of her time in the hotel over the past few days, gathering resources. Now that she had the resources, of course, she needed to figure out how to use them.

The life of the wealthy was even smoother than she had imagined. For example, now, as long as she was willing to pay, the hotel could immediately assemble an exceptionally professional investment team for her within an hour.

Now that she had identified the beneficiary for her sponsorship, the system’s money had also been deposited into her account, giving Sheng Quan full confidence.

In the first few days, Sheng Quan had thought the system might be a bit stingy. It hadn’t even left her any money to buy a phone. But now, she felt it was really quite thoughtful.

This wasn’t just a hotel; it was clearly Ruyi from the folktales, granting every wish without hesitation, without even asking for discounts.

Humming a tune, she removed her face mask. These things were quite expensive, but there were two full boxes in the bathroom, and whenever she ran out, someone would come to replenish them, just like the various expensive skincare and cosmetics placed on the table.

Perhaps because she hadn’t stayed up late after coming here, Sheng Quan’s skin had been in great condition all along, so she couldn’t appreciate the effects of these expensive skincare products. But when she applied them to her face, her already good mood soared to another level.

Once again, she sighed, the life of the wealthy was truly wonderful.

After finishing her skincare routine, Sheng Quan directly used the hotel phone to call Director Wan Bao.

The first time, there was no answer. She checked the time and decided to call back in ten minutes.

Director Wan Bao was a minor character mentioned briefly in the book, but perhaps due to her transmigration, Sheng Quan found her memory rapidly improving. For example, she could now clearly remember the sentences about Director Wan Bao from the book.

At that time, a popular character had watched “The Road of Life” and liked it very much, but couldn’t find any information about the director. When asked later, someone had responded like this:

“Director Wan is not bad in character, and he’s quite capable, but he’s just a bit unlucky. He shot a flop before this film, and this ‘The Road of Life’ was in production, but the investors suddenly withdrew. He didn’t want to compromise on quality, so he raised money himself and did it himself. In the end, he was dragged into financial ruin by this good play, and he also fell ill. Later, someone took over the project, and ‘The Road of Life’ is now a hit, but he has no relationship with it anymore.”

The entertainment industry may look glamorous, but those familiar with it know that it’s a money-eating place, whether it’s TV dramas, movies, or even releasing songs, it all requires money.

There are many directors who have bankrupted themselves making TV dramas. Once filming starts, the money is burning every second. Either finish shooting before the budget is used up, or the director has to scramble for money everywhere. So wealthy investors are highly sought after in the entertainment industry.

Director Wan Bao was obviously one of those directors who had burned through everything for the drama he was shooting.

The drama was good and became popular, but the one who put in the most effort didn’t get any returns.

There was no further mention of Director Wan Bao’s fate in the book, but Sheng Quan speculated that he must have encountered some misfortune, and he might even have died of illness. Otherwise, even if he didn’t make money, a director who could make a hit drama wouldn’t worry about his future and wouldn’t be mentioned with such regretful tones.

She was recalling the plot when the phone rang.

When she picked it up, she heard a tired male voice on the other end, “Hello, sorry I didn’t pick up just now. Is there something I can help you with?”

At this time, Director Wan Bao was shooting “The Road of Life” and was probably trying to raise funds.

Even if she didn’t know the plot, Sheng Quan could tell from his tone that he was probably not having an easy time right now.

She confirmed, “Are you Director Wan?”

“Yes, I am. Who am I speaking to?” On the phone, Wan Bao couldn’t help but rub his forehead. Today, he went to raise funds again, trying his best to show the excellence of this script and the potential for investors to get rich returns, but because of the performance of the previous drama, not many people were interested.

The investors suddenly withdrew, everything was thrown into chaos, and the other party had left a loophole in the contract, avoiding compensation. Wan Bao was simply at his wits’ end. But he couldn’t give up on this drama; it had consumed all his efforts.

He had a premonition that as long as it could be completed, it would definitely become popular.

But no investor believed his words because every director said similar things when raising funds.

Now Wan Bao was relying on his own savings, but if this continued, he knew he wouldn’t be able to hold on. But if he stopped now, it would be as if all his previous efforts were in vain, so he could only grit his teeth and continue.

As he was thinking about various things, a crisp female voice came from his phone, “Hello, my name is Sheng Quan. I’m interested in ‘The Road of Life’ and would like to make a personal investment. Could you please send me a project presentation document? I’d like to understand it more before making a decision.”

Investment?!!

Wan Bao’s eyes lit up. He wasn’t bothered anymore, and he wasn’t tired anymore. His whole person suddenly became spirited, as if he had just been injected with two pounds of chicken blood. Even his tone, which had been a bit tired before, became lively:

“Of course, of course! Miss Sheng, can you give me your email? I’ll send it over right away…”

As he spoke, he felt it wasn’t safe, so he immediately said, “Or if you’re in the country, I can come over to explain it to you in detail now. It won’t take up much of your time.”

Sheng Quan: “…”

It was clear that Director Wan Bao was in urgent need of money right now.

But this was even better. The more urgently he behaved, the easier it would be for her to negotiate terms. After all, they hadn’t met before, and what if Director Wan Bao was the type who didn’t accept investors designating actors to join the cast?

If possible, Sheng Quan still didn’t want to change production teams. After all, after analyzing and investigating over the past few days, the most suitable drama for investment at the moment was “The Road of Life.”

She immediately gave the address of the hotel she was staying in, and when Wan Bao heard the name of the hotel, he instantly felt relieved.

This hotel was famous for its luxury. Even the most ordinary room cost over fifty thousand per night. If Sheng Quan could stay in such a hotel, it at least showed that she wasn’t lacking in financial resources, and the amount she could invest would also be ideal.

He was now at his wit’s end, and when a huge pie fell from the sky, he grabbed it as if it were his last straw. Hanging up the phone, he immediately bought a ticket and rushed to catch the earliest flight to the Magic City.

He didn’t even stop to think about the authenticity of this phone call. In this situation, even if there was only a one percent chance, Wan Bao would seize it regardless.

Four hours later, Wan Bao arrived at this seemingly low-key yet luxurious hotel.

To be honest, he had never stayed here before.

After all, his most famous work only had a little bit of fame, and now that the investment he had worked so hard to get had run away, as an ordinary little director, he usually lived quite frugally.

It was already one in the morning, standing at the luxurious hotel entrance that was completely incongruent with his demeanor, and as the cold wind blew, Wan Bao’s brain, which had been heated by investment, cleared up slightly.

Only then did he have time to start thinking about all sorts of messy questions.

Who introduced Sheng Quan to him? He was so excited that he didn’t even ask. She didn’t even say how much she wanted to invest. What if he only managed to get a little investment by coming over like this? Was this phone call really genuine? Could it be a prank call? It seemed like someone had received similar calls before. What if it was fake? Wouldn’t he have wasted the entire night in vain?

Wan Bao anxiously reported Sheng Quan’s name to the staff, holding his breath, afraid that they would say, “We don’t have a guest by that name in our hotel.”

Fortunately, such a thing did not happen. The staff smiled and said, “Miss Sheng has already informed us. Please come this way, sir.”

Wan Bao let out a long sigh of relief in his heart.

And as he was led by the staff into the exclusive elevator and watched it go directly to the top floor, his spirits soared again.

He knew that the top floor of this hotel only had one room, and naturally, it was also the most expensive.

Miss Sheng, who could stay in such a room, had actively approached him for investment.

He had bet right.

In the rush of flying in from another city, he hadn’t even had time to change his clothes, and these three words instantly popped into Wan Bao’s mind.

And when he saw two hotel-assigned bodyguards standing at the door of the room, as well as the housekeeper on duty outside, and two service staff, Wan Bao became even more certain: this wasn’t just a pie falling from the sky, it was clearly a gold cake!

If he couldn’t seize this opportunity… no, he would definitely seize this opportunity.

Wan Bao quickly adjusted his mindset and established his position in cooperation with Miss Sheng in his mind.

Just one sentence: Any conditions are negotiable, as long as the money is there!