Going home for Chinese New Year, I squeezed onto a bus with three energetic young women.

"no!!"

Four female voices rang out in unison.

Chen Tingting was the first to lose her balance and rushed over in a few big steps.

"Well, you little Ruyue! I knew you weren't up to any good by coming here every day!"

Chen Tingting bit her back teeth, the silver tongue stud peeking out from between her lips:

"You always act like an ethereal fairy, untouched by worldly affairs, but I knew you were plotting against Big Brother! Now your true colors are showing!"

Li Jiaxin also joined in, her cool and aloof face full of wariness:

"Exactly! You high school girl, don't get involved. Do you think you can just eye my brother's meat?"

Lin Xiaoshuang, with her yellow hair in a little tuft, swayed twice and quickly went around to Bai Li's other side, grabbing his free arm as if afraid that Jiang Ruyue would snatch her away.

Chen Tingting raised her chin and dropped a bombshell with a proud look on her face.

"Besides, Big Brother has Star Wrath! You think you can steal my spot? Dream on!"

Jiang Ruyue blankly lifted her head from Bai Li's embrace.

That tender, youthful face, so delicate it seemed you could pinch water out of it, was filled with confusion, and her cool, cute voice carried a hint of bewilderment.

"Who is it?"

Chen Tingting, Li Jiaxin, and Lin Xiaoshuang moved in unison.

Three fingers pointed in unison at Zhang Qian, who was huddled next to the prop box.

"she."

Zhang Qian, whose name was called, completely lost her usual social demeanor.

With her blue hair hanging down her cheeks, she, who usually loved to be teased and tormented, was now so embarrassed that she covered her face with both hands.

Li Jiaxin, not one to shy away from stirring things up, directly revealed the following:

"While we were away, she was the first to climb into my bed and sleep with me, even secretly signing this contract. That's an undeniable fact!"

Zhang Qian was practically bursting with anger.

Her face was flushed red, and she peeked out from between her fingers, avoiding the gaze of others, and nodded very slightly.

"Yes..." Zhang Qian's voice was barely audible, "I am Big Brother's Xingnu..."

Jiang Ruyue looked at the shy Zhang Qian, then at the three women who were full of vigilance, and pouted in dissatisfaction.

"All right."

Hearing those two words, brimming with regret, made Bai Li roll her eyes.

He raised his hand, curled his fingers, and gave Jiang Ruyue a sharp tap on the forehead.

"Ouch!" Jiang Ruyue cried out in pain, clutching her forehead.

"What do you mean 'okay'!" Bai Li pulled the warm, soft body away from his arms, creating some distance between them.

"School starts the day after tomorrow, so get back to studying! What kind of nonsense are you thinking about?"

Jiang Ruyue felt extremely wronged after being reprimanded in public.

She covered her head with both hands, and a thin mist welled up in her bright, watery eyes, making her look exceptionally endearing.

"Xiaoshuang and Sister Tingting are only a year older than me..."

Jiang Ruyue muttered a rebuttal, her words revealing a deep sense of resentment:

"Why can they do it, but I can't?"

Bai Li placed his hands on her shoulders, his tone serious:

"You're still in school. A student's purpose is to study hard, sit in the classroom every day, and not think about other things."

Hearing this profound truth, Jiang Ruyue lowered her head and fell into deep thought.

A few seconds later.

She raised her head again, met Bai Li's gaze, and said in a serious tone:

"Do you think I've suffered because of my lack of education?"

Bai Li was stunned by the lightning.

But then again.

Jiang Ruyue's lingering innocent student identity, paired with this pleated skirt, is indeed extremely alluring.

What normal man could resist this awkwardness of repeatedly navigating the boundaries between school and society?

Let alone Bai Li, if it were those guys going to massage parlors, they'd rather pay a few hundred more dollars than refuse, saying, "Eight hundred it is, I need to see your student ID."

But this can't be rushed.

This girl is too inexperienced, too clumsy, and knows nothing but blindly pounces.

Now, as Bai Li tried to bite into a cat, she felt like she wanted to pet it but realized she didn't actually own one.

In the end, all I could do was mimic the deer's meows and the cat's cries, feeling utterly powerless.

More importantly, even in broad daylight in the studio, five or six pairs of eyes were staring intently at him.

It would be too hasty to talk about romance and poetry in this setting.

The atmosphere has to be right.

As long as the atmosphere is right, status, rules, and morality don't matter.

In a corner far away from them.

Wang Wei was huddled behind a pile of junk, shivering, clutching a spare flashlight.

His chubby face was filled with awe and wonder.

"Is this the world of succubi...?" Wang Wei wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and muttered to himself:

"This is outrageous, these women are too fierce."

"If I stay here any longer, I'll explode if I hear it for even one more second."

"Ahem!"

Bai Li cleared her throat, abruptly cutting off the increasingly out-of-control topic.

"Alright, alright, everyone, put your minds at ease."

Bai Li clapped his hands, his peach blossom eyes sweeping around:

"Get filming started quickly, stop dawdling here."

Several young women pouted, looking somewhat reluctant.

Bai Li then threw out the bait:

"Let's finish our scenes early today and call it a day. We won't have boxed lunches this afternoon; I'll take you guys out to a restaurant!"

"Yay!~"

Upon hearing that they were going to a restaurant, the four girls instantly dropped their tense and defensive stance, and cheers erupted one after another.

With delicious food as a starting point, the crew's efficiency skyrocketed.

For the entire afternoon, Bai Li sat behind the monitor, using his talent as a top-tier web series director to control the entire situation.

The four young women were completely immersed in the story, and with Jiang Ruyue watching eagerly from the side, these girls were bursting with enthusiasm for performing, and several long shots were completed in one take.

It was a little after 4 p.m.

With the last movement completed.

Wang Wei straightened his aching back and shouted at the top of his lungs, "OK! All tasks done for today, call it a day!"

Once work was finished, the studio returned to its lively, bustling atmosphere.

Chen Tingting tossed aside the props she was holding and stretched out a big yawn:

"Oh my god, I'm exhausted."

Chen Tingting rubbed her shoulder, turned around and ran to Bai Li's side, her tattooed arm naturally draped over the back of his chair:

"Big brother, we're done working. Where are you taking us for dinner tonight?"

Bai Li hooked the car keys on the table into his hand, twirled them between his fingers, and was in a very good mood.

"What would you like to eat? It's on me today, so go all out!"

Chen Tingting's eyes lit up instantly, and she blurted out two words:

"Mala Tang!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiaoshuang, who was standing next to him, nodded vigorously and raised both hands in enthusiastic response:

"Yes, yes, yes! Spicy mixed noodles are fine too! I want extra starchy sausage, and those deep-fried fish balls until golden brown!"

Zhang Qian tidied her blue hair, licked her lips, and echoed:

"Add two more servings of duck blood and wide rice noodles, it's a perfect match."

Listening to the list of dishes these people ordered, Bai Li put one hand to his forehead, amused and annoyed by these girls.

This person, who possesses a super-rich system, wanted to treat others to a meal, but ended up targeting a street-side spicy hot pot stall.

These energetic young women's understanding of food has never strayed from the concept of spicy broth.

"I'm telling you, don't try to save me money."

Bai Li pointed at them, her tone full of helplessness:

"Couldn't you just rip me off and treat me to something fancy, like a Black Pearl restaurant? Or a high-end Japanese all-you-can-eat place?"

As soon as she finished speaking, the four girls pouted, their faces full of disgust.

Chen Tingting flicked her wrist, looking utterly disdainful:

"Come on, give me a break. What's the point of eating there? It's not like we haven't eaten there before."

She started counting on her fingers:

"After moving into the Cloud Top Palace with my older brother, the property manager would send salmon slices and black caviar to our home every few days."

"The raw meat was slippery and tasteless. Even when dipped in soy sauce and wasabi, it was pungent."

"After eating the whole plate, I felt like I hadn't eaten anything at all; it was like I had just starved."

Li Jiaxin, hands in her pockets, nodded in cool agreement:

"Sister Tingting is right. Those Western food plates are bigger than your face, and there's only a piece of meat the size of a fingernail in the middle."

"That amount isn't even enough to fill a tooth gap."

"We love restaurants where we can eat heartily, with our mouths greasy and sticky – that's what real eating is all about!"

Jiang Ruyue, who had been quietly waiting on the sidelines all afternoon, took a step forward.

She straightened her skirt, her cool, first-love face filled with seriousness, and surprisingly, she stood on the same side as these energetic young women.

"I feel the same way," Jiang Ruyue concluded. "The food my parents made at home before was really not very interesting to eat."

She looked at Bai Li, her eyes sparkling:

"It's not as good as the stinky tofu you took me to eat at that street stall last time."

have to.

Bai Li was completely convinced.

These five women include a pampered young lady who developed a rebellious streak from being raised in luxury, and four lower-class girls who grew up eating street food.

Despite their vastly different backgrounds, these two people share a remarkably similar soul.

"Fine, fine, that's all the ambition you have."

Bai Li stuffed the car keys into his pocket, stood up, and put on his trench coat.

"Unanimously approved, let's proceed."

Just as I was about to leave, Wang Wei came running over carrying a bunch of cables.

He pointed to the street corner across the street.

"Brother Li, can we skip the spicy hot pot?"

Wang Wei winked and suggested:

"When I was putting away the reflector by the window just now, I saw that a new food stall called 'Hot Pot' had opened across the street."

Wang Wei swallowed hard and began to enthusiastically promote the product:

"The mutton hot pot was placed on a charcoal stove, the red oil was boiling, and it was full of chunks of mutton with bones. The aroma could be smelled all over the street."

"I just counted carefully, and the tents outside are completely full of people."

"It's incredibly popular; the business looks booming. Shall we go over there and try it out?"