It's just that they have money.

"Brother, what are you doing in Hengdian? Are you here to audition too?"

"Do I look like an actor to you?"

Wang Shiyi looked him over carefully, tilted her head and thought for a moment, then shook her head.

Fang Chen couldn't help but chuckle.

"I'm here to discuss business." He didn't elaborate, and Wang Shiyi didn't press for details.

"So you're out alone at night?"

"Take a walk by yourself, clear your head." Fang Chen looked at her. "What about you? Going back tomorrow?"

Wang Shiyi shook his head. "I still have a day off tomorrow, and I want to wander around Hengdian a bit more to see if any other production teams are hiring. Since I'm already here, I can't just leave empty-handed."

Fang Chen looked at her and suddenly said, "Stop turning around, come to my group tomorrow."

Wang Shiyi paused for a moment, blinked twice, as if she hadn't heard clearly.

"You...your team?" Her voice rose slightly, tinged with disbelief. "Brother, you're the director?"

"no."

"Producer?"

"I guess so."

"Investors?"

"That's right."

Wang Shiyi's mouth opened into a perfect "O" shape, and his eyes widened in disbelief.

"Brother, didn't you say you were here to discuss business?"

"Can't investors be the ones discussing business?"

"But...but last time in Fengtian, you weren't with anyone else. You were just standing there with a friend, dressed like an ordinary tourist. I thought you were..." Wang Shiyi gestured incoherently, drawing circles in the air with her hands as if stirring an invisible pot of porridge, "...the kind of...ordinary people who come to watch the fun..."

"I really did come here to watch the fun."

"But you have the money to watch the show!" Wang Shiyi blurted out, then startled herself, covering her mouth with both hands, leaving only her round eyes peeking out as she looked at Fang Chen in terror.

Fang Chen couldn't help but laugh when he saw her like this.

Wang Shiyi made a muffled sound from behind her fingers: "Brother, don't laugh, I'm scared."

"What are you afraid of?"

"I'm afraid you're just kidding me." She lowered her hand, her expression changing from fear to a complex mix of anticipation and unease.

Fang Chen leaned against the lamppost, hands in his pockets, watching her with a leisurely air.

"Why would I stay up all night, messing with you on the streets of Hengdian?"

"Who knows..." Wang Shiyi muttered softly, her gaze drifting across the street, then back to his face, before quickly looking away, as if confirming something, yet not daring to look for too long. "Brother, you said you're an investor, you need some proof, right? What if you're that kind of... that kind of..."

Which one?

"It's the kind of thing that scams young girls..." Her voice trailed off, and by the last few words it was barely a whisper. Her face was bright red, the kind of red you could see even under the streetlights.

Fang Chen was genuinely amused by her this time, laughing so hard his shoulders were shaking.

"So, tell me, what's the name of your movie?"

"It's not decided yet."

"...What do you mean it's not decided yet?"

"It's in preparation, the name is tentative." Fang Chen was somewhat helpless at her tone.

Wang Shiyi's expression became even more complicated. Her eyebrows furrowed, her lips were pursed into a thin line, and her whole face was filled with confusion about whether this person was reliable or not.

She subconsciously took half a step back, as if to create a safe distance between herself and him.

"Let me tell you, even though I'm a student, I've been to over a dozen groups and met all sorts of people. Some of them are just using small resources to brag and scam women; I've encountered them."

Fang Chen found it amusing to see her looking so alarmed, but he didn't show it on his face.

"Do you think I'm that kind of person?"

Wang Shiyi scrutinized him for two seconds, her eyebrows furrowing even more.

"That's precisely why I'm scared. If you looked like a conman, I would have run away long ago."

She spoke with such sincerity that Fang Chen couldn't tell whether she was praising him or scolding him.

"You don't look like a con artist, and you don't talk like one, but what you're saying... it sounds too much like something a con artist would say. Do you understand what I mean?"

"I understand." Fang Chen nodded. "You mean, a conman who looks like a good person is more dangerous than a conman who just looks like a conman."

"Yes, yes, yes!" Wang Shiyi nodded repeatedly, but then suddenly realized something was wrong and shook his head. "No, no, I didn't mean you're a liar, I meant... oh dear, I can't explain it clearly."

She was so anxious that she spun around in place. After she finished, she stopped, took a deep breath, and patted her cheeks with both hands, making two crisp slapping sounds.

"Calm down, girl, calm down."

Fang Chen's lips twitched as he watched her slap his face twice.

Why are you hitting yourself?

"Come to your senses," Wang Shiyi said confidently, then suddenly realized that her behavior might have seemed a bit silly to others, and her ears turned red again. "Just pretend you didn't see it."

"I saw it."

"Could you please cooperate?"

"Okay, I didn't see it." Fang Chen readily agreed.

Wang Shiyi nodded in satisfaction, then composed himself and said seriously, "Brother Fang, I have one last question for you."

"ask."

How many people are in your group right now?

"There are three screenwriters, two production staff, one administrative staff, and a newly signed male actor."

After listening, Wang Shiyi counted on his fingers, then looked up with a puzzled expression on his face, as if he wasn't very good at math.

"So there aren't many people there?"

"Yes, it's just getting started."

"A fledgling production team, you dare to cast a student like me?"

"Why wouldn't you dare?"

"Because...because I have no experience! Aren't you afraid I'll mess it up?"

"You're inexperienced, so you're not afraid I'm a scammer. I'm experienced, why should I be afraid of you messing things up?"

Wang Shiyi was speechless, her mouth agape for a long while before she finally managed to stammer, "Where do you look like you have any experience?"

Fang Chen was stumped by her question.

He thought about it for a moment and realized he didn't seem like it. He'd only been in the industry a few days, the company was acquired, the team was already there, the actors were newly signed, and the script was still being revised. From any angle, he didn't seem like an "experienced" film investor.

But he still spoke up.

"I don't have experience, I have money."

Wang Shiyi was stunned for a moment.

"There are plenty of rich people out there," she said softly.

Fang Chen shrugged: "There are indeed many rich people. Right now, there's one standing in front of you. The opportunity is yours; you decide for yourself."

Wang Shiyi took a deep breath and nodded vigorously.

"Okay. I'll give it a try tomorrow. If I get the part, I'll act; if I don't..."

"Then let's go back to school," Fang Chen said matter-of-factly.

"Okay, let me add you on WeChat first!"