In America, the Best Actor award starts with stereotypes.

Filming for "Rush Hour" is progressing smoothly.

Chen Zhuo has been living a more and more comfortable life these days.

On set, through hard work and sweat, he almost never made a mistake during filming and delivered several outstanding performances. He even had his own seat while waiting for his turn to be filmed.

Back in the basement at night, I had roast duck, milk tea, wontons, and roast pork every day, and I even ate West Lake Vinegar Fish once, which was alright, but I have to say it was definitely not authentic at all.

That day, the crew had a half-day off because they needed to move to an indoor location to prepare for filming.

Chen Zhuo came to the park alone and continued his Rubik's Cube sermon.

Although progress has been slow these past few days, thanks to the spread of information on the Internet, he has still managed to get two white entries.

[Helpful (white): Good deeds are rewarded; those you help will have their favorability rating increased.]

[Intelligent (White): Your comprehension is outstanding. Even in completely unfamiliar fields, you can quickly find the way and learn new knowledge at a rapid pace.]

This made him even more convinced that he was on the right track, and he worked even harder in his teaching.

By the time everything was over, it was already dusk.

Feeling a bit thirsty, Chen Zhuo walked toward the vending machine in the park based on his memory.

He had just turned past a grove of trees when he saw a familiar figure.

Alicia Silverstone.

She was wearing a black knit sweater today, and her long golden hair fell naturally over her shoulders.

To avoid paparazzi, she wasn't wearing makeup, a mask covered most of her face, and a hat, but the familiar weariness and dejection in her eyes still made Chen Zhuo recognize her at a glance.

She was standing in front of the vending machine, pressing the confirm button with some frustration.

Clearly, there was a minor malfunction in the vending machine.

In this day and age, just as television screens sometimes glitches, vending machines placed on the roadside often get stuck.

Alicia sighed self-pityingly, her shoulders slumped, and she prepared to give up and leave.

"Bang."

A hand suddenly slammed down above the shipping outlet.

Alicia was startled and instinctively took a half step back and turned to the side.

Chen Zhuo was standing beside him, a gentle and polite smile on his face.

"Clang!"

A can of Coke fell down.

"Here you go. This usually happens when the outlet is blocked. Just tap the outlet and it'll be fine."

Chen Zhuo bent down, took out the can of cola, and handed it to Alicia, who was still somewhat dazed.

"Oh, thank you."

Alicia looked at that slender hand and suddenly felt a sense of familiarity.

She glanced at Chen Zhuo furtively, her cheeks slightly flushed.

She recognized the face.

It's that man who teaches Rubik's Cube by the river.

These days, she often wanders aimlessly along the Los Angeles River.

Only now, feeling her heart pounding faster, did she realize that she had not been aimlessly wandering.

She carefully took the Coke.

The originally cold jar felt somewhat warm to her.

Chen Zhuo bought himself a regular bottle of water, opened it, and took a big gulp.

I let out a comfortable sigh of relief.

Drinking water is more effective at quenching thirst than beverages.

Alicia pulled the tab and took a sip, the rich sweetness temporarily washing away her worries and giving her a taste of youth again.

"Um... could you do me a favor?"

Ok?

Chen Zhuo was surprised that she would take the initiative to talk to him, and he glanced at her with some surprise.

"I'm out of coins. Could you buy me a bag of Skittles? I can give you extra money."

Alicia winked at him, her eyes filled with girlish anticipation.

"No need, it's nothing at all."

Chen Zhuo waved his hand and then put another coin into the vending machine.

"Clang!"

A bag of Skittles fell down.

"Give."

Chen Zhuo spoke calmly, handed over the candy, and prepared to leave.

"etc."

Alicia rummaged in her handbag for a while and pulled out a gift certificate.

"A friend gave it to me, but I don't like this store, and it's a shame to throw it away. If you don't want to take it, you can take it."

Chen Zhuo took it and looked at it.

This is a dark green Bloomingdale's gift certificate with a gold trim, worth one hundred dollars.

In this era, paper gift certificates are a symbol of status, circulating only in high-end circles. They are also a form of hard currency in the market, easily exchangeable for cash anywhere.

If I pay for your payment with a 50-cent coin, are you going to pay me back with a hundred-dollar bill?

Isn't that a bit too generous of you?

Chen Zhuo was both amused and exasperated.

"This is too much, I can't accept it."

"If you don't take it, I'll throw it away."

Alicia pouted, her tone carrying a hint of arrogance.

This……

Chen Zhuo's hand holding the gift certificate froze.

He was terrified of poverty and couldn't stand such waste.

Seeing Chen Zhuo looking somewhat bewildered, Alicia let out a soft snort.

"You really don't recognize me?"

Before he could respond, she took off her mask, revealing a hint of grievance on her delicate, youthful face.

"Last time my wallet was stolen, you ran out like Peter Parker and got it back for me from the thief."

"Even a bottle of drink was against me today, and you stepped in to get it for me."

"I begged you to do me a favor, and you agreed without hesitation."

Alicia raised her eyelids and stared straight at him, her eyes slightly red.

"I owe you three times, yet you won't even accept the slightest bit of kindness from me."

"You, like the media, my relatives, and friends, think I'm a jinx who will ruin everything, so you don't want to be associated with me, right?"

Her chest heaved, and her voice trembled with sobs.

"No, no, I never thought that way, Miss Silverstone."

Chen Zhuo waved his hands repeatedly, looking somewhat astonished.

"You recognize me now, so you must know what I've been through all this time."

Alicia took a half step forward and stared directly into his eyes.

Do you think I'm like the person portrayed in the reports?

"No, you are very slim and definitely not the jinx the media portrays you as."

Chen Zhuo met the gaze and looked back, his eyes serious.

Alicia grabbed his collar; her 1.65-meter height seemed petite next to Chen Zhuo's 1.8-meter height.

"Would you be willing to be my friend and continue to lend a helping hand when I'm helpless?"

Since you've said that, if I refuse, would I even be human?

Chen Zhuo sighed inwardly and nodded slightly.

"Hello, Miss Silverstone, my name is George Chen."

"Just call me Alicia."

"Okay, Alicia."

As soon as Chen Zhuo finished speaking, a pair of slender hands handed him paper and pen.

"As friends, shouldn't we exchange contact information?"

"That seems to be the case."

Chen Zhuo smiled and shook his head, then wrote down his contact information.

For some reason, he felt as if he had fallen into a trap.

"I have some things to take care of. If you need any help, just give me a call. Consider it my way of repaying you for this gift certificate."

He exchanged notes with contact information written on them, waved, and left.

Alicia watched Chen Zhuo's retreating figure, a faint smile appearing on her lips.

He was somewhat smug, and also a little cunning.

As the sun set, the blonde girl put on a mask and gripped the sticky note in her hand tightly.

The evening breeze was pleasant, and my steps were light.

It felt like going back to a few months ago.