Not interested in money?
How thick did his skin have to be to pull off such a boast?
Vin Diesel was roasting him mercilessly inside, unaware that this was merely one of Lin Yuan's peculiar amusements.
It would not be until CCTV's 2015 program Let's Talk that the original owner of that line would get the chance to say it.
Although Lin Yuan had said it first as a joke, he was not rich enough yet for it to sound like a Versailles humblebrag.
The effect was truly terrible!
He secretly resolved that he would definitely find another chance to say it in the future.
"What nonsense are you talking about? Haven't you nearly spent all your money already?" Vin Diesel asked worriedly.
"No, my money keeps growing. Director Ang Lee just gave me a huge red envelope."
After Lin Yuan's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon promo aired, Director Ang Lee had said he would give Lin Yuan a red envelope when he saw the screenings surge.
As the box office revenue gradually came in, he promptly made good on that promise.
A full 1.5 million USD!
To be honest, Lin Yuan had been stunned when he received the money.
Not because he thought it was too little, but because Director Ang Lee had given him far too much.
Although Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon had reached 240 million USD at the box office with Lin Yuan's help,
the producers would be lucky to receive 100 million of that. The rest went to distributors and theaters.
Director Ang Lee's salary had only been 1 million USD, and even with his box office share, he probably made around 9 million USD in total.
For him to hand over such a large sum at once was incredibly generous.
With the $1.5 million he had just received, plus the $2 million Jackie Chan had given him during his trip to Hong Kong Island, Lin Yuan still had more than $2 million on hand even after splurging on gifts.
The entertainment industry truly was a place of fame and fortune. Being a star was seriously profitable!
Although Lin Yuan was nowhere near earning 2.08 million a day, he could probably barely be considered half-Shuang level.
So Lin Yuan's money had not decreased at all. It was only growing.
"Fine, I won't tag along for the last gift. Go on your own." Vin Diesel raised his brows with a teasing grin.
Indeed, the final gift was for Liu Yifei.
Grand Central Terminal, located in the heart of Manhattan, New York City.
Construction on the station began in 1903, and it officially opened on February 2, 1913. It already had nearly ninety years of history.
As a landmark of New York, Grand Central Terminal still retained its status as the world's largest train station even in 2024, after infrastructure construction had begun booming across the western side of the Pacific. It stood firm and unshaken.
Lin Yuan strolled through the station's main concourse, gazing at the soaring dome overhead. He could not help marveling that such a magnificent structure had been built at the beginning of the last century. It truly was a miracle.
Unfortunately, that glory belonged only to yesterday.
Today's Bald Eagle no longer possessed such infrastructure-building capabilities. After all, playing with finance was just too satisfying.
People streamed through the station hall, and amid the dense crowd, Lin Yuan spotted that tall figure at a glance.
Liu Yifei, dressed in a short white down jacket, had arrived ahead of him.
Lin Yuan walked over with a smile. "Qianqian, long time no see."
"You always say that. Good thing you didn't follow it with, 'I've missed you to death.'" Liu Yifei wrinkled her nose, looking utterly adorable.
"That was Teacher Feng's line. Too bad I never went down the comedy-star route. What a waste of my talent."
"Talent?" Celestial Fairy looked a little puzzled.
"Haven't you noticed that a lot of comedy stars are actually very handsome?"
Lin Yuan was not talking nonsense. Just look at Stephen Chow, Hong Kong Island's King of Comedy, and the two successive military arts academy heartthrobs from mainland China, both of whom had excelled at comedy.
People with comical faces naturally had an advantage when acting in comedies.
But handsome people with a sense of humor were the true trump card.
Not only could they make people laugh, they were also likable and pleasing to the eye.
"You're really going in circles just to praise yourself for being handsome. Your skin is getting thicker and thicker!"
Liu Yifei cautiously reached out her hand. Seeing that Lin Yuan had no intention of dodging, she lightly pinched his cheek and tugged it.
That was how it was between a man and woman who liked each other. They used certain contexts to conceal their shyness, touching each other under flimsy pretenses while thinking they were being clever.
"Your skin really is thick. I wasn't wrong at all!"
With that added line, the feeling of overdoing it became even stronger.
"Am I really not handsome?" Lin Yuan asked with a smile.
"You were pretty handsome to begin with, but saying that makes you seem greasy. You know, the most handsome kind of handsome is when someone doesn't realize it himself."
"If someone were truly that handsome, how could he possibly not know? Pretending not to know you're handsome—isn't that hypocritical?"
"You're getting better and better at talking."
"But not many women like me."
The moment he said that, they both suddenly laughed.
It was an understanding shared only between them.
They had not seen each other for more than twenty days, and Lin Yuan looked her over again and again before suddenly asking, "Huh? Did you get taller?"
"Mm, two centimeters. I'm 170 now."
Lin Yuan nodded. She was still growing, so she would get taller. In his memories, Liu Yifei had grown to 172 centimeters, with fair skin, a beautiful face, and long legs.
"Did you get taller too?" Liu Yifei compared herself with Lin Yuan and realized that the gap between their heights had not narrowed.
"Mm, two centimeters, just like you. I'm 185 now."
Lin Yuan would turn nineteen in another two months, yet he was still growing. In his previous life, he had reached 188 centimeters.
They had the perfect height difference. They really were made for each other. That was what Lin Yuan thought, and he believed Liu Yifei thought the same.
I find the green hills so enchanting; surely the green hills see me the same way.
"Let's go. The train is about to leave. It would be awful if we missed it," Liu Yifei said.
"If we really miss it, we'll just buy tickets for the next one."
"Then I won't be able to avoid my mom checking up on me."
Liu Mama had gone back to China again. Her frequent trips back recently were to pave the way for Liu Yifei's return next year to take the Yanying entrance exam.
Over the next year, Liu Yifei would also be extremely busy.
She not only had to complete her studies, but also prepare for Yanying's entrance examination and take foundational acting classes.
Today's trip was time the two of them had squeezed out of their busy schedules.
They were taking a train together from New York to Nashville, the capital of Tennessee, covering a total distance of 2,200 kilometers.
"Hurry up. The Nashville Country Music Festival is waiting for me. I can hardly wait," Liu Yifei said.
If you're in such a hurry, why didn't you fly?
Lin Yuan only grumbled inwardly. How could he fail to understand the romance of taking a train together, crossing North America and taking in the scenery along the way?
You had to slow down to make things romantic. Too many things were no good when they happened too quickly.
Even more exciting was the fact that they would spend a night together on the train.
After completing another date with any girl, a skill reward will be granted based on the host's performance!
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