Little Treasure, Never Underestimate Yourself

Chu Tian cleared his throat, his face a little warm as he muttered softly, "What was the point of telling me so early..."

After saying that, Chu Tian straightened up again and snapped with more bluster than bite, "What business is it of yours whether I bring family along? Worst case, I'll pay for the meal later!"

"Godfather!" Zhou Han's expression changed instantly, and his attitude toward Chu Tian became respectful. Then he looked at Gu Shiyan. "Godmother!"

Gu Shiyan: "..."

Chu Tian: "..." You're really something else.

Zhou Han had an incredibly thick skin. Not only was he unashamed, he was downright pleased with himself.

The reason he had been so devastated that Chu Tian had brought family along was simply because he wanted barbecue, not dog food. But since Chu Tian had offered to cover the food expenses...

Barbecue mixed with dog food? He could handle it!

"Is it really that dramatic?" Chu Tian asked, both annoyed and amused. When the owner brought over the freshly grilled food, he proactively pushed it toward Zhou Han.

"You don't understand." Zhou Han grabbed a skewer of grilled pork belly and took a savage bite. The fragrance instantly brought tears to his eyes. "I don't have a company or an agent. If I want work, I have to go from crew to crew, auditioning and begging for jobs myself. If I'm lucky, I get a bit part and have money to eat. If I'm unlucky, I can go a whole month without work and live on thin air. It's miserable..."

Chu Tian was somewhat moved by that. He had just raised a hand, intending to pat Zhou Han's shoulder and comfort him.

"Mmm, so good." Zhou Han's melancholy from moments ago vanished completely. With one huge bite, he could strip an entire skewer clean. "You two should eat too. Barbecue only tastes good while it's hot. I didn't know you were bringing family, so I only ordered enough for two. If it's not enough, we can order more."

Chu Tian's mouth twitched as he silently withdrew his hand.

He had worried for nothing!

Zhou Han was not familiar with Gu Shiyan. Although one was the third male lead and the other was the fourth, and they had quite a few scenes together, they had never interacted beyond the basic courtesy of nodding to each other.

Compared to Gu Shiyan, who was always stern and spoke little outside of filming, Chu Tian, whose train of thought matched his own, was much more to Zhou Han's taste.

But now that they were sitting at the same table eating... Zhou Han's eyes shifted. For Chu Tian's sake, he decided to give Gu Shiyan a warning. "You'd better have your agent come to the set within the next couple of days."

Gu Shiyan paused and looked up at him.

Cao Ying had more than just Gu Shiyan under his management. Especially after realizing that Gu Shiyan was showing signs of becoming uncontrollable, he had deliberately left Gu Shiyan alone on set under the excuse that he was busy with other work. He had not assigned him an assistant either, intentionally making things difficult for him.

Gu Shiyan did not care whether Cao Ying was around or not, but there was enough in Zhou Han's words to make him think twice.

"What do you mean?" Chu Tian asked indistinctly through a mouthful of grilled beef tongue as he chewed with all his might, urging Zhou Han to explain.

Zhou Han sighed and set down the skewer in his hand. "I'll be direct. I heard Wang Yang privately telling the screenwriter that Gu Shiyan stole his spotlight. He wants the screenwriter to cut Gu Shiyan's scenes."

Wang Yang was the second male lead in this drama.

To give Wang Yang more scenes, even Zhou Han's own role as the third male lead had been cut again and again. He could barely look after himself, so how could he worry about anyone else? But who told him to be such a kind person?

Now that they had run into each other, he could not live with his conscience if he did not warn him.

Chu Tian frowned and cautiously looked toward Gu Shiyan.

No wonder this drama had flopped so quickly in the original novel after the four-way romance was exposed. When Chu Tian read this part, he had even complained about whether the male lead's plot armor had suddenly stopped working, for him to get screwed over like this.

So it had not failed. It was simply too powerful.

It turned out Wang Yang was unhappy that Gu Shiyan was more handsome, had a better figure, and played a more likable character. That was why he had stirred up trouble, wanting the screenwriter to alter the script and reduce Gu Shiyan's scenes.

Gu Shiyan's male lead plot armor continued to work its magic. The person trying to cause trouble got exposed before he could drag Gu Shiyan down.

"I understand." Gu Shiyan gave Zhou Han a polite nod. "Thank you."

Seeing that the atmosphere had grown heavy, Chu Tian lightly coughed and patted Gu Shiyan's arm in reassurance.

"Don't be afraid. I can tell you're blessed by fate. With a quick calculation, I can see that you'll definitely escape danger this time and rise to greater heights. Within three days, there will be a turn for the better."

"Oh? You can tell fortunes too? You're acting like it's real." Zhou Han laughed heartily, showing him no mercy. "Then calculate when I'll become famous."

"Heh." Chu Tian sneered and actually made a hand seal. "I calculated it. You have no chance."

Hearing that, Zhou Han was not angry at all. Instead, he laughed even harder.

Chu Tian sneered repeatedly and did not argue with him, merely waiting for the outcome to be revealed within three days.

[Laugh all you want. Your mockery right now will become the boomerang that hits you in the future!]

Although the original novel of Nine Provinces Sword had been written many years ago, and some of its jokes and tropes seemed outdated now, it had become hugely popular back then because of the author's skill at creating characters.

Every person in the book felt like more than a flat figure on paper. The author gave them flesh and blood through words, crafting them so vividly that readers still found them unforgettable.

Gu Shiyan had come for the character in the original novel, only to run into an awful director, screenwriter, and coworkers.

However, in the original novel, the rights to Nine Provinces Sword changed hands again a few years later. With a rising director and a capable editor at the helm, Gu Shiyan played the male lead. After airing, it became that year's breakout phenomenon.

With that drama, Gu Shiyan won the White Peony Best Actor Award in one stroke, earning the first Best Actor title of his life.

Chu Tian thought about it. Good opportunities should not go to outsiders.

With an idea forming in his mind, Chu Tian became distracted. Even the delicious barbecue could not pull back his wandering thoughts.

Seizing the opportunity, Zhou Han swept through the food like a whirlwind and polished off more than half of it in one go.

Gu Shiyan said nothing. He simply took a few extra skewers of beef and shrimp and casually placed them in Chu Tian's bowl.

Chu Tian did not notice at all. After hurriedly finishing his skewer and paying the bill, he rushed back to the hotel and called Chu Maoming.

"Brother!" Chu Tian spoke in a fawning tone, smiling like a fox that had stolen cream. "I've got a great chance to make money. Do you want in?"

Unfortunately, Chu Maoming was cold and ruthless. "No."

Chu Tian: "..."

"No," Chu Tian protested, "do you really not want to hear it? I'm telling you, if you miss this chance, you'll only be able to dream about getting rich with so little money!"

"Oh." Chu Maoming remained cold and calm. "I'm already very rich. I don't need those scraps."

Chu Tian: "..." But I do!

The urge to resent the rich stirred within him.

Perhaps sensing Chu Tian's low spirits, Chu Maoming's voice softened slightly. "The company has a lot of projects lately, and I'm busy with work. I don't have time to open up a new project. If you have an idea, do it yourself. If you need money, tell me. Treat it as practice investing. It doesn't matter if you lose money. As long as you gain experience, it won't be a loss."

"But..." Chu Tian stammered, his face red, "I-I don't have that much money."

He had never looked deeply into this industry and did not know how much it cost to invest in a drama, but it was definitely not something he could afford.

"Go find Little Cai." Chu Maoming pointed Chu Tian in the right direction. "Have him make an analysis plan and an investment budget for you. You can ask him about anything you don't understand. While you're at it, have him calculate your assets."

Chu Maoming paused there, then said meaningfully, "Little Treasure, never underestimate yourself, understand?"