055 A Sequel to "Sunny Piggy"?

Since they had different viewpoints, half a sentence was already too much. After exchanging only a few words, Yan Li parted ways with Fan Xiaopang and headed to the dressing room together with Liang Guanhua, who was waiting for him.

"Hey, what did she want to talk to you about?"

Liang Guanhua asked with a gossipy tone. Yan Li answered honestly, "She was explaining to me why she forgot her lines earlier."

"Ah?"

Liang Guanhua looked puzzled. "Does that have anything to do with you? Shouldn't she be explaining that to the director?"

"I have no idea what she was thinking either."

Speaking of this, Yan Li was also baffled. If you forget your lines, go back and memorize them. What's the point of telling me? It was her own mistake, yet she wouldn't even let people shake their heads.

"I think this girl feels a bit different about you."

Liang Guanhua put on the posture of an experienced veteran, his chubby face twitching and winking. "How about I play matchmaker for the two of you?"

She sure felt different!

She probably had several thousand words of intelligence reports cursing him out tonight. Well, maybe even more.

Yan Li maintained a simple and honest expression. "Forget it. She's already a top-tier young actress, while I'm a complete nobody. I wouldn't dare climb so high."

"You are just too honest, kid."

Liang Guanhua sighed, looking at him with a mix of disappointment and hope. Yan Li was good in every aspect—he spoke well, knew how to handle social situations, and had solid professional skills. It was just that he became shy the moment he saw girls. No wonder he was still single despite being so handsome.

Just as they were chatting, Yan Li received a call from Cheng Lidong, inviting him out for dinner.

Yan Li had a rough idea in mind. Cheng Lidong had hinted before that a friend of his had a project that wasn't going smoothly and wanted to see if they could quietly inquire about it through his "relative."

Although Cheng hadn't specified the exact situation, Yan Li already had a pretty good grasp of it through his system. He figured it wasn't a major issue and it would be a good way to do someone a favor.

"Alright, wait for me a moment. I'll take off my makeup and head over."

Yan Li made arrangements with Cheng Lidong, then removed his makeup, changed his clothes, and got into Cheng Lidong's car to head toward the city center.

Attentive observers noticed this, further cementing the rumor that Yan Li and producer Cheng Lidong were on extremely good terms.

Fan Xiaopang also got word of it. Though she cursed him as a bootlicker in her heart, her anger subsided quite a bit.

There was nothing else she could do; he had the big boss of the crew backing him up, and she couldn't afford to provoke him...

————

In a restaurant in Suzhou City

Inside a private dining room, Cheng Lidong introduced the two parties: "Xiao Yan, this is Director Meng Ji. He directed *The Legendary Siblings* and *Sunny Piggy*."

Yan Li clasped his hands together tightly. "Director Meng, I've heard so much about you."

"Old Meng, this is the younger brother I told you about, Yan Li. He's a really great guy and his acting skills are top-notch."

Wearing glasses, Meng Ji wasn't one to smile easily. His attitude toward Yan Li was neither cold nor particularly warm.

As for what Cheng Lidong said, Meng Ji was actually half-skeptical. Coming over today was primarily because he happened to be in Suzhou City anyway, so he dropped by to catch up with old times with Cheng Lidong. He hadn't paid much attention to the Yan Li that Cheng had recommended.

Meng Ji wasn't Cheng Lidong. The latter mainly operated in Zhejiang Province with a relatively low status and limited connections in Beijing.

Meng Ji, on the other hand, had been a director since the 1990s and knew quite a few people both inside and outside the official system in Beijing. The production company behind this current project wasn't some small-time outfit either, and even they couldn't find a solution. How could it possibly be resolved by some random greenhorn?

Yan Li?

Heh, as if he hadn't checked. None of the major leaders at a certain bureau had the last name Yan, and his friends working at that bureau also said they had never heard of that name.

Of course, given Cheng Lidong's precedent, Meng Ji didn't go so far as to think Yan Li was a complete fraud.

There were a lot of people working at that bureau; who could possibly keep track of everyone's relatives? Add in those who kept a low profile, and it was normal for his friend not to know.

However, Yan Li's evasive and secretive style didn't look like someone with genuine backing, which made Meng Ji strongly suspect that Yan Li might have just stumbled into success last time by sheer luck.

Yan Li sensed Meng Ji's indifference, but he didn't mind at all.

It wasn't like he was the one in a rush!

If Yan Li wanted to expand his network, he didn't have to desperately grovel and pander to every successful person he met. He wasn't going to die if he didn't befriend them, so why should he act so humble and low?

Therefore, if Meng Ji chose not to bring it up, so be it; he would just consider it lack of destiny. Getting a free, luxurious meal today meant the trip wasn't a waste either.

With a calm and relaxed mindset, Yan Li ate and drank heartily. When chatting, he was accommodating and maintained the proper posture of a respectful junior.

However, expecting him to be emotionally perceptive and proactively offer to share the burden for them was completely out of the question.

Seeing that they were almost done eating and the main business hadn't been brought up yet, the middleman Cheng Lidong started to feel the pressure and took the initiative to break the deadlock.

"Xiao Yan, here's the thing. Director Meng has a crime-themed TV series on his hands, but the censorship review keeps getting blocked. You're well-connected; see if you can help inquire about it."

Since Cheng Lidong had spoken up, Meng Ji couldn't continue playing deaf and dumb. Treating a dead horse like a live one, trying couldn't hurt anyway.

Thus, Meng Ji finally opened his mouth, explained the specific situation in detail, and then stated:

"Xiao Yan, don't worry. Old Cheng knows my personality. If this matter gets resolved, I will definitely not treat you unfairly."

Since Meng Ji had stated his stance, Yan Li didn't put on airs and even gave Cheng Lidong a polite boost.

"Since Brother Cheng has spoken, I definitely have to help."

"However, Director Meng, let's get the ugly words out of the way first. My capabilities are limited; I can only help inquire about the news, and I can't guarantee that it will definitely work."

This kind of matter could be assisted with, but one should never make blanket promises or take full responsibility.

Use three tenths of your effort, speak three tenths of your capability, and always leave yourself room to maneuver.

Meng Ji indicated that he understood. Only then did Yan Li take out his phone and say he was going outside to make a call to check on the situation.

It took nearly twenty minutes before Yan Li returned. Facing the expectant gazes of Cheng Lidong and Meng Ji, he nodded slightly.

"There's some progress."

"How is it?"

Meng Ji hadn't expected Yan Li to actually dig up some progress. Pleasantly surprised, he proactively stood up and poured him a glass of water.

Yan Li didn't beat around the bush and dropped some specific details: "Here is the thing. The exact specifics are still unclear at the moment, but it should be related to the recent XX special case at a certain bureau..."

The more Meng Ji listened, the more reliable it sounded. The vast majority of what Yan Li mentioned, he already knew, but there were also a few crucial details he had been completely unaware of.

Tsk, he had been blind to a person of true greatness and had actually run into a genuine deity!

"That's all I know for now. I also begged my relative to help look into it, and I'll give Director Meng an update when the time comes."

Yan Li didn't spill everything all at once. The timeframe was too short, which would make it seem too abnormal.

Moreover, drawing from his previous experience with Cheng Lidong, Yan Li felt that for situations like this, dragging the timeline out a bit longer made it look more "hard-earned," making the favor much more valuable.

Furthermore, he would no longer give precise, direct, and specific pointers; instead, he would provide a general scope followed by vague hints to avoid any future trouble.

Although Yan Li constantly downplayed his own "intelligence-gathering ability," in the eyes of outsiders, his credibility was actually continuously rising.

Mainly because the intelligence system was too much like a cheat code, and Yan Li's act of downplaying it actually fit much better into the normal, realistic logic of everyone's understanding.

Take Meng Ji, for example. He now truly believed that Yan Li was "well-connected," and his attitude had become several times warmer and friendlier than before. Since the matter wasn't even settled yet, he had already extended an olive branch.

"I happen to be preparing a new show right now, a sequel to *Sunny Piggy*. If Xiao Yan is interested, I'll reserve a role for you."

A sequel to *Sunny Piggy*?

Yan Li grew interested. With the influence of the predecessor, he guessed the reception and results should be quite good.

However, looking at his own appearance, grabbing the male lead role of Piggy Bajie was a long shot, but he could check out whether there were any standout supporting roles available when the time came.