The sky was just brightening. Qu Yanting arrived at the film set early in the morning. He tried his best to avoid meeting too many people on the way from the residential area's entrance to the building unit.

The residential area was filled with the desolation of a crisp autumn morning. There were few people around. The members of Group A, who had just finished an all-nighter, were all resting in the open space behind the building unit.

Xiao Zhang walked over carrying a bag of breakfast. "Screenwriter Qu, good morning. This portion is for you. Soy milk and xiaolongbao. If you're not used to it, I can go buy something else."

Qu Yanting took it and said, "Thank you."

Xiao Zhang explained, "I didn't buy it. Group A pulled an all-nighter last night and just wrapped up. Brother Lu Wen was considerate of everyone's hard work and treated the whole crew to breakfast."

Qu Yanting didn't say anything. He carried the buns and soy milk into the building unit.

He hadn't been to the lounge yesterday, so the room was a bit stuffy. He walked to the balcony to open the window for ventilation. The residential area had limited space. Standing on the balcony of 101, he had an unobstructed view of the scene behind the building.

Outside the window, Group A was exhausted after pulling an all-nighter. Everyone was resting haphazardly on the spot, slumping down. Those eating breakfast ate breakfast, and those dozing off dozed off.

Qu Yanting's eyesight was average, so he couldn't observe everyone individually, but he noticed a few peculiar characters. Under the grapevine, Ren Shu and Director Liu were lying face to face on a table, having a small meeting. The art director was squatting under a streetlamp, wiping a pair of fluorescent orange sneakers on his feet.

The most conspicuous was the male lead, who was standing while others were slumping, and not just standing—he was doing a handstand in front of the fence.

Lu Wen had been in a handstand for five minutes. The blood rushing to his head slightly diluted much of the fatigue from the all-night shoot. He didn't dare to sit, let alone go back to his trailer to rest, afraid that he would close his eyes and sleep like a log.

This was because there were still two scenes to film during the day. He could only wrap up after they were done.

Sun Xiaojian squatted to the side. "Come down, the coffee isn't hot anymore."

Lu Wen flipped down, wiped his hands, and took a cup of extra-strong coffee to wake himself up. He could have taken a nap yesterday evening, but Qu Yanting was in his trailer. Not only did he invade his personal space, but he also annoyed him, which made him unable to sleep after he left.

Sun Xiaojian asked, "What did you and Screenwriter Qu talk about yesterday?"

"Nothing much," Lu Wen said. "I don't like to chitchat."

Sun Xiaojian understood as soon as he heard it. It was most likely bickering. He said, "When Screenwriter Qu got off the trailer, his expression was a bit cold."

Lu Wen took a sip. "What's new? When has he ever given me a pleasant look?"

Sun Xiaojian thought about it, and it was true. He felt that between Lu Wen and Qu Yanting, there was a sense of a fractured relationship, yet they couldn't avoid seeing each other and were forced to interact, creating a feeling of friction.

"It's especially like..." he said, making an analogy, "a divorced couple who reluctantly maintains contact for the sake of custody rights."

Lu Wen almost snorted the coffee out of his nose. "Stop spouting such moronic nonsense at me."

Sun Xiaojian said, "Then what kind of feeling is it?"

Lu Wen tried to find a suitable word, but the few he thought of didn't seem accurate enough. His language skills weren't great, so he brushed it off. "Why would I have any feelings for him? I'm going to wait for my cue."

He said he was waiting for his cue, but the surrounding area was just that big. It was just a matter of circling around the base of the wall and waiting in a less crowded spot in front of the building. He stood to the side, waiting for all the teams to get ready.

When Lu Wen was doing the handstand, a section of his pant leg had slipped down and was now stuck at the bend of his knee, revealing his long, firm left calf. He had always been active; even when his body was tired, his head still had to look around at anything interesting.

Turning his head, he realized he was standing under the balcony window of 101.

Lu Wen looked up again and saw Qu Yanting standing inside the window. He was so startled he jumped back a step. Out of surprise or agitation, he stomped his foot hard, shaking the pant leg down.

Qu Yanting hadn't noticed him at first. Now, following the sound, he lowered his gaze and looked at Lu Wen with a calm expression. Then he raised his cup and took a sip of the sweet soy milk treated by the silly boy.

In movies and TV shows, a scene like this would be a date, a courtship, or at the very least, a love song would be sung.

However, there was no greeting, and waving was out of the question. Lu Wen and Qu Yanting's eyes met for an instant before they both looked away, turning their heads back.

Next, the set was ready, and all departments were in position. Lu Wen walked towards the grapevine.

This grapevine was planted by Ye Shan. He had spent countless nights sitting alone under it to relieve his worries. Last night's all-night shoot took place under the grapevine for half the night.

The scene about to be filmed was Ye Xiaowu skipping class and coming home to find Ye Shan's new book destroyed. He wanted to buy a new one for Ye Shan. He had no money, but when he saw the neighbors playing cards under the grapevine, he came up with a plan.

Lu Wen walked over, changed direction, and caught a glimpse of Qu Yanting having already left the balcony.

Filming began.

"Uncles and Aunties, playing cards again," Ye Xiaowu popped up, leaning against the trellis.

The neighbors were used to him skipping class. Auntie Yang said, "It's so hard to get into a key high school, yet you skip school all the time. You'll regret it in the future."

Ye Xiaowu: "It's the sports meet today, so I came back."

"Nonsense," Uncle Lin said. "My nephew goes to the same school as you. He said it's not until next month."

Ye Xiaowu: "Hehe."

Auntie Yang: "Be careful or your mom will whip you when she gets back."

Ye Xiaowu: "I'll just say I have a headache. My mom dotes on me the most, she wouldn't bear to hit me."

Grandpa Qian spoke unhurriedly, "Let him skip if he wants to, he can't learn anyway. I think he should go help at the fish stall. It's not like he has any hope of getting into university."

Ye Xiaowu disliked Grandpa Qian the most. The nasty old man was always pulling rank because of his age. He said, "How do you know I can't get in? If I get into university, I'll invite you to the opening ceremony."

Grandpa Qian: "If you can get in, then I can be a professor at the university."

Ye Xiaowu changed the subject. "Why don't you put aside the matter of being a professor and first settle the five table fees you owe?"

Grandpa Qian's expression changed. "You little brat, hounding me for a debt of ten yuan. I'll give it to you when I win."

Ye Xiaowu: "You say that every time. This is the fifth time. You can't even pay a ten-yuan table fee. Do you need to pay in installments for a bowl of xiaomian? Do you need a loan to eat a pot of chuanchuan?"

Grandpa Qian had always liked to take advantage of others. Annoyed and embarrassed, he pushed his cards aside, welshing on the ten yuan, and left.

Ye Xiaowu immediately sat down. "Let me play, let me play. What are the stakes?"

Auntie Yang: "Do you have any money? Don't just join in for fun."

"You don't get it, do you," Ye Xiaowu said. "This is called 'catching a wolf with bare hands'."

Ye Xiaowu was bad at studying, but he was good at everything unrelated to it. He joined the card game, shedding his usual devil-may-care attitude. He focused on the cards, not making a sound during each round.

As soon as he won, he would curve two fingers and tap the corner of the table, signaling everyone to pay up, his posture like that of a veteran.

After a few rounds, Ye Xiaowu had not only won enough for the book, but also enough for his and Ye Shan's pocket money for the next month, based on their family's living standards. He didn't linger on the victory. "Let's stop here."

The other three were unwilling to accept their loss and demanded another round.

Ye Xiaowu folded the scattered bills one by one. "Thank you, Uncles and Aunties, for your sponsorship. I'm going to buy a book for my brother now."

Ren Shu shouted, "Cut, pass!"

There was a one-hour break before the next scene. The staff started preparing the new set.

Lu Wen didn't move from his spot, remaining in his chair. As the people around him gradually dispersed, he noticed Ruan Feng standing outside the grapevine. Ren Shu saw him too and asked, "When did you get here?"

"A good while ago," Ruan Feng replied. "I heard Group A was filming a mahjong scene, so I came to watch the fun."

'As expected of someone from Sichuan,' Lu Wen thought, 'although not a purebred.'

From the project's inception to its preparation, Ren Shu had basically given up all forms of entertainment. He walked to the table and restlessly touched a tile. Ruan Feng also came over, and with Lu Wen, they had three players, just one short of a full game.

Almost everyone had left. Ruan Feng said, "We don't have enough people to play."

Ren Shu looked around. "Let's call someone else. Go get Screenwriter Qu."

Ruan Feng's brow tightened, and he subconsciously touched the wallet in his pocket. "Teacher Qu is probably very busy. Maybe we shouldn't call him."

'This must be what they call 'avoiding suspicion',' Lu Wen thought to himself.

Ren Shu said, "Back in university, we used to secretly play cards in the dorm. Screenwriter Qu never participated. He probably doesn't really know how. We were poor students back then, so losing felt bad, but now it doesn't matter."

Ruan Feng gave a polite but awkward laugh. "Hehe."

Ren Shu said, "Go get him. The money he loses can treat us to drinks."

Ruan Feng: "Maybe we should forget it..."

"Why are you so wishy-washy at your age?" Ren Shu ordered, "Xiao Lu, you go get Screenwriter Qu."

Some things just couldn't be avoided, even with silence. Lu Wen reluctantly complied and went to knock on the door in the building unit. His hand was sore from knocking before Qu Yanting finally opened the door a crack.

Lu Wen got straight to the point. "Wanna play cards?"

Qu Yanting said, "Not interested."

Lu Wen distanced himself from the request. "Director Ren asked me to get you." Then he added casually, "And besides, Ruan Feng is here too."

Qu Yanting didn't react. 'Too what?' He couldn't understand what kind of coquettish act this person was trying to pull on him.

Lu Wen lost his patience. "We all know you're not very good at it. It's okay if your skills are bad. Given your status, how would we dare to win too much from you?"

Qu Yanting was about to close the door, but he was provoked by this cheeky tone. He suspected that after filming one scene as Ye Xiaowu, Lu Wen really thought of himself as a mahjong god. He changed his mind and agreed, "Alright then."

Everyone else had left. The screenwriter, the director, the male lead, and the second male lead gathered under the grapevine to play cards.

Qu Yanting didn't bring anything. He sat down to fill the empty spot, looking like he was about to "catch a wolf with bare hands" to anyone who didn't know better. Lu Wen was opposite him. He wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but he felt that Ruan Feng's expression was a bit grim.

The game began. Qu Yanting asked, "What are the stakes?" After that, he didn't say another word, just stared at the table, picking up and discarding tiles gently.

After one round, Qu Yanting won against all three of them.

Lu Wen looked up and saw Qu Yanting curve his index and middle fingers and tap twice on the corner of the table, signaling them to pay up. He had no cash on him and hadn't expected to lose. He asked sheepishly, "Can I scan a code?"

Qu Yanting didn't even raise his eyelids. "I'll deduct it from your pay."

Bringing up his pay again. Lu Wen said, "I'll win it back next round."

The next round, Qu Yanting won double, worth four times the base score. The round after that, Qu Yanting got a pure one-suit hand, endlessly crushing them. The card table finally fell silent when Ren Shu and Ruan Feng had lost all their cash.

Lu Wen calculated how much he owed, finding it more and more unbelievable. Was this some kind of joke? This was what they called 'not very good at it'?

Ren Shu's voice was hoarse, as if he had phlegm stuck in his throat. "Yanting, you've been hiding your skills."

Qu Yanting was in a hurry to get back to work and had no intention of showing off his skills. He said, "Just a lucky hand. Let's stop here."

Ren Shu said, "One more round, let us turn the tables."

Qu Yanting didn't linger on the victory at all. He folded the bills one by one, waved over a production assistant, and said, "Thanks to Director Ren and Xiao Ruan for their sponsorship. I'll treat the whole crew to breakfast tomorrow."

After speaking, he pushed his chair back and returned to the building unit. Before leaving, he looked up at the grapevine above.

Lu Wen watched, and scenes of Qu Yanting playing cards flashed through his mind in reverse, coincidentally overlapping with the scenes he had just acted out.

Ren Shu also left. Having lost all his money, he obediently went back to filming. In an instant, only Lu Wen and Ruan Feng were left under the grapevine.

Ruan Feng tucked his wallet away and muttered, "I told you not to call him, but you insisted. Great. I wasn't making much money to begin with, and now I have to pay out of my own pocket."

Lu Wen came back to his senses. "What do you mean, not making much money?"

"Filming this drama," Ruan Feng said. "Getting a tiny bit of pay, and then losing a sum on top of it."

Lu Wen couldn't help but ask, "How could your pay be just a tiny bit?"

Ruan Feng sighed. His pay was actually decent, but he had taken this role for a "friendship price." Since he had already started, he decided not to hide it anymore. He leaned close to Lu Wen's ear and whispered a number.

Lu Wen was so shocked he thought he had misheard.

Ruan Feng's pay was actually only one-third of his own.