Chapter Seven

  "Just look at it, don't touch!" Kuo Fei's tone carried a hint of blame. He carefully unfolded the contract, smoothed out the wrinkles and then gingerly put it back in the box.

  Ke Yuan was startled by him and stood up: "What's the hurry? It's just a contract."

  "Hey, what's with the contract? This is our first time on TV! It's so memorable! In the future, we can show this contract to our sons and say, 'This is where your old man started his path to stardom!'"

  "Is this the starting point of stardom?" Ke Yuan's smile was insincere. "Being a star is that easy?"

  "Of course it's good." Luo Fei put the box back in the drawer, moved a folding table from against the wall, stepped on the corner of the table and pressed down hard. "Isn't it great to be chased by someone who shouts 'I love you' every day?"

  The folding table was full of rust, and Ruo Fei pressed it without unfolding. The table bounced up instead. Ke Yuan saw the situation and went to help him use force: "As you said, when Renminbi is better, why don't you go?"

  "Stop messing around." The table unfolded this time, and Luo Fei was satisfied with the dust on his hands. He stood up straight, smiled at Ke Yuan, and said, "Let's eat!"

  The dinner was sumptuous, with stir-fried meat, roasted eggplant, fresh mushroom hearts, and scallion tofu, both hot and cold dishes were paired with meat and vegetables. The fragrant white rice made everyone's mouth water. Ke Yuan had spent most of his time outside socializing in the past, and it had been a long time since he had eaten a proper home-cooked meal. The dishes in front of him just happened to suit his taste. He ate with gusto, completely forgetting that he had just eaten a meal at the hotel three hours ago, courtesy of Li Yi Heng.

  Luo Fei always thought that his cooking skills were just average, and he didn't dare to show off easily. Unexpectedly, Ke Yuan welcomed him so warmly, it was overwhelming, and he was taken aback, his chopsticks paused in mid-air.

  Ke Yuan swallowed a bowl of rice with the momentum of one man holding a pass, raised his head, and saw Ruo Fei's expression as if he had seen a ghost.

  "What's wrong?" He was bewildered.

  "Good... is it delicious?" Lu Fei almost bit his tongue.

  "Not bad." Ke Yuan replied straightforwardly.

  Luo Fei's eyes welled up with tears: "Xiao Jin, this is the first time you've ever praised me. In the past, you always thought my cooking was bad and wouldn't even eat it."

  Doesn't taste good? Was this Li Jin raised by swallow's nest and abalone?

  Ke Yuan frowned: "How could I think what you cooked is not delicious?"

  "It's what you said, eating these is meaningless. If we're going to eat, let's go to the Shangri-La Hotel and have a top-notch meal," said Luo Fei.

  Ke Yuan lost his smile.

  How about the top-notch dinner at Shangri-La, where the six-ounce steak is always cooked to eight ounces, and the champagne tastes like beer with a hint of horse urine? Even the dessert after dinner isn't carefully crafted. But perhaps all these imperfections are reflected in Lijin's eyes as symbols of status, proof of fame.

  No wonder he rushed to accompany others in bed, with such great ambitions, no wonder.

  He just doesn't know that in the entertainment industry, there are countless people who can't become famous even if they sleep with everyone.

  "I don't want to go now." Ke Yuan smiled and took a big bite of meat into his stomach.

  As he ate, the atmosphere didn't feel right. Ke Yuan raised his head, Luo Fei's lips trembled, and he looked at himself with a difficult expression, as if he had borrowed money from someone but didn't know how to ask for it. Suddenly, he couldn't eat anymore, and he put down his chopsticks, his tone impatient: "What's wrong again?"

  Luo Fei was full of entreaty: "Xiao Jin, can you never go again in the future?"

  What was he doing?

  Ke Yuan rolled his eyes: "No problem."

  "No, my point is that from now on you will never accompany others...". Ruo Fei swallowed hard and couldn't say those two words. "As long as we are willing to suffer and work hard, even if we don't rely on those unconventional means, we can still become popular!"

  Yes, as long as you are willing to suffer and work hard, you can still succeed without relying on improper means.

  But this probability is only about one percent.

  One in a hundred, ten in a thousand, and in millions...

  How can you guarantee that your ancestors' tombs will emit green smoke and be one of these lucky ones?

  Ke Yuan also firmly believed in this sentence at that time, so he endured hardships and pains, but still remained a small unknown artist.

  He no longer believed in this sentence from the moment he got down from Li Yi's bed.

  But for some reason, looking at the face in front of him, he suddenly thought of himself back then.

  Eyes full of hope, ambitions soaring high, firmly believing that they can stand at the top of the mountain with their own hands.

  "Alright, I promise you." He smiled.

  Although you will eventually realize your mistake, I just hope the one who tells you is not me.

  Luo Fei felt relieved after getting that promise and ate happily. Ke Yuan, on the other hand, lost his appetite and only had a few bites before stopping. After dinner, Luo Fei rushed to wash the dishes, while Ke Yuan showed no interest in competing with him and leaned against the wall watching him work.

  "You don't agree with me sleeping with others, why didn't you stop me earlier?" He suddenly asked after staring for a long time.

  Luo Fei sighed: "I knew you wouldn't be stopped? The boss said there was an advertisement for you to shoot, and he called you alone. I was happy for you at first, but later when Pinky told me, the boss wanted you to do that kind of thing. At that time, I couldn't help it, rushed into the boss's office, and asked him where he took you."

  "Will he tell you?" asked Ke Yuan.

  "Of course he wouldn't, and he even told me not to stop you from becoming famous. To hell with his fame, I saw that no matter what I said, he still wouldn't speak, and it made my head spin. Luckily, there was a cowhorn knife hanging beside his desk, so I grabbed it and held it to his neck, telling him that either he told the truth or we'd both end up dead together. He was scared by me, of course, and then he was willing to say anything."

  Hold a knife to the boss's neck?!!

  Ke Yuan subconsciously took a step back, keeping a distance from this dangerous individual: "Your boss didn't call the police on the spot, proving that he truly loves you."

  "Who knows if he loves me or not." Rong Feiyang smiled and said, "Anyway, I haven't seen him from that time to now, even if he wants to make a move on me, it'll have to wait until tomorrow."

  Ke Yuan sighed and stepped aside to let him put the bowl in the cabinet: "By the way, do you know where all the medicine I've been taking lately went? I just looked around and couldn't find it."

  "Taking medicine? Why are you taking medicine? Are you feeling unwell?" Ruo Fei was startled, almost shattering the bowl in his hand.

  "Haven't I been taking medicine all along?" Ke Yuan gave him a slanted glance, finding it strange that he was making such a big deal out of it.

  "No way!" Hong Fei said, "You're in such good health, from the time I met you to now, more than half a year has passed and you haven't even had a cold. Xiao Jin, have you been feeling unwell lately?"

  It's been more than half a year, and I haven't had a cold...

  Ke Yuan's hands were behind his back, silently sticking to the cold wall, and in the palm of his hand, which was quietly clenched, was a wet sweat that had burst out instantly.

  "No, I was just kidding." He forced a smile and walked back to the bedroom with his head down.

  From waking up till now, I've been worried about this matter all along.

  There were no hospital diagnosis or medication in the room, and Luo Fei also personally confirmed that Li Jin was physically healthy before his death.

  So what was the cause of death for 23-year-old Li Jin?