Chi Yan shook her head and stopped looking at her.
Unexpectedly, Xu Yi suddenly got up from her bed and started rummaging through her suitcase for snacks.
“I’m going to eat as much as I can now and hide the rest!”
As she spoke, she handed some snacks to Chi Yan and You Shan.
Chi Yan said, “No need, I just ate and I’m not hungry.”
Seeing that Chi Yan didn’t take any, You Shan also declined.
Xu Yi became anxious. “Come on, at least take two or three packs.”
Chi Yan hesitated for a moment. She figured two or three packs wouldn’t be too much, so she took two bags of potato chips from Xu Yi’s hand.
“Thanks.”
Seeing this, You Shan also accepted some without further refusal.
Xu Yi waved her hand dismissively. “No need to be so polite, we’re roommates after all.”
Before she finished speaking, the last member of their room walked in.
Chi Yan found her face somewhat familiar, but she couldn’t remember where she had seen her before.
Xu Yi greeted the newcomer enthusiastically. “Hello!”
The girl seemed very shy and softly replied, “Hello.”
Xu Yi stepped forward to help her with her luggage. “Put your bag down first.”
“Thank you.”
After settling in, the girl introduced herself.
“Hi, my name is Qi Kerong.”
Her voice was so small that Chi Yan began to doubt her acting abilities.
She had never seen such a timid and shy actress before.
The other three introduced themselves one by one, and then the room fell into silence.
Chi Yan broke the awkwardness by saying, “I want to walk around the apartment. Do you guys want to come?”
Qi Kerong shook her head slightly, indicating she wouldn’t go. Xu Yi immediately agreed without hesitation, while You Shan looked hesitant.
“Then Xu Yi and I will go check it out first,” Chi Yan said.
“I remember there’s a layout map of the apartment in the living room. Let’s check that first.”
When Chi Yan first arrived, she had been carrying her suitcase and was led by the staff, so she hadn’t had the chance to take any photos. She needed to go back and take a picture of the map.
“Okay,” Xu Yi agreed. Then she lowered her voice and asked, “Do you think the other two in our group are suitable for teaming up?”
“It’s hard to say. Besides female actors, we also need male actors.”
Chi Yan was inclined to work with at most one more female contestant. You Shan seemed like a possibility, but she wasn’t sure about Qi Kerong’s capabilities and didn’t want to make any rash decisions.
As for the male actors, Chi Yan planned to team up with a few familiar faces.
Near the apartment’s layout map in the living room, several contestants were gathered in groups of four, clearly roommates.
Chi Yan and Xu Yi stood at a distance, observing. There were too many people in front of the map, making it difficult for them to squeeze in.
“I’ll take a zoomed-in photo,” Chi Yan said.
After taking the picture, she checked the text to make sure it was clear and sent it to Xu Yi.
“Oh, I haven’t added them yet,” Xu Yi realized.
“Let’s send it to them when we get back. For now, let’s check out the practice area.”
Chi Yan pointed to the location on the map, and she and Xu Yi headed there together.
What she didn’t expect at all was running into Yang Yueyi at the practice area.
Chi Yan hadn’t even noticed her, but Yang Yueyi made a point to come over and mock her.
“Chi Yan? You actually showed up. Too bad Uncle didn’t drag you back home.”
Chi Yan asked, “So you were the one who told him I was participating?”
“Yep,” Yang Yueyi smirked. “It’s just a pity that Uncle didn’t stop you. But in the end, you’ll only ever be my stepping stone!”
“If you don’t dare to confront me openly and only scheme behind my back, that’s really something,” Chi Yan said calmly. “But there’s only one outcome for you—you’ll be crushed by me.”
Her tone was calm, but her words were powerful.
Xu Yi was so shocked that she tugged at Chi Yan’s arm, while Duan Jing also turned to look at her.
“Hah,” Yang Yueyi laughed in anger. “You, a journalism major, actually think you can compete with me, someone who graduated from Haiyi’s professional acting program? You and I are on completely different levels—like high school compared to university!”
Xu Yi couldn’t hold back and retorted, “Even so, our Haida is still one of the top ten universities in the country. We’re miles ahead of people like you who only got into college through an arts entrance exam.”
“You! So what if you’re from Haida? This show judges acting skills—do you even have any?” Yang Yueyi scoffed. “You probably just got lucky making it past the auditions!”
Chi Yan’s eyes flickered, and she suddenly asked, “Yang Yueyi, do you dare to make a bet with me?”
“A bet?”
“By the end of the competition, whoever ranks higher wins. The loser pays one million yuan. How about it?”
Chi Yan’s voice wasn’t small, and the contestants in the practice area who overheard her collectively gasped.
People whispered among themselves:
“They’re actually betting a million? That’s crazy!”
“If they can afford a million, why even compete here? Wouldn’t it be better to invest in their own film?”
One person’s friend immediately responded, “That’s the difference between us and rich people.”
Xu Yi was flustered. “Chi Yan, a million is too much! Don’t act on impulse!” She grabbed Chi Yan’s wrist, trying to stop her.
Yang Yueyi, however, sneered and agreed readily. “Fine, let’s put it in writing. Whoever ranks lower pays the other a million.”
She didn’t believe for a second that Chi Yan could surpass her. Chi Yan was being way too arrogant, and it was about time she learned a lesson!
Chi Yan calmly took out her phone and opened the voice recorder.
“I, Chi Yan, and Yang Yueyi hereby make a bet. Based on the final results of The Actor’s Journey competition, whoever ranks lower must pay the other one million yuan.”
Chi Yan had no fear. She had far more experience than Yang Yueyi and was much more skilled in acting.
Since they made this bet in public, and she had a recording of it, Yang Yueyi, being too proud, wouldn’t dare go back on her word. If she lost, she would have to ask Yang Lan for the money.
When that happened, Yang Lan would surely complain to Chi Hongzheng. If Chi Hongzheng refused to pay, Chi Yan would push Yang Yueyi into demanding it. If he did pay, then he would have spent a fortune just to be frustrated—how satisfying!
No matter what, Chi Yan would come out on top.
“Your turn,” Chi Yan said, looking straight into Yang Yueyi’s eyes.
Yang Yueyi glared at her. “Fine! I, Yang Yueyi, and Chi Yan make a bet. In The Actor’s Journey finals, whoever ranks lower will pay the other one million yuan!”
Chi Yan played the recording back once to confirm. It was accurate.
“Great. I’ll send this to that person and have him forward it to you,” she said.
Yang Yueyi instantly realized that person meant Chi Yan’s father. Her anger flared—Chi Yan had set her up!
Chi Yan’s father was still her own father too. If he heard about their bet and recalled how she had tried to turn him against Chi Yan earlier, it would be hard for him not to be suspicious.
“No way! Are you trying to trap me? What if he actually listens to it?”
Chi Yan shrugged. “Not my problem.”
“Add me and send it to me instead!” Yang Yueyi ordered.
“I don’t add animals to my contacts.”
“You—!”
Xu Yi, who had been spectating this whole time, hesitantly suggested, “Chi Yan, why don’t you just send it via Bluetooth?”
Chi Yan thought that was a good idea.
Yang Yueyi, exasperated, muttered, “Who even uses Bluetooth these days?”
“If you don’t want it, I’ll just send it to that person instead.”
“Fine, fine! Just send it!”
Chi Yan quickly transferred the file to Yang Yueyi’s phone.
“That person told us not to fight,” Chi Yan said. “Now that we have this bet, let’s stay out of each other’s way. You don’t deliberately mess with me, and I won’t bother you either. Understood?”
“As if I even want to talk to you!” Yang Yueyi snapped in frustration.
“You started talking to me first. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have even noticed you,” Chi Yan said, before turning to Xu Yi. “Let’s check out that area. After that, it’ll be time for dinner.”
Xu Yi hesitated, stammering, “You… you…,” but she couldn’t find the right words.
“I already had issues with her before. It’s nothing,” Chi Yan said casually.
Xu Yi was stunned. A million yuan was nothing?
Chi Yan knew she had been a bit impulsive today, but she didn’t regret it. In fact, she saw it as an opportunity to prevent people from spreading rumors that she was being kept by someone.
She was certain that Chi Hongzheng wouldn’t allow anyone to find out she was his daughter, but that wouldn’t stop netizens from assuming she was some rich young lady.
Of course, this might cause some trouble, but she wasn’t worried. The entertainment industry thrived on publicity. As long as she created a stir, she would leave an impression on the audience.
Whether that impression was good or bad didn’t matter—she was confident she could turn most of it to her advantage!
As expected, Chi Yan and Yang Yueyi’s bet quickly made it to the trending topics. The hashtag #MillionYuanBet even had a “Hot” tag next to it, drawing in countless curious netizens.
“Damn, they’re already going this hard on the first day? A million isn’t small change!”
“Who even are these two? I came to watch Duan Duan, but the camera was completely on them!”
“Girl above, obviously a million-yuan bet is more eye-catching right now!”
The gossip-hungry netizens weren’t satisfied—they started online polls about who would win.
Chi Yan and Yang Yueyi’s backgrounds were quickly dug up. One was a professionally trained actress, while the other had never acted before. The results were obvious—the voting was overwhelmingly one-sided in favor of Yang Yueyi.
Chi Yan’s fans, the Yanhuo (Smokeflames), felt a little helpless but still voted for her as much as they could.
They also encouraged each other.
“Trust our sister! If she was able to land a role in The Great Sheng Dynasty, she must have real talent!”
“Exactly! She’s the one who proposed the bet—she must be confident about winning!”
Chi Yan, however, remained completely unaware of all this.
At that moment, all contestants had arrived, and the show’s director called them to gather in the large garden next to the apartment complex.
“I’m the chief director of The Actor’s Journey, and it’s great to meet you all! I’ll keep it short—your first task as a group is to turn in your phones. During the recording, you’ll only have access to your phone for half an hour each day. You now have ten minutes to contact your family and friends.”
Instantly, chaos broke out.
Only when the staff arrived with labeled phone bags did many contestants realize this wasn’t a joke.
They groaned and quickly sent messages to their closest contacts before reluctantly placing their phones into the bags.
Chi Yan, however, felt nothing. In her past life, she had gone through this plenty of times. She simply sent a message to her mother and handed over her phone.
