Huayu: Starting from retirement, sweeping across the domestic entertainment industry

Li Yitong and Tian Xiwei, both dressed in pajamas, snuggled on the sofa, chatting and laughing as they watched TV.

There were takeout boxes and several cans of beer that had already been opened on the coffee table.

Tian Xiwei heard the door open, turned around, and was stunned to see Li Ran.

"Why did you come here? Why didn't you say anything?" Her eyes widened slightly, and her voice was somewhat flustered.

Li Ran walked in, casually closed the door, walked to the sofa, and sat down next to her in a relaxed manner.

"Should I let you know when I come over?"

Li Ran paused, looked into her eyes, and said meaningfully, "Why are you so nervous?"

Tian Xiwei felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze and turned her face away. "Am I nervous? What do I have to be nervous about?"

She didn't "steal a man," so why is she so nervous?

Li Ran glanced at the TV screen; it was showing "The Amazing Girl," a drama starring Li Yitong and Jin Chen as the two female leads.

He thought to himself, "Jin Tong, the jade maiden, it seems she really is a slut."

Li Yitong leaned against the other end of the sofa, holding a can of beer in her hand, watching this scene with a smile on her face.

"Looks like you two are really together."

She glanced at Tian Xiwei first, then turned to Li Ran and asked, "Aren't those things online just rumors?"

Li Ran chuckled awkwardly, leaning back on the sofa in a relaxed posture. "Sister Tong, don't tell me you haven't noticed?"

Li Yitong smiled, a smile that carried a hint of composure after being exposed.

"Let's confirm it now."

She paused, her gaze sweeping between the two of them, then stood up. "Well then, Xiaotian, I won't bother you two any longer."

She made a move as if to leave, her movements unhurried, as if she were just going to pour a glass of water.

Tian Xiwei reacted quickly, grabbing her arm and pulling her back onto the sofa.

Then Xiaotian turned to look at Li Ran, her eyes filled with a hint of resentment.

"I'm sleeping with Sister Tong tonight, you go back to your room." She said matter-of-factly, as if announcing an unquestionable decision.

Li Ran pointed to his face, his face filled with disbelief. "No, you want me to go back?"

Tian Xiwei nodded and winked at him, her expression so innocent it was obvious she was faking it.

"What, you're jealous because Sister Tong is a girl?" She said this with a smug smile on her lips, like a proud cat.

Li Yitong laughed out loud and jokingly said to Li Ran, "Sorry, Li Ran, your girlfriend is a bit clingy."

Li Ran felt that these words were a provocation no matter how he listened to them.

He chuckled, leaned back on the sofa, put his hands behind his head, and looked at the two cats beside him, who looked both sweet and alluring.

"Actually, I can accept the three of us together." He said this without looking at Tian Xiwei, but stared straight at Li Yitong, his eyes carrying a hint of joke and a hint of seriousness.

"Sister Tong, do you mind?"

Tian Xiwei seemed lost in thought and remained silent. She glanced at Li Ran, then at Li Yitong, and pouted, her expression a mix of anger and speechlessness.

Li Yitong was still smiling, her crescent-shaped eyes curving into a beautiful arc, like a cat that was curious about everything yet lazy.

She looked at Li Ran, her gaze lingering on his face for a moment, before slowly saying, "If Xiao Tian has no objections, then of course I can too."

After she finished speaking, she winked at Li Ran. The movement was so quick that it seemed like an unintentional habit.

Upon hearing this, Tian Xiwei's heart skipped a beat; she dared not play with fire any longer.

She just wanted to annoy Li Ran and make him taste what it's like to be jealous.

She expected Li Ran to be as outspoken as ever, but to her surprise, Li Yitong wasn't angry and even agreed.

Now she's facing a difficult problem, making her look like a heartless woman who started something and then abandoned it.

Wait, Li Yitong is a woman! And she was clearly the one who was angered by Li's anger first, so how come she's now in a dilemma?

But she couldn't let Li Ran have it so easily.

Thinking of this, she stopped being silent. Xiao Tian raised her foot and kicked Li Ran next to her with just the right amount of force, enough to make him feel pain.

"Li Ran, what are you thinking about? Go back to your room right now!" Her voice rose, carrying a hint of annoyance and a warning.

Li Ran gripped her ankle tightly and didn't let go.

"Do you agree or not? Why are you kicking people?" He chuckled, his tone a mix of roguishness and probing.

Looking at the expression on his face, Tian Xiwei suddenly realized that he wasn't joking; he was asking seriously.

If she agrees tonight, he really can sleep with both of them.

The thought was like a bucket of ice water poured over her head, completely extinguishing the spark of her earlier sullen anger.

"I agree with you, you idiot! I'll take you to the Shu Road!" She glared at him, raising her voice a notch, but if you listened carefully, there was no real confidence in it anymore; it was more of a bluff.

Li Ran smiled, loosened her ankle, and turned to look at Li Yitong. "Sister Tong, you're probably going to be disappointed. Xiao Tian doesn't seem to like threesomes."

He spoke in a relaxed tone, but there was a hint of regret in his eyes. Whether it was genuine regret or an act, only he knew.

He spoke in a relaxed tone, but there was a hint of regret in his eyes. Whether it was genuine regret or an act, only he knew.

"Then I'll head back now." He slowly stood up and casually picked up the half-empty can of beer from the coffee table.

Tian Xiwei stood up and pushed him towards the door. "Get the ball out of here!"

When they reached the door, she lowered her voice and whispered in his ear, "I'll deal with you tomorrow."

His tone was fierce, but his ears were bright red.

Li Ran was pushed out the door by her. He looked back and saw Li Yitong still sitting on the sofa, smiling at him. He was now certain that this girl was provoking him.

No, I have to straighten her out.

Tian Xiwei returned to the sofa, plopped down, picked up her beer and took a big gulp. The icy liquid slid down her throat, but the heat still lingered in her chest.

Li Yitong looked at her with a smile, her crescent-shaped eyes carrying a hint of mischief, as well as an indescribable tenderness.

"The one Li Ran just took seems to be the one I finished drinking from," she said slowly.

Tian Xiwei paused for a moment, then burst out laughing.

She laughed for a while, then realized something was wrong—why was she laughing? Li Ran had drunk beer that another woman had drunk; she should be angry.

But she just couldn't help wanting to laugh.

Li Yitong smiled when she saw her smile, and smiled back.

The two of them snuggled up on the sofa, laughing hysterically at the TV show that hadn't finished airing yet.

……

When Li Ran returned to his room, it was already 11:30 p.m.

He lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling for a long time, his mind filled with Li Yitong's last smile—her eyes curved into crescents, her lips slightly upturned, carrying a hint of inexplicable smugness.

The smile was not ostentatious, even gentle, but Li Ran still felt provoked.

I can't explain why, I just feel uncomfortable.

He thought for a moment, then turned over, picked up his phone, and decided to ask Lu Yuxiao for information.

That silly cow knows nothing; asking it is pointless.

As a female artist in the company, Lulu Xiao should know something—although she's not very smart either, she's still better than Zhang Linghe.

He opened Lu Yuxiao's chat window, scrolled through the emojis for a while, and then sent her a cheeky "Are you there?" emoji.

Not long after, the screen lit up.

Lu Yuxiao's reply popped up, consisting of only one sentence: "What's wrong, Xiao Ran?"

He stared at the title for a second. "Little Ran"? What the heck...?

But the corners of his mouth unconsciously curved slightly.

Too lazy to beat around the bush, he typed directly: "Little Mudman, how much do you know about your company's top female employee?"

The other end was silent for a few seconds, then sent three question marks.

Immediately afterwards, a video call request popped up.

Li Ran answered the call, and Lu Yuxiao's face appeared on the screen. The lighting was dim, as if only the bedside lamp was on.

Her hair was loose, she wore no makeup, and her skin was so white it was almost translucent, making her look pure and lively.

The background shows the white headboard of the hotel room, similar to the one he stayed in in Hengdian.

She looked in the direction of the camera, her brows slightly furrowed, a look of confusion on her face.

"Are you asking about Li Yitong?" Her voice was lower than usual, with a soft quality, like someone just pulled out of bed.

Li Ran nodded, but before he could explain why, Lu Yuxiao's expression changed.

Her brows furrowed even more, her lips were slightly pursed, and her tone carried a hint of unspoken bitterness.

"Why are you asking her that?"

Li Ran looked at her scrunched-up little face and couldn't help but laugh.

He shifted his position, resting his phone against the pillow to make himself more comfortable. "Right now, I'm filming 'The Legend of Canglan,' and Li Yitong is making a cameo appearance..."

"I know all this," Lu Yuxiao interrupted him, explaining, "Sister Tong asked me about you and Tian Xiwei yesterday."

She paused, her eyes narrowing slightly, a hint of interrogation in them. "What I'm asking now is, you don't like Sister Tong, do you?"

Li Ran smiled sheepishly at her jealous expression.

He found himself enjoying watching her like this—even though she said she didn't like it, the concern in her eyes was impossible to hide.

"No, whether I like her or not is none of your business," he teased her deliberately. "Do you even know her?"

Lu Yuxiao was speechless at his words, and a blush visibly rose on her bare face.

She opened her mouth as if to say something, but then swallowed it back.

Yeah, why should I question Li Ran? They're not boyfriend and girlfriend anymore, so Zhou Ye and the others should be the ones jealous.

She bit her lip, her voice lowering, but her tone remained stubborn. "It's none of your business! What do you want to ask? Hurry up and ask, I'm going to sleep."

Li Ran put away her joking expression and briefly explained Li Yitong's situation.

After hearing this, Lu Yuxiao stared blankly, her mouth agape, her eyes wide, like a little penguin stunned by a sudden question.

She thought about it carefully.

Before filming "Snow in the Sky", she starred in "When the Clouds Meet the Moon", in which Li Yitong was the female lead.

At that time, Li Yitong was also very enthusiastic towards her. She would chat with her during breaks in filming and would treat her to meals after work.

Now that Li Ran said that, she suddenly felt that something was indeed a little off—that kind of enthusiasm didn't seem like the care a senior would give to a junior, but more like... she couldn't quite put her finger on it, it just wasn't quite the same.

She nodded blankly, looking at Li Ran on the screen, and slowly said, "It seems so..."

Li Ran sighed speechlessly at her belated realization.

I was desperate and would try anything, so what could I possibly get out of this little fool?

"Alright, go to sleep. Sleeping more might help your brain develop."

Lu Yuxiao