Chapter 1965: Getting Drunk

The agent went back to the private room first. Liu Yan sent a text message to Liu Yiming, telling him where she was and asking him to come pick her up at the restaurant, then followed inside.

"Um, Director, everyone, my brother has something to discuss with me, so I'll have to leave a bit early. I'm really sorry, let me toast you all."

Liu Yan thought it over and decided to follow her agent's advice.

After all, no matter what, she was new here. Even though her brother had helped her out initially, recommending her to the company, Future Film had also valued her and arranged so many opportunities.

But the problem was, she couldn't make things too difficult for others. She couldn't come across as being too fussy right from the start.

"You're leaving?"

Clearly, everyone present was surprised that Liu Yan was about to leave.

The one who asked was none other than Zhang Mo.

He was one of the lead actors in this drama. After all, it was a TV series invested by Huayi. His father had some connections in the Beijing circle, so getting him in as a lead was no problem.

"Yeah, my brother needs me for something." Liu Yan said frankly.

To be honest, the person she disliked most in the entire crew was this Zhang Mo.

It was one thing that his acting was terrible—after all, he had a good father. But this guy was not only greasy-looking, but also, relying on his status as the lead, he harassed the actresses in the crew all day long. It was utterly annoying.

He had hinted several times about inviting her out to dinner, but Liu Yan had always played dumb and brushed him off.

"One glass isn't enough. Come on, let's start with three penalty glasses."

Zhang Mo's eyes rolled, and he said with a smile.

Clearly, this guy was up to no good.

Liu Yan frowned slightly, wanting to refuse, but her agent looked at her and gently shook her head.

"Alright, three glasses it is!"

Liu Yan gritted her teeth and said firmly.

No matter what, leaving midway was indeed a bit inappropriate. Since she had already asked her brother to pick her up, she might as well drink.

Watching Liu Yan raise her glass, a cold smile curled at the corner of Zhang Mo's mouth.

Once something starts, the rest is no longer up to you.

...

...

At that moment, Zhao Fusheng and Liu Yiming were already in the car, nearing the restaurant.

Unexpectedly, the place where Liu Yan and her crew were dining was not far from Future Film—only about half an hour's drive.

"Chairman, where should we eat later?"

Liu Yiming asked Zhao Fusheng from the driver's seat.

"Bai's Courtyard."

Zhao Fusheng thought for a moment and said to Liu Yiming, "Call Assistant Yang and have her bring the madam there."

"Okay."

Liu Yiming quickly nodded.

Bai's Courtyard is located in the famous Le's Garden on Suzhou Street in Haidian District, Beijing. It is a Qing Dynasty-style garden restaurant specializing in imperial cuisine, official cuisine, and the distinctive Bai family cuisine.

The garden where the restaurant is located was built during the Kangxi reign by the descendants of Prince Li, Daixi, the second son of Nurhaci, the founding emperor of the Qing Dynasty.

Prince Li's Garden was the first prince's mansion garden built in the western suburbs of Beijing. Later, it came into the possession of the Bai family of Tongrentang, so it is also called Bai's Courtyard.

In 2001, the Beijing Bai's Courtyard Catering Co., Ltd. was established. Under the banner of respecting history, restoring the original appearance, and balancing protection with development, a huge investment was made to extensively renovate Prince Li's Mansion Garden, restoring the former glory of this historic garden to the world.

The courtyard covers an area of about 3,000 square meters, with a total of 36 private rooms, including 17 VIP rooms, 19 regular rooms, one large multifunctional banquet hall, and two small banquet halls.

If you pass by during meal times, you will inevitably see costumed attendants and so-called maids greeting guests.

The tableware at Bai's Courtyard is very unique, with a strong imperial feel, though it's a bit heavy to use. The dishes prioritize presentation over taste, seemingly suitable for business banquets, especially for foreign guests.

Along the path from the entrance to the seating area, there are men and women dressed in Qing Dynasty court attire everywhere, bowing to people and shouting 'auspicious greetings,' as if entering the set of a period drama.

The imperial pastries come in a platter consisting of cloud-bean rolls and pea-flour cakes, with three vivid little dough figurines inserted in the plate.

The braised deer tendon, which I initially thought would be a challenge for my pitiful teeth, turned out to be very easy to chew.

The quick-fried shrimp balls and quick-fried fish slices are both sweet and sour.

The 'Imperial Concubine's Smile' is made from rose, carnation, and chrysanthemum petals, so brightly colored that it seems inedible, with a slightly sweet and sour taste.

After the meal, taking a casual stroll in the courtyard, you see some open-air tables casually placed around the garden. Amidst the green shade and the sound of the pool, glasses clink and plates gleam, creating a very pleasant atmosphere.

Fan Baobao and Zhao Fusheng both liked to entertain guests there.

Since it was Liu Yan's birthday today, Zhao Fusheng planned to treat everyone there.

Although by Zhao Fusheng's standards, a meal for four would cost at least a few thousand yuan, it was really not expensive for him.

The convoy drove quickly and soon arrived at the restaurant Liu Yan had mentioned.

"Call Liu Yan."

Zhao Fusheng said to Liu Yiming.

He no longer intended to keep his identity hidden.

There was no need; after all, they were no longer children.

Such games were too boring.

Liu Yiming nodded, took out his phone, and dialed.

"Beep, beep, beep..."

A busy tone came from the phone.

It rang for a long time, but no one answered.

"What's going on?"

Liu Yiming muttered to himself.

"What's wrong?"

Zhao Fusheng asked curiously, "No answer?"

"Yeah, she just texted me the address here, but now she's not picking up."

Liu Yiming's expression turned somewhat grim. Could something have gone wrong?

“We'll know once we go in and take a look.”

Zhao Fusheng smiled, not taking it seriously at all, and said to Liu Yiming.

It wasn't like she was going out alone; she was with the crew. What could happen?

“Uh, I'll go in alone, Chairman.”

Liu Yiming quickly said to Zhao Fusheng.

After all, such a trivial matter didn't require Zhao Fusheng's involvement.

Zhao Fusheng waved his hand: “I'll go too. It's not like there's anything to do in the car anyway.”

As he spoke, he stepped out of the car and walked into the restaurant with Liu Yiming.

Behind them were several bodyguards in black suits.

……

……

At that very moment, in the largest private room of the restaurant, Liu Yan was downing her third glass of baijiu.

Just moments ago, she had chugged three bottles of beer in one go. It started as a penalty of three glasses, but then Zhang Mo stirred things up, saying three glasses weren't enough—she had to drink three bottles of beer.

After the three bottles of beer, everyone started clamoring again, saying three bottles weren't enough, and she had to drink three glasses of baijiu.

Even the director joined in the clamor. Liu Yan wanted to refuse but had no way out, so she had no choice but to keep drinking.

As for her agent, at that moment, she was being held back by several crew members, struggling desperately.

“Impressive!”

“What spirit!”

People kept shouting beside Liu Yan, clearly enjoying the spectacle.

As for Zhang Mo, he was grinning smugly without pause.

“Drink up. When you're drunk, I'll take you home.”

Zhang Mo sneered inwardly.

Although the crew knew that Liu Yan was someone Huayi had slipped in, Zhang Mo didn't take it seriously at all.

He was from Huayi, so he naturally knew that Liu Yan wasn't actually part of Huayi—she had just pulled strings through Wang Zhonglei.

As for who exactly had asked Wang Zhonglei for the favor, that had nothing to do with him.

He just liked the girl's sexy looks and wanted to have some fun with her. It wasn't like he was looking for a girlfriend, so why bother with all that?

As for whether Liu Yan was willing?

Heh, since when did a newcomer in this circle have the right to say whether they were willing or not?

In Zhang Mo's view, aside from the big shots he couldn't afford to mess with, sleeping with a new actress was no big deal.

After all, his father was a renowned big shot in the Beijing circle.

Since childhood, even his stepmother Deng Jie had to go along with him. Zhang Mo only ever did what pleased him.

Looking at Liu Yan, whose cheeks were already flushed, Zhang Mo knew that he might very well succeed today.

The prerequisite was to get her to drink a little more.

"Come on, come on, don't be shy, have another glass."

Zhang Mo, with a half-smile, looked at Liu Yan and handed her the glass in his hand.

"I can't, I can't drink anymore."

Liu Yan struggled to control herself, shaking her head, trying to refuse the glass.

"Just one glass, just one glass."

But Zhang Mo didn't heed Liu Yan and continued to urge her to drink.

"Maybe you should just let it go; she really seems unable to drink anymore." At that moment, a male actor said from the side.

"None of your damn business!"

Hearing this, Zhang Mo turned his head and glared fiercely at the man: "Get lost!"

Scolded by him, the man immediately dared not speak.

Everyone knew this guy was the notorious young master of the circle, relying on his father's reputation to do all kinds of evil, preying on many actresses, especially female newcomers, many of whom had fallen victim to his clutches.

Seeing him like this, the others had no choice but to shut up, angry but not daring to speak.

Just then, the door of the private room was pushed open...

"Take your hands off her!"

A voice rang out, followed by Zhao Fusheng and Liu Yiming entering.

Especially Liu Yiming, whose face was almost twisted, rushed to Liu Yan's side, pushed Zhang Mo and the others away, and held Liu Yan in his arms.

"Bro..."

Liu Yan looked up, saw it was Liu Yiming, finally breathed a sigh of relief, and revealed a smile.

"Who are you?"

Pushed away by Liu Yiming, Zhang Mo said indignantly: "This is a crew dinner; please leave."

"Leave your mother's head!"

Liu Yiming could no longer control himself and punched Zhang Mo in the face.

He wasn't stupid; even if he hadn't eaten pork, he'd seen pigs run, hadn't he?

It was obvious that these bastards were deliberately getting his sister drunk with ulterior motives.

And clearly, this guy was the mastermind.

At this moment, no matter whose son Zhang Mo was, even if his father were the Heavenly King, nothing could stop Liu Yiming's determination to protect his sister.

"Ouch!"

Zhang Mo let out a pig-like scream and suddenly fell backward.

"Quite bold, daring to touch my people, tired of living, are you?"

A cold snort sounded, and only then did everyone realize that there was another person in the room.