Huayu: I really am a genuine top star.

Chapter 69 Practice diligently and take it seriously

The next day, at 7:30 in the morning, in the cafeteria.

Shen Li slumped in her chair, feeling like a salted fish left to dry on the beach.

Every muscle in his body was sending out an SOS distress signal; he couldn't lift his arms, his legs were trembling, and even the hand holding chopsticks was acting out Parkinson's disease.

An eight-kilometer warm-up run left him questioning the meaning of life.

With core strength and two sets of exercises, you can hold a plank position forever.

The flexibility training time was doubled, and Fang Ying personally pressed his legs down, with such force that it was as if she wanted to fold him up.

Even worse, this devilish instructor wore that awful sports bra the entire time. The neckline was shockingly low.

When he was stretching his legs, someone pressed against him so hard he almost died on the spot.

Today, there were six eggs, two meat buns, a bowl of soy milk, and a corn cob that Xiong Rui forced onto my plate.

This amount of food would have been enough for him to eat three meals a day before, but now it's only enough to make him "half full".

"Eat." Fang Ying across from him still wore that cold, aloof, and unapproachable expression.

The full curves encased by the sports bra gleamed delicately in the morning light. The sweat hadn't completely dried yet, and a few beads of sweat slid down the graceful curve of her collarbone into the deep cleavage, making Shen Li quickly lower her head to peel an egg.

Damn it, why are the eggs in this lousy cafeteria so hard to peel?

By the time I peeled the third one, my fingers were already cramping. By the time I peeled the fourth one, my whole hand was exhibiting symptoms of late-stage Parkinson's disease.

"Sister Fang Ying," Shen Li gritted her teeth and forced a humble smile, "Could we... be just a tiny bit gentler tomorrow? Just a tiny bit?"

Fang Ying raised her eyes, stared at him for two seconds with her cold, beautiful eyes, then slightly curled the corners of her lips and uttered two words: "No."

Shen Li: "..."

Well, he shouldn't have asked.

After finally finishing breakfast, Shen Li staggered back to her dormitory.

There were no classes this morning, and Jingyang was still catching up on sleep, fast asleep. Yangyi went out and no one knew where he went. Dai Xiao's bed was isolated from the world with the curtains drawn, and the only sound could be the faint sound of typing on a keyboard.

Shen Li lay lazily on the bed, first checking her bank card balance.

"Your savings card ending in 3829 has a balance of 386.42 yuan."

Three hundred and eighty-six yuan and forty-two cents...

Last week, I treated Wu Yue and Yao Jia to barbecue, which cost 640 yuan. Last night, I treated the three guys in my dorm to barbecue, which cost another 300 yuan. There were also various miscellaneous expenses related to the testing and development of "Lili Run".

With the added extra protein from eating chicken legs every day lately, my expenses have skyrocketed, and my meal card balance is almost depleted...

The hard-earned money I saved up at the start of the semester, plus what I've been making lately from running "flash delivery," taking attendance for others, and reserving seats, is gone in a flash.

"Damn it, money comes like a tortoise crawling, but it disappears like a rabbit darting away... Money, money, money!"

While pondering this in her mind, Shen Li first opened the "Daily Payment Group 1 for Extras in Film and Television City".

The group chat was quite lively today. Several announcements were posted, but most of them were things like "We need a prince with a shaved head for a Qing Dynasty drama tomorrow" or "We need someone to play a corpse for a Republican-era drama."

Shen Li didn't want to shave her head or play a corpse for the time being, so she continued to observe.

He also discovered that in addition to the group leader posting announcements, there was another type of person in the group who specialized in "information integration".

There's an ID called "Film City Know-It-All" that posts a summary message every morning, compiling all the announcements from film crews that day into a table, including the crew name, filming location, roles needed, salary and benefits, and application method, all clearly listed.

Below it was a string of comments such as "Thank you, Best Know-It-All," "Best Know-It-All is awesome," and "May good people have a peaceful life."

Shen Li clicked on the profile picture of "Film City Encyclopedia" and found that his Moments were full of various film city guides, anti-scam tips, and group leader reviews.

It's practically a self-media platform offering a "survival guide for film and television cities."

"This guy's got talent." He labeled the other person, "Information asymmetry is money. If you aggregate information and share it for free in groups, you'll earn traffic and reputation. Once the traffic picks up, taking on projects like Google Ads and building paid communities are all ways to monetize."

Shen Li had a sudden inspiration. Could she create something similar within "Lili Run"? Like a "Beijing Film Academy Survival Guide," integrating various practical information from within the campus…

Which teachers don't take attendance, which cafeteria food stalls offer good value for money, which club activities offer subsidies, which part-time jobs are reliable... turn these into paid content or exclusive content for members.

"Hmm, that's a good idea." Shen Li made a note in her memo.

Just as I was pondering this, the group chat suddenly exploded.

A new notice has been posted: "Urgent! A stunt double is needed for a period fantasy drama tomorrow morning! Requirements: Male, around 175cm tall, slim build, with martial arts skills. Daily pay 500 RMB! Extra pay for dangerous stunts! Apply now!"

The announcement was issued by Wu Yue.

Shen Li stared at the message: "Martial Arts Substitute! 500 RMB per day! Posted by Wu Yue!"

The image of Wu Yue's lean, ruthless face flashed through his mind, along with Yao Jia's words, "Not enough muscle mass," and Fang Ying's grueling training that morning that had driven him to the brink of ecstasy...

Martial arts skills? ...Do I have any right now? I've only been training with Fang Ying for a few days. My physical fitness has indeed improved a little, and my core strength seems to have... also increased. But to talk about "martial arts skills," I'm still a long way off.

"Stunt work is no joke... Dangerous stunts, without real skills, you're just asking for death. 500 yuan may seem tempting, but it's not easy to earn."

I recalled Fang Ying saying, "Last year, an assistant director tried to seduce a stuntwoman, so I broke her arm," and Wu Yue saying, "Film studios are places where people eat people," as well as Yao Jia's cold gaze when she pinched her upper arm.

"First, I should strengthen my physique, work as an extra, accumulate experience, and build connections."

Continue scrolling down the group messages.

Several replies have already appeared under Wu Yue's announcement.

"1. Brother Yue, it's me! Ah Fei! I did your fight scene last time!"

1. Materials will be sent privately. Professional martial arts routines.

"Brother Yue, I'm a newbie looking for mentorship! I have some Sanda (Chinese kickboxing) training!"

Shen Li noticed that he recognized several of the IDs among the replies... They were all "celebrity extras" who frequently appeared in the group, and all of them had worked with Wu Yue before. The replies were concise and to the point, without any unnecessary words.

Less than two minutes later, Wu Yue tagged an ID: "@Afei, come here. Tomorrow at 7 AM, Zone C. Don't be late."

The guy named "Afei" replied instantly: "Alright, Brother Yue! I'll be there on time!"

Others sent messages like "Congratulations" and "Ah Fei is awesome".

Seeing this scene, Shen Li understood that this was the world of entertainment.

Wu Yue prioritizes giving tasks to people he trusts. That "A Fei" is clearly one of Wu Yue's "personal stunt doubles."

The reason someone can accept a stunt double job for 500 yuan a day is because they have real skills and have cooperated with Wu Yue many times, establishing trust.

"I haven't even gotten close to the edge yet," Shen Li said with a self-deprecating laugh.

"But it's okay. You have to take things one step at a time, and you have to integrate into the circle little by little. As long as you practice steadily and work hard, one day, when the announcement is released, you will also tag Shen Li."

After leaving the extras group, I switched to the "Beijing Special Actor Exchange Group".