Over there, curses were flying, while here, everything was harmonious.
Shen Xinyu dragged Guo Dabao, who had a mouthful of mud, up from the ground and enthusiastically helped brush the dirt off him. "Not bad, the Jiangnan Military Region has experts like you."
Guo Dabao had calmed down by now and asked curiously, "Shen Xinyu, where do you rank in hand-to-hand combat in your War Wolf unit? I mean pure free fighting."
Shen Xinyu raised an eyebrow and said, "Me? I'm just a rookie. If you go to the Southwest Military Region and ask who's the weakest in War Wolf, it's definitely me, Shen Xinyu!"
The War Wolf teammates nearby couldn't help but smile knowingly. They knew Shen Xinyu was spinning tales again. In War Wolf, even if he wasn't ranked first, he was at least in the top three—otherwise, how would he dare boast that if Guo Dabao beat him, War Wolf would concede?
The honest Guo Dabao, however, took it at face value. He nodded and sighed, "War Wolf really is full of talent. I once met a retired member of your unit who's now writing novels. He's even better than you, Shen Xinyu. Too bad he didn't have time to train me."
"A retired member of our unit? Better than Shen Xinyu?" Several War Wolf members nearby frowned.
In the past two years, no veterans had left War Wolf, and even those who retired due to serious injuries were mostly recruited by other military regions as advisors. Anyone from their unit was basically at the level of a soldier king, let alone someone better than Shen Xinyu—who would let someone like that go?
So, they deeply doubted Guo Dabao's claim.
Yang Yi's books had been promoted and distributed to the Southwest Military Region, but without the backing of the few book-fan veterans in the Jiangnan Military Region, the promotion there was far less effective.
"Really, why would I lie to you? He came to our region as a guest, and hundreds of people watched me fight him. I couldn't win at all!" Guo Dabao said indignantly.
Shen Xinyu clenched his fists. A vague answer was forming in his mind, but he dared not believe it. He asked Guo Dabao calmly, "What's the name of this person you're talking about?"
"Yang Yi! Haven't you all seen *Soldiers' Sortie* and *Drawing Sword*? He wrote those..." Guo Dabao's words were cut off.
Sure enough!
Hearing that name, Shen Xinyu's eyes widened. He rushed over, grabbed Guo Dabao's hand, and asked excitedly, "Yang Yi? You mean Yang Yi? Wood Yi Yang, the Yi from 'unusual anecdote'?"
Guo Dabao thought for a moment about how to write that "Yi," but he was thinking of the wrong character. He shook his head, crouched down, and traced a few strokes in the dirt. "No, it's not that 'Yi.' It's this one."
"That's it! Yang Yi—where did you see Yang Yi?" Shen Xinyu was so excited he nearly lifted Guo Dabao off the ground by his collar.
The commotion caught the attention of Old Li and Luo Zongsheng. Luo Zongsheng walked over and barked, "Shen Xinyu, what are you doing? Put him down! He's our comrade! Are you confusing an exercise with a real battle?"
Shen Xinyu quickly let Guo Dabao go. Without bothering to defend himself, he said excitedly to Luo Zongsheng, "Luo, this guy, Guo Dabao, says he's seen Yang Yi."
The name Yang Yi made Luo Zongsheng pause, as if he had been transported back to the past, the image of that brother who always made him feel ashamed flashing before his eyes.
"Yang Yi? Really Yang Yi?" Several War Wolf veterans widened their eyes and asked excitedly.
"Yang Yi, where is he now?" Luo Zongsheng, known as Luo to his brothers, spoke in a heavier tone, as if trying to hide a choked-up nasal sound. "Is he doing well now?"
"He should be doing fine, right? He wrote two really great novels. Haven't you read them? By the way, is he really from your War Wolf unit?" Guo Dabao scratched his head and said.
Old Li nodded beside him. "I've met Yang Yi too. He's doing well now. I heard our higher-ups wanted to hire him as an instructor for the Vipers, but he didn't agree. Hey, Old Luo, what's the story with him in your unit?"
"Ah, it's all my fault. I didn't protect him well!" Luo Zongsheng smiled bitterly and said frankly, "When he left, he didn't leave any contact info. We've been looking for him all these years, but we can't find him..."
"A couple of years ago, that guy, Lu..." Shen Xinyu almost blurted it out, but a teammate pulled him back, and he stopped himself, grumbling, "Anyway, the matter's resolved. Luo wants to bring Yang Yi back. Even if he's gained weight and can't fight anymore, the treatment he deserved should still be made up to him! Oh, and his military status was restored long ago, but it's listed as retired."
Guo Dabao didn't like anyone badmouthing his idol. He said irritably, "Yang Yi hasn't gained weight. He's still strong. Didn't I say he's better than you?"
"Bullshit! Yang Yi better than me? Back in War Wolf, I used to crush him!" Shen Xinyu shouted angrily.
In reality, the gap wasn't that big. Yang Yi and Shen Xinyu were evenly matched in skill, neither willing to concede to the other. But with their life-and-death bond and mutual respect, Shen Xinyu had always held onto the memory of his old rival Yang Yi.
But he couldn't lose face!
"Pfft, I say he's better than you, so he is. When he went all out, I couldn't even defend myself," Guo Dabao snorted. "If you don't believe me, go find him in Jiangcheng and challenge him one-on-one!"
...
In Jiangcheng, Yang Yi sneezed. He frowned, wondering if he was catching a cold.
Though his body was strong enough to almost never get sick, there was a delicate little girl at home now. To avoid passing anything to his daughter, he told Ding Xiang and headed to the Jiangchuan University hospital to buy some cold medicine.
On the way back, he happened to spot Guo Ziyi standing in front of the Film Academy building.
Standing face-to-face with Guo Ziyi was Du Yuanlei, the girl he couldn't stop thinking about.
Du Yuanlei could be considered pretty, Yang Yi thought, but he didn't feel much about it. Mo Fei was far more beautiful, and even Mo Xiaojuan could barely compete with her.
Still, as a director, Du Yuanlei had a better aura than most girls, probably because of her talent. That must be why Guo Ziyi was drawn to her.
Since Guo Ziyi was his friend, Yang Yi, who usually didn't gossip, stopped to watch from a distance. He saw Guo Ziyi's expression shift from joy to disappointment, finally lowering his head, handing something to Du Yuanlei, and slinking away.
Throughout it all, Du Yuanlei remained expressionless.
After Du Yuanlei turned and went back, Yang Yi quickly walked over to Guo Ziyi, patting the dejected chubby guy on the shoulder. "What's up? Didn't you say you'd given up? Why come looking for her today?"
"Brother Yang!" Guo Ziyi was startled to see Yang Yi and blushed deeply. "You saw all that?"
"I saw it. No big deal, just a rejection," Yang Yi comforted him. "There are plenty of fish in the sea. Why fixate on one?"
Guo Ziyi sighed and explained what had happened.
It turned out the chubby guy had indeed given up. But later, Du Yuanlei called a meeting with all the performers, demanding authorization letters from the lyricists and composers of non-original works for future royalty management. Most couldn't provide them, so the singing royalties would all go to the original creators.
Even though the royalties weren't much, it was a requirement from the copyright organization, strictly limiting any profit from infringement.
Still, a few people could produce authorization letters, like the well-connected Tang Kaitai.
If Guo Ziyi had asked, Yang Yi would have given him authorization. But the guy didn't care about the small money and didn't want the hassle.
However, he still needed to provide the name of the lyricist and composer for his song *College Era*. Knowing Yang Yi didn't want to make a big deal, Guo Ziyi suggested telling Du Yuanlei privately.
Du Yuanlei agreed!
That gave Guo Ziyi the wrong signal. The guy mistakenly thought his relationship with Du Yuanlei could still be salvaged, so he copied one of Yang Yi's moves—actually, he copied Xixi's handmade craft—writing a full love letter folded into a heart shape...
Then came the scene Yang Yi had just witnessed.
"She took the letter?" Yang Yi remembered Guo Ziyi handing something to Du Yuanlei.
"No, it was just another piece of paper with your stage name, Mu Zi'ang, and a link to a copyright organization certification..." Guo Ziyi sighed.
He opened his other hand, which had been clenched the whole time. A red heart was soaked with sweat.
"Like I said, there are plenty of fish in the sea. Jiangchuan University has so many beautiful girls. You don't have to hang yourself on Du Yuanlei's tree," Yang Yi comforted him.
"A real man builds his career before settling down. Brother Yang, I don't want to date anymore. I'm going to work hard for my dream of becoming an actor!" Guo Ziyi threw the red heart into a nearby trash can and said solemnly.