The story of Rose starts with being a brother

Chapter 462 An Insignificant Bet
Once upon a time, there was a couple living in the Love Apartment. They lived in the apartment for five years but never met. It wasn't until a chance online chat that they discovered they were actually only one wall apart.

At that time, the apartment was not yet called Love Apartment.

After breaking down the barrier between them, the couple, Wang Tiezhu and Tian Erniu, quickly fell in love, became a couple, and eventually got married.

On their wedding day, they made a wish to the apartment's landlord: to commemorate their love and pass on this wonderful destiny, to have the apartment officially renamed Love Apartment.

At the same time, the landlord is also a romantic who sincerely hopes that all lovers in the world will be able to get married. He also promised that couples who move into the Love Apartment will have their rent halved and their water and electricity waived, which is almost a charitable benefit.

Thus, Love Apartment became a well-known residence that attracted young people from far and wide.

However... as the place where the apartment was renamed, only one couple briefly enjoyed the benefit of half rent and free water and electricity in suites 3601 and 3602 after the name change.

It wasn't Lu Zhanbo and Lin Wanyu, the couple who actually got together, but rather Lu Ziqiao and Chen Meijia, the fake couple who moved in for the perks.

Although they briefly enjoyed the benefits, because their suite was not full and two people shared four rooms, they actually paid the full rent for a single room.

Well... it's basically like we didn't save any money. Although Guan Gu Shenqi and Zeng Xiaoxian from next door moved in later, Lu Chen's relationship had already been exposed.

Although Zhanbo and Wanyu later became a real couple, they soon went on a world tour.

From then on, neither of the two meaningful suites in Love Apartment remained a real couple.

After that, in addition to Tang Youyou, the other two people who moved in were either newly divorced or about to have their engagement fall through.

The symbolic meaning of this "origin of love" in Love Apartment is greatly diminished.

This is why Hu Yifei initially thought that Love Apartment was going to become a divorce apartment.

But what no one expected was that someone would soon be taking up the "love" banner of Love Apartment.

……

Early November, Thursday.

"Hurry up, hurry up, Youyou's already started filming."

On the streets of Shanghai, in a white convertible BMW, Hu Yifei, sitting in the passenger seat, excitedly urged Qin Yumo on.

"What's the rush? We can't go into the film set." Qin Yumo said this, but still sped up a bit. "If you want to get there sooner, why don't you take Wen Sheng's car?"

"Isn't it all because of you?"

Hearing this, Hu Yifei pouted and turned to Qin Yumo, saying, "I was originally planning to get into Wen Sheng's car, but you insisted on driving alone."

"What? Are you trying to avoid suspicion?" Hu Yifei looked at her with a strange expression.

"..."

Qin Yumo's eyes twitched, and she denied it, saying, "What are you talking about? I just didn't want to squeeze in, especially since Teacher Zeng and Zhang Wei are also there."

"Hmph, it's your fault for dawdling. It was supposed to be just the three of us going straight, but we dragged those two along until they caught up. Let them go first."

Hu Yifei's words left Qin Yumo speechless for a moment. After a few seconds, she retorted, "Well, I want to drive myself anyway."

"Anyway, you wouldn't care about that little bit of gas money," Hu Yifei snorted again. "I just don't know who used to use the excuse of saving gas money to insist on going with Wensheng."

Hearing her best friend's increasingly sharp and sarcastic remarks, Qin Yumo's hand on the steering wheel trembled, and she said angrily, "Yifei, if you say that again, I'll take you down with me!"

Upon hearing this, Hu Yifei gripped the handle, her heart suddenly tightening.

"No, I won't say anymore. Calm down. The person you're going to die with isn't me, it should be Wen Sheng in front of you."

"..."

Qin Yumo took two deep breaths, wishing she could slam the gas pedal into the back of the Mercedes in front of her and then they could all go down together.

At this point, Hu Yifei chuckled and said, "Relax, I was just saying it casually. Besides, it was just the two of us in the car before I said it. Do you think you can hide the changes in you from me these days?"

"What...what changes could I possibly undergo?"

“You’re not proactive in coming over to eat with us. Whenever Wen Sheng comes over while we’re drinking and chatting, you make an excuse to leave. The worst part is that Wen Sheng even complained to me that you discriminate against him!”

After Hu Yifei finished speaking confidently, she stared at Qin Yumo with an inquiring look.

"Complain...complain? Discrimination?!"

As Qin Yumo's voice suddenly increased, the car swayed slightly.

"Yu Mo, don't get agitated, just drive carefully."

Hu Yifei quickly tried to comfort him, then added fuel to the fire, saying, "You're complaining! Wen Sheng told me that you have a bad expression whenever you see him, and you don't talk to him. You can chat and laugh with other people, but you're like a mute when you see him. Isn't that discrimination?"

"..."

Qin Yumo's expression changed several times after hearing this, and after a long while, she stared at the Mercedes in front of her and complained, "Is he a primary school student?"

"Regardless of whether Wensheng is a primary school student or not, he has brought the issue to me, saying that this behavior violates the spirit of unity and friendship in our Love Apartment, and he wants me to help resolve it," said Ms. Hu, the apartment's homeroom teacher, shrugging.

Qin Yumo glanced at her and said helplessly, "You believe his nonsense?"

"Of course I don't believe it!"

Hu Yifei initially stated firmly, but then changed the subject, saying, "However, I am indeed curious about what happened between you two?"

She paused, then winked and said, "Didn't you like him before? Why don't you change your strategy, pretend to distance yourself from him first, then make him feel disappointed, then he won't give up, and then he'll chase after you?"

"..."

Qin Yumo's head was getting more and more throbbing as she listened, and she couldn't help but say, "Yifei, what are you saying? Is this something you should be saying?"

"A classic romance plot! When I was in class, girls would always sneak around reading romance novels. I confiscated so many!" Hu Yifei exclaimed with a smile. "But after looking at them myself, I found that many romance novels have very similar plots. It seems that this kind of 'wife-chasing-after-the-cremation' plot is very popular these days."

"The process of chasing after one's wife is like going through a crematorium..." Qin Yumo's lips twitched, speechless.

"Strictly speaking, your relationship with Wen Sheng isn't exactly a 'chasing-back-to-the-wife' scenario. At most, it's more like... well... the CEO panicked after giving up being a simp."

"..."

Qin Yumo's bulging chest heaved, his breathing became rapid, and he gripped the steering wheel harder and harder.

"Hey Yu Mo, is this what I said? I never expected it. I always thought those novels were just nonsense, but it turns out there's some truth to it. I'll..."

"That's not how it is at all!"

"That is……"

"Stop making wild guesses. Wen Sheng and I are just normal friends."

You can't exactly say that you did this because Nuolan came to you, can you?
Although it sounds a bit hypocritical, as Nuolan said last time, she is also a woman and can understand her.

I was so caught up in the bliss of the moment that I almost forgot what kind of person I am.

Until Nolan's blow woke him up...

I, Qin Yumo, still have a sense of shame!
……

"Wensheng, do you think Youyou might suddenly realize while acting that Killer Bear is actually Guan Gu in disguise?"

Inside the Mercedes ahead, Zeng Xiaoxian asked expectantly, while Zhang Wei, holding a cake, sat in the back seat.

The cake was intended for Youyou, as today is her tenth anniversary since her debut, and everyone decided to go out and surprise her.

The biggest surprise, however, came from Guan Gu Shenqi.

Just like in the original drama, Guan Gu carefully prepared a fake scene for Youyou so that she wouldn't become a corpse again on this important day.

The scene that Guan Gu planned required the entire crew to act with him, and normally the crew wouldn't waste their time with him.

Although the era of film reel delivery is over and filming no longer wastes film rolls, few people are willing to waste the time and effort involved.

Tang Youyou isn't some big star.

In the original series, Guan Gu Shenqi got this opportunity by bowing, and now, he also relies on bowing, but the one who really makes a difference is Wen Sheng, the new investor.

Fortunately, "Reversal Hero" was filmed and broadcast simultaneously, a format that is virtually impossible in my country under normal circumstances; otherwise, Wen Sheng probably wouldn't have been able to get involved. After all, it's very difficult for a normal investor to invest in such an extremely unstable project.

Whether it's the approval of subsequent episodes, future viewership ratings, revenue, or any other aspect, everything is unknown.

It's no wonder that the original investors reduced their funding.

Even if the first few episodes have decent ratings on local TV stations, there are countless examples of TV dramas starting strong but ending weakly. Who knows if the next episode will just make all the money go down the drain?

Moreover, the main revenue of film and television dramas is long-term revenue. First, the TV station purchases the first-run broadcast rights, and then it purchases the second and subsequent broadcast rights. This back-and-forth process takes several months or even more than a year.

This means that the payback period will be very long.

Moreover, online platforms are still in their infancy, and online copyrights don't fetch much money. As for the advertising revenue sharing from sponsors... Lisa Rong said it was barely enough to keep the production crew going.

So, unless someone has a problem with their brain, who would invest in a project that is high-risk, slow to pay back, and has insufficient sources of income?

Coincidentally, Wen Sheng had a mental problem.

Anyway, he wasn't expecting to make money from this right now; he just happened to have this opportunity, so he thought he'd test the waters.

Of course, her successful entry into the production was also inseparable from the fact that Lisa Rong herself was the producer of the show.

After all, this is a project of Shanghai Radio and Television Station, and as the station's top female anchor, Nuolan is practically his family.

One party needs money, and the other party needs this opportunity; they just happen to be a good match.

Otherwise, even if there were one person with a mental problem who wanted to spend money to get in, it would be extremely difficult.

No matter the era, you can't just have money to break into an industry; you have to know where the door is.

Although Wen Sheng has successfully invested, he has not interfered with the subsequent plot, nor has he told the other people in the apartment about it.

Even when it came to the fact that Youyou's filming was about to end, he didn't say anything about asking the screenwriter to rewrite the plot, as if he really was just a fool with too much money.

However, after Guan Gu bows, the director will still cooperate out of respect for him.

As for whether the screenwriter will change the plot where Tang Youyou's filming ends, that depends on whether producer Lisa Rong will think about it.

Even though he repeatedly emphasized that he did not invest in the show because of Tang Youyou, Lisa Rong still said that she could arrange another brain transplant surgery to bring Youyou back, or even a supernatural scene of a zombie or a resurrection.

In the original storyline, the character played by Youyou would undergo a brain transplant after death, solely to highlight the superior medical skills of the sponsoring hospital. The character after the brain transplant would then be played by another actor.

Well, in this world of comedy, everything seems to be set up like a makeshift operation.

So if Wen Sheng, the investor, is willing, he could make the plot even more outrageous.

Unfortunately, he didn't have that idea. As for Lisa Rong's misunderstanding, I believe the producer will understand after today.

"Whether Youyou discovers that the killer bear is played by Guan Gu is not important. What is important is that Guan Gu will definitely confess to Youyou today."

Wen Sheng said with a smile as he drove.

"Huh? Guan Gu will confess his feelings!"

Zhang Wei, sitting in the back seat, craned his neck in surprise.

"What's the big deal?" Zeng Xiaoxian scoffed. "Guan Gu has gone to such lengths for Youyou, it's obvious to everyone that he likes her, okay?"

"Really? Why didn't I see that?"

Zhang Wei muttered to himself at first, but after seeing the disdain in their eyes in the rearview mirror, he quickly explained, "I mean, I didn't expect Guan Gu to confess to Youyou today."

"Yeah, actually I can't believe it either."

Zeng Xiaoxian nodded, looking suspiciously at Wen Sheng who was driving.

Wen Sheng smiled and asked, "What do you two want to bet with me on?"

"Still betting?"

Zhang Wei's expression changed first. He was already working as a cleaner for Wen Sheng until the year after next. If he continued to gamble, he might become an experienced cleaner before he became an experienced lawyer.

Um... Zhang Wei hasn't obtained his lawyer's license yet.

"I won't gamble, I won't gamble." Zhang Wei's head bobbed up like a rattle drum.

Zeng Xiaoxian, however, was still hesitant.

"What's wrong with Teacher Zeng? As a seasoned relationship advice host, don't you have this much confidence?" Wen Sheng said with a smile.

"for this I……"

Zeng Xiaoxian stammered at first, but quickly changed his tone: "What are we betting on?"

Besides being a seasoned relationship talk show host, he is also a seasoned secret admirer.

He didn't quite believe that Guan Gu Shenqi could be more courageous than him. What kind of man would dare to confess his feelings to someone he didn't dare to admit just a few days ago?

He's had a crush on Hu Yifei for so long, but he hasn't dared to utter a single word!

"If Guan Gu doesn't confess to Youyou, then I'll admit defeat and I'll pay your rent next month."

"Holy crap! Such a huge bet!" Zhang Wei's eyes widened, and he suddenly felt tempted. Saving a month's rent was too good to pass up.

Zeng Xiaoxian raised an eyebrow upon hearing this: "Then even if I lose, I'll still pay your rent next month?"

“No need for that.” Wen Sheng shook his head, then chuckled and said, “If you lose, just say a word for Nuolan on my behalf.”

"What can't you say yourself that you need me to bring for you?" Zeng Xiaoxian asked curiously.

"What do you think about me saying it's not as effective as I thought?"

"Tell me what message you want me to convey first."

"Just tell him that Wensheng is doing perfectly fine at the apartment and that she's the only one in his heart."

"..."

Zeng Xiaoxian's expression was strange: "That's it?"

“You’ve been perfectly normal here, haven’t you?” Zhang Wei interjected.

“Yeah, wouldn’t it show we value her by telling her?” Wen Sheng smiled and then said to Zeng Xiaoxian, “Don’t tell her I asked you to tell her, okay? It’s that simple, wanna bet?”

"This one……"

Zeng Xiaoxian considered it for a moment. He was Nuolan's mole after all. Although he felt that Nuolan didn't trust him anymore, it wouldn't hurt to pass on this message.

It’s a win-win situation either way!
After thinking for a moment, Zeng Xiaoxian nodded: "Let's take the bet."

"Um... Brother Sheng, do you think I can still join the betting?"

At this point, Zhang Wei, unable to resist the temptation of saving a month's rent, spoke up.

Wen Sheng glanced at him in the rearview mirror and said with a smile, "Okay, even if I lose, I'll still pay you a month's rent."

"Yes! Should I also pass on a message to my sister-in-law?" Zhang Wei asked happily.

“No need for that.” Wen Sheng shook his head. “If you lose, it’ll be the same as before: three months of doing laundry and taking out the trash.”

"..."

Although the sentence was getting longer and longer, Zhang Wei only hesitated for a moment before agreeing.

After making the bet with the two men, Wen Sheng glanced at the BMW that was faintly visible in the traffic in the rearview mirror.

Yu Mo, Yu Mo, throughout history, those who surrender have never had a good ending.

There's an inside traitor... Wen Sheng glanced at Zeng Xiaoxian beside him again. This time, he'd better work on winning him over properly.

(End of this chapter)