Looking at his stern demeanor, blocking her with his words, Wen Qianyi thought he genuinely wanted to discuss something serious, probably about the complicated relationship between them. Unexpectedly, at the critical moment, he suddenly blurted out 'talk about love.'

"When can you be a little more serious?"

Seeing Qianyi's rare serious face, Li Yan, who had jokingly started, quickly said, "I am very serious. At this point, you should know very well that I have feelings for you!"

As he began to speak earnestly, Wen Qianyi's mood also stirred. She said faintly, "Why should I know? Like? Your affection isn't worth much!"

"I admit, I'm not only fond of you, but that doesn't mean my affection is cheap."

Wen Qianyi slightly opened her lips, then sighed inwardly and stopped. Since it was already time to lay cards on the table, his flirtatious nature was no secret. Saying more sarcastic words would have no meaning, nor would it solve the problem. Instead, it could make her unable to remain calm and deeper into it. It would be better for everyone to calmly analyze and clarify everything, then just remain friends and colleagues.

"Alright, I won't attack your feelings. Everyone has their freedom and opinions. I can't impose my personal, or even public, views to override your ideas."

These words from Wen Qianyi surprised Li Yan a bit. He would rather she be sarcastic or even scold him than draw such rational boundaries. Because she has always been a very rational person, decisions made when she is rational tend to be very realistic.

"Didn't you want to speak? Go ahead. Didn't you say you liked me? I truly don't understand, when did you start liking me, and why?"

From a normal perspective, one might think it was because of her beauty or wealth, but she didn't see it that way. If it were merely for profit, Li Yan should have diligently tried to win over Yu Xiaodi, which would be the best way to obtain both wealth and beauty.

"When... why..."

Li Yan mumbled a bit and started thinking. This question seemed to be something he had thought about, yet also had never considered before. It seemed to occur naturally.

Wen Qianyi also waited. She indeed could feel a certain affection from him but didn't know when it began or to what extent it reached.

After pondering for a moment, Li Yan smiled slightly, "Should be the first day I met you!"

"Absurd! You, being a seasoned player, telling me a love-at-first-sight story, aren't you exaggerating a bit?" Wen Qianyi couldn't help but snort, "If that's the case, why didn't you fall for Zhang Yurong at first sight instead?"

Li Yan felt a bit embarrassed; with Yurong, it was quite the opposite—mutual aversion at first, truly developing feelings over time.

"Perhaps... it can't be considered love at first sight. As you said, I am not a naive young man. But I can't deny that when I saw you during the interview, I was moved. Of course, it may have been just the kind of attraction men feel when they see a beautiful woman. At that time, Sun Hui was also moved. Overall, my first impression of you was not only of beauty but also of a very strong aura. Even during the interview, the rhythm followed your lead without making us feel repulsed, so it was much more profound than others."

"That's all?" Such an impression was somewhat believable to Wen Qianyi. If he had said he fell in love at first sight, no one would believe it!

"Notice! I said it was the first day, not just the first meeting. That evening, we ran into each other at a bar! That encounter made my impression of you even more three-dimensional and profound. Beyond being astute and sly, I saw a straightforward and easy-going tenderness in you, yet you weren't frivolously close to men. You exemplify a very confident and independent woman."

Li Yan recalled the situation at the time, covertly compared it, and realized that among the women he currently liked, it was Wen Qianyi who first stirred his heart! With others, emotions accumulated over time for various reasons.

With this realization, his emotions surged even more. He initially wanted to communicate well, even if they couldn't be together, at least remain friends. But now he felt that since he wanted to keep all the girls he liked around him, why should he give up the one who first stirred his heart, Qianyi?

"Really? How come I wasn't aware?" Wen Qianyi replied faintly, her thoughts also returning to the past.

During the interview, she didn't particularly pay attention to Li Yan. Meeting again in the evening, she noticed he had showered before going out drinking, thinking he was a seasoned player. What slightly annoyed her was that this seasoned player seemed indifferent to her, the most dazzling flower. After starting work, she was even more surprised to find out that he was famously hopeless, which piqued her interest. It was from then on, she began paying attention to him, and that's why she asked Ye Jiahong to pair him with her.

"It's a miracle if you hadn't noticed! Back then, we were all captivated by you at that table of men. It wasn't just us; among your friends, wasn't there someone deeply infatuated with you as well? I'm just an ordinary person, after all." Li Yan laughed at himself. "After that, we spent almost every day working together. Didn't we often run into each other at the bar for drinks? There's no need for me to say more, right? You must understand your allure. Being around you every day, it's hard not to fall for you."

Wen Qianyi fell silent. Spending day after day together indeed creates an environment where sparks easily fly between single men and women of similar age. Unless two people have vastly different personalities, are naturally incompatible, or frequently argue at work, developing feelings is quite normal.

Why is it easy for co-acting performers to spark romance rumors? Because filming a movie or TV series typically takes at least two to three months. The crew works together, spending every day with each other. They're of similar age and have shared topics outside of work, so developing feelings and chemistry is natural. But generally, for the sake of their career, they hold back, and once filming wraps, they often part ways and enter new work environments, making the feelings fade, and thus nothing comes of it.

Li Yan and Wen Qianyi later also moved on to different work environments, but by then, they had gone beyond mere feelings and had actually fallen for each other. Even though they parted, they were still in the same company and could often meet.

...

After a while, Wen Qianyi broke the silence, yet she still didn't express her stance.

"If that's the case... why didn't you pursue me? Instead, you got together with Xiao Di and tangled up with Hai Fu?" She asked the question that had been stifling her heart for a long time as calmly as possible, still tinged with a trace of disappointment.

Li Yan let out a bitter laugh, leaned back a little onto the bed, and put some distance between them to ease the tension.

"Before I answer, let me ask you a question. Last time on Carefree Island, you and Hai Fu... you two should have talked once. Did she mention anything about the relationship between us?"

Wen Qianyi lightly pursed her lips, nodded: "Pretty much everything, if she didn't hide anything."

Li Yan trusted that since Hai Fu said it, she wouldn't hide anything, because saying a little more would make people despise her more; fully disclosing would be more candid.

"So you still don't get it? I've talked to you about my situation with Xiao Di, and you basically watched it develop; you also know about Hai Fu." Li Yan sighed.

Wen Qianyi could guess most of it, but since the conversation came to this point face-to-face, she wanted to hear his own answer: "How would I know if you don't say?"

"OK! There's nothing embarrassing about it. Compared to you all, I earn less, have no good background or promising future, and am basically just an ordinary person. The fact that I have some interaction with outstanding girls like you all is just a result of various unexpected incidents. So essentially, Xiao Di and I are people from two different worlds, and with you, with Hai Fu, you could say we are from two different classes. Do you think me actively pursuing you would be realistic?"

Li Yan asked in return.

Wen Qianyi remained silent.

"For instance, today, if I reached out my hand to shake hands with Zhang Yurong, even if it succeeded, many people would still be disdainful, thinking of me as a toad lusting after swan meat, right? Whereas if I were a bit more handsome, the son of a major shareholder, and climbed to the position of director or general manager on my own merits, then people would envy and bless me, right? And to give another instance, those who were amazed by you at first sight, besides me, included Sun Hui, Wang Lei, and others. Did any of them take action to pursue you?"

Li Yan spread his hands and smiled, "Obviously, they all had the self-awareness to know they belonged to a different class from you, or from someone like Zhang Yurong. They admired you from afar, just like they admired celebrities. They wouldn't genuinely pursue you because that's basically a doomed endeavor, and practical people wouldn't pursue something pointless.

I knew about Xiao Di's family background early on — her wealthy mother — do I match up? So I never thought of pursuing her; it was due to her enthusiasm and initiative. Initially, with Hai Fu, starting from a one-night stand, she also worried that I would use the relationship to blackmail her. As for you, you are far more outstanding than me. You are a rational person who hasn't dated, choosing to find a partner who can transition from love to marriage all at once, right? How would you accept a man with no financial foundation? If I had pursued you, you might have already distanced yourself from me.

Of course, there's also the fact that I'm not a good guy. I'm flirtatious and have slept with many, but in matters of the heart, I'm quite inexperienced, which made me passive."

In fact, there was an even more important reason Li Yan hadn't mentioned. That was because he was married to Zhang Yurong, and he felt that he couldn't openly pursue anyone else until things were sorted out with Yurong.

After listening to Li Yan's words, Wen Qianyi was speechless for a long time. She hadn't expected that her excellence would become a barrier for him! And she also admitted the possibility of what Li Yan said; as for his claim of inexperience, it might be feigned innocence.

"No way! You're an assassin. You're not without a financial foundation, and you should be confident!"

Begging for guaranteed monthly passes! If the monthly pass count is strong, there might be a resolution with Qianyi to celebrate the New Year! Hoping for your guaranteed monthly passes to support Mixed, support Old Lai, monthly passes, monthly passes!