The phone number and bank card were settled, and Henry Clark looked at the list again—the next step was to get a temporary residence permit. But to get the permit, he needed to rent a place first, and it was already past five o’clock. Henry Clark couldn’t find a place to stay for the moment. He wanted to explore Hengdian properly, but dragging his suitcase around was inconvenient.

“Guess I’ll just go to an internet café for a while.”

Henry Clark usually liked to play “CrossFire” online, but now that he was in a new and unfamiliar place, he wasn’t in the mood for games. He just logged into QQ and started chatting in the Hengpiao group he’d joined. His QQ nickname was [A Heart-Stealing Mouse].

“Brothers and sisters, little bro Henry Clark has finally arrived in Hengdian today. I’ll look for a place to stay tomorrow, I’m so excited.”

Soon, a user with the screen name [Julia Howard飘飘] replied: “Little Mouse, you’ve come to Hengdian?”

“Yeah, I’m at Baxian Internet Café right now.”

“I’m at Baxian Internet Café too. Are you on the second floor or in the main hall?”

“The main hall. Sister Xue, please take care of me. Where are you? I’ll come find you, okay? I just got to Hengdian and don’t know much about anything.”

“Mm, come up to the second floor. I’m at the first private booth by the stairs.”

“Is there an empty seat next to you? I’ll switch computers.”

“There’s one right next to me.”

Henry Clark immediately grabbed his suitcase and headed upstairs. [Julia Howard飘飘] was an admin in the group, a veteran Hengpiao with over a year’s experience. She often posted photos from her shoots in the group. She looked pretty good, had a straightforward personality, and was always willing to help others.

Climbing the stairs, he spotted [Julia Howard飘飘] right away. Since it was the turn of spring and summer, the internet café was hot. She wore a light blue sweater, a jacket draped over the back of her chair, and jeans—she stood out.

She was a little over 1.6 meters tall.

“Sister Xue.”

“Little Mouse.” [Julia Howard飘飘] greeted him warmly and waved Henry Clark over. “I’ve already logged you in on this computer.”

“Thank you.” Henry Clark felt a bit awkward; he’d never been good at talking to girls.

“You only brought this little bit of stuff? Why didn’t you say something in the group before you came? If you’d told us in advance, we could’ve kept an eye out for a suitable place for you.”

“I didn’t know what the situation would be. It was only in the past few days that I suddenly decided to stop studying, so I made up my mind to come to Hengdian.”

“You’re not studying anymore?”

“No, I studied art, but I failed the art school entrance exam twice, and my professional scores weren’t good. By the way, Sister Xue, is your real name actually Julia Howard?”

“Yes.” Julia Howard nodded. She had big eyes and well-defined features, though her mouth was a bit big too. “Aren’t you looking for a place now? Where are you staying tonight?”

“I’ll just make do at the internet café tonight and look for a place tomorrow. It’s already dark, so I was just about to ask around online to see if anyone in the group or on the forums knows of any places for rent.”

“I’ll help you ask around too.”

“Thank you.”

“No problem.”

Julia Howard usually just chatted and hung out online, so she enthusiastically joined in the search for a place. After all, she was a veteran Hengpiao and knew a lot of people. She had friends in various QQ groups and forums. Henry Clark also posted a rental ad on the forum and asked around in the group.

A few people said they could share a place, but Henry Clark didn’t like the idea of sharing. The rest of the group members were either bragging or spamming emojis. A few people gave Henry Clark some basic info about Hengdian.

“Mouse, it’s best to find a place near the old union. Since you just got here, it’ll be convenient to wait for casting calls there.”

“Ask the landlord for the address, phone number, and name, and take them to the new union. It’s best if the landlord writes a note for you. You’ll also need a copy of your ID and a red-background photo, 2-inch, same as your ID.”

“Permits are processed Tuesday to Friday. The window opens around 1:30 p.m. Manager Wu, Sister Wu, will have you fill out your info and give you a contact slip. Then you can go to the Hengdian police station to get your temporary residence permit.”

“Also, dress nicely tomorrow. They’ll take your photo for the permit on the spot.”

“Once you get your permit, you can head back. Usually, you’ll get it by 2:30. Mouse, you’ll officially be a Hengpiao after that.”

“By the way, Mouse, how tall are you? Are you good-looking?”

“I’m 1.75 meters right now, and I guess I’m kind of handsome. I’ll send you guys a photo.” As Henry Clark spoke, he found a full-body photo from his private QQ space and sent it to the group.

Henry Clark wasn’t a great student—he’d failed the art school entrance exam twice, and after four years of art study, he’d only really learned sketching and gouache, nothing else. But he looked decent, not weird-looking. He wasn’t super handsome, but he definitely qualified as “kind of handsome.” He often joked that he was a mix of Andy Lau and Tony Leung, though at first glance he actually looked more like Leon Lai—a melancholy pretty boy.

“Wow, not bad, a real hottie!” a girl popped up in the chat.

“1.75 meters tall and looks good too. You could try for featured extra roles.”

“You’ve got potential, bro. I’m rooting for you.”

“Thanks, but I’m just average, really—third best in the country,” Henry Clark boasted.