Li Yitong reveals her early encounter with a talent scout from a major Korean entertainment company. According to the 35-year-old actress, it happened during her school days when she was still studying at Shenzhen Art School. As she recalls, “The scout chose me… wanted me to sign for 10 years.” But the offer didn’t spark excitement, and her mom suspected danger. Li Yitong quoted her mother saying, “Aiyah, this is definitely a scam. They’ll lure you over there and then it’ll turn into human trafficking.”

She explained that her entire family didn’t believe it, and at the time, she herself had no intention of entering show business. “I still didn’t have a dream to enter showbiz,” she said, so the idea of moving abroad as a trainee felt unrealistic, and she declined. The scout apparently told her that the K-pop group The Grace, which is managed by SM Entertainment, was lacking a Chinese member and assured her that she would be able to debut quickly. “That didn’t entice me at all but rather made me very perturbed,” she admitted.

Years passed. Li Yitong entered the Beijing Dance Academy. Then something unexpected happened, she ran into the exact same talent scout again, now working for JYP Entertainment. She described it as a coincidence that felt almost surreal, seeing the same person “already 4–5 years later” standing at the academy gate recruiting new trainees. Though she wasn’t asked to join this time, the encounter proved the scout was the real deal.

Did she ever regret saying no? Li Yitong says she never did. Her response, “Every person, every step, there’s a plan and purpose. All good choices.” Today, looking at her success as an actress, it certainly worked out well.