The celebration party was held on the 2nd, and Wen Ying stayed in Hunan until the 4th.
Director Fan genuinely liked Wen Ying. After the party, he arranged a temporary work pass for her, allowing her to observe the recording of a programme she was interested in.
“Being a programme director is different from being a scriptwriter. If you’re curious, it’s good to learn a bit, broaden your horizons.”
If Wen Ying stayed a few more days, Director Fan could even arrange for her to visit a TV drama set.
Different directors interpret scripts differently.
Even actors have their own takes on the characters.
These insights are both fascinating and crucial for a new scriptwriter. Wen Ying, listening to Director Fan, was keen to stay longer in Hunan—but that was, of course, impossible!
Chen Ru was the sword of clarity hanging over Wen Ying’s head.
Staying in Hunan until the 4th was already the result of multiple pleading phone calls to her mum. After some back-and-forth, Manager Chen’s firm deadline was that Wen Ying must be home by the evening of the 4th!
Even without Chen Ru, there was Xie Qian.
Xie Qian always had a way of reminding Wen Ying of the importance of studying.
“Indulging in pleasure and forgetting duty” was Liu Houzhu’s trademark, not Wen Ying’s script, so she couldn’t mimic his ways.
Once Tianjiao’s second production started filming, Wen Ying could visit the set too, and since it would be her own script, the experience would be even more educational.
Xie Qian didn’t directly pressure Wen Ying to return to Chengdu. Instead, he kept the three academic underachievers busy with study tasks, piling on more work. The first to crack was Wang Shuang.
Young Master Shuang was desperate to stay in Hunan for the gossip, eager to be at the forefront of the drama, but he buckled under the mounting pile of exercises.
A holiday more exhausting than school? Was that even a holiday?
The juicy gossip field turned into a mountain of books and questions. Wang, the gossip enthusiast, lost his appetite for drama and urged Wen Ying to head back.
“You can do exercises anywhere. I’d rather do them in Chengdu. Staying in Hunan means paying for accommodation.”
This guy, in his zeal to cut down on study tasks, forgot his bold promise on the plane to arrange business class travel for Wen Ying and Xie Qian in the future. Not even a Tianjiao shareholder yet, and he was already pinching pennies on travel expenses!
On the afternoon of the 4th, Yuan Fenghui arranged for an assistant to take Wen Ying, Xie Qian, and Wang Shuang to the airport. Li Mengjiao had a dairy brand promotion to attend, Zhang Yangning was seizing the chance to cosy up to Teacher Huang Yongjuan, and Yun Chen had her own filming tasks. None of them joined the trio.
Oh, and Zhang Guangzhen stayed in Hunan too.
Zhang Guangzhen was now just a scriptwriter owed back pay, waiting for Cao Bo to settle his final payment!
…
At the airport waiting area.
Unable to stay on the gossip frontline, Wang Shuang hadn’t forgotten Wen Ying’s mention of the “best strategy.”
“What’s the best strategy? You mentioned the worst and middle ones but not the best. That’s such a tease!”
Wang Shuang wasn’t just humbly seeking advice; he was practically grovelling.
He took care of buying water and carrying bags, acting as Wen Ying and Xie Qian’s “assistant”—the unpaid kind.
It wasn’t that Wang Shuang was masochistic; he was eager to improve, tired of being sidelined by Yuan Fenghui whenever something big happened.
At the very least, he wanted to understand the conversations between Yuan Fenghui, Wen Ying, and Xie Qian!
Xie Qian thought grasping these intricacies depended on talent. Some people could see through to the core at a young age, while others remained “innocent” well into their thirties or forties.
Tutoring underachievers in academics was about helping them get into good universities.
But hand-holding them through the adult world? Xie Qian wasn’t Wang Shuang’s dad or nanny. That went beyond the bounds of friendship.
It’s fine not to get it now. A few hard lessons would teach him better than theory ever could.
Wen Ying thought for a moment and tried a different angle to persuade Xie Qian.
“If he stays that clueless and falls for someone’s scheme, as his friend, would you just stand by? You’d help him, so why not prevent him from being duped in the first place? It’d save us all time and effort.”
Xie Qian, for once, was left speechless.
A year ago, Xie Qian wouldn’t have cared if a fool like Wang Shuang got scammed.
Now, he considered Wang Shuang a friend.
Not as close as Wen Ying, but closer than Tang Yifeng or Geng Xiao. Friends who see each other and talk daily—how could he just watch one jump into a pit?
“You’re right.”
If Xie Qian had to spend energy cleaning up Wang Shuang’s messes, it was better to invest in helping him grow. When the underachiever stopped slacking, the top student could relax.
Convinced by Wen Ying, Xie Qian still insisted on “guiding” Wang Shuang, not spoon-feeding him answers.
Wen Ying smirked, knowing Xie Qian’s weakness: he hated hassle and preferred efficient solutions!
Wen Ying wasn’t one to ignore others’ opinions. Xie Qian compromised, so she did too, reaching a consensus.
That’s why, despite Wang Shuang’s eager flattery, Wen Ying kept him guessing.
It wasn’t about teasing—it was about forcing him to think.
As Wang Shuang pestered, a figure dragging a suitcase passed security, heading toward them.
Wearing a trench coat and sunglasses, completely covered up.
“It’s Professor Fang…”
Wang Shuang was puzzled.
“Why’s she at the airport? Shouldn’t she stay in Hunan right now?”
Professor Fang wasn’t just a music academy professor; she was a key figure in the scandal and Xu Mei’s agent!
Even if General Manager Guan and the others chose the worst strategy and abandoned Xu Mei, shouldn’t Professor Fang, as her agent, keep working to clear her name? How could she just walk away before Xu Mei was out of the scandal’s vortex?
Neither Wen Ying nor Xie Qian spoke, leaving Wang Shuang to rack his brains.
Why was Professor Fang leaving Hunan? Because Yu Tianlin suggested Xu Mei get a new agent?
But that hadn’t happened yet!
Shouldn’t she at least handle a proper handover before quitting?!
Wang Shuang was shocked by Professor Fang’s irresponsibility, feeling a rare pang of sympathy for Xu Mei: with an agent like that, Xu Mei was truly unlucky.
Professor Fang, clearly distracted, didn’t notice the trio.
Though a victim herself, she looked like a fugitive on the run, sitting down and clutching her suitcase handle tightly.
It seemed Professor Fang was on the same flight back to Chengdu as them.
Her phone rang, and she hung up.
But the caller was persistent, ringing again after being rejected. Wen Ying saw Professor Fang hang up several times, looking ready to yank out her phone’s battery, when another call came.
Professor Fang took two deep breaths and answered.
“Hello?”
“Yes, I’m heading back to Chengdu, at the airport now.”
“You want me to stay in Hunan to clear your dad’s name? Impossible.”
“What I saw with my own eyes—how could it be a misunderstanding!”
“…You’re lobbying for your dad, asking me to forgive him?!”
