The minor incident concluded with Jin Si’s delight as its ultimate outcome.
Not only him, but Fan Qing also ended up enjoying the resolution.
The only one to feel any sting was Hua Er, who had learned a lot in a single banquet—and grown up fast.
Less than a week later, Fan Qing noticed he had some free time.
He flipped through the files on his desk and suddenly asked,
“I remember a file about a high-end skincare brand that wanted to collaborate with Hua Erz. Where’s that?”
Hua Er appeared promptly.
“I contacted them. They said they want more than just Hua Erz—they hope you can be involved too, so the file has been sent back for now.”
Fan Qing nodded and asked again,
“And Jian Feiyang? How’s he doing? I remember he was supposed to appear on a variety show with Guan Junhao?”
Hua Er spoke quickly.
“That was the plan, but Guan Junhao’s side thought the variety show was too superficial. So Jian Feiyang’s team found him another opportunity, and he didn’t go to the show.”
Interesting.
Fan Qing propped his chin in thought.
“And Guan Junhao? I remember he wanted to transition his career?”
Hua Er nodded slightly.
“Yes. He’s recently paid out-of-pocket for several acting lessons during his free time. His instructors have contacted me—they say he’s improving greatly. But there’s currently no suitable script. By the way, Fan Qing, is the company considering investing in producing a movie or TV series? I’ve been researching the market and it seems promising.”
He paused, then added,
“Web series could also be a good choice—low cost, low risk. It could be a way to showcase some of the company’s less-developed talents while keeping expenses down.”
Fan Qing leaned back, legs crossed, fingers resting on his knee.
He didn’t answer Hua Er directly, instead watching him with genuine interest.
“You’ve changed a lot recently.”
The fluent responses just now, the proactive suggestions for production—they were almost a different person.
Fan Qing squinted slightly, a wave of admiration and satisfaction welling up inside him.
Admiration for Hua Er’s growth, and satisfaction…
He really did have a keen eye for talent.
Hua Er froze for a second at the comment.
Then he regained composure.
“Fan Qing, do you think this change of mine is a good thing?”
Hmm?
He even dared to ask back?
Clearly, his courage had grown considerably.
Fan Qing naturally didn’t dodge the question.
He nodded slightly.
“It’s a good thing. I’m a little surprised at how fast you’ve grown, but it also proves that my judgment isn’t bad.”
Hua Er quietly exhaled in relief.
He even teased lightly, trying to ease the tension.
“And it also means Fan Qing will have more chances to visit the set, right?”
Fan Qing: “?”
This kid had some nerve, daring to tease him like that?
He narrowed his eyes, watching Hua Er intently.
Hua Er tensed, fingers clenched behind his back.
Hold it together! You’re aiming to be Fan Qing’s assistant; your mental resilience has to be stronger than anyone else’s!
Taking a deep breath, he reminded himself to emulate Jin Yi.
Thinking that way, he suddenly felt his thick-skinned confidence reach 360 degrees—fully reinforced.
Fan Qing: “…Not bad. Your boldness is growing as fast as your growth.”
He continued to watch him for a long moment.
Hua Er remained motionless.
Finally, Fan Qing smiled.
“You’re right. My visits to the set will indeed be more frequent now.”
Since Hua Er was already so self-aware, not visiting would almost be a disservice to himself.
Might as well ask Nie Luo later if it’s convenient and suitable.
Fan Qing leaned back calmly, then remembered another matter.
“You just mentioned the company investing in its own productions?”
Here we go.
Hua Er collected himself, growing serious.
“Yes, that’s right.”
Nervous. Would Fan Qing even consider his opinion?
The more nervous Hua Er got, the more serious his expression became.
Fan Qing studied him thoughtfully.
Of course, he’d considered the company producing its own projects.
It wasn’t that he hadn’t thought about it before—just hadn’t had the chance. And…
Fan Qing gave him a faint, knowing smile.
“I suppose you didn’t suddenly think of this out of nowhere?”
Hua Er froze, his eyes betraying a hint of panic.
As expected.
Fan Qing continued casually,
“Tell me—why did you suddenly get this idea?”
Hua Er was just an assistant, not the CEO.
No matter how much he had grown or learned, coming up with this had to have a reason.
Fan Qing’s intuition was correct.
Hua Er hadn’t acted on impulse; he was…
“I want to introduce someone to you, along with their script.”
Hua Er drew a deep breath.
Interesting.
Fan Qing studied him for a long moment.
Hua Er grew even more nervous under his gaze.
Would he agree?
Would Fan Qing think his request was presumptuous?
Hua Er’s fingers whitened as he gripped them tightly.
He might be met with a scolding, told he was overstepping.
But this was an opportunity.
The only thing he could grasp right now was this chance.
Even thinking that, Hua Er still felt uncertain inside.
Would Fan Qing really consider what he had to say?
“Then let’s go.”
Fan Qing’s voice cut through the silence.
Hua Er’s eyes went wide.
“Ah—ah?”
All of his earlier composure evaporated. He couldn’t believe what he had just heard.
Had he heard correctly?
Fan Qing was already standing, putting on his coat.
“What? Not going?”
Hua Er stumbled over his words.
“G-go, I’ll lead the way right away.”
A few steps out, he couldn’t help but glance back.
“Fan Qing…”
“Want to ask why I agreed without asking questions?”
Fan Qing interrupted.
Hua Er froze, nodded dumbly.
“Y-yes.”
“If you really want to know… I guess that guy’s just lucky.”
Fan Qing looked at Hua Er.
Lucky, indeed.
Even without knowing who the person was, just considering that he happened to know Hua Er, and Hua Er was willing to personally recommend him, that person was certainly lucky—right?
Half an hour later, Fan Qing quickly revised that thought.
This guy’s luck was truly abysmal.
Meeting Hua Er probably exhausted all the good fortune he had for a lifetime.
Fan Qing couldn’t blame himself for thinking that way.
He listened to the young man’s explanation.
“Actually, Hua Er and I initially signed up to go to Tenghuang together, but on the day of registration, the staff member was in too much of a hurry and took the forms to the restroom, and mine accidentally fell in…”
“Then later, I went to another branch. The staff there didn’t go to the restroom, but he drank a sip of a drink that spilled on my name, so someone mistook another person with a similar name for me.”
“And then… blah blah blah…”
Fan Qing had already tuned out the specifics.
In short: miserable. Utterly miserable.
So miserable that he couldn’t resist interrupting.
“…Let’s skip all that. Hua Er said you have a script you want me to see?”
The young man, looking a bit haggard, immediately nodded.
“I’ll get it for you.”
He planted his hands on his knees and leapt to his feet.
“Wait—”
Fan Qing called out.
Too late.
Bang.
The young man hit the floor, clutching his head and curling up.
Fan Qing: …
Actually, the moment he stepped inside, Fan Qing wanted to ask why anyone would sit under such a precarious cabinet.
Does he do this often?
Fan Qing slowly glanced at Hua Er.
Hua Er, unfazed and bleary-eyed as usual, nodded.
Yes, often.
Fan Qing slowly withdrew his gaze.
Alright, then.
After lying silently on the floor for a moment, the young man finally drew in a shaky breath and got up to fetch the script.
Fan Qing took it and paused.
He instinctively glanced at the pages.
The young man quickly explained.
“Because I often encounter little accidents—like drinks spilling on paper—so I had each page laminated.”
Thinking back to the loud crash earlier, Fan Qing nodded slowly.
That actually makes sense.
He took the script, picked a random seat, and began reading.
Seeing that he didn’t ask any further questions, the young man grew a little nervous.
He quietly leaned toward Hua Er.
“…Um, won’t he ask me some questions?”
Hua Er looked at him and whispered back,
“What would you want him to ask?”
The young man froze.
“Well… when I’ve submitted scripts before, they always asked if any had been performed before, my education, that kind of thing. Aren’t those standard questions?”
Hua Er kept a blank expression.
Honestly? Your question’s kind of tricky. I’m not sure if I should ask…
Though internally flustered, Hua Er maintained an exterior of calm and composure.
“That’s different. You used to deal with lower-level people; our Fan Qing is the company’s second-in-command. Asking those questions would waste his time—it’s better to just look at your script directly.”
…Damn!
The young man almost believed him!
“Uh… I guess that makes sense?”
Wait… what?
The company’s second-in-command?
He suddenly grew nervous again.
“I-I’ve never interacted with the company’s second-in-command before!”
Then, looking at Hua Er with some awe, he said,
“You’re really impressive now. By the way, isn’t the company’s top executive even more impressive?”
Top executive?
Hua Er’s mind flashed back to Jin Yi’s bold statements.
A subtle crack appeared on his face.
…He’d made a mistake.
He corrected himself slowly.
“I misspoke earlier. Actually, Fan Qing is the company’s top executive.”
There was no way he would admit that Jin Yi was a top executive of the company!
Fan Qing: …
He could hear it.
Perhaps he should be thankful that Jin Yi didn’t hear it?
Anyway, back to the script…
Fan Qing skimmed it.
Curious—how had no one taken this script seriously?
Could it be…?
Fan Qing entertained a bold thought.
“Has no one really looked at this script carefully?”
Impossible.
Hua Er immediately denied it in his mind.
He knew how many places his friend had run around for this script.
Next moment, he was slapped in the face with reality.
His friend’s expression was a mix of shock and awe.
“How did you know? Usually, when they asked questions, they’d impatiently kick me out, so…”
Fan Qing understood.
Hua Er understood.
For a brief moment, their eyes met, and both found the situation hard to describe.