Jin Yi had no idea that he had nearly ended up being handed a company to manage.
He also did not know that both Fan Qing and Jin Si had once placed a bit of hope in him—though that hope had very quickly turned into disappointment.
At the moment, he was happily selecting roles.
Jin Si had even found them a film director—Director Xun. Though he did not have many award-winning works, he was experienced. Aside from being somewhat indecisive and prone to hesitation, he had no major flaws.
Right now, he was sitting with Jin Yi, watching the young actors audition in front of them.
Jin Yi sucked in a breath. “I think that look he gave was really good. That expression was spot-on. What do you think, Director Xun?”
Director Xun nodded uncertainly. “Ah? Yes, the look was quite good… but is he a bit too young? I feel he might not be very suitable…”
“Then what about this one? Perfect age, and his acting is not bad either. How about him?”
Director Xun frowned again. “But his appearance is rather ordinary. I think this role needs someone with a more striking face.”
A vein slowly surfaced on Jin Yi’s forehead.
He struggled to keep going.
“Then how about this one? Good looks, right age!”
There was still an issue?
Director Xun glanced over and slowly shook his head. “But his acting is quite average. I am worried he will not be able to deliver that feeling…”
Jin Yi leaned back and slumped in his chair.
So tired. He felt like he would never love again.
This was not how it was supposed to be. He was meant to be having fun. How had joyful casting turned into this?
Tilting his head, he shot Director Xun a resentful look.
He was starting to suspect that his brother had deliberately found this director just to sabotage him.
With such an indecisive director, could they really make a good film?
Had his brother, for the first time in history, misjudged someone?
“Looks like you still have not made a decision?”
When Fan Qing walked in, he saw the two of them wearing equally miserable expressions.
Fan Qing: …
He wished the gossiping media outlets could walk in and see this with their own eyes.
With faces like these, what did any of this have to do with casting couches?
Jin Yi perked up slightly when he saw him.
“Actually, I have picked quite a few already, but Director Xun says none of them will work.”
Fan Qing paused mid-step.
The Second Young Master had already picked quite a few???
For a fleeting second, he wondered whether the media reports might contain a sliver of truth after all.
“…Explain.”
He might as well ask first.
He had been working overtime nonstop lately. He really did not want to add more to his workload.
Jin Yi launched into a stream of complaints.
After venting, he concluded, “I just think Director Xun’s standards are a bit too high. This film is mainly to cultivate new talent for the company. Naturally, we should pick whoever has the most potential.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Director Xun made a small sound of confusion.
“But no one told me that.”
Jin Yi stared at him in shock.
“Did that even need to be said? Is that not obvious? Did you not notice that everyone auditioning today is from our company?”
Director Xun opened his mouth, then closed it.
How could he put this?
He truly had not noticed.
What a farce.
Fan Qing looked at the two of them and suddenly understood.
They could not be left together.
If they were, he would only end up with more work.
With that thought, Fan Qing took out his phone and began making a call.
“Director Xun, I will arrange for you to have an assistant director. As for the Second Young Master’s suggestions, you may adopt them if appropriate. Otherwise, you may treat them as though they were never said.”
Director Xun hesitated even more. “But what he said makes sense.”
Fan Qing drew in a slow breath.
He would pretend he had not heard that.
After ending the call, he turned back to Director Xun. “The assistant director will arrive in about half an hour. After that, he will assist you in making decisions.”
The moment Jin Yi heard this, he objected.
He leaned in, slightly displeased. “What is that supposed to mean? Was I not doing a pretty good job?”
A pretty good job?
Fan Qing slowly took out his phone, nearly pressing it to Jin Yi’s face.
“When you say ‘pretty good,’ do you mean that I had to rush over from a meeting at Tenghuang to deal with the fact that you two made it onto the trending list?”
What?
Trending?
Jin Yi grabbed the phone, already grinning before he even read it. “Is that not a good thing? That is free early publicity! Plenty of people beg for that kind of exposure.”
Director Xun nodded in agreement. “That is true.”
“Wait until you finish reading before you speak,” Fan Qing said coolly.
No sooner had he finished than Jin Yi lifted his head with an awkward expression.
Fan Qing remained expressionless. “Finished reading?”
“…Yes.”
Damn it.
Those trash reporters had set him up.
How was he “selecting concubines”? He had been conducting a perfectly proper casting session.
A bunch of dirty-minded people saw filth everywhere they looked.
Infuriating.
“Still want to continue?” Fan Qing took back his phone.
His tone was phrased as a question, but his gaze was a clear warning.
If you dare say yes, you are finished.
Jin Yi’s survival instincts kicked in immediately.
“Haha, well… actually, now that I think about it, casting such an important matter should be left to the director and assistant director. The weather has been great lately. I will take a week off and go out to have some fun. Do not miss me!”
With that, he slipped away as fast as he could.
…He had run quickly enough.
After dealing with one problem, Fan Qing turned his gaze toward Director Xun.
For no discernible reason, the nearly fifty-year-old director shrank back slightly.
Good. So he knew how to be afraid.
That was excellent.
Fan Qing slowly revealed a smile.
“I heard you let a few media outlets in, Director Xun?”
Director Xun felt inexplicably guilty. “Y-yes?”
Fan Qing’s smile widened. “Very well done. But let us not do that next time. The male lead of our film is Nie Luo. We will not lack publicity. Would you not agree, Director?”
Director Xun tried to argue, his voice growing smaller and smaller. “But early promotion is not necessarily a bad thing…”
In the end, he surrendered in a whisper. “Y-you are right. We will not let them in again.”
Excellent.
Fan Qing nodded in satisfaction.
“As for the role you were discussing earlier—I believe appearance is essential for that character. Acting skill is equally important. In that case, being slightly younger is not a major issue. We can rely on makeup to age him appropriately. What do you think, Director Xun?”
Director Xun hesitated, struggled internally, and then slowly accepted it.
That… did seem reasonable.
Good. Half the problem was solved.
Fan Qing’s expression finally brightened by a fraction.
“Please wait for a moment, Director Xun. The assistant director I arranged should arrive shortly. He will help you finalize the casting.”
The assistant director he had selected had plenty of flaws—but one outstanding strength: decisiveness. He was sharp in judging both people and situations.
A perfect complement to Director Xun.
With the casting issue temporarily settled, what about the online uproar?
Fan Qing smiled faintly.
He was no longer merely a manager in name.
Since he already knew Director Xun had let the reporters in, identifying which outlets had twisted the story was simple.
Fan Qing personally “greeted” each of the media organizations involved.
To his surprise, one of them turned out to be particularly stubborn.
It was not even a legitimate news outlet—just an entertainment influencer account. Yet it had over one million followers.
When Fan Qing reached them, the person in charge spoke with brazen arrogance.
“President Fan, do not try to pressure me with your status. I am just reporting what I see. If you are unhappy and want me to delete the posts? Sure. One million. One million and I will take them down. That is not much for someone of your standing, right?”
Fan Qing: …?
Where did this person find such confidence?
He was genuinely puzzled.
What made him think this trivial bit of gossip was worth one million?
When Fan Qing remained silent, the other party grew even more emboldened.
“Oh, and do not think about tricking us or suing us. Let me tell you—there is another scandal about your company that I am holding onto.”
Had the Second Young Master caused something else?
The thought flashed through Fan Qing’s mind.
But then—
Fan Qing let out a cold laugh. “You expect me to believe your nonsense?”
“Nonsense? President Fan, I have never seen someone so good at self-deception. Fine. You will not accept reality until you see the coffin, is that it? Then wait. I will work overnight to expose that scandal just for you. You can look forward to it.”
The call ended with outrageous confidence.
Fan Qing stared at his phone.
Had Jin Yi truly stirred up something else?
Even so… let him try.
Fan Qing was curious what this person thought he could fabricate.
And besides—
He glanced at the disconnected call.
Was this man serious?
He planned to expose a scandal… and gave advance notice?
Did he truly believe Tenghuang lacked the ability to suppress the news?
The founder of the influencer account genuinely thought so.
In fact, he believed he had asked for too little.
That was Jin Ershao, after all—backed by President Jin. Everyone knew that. Three million would probably be the proper price to seal his mouth.
Retaliation?
He was not afraid.
He had investigated. In his view, Jin Ershao was merely a public-relations prop—an image project to showcase brotherly harmony. If trouble arose, President Jin would simply throw money at the problem. He would not genuinely defend that prodigal younger brother.
Otherwise, how could a major company like Tenghuang have ended up in Fan Qing’s hands?
Was that not proof that President Jin was deliberately letting his brother rot?
He prided himself on understanding these dynamics perfectly.
Fan Qing might be putting on a tough front now, refusing to pay. But once this new scandal broke, he would pay obediently.
Why?
Because Fan Qing was just as useless. If President Jin intended to ruin his brother, would he truly assign someone competent to stand at Jin Ershao’s side?
The influencer even remembered Fan Qing’s face. Handsome—very handsome.
A pity he was older. Jin Ershao likely preferred someone younger.
Perfectly normal.
With that in mind, he quickly wrote a fresh post. While the topic was still trending, he published it immediately.
He refused to believe Fan Qing could remain calm once this scandal surfaced.
Meanwhile, Fan Qing was overwhelmed with film-related matters.
Then Hua Er knocked and entered, wearing a strange expression.
“President Fan, that influencer account you asked me to monitor has posted again.”
“Oh?”c
“What did he say this time? What has the Second Young Master done now?”
Fan Qing paused, taking a sip of water.
Let him hear what new absurdity had been invented.
Hua Er’s expression grew even stranger.
“Not… not about the Second Young Master.”
He slowly handed over his phone.
“It is about you.”
Fan Qing’s smile froze.
“…Me?”
Hua Er nodded.
In that instant, only one thought flashed through Fan Qing’s mind.
He wondered whether President Jin would take on a hit job.