Chapter 14

At 7:30 in the morning, Zhang Tan arrived at the company. Luo Ming hadn't come yet, and the office windows were tightly shut, making the room feel stuffy.

He put down his backpack, walked to the window, and pushed it open to let in fresh air. The street outside was bustling with traffic, and the noise rushed in along with the air.

Luo Ming liked quiet, so the windows were always closed, and the air conditioner was often on. Taking advantage of his absence, Zhang Tan decided to air out the room first.

Zhang Tan found a kettle in the corner, touched it, and found a layer of dust on his hand. It seemed to have been unused for a long time. He washed it inside and out, filled it with water from the water dispenser, plugged it in, and took out the Lushan Yunwu tea, a thermos, and a teapot from his backpack.

The water boiled, and he brewed a pot of tea. It was a few minutes past eight, and he estimated that Luo Ming would be arriving soon. Zhang Tan closed the window, turned on the air conditioner, and set it to ventilation mode. The office had a monotonous color scheme, and he thought about bringing in two potted plants the next day to add some greenery and make it more pleasant to look at.

A moment later, Luo Ming pushed the door open and said somewhat strangely, "The office looks a bit different. Did you clean it?"

Zhang Tan smiled and said, "I made a pot of tea, try it."

"You're thoughtful," Luo Ming said with a smile, poured a cup, and after drinking it, said to Zhang Tan, "Let's add a Zouwu as you suggested."

Zhang Tan wasn't particularly surprised and nodded in agreement.

Luo Ming continued, "I've already written the plots for the first five episodes. Today, you're responsible for adding the Zouwu's plot, but it shouldn't affect the main storyline."

"No problem," Zhang Tan said, put down his teacup, filled his thermos with tea, placed it by his side, and opened his computer to start working.

Luo Ming's personality was a bit dull, and he didn't like chatting much.

Neither did Zhang Tan.

Once they started working, neither of them spoke, and the office became particularly quiet, with only the sound of the computer keyboard and the occasional gurgling from the water dispenser.

Adding the Zouwu character without affecting the main storyline meant that it would mainly serve to add humor and lighten the mood. Zhang Tan firmly adhered to this principle and tried to quickly establish the Zouwu's character within the available range.

By the afternoon, he had finished writing. Luo Ming took the script to discuss with the chief director, who would ultimately decide whether it was acceptable.

Not long after, Luo Ming returned and said that the chief director agreed. Zhang Tan felt a slight relief, as the Zouwu character was finally confirmed.

Luo Ming encouraged him and then said, "That's the good news. The bad news is that the chief director wants us to complete the scripts for the next five episodes within three days. The time is tight. I'll write the first two episodes, and you can write the last three. How does that sound?"

The animation project was divided into groups, with the first five episodes produced by one group and the next five by another, to ensure a smooth production schedule.

Luo Ming had to discuss storyboards with the first group the next day and had no time to write the script. Seeing Zhang Tan's steady performance and strong ability, he wanted to give him a chance to try.

Zhang Tan, of course, had no problem and was eager to take on the task.

"Let's go over the main plot again," Luo Ming said.

Over the next three days, Zhang Tan focused on scriptwriting, maintaining consistency with the first five episodes while making some minor innovations around the main plot. The process went relatively smoothly, but he always felt somewhat constrained.

Luo Ming reviewed the three episodes Zhang Tan wrote, made some minor adjustments, and largely kept the original version. He integrated them with the two episodes he wrote, printed out the five episodes, and submitted them to the chief director for review.

"Is this written by the new guy you brought in?" The chief director, surnamed Fu, finished reading the five episodes, flipped to the last three, read them again, and asked Luo Ming curiously.

Luo Ming's eyebrows involuntarily raised, and he said, "His name is Zhang Tan, and he wrote it."

Director Fu smiled, neatly placed the script on the side, and covered it with his hand, saying, "It's pretty good. No wonder you picked him so quickly. I have no issues with the script; it's very good."

Luo Ming had extensive project experience and could be considered a seasoned veteran, but hearing this still made him feel greatly relieved. As a screenwriter, the hardest part wasn't coming up with the script but discussing it with superiors, especially when dealing with amateurs who could drive you crazy. He had seen female screenwriters cry from frustration.

"Want to have dinner after work? Do you have time?"

Back in the office, Luo Ming saw Zhang Tan writing and drawing on his desk and asked.

From Luo Ming's expression, Zhang Tan could tell that the discussion with the chief director went well, meaning the five episodes they submitted were approved. So he didn't ask further and smiled, saying, "I know a good restaurant."

"Then let's follow you. Are you driving or should I?"

Zhang Tan didn't have a car.

"I'll ride with you."

With half an hour left until the end of the workday, Luo Ming suggested leaving now, saying it didn't matter.

They packed up their things, and Luo Ming noticed the draft paper on Zhang Tan's desk, which had some drawings on it. He glanced at it casually, then suddenly turned to look closely, picked it up, and asked Zhang Tan curiously, "Did you draw this?"

Zhang Tan, having packed his backpack, said, "I'm not sure if it fits the story's style."

Luo Ming marveled, not expecting Zhang Tan to have this skill. The drawing showed the main character and Zouwu standing by a river, facing off against a river demon. If he remembered correctly, this was a scene from the sixth episode, where the main character, with Zouwu's help, fought a tough battle against the river demon and obtained the demon's core, significantly boosting his strength.

This was a crucial plot climax.

Although Zhang Tan's drawing was just a static image, it was very expressive, conveying a sense of tension and readiness for battle, with a lot of tension.

"Very good, it matches what I imagined. We can take this to the storyboard artists tomorrow for reference," Luo Ming said.

After the anime script was finalized, the next step was to create storyboards, converting the text into images. This required thorough communication between the screenwriter and the storyboard artists to understand each other's intentions.

They closed the office door, left the building, and drove for about ten minutes to a not very conspicuous restaurant, guided by Zhang Tan.

Although the environment wasn't fancy, the food was excellent, and Luo Ming praised it highly.

After dinner, Luo Ming received a call from his wife, which Zhang Tan guessed from the content and tone of the conversation, which wasn't hard to figure out.

Luo Ming, in his forties, was already married, wore a wedding ring, and sometimes brought his own lunch, which was colorful and meticulously prepared, clearly by a woman.

Seeing him hang up, Zhang Tan smiled and said, "Is it your wife's call?"

Luo Ming put away his phone and said, "She wants me to help our daughter with her homework."

He then added somewhat helplessly, "She's in the third year of junior high, and some of the homework is beyond me. I have to work with my wife to figure it out, which is quite challenging."

Zhang Tan smiled and said, "Then you should go back quickly."

Luo Ming said, "No rush, I'll drop you off first."

"No need to trouble you. I can take the subway; it's only a ten-minute ride."

Luo Ming eventually drove off, and Zhang Tan took the subway back to Xichang'an Street. As soon as he arrived at Little Red Horse Academy, he saw two little girls standing under a mulberry tree.

It was already 9:00 PM, and the children were usually playing in the activity room, but only these two were outside.

Zhang Tan recognized them; one was Xiao Mi, and the other was Meng Chengcheng. Seeing him suddenly appear, the two girls were clearly startled and looked around nervously.

Am I that scary? Zhang Tan said, "What are you doing outside? Go back to the classroom to play; there are mosquitoes out here."

Meng Chengcheng nodded dazedly and turned to leave, but she kept looking back every few steps.

As for Xiao Mi, she didn't leave, but instead lifted her head and looked up at the tree, acting furtively.

Zhang Tan followed her gaze and was startled in turn.

He saw a little girl in a red dress hugging the tree trunk, sitting on a branch. Seeing him look up, she waved and said in a Sichuan accent, "I'm Ah Er, I'm showing off my special skill, ha."