Chapter 69

Zhang Tan and Xiao Bai were snuggled on the sofa, almost falling asleep, until Teacher Xiao Liu came knocking on the door, looking for Guawa Zi, as her aunt had arrived.

Xiao Bai quickly wiped her mouth with her little hand and ran out in a hurry.

After leaving Xiaohongma School, Ma Lanhua immediately gave her a whack on the back of the head and scolded, "Xiao Bai, how many times have I told you not to always go to Mr. Zhang's house? Are you not listening to me?"

Xiao Bai angrily said, "Why are you hitting a child???"

"Answer my question first, were you at Mr. Zhang's house?"

"Yes, I was."

"Did I tell you not to go? Don't always run to Mr. Zhang's house. You're a girl, and he's a boy. What are you thinking?"

"I went to deliver the spicy chicken."

"Did you deliver it?"

"Yes, I did."

"Did you do what I told you to do?"

"Yes, I did."

"What did you say? Tell me what you said."

"Thank you, Mr. Zhang, for taking me out to play. Although my aunt is a fool, I am a good person. The spicy chicken I made is super delicious. I gave it to you. If you like it, give it a thumbs up, okay?"

After saying this, she noticed that Ma Lanhua was standing still, staring at her with a blank expression, looking very scary.

"What, what's the matter, Aunt? Did you see a ghost?"

Ma Lanhua said in a sinister tone, "You little fool, I'll teach you a lesson. Come over here and take your beating!"

Xiao Bai was about to run, but Ma Lanhua had already anticipated her move, caught her, and lifted her up, beating her bottom, making her cry out loud. The alleyway immediately filled with barking dogs, more and more of them, as if a big thief had come.

"Dogs, save me, save me, bite Ma Lanhua, her bottom is black~~~"

She was beaten all the way home.

The child sat on a stool, looking miserable, still not understanding why Ma Lanhua had beaten her, even though she had behaved so well.

Aunt's bottom is indeed black.

Taking advantage of Aunt going to the bathroom, Xiao Bai woke up her uncle.

"Uncle~~ Uncle—"

No response.

Xiao Bai said angrily, "Bai Jianping! Are you sleeping again??"

Uncle Bai Jianping finally stopped snoring, woke up, and asked drowsily, "Xiao Bai, what's the matter?"

"Aunt hit me."

"Hit her back."

"I wanted to bite her, but I can't beat her."

"Then you deserve it."

"Shut up!" Xiao Bai said angrily, realizing her uncle was no help.

The bathroom door opened, and Ma Lanhua appeared, staring at Xiao Bai with ill intent. "What are you doing?"

"I, I'm counting stars."

"Did I hear you cursing me?"

"No such thing, your ears must have bugs."

"Don't curse me behind my back."

"I'm a good child."

"If you're a good child, why are you pulling your uncle's hair?"

Xiao Bai looked and realized she was indeed pulling Uncle's hair. Huh, huh, huh~

Uncle was lying on the bed, staring at her with wide eyes, silently.

Huh? Weren't his eyes closed just now?

Xiao Bai laughed awkwardly, covered Uncle's face with her hand, and made a sleeping gesture, saying, "Uncle, close your eyes and go to sleep, be good."

Bai Jianping closed his eyes but spoke.

"Xiao Bai, you can't beat Aunt, so you come to bully me?"

"Huh? Uncle, can you talk while sleeping? Are you talking in your sleep? You're so amazing."

"I'm not amazing, you pulled my hair, it hurt, and I woke up."

"Huh, huh, huh~~~ Aunt, Mr. Zhang gave you a thumbs up."

Ma Lanhua's attention was diverted, and she asked, "Is it good?"

"The spicy chicken is great, he said."

"Is it spicy?"

"Not spicy, that's his specialty."

"That's good, I'll put more next time."

"… Mr. Zhang also wrote you a poem."

"What?!"

"A poem."

"What kind of poem?"

"Just a poem."

"Bullshit, did he say my spicy chicken is shit? What did he say?"

"He said it like this."

Xiao Bai recited the poem Zhang Tan had written:

"Ma Lanhua, your spicy chicken

Without a doubt

Is the best

Spicy chicken in the world."

Ma Lanhua laughed and scolded, "You little fool, this is a poem, not shit. Are you stupid?"

At the same time, she pursed her lips. This Mr. Zhang, who looks so proper, wrote such a poor poem. Even with her elementary school education, she knew it was terrible.

Xiao Bai left, and the night grew deeper. Xiaohongma School became a bit lively, with the gate light on, and Old Li brought out a chair to sit in the courtyard, cooling off and greeting the parents who came to pick up their children.

Zhang Tan took a shower, sat at his desk, turned on his computer, and searched for news about "Tomorrow's You."

In just over an hour, many review articles had already been published.

"A Well-Made Youth Romance Film"

"Tomorrow's You: I Once Thought of Ending It All, Until I Met the Warm You"

...

Zhang Tan read a few, thinking these people were not very critical. He decided to wait and make a video analyzing "Tomorrow's You" in the next episode, deeply dissecting this youth romance film.

He also saw many news articles mentioning Su Lan, who had attended the premiere.

In the class WeChat group, new messages kept coming in, with everyone discussing Su Lan's participation in "Tomorrow's You." Someone posted several photos, all released by the media.

Su Lan was also in the group, occasionally chatting with everyone, and many people responded.

Su Lan and Zhang Tan were classmates. She studied directing but became an actress by chance in her sophomore year, quickly gaining fame through a period drama and entering the entertainment industry.

Su Lan often worked outside, so she attended classes infrequently. They should have had little interaction, but Zhang Tan's predecessor was a "sea king."

To be called a "sea king," regardless of reputation, one thing was certain: he was very good at flirting with girls.

Su Lan was naturally beautiful, and Zhang Tan, of course, did not ignore her. Such a beautiful girl, and a classmate, was a prime target. In their freshman year, he pursued her intensely.

Although he didn't succeed, their relationship was closer than with others. Later, when Zhang Tan became a "sea king," Su Lan distanced herself and became a nodding acquaintance.

Today, Zhang Tan didn't expect to meet Su Lan, and even less expected her to notice him in the crowd. He wondered if she had recognized him.

His phone was on the bedside table. He went to the living room to get a glass of warm water, as he had eaten spicy chicken and was thirsty.

After drinking a few sips, he put the glass back on the bedside table, turned on the lamp, and turned off the ceiling light. He lay on the bed, and the room was very quiet, with crickets chirping and the clock ticking on the wall.

"If there are no other comments, the script discussion meeting is over. Dismissed."

"Congratulations, Zhang Tan, and your writing team for completing a major project."

"The script for 'Unlucky Bear' is of high quality, very funny, and shows a lot of effort."

"Congratulations, Zhang Tan."

...

That morning, the production company held a script discussion meeting for "Unlucky Bear," collectively reviewing the first season script that Zhang Tan and his team had just finished.

The script had been sent to the attending writers a day in advance, and they had all read it. The issues that needed to be raised had already been discussed before the meeting, and the script submitted to the meeting was the revised version.

The attendees included the head of the animation department, Yang Senlin, the director of the project team, Li Liang, the head of the script review group, Old Liu, the head of the third writing team, Feng Dong, and the heads of the other three teams, as well as several senior writers, such as Luo Ming.

This kind of script review meeting, while not purely formal, was more form than substance, somewhat like a tea party.

Zhang Tan maintained a proper attitude. The attendees were all leaders or seniors, and during the meeting, he took notes, writing down everyone's suggestions. By the end of the meeting, he had filled five pages of notes, including a drawing of Xiao Bai.

Most of the feedback was positive, with everyone expressing high hopes for Zhang Tan, recognizing his potential as a young writer. This time, the production company knew about Zhang Tan as a young writer.

A newly graduated young man, if he has talent, the biggest challenge is to stand out. In the writing industry, one must be able to write, speak, and have high emotional intelligence, almost a jack-of-all-trades. Any one of these can eliminate most people, leaving only a few.

After responding to everyone, Zhang Tan put away his notebook and returned to the office.

Jiang Rong had been waiting anxiously. Seeing him return, she immediately asked, "Boss, how did it go?"

Zhang Tan didn't keep her in suspense and said directly, "It went smoothly."

"Great~~~" Jiang Rong and Xu Jian were visibly excited, relieved that they hadn't encountered a difficult client this time.

Xu Jian, seeing Jiang Rong acting like a child, laughed and said, "I told you, the script discussion meeting is like a tea party. It usually goes well. You were just scaring yourself."

Jiang Rong said, "That's true, but who knows? What if the leaders and seniors found Zhang Tan young and inexperienced and made things difficult for him?"

This was her first script, and the first time always had special significance.

Xu Jian paused, realizing she had a point. He had attended review meetings before where new writers were criticized to the point of blushing, even though they eventually passed.

Zhang Tan said, "Alright, alright, don't worry. Everyone was very reasonable and gave us a lot of useful suggestions. Jiang Rong, here's the notebook. Organize the notes and share them with everyone."

Jiang Rong took the notebook, flipping through it, and when she saw the drawing of Xiao Bai, she asked, "Boss, who did you draw?"

Zhang Tan quickly took the notebook back, saying, "I'll organize it myself."