Chapter 85

"Teacher Zhang, Teacher Zhang~~~"

Zhang Tan was relatively idle on the set, with occasional tasks to handle.

He was typing away on his computer in the temporary office when he heard a voice and looked up, asking, "What is it?"

The person who came in was a crew member.

"Teacher Zhang, please look at this line of dialogue."

Zhang Tan took the script, which belonged to the young actor playing "Baoyu."

"Is there a problem?"

"It's too long, the young actor can't remember the lines. Can you make it more concise?"

"Sure, wait a moment."

Zhang Tan immediately picked up a pen and started making changes directly on the script.

He hadn't written for young actors before, so he unconsciously wrote the script to adult standards. For example, the line he just read would be fine for most actors, but it was too long for a child to remember.

"Here, take it."

In less than a minute, Zhang Tan finished the changes and handed the script back. The crew member glanced at it, smiled, and hurriedly left after saying thanks.

Zhang Tan was just about to reorganize his thoughts and continue typing when someone knocked on the door and came in.

"Teacher Zhang~~~ Do you have a moment?"

The person who came in was the assistant director of the production.

Zhang Tan simply closed his laptop, realizing that today was quite busy. Several people had already come to him in a short time.

"Here's the thing, I want to schedule the next three days of shooting with you."

Generally, the final scheduling is decided by the director, but before that, the director and the scriptwriter would discuss and agree on the plan, which would then be handed over to the director.

During this period, the scheduling was primarily decided by Zhang Tan and the director, with the final approval from Zhang Tongshun.

"There's a night shoot tomorrow, but it can't be scheduled. Zi Han has an exam tomorrow night. Can we change it to the daytime?"

"This is a night shoot, how can it be changed to the daytime?"

"No, Zi Han has an exam and won't be available. Also, several parents of the young actors said they need to rest at night and can't shoot."

Zhang Tan was speechless.

He had worked on many sets before and encountered many last-minute changes, but never for a reason like an exam.

"Alright, let's postpone it. We can't shoot during the day."

After a while of discussion, they finally settled the schedule.

"Thank you, Teacher Zhang. I'll adjust the schedule according to your suggestions and then hand it over to Director Zhang."

"Sure, by the way, is Teacher Hu not here today?" Zhang Tan asked.

Teacher Hu was the production director, and the person in front of him was the assistant director.

The assistant director smiled, "He went to the next set."

Zhang Tan was surprised. The usually timid Teacher Hu had become so bold?

He knew that Teacher Hu was still upset about Wang Yifan's trick on the opening ceremony day and often talked about it with resentment.

Zhang Tan had seen how powerful someone's grudges could be, but fortunately, the person holding the grudge was on his side. Otherwise, he wouldn't have slept well.

"Did he go to cause trouble?"

"Cause trouble?" The assistant director was puzzled for a moment, then understood what Zhang Tan meant and laughed, "No, he went to the 'Dian Jiang Chun' set, not the 'Jin Ke Zhang' set."

"Dian Jiang Chun?" Zhang Tan quickly thought about it, but the assistant director didn't let him think too much and explained further, "Teacher Hu heard that Su Lan has a scene today and went to see her."

Zhang Tan was speechless. The middle-aged, greasy Teacher Hu was a fan? And he was a fan of a young and beautiful actress like Su Lan? Shouldn't he be more interested in older actresses? Did he have no self-awareness?

"Would you like to go see, Teacher Zhang?" The assistant director asked casually before leaving.

Zhang Tan waved his hand, "No, no, I'm very busy."

As the assistant director left and closed the door, he added, "Teacher Zhang is exceptionally steady and reliable, not like a young person at all."

After he left, Zhang Tan pondered the words. They sounded like a compliment, but the underlying message seemed to be that he was dull and lacked the vitality of a young person.

Zhang Tan had known for a while that Su Lan was on the next set and had been unconsciously avoiding it, but he thought about it and decided there was no need to.

He immediately got up and went to the next set, standing among a group of crew members to watch Su Lan shoot. She was so beautiful that she could cry on command, even when no one was hitting her.

He had planned to watch for a moment and leave, but ended up watching for the whole morning and only returned when the shooting was over.

"Hey?" In the dispersing crowd, Zhang Tan met an acquaintance. He was quick-witted and, before the other person noticed him, took the initiative, "Teacher Hu, I finally found you. Everyone on the set is looking for you. Why did you hide here?"

Teacher Hu was a bit embarrassed. At his age, he had become so obsessed with a star that he had neglected his duties, and his face was a bit red.

He patted Zhang Tan's shoulder, "Come on, Teacher Zhang, didn't you see? Su Lan's acting is really good. By the way, are you free tonight? I'll buy you a drink..."

Zhang Tan politely declined the invitation to drink with Old Hu and returned to the school, where he saw Xiao Bai from a distance. He waved, and the little girl ran over happily.

"Let's go home and have some bear drinks, watch the windmill, and the fake old man."

Not drinking with a greasy middle-aged man, but having bear drinks with a fresh little girl, the choice was obvious.

Xiao Bai was surprised by Zhang Tan's directness.

"That's not good~~~"

Zhang Tan stopped and asked, "Not giving me face?"

"What?"

"You're not giving me face?"

"..." *Dandan noodles?*

"..." It turned out she was a silly child. "I made money today."

"Haha~~"

Xiao Bai then followed him.

Welcoming the little girl into his home, he opened a bear drink and turned on the TV.

Xiao Bai watched with great interest and suddenly asked, "Boss Zhang, do you have any little friends?"

Zhang Tan washed his face and, while drying it with a towel, asked, "What kind of little friends?"

"The little friends in your phone," Xiao Bai said.

"The little friends in my phone?" Zhang Tan didn't understand what she meant.

"Yesterday's play, you forgot already?" Xiao Bai said.

"Oh, you mean the video of the play?"

Yesterday, he had shown Xiao Bai a video of "Xiao Xigou," and she had been thinking about it.

Zhang Tan took out his phone, intending to let Xiao Bai watch the new video on it, but then he thought about it and went to his bedroom to get a small projector box. He placed it on the coffee table, set up the stand, and a beam of light projected onto the wall, gradually expanding into a screen. He then connected his phone to the projector via Bluetooth and opened the new video, turning his living room into a home theater.

"Wow—what's this?" Xiao Bai exclaimed, her face full of surprise, her mouth forming an O, unable to understand how there were little friends on the wall.

"This is my magic, isn't it cool?" Zhang Tan boasted.

Xiao Bai nodded repeatedly, "My strength is also in magic, hehehe."

Hmm? Are you sure? Zhang Tan stared at Xiao Bai, who looked at him with a cute expression, not backing down in her area of expertise.

Zhang Tan gave in first, nodded, and sighed, "You are truly amazing."

You're better at boasting, and you have thicker skin.

Xiao Bai was quickly captivated by the new "Xiao Xigou" video, watching it with great interest, her eyes wide open, completely immersed. She was more engaged than when she watched on the phone last night.

Zhang Tan played three videos in a row. After about ten minutes, they were all done, and Xiao Bai asked if there were more.

Zhang Tan said there were no more, and Xiao Bai didn't argue, but she was a bit disappointed. She then started chatting about the fun things that happened at Xiaohongma School today, such as Shen Liuliu annoying Luo Zikang, who threatened to beat her, but Xiao Bai, the only Xiao Bai at Xiaohongma School, defused the situation and saved Shen Liuliu.

The conflict between Shen Liuliu and Luo Zikang was just a small episode of the evening. What Xiao Bai was most excited about was that Teacher Xiaoliu's boyfriend had come and was surrounded by the kids, with some even calling him "brother-in-law."

"Brother-in-law? Who called him that?" Zhang Tan was shocked.

"Xiao Bai did," Xiao Bai said confidently.

Zhang Tan almost choked, "Do you know what 'brother-in-law' means?"

"The wife of your sister," Xiao Bai said.

This didn't confuse Xiao Bai. Sister, brother-in-law, uncle, aunt—similar terms. Aunt is the wife of the uncle, so brother-in-law must be the wife of the sister.

"Boss Zhang, what about your girlfriend? Why doesn't she come to play with us?" Xiao Bai was curious.

"I don't have a girlfriend."

"That day, that day, I saw her~~" Xiao Bai laughed slyly, referring to Jiang Rong.

"She's not my girlfriend."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't have a girlfriend."

"..." *You're so pitiful, Boss Zhang. What are you doing?*

Zhang Tan: →__→

Don't talk like that, as if you know everything. You're only 4.5 years old.

To stop Xiao Bai from looking at him with pity, Zhang Tan explained that it wasn't that no girls liked him, but that he was focused on his career. Girlfriends were just passing clouds, not worth mentioning. Hmm? Yes? No?

As Zhang Tan was talking, he suddenly saw a 100-megapixel high-definition photo projected on the wall. The photo showed a girl in ancient costume, holding a sword, turning her head, a fleeting glance, very cool.

The angle clearly indicated it was a candid shot.

Zhang Tan felt a wave of gossip interest rising from his neck, spreading to his face, covering his entire face.

"Who was looking through my phone? You! Xiao Bai? What are you doing?"