Chapter 9

PS: Big Brother Xiaobai is asking for recommendations.

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Watching Xiaobai, who seemed to transform into a little rabbit, quickly slip away, Zhang Tan was puzzled. It seemed like Xiaobai was very afraid of him, even though they had been chatting quite casually just now. Oh, Xiaomi wasn't at ease at all, being nervous the whole time.

Xiaobai's rapid-fire talk had left Zhang Tan a bit dazed. He had to replay it in his mind three times to understand that she was actually supporting Xiaomi, showing a bit of a big sister's demeanor.

Zhang Tan picked a movie at home and settled into the sofa to watch it. Last time, he chose a highly-rated movie; this time, he picked a high-grossing one, which had relatively high ratings and truly high box office earnings.

After finishing the movie, it was already quite late. Zhang Tan went downstairs to the first-floor activity area. Some of the children had already gone back to their dorms to sleep, while others were watching TV, sitting on their little chairs, their little heads raised, a sea of them, all in unison.

Xiaobai was among these children, her big eyes glued to the TV, with no other presence in her mind.

Zhang Tan couldn't help but look at her a few more times because she was so "domineering."

Xiaobai, with her left hand hugging Xiaomi and her right hand on Meng Chengcheng's shoulder, had a band-aid on her face and was wearing a large Chinese jacket, looking like the big sister, drawing everyone's attention.

Teacher Xiaoliu had reminded her several times, but it had no effect. Seeing that she only looked like the big sister but wasn't really one, she pretended not to see.

Zhang Tan chatted with the staff for a bit and reminded them not to let the children watch TV for too long. As a result, the staff turned off the TV and herded the children to go to sleep, causing a chorus of protests from the little ones, many of whom looked at him innocently.

Zhang Tan: →_→

What's your point? I haven't even had time to leave! This will make the children resent me, right??

Xiaobai stared at the turned-off TV for a few seconds, then ran to the staff and asked if she could watch for 5 more minutes, or even 2 minutes. She had to know if the donkey would die; otherwise, she wouldn't be able to sleep, with donkeys in her dreams.

The staff looked at Zhang Tan for approval.

Zhang Tan: *&%￥#@*

Are you trying to push me into the fire? You even pointed me out with a megaphone! How will Xiaobai think of me? We just made up!

Sure enough, Xiaobai glared at him, ground her little teeth, and pulled the staff to him, asking, "Uncle, what's this?"

She held up two fingers in front of him, waving them.

What's your point?

Zhang Tan said, "2."

Saying I'm 2?? The nickname "Black Ass" was just canceled, and now there's a new one?

After confirming that Zhang Tan wasn't drunk, Xiaobai felt relieved and earnestly requested to watch a bit more TV, just to see the donkey alive, or she wouldn't be able to sleep well tonight.

Zhang Tan said, "Okay, 5 more minutes, starting now."

He then told the staff, "You take the other children to the dorms; I'll take care of this one."

Ten minutes later...

Zhang Tan: "5 minutes were up long ago; it's already two 5-minute intervals."

Xiaobai, still staring at the TV, said without turning her head, "But the donkey hasn't been rescued yet."

Zhang Tan was also watching the cartoon. As a screenwriter, if he wrote it, the donkey wouldn't be rescued until at least two episodes later, to build up the suspense before the rescue. It wouldn't happen so quickly. First, he would create tension, then release it, to attract children like Xiaobai.

"Go to sleep, go to sleep. I'll turn off the TV, and you can continue watching tomorrow. I've seen it; the donkey doesn't die and will definitely be rescued."

Finally, he managed to get Xiaobai to the dorm. Zhang Tan also returned to his room, sat at his desk, and turned on his computer. He saw a bowl of boiled peanuts, picked one up, peeled it, and revealed two plump, cooked peanuts. The aroma wafted to his nose, making him want to eat it.

He moved the mouse, opened a real estate agency website, and checked the housing prices on West Chang'an Street. As the private chef had said today, the prices in this area were ridiculously high, and the rent was exorbitant.

Zhang Tan browsed for a while but didn't see many properties for sale on West Chang'an Street. Most were for rent only, making it a seller's market.

Zhang Tan estimated that if he sold the land of Little Red Horse Academy, he would instantly become a billionaire, no longer worrying about the academy's funding or job issues, and could live the life he wanted.

If he had the passion, he could write his own script, form a production team, and direct it, pursuing his dreams without the need for a starting phase or accumulation, achieving his goal directly. Of course, whether he would succeed was another matter.

Zhang Tan was very tempted, but his only concern was that Little Red Horse Academy was left to him by his grandparents. Although he didn't know much about it, he could guess that the two elders cherished it greatly.

Little Red Horse Academy was the result of their hard work.

Zhang Tan hesitated, couldn't make up his mind, closed the webpage, and went to sleep!

The next morning, he came to the company, and a staff member brought him a new script.

Zhang Tan flipped it open and saw that the script was called "Under Tianyu Mountain."

Zhang Tan's work routine these days was to read scripts in the morning and have meetings in the afternoon.

Others also received it. Jiang Rong, sitting across from him, turned her head from her computer and asked, "Zhang Tan, what's the name of the script you received?"

Not everyone read the same script. Sometimes each person had a different one, sometimes the same, and sometimes a few had the same while others had different ones, so Jiang Rong asked.

"Under Tianyu Mountain," Zhang Tan said. "What about yours?"

Jiang Rong showed him her script and said with a smile, "What a strange script, I've never seen such a long title before."

Zhang Tan was surprised to see: "This Hero Is Overly Cautious Despite Being Strong"!

Wasn't this the script he had attached to his resume?!!

He thought the production company had forgotten about this script, but it seemed they planned to evaluate it today.

"I think the title is very unique, memorable, and on point. It's interesting," Zhang Tan silently praised himself.

Jiang Rong thought about it and nodded, agreeing.

The scripts they evaluated were anonymous, without the author's name, to facilitate open discussion without any reservations.

The script in Zhang Tan's hand also had no name, but after reading it, he felt it was definitely written by an experienced hand, with a well-structured and engaging plot.

"Ha ha ha~~"

Jiang Rong suddenly laughed and turned to Zhang Tan, saying, "Zhang Tan, this script is hilarious. Do you want to read it? The hero is so funny, so serious in his humor. Do you know how he fights a slime, the lowest creature on the food chain?"

Zhang Tan was very supportive.

"How does he fight it?"

To be supportive, he pretended to think and asked, "With a big move?"

Jiang Rong laughed, "You guessed some of it, but not quite. Keep trying."

After two wrong guesses, Jiang Rong couldn't hold back and laughed, "He actually uses his full strength, you know? He's a hero summoned to save the world, a genius from the divine realm, and he uses his full strength to kill a slime. Ha ha."

Zhang Tan laughed a couple of times, and Jiang Rong added, "Do you know? He prepares three sets of armor for a fight, one to wear, one as a backup, and another as a backup for the backup. Ha ha ha. Who wrote this? It must be a comedian."

Zhang Tan: (￣ェ￣;)

Allow me to rephrase!

Zhang Tan didn't respond, and others joined in.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm reading this script too. This hero is making me laugh so hard. I've never seen such a coward."

Another person said, "He's not a coward, just overly cautious. What kind of person is he? What has he been through?"

Another person chimed in, "He's just a coward."

"I don't think so. He's cautious but not a coward."

"Isn't that being a coward?"

...

Jiang Rong joined the discussion, "He's a comedian."

"Which script are you talking about?" someone else asked.

Because it was his script, Zhang Tan was very excited about the afternoon evaluation meeting.

In the afternoon, after lunch and a nap, at 2 PM, the deputy team leader notified everyone to go to the meeting room.

Zhang Tan brought his laptop, sat in his usual spot, and Jiang Rong, sitting to his right, excitedly whispered, "Finally, we'll know who the comedian who wrote this hero is."

Zhang Tan glanced at her, thinking, are you sure you want to keep calling this author a comedian?

The team leader, Old Liu, arrived last, sat down, and said, "As usual, let's start. Zhang Tan, you go first."

He always started with Zhang Tan.

Zhang Tan was used to it and said, "The script I have is called 'Under Tianyu Mountain.' It's about... many strengths..."

After listing many strengths, he started on the weaknesses.

Jiang Rong whispered, "There are three weaknesses."

Zhang Tan: "There are three weaknesses."

Jiang Rong gave Zhang Tan a smug look. She was used to his habit and suspected he had OCD. Every time he evaluated a script, he always listed three weaknesses.

As for the strengths, there could be one or many, but the weaknesses were always three.

Zhang Tan continued, "First, the whole story is a bit dull, lacking novelty, and somewhat boring..."

After finishing, Old Liu asked, "For these three weaknesses, what solutions do you suggest?"

Zhang Tan: "For the first one, I think we can add a supporting character to liven up the atmosphere, like a pet..."

There are many examples of this, such as Mushu in the animated film "Mulan." The addition of this small character made the film much more lively and interesting.

Many anime and live-action films have similar setups, often placing a comedian character next to the protagonist to liven up the atmosphere, like the Fat Man in "The Lost Tomb."

Old Liu nodded without comment and asked the three colleagues who also received this script to share their thoughts.

After everyone spoke, he said, "I will provide all your suggestions to the production team."

"The production team?" someone asked curiously.

Old Liu nodded, "This is actually a project the company is preparing to launch. The script was written by one of our in-house screenwriters, who came to hear our opinions. Your suggestions are all good."

Everyone was excited; this was the first time they had evaluated a script that would be put into production.

Old Liu: "Alright, let's continue. Jiang Rong, you seem eager. Go ahead and share yours."