Chapter 97

Sulan said a word in the class group chat, finally defusing the situation where Zhang Tan was being ganged up on.

Privately, Zhang Tan sent her a WeChat message, thanking her for standing up for him, truly living up to her roles as a police officer and a heroine.

Considering that she had helped him several times recently, not just this time but also when she voluntarily promoted "Little Theater Bones" on Weibo, Zhang Tan felt he should properly thank her.

The next day, he drove to the set of "Dian Jiang Chun," with his trunk full of watermelons.

"You bought so many watermelons? But they are really sweet," Sulan said with a smile, her eyes squinting like Xiaobai's when she laughed.

The entire crew happened to be changing scenes when Zhang Tan arrived with the watermelons. The director decided to let everyone take a 10-minute break, enjoying the watermelons on such a hot day before resuming work.

"I've been wanting to thank you for a while. Last time on Weibo, you helped promote our show, and many celebrities responded and supported us, which was a huge help," Zhang Tan said. "Sulan, to get so many celebrities to help promote it, it seems you not only have a strong influence among fans but also a wide network in the industry. You just graduated, and to achieve this is really impressive."

Sulan elegantly ate a piece of watermelon and said, "It's sandy and really sweet."

Then she looked at him with her beautiful eyes and said, "You're quite the talker, but no need to flatter me. We're classmates, and it was just a small favor."

Zhang Tan: "I'm not flattering you; I'm genuinely grateful. Oh, and about yesterday, if you hadn't said something in the group, the class monitor might have thought I was lying."

Sulan laughed and said, "That's because you've done too many things you shouldn't have. Thanks for the watermelons, they are sweet, but I can't eat too many during filming."

She found the makeup artist to touch up her makeup and got back to work.

Zhang Tan watched for a while and then saw Yangzhu nearby, smiling as he went over to chat with her.

At 10 PM, Sulan finally left the set, dragging her tired body back to the hotel. Yangzhu suddenly took out a plate of watermelon slices from the fridge.

"Susu, have some watermelon. It's chilled and really good."

"Why did you suddenly buy watermelon?"

It was so hot during the day, and she was feeling irritable, so she couldn't refuse the cool, sweet watermelon and took a piece.

"It's sandy."

Yangzhu glanced at her and said, "Actually, I didn't buy it; someone else sent it."

Sulan took a bite, feeling the cool, sweet taste, and asked, "Who sent it? Zhang Tan?"

Yangzhu, seeing that she wasn't angry, nodded and said, "He said you praised the watermelon as very sweet, so he sent two over. They're not expensive."

Sulan didn't say anything, finishing the watermelon in her hand before saying, "In the future, don't accept anything without my permission."

Meanwhile, at Xiaohongma Academy, the kids were also eating watermelon.

"I want more, Boss Zhang~" Liuliu, who finished first, ran up to Zhang Tan and pleaded.

Zhang Tan said, "I'll give you one more piece, but it's the last one. Don't eat too much, or your little tummy will hurt."

Shen Liuliu excitedly jumped, stretching out her hands to take the watermelon, her little mouth sweetly saying, "Okay, thank you, Boss Zhang. You're a good boss, I really like you."

Liking me but running off with the watermelon, that's just materialistic!

Shen Liuliu, like a little mouse, nibbled on the watermelon while sidling up to Luo Zikang, grinning, "Zikang, you haven't finished yours yet?"

Luo Zikang, hearing this, instinctively protected the half-eaten watermelon in his hand, saying warily, "Liuliu, go away."

Liuliu not only didn't go away but stepped closer, saying confidently, "I'm not going away. This is Boss Zhang's place, humph!"

Although Luo Zikang could easily tackle her, he strangely kept losing to her, losing big. This time, he didn't want to lose again; he just wanted to eat the watermelon.

Since Liuliu wasn't leaving, he decided to leave, moving away from Shen Liuliu.

Shen Liuliu found it boring, and Luo Zikang wasn't fun anymore.

She found Xiaobai, Chengcheng, and Xiaomi and went over to them.

Xiaobai avoided her, growling, "Get away, don't touch me."

"Hehe, Xiaobai, you're so mean." Liuliu pouted and went over to her.

Xiaobai slapped her little hand away, saying, "Your hands are dirty, don't touch me."

Shen Liuliu looked at her hands, which were sticky with watermelon juice.

She thought for a moment and suddenly stuck out her little tongue, licking, licking, licking~~~

Ew—

Xiaobai, feeling disgusted, quickly moved away, pulling the dazed Chengcheng with her.

Because they ate the watermelons sent by Boss Zhang, Xiaobai, along with a few other kids, declared that they would represent the kids and come to Boss Zhang's place to dance and sing as a thank you.

Zhang Tan, of course, clapped and welcomed them, listening to Xiaobai sing while watching Chengcheng and Xiaomi dance, with Liuliu cheering on the side, shouting "666." It was a scene of peace and prosperity, making him feel like a king.

But, is this considered illegal child labor?

—

"What? Someone reported us for illegal child labor? The production has stopped? Tell me the details."

That day, Zhang Tan was at the company and didn't go to the set. Around noon, he received a call from the production coordinator, saying that someone had reported them for illegal child labor, causing the production to stop. The staff and child actors had dispersed, and the set was sealed off.

After the coordinator finished speaking, he added, "Director Zhang is also on his way back to the company."

Zhang Tan hung up the phone and immediately went to find Zhu Ruopu, thinking of Gao Xiaolan, he decided to find her first.

After discussing with Gao Xiaolan, they went together to find Zhu Ruopu.

Zhu Ruopu was in a meeting. Seeing Zhang Tan and Gao Xiaolan appear together, he made them wait for about five minutes before the three of them sat down in the office.

Zhu Ruopu noticed that Zhang Tan had closed the door and smiled, "What? You two came to see me at the same time, there must be something important. Is there any good news?"

Zhang Tan and Gao Xiaolan exchanged glances, and Zhang Tan spoke, "Minister, you're right, we came for something important, but you'll be disappointed. It's not good news, but bad news."

Zhu Ruopu unscrewed his thermos, took a couple of sips, and said, "I can tell. Go ahead, what's the bad news?"

He knew without asking that it must be something related to "Little Theater Bones."

Now that "The Golden Section" was basically dead, "Little Theater Bones" was one of the few bright spots, and it couldn't afford any mistakes.

Zhang Tan said, "Just now, we received news from the set. Someone reported us for illegal child labor, and the media is already on the case. The internet is probably full of rumors right now..."

Zhu Ruopu listened calmly, but when he put down his teacup, it took him three tries to put the lid on properly.

A moment later, Zhang Tongshun returned and gave a detailed account.

Meanwhile, the company's legal and public relations departments got involved.

This incident caused a huge stir online. In the past two weeks, "Little Theater Bones" had been in the spotlight, with debates about children acting in serious roles never stopping.

Suddenly, the news of illegal child labor was like a shot of adrenaline, and the media and social media platforms pounced like sharks smelling blood, ready to tear them apart.

There are legal provisions regarding child actors. Cultural and sports organizations can hire professional performers and athletes under 16 years old with the consent of their parents or guardians.

In other words, as long as the child actors' guardians agree, it is not considered illegal child labor.

The problem now is that one child actor's contract wasn't properly handled, and the parents' signatures were not obtained before the child started filming.

It's not that they didn't sign, but it was a matter of timing.

The contract was supposed to be signed beforehand and then backdated.

If it hadn't been brought to light, it wouldn't have been an issue; this kind of practice is common in the industry.

But now, it has been brought to light!

"Someone is jealous," Zhu Ruopu said.

In the meeting room, about ten people were discussing the issue.

Some didn't understand Zhu Ruopu's cryptic comment, while others immediately thought of many things.

Zhang Tan understood; someone was jealous of "Little Theater Bones" and had a case of red eye.

"But!"

Zhu Ruopu said firmly, "Pujiang Film Studio is not a small company that can be bullied. If someone wants to bite us, they better be prepared to be bitten back. This matter is not complicated, but it's not simple either. I'll handle it."