Tan You headed to the film set, while Wang Dong took her proposal for a kids’ variety show to the main conference room. Many people were already waiting inside. When they saw Wang Dong push the door open, their eyes went not to him, but straight to the proposal in his hands.

Wang Dong said irritably, "You people always push me out in front when there’s trouble. Is Tang Li a tiger? Why is every single one of you so scared of her?"

One of the shareholders, a man fond of laughing, cleared his throat. "Ah, Wang Dong, you have to understand. You’re the one who hired Director Tang in the first place. That old connection hasn’t faded, has it? The rest of us were never that familiar with her."

"Exactly. It’s easier to work with people you know. When you’re on the case, Wang Dong, success is practically guaranteed." While the two shareholders were speaking, a savvier one had already snatched the proposal from Wang Dong’s hands, and a small group huddled together to read it.

Wang Dong gestured at the group. ’When trouble brews, they’re the first to scatter. But the moment I have good news, they swarm me like bees. Every last one of them is an expert at reading the room.’

"So, what’s Director Tang’s plan? If she’s going to be on set for the shoot, won’t her schedule be too tight?"

Wang Dong said, "That’s why she won’t be on set for this one. She’ll just take a producer credit. But I’m warning you now: you are not to change the creative concept. If you annoy her, you’ll have to go grovel for ideas yourselves. Don’t expect me to do it for you every time."

"We get it. Are we the kind of people who don’t know where the line is?"

"We may not have the creative chops, but our execution is absolutely top-notch. We would never ruin Director Tang’s passion project."

"So, which director do we pick? The standards for this one are pretty high."

Watching the executives discuss business, Wang Dong let out a contented sigh. ’The last six months have been so relaxing,’ he thought. ’It really pays to have a powerhouse on your team. Who wouldn’t be jealous of me right now?’

Back at the recording studio, Tan You was greeted by the sight of a teary-eyed Director Hu. She froze, then glanced at Sister Yun, who was standing beside him with a helpless look on her face. "What... what happened to him?"

Sister Yun suppressed a laugh. "He’s moved. He found out you’re planning a dating show and that you specifically waited for his current project to finish."

Director Hu wiped at his tears. "Director Tang..."

Tan You averted her eyes, unable to watch. "Director Hu, if some delicate pretty boy were looking at me with tears in his eyes, I might have felt a tiny bit of sympathy. But you... this is an assault on my eyes..."

Sister Yun could no longer contain herself, turning away to hide her smile. She knew her husband well—he was just an incredibly sentimental person who could get teary-eyed watching a cheesy soap opera.

Let alone a situation like this.

’But honestly,’ she thought, ’the phrase "an assault on my eyes" is actually pretty accurate.’

Seeing that Director Hu was about to start crying again, Tan You had no choice but to command, "Stop! No more crying!"

Director Hu couldn’t stop a hiccup from escaping. "Okay... HIC... I’ll stop crying..."

Tan You clenched her jaw, suppressing a burst of laughter. "We can talk about it after we finish filming for the day. Right now, I need you to be professional and logical."

Director Hu instantly straightened up. "Right! All departments, stand by!"

Sister Yun sighed. "You always know what to do."

Tan You laughed. "It’s not that you can’t handle him. I think you just enjoy seeing him cry."

"Is it that obvious?" Sister Yun threw up her hands. "I won’t lie, after seeing it so many times, I find it kind of fun."

Tan You shook her head. "You two are a perfect match!"

Despite having other things on his mind, the moment he sat behind the monitors, Director Hu’s focus and professionalism returned. As soon as the day’s filming was finally over, he immediately trotted over to Tan You. "Director Tang, can we discuss the details now?"

Tan You casually thrust the few pages of the dating show proposal into Director Hu’s hands. "This is the initial concept. I haven’t started looking for cast members yet. The selection process will be difficult."

Director Hu quickly scanned the pages. "The cast is the most crucial element."

"Exactly, which is why I need to consider the casting very carefully." Tan You held up her hands. "Pushing me won’t do any good right now. I don’t have anything for you. How about you go find the cast members?"

"No, no, no! My eye for talent is nowhere near as good as yours!" Director Hu immediately waved his hands in frantic refusal. "I’ll just handle the filming. The casting has to be your responsibility."

"I knew I couldn’t count on you." Not that Tan You ever really did. "I’ll handle the casting. But I can’t focus on that and be here at the same time, so you’ll have to manage the upcoming shoots by yourself."

"Don’t worry, I’ll have Ayun to help me." Director Hu immediately puffed out his chest. "Ayun and I will be waiting for your good news."

Sister Yun smiled as well. "Don’t worry about us. I definitely won’t hold you back."

Tan You said, "Oh, I trust you completely, Sister Yun. The only reason I’ve been coming in every day is to keep Director Hu in check, so he doesn’t try to force romantic scenes for the female cast members. This is a mystery-suspense variety show; we have no need for cutesy romance." 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

"Once the new show starts filming, there will be plenty of opportunities for Director Hu to put his talents to use."

Director Hu’s eyes darted away. "I get it, I get it. I’ll shoot fewer of those scenes, all right? But Director Tang, you have a heart of stone! What’s more fun than shipping a good couple?"

"That’s just manufactured, industrial-grade sweetener," Tan You said, her face expressionless. "If we’re going to do this, we need to capture something real. I’m heading out. We can talk more later."

Tan You left crisply. Director Hu stood there, muttering to himself, "Real... What counts as ’real’? It’s not like it only counts as ’real’ if the cast members actually end up together, right?"

Sister Yun just chuckled without a word. The truth was, she had no idea what was going on in Tan You’s mind either.

「One month later.」

Tan You spent the entire month running around and finally managed to assemble a cast of eight. The Beauty System had been a huge help. All eight chosen cast members were the cream of the crop.

Their professions spanned various fields: there was a self-made start-up CEO, a gentle but capable female executive, an athlete, a lawyer, and, of course, a university student.

Director Hu was practically vibrating with excitement when he received the cast list. "You... Director Tang, how on earth did you sign such incredible people? What did you have to trade for them this time?"

Tan You said, "I don’t have an endless supply of scripts to trade. I just analyzed their personalities and preferences and made some educated guesses about their dating patterns. Of course, whether or not they actually hit it off will be up to them."

Director Hu’s small eyes were gleaming. "A domineering CEO and a university student... isn’t that pairing just perfect for shipping?"

"And this one! The gentle and capable female executive with the meticulous, shrewd lawyer. That’s another great ship!"

Tan You wiped her hands. "I seriously doubt your matchmaking skills. If you don’t believe me, we’ll just have to let the show prove who’s right."

Director Hu asked, "Why do I get the feeling that all the women you cast are rather... strong-willed?"

Tan You shrugged. "Perhaps it’s because I’m a closet feminist. My main goal is to show everyone that women these days are amazing. They’re no longer just passively waiting to be chosen—they have the right to do the choosing themselves."

"They most certainly do," Director Hu agreed. "But where on earth did you find such exceptional women?"