MTL - 51

Tang Yu, the wheel of fortune turns, and it’s your turn to face a trial.

— From The Diary of a Little Tyrant

After Tang Xin hung up the phone, she turned around and bumped into Ding Xiaoshan. Ding Xiaoshan smiled at her and said, “Are your parents nagging you about marriage too? You’re still young, and there seem to be quite a few people chasing after you. Why are you going on blind dates?”

The two were in the same project team. Tang Xin was younger, and Ding Xiaoshan harbored some jealousy towards her. Unfortunately for Ding Xiaoshan, she wasn’t the lead screenwriter, so they often argued over the script. Sometimes, they even fought over a single line of dialogue until their faces turned red.

Tang Xin gave a faint smile. “Well, nagging about marriage doesn’t depend on age. If your parents think you should have a boyfriend, they’ll push you. If they think you should get married, they’ll push even harder.” After saying this, she sighed. “I’m heading back to work.”

Lu Zhihang had actually come to ask Tang Xin for the first draft of the screenplay.

Only Tang Yu and Tang Dingding had copies of the screenplay.

That night, Tang Xin retrieved the screenplay from Tang Yu, made a copy, and brought it to Lu Zhihang.

As she handed the screenplay to Lu Zhihang, Tang Xin felt a bit nervous. She wasn’t sure if he would approve of it, as the current outline differed significantly from what she had written two years ago.

Lu Zhihang noticed her nervousness and chuckled. “Let me take a look and compare it.”

Tang Xin smiled. “Okay.”

For several days, Lu Zhihang didn’t show up or say anything about the movie script.

It wasn’t until the day of the contract signing that Lu Zhihang finally appeared. He looked worn out, as if he hadn’t slept for several nights, but his spirits were still high.

The signing location was at Time Shadow Entertainment, scheduled for 10 a.m. Tang Xin went with Lu Zhihang and Feng Cheng. She drove herself, and after the signing, she planned to go to the airport to pick up her parents.

Lu Zhihang shared a car with Feng Cheng and Lao Yuan. Sitting in the passenger seat, he closed his eyes to rest. Feng Cheng glanced over and asked, “Have you been staying up late these past few days?”

“Mm,” Lu Zhihang opened his eyes and turned to look at him. “Lao Feng, let’s make a few more revisions to the script outline.”

“Huh?” Feng Cheng was surprised. “I thought you weren’t handling the script anymore?”

Lu Zhihang gave a low laugh, shaking his head, and sighed. “If I truly didn’t care about the script, I wouldn’t be in this business. Once the signing is done, I’ll show you something interesting.”

Feng Cheng chuckled. “Fine, we’ll revise it. Isn’t every good script refined through revisions?”

What else was there to say? Hadn’t they always revised scripts this way?

Tang Xin hadn’t been to Time Shadow Entertainment in a long time. Gao Heng, the assistant, personally came down to greet her. She looked at him and smiled. “Gao Assistant, aren’t you wearing contact lenses anymore?”

Gao Heng pushed his glasses up with a smile. “I don’t wear them much anymore; they’re not good for my eyes.”

The group headed upstairs together and entered the brightly lit conference room.

Several documents were laid out on the table, including Tang Dingding’s contract.

Tang Yu stood by the window on a call, his tall, slender figure facing away from them. His tone sounded irritated. Tang Xin glanced at him and walked over to Tang Dingding, asking, “Where’s your agent?”

A couple of days ago, Tang Dingding had told Tang Xin and You Huan on WeChat that Tang Yu had set her up with her own agency, complete with an agent and an assistant.

Tang Dingding smiled. “Her contract hasn’t expired yet, and she isn’t managing just me right now. She happened to be busy today.”

Just then, Tang Yu ended his call and walked over. His expression was somewhat impatient, but when his gaze swept over Tang Xin, it softened slightly.

The signing ceremony proceeded smoothly.

Tang Yu swiftly signed his name, put down the pen, leaned back in his chair, and stared directly at Tang Xin. Beneath his calm gaze flickered an ambiguous glint, as if saying: Finally, you’re mine.

Tang Xin deciphered his look like unraveling a string of garbled code.

She shot him a glare, but the man remained unfazed. In fact, his eyes grew even more suggestive, causing her heart to race uncontrollably.

At that moment, Tang Dingding leaned over and whispered in her ear, “Wow, a hundred million yuan! My brother is spending a hundred million yuan to pursue you. Isn’t that super romantic? If you ever write a romantic drama script, you can use this as material. It’ll definitely tug at the hearts of female viewers.”

Tang Xin turned to look at the innocent little lamb and smiled faintly. “If you knew what he once said to me, you wouldn’t find this romantic at all.”

“Huh?” Tang Dingding looked at her, confused. “What did he say?”

“You ask him.”

“…”

Tang Dingding didn’t dare to ask.

With the signing completed, the money secured, and the leading actress confirmed, Tang Xin couldn’t shake the feeling of having sold herself. This realization made her blush with shame. She consoled herself by thinking that at least she’d sold herself for a hundred million yuan—it wasn’t a bad deal. Then, she hurried off to the airport.

In the conference room, only Tang Yu, Tang Dingding, and Gao Heng, who was organizing the documents, remained. Tang Dingding recounted her earlier conversation with Tang Xin. Tang Yu frowned.

Tang Dingding cautiously asked, “Brother, did you really do or say anything excessive in the past?”

Ka-chak.

The door suddenly swung open.

Huo Chendong walked in, looking like he had just returned from outside, sweat glistening on his forehead. He glanced at Tang Yu, took a breath, and asked, “Is the contract signing done?”

Tang Yu nodded, stood up, looked at Tang Dingding, and gave her a few instructions. “I’ve spoken to your agent. Before the movie announcement, no activities will be arranged for you. Just keep doing what you normally do at the company, understood?”

Tang Dingding replied, “Got it.”

Gao Heng took the documents out first, leaving only three people in the conference room.

Tang Yu took a few steps forward, glanced at Huo Chendong in front of him, then looked back at Tang Dingding. A mocking smirk tugged at his lips. “Indeed, I’ve done some excessive things to Tang Xin in the past. She’s proud and stubborn, unwilling to take any losses, which makes pursuing her difficult now. But this is also what I deserve. When something comes too easily, it’s not cherished. Do you understand?”

Tang Dingding was stunned, looking at him with confusion.

She might not fully understand, but Huo Chendong did. His expression shifted slightly. Tang Yu was reminding Tang Dingding that even if he regretted and wanted to pursue her, she should remain proud and resilient, not allowing herself to be taken advantage of.

In truth, Tang Yu was indirectly warning Huo Chendong. Men could sometimes be reckless. It wasn’t arrogance on Tang Yu’s part—he knew himself well, and he knew what Huo Chendong was like.

They were different.

Tang Yu could guarantee absolute loyalty to his partner.

Huo Chendong, on the other hand, couldn’t necessarily do the same—he had too many past indiscretions.

Tang Yu left the conference room and returned to his office. Picking up the new contract, he gave a faint smile.

Gao Heng pushed the door open. “Mr. Tang, we can head out now.”

An accident had occurred on a film set in Hengdian. An actor fell while performing a wire stunt, suffering multiple fractures. Since the production team had run into trouble, Tang Yu needed to go check on the situation.

At the airport, Tang Xin met Zhong Lijun and Tang Dawei, who were dragging a large suitcase. It seemed they planned to stay for a while.

Whenever Tang Xin was busy in previous years, Zhong Lijun and Tang Dawei would visit for periods ranging from a week to a month. Smiling warmly, Tang Xin asked, “Mom and Dad, how long do you plan to stay this time?”

Zhong Lijun smiled back. “That depends on how things progress between you and Xiao Lin.”

Tang Xin: “...”

Tang Dawei stuffed the suitcase into the trunk, clapped his hands, and said, “Don’t listen to her nonsense. It’ll be about a week. Your mom insists on visiting Qingdao for a few days.”

“Go ahead. I’ll pay,” Tang Xin said cheerfully.

“Do I need your money? Who do you think you’re fooling?”

Zhong Lijun snorted and got into the car.

“...”

As soon as Tang Xin got in the car, she received a message from Tang Yu reporting his itinerary, even explaining the reason for his business trip.

She responded with a string of random characters.

Tang Yu seemed accustomed to this mode of communication. Seeing the garbled text, he chuckled quietly, pushed open the car door, and walked into the airport.

Tang Xin brought her parents home. As they exited the elevator, Zhong Lijun glanced at the opposite door and casually asked, “How’s your neighbor? Male or female? Easy to get along with?”

Tang Xin: “...Male.”

Suddenly, her head started to ache. What if Tang Yu ran into her parents? Wouldn’t that be awkward?

That night, she sent Tang Yu a message on WeChat: “When you return from your business trip, don’t stay here.”

Tang Yu hadn’t heard Tang Xin speak properly on WeChat in a long time, and now she was saying something so unpleasant. With a cold expression, he immediately replied, “Impossible.”

Little Rich Girl: “I mean temporarily, temporarily! Next month, feel free to stay if you want. Who cares?”

By then, Tang Yu had just finished showering and loosely tied his bathrobe. His lips twitched as he mimicked her response with a string of random characters.

Little Rich Girl: “...”

She ignored him outright.

After a long while, she pulled her phone from under the pillow and replied, “My parents are here. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Tang Yu didn’t know that Zhong Lijun and Tang Dawei were aware of his existence, and Tang Xin certainly wouldn’t tell him about crying over a breakup and being discovered by her parents. Tang Yu wasn’t one to back down either. How could he deliberately avoid her because of one sentence?

He replied, “Then it’s perfect. Let’s meet Uncle and Auntie.”

Tang Xin: “...”

Good grief, don’t regret it later.

...

Three nights later.

Tang Yu stepped out of the elevator, pulling his suitcase. He glanced at the time—it was just before ten o’clock.

As he entered his password, a ding sounded behind him, and the elevator doors opened.

A middle-aged man’s gruff voice boomed, “Xin Xin said she wanted a midnight snack. Why didn’t you buy it?”

The woman retorted irritably, “What do you know? Eating late-night snacks at this hour will make her gain weight. Besides, she’s meeting Xiao Lin for dinner in a few days. How can we…?”

Zhong Lijun’s words suddenly caught in her throat as she stared in surprise at the man standing by the opposite door. Dressed in a white shirt and black trousers, he was tall and slender, his face more handsome than any movie star’s. His demeanor was impeccable.

This was exactly the type her daughter liked.

Most importantly, why did this man look so familiar?

Tang Yu placed his suitcase inside the door and scanned the middle-aged couple, especially Tang Dawei. He finally understood why Tang Xin called her father “Bandit Dad.” The middle-aged man wore a black T-shirt and baggy shorts. Though not particularly tall, he was broad-shouldered, with faint traces of tattoos visible at his neckline. One could imagine his entire back was covered in ink.

Definitely quite thuggish.

After a brief pause, Tang Yu calmly smiled and greeted them. “Uncle, Auntie, hello.”

Tang Dawei squinted at him and hissed, “Hey, aren’t you that Tang Yu? The CEO of Time Shadow Entertainment? It’s you, isn’t it?”

Tang Yu paused, then smiled. “Yes, it’s me.”

Tang Dawei had genuinely been involved in the underworld when he was young and had a sharp eye for people. Tang Yu’s composure, self-discipline, good looks, and family background, combined with his ability to handle situations with ease, indeed made him very attractive to young women.

He walked over and sized him up from head to toe. “Was it also because of you that my daughter went through a breakup?”