Chapter Four: Two Weeks, Discharged

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Time sometimes passes very slowly, and sometimes very quickly. In the blink of an eye, two weeks have passed.

During these two weeks, Li Yan truly devoted all his work hours to his job. Although he was only at a half-baked level regarding the company's first entrepreneurial film, he followed up and supervised daily, setting up development plans for the company and preparing investments for the next project.

As a representative of the investors, Li Yan's name would be listed under "Producer" in the movie credits, with the main investor in the first position. Producers rarely get involved directly, unless they are major directors, producers, or lead actors who also invest. However, with so much money invested, it cannot be left to Qiao Pan alone. Heavenly Film also appointed a producer to work alongside Qiao Pan.

Qiao Pan temporarily couldn't collaborate with well-known directors, as renowned directors are always fewer than famous actors. If they are famous but lack box office appeal, he's not interested. It might be better to work with a young director for more control and easier collaboration. So this time, he chose Zhou Yuan, whom he had introduced to Li Yan that day!

Actually, Chu Yi had no impression of that Zhou Yuan either. It's said that Mo Yan recommended him to Qiao Pan, and Qiao Pan had a favorable evaluation of him. Both Qiao Pan and Mo Yan proposed Zhou Yuan, and since Chu Yi was Qiao Pan's earliest collaborator and supported him, it ultimately depended on Li Yan's decision. If he insisted on not using Zhou Yuan, they would have to find someone else.

Upon receiving this news, Li Yan had little confidence in the slightly anxious young director he met that evening. The director himself admitted he had only made one small-budget film and mainly shot commercials and music videos. Could a director who seemed struggling or simply hadn't had the opportunity handle "Springtime Leaked"?

That day, he gathered everyone to watch the movie—the DVD that Zhou Yuan had given him—during work hours, to see his only remarkable film work.

Their aim was to evaluate the director's ability, to see if he had the qualifications and strength to lead the company's debut project. Everyone seemed to watch with the mentality of completing an assigned task, but as it went on, even Jiang Xueyin, who was usually uninterested in cinematography, art, and makeup, was drawn in by the plot.

You could say that the small-budget film, which never had a chance to be screened and went directly to DVD, ended up a loss, was quite rough due to financial issues, yet the screenplay was meticulously crafted, telling an engaging story. The director had a good grasp of the story's pacing, managing to naturally engage uninterested viewers, turning them interested and leaving a decent impression by the end.

After viewing it, everyone had a positive opinion of Zhou Yuan, feeling that what the director lacked was not ability or control over film, but funding and a mature team collaboration. Entrusting him with directorial duties would surely be a cost-effective choice.

In the process of forming the crew, in addition to the director and screenwriter, the most crucial is casting the lead roles. Other positions like art, music, makeup, set design, props, and cinematography were areas where Qiao Pan had an established pattern and could find suitable personnel. But the director and lead actors had to be confirmed by the big boss, Li Yan.

The familiar faces of third-tier, cost-effective TV drama actors were easy to negotiate with, and their situations weren't easy, so Li Yan didn't make it difficult for them. Professional opinions from Qiao Pan and the confirmed director Zhou Yuan were fine, and he had no objections. However, casting two slightly more prominent lead actors, two males and two females, was a bit challenging. The two male stars weren't from Cloud Island but were relatively more bankable, while the female stars were strong in the mainland.

Prices, schedules, and choices had to pass through Li Yan. As for the actresses, besides one renowned actress, the other was a rookie star, brought in through connections with Qiao Pan. It's unclear what agreement Qiao Pan had with her company, or what else he might have done. In any case, she was a newcomer, priced reasonably, and looked decent, so Li Yan agreed, not wanting to embarrass Qiao Pan. After all, adding another actress wouldn't significantly affect the box office impact.

The rookie actress's company also gave Li Yan a 10,000 yuan kickback through Qiao Pan. Her salary was only a few tens of thousands, and her agent took a commission, so it was evident their company wasn't aiming for profit, but for an opportunity to promote the artist. Li Yan saw no harm in accepting it.

Besides this, Chu Yi, as an investor, also suggested that his artists could participate symbolically at a low cost. As a result, Xiao Lu and Xiao Ai both got small cameo roles with one or two minutes of screen time, with a few others also cast as extras in the background. Of course, Xiao Lu didn't seek additional private favors or demand roles from Li Yan, because for them, being unknown and without a big company, was about gaining face time step by step. Being young, they had time to accumulate. Given what Chu Yi had secured for them, they were satisfied, without expecting to reach the top overnight.

…

All these affairs kept Li Yan quite busy, and his working attitude was observed by those around him. Whether it was Zhang Yurong, Wen Qianyi, or Hai Fu, they were surprised by and then pleased with his performance.

Huang Ying felt a bit awkward; Li Yan had promised to visit for dinner and meet her brother, yet he hadn't followed through. She wanted to call him but felt it was inappropriate to disturb him, given how hard he's working now compared to before.

Every afternoon, Li Yan still went to the hospital on time to look after the steadily recovering Yue Yao. On weekend evenings, he continued to dine with Zhang Yurong at her parents' home. Facing her father, Zhang Yurong now felt more confident because Li Yan was genuinely striving and progressing, rather than just talking nicely or having others speak well of him.

Qiao Huanxuan had left S City for a while, but she occasionally kept in touch with Li Yan. Yu Xiaodi continued her schooling, knowing that Li Yan was now the head of a new company and busy with work, including his noon visits to the hospital to care for Yue Yao. She behaved well and didn't cling to him, but when he was free on weekends, they would have a meal together.

While Li Yan was busy, Li Jie was conducting a passionate reform of the security company. Following Li Yan's guidance, she and Li Chengfeng persuaded the security team leaders by clarifying the company's aim of increasing commissions. Most of them had been with Li Chengfeng for quite a while, usually in their thirties and forties, and the company's long-term strategy was still somewhat attractive to them.

Being a bodyguard is a fleeting profession, and while being a security guard is slightly better, being older compared to younger ones lacks a competitive edge. These veteran security team leaders might not worry about future job prospects, but they face a decline. Continuing with Jie Rui, under Li Jie's strategy, they can transition into management roles and even become trainers or consultants in the longer term. Such career planning had never crossed their minds before.

Having persuaded the security team leaders and gained their support, the company also quickly assembled a professional management team and promptly replaced the original office staff. Given Li Jie's thorough understanding of the security company's affairs as the manager, the transition wasn't too difficult. However, as feared, the departing office staff spread rumors of mass layoffs within the security ranks, causing significant unrest despite the team leaders' reassurance.

Li Chengfeng had always followed a management style based on personal relations rather than strict legalities, relying on friendships and loyalty, which made him feel somewhat unscrupulous now. Yet, this mode gave the current management team some convenience. Previously, everyone's treatment was based on trust and reputation rather than strict contracts, so implementing changes now wasn't hindered by contract protections. However, resigning contracts was a challenging process, requiring individual persuasion without causing dissent.

Overall, things were toughest on her side, with uncertainty lingering over potential significant staff turnover.

...

That afternoon, Zhang Yurong and Li Yan both took a day off from work.

For Li Yan, skipping work wasn't a big deal; although he didn't frequently take leaves or absenteeism, it wasn't rare for him. For Zhang Yurong, it was comparatively uncommon.

Both of them were at the hospital to take Yue Yao home. After nearly twenty days in the hospital, though not completely healed, her injuries were no longer serious, and she could recover and recuperate at home. Initially, Zhang Yurong suggested she stay longer for better observation in the hospital, but Yue Yao repeatedly insisted on being discharged. With all tests indicating no issues and the convenience of having Liu deliver tonics to her at home, they agreed to it.

As Li Yan went to handle the discharge procedures, Zhang Yurong helped Yue Yao pack, although Yue Yao had already packed by herself. She felt most things bought at the hospital weren't valuable since they weren't needed at home. Instead of discarding them having been used, Yue Yao insisted on taking them back.

Yurong had to relent, repacking and decisively omitting towels and cups. But during the packing, she stumbled upon several sets of sexy camisole lingerie, feeling slightly surprised. Despite visiting Yue Yao daily over the past two weeks and spending more time on weekends, she didn't help bathe Yue Yao or inspect her wounds under normal circumstances, so she wasn't aware of the lingerie she wore beneath the hospital gown.

"These lingerie pieces are very pretty, aren't they? Where did you get them?" Yurong picked up one item, noting its scant material and how overly sexy it seemed to wear.

As she posed this question, Li Yan returned with a bit of awkwardness at the door. Could she believe these were nurse-bought?

Yue Yao's expression slightly stiffened. Her insistence on taking the used items home centered on these lingerie pieces, using others as distractions. The unexpected assistance from Yurong in packing led to them being noticed. Had she known, she would have skipped the batch and simply packed the lingerie.

(Thanks to yesterday's supporters: Ajackson, Maple Wanderer, jK Liang, Me, The Most Unique, 597243822, dongmin8061, kgjo, Starlight in the Night, Cp Pampas.) (To be continued. To know more about the upcoming events, please visit www.qidian.com for more chapters, support the author, and read the original!)

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