After a failed blind date, a wealthy woman tried to walk into my heart

For the past two weeks, the weather in Jianghai City has been gloomy and harsh. The cold, biting air has enveloped this bustling city, with signs of snow on the horizon.

In stark contrast to the dreary weather is Shen Lang's filming progress. Over the past half month, Shen Lang has filmed more than thirty episodes of the short video adaptation of the novel, covering over three hundred chapters of the book.

Under Shen Lang's direction, the pace of filming and the quality of the short videos have significantly improved. The actors' performances have visibly enhanced. Any episode chosen at random, whether it's the plot or the acting, doesn't seem like a low-budget short video but rather a well-crafted version of an excellent martial arts film.

Now, Shen Lang just needs to wait for the special effects to be added in post-production and to promote the videos on Douyin. Then he can enjoy the rewards of his hard work.

"Director Shen, the special effects should be fully done by tomorrow at the earliest," said Gu Linyu, Shen Lang's short video operations manager, as she came to discuss the upcoming video release plan.

"I'm just wondering if giving away the first five episodes for free to drive traffic might be a bit of a loss. Each episode costs us over ten thousand to produce," Gu Linyu, a 22-year-old recent graduate in multimedia technology, asked. She had come to apply for the job right after Shen Lang posted the recruitment ad. Although she didn't have much work experience, her professional background and serious attitude made her a good fit.

Shen Lang glanced up from typing on his phone and asked, "Linyu, have you ever paid to read a novel?"

"Well, don't laugh, Director Shen. I usually read pirated versions online," Gu Linyu admitted with a sheepish smile. "I only pay for novels when I really like them and want to read the latest chapters."

Shen Lang continued, "And when you do pay, is it often for a chapter that's about to start charging, and that's the one that makes you want to keep reading?"

"Yeah, that's right. Recently, I was following this CEO romance novel. The main character's child was about to reunite with his dad, and then the next chapter suddenly became paywalled."

Gu Linyu nodded, "I couldn't resist and ended up spending over a hundred bucks to subscribe to the whole book."

"Exactly. Novels and short videos are pretty similar. The first five episodes of our series are just before a small climax, with the sixth episode being the key one that really hooks viewers. Plus, each episode is only a few bucks. As long as the acting and plot are good, fans of novels and shows will be just like you—eager to pay for the next episodes until they catch up to the latest one."

"I get it now, Director Shen," Gu Linyu said, enlightened. "I'll contact Douyin tonight to launch the first five episodes and drive some traffic."

"Great. And don't forget to use my author account to help with the promotion. The fans there are paying readers, and they're the real big spenders," Shen Lang reminded her.

"Got it. I'll get on it," Gu Linyu said, glancing at Ye Yinan, who was sleeping on the chair, before quietly leaving the office.

After Gu Linyu left, Shen Lang turned to look at Ye Yinan. She looked pretty even in her sleep, and her peaceful face was quite pleasant to see.

The weather was cold today, and Ye Yinan was wearing a black, fur-lined coat over a white shirt and blue jeans. Her head was tucked into the coat, so Shen Lang gently pulled back the coat to reveal her delicate face.

He nudged Ye Yinan awake, showing no mercy: "Wake up, princess. I need to take you home."

Ye Yinan opened her sleepy eyes, yawned, and lazily looked at Shen Lang. "Are you done with work?"

"Yeah, I'm done," Shen Lang said absentmindedly while tidying up the desk.

"Is it really fun to hang out with me every day? You'd be better off sleeping at home. You're just sleeping here anyway," Shen Lang said, having been extremely busy lately. He hadn't had much time to chat with his girlfriends or pick up Ye Yinan; her bodyguard had been driving her to the set.

Ye Yinan, with a lazy but content smile, said, "It's more comfortable to sleep next to you. I can't sleep well at home."

Seeing Ye Yinan's dependency clearly written on her face, Shen Lang decided to offer her some help. "There's nothing much to do around here. Let's go to that night market street we went to last time. It'll be good for you to get some exercise."

Shen Lang pinched Ye Yinan's slender arm and shook his head. "All you do is scratch and sleep all day. Your body must be exhausted."

"Sure," Ye Yinan agreed without hesitation, her eyes sparkling with anticipation. She quickly helped Shen Lang clean up the desk.

After tidying up, Shen Lang said goodbye to the staff still packing up and drove Ye Yinan to the night market street for a stroll.

...

After finishing their walk, it was already past nine in the evening. The two of them walked side by side on the windy street and soon reached the underground parking lot, ready to head home.

"Are you cold?" Shen Lang instinctively tugged at Ye Yinan's collar. "Do you want a jacket? You can return it to me tomorrow."

Ye Yinan looked at Shen Lang in surprise and asked directly, "Shen Lang, are you flirting with me?"

Shen Lang seemed intrigued. "Oh, so you know what flirting means? Where did you learn that?"

Ye Yinan thought for a moment. "From a beauty blogger. She said if a guy doesn't do things like this, it means he doesn't love you."

"Stop watching those people's videos. They're useless," Shen Lang said dismissively, opening the car door and sitting in the driver's seat. "They used to teach girls how to do makeup, but now they're teaching them how to exploit guys. Watching their videos can make you obsessed."

"Got it," Ye Yinan said, then asked, "So were you flirting with me just now?"

"No, it was just a friendly gesture. Don't read too much into it," Shen Lang replied coldly, focusing on setting up the navigation on his phone.

Seeing Shen Lang's distracted demeanor, Ye Yinan gazed at him for a moment and then seriously said, "If you admit it, I'll let you touch my leg."

"Yeah, babe, I was flirting with you."

"Babe, your jeans are quite nice and warm. Come a bit closer, yes, like that."