Mysterious Assistant of the Washed-Up Queen

As a few of them were chatting, three more people came in together.

"Yo, there's quite a crowd here?" one of them remarked.

The moment the three entered, the oldest among them smiled in surprise upon seeing so many people seated inside.

Seeing more guests arrive, Wei Liangxiao quickly stood up to greet them.

Chu Tian and Hou Yichuan also stood up; after all, they were among the younger ones in this gathering. This was an informal get-together, not some corporate meeting that required strict adherence to seniority based on tenure. Privately, age generally took precedence. The newcomers looked to be in their forties, so Chu Tian and Hou Yichuan were definitely considered juniors in comparison.

Wei Chuan was the only one who didn't stand, as he was the eldest present. If he stood up, that would seem odd, Chu Tian thought. Just then, however, Wei Chuan lazily stood up, chuckling, "Ah, it seems the newcomers are quite the personalities, with everyone standing up. I suppose I'll do the same."

Had he not stood, it would have been fine, but his standing up took the newly arrived guests by surprise.

Lu Yongxin, who had just entered and was about to greet Wei Liangxiao, stumbled and hurried past him, exclaiming with a panicked expression, "Oh dear, Wei, what are you doing, Wei? You're putting me in a terrible spot! Do we have some kind of feud that you'd torment me like this?"

"Please sit down, sit down! What's all this about!"

Lu Yongxin pulled Wei Chuan to sit down, chuckling as he glanced around at Chu Tian and Hou Yichuan; unfortunately, he didn't recognize either of them.

Wei Liangxiao, who was at the door about to greet Lu Yongxin, was left with his hand suspended in mid-air.

He glanced back at his father and could only sigh helplessly. What could he do? It was his own father, after all. There was no helping it.

Wei Chuan, seeing his prank succeed, sat there quite smugly and, glancing at Lu Yongxin, said, "Good to see you've still got a conscience, kid. I thought you were some big shot."

"Tsk, Wei, your mouth is really something else!" Lu Yongxin retorted. "I'm no big shot; can't I just be a teacher?"

"Alright, alright, have some tea," Wei Chuan said. "We're all old acquaintances. No need for all this fuss in front of the youngsters."

After their exchange, Wei Liangxiao finally found an opportunity to speak. Having greeted the newcomers, he brought them over for introductions.

"Everyone, let me introduce you. This is my current boss, Chu Tian, President Chu of Unlimited Entertainment. You should know him; Unlimited Entertainment just collaborated with your station."

"This gentleman is also from Unlimited Entertainment, Deputy General Manager Hou Yichuan, President Hou. He's also President Chu's partner."

After introducing Chu Tian and Hou Yichuan, Wei Liangxiao pointed to Lu Yongxin. "This is a friend of my dad's, and also an uncle figure to me. His name is Lu Yongxin. He's a former actor, now an acting teacher at the film academy, and he still occasionally acts."

"No, no, no, let's not get into that," Lu Yongxin, who was sitting beside Wei Chuan, quickly waved his hands upon hearing Wei Liangxiao. "You call Chen Sheng 'Big Brother,' and then you call me 'Uncle'? I can't accept that!"

Wei Liangxiao couldn't help but laugh; their relationships were indeed quite tangled.

Seeing Chu Tian and Hou Yichuan looked a bit confused, Wei Liangxiao quickly introduced the remaining two.

"This is Brother Sheng, Chen Sheng, Lemon TV's star host, their number one emcee!"

"Not at all, not at all, you're exaggerating," Chen Sheng said, greeting them politely and with perfect grace. "I'm just a humble host. Please don't mind my friend's teasing."

One person remained. Wei Liangxiao seemed just as familiar with him, pulling him forward for an introduction. "Hu Zhenglun, also a director at Lemon TV. Like me, he works on variety shows, though he hasn't really made a big name for himself yet."

The two seemed very familiar, as Wei Liangxiao immediately started teasing him.

"You just have to rub salt in my wounds, don't you?" Hu Zhenglun retorted, though his words lacked conviction. "What do you mean I haven't made a name for myself? I have two or three shows under my belt, you know!"

After the round of introductions, everyone was formally acquainted.

Once they sat down, there was still a slight reserve among them due to their newness to each other.

However, being a group of men, and especially with Wei Liangxiao acting as the social lubricant, they slowly warmed up and became more familiar.

"Let me tell you," Wei Liangxiao began, "our boss, President Chu, is incredibly decisive. You all should definitely seize this opportunity."

Originally, when Chu Tian first met Wei Liangxiao, his melancholic temperament and long hair made him seem more like a brooding, artistic type.

But after getting to know him, Chu Tian discovered the man was a total social butterfly and a chatterbox. It's a mystery how someone like him got divorced, Chu Tian mused. With a mouth like that, he couldn't even keep his wife? That doesn't seem right.

Chu Tian watched Wei Liangxiao skillfully work the room. He almost chuckled, but he understood what Wei Liangxiao was doing. He's trying to build up his image, make these people take him seriously, and help him network, Chu Tian thought.

"You have no idea," Wei Liangxiao continued, addressing the newcomers. "The first time I met President Chu, he just SMACK! slapped a proposal right onto my face!"

Wei Liangxiao vividly reenacted the scene, though it seemed a bit over the top.

"At that time," he went on, "I thought to myself, 'Wow, this show has potential, it looks promising! But it also looks like it's going to cost a fortune.' So, naturally, I was a bit hesitant."

"Hu, you know how it is," Wei Liangxiao said, turning to Hu Zhenglun. "There are plenty of good show ideas out there, but without money, even the best show is useless, right?"

Hu Zhenglun nodded in deep agreement.

Encouraged by Hu Zhenglun's affirmation, Wei Liangxiao became even more animated. "So I told him, 'This show has potential, but how much are you planning to invest? It won't work if the budget is too small.'"

"You guys have to understand, that was the very first time President Chu and I had ever met. We didn't even know how to write each other's names!"

Watching his exaggerated performance, Chu Tian felt an urge to laugh. However, he also understood that Wei Liangxiao was deliberately building an image for himself, trying to make others see him as important and help him forge connections.