Chapter 45: The Film Crew
For the first time, Pu Tong overslept.
This was completely against his study schedule.
The reason was simply that he slept too well last night.
So why did he sleep so comfortably?
“This really did me in…” he hurriedly got out of bed and casually sent a “good morning” message to a certain culprit—his surname Yu, his deskmate.
Then… he didn’t receive a reply for an entire hour.
Was she still sleeping?
Pu Tong:
“Are you still not up? Do you really think you’re some young master? I’ve already finished all my chores, and if I had more time I’d even go for a morning run. And you’re still in bed? You lazy dog, you stayed up until 2–3 a.m. on your phone, you lazy dog, societal scum, maggot of civilization—if I were you I’d already jump off a building. You’re definitely still lying in bed right now, right? Sleeping like a dead pig? I’m going to punch your lazy head in. A new day, and you still haven’t changed—you’re still a lazy dog, an unmotivated pathetic worm. First insult of the day, aimed at you!”
So satisfying!
Honestly, he could feel Yu Wanwan’s kindness. He wasn’t some cold-hearted anime protagonist who rejected all emotions.
Sometimes, a part of him would feel a subtle heartbeat because of her actions…
Buzz.
Yu Wanwan:
“YOU’RE DEAD!”
Pu Tong:
“Sleeping ten hours? You really are a pig.”
Yu Wanwan stared at the screen, feeling a bit wronged.
She wasn’t actually sleeping ten hours—she had stayed up all night browsing emotional strategy guides.
As for why she was reading emotional strategy guides…
Pu Tong:
“Goodbye, I’m going to study!”
He threw his phone aside and immersed himself in studying again.
Heh. All red dust and romance are nothing but skeletons. How could they compare to the confidence studying gives me?
Every day: “cement my heart.”
“Hopefully what I said last night helped him feel at ease…” Yu Wanwan murmured, staring at the screen and noting something down.
17 minutes 26 seconds.
That was their video call duration last night.
On a weekend when she couldn’t see him at school, that was all the time she could get.
……
This time, Pu Tong’s essay went even more viral, sparking widespread discussion across society.
Discussions about traditional culture emerged endlessly, with celebrities and officials joining in.
But all of this seemed unrelated to him.
Reviving traditional culture was not something that could be achieved in a day, nor by a single essay.
He was only someone who lit a spark. As for how far the fire spread—that was beyond his control.
Compared to Lin Lan, he still lacked too much. Compared to Lin Yuxi and Yu Wanwan, he also lacked responsibility and determination.
The boy was lost, unsure of his path. The restraints were self-imposed; only he could resolve them.
“Hey you brat!”
Before she even entered, his mother’s voice pierced through the door and interrupted his thoughts.
“You won’t even show me your essay, but you let others post it instead!”
His mother, Hu Ni, walked in with a deliberately stern expression.
“Sorry, I…”
“Sorry for what? I was joking! Do you really think I’m the kind of bad woman who gets angry over something like that?”
Pu Tong tilted his head.
It really did feel like she was.
“In fact, things like this should be posted by old artists like Teacher Lin. That’s what gives them meaning.”
Pu Tong nodded. Indeed, veteran artists were the most suitable voices for promoting traditional culture.
“Your essay was really well written—come on, let me admire it in person!”
“You’re being honest, right…”
“The photos you posted were taken at night with bad lighting, so they weren’t clear. I wanted to post a high-definition version!”
his mother said sheepishly.
“If I couldn’t be the first, at least a reposted upgraded version is fine!”
As expected of her.
……
Meanwhile, in the production team.
“Episode 3 viewership dropped by 30%…”
Director Xu Lei stared at the latest data, feeling completely off.
The first episode blew up, the second skyrocketed further, but the third suddenly dropped sharply.
Why?
Was there a problem with the third episode?
He frowned and carefully compared the episodes.
What was missing in Episode 3?
“Damn it!”
He slammed the table.
He finally realized the problem.
Episode 3 was missing Pu Tong!
Maybe there were other reasons, but audience feedback clearly showed that without Pu Tong, many viewers lost interest.
Not because Pu Tong alone was that popular—but because the first two episodes had built him into a highlight.
Once he disappeared, viewers felt something was missing.
Add in his fans, poetry fans, song fans, face fans, and shipper fans—audience loss was inevitable.
Without him, many simply didn’t want to watch.
“Are you saying I have to go beg him to save my show?”
Xu Lei’s face stung as if slapped.
He had already said he wouldn’t film Pu Tong anymore—going back now would be humiliating.
“Hmph. You think only you can save my show?”
He picked up his phone and called someone.
“Old Xue, it’s me.”
“Didn’t your drama just finish filming? Time to promote it.”
“I was thinking your crew could come on my variety show as guests. Good exposure, good publicity. What do you think?”
“You don’t know my show’s popularity? Guaranteed trending topics!”
He hung up, satisfied.
A crew full of A-list actors coming on would definitely boost ratings.
Even without Pu Tong, he still had ways to recover viewership.
“They’re not that important. We’ll be fine without him.”
……
Pu Tong eventually gave the essay to his mother.
Since it had already been posted online, it was no longer a secret.
His mother happily took photos and rushed off to post on Weibo.
“Wait!” she suddenly turned back. “Your father is coming back this week!”
“My dad? Isn’t he always on set?”
“He finished filming. He’s coming back with the crew to promote the new drama.”
A film crew?
(End of Chapter)
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