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The assistant looked up and met He Jinyun's smiling face. Struck by his looks, her heart suddenly skipped a beat.

The next second, the assistant blushed and looked away.

Forget it, forget it. As long as her idol was happy!

He Jinyun was happy, but Ye Zexi, who was about to get paid, was even happier.

Ye Zexi had even started considering when to withdraw from the competition. He definitely could not do it now; the money had not reached his hands yet. At the very least, he had to wait until he got the money before withdrawing.

While Ye Zexi was considering withdrawing, Gao Shu was discussing Ye Zexi's future career plans with Li Changjian.

Although it was Gao Shu's first time being a manager, these matters were nothing compared to the company's affairs. He handled them with far greater ease.

But after only a few exchanges, a staff member hurried over and said quietly, "Director Li, something happened..."

Li Changjian's expression changed at once after hearing him out. He stood and said to Ye Zexi, "Zexi, it's getting late. Go back and rest first; we still have filming tomorrow. Assistant Gao, you should head back as well. We can contact each other if anything comes up."

Gao Shu nodded without saying anything else.

Ye Zexi had not heard what the staff member said, but he was not interested in such matters anyway. He merely said to Li Changjian, "All right. Sorry for the trouble today, Uncle Li. You should wrap things up early and get some rest too."

Li Changjian's expression softened for a moment when he heard that. Smiling, he patted Ye Zexi on the shoulder. "All right, I understand. Hurry back."

With that, Li Changjian left first with the staff member.

Gao Shu gave Ye Zexi a rather satisfied look.

Their young master really had changed.

When would the old Ye Zexi ever have said something like that?

Gao Shu became increasingly satisfied with Ye Zexi, and at the same time decided that he had to become their young master's strongest support. Setting up a studio could not wait!

With that thought in mind, Gao Shu left as well.

Ye Zexi returned to the dormitory alone. It was not until the next day that he learned what had happened the previous night really was no small matter—

Tang Jing and Cui Yi had gotten into a fight.

Early in the morning, Yu Yan came to Ye Zexi's dorm room and told him about it.

The exact reason for their fight was unknown. Li Changjian had been furious over it and repeatedly warned both the staff and contestants that anyone who spread word of it would have no future in the industry.

Li Changjian had extensive connections in the industry. His films had won countless awards in his early years, and he had hosted several major China Central Television events. Naturally, his words carried weight, so the matter was suppressed.

The moment Ye Zexi heard about it, he could not sit still. He immediately prepared to find Li Changjian.

"Hey, hey, hey! Director Li was afraid you'd get angry, so he repeatedly stressed that we weren't allowed to tell you! If you go looking for him now, I'll be forced to withdraw from the competition today!" Yu Yan blocked the doorway firmly, refusing to let Ye Zexi leave.

Ye Zexi frowned and looked down at Yu Yan. "Then why did you tell me?"

Yu Yan's eyes widened at once, as though he had been caught red-handed. He became awkward all over and stammered for a long while before saying quietly, "It's just... that, before... last Friday, didn't you..."

He did not finish, but Ye Zexi understood what he meant.

"How is Tang Jing?" After calming down, Ye Zexi changed the subject.

Yu Yan immediately said, "He came back in the middle of the night yesterday. He looked like he was fine."

"He wasn't hurt, was he?" Ye Zexi asked.

Yu Yan answered honestly, "I was too far away at the time, so I didn't see clearly. Probably not?"

It was not until right before filming began that Ye Zexi saw Tang Jing. When Yu Yan said he was not hurt, he had actually meant that Tang Jing was only slightly injured.

Tang Jing had delicate features, so during filming, he usually only wore light makeup, if any at all.

The moment he appeared today, Ye Zexi noticed that his foundation was unusually heavy, and the corner of his mouth had a bit of broken skin.

Ye Zexi could not stop himself from walking over. "Are you okay?"

At the sight of Ye Zexi, a trace of surprise flashed through Tang Jing's eyes, but he soon pressed his lips together in a smile. "What could possibly be wrong?"

Ye Zexi frowned and spoke bluntly. "Really nothing? I know about last night."

Tang Jing was even more surprised. When he looked up, he met Yu Yan's peeking gaze from not far away and quickly understood.

He smiled helplessly. "Yu Yan actually dared to tell you? Director Li told the other contestants so many times that they couldn't let a second person find out."

Ye Zexi sat down beside him. "You didn't get the short end of the stick, did you?"

Tang Jing nodded. "I threw the first punch. How could I have come out worse?"

Ye Zexi sighed in relief. "That's good. If you get into a fight next time, tell me in advance."

Tang Jing laughed. "What? Are you planning to come help?"

Ye Zexi raised a brow and rolled his shoulders. "I can take on four by myself."

Tang Jing did not take it seriously and simply laughed it off.

After a while, he suddenly spoke again. "Last night, I saw Mentor He talking to you. What were you talking about?"

Ye Zexi already considered Tang Jing one of his own, so he did not hide it from him. "We discussed an advertising partnership."

Tang Jing's expression shifted slightly, but it quickly vanished. "I see. Director He thinks highly of you."

Ye Zexi was not happy to hear that. "I'd rather he didn't."

Tang Jing smiled. "Only you would say that. If anyone else could earn such appreciation from Mentor He, they'd laugh themselves awake from a dream."

Ye Zexi sighed and slowly shook his head.

But Tang Jing's words reminded Ye Zexi of something he had overlooked for a long time—

According to the novel's plot, Tang Jing was supposed to meet He Jinyun on Era Idol.

Afterward, He Jinyun would invite him to act in a film. During filming, their feelings for each other would grow.

When the film was released, Tang Jing would become an overnight sensation, and the two would naturally announce their relationship.

Why, then, had He Jinyun already left while Tang Jing still did not seem very familiar with him?

Before Ye Zexi could figure it out, the two mentors entered. Walking with them was this episode's guest mentor—Yuan Ming.