4. I absolutely won't.
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For two consecutive days, the Pujiang Film Studio gave no response. Zhang Tan didn’t just wait idly; during this time, he sought two other jobs, sent out resumes, and even attended an interview for one of them. He passed, but the conditions were far from what he hoped for, so he politely declined.
Searching online for job postings yielded no suitable options, so he closed his laptop and decided to visit the talent market the next day.
Stretching lazily, Zhang Tan noticed the sky outside had darkened, and the quiet Little Red Horse Academy was gradually coming alive.
The children were steadily arriving.
Zhang Tan had been eating out these past few days, but today, feeling inspired, he cooked two dishes himself. After dinner, he went downstairs to the courtyard for a stroll, with the constant chattering of children filling the air.
The Little Red Horse Academy had a large courtyard surrounded by many camphor, locust, and golden osmanthus trees, as well as two mulberry trees. There were two buildings, both three-story red-brick structures, but currently only one was in use. The first floor served as the children’s activity area; the second floor housed their dormitories and the teachers’ offices; the third floor was occupied solely by Zhang Tan and used for storage.
As for the other building, it was currently idle. Before the academy became a late-night school, both buildings were in use, but now, with fewer children, it was unnecessary.
Lost in thought, Zhang Tan suddenly heard an “ouch” nearby. In the dusk, a child bumped clumsily into him and fell flat on their back.
He hurried to help.
“Are you okay, little one?”
A tender Sichuan accent replied, “I got hit so badly~~~~”
“Who are you?”
Zhang Tan paused. Sichuan dialect? He immediately thought of the little white-haired kid who bit him the day before yesterday.
“Sorry, I didn’t see you. Did it hurt?”
He helped the child to her feet. She was a petite girl with ear-length short hair, delicate features smaller than his palm, a pointed chin, and large, bright eyes.
She wore a red long-sleeved tracksuit, faded and worn, with the word "China" in white characters flanking the zipper on her chest. The cuffs were tattered, looking as if small mice had nibbled them.
Zhang Tan had only seen such clothing in old photos; it had a strong vintage feel.
This must be the little white-haired kid who bit him!
Sand clung to his shoes and pant legs, and a small red plastic bucket lid was stuck to his foot.
Earlier, the little white-haired girl had been rushing with this small bucket, accidentally bumping into his leg in the dusk, spilling all the sand inside.
“Who are you? I’ve never seen you before.”
The little white-haired girl eyed him curiously, then suddenly widened her eyes in recognition.
“It’s you! Blacky Butt!!”
Zhang Tan: “…”
The girl turned and ran off, abandoning the bucket as if he might eat her.
Zhang Tan: “…”
It seemed the children held grudges and had given him a nickname—Blacky Butt. It wasn’t as flattering as “Sea King,” but at least it was literal.
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Zhang Tan watched the little white-haired girl dash to the gatekeeper, Old Li, and point towards him, presumably to complain. Bet a pack of spicy strips it wasn’t good news.
Indeed.
The girl lowered her voice and complained loudly to Old Li, “Bad news, bad news, here comes that Blacky Butt troublemaker.”
Old Li asked, “Where’s the troublemaker?”
She pointed under the streetlight to Zhang Tan in the distance. “That one, the Blacky Butt who came last time, never seen before. He’s going after the other kids—grab him quick!”
Old Li saw it was Zhang Tan and said, “He’s not a bad guy. He’s the owner of our academy.”
The girl looked surprised. “Owner?”
Old Li explained, “Owner—this place belongs to him.”
The girl paused, as if unable to believe that was true.
Her adorable Sichuan dialect came out again: “He’s Blacky Butt, real bad. Just now when he bumped into me, I got so mad I felt like a ghost was chasing me. I think he’s a bit weird.”
Old Li chuckled, “Weird? Don’t let the boss hear you say that.”
When the girl first came to the academy, Old Li couldn’t understand the cute Sichuan dialect either. But she loved talking and often came to chat, which helped him learn. “Weird” wasn’t a compliment—it meant something like “odd” or “off.”
Despite being the boss, Blacky Butt still dared to challenge her. When Xiaomi was taken away, she blamed Blacky Butt.
At least, that was how she saw it.
If it weren’t for Blacky Butt blocking her, she could have caught up to Xiaomi and saved her.
“Grandpa, here’s your little water gun. Go get the boss and give him a good smack on both ears.”
The girl handed Old Li her water gun, egging him on to take on the boss.
Old Li: “…”
Do I look like a fool?
“Don’t be scared, Grandpa, it’s just a minute or two,” she encouraged.
Old Li was speechless. It wasn’t fear he felt, but worry that the boss might think he was trying to scam him.
“Why don’t you go then?”
The girl was shocked, as if hearing an adult say something unthinkable, almost inhuman.
“I’m still a kid. When I grow up, I’ll whack Blacky Butt on the head for sure.”
Old Li dared not argue anymore. She was getting more rebellious. If Zhang Tan heard this, it would be awkward—he might think Old Li was encouraging the kids to talk behind his back.
“The boss already left, see?” Old Li said.
Under the streetlight, Zhang Tan was gone.
The girl glanced around, couldn’t find him, snorted, and said, “Blacky Butt runs really fast.”
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“Grandpa, don’t let him come back tomorrow. If he does, you give him a good smack on both ears.”
“Easy for you to say!” Old Li refused to comment, urging her to hurry back: “You sneaked out to play again. Go back quickly, Teacher Xiao Liu will be worried if she can’t find you.”
“Teacher Xiao Liu is busy dating, she doesn’t have time for me.”
This little smart aleck knew everything, so much more than you’d expect.
Old Li gently nudged her forward, “Go, go, no more talking.”
This little one was fierce and talkative.
The girl reluctantly left her water gun and returned to the classroom. She saw Teacher Xiao Liu playing games with the children and suddenly had an idea—could she get Teacher Xiao Liu to smack Blacky Butt on the head? Teacher Xiao Liu often angrily scolded her boyfriend on the phone. She was fierce, definitely not as timid as Old Li.
Unaware of all this childish plotting, Zhang Tan returned to his room, turned on the TV for a while, then shut it off and opened his laptop. He registered as a member on an online video site, aiming to find a domestic film rated above 9.0 to watch, but after searching for a long time, he settled for one with an 8.6 rating.
He wasn’t watching for entertainment but with a mission—to understand the current film industry.
As a screenwriter, the first prerequisite was to watch films, to watch obsessively. Without solid experience, he wouldn’t be able to contribute in script discussions.
After finishing the movie, Zhang Tan wrote a review. It was already past nine o’clock when he went downstairs to the activity area on the first floor.
Children were gathered in small groups—some reading picture books, others listening to stories, some singing and dancing—all accompanied by teachers.
The oldest kids here were eight, the youngest just three.
The group singing and dancing included the little white-haired girl.
One moment she was happily watching her friends dance, waving her arms and legs joyfully, but the next, spotting Zhang Tan, her face darkened, even more sullen than her nickname suggested, with a serious expression.
She shot a big-eyed glance at Teacher Xiao Liu. She had already begged Teacher Xiao Liu to smack Blacky Butt on the head, excitedly waiting for her to do it like she did with her boyfriend, only to see Teacher Xiao Liu smiling at Blacky Butt instead.
“I’m done dancing,” said a little girl.
Zhang Tan recognized her as Xiao Qian, the girl he met on his first day at the academy.
Teacher Xiao Liu praised Xiao Qian, then scanned the group of children, fixing her gaze on the little white-haired girl.
“Xiao Bai, come dance.”
The girl widened her eyes. No smacking Blacky Butt, but now being asked to dance? Hmph!
She turned her head slightly, lifted her chin, crossed her arms, and said with great defiance, “No.”
If Blacky Butt weren’t here, she might have danced. But with him right in front of her, she refused to perform.
Teacher Xiao Liu thought Zhang Tan might be making her shy, so encouraged her, “Girls should be more confident and bold.”
Hearing this, the girl defiantly shouted, “Hell no, I won’t!”