Lu Zhiyao looked at the script, then at Zhang Zuting.

He looked at the script again, then at Mr. Pei.

He was struggling with a decision.

An unknown director, a production team without successful precedents, a script that seemed eccentric, and having to play a simple main character.

From every perspective, accepting this role was somewhat risky.

But after hearing Zhang Zuting’s speech, Lu Zhiyao was seriously wavering.

Maybe this movie could break through the character images he’d portrayed before, and cure his “box office poison” reputation?

If they could make a highly acclaimed film, even if it didn’t make much money, as long as it washed away the “box office poison” title and regained audience favor, that would be a huge win!

Besides, working with Zhang Zuting might allow him to learn something and refine his acting skills.

After careful consideration, Lu Zhiyao made up his mind and finally nodded: “Alright, I’ll take a gamble for this good script and Mr. Zhang! Like Mr. Zhang, I’ll join the production with reduced pay!”

Pei Qian quickly raised his hand to stop him: “That’s unacceptable!”

“I won’t short either of you a single cent of your deserved payment. I want to give you both extra!”

“Please don’t feel embarrassed. As long as you both deliver brilliant performances, that will be the greatest reward for me!”

Both Zhang Zuting and Lu Zhiyao showed grateful smiles.

Indeed, working with someone like Mr. Pei was truly straightforward!

Pei Qian was also very pleased—the “box office poison” had joined the production. Things were going according to plan!

“Since that’s settled, let’s prepare quickly and aim to start shooting soon!”

Pei Qian couldn’t wait to spend all three million completely.

…

For now, the movie matters were temporarily concluded.

The script was finalized, preliminary preparations were mostly done, and the two main actors had been secured. Both had good status and acting skills. Everything looked quite legitimate, not at all like a movie project destined to bomb after release.

He had fooled everyone—the disguise was working perfectly!

As for the female lead and some minor roles, Pei Qian didn’t bother with them anymore, leaving Zhu Xiaocai to figure it out himself.

After all, the female character in this film was just a plot device with limited screen time, unlikely to stand out.

As long as the critic and male lead roles were secured, no amount of trouble with other actors could overturn things.

…

…

November 22nd, Monday.

Pei Qian casually turned off his 10 o’clock alarm, slept for another half hour, and finally woke up naturally.

After getting up, he saw it was almost lunchtime and ordered takeout from Slackin’ Internet Café.

He watched some shows, and then his food arrived.

While eating his takeout, Pei Qian pondered his work for the coming period.

The tasks for this cycle had basically all been assigned. In the short term, at least for these five or six days, there shouldn’t be anything particularly urgent to handle.

However, he still hadn’t figured out exactly how to spend the 5 million charity quota.

There were many ways to do charity.

Some foreign tycoons did charity for tax exemptions. Some even turned charity into a business, not only avoiding losses but making profits.

But Pei Qian’s purpose for doing charity was rather simple—purely to lose money.

The simplest approach would be to donate, but to whom? That was the question.

Whether donating to impoverished children or underdeveloped regions in China, the money would inevitably pass through certain charitable organizations. Pei Qian didn’t have the energy to verify or distinguish which charitable organizations were truly reliable.

After all, even many seemingly reputable charitable institutions and non-profit organizations had been exposed in scandals.

This money would be spent either way, but if it ended up benefiting some parasites, that would be extremely frustrating.

So Pei Qian’s initial plan was to start from his immediate surroundings, first ensuring the money reached those who truly needed it, then gradually expanding the scope.

Five million for charity wasn’t much, comparatively speaking. It fell far short of foreign billionaires who often donate nearly 90% of their estates to charitable foundations.

But foreign billionaires’ estate donations were often for tax avoidance, and if even 10% of those huge estates went toward genuine charitable activities, that would be decent.

Pei Qian’s current 5 million, however, was a solid 5 million that would definitely all be spent without any discount.

As the system’s initial funding continued to increase, the funds Pei Qian could use for charitable activities would also increase. Perhaps in the future, it would grow to 8 million, 10 million, or even more.

In the long run, Pei Qian would certainly need to establish a dedicated charitable foundation to manage this money and direct it to where it was most needed.

But this matter couldn’t be rushed at present.

So Pei Qian planned to start from his immediate surroundings, at least ensuring the money reached those who truly needed it.

However, he hadn’t quite decided exactly which people to give it to.

As he was contemplating this, his phone rang.

Pei Qian put down his chopsticks and looked at the caller ID—surprisingly, it was his counselor Zhang Wei.

“Huh?” Pei Qian was a bit surprised.

The last time Zhang Wei called, it was to ask Pei Qian to put in a good word with the leadership at Fei Huang Studio, helping solve the employment problems of some senior students.

Pei Qian thought he’d struck gold and happily arranged for them to work at Terminus Chinese Website.

And then…

That was it.

Now that Zhang Wei was calling again, what could it be about?

Pei Qian was now a sophomore, still holding no positions at school. This year’s grades would probably at best match last year’s, so scholarships and honors were out of the question, and anything else… was even less likely.

Could it be another batch of senior students needing employment?

That couldn’t be right either—it was only November, nowhere near graduation season yet.

With confusion, Pei Qian answered the call: “Hello? Teacher Zhang?”

On the other end of the phone, Zhang Wei was silent for two seconds, his tone somewhat complicated: “Pei Qian, should I be calling you ‘Mr. Pei’ now?”

Pei Qian: “???”

Something seemed off.

Had his secret been exposed???

Zhang Wei had stayed at the university as a counselor after graduating as a senior, so in terms of age, he was only about five or six years older than Pei Qian, practically the same generation. Although they didn’t interact much, they were basically like friends.

Zhang Wei often paid out of his pocket to treat some male students from the same grade to meals and drinks, so Pei Qian had a good impression of him.

But this phone call today made Pei Qian realize a big problem!

Previously, Pei Qian had told Zhang Wei that he had found a part-time job at Fei Huang Studio, and Zhang Wei hadn’t doubted it.

But this time, Zhang Wei calling Pei Qian “Mr. Pei” was a huge issue!

Pei Qian laughed: “Teacher Zhang, what kind of joke are you making? When did I become Mr. Pei?”

Zhang Wei was both angry and amused: “You’re still pretending! If Zhu Xing’an hadn’t come back to see me recently and mentioned your situation, I would still be in the dark!”

“So it turns out you’re the boss of Tenda, and Fei Huang Studio, along with many other businesses, are all yours?”

“You’re something, building such a large enterprise quietly in just over a year, and being so low-key that hardly anyone around you knows!”

“If it were someone else, they would have boasted to the whole school after making just a little money. But you? You’ve created such a huge company, and you’re hiding it like a thief!”

Pei Qian: “…”

Not good! The secret was out!

Pei Qian had tried his best to minimize his appearances at Terminus Chinese Website, but this kind of thing couldn’t be hidden forever…

Pei Qian was silent for a moment: “Teacher Zhang, you know I’m a low-key person. I just want to have a normal campus life. I don’t want to be sitting in class and suddenly have seniors rushing into the classroom asking me for jobs. That would be too bizarre…”

Zhang Wei was speechless: “Is this how business geniuses think? Truly unique… Alright, since you put it that way, as your teacher, I’ll certainly keep your secret. Don’t worry about your normal life being affected.”

“However…”

“Next year’s graduation season, Mr. Pei, you’ll need to help your Teacher Zhang again, right?”

“I heard from Zhu Xing’an that you arranged for them to work at Terminus Chinese Website, and now the site is doing very well! See, this is a win-win situation. The school provides you with talent, you provide employment opportunities for the seniors, my employment rate goes up, and your company’s performance improves. How wonderful!”

Pei Qian: “…”

On the surface, it did seem good, but…

Forget it, it’s hard to explain.

Pei Qian didn’t want to take in any more seniors. It was unbearable!

Creating another Terminus Chinese Website? How would he survive?

Although the current Terminus Chinese Website wasn’t making too much profit, it was still a burden. Mr. Pei didn’t want more burdens.

But it was also difficult to directly refuse, after all, Zhang Wei was right—from every perspective, this was a win-win-win situation for the school, individuals, and the enterprise. What reason could Pei Qian give to refuse?

Pei Qian thought of the recruitment exam he had established earlier and got an idea.

“Teacher Zhang, it’s like this.”

“As you know, Tenda has recently received attention from multiple parties due to some unexpected reasons, so we have just established company regulations. Our company now requires all new hires to pass a standardized entrance exam for screening.”

“I can’t just make a rule and then break it myself, can I?”

Zhang Wei: “…I see, that’s a bit unfortunate.”

“Very well, since it’s a new regulation, I won’t insist. This year, I’ll tell the seniors to prepare for your company’s exam in advance.”

Pei Qian thought of something else: “By the way, Teacher Zhang, although I can’t directly hire them, I have some other ways to help the alma mater.”

“First, regarding the entrance exam, I hope to find some graduate students to help with grading papers. The compensation will certainly be adequate.”

Zhang Wei: “That’s easy to arrange. After all, many graduate students participate in grading papers for the national college entrance exam and civil service exams. It’s just a matter of scheduling to help your company grade these papers. I’ll mention it to the department leaders, and it should be fine.”

Pei Qian continued: “Also, I want to donate some money to the school’s poor students.”

Zhang Wei: “That’s certainly good, but how do you plan to donate? According to the school’s list of financially disadvantaged students?”

Pei Qian shook his head: “I hope we can query the school’s campus card system to filter out students who eat frequently in the school cafeteria but spend very little each time. Then the school can verify these students’ actual economic situations.”

“For all confirmed financially disadvantaged students, we will provide a subsidy of 500 yuan per month for the next five months to ensure their basic living needs.”

“There will be a total of 2,000 slots.”

Zhang Wei was silent for a moment: “Good. I thank you on behalf of these students.”