Chapter 261 - 259: Beneath the Moon, Before the Flowers

Chapter 261: Chapter 259: Beneath the Moon, Before the Flowers

After dinner, Li Weiya had planned to invite Wang Ming to spend the night at her place, but Old Wang absolutely refused, insisting on going back to his school dorm.

He came up with a good excuse, too. Starting tomorrow, he was going to be under Jiang Xia’s intensive tutelage and needed to go back to his dorm to grab some things.

Li Weiya couldn’t do anything about it, so she had to let him go.

After seeing Old Wang off, Jiang Xia and Lin Yanwan leisurely rode their bikes back to the dorms.

"Are you really going to do *Slam Dunk*?" Lin Yanwan asked curiously, hugging Jiang Xia’s waist as they rode.

Jiang Xia nodded. "Yeah. I was originally going to do *Four-wheel Brothers*. That way, your dad could also make toy race cars and we could make a killing off of elementary school kids. Logically, since Qitian Animation Company got its start with children’s animation, *Four-wheel Brothers* might have been a better choice. The market would be more receptive, and more importantly, the kids would definitely love it."

"So why aren’t you?"

Jiang Xia sighed quietly. "There are just too many shows I want to make. *Cardcaptor Sakura*, *Pokemon*, *Dragon Ball*, *Four-wheel Brothers*, *Slam Dunk*... they’re all animated masterpieces. But in the end, I want to broaden our horizons. I want the world to see Qitian Animation as a company that can handle any genre. Only then will people always look forward to what we do next. *Four-wheel Brothers* will just have to wait for another time."

Lin Yanwan nodded slightly. She wasn’t in a position to offer advice on animation strategy, but she did remind him, "There are a lot of things you’ll need to be careful about with *Slam Dunk*."

After all, it’s a show that focuses on Japanese high school students competing in a national basketball tournament. A lot of the details won’t match the reality here in China, and the differences will be obvious at a glance.

"I know," Jiang Xia said. "That’s why I need to write the script carefully and adapt it to a Chinese setting as much as possible."

"Now that you mention it, I’m actually really looking forward to it."

Jiang Xia suddenly grinned and asked, "Babe, what do you think about changing Sakuragi Hanamichi to Duanmu Huadao?"

"Huh?"

’As someone who’s been reborn, the name sounds pretty strange at first. But people in this world have never seen *Slam Dunk*, so they might actually think Duanmu Huadao sounds better.’

"Well, I think the name is secondary. The other details are more important. You’ll have to think those through carefully."

"Yeah, you’re right."

The two of them chatted and laughed, eventually arriving at the foot of the dorm building. After locking up the bike, they didn’t go straight back to their rooms. Instead, they held hands and took a stroll through the garden out back, basking in the soft moonlight. It was the very picture of a romantic evening.

"What are your roommates planning to do for the seven-day National Day holiday?"

"Cui Jiaying and Si Si seemed to have packed up and gone home this afternoon, so it’s just me and Qiuting staying at school. But she mentioned something about getting a part-time job," Lin Yanwan said.

"Qiuting is getting a part-time job?" Jiang Xia looked skeptical. ’She’s so introverted, can she really find one?’

"That’s what she said. Something about handing out flyers for 80 yuan a day."

"I have my doubts."

Jiang Xia pictured Qiuting handing out flyers. ’Too shy to talk to anyone, she’d probably just keep her head down and offer them to people. She’d likely work all day for nothing.’

Lin Yanwan said, "I thought so too. I tried to convince her to find something else, but she said she wants to give it a try. She thinks it might help her work on her shyness."

"That’s true. Dealing with strangers takes courage sometimes."

"Speaking of which, do you have any work at your company that might be suitable for her?" she asked suddenly.

"Well..."

Jiang Xia thought about it seriously. Most of the positions at his company were technical. Qiuting obviously didn’t have any animation production skills. The only thing she might be able to handle right now would be an administrative or clerical role.

But the receptionist needed to be at the company at all times, and her class schedule obviously wouldn’t allow for that.

"Sorry, nothing," he said, shaking his head.

"If there’s nothing, there’s nothing. I was just asking on a whim, don’t worry about it," Lin Yanwan said.

"Qiuting doesn’t come from a well-off family. If I can help, I will. It’s just that there really isn’t a suitable job for her right now. Once her professional skills improve, it wouldn’t be out of the question to hire her as your assistant," Jiang Xia said earnestly.

Lin Yanwan smiled faintly. ’That’s one solution.’

They continued to walk a few more laps around the garden and were about to head back to the dorms when Jiang Xia suddenly stopped in his tracks.

"Wait... I think there actually might be a job she can handle right now."

"Hm?"

"A Production Coordinator. It’s the person who chases down deliverables," Jiang Xia explained. "They’re responsible for checking the progress of specific tasks like key animation, in-betweening, and backgrounds. They also help plan, manage, and supervise the overall project schedule, staff assignments, and the production process for their assigned part of the project."

Before, it was just a two-man operation with him and Wang Ming as the only artists, so all the work progress was under his direct control. But once the team expanded, the roles became more specialized, and the animation process became more formalized, an employee like a Production Coordinator became essential.

As the animation director, he couldn’t possibly micromanage every single stage of production. The Production Coordinator would take on that responsibility, and they would also be the one with the best understanding of the project’s overall progress.

But Lin Yanwan furrowed her brow slightly.

"That sounds so complicated. I don’t think Qiuting can do it, can she? Besides, she has classes, so she won’t have time."

"Have you forgotten about the two other artists from our school?"

Jiang Xia smiled. "I can assign her the task of coordinating Su Qing’s and Luo Peng’s work. She can liaise with the relevant departments. Compared to handing out flyers, this job would be much better for helping her with her shyness."

"Hmm... well, as long as you think it’s okay. I’m just worried it might disrupt the team’s workflow."

"Haha, it’ll be fine. I’m not saying she has to become a full-fledged Production Coordinator right away. If it really doesn’t work out, she can be your assistant in the future. For now, let’s just have her try it as a part-timer. If she really can’t handle it, I’ll figure something else out."

"Okay."

Lin Yanwan nodded in agreement.

Giving Qiuting a job was a favor, not an obligation. A company doesn’t carry dead weight, and you can’t make exceptions just because you’re close with someone. A company run like that won’t last long.

After sharing a kiss under the moon, they each returned to their own dorms.

Su Qing wasn’t there. He had told Jiang Xia earlier that afternoon that he was going home for the National Day holiday. In any case, his family lived near Tsinghua, so he could come over whenever.

Zhao Ning and Zhou Zijian, on the other hand, were coding enthusiastically. Outside of their major-specific classes, they spent most of their time teaching themselves. They were already almost finished with a thick book on C programming.

Jiang Xia didn’t disturb them. He walked out onto the balcony, took out his phone, and called home.

’It had been a month since he’d arrived in the Imperial Capital. He had called home frequently at first, but the intervals had slowly grown longer. It had now been over half a month since he’d last heard Xia Shanshan’s nagging.’

A familiar ringback tone played through the earpiece. A few seconds later, the call connected.

He swallowed, then called out softly, "Mom..."