Jiang Xun had no idea that Liu Chef had so many thoughts in his mind.
Looking at Liu Chef now, there was hesitation in his eyes as he asked, "Is signing with Starry Sky Kindergarten the only way to continue in the competition?"
He had heard before that some competitions required signing contracts in advance, and those who didn't sign couldn't progress to the next round.
This was his first time participating in such a culinary competition, so he wasn't sure if there were similar unwritten rules.
Liu Chef was taken aback by his question, then looked at the young man and said, "Of course not. You're free to choose."
As soon as Jiang Xun finished speaking, he felt a bit regretful.
After all, the other person was a senior in the culinary world, and his words had been somewhat presumptuous.
But having already spoken, and not being particularly quick-witted to remedy the situation, he could only leave feeling somewhat guilty, just as a host came over to Liu Chef to go over the script.
Jiang Xun breathed a sigh of relief.
As he walked a few steps towards the exit, he saw the girl who made desserts.
There were more male contestants in their culinary competition.
With only a few girls in total, they naturally stood out, and the two of them had exchanged a few words before.
Later, they gradually became more familiar, chatting more on WeChat.
Seeing her again, in a situation where he wasn't familiar with others, she was clearly his only acquaintance.
"What's wrong?" Seeing that he seemed troubled, she took the initiative to ask.
Jiang Xun told her about Liu Chef's question and his own cold response.
The girl was silent for a moment, then said, "I might choose Starry Sky Kindergarten, if they want me."
"Why?" Jiang Xun was surprised.
"It's not about whether I can advance or not. I've been a fan of the kindergarten before, and I just want to make desserts in a more healing environment. I don't care about making more or less money."
She really disliked the so-called scheming and plotting.
She had already experienced it since the competition began.
Everyone forming cliques openly and secretly,
It all made her somewhat weary.
So she preferred a simpler life. If she went to a cake shop, she'd be parachuted in.
The old employees would surely be dissatisfied.
Before even arriving, she might already invoke others' dislike.
The healing atmosphere of Starry Sky Kindergarten had made her a long-time fan.
Now that Starry Sky Kindergarten was extending an olive branch to her, she was more than willing to accept.
The girl looked at Jiang Xun and said, "But everyone has their own choices. You should just choose what's best for you."
Jiang Xun pondered this.
During this time, he had also learned that Starry Sky Kindergarten was indeed quite good in every aspect.
But he had been burned before, so he wasn't sure if this goodness was genuine or just a facade.
As the two were talking, they were rudely interrupted by a male contestant: "Hey, you two contestants can't talk to each other."
Then a short, stout middle-aged man appeared, frowning, with deep wrinkles between his brows.
As soon as he appeared, people nearby respectfully called out, "Hello, Director."
Jiang Xun was slightly taken aback.
The short, stout middle-aged man then gave Jiang Xun a few words of advice.
Afterwards, he was surrounded by a crowd of people and left the area.
Jiang Xun couldn't help but ask those nearby, "Is he the director?"
In his impression, the director should be an elderly man around 60 years old.
But the middle-aged man he just saw looked only about 40 years old.
However, his skin with orange peel texture made him look particularly hot-tempered, and despite being short and stout, his presence was not at all diminished.
A lighting technician who had just become a permanent employee this year saw him ask and couldn't help but grumble, "Actually, he's just a deputy director, but he likes everyone to call him director."
His tone was full of disdain.
Originally, people should just tell it like it is, but he insists on skipping ranks.
It's also because the old director doesn't manage anything and delegates power.
Nobody dares to offend him.
So they can only cater to his preferences, calling him director over and over, until even he starts to believe it after a while.
The deputy director's surname was Liu. At this moment, he had just returned to his office.
He took a sip of the strong tea brought by his assistant, then spat out a mouthful of tea leaves onto the ground.
Finally, he carefully examined the report.
But Deputy Director Liu quickly spotted the problem: "What's going on? Our S-grade variety show has such strong online popularity, how come the title sponsorship fee is only 3 million? What is the advertising department doing?"
Let alone an S-grade variety show, even a B-grade one would have advertising fees around 3 million.
This time, the station's publicity and distribution costs alone were over 20 million.
They were determined to do a good job.
The advertising revenue should first make a big profit.
They had inquired about those big TV stations, and their title sponsorship fees were several hundred million.
At least 20 million would be appropriate.
The assistant explained beside him, "This is the copyright we received from Starry Sky Kindergarten. They already have a title sponsor, Gu Corporation, who gave 100 million."
"Then where's the money?" Hearing about 100 million, the deputy director's heart surged.
"The money was taken by Starry Sky Kindergarten. This was negotiated by Little Mei. Because of their online popularity..."
The deputy director didn't want to hear it and immediately said, "Absurd."
"We're working hard for nothing. Now immediately tell the advertising department to ask if their investment title sponsors can increase their input. If not, replace them immediately. The title sponsorship fee must not be less than 20 million."
"And by the way, ask if Gu Corporation is willing to add more investment!"
They did give money, but the money was given to Starry Sky Kindergarten.
But now it's the TV station doing this, there's no reason they should receive less money.
"But Starry Sky Kindergarten..." The assistant hadn't finished speaking when Deputy Director Liu rudely interrupted.
"What does Starry Sky Kindergarten have to do with us? Do they expect everyone at our station to work for them for free?"
"But..."
Deputy Director Liu slammed his cup on the desk with a bang.
The assistant didn't dare to say anything more.
Then, fearing that this young fellow would mess things up, Deputy Director Liu personally went to call and negotiate with the advertising department.
The advertising department was also confused. They immediately started discussing sponsorship with companies.
After all, it was an S-grade variety show.
A 20 million title sponsorship wasn't much, and they quickly secured it.
But Deputy Director Liu was still unsatisfied.
The kindergarten had taken the lion's share. It was really frustrating.
The young assistant couldn't help but leak the news to Little Mei: "What should we do? The deputy director has already changed the title sponsor."
"What? This was all agreed upon in advance," Little Mei said.
Although Little Mei was a young woman, she was exceptionally driven.
In just a few short years, she had become a producer at the television station.
She had originally planned to venture out and explore opportunities elsewhere,
To experience the atmosphere at some larger stations.
But the old station director saw great potential in her and repeatedly persuaded her to stay.
This time, being able to capitalize on the popularity of Starry Sky Kindergarten was already a favor from friends. She never expected Deputy Director Liu to secretly undermine her efforts.
