Chapter Thirty-Eight: The Branch of Tianhe

In the morning, Tang Zhichu was awakened by the alarm clock, then closed his eyes for a few more minutes, teetering on the edge of sleep before suddenly sitting up. He rubbed his face and got out of bed.

Half an hour later, Tang Zhichu was sitting on the living room sofa, waiting for Chen Siyang. Today, it was Chen Siyang’s turn to make arrangements. After breakfast, she went upstairs, saying she needed to fetch something.

A moment later, Chen Siyang came downstairs, wearing the hat Tang Zhichu had given her. She placed another hat on Tang Zhichu’s head, a fisherman’s hat she used to favor.

“Luckily your head isn’t too big, otherwise I’d just give you this hat outright.”

Tang Zhichu smiled, “I’ll take that as a compliment, but I’m not much of a hat person.”

Chen Siyang shot him a look, “Don’t give it back later.”

“Once it’s gifted, there’s no reason to take it back.”

...

An hour later, Tang Zhichu finally understood why Chen Siyang insisted on giving him a hat.

She had brought him to her company, Tianhe Entertainment.

Tianhe’s headquarters were in Yanjing, but there was a branch office in Yuzhou.

The Yuzhou branch mainly served as a talent incubator.

It was a five-story building, and from the moment they entered, Tang Zhichu saw many young faces.

“Good morning, Teacher Chen!”

“Morning, Sister Siyang!”

“Good morning, Goddess Siyang!”

...

People kept greeting Chen Siyang, and many cast curious glances at Tang Zhichu, who stood by her side.

Some seemed ready to approach and ask questions, but noticed someone nearby carrying a camera and hesitated.

Were they filming some sort of show?

Tang Zhichu tugged the brim of his fisherman’s hat, trying to shield his face as much as possible. Chen Siyang’s popularity here was evident.

“Who’s that?”

“No idea, but he’s so tall and looks pretty cool.”

“Could he be Goddess Siyang’s boyfriend?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. Maybe he’s an artist? He’s kind of handsome.”

...

Various speculations and discussions buzzed around. Many young people followed them furtively.

“These are mostly trainees, but some are arts teachers. For example, the one in red just now—she’s a top instructor from a renowned domestic dance troupe,” Chen Siyang explained.

Tang Zhichu nodded, observing the talent development system of a leading entertainment company in the country.

The two worlds were similar; few domestic entertainment companies had their own training systems, and even fewer did it well. Only after the bubble of celebrity traffic faded did people start to value this area.

In Tang Zhichu’s memory, the best training system wasn’t at Tianhe Entertainment, but at another large idol company, which even had its own website and livestreams from the start of training. It was like a massive internal talent show—and incredibly lucrative. Fans reportedly spent millions to boost their favorite idols’ rankings.

Chen Siyang led Tang Zhichu into the elevator and pressed the button for the third floor.

She seemed a bit absent-minded—on their first date, Tang Zhichu had taken care of her in the elevator.

Tang Zhichu was mostly silent along the way, which, in Chen Siyang’s view, was normal; after all, this was her domain.

Most people here were familiar faces to her, but to Tang Zhichu, it was a completely foreign place and field.

When the elevator opened, Chen Siyang looked at him and smiled, “Not nervous, are you?”

Tang Zhichu shook his head, “Not nervous, just amazed. I didn’t realize your company had so many good-looking people.”

Amazed? Not really.

In his previous life, Tang Zhichu’s own company was even larger, an internet celebrity firm with practice rooms, recording studios, music rooms, and dozens of streaming booths.

Returning to such an environment made him feel a bit dazed.

Chen Siyang interpreted his reaction as nervousness. She glanced outside, then grabbed his hand.

Tang Zhichu was taken aback—he felt Chen Siyang adjust her grip, turning it into a proper hand-hold. His hand was cool.

Strictly speaking, it was their first time holding hands.

“This floor is our main activity area: practice rooms, gym, library, music room, and over here—our classroom.”

Her voice dropped as she spoke, calling the camera crew behind them before pushing open a nearby door and pulling Tang Zhichu inside.

One of the camera operators tried to follow, but the door shut with a snap.

The cameramen looked at each other, then quietly filmed through the window.

Inside, the scene stunned the onlookers outside.

A former member of the planetary girl group, now the most popular substitute teacher at Tianhe Entertainment’s Yuzhou branch, Chen Siyang, had voluntarily held the hand of a young man.

This was news!

A crowd gathered, only to be dispersed by a slightly plump woman in her thirties.

At that moment, Tang Zhichu really did feel a bit nervous.

What was happening inside?

Five or six girls, all strikingly attractive, were lined up doing splits.

Their slender, well-proportioned legs looked even longer than his own.

As soon as Tang Zhichu and Chen Siyang entered, the girls glanced over, along with a red-haired woman, presumably the teacher, who gave them a stern look.

Chen Siyang gave an embarrassed smile and greeted, “Teacher Yang.”

Tang Zhichu followed suit, “Good morning, Teacher Yang.”

The red-haired woman relaxed her expression, though her gaze lingered on Tang Zhichu. “Hello, you must be Xiao Tang. Siyang has told us about you. There’s a seat over there, please have a seat.”

Tang Zhichu nodded and looked at Chen Siyang.

She whispered, “This is our morning class, a daily routine. Just wait for me over there, don’t worry—I’ve spoken to them.”

To be precise, it was a posture training class.

Teacher Yang guided them through a set of posture exercises.

Tang Zhichu glanced a few times, feeling uncomfortable, so he turned to look out the window.

One girl wore shorts, her long, pale legs exposed; some movements were so large that even the contours of her shapely hips were visible.

The girls occasionally sneaked peeks at Tang Zhichu.

They were mature artists under Tianhe Entertainment, idol singers and actors, though none currently had projects. Out of self-discipline, they maintained their physique and helped teach trainees, earning extra income.

The morning class lasted an hour, leaving Tang Zhichu restless.

Playing with his phone would seem inappropriate; watching the female celebrities stretch was equally awkward, especially with a few cameramen outside the corridor.

He ended up staring out the window.

Calling it a date, it felt more like Chen Siyang giving Tang Zhichu a glimpse into her daily life.

After the morning class, they said their goodbyes and moved to another classroom.

This one was for acting lessons; some of the girls from the posture class were there too.

It wasn’t a traditional acting class. They selected scenes from works and rehearsed and performed themselves.

Very immersive—Tang Zhichu watched with genuine interest.

Perhaps because of the three or four cameramen outside, their performances were intense. They could cry on cue; veins stood out on their necks during emotional moments.

Gradually, Tang Zhichu felt himself affected.

If an ordinary person saw this scene, they’d probably call it madness.