Liu Ge, a leader at Jingcheng TV who had always appreciated Jia Bingyang’s talent, was very satisfied with the final cut of the documentary Jia submitted.

Jingcheng TV had never released a documentary of this type before, and Liu Ge had even promised to promote it wholeheartedly.

But the situation took a sudden turn.

Liu Ge had argued with other executives at the station and was deeply frustrated.

He sighed heavily, feeling guilty for Jia’s hard work. “Xiao Jia, the other leaders at the station have spoken. We can’t win against the higher-ups. There’s nothing I can do. I think you should let it go.”

Other leaders at the station.

Jia Bingyang hung up the phone, stunned.

Could the slot he had fought for really be that coveted?

There weren’t even any other programs scheduled during that time—why would a leader deliberately intervene to sabotage it?

Rachel’s son, who had long since recovered from his fever, was playing on set and had become much livelier compared to when he first arrived.

Holding a small cake Rachel had given him, he cautiously approached Jia, noticing his grim expression. “Uncle Jia?” he asked timidly, offering the cake.

Jia snapped out of his thoughts, immediately putting on a smile.

He crouched down and took a bite of the cake. “It’s delicious!” he said warmly.

The child beamed at his praise, while Rachel, ever perceptive, noticed the forced nature of Jia’s smile. “Jia Bingyang? Are you okay?” she asked.

Jia quietly chewed the unremarkable cake.

He understood that Liu Ge’s advice to let it go was well-intentioned.

Without connections or financial backing, Jia had grown used to staying low-key and making compromises.

When Lin Miao had been parachuted in as the leader of the production team Jia had painstakingly assembled, Jia hadn’t raised a single objection.

But this time, he couldn’t swallow the frustration.

This documentary was no longer just his. It carried the weight of Jin Yaotiao’s investment, the tireless efforts of the entire crew, and Rachel’s sacrifices.

She had braved harsh conditions alongside him to ensure progress, unable even to visit her feverish child back in Linjiang.

This strong and independent woman had broken down into tears during an argument, overwhelmed by worry and exhaustion.

Jia clenched his jaw, set the child down gently, and stood up abruptly. “No. I need to fight for an explanation.”

---

At Jingcheng TV, Jia intended to approach the leadership to plead his case but unexpectedly ran into someone else.

Lin Miao, flanked by a group of subordinates, was seated in an office. When he saw Jia, he barely raised an eyebrow and scoffed. The subordinates exchanged knowing glances; many were familiar faces to Jia.

Jia was taken aback. “Lin Miao? Why are you back?”

He had almost forgotten about Lin Miao.

When Jia first started his independent production, he had been driven by a desire to prove himself. But as work consumed him, he gradually stopped dwelling on his past conflicts with Lin.

After all, Lin Miao came from a completely different world. Jia, a self-made man, had relied on a stroke of luck to secure Jin Yaotiao’s investment, stretching every penny to its limit.

Lin, born with a silver spoon, had effortlessly taken over the documentary team Jia had fought hard to assemble, armed with a massive budget from the station.

When Jia returned to Jingcheng with his completed documentary, Lin’s project wasn’t even close to completion—he had heard Lin was vacationing overseas with his team.

Lin smirked. “If I didn’t come back, should I have let you run wild at the station?”

It took Jia two seconds to grasp the implication. “Lin Miao, are you the one who got my time slot canceled?”

Lin lazily played with his phone, not even sparing Jia a glance. “Don’t blame me for your failures. The station just thinks my project is better suited for that time slot.”

Jia was incredulous. “Didn’t your project already have a scheduled slot?”

Lin had often bragged during their time in the same team that his uncle had secured him the prime Spring Festival slot, with international promotions in the works. It was the most coveted release window, far more valuable than the slot Jia had been fighting for.

Lin finally responded, his mocking tone unmistakable. “Go ahead, try.”

Jia’s voice rose. “Lin Miao! This documentary is the collective effort of many people, not just me. It poses no threat to you!”

Lin sneered, patted Jia’s shoulder mockingly as he walked past, and said, “You want to ruin my reputation and expect me to let it slide? Sorry, I’m not that kind of person. Your documentary? Maybe when I’m in a better mood.”

---

Jia was left in stunned silence.

When he approached the leadership for clarification, they responded with vague assurances: “We’ll discuss it later.”

Disheartened, Jia informed Liu Ge, who did his best to advocate for him but achieved little.

Jia Bingyang’s reputation wasn’t strong enough for anyone at the station to take him seriously.

Ultimately, there was no progress.

Jia Bingyang went to Linjiang to apologize to Jin Yaotiao: “President Jin, I’m sorry for your investment. It’s my fault that I caused trouble for the documentary crew.”

Recently, Jin Yaotiao had been staying at Mingde’s headquarters in Linjiang, busy with a major project soon to unfold in the Shenzhen market.

She managed to take a break and directly hosted the guests at home. In addition to Jia Bingyang, Lei Qiu also came.

The fiery-tempered exterminator sat next to Jia Bingyang, not blaming him, but apologizing with him: “Yaotiao, everyone in the team has been trying hard, but the hope is slim. I’m sorry.”

When she had free time, Jin Yaotiao was in charge of dinner at home.

Autumn brought many delicious ingredients, like the plump butter crabs.

The butter crabs were large, similar to blue crabs in appearance, but the taste was different.

Regular crabs only have a little yellow paste in the shell, but butter crabs are filled with it all the way through the joints.

Simply steaming them brings out the freshest, sweetest taste of autumn.

As the crabs steamed, Jin Yaotiao was handling fresh lotus roots.

Despite the heavy mood of the two guests, she remained calm and even joked with Lei Qiu: “Why have you gotten so tan? Filming has been tough, huh? Spending every day under the sun.”

Lei Qiu forced a smile. “Yaotiao, let’s be serious.”

Jin Yaotiao took a bite of the lotus root, which was so tender it was sweet and crunchy even raw.

She said, “What’s the rush? Haven’t the permits already been approved?”

Jia Bingyang sighed. “President Jin, you may not understand this industry. Even if we have the permits, it’s not uncommon for TV shows to be delayed for a year or two. If Lin Miao really wants to make things difficult for me, she could easily delay it until then. Otherwise… otherwise…”

He gritted his teeth and said, “Otherwise, you could just remove me from the filming crew.”

Lei Qiu furrowed her brow, and Jin Yaotiao gave him a stern look. “What nonsense are you talking?”

She was investing in Jia Bingyang, not necessarily for his work, but as a way of creating a good relationship.

Moreover, Jia Bingyang wasn’t a bad person.

They had known each other for so long, and she had no need to pull him down for a small sum of money. That would be pointless.

Seeing her reaction, Jia Bingyang felt both guilty and touched. He lowered his head and said, “Your investment, so many people’s hard work… I… I’m just anxious.”

Once the lotus root was ready, Jin Yaotiao added it to the broth, then added glutinous rice and pork ribs, covering the pot. “What’s the rush? The important thing is solving the problem. If you can’t get on a channel, can’t you try another one?”

Jia Bingyang forced a smile. “Liu Ge has already thought about it for me, but I’m just a nobody with my first film. It might offend Lin Miao, and it may not even make a splash. It’s clearly a losing business. Who would want to take it?”

It was because he was too useless.

Otherwise, Lin Miao wouldn’t have suppressed him to this point. Even Liu Ge, who was helping him, was being sidelined by others at the station.

Those people weren’t necessarily his enemies, but they didn’t think it was worth opposing Lin Miao for a nobody.

Only Jin Yaotiao, as his patron, still chose to not give up on him.

The sweet aroma of roasted sweet potatoes filled the air, and when taken out of the oven, the potatoes were soft and split open, with syrup oozing out.

Jin Yaotiao put on gloves and scooped out the golden sweet potato flesh with a spoon, mashing it and adding it to glutinous rice flour.

These were to be used for making sweet potato balls.

The sweet potatoes could be steamed, but Jin Yaotiao preferred roasting them. She found that roasted sweet potatoes were much more aromatic than steamed ones.

The high heat removed moisture, making the sweet potatoes extra sweet, and no extra sugar was needed. She added milk and kneaded the mixture into round balls.

She thought for a moment and suddenly said, “If it doesn’t work out, we could just stream it online. After filming for so long, it would be a shame for it to be hidden away.”

Jia Bingyang hesitated. “But streaming it online might not get the same return. The platform could be harsh on us…”

Documentaries didn’t have the built-in popularity of TV dramas, and this was a film from an unknown director. No platform would want to spend a lot of money on it.

Jia Bingyang had considered this option, but he couldn’t bring himself to give up on the broad stage of the Beijing station.

Jin Yaotiao, kneading the sweet potato balls, smiled. “What’s the big deal? As long as it’s not a buyout, once the fame grows, the return will come.”

That was true. In recent years, many TV stations had brought in popular online films, but that only happened after they gained considerable attention.

Jia Bingyang didn’t have that much confidence in himself.

He also didn’t understand why Jin Yaotiao trusted him so much.

But, after her comforting words, he felt that the road ahead didn’t seem so difficult.

Jin Yaotiao waved to him and Lei Qiu. “Stop sitting there. Go wash your hands and come help.”

The golden sweet potato balls, hot and soft, took shape in their hands.

Breathing in the sweet, milky fragrance, Jia Bingyang began to relax, softly asking, “President Jin, aren’t you worried that I might waste your investment?”

Jin Yaotiao glanced at him and Lei Qiu.

Lei Qiu didn’t seem to be good at cooking, so Jia Bingyang finished the sweet potato balls she had started, making her smile.

“Don’t think so much.” Jin Yaotiao said calmly. “Since I invested in you, it’s because I trust you. Even if this investment fails, it’s not the end. Jia Bingyang, your journey is long. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Just do what you want.”

Jia Bingyang squeezed the sweet potato dough, his eyes getting a bit moist.