"You really don't want a honeymoon?" Jiang Yue asked again, arms folded as she leaned against the doorframe of her new rental.
Lu Zeyan handed her the keys without looking up from his phone. "Use the money to rest. Honeymoons are for people with time to waste."
She snorted. "You're lucky I'm not the romantic type."
"I know."
Inside, the new place was simple but decent. Two bedrooms. A small balcony. A kitchen that didn't reek of grease.
Clean, cheap, and close to the city's biggest filming lots.
Jiang Yue scanned the room with the eyes of someone used to disappointment—and still found nothing to complain about.
"…So when does this fake marriage actually start feeling real?" she muttered.
Zeyan didn't answer.
He was busy reading his system screen.
[System Alert: Critical Opportunity Detected – First Venture Capital Shortfall] [Loan Option Available – 10 BP (Business Points) with 100% Interest] Repayment Deadline: 60 Days
Failure Penalty: Access to Script Vault locked for 90 days + System passive insights suspended.
He hesitated.
This was a trap. A helpful one—but a trap nonetheless.
Still… without that loan, he couldn't secure the rights to the short animation script that had trended in 2027 and set the stage for the next wave of serialized webtoons.
He stared at the stats:
Title: When Spring Bends to Summer
Genre: Romance / Slice-of-Life Animation
Runtime: 3 mins
Cost: 10 BP
Estimated ROI in current market: 4.6x in 3 weeks with proper launch timing.
He made the decision.
[Loan Confirmed. BP +10.00 | Repayable: 20.00 BP in 60 days]
[Script Purchased.]
Across from him, Jiang Yue was setting up her bed—an inflatable mattress, a folded blanket, and one half-broken mug for coffee.
He caught a glimpse of her back: bruised, raw from yesterday's shoot.
His fingers tightened around his phone.
[System Tip: Emotional Trigger Detected – Subject Jiang Yue]
[Compatible Parallel Module Suggestion: "Talent Enhancement – Co-bound Star"]
Projected PP Flow Contribution: 0.000121953/hr
[Skill Development Available – Acting Stream]
Level 1:
Advanced Acting Workshop
Cost: 7.5 PP
Duration: 1 Week
Effect: +5% Skill Increase
Next Tier Unlock (10% → 20% gain): 10–15 days.
Cumulative cost scaling applies.
Note: Subject not yet system-aware.
Recommend passive investment first.
He memorized the numbers.
She wasn't ready.
But she would be.
That night, while Jiang Yue slept off a pulled muscle, Zeyan sat at his laptop, studying.
[System Learning Module Activated]
[Beginner Course: Viral Storyboarding for Short-form Digital Media]
Duration: 90 minutes
Cost: Free (First Session)
Outcome: Efficiency Boost +3% for next 10 projects
Visual grids filled the screen—anatomy of a 3-minute hook, colour theory that amplified mobile viewer retention, subtitle cadence, pacing techniques.
He absorbed it all without blinking.
He had to. Time was bleeding, and the world wouldn't wait.
Two days later.
SkyInk Media released its first micro-project: When Spring Bends to Summer.
A 3-minute silent animation of a girl falling in love with a boy who only ever spoke through paper flowers.
No voice actors. No big names. Just movement, colour, and raw feeling.
Uploaded at midnight to five platforms.
Zeyan watched the analytics in real time.
Nothing happened for the first hour.
Then a blogger reposted it with the caption:
"Why am I crying over an animation with zero dialogue?? Who made this???"
By dawn, the video had crossed 120K views on Weibo. By noon, 400K. By evening, 1.3 million.
And it kept climbing.
[System Update: Viral Surge Detected]
Business Points Earned: +4.88
Popularity Points (Global Passive): +0.001158301
Influencer Pickup Bonus: Activated Cool-down for Viral Repeat: 7 Days
Zeyan's fingers hovered over the next production schedule.
He had just enough points to reinvest—or repay.
He chose reinvestment.
Always reinvestment.
Meanwhile…
Jiang Yue limped into a stunt rehearsal at a small studio, holding a bruised rib and a thermos full of black coffee.
The production assistant barely glanced at her.
"You're late."
"I walked here."
"You should've run."
She said nothing.
Her body moved without complaint—rolls, tumbles, high falls.
But inside her mind, a quiet voice whispered:
"Is this all it will ever be?"
[System Note: Emotional Instability Detected – Subject
Jiang Yue] [Skill Development Opportunity: Active Prompt Unlock Available in 5
Chapters]
Tracking status: Passive. Not system-bound yet.
Zeyan's phone buzzed.
It was a casting email.
Request: Voice Actress Audition – SkyInk Animation's Next Project
The recommended voice?
Jiang Yue.
He smiled faintly.
Everything was moving.
And this time, he was the one controlling the camera.