Recently, I saw news about Chen Sicheng and Tong Liya appearing together again. Many people are still stuck on what you can call “a breakup reveals someone’s character” — whether it’s about “breaking up and seeing what kind of person they really are.” I, however, look at this from a different angle, and that’s when I realize: the two of them aren’t playing any kind of romance game at all. What they’re doing is a huge, carefully run business chess match.

Let’s start with the numbers. Tong Liya still holds a 5% stake in Chen Sicheng’s company. That isn’t a small amount. His movies have already broken 15 billion yuan at the box office, and she follows along by taking dividends. Think about it—who would argue with their own financial patron? Instead of calling this an ex-husband and ex-wife situation, it’s more like two business partners operating on their own tracks, meeting each other’s needs as they go. They time it to celebrate their child’s birthday every year, and both of them show up. This kind of respectable, “warm” approach—on the surface—really is about maintaining a stable business ecosystem.

Now, take a look at the child. Duoduo is already 10 years old. At the birthday party, Chen Sicheng and Tong Liya stood on either side, smiling especially sincerely. During the Spring Festival, they even took the child to Sanya together. For the child, the parents’ divorce is just like changing the place you live—there’s no sense of a split. This shared parenting model not only protects the child, but also preserves both sides’ public images. It’s one stone, two birds.

So you see, those top-tier displays of “decency” in the entertainment industry are never built by any grand mindset or cultivation. To put it plainly, it all comes down to real capability. Chen Sicheng can handle things so smoothly because he has enough money and enough say in the matter. The marriage certificate can be torn up, but the business alliance is actually even more solid. That’s the real kind of sophistication—not that you have to stay together to call it success, but that after you separate, you can see each other’s value even more clearly.