Love Variety Show: The despised me exploded in popularity

"Can we record the song this afternoon?"

Three seconds later, Pei Muchan replied with a simple, "Mmm."

He glanced at it, went to take a shower first, and then came out after blow drying his hair. He found that there were a few more messages on his phone; Pei Muchan had added a few more sentences.

They were mostly about recording the song, but in the end, she sent an unrelated picture. A small and cute doll was placed on his desk.

Xu: "????"

"Where did this come from?"

Half a minute later, Pei Muchan replied.

"Got it from scanning a code on the street."

Xu Qingyan didn't reply again, but went into his room and flopped onto his bed with a bang. His phone lay to one side while he propped his head with his arms, staring at the pristine ceiling, and muttered to himself.

"Gifted..."

Then he suddenly rolled over, reached for his phone, and opened the image recognition app. After buffering for a while, it popped up with something resembling a price tag, a trinket worth over seven hundred.

Gifting at a trade fair, huh! Scan a code and get a doll worth over seven hundred?

After setting his alarm, he tossed his phone away and lay on his bed tossing and turning, his mind filled with cluttered thoughts. After struggling for a good while, he slowly grew sleepy and drifted off.

Buzz buzz buzz.

When he awoke, it was already two o'clock in the afternoon, and he hastily washed his face. Looking at himself in the mirror, he took a deep breath and then put on his shoes to leave.

After arriving at the studio, he didn't see Pei Muchan in the office.

The door to the arranger's room was closed, so she was probably inside.

Xu Qingyan touched the doll on the desk and took another glance outside. He thought it odd, what could Pei Muchan suddenly be busy with right now?

However, since they had an appointment to record the song together that afternoon, he couldn't wait any longer. The studio was quite familiar with Pei Muchan, so he had to interrupt her "creative process" now.

Before knocking on the door, Xu Qingyan still felt that Pei Muchan seemed a bit "timid"?

Knock knock knock.

A few seconds passed before a calm voice came from the room, "Come in."

He pushed the door and entered, seeing Pei Muchan arranging the music, so he simply stood behind her. Without saying a word, he just watched her work.

As a whole minute passed, all she did was move the mouse.

In the end, Pei Muchan couldn't keep up the act and silently got up from her chair.

She seemed to have grown even prettier than she was half a month ago, with a change in hairstyle. With light makeup on her face, her skin seemed a few shades paler, her neck exposed and delicate.

Xu Qingyan smiled, "I saw that doll, you know?"

"Oh." Pei Muchan averted her eyes and changed the subject, "Aren't you here to record a song? We've set a time, we can head over now."

"Sure, but where can you scan a code and get a doll worth seven hundred?" He asked.

Pei Muchan's face visibly reddened, she didn't say a word and left as if fleeing.

...

Xu Qingyan found that Boss Pei was a bit petty—it was only that he had exposed her once. She hadn't spoken much to him from that afternoon until they started recording.

Tsk, what a tightwad.

In the recording studio, Xu Qingyan was gradually getting in the zone.

From vocalization to singing technique, Pei Muchan had it down pat, teaching him hand-in-hand. Xu Qingyan's singing was only third-rate, not comparable to her solid professional skills.

Despite this, even though Pei Muchan had practiced this song many times before, she would still be moved by the lively lyrics, like "the azure sky after rain..."

Or "smoke from kitchen chimneys rises faintly, separated by a thousand miles of river," and "outside the curtain, the banana leaves shake in the sudden rain, the door knocker rusted green," all full of imagery.

Each line, taken alone, was stunning; she finally understood what he meant earlier by "striving."

If "Blue and White Porcelain" wasn't classical enough Chinese style, then there were few classical songs in the music world. As she pondered, she suddenly realized that the person in front of her had already participated in the recording of the Spring Festival Gala.

Looking at Xu Qingyan singing in the studio, she felt somewhat dazed.

She still remembered the sight of him arriving in Xinghai with his luggage two months ago, when she walked to the entrance of the Tech Park and saw the tall, lanky figure standing there under the dim light.

Behind him was the brightly lit city, casting a vivid glow that reflected the two of them, looking haggard.

By the time recording finished, it was already seven thirty in the evening.

The post-production work, even expedited, would still take three days; there was no choice but to wait.

Both of them were hungry, so they found a familiar restaurant and ducked in, choosing a private room to eat slowly.

In the brightly lit room, Pei Muchan ate with small bites. Xu Qingyan ate faster and played with his phone after finishing, not much different from usual.

It was only after he saw she had nearly finished her meal that he spoke up.

"I still have to go back in five days. I expect this routine to continue until the New Year. We'll have a ten-day holiday split into two parts, and afterward, I assume things will get more stringent."

"Mmm-hmm." Pei Muchan lowered her eyes, inadvertently setting down her bowl and chopsticks, "I'm full."

"You're full after eating that little?"

"Yeah, let's go back," she said, her voice slightly stuffy.

In the car, Xu Qingyan began talking about the situation over at the Chang'an venue, naturally skipping over the topic of Jiang Yunyao—no need to bring that up.

"So, you're an assistant director now?" Pei Muchan's mood seemed to lift a bit, slightly surprised.

"Of course. Otherwise, do you think I went there just to do odd jobs?" Xu Qingyan raised his eyebrows, showing off for a bit, then returned to normal, "Having this experience will make the road ahead easier."

"You haven't offended anyone, have you?" Pei Muchan knew his personality all too well.

"No, everyone at work is extremely friendly and speaks nicely." Xu Qingyan once again ignored Zou Lewei, not taking such a person seriously at all.

He was now an assistant director with a bit of authority but hadn't officially touched on core projects yet. What was Zou Lewei but a mere jumping clown?

He couldn't reveal details about the Spring Festival Gala, having signed a confidentiality agreement.