After finishing lunch, everyone started rehearsing. As a guest performer, Ji Nian also needed to sing on stage.
Coincidentally, Yu Luobai had adapted his song "The Ordinary Path" a bit, making the whole song more infectious and penetrating.
For the main melody part, she needed to play the kettledrum as an accompaniment, so she had been learning the kettledrum recently. To be honest, it was quite simple. After practicing for two days, she could basically follow the rhythm and beat it without any difficulty.
For the song "Fairy Tale," she needed to provide piano accompaniment, which was her forte, so there wasn't much of a problem. The main thing was to practice more to avoid getting nervous and forgetting the score.
The new song "Prague Square" was a duet, so they needed to rehearse it more.
Throughout the concert, she would appear on stage three times, which was considered a high visibility rate. Moreover, she was told she would receive a performance fee, so she had to take it more seriously. This was an opportunity to make money.
Yu Luobai truly lived up to his reputation as the king of entertainment. He was an all-round, high-quality idol – not only was he a great actor, but he also excelled at singing and dancing. His voice was phenomenal. Ji Nian secretly developed a crush on him several times today.
After the rehearsal ended around four in the afternoon, everyone took a rest on the sofas.
Ji Nian took the water handed to her by Peng He and looked at the man beside her, asking, "Teacher Yu, is the place where you're staying arranged by the company or your own?"
Yu Luobai turned to her, unsure why she asked that, and answered, "It's arranged by the company. Why?"
Ji Nian was puzzled. Shouldn't a superstar like him have his own place to live?
"Where is the place arranged by the company?" Ji Nian asked curiously.
Yu Luobai raised his eyebrows and said, "Why?"
"It's like this, I'm currently living with Shu Yao," Ji Nian frowned. "But it's not good to keep staying at her place, so I thought I should rent a place for myself. I heard that the company provides accommodation for artists, so I'm just asking."
"So you don't have a place to stay right now?" Peng He asked in surprise.
Ji Nian nodded, then shook her head. "No, I'm still renting that house in the suburbs, but it's too far away from where I work in the city."
Yu Luobai recalled the small room in the suburbs he had seen in the woman's video, and he couldn't help but frown. "The company has arranged accommodations. I'll have them arrange something for you."
"No need to trouble Teacher Yu," Ji Nian was startled. "How could I bother you with my own affairs? What if the company has any objections?"
"We're so close already. Why are you still being so polite with me?" Yu Luobai smiled.
"No, no, it's just that... it's not appropriate for you to help me with this," Ji Nian looked bewildered.
Yu Luobai raised his eyebrows. He knew what the woman meant – she wanted to avoid any potential issues. However, as a shareholder of Huayu Entertainment, he was fully entitled to make such arrangements.
"What kind of place would you like to live in?" Yu Luobai asked casually.
Upon hearing the question, Ji Nian thought for a moment. She wasn't picky about her living arrangements. A single-person apartment would be fine. "It's alright," she answered. "I'm not picky. I'll live wherever the company arranges for me."
Yu Luobai nodded without saying anything further, but Peng He, who was watching his artist, became more certain of his own thoughts.
"Now that we've rested, let's talk about your drama," Yu Luobai picked up the script from his file bag and asked with concern, "How was the filming today?"
Ji Nian's face lit up when she talked about this topic. "Thanks to your coaching yesterday, the director praised me today."
Seeing the woman's satisfied expression, Yu Luobai's lips curved up. "That's not bad. Keep up the good work."
Ji Nian nodded and smiled. "Definitely! Teacher Yu, let's have a lesson!"
At five in the afternoon, Ji Nian reviewed the scenes she needed to act out tomorrow, said goodbye to them, and prepared to leave.
Yu Luobai watched the woman's departing figure, lost in thought for a long time before saying, "I remember the apartment downstairs is vacant, isn't it?"
Peng He was startled and asked in confusion, "What are you going to do?"
Yu Luobai laughed out loud, turned to look at him, and said, "Ji Nian happens to need a place to stay, doesn't she? Since we're collaborating recently, it would be more convenient if she lived nearby."
"That's a lame excuse. You might as well save it to fool others," Peng He rolled his eyes and asked seriously, "Tell me the truth, are you interested in her?"
Yu Luobai was caught off guard, as he had never considered that question before. "What are you thinking?" he said.
"Don't think I can't see it. Whenever other women approached you before, you were always very restrained," Peng He recalled their interactions during this period. "But with Ji Nian, you don't avoid her at all. If you don't like her, what is it?"
After hearing this, Yu Luobai felt a moment of confusion. He didn't know if he liked her or not, but he definitely felt comfortable being around her, and he couldn't help but want to get closer to her.
"It's not that you can't date, we're pursuing the path of real talent," Peng He said seriously. "But I don't think Ji Nian will necessarily like you."
Yu Luobai was puzzled. "Why not?"
Peng He took out his phone, opened the Douyin app, and searched for a video clip edited by others, titled "Fairy Crying."
"Here, take a look," he said.
Yu Luobai took the man's phone and watched the content of the video, seeing the woman's sorrowful gaze and her forced smile as she cried. An unusual emotion stirred within him.
"Ji Nian's relationship with Cheng Liran is well-known. The last time they appeared together, during the Q&A session, Ji Nian was asked a question that made her cry."
Peng He suddenly felt some sympathy for this woman. Every day, she appeared cheerful and happy, but in reality, her breakup hadn't been long ago.
On top of that, in the TV drama she was currently acting in, her ex-boyfriend was the male lead. Facing him every day must have been difficult for her, even if she didn't show it.
"When did this happen? I had no idea," Yu Luobai frowned.
Peng He thought for a moment and said, "It hasn't been long since this happened. And with how busy you've been, always working on the concert, when would you have had time to go online and see these things?"
"You're overthinking it. She and I are just friends," Yu Luobai said calmly, suppressing the uneasiness in his heart.
"Yeah, right, I believe you," Peng He said sarcastically. "Looks like I need to start preparing PR statements in advance, just in case they're caught by paparazzi. That way, I'll be ready to handle it."
Yu Luobai didn't want to entertain the chattering person beside him any longer. He stood up and prepared to leave.
Peng He looked at the man's retreating figure helplessly and shook his head with a sigh. "Sigh, his wings have hardened."
Yu Luobai's heart was actually in turmoil. Images of the woman's smile kept flashing through his mind. He took out his phone and started searching online for information about Cheng Liran's relationship.
Although the news had spread throughout the industry before, he didn't understand it very well. After seeing that video just now, he couldn't help but feel uneasy no matter how he thought about it.
