Chapter 11

Ten o’clock in the morning.

The 《Ideal Times》 livestream went online right on time.

Viewers who had been waiting all night eagerly flooded into the livestream. In no time at all, the viewer count hit seven figures, and it continued to climb rapidly.

【Here it comes! It’s finally here!】

【I have a foul mouth, so I’ll curse first: Director Yang, you damn dog!!!】

《Ideal Times》 was a livestreamed variety show. Except for the first day, the streaming schedule for the remaining days was set from 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM.

Yet on that very first night, right after Song Shuqi asked Qiao Yanli about his retirement from the entertainment industry and Qiao Yanli had uttered only a single sentence in response, the crafty Director Yang cut the stream.

Right at ten o’clock sharp.

To make sure the officially edited episodes had juicy content when they aired later, Director Yang had deliberately saved that topic for the final cut. But for the viewers in the livestream, it felt as infuriating as having a movie cut off right before the climax, and they immediately took to their keyboards to rage.

Yet Director Yang had nerves of steel and didn’t budge an inch.

【So what happened after that yesterday? What did Qiao Yanli actually say?】

【A whole night has passed, has anyone dug up what Qiao Yanli actually did after he retired?】

【Slacked off, what else? He even said he wouldn’t focus on singing after his comeback. He’s clearly back in the industry just to make a quick buck. No one actually believes that nonsense about chasing dreams, right?】

【Tell a joke: Qiao Yanli’s dreams.】

【…】

【What are they doing today?】

On screen, picturesque mountain and water scenery flew rapidly backward, suggesting the camera was inside a moving vehicle.

As if the question had reached through the screen, the camera suddenly shook violently. Once someone adjusted it, the youthful, energetic face of a girl group idol appeared in the frame.

“Hello.”

You Yinyin greeted the camera. Today she had her hair up in a bun, looking just like a high schooler, exceptionally pure and adorable, her eyes curving like crescent moons when she smiled. She made a finger heart at the lens, and the camera panned in turn across Wan Yu and Tu Sheng in the back seat before finally settling on Qiao Yanli, who was driving.

“We’re on our way to a nearby city, and Brother Qiao is our driver. Brother Song and the others are in another car.”

Hearing her mention him, Qiao Yanli glanced sideways. His cool, detached eyes and the tiny black mole beneath the outer corner of his eye were caught on camera.

In the background, You Yinyin explained, “Before joining the show, Director Yang asked each of us to write down what we wanted to do together with friends. Today we’re fulfilling my wish. What I wrote was sitting down and singing together with friends.”

You Yinyin said cheerfully, “We could have just sung in the courtyard, but Director Yang insisted on holding a concert, so now we’re heading into the city to find a suitable venue.”

You Yinyin continued, “Renting the car cost money, though, and we won’t have time to cook for ourselves today, so all the money Brother Qiao earned yesterday has been spent.”

At this point, she paused and asked a little blankly, “Did Director Yang swindle us again?”

Qiao Yanli kept his eyes focused on the traffic ahead as he turned the steering wheel. “It’s fine. We can earn more.”

“True!” You Yinyin agreed happily. Watching the bullet comments fly past, she asked on behalf of the fans, “Brother Qiao, your fans are all asking if you’re going to sing?”

When everyone sang together last night, Qiao Yanli had only played the keyboard to accompany them, never opening his mouth to sing.

Qiao Yanli replied, “I will.”

The fans immediately grew excited.

【I get to hear Xiao Qiao sing again?!】

【It’s live! Round it up and it’s basically an online concert!】

【What song is Xiao Qiao going to sing?】

You Yinyin faithfully relayed the question: “Brother Qiao, your fans are asking what song you’re going to sing.”

“I haven’t decided,” Qiao Yanli said casually. “What do you want to hear?”

The fans grew even more excited, and song titles flew across the screen.

During his time as an idol, he had released many albums with plenty of gems, boasting quite a few signature hits.

Dazzled by the choices, You Yinyin couldn’t resist chiming in, her eyes shining bright. “Brother Qiao, I want to hear you sing 《Midsummer Night》.”

“《Midsummer Night》?”

“Mm!” You Yinyin nodded vigorously.

“That song isn’t very well known.” Compared to his other, more widely circulated works, it could even be called his most obscure. Qiao Yanli was a bit surprised she had requested it.

You Yinyin looked a bit sheepish, but still looked at him expectantly. “Can you? Brother Qiao?”

“No problem.”

Delighted, You Yinyin immediately pulled out her phone, found the track in her playlist, and hit play.

By the third line, Wan Yu suddenly let out a soft “Huh?”

“Xiao Qiao, this is your song?”

Qiao Yanli said, “Yeah.”

“Goodness…” Wan Yu even hummed along for a couple of lines. “This was your song? I never realized. The composition is truly wonderful.”

You Yinyin eagerly chimed in with praise. “Brother Qiao wrote the music and lyrics for all his songs! He’s amazing!”

The more Wan Yu listened, the more she liked it. The two of them had collaborated a few years ago, which had left her with a great impression of him. An idea struck her, and she said, “Why don’t we sing it together? Let’s bring Xiao Song in too, and the four of us can sing together.”

Qiao Yanli naturally didn’t mind and readily agreed.

“Me too?” You Yinyin asked, thrilled. She hardly knew what to do with her hands and feet, rambling incoherently, “I… I’ll sing my best and try not to hold you back!”

They contacted Song Shuqi in the other car over the phone, and after getting his confirmation, the plan was quickly set.

Without a sound system or microphones, they harmonized along to the backing track. The three of them were surprisingly in sync, and Tu Sheng kept praising how good it sounded from the side.

Entering the city, the cars followed the map Director Yang had given them and pulled up one after another in front of a public square.

Qiao Yanli checked the address. “This is the place.”

“Here?” You Yinyin looked around in confusion. “Didn’t Director Yang say we were going to hold a concert and that he’d find lots of spectators for us?”

In their minds, it was supposed to be a small venue with a professional stage and fully equipped gear.

But looking at this square now, where there was nothing except ordinary passersby…

“Director Yang?” Wan Yu called out. “Did you give us the wrong address?”

Director Yang said, “Nope, this is the place.”

Wan Yu was stunned. “Where are the spectators?”

Director Yang said, “Aren’t all these pedestrians spectators?”

Wan Yu retorted, “When I asked you earlier, didn’t you say it was a grand theater?”

Director Yang said, “That costs extra.”

Everyone: “…”

“What about the equipment?” Qiao Yanli’s eyelid twitched, already having an ill premonition.

Without a word, Director Yang pulled out a price list he had prepared long in advance.

Compared to the earlier prices for food ingredients, the rental fees for music equipment were astronomical.

Chu Xinyue groaned in frustration. “I knew all along that Director Yang was up to no good, so how did I still fall for his tricks?”

But with so little living money left in their hands, they didn’t have enough to pay for renting the equipment.

Smug that things were going according to plan, Director Yang said, “If your funds aren’t enough, we can also provide job opportunities.”

Today’s concert was just a facade; making them suffer through hard labor was the real goal.

Chu Xinyue asked, “Qiao Yanli, do you have any more ideas to sell?”

Qiao Yanli gave it some thought and offered an affirmative answer: “Plenty.”

Director Yang: “…”

Amused by Director Yang’s face turning green, everyone burst into laughter.

Director Yang hastily said, “No buying on credit.”

Everyone booed in unison.

【This must be the only celebrity Director Yang hasn’t managed to torment across all his shows, hahaha!】

【With Qiao Yanli around, they don’t have to worry about living expenses. Director Yang can’t trick them anymore!】

Director Yang said, “If you’re willing to work, we can provide all of this to you at a very low price.”

The job Director Yang provided was handing out flyers. The pay was equally pitiful, but for the sake of the performance venue, they could only reluctantly agree. Wearing a mascot costume paid an extra ten Yuan, and everyone chose to wear one.

After changing into the mascot suit, Qiao Yanli walked out holding the giant plush head, only to see You Yinyin squatting by the roadside, resting her chin on her hands as she looked longingly at a band not far away.

There were other people singing with guitars in the square, but a small band was the most eye-catching of all. They had a full set of instruments, sported trendy hairstyles, and drew quite a crowd of passersby who stopped to watch.

He asked casually, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” You Yinyin said dejectedly. “I’m just a little envious of them…”

Qiao Yanli tilted his head toward her. “You really want to give it a try?”

“Yeah.” After all, before heading out today, everyone had promised to fulfill her wish, and You Yinyin had been looking forward to it the whole time.

Qiao Yanli put on the bear head. “Wait here.”

Everyone watched as a big brown bear darted swiftly across the square, weaving nimbly left and right through the crowd, before stopping in front of the performing band. Before long, when the band took an intermission, he walked over to talk with them.

No one could hear what was said from a distance. The cameraman rushed over, but by the time he arrived, the two sides had already reached an agreement. The lead singer generously gave up the microphone, gesturing for him to go ahead.

Qiao Yanli turned back and waved to You Yinyin.

You Yinyin stared blankly at his gestures. Only when he signaled to her did it finally click, and she scrambled to her feet and ran over.

“Brother Qiao?!”

From inside the big bear mascot suit, Qiao Yanli pointed at the spot in front of the microphone. “You sing.”

“Can I?” Flustered, You Yinyin stammered, “Wouldn’t that be bad? We still have to go do our jobs.”

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about that.”

With him saying so, You Yinyin didn’t refuse any further. After thanking him repeatedly, she went to discuss the song choice with the rest of the band.

Soon, the prelude began to play.

Inside the mascot suit, Qiao Yanli raised an eyebrow. From afar, You Yinyin raised both hands above her head to form a big heart in his direction. Her smile was sweet, her eyes curving like crescent moons, looking utterly adorable.

She hadn’t put on her mascot costume yet, and quite a few people recognized her. A bubbly, cute girl-group idol had fantastic public appeal, and she was also the vocal lead in her group. Her live performance was poised and natural, and her sweet singing drew in the people scattered across the square.

Song Shuqi came over as well.

Holding a stack of flyers that he hadn’t started distributing yet, he set them aside for now and joined the others in cheering You Yinyin on.

Knowing that Qiao Yanli was inside the big bear, he asked offhandedly, “What song is this? It sounds pretty good.”

Qiao Yanli answered, “《Yesterday’s Poem》.”

Song Shuqi asked, “Is it Yinyin’s own song?”

Qiao Yanli turned his head. The big bear’s two dark, bead-like eyes stared silently at him. Through the oversized plush head, there was no telling what expression he wore. Only after a long pause did he speak: “It’s my song.”

Song Shuqi froze.

Qiao Yanli paused. “Aren’t you a fan of my music?”

Song Shuqi: “…”

His mind went blank. He had clearly forgotten what he had said the previous night.

【I’m already feeling second-hand embarrassment for Song Shuqi…】

【What kind of fan can’t even name their idol’s songs? You Yinyin seems way more like a Qiao fan to me. Before singing any of her own songs, she sang one of Qiao Yanli’s first.】

Song Shuqi scrambled to recover: “Right, right, it’s your song! It’s just been so long since I heard it that it slipped my mind for a second.”

The brown bear nodded. It was hard to tell whether he bought the excuse, but he did not pursue the matter further.

Song Shuqi, however, could not stay calm.

He glanced at the nearby livestream camera, worried he might get flamed for this. The broadcast had cut off abruptly last night, but the flame war had never stopped. Qiao Yanli’s fans and haters were tearing into each other viciously across other platforms, dragging the variety show Ideal Times onto several trending topics as well. The top trend was Qiao Yanli’s remark: “Can a person only have one dream?” Since Song Shuqi had been the one to bring up that topic in the first place, he definitely did not want to draw the crossfire onto himself.

But before he could figure out the best way to explain himself, the song ended, and Qiao Yanli suddenly stood up.

Song Shuqi assumed he wanted to sing too, only to see him borrow a hat from a passerby and place it right in front of You Yinyin.

Everyone: “???”

Qiao Yanli straightened up. Through the costume, the glossy black eyes of the bear head stared unblinkingly at the onlookers who had stopped to watch.

Passersby: “…”

He reached out a bear paw and nudged the hat forward.

Then patted it twice.

He rubbed his bear paws together, then held them out expectantly toward the crowd.

The meaning was crystal clear.

Passersby: “…”

The plaza concert had instantly transformed into street busking.

【Hahahahaha, Qiao Yanli, classic you!】

【Director Yang: I let my guard down! He can even make money like this?!】

【Where’s Director Yang? Hahaha, I demand the camera cut to Director Yang’s face! I really want to see him look totally defeated!】

【Director Yang: Smile gradually fading.jpg】