Chapter 103: Then, I Shall Sing a Song

At this moment, only two words echoed in He Xi’er’s mind: Is that it?

She had thought she would need to weave a series of carefully linked reasons to introduce Teacher Gabe without arousing suspicion.

But happiness came too suddenly, and He Xi’er felt somewhat unprepared to grasp it.

Jiang Qi was different—she knew the real test of acting was yet to come.

The three regular guests and two guest stars marched grandly toward the production team.

Jiang Qi linked arms with her close friend, deliberately falling to the back of the group. Seizing a quiet moment, she whispered in her friend’s ear, “Follow my lead when it’s time to act.”

Her friend’s acting was poor, and she felt uneasy entrusting her entirely.

The guest group centered around Xie Shun, who held the most prominent position among them.

When this group arrived before the directors, everyone was stunned, including Li He.

He hadn’t expected the efficiency of the Jiang sisters to be so high, directly pulling in the three regular guests.

Feigning ignorance, Wu Guang sat and asked, “Teacher Xie, is there something you need?”

This was his screen debut, dedicated to Li He and to the show "Yearning."

Li He sat quietly behind, watching Wu Guang’s performance.

Xie Shun waved to Director Wu Guang, signaling to step aside for a private conversation.

Initially, Wu Guang wanted to maintain a bit of aloofness, relishing the feeling of knowing something important but refusing to share it.

He thought, “I’ll just watch you panic while I stay silent.”

But seeing all the other directors staring at him, he gave up the act.

Wu Guang followed Xie Shun around a low stone wall, stopping at a spot a fair distance from the directors and cameramen.

Teacher He followed behind, while Jiang You remained still—not out of disinterest but because the two guest stars chose not to eavesdrop, and he felt awkward to intrude.

“What’s with the secrecy?” Wu Guang blinked his curious eyes, genuinely puzzled.

He gave himself a full score for this round of acting.

Xie Shun looked a little embarrassed. “Is the program planner in the director’s group?”

Once the question was out, Xie Shun felt much relieved.

Meanwhile, at the director’s base.

Jiang Qi linked arms with her friend, casually walking over to Jiang You and chatting with him.

He Xi’er lowered her head, guessing aloud, “Do you think the program planner might not be in the director’s group, or maybe hasn’t even come to the shooting location?”

She asked the innocent Jiang You.

He thought for a moment and replied, “It’s possible, but I’m more inclined to believe the planner is within the director’s group.”

Jiang Qi pressed on, “Which one do you think is the planner?”

Jiang You scratched his head, then took a couple of steps forward, seriously observing each person in the director’s group as if he genuinely knew the planner.

The strange behavior of the guests left the directors utterly baffled; they still had no idea what was going on.

Seeing Jiang You so easily fooled, Jiang Qi and He Xi’er exchanged a glance, each spotting the sly satisfaction of a scheme well-played in the other’s eyes.

They didn’t dare linger, following Jiang You’s lead to observe the director’s group closely.

They had to finish the act before Xie Shun and Teacher He returned—both seasoned veterans who might detect their ruse.

Just as Jiang You was pondering who was most likely the planner, a sudden exclamation rang out:

“Teacher Gabe!”

Jiang Qi’s reaction was exaggerated—her mouth wide enough to fit an entire apple, her hands flailing uncertainly in disbelief.

“Your acting? And you want me to follow you?” He Xi’er curled her lips, unimpressed by her friend’s over-the-top performance.

Too clumsy.

“Teacher Gabe, what are you doing here?” Despite her disdain, He Xi’er mimicked the line.

Li He sighed helplessly, rubbing his forehead with one hand. Luckily, these two were singers, not actors; otherwise, mealtime would have been a disaster.

“All right, enough. Why are you two out here?” Li He feigned surprise at seeing them.

He deliberately ignored the part where they were supposed to be acting for him.

Now it was Jiang You’s turn to be perplexed.

Teacher Gabe?

He glanced between Jiang Qi, He Xi’er, and the handsome man emerging from the director’s group.

“Teacher Gabe, why are you in the director’s group? No, why are you at Mushroom House?” Jiang Qi continued the act.

She had devised a whole script for herself, very thorough.

“Cough cough!” Li He cleared his throat, signaling the sisters had overdone it. It was so awkward even he couldn’t bear it.

Only then did Jiang finally catch on, a bit slow, he said, “You’re Teacher Gabe?”

Don’t lie to me—how could Gabe be so young and handsome?

I suspect you’re acting for me, and I have proof.

Before any explanation could be offered, the trio of Xie Shun returned.

Li He didn’t dare act presumptuous and stepped forward. “Senior Xie, Teacher He.”

Xie Shun and Teacher He wore expressions identical to Jiang You’s—utter disbelief, impossible, it must be fake.

Teacher He pinched Xie Shun’s arm, and upon feeling real pain, still couldn’t believe it. “Gabe is so young. How did you write ‘Elimination’? I always thought Gabe was no younger than thirty.”

The difference was too stark.

It defied logic.

Generally, those who write exceptional songs tend to be older.

Creation demands inspiration and experience; without certain life insights, it’s hard to compose songs rich in life’s truths.

Li He thought for a moment, then sheepishly said, “Maybe it’s just talent!”

The room instantly fell silent.

“All right, all right,” Xie Shun broke the awkwardness. “Let’s go inside and talk, have dinner while we chat before the food gets cold.”

Li He followed naturally into the courtyard of Mushroom House, so effortlessly that he seemed like a regular guest.

Jiang Qi, He Xi’er, and Wu Guang all thought at once: Of course, you want Buddha Jumps Over the Wall and boiled cabbage.

Once inside, Li He stayed busy, helping serve dishes and rice, thoughtfully helping himself to a bit more.

Xie Shun and Li He were both songwriters from Group Seven, and Xie Shun felt an innate closeness to Gabe.

“Gabe really raised the bar for all of us songwriters,” Xie Shun laughed heartily, clearly pleased.

Jiang You quietly ate, saying nothing—he felt a pang of inferiority stirred by Li He.

How could someone write songs, sing, draft variety show plans, and still look so handsome?

It was illogical.

Jiang You felt the world was cruelly conspiring against him—tortured physically by day and mentally by night.

Teacher He picked up some cabbage, placing it in his bowl with admiration. “So you wrote the plan for ‘Yearning for Life’ all by yourself?”

“Mm,” Li He replied shyly. “I didn’t have much work this month, kind of slacking off. I felt a bit guilty, so I wrote this plan. Didn’t expect Boss Yang to approve it.”

Li He’s humblebrag made everyone feel the Buddha Jumps Over the Wall wasn’t even worth eating.

Xie Shun nearly wanted to poke Li He with his chopsticks—those words were infuriating.

Just bored, wrote a plan; the company approved it and decided to film it. That made the colleagues who stayed up late writing plans look useless.

Xie Shun asked, “Is the workload in Group Seven really so light now?”

They could slack off at work.

“Not at all,” Li He said, chewing chicken, mumbling, “I see my colleagues in Group Seven are pretty busy every day, like they have endless songs to write.”

Xie Shun’s eye twitched—he felt Gabe was deliberately irritating him.

“Why can you slack off? Is it because you’re too handsome and Boss Zhang can’t bear to waste your brain cells?” Teacher He joked.

“No,” Li He said seriously, “I’ve already completed my workload. I wrote one song recently, and Boss Yang excused me from work this month.”

“This song will be released soon, coming out in September.”

That was a subtle plug, warming up for the song “Ten Years.”

September.

Everyone thought the same thing and wisely dropped the subject.

Thanks to Gabe’s arrival, the three regulars abandoned their post-dinner work plans and chatted casually.

As the evening wound down, Li He scratched his head sheepishly. “Tonight’s dinner was great. How about I sing a song to pay for it?”

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P.S. Posted first, will revise later. Please point out any errors.