Who said this top flow is crazy! This top flow is awesome!

Chapter 197 Cigarettes and High Heels, Wait a while
Backstage.

The directing team.

"Director, director, the ratings have surpassed 50%!!"

A staff member monitoring real-time ratings exclaimed in surprise, "It's 11% higher than last year's peak! It's broken, director, it's broken!"

The Spring Festival Gala's chief director was equally surprised and shocked: "Didn't Shen Bin and his team only get 40% in their skit? It's gone up by 10%?"

"Yeah, I was wondering too... This is too much! Oh right, I remember now, tonight is the advanced viewing finale of 'My Love from the Star'! A lot of people are waiting to see Professor Ji and Cheon Song-yi!"

The director was stunned for a moment before shaking his head and sighing, "This Chi Ye is really like a rocket, look at how much influence his every move has now?"

"The ratings have dropped again. After 'Blue and White Porcelain' ended, they started to decline again."

The staff member looked up again: "What should we do?"

"What do we do... Where are Chino and Jin Xia? Tell them to go back to their seats and get more screen time! They'd better sit still today!"

"Okay, I'll go find them."

……

Backstage area, corridor.

"Teacher Chi, am I pretty?"

This summer, she held up her ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) with her little hands, her face flushed, her peach blossom eyes curved into crescents, and the two silk white plum blossoms pinned to her temples seemed to come alive. The jade hairpin with its tassels swayed gently, and her gentle and soft Wu dialect temperament leaped off the page.

She looked at her makeup and costume with delight: "I wish I could film a period drama with you."

Ikeno glanced at her: "Not very pretty."

"Ok?"

This summer, she glanced at him, then, seeing that no one was around, pulled Chi Ye to a corner and leaned closer: "Isn't it pretty?"

Ikeno: "...It's alright."

The Empress Dowager narrowed her eyes, sized him up a few times, thought for a moment, then suddenly pulled her collar down a little, tentatively asking, "Is it pretty?"

"That's beautiful now."

Ikeno nodded in satisfaction.

“…Hehe.”

The Empress Dowager quickly straightened her collar, frowned, and lectured, "You should reflect on your actions."

"What should I reflect on?"

"How would I know what you need to reflect on? Anyway, you should reflect on it first."

Chi Ye glanced at her sideways, and was about to speak when a member of the production team called out, "Teacher Chi? Teacher Jin Xia? Come quickly, this spot can't stay empty forever, we need your shot. We're running out of time, we still have to sing 'Unforgettable Tonight' later, please hurry."

Chi and Jin: "..."

Damn it, I've only gotten this far and someone's already interrupting me?
Chi Ye cursed his bad luck inwardly. Jin Xia noticed his mood, thought for a moment, and leaned down to whisper in his ear: "Teacher Chi, don't be sad. I'll give you a good look later."

Chiye: "?!!"

He immediately perked up: "Hey, you have to say something..."

"Oh dear, oh dear, elbow, elbow, it's too late."

This summer, she pretended to be an experienced driver in front of Chi Ye, not giving him a chance to turn around and continue talking, and pushed him forward.

“I’m recording this. If you try anything funny, I’ll put gutter oil in your Coke.”

"Such a good thing?!"

Ikeno: "...You'd better really think it tastes good."

"..."

The two of them joked and teased their way back to the scene. As soon as they got back to their seats, they stood up straight, looking reserved and polite.

The Spring Festival Gala camera suddenly panned over, showing a commotion on set, with viewers screaming in front of their TVs, resulting in a slight increase in ratings.

Not far from their round table, Sheng Ning, Shi Jinwei, Xu Yingying, Yu Yan, and others stared at the two with complicated expressions.

Blue and White Porcelain...

What a beautiful poem, "Blue and White Porcelain".

With the release of this song, the best program of this year's Spring Festival Gala was secured, and the so-called "wishful thinking" of Ikeno's mishap was ultimately shattered.

So angry.

"No, how could he write such lyrics and compose such music in such a short time?"

On the other hand, Zhang Yuchu Hanzhou, who has been keeping a low profile recently but has been gaining fans, was puzzled: "I don't even recognize half of the lyrics to this song, how can he be so well-educated?"

Hua Yichen, standing next to her, twitched the corner of her mouth.

"Hey buddy," Chu Hanzhou asked curiously, "What were you guys thinking when Yue Na released it?"

Mr. Liu's face darkened, and he felt a tightness in his chest.

"Stop talking, it's time to sing 'Unforgettable Tonight,' don't sing it wrong again this time."

Chu Hanzhou's friend from the same company reminded him that the last large-scale art show on stage, which was about to end at midnight, was coming to a close. Next up was the annual classic chorus, where all the guests would go on stage together to sing "Unforgettable Tonight".

But ordinary audiences are clearly not interested in such a large-scale chorus.

This summer, my younger sister was feeling very bored. When this scene was playing on the big TV at home, she took out her phone and opened Weibo.

—As expected, the reunion of Professor Chi and Cheon Song-yi in the finale of "My Love from the Star" has ignited the entire internet.

"Blue and White Porcelain" also went viral online.

At this moment, their popularity on Weibo's trending topics list has even surpassed that of the "Spring Festival Gala." Of course... because they were guests on this year's Spring Festival Gala, the popularity of #SummerWhispersByThePool# is roughly equivalent to that of the Spring Festival Gala.

#Professor Ji and Cheon Song-yi in "Blue and White Porcelain"#
#Waiting for the Rain to Fall in the Azure Sky#
#ike野this summer#
#SummerWhispersByThePond#
#porcelain#
Related trending topics have exploded on the hot search list, especially among fans of the pairing of Chi Ye and Jin Xia, as well as fans of the pairing of "My Love from the Star," who have gone crazy.

"Who would understand! The moment I saw Xiaxia on stage, every pore on my body opened up – it was such a wonderful surprise!"

"Tears welling up, those old-school pairings are attacking me again."

"What do you mean by 'old-fashioned'? Professor Chi and the big star are a match made in heaven!"

"The song 'Blue and White Porcelain' is simply beyond human ability to write. I heard it was only finished right before the Spring Festival Gala rehearsals. Coconut's talent is at a level that can make career-driven fans faint every day. How can there be such a perfect man in the Chinese entertainment industry?!"

"The Spring Festival Gala's closing act with a 50% viewership rating is incredibly valuable! I advise fans of that four-character actor and YY's family to stop being so foolish; your idol will never reach the heights that Coconut has reached in his entire life."

"The most awesome program of this year's Spring Festival Gala, bar none!"

"I'm not in China, and I wasn't particularly interested in Chinese culture before, but after listening to this song today, I suddenly developed a liking for porcelain."

"A truly deserving idol!"

Although the reputation of the Spring Festival Gala has gradually declined over the past decade, its influence remains undeniably that of the No. 1 gala due to its deeply ingrained roots.

Whether Chinese people around the world will watch it is unknown, but they will definitely turn on their TVs as background music on the day. Coupled with the popularity of "My Love from the Star", there are already many overseas viewers paying attention to this year's Spring Festival Gala.

Therefore, almost as soon as "Blue and White Porcelain" was sung, it spread like wildfire across the entire internet and some overseas regions.

Yes, it wasn't just a hit in China; people overseas, in South Korea, Singapore, and even Japan all heard the song.

Professor Chi is actually a musical prodigy!

This was the first reaction of Southeast Asian viewers and fans who didn't know much about him before and simply liked "Professor Chi". Then came an unexpected surprise, feeling that they hadn't made a mistake in supporting him.

Is Professor Chi as "omnipotent" in real life as he is in the drama?

The influence of "Blue and White Porcelain" spread imperceptibly.

Cultural promotion often happens quietly and invisibly, but when it accumulates to a certain peak, it can suddenly erupt and create a huge influence.

Clearly, Chi Ye succeeded. With his song "Blue and White Porcelain," he successfully completed the "task" that his superiors had placed high hopes on.

The leader was very happy and called Jinzhao several times that evening to express his "thank you".

I was happy today, but... when I saw Chi Ye and Jin Xia being interviewed together on CCTV-2 after "Unforgettable Tonight", I suddenly wasn't so happy anymore. My feelings were complicated.

……

After midnight.

The Spring Festival Gala has basically ended, but most people have not yet left.

Ikeno and this summer received an interview from CCTV-2.

Also being interviewed with them were Lao Peng, who, seeing Chi Ye's career improve day by day, became extremely anxious and wanted to try his luck at Chunshan, but almost ended up joining the Liangshan bandits; Chu Hanzhou, the top literary scholar in the Chinese entertainment industry; and a certain artist surnamed Huang.

The five people sat in the studio's live broadcast room, and the studio's viewership ratings visibly increased.

The host, Xiao Ni, first asked Lao Peng and the artist surnamed Huang a few questions. Lao Peng was asked, "Did you feel that the Spring Festival Gala stage was particularly large, so you went to great lengths to attract the audience's attention?"

Lao Peng looked a little embarrassed and stammered, "Such a big stage, I am indeed a little nervous."

The question posed to the celebrity surnamed Huang was: "If there were a parallel universe, what would you be doing right now?"

The artist surnamed Huang looked sallow: "Maybe...maybe I'll watch the Spring Festival Gala at home."

The host was satisfied, then skipped over Chu Hanzhou and asked the main character, #Chipan Xiayu#.

As for why not ask about the husband's upbringing...

This was Chu Hanzhou's own request; he just needed to show his face and smile, no need to ask questions.

"We just listened to 'Blue and White Porcelain,' and it's a really beautiful song. I heard that you, Chi Ye, only recently finished composing it. Where did you get your inspiration to create such an excellent song?"

Ikeno thought for a moment and said, "I think it has something to do with the script of 'My Love from the Star'."

"Oh?"

Everyone became interested.

Chi Ye explained, "Because there is a plot in 'My Love from the Star' about Professor Chi and Cheon Song-yi's past lives, one of the settings is that Professor Chi likes to collect porcelain and is knowledgeable about ancient and modern times. When I was writing this plot, I specifically learned a lot about porcelain."

"The more I learn about it, the more I find this culture beautiful. This beauty may not refer to any specific thing, but rather to the beauty of time."

"The beauty of time?"

The others glanced sideways, while the Empress Dowager's eyes sparkled.

Xiao Ni asked in confusion, "Why do you say that?"

"Porcelain is a brilliant treasure that China has given to the world. It has a profound historical and cultural heritage. The inspiration for 'Blue and White Porcelain' comes not only from porcelain, but also from 'people'."

Chino gave an "official explanation": "The lotus scrolls meander from the bottom of the bottle upwards, the banana leaf pattern stretches out at the neck, the cranes in the clouds seem to be taking flight, and the landscape spreads out for thousands of miles within a small space. Every line contains the tempering of the kiln fire at thousands of degrees and the lightness and heaviness of the craftsman's breath."

"So, at a certain moment, I felt that when a craftsman picks up his brush, the tip of his brush is not dipped in paint, but in time."

Everyone was slightly taken aback. Peng Chen stared blankly at Chi Ye, as if he didn't recognize him at all.

Chu Hanzhou: What the hell are you talking about? Can't you speak like a human being?!

……

Today's family.

The old man was getting on in years, so after listening to "Unforgettable Tonight," he went back to his room to rest.

The rest of the family and friends were still in the living room. When they heard Chi Ye's answer on the TV, they were all slightly taken aback and looked at each other.

My aunt exclaimed in surprise, "Wow...you're so good at talking!"

The aunt said with a reserved expression, "Chi Ye has always been quite eloquent."

Jin's mother glanced at her, thinking to herself, "What are you so smug about?"

Today, his face darkened slightly—what he noticed was the way his beloved daughter looked at Chi Ye!

Pride, admiration, and an uncontainable joy.

Seriously, with your current popularity and careers, if you just stare at him like that, won't the fans go crazy?
Among the crowd, it was Jinming, who had always looked down on Ikeno, who suddenly began to look at Ikeno with new respect after hearing these words.

"Wonderful! This young man is well-versed in poetry and literature, and his temperament and demeanor are naturally refined. Every gesture he makes reveals his extraordinary talent. He is truly a promising young man."

Everyone in the family: "?!"

Seeing this, the wife felt embarrassed and cursed, "Speak like a human being!"

Jinming's face instantly turned red, and he pointed at the crowd: "You...you have disgraced civilization!"

Looking at it now, none of you deserve to be called "family" with Ikeno!
A bunch of vulgar people! Uncultured bumpkins!

Also, why is it that when Ikeno spouts fancy words, he's considered eloquent, while I'm just "speaking like a human being"?!

His wife could tell at a glance what color his answer was, so she lowered her voice and scolded him: "Wait until you write 'Blue and White Porcelain' before you talk about it."

Jinming was furious: "I'm not a celebrity, what...what am I supposed to write!"

"You'd better not leak it."

His wife glared at him.

Jinming: "...face."

"I understand, I won't say anything more."

"..."

……

The interview on Channel 2 has ended.

Ikeno and Jin Xia walked out of the studio and into the parking lot, where Mi-jie was already waiting.

"Teacher Chi, are you really not going home with me for the Chinese New Year?"

This summer, looking at Chi Ye with reluctance, she said, "If you don't have anywhere to spend the New Year, come back with me."

"I have a place to spend the New Year."

Chi Ye waved his phone: "I'm going to call my parents later. I haven't contacted them in a long time, and I miss them."

"...Okay then, see you after the New Year. I'll miss you."

This summer, she glanced at his phone, paused, and then leaned over to say, "Send me a WeChat message every morning and evening without fail... I won't let you send it for nothing, I'll send you a red envelope!"

Chi Ye immediately nodded: "Forget about the red envelope, a bank transfer is fine, but the amount should be large."

This summer, she glanced at Sister Mi, who had been observing her, and waved her hand, saying, "...I'm leaving, Teacher Chi."

"Bye-Bye."

"Yes, Happy New Year, Teacher Chi."

"Happy New Year."

After Chi Ye finished speaking, Jin Xia turned around and walked to Sister Mi, just about to get into the car.

Bang bang!

Bang bang bang!
The fireworks that had already been set off after the song "Unforgettable Tonight" were played went off again, and the colorful fireworks instantly bloomed into huge golden stars. The layers of petals fell like broken gold, illuminating the entire night sky.

"Go quickly, see you later."

Ikeno waved his hand.

"Hmm...Teacher Chi, you look really handsome today!"

After saying that, Jin Xia closed the car door without waiting for Chi Ye's response.

The car sped away.

Chino watched the car leave before lowering his hand, looking somewhat bewildered at the fading and dissipating fireworks in the night sky.

—He doesn't have a mother.

The original owner came from a divorced family; her mother had passed away, and her father was abroad and nowhere to be found.

But in order not to make the Empress Dowager feel guilty, he didn't tell her, because given the Empress Dowager's personality, if she really knew about his family situation, she definitely wouldn't have returned to Shanghai today.

But if she doesn't go back, the old man will only see her a few times a year, which will be very difficult for both the family and her personally. The old lady who loves her grandfather the most will definitely feel guilty all the time.

Therefore, Ikeno said he wanted to contact his family.

But this phone call is empty; should I call my parents in another world?
Thinking of this, Ikeno, who had been feeling calm, suddenly felt a little melancholy.

Yes, he not only doesn't have a horse, but he also seems to have no relatives.

Da da da…

Suddenly, I heard the sound of high heels hitting the ground behind me.

Ikeno was taken aback and subconsciously turned around.

Sheng Ning lit a cigarette, her phoenix eyes calmly watching him: "What are you looking at? Looking for Mom again?"

Ikeno raised an eyebrow: "Looking for your daughter."

"..."

Surprisingly, Sheng Ning didn't get angry or argue this time. She just quietly smoked her cigarette without saying a word or leaving. It was as if it were an unconscious habit; every year at this time, she would stand by for a while.

Do nothing, just stay quietly.

(End of this chapter)