Entertainment Era: Starting with Teaching Sister Meng to Sing

Unlike Wang Xiaozhou, Song Shihui was the type who slept soundly after drinking, waking up at 8:30 the next morning.

I got up and looked around the room, but Wang Xiaozhou was nowhere to be found. He probably went back to school for class.

Turning his head to look at the mess in the kitchen, Song Shihui finally realized what absurd things he had done yesterday.

How could I dare to let a young man who is almost eighteen and full of energy spend the night at my house, and even let him carry me back to my room?

What's even more ridiculous is that I actually thought I'd wait until he actually made a move before I fought back. If that bastard gets angry, he could probably hold me down with one hand, right?

Wouldn't the chastity of someone who has been single for 24 years become a joke then?

I'm so ashamed of my own stupidity.

After sobering up, Song Shihui cursed himself as he cleaned up the kitchen, feeling a little relieved that the bastard wasn't quite that beastly.

Thinking about it makes me want to laugh a little. He's really a beast. He actually removed his own makeup. Can a person's brain circuits be like that?

After tidying up the kitchen, I checked the time and it was already 9:30. Luckily, I had taken the day off yesterday to pick up my younger sister, otherwise he would have made me late.

With his car keys in hand, Song Shihui headed straight for the county's train station. Less than ten minutes after arriving, he saw a young girl wearing a mask running towards him from the exit.

"Hurry up and get in the car, it's much colder here than in Tianjin, isn't it?"

Song Shihui went up and covered Mao Xiaotong's ears, then carried her to the car with her between his legs.

After getting into the car, Mao Xiaotong rubbed her face and asked Song Shihui, who was driving, "Sis, I just finished filming on set and haven't gone home to see my mom yet. Why did you insist on bringing me to Songjiang? What surprise do you have in store?"

At this time, Mao Xiaotong had just played Ying Guiren in "Empresses in the Palace". Her career was just starting out, and she hadn't had any messy relationships yet. The first thing she did when she had time during the holidays was to go home to see her mother.

But before filming wrapped up, her distant cousin Song Shihui suddenly called her, saying she had prepared a surprise for her in Songjiang and that she absolutely had to come.

Before I was admitted to film school, I was living with my mother. Only my cousin's family didn't mind that my family was poor. They helped me a lot in life and work. They wanted me to come over, so it was definitely not easy to refuse.

Song Shihui drove the car into the underground parking garage and took Mao Xiaotong up the elevator: "The surprise isn't ready yet. That kid is a bit difficult to deal with. We might have to wait a month before there's any hope."

"That kid?"

Mao Xiaotong didn't know what her cousin was talking about.

Song Shihui waved his hand dismissively and opened his own door: "Don't rush, since you're already here, just play with me for a couple of days. I'll bring that kid over in a few days, and I don't believe he won't give in."

He then told Mao Xiaotong to go watch TV on the sofa while he went to the kitchen to get busy.

Mao Xiaotong sat for a while, then realized that this wasn't right, so she rushed to the kitchen to help, and then... she found that there wasn't much she could help with.

The menu was the same as yesterday, with the only hot dish being steak, and the rest being sashimi and boiled seafood.

This woman can't cook at all; when guests come over, she can only prepare something for show.

"Sis, who's that kid you were talking about? What's the surprise? Tell me already!"

Seeing that Mao Xiaotong was really anxious, Song Shihui had no choice but to reveal a little information, and the two talked while eating:

"Have you watched The Voice of China? Do you know Meng Ziyi, who's very popular on the show?"

Mao Xiaotong nodded: "I know, she's the most popular among the blind audition contestants. The final competition is about to air, and if she can perform another original song, she'll probably become even more popular."

Upon hearing this, Song Shihui smiled and said, "The person who wrote the song for her is Wang Xiaozhou. He handled both the lyrics and the music, and even taught her how to sing. He is currently a senior in high school at our school, and I teach him English."

"ah!?"

Mao Xiaotong was so surprised she almost jumped up: "What a coincidence! Meng Ziyi wasn't lying on the show, the person who wrote the song for her really is a student."

That's terrifying! What kind of talent does it take to write a song like "One Meat, One Vegetable" while still in school?

Song Shihui shook his head: "Wait a few days until the Voice of China competition airs, and you'll find that his second song is even more outrageous."

Mao Xiaotong quickly figured it out and trembled with surprise: "Sis, the surprise you're talking about, it can't be that you can get me a song from Wang Xiaozhou, right?"

Mao Xiaotong, who starred in "Empresses in the Palace" before the Lunar New Year, has become a huge hit. As Ying Guiren, whose role was not very big, Mao Xiaotong feels that her career has started at a very high level.

If he were to add a song like "One Meat, One Vegetable" to his repertoire, developing both his visual and entertainment careers, Mao Xiaotong would never have imagined how popular he would become!

"Yes, but that kid is arrogant at heart and has high skills. We haven't taken him down yet."

Mao Xiaotong nonchalantly put down her chopsticks: "It's nothing, he's just a high school student. I'm not leaving for the next few days. If you have the chance, invite him over to our house, and the two of us sisters will take him down together. I don't believe he can withstand it!"

Song Shihui was too embarrassed to say that he had already sent someone to his house, so he just nodded and hummed in response. After cleaning up the kitchen with Mao Xiaotong, Song Shihui suggested:

"I heard from my aunt that your calligraphy skills are quite good now? I have all the brushes, ink, paper and inkstones I've collected over the years in my study. Show them to me."

Mao Xiaotong wasn't intimidated by the words. Her biggest hobby since childhood has been dancing, and besides that, she also practices calligraphy. According to her teachers at school, even if she doesn't act in TV dramas, she can easily support herself by opening a calligraphy class, so her skill level is naturally quite high.

The two sisters entered the study one after the other. Mao Xiaotong looked at the ornaments on the desk with envy. That pen alone was probably worth her salary for a TV series. She wondered how famous she would have to be to catch up with her cousin's quality of life.

Standing at the desk, Mao Xiaotong didn't immediately begin preparations. Instead, wanting to admire her cousin's recent works, she casually picked up a piece of Xuan paper from the corner of the table and unfolded it:

"Sis, did you write this recently? What kind of lyrics have you been writing lately?"

Song Shihui looked at the Xuan paper in Mao Xiaotong's hand and wondered why he hadn't used Chengxintang paper for calligraphy recently. This kind of precious Xuan paper was only used when one's energy and spirit were at their peak and one wanted to leave behind a work for appreciation. He usually used ordinary Xuan paper for practicing calligraphy.

Walking behind Mao Xiaotong, watching the Xuan paper being slowly unfurled, the two of them stared wide-eyed.

"Only now do you realize... you were wrong back then?"

Song Shihui asked in confusion.

Mao Xiaotong gently ran her hand over the title of the poem as if it were a precious treasure: "This definitely wasn't written by you, sis?"

Song Shihui nodded: "The finest calligraphy possesses a 'melancholy' atmosphere throughout, not pursuing a tense or aggressive style, but rather expressing heaviness and dazedness through deliberate brushstrokes and slightly trembling lines."

Mao Xiaotong added, "The ink naturally changes from dark to dry as the writing progresses, much like the gradual drying of tears and the darkening of emotions. The brushstrokes are mostly concealed when entering the paper, subtle and profound. The brushstrokes are mainly centered, with occasional side strokes for texturing, like the undercurrents of emotions."

"Only those with a master-level mindset and skill can achieve this."

Song Shihui made a definitive statement, then spoke bitterly, "Xiao Tong, have you ever seen this poem, 'Picking Mulberry Leaves - Only Now Do I Realize My Mistakes,' before?"

Mao Xiaotong clutched her heart and gently shook her head: "I only know that 'Picking Mulberry Leaves' is a Tang Dynasty ci poem title, also known as 'Ugly Slave' or 'Luo Fu's Charm.' As for this poem, 'Only Now Do I Realize My Mistake,' I've never heard of it. Sister, who wrote this calligraphy? And is the poem his original work?"

Song Shihui didn't even need to recall; in nearly three years, only one guest had ever visited his house.

Wang Xiaozhou!