Entertainment Era: Starting with Teaching Sister Meng to Sing

That bastard is using his tricks again.

A subtle sense of closeness, coupled with the creation of a fictitious competitor.

This common cutting technique used for green tea is equally effective when applied to women.

Despite their heartfelt pleas for him to stay, Wang Xiaozhou arrived at the art school gate just as Meng Ziyi was leaving school, followed by her best friend Sun Jiayi.

"Why did you come to pick me up from school today?"

Meng Ziyi had a sweet smile on her face, and with a 76% favorability rating, she had naturally adopted Wang Xiaozhou's perspective as his girlfriend.

Wang Xiaozhou nodded to Sun Jiayi behind her and said, "I didn't want to go to class this afternoon, so I came early to see what you wanted to eat and will take you there."

After thinking for a moment, Wang Xiaozhou added, "If your friend doesn't have anything else to do, they can come along."

"Okay, okay."

Before Meng Ziyi could reply, Sun Jiayi immediately jumped up in response. She couldn't wait to get up close and personal with Wang Xiaozhou and see if his daily life with Meng Ziyi was as exciting as she had imagined.

Perhaps feeling she had overstepped her bounds, Sun Jiayi jumped up to agree, then looked at Meng Ziyi shyly and said, "Hehe, is it convenient, Ziyi?"

Meng Ziyi happily agreed: "That's convenient, let's go together, it's my treat."

"My treat!"

Sun Jiayi quickly interrupted, "You always refused when I invited you to dinner before, but this time I'm treating Brother Xiaozhou too. You can't just rush to spend money with me, can you?"

She knew that Meng Ziyi's family was not well-off, so she would always insist on treating everyone when they went out, but Meng Ziyi never agreed and always split the bill fairly.

One genuinely wanted to treat the other, and the other genuinely didn't want to take advantage of the situation; this is probably the most important reason why the two became best friends.

"Alright, I'll just take you guys out for two bowls of spicy hot pot at most. It's only fourteen yuan. What are you arguing about?"

Wang Xiaozhou, being both generous and frugal, led them directly to the mala tang (spicy hot pot) shop they had just visited.

He only ordered two bowls. When Meng Ziyi asked him why he wasn't eating, Wang Xiaozhou patted his stomach and said, "I just ate two and a half bowls, and I really can't eat anymore."

Meng Ziyi assumed he had come with Huang Mao and his gang, so she didn't ask any further questions and continued eating noodles with Sun Jiayi, one strand at a time.

While Wang Xiaozhou was opening a bottle of soda and handing it to her, Meng Ziyi said, "I went to see Sister Juan yesterday. She's doing pretty well. If we can really make money before the New Year, I'd like to take her to a big hospital for another checkup."

Wang Xiaozhou remained silent. With the cancer having already metastasized to distant places, there was little point in seeking treatment elsewhere; it could only prolong survival to some extent.

Taking my aunt to a big hospital for a checkup at this point might not actually be a good thing.

However, meeting Meng Ziyi's hopeful gaze, Wang Xiaozhou still spoke up: "Let's discuss it with my third uncle. The money will definitely arrive before the New Year. Whether to take her to a big hospital for another check-up or let her live comfortably for the next few years, it's up to you to decide."

They are all educated young people. There's no need to elaborate on Zhang Juan's illness; everyone knows what's going on, so there's no need to hide anything.

The topic was thus diverted. After taking one last bite of noodles from the spicy hot pot, Sun Jiayi cautiously asked, "Are you two... related? Why do you call Sister Juan, and Brother Xiaozhou call Third Aunt?"

Meng Ziyi shook her head, and was about to explain their relationship when Wang Xiaozhou smiled and said, "Yes, we're relatives. I call her my aunt."

"Wow"

Sun Jiayi's eyes were seeing stars; it was even more exciting than the idol dramas in her head!

After dinner, Wang Xiaozhou will take Meng Ziyi to familiarize herself with the new song. Sun Jiayi cannot be included in this segment, as all works must be kept secret before the show airs.

Wang Xiaozhou told Sun Jiayi to take a taxi home, while he led Meng Ziyi leisurely towards the KTV to help her digest her food.

As for the industry's traditional practice of singing when full but not when hungry, that's not a problem for Wang Xiaozhou at all. He didn't bring Meng Ziyi to sing anyway; he just wanted to accompany her to memorize the lyrics.

Are you going home this Friday?

Meng Ziyi, wearing a large hat, asked in a muffled voice.

Wang Xiaozhou: "Yes, I go home almost every week."

"Why didn't your uncle and aunt leave one of them in the county town to keep you company? Senior year of high school is very important. All this running around every week means you're missing a lot of study time."

"It doesn't matter. I'm naturally intelligent, so I don't need to spend extra time outside of class."

"oh."

Following behind Wang Xiaozhou, stepping in his footsteps, Meng Ziyi held back for a long time before finally asking the question that was truly on her mind: "Where do you plan to go to university? Are you staying in our hometown?"

Wang Xiaozhou turned around, raised an eyebrow, and smiled, "Want to go to university in the same city as me? You can't bear to part with me?"

"Annoying!"

Mencius recalled sweeping his leg through the void; his attitude just now had already given the answer.

"I don't have a goal. I'll just take it as it comes, but it's unlikely to be Kyoto. My mediocre score would be awkward if I went to Kyoto."

"Not going to Kyoto?" Meng Ziyi seemed disappointed, even a little sullen.

Wang Xiaozhou offered some words of comfort: "Even if I don't go to university in Kyoto, we'll still see each other often. We commute on Saturdays and Sundays, and we'll both have money by the end of the year anyway, so it's not like we can't afford train tickets."

Meng Ziyi didn't reply, and the two walked forward in silence. After passing several alleyways, Meng Ziyi suddenly strode up to Wang Xiaozhou, stopping him in her tracks, and said seriously:

"I'm not going to the Beijing Film Academy. Wherever you go to university, I'll apply to the film academy there."

Wang Xiaozhou was stunned. Could a 76% favorability rating really have this kind of power? Could it make a girl who always says "My biggest dream is to get into the Beijing Film Academy" say "I'm not going to the Beijing Film Academy" just so she can be in the same city as him?

In the limited span of life, there are always a few major decisions made with absolute emotion, and the emotions that burst forth in these moments cannot be measured by numbers.

So Meng Ziyi was serious at this moment. Regardless of whether she would regret it later, she was giving up the Beijing Film Academy and choosing to go to the same city as Wang Xiaozhou.

You can't force someone to talk to you like this. Wang Xiaozhou joked, "It can't be that bad, Auntie. Are you so infatuated with me that you can't be apart from me for even a day?"

This tactic worked as expected. Meng Ziyi turned away in shame and anger, and walked towards the KTV ahead of Wang Xiaozhou.

Wang Xiaozhou, following behind, also breathed a sigh of relief. He thought to himself, "Sisters, please don't try to stick to me all the time. It's okay now that I only have two characters bound to me, but what if there are more later?"

We need to establish the rules beforehand: no woman can have me 24/7!

From that day on, Wang Xiaozhou's life began to return to a regular pattern.

During the day, he would secretly play around with Song Shihui, and after school, he would accompany Meng Ziyi to practice singing without fail. In the evening, he would occasionally go to Song Shihui's house for a free meal, and take the opportunity to flirt with Mao Xiaotong, who was still innocent and naive.

Wang Xiaozhou's blissful days lasted for half a month until the day the Voice of China competition aired. He knew that his regular routine was about to be disrupted again, and that he would have to say goodbye to his previous life.

After this episode, Meng Ziyi will become incredibly popular, and her signing fee will skyrocket.

Of this exorbitant signing fee, 90% of the profits belong to him!