Chinese entertainment: Top stars have no holidays

The next morning.

A ray of morning light shone into the room, dispelling the lingering intimacy of the previous night. The two people, tightly embracing each other on the bed, frowned in unison.

Tian Xiwei was the first to wake up.

She nestled in Jiang Bai's warm embrace, the scent of his hormones lingering around her nose, and lazily nuzzled against his chest.

After a night of intimacy, the two no longer maintained the sense of propriety they used to have, and the touch of their bodies pressed tightly together was both gentle and reassuring.

She slowly tilted her head back to look at the profile of the face that was so close to hers.

The morning light fell on Jiang Bai's eyebrows and eyes, outlining his features with deep lines. Even in his sleep, he was still very handsome. This scene was especially healing.

Tian Xiwei stared, slightly lost in thought. She couldn't help but gently raise her hand and carefully tap his straight nose, then lightly brush his lips, the movement as light as a feather, as if afraid of waking the sleeping man.

But as soon as her index finger touched the ground, the person in her arms gently tightened their embrace, holding her even closer.

The next second, Jiang Bai slowly opened his eyelids, his eyes still drowsy from just waking up. His voice was hoarse and deep, with a magnetic quality: "Awake?"

It turned out he had been awake for a while, but he couldn't bear to break the peace, so he quietly held her tenderly.

Caught in her little act, Tian Xiwei blushed slightly and snuggled closer to him, murmuring softly, "You're awake."

"Mmm." Jiang Bai looked down at the soft, sweet girl in his arms, and gently rubbed the top of her head. "Did I crush you last night?"

"Was it disturbing your rest since it was your first time sleeping with someone?"

It's still a lie.

Jiang Bai had mastered the art of lying to make girls happy in his past life; it was an innate skill he couldn't change, and he would do it subconsciously.

Recalling the chaotic yet sweet scene from last night, Tian Xiwei's ears instantly turned bright red. She buried herself in his arms, refusing to look up, and whispered reproachfully, "You still say that? You kept pulling my hair last night, it hurt so much."

"Is it just a headache?"

Jiang Bai chuckled softly, the sensation of his chest vibrating exploding in Xiao Tian's ear.

He gently smoothed her disheveled hair, his movements incredibly tender: "My bad, I'll be gentler next time."

I don't know what aspect of being "lighter" means.

Tian Xiwei's heart skipped a beat, so she simply shut her mouth, nestled obediently in his arms, and enjoyed this rare moment of tender solitude.

The two lay there quietly in each other's arms for a long time without saying a word, but there was no awkwardness at all.

After a night of passion, their feelings for each other became clear, and this tenderness was more reassuring than any words.

The silence of the room was broken when the phone on the bedside table vibrated.

Jiang Bai reached for his phone, glanced at the message his assistant had sent, and his eyes showed a hint of helplessness and apology.

He gently released his grip on Tian Xiwei and said softly, "Xiao Tian, ​​I have to go."

Upon hearing this, Tian Xiwei immediately looked up, her eyes filled with astonishment and reluctance: "So early?"

"Hmm." Jiang Bai nodded, his tone clearly apologetic. "I have to catch a flight to Jiaxing this morning. The recording of the second season of 'The Masked Singer' officially starts today. My schedule is set, and I can't cancel it."

Last night was so hot that she almost forgot Jiang Bai had a variety show recording schedule.

The initial sweetness was instantly replaced by a faint sense of loss.

Tian Xiwei pursed her lips, a faint hint of grievance rising in her eyes, but she was exceptionally sensible and did not whine or act spoiled to try and keep her.

She understands that artists have little control over their own lives; once their schedules are finalized, they cannot be changed at will.

Moreover, it's an important schedule like recording a variety show.

"How long will it take you to come back?" she asked softly, her voice full of reluctance.

"After recording this episode, I have to go back to the film set to shoot. See you in Shanghai when you have time."

Jiang Bai reached out and gently ruffled her hair, soothing her softly, "I'm sorry you had to go through that. I wanted to spend a couple more days with you in Shenzhen and show you around, but unfortunately, the schedule was too tight."

"I'm not wronged." Tian Xiwei shook her head, forcing a smile. "You focus on recording the show; I'm going back to Shanghai too."

"Sister Li helped me choose a few notebooks. I'll go back and finalize the project with her when I get back."

Despite saying that, the disappointment in her eyes was impossible to hide; her bright eyes drooped slightly, like a kitten that had been abandoned.

Jiang Bai's heart softened when he saw her like this. He bent down and gently hugged her, placing a soft good morning kiss on her forehead: "Be good, I'll spend more time with you after I'm done with this busy period."

"Mmm!" Tian Xiwei nodded emphatically, instantly becoming much happier.

The two quickly got up, tidied themselves up, washed up, and changed clothes.

After tidying up, Jiang Bai stood at the doorway.

Tian Xiwei saw him to the door, leaned against the door frame, her gaze fixed on him, her eyes full of reluctance.

"I'm leaving." Jiang Bai looked at her, his tone gentle and tender.

"Have a safe journey! Remember to eat well and don't overwork yourself during filming!" Tian Xiwei hurriedly reminded her, her words full of concern.

"I understand." Jiang Bai replied with a smile, glanced at her one last time, turned and pushed the door open to leave.

......

After meeting up with his team members, Jiang Bai took a car directly to the airport to catch the earliest flight to Jiaxing.

The plane landed smoothly before noon.

The production team's car was already waiting at the airport. He was taken directly to the recording site of the second season of "The Masked Singer" without any extra stops.

Upon arriving at the scene, Jiang Bai immediately went to the backstage of the program team to coordinate the schedule and recording details with the director and production team.

The director was exceptionally warm and polite when he met Jiang Bai.

Jiang Bai is no longer a newcomer who only gained popularity as a supporting actor.

After the hit drama "A Love So Beautiful" became a sensation, he has taken the lead in popularity and now enjoys immense popularity and is a guest that the production team is eagerly anticipating.

"Mr. Jiang Bai, welcome, welcome! It's kind of you to come all this way." The director smiled and stepped forward to shake hands, his attitude humble. "We're all looking forward to your performance. Just give it your all during this recording."

"Director, you're too kind. It's my pleasure."

Jiang Bai was humble and gentle, without any airs of a big star, and cooperated with the team to check the recording process, rehearsal time and stage details.

After the handover was completed, the director smiled and explained the masked rules and guest code names for this episode to him.

To maintain suspense in the show, all guests will wear exclusive masks to conceal their identities and interact using nicknames provided by the production team, without revealing their real names or identities.

"Mr. Jiang Bai, we've already decided on the nickname for your special program, one that fits your persona and temperament," the director said with a smile. "It'll be called {The Busy School Heartthrob}."

Jiang Bai was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, then burst into laughter.

This flower name is quite fitting.

On the one hand, it fits his popular campus heartthrob persona from "A Love So Beautiful," and the label of "campus hunk" is deeply ingrained in people's minds.

On the other hand, he has been busy filming, promoting his dramas, and recording variety shows non-stop during this period, and his schedule is indeed "very busy".

"That's very fitting, I like it very much." Jiang Bai nodded in agreement.

Seeing this, the director added with a smile: "Although our program emphasizes masked secrecy, we don't need to wear masks throughout the rehearsals and guest interactions. Everyone here is an industry insider, so we can just communicate and work out normally in private. We'll keep the entire recording process completely confidential."

This is also standard practice in variety shows within the industry.

The so-called masked secrecy is aimed at ensuring that the audience and the camera meet and rehearse with the guests in advance, so as to guarantee a smooth stage performance and avoid recording mishaps.

Just then, a gentle and clear female voice came from the side: "This must be the guest who will be collaborating with me on stage, right?"

Jiang Bai turned his head and saw a gentle and slender figure walking slowly towards him, with gentle eyes and a clean and ethereal temperament.

He is the guest who sang a duet with him in this episode, codenamed "The Restless Iron Lady".

The famous Angela Chang.

That song, "Invisible Wings," was sung in school choirs by almost everyone born in the 80s and 90s...

In addition to her singing career, Angela Chang also starred in several famous Taiwanese dramas when they were all the rage across Taiwan, Hong Kong and mainland China.

Jiang Bai watched her in "Romantic Princess" when she was in junior high school, and she really enjoyed watching it back then.

Zhang Shaohan, however, was not familiar with Jiang Bai.

It was only after the guest collaborator was confirmed that I went online to learn about Jiang Bai.

My first impression of him was that he was a young, handsome guy, a newcomer to the industry.

However, in the past two weeks, "A Love So Beautiful" has become so popular on the internet that even Angela Chang has heard about it.

I also watched a few episodes of "A Love So Beautiful" and developed a liking for his clean and comfortable temperament and natural acting skills.

After all, idol dramas are a field that Angela Chang was once familiar with and skilled in.

Seeing him in person now, I feel that he has a clear, gentle and upright temperament, and is even more outstanding than in the photos.

"Hello, Ms. Zhang Shaohan, I'm Jiang Bai. It's a pleasure to work with you this time." Jiang Bai took the initiative to step forward, greeted her politely, and was humble and courteous.

"No need to be so polite, just call me Sister Shaohan." Angela Chang smiled gently, showing no airs of a senior, and was very friendly and approachable.

"I just heard from the director that I'm really looking forward to our duet performance this time."

"You have a great voice. I watched the TV series you acted in, and the lines were excellent. I imagine you must sing very well too."

Everyone carries a beautiful sedan chair.

"Thank you for your recognition, teacher. I still have a lot to learn, and I will need your guidance during the rehearsal later."

Jiang Bai didn't take those words seriously and remained very humble.

Without much pleasantries, the two got straight to the point and began a brief conversation while sitting in the rest area.

From the rhythm and harmony of the chorus song "Rooftop" chosen by the production team, to stage positioning and emotional expression, everything was meticulously communicated.

Of course, it was mainly the program's production team and music director who communicated with them about the specific stage presentation.

Everything was done according to the stage flow and music arrangement prepared by the production team.

However, as a senior in the music industry, Angela Chang has rich stage experience and patiently shared many singing techniques with Jiang Bai.

They also provided many suitable adjustment suggestions based on his vocal characteristics.

After all, Jiang Bai is an actor who has never even released an official single. In Zhang Shaohan's eyes, he was only invited by the production team for the sake of generating buzz and making it more difficult to guess who he was.

Jiang Bai listened attentively, quickly absorbing the key points, and occasionally offered his own ideas, which earned him Zhang Shaohan's respect.

In just over ten minutes of conversation, the two finalized the rehearsal details.

After confirming with the director and music director that everything was okay, the two of them went on stage to rehearse in their own clothes.

"Can't sleep at night, so I hum a song to express my feelings~"

"I'll just have to go to the rooftop to find another dream~"

The singing wasn't particularly amazing, but it was catchy and pleasant enough to hear, coming from Jiang Bai's mouth.

Standing below the stage, the originally serious-looking directing team exchanged surprised glances.

Nobody told them Jiang Bai could sing so well!

Only the show's director revealed a cryptic smile.

This is nothing.

The original song that followed was truly jaw-dropping!

If it weren't for the variety show script, the director believed that if Jiang Bai appeared on the show for a whole season and 12 episodes, the judging panel would never have been able to guess who was behind the mask!

The contrast is too big!