I'm in Wuha, and the whole internet is shipping me and Song Yuqi as a couple.

Wu Zheng sat in the director's chair and reached out to lift the hat that was covering his face, making a small opening.

He looked at his empty purse and couldn't help but swallow hard.

"Fine, you guys are capable enough to even take over the director's command post."

Wu Zheng stood up, dusted off his trousers, and took three vermilion mission scrolls from the assistant director.

Don't get too excited yet.

"Tonight is the grand lantern festival in the ancient town, and all the tourists in the town are watching it in the square."

"The program team was invited to present three intangible cultural heritage programs as the grand finale."

"All the Shu Tong coins you have must be used as tuition for your apprenticeship."

Deng Chao, carrying a vegetable basket, stepped forward and peered at the scroll on the table.

"Old Wu, what kind of trap are you trying to dig this time?"

Chen He leaned the fortune-telling banner against the corner of the wall and rubbed his stomach as he chimed in.

"They locked us in a dark room early in the morning, and now they want to force us to perform. Even the donkeys in the production team wouldn't dare to do this to us."

Wu Zheng sneered and spread out the three reels on the control panel.

"The first item is the fireworks display."

"The third item is the use of Shu embroidery techniques to create the blank of an oiled paper umbrella."

Wu Zheng pointed to the leftmost reel and deliberately raised his voice.

"Iron-sparkling involves molten iron at a temperature of over 1000 degrees Celsius; it's a purely masculine project. Who would dare take it on?"

Upon hearing this, Deng Chao straightened his neck and slammed his hand on the table.

"Old Wu, stop using reverse psychology!"

"What kind of big scenes haven't I seen in movies back then?"

Chen He tried to shrink back, but Deng Chao grabbed him by the back of his collar.

"Chen He, show some manly spirit! We'll take this!"

Chen He glared at Deng Chao, clutching the hem of his clothes tightly.

"Brother Chao, you can go by yourself, why are you dragging me along?"

"My body can't withstand the heat of molten iron!"

Without saying a word, Deng Chao grabbed a vermilion pen and pressed his fingerprint onto the scroll.

"We'll share the good times and the bad; we're the Iron Flower Duo tonight!"

Wu Zheng's lips twitched slightly as he turned to look at the remaining two groups.

Lu Han and Qin Xiao exchanged a glance.

Qin Xiao shook the folding fan in his hand and straightened his chest.

"I've seen face-changing in traditional performing arts; there's a trick to it. Xiao Lu and I booked it."

Lu Han nodded in agreement and stepped forward to sign the document.

Only the last roll of Shu embroidery and the oiled paper umbrella remained on the table.

Wu Zheng squinted and looked at Jiang Che and Song Yuqi standing by the door.

"Jiang Che, this needlework is not simple. There are twelve steps, and if you make a mistake in even one, you can't finish the job."

Without hesitation, Jiang Che stepped forward, took the scroll, and wrote his and Song Yuqi's names at the end.

He turned around and took Song Yuqi's slightly cool hand into his palm.

"This is safe, there are no sparks, and it won't hurt your face."

Song Yuqi smiled, pursing her lips, and gently squeezed her fingers in his palm.

Half an hour later, all five members of the Wuha team went to the intangible cultural heritage workshop in the ancient town to become apprentices separately.

In the blacksmith's shop in the east of the city, the furnace was burning bright red.

Deng Chao and Chen He were wearing heavy leather heat-resistant suits weighing dozens of kilograms, and wire masks on their heads.

The master handed Deng Chao a long-handled wooden stick, pointing to a wooden bucket filled with water and a target in the distance.

"Don't touch the stove yet. Use the tip of the stick to strike the water, find the explosive force of the wrist flick, and disperse it into mist to pass the test."

Deng Chao swallowed hard, and as soon as he swung his arm out, the intense heat that hit him made the veins on his forehead throb.

His wrist went limp, and the wooden stick struck the rim of the bucket, splashing water onto the blue brick floor and sending up a puff of steam.

Chen He was so frightened that he took three big steps back and his back hit the door.

"Brother Chao! Keep your hand steady!"

"If molten iron were splattered on my forehead, I'd be roasted alive!"

Deng Chao was covered in sweat, and gritted his teeth as he gripped the wooden stick tightly again.

"What are you yelling about! I'm just getting into the swing of things!"

"Master, give me another striking plate. I refuse to believe I can't create something spectacular!"

The two were busy working in the workshop, their leather jackets burning hot from the steam, and their shouts could be heard half a street away.

The atmosphere was equally somber backstage at the opera troupe's place across the street.

Qin Xiao sat in front of the dressing mirror, his scalp tightly bound by a thin rope by the master craftsman.

"Master, be gentle, be gentle! My eye is being pulled all the way to my temple."

The master craftsman had immense strength and deftly fastened the mechanical mask.

"If you want to make a living this way, you have to suffer this hardship. You have a string in your mouth, and a mechanism behind your ear. You exhale and it becomes a sheet, you shake your head and it becomes a sheet."

Lu Han tried to pull the hidden thread, but the mechanism got stuck halfway, and the mask was hanging on the bridge of her nose, teetering on the verge of falling.

Qin Xiao turned his head and looked at Lu Han's face, which was half black and half red, and couldn't help but laugh out loud. As a result, he pulled his scalp and winced in pain.

"Little deer, your face is all mixed up with black and red."

Lu Han pulled off her mask and rubbed her aching cheeks.

"Teacher Qin, this hand speed is much harder than playing a video game. Let's make sure we don't get stuck on stage tonight."

At this moment, the fragrance of bamboo permeates the quiet Umbrella Manor in the west wing.

Jiang Che and Song Yuqi sat at a long wooden table by the window.

The old embroiderer placed a spool of colorful silk thread in front of Song Yuqi.

"Young lady, Shu embroidery emphasizes flatness, evenness, fineness, and density. This needle is three times finer than ordinary embroidery needles, so your hand must not tremble."

Song Yuqi picked up a silver needle and tried to thread the extremely fine silk through the eye of the needle.

After threading it three times, the silk thread came loose outside the eye of the needle.

Song Yuqi pursed her lips, her fingers holding the needle tip turned slightly white, and a thin layer of sweat appeared on her forehead.

Jiang Che put down the bamboo plane in his hand and sat down next to her.

He grasped Song Yuqi's trembling wrist and held her fingers firmly in his palm.

Song Yuqi turned to look at him, a light blush rising on the back of her neck.

Jiang Che raised his other hand, took the thin needle, and gently guided her hand to insert it.

The silk thread slid smoothly through the eye of the needle.

"Don't rush, just follow the light."

Jiang Che spoke very close to her, his warm breath brushing against her temples.

Song Yuqi breathed very softly, her gaze falling on the two people's overlapping fingers.

The old embroiderer glanced at it from the side, smiled and nodded, then turned and went to the inner room to get the fabric.

The only sound inside the house was the rustling of bamboo leaves outside the window.

Song Yuqi looked down at the red silk cloth on the bandage and spoke softly.

"Jiang Che, you've studied this before?"

Jiang Che picked up the bamboo strips on the table and skillfully peeled off the outer skin with the knife, leaving the even umbrella ribs.

"No, it's just that my fingers are more steady."

He handed the shaved bamboo strips to Song Yuqi.

"In a moment, open the umbrella and embroider a begonia on it. I'll be in charge of the frame."

Song Yuqi took the bamboo strips and brushed her fingers across the back of his hand.

"What if the embroidery doesn't look good?"

Jiang Che looked up at her, a smile in his eyes.

"You'll look good no matter what you embroider. Even if you embroider a steamed bun, I'll still walk through Thousand Lantern Street in it tonight."

Song Yuqi smiled and gently patted the back of his hand.

"You've embroidered a steamed bun."

She gripped the silver needle tightly and focused intently on stitching the silk fabric.

Red silk threads weave through the silk fabric, outlining the shape of the petals.

Jiang Che sat beside her, his bamboo-splitting knife moving steadily, wood chips falling at his feet.

Sunlight streamed through the carved window frame, falling on the two people's clothes, creating a striking contrast of red and white.

On the long street outside, the muffled thuds of Deng Chao striking the wooden planks and Chen He's exclamations could be faintly heard, interspersed with the tunes of Qin Xiao practicing his pronunciation and warming up his voice.

The afternoon in the ancient town gradually passed amidst the hustle and bustle of everyone.

After finishing the last stitch, Song Yuqi cut the thread and presented the embroidered umbrella to Jiang Che.

A deep red crabapple blossom unfolds in the center of the silk fabric, its stitches dense and neat.

Jiang Che took the umbrella and laid it flat on the thirty-six bamboo ribs.

He grasped the closing ring at the bottom of the umbrella handle, held Song Yuqi's hand tightly, and slowly pushed it open with her.

The oil-paper umbrella was fully opened in front of the two of them.

The crabapple blossoms gleamed with a warm luster under the light.

Song Yuqi looked up at the umbrella, her eyes filled with joy.

"It really worked."

Jiang Che looked at her profile illuminated by the light, then slightly turned his wrist to lower the umbrella brim, blocking the view from the window.

The light and shadow dimmed, and the distance between the two was brought to a small space by an umbrella, their breaths mingling together.

Jiang Che looked down at her lips and reached out to brush away a stray hair from her forehead.

Song Yuqi's eyelashes trembled slightly, but she didn't back down; instead, she gripped the hem of his clothes tightly.

"Jiang Che, someone is passing by outside."

Jiang Che chuckled softly, lowering his voice.

"They can't see because of the umbrella."

Song Yuqi's ears burned, and just as she was about to speak, Chen He's loud voice suddenly came from outside the courtyard gate.

"Brother Che! Sister Yuqi! Help!"

Chen He rushed into the yard with his face blackened by smoke, not even having time to take off his heat-resistant clothing.

"That old Wu guy has no sportsmanship. He said we weren't skilled enough and deducted ten coins from our pay!"

Deng Chao followed him in, his face a mixture of black and white.

"Hey chef, are you done yet? Quickly lend us some coins to buy some water, our throats are parched!"

Song Yuqi quickly stepped back half a step, raised her hand to straighten her collar, and her cheeks felt slightly hot.

Jiang Che folded up his oil-paper umbrella, turned around calmly, and looked at the two disheveled people.

"The coins are on the table, take them yourself."

Chen He grabbed the teapot on the table and took a big gulp, then looked at the two people in the room and suddenly narrowed his eyes.

"Hey chef, what are you two doing under the umbrella with the door closed?"

"Why does this room smell so sweet and sour like we're in love?"

Deng Chao also came over and reached out to touch the umbrella.

"These crabapple blossoms are embroidered beautifully. It must be Yuqi's skill. The chef doesn't have this level of attention to detail."

Jiang Che reached out and took the umbrella back, holding it behind his back.

"Once you've rested enough, hurry back and practice your iron flower skills. If you can't perform well tonight, the whole town will be watching."

Upon hearing this, Deng Chao immediately pulled Chen He outside.

"Let's go, let's keep forging! We absolutely can't lose to Old Wu tonight!"

Watching the two figures rushing away, Song Yuqi couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Jiang Che turned to look at her and handed her the repaired oil-paper umbrella.

"Let's go, let's go check out the main venue too."

Song Yuqi held the umbrella handle and naturally placed her other hand in Jiang Che's palm.

The afterglow of the setting sun shone on the bluestone slabs, casting long shadows of the two people that blended into the smoke rising from the ancient town.