A band, or a battleground?

As Shen Yihan said this, she rested her chin on her hand that wasn't holding chopsticks and smiled gently.

Even Qi Yuan had to admit that this woman's smile was indeed very beautiful.

However, Qi Yuan still took a piece of braised beef from her box and started chewing it.

Shen Yihan suddenly said, "When you have more time in the future, why don't you ask the company to arrange a role with more screen time for you?"

Qi Yuan swallowed the beef and immediately said, "Then forget it."

"Why?" Shen Yihan asked, puzzled. "You'll definitely have more time when you go to university."

However, Qi Yuan felt that even if he wanted to pursue an acting career, he wouldn't be content with playing roles written by others, especially in fan-oriented dramas. Besides music, he had many amazing story ideas in his head. If he couldn't write the scripts himself, he would hire skilled screenwriters to write the stories he wanted.

However, he then said, "If I had more time, I would go and hold a concert. Do you know how many Kasuga Kage fans are looking forward to our tour?"

Shen Yihan pouted: "I thought you really enjoyed being an actress because you've been acting so well these past few days."

Qi Yuan countered, "Do you think I acted very well?"

Shen Yihan: "Yeah, if someone else had made a cameo appearance, their performance would definitely have been much worse than yours."

Qi Yuan shook his head: "That only shows that your standards are too low. Okay, we only have a short break, so hurry up and eat."

Shen Yihan picked up her chopsticks and ate a few bites.

But not long after, she muttered again, "I actually thought it would be fun to act opposite you. Don't you think so?"

Qi Yuan's heart stirred slightly.

He paused for a few seconds, then said in a low voice, "Acting is indeed a rather interesting and novel experience. Especially with people you get along with, acting seems to be more comfortable."

Shen Yihan laughed and said, "You think so too, right? Then let's arrange another role."

Qi Yuan: "I can only say that I would consider it if it were a cameo role, but I can't guarantee it. Besides, trying new experiences is also a way for me to find inspiration."

Shen Yihan's eyes lit up immediately: "So, did you have any inspiration this time?"

Qi Yuan nodded slowly.

"Then I'll be really looking forward to it!" Shen Yihan smiled, then couldn't help but ask, "When can I hear your new song?"

"When I've finished filming all my scenes."

By this point in the conversation, Qi Yuan had finished his lunchbox and got up to throw out the trash.

Just then, Shen Yihan felt her pocket vibrate. She took out her phone and saw that it was a call from Assistant Zeng.

But Assistant Zeng was clearly on set, so why did he need to make a phone call?

Shen Yihan looked up blankly and saw Assistant Zeng staring at her from dozens of meters away.

The moment their eyes met, Shen Yihan stuck out her little tongue.

She already understood what Assistant Zeng was trying to say.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

That evening, Qi Yuan returned to his hotel room and stopped in front of the bathroom mirror.

In his room, where he was all alone, he stared blankly at himself in the mirror for a long time.

Suddenly, he muttered to himself, "Does it really have that much charm? I don't see it at all..."

He had, of course, already noticed that Shen Yihan, this top-tier celebrity, treated him somewhat differently. And their interactions over the past two days had further confirmed to him that this attitude was enough to be considered a sign of affection.

Although he didn't have any romantic feelings when he first met her, now that he sees her smiling at him from time to time, he can't help but imagine... what would happen if they really went further together?

What would it be like to date a top-tier female celebrity who's always in the spotlight? Would it be amazing, or exhausting?

Qi Yuan turned on the tap, bent down, and splashed some cold water on his face.

Then look up and turn off the tap.

He looked in the mirror and warned himself: "The three great illusions in life: my phone is vibrating, I can turn the tables, and she likes me!"

In my previous life, during my university years, one of my roommates had this same misconception, rashly confessed his feelings, and ended up losing even the friendship.

Shen Yihan is now one of my strongest connections in the entertainment industry, so I can't afford to make any rash moves.

Unless she makes it more obvious and more convincing... then, will we talk to her then?

Qi Yuan chuckled self-deprecatingly: "Hehe, what do I have to worry about? Just don't take the initiative or refuse, as long as I don't deliberately make a fool of myself, I'm in an invincible position no matter what."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

203 alert continues to escalate

Qi Yuan left the film crew on Monday evening.

The director, several main actors, and dozens of staff members put on a farewell ceremony for him. It was called a ceremony, but it was actually quite simple; they simply booked a restaurant and, under the guise of a send-off, gathered together for food and drinks.

Most of them had no contact with Qi Yuan. It was less a farewell and more a free meal. Only Shen Yihan, the director, the cameraman, and two of the assistant directors could actually talk to Qi Yuan.

Not long after all the dishes were served, Qi Yuan took out his phone, glanced at it, and said, "Sorry, I have to catch my flight, so I'll be leaving now."

Someone at the table instinctively wanted to persuade him to stay a little longer, but then looked at the director and Shen Yihan. These two were undoubtedly the ones with the most say here.

The director said, "Okay, I'll see you off."

Qi Yuan: "No need, no need, Director Liu, you don't need to be so polite..."

Shen Yihan had already stood up: "Let me see you to the door."

The director immediately stood up: "Yes, we'll walk you to the door. The car that's picking you up should be parked outside, right?"

Qi Yuan nodded. Then the director and Shen Yihan saw him out.

The three of them walked outside the restaurant and sure enough, they saw a minivan.

At this moment, Shen Yihan couldn't help but ask, "What about the song you promised me?"

The director looked bewildered: "A song?"

"I said I got some inspiration while acting on set these past few days, so I wrote a song," Qi Yuan explained with a smile, then looked at the girl and said, "It's finished. Do you want to hear it now?"

Shen Yihan nodded vigorously.

Director: "...You wrote a song in just two or three days of filming? It's not related to our show, is it?"

"It's not entirely related, but it was definitely inspired by the character Lu Chen."

As Qi Yuan said this, he opened the door of the van and picked up a guitar from the seat.

Shen Yihan's eyes lit up: "You were really ready!"

The director, shameless as ever, asked, "Can I listen to it too?"

Qi Yuan nodded, gathered his emotions for a moment, and then began to play.

The standard arpeggios required for playing and singing are no longer a challenge for him. Even without Qiu Mengxue's help, he can create a formulaic arrangement on his own. Of course, if he wants to perform on stage properly, especially considering the coordination of multiple instruments in a band, he will still need to ask Qiu Mengxue, or the more capable Zhou Taishan.

Playing a soft melody, Qi Yuan began to sing...

A few minutes later, he packed his guitar back into his bag and said goodbye, "I'm a bit pressed for time, I really have to go now. You guys enjoy your meal, bye-bye."

Liu Weiting started the car from the driver's seat and drove away with Qi Yuan.

Shen Yihan waved goodbye, then turned her head and saw the director standing there blankly, seemingly still in a daze.

After a long silence, the director said, "Now I understand why you like his music... But isn't he a rock musician? That song you just heard, shouldn't it be considered folk?"

Shen Yihan smiled and said, "You don't know this, but they sang folk songs on the talent show where they debuted. And two of the mentors used that as a reason not to select them."

Director: "Those two mentors must be very regretful."

Shen Yihan: "It's no use regretting it now."

At that moment, the director suddenly slapped his thigh: "That's right, I completely forgot to ask! That song he just sang was such a perfect fit for the character of Lu Chen, I should have asked if it could be used in the show!"

Shen Yihan crossed her arms over her chest: "Really? But Lu Chen is just a supporting character with few scenes. And Qi Yuan's current value... to be honest, so many people in the music industry want to commission songs from him, but they don't have the connections."

The director asked cautiously, "Won't it be very expensive? But all the profits from this song go to him; we're just using it as a character song. Is it really that expensive?"

Shen Yihan pouted: "Then I don't know. Besides, since it's going to cost money anyway, why not just use this song as the ending theme or the opening theme?"

"End credits song, theme song..." The director pondered, and the more he thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.

Shen Yihan then said, "If you think it's okay, then I'll help you ask. Anyway, we work in the same company and are friends, so we can talk to each other."

The director gritted his teeth and nodded emphatically: "Okay, please ask around for me."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

While Qi Yuan was still on the plane, he couldn't receive any calls or go online, so he naturally didn't know that his three bandmates had reunited.

It was still a self-study period, but all they had to do was inform the teacher that they wanted to rehearse. And the place where they met was indeed the school's music room.

However, what was taking place was not a rehearsal, but an emergency war situation meeting.

All three of them were holding their phones, and on the screens of their phones were the blog updates that Shen Yihan had just posted:

[I was so lucky today to hear a truly amazing song from Qi Yuan! He had a three-day guest appearance on our show, and not only did he find fresh inspiration, but he also created a very charismatic character! Stay tuned, we'll be waiting for you all next spring.]

Two pictures were also attached to this text.

The first picture is of Qi Yuan filming. He is wearing a black shirt and trousers, holding a magnifying glass, and sitting at a table. It's unclear what he is doing.

The second photo shows Qi Yuan sitting in a van, holding a guitar. The door is open, and the person taking the photo is clearly standing outside the vehicle.

Qiu Mengxue murmured, "What alert level is it now?"

“Qi Yuan sang a song, but even we don’t know what it was about. Only Sister Yihan knows…” Jiang Yi’s eyes became more focused, even sharp. “This is no longer an S-level alert, it’s a super S-level alert!”

Although Ning Qianyu was also worried, she pretended to be nonchalant in front of her two teammates who had already revealed their true feelings: "What 'super S-level'? When you get dramatic, you're way more exaggerated than me. Besides, it's just a song, why take it so seriously?"

Qiu Mengxue shook her head: "No, we must take this seriously."

Ning Qianyu glanced at Jiang Yi again, but was slightly startled by her gaze. She couldn't help but ask, "Yi Yi, what are you thinking about?"

Jiang Yi clenched her fists, lowered her face, and watched her fists clench and unclench.

But the tone of her voice was surprisingly calm: "I'm thinking I need to get serious. If things continue like this, it wouldn't be surprising if Shen Yihan confessed to him one day. Do you think Qi Yuan would accept if she did?"

Ning Qianyu and Qiu Mengxue wanted to give a negative answer, but they couldn't bring themselves to say it.

Because nobody is sure.

Qiu Mengxue didn't give an answer, but instead asked, "Then what do you want to do?"

Jiang Yi said earnestly, "I want to do something, to do everything in my power, to prevent our band from being broken up by outsiders. If you want to do something, please hurry up."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

204 They seem to be acting strangely.

After Qi Yuan got off the plane, he found a series of unread new messages.

Ignoring the uninformative points, one particular one caught his attention.

The message came from Shen Xingyun, the boss of Tianhua Entertainment:

The entrance exams for the Huaxia Conservatory of Music start in March, and registration has recently opened. Do you need your company to help you register? I think all four of you want to go there, right?

Qi Yuan immediately replied: 【Of course, thank you very much, Mr. Shen.】

Not long after, Shen Xingyun sent another message: "Then the company will register you. Liu Weiting will explain the details of the exam to you. Anyway, with your musical talent and academic performance, you shouldn't have anything to worry about."

At that moment, Qi Yuan and Liu Weiting were sitting in the car leaving the airport. He sent another brief thank-you message to President Shen, then turned to discuss something with Liu Weiting beside him…

Then, more than an hour later, Qi Yuan returned to his residence and sent a message in the Spring Shadow Band group:

The company wants to help us register for the music academy entrance exams. We can talk about it tomorrow if we're free.

After posting this, he put down his phone and went to take a shower.

It was already past 10 p.m., time to wash up and go to bed.

But just as he finished showering, changed into his pajamas, and was drying his hair, the doorbell rang.

Qi Yuan walked over, opened the door, and saw Qiu Mengxue.

In the cold winter of December, the girl wore a high ponytail, a brown trench coat, and ankle boots. With her hands in her trench coat pockets, she exuded a neat and carefree vibe.

However, paired with her pretty face with a smile on her lips, she has an added touch of sweetness.