A band, or a battleground?

So the assistant director took him on a tour of the studio.

This studio, while not comparable to the studio for "The Coming One," is still quite large, with eight rooms set up, each equipped with air conditioning.

"Are these air conditioners all genuine?" Qi Yuan asked.

The assistant director replied, "Yes, but none of them are plugged in. You can operate them freely without worrying about the risk of electric shock. During the recording, apart from a few cameramen, all staff members, including the directing team, will not be present. We'll give you a recording environment with zero prompts and no interference."

Qi Yuan: "So, you mean it's all up to us guests to act, play, and improvise?"

The assistant director smiled and said, "It's like when you play murder mystery games. There's no DM, which is the host of the murder mystery game, but there are famous professional hosts among the guests who will help keep the recording going."

Qi Yuan glanced at the thin script in his hand: "Then my tasks are quite limited. I'm not the murderer, and I don't have a particularly strong motive. It's hard for them to suspect me, right?"

“Yes, you don’t need to spend too much time clearing your name, so you can focus more on the investigation and reasoning…” The assistant director suddenly lowered his voice, “Don’t you think there are too few shots like this?”

Qi Yuan: "As for the camera, I don't have too many requirements."

The assistant director, unsure whether Qi Yuan genuinely didn't intend to steal the spotlight or was merely being polite, quickly explained, "Because our program offers a lot of room for improvisation, the main scenes are actually interactions between the guests. You can interact more with the guests you know; as long as it fits the story's background or is interesting, we'll definitely include it in the final cut."

Qi Yuan thought for a moment. With his limited network of contacts, the only guest he knew on this show was probably Shen Yihan. Moreover, she was a top idol. If he only interacted with her, he would inevitably be the subject of gossip.

Anyway, it's just a cameo job to make money; I'll just go through the motions and be done with it.

Thinking of this, Qi Yuan found a place to sit down and began to read the script.

After a while, the assistant director came over and reminded him, "Mr. Qi, you can change your clothes and put on some makeup now."

Qi Yuan: "Do air conditioner repairmen need to wear makeup?"

The assistant director laughed and said, "Of course!"

Qi Yuan stood up and asked again, "If someone deduces the murderer beforehand, then this program..."

Assistant Director: "As long as we can produce evidence that forces the murderer to confess, the main program will end immediately. Even if it only lasts for ten minutes, it will still end."

Seeing the other party's confident demeanor, Qi Yuan laughed and said, "It seems that it's impossible to identify the murderer in advance."

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.

When Shen Yihan arrived, Assistant Zeng was still earnestly reminding her: "Miss, I know you get along well with Qi Yuan, but in front of the camera... no, even if there are no cameras, as long as there are other people around, you must be careful to keep your distance."

Is it really that exaggerated?

Assistant Zeng said with a bitter face, "I didn't think it was necessary to emphasize this to you, because you've always maintained a good distance from other male celebrities. But on the way here, you had the driver play all of Haruhi Kage's songs!"

Shen Yihan stuck out her little tongue: "That just means I like their songs."

Assistant Zeng sighed, "This is the first time I've ever seen you act like a fan. If I didn't know you were busy, I would have wondered if you would watch their performance like a fan chasing after a celebrity..."

Shen Yihan narrowed her eyes, hiding the smile in them.

In fact, after arriving in Shanghai yesterday, the first thing she did after dropping off her luggage at the hotel was to go to the Shanghai Music Festival to see Haruhi Kage's performance. However, she didn't tell anyone about her itinerary yesterday, including her assistant.

As they were talking, the two entered the dressing room and saw that there were already three celebrity guests there.

One is Song Zhi, a female celebrity who frequently appears on variety shows; another is Chen Songmo, a veteran actor; and the third is Qi Yuan.

Shen Yihan's eyes lit up. But she didn't talk to Qi Yuan first; instead, she greeted Chen Songmo and Song Zhi.

After chatting casually for a few minutes, Shen Yihan changed into a light blue and white patient gown, sat down, and had the makeup artist do her makeup.

At this moment, she noticed that Qi Yuan had finished putting on makeup and was looking down at his phone, not saying a word to anyone. Song Zhi and Chen Songmo, on the other hand, were still chatting about interesting anecdotes in the entertainment industry, with Song Zhi busy praising him and Chen Songmo casually chiming in.

Shen Yihan felt that if she weren't there, Qi Yuan would truly be shown how weak his network of connections was. But since she was there, how could she let him feel isolated?

She noticed that Assistant Zeng had already left, so she asked, "Qi Yuan, are you still writing new songs lately?"

Qi Yuan replied, "I'm writing all the time, whenever I have an inspiration."

Shen Yihan asked with a smile, "So, do you have any inspiration right now?"

Qi Yuan looked up at the ceiling, thought for a moment, and shook his head: "It's hard to come up with inspiration for this guest appearance on the show."

Chen Songmo merely glanced at him without saying a word.

Song Zhi took the opportunity to flatter this rising star, saying, "I've heard several of your songs; they seem to cover all styles. Maybe our 'Who's the Murderer' show can even spark your inspiration!"

Qi Yuan smiled and said, "If that's really possible, that would be wonderful."

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.

161 Are you here to cause trouble?

Qi Yuan truly realized just how fast rumors could spread in the entertainment industry.

The remaining two celebrity guests are Bai Xingye, a newly popular young actor, and He Dong, a familiar face from the show "Tomorrow's Band."

Bai Xingye and Qi Yuan naturally had nothing to say to each other, but He Dong asked him as soon as he saw him, "Long time no see, Qi Yuan. I heard you're going to write a song for this show?"

Qi Yuan: "It hasn't been long... Besides, who told you I was going to write songs here?"

He Dong pointed around and said, "That's what everyone says."

Then the voiceover rang out in the studio: "Please take your seats, everyone. Our recording is about to begin!"

Although there are no DMs and it is said to be a real recording without prompts, of course, this program cannot be completely without any prompts, relying entirely on the guests to advance the plot.

Each guest's script included their opening location. Qi Yuan's location was at the entrance of the studio.

He waited there for quite a while until the assistant director reminded him to enter, and then he leisurely walked inside.

Then I saw the five guests, and three cameramen with cameras. They were all gathered in a circle in the corridor.

Hearing footsteps, all five of them looked at Qi Yuan.

He Dong looked surprised and pointed at him, asking, "Who are you? Why are you here?"

They were chatting and exchanging pleasantries just minutes ago, how can they act so seriously now?

Dressed in his theatrical costume, Qi Yuan felt it necessary to be serious as well. Of course, his costume already reflected his identity.

Qi Yuan pointed to the five large characters on his chest that read "Professional Air Conditioner Repairman," and asked, "What do you think I do?"

Shen Yihan asked, "Do we need to fix the air conditioner here? I've been here for a month and the air conditioner hasn't had any problems."

"That's because I fixed it well! I was called in by the director to fix the air conditioner more than a month ago. And after all this time, the director still hasn't paid me my labor fee. Where is your director? I finally made it all this way just to ask him in person why I haven't been paid!"

Qi Yuan's speech was forceful, especially the words "Why aren't you paid?", which were filled with anger at being owed wages.

Shen Yihan blinked secretly, her eyes telling him—very good, he got into character right away.

He Dong said in a deep voice, "The dean has been poisoned to death. He was in his office. We just found out."

"Huh?" Qi Yuan feigned shock and rushed into the office, where he indeed found a corpse slumped over the table.

The show naturally didn't feature a real, physical mannequin; it was actually a dressed-up dummy with its mouth smeared red and a pool of blood on the table.

Qi Yuan quickly turned around: "Then you should call the police!"

He Dong shook his head: "We just tried, but there's no cell phone signal. If we want to call the police, someone has to drive out and find them."

Shen Yihan: "This sanatorium is too remote. There isn't even a convenience store within several kilometers."

Chen Songmo added, "Besides, none of us can go. The dean is dead, and we don't even know who the murderer is. What if the murderer goes out and runs away?"

“Then I’ll go call the police,” Qi Yuan said, pointing to the large lettering on his chest. “I’m an air conditioner repairman, and I just got here. The murderer can’t be me, can he?”

Chen Songmo waved his hand dismissively: "No, it could also be you!"

Qi Yuan looked at him quietly.

Chen Songmo continued, "What if you're the murderer, secretly poisoned the dean, then went out for a drive and came back?"

"Why didn't I just run away? Why did I have to come back?"

This line wasn't in the script; Qi Yuan made it up on the spot. And after he said it, Chen Songmo was momentarily speechless.

Everyone then realized that, compared to the other five characters, Qi Yuan's character did seem somewhat detached...

At this point, He Dong said, "There's a saying that after a crime, the real killer always likes to go back to the scene. And who knows, maybe you have some other motive?"

Qi Yuan shrugged: "Then why would I kill the dean? He only owed me eight thousand yuan. I could drive there for that money, but it wouldn't warrant killing someone, would it? Since you all said he died of poisoning, buying poison would cost money!"

It remains difficult to refute.

The guests looked somewhat embarrassed, and their eyes conveyed the same message to Qi Yuan: "You're not here to cause trouble, are you?"

At this moment, the narration started again: "Air conditioner repairman Master Qi decided to leave, and the people present could not stop him, so he left."

Shen Yihan was dumbfounded—the show had only just begun, and they were already gone? Was this character just here for a cameo?

The other guests exchanged bewildered glances. Could this be the character with the shortest screen time on the show "The Great Murder Mystery Detective"?

Qi Yuan walked out of the photography area, and less than a minute later, the narration sounded again: "Air conditioner repairman Qi discovered that there was a bridge on the only way, but the bridge was broken, so he had to come back."

Shen Yihan, who was collecting clues at the scene with the other guests, couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Qi Yuan is back.

Song Zhi asked with a smile, "Weren't you leaving?"

Qi Yuan's expression was grave: "The bridge is broken, and no one can cross it now. Moreover, I discovered that the bridge was blown up!"

"Blown off?"

"Did someone use explosives?"

"My God!"

The guests all exclaimed in amazement.

Qi Yuan continued, "When I came here, the bridge was fine, but it was blown up when I left. And since you're all here, it must have been a time bomb. Since people are already dead here, I suspect the killer's goal was to kill everyone present and completely destroy the evidence. Have you found any clues?"

Bai Xingye raised his hand: "We discovered that the dean was secretly destroying medical records! There was a smell of burning paper in the bathroom, and there were also burnt fragments in the toilet!"

The whole "going and returning" maneuver was written in Qi Yuan's script. But he was completely unaware of these clues.

Qi Yuan realized that the key to this game was clues. The more clues found at the scene, the more complete the truth would be. As for relying on intellect to deduce things from the start, that was simply impossible.

As for the fact that they even have explosives, yet they choose to use poison to kill people... Qi Yuan was too lazy to point out such flaws.

Since the audience doesn't care, why take it so seriously? Besides, maybe the screenwriter had a reason for doing this?

Qi Yuan clearly understood his position: he was just there to make a cameo appearance for a day and earn some money, and he would simply follow the script.

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.

162 is a different price.

For the next hour or so, Qi Yuan was practically just a tool.

Every clue discovered increased suspicion on a particular guest. The only exception was the air conditioner repairman; not a single clue connected him to anything.

As for reasoning, well, there's no way to do it. Not only is there a lack of clues, but everyone is busy defending themselves, then coming up with a new clue, and then the next person continues the defense, interspersed with some banter...

This made Qi Yuan feel a bit bored.

In his previous life, he wasn't particularly interested in activities like murder mystery games. He preferred playing RPGs alone on his computer. Although they were single-player games, he found them more fun than group activities.

Seeing that he was lingering on the sidelines, Shen Yihan seized the opportunity when the camera wasn't on her, came to his side, and whispered, "Are you... not used to it?"

Qi Yuan: "I guess so."

Shen Yihan: "Haven't you ever played a murder mystery game before?"

Qi Yuan: "I've never played it. Have you?"

Shen Yihan shook her head slightly: "I've never played this before, so I really enjoy participating in this show. It's not for any other reason than that it's fun."

Qi Yuan was taken aback: "Fun?"

Shen Yihan sighed, "I started acting in elementary school and became a child star. I was filming and going to school at the same time, so the schedule was really tight. It seems like they wanted to make things easier for me, so later my dad founded Tianhua Entertainment. Anyway, I've rarely had this kind of entertainment growing up..."

Qi Yuan: "So that's why Tianhua Entertainment was founded? They actually managed to build such a large-scale operation just to protect their daughter."

Shen Yihan: "Actually, Tianhua Entertainment was quite large from the beginning because my grandfather was an investor and invested a lot of money in my father."

Qi Yuan: "My apologies, I didn't know you were a second-generation rich kid, but a third-generation rich kid."

Just then, Bai Xingye, the popular young actor, arrived. This guy was not only handsome, but his hairstyle was also exquisite, with even his bangs meticulously styled. Despite wearing a hospital gown, anyone could tell that he was completely different from a real patient.

Bai Xingye asked with a smile, "Miss Shen, have you discovered any clues that you want to discuss with Master Qi?"

A hint of distress flashed across Shen Yihan's face as she turned and said, "I didn't find any clues."