Chapter 27: Don't Worry, Old Friend!

After eating, Jin Li returned to her dormitory to rest; her spirits were so low that even when she wanted to work on practice problems, she couldn't concentrate.

After sleeping for thirty minutes, Jin Li felt slightly better and forcibly climbed out of her warm bed.

She didn't go to the desk; instead, she took out a Huanggang Secret Volume, placed it on her lap, leaned against the bed, pulled out her phone, and opened a video to watch the teacher explain the problems.

Jin Li's foundation in mathematics was quite poor; sometimes, while studying, she had to go back and make up for middle school knowledge.

But mathematics is an absolutely rational subject: one is one, two is two; as long as a problem is given, it can be solved to yield an answer.

Jin Li had no desire to become some mathematician, delving into mathematical theorems that offered no clear answers or challenging world-class problems.

It was enough for her to just swim around in the high school pool; this was Jin Li's life, getting by as best she could.

She listened intently to the mentor's explanations, occasionally looking down to take notes, her mind immersed in the wonders of logical thinking, unaware of the passage of time.

After Sui Lingfang had explained everything to the company and greeted the relevant staff from the production team, more than two hours passed before she finally had a moment free; she immediately rushed over to check on Jin Li.

The moment she pushed open the door, she saw this scene—

A light pink coral fleece blanket was draped over Jin Li's legs, with a workbook serving as a pad and a test paper resting on top of it.

Holding a phone in one hand and writing on the test paper with the other, her expression was utterly serious.

A sliver of sunlight streamed through the slightly opened window, falling upon Jin Li's hair and causing it to shimmer with a faint, fragmented golden hue.

Sui Lingfang couldn't help but freeze for a moment.

People who are serious about what they do seem to always receive heaven's favoritism.

Walking closer to look, all she saw was a dense mass of numbers and various symbols she couldn't understand.

The corners of her mouth twitched involuntarily.

Sui Lingfang stared quietly at Jin Li for several minutes; seeing her so immersed in the ocean of knowledge that she hadn't even noticed her presence, she finally couldn't help but speak up.

"Jin Li, are you feeling any better?"

Jin Li first nodded lightly, not looking at Sister Fang, her gaze still fixed tightly on the test paper.

Her brows were slightly furrowed as she pondered a difficult problem; she was close, just a little bit away from solving it.

Sui Lingfang's originally worried mood gradually eased.

Jin Li's complexion looked quite normal; she wasn't short on time.

About five minutes later, Jin Li wrote down the final number and put down her pen.

She let out a long sigh and remarked with emotion, "Sister Fang, mathematics is really so hard!"

Sui Lingfang glanced at the solution process; tsk, truly terrifying.

"No matter how hard it is, didn't you still solve it? I see you've finished this entire Huanggang Secret Volume; how did you do?"

Jin Li shook her head. "It was terrible."

Her voice was very calm; she was merely stating a fact, feeling no sense of loss.

For someone with no foundation, isn't performing terribly on an exam a perfectly normal thing?

Jin Li stretched lazily, then came back to her senses and asked, "Sister Fang, how long have I been resting?"

Sui Lingfang checked her phone; several WeChat messages had come in, but she hadn't opened any of them yet.

Having survived the midday barrage of information, she decided to let her brain rest a bit longer.

"You've been resting for two and a half hours; how does your body feel?"

Jin Li asked, "How much time is left until the recording ends?"

"If you mean the afternoon session, there's an hour and a half left; it ends at five o'clock, but we have to continue recording at six in the evening, and it's estimated we'll go until ten tonight."

Sui Lingfang reminded her, "This is just a preliminary estimate; if the trainees' performance later on is unsatisfactory, we'll have to re-record repeatedly, and the time will drag on even longer."

Jin Li threw off the blanket and got out of bed. "I feel like I've mostly recovered; if I go now, I can hold out until the afternoon session ends."

Sui Lingfang thought for a moment and said, "If we go now, adding makeup and styling will take at least half an hour, meaning you'd only be on stage for an hour; why don't you keep resting and go on for the evening session instead?"

Jin Li shook her head. "You know my body can't handle staying up late; I definitely won't last until ten during the evening session, probably having to leave by nine. Besides, since I'm feeling well now, it's better to hurry and start recording; we can deal with tonight's issues when tonight comes."

Sui Lingfang felt this made sense; physical condition wasn't something Jin Li could control at will.

What if she kept resting until evening, only for Jin Li to feel her body giving out at the last minute?

Suddenly, she heard Jin Li say something lightly.

"I remember Lian Baozhi's stage performance is scheduled for the afternoon session; I've been waiting to watch her stage."

Sui Lingfang paused in her steps, saying with a mix of helplessness and amusement, "So this is the real reason you're rushing to record for the afternoon session."

Jin Li gave her a sweet smile but said nothing.

A gentleman waits ten years to avenge a wrong.

But if revenge can be taken on the spot, there is no need to wait.

At four in the afternoon, Jin Li returned to the recording studio.

Lian Baozhi was no longer at the mentor's seat; she was in the backstage waiting area making preparations.

On stage, other trainees were performing the theme song, jumping and dancing, displaying full youthful vitality.

Jin Li naturally blended in among the mentors, clapping along and nodding in approval.

The mentor seats for the afternoon session had been rearranged, and the boy group March Sky had collectively changed into a new set of performance outfits.

Coincidentally, the boy group March Sky was seated to Jin Li's right, while Ji Qinglian was seated to her left.

Ji Qinglian noticed Jin Li's return immediately, leaning over to ask loudly, "How is your body? Are you okay?"

The venue was filled with excessive noise and clamor; one could only hear what others were saying by leaning close and speaking loudly into their ears.

Jin Li made an "OK" sign, then playfully flashed a wink at her, her little expression seeming to say: No problem, I'm feeling much better!

Ji Qinglian immediately reached out and ruffled her hair.

Then she patted Jin Li's shoulder, pulled her close, and the two exchanged some whispered words.

After about three or four minutes, the two separated and returned to their respective seats.

At that moment, another slender hand reached out and gestured before her eyes; Jin Li turned to look.

It was Gu Cheng.

Gu Cheng had swapped seats with a teammate and now sat by the aisle, positioned perfectly to converse with Jin Li.

He bent down, leaning close to her ear, and asked loudly all the same, "Are you feeling any better?"

The corners of Jin Li's mouth lifted into a smile, and she gave him two thumbs up.

She said nothing, yet anyone seeing her expression could guess what she meant to convey.

—I'm fine, old friend, don't worry!

Gu Cheng smiled too, revealing several large white teeth, then immediately restrained himself, leaving only a faint smile lingering at the corners of his mouth.

After a moment's thought, he wrote a sentence on the mentor's cue card provided by the production team, handed it to Jin Li, and passed her the pen as well.

[If you are unwell, you must speak up immediately; do not push yourself. Your health is most important.]

Jin Li arched an eyebrow and scribbled a single character with vigorous, flowing strokes:

[Okay ^_^]

Just as she passed the card back, the stage lights suddenly went out, and the noisy trainees instantly fell silent.

Jin Li looked up as a beam of intense light descended, and Lian Baozhi made his entrance.