Chapter 287: Xixi Wants Xixi

After lunch, Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng returned to their classroom to pack their bags, then left school together and took a taxi to her home.

When the two arrived at the entrance of Yan Zhusheng's residential complex and stepped out of the taxi, an Audi slowly drove out toward them.

Yan Zhusheng glanced at the Audi, blinked her eyes, and felt a strange sense of familiarity.

But Li Luo recognized it at once—it was Ying Zhicheng's car.

Li Luo silently worried for Ying Zhicheng and Yuan Wanqing, thinking: You two are pushing it too far—don't you fear Yan Zhusheng might come home early and catch you?

Originally, Li Luo had thought that after his rebirth, interacting with these two elders, whether Ying Zhicheng or Yuan Wanqing, they were among the most outstanding of their generation.

They were both methodical in how they handled affairs.

But somehow… when it came to matters of the heart, they still couldn't fully control their emotions.

After all, even if they'd privately confirmed their relationship, with their hectic work schedules, they might only meet once or twice a week.

If Yuan Wanqing's schedule got busier, they might even meet only once a month.

Under such circumstances, seizing every spare opportunity was understandable.

Fortunately, Yan Zhusheng didn't have a Memory Palace—she merely found the car familiar; otherwise, if they'd been caught, it would've been hard to clean up.

Li Luo sighed helplessly, silently relieved for Ying Zhicheng, then followed Yan Zhusheng into the complex and arrived at her door.

Yan Zhusheng pulled out her keys, unlocked the door, and stepped inside.

Fortunately, the two had been restrained—the living room looked perfectly normal.

Li Luo finally relaxed and greeted Yuan Wanqing, who was sitting on the sofa: "Auntie Yuan, good afternoon."

"Mm, good afternoon," Yuan Wanqing smiled at him. "Make yourself at home, no need to be formal."

Li Luo sat down on the adjacent single sofa.

Yan Zhusheng went to the kitchen fridge, fetched some juice, poured some for Li Luo, then sat quietly beside Yuan Wanqing.

Yuan Wanqing didn't rush into serious matters; instead, she held Yan Zhusheng's small hand and chatted with the two kids about school.

She now understood her daughter better, and when she asked about Yan Zhusheng's own life, Yan Zhusheng would just say "Mm" or "Oh."

But whenever the topic touched on Li Luo, Yan Zhusheng's words began to flow.

When they talked about today's basketball game, Yan Zhusheng spoke several sentences in a row—though not vividly, she covered everything thoroughly.

After the casual chat ended, Yuan Wanqing finally shifted topics and said to Li Luo: "I've got a basic plan ready—listen, and see if the novel's content can align with it?"

Li Luo nodded: "Auntie, go ahead."

"It's like this," Yuan Wanqing considered her words, then said, "Didn't you say you'd write the female lead singing one of my album songs on a TV show when I release my new single?"

"Yes," Li Luo replied. "Originally, I planned for the female lead to appear on singing variety shows, so I'd already laid groundwork early on, and could easily weave it into a plotline to support your album promotion."

"Mm," Yuan Wanqing nodded, then smiled and asked, "What about 'I Am a Singer'? Could you write that in?"

Hearing this, Li Luo froze for a moment, then couldn't help asking: "Can Auntie Yuan appear on that show? As a debut guest?"

"How could I?" Yuan Wanqing laughed and shook her head. "I'm not prestigious enough for a debut spot—even a replacement is a stretch. The company just arranged things for me to get a challenger slot."

"A challenger singer…," Li Luo murmured, then his eyes brightened and he nodded quickly: "Sure, no problem. This role fits the female lead's profile perfectly—I can write it."

"If you say so, I'm relieved," Yuan Wanqing smiled. "I'm the second challenger. I'll start recording in mid-August, and it's scheduled to air on August 21st—I'm letting you know in advance."

"Mm," Li Luo nodded. "There's plenty of time—no issues."

It was only mid-April now, still four full months until the sixth episode of 'I Am a Singer' aired.

More than enough time for Li Luo to prepare the relevant plot drafts.

But after thinking it over, Li Luo asked: "Which episode?"

"Huh? What?" Yuan Wanqing asked, puzzled.

"Then, counting from the sixth episode to the thirteenth—that's eight episodes total. The finale includes two songs: a duet and a solo," Li Luo counted on his fingers. "That's nine songs total. Your album has six—so we're still missing three."

"Uh…" Yuan Wanqing looked at Li Luo, blinked, paused, then burst out laughing and shook her head. "You… should I say you have too much faith in me, or do you think anyone who gets on 'I Am a Singer' is just some random nobody?" I don't even know if I'll succeed as a challenger."

"Oh right?" Li Luo realized, then curiously asked, "By the way, when signing contracts for these shows, do they discuss the results with you? Are votes truly from real people, or is there manipulation behind the scenes?"

"Cough…" Yuan Wanqing sighed helplessly. "You're so young, and already thinking about this?"

"After all, the production team wants ratings," Li Luo said. "Whether it's pretended fairness or hidden manipulation, every tactic is aimed at higher ratings and profit."

Under these conditions, the production team must not only ensure fair competition but also carefully consider the chemistry between each guest singer.

Almost every contestant represents a segment of the audience's profile.

Only when these seven or eight distinctive singers come together can they attract the largest possible viewership.

And among them, which singer wins the title of "Singing King" to ignite the show's traffic is something the director and production team must weigh carefully.

"The contract has vague agreements, but rarely specifies clear outcomes," Yuan Wanqing said. "For example, some big-name singers might sign guarantees to reach the finals, but not a guaranteed championship."

"Some singers sign contracts ensuring they won't be eliminated before the finals."

"Of course, some singers, due to scheduling conflicts, sign agreements to be eliminated by a certain episode."

"All kinds of supplementary agreements exist."

Hearing this, Li Luo became genuinely interested.

In his past life, most of this was hearsay—he'd heard many entertainment industry rumors secondhand from Xu Youyu.

Things like singer secrets—he'd only heard them during Xu Youyu's casual chats, never knowing if they were true.

He never expected that, in this life, he could hear an insider discuss this topic.

Now Li Luo was truly intrigued, and couldn't help pressing further: "So, Auntie Yuan, what kind of contract did you sign?"

"I haven't signed anything yet—only reached a preliminary understanding," Yuan Wanqing chuckled. "After I got the news, I came to explain to you first. The exact terms still need to be finalized with the show's production team."

"Can the challenger attempt succeed?" Li Luo asked. "At least aim for a fair vote? I remember you need to rank in the top four of that episode to succeed?"

"Mm," Yuan Wanqing nodded lightly. "But even if we just compare pure talent, I doubt I can beat those seniors."

"Singing is about talent, not seniority," Li Luo shook his head, then asked, "Which song will you use for your challenger episode?"

"'The Sky Has No Limits'?" Yuan Wanqing mused. "That one should suit the competition stage well?"

"Hmm…" Li Luo nodded, then shook his head, paused for a few seconds, and suggested, "If possible, I'd recommend 'Empty Heart.'"

"Really?"

"'The Sky Has No Limits' is certainly explosive too, but for first-time listeners, it's hard to immediately grasp the uplifting, breakthrough spirit in the lyrics."

Li Luo explained simply, "This emotion is a relatively advanced one—and the more advanced it is, the more carefully you must savor it to truly feel it."

"Whereas 'Empty Heart,' with its equally powerful high notes, is a pure ballad of heartbreak."

"Love—any listener, even hearing this song for the first time, can instantly immerse themselves in its ballad atmosphere."

"So if both songs are debuting for the first time and you want to maximize your ranking, I recommend 'Empty Heart.'"

Hearing Li Luo say this, Yuan Wanqing fell into deep thought; after careful consideration, it did seem to be true.

She nodded and said, "Alright, let's go with your suggestion."

Then she asked, "The album title hasn't been chosen yet. The company has some recommendations, but I still want to hear your opinion—after all, you wrote all these songs."

"Hmm." Li Luo thought for a moment, then said, "How about 'The Sky Has No Limits'? This song could easily be the lead single, and using the song title as the album title carries a good meaning."

"Good." Yuan Wanqing nodded with a smile. "Let's do it that way."

After settling these matters, the three chatted a while longer.

Around three in the afternoon, Yuan Wanqing's assistant called to say it was time to attend an event.

Yuan Wanqing stood up to explain, and Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng rose with her—they were headed back to Bihai Lanting to buy groceries and cook.

As they left, Li Luo said to Yuan Wanqing, "Auntie Yuan, good luck—I already have ideas for the other three songs' styles. Don't let me down."

Hearing this, Yuan Wanqing smiled gently. "Alright, I'll do my best."

It was rather amusing.

Yuan Wanqing herself had little confidence about the challenge.

Yet Li Luo had already planned out which songs she should sing in the finals.

One could only say the young were bold and determined.

Inspired by him, Yuan Wanqing felt a strange sense of returning to youth, and secretly looked forward to her challenge on 'I Am a Singer.'

…

A week of study passed in the blink of an eye.

After four consecutive days of competition, women's badminton had advanced from the Round of 32 to the final four.

Ying Chanxi and Yan Zhusheng both fought through five rounds to reach the semifinals.

If they each won one more match, they would meet again on the court.

To be fair, for a sport like badminton, when Ying Chanxi first started competing, she might still have been a bit rusty.

After her last match against Yan Zhusheng, although her knee was scraped and injured, her skill level actually rose quite a bit.

After entering the elimination stage, the match format changed to 15 points per game, best of three games, but Ying Chanxi became even steadier than during the earlier rounds, advancing to the semifinals quite smoothly.

As for Yan Zhusheng, there was even less to say—she basically took every match 2-0, never giving her opponents much of a chance.

By Friday the 24th, the badminton semifinals were also about to begin.

And during the last period of the afternoon—Chinese class—as it was nearly over, Kong Junxiang glanced at the time from the podium, then said:

"Class is almost over. There are a few things I want to tell you in advance."

"First, from next Monday through Wednesday, we'll have our midterms. The recent matches have been exciting, and our class's grades have been great too, but don't forget to review carefully and prepare for the exams."

"There's one more thing, and it's quite important."

"You all should know that once we get to our second year of senior high, we'll be split into arts and science tracks."

"But this year, the situation might be a little different."

"The Ministry of Education issued the official college entrance exam reform notice yesterday, and the specific details will be further released by the end of the month."

"The general idea is that, starting with our cohort, there will no longer be an arts-science split. Instead, a 'choose three out of seven' system will be implemented."

"Simply put, besides Chinese, Math, and English—which remain the three required core subjects—for the remaining three courses, you can freely choose three from seven subjects: Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Politics, History, Geography, and Technology, to serve as your electives."

"There are various other specific rules, so I won't go into them here. Just be mentally prepared."

"So, after we come back from the Labor Day holiday, the first Saturday will still be the parent-teacher meeting. But this time, the meeting will include content about the college entrance exam reform, so please make sure to tell your parents about it when you go home this week."

"Unless there's something major going on at home, parents must come to school to attend the meeting."

"Even if something really comes up and they can't make it, I'll personally invite the parents to come to the school when they have time, so I can explain the college entrance exam reform clearly."

"Is that clear to everyone?"

The students of Class Eight responded in unison.

Kong Junxiang nodded satisfiedly, and when the bell rang, he asked, "Who's made it to the badminton semifinals in our class?"

"Yan Zhusheng!" Xu Yinghuan raised her hand.

"Oh right." Kong Junxiang nodded, then turned to Yan Zhusheng and smiled. "Go all out today—try to bring back the championship for our class."

After dismissing class, Kong Junxiang picked up his textbook and thermos and strolled slowly out of the classroom to join Ding Laoshi for dinner.

The students of Class Eight hurried to the cafeteria to eat, aiming to reach the playground before the evening match began.

Li Luo waited with Yan Zhusheng at the stairwell for Ying Chanxi to come down, with Xu Yinghuan and Qiao Xinyan following beside them; the five of them headed straight to the playground.

At this time, the side nets on the playground had been removed, leaving only the center net.

Ying Chanxi's opponent was Luo Jiajia from Class Three.

She was Zhao Rongjun's desk partner, with exceptional athletic reflexes and strong badminton skills.

In the preliminary rounds, Luo Jiajia was the only other player besides Yan Zhusheng to win all five matches—her strength was not to be underestimated.

Yan Zhusheng's opponent, meanwhile, was Gao Yuqin from Class Seven.

She had been lucky—her previous opponents had been weak, allowing her to advance step by step.

But facing Yan Zhusheng, Gao Yuqin's run would almost certainly end here.

But Gao Yuqin being here meant that…

"Oh?" Lu Wei appeared before Li Luo, grinning at him. "Tomorrow's Saturday—I'm looking forward to it."

Li Luo sighed, thinking this brother was truly bored out of his mind.

Ignoring the guy, Li Luo followed Ying Chanxi and the others to the other side of the competition area.

At this moment, Xu Youyu strolled over too, coming to join the crowd and cheer on her two good sisters.

When evening reached five o'clock, the PE teacher announced the first match would begin.

Yan Zhusheng and her opponent, Gao Yuqin, took the field.

After the serve, Yan Zhusheng gave her opponent no mercy whatsoever—immediately launching fierce attacks that left Gao Yuqin gasping for breath.

First set 15–3, second set 15–2—Yan Zhusheng won easily, offering zero chance, making Lu Wei on the sidelines turn red with rage.

"You wait—tomorrow you'll see!" Lu Wei shouted a few threats at Li Luo and his group, then hurried over to Gao Yuqin, whispering soothing words to her—he didn't know what he was saying.

Xu Youyu glanced curiously at Lu Wei over there, then asked, "Did you offend him somehow?"

Li Luo's lip twitched: "If rejecting a girl's affection counts as offending him… then yeah, I guess I did offend him."

"So it's because you're just too charming," Xu Youyu giggled, covering her mouth.

"I barely paid any attention to Gao Yuqin at all, and lately she hasn't even spoken to me—how the hell is Lu Wei thinking?" Li Luo looked utterly baffled.

"You just don't get it," Xu Youyu chuckled. "Guys like him think differently."

"Think about it—his favorite girl shows more interest in you, but ignores him completely."

"In that situation, you can understand why he'd resent you, right?"

"But you've clearly and firmly rejected the girl—and yet Lu Wei still hates you. Where's the real problem?"

"Is he mentally ill?" Li Luo asked.

"It's not that simple," Xu Youyu wagged her finger, then smiled. "It's jealousy. He's thinking: I love this girl so much—I treasure her, I'd carry her in my arms—and yet you just reject her?"

"That makes it seem like the girl he loves isn't actually popular at all."

"On the contrary, if the girl he pursued was wildly popular—so much so that even guys like you became obsessed with her—but he still won her in the end—that's what would give him true satisfaction and pride."

"In the end, it's just his vanity at work."

Li Luo understood her analysis, but the conclusion made him even more speechless.

So whether you accept or reject her, you get hated and targeted anyway?

These days' yes-men are really damn hard to please.

"But how come you understand this so well?"

"What do you think?" Xu Youyu gave him a look. "Just watch the match—Chanxi's up next."

With Xu Youyu's reminder, Li Luo stopped caring about Lu Wei over there and immediately refocused on the court.

This match was far more exciting than the previous one-sided slaughter.

Although Luo Jiajia held the upper hand, Ying Chanxi was also strong—she fought back fiercely, matching her opponent point for point.

Unfortunately, she just barely lost—15–12 in the third set—and was eliminated 2–1 overall.

Seeing this result, for some reason,

Li Luo felt a quiet sigh of relief.

But as Ying Chanxi walked off the court, dejected, Li Luo stepped forward with a drink, twisted open the cap, and handed it to her, adding, "You did great—don't be upset."

"I was so close," Ying Chanxi pouted, dissatisfied with her performance in the third set, and took the drink from Li Luo to sip.

Seeing she still looked down, Li Luo reached into Yan Zhusheng's pant pocket, pulled out a wet wipe, took one out, and gently wiped the sweat from Ying Chanxi's face. "Don't move—I'll clean you up."

Ying Chanxi froze on the spot, then blushed, glancing left and right, too shy to meet Li Luo's eyes.

Yet she didn't want him to stop—so she stood there obediently, letting him wipe her cheeks.

Feeling the coolness of the wet wipe on her skin, Ying Chanxi suddenly thought: maybe losing wasn't so painful after all.

Nearby, Yan Zhusheng watched this scene, silently pulled out a tissue, and wiped the sweat from her own forehead.

She had won the match and advanced to the finals—but she looked even more dejected than Ying Chanxi.

Someone who didn't know might think Ying Chanxi had won.

"Why do you look so unhappy?"

On the way to the cafeteria, Li Luo turned to Yan Zhusheng and asked.

Yan Zhusheng glanced at him, then turned away without speaking.