Chapter 198: I'm Wondering Whether to Lay Down a Carpet

"Hello? Hello? Yanzi? Are you listening?"

On the other end of the phone, Chen Zeshan's continuous calls snapped Sun Yanzi out of her brief daze; her pink tongue instinctively swept over her slightly dry lips: "Ah, I was just doing something, sorry."

"... Never mind, I originally wanted to ask if you wanted to return to Taiwan today; your teacher and the others are celebrating Mid-Autumn Festival, and I was thinking of inviting you to join."

"Uh... it's fine, I'll just call my teacher and the others to let them know when the time comes; I'll return in a few days once the album promotion starts."

Knowing her teacher still cared about her, Sun Yanzi smiled, then hung up the phone, looked down at the plates of dishes on the table, took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled—

Good, let's get to work!

Because she was afraid of bumping into Zhou Yi on the road, these pre-cooked half-finished products had been delivered in the morning.

Except for a few dishes like pan-fried fish and Hakka stuffed tofu, where completing the final step might be a bit difficult, she had to ask Chen Zeshan for help; for the other dishes, Sun Yanzi felt they were no problem—anyone with hands could do it.

"Let me see, first pour a little oil..."

After pressing the button on the range hood, Sun Yanzi, holding a spatula, looked at the frying pan being scorched by the high flame, puffed her cheeks, and carefully lifted the oil bottle to pour a thin stream down—

"Sizzle!"

—?!

Hiss!

The splattering hot oil made Sun Yanzi instantly open her mouth wide; she instinctively pulled back her left hand, shook it, pouted and blew on it, and the brief pain almost made her cry out.

Fortunately, to avoid attracting the attention of the man outside, she forced herself to endure it, though her facial features looked somewhat distorted...

Zhou Yi, still in the living room watching TV while talking on the phone with Qian Jiang, instinctively turned his head upon hearing the loud commotion coming from the kitchen—

But the tightly closed kitchen door blocked his view.

"Su Mang told me today that your issue of 'Vogue' will officially go on sale on November 1st, and the company will also carry out corresponding promotions then.

"Also, regarding the new cover interview with 'Contemporary Music' I mentioned before, you should make a decision now; are you going to take it? The other party has already raised the offer to 600,000."

An interview fee of 600,000 is already in the realm of overpricing for current domestic stars; even the currently popular Lu Yi or the rising Chen Kun wouldn't get this price, and the only mainland artist who could compare is probably Zhao Wei, whose popularity exploded again this year thanks to the buzz around 'Love in a Fallen City'.

Among Hong Kong and Taiwan stars, only a few can get this price.

"Wait a bit longer; once the full week's results for my English single in the Japanese market come out, it might go up even more."

Looking up at the calendar placed beside the TV cabinet in Sun Yanzi's house, the words 'October 1st, Monday' were particularly clear.

His English single was released on September 22nd along with the release of 'Rush Hour 2'; since it happened to fall on a Saturday, the initial sales volume (first-week sales) that the Japanese Oricon chart values was not counted for him.

As for how much the sales were for the new week starting September 24th, he would know tomorrow, as the Japanese Oricon chart announces the previous week's sales rankings every Tuesday.

"That works, after all, your English single is actually doing quite well in Japan right now."

With the principal's approval, Qian Jiang felt somewhat more confident about the negotiation bottom line, though his tone carried a hint of emotion: "Moreover, Jackie Chan's new movie 'Rush Hour 2' is also terrifyingly popular in Japan; there are rumors that the production company has raised the box office expectation to around 1.7 billion yen, and that doesn't even include future DVD revenue.

"Riding this wave, your English single basically has buzz every single day."

1.7 billion yen? That much?

Even Gin, who arranged people to rob banks, only dared to rob 1 billion yen; this is almost equivalent to two Gins.

Zhou Yi, who didn't actually know how much box office 'Rush Hour 2' had in Japan, instinctively raised an eyebrow: "Who is the current number one on the Japanese Oricon singles chart?"

"Utada Hikaru's 'Can You Keep A Secret?', with sales over 1.2 million now; the platinum single certification is a done deal; I think you shouldn't even think about that."

Qian Jiang, who could guess what Zhou Yi wanted by asking that question, couldn't hold back his expression.

You're used to being number one in the domestic market, right? You want to be number one in Japan too? Utada Hikaru is at the peak of her popularity; there's no way she can be knocked down by you.

"I was just asking, no other meaning."

Zhou Yi, peeling an orange and putting two segments into his mouth, kept his gaze locked on Hunan TV on the screen and goaded: "Since she's the champion, then hurry up and provoke her; take advantage of the current buzz and popularity. What is Warner Japan eating? Do they need to be taught? Do they have money but don't know how to make it?"

After all, Utada Hikaru is with EMI Records, and Warner is an old rival.

"... Alright then, I'll contact Jianhui and have him suggest it to the Japan side."

Qian Jiang, who originally thought that over-marketing might cause huge controversy in the Japanese market, swallowed his words when he remembered that this young master seemed to have debuted domestically amidst controversy, and changed his wording.

Just as he hung up the phone, Zhou Yi heard the sound of the kitchen door opening—

"Here it comes, here it comes, let you see the chicken soup I stewed."

Wearing gloves, Sun Yanzi cheerfully invited Zhou Yi to the dining table; the spreading aroma poured out from the wide-open kitchen door, and the curious Zhou Yi immediately walked over: "Really?"

"I told you not to underestimate people."

Sun Yanzi, taking off her gloves and throwing them onto the dining table, proudly snapped her fingers; the pride almost overflowing from the corners of her eyes made Zhou Yi, refusing to believe it, pick up a spoon—

The taste was actually not bad?

Chewing a few times, Zhou Yi sincerely praised: "Not bad."

"Hehe, right?"

Leaning one hand on the pure white dining table, tilting her body slightly, Sun Yanzi put one hand on her hip, crossed her feet, and confidently lifted her head: "Don't let me brag, when I was in Singapore I was a famous little cook, my friends—"

"How long did you stew it? It's quite mushy."

Zhou Yi, unceremoniously grabbing a chicken wing and shoving it into his mouth, asked without looking up; Sun Yanzi, who was just boasting, suddenly got stuck—

"Uh, about a morning, a morning. I stewed it as soon as I woke up and bought the groceries."

Afraid that saying more would reveal the truth, Sun Yanzi immediately turned and slipped back into the kitchen: "There are other dishes, wait, I'll come help you bring them."

"Oh."

Zhou Yi, who originally intended to focus on eating, didn't pay much attention until Sun Yanzi brought out dish after dish from the kitchen, almost filling the center of the dining table...

He, chewing on a chicken wing root, carefully counted them; exactly eight dishes, including heavy meat dishes like big fish and big meat.

"How is it?" Sun Yanzi, who had absolutely no idea about the cost, looked like a little dog waiting for praise, proud and arrogant, staring straight at him with her eyes.

"How much is pork per jin today?"

"Ah?"

Sun Yanzi, who never expected the words to come out of Zhou Yi's mouth to be this sentence, blinked rapidly, and with no justification but plenty of confidence: "Forgot."

She almost wanted to swap it with Singapore's prices.

"Oh~"

With a meaningful glance at Sun Yanzi, Zhou Yi's face immediately showed a hint of mockery. He picked up the bowl and headed for the kitchen: "I'll go get the rice—"

"Hey! Wait! I'll help you! How can I let a guest do that!"

Sun Yanzi, looking horrified, caught Zhou Yi's arm with lightning speed—

The next second, she was dragged along by Zhou Yi as he moved forward.

"Aaaaaah!"

Biting her teeth tight, Sun Yanzi had never hated the floor tiles in her home so much. They were too slippery; even though she clung tightly to the man's arm, she couldn't stop herself. Her hands kept sliding toward the kitchen.

After Zhou Yi pulled out one by one the boxes she had stuffed into the trash can, she simply sat down on the floor, pouted in feigned grievance, and looked up at him.

Zhou Yi, now grinning, didn't call her out directly. Instead, he raised the bowl in his hand: "I'm just here to get rice. What are you trying to do?"

"I was thinking the floor is cooler. Should we put down a rug?"

(End of this chapter)