The Slacker Duo

People in the entertainment industry were all full of drama.

Although Li Jun was already in his seventies and had not come out to write songs for many years, and had never been much of a famous artist before, he still wielded enormous influence within the industry.

But this old master had a pretty good feel for variety shows.

He was relaxed in front of the camera, humorous in speech, like an Old Urchin.

As a major internet celebrity, Zhong Yutong was even more flawless in this regard.

She was very polite and respectful toward everyone.

After settling in, she seriously sought Li Jun's advice and discussed songwriting with him, repeatedly scrutinizing every word of the lyrics they wrote.

She had excellent looks.

Having come from the grasslands and belonging to an ethnic minority, she carried an exotic charm that looked especially good on camera.

Sun Meiqi and Xue Lin named themselves the "Sister Flower Combination."

Sun Meiqi was open and generous. She seemed a little blunt when she spoke, but in fact had extremely high emotional intelligence.

She could always praise the people around her in a straightforward way that left them beaming.

Xue Lin was shy and adorably ditzy, often blushing before she could even get a word out.

Every now and then, she would say something a little silly that was also hilarious.

The key was that she herself seemed unaware of it, making it feel natural rather than deliberate.

So all three groups were "experts"!

But the group the production team was truly focused on was Lin Fei and Song Dao.

Mainly Lin Fei.

Of course, Song Dao was no mere accessory either.

In the production team's eyes, Brother Dog had substance.

Although he was seen as an internet celebrity and criticized by some people, with Ma Shen on site even looking down on him, his creative ability was beyond doubt.

Whether it was "See Through" or "Sad City," both were highly polished pop songs.

And Lin Fei's powerful singing when she returned this time had shocked many industry veterans, who came forward one after another to praise her.

All the voices online were full of compliments and admiration as well.

It was as though all the people who had attacked her back then had vanished.

With that level of buzz, even if they just filmed her sitting quietly there doing nothing, plenty of people would still be willing to watch.

Of course, it would be even better if she could show some variety-show flair!

Unfortunately, the production team had been thinking too much.

After being assigned their rooms, Song Dao and Lin Fei's pair immediately started slacking off.

It left even Zhu Shao somewhat speechless.

They had said the show was meant to be relaxed and leisurely, but they could not literally do nothing, could they?

At the very least, they had to give the camera crew something to film, right?

Left with no choice, he could only send Lin Fei a message.

"Sister Fei, shouldn't we talk to Song Dao?"

Only then did Lin Fei reluctantly get up.

She had gotten up too early, and her face felt a little dry, so she came down from the third floor to the second with a face mask still on.

Relaxation was the whole point.

This old Western-style house was enormous, like a small estate.

She, Sun Meiqi, Zhong Yutong, and Xue Lin—the four women—stayed on the third floor, while Song Dao, Zhao Qi, Ma Shen, and Li Jun—the four men—stayed on the second.

Even so, there were still quite a few empty rooms.

Lin Fei looked beautiful on camera.

But she gave off an utterly languid air.

Yet it was precisely that relaxed feeling that made the footage look especially good.

To the production team, it was simply an unexpected delight.

They made their living at this, so naturally they could see what worked.

So instead of reminding her as they had planned, they stopped saying anything and silently followed along filming.

Lin Fei came to Song Dao's room and lightly knocked on the door.

Song Dao opened it, wearing a pair of oversized shorts with a T-shirt thrown over them. "Sister Fei's here. Come in."

The production crew members were somewhat speechless.

The Heavenly Queen going on vacation was one thing, but why were you so laid-back too?

Was this the style of Feiyang Music Movement?

Come to think of it, it really was. Aside from Hu Wei, who had only recently joined and dressed formally whenever he attended events, the rest all wore whatever felt comfortable.

But the Heavenly Queen could afford to be laid-back because she had absolute confidence. What was your confidence, Brother Dog?

Lin Fei looked at Song Dao. "I'm a little hungry. Want to go get something to eat?"

Song Dao's eyes lit up. "I heard Huazhou cuisine is pretty good. How about we go try some?"

The production crew: "..."

You two little ancestors, we'd only just set up the lights and positioned the cameras. Shouldn't you be seriously discussing ideas for songwriting in the room?

A deputy director braced himself and softly reminded them, "Teacher Lin, perhaps you should discuss songwriting with Teacher Song first?"

Lin Fei waved dismissively. "What's there to discuss? I don't know how to write songs."

Then she looked at Song Dao. "I'll go change into something to disguise myself. I know an old restaurant. I'll call ahead and make a reservation, or we might not get a table..."

The cameraman assigned to their group nearly blacked out on the spot.

At the restaurant.

The two of them ate with great enjoyment.

They had invited the staff following them to eat as well.

But the offer was politely declined.

After all, it was inconvenient for them to appear on camera, and footage of the two eating could be edited into the show later.

"This braised pork is better than mine. Song Dao, try it. It's fine to eat more—as long as you keep exercising."

"You can make this too?"

"Of course. I've known how to make it since I was little. Over the years, whenever I had time, I'd study food at home."

Lin Fei had never been in the habit of talking about the hardships of her childhood. She merely said, "I've known how to make it since I was little," then began earnestly introducing the dishes to Song Dao.

"You can tell whether braised pork is good just by looking at it. Look at theirs—the color is bright and enticing, the meat is tender and juicy, fatty without being greasy, with just the right balance of sweet and savory. The amount of sugar is perfect..."

After her introduction, not just Song Dao—even the staff quietly filming beside them couldn't help swallowing.

"The crystal shrimp is good too—translucent, plump, and tender, fresh and silky on the tongue. It's a delight to both the eyes and the palate."

"And the poached chicken, stir-fried shrimp, eel in hot oil... Ah, I've been craving these for so long. I finally got to eat them."

As expected of a Jing University graduate, Lin Fei's talents always revealed themselves when no one expected it.

Genuine and unpretentious.

Several production crew members swallowed as they smiled excitedly.

They could already tell that once the first episode aired, the Heavenly Queen and Song Dao's group would definitely stand out.

Countless people would surely joke that this was a food show.

In variety shows these days, the last thing anyone feared was becoming a meme.

A lot of the time, worried that viewers might miss it, the production team would even take the lead in making all kinds of bits.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Lin Fei took the initiative to pay the bill. Song Dao remained calmly seated, which excited several members of the production crew even more.

See? There was the talking point!

But when the waiter came over, the restaurant manager unexpectedly followed behind.

He very politely offered to waive the bill for both of them.

"Our waiter just told us that Teacher Lin praised every dish at our restaurant. That is the best publicity we could receive, so please accept this small token of appreciation..."

In truth, given this restaurant's standing in Huazhou, it did not need any publicity at all.

Just like today—these two had needed to reserve a table in advance just for lunch.

If it had been dinner, even if Lin Fei was the Heavenly Queen, there would most likely have been no tables available if she had tried to book on the spot.

All they could say was that this place really knew how to handle people.

The restaurant manager then had the waiter bring over several takeaway containers and pack them into an exquisite bag.

He smiled at the production crew members. "Teacher Lin instructed us when she arrived that if you weren't eating with them, we should make another serving for you..."

They froze.

Then, deeply moved, they thanked him again and again.

On the way back, since they were being filmed, the two communicated on their phones in the car.

Song Dao: Teacher Lin, when did you tell the restaurant to make an extra serving?

He thought the restaurant manager was simply being tactful and had deliberately said that.

Lin Fei replied: When I ordered on my phone, I wrote it in the notes.

Song Dao: "..."

This woman might be a spendthrift, but her emotional intelligence was really high!

He remembered something else—when ordering, Lin Fei had never asked whether he had any dietary restrictions.

Yet when the dishes arrived, there were no chopped scallions in any of them.

He had never actually mentioned this before. It was only that on the day he moved, he had bought all sorts of groceries—except scallions.

Smart, beautiful, emotionally intelligent, and an unmatched singer... If she hadn't been stabbed in the back by her biological father back then, then slandered and smeared from every direction, wasting five or six years of her life, she would probably have been even more famous today.

Still, things were pretty good as they were now.

After all that time spent settling and accumulating, the energy released in her comeback would be even stronger.

As Penguin Music created a special section exclusively for "Best Songwriter" and Tencent Video released several behind-the-scenes clips, this show featuring Lin Fei became a hit before it had even aired.

It instantly shot to the top of trending lists and media headlines everywhere.

[Lin Fei Joins Best Songwriter]

[Lin Fei and Song Dao Record a Variety Show Together]

[Four Mentors Lead Four Contestants—Best Songwriter Is Packed with Highlights]

The online comments came in all varieties, making things especially lively.

"Is something really going on between Lin Fei and Song Dao? She supported him from the very beginning, then signed him to her company, and now she's bringing him onto a show with her. Isn't that a little too much favoritism?"

"Brother Dog is finally doing well! He actually gets to be on a show with the Heavenly Queen! Keep it up, Brother Dog—win over the Heavenly Queen soon!"

"Has anyone noticed something? Ma Shen is participating in this show too. I'm dying—the production team really knows how to stir things up."

"Song Dao's status is leagues below Brother Shen's. He's just some small-time internet celebrity. Being able to record a show with Brother Shen is already an honor for him."

"Ma Shen: I actually didn't want to go, but Dad the client paid too much..."

"Sun Meiqi is my absolute favorite! I love how genuine, straightforward, and unpretentious she is. I love her songs even more!"

"Why is Sister Fei joining a show like this? Best Songwriter... doesn't really suit her, does it?"

"Didn't you see? It's mentors leading students."

As the buzz online continued to grow, the production team quietly accelerated the filming schedule as well.

The next day, Song Dao stayed alone in his room and "wrote furiously" for the cameras.

After spending roughly ten minutes, he "finished writing" a song.

Then he went to find Lin Fei and told her he was done.

Lin Fei took it and casually glanced over it twice before softly humming part of the song's chorus melody.

Chief director Zhu Shao, who had hurried over after hearing the news, couldn't help secretly giving a thumbs-up.

Who said Lin Fei had no variety-show instinct?

Just that little chorus melody she hummed—once it was edited and inserted in the right place, it would absolutely send the audience's anticipation through the roof!

And Song Dao effortlessly writing a song in barely ten minutes was just as compelling.

Still, this genius-songwriter persona wasn't so easy to establish...

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