Starting at nine that morning, Li Xun's phone suddenly began buzzing nonstop as more and more members of the production crew called to congratulate him.
Feng Lan, who played Madam Bao; Jin Jiawei, who played Ling Chuchu; Ren Yi, who played Gongsun Ce; He Dongzhi, who played Shen Liang; Wang Qiong, who played Xiao Ai; and others.
Jin Jiawei, who played Ling Chuchu, and Ren Yi, who played Gongsun Ce, were especially enthusiastic.
Young Bao Qingtian was being filmed and broadcast at the same time, with the script written as filming progressed. Although Ling Chuchu and Gongsun Ce had both been confirmed as regular characters, how much screen time each character got, whether they were dispensable or pivotal, and whether they stood out or were mediocre—
In the end, wasn't all of that up to the screenwriter?
Young Bao Qingtian was already showing signs of becoming a huge hit, and the value of its regular characters was growing at a staggering, almost geometric rate.
In just one day, the popularity of nearly every actor in the show had risen at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Jin Jiawei hadn't had much screen time in the first two episodes, but she could still clearly feel herself becoming more popular. In less than a day, she had gained over three hundred thousand followers on Weibo, and most of the comments on her latest post were about the plot of Young Bao Qingtian.
As the male lead's second-in-command in the web series, Ren Yi had considerably more screen time than Jin Jiawei, and his scenes were often especially striking. The way the story was written even seemed to give him a slight edge over the protagonist, Bao Zheng.
For instance, his scene at Spring Breeze Full Moon Tower, where he debated the scholars, vividly captured both the noble bearing of an ancient prefect's son and the elegant charm of a young scholar.
In particular, the confidence he showed when solving the riddle and composing the matching couplet had female viewers flooding his Weibo with comments. In just half a day, he had gained over five hundred thousand followers.
The success of Young Bao Qingtian had tightly bound the web series to their careers. Li Xun was the only screenwriter with the power to determine how much screen time they got and what became of their characters. How could they not try to get on his good side?
After all, the potential Young Bao Qingtian had shown was simply astonishing!
At the same time, in an upscale residential complex in the capital.
A woman in pink pajamas sat elegantly at her vanity, carefully applying eyeshadow with a brush.
Soft footsteps sounded behind her. In the vanity mirror, she saw a young woman in casual clothes come up behind her.
The woman smiled happily. Her visitor had arrived much earlier than she'd expected.
The visitor was Yu Juan, a seasoned agent. The woman seated at the vanity was Xia Qing, a popular singer.
At six the previous evening, Xia Qing's new song, "The Cage," had been released simultaneously across all the major music platforms.
For the past six months, her company had thrown nearly all its best resources into promoting Xia Qing. She had released a new song every month, each one written and composed by top names in the industry.
Since then, every one of Xia Qing's new songs had climbed to the top of the major charts without exception.
And the time it took each new song to reach number one had steadily decreased.
First five days, then four, then three, and finally two.
At first, Xia Qing had spent sleepless nights constantly refreshing the charts on every platform. Now, she barely paid them any attention. She ate and slept as usual.
Refreshing the charts no longer served any real purpose.
She was going to reach number one eventually. Whether it happened sooner or later made little difference, so why sit foolishly in front of a computer waiting for an outcome that was guaranteed?
Once the new song reached the top, her agent would come over, beaming with excitement, and tell her. Xia Qing could just sleep soundly, take her time getting ready, and wait for her agent to announce the inevitable.
The new song had been released at six the previous evening, and it was only 9:30 in the morning now.
"Not bad at all. This is the new song I'm happiest with, and it's climbed to the top even faster this time."
Looking at her agent in the mirror, Xia Qing curled her eyelashes and asked casually, "So, Sister Yu, which platform did it top first this time?"
Yu Juan shook her head gently without answering.
Xia Qing was surprised, then delighted, but she still kept her tone calm and composed. "Did it reach number one on all the platforms at the same time? 'The Cage' really is my best song yet, but surely it hasn't done that well?"
Yu Juan sighed softly. "Qing, 'The Cage' hasn't reached number one on any of the major platforms."
"Ah!"
The eyelash curler pinched Xia Qing, and she cried out in pain.
"I was too impatient. No matter how good a song is, it takes time for word of mouth to spread. So where are we on the charts now?" Xia Qing set down the curler.
Yu Juan checked her phone and replied, "Third on Penguin Music's Top Popularity Chart, third on Cat-Dog Music's Rising Chart, third on NetCloud Music's Popular Songs Chart..."
Xia Qing finally sensed that something was off. She turned to look at her agent. "Third on every platform? Then what are the first- and second-place songs? What are they, and who sings them?"
Yu Juan replied, "On Penguin Music's Top Popularity Chart, 'As Long As There Is You' is first and 'Unburdened Heart' is second. On Cat-Dog Music's Rising Chart, 'Unburdened Heart' is first and 'As Long As There Is You' is second. On NetCloud Music's Popular Songs Chart, 'As Long As There Is You' is first and 'Unburdened Heart' is second..."
"'As Long As There Is You,' 'Unburdened Heart'..." Xia Qing kept repeating the two titles, then suddenly said, "Sister Yu, get me the details for those two songs. Who made them? It's like they fell out of the sky overnight!"
Xia Qing took the information for the two songs. It read: "'Unburdened Heart,' lyrics by Li Xun, music by Li Xun and Huang Ting, performed by Li Xun; 'As Long As There Is You,' lyrics by Li Xun, music by Li Xun and Huang Ting, performed by Li Xun and Zheng Yuji."
Xia Qing's mind went blank.
"Li Xun... Li Xun. Why is that name here? Could it be him?!"
Then she immediately shook her head. "Impossible! All he can do is deliver food and physical labor—work himself to the bone. Since when could he write songs, compose music, and sing? I know exactly what he's capable of! It can't be him. It can't!"
Around eleven that morning, Li Xun's phone finally went quiet for a while. Just as he was about to head out for lunch, it rang again. The caller this time surprised him a little.
The popular singer Zheng Yuji!
The ending theme of Young Bao Qingtian was a duet by Li Xun and Zheng Yuji.
"Li Xun, congratulations! Young Bao Qingtian's a huge hit. You've made a name for yourself overnight," Zheng Yuji said with a laugh.
"Thanks. I'm not very smart, so I have to work twice as hard as everyone else. Luckily, my luck's been pretty good. I've had leaders who appreciate me and friends who've helped me, and I've finally managed to achieve a little something," Li Xun replied with a smile.
"You're too modest," Zheng Yuji said with a laugh.
"Not at all," Li Xun replied, smiling.
"By the way, 'Unburdened Heart' and 'As Long As There Is You' are doing well across all the platforms. Actually, 'well' doesn't begin to cover it—they're doing amazingly. 'As Long As There Is You' is already the best-performing song of my entire career. I was browsing the charts this morning and saw the two songs. I could hardly believe my eyes. I was so excited and wanted to share the joy with someone. We achieved this together, so you were the first person I thought of. I hope I'm not disturbing you," Zheng Yuji said, brimming with excitement but trying to keep it in check.
"The two songs are doing well? Congratulations—no, congratulations to us both!" Li Xun said with a laugh.
Zheng Yuji suddenly raised her voice. "Don't tell me you don't even know how the two songs are doing?"
Li Xun scratched his head. "I've been keeping an eye on Young Bao Qingtian's view count since last night. I really did forget that the theme song and ending song had gone up on all the platforms."
There was a long silence on the other end before Zheng Yuji finally said, "If I told my friends there's someone who sang two songs that both made the top two on Penguin Music's Top Popularity Chart, the top two on Cat-Dog Music's Rising Chart, and the top two on NetCloud Music's Popular Songs Chart—but he has no idea, and when someone tells him, he just casually says he was busy with other things and forgot—what do you think my friends would say?"
Li Xun asked, "What would they say?"
Zheng Yuji laughed. "They'd definitely say, 'Come on, tell us! Which legendary superstar is that amazing?!'"
Li Xun chuckled. "I'm sure they wouldn't put it that way. I bet they'd say, 'Who's this guy trying so hard to show off?' That'd be more like it!"
A laugh escaped from the other end of the phone.
That was exactly what Zheng Yuji had wanted to say, but she and Li Xun weren't close enough yet for her to say it without it feeling awkward.
Now that Li Xun had said it himself, Zheng Yuji suddenly felt that they had somehow grown closer.
"Anyway, thank you!" Zheng Yuji said earnestly.
Thanks to "Sleeping In on Rainy Days" for the two monthly tickets. I wrote last night's chapter in a rush, so I made a few revisions this morning. Please vote and add the story to your favorites.
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