A Crucial Step

Starting from nine in the morning, Li Xun's phone suddenly became busy, with more and more crew members calling him to congratulate him.

Madam Bao's actress, Ms. Feng Lan, Ling Chuchu's actress, Jin Jiawei, Gongsun Ce's actor, Ren Yi, Shen Liang's actor, He Dongzhi, Xiao Ai's actress, Wang Qiong, and so on.

Among them, Ling Chuchu's actress Jin Jiawei and Gongsun Ce's actor Ren Yi were the most enthusiastic.

Young Bao Qingtian adopted a "shoot-as-you-broadcast" model, with the script being written and filmed concurrently. Although Ling Chuchu and Gongsun Ce were confirmed as regular characters, the exact amount of screen time for each role, whether a character was dispensable or crucial, whether they were brilliant or mediocre, ultimately depended on the screenwriter's whim.

Now that Young Bao Qingtian was showing signs of becoming a massive hit, the value of the regular characters in the show was skyrocketing at an exponential rate.

In just one day, the popularity of almost all the actors playing characters in the show had increased at a visibly rapid pace.

In the first two episodes, Jin Jiawei didn't have much screen time, but she still clearly felt her fame growing. In less than a day, her Weibo followers had increased by over 300,000, and in the comment section of her latest Weibo post, the vast majority of netizens were discussing the plot of Young Bao Qingtian.

As the male second lead in the web drama, Ren Yi had significantly more screen time than Jin Jiawei, and his scenes were often very brilliant, with plot developments even subtly overshadowing the protagonist Bao Zheng.

For example, his "Debating the Scholars at Spring Breeze Full Moon Tower" scene perfectly showcased the noble demeanor of an ancient prefect's son and the elegant bearing of a young scholar.

Especially his confident demeanor as he solved the riddle and provided the matching couplet drove a legion of female viewers to leave passionate comments on his Weibo. In just half a day, his Weibo followers had increased by over 500,000.

The immense popularity of Young Bao Qingtian had tightly bound the web drama and their future careers together. And Li Xun, as the sole screenwriter who could control their screen time and character fates, how could they not want to build a good relationship with him?!

Ultimately, the potential displayed by Young Bao Qingtian was simply too astonishing!

At the same time, in a high-end residential complex in Jing City.

A woman in a pink pajama set sat elegantly at her vanity, meticulously applying eyeshadow with a brush.

Soft footsteps approached from behind her. Through the vanity mirror, a young woman in casual wear could be seen arriving behind her.

The woman smiled with delight; the visitor had arrived much earlier than expected.

The visitor was Yu Juan, a seasoned agent, and the woman sitting at the vanity was Xia Qing, a currently popular singer.

Last night at six o'clock, Xia Qing's new song, Cage, was officially released simultaneously on all major music platforms.

For the past six months, the company had mobilized almost all its advantageous resources to promote Xia Qing, releasing a new song every month with lyrics and composition by industry top artists.

Since six months ago, every new song by Xia Qing had, without exception, topped the charts.

And the time it took for a new song to be released and reach the number one spot had been steadily decreasing.

From five days initially, to four days, then three days, and finally two days.

Xia Qing had gone from sleepless nights, constantly refreshing the charts on various platforms, to being unconcerned, eating and sleeping as usual.

Refreshing the charts no longer held any practical significance for her.

Regardless, it would eventually reach the top; the outcome was merely a matter of sooner or later, so why would she bother sitting foolishly in front of the computer waiting for a guaranteed result?

Anyway, after a new song successfully topped the charts, her agent would excitedly report it to her. She could sleep soundly, get ready, and quietly wait for her agent to inform her of the inevitable outcome.

The new song was officially released at six last night, and it was now only 9:30 in the morning.

"It's worthy of being my most satisfying new song. The speed of reaching the top this time is even faster."

Looking at her agent standing behind her, Xia Qing asked casually while curling her eyelashes, "How is it, Sister Yu? Which platform reached number one first this time?"

Yu Juan gently shook her head without speaking.

Xia Qing was slightly surprised, then her expression turned to pleasant surprise, but she still asked in a very calm and composed tone, "Did it reach number one on all major platforms simultaneously? This song Cage is indeed my best song, but it can't be that exaggerated, right?"

Yu Juan sighed softly and said, "Qing, Cage did not reach the top of the major platforms."

"Oh!"

Xia Qing pinched her eyelid with the eyelash curler, letting out a yelp of pain.

"I was too eager. Even the best songs need time for word-of-mouth to build. So, what position are we in on the various platforms now?" Xia Qing asked, putting down the eyelash curler.

Yu Juan took out her phone and glanced at it, replying, "Penguin Music Peak Popularity Chart, third place. Cat Dog Music Soaring Chart, third place. Net Cloud Music Pop Chart, third place..."

Xia Qing finally sensed something unusual in the atmosphere. She turned to look at her agent and asked, "All major music platforms are third place? Then what about first and second place? What songs are they, and whose songs are they?"

Yu Juan replied, "Penguin Music Peak Popularity Chart, first place is As Long As There Is You, second place is Unburdened Heart; Cat Dog Music Soaring Chart, first place is Unburdened Heart, second place is As Long As There Is You; Net Cloud Music Pop Chart, first place is As Long As There Is You, second place is Unburdened Heart..."

"As Long As There Is You and Unburdened Heart," Xia Qing repeated the two names, then suddenly said, "Sister Yu, quickly give me the information for these two songs. Whose songs are they? How come it feels like they dropped from the sky overnight?"

Xia Qing received the information for the two songs. It read: "Unburdened Heart, Lyrics by Li Xun, Composition by Li Xun, Huang Ting, Vocals by Li Xun; As Long As There Is You, Lyrics by Li Xun, Composition by Li Xun, Huang Ting, Vocals by Li Xun, Zheng Yuji."

Xia Qing's mind went blank.

"Li Xun... Li Xun, why is it this name? It couldn't be him, could it?!"

Then she immediately shook her head, "Impossible! He only delivers food, only does manual labor, works hard. When did he learn to write lyrics, compose music, and sing? I know his capabilities all too well! Impossible, absolutely impossible!"

Around eleven in the morning, Li Xun's phone finally quieted down for a bit. Just as he was about to go out for lunch, the phone rang again. The person calling this time was someone who surprised Li Xun somewhat.

Zheng Yuji, the popular singer!

The ending theme song for Young Bao Qingtian was a duet between Li Xun and Zheng Yuji.

"Li Xun, congratulations. Young Bao Qingtian is a huge hit. You've become famous overnight," Zheng Yuji said with a smile.

"Thank you. I'm not a very smart person, so I have to work twice as hard as others. Fortunately, my luck has been pretty good, with leaders who appreciate me and friends who help me, I've finally achieved a little success," Li Xun replied with a smile.

"You're too humble," Zheng Yuji said with a smile.

"Not at all, not at all," Li Xun replied with a smile.

"By the way, 'Unburdened Heart' and 'As Long As There Is You' have been doing really well on all the major platforms—actually, not just well, but exceptionally well. 'As Long As There Is You' has even become the best-performing song I've ever had. When I saw these two songs on the charts this morning, I couldn't believe my eyes. I was so excited, and I wanted to share this joy with someone. This achievement is something we accomplished together, so you were the first person I thought of. I hope I'm not bothering you," Zheng Yuji said, full of excitement but trying to contain it.

"The two songs are doing that 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 and said, "From last night until now, I've been focused on the viewership of 'Young Bao Qingtian.' I completely forgot about the theme song and ending theme being released on all the major platforms."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line before she spoke again, "If I told my friends that someone had two songs, both simultaneously hitting the top two spots on Penguin Music's Peak Popularity Chart, the top two on Cat Dog Music's Trending Chart, and the top two on Net Cloud Music's Pop Chart, and that he himself had no idea, and when someone told him, he casually said 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, 'Tell us, tell us! Which great god is this awesome?!'"

Li Xun chuckled, "I don't think they'd say that at all. I bet they'd say, 'Who is this guy trying so hard to act cool?!' That would be more realistic!"

A snort of laughter came from the other end of the line.

This was exactly what Zheng Yuji had been thinking, but she and Li Xun weren't quite close enough for her to say it. If she had, it would have seemed out of place.

Now that Li Xun had said it himself, Zheng Yuji suddenly felt that their relationship had unconsciously grown a little closer.

"In any case, thank you!" Zheng Yuji said earnestly.

Thanks to "Sleeping Soundly on Rainy Days" for the two monthly tickets. I wrote last night's chapter in a hurry and made slight revisions this morning. Please vote with recommendation tickets and add to your collection.