Pingtan

"Tell me, Menglan, what have you been planning lately? Are you filming any new dramas?" Xiang Zhinan asked.

"Me? I haven't accepted any scripts for now. I'm taking a break first and will see after this variety show ends," Shu Menglan said.

"Hahaha, all your questions have been pretty proper. How am I supposed to ask mine?" Yu Lin joked.

"Yu Lin, if you want to drop a bombshell, just say so." Shu Menglan rolled her eyes at Yu Lin with a smile.

"Fine, let me think... Brother Chi, I'm a little curious... I'm just purely curious, no other meaning. Do family-arranged marriages really exist in your circle?" Yu Lin was the sort with little guile, daring enough to ask Chi Yan questions. The other guests had all consciously or unconsciously avoided Chi Yan, but he went right up and asked with enthusiasm.

Yet Chi Yan did not seem to think there was anything wrong with it. His expression did not even change. "They definitely do."

"So, Brother Chi, do you have one?" Yu Lin's gossiping instincts were instantly stirred, as if he had completely forgotten what sort of occasion this was.

The other guests immediately sensed that something was off, and their expressions changed. Xiang Zhinan was still the quickest to react. He coughed and joked, "Yu Lin, answering that question costs extra."

Yu Lin might have realized that his question was somewhat inappropriate. He smiled and followed Xiang Zhinan's lead. "Just curious..."

"No." Chi Yan's gaze seemed to drift toward Li Yu before he added, "And there won't be one in the future either."

[Hahaha, everyone else is visibly panicking.]

[Yu Lin really can't hide his low-EQ trait.]

[Holy shit, what kind of circle has my phone daddy dragged me into now? Is this really something I'm allowed to know?]

[Wow, Chi Yan is handsome, capable, and well-connected, and he even rejects family-arranged marriage. He's officially a male lead from a novel.]

[I feel like Chi Yan is so innocent, hehehe.]

[Experience tells me that the more innocent someone is, the more... ahem... once they awaken...]

[This batch of netizens is no joke either. They can drive down any kind of cursed road.]

"Got it. Career comes first," Xie Jingming said.

The others nodded thoughtfully. Li Yu nodded along too, but he was thinking, Huh? Is Brother Chi planning to stay alone for the rest of his life?

"It's raining," Zhou Yanqing said, changing the subject at just the right moment.

"It really is... There was still sunshine this morning." Shu Menglan stretched her hand out the window and caught a few raindrops.

"Listen, there's the sound of a pipa too!"

At Liang Meichen's words, everyone quieted down and listened closely, their eyes instinctively searching for the source.

"Sounds like someone is playing in that pavilion in the middle of the river," Xie Jingming said.

The painted boat drifted along slowly, drawing closer and closer to the little pavilion Xie Jingming had mentioned. The sound of the pipa became clearer and clearer.

Behind two folding screens in the pavilion stood a cedarwood table, with a man and a woman seated on either side. The man wore a gray long robe and held a small sanxian, while the woman wore a black velvet qipao and cradled a pipa in her arms.

"Wow! What is this?" Yu Lin asked curiously, nearly leaning half his body out the window without the slightest concern for the rain swirling down from the sky.

"Pingtan. I just don't know which piece this is," Xiang Zhinan said. Having hosted shows for so many years, he naturally knew more than the others.

The woman in the pavilion smiled at them, her red lips parting gently. "Hands soft as crimson pastry, yellow-rattan wine, spring filled the city, palace walls lined with willows. The east wind was cruel, our joy too fragile; a heart full of sorrow, years of parting. Wrong, wrong, wrong! The world is cruel, mankind is harsh; rain sends off dusk, flowers have already fallen. Dawn wind dries, tearstains remain; wishing to write what is in my heart, I speak alone beside the slanting rail..."

Xiang Zhinan listened intently for a while before saying, "Oh, this should be The Phoenix Hairpin."

"The Phoenix Hairpin?" Shu Menglan turned to Xiang Zhinan, her eyes brimming with curiosity.

"The story behind The Phoenix Hairpin is actually the love story of Lu You and Tang Wan. They loved each other dearly after marrying, but Lu You's mother disapproved of the marriage. She believed Tang Wan was holding her son back, so Lu You was forced to divorce her. Later, Lu You married someone else, and Tang Wan married another man as well. The Phoenix Hairpin was written when Lu You and Tang Wan met again. After Tang Wan replied with The Phoenix Hairpin: The World Is Cruel, she died in sorrow," Xiang Zhinan said.

"I learned something new." Shu Menglan exclaimed, then added, "It's just a pity their ending was so tragic."

"Don't you think listening to this in the rain is incredibly atmospheric?" Liang Meichen said.

"It really is. Everything is just right." Xie Jingming cast his gaze farther into the distance.

A pool of clear water, a painted boat, an ancient pavilion—everything was shrouded in misty rain. The entire old town seemed steeped in fog, tinged with endless hazy colors amid the tender storytelling and singing, and the winding melodies of the strings.

"It sounds so good, my bones are practically melting," Shu Menglan said.

"So this is the legendary soft Wu dialect? I can't understand it, but I really like this tune," Zhou Yanqing said.

Every frown and smile of the woman in the pavilion was like a painting. She was no longer young, and time had left traces on her face that were difficult to erase. Yet it was precisely that maturity that gave her storytelling and singing a stronger sense of history and charm.

"Elegant. This is truly too elegant!" Yu Lin could not help exclaiming.

"At a moment like this, it would be perfect to compose a poem," Xiang Zhinan said.

Hearing that, Shu Menglan immediately turned around and egged him on. "In that case, Teacher Xiang, why don't you improvise one?"

"One, one!" Liang Meichen joined in.

Xiang Zhinan was naturally unafraid. As a host, how could he manage without a little literary talent?

Seeing everyone urging him on, he thought for only a moment before clearing his throat:

"A city of misty rain, a dream,

Withered lotuses scattered, a bamboo boat adrift.

Blue tiles hold no warmth, stone paths run cold,

Endless strings sing as rain is born."

Xiang Zhinan spoke slowly, and the poem seemed all the more rich in lingering charm.

"Awesome! As expected of my Teacher Xiang, you're so talented." Shu Menglan was the first to cheer.

"Good poem!" Liang Meichen took the lead in applauding as well.

"Whether it's this Pingtan or the poem Teacher Xiang composed, both are so meaningful," Li Yu said.

"These are all parts of our country's culture. Besides Pingtan, there's Huangmei opera, Beijing opera, and so on. They are all our 'soul.' We can take some time to learn about them."

Xiang Zhinan's words directly elevated the theme of this episode to another level.

"You know what? You're absolutely right!" Yu Lin rested his chin on his hand and nodded, then looked at everyone. "Actually, I know a little too. Want to hear it?"

"Oho, Yu Lin, aren't you a pop singer? All right, go ahead and give everyone a bit," Shu Menglan said with raised brows.

Yu Lin wore a mischievous smile, and Li Yu knew at a glance that this guy was not going to play by the rules.

Yu Lin pinched his fingers together, pointed toward the horizon, and put on an extremely affected expression. Even his tone sounded strange as he sang, "The birds in the trees pair up..."

Everyone burst out laughing. Holding back her laughter, Shu Menglan actually joined Yu Lin in singing, "Green waters and verdant mountains wear smiling faces; from now on, no more suffering the bitterness of slavery..."

"Husband and wife return home together..." Liang Meichen found it amusing and joined the singing of The Heavenly Match.