Pei Yubai walked for a while and then saw his assistant sitting in the car waiting for him.
The assistant spent the day wandering around Cloud-Hidden Town, and he was quite curious about the Yue Lao Temple that Brother Pei and the others had filmed.
He had been longing to see the lanterns displayed at the Yue Lao Temple at night, so he finally went to see them.
After watching the lantern release at the Yue Lao Temple, he figured Pei Yubai Pei Yubai.
Upon seeing Pei Yubai, he flashed his car lights twice.
Pei Yubai got into the car.
The car started and gradually disappeared.
Qiguan Yuan stood beside the rock, watching the two car headlights disappear at the end of the road.
He glanced down at his wrist.
The Dust-Settling Red Cord, curled up from her wrist, its end pointing in the direction Pei Yubai had left before retracting and wrapping back in its original position.
Qiguan Yuan turned around and walked back the way he came. Dust-Settling Red Cord to guide him.
Upon arriving at the house, Qiguan Yuan climbed the steps, pushed open the door, and walked back to the main house.
The bedroom was dark; moonlight streamed in through the window and fell on the couch.
Qiguan Yuan took off his outer garment and cast a cleansing spell on himself.
Then I lay down, rested my head on the pillow, and looked at the wooden beam above my head.
The wood was carved with patterns, which have become somewhat blurred with the passage of time.
He looked for a while, then closed his eyes.
His memory returned faster than he had expected.
While I was with Pei Yubai, my memories quickly began to stir.
He kept his eyes closed, slowly sorting through those memories.
Pei Yubai's car drove off the dirt road, onto the cement road, and then onto the asphalt road.
Streetlights flashed past the car window, one after another, alternating between light and shadow.
The assistant glanced at Pei Yubai in the rearview mirror. Pei Yubai leaned back in his seat, eyes closed, his expression unchanged from usual.
But his assistant, who had been with him for several years, could tell he was different.
He was quieter than usual today, and hadn't asked a single question about the itinerary since he got on the bus. This wasn't his usual style.
The assistant cleared his throat.
" Teacher Pei, the first episode of the show has aired, and the data is very good. The online comments are also mostly positive."
The assistant paused, then glanced at the rearview mirror. " Teacher Qiguan's fans have commented on your Weibo post, requesting your help in creating a Weibo account for Teacher Qiguan."
Pei Yubai opened his eyes, took out his phone from his pocket, and opened Weibo.
His comment section has been flooded with Xiao Yuan Grains, with the most upvoted comment being, " Pei Yubai, where is your wife's Weibo?"
The comments below unanimously agreed.
Pei Yubai looked at it for a while, then exited Weibo and turned his phone over to rest it on his lap.
Yuanyuan doesn't even have an ID card yet.
He needs an ID card, whether it's for getting a SIM card, opening Weibo account, or doing anything else.
All of these things have to come down to one condition: Yuanyuan is willing to go back with him to meet his parents.
Pei Yubai picked up his phone and sent a message to his father's assistant. "How do people without ID cards get a certificate? What materials are needed, what is the procedure, and how long does it take?"
Only then did Pei Yubai have time to call Meng Xu back.
The phone rang for a long time before being answered. Meng Xu's voice came through the receiver, low and hoarse, with a nasal tone as if he hadn't woken up yet, and he mumbled a "hello" indistinctly.
"It's me. What do you want with Director Song?"
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, followed by rustling sounds, as if Meng Xu had crawled out of bed.
His voice was much clearer than before. "You actually know how to call back? Do you even know what time it is? There's a limit to how much you value your girlfriend over your friends."
Pei Yubai did not respond.
Meng Xu continued, "The filming of the next episode of the variety show was originally planned to focus on Jiang Wantang, filming her exchange program at the National Opera and Dance Drama Theatre. This scene hasn't been filmed in any other variety show before, which fits our show's little-known theme."
He continued, "But Jiang Wantang gave up that spot. She said she could get it herself, it was just a matter of time, and exchanged it for an audition opportunity for a role in Director Song's movie. The filming location will definitely have to change, and due to the confidentiality of Director Song's movie, there are many things that cannot be filmed. I need to communicate with Director Song."
Pei Yubai said, "I'll send you Director Song's contact information."
If Meng Xu wanted to know Song Yuan's contact information, he could simply look it up himself.
If you insist on waiting for him to give it to you, you're just giving him something to do.
Being single is like this; you really have a lot of free time.
Pei Yubai hung up the phone and sent Song Yuan's contact information to Meng Xu.
Then he took the script out of his bag, turned to the marked page, and started reading.
After getting Song Yuan's contact information, Meng Xu didn't rush to call.
He first washed his face, smoothed his hair back, then made a cup of tea, sat on the sofa in the hotel room, put his phone on the coffee table, and stared at the number on the screen for a while.
He picked up his phone and dialed.
The phone rang three times before being answered.
A middle-aged man's voice came through the receiver, speaking slowly, "Who is this?"
Meng Xu sat up straight.
"Hello Director Song, I'm Meng Xu, the director of ' Travel to Those Little-Known Places '."
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, as if they were wondering who this person was.
Before the other party could speak, Meng Xu, knowing it was normal for Song Yuan to pay attention to variety shows, continued, "I'd like to discuss a collaboration with you. I have an artist who wants to try for an audition opportunity for your new film."
"In exchange, I will personally invest an additional 50 million in your film and provide a batch of filming equipment from my company. I can send you the equipment list for your review; please see if it suits your needs."
Song Yuan didn't immediately agree, "I can give you an audition opportunity, but whether you can land the role depends on your own ability. I won't lower my casting standards just because of investment."
The key reason is that he has received investment from Huateng Group, so he is not short of funds.
The only reason they agreed to give him a chance was because of the batch of filming equipment Meng Xu had.
He knew about Meng Xu's variety shows, since Pei Yubai had participated in one, so he knew a little about it.
I also learned about the equipment that Meng Xu had tinkered with himself, and it was indeed a good product.
Meng Xu, "That's right."
"Which artist?" Song Yuan asked.
Meng Xu opened his mouth, then paused.
He thought for a moment. Jiang Wantang wasn't in the entertainment industry, nor was she formally trained, so she had absolutely nothing to do with Song Yuan's film.
Why did she go to ask for this audition spot?
Before making the call, he was so focused on how to talk to Song Yuan that he didn't think about this aspect at all.
" Director Song, let me check with the artist and get back to you later."
Meng Xu hung up the phone, found Jiang Wantang's number, and dialed it. The phone rang for a long time before being answered.
Jiang Wantang's voice came through the receiver, not loud, and tinged with surprise. " Director Meng?"
Meng Xu cut to the chase. "What do you want with Director Song's film audition opportunity? You're not an actor, nor are you formally trained."
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, so quiet that Meng Xu thought the signal had been lost.
He glanced at his phone screen; the call was still going on.
Jiang Wantang's voice came again, softer than before, but every word was clear. "This opportunity is for Ji Shiyu."
Meng Xu paused for a moment. Jiang Wantang continued, "Please ask Director Meng to inform the other party so he can prepare properly. The role in Director Song's film is very rare; if he gets it, it will greatly help his career transition."
She finished speaking and didn't say anything else.
Meng Xu held his phone, unsure what to say.
He recalled the details of filming the program during that period.
Are these two also involved in problems?
Jiang Wantang said a few words and then hung up the phone.
Meng Xu looked at the words "Call Ended" on his phone screen and leaned back on the sofa.
Pei Yubai and Qiguan Yuan.
Ji Shiyu and Jiang Wantang.
Meng Xu tossed his phone onto the sofa, stood up, and took a few steps around the room.
Is he filming a travel variety show or a dating variety show? Why are so many couples appearing on screen now?
He paused and thought for a moment, then realized that with the current lineup, if he were to actually create a dating reality show, it might become a hit.
But he quickly dismissed the idea. His priority now was to finish " Travel to Those Little-Known Places," which had already made a good start, and he couldn't afford to mess it up.
He picked up his phone, found Ji Shiyu's number, and dialed it.
The call connected, Ji Shiyu's voice came through the receiver, sounding a little surprised, much like Jiang Wantang's reaction.
" Director Meng?"
Meng Xu, " Teacher Ji, I have an audition opportunity for Director Song's new film. Would you like to give it a try?"
Ji Shiyu was silent for a moment. " Director Meng, this spot is...?"
Meng Xu didn't hide anything. " Jiang Wantang exchanged her privilege for this audition opportunity. She said to tell you to prepare well."
There was a long silence on the other end of the phone.
After a long while, Ji Shiyu's voice came through the receiver, very low, as if pulled from a deep place. "Okay. I'll go. Thank you, Director Meng."
Meng Xu sent Song Yuan's contact information, instructing him to handle the audition details directly with Director Song.
Then he called Song Yuan again and explained the situation.
Meng Xu spent several days communicating with Song Yuan about the details of the filming.
Once everything was finalized, Meng Xu posted a message on Weibo: The second episode will be filmed next Friday. The specific location will not be revealed yet. Please stay tuned.
The comment section was flooded with messages within a minute of the message being posted.
[Episode 2! We've finally waited for it!]
[This Friday? So fast! I love you, Director Meng!]
[Where was the second episode filmed?]
[Why haven't you revealed the location yet?]
[Could it be a mystery guest they're keeping secret?]
[Will there be any Qiguan Yuan?]
[Will Yuanyuan meet in the second season?]
[ Pei Yubai, you should say something about whether your wife is going or not.]
[ Xiao Yuan Grains's Wanderings 2.0 is coming soon]
[Waaaaah, Yuanyuan, are you going or not?]
Xiao Yuan Grains flocked from the supertopic to the comment section, from the comment section to private messages, and from private messages to everything that might be related to Qiguan Yuan.
Qiguan Yuan, the protagonist of the online discussion, was completely unaware of all of this.
Qiguan Yuan hasn't left the house these past few days; he's stayed inside.
Most of her memories of being with Pei Yubai during this time have returned.
Qiguan Yuan retracted his tail, stood up, walked to the moon gate, and looked at the old elm tree in the courtyard. The wind blew, and the red ropes all over the tree swayed gently, making a rustling sound.
Now that her memories had mostly returned, she was going to find her boyfriend.
After all, he had seen the look in Pei Yubai's eyes that day, the look of reluctance to leave.