The intro begins.
This is a traditional Chinese style song with a somber melody, and the lyrics describe the state of mind of the character Shen Che.
Cheng Che closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then spoke.
[ The Bard Incubus Voice ] was triggered in that instant.
When his voice came through the monitor speakers, the recording studio fell silent for a moment.
The voice was clear, with a slight hoarseness, like the sound of wind blowing through old pages.
When he sings the chorus, his voice goes up, but it doesn't feel like he's trying too hard; it's like he naturally reaches that position.
Sound Engineer Liu, wearing monitoring headphones, rested his fingers on the mixing console.
He stared at the waveform for several seconds, then turned his head and glanced at President Fang outside the glass window.
President Fang outside, his expression calm, but his eyes were slightly red.
Halfway through the second verse, one of the two harmonies was supposed to join in, but he forgot to.
She was led astray by Cheng Che's voice, forgetting what she was supposed to be doing.
The Sound Engineer Liu, reminded her through the headphones to "harmony," and she snapped out of her daze and quickly added the vocals.
The song ended.
The recording studio was quiet.
Sound Engineer Liu took off his headphones, turned his head, looked at President Fang outside the glass window, and gave him a thumbs up.
President Fang nodded, a deep smile on his face.
" Teacher Cheng," Sound Engineer Liu, said into the walkie-talkie, "One more time?"
Cheng Che nodded.
The second attempt was more stable than the first.
When he sang the chorus, he added his own touch, slightly lengthening the last note to make it sound deeper.
After the song was finished, the Sound Engineer Liu, stood up, clapped his hands, and said with a sigh, "That's good, only two takes."
He looked at Cheng Che and added, "I've been recording for over ten years, and this is the first time I've seen someone get it in just two takes. Teacher Cheng, it's a shame you don't sing with that voice."
Cheng Che took off his headphones and smiled, "You flatter me."
The Sound Engineer Liu, shook his head and turned to save the audio file.
President Fang walked in from outside, clapped his hands, and said, " Teacher Cheng, you've worked hard. It's much faster than I expected. I thought it would take at least an afternoon to record."
Cheng Che placed the headphones on the shelf and smiled, "The lyrics and music are well-written, and it's easy to sing along."
President Fang looked at him, and although he wanted to say "Stay in Shenzhen City for a few more days," he swallowed the words back.
She remembered that the nineteen-year-old boy in front of her had to go back to the Capital City for his final exams the next day.
She suddenly found it a little funny, feeling like she had wasted her life.
"Then I won't keep you any longer." President Fang smiled. "Let's get together again next time you come to promote the business."
Cheng Che nodded and led his team out of the recording studio.
As the car pulled out of the underground parking garage, Qin Lie turned and asked, "Should we go straight to the airport? Or find somewhere to grab something to eat? You've only had airplane food since yesterday."
Cheng Che thought for a moment and said, "Let's go to the old street. I want to buy something."
What to buy?
" Shenzhen City's wife cakes and dried mangoes." Cheng Che leaned back in his chair. "Take some for Wang Zheng and the others, and while you're at it... bring a gift for the rest of the group."
Qin Lie laughed, "You're still thinking about bringing back local specialties for your friends after winning the championship? Okay, let's go to the Dongmen."
The car turned onto Shennan Boulevard, where the midday sun shone brightly on the asphalt, creating a blinding reflection.
Cheng Che flipped down the sun visor, took out his phone, and sent a message to Pei Jingshu: "Finished recording, head back to Beijing immediately. I sent you an international package, remember to sign for it."
Pei Jingshu replied quickly, "What is it?"
Cheng Che kept everyone in suspense.
You'll see when you get there.
The Dongmen Old Street was crowded. Cheng Che wore a hat but no mask, but few people recognized him. After all, he was driving [ Fade into the Bustle ], so he was safe.
He stopped in front of a time-honored pastry shop, ordered four boxes of wife cakes, three boxes of dried mangoes, and two packets of almond cookies.
The shop owner glanced at him a couple more times while packing things up. "You're a really handsome young man."
Cheng Che smiled but didn't reply.
Qin Lie, carrying the bags beside him, muttered, "You bought so much, will your suitcase even have room for it?"
If it doesn't fit, just carry it by hand.
Cheng Che then turned into a nearby silver jewelry store, picked out a thin chain with a small tennis ball-shaped pendant. It was silver, inexpensive, but finely crafted.
He picked it up and looked at it, then asked the shop owner, "Can this be engraved?"
"Sure, what do you want to engrave?"
He thought for a moment and said, "Let's engrave a CC."
The proprietress wrote "CC" on the back of the silver medal and asked, "Is this all?"
"This is it."
After he finished carving, he glanced at it and put it in his pocket.
The two found a tea restaurant in the old street. Cheng Che ate a bowl of wonton noodles, Qin Lie ordered a stir-fried beef chow fun.
While eating, Qin Lie was scrolling through his phone when he suddenly turned the screen around and said, "Take a look at this."
The hashtag # Cheng Che # Shenzhen City trending. A netizen posted a photo of him carrying a bag of pastries in Dongmen Old Street, with the caption:
"I just saw someone at the Dongmen who looks a lot like Cheng Che, but he was buying wife cakes and silver jewelry, so I don't think it could be him. He's probably eating at a Michelin-starred restaurant."
The comments section has gone off-topic:
He bought silver jewelry?? For whom?
[The wife cake was probably for my teammates, but the silver jewelry... it must have been for my girlfriend.]
[So who is that tennis pendant for, Yan Ruanning or Pei Jingshu???]
[Help! He's so good at this!]
Cheng Che glanced at it, flipped the phone over, and said speechlessly, "How could this be captured on camera?"
[ Fade into the Bustle ] The effect was barely over when it was photographed?
My flight was in the afternoon, and it was almost dark when I landed in Capital City.
Cheng Che dragged his suitcase out of the terminal, took a deep breath of the northern air, broke up with Qin Lie, and took a taxi back to school.
Final exams start tomorrow.