Bai Leyao’s smile on her face was completely uncontrollable, sparkling. For anyone in the music industry, having a song with lyrics and music by Ao Chen was a great honor, but for so reason, Ao Chen had suddenly proposed to collaborate with Bai Leyao.
Bai Leyao herself was unclear why, but joy surged through her head, and she was too lazy to think about it.
"What’s happening here? Why all the commotion?"
Two people followed Ao Chen, dressed in impeccably tailored suits.
Ao Chen’s attire was much flashier, exceptionally bright colors that made him stand out in a crowd at a glance.
His voice also carried a cool detachnt with a hint of dandyism, showing he wasn’t a serious person at all. Yuran’s form first stiffened, then she slowly turned to et his gaze.
Ao Chen faced Yuran’s gaze with an undiminished smile, "This person is...?"
Bai Leyao ca bursting out, "Senior Ao Chen, this is my boss, Yuran."
"Oh~"
Ao Chen’s tone rose, slightly mocking.
He extended his hand leisurely toward Yuran, "President Yu, hello, Ao Chen."
Emotions surged inside Yuran, and the word "master" choked in her throat. She suppressed her emotions and slowly extended her hand to shake with Ao Chen, "Hello, thank you for taking care of Bai Leyao."
Ao Chen smiled, withdrew his hand, and continued to stare directly into Yuran’s eyes, without shifting in the slightest, "I heard from Bai Leyao that the hit song from her previous album was your work. It sounded familiar to . If we’re to thank anyone, it isn’t necessary, as it’s because of you that I decided to collaborate with her."
This reason was frankly straightforward.
Bai Leyao, far from being unhappy, excitedly grabbed Yuran’s hand, "Yuran, look, I told you, you’re very good. If it hadn’t been for you, Senior Ao Chen wouldn’t have collaborated with ."
Yuran: "..."
Normally, when people hear such words, they feel unhappy deep inside, thinking that soone else has stolen their spotlight—this girl.
Yuran was sowhat at a loss whether to laugh or cry.
This conversation completely excluded Catherine. Ao Chen was not just well-known over here but also incredibly famous throughout the entire music industry worldwide.
She once invited Ao Chen to compose a piece for her new movie, but Ao Chen had unapologetically declined, not giving her any face.
But now, Ao Chen was here, ready to collaborate with an obscure, unknown singer?
"Mr. Ao..." Catherine suddenly interrupted, Ao Chen’s gaze shifted and saw her, his face slightly puzzled, "May I ask who you are?"
Catherine, who had just smiled, faltered, not knowing whether Ao Chen was deliberately pretending not to recognize her or actually didn’t know her. Compared to Ao Chen’s warmth toward Yuran, his attitude toward her clearly seed much more indifferent.
She was displeased, yet dared not offend Ao Chen.
Politely smiling, "Mr. Ao, hello, I am Catherine Hawes Lee. We had collaborated previously on ’The Battle of Doomsday’."
In reality, it was the production team that had collaborated with Ao Chen. She had only heard of him, never personally eting him.
The reason for forcibly establishing a connection was rely because Ao Chen dealt with so many production teams; he didn’t necessarily recognize or rember everyone.
A re formality—when you say collaboration, then it’s collaboration.
Ao Chen was well aware of such ntalities and wasn’t bothered at all, giving a dismissive smile, "Oh, nice to et you."
Yuran looked at Ao Chen, sowhat skeptical, her gaze so piercing that Ao Chen found it hard to ignore. He glanced at Yuran sideways, pondering sothing, then swiftly shifted his gaze away.
After the pleasantries, Ao Chen directly said to Catherine, "I wasn’t aware of what you were disputing earlier, but now that I am here, why don’t we talk business? I hope you both can give so latitude, Miss Catherine, perhaps you could set aside what was happening just now?"
Catherine’s face was all awkwardness, unable to show displeasure or brush it off, she could only nod, "Out of respect for Mr. Ao, naturally."
"Thank you."
Ao Chen’s gratitude lacked any sincerity.
Catherine was infuriated inside, yet she said nothing.
After a mont, she interjected, "Mr. Ao, may I join your table?"
Ao Chen looked troubled, "Miss Catherine, that might not be appropriate. After all, I am here on a paid contract to discuss a collaboration. It wouldn’t be proper for you to tag along."
Yuran was almost convinced by Ao Chen’s deceptive excuse, holding back her facial expression, while internally she criticized her ntor for his usual hypocrisy.
Catherine felt extrely embarrassed, with a dark expression, she said her goodbyes and left with her assistant and manager. Missing the rare opportunity to see Yuran was a waste. More importantly, she hadn’t even gotten a chance to be sarcastically personal with Yuran, which ended up making her seem ironic instead.
As they watched Catherine’s retreating figure, Yuran and Bai Leyao welcod Ao Chen inside.
After taking his seat, Ao Chen’s expression instantly turned indifferent. He stared at Bai Leyao, then shifted his gaze toward Yuran, "Your na is Yuran?"
Yuran nodded.
A flicker of reminiscence passed through Ao Chen’s eyes, "Yuran, the na does sound familiar."
Yuran heard him clearly, feeling a bit sad but also sowhat at a loss.
Her gaze flickered, not daring to look at Ao Chen’s expression. Ao Chen shifted his gaze away and confessed, "To be honest, it has been a long ti since I’ve returned to the country, including..."
He wanted to say including the death of his beloved disciple, which he had not co back for. This place was saddening for him. Many things had happened here, and he had his reasons for not wanting to return, tied to his past.
His return this ti was rely due to the similarities in the lodies and the compositional techniques, which really resembled those of his disciple.
And the nas were so similar too.
Bai Leyao listened intently. Suddenly confronted with this lengthy explanation, her curiosity soared, "Teacher Ao, including... what?"
Ao Chen snapped back to reality, shook his head, "Nothing much. I promised to produce an album for you, with at least three songs from my side. After our collaboration, I’ll ask you so questions as a prerequisite for our exchange. Don’t worry, I won’t pry into your privacy."
Bai Leyao nodded repeatedly, "Teacher Ao, I promise you, even if it’s private, it won’t matter."
Yuran: "..."
Girl, do you really need to be this bold?
Ao Chen raised an eyebrow, said nothing, while Kang Zhenyu coughed, subconsciously signaling Bai Leyao to be more reserved and not so impulsive.
Ao Chen was only thirty-five this year, still young.
Artistic people always appear particularly refined, and Ao Chen was no exception, the kind that imdiately gives a good impression.
"I would like to talk to you alone."
The dinner hadn’t even started, but Ao Chen seed increasingly impatient. When his gaze fell on Yuran’s face for the fifth ti, he couldn’t hold back and made his first request.
The room fell silent instantly.
Bai Leyao looked conflicted as she said, "Teacher Ao, are you looking to discuss sothing personal or professional with Yuran? You’re writing songs for , you wouldn’t be trying to exploit Yuran, would you? If so, I am not interested."
Yuran: "..."
Kang Zhenyu: "..."
Ao Chen: "..."
Feelings were complicated...
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