Chapter 64 Watching the Show on the Show

"The semester hasn't even started for you yet. What is there to experience?"

As a celebrity observer, Yu Wei's current task should have been to experience and observe Qi Luo'an's daily life. But what was there for a college student to experience besides going to class?

"Just because the semester hasn't started doesn't mean I can't study. What did you think I came back to campus early for?"

"Wasn't it because you couldn't stand staying at home anymore?"

Qi Luo'an clicked her tongue, though she wasn't really angry. She merely glanced at the three cameramen trailing behind them. You have the right to expose someone's background, she thought, but every single word you say is being recorded by the production crew.

The show was still filming, after all. Maybe she should say something more positive and uplifting...

Once the blind box segment concluded, the production transitioned from indoor to outdoor filming. Each pair of guests was accompanied by a dedicated camera crew to ensure they captured the most authentic details of the non-celebrity guests' lives.

In entertainment novels, staff members like cameramen are usually brushed over with a single stroke, but in reality, their work involves a tremendous amount of detail and heavily relies on experience.

Take the team following Yu Wei, for example: one camera position handled the main wide shots, two were responsible for capturing character dynamics, and an assistant handled the audio recording while carrying all the spare camera batteries.

Every day after wrapping up, they would hold a meeting with the cinematography team to review the next day's shooting schedule and division of labor. Yu Wei had looked at their camera placement charts—every shooting spot was clearly marked, complete with detailed shooting contents and the required focal lengths.

Anyone without a flexible mind would struggle to make a living as a cameraman. Execution and adaptability were crucial; after all, so-called television magic was fleeting, and once missed, it was gone forever.

The production team actually knew that Yu Wei and Qi Luo'an were old acquaintances, especially since their music video release hadn't been long ago. Therefore, the camera crew wasn't surprised by how familiar, almost intimate, their interactions were.

A bit of familiarity was good; it generated content. Audiences didn't like stiff, rehearsed politeness. They had a strong hunch that this pairing would become the most popular group once the show aired.

"Come with me to the library to study!"

With the semester not yet started, Qi Luo'an couldn't think of any other good filming locations. A college student's routine only consisted of a few basic things—she certainly couldn't drag him into the women's dormitory...

"So what is this, are you studying for the civil service exams or the graduate entrance exams?"

As a proud representative of a white-collar major like Chinese Language and Literature, it was hard to convince anyone if you didn't take the civil service or graduate exams. The job prospects after getting a master's degree were about the same anyway, so taking the civil service exam offered a much better return on investment.

Of course, with her family's vast wealth, she definitely wouldn't starve even if she just decided to flat-out slack off.

"What exams? Wouldn't it be wonderful to graduate and immediately publish a book to become a total flop?" Qi Luo'an joked, offering a self-deprecating laugh. Clearly, she was quite helpless about her major as well.

"I'll come to you for wisdom when the time comes."

"Let's skip that."

Yu Wei himself was an established flop. His wild-style writing was predictable at a glance, so teaching others was out of the question. Back when he first joined author chat groups and newbies asked him for chapter recommendations, he was still cluelessly babbling away while those same newbies were already hitting ten-thousand subscriptions.

They had originally planned to visit the Jiaotong University library, but the production team hadn't finalized communication with the school yet, making it awkward to blatantly march in for filming. Thus, they had no choice but to contact a local bookstore instead.

Bookstores found it very difficult to turn down this kind of filming request. After all, appearing on screen was free publicity that would undoubtedly attract plenty of new customers looking to check-in.

At three o'clock in the afternoon, lazy sunlight slanted across the bookstore floor. Qi Luo'an sat at a table by the window, with Yu Wei opposite her, the two of them separated by several stacks of open books.

The wide-angle shot looked exceptionally good: the man was handsome, the woman was pretty, and the on-site atmosphere was quite cozy, resembling an art photoshoot.

However, the moment Yu Wei pulled out his tablet and Magic Keyboard to clack away at a furious typing speed, the previously artistic and scholarly atmosphere instantly shattered...

"Anyone who didn't know better would think you were writing a thesis."

Qi Luo'an actually wanted to calm down and read a book, or at least put on a convincing display for the show. But for some reason, the mere thought of Yu Wei sitting right across from her made it impossible to settle her mind.

"Well, that's still different. Web novels certainly don't require plagiarism checks."

Yu Wei had written a graduation thesis before, and the endless rounds of software checks—lowering similarity scores only to have to pad them back out—had nearly driven him half-mad. Let's just say Dr. Zhai's legacy still held a lot of weight.

If web novels started requiring plagiarism checks, a massive chunk of template-copying authors would be out of a job...

"Let me see what you're writing."

Growing bored with her study materials, Qi Luo'an simply stood up, walked over, and sat down beside Yu Wei to watch him write. She was bound to read the new chapter anyway, so she might as well read it in advance.

If anyone else had watched him type, Yu Wei would have instinctively shielded the screen with his hand. Yet with Qi Luo'an sitting right beside him, her eyes wide with curiosity, Yu Wei didn't feel awkward at all, which was quite strange.

Perhaps because she was a genuine reader, he didn't care about losing face...

"Tell me, do all web novel paragraphs have such weird formatting? Starting a new paragraph every two sentences—don't tell me you write your essays like that too."

"I remember my editor saying web novels need as many paragraph breaks as possible. It reduces visual strain and makes it easier for readers to scan ten lines at a glance."

Yu Wei had long forgotten where he even picked that up, but since many people read novels on their phones, paragraphs that were too long and dense became visually cramped.

*Old man on subway looking at phone.jpg*

Qi Luo'an still found it novel. Although she had read plenty of web novels, watching an author write in real-time was a first. It had a certain... amusing charm, kind of like watching a turtle crawl.

Writing this slowly—how was it enough for anyone to read?

"Your typing speed isn't cutting it, bro."

"A man shouldn't be too fast."

The camera crew standing nearby was startled into a cold sweat. These two were entirely too familiar with each other; tossing out such suggestive banter so casually—what would the viewers think when they saw this?

Is it possible that... these two... uh...

"Since your typing speed isn't going to pick up anyway, you might as well use the time to think about what song we should sing as a duet later."

Qi Luo'an's remark successfully steered the conversation back on track. Leisurely as they appeared now, they would have to start practicing songs in the coming days.

"A duet? I thought you'd want to sing a solo."

If someone asked Yu Wei to think of a female solo song, he could rattle off a bunch. But finding a good duet for a male and female singer was tricky; most were romantic love songs, which felt a bit out of character for them.

Given their relationship, they clearly fell into the category of ultimate frenemies.

If all else failed, they could just pull out a Phoenix Legend track, and he could handle the rap hypes while she took the lead...

"Don't even think about slacking off. I haven't sung a song in eight years, and I have no intention of ruining your music."

Qi Luo'an preempted his thoughts. She had come to the show strictly to "stalk" Yu Wei. As for singing, she had no desire to steal the spotlight—that was Yu Wei's home turf.

She harbored zero covetous ambitions regarding Yu Wei's musical work. To be precise, her interest in becoming famous was far lower than her interest in Yu Wei...

"No need to rush, let me think about it."

Yu Wei was finishing up *Swordsman in the Jianghu* today, so his brain couldn't squeeze in a new song just yet. Doing some preliminary filtering later wouldn't hurt.

"Are you going to write a new song?"

Cameraman Xiao Zhu couldn't help asking the question. Before they arrived, the production team had specifically emphasized that if Yu Wei wanted to write a new song, they should support him wholeheartedly.

For a musical variety show, having an original song to release right out of the gate was a dream start. How could they not support it? They would practically enshrine Yu Wei on the spot if they could.

"Yeah, you can look forward to it."

Singing anything other than a new song wouldn't work either; covering someone else's tracks risked exposing him, and none of his previous songs were particularly suited for a male-female duet.

"That's fantastic. This time, I'm definitely going to observe your creative process from start to finish."

Writing a song was different from typing a novel; it at least required a source of inspiration and a clear songwriting and composing process.

Yu Wei actually shared that thought. The system would grant him those creative processes anyway, so he might as well use the show to demonstrate to his readers that he didn't hoard unreleased tracks—they were all freshly baked.

"Are you watching *Beyond the Stage* tonight?"

Lowering her head to look at a book, Qi Luo'an suddenly asked a question that served as a reminder: the episode he had participated in was finally about to air.

When he signed the contract for *Music Blind Box* last week, the show's teaser had already dropped, but he had been too busy lately to pay attention. Qi Luo'an bringing it up clearly meant she wanted to watch it with him.

Watching the broadcast alongside someone who had actually been on the show—quite a clever move, weren't they?

And let's not forget, they were currently filming a reality show themselves. Watching a show while *on* a show added another layer of meta-inception.

Looking for help, Yu Wei glanced at the staff members, wondering if watching a TV show within a TV show was allowed... would there be any copyright conflicts?

Cameraman Xiao Zhu nodded. Their show was also broadcast on Tencent Video anyway; since it was all the same platform, naturally, there wouldn't be any issues.

"So, where are we watching it?"

"At your place, obviously," Qi Luo'an asked with her eyes half-closed. "I live in the women's dorm—can you get in?"

"If you manage to get in, we could watch it in my dorm instead."