Next, Ji Yan also unceremoniously brought out a large number of albums—although the number of albums Ji Yan presented was quite astonishing, Ning Wei did not perfunctorily at all, writing her name on each one neatly and correctly.

Seeing the other person's serious expression, Ji Yan's nervousness vanished in an instant.

This wasn't the first time he had met Ning Wei, but it was the first time they had spent time together privately like this. Ning Wei was even more like Ning Wei than he had imagined...

When he was with this person, he didn't seem to feel nervous at all. Although the other person didn't talk to him much and his expression was always indifferent, Ji Yan inexplicably felt that he would feel very comfortable with the other person.

This is the Ning Wei he imagined her to be.

After signing the albums, Ning Wei handed them to Ji Yan. Then, he took out a guitar and looked at Ji Yan, asking, "Want to give it a try?"

"Yes." Ji Yan's answer was also straightforward.

Snow Mountain TV did not offer any comments on the performance; everything was left to Ning Wei and Ji Yan's discretion.

Ning Wei strummed the guitar strings, and that's how their collaboration began.

He first played Ji Yan's "Leap".

This song is quite lively. When Ning Wei played it, Ji Yan's toes lightly tapped the floor, and he felt very relaxed. After the accompaniment ended, Ning Wei gestured to Ji Yan to sing first.

"Bungee jumping to the highest point in the world, stepping onto the top of the earth."

"I wish to transform into a crane and fly over the perils of heaven and earth."

"I don't care about not fitting in; I have my own world."

"Snowy plateau, desert, blue sky, let me leap! Leap! Leap!"

Before Ji Yan could even look at Ning Wei, a voice rang in his ears. When Ning Wei sang this song, his voice wasn't as passionate as when he sang "Blue" his own songs, but there was a lively quality to his voice because the song "Leap" was originally very lively.

If Ji Yan were watching the live stream, he would probably write a big "Great" on the screen, but hearing Ning Wei sing his own song in person was a completely different feeling.

Ji Yan was originally standing a bit far from Ning Wei, but he quietly moved closer to her.

Ning Wei is completely different when she sings—even though this song is completely different from the style of "Blue" Everyday, Ji Yan can clearly hear Ning Wei's dedication and gentleness.

Listening to this person sing, and singing with this person, Ji Yan's heart would unconsciously calm down.

Even though the two had never collaborated before and hadn't explained how to sing, Ji Yan was completely immersed in the song once the guitar melody started playing.

Even when he reached the last verse, he couldn't react—there was no clash, no rushing, no wrong lyrics in this song "Leap." Their voices complemented each other perfectly, and Ji Yan became more and more excited and joyful as he sang.

He felt that the two of them didn't need to rehearse anymore. This duet was even better than he had imagined, a collaboration that far exceeded his expectations.

Ji Yan had also heard Ning Wei's cover of "Leap," but he felt that the reason they were able to present such tacit understanding at this moment must be because Ning Wei had listened to the song many times and played it many times. Although the outside world preferred to use the word "talent" to describe her, Ji Yan knew very well that she had taken the song very seriously.

For a singer, this is undoubtedly the greatest respect.

Ning Wei remained taciturn, only continuing to ask Ji Yan, "Shall we come for 'Reversing Time'?"

Ji Yan nodded: "Come on."

This song was completed in one take, so much so that when the song was finished, the rehearsal room fell into an eerie silence.

It feels like... there's no need to do it a second time.

When the staff from Snow Mountain TV entered, they sensed an eerie atmosphere. Ning Wei sat on one side, silent, while Ji Yan sat on the other, also silent.

Could it be... that there's something wrong with these two?

The staff couldn't help but imagine what was going on.

It's common knowledge that Ning Wei doesn't like socializing, and as for Ji Yan... judging from how he interacts with Ji Ruan, it's clear that Ji Yan isn't the kind of person with a particularly good temper.

"Teachers, there's a lounge next door. Would you like to have some fruit and tea there first?"

"Okay," Ji Yan replied.

Ning Wei didn't say anything, but she followed along.

The lounge door was closed, but the staff's expressions did not relax; instead, they looked even more worried.

Will a fight break out?

Snow Mountain TV is, after all, a provincial-level television station. At its New Year's Eve concert, the number of celebrities who dare to cause trouble can be counted on one hand, but Ji Yan and Ning Wei are both among them.

The concert's producer noticed his staff member's worried expression and called him over to ask what was wrong. After asking, he confirmed, "Did you see them fight with your own eyes?"

"No."

"Just close the door." The producer was quite casual. "Whatever their conflicts are, as long as they're not filmed."

He didn't think Ning Wei and Ji Yan would have a conflict. Ning Wei had rejected Snow Mountain TV countless times. If he really didn't want to cooperate with Ji Yan, he wouldn't have come at all. There were rumors in the industry that if Ning Wei didn't want to deal with someone, he wouldn't even communicate with them.

But aren't the two of them going to the lounge together right now?

...

In fact, the atmosphere in the lounge was very harmonious.

Ji Yan poured Ning Wei a cup of tea, and then poured one for himself. The two sat facing each other and drank tea.

This was the first time Ji Yan had been so close to Ning Wei.

He noticed that the other person had single eyelids, very fair skin, but darker eyes than most people. The other person drank tea slowly and unhurriedly, yet he still had time to get Ji Yan an orange.

When the orange was handed to him, Ji Yan was taken aback.

"Thanks."

He suddenly remembered that he had brought a bag of throat lozenges, so he quickly opened the bag and handed one to Ning Wei: "Teacher Ning, here you go."

"Ning Wei." Ning Wei's voice wasn't loud; his speaking voice was quite different from when he sang, which Ji Yan found rather novel.

The two slowly sipped their tea, the tea steaming gently. Neither of them spoke, yet the atmosphere was not awkward.

“I really like your songs,” Ning Wei suddenly said.

"Thank you," Ji Yan said with a smile. "I love every song by 'Blue'."

As soon as he finished speaking, Ning Wei raised her phone, and the screen displayed the WeChat friends interface. Ji Yan opened his phone and scanned the QR code. The next moment, Ning Wei's account was in his phone's contact list.

The other person sent him a greeting emoji, a soft white rabbit holding flowers. Ji Yan felt that the rabbit looked familiar, but he couldn't remember it for a moment.

He sent a panda blushing emoji, then felt it was too revealing of his true nature, so he quickly deleted it and resent a happy cat emoji.

What Ji Yan didn't know was that Duan Yiran, who was still scrolling through videos, suddenly received a total of five panda blushing emojis.

Duan Yiran: "...Where's your rabbit?"

Another blushing panda emoji was sent. Duan Yiran: "Thank you, but please don't send me this perverted panda anymore."

He was certain that Ning Wei had gone mad.

...

With Ning Wei's friend by his side, Ji Yan was very satisfied and felt that the trip had not been in vain. After leaving the lounge, the two rehearsed "Leap" and "Reversal of Time" again, and the quality of this rehearsal was still very high.

Moreover, when singing with him, Ning Wei's voice was not exactly the same as his performance at the concert, and Ji Yan felt that he was being taken care of, even though the other party did not say anything.

After the rehearsal, the two walked out of the Snow Mountain TV building at the same time. Ji Yan wrapped his scarf around himself and was about to wave goodbye to Ning Wei when two figures walked towards him, causing Ji Yan to unconsciously frown.

He never expected to see Ji Yushi and Ji Xuekong here.

He had almost forgotten about these two people.

"Xiao Yan..."

Ji Yan frowned even more deeply. If he remembered correctly, this was not how the brothers Ji Yushi and Ji Xuekong addressed him. Usually, only his older brother would call him that.

Ji Yan pretended not to hear and deliberately moved to the side to make way for the two people.

Ji Yushi had no intention of pretending not to know him. With a long stride, she blocked Ji Yan's path in an instant.

"Get out of the way."

"I just want to apologize to you. We were wrong before."

"Get out of the way."

Ji Yan waved his hand: "You don't need to say anything, just shut up."

"Xiao Yan..."

“He doesn’t want to talk to you.” Ning Wei, who was standing next to Ji Yan, suddenly spoke up: “He has already told you.”

"You..." Ji Yushi was about to say something when Ning Wei reached out and pushed Ji Yushi away, making way for Ji Yan: "Let's go."

Ji Yan was taken aback, then obediently followed Ning Wei.

"You hate them?" Ning Wei suddenly asked.

Ji Yan nodded slightly: "Yes, it's very annoying."

Ning Wei didn't say much after hearing this. After a while, he asked Ji Yan, "Did you drive?"

Ji Yan shook his head.

"Then I'll take you."

Before Ji Yan could refuse, he took Ji Yan there. After a while, in the parking lot, Ning Wei rummaged around behind the car and handed Ji Yan an album wrapped in paper: "It's for you."

Upon closer inspection, Ji Yan noticed that the album cover looked somewhat old. It wasn't the album itself, but rather the style of the cover that didn't seem to be from recent years.

The cover is somewhat pale and dark, the sky is as if it has been stained black with ink, and under the dark sky, the four words "Gray Keys" written in black ink are blurred as if they have been soaked by rain.

"This is our first album after our debut. At that time, 'Blue' hadn't yet entered the public eye, and many people may not have heard of this album," Ning Wei said. "You can give it a listen."

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

Ji Yan held the album and stroked it carefully. He had collected quite a few "Blue" albums, and some of them were second-hand copies that he had bought at high prices, but he didn't actually own this one. In fact, when fans reviewed the band's career, they almost never mentioned this album.

"Thank you," Ji Yan said again.

Ning Wei didn't say anything more, but Ji Yan's displeasure at the appearance of Ji Yushi and his brother had vanished at that moment.

The car drove slowly on the road, not fast, just like the feeling Ning Wei gave off.

Ji Yan was eager to listen to the album. He put the album in his bag, closed his eyes and dozed off for a while. When he opened his eyes, the car had already arrived at the apartment building.

When Ji Yan went upstairs, he received another rabbit emoji on WeChat.

He couldn't help but laugh when he saw the rabbit clumsily climbing the stairs.