work overtime
To avoid attracting unnecessary attention, the two spoke very softly and did not remove their hats throughout the meal. They ate quietly in a corner, occasionally whispering a few words to each other.
So although they arrived later than the people at the next table, they left earlier.
After leaving, Lin Ting and Zhao Qinfeng slowly walked back, finally able to chat at a normal volume.
Lin Ting nudged Zhao Qinfeng with her elbow and asked, "Of the group of students at the next table, only two passed the interview. I remember the one in the songwriting track; his lyrics were the best I've ever seen. I don't remember the one in the singing track; he must have been interviewed this afternoon?"
Zhao Qinfeng said, "Yes, he was the second to last in the afternoon session, practically the headliner. How should I put it... his basic skills are very solid, and the song he chose matches his voice very well. He's a smart guy who knows how to play to his strengths and avoid his weaknesses."
Lin Ting remarked with a sigh, "It seems that those who pass do indeed possess certain qualities that allow them to stand out."
The two returned to their lodgings and ran into Zhang Fengming, who was also returning from outside.
"Good evening, Teacher Zhang," Zhao Qinfeng greeted him.
"Good evening... good evening!" Zhang Fengming scratched his head awkwardly and said, "Haha, what a coincidence, you guys are back at this time too, hahaha..."
"How was work today?" Lin Ting sighed inwardly. He had worked with Zhang Fengming many times, so he knew that Zhang was someone who couldn't keep things to himself. In daily life, he was impulsive and rash, like a young man just entering society. He could only calm down immediately when talking about work.
Zhang Fengming was no longer embarrassed, and even his gaze became firm. He stopped glancing between Lin Ting and Zhao Qinfeng. "Everything went smoothly. Today, my team and I arranged all the work for the first few days of recording. Hahaha, the final product will definitely move everyone!"
Lin Ting smiled and said, "Then we'll wait and see. Teacher Zhang is indeed amazing."
The three parted ways in the corridor and returned to their respective rooms.
As soon as Lin Ting entered the room, he turned on his phone and found that Zhao Qinfeng and Zhang Fengming had both sent him messages immediately.
Zhao Qinfeng: Why don't you remind Teacher Zhang? His actions are just too obvious.
Zhang Fengming: Ahhhhhh I really can't hold it in anymore! Just give me a quick death, I can't take it anymore!!!
Lin Ting first replied to Zhao Qinfeng, saying it wasn't a big deal and she would talk to him about it herself. Then she opened Zhang Fengming's chat box and asked him, "Why are you reacting so strongly?"
Zhang Fengming: "Answer me first, what is your relationship with Zhao Qinfeng?"
Lin Ting: "...We're friends."
Zhang Fengming: "Then why didn't you tell him about writing lyrics?"
Lin Ting: "You don't have to tell your friends everything. We've worked together before and happened to run into each other, so that's how you know I'm Jinghu."
Zhang Fengming: "Oh, that's true, but I really don't know what to do. Zhao Qinfeng has definitely figured it out, and in a few days other people will also realize that our relationship is unusual."
She also posted a few crying emojis.
Lin Ting: "Don't smear my reputation. We are friends, nothing more."
Zhang Fengming: "Sigh...it's all the same. You should help me think of what to do..."
Lin Ting: "Okay, I'll just ask you about your work progress every time I see you."
In fact, this method sounds very practical. Lin Ting thought about it and realized that it would definitely cover up Zhang Fengming's panic, while also creating a positive image of him as a dedicated and hardworking person, and expressing his concern and admiration for Teacher Zhang's career. It was a win-win-win situation.
Zhang Fengming: "It sounds reliable, but you're not the boss who pays my money!"
Lin Ting: "Yes, yes, yes, I have to go now, bye-bye."
Zhang Fengming sent over a few meaningless emojis and then fell silent.
Lin Ting cleared the red dot indicating the message and then opened her work emails.
He still has some words to write during this period, plus he needs to collect some video scripts, so he has to work overtime at night.
He was busy until bedtime, and he thought back on the promising candidates he had interviewed that day. The useful information was still limited. Some people hadn't been able to effectively showcase themselves and had to leave the interview early. Among those who passed the preliminary round, some were people with connections, while others had indeed demonstrated their abilities. Lin Ting was very much looking forward to their future performances.
He fell into a deep sleep, conserving his energy for the interview the next day.
After waking up, he went to eat breakfast, then went to get his makeup done, and finally arrived at the filming location on time.
Zhao Qinfeng had already arrived and was looking through the information of the candidates he had interviewed that day. Hearing the familiar footsteps, he recognized the person without even looking up and greeted him warmly.
Lin Ting sat down next to him and asked, "Any promising talents that interest you?"
Zhao Qinfeng said, "We still have to wait until we hear it before we can make a judgment; what we see on paper doesn't tell us anything."
Lin Ting snapped out of her daze: "Oh right, yesterday I could at least look at the lyrics next door, but here all I can refer to is the song title."
After a while, Zhou Yuqiu and Zhang Lin arrived. They greeted each other and continued to look through the materials, waiting for the recording to begin.
After yesterday's interviews, everyone is much more proficient now. Although there are more candidates to be interviewed today, the interviews are actually finished much faster.
"Good luck to you guys this afternoon, I'm going next door." Lin Ting said goodbye to the group after finishing her boxed lunch.
"Okay, go ahead." Zhao Qinfeng waved his hand.
Zhou Yuqiu smiled at him, while Zhang Lin nodded slightly in return.
Wang Qiong said lazily, "Take care, and don't bother seeing me off."
Lin Ting went next door and found the atmosphere a bit tense.
When the people here saw Lin Ting arrive, they quickly invited him to sit down and discuss things together.
"Well, it's like this. Our elimination criteria may have been too high. As a result, we've found that even though we've interviewed three-quarters of the trainees, we've only given out half of the spots."
"Should we relax the standards a bit later?"
"No, that's too unfair to those who were eliminated earlier," Lin Ting immediately objected.
Everyone looked at him. Lin Ting hadn't been very noticeable before, mostly just quietly taking notes in the corner, only occasionally saying a few words during the comments session.
At this point, he objected very firmly, without considering any formalities or social etiquette.
However, his objection was reasonable, and everyone agreed with him, but they were troubled about how to solve the problem of quota allocation.
The on-site director also came over to discuss it with them.
Ultimately, they decided to immediately send out a notice, allowing those who had been eliminated from the creative track but had not yet left to stay a little longer, and to have another "elimination round" that evening.
Everyone on site had to work overtime, and their moods were far from pleasant. However, Lin Ting breathed a sigh of relief because someone had just hinted at bringing in a few more people with connections, but the idea was quickly suppressed by everyone.
The afternoon interviews followed their original standards, and in the end, there were still a few openings left.
"We've ordered boxed meals for you, thank you so much, teachers!" a staff member said to them as they came over.
Lin Ting was also included; it was his own initiative that led to this.
He briefly explained his situation to Zhao Qinfeng on WeChat, telling him not to wait for him to have dinner together.
Zhao Qinfeng quickly replied, telling Lin Ting to focus on her work and that he understood.
The evening interviews were even more intense than before. A small number of people had already left the recording base as soon as they received the elimination notice, but some who had not yet left, or who could still make it back, immediately returned to the recording site, and many of them did not even have time to eat.
The waiting area was a bit chaotic for a moment, so the staff quickly found some snacks to fill their stomachs and let those who hadn't had their turn eat something.
"Thank you." A young man in a black short-sleeved shirt accepted the soda crackers offered to him by the staff member and thanked them politely.
His name is Chen Taining. He was on his way back to school when he received a notification for a second interview while in a ride-hailing car. So he made a quick decision and asked the driver to turn around.
He chewed on the soda crackers without tasting anything, only drinking a little water to prevent himself from choking. He dared not drink more, worried that he would get nervous if he drank too much water.
He didn't know why he impulsively signed up, passed the online screening, and then came here over the weekend.
After all, Chen Taining was just an ordinary undergraduate student in the School of Architecture and Engineering at a certain university, and he seemed to have nothing to do with music.
"Number 15!" the staff member called out.
"Here!" Chen Taining swallowed the cookie in his mouth, put the remaining cookie and bag on his seat, and followed the staff to the interview room.
Lin Ting looked up and felt a long-lost sense of familiarity with the appearance of the student in front of him. Back when he was in school, there were generally more men than women in engineering majors, and countless boys around him dressed similarly to the student in front of him.
"Is this Chen Taining? Please present your performance," said the mentor sitting in the main interviewer's seat.
To streamline the process, self-introductions were omitted, so the interview time was compressed to the shortest possible.
Chen Taining took a deep breath and began to sing.
Lin Ting had read the lyrics in advance, though he did so only when he had a spare moment, as time was indeed very tight. However, he still marked Chen Taining's resume with an important note.
As Lin Ting listened, he thought to himself, "The timbre... is acceptable, the melody... is good, and the lyrics are indeed very good. I don't have much of an impression of him; he must be one of the students who participated in the interview this morning."
He exchanged a subtle glance with his mentor beside him.
Chen Taining qualified for the next round. The result was announced on the spot. He was stunned for a moment before showing an incredulous expression.
"Congratulations," the mentors said to him with smiles, and then staff members quickly guided him away.
Taking advantage of the time before the next student came in, Lin Ting quickly whispered to the mentor next to him, "Why was this student eliminated back then?"
The mentor thought for a moment and said, "His first song was nowhere near as good as this one. Plus, he was probably too nervous at the time, and he sang way off-key, so he was eliminated."
Lin Ting suddenly felt that working overtime was particularly meaningful. Fortunately, everyone hadn't treated the remaining spots carelessly, but instead gave the eliminated students another chance for an interview, which is how they "salvaged" one out.
The subsequent interviews were fairly standard, and the evening interviews ended around nine o'clock.
Perhaps because they had built a friendship while working overtime together, Lin Ting was pulled up by several mentors to have a late-night snack. By the time they actually got back, it was already past 10 p.m.
Zhao Qinfeng messaged him midway through, saying he wanted to go to Lin Ting's room to find him. Lin Ting said he was having late-night snacks with colleagues and would be back later, so he sent Zhao Qinfeng the room's keypad lock code and told him to go wherever he wanted. When they left, there were still some skewers left, and it seemed no one wanted to take them away, so Lin Ting packed them up and took them with him, along with a side of egg fried instant noodles.
When Lin Ting returned, he opened the door and found the room dark, assuming Zhao Qinfeng had already gone back to his room. He had brought Zhao Qinfeng his late-night snack, so he hadn't turned on the light. He was about to close the door again and knock on Zhao Qinfeng's door.
But before he could close the door, the light suddenly came on.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
