Chapter 56

As expected, Zhao Hean was right. Several programs did have some problems. The soprano soloist suddenly caught a cold and her throat was hoarse. The ballet leader was accidentally bumped by someone while walking and her ankle was swollen.

For a program like this where the cast can be replaced at any time, there is a 90% chance that they will be re-selected. Liu Aiping is not only outgoing, but also well-informed. I guess the student union also exchanges this kind of information every day.

So, within a week, Qiao Bailu heard that two programs had already replaced their actors. There were also several other programs that were probably in danger, and it all depended on whether the leading actors could get through it safely.

Qiao Bailu was speechless. It was just a party, and their school was a scientific research school. There were almost no arts students, and not many would go into the entertainment industry in the future. There could be only a hundred or so people. Was there a need to compete so much?

"You don't understand this. To show up in front of those big shots, you have to work ten years less." Zhou Mengyao said while eating ice cream. Qiao Bailu was even more puzzled: "Their performances are outstanding, which can only be said to be talented in performance. Among the elites who come to our school, how many are related to the entertainment industry? Aren't most of them entrepreneurs? Do you think these people will be interested in a student who can only sing and dance? Keep... cough, or find a capable employee?"

Zhou Mengyao couldn't help but burst out laughing, then waved her hands and said, "We don't need to worry about their affairs. Anyway, your show is too dangerous, no one will want to hurt you, so you don't have to worry. I came to you to discuss something with you."

Qiao Bailu is the screenwriter. She doesn't need to perform on stage because the script has already been selected. Even if Qiao Bailu is injured, it will not delay the performance of the show. Therefore, Qiao Bailu is basically in no danger.

Bending her head and taking a bite of ice cream, Qiao Bailu asked vaguely, "What's the matter?"

"Didn't we discuss building a studio before? My father agreed." Zhou Mengyao said excitedly. Before, Mr. Zhou took Zhou Mengyao with him to teach her about business. It can only be said that she is worthy of being Mr. Zhou's biological daughter. Once she understood, she immediately developed a great interest in business.

However, she did not want to just inherit her father's business. After all, her father was not too old, only 34, still very capable. Even if he retired, it would still take him another 20 years.

She couldn't just follow her father around as a follower for the past 20 years, right? So, she decided to go it alone. After thinking about it, her best friend Qiao Bailu was a scriptwriter, so why not set up a studio?

The entertainment industry is actually a big pie. She has also read Bai Lu's novels, so there is a market for them. A good screenwriter can basically support one-third of a studio, and the rest are actors and filming teams.

As for the management staff, we have to wait until the studio is stable. At present, for a small studio, Zhou Mengyao can handle all the management work by herself.

"Really? That's great. Have you registered the company?" Qiao Bailu asked hurriedly. This was also a good opportunity for her. Although being a freelance editor would be more casual, she could write when she wanted to, but if she could work with her best friend, she could still accept it. Being a boss was more promising. Besides, Mengyao wouldn't force her to write a script.

"Well, I plan to cooperate with you, so let's think of a name together." Zhou Mengyao said with a smile, clapped her hands, and threw the ice cream bag into the trash can: "But it's useless without a script, you should write a script quickly."

Qiao Bailu widened her eyes: “Are you going to shoot my script first?”

Zhou Mengyao nodded as a matter of course: "Of course, our joint studio can't afford to buy other people's scripts now, so you are the only one who can take over first."

"Don't be ridiculous. Even Sister Zhou didn't dare to use my script. She still asked Teacher Zhou to adapt it. Aren't you afraid of losing everything?" Qiao Bailu shook her head quickly. Zhou Mengyao laughed twice: "What are you afraid of? I don't have anything else but money!"

Qiao Bailu's mouth twitched, she was speechless: "You have money but I don't. I want to accumulate a lot of experience and then make a breakthrough. If I fail in my first script writing, I won't have good luck in the future. How about this, aren't we going to be juniors soon? After school starts, you start running around for studio documents. Let's find a veteran playwright first, make a hit, and then I'll write the script, okay?"

Zhou Mengyao touched her chin and said, "That's fine. I'll draw up a contract later. The studio belongs to both of us. We need to work out the dividends and shares in advance. Even brothers have to settle accounts clearly. Let's settle it first, so we won't have to worry about quarrels in the future."

Qiao Bailu nodded quickly, indicating that this was a good idea. She really wasn't in the mood to write a script right now. The school anniversary party was about to begin, and she was still waiting to see the result.

There was nothing wrong with the script and the actors in her show, but it was not without some problems. The problems were mostly with the props and the background. Because it was set in the future, even if there were no real mechas or spaceships, there had to be a projection. But where could she find a projection as big as the stage background wall and very clear?

Even if I find it, where can I edit such a scene?

After being busy for the past half month, Qiao Bailu has lost 5 or 6 kilograms, and Liu Aiping has lost nearly 10 kilograms. Before the party started, she hugged Qiao Bailu and rubbed her body hard: "Originally, I was thinking about losing weight, but I never had the time. I didn't expect that the effect would be so good in this month! Why don't I follow you from now on! Try to lose another 10 kilograms!"

Qiao Bailu nodded with a smile: "Okay, I can't bear to leave you, why don't you pledge yourself to me, and we can see each other every day?"

Liu Aiping held her hand and nodded vigorously: "Okay, my dear, as long as you don't mind that I'm older than you, why don't we pay our respects to heaven and earth and our parents while everyone is here?"

Zhou Mengyao next to her was speechless: "Stop talking nonsense, the host has come on stage, the party is about to begin, you have to listen carefully, don't miss the voice announcing the program."

Qiao Bailu and Liu Aiping looked at each other, and both of them were silent. In fact, they teased each other before because they were too nervous. They were busy for half a month, and today they would see the results. If they succeeded, they would become famous.

If they fail, then all their hard work will be in vain, so they are naturally very nervous. The two of them are relatively good, even if they are nervous, they just find someone to talk to. The lead dancer of the first program was so nervous that she was shaking, and the lead singer had to keep whispering to comfort her.

Some people are just nervous before going on stage. When the host announces the program and the lead singer comes on stage, the trembling body suddenly straightens up, and they skillfully spread their arms and slide sideways into the stage.

Qiao Bailu was stunned. She touched her chin and turned to ask the actor behind her: "Are you nervous?"

"A little bit, but not too nervous. Bailu, didn't you say that we should treat the people below as potatoes?" A girl said with a smile. Qiao Bailu said seriously: "I suddenly realized that it's not okay to treat them as potatoes. They don't look like potatoes! How about this, you treat them as purple cabbage, or purple onions? Or, burnt potatoes?"

Several people burst out laughing. Liu Aiping couldn't help but pinch Qiao Bailu's arm: "Don't joke around. It will be terrible if they start laughing later."

Then he looked at the actors seriously and said, "Take it easy. Act the same way you normally act in rehearsal. Don't be nervous, but don't take it lightly either."

Several people responded quickly. Liu Aiping wanted to say something, but Qiao Bailu waved her hand and said, "Stop talking. It's already this late. I believe everyone knows what's going on. I've said it many times before. Now we just have to wait and see the result."

Liu Aiping nodded and stood with her to listen carefully to the voices in front. The singing style of the song has only become popular in the past two years. It is not easy to sing along, and there are people dancing around. It is not easy to change the style at any time.

They couldn't see the reactions of the audience in front of them, but after the three-minute singing session, the applause from below was enough to let them know that the first show was a success.

The host smiled and said a few words, then announced the name of the second program in time - Light of the Future.

The stage lights came on, and a boy was lying in a semicircular cabin. Behind the cabin was a projection. The boy on the screen looked exactly like the boy lying down, except that the boy on the screen was wearing a long gown and a school scarf.

"Emma, so this is how people wore clothes in ancient times?" The line sounded, and the person on the screen raised his hand to look at his clothes in surprise: "This is really not easy, it is worthy of being a game cabin made by Future Company, it is 98% realistic. Oh, by the way, it is said that eating can also have taste and smell! Go and have a look!"

As he spoke, the boy on the screen started running. Then the doorbell rang outside, and a round robot slid to the door from the corner of the wall: "Please enter your fingerprint."

The woman standing outside looked anxious. She raised her hand and pressed the middle button. The robot's dull voice rang out, "Identity confirmed, Mom, please come in."

The woman rushed in quickly and grabbed her son from the game cabin: "Hurry, your father was in a car accident! He is in the hospital now!"

The boy was stunned for a moment, then he crawled out and ran out with the woman.

Qiao Bailu couldn't see the stage in front of her, so she could only imagine the scene by following the sound. Xie Jiayuan studied biomedical engineering, and her program was more or less related to Xie Jiayuan's major.

The whole story is about an ordinary boy who was playing games online at home. His father suddenly got into a car accident, so he rushed to the hospital with his mother. While waiting for the operation, the film shows the medical equipment of the future and warns people not to forget history and culture.

In the past two years, the country has been vigorously developing the economy, and the pace has been a bit fast. This speed has made society impetuous. At the current speed, if we only develop science and technology and the economy, it is estimated that in a few hundred years, historical culture will really become a thing of the past.

There are prospects and reviews, and this script has a beginning and an end. Most importantly, Qiao Bailu had read a lot of novels in her previous life, and her imagination is rich enough. All the future instruments that appear in the stage play are amazing.

When the actors left the stage, the applause was much louder than the first show. Liu Aiping's eyes widened with surprise: "Bai Lu, we succeeded! We really succeeded!"

Qiao Bailu reached out and patted her shoulder: "If I don't succeed, I'll be sorry for your busyness these days, Senior Liu, thank you so much for this period of time. If it weren't for you, I would definitely not be able to do it."

"I want to thank you too. If it weren't for your script, I wouldn't have succeeded." Liu Aiping also hurriedly said. Just then the actors came back, and Qiao Bailu thanked everyone again. Everyone also thanked Qiao Bailu, and they bowed to each other.

Liu Aiping chuckled: "Don't thank me anymore. The fact that we didn't fail this time is also the result of our joint efforts. Everyone has contributed and worked hard. No matter who is missing, this program will not be successful! To celebrate, I'll treat everyone to a midnight snack, okay?"?

The crowd responded with a roar, and everyone laughed and pushed each other to change clothes and remove makeup, because there were still some bad performances to come. This evening party was more strict, and they were not allowed to go out before the time, so after changing clothes, they had to go to the front to be the audience.

Fortunately, the quality of the programs is quite high, and Qiao Bailu will not be impatient.

As soon as I sat down, Xie Jiayuan sent me a text message - Congratulations, this is a success. I just saw that the school leaders were applauding. The show was very good.

"Thank you. We're having a big dinner today. Do you want to go?"

"Your treat?"

"Of course not. Senior Liu is treating us, but you can bring your family members."

"Go ahead."

During the two and a half hour show, Qiao Bailu occasionally sent text messages to Xie Jiayuan and whispered a few words to Zhou Mengyao and Yao Lingling beside her, but the time was quickly passed. When the show ended, everyone stood up and applauded. Qiao Bailu finally breathed a sigh of relief and hunched over to come out to find Xie Jiayuan.

After the school celebration, someone soon came to visit. It was an acquaintance. Qiao Bailu looked at the person sitting opposite her in surprise: "Teacher Zhou, why are you here? Aren't you filming in Province Z?"

The screenwriter also has to follow the crew. On the one hand, he can explain the play to the actors so that they know more clearly what the playwright wants to express, and on the other hand, he can modify the script at any time. If some actors have poor acting skills, the screenwriter will consider it and change the role of that person slightly, such as changing the front view to the side view, changing the quarrel to a fight, etc.

Shili Hongzhuang is currently being filmed, so Zhou He should be there too.

"I also came back to attend the school celebration." Zhou He said with a smile, motioning Qiao Bailu to sit down. "I watched the show yesterday and thought the stage play was pretty good, so I asked about it. I didn't expect it to be your work. It's very well written."

"Thank you, Teacher Zhou." Qiao Bailu blushed and said shyly, "I'm still in the learning and exploration stage, and the script has many imperfections, but I will definitely work hard in the future."

"I'm optimistic about you, too." Zhou He said with a smile, paused, and put down his teacup: "Are you going to be a screenwriter in the future?"

Qiao Bailu nodded quickly: "Yes." Glancing at Zhou He, Qiao Bailu had an idea in her mind, but she didn't dare to propose it rashly. What if Teacher Zhou had any taboos? It would be fine if it didn't work out, but it would be a waste to offend Teacher Zhou.

It's a rare opportunity, not everyone can meet Teacher Zhou. Especially since she just debuted, no, to be precise, she hasn't debuted yet, and her first work was adapted by Teacher Zhou, which has nothing to do with her.

Opportunities are fleeting. If you miss them, you may regret it for the rest of your life.

Unable to make up her mind, Qiao Bailu felt like there were dozens of mice in her heart, and she was so anxious that she could hardly sit still.

Zhou He was such a careful person that he could tell at a glance and couldn't help but raise his eyebrows: "Why, is there something urgent later?"

"No, Mr. Zhou, I'm asking you something..." Qiao Bailu blushed and waved her hand quickly. Seeing Mr. Zhou's kind smile, she couldn't help but say, "What do you think of my qualifications? Can I make it as a screenwriter?"

"If you ask me, you have pretty good talent and a rich imagination, but you lack a little experience and can't grasp the plot twists for now. Although scripts and novels are both literary works, there are some differences between them."

Zhou He thought for a while before giving a very pertinent comment: "But if you study hard, you can still go smoothly on this path."

"Then I want to ask Teacher Zhou to be my teacher. What do you think?" Qiao Bailu was more cautious, with a tremor in her voice when she spoke. After she finished speaking, she quickly waved her hand: "If Teacher Zhou doesn't want to, forget it, but can I still ask Teacher Zhou for advice in the future?"

Zhou He was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help laughing: "You want to take me as your master?"

Seeing that Zhou He didn't look angry, Qiao Bailu nodded quickly, "Yes, in fact, I've watched TV shows written by famous screenwriters in the circle, and I think that Mr. Zhou He is the most suitable for me. I can't write about grand and open scenes, and Mr. Zhou is good at capturing delicate emotions. For example, Mr. Zhou's most famous drama, Wan Jia Deng, the scene where Nan Zhu brushed the sheets at home with a brush, I remember it very clearly. And the scene in A Thousand Mountains and Thousands of Rivers where the heroine sang nursery rhymes while holding her son's swaddling clothes was also heartbreaking, so I thought..."

Zhou He raised his eyebrows: "It seems that you have really done your homework. However, when others look for teachers, they look for teachers in areas that they are not good at. In terms of emotions, you actually don't need a teacher anymore."

"Teacher, my strength is in describing emotions. I don't need to give up my strengths and start learning from my weaknesses again. Of course, it doesn't mean that I have completely given up my weaknesses. Teacher Zhou is not bad at describing big scenes. Take the drama "Wan Jia Deng" for example. The scene where the heroine was chased was very gripping and not weak at all. The scene in "Thousands of Mountains and Rivers" where Nanzhu led the troops to attack Shanhaiguan was not a small detail. If this is not considered a big scene, then I don't know what is considered a big scene."

Everyone likes to hear good words, especially Qiao Bailu, who was not deliberately flattering. Many of her words touched Zhou He's heart. Therefore, Zhou He's expression became more kind: "There are many people in the circle who are more famous than me..."

"But I have a connection with Teacher Zhou. It was Teacher Zhou who taught me the tricks of script writing last time." Qiao Bailu took advantage of the situation. Seeing that Zhou He did not firmly reject the idea, she immediately served him tea and water and patted his shoulders. Anyway, Zhou He was old enough to be her father.

"Teacher Zhou, will you accept me? I promise that I will study hard with you in the future and will never bring shame to your reputation!" Qiao Bailu hurriedly tried to please him. In fact, she had already had this idea in mind.

There are indeed many professors at Q University who are suitable for her to study under, the most famous of which is Dean Li. Huang Qiwen in her class also wants to become his disciple.

But Dean Li is over 60 years old, and the conditions for accepting students are very strict. After being a professor for decades, he has less than ten students. Qiao Bailu thought she didn't have the face to do so, so she simply didn't go against the wall.

As for the others, either their styles were different or their personalities were incompatible. Besides, after much thought, Qiao Bailu decided not to take the postgraduate entrance examination, so there was no need to look for a professor at school anymore.

Before 2006, college students were still relatively valuable, but after three years, college students were worse than dogs, and graduate students were everywhere. She really didn't need to delay for another three years. Moreover, she studied literature, so it didn't really make much difference whether she went to graduate school or not.

Without graduate school, the professors in the school are not as good as the teachers outside the school. At least, in terms of the market, people outside the school are definitely more perceptive than those in the school.

There are enough people in the industry who are old enough, talented enough, experienced enough, and have won enough trophies. Zhou He is one of them. What's more, Qiao Bailu has received guidance from Zhou He before, and now Zhou He has watched a stage play and came to meet the screenwriter. This is simply a good opportunity that fell from the sky. Qiao Bailu herself feels that if she doesn't seize it, she will be too sorry for herself.

Thinking about it, he became more diligent: "Teacher Zhou, you also said that I still have a little bit of talent. If I become your disciple, I will work like a slave for you in the future. If you tell me to go east, I will never go west. If you tell me to jump into the river, I will never jump into it!"

Zhou He couldn't help laughing because of her. After laughing, he touched his chin and said, "Alright, to be honest, I think you are quite pleasing to the eye, you are sweet-mouthed, you have good literary talent, and you are willing to learn. It's not a loss for me to accept you as my student."

Qiao Bailu was so happy that her gums popped out. She quickly brought the teacup to Zhou He and shouted in a clear voice, "Teacher! When will you let me complete the apprenticeship ceremony?"

Zhou He smiled and touched the teacup: "How about this, I will be back to Province Z in a few days, let's do it before then, you invite a few classmates, we will set up a banquet, and then you can perform the ceremony and that's it."

Qiao Bailu nodded hurriedly, thinking about what gift to give as a disciple. She would ask other people about their gifts as disciples. Times have changed. She couldn't ask her to give beans and bacon, could she?

"I will also bring your teacher's wife and a few friends to witness this happy event. You should be prepared." Zhou He smiled and said. Qiao Bailu nodded and left her phone number. After seeing Zhou He off, she immediately called Zhou Yanhua: "Do you know what Teacher Zhou He likes? And what does Teacher Zhou He's wife like?"

Zhou Yanhua was quite curious: "Why are you asking about this?"

"I'm going to become your apprentice. I need to find out what the teacher and his wife like in advance, so that I can choose a thoughtful gift for them." Qiao Bailu smiled so hard that her teeth were visible. Zhou Yanhua could tell the joy in her voice without even looking at her: "Really? This is great news. You're really lucky. Teacher Zhou doesn't have any other hobbies. He just likes to drink tea and read books. If you want to give her a gift, tea is the right choice. Your wife likes to grow flowers the most. You can pick a pot of blooming peonies. I guarantee she'll like it."

Qiao Bailu quickly agreed, and then she became curious: "Sister Zhou, how do you know so much?"

"Of course I know. Your teacher Zhou is my distant cousin. Otherwise, how do you think I was able to get Teacher Zhou to write a script for us?" Since Qiao Bailu was going to become his apprentice, Zhou Yanhua didn't hide it and said with a smile, "Isn't it because of connections?"

Qiao Bailu blinked and thought about it again before she understood what Zhou Yanhua meant. She couldn't help but feel depressed: "Why didn't Sister Zhou introduce me earlier? This way I could become your disciple earlier."

Zhou Yanhua coughed lightly: "Isn't it because you didn't mention it?" After saying that, she felt a little guilty: "Okay, okay, since it's a formal apprenticeship, you have to dress more decently when the time comes. Go buy clothes and gifts quickly. I won't bother you anymore. See you later."

After hanging up the phone immediately, Qiao Bailu twitched her lips and turned to call Xie Jiayuan. Such a good thing naturally had to be shared with Xie Jiayuan.

Chapter 57

May 1st to 3rd was a short holiday. She called Qiao's father and mother two days ago and told them about the apprenticeship. Since it was going to be a grand ceremony, it would be best if the elders could be present.

Although Mr. and Mrs. Qiao didn't quite understand these things, when they heard that their daughter was going to study under a particularly famous cultural figure, they immediately packed up and planned to take the train over.

Xie Jiayuan was stunned: "When will it arrive?"

"Tomorrow." Qiao Bailu said with a smile. Qiao Zhenting ate strawberries and laughed, "That's great. I have a day off, so I'll take my parents to City B. They've never been here before, so they must be very interested. We also need to go see the house you bought. By the way, didn't they say they'll hand over the house? When will it be handed over?"

"It will be delivered in October. They will come in batches. We bought relatively late, probably the third batch. The house will be delivered in October. In December, the property management will organize an interview and apply for the property certificate. We will renovate it at the beginning of next year and we will be able to move in by the end of the year."

If you calculate, at that time, she would be six months into her senior year. If she didn't plan to take the postgraduate entrance examination, she could start her own stay-at-home life.

Xie Jiayuan frowned and thought about what she was going to say: "Uncle Qiao and his friends will be here tomorrow, so how about I stay in a hotel for the next two days?"

"Why do you have to stay in a hotel for two days?" Qiao Bailu was a little surprised, and then clapped her hands: "Ah, are you worried that my parents won't accept you? It doesn't matter, I'll just say good things for you when the time comes."

Xie Jiayuan's eyes widened: "You mean, are you going to confess our matter to your parents?"

Qiao Bailu nodded: "Yes, we are both twenty years old, not young anymore, why can't we be honest? Why, do you still want to drag it out?"

The difference between being honest and not being honest lies in responsibility. If both families acquiesce to this matter, then there is an extra responsibility, and there will be no irreconcilable conflicts in the future, and the two people will be tied together. If anyone dares to be unfaithful, not only the partner, but also the parents at home will not agree.

Xie Jiayuan's eyebrows curved, and he smiled foolishly: "Why would I not want to? It's just that you didn't say it before, so I thought..."

"Well, let my parents meet you this time. By the way, Qiao Zhenting, pack your things quickly. You and Xie Jiayuan will live in the same room for the next two days, and let my parents live in your room." Qiao Bailu turned around and said. Qiao Zhenting put down the bowl of strawberries and clapped his hands in response, "I see. I'll go pack it up now. Actually, there's nothing to pack. It's not like my parents haven't been to my room before. You washed the sheets and quilt covers for me last week. I've only slept there for two days. How about taking out the bedding to dry in the sun tomorrow?"

"Okay, then Xie Jiayuan and I will go downstairs to buy some toothbrushes and towels." Qiao Bailu stood up and pulled Xie Jiayuan: "Don't sit and watch TV all the time. I remember you have homework, right?"

"Watching TV is my homework. Our teacher asked us to write a review of this TV series." Qiao Zhenting pointed at the TV and said, "Okay, okay, I know my limits. You should go quickly. It's getting late. Go early and come back early. Go to bed early and get up early. We have to pick someone up at the train station tomorrow."

Xie Jiayuan opened the door and pulled Qiao Bailu out: "Bailu, do you really want to be honest? Then can I go when you become my disciple?"

"Of course I have to go. You're my boyfriend, and you're not someone I want to be ashamed of. Why can't I go?" Qiao Bailu said with a smile, but she was a little worried. "The apprenticeship is scheduled for the day after tomorrow. The teacher said we can just do it at home, but the teacher has invited a few friends. I have friends here too, plus my parents, Qiao Zhenting, and you. I'm afraid the teacher's house can't accommodate them. Besides, it's not good to ask the teacher's wife to cook for us when we go to be apprentices, so I'm thinking, is it more appropriate to book the place in a hotel?"

"I also think the hotel is more appropriate." Xie Jiayuan thought for a moment and said, "In fact, you should invite Zhou Yanhua and the editor from Huahong as well. After all, this opportunity is very important."

Bella Qiao clapped her hands: “Yeah, I almost forgot, so I’ll call the teacher and ask?”

Xie Jiayuan nodded, and Qiao Bailu hurriedly took out her cell phone to make a call. After just two rings, Zhou He answered the phone immediately. Qiao Bailu did not directly ask Zhou Yanhua and the others to come. She only asked, "Teacher, Sister Zhou and the others have been kind to me. If it weren't for their help, I would have to run into more obstacles. Do you think I should invite them to the apprenticeship banquet this time?"

Zhou He pondered for a moment and said, "Well, we still have to invite them. There will definitely be many opportunities for cooperation in the future. It's not like we don't have any contact with each other. Invite them all over, so that the ceremony can be more solemn. I also have a few people to introduce to you. They are all in Beijing. It's also a coincidence. I just called and said I'll be back tomorrow, so I can catch up the day after tomorrow."

Qiao Bailu quickly suggested holding the wedding in a hotel, and Zhou He agreed, probably because he was afraid that his wife would be too tired. However, both the master and the apprentice were vying to book a place, and in the end Zhou He, relying on his seniority and age, overpowered Qiao Bailu and directly named a place, asking Qiao Bailu to bring her family there at 10 o'clock the day after tomorrow.

After hanging up the phone, Qiao Bailu was still a little uneasy: "Teacher wants to book the banquet by himself, isn't that a bit too much?"

After all, she was the only one who benefited from this matter. Now even the banquet had to be paid for by Teacher Zhou, which made Qiao Bailu feel even more embarrassed. Xie Jiayuan reached out and rubbed her hair: "Don't worry, you just need to appreciate Teacher Zhou's kindness. In the future, you just need to show more respect to Teacher Zhou, right?"

Qiao Bailu nodded quickly, turned to the supermarket, bought a toothbrush and a towel, and remembered that the slippers at home were just enough, so she bought two pairs of sandals. As for the rest, she didn't know what Qiao's father and mother brought, so she could only wait until they picked up the people tomorrow.

The two of them took the sleeper train at night and arrived at six in the morning. After sleeping all night on the train, they were still in good spirits. They kept chattering along the way: "Are you really going to become my disciple? I only heard you say that this Teacher Zhou is very famous. How is he famous?"

"Mom, the Wan Jia Deng that you liked to watch a few years ago was written by Teacher Zhou." Qiao Bailu turned around, and her mother's eyes widened immediately: "Oh, really? That's really, too famous! I love that TV series. If you take him as your teacher, can you also write a TV series like that in the future?"

Father Qiao coughed lightly and said, "Calm down. Teacher Zhou is a cultured person. You are too country bumpkin if you keep chattering like this. Be careful that Teacher Zhou doesn't look down on Bai Lu!"

"Dad, Teacher Zhou is not that kind of person." Qiao Bailu said with a smile. Although she had only met Teacher Zhou twice, she was still pretty good at judging people. Plus, Zhou Yanhua also said something, so Teacher Zhou's character was still quite good.

However, Mother Qiao was still a little nervous: "Is he really not going to look down on you? Otherwise, why don't we just not go? Just wait at home and give you a celebration party later?"

"Mom, my becoming your disciple is a big deal, a big deal for a lifetime, how can you not show up? Don't worry, a son will never dislike his mother. If Teacher Zhou really dislikes you, I won't become your disciple."

Qiao Bailu waved generously, and Qiao's mother waved her hand quickly: "Don't, this is a rare opportunity. If Teacher Zhou doesn't like us, your father and I will go outside and wait. Don't lose your temper."

They talked all the way home, and when they entered the house, they started to fuss again: "Jiayuan lives here too? Are you living together?"

As she said that, Mother Qiao turned around and looked at Qiao Bailu with a look of disappointment: "You, come here!"

Dragging her to the bedroom, Qiao Bailu did not dare to resist. She winked at Xie Jiayuan who looked anxious and worried, and followed Qiao's mother into the house: "Mom, don't be nervous. Although we live under the same roof, we live in separate rooms. If you don't believe me, ask Zhenting. Zhenting lives in the room opposite. We really didn't do anything."

Qiao's mother was very suspicious, but Qiao Bailu had a strong witness: "Really? I swear, look, the locks on the door are all in good condition. I always lock the door when I go to bed at night. I always listen to you the most. I will listen to whatever you say. I promise!"

Raising her hands, Qiao Bailu said with a smile: "You can live here peacefully for the next two days. Take a shower first, then go to bed. I'll take you to eat delicious food at noon. In the afternoon and evening, we'll go shopping. I'll buy clothes for you and dad. I've made money again!"

I had no money after I bought the house, but I had finished two books before. The income from the online book not only paid off the mortgage, but also left a lot of money every month. The royalties from publishing the book also increased a lot. It used to be 10,000 or 20,000 yuan, and it rose to 40,000 or 50,000 yuan last year, and it is directly 80,000 yuan this year. This is just the first edition, and the reprint will cost extra.

Qiao Bailu firmly believed that the manuscript fee would get higher and higher. Now it was paid by word count, but within two years, it would be paid by royalties. By then, a book worth hundreds of thousands would not be a dream!

"We brought clothes." Mother Qiao was instantly diverted from the topic and hurried out to call Father Qiao: "Bring the bag of clothes over, go change clothes quickly, and let Bai Lu see if the clothes we prepared are okay."

Mother Qiao has been working hard to make money in the past two years and has lost a lot of weight. Although she is still a little plump, it is a good-looking plumpness. She is unlike before, with a fat belly and thick legs, a typical middle-aged woman.

In addition, she had attended several parties with Qiao's father and paid some attention to her appearance. Qiao Bailu even subscribed to fashion magazines for her, so she was able to be influenced by them.

So, now that Qiao's mother has dressed up, her appearance is considered to be slightly above average, which can be rated 70 points. The lotus-colored dress is simple and elegant, with brown wedge-heeled crocodile-mouth sandals and a bright red handbag. The details are matched with a set of gold jewelry. It can't be blamed that Qiao's mother is tacky. It's really her temperament. Wearing jade is out of place. It's not as good as wearing gold to look cheerful and rich.

There is no need to say anything about Mr. Qiao, he is very good-looking. Qiao Bailu and her brother look more like Mr. Qiao. Although they have dark skin, men with darker skin look more manly. They also look very stylish in suits.

Qiao Bailu never expected that her parents would match clothes so well. She gave them a thumbs up again and again: "Great, they look really good. Mom and Dad, did you buy this outfit yourselves?"

"No, I paid a shopping guide to buy everything." Qiao's mother said happily, gesturing with her hand: "Three thousand, hired a shopping guide, from head to toe, clothes, shoes, jewelry, bags, your father and I just need to tell you a budget, is this money worth spending?"

"That's right, it's worth it! You actually know about shopping guides!" Qiao Bailu was even more surprised. Qiao's mother waved her hand: "Hey, actually we don't know either. Your father has a business partner, and his wife and I are quite familiar with each other. Didn't you call and say you wanted to be his apprentice? I was nervous and didn't know what to wear, so I called her and asked her. She recommended a shopping guide to us."

"Of course!" Qiao Bailu gave a thumbs up. "I was thinking that when you guys come over, I'll take you to the supermarket to look around and pair up a few more outfits. Shopping guides in specialty stores are usually free, but the price is not low. If you hire a shopping guide and the clothes are not too expensive, it will be a good deal."

Mother Qiao waved her hand and said, "It's not expensive. Your father and I have a budget of 50,000 yuan. This set of jewelry will cost more than 10,000 yuan in total. I can pass it on to you and your brother in the future. It's a valuable item. The shopping guide said that this dress is simple and elegant, and it will never go out of style. It can be worn for two or three years."

Qiao Bailu burst out laughing. Her mother was still adorable. When she was silent, she looked like a noble lady, but when she spoke, she looked like a kind and lovely aunt. No, now she can't be called aunt. Mom has taken care of herself, and her complexion is much better. She looks much younger. Um, elder sister?

Because the clothes were prepared for tomorrow, in this hot day, Qiao's mother didn't dare to wear more, and urged Qiao's father to change. Qiao Bailu had prepared comfortable pajamas for them before, and the two of them took a bath and fell asleep.

I slept until after two o'clock, and it was Qiao Bailu who woke me up, for fear that I would sleep too much during the day and would not be able to sleep at night. Besides, I would not be able to sleep well if I didn't eat lunch.

This is the first time for my parents to come to City B, so they have to try the famous roast duck. Qiao Bailu borrowed Zhou Mengyao's car yesterday, and it happened to be useful in the next few days. She and Xie Jiayuan got their driver's licenses in March, and Qiao Zhenting got his two days ago.

"By the way, Bailu, my parents don't speak Mandarin." Qiao Bailu knew her parents' tastes better. She flipped through the menu and ordered some dishes. As soon as the waiter left, Qiao's mother nervously grabbed the teacup and said, "What should I do?"

Although Z City is big, there are still many locals, and Mr. and Mrs. Qiao can understand their dialect. But in B City, those people may not understand. However, both of them are in their thirties or forties, and it is not possible for them to learn Mandarin again.

Qiao Bailu asked two people to try it out, and sure enough, when they started speaking, they could understand it, but the accent was very strange and stiff, it was worse than speaking in dialect.

"It's okay. I'll try to follow you and help you translate. If I'm not here, let Zhenting or Jiayuan follow you. Anyway, there will always be someone to accompany you, so you don't have to worry at all."

Qiao Bailu finished speaking with a laugh, not taking it to heart at all: "Actually, when you speak Mandarin, others can understand it, it's just a little bit strange, but it doesn't matter, my friends all know that I'm from Province H, they may find it strange, but no one will laugh at you, don't you trust my vision of making friends? Besides, what's wrong with having an accent? Uncle Dashan didn't speak pure Mandarin on the Spring Festival Gala, but everyone could understand him anyway, right? So, you don't have to be nervous at all, just say whatever you want, speak Mandarin if you want, and ask Zhenting or Jiayuan to translate for you if you don't want to."

As he said that, he winked at Xie Jiayuan: "Xie Jiayuan is looking forward to this opportunity to show off, don't you think so, Xie Jiayuan?"

Xie Jiayuan nodded quickly: "Yes, uncle and aunt, you don't have to worry. In fact, there are many people in City B who speak the local dialect. Just tell them when the time comes. Teacher Zhou is very kind and will definitely not mind."

Although Mr. and Mrs. Qiao were still nervous, there was nothing they could do. No one could speak Mandarin fluently in just one night. Even Qiao Bailu had to go to school for more than ten years before she could speak it.

The roast duck was served. Seeing the delicious food, Mr. and Mrs. Qiao put the matter aside for the time being. Neither of them was the type to dwell on trivial matters. It had come to this point, so what else could they do?

It’s time to eat, it’s time to drink, and then go shopping after eating and drinking.

The next morning, Qiao Bailu was sleeping soundly when she heard the door banging. It was Qiao's mother's voice outside the door: "Bailu, what time is it? Why are you still sleeping? Get up quickly!"

Qiao Bailu took out her phone. It was eight o'clock! She was a light sleeper. Once she was woken up, she couldn't fall asleep again. It was a pity to waste such a good vacation. She rolled on the bed, sat up, and ruffled her hair. She was about to go out in her pajamas, but suddenly she remembered that Qiao's father and mother were there. She said yesterday that she and Xie Jiayuan didn't do anything.

Well, in fact, they really didn't do anything, but as boyfriend and girlfriend, they love each other and are full of vigor and vitality. After hugging, they want to kiss, and after kissing, they want to touch. So, except for the last step, they even know where the moles on each other's body are.

Normally, it would be nothing for Qiao Bailu to just walk out in her pajamas, but by wearing that now, wasn’t it clearly telling Qiao’s father and Qiao’s mother that they were particularly “familiar” with each other?

Thinking of the expression that Qiao's mother would have when she understood, Qiao Bailu quickly shook her head and changed her clothes quickly. After she was done with the clothes, she opened the door to wash. Qiao's mother sat on the sofa and nodded with satisfaction when she saw that Qiao Bailu was dressed neatly.

"Mom, did you make breakfast?" Qiao Bailu asked when she smelled the fragrance from the kitchen. Qiao's mother nodded and said, "I saw that your refrigerator was quite well stocked, so I cooked some porridge and fried two dishes. But why are there no steamed buns?"

Xie Jiayuan just came out and said hurriedly, "I usually go to buy breakfast in the morning. Auntie, what do you want to eat in the morning? I'll go buy it right away. Fried dough sticks, steamed buns, sesame cakes, or steamed buns?"

Mr. Qiao came out of Qiao Zhenting's room in high spirits: "Let's eat a little bit. Anyway, if we can't finish it, we can put it in the refrigerator and eat it tomorrow morning."

Xie Jiayuan nodded quickly, opened the door and went to buy breakfast. Father Qiao went directly to Xie Jiayuan's room, first stretched out his hand to pull up Qiao Zhenting who was still sleeping soundly on the bed, and then looked carefully at Xie Jiayuan's room.

He went out and went to the kitchen and muttered to his wife, "I looked, there's nothing in Xie's room except books. I guess it's like what my daughter said, they live separately and don't do anything."

Mother Qiao rolled her eyes. If Xie Jiayuan was going to clean up, it would be strange for a rough guy like you to see it! Kids nowadays are more clever than each other! If you knew they were coming, why didn't you clean up early and get a confession?

It was already nine o'clock after breakfast, and Qiao's mother urged them to leave, fearing that they would be late. Qiao Bailu explained several times that the hotel was near the school, and it would only take half an hour to walk there, or ten minutes to drive there, so there was no need to leave so early.

But Mother Qiao pretended not to hear anything. She changed her clothes and stood at the door. There was no choice but for Qiao Bailu to change her clothes quickly.

Today she was wearing a sky blue dress, white single-heeled sandals, a white bag, and silver jewelry. Anyway, she was a poor student, gold was too old-fashioned, jade was not enough, so it was better to be plain.

The dish prepared for Teacher Zhou was tea, and the dish prepared for Mrs. Zhou was a pot of peonies. It was not top quality, but it was also top grade. She spent tens of thousands of dollars to buy it. Her arms were shaking with nervousness when she held it.

I heard that Teacher Zhou has a daughter who is three years younger than her. Influenced by her parents, she likes reading books very much, so she prepared a set of hardcover editions of the Four Great Classics. Although it is a bit cliché, it is also a thoughtful gesture. You can't just give her a popular novel now, right?

Originally, Qiao Bailu was a little nervous, but seeing that Qiao's father and mother were so nervous that they didn't know when to put down their hands, she suddenly stopped being nervous and was able to comfort her parents: "It's just a teacher's appointment. Dad, wasn't it quite normal when you held a thank-you banquet for me when I took the college entrance examination? Don't be nervous, really, everyone is very easy to talk to."

Mother Qiao wiped her palms with a tissue. "How can it be the same? We won't have to see each other after the teacher's farewell banquet. You've graduated from high school anyway. But how far you can go in the future depends on how much the teacher cares about you. What if we are rude and affect the impression of you in the teacher's mind..."

"It's really okay. The teacher is a very kind person with good character. He won't laugh at you." Qiao Bailu said with a smile and secretly took out her mobile phone to send a text message to Zhou Mengyao.

Ten minutes later, the car turned off in the hotel parking lot. Qiao Bailu opened the car door and a figure came running over from a distance. He greeted her with a smile, "Bailu, you're here? Hey, this is the uncle and aunt, right? Hello, my name is Zhou Mengyao, and I'm Bailu's good friend. You can just call me Mengyao."

Father and Mother Qiao nodded awkwardly. Zhou Mengyao was a very outgoing person. After spending a long time with Qiao Bailu and Yao Lingling, her words were no longer so choking. She was just cheerful and generous. "I heard Bailu talk about uncle and aunt a long time ago. She said that you are all very easy to get along with. I especially want the vegetable dumplings made by aunt, but Bailu is too stingy and only gives me one every time!"

Mother Qiao couldn't help laughing: "If you like, let's go there for dinner tonight?"

Zhou Mengyao was overjoyed and nodded quickly: "Yes, yes, thank you very much, Auntie. You are really as enthusiastic as Bai Lu said. And uncle, you are so handsome, much better looking than my dad. My dad has a pot belly."

Apart from his own daughter and son, it was the first time that Mr. Qiao was praised so directly. His face turned red and he quickly waved his hands: "It's just so-so. I also often go to construction sites and do a lot of work. Your father makes a lot of money and lives a life of luxury. It's different. At our age, it's better to be a little plump."

After talking for a few words, Mr. and Mrs. Qiao finally realized that they had been speaking awkward Mandarin. But looking at Zhou Mengyao's expression, she didn't care at all and was still smiling. Their original anxiety suddenly lessened and their expressions relaxed a little. They were finally not so nervous anymore.

Zhou Mengyao noticed this and winked and made a face at Qiao Bailu. Qiao Bailu reached out and pinched her cheek, smiling and nodded slightly, indicating that she owed Zhou Mengyao a big meal and would make it up to her later.

When we arrived at the hotel entrance, we met Yao Lingling again. Although Yao Lingling was not talkative, she was quite good at dealing with elders. She made Mr. and Mrs. Qiao happier, and even the slight awkwardness they felt slowly disappeared.

Qiao Bailu gave a thumbs up. It turned out that she would only relax if they saw it in person.

They arrived at 9:30, and Zhou Yanhua, Zhu Wenqing and other people who had helped Qiao Bailu also arrived one after another. At 9:50, Mr. Zhou and Mrs. Zhou walked in together, accompanied by a few strangers, who were probably the friends that Mr. Zhou had mentioned.

After everyone exchanged greetings, the apprenticeship ceremony officially began at 10 o'clock.

Chapter 58

The hotel receptionist came and took them to a decorated room. Zhou He and Mrs. Zhou took their seats. Qiao Bailu respectfully stepped forward and bowed three times. The receptionist brought tea and Qiao Bailu only had to take it and offer it to Zhou He and Mrs. Zhou with both hands.

Then she stood up and walked around to another table with a picture of Confucius hanging on it. Qiao Bailu took the incense handed to her by the receptionist, bowed three times, and respectfully placed the incense in the burner.

The next step was to present the apprenticeship gift and the return gift to the teacher. This was even simpler. Mr. Qiao was the one in charge. He had received instructions from Qiao Bailu before, so he hurried forward and handed over the gift package.

Zhou He nodded and took it with a smile, very happy: "The gift chosen by Bai Lu is very good, I like it very much." After saying that, he looked at Mrs. Zhou, and Mrs. Zhou also smiled: "Yes, thank you for your trouble, I like it too."

"Since you have become my disciple, you will be my disciple in the future. You will be different from ordinary students." Zhou He spoke gently, gave some routine instructions, and handed Qiao Bailu a small box: "I hope you will keep your original intention in the future and don't forget yourself."

Mrs. Zhou also smiled and pulled Qiao Bailu over. She was also a small box, but she spoke more directly than Zhou He: "When I saw you, I felt that you were pretty and had a good temperament. I liked you in my heart. Since you have become my disciple, you can treat me and your teacher Zhou as your elders in the future. Don't be polite. Come to our house tomorrow and my wife will make you something delicious."

Then he talked to Qiao's mother again: "Look, you came to City B without telling us in advance. If we had known earlier, we would have invited you to dinner yesterday, and we could have sat down and talked. Otherwise, after dinner, come to our house, and we can have a chat. Is this your son? The boy is very handsome. How old is he? What's his name? Where does he go to school now?"

Qiao Zhenting's face turned slightly red. He struggled a few times in embarrassment, but his hands were held by Madam Zhou, so he didn't dare to use any strength. When he couldn't get out, he gave up and replied obediently, "Hello, Auntie. My name is Qiao Zhenting. I'm nineteen this year. I go to school at Beijing Film Academy and will be a sophomore soon."

Zhou He took Qiao Bailu to meet people. He brought four or five friends with him today, all of whom were very close friends in the circle. The first one was the famous director Xu Honggang. Zhou He patted his shoulder with a smile and said, "This is Director Xu Honggang. He is mainly responsible for making movies. You probably don't need him now, so don't worry too much."

Xu Honggang glared at him unhappily: "Relationships are meant to be contacted only when they are needed, and if they are not needed, just ignore them and don't care about them?"

Zhou He nodded with a smile, and Qiao Bailu quickly called out, "Hello, Uncle Xu. My name is Qiao Bailu. Please take care of me."

Xu Honggang looked her up and down and nodded: "It must be good to have Lao Zhou accept you as his student. From what Lao Zhou said, you want to enter this circle in the future?"

"I want to follow the same path as my teacher and become a screenwriter." Qiao Bailu said quickly, and Xu Honggang didn't say anything. Zhou He reached out and pointed at another one: "This is Li Changhe, a famous producer. He produced my Wanjiadeng."

"This is Cao Zhenkun, also a director, good at making TV series."

"This is Bai Ling, deputy director of B City Satellite TV Station."

"This is Zhang Ran. Don't underestimate him because he is a man of action. He opened the film and television city in the east of City B."

Qiao Bailu had heard of the people present, and was surprised at the noble status of the visitors, while she greeted them politely. She also knew that these people came because of Zhou He's face, and she didn't plan to debut in the next two years, so she just followed and recognized them.

After saying hello, he huddled behind Zhou He, listening to their greetings and conversation while serving tea and water. When he was free, he just listened.

Unexpectedly, this obedient look made those people nod secretly, thinking that Zhou He's vision was not too bad. Although this student has no outstanding works yet, he is talented, sensible and self-aware, which is enough.

Qiao Bailu also took the time to secretly observe Mrs. Zhou. Mrs. Zhou was very easy-going and had already begun to impart her experience to Mrs. Qiao: "When it comes to growing flowers, it depends on their habits. Some flowers need to be watered frequently, while others cannot be watered at all."

Father Qiao, Qiao Zhenting and Xie Jiayuan, three grown men, could not interrupt the conversation between Mrs. Zhou, Mother Qiao, Sister Zhou Mengyao and Yao Lingling, oh, and Zhou He's seventeen-year-old daughter Zhou Minyu, so they had to sit aside and drink tea.

Zhou Minyu was a good child. Seeing that the three of them were silent, she felt that today was her parents' home court, and she was also the little host, so she had to help greet them. She shyly pushed the candy plate forward and said, "You guys eat too."

Father Qiao suddenly had an idea and found a topic to talk about: "You are Teacher Zhou's daughter, right? You are really pretty. How old are you this year? Where do you go to school?"

Zhou Minyu blinked, not quite understanding, so Mr. Qiao had to switch to Mandarin. Although his accent was a bit strange, it was still fluent. Zhou Minyu hurriedly replied, "I'm seventeen, still in high school, and I have a day off today."

"Oh, high school. High school is hard, right? Well, all students are like this. They work hard for three years, and then they can get into a good university. Then they can relax in the second half of their lives." Father Qiao said with a smile: "Which university do you want to go to in the future?"

"I want to apply to B University." Zhou Minyu's eyebrows were curved. She inherited the personalities of both parents and was gentle. Qiao Zhenting also relaxed a little and said with a smile, "Really? You are really smart. When I was in high school, I was very stupid and couldn't learn well. That's why I thought of taking training classes. Is your school far from Beijing Film Academy? If it's not far, you can come to visit me when you are free. I will take you to watch people filming. Our school often has crews selecting roles. I wanted to act, but my sister didn't allow me to. She insisted that I study hard in my freshman and sophomore years so that I can come out to film in my junior year."

"Your sister is right. The classes in the first and second years of college are quite tight. If you don't attend classes, you will fail. When you become a star in the future, it won't sound good if it gets out." Zhou Minyu said with a smile. Qiao's father reached out and slapped Qiao Zhenting: "Study hard, okay? You see, Minyu is younger than you, and she knows more than you!"

After talking more, the group of people became familiar with each other. In a blink of an eye, it was half past eleven. Qiao Bailu asked Teacher Zhou in a low voice, then stood up and called the waiter to serve the food.

Two tables were booked, one for men and one for women. Men wanted to drink, so it was not convenient for them to drink with women. However, Qiao Bailu still came over with a glass of wine to toast, as she was one of the protagonists today.

After the meal, the busy people went their separate ways, but Mrs. Zhou held onto Mrs. Qiao’s hand and refused to let go: “No, we agreed. Come to my house this afternoon and I’ll show you the chive flowers I grew.”

Qiao Bailu's mouth twitched. Look at Zhou Yanhua, chive flowers? Didn't you say before that you like to grow flowers, and it would be best to buy a pot of peonies?

Zhou Yanhua smiled and spread her hands, waving them: "The magazine has an interview this afternoon, I'll go over first, and come out for dinner when you're free. Uncle, aunt, Uncle Qiao, Aunt Qiao, I'm leaving first."

After saying hello, they left without hesitation. Zhou Mengyao and Yao Lingling had an appointment to go shopping, and after saying hello, they also left. Qiao Qiao Bailu took two steps back and reached out to pull Zhou Minyu: "Little Junior Sister, what kind of flowers does Master's Wife like to grow?"

"I like all kinds of flowers, including chives and peonies." Zhou Minyu is smart. She saw the quarrel between Zhou Yanhua and Qiao Bailu just now, and said with a smile: "Senior sister, don't worry. My mother is easy to please. She will like whatever you give her."

Qiao Bailu turned her head to look at her: "Junior sister, you are so sweet. By the way, I also bought you a gift. See if you like it."

After that, she called Qiao Zhenting. Qiao Zhenting had been carrying the box from beginning to end. It was so heavy that he quickly handed it over. Qiao Bailu asked Zhou Minyu to take a look and said, "If you don't like it, tell me what type you like. I'll change it for you next time."

"I like it. I've wanted to buy it for a long time, but my father insisted that he would buy it for me after I finished the college entrance examination." Zhou Minyu's eyes sparkled, and she reached out to touch the spine of the book: "Thank you, senior sister."

"You're welcome. It's not expensive." Qiao Bailu said with a smile. In fact, it was only three or four hundred yuan. Compared with the bag of tea and the pot of peonies, it was not expensive at all.

The little girl liked it very much and refused to let go. Seeing her like this, Mrs. Zhou couldn't help laughing and became more determined to invite the Qiao family to visit their home. She dragged and pulled Mrs. Qiao into the car.

Just then, Teacher Zhou also said that he had something to say, so Qiao Bailu hurried to follow, and so a group of people went to Zhou's house again.

Zhou He took Qiao Bailu to the study, took out a piece of paper, and wrote down a few books: "I will leave for Province Z tomorrow. If you have time, take a look at these books first. I will be back in the summer vacation, and you can come to class then."

Qiao Bailu nodded quickly: "Then teacher, call me when you come back?"

Zhou He nodded: "Well, when the time comes, you come over at nine o'clock every morning. If I am free, I will give you lessons. If I am not free, I will give you homework."

"Yes, thank you, teacher." Qiao Bailu nodded with a smile. Zhou He stood up with a smile: "You are also smart, but you can't be proud. There are many smart people in this world. As far as I know, there is a student in B University who is about your age and has published many books. Don't think you are so capable."

"I know. I also write novels on the website, and there are many people who do better than me." Qiao Bailu said hurriedly. Zhou He was a little confused: "On the website? Which website? Q station?"

"No, J-site." Qiao Bailu said hurriedly. Zhou He thought for a while and shook his head: "I don't remember much. Are you taking care of both sides now, writing for both publishing and the Internet?"

"Yes, choose a subject and write from different aspects at the same time. This can improve your writing skills and your control over the plot." It is easy to mix up the same subject. For example, if it is a story about family intrigue, it is easy to have a plot of poisoning and framing someone in one book and drowning and framing someone in another.

Although poisoning and drowning are different, they are both frame-ups and can generally be classified as one plot.

"Well, I've noticed that online literature has developed very quickly in the past two years, but..." Zhou He frowned, "There are places on the Internet where the laws are not sound."

"There are also many plagiarized articles." Qiao Bailu said with a smile, and it was quite rampant. Many popular articles were plagiarized in seconds. This is also one of the reasons why Qiao Bailu did not give up the physical world. Although there is a lot of money to be made online, overall, the physical world still makes more money.

Zhou He didn't know much about the Internet, but the general trend was that with computers becoming more and more popular, online literature would definitely develop faster and faster, so there was no need to stop it.

"Tell me about your recently published novels in general, except for Ten Miles of Red Makeup," Zhou He said. Although Qiao Bailu was puzzled, she also explained in detail: "Do you want to tell me about the ones on the Internet?"

"Tell me about it." Zhou He nodded. Qiao Bailu coughed lightly and started from her recent drafts. "They are all about rebirth. The story is about a woman in her twenties who failed in her previous life. Her husband cheated on her with her best friend. Moreover, she was killed by those two people. After rebirth..."

Zhou He raised his hand and pressed: "Please give me more details."

Qiao Bailu nodded and simply followed the outline. Zhou He touched his chin and said, "It's quite novel. Let's do this. You can adapt it into a script later. I'll give you an email address. Send it to my email address when you're done. I'll see what level you're at first."

"Okay." Qiao Bailu quickly reached out to take the piece of paper, wrote it down carefully, and put the note away so as not to forget it later.

"There's nothing else to say. It's very convenient to contact each other now. If I remember anything, I'll call you later." Zhou He said with a smile, stood up and walked out, and Qiao Bailu hurriedly followed.

Outside, Mrs. Zhou was making tea: "You guys should try it too. I don't know where the old man got the tea from, but I think it tastes pretty good. If you like it, bring some back."

"Hey, we don't want that. Jianjun and I don't like drinking tea. We usually drink mint water or tea at home." Mother Qiao said with a smile, holding the teacup and smelling it: "It smells really good, it must taste good."

"Are you planning to stay in City B for a few days this time? The kids are on vacation, so I can stay with you for a few more days."

"We are planning to stay for two days, but we will leave on the 7th. We are busy with business at home. Besides, we will only have three days off, so there is no need for them to worry about us. We will come and visit again when summer vacation starts."

"What business does your family run?"

"Jianjun is a construction contractor. This year he started his own construction company and has quite a lot of work. I opened a clothing store myself. Business is neither good nor bad, just enough to make a living."

"Wow, this construction company is pretty good. It's been making a lot of money in the past two years."

Qiao Zhenting couldn't stay idle and didn't like to listen to these things, so he tilted his head to talk to Zhou Minyu. Xie Jiayuan sat seriously on the sofa on the other side, and when he saw Qiao Bailu come out, his eyes lit up instantly.

Then the parents chatted and the younger generations gathered together to talk. Zhou Minyu was probably planning to study literature, and would ask about professional courses from time to time. However, after all, she was a child at heart, and she was gradually attracted by Qiao Zhenting's talk about interesting things in school.

Xie Jiayuan squeezed Qiao Bailu's palm and said, "Are you finally relieved now?"

Qiao Bailu nodded with a smile: "Well, with a teacher to lead the way, I will definitely become famous in two years. Just wait and see. There will be a lot of money in the future. Boy, you have to be obedient to have food to eat. I will support you."

Xie Jiayuan couldn't help laughing, and then he said, "Once the matter of going abroad is settled, shall I ask my parents to come over?"

Qiao Bailu blinked in confusion, and Xie Jiayuan gestured in the direction of Qiao's father and mother: "I have met your parents, you should also meet my parents. If I really go abroad, let's settle the matter first, so that both families know what's going on, and I can rest assured, okay?"

"Well, OK, I don't have any objection anyway." If she really had to be separated, she could only blame her bad luck. However, she still believed in Xie Jiayuan, and it wasn't like she couldn't see him anymore.

At around five o'clock, Mother Qiao asked to leave, but Mrs. Zhou was too enthusiastic and insisted on holding her back and not letting her go. She also took Mother Qiao to buy groceries. Father Qiao was left at Zhou's house, and he and Teacher Zhou looked at each other. The two of them really had nothing to say to each other.

After hesitating for a while, Mr. Qiao smiled and said, "Teacher Zhou is a cultured person. You see, I am a peasant. I didn't concentrate on studying before, thinking that going to school was useless. Now, when the time comes, I am hungry, so I am thinking about whether to apply for an adult school. But I feel that I am too old and afraid that I can't learn. What do you think, Teacher Zhou?"

Teacher Zhou nodded quickly: "This is a good thing. Sharpening the knife does not delay the chopping of wood. Think about it, you want to do something now, but you don't know much, so you have to find someone to explain it to you while you figure it out. It may take you three years. But if you go to school, you can learn things by yourself, spend one year studying, and another year solving the problem. You have saved one year, right?"

"But I'm afraid I can't keep up. Besides, I don't know what to learn." Mr. Qiao was a little frustrated. Teacher Zhou knew that he was a builder, so he gave some advice sincerely: "I think you should learn some courses on reading blueprints. You don't need to go to the construction site often now, so you don't need to understand it too much. It's good enough to understand the architectural drawings roughly. In addition, learn some management skills, manage talents, and manage the company. You will have to expand your company in the future. You can manage a small number of people now, but when there are more people in the future, will you still check and pay salaries one by one? You also need to learn who should do what."

Mr. Qiao suddenly realized that intellectuals are different, and hurriedly asked about the things he usually had doubts about. But Mr. Zhou is not a professional economist, his main job is a screenwriter, and he knows a little about business because he looked up information when writing scripts.

If the questions were simple, he could answer a few questions, but if the questions were complex, Teacher Zhou only had a vague understanding.

So, Teacher Zhou clapped his hands and said, "But, after all, I am not in your field. What I said is just my opinion as an outsider. It would be bad if I misled you. How about this, I recommend someone to you and let him talk to you later?"

Mr. Qiao was overjoyed. He didn't expect to gain such a great deal. He was so moved that he wanted to stand up and salute Teacher Zhou. Teacher Zhou went back to the study and found a business card. "Give me a try and treat me to a meal. It depends on you how much you can learn."

"Yes, yes, Teacher Zhou, this has been a great help." Mr. Qiao's father couldn't stop smiling. He had also suffered losses. In March this year, he lost a lot of money because of things on the construction site and problems with the drawings.

Normally he has no one to ask for advice, so having someone to give him some guidance is a blessing that cannot be bought with any amount of money.

Qiao Bailu was even more surprised. Qiao's father couldn't say anything to please him, but Qiao Bailu could. In an instant, she said things like "Teacher, you are the best," "Teacher, you are the most enthusiastic," "Teacher, I will definitely honor you in the future," and other random words, all sweet and random.

Teacher Zhou couldn't help laughing, and Zhou Minyu was stunned - she had never seen a disciple more caring than her own daughter, today was really an eye-opener.

In the evening, Mrs. Zhou made hotpot and everyone had a happy meal together. It was past eight o'clock before they drove away.

Mr. and Mrs. Qiao were full of praise: "Teacher Zhou is such a nice person. Bailu, you must be nicer to your teacher and his family in the future. When we return, your father and I will buy some more local specialties and send them to you."

"That's right. It's all about relationships. If you visit more often in the future, our two families will become closer. Your teacher and his wife are very nice people. They don't look down on our family. You have to listen to your teacher in the future."

Qiao Bailu nodded with a smile, and changed the topic to discuss where to go tomorrow. Qiao Zhenting was the first to express his opinion: "Of course we should go to the Forbidden City. If we come to City B and don't go there, it would be a wasted trip."

Xie Jiayuan has a different opinion: "There are only houses and some exhibits to see there, and you can see these things elsewhere. It's better to climb the Great Wall."

"It's not like we can't go at the same time. Let's go climb the Great Wall tomorrow morning, then go to the Forbidden City, and the day after tomorrow go to Prince Gong's Mansion and Houhai." Qiao's father and mother had train tickets for the 7th. Qiao Bailu turned around and pinched Qiao Zhenting again: "Do you know that you can take a leave of absence in two days to accompany your parents?"

Qiao Zhenting nodded quickly: "I know, I know, sister, please let go. Mom and Dad, look at your daughter. She bullied me like this when you were here, and when you were not around, she almost locked me out of the door."

Father Qiao waved his hand nonchalantly: "Your sister is doing this for your own good." After that, he fiddled with the business card in his hand and said, "I'm not going out tomorrow. I have to treat this person to dinner tomorrow. You don't have to follow me. Just your mother and I will go. By the way, you guys choose a hotel. I don't know which hotel in City B is better."

Mother Qiao didn't even glance at Qiao Zhenting, and said excitedly: "Speaking of which, when you go back later, can you give them a call first? And then see when they are free?"

Father Qiao nodded: "Yes, yes, yes, I was so excited that I forgot about this. I will call you when I get home."

Qiao Zhenting sang sadly while leaning on the chair: "Little cabbages, the fields are yellow..."

Chapter 59

Qiao Bailu didn't care much about Mr. Qiao's business. She only knew that Mr. Qiao and Mrs. Qiao were going to stay in City B for five days, and she and Qiao Zhenting had already planned where to go and what to buy.

But because of a business card given by Teacher Zhou, Mr. Qiao spent the rest of the days learning from the teacher. He had dinner with the teacher on the first day, and took a tour of the company on the second day. Of course, he just looked at the company's departments and so on. On the third day, he went to drink tea again, and on the fourth day, he was taken to the construction site for a tour. On the fifth day, well, it was time to pack up and go back home.

After sending the people away, Xie Jiayuan was called over by the class teacher, who said that the places for studying abroad had been decided, one for Xie Jiayuan and the other for Zhang Minmin.

Their department originally agreed to two places, but in the end, three people were selected. The class teacher's words were quite interesting - originally you and Liu Yueze were selected, but Director Cheng meant that Zhang Minmin's grades were also good, and it would be less tiring to work with a man and a woman. Director Zhao thought that Liu Yueze's academic performance was also good, so he planned to replace you. If Liu Yueze hadn't insisted, you would probably be in trouble this time.

Xie Jiayuan was not a nerd, and the meaning of this was clear enough. Zhang Minmin had taken the path of Director Cheng. She wanted to squeeze out Liu Yueze, but she didn't expect that Liu Yueze was not someone who could simply turn around and take the path of Director Zhao.

Although Director Cheng is called the director, he is actually also called the deputy. Director Zhao is the legitimate director of their department, but Director Cheng and Director Zhao are not mortal enemies. They are colleagues and will meet in the future. It is not good to be in opposition.

Therefore, Xie Jiayuan, who had no background, was in danger. But Liu Yueze, for some reason, helped Xie Jiayuan, so Xie Jiayuan was able to keep his place.

After leaving the class teacher's office, Xie Jiayuan frowned and thought carefully about when he and Liu Yueze became close friends. They were in the same department, both had excellent grades, and he had heard of each other, but he had never said hello when they met. Why would Liu Yueze help him?

After returning home, Qiao Bailu immediately rushed over to ask about the results. Xie Jiayuan told her about Liu Yueze: "Liu Yueze and I only talk to each other when we are doing experiments and occasionally when we need something. We don't usually interact with each other. Why would he help me?"

"This, probably out of kindness? Doing good things?" Qiao Bailu was puzzled, but didn't care: "You don't have to think about it all the time. If he has any intention, he will definitely not help for nothing. Let's prepare a thank-you gift later, find out his address and send it to him. If he has any requests, as long as we can do it, we will do it, as a favor. If he doesn't have any requirements, then keep it for now. Anyway, we are not asking him for help now. He can't force us to do anything, don't you think?"

Xie Jiayuan nodded in agreement and got up to make a phone call. Qiao Bailu was thinking about what to buy later. To be honest, buying gifts for people of the same age is actually the most difficult thing to do. As for the elders, whether it is supplements, clothes, or watches and ties, as long as it is not too out of line, it will be acceptable.

But for people of the same age, you still have to consider whether the other person likes you or not. If they don’t like you, then it will be a waste of time.

"Which class is Liu Yueze from? Why don't you find out what he likes?" Seeing Xie Jiayuan finished the call, Qiao Bailu said quickly. Xie Jiayuan shook his head: "Don't worry, I just asked for Liu Yueze's phone number. I'll talk to him first."

Qiao Bailu nodded quickly and leaned over to Xie Jiayuan's ear to listen.

"Hello? Who is this?" The voice on the other end was very cheerful. Xie Jiayuan said quickly, "I'm Xie Jiayuan. I just learned about the quota for studying abroad from my class teacher. Thank you."

There was a pause on the other end: "Xie Jiayuan? How do you know my phone number?"

"I asked my class teacher for it." Xie Jiayuan did not hide anything and said straight to the point: "Thank you for your help this time. If it weren't for you, I probably wouldn't have been able to get this place."

"You're welcome. If you can't get the place this year, you can always get it next year. If you can't get it next year, you can always apply for a foreign graduate school. If you can't get a graduate school, you can always apply for a doctorate. Even if you don't have me, you have your own ability and you will always be able to achieve your goal."

The tone on the other end was a little casual: "I just want to find someone to keep me company. Boys are always more convenient than girls. It's hard to get along in foreign countries. Having a companion will always make things easier. So, I'm not thinking all about you. It's just a small favor."

"It's just a piece of cake for you, but it's a great favor to me, so I have to thank you." Xie Jiayuan smiled and said, "Are you free tonight? I'll treat you to a meal and thank you in person."

"That's fine. Let's meet at 6pm. You decide the location." Liu Yueze agreed straightforwardly. Xie Jiayuan gave a name, hung up the phone, and turned to look at Qiao Bailu. "Don't buy expensive gifts for now. We'll talk about it later. Anyway, we're not going abroad after leaving the horse farm. We'll meet again. By the way, what do you think of what I told you last time about meeting my parents?"

"Didn't I agree?" Qiao Bailu blinked, raised her hand with a smile, and hung it around his neck: "But don't call them to come over, so as to avoid trouble. I will accompany you to take a look during the summer vacation."

Before going abroad, Xie Jiayuan must go home.

At half past five, Xie Jiayuan and Qiao Bailu went out and waited at the hotel. Three minutes before six, Liu Yueze came up. After entering the room, he looked at Xie Jiayuan and then at Qiao Bailu: "I heard from others that you have a pretty girlfriend. She is really pretty. However, you are going abroad soon. Are you relieved?"

"Why can't I be at ease? I believe in her." Xie Jiayuan frowned slightly, but immediately relaxed his expression: "Thank you for your help with my going abroad. If you need any help in the future, just let me know. If I can do it, I will do my best."

"Well, it seems that you are not stupid." Liu Yueze touched his chin and sat down: "In that case, I just happen to need your help with something, but it's not a big deal. With your ability, you can definitely do it."

Xie Jiayuan and Qiao Bailu looked at each other and nodded: "You say."

"It's like this. I heard that you are better at chemistry than physics?" Liu Yueze saw that Xie Jiayuan was eager to repay the favor, so he didn't hide it. "I am just the opposite of you. I am better at physics than chemistry. My main focus in the future will be on aerospace materials. So, I want to ask you for extra lessons."

Xie Jiayuan was a little surprised: "Zhang Minmin's grades are also pretty good..."

To get a place to study abroad, you need more than just connections. You need to at least have good grades that the teacher will remember. But a teacher usually teaches hundreds of students. How can he remember them if you are not outstanding?

"Don't mention it. That girl has a head full of straw." Liu Yueze waved his hand unhappily. "I went to your place to ask around. People in her class said that this person is very arrogant. I'm looking for people to learn from each other, not for..."

Liu Yueze coughed lightly and said, "Anyway, I just thought that boys are more convenient than girls, so I just mentioned it casually. It didn't take much effort. If you want to thank me, then there's no need. Just help me in the future. If you don't want to, then I can't do anything about it."

Liu Yueze spread his hands and said, "I really don't have any other purpose. Don't think too much of me. Let me put it this way, you have heard of my grandfather, Liu Zhang, right?"

Qiao Bailu didn't understand, so she blinked and looked at Xie Jiayuan, who was surprised: "You are Professor Liu Zhang's grandson? A biological grandson?"

Liu Yueze nodded: "Of course it's my family, our family has been doing this for generations, you don't have to be too surprised, the reason I told you this is just to say that your quota is really just a matter of a word from me, you don't need to thank me at all."

Xie Jiayuan nodded quickly: "I am a mean person, I'm sorry."

"It's okay. What do you think of what I just proposed?" Liu Yueze asked while drinking tea. Qiao Bailu coughed lightly and said, "Well, how about we talk while we eat?"

I've been here for more than half an hour and haven't even ordered any food. The look in the waiter's eyes is already very strange, okay?

Liu Yueze reached out and touched his stomach: "If you didn't say it, I really didn't feel hungry. Now that you said it, I feel hungry. Hurry up and order some food. You guys are treating us today, right? Then I'll be at your service."

Liu Yueze said with a smile, Qiao Bailu hurriedly handed over the menu: "Of course, you're welcome, just order whatever you want."

When the food and wine were served, Qiao Bailu stood up with her glass in hand: "Liu Yueze, let me toast you first. When you and Jiayuan go abroad together in the future, if you don't mind, you two can help each other and keep each other company."

She wanted to directly ask Liu Yueze to take care of Xie Jiayuan, but on the one hand, she was not familiar with Liu Yueze and could not figure out his temper, and on the other hand, she also had to consider Xie Jiayuan's face.

Although she didn't know Liu Zhang, from the way they spoke, she knew that Liu Zhang must not be an ordinary person. Liu Yueze's identity was probably beyond their reach.

Liu Yueze took the wine glass and gestured: "Don't worry, I have the same plan. You're welcome. We are in a foreign land and come from the same place, so we are brothers. Come on, brother, cheers!"

Xie Jiayuan stood up with a smile and clinked his wine glass.

Time passed quickly, and in a blink of an eye it was the final exam. After the exam, Xie Jiayuan took Qiao Bailu back to his hometown. Xie Jiayuan's parents had been notified long ago, and the house was cleaned up and there was a table full of food, which was very sumptuous.

Just like what Xie Jiayuan said, Mr. and Mrs. Xie are both very honest and kind people. They are five or six years older than Mr. and Mrs. Qiao, which means they are almost fifty years old.

Xie Jiayuan's eldest brother looked like an elite. He had a serious face and didn't talk much. However, he was very careful to take care of his parents during meals.

The two old people only cared about persuading the two children to eat more during the meal, and did not question Qiao Bailu's family background or anything like that. After the meal, Qiao Bailu still wanted to show off, but Mother Xie quickly pushed her out: "Go watch TV, there is watermelon, ask his eldest brother to cut the watermelon, I'll get you a spoon, so it's not easy to bite it on your face."

He pushed and pulled the person into the living room, told Xie Jiayuan to take good care of him, and then went back to the kitchen to clean up.

Brother Xie sat back on the sofa: "Are you two planning to settle down?"

Xie Jiayuan nodded: "Brother, don't you know me yet? Once I make a decision, I won't change it. I'm going abroad soon, and I'm afraid my parents will worry about me, so I'll bring Bai Lu back to let them see her. By the way, brother, when are you getting married?"

Brother Xie frowned: "No one yet."

Xie Jiayuan raised his eyebrows: "Didn't you say you had a partner last time?"

"We haven't been in touch since you came to visit us." Brother Xie shook his head. Their house was built many years ago. At that time, floor tiles were very expensive, so they only had cement floors and no paint on the walls. Over the years, it has become even more ugly with gray. Because Brother Xie and Xie Jiayuan are not often at home, the light bulbs in the house are still dim, which gives it an old and poor vibe.

Except for the sofa and TV, which were bought by Brother Xie before, the rest of the furniture in the house was very old. It was not that Xie Jiayuan and his brothers did not want to buy new ones, but at this age, the elderly were more stubborn and not willing to spend money.

Xie Jiayuan raised his eyebrows but didn't respond. He turned to Qiao Bailu and asked, "Stay for two days? I'll take you back to City Z later?"

“Um…” Qiao Bailu leaned close to Xie Jiayuan’s ear: “Is there a room for me?”

Brother Xie had sharp ears. Before Xie Jiayuan could speak, he nodded first: "Yes, Jiayuan and I live in the same room, you sleep in Jiayuan's room."

Qiao Bailu nodded quickly: "Okay, thank you, brother."

Brother Xie smiled slightly and asked about Xie Jiayuan's school life and his study abroad: "How much is the tuition fee per year?"

"Because I'm a publicly funded exchange student, my tuition is still paid to Q University, just like in previous years. You don't have to worry about living expenses. I still have some money on me. I'll check out the cost of living there when I get there."

Brother Xie nodded: "You don't have to rush to work and earn money. Spend your time on studying and try to come back early. Know the priorities. If you don't have enough money, ask me for it. I don't need it now anyway, so don't be polite to me."

Xie Jiayuan smiled and nodded: "Don't worry, I won't be polite to anyone but you."

As they were talking, Qiao Bailu's phone rang. She quickly went to her bag and hurriedly took it out to answer the call: "Hello?"

"What? It starts airing next Saturday? Which TV station?"

“Weekly or daily?”

"Yeah, I know. Call me when the results are out."

Xie Jiayuan raised his eyebrows: "Ten Miles of Red Makeup is going to be broadcast?"

Brother Xie was a little confused, so Xie Jiayuan explained: "Bai Lu is a novelist. One of her novels was adapted into a TV series. It should be someone from the publishing house who called."

Qiao Bailu nodded: "Bingo, you got it right. It will be broadcast next Saturday, and it will be the first broadcast on the satellite TV station in City B."

B City Satellite TV Station only gave face to Zhou He. If Qiao Bailu took action herself, cough, Qiao Bailu touched his chin, wondering if they would give face to the county TV station if she took it to him. They should give it, right? Didn't Dad say that Uncle Zhai, the county magistrate, has a good relationship with his family?

However, there is a huge difference between the county TV station and the satellite TV station.

Mr. and Mrs. Xie were probably used to the incident when their eldest son brought home a girlfriend, so they were particularly enthusiastic towards Qiao Bailu. Not only did they not ask Qiao Bailu to do any work, they almost fed her food.

Qiao Bailu is also a well-behaved child. Not to mention that Father and Mother Xie are honest people, even if they are not honest, she has to behave filially because they gave birth to Xie Jiayuan and raised her lover.

So, she persuaded Xie Jiayuan to bring the old man to the city, and Qiao Bailu generously used her credit card to buy clothes for the old man. The old man was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling and called her his daughter.

Qiao Bailu would never tell them that Xie Jiayuan's card was also on her.

It was not until Friday afternoon that Xie Jiayuan sent the person back to City Z.

On Saturday night, everyone in the Qiao family put aside their own affairs and started waiting in front of the TV at 7 o'clock. At 8 o'clock, the theme song began to sound. Qiao Bailu did not participate in the production of this TV show. She just provided an outline.

So, we didn't know anything about it beforehand.

As soon as I heard the theme song, I couldn't help but open my mouth wide - it was a song that had never appeared in later generations, so beautiful! Who produced it? When I write the script later, I must invite these people over!

"It's started, it's started!" Qiao's mother was very excited. She reached out and poked Qiao's father. Qiao's father stared at the TV without moving his eyes: "Yeah, it's started, don't make a sound."

"Girl, slow down!" a nanny shouted anxiously while jogging while holding her skirt.

"Mammy, you can't catch me~" The camera moves forward, and a little girl of seven or eight years old appears, with a bright and innocent smile on her delicate and lovely face. This crew really spent a lot of money, and the clothes and jewelry are all made very well.

Then the camera turned to a pale and thin woman, who wiped the sweat off the little girl with a handkerchief with a loving face: "Don't run too fast, you'll sweat a lot, wipe it off quickly, or you'll catch a cold."

Even Qiao Bailu, who wrote this story, couldn't help but be engrossed in it. The first two episodes focused on the heroine's family background, and then played to the death of the heroine's mother.

Zhou He is indeed a famous screenwriter with delicate and moving emotions. That scene was tear-jerking and very sad.

“Hey, is that the end?” When the ending song came on, Mother Qiao looked unsatisfied. She turned around and saw Qiao Bailu and clapped her hands: “Oh, our Bailu is really amazing! Such a wonderful story was actually written by our Bailu!”

Qiao Zhenting held onto Qiao Bailu's arm and said, "Sister, with you here, I believe I will be very famous in the future."

Qiao Bailu reached out and slapped him on the back of his head: "Go away, if you don't work hard, you can't rely on anyone else. I also need to make money. If you ruin my movie, I will definitely not let you act, so, do you understand?"

Qiao Zhenting pouted: "I understand."

Father Qiao gave a thumbs up: "My daughter is extraordinary! The stories she wrote are so interesting!"

Xie Jiayuan also called over there. After hearing a lot of praise, Qiao Bailu went back to her room, turned on her computer, and planned to see if there were any posts on the forums.

The first new blog I opened is this one. She’s the original author of the book and is fairly famous, so she was always present in the crew when they were filming the TV show and when they were doing the promotion a couple of days ago.

The show is going to be aired today, and Zhou He also mentioned his students specifically, and the crew was also notified.

There were indeed about two thousand more comments below, all from her readers.

——Congratulations!

——It’s finally on air, congratulations!

——The filming was pretty good and did not tarnish the original book.

——Congratulations!

After flipping through the comments, all of them were like this. On the hot list, the one about Shili Hongzhuang was actually ranked third. But when I flipped through it, it was not Qiao Bailu's credit at all, all of them came to appreciate the young handsome guy. It is said that Nanzhu of this TV station invited a hot fried chicken with many fans.

The female lead is also quite famous, and the remaining one-third is just for the fame of the screenwriter Zhou He.

For a moment, Qiao Bailu felt a little sour. Her popularity was still not good enough. She didn't even have one third of the influence. Okay, one third was too much of a luxury, but she didn't even have one quarter.

It seems that I still need to work hard.

I looked through other forums again. Although there were posts about the TV, there were no highlights in the first two episodes. Apart from praising Zhou He for his still-robust skills and praising the young actors' acting skills, the show basically had little to do with Qiao Bailu.

I felt a little depressed while watching it, but I also thought that it was adapted from my novel after all, so I should be happy. I felt a little complicated. I simply stopped watching it, turned off the computer and went to sleep.

But the next morning, before she even got up, her cell phone rang. She impatiently grabbed it and looked at the name. It was Zhou Yanhua. She shook her head to wake herself up: "Sister Zhou?"

"You haven't gotten up yet? Hahaha, I'm here to tell you good news. I guarantee you won't be able to sleep after I tell you."

Qiao Bailu thought for a moment: "Ratings?"

"Hmm, you're really smart. You guessed it right. It's the ratings. It's actually over three. This year, besides Master Jin's, yours is the only one that ranked first!"

Qiao Bailu widened her eyes and sat up suddenly: "Really?"

"That must be true. How could I joke about this and lie to you? It was already 3.1 in the second episode yesterday. Now Nanzhu and the heroine haven't appeared yet. When they appear, it may even go up."

"What's Master Jin's?" Qiao Bailu asked hurriedly. Zhou Yanhua paused and coughed lightly: "Well, you can't compare with Master Jin. He has been a writer for many years and is well-known throughout the country. You are just... well, to use a current word, you are now an idol writer. Do you understand?"

Qiao Bailu didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "Sister Zhou, I'm not competing with Master Jin, I just want to know how much difference there is, so I have an idea in my mind."

"Master Jin's premiere rating was 8.8, the highest in the past two years." Sister Zhou hesitated for a moment, but still said it. Qiao Bailu exclaimed in amazement and secretly smacked her lips. She didn't know if she could reach Master Jin's level in her lifetime... Oh, that's not right. How can I, who aspires to be a gold medal screenwriter, compare myself with a martial arts master like Master Jin?

Even now, she only contributed one-fifth of the ratings of Shili Hongzhuang at most. If a TV show is written well, the power of appeal can reach more than half!

After hanging up the phone, Qiao Bailu rolled on the floor twice, clenched her fists, and said, "Keep working hard, Qiao Bailu. One day, you will be at the top!"

Chapter 60

In early September, Xie Jiayuan went to Country M. Qiao Bailu stood at the airport, feeling sad for a few minutes, and then hurried back by car. Zhou Mengyao did what she said, and really set up the studio, and successfully attracted the first batch of actors.

He excitedly went to Qiao Bailu to discuss important matters: "Now we are looking for a director and a script. I think that as a small studio, we should start from the bottom and work our way up. So, we can't look for a big name right from the start. What you said before about having a hit overnight is basically impossible."

Qiao Bailu blinked and thought for a while before she remembered that Zhou Mengyao had indeed asked her to write the script before, but she didn't have the courage at that time, so she said that she wanted to make a big hit and had to start well for good luck, so she had to find a good script at the beginning.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Mengyao found a reason to refute: "Our studio doesn't have that much money. You are a pure screenwriter. I only have about one million yuan on hand. It's good enough to pay the actors' salaries. Where can I buy good scripts?"

Qiao Bailu’s mouth twitched: “Is the studio so poor?”

"Yeah, actually my dad wanted to invest at the beginning, but I think, since we have already discussed that this is our studio, I can't let my dad get involved too much. Besides, I said at home at the beginning that this is to train myself and my own career. My dad can help me with connections, but I don't want any money involved."

Qiao Bailu nodded: "It's right to do so. After all, I still own half of the studio."

"Yes, so now we don't have the money to hire a good screenwriter, so you're the only one left." Zhou Mengyao widened her eyes and patted Qiao Bailu: "You should have some confidence in yourself. Look at your Ten Miles of Red Makeup, isn't the ratings pretty good?"

"That's the script written by the teacher. It has nothing to do with me." Qiao Bailu was helpless, but Zhou Mengyao insisted: "Anyway, you provided the outline of the script, so hurry up. We can't support those actors for nothing..."

Qiao Bailu interrupted her: "Did you get something wrong? Others choose actors based on the script. They look at what the heroine Nanzhu looks like in the script and try to choose the most suitable one. You don't even have a script, so where did you get the actors?"

"Sign a contract. I went to the Beijing Film Academy and other schools to find fresh talents. I guarantee they will be very talented." Zhou Mengyao said with a smile. Qiao Bailu was even more speechless: "How is the acting?"

"This is fine in my opinion." Zhou Mengyao said with a smile, "Oh, I have my own plan. Think about it, can we afford to poach those who are already famous? We can't afford the penalty for breach of contract. Besides, our studio has just started and hasn't even produced a play. Why would those famous actors come to our studio? If they are from other companies, besides paying them a large performance fee and working hard to make them famous, you are also bringing benefits to other companies."

Zhou Mengyao said earnestly, "Since we are planning to make it big, can't we start from scratch? Can't we train artists that belong only to our company? Can you have some faith in me? I have taken out all my money, and I will never let it go to waste."

Qiao Bailu blinked and thought about it. She was indeed no match for Zhou Mengyao in terms of business. Zhou Mengyao must have considered everything carefully to make such a choice. At worst, it would be failure. Anyway, the people signed were all newcomers, so there was no need to worry about delaying anyone's future. Once the contract was torn up, they could go wherever they wanted.

"Well, I won't get involved in management matters. You have the final say on everything. Aren't we just short of a director and a script now? You go find a director, and I'll take care of the script!"

Even Zhou Mengyao had the courage to invest all her wealth and sign newcomers, so why didn't I have any confidence? As long as the ratings didn't drop to a few tenths, there would be profit! Isn't it just a script? Could it be that this would embarrass me, who is so talented, knowledgeable, can compose poems in five steps, speak fluently, have a lot of ideas, and is beautiful?

What the hell is that last one!

Even if I don't have confidence in myself, I will show it to the teacher after I finish writing it... Qiao Bailu shrank her neck. A few days ago, the teacher told me to go to class every day. I dared to write the script before I even finished the class. Will the teacher be angry?

Otherwise, just treat it as homework?

What type of drama should I write? This year, more than half of the new dramas released by all TV stations are costume dramas. Otherwise, according to the forecast, the remaining 70% are costume dramas. So, should I write a modern drama?

But the fact that there are so many costume dramas also shows that there is a market for it. You wouldn’t dislike watching modern dramas, right?

Otherwise, write an idol drama? Idol dramas are still very popular. Oh, by the way, in my previous life, it seems that in recent years, idol dramas have become popular, such as First Kiss, Falling in Love with You, and so on. Some are outstanding, and some are not.

Even if Qiao Bailu doesn't like watching it, she can still say a few words.

With a fist, I decided to write an idol drama. Qiao Zhenting happened to be a sophomore, so he could still spare some time to act in a drama.

After making the decision, Qiao Bailu became a complete homebody. From Monday to Friday, apart from going to school, she stayed at home writing scripts. On Saturday and Sunday mornings, she went to Zhou's house for classes, and stayed at home writing scripts in the afternoons.

At the same time, she couldn't delay the online novel, and she also had to work on the physical book at the same time. She now wished she could split her work into three people. The daily coding task had increased from 12,000 words to 25,000 words.

She doubled her time, became busier, and thought less about Xie Jiayuan. Every time Xie Jiayuan video chatted with her, she would feel depressed - the heartless little girl, she was living a better life when she was not around.

However, she lost a lot of weight without taking care of herself.

Feeling sympathetic, and seeing how busy Qiao Bailu was, Xie Jiayuan worked even harder.

At the end of November, Qiao Bailu called Zhou Mengyao to have dinner with her. When the others came over, she took out the script and handed it to her: "It's time to start filming. It's already the end of November. This idol drama is easier to shoot. Can it be finished in three months? It will be broadcast in the spring."

They can't grab the summer vacation schedule, that's the world of veteran screenwriters.

Zhou Mengyao took it and originally planned to just glance at it, but after reading two pages she couldn’t put it down anymore. Halfway through, she started sniffling: “Why is this happening? Wow, so pitiful! The heroine was bullied so badly!”

While crying, she couldn't help laughing: "Oh, Nanzhu is so handsome! I've decided to let Zhenting play Nanzhu, what do you think?"

Qiao Bailu was drinking tea, and when she heard this, she spit out a mouthful of tea: "What did you say?"

"I say let Zhenting play Nanzhu. Look, the Nanzhu you described is so handsome and sunny. Qiao Zhenting can just play his true self. This role doesn't require much acting skills and he is totally capable of playing it."

Zhou Mengyao wiped the table with disdainful paper and said with a smile: "By the way, I almost forgot to tell you that Zhen Ting is also my newly signed actor! I signed four people in total, two men and two women. When the filming starts later, you can also go to the studio to take a look."

Qiao Bailu asked with a wooden face: "When did it happen?"

"It was in August, when you just came back." Zhou Mengyao smiled and blinked. At that time, Qiao Bailu was busy going to Teacher Zhou's house to attend classes, and at the same time she was flirting with Xie Jiayuan. She didn't even know when the studio would be registered. Signing a contract with her own brother, well, didn't seem to be that important.

Qiao Bailu opened her mouth and wanted to say something, but couldn't. She said she was going to find a big company for Qiao Zhenting, and she would still own half of the studio. Could it be that she herself didn't think highly of her own studio? She said Qiao Zhenting still needed to learn, but the Nanzhu in this script really seemed to be tailor-made for Qiao Zhenting.

God knows, Qiao Bailu just borrowed some characteristics from the people around her. For example, the heroine in the film borrowed a little bit of Yao Lingling's nobleness and a little bit of Huang Qiwen's gentleness, of course, only a little bit, and then remixed them into a new heroine.

When writing about Nanzhu, she didn't come into contact with many men, so some of Qiao Zhenting's characteristics were magnified.

"Okay, you're the boss and you have the final say." Qiao Bailu waved her hand weakly: "Let me make it clear first, this is the first drama of our studio. Do you understand what the first drama means?"

Zhou Mengyao nodded: "Of course I understand. Even if we can't succeed, we must not fail."

"It's good that you know. My original plan was that no matter whether it was the screenwriter, director or actor, there must be one who could appeal to the masses. But you chose all newcomers. Of course, this is also an opportunity. If it succeeds, our studio will not only stand on its own feet, but at least it will be well-known. All the people are newcomers, but we can still succeed. It shows that we are capable."

Zhou Mengyao nodded with a smile: "You finally hit the nail on the head, that's what I planned. In fact, you forgot to mention one thing, that is, it didn't work. Although we have to stay low for a while, at least we have an excuse."

Zhou Mengyao blinked: "You understand?"

Qiao Bailu covered her forehead: “I don’t understand.”

They are all newcomers, so no one will blame them even if they fail.

"Well, since you've decided, Nanzhu, I'll go and see the two girls in our studio. If they're suitable, the female lead and female supporting role will be given to them. If not, I'll look for them myself. As for the director's matter..."

"Leave it to me!" Zhou Mengyao patted her chest. In addition, there was funding, which Qiao Bailu couldn't help with, so Zhou Mengyao took care of it all. In addition, there were other things such as producers, cameramen, props team and other messy things, and Qiao Bailu shared some of them. She was responsible for finding props and filming locations.

Originally they thought they could start filming in November, but unexpectedly, as it was the first time for both of them to do this and they were unfamiliar with the place, they thought finding someone would be just a matter of shouting on the street, but they didn't expect it would take more than a month.

When Qiao Zhenting heard that the role of Nanzhu was given to her, he almost jumped up with joy: "Really? Sister, you didn't lie to me? Didn't you say that you would wait until my junior year to film for me? You didn't lie to me, did you?"

"Let me ask you, what's going on with your contract?" Qiao Bailu asked with a straight face. Qiao Zhenting instantly became timid and stood there like a little quail, shrinking his neck and muttering, "Well, don't you also own half of the studio? I read the contract, it clearly states that you hold 40% of the shares!"

The corners of Qiao Bailu's mouth twitched. It hasn't even gone public yet, so where does the controlling stake come from?

"Since it's your studio, I have to follow you. I'm waiting for you to write a particularly good script in the future, and then support me." Seeing that Qiao Bailu's expression had eased a little, Qiao Zhenting quickly said with a smile: "Sister, I've thought about it carefully. I haven't made my debut yet. Even if I go to another company, I will definitely sign a lowest-level contract for ten or eight years, and the dividends will be very small. If I become famous, I will be exploited in the future. If I'm not famous, I might be put on ice. In addition, there might be some unspoken rules or something like that. So, instead of getting hurt in the future, it's better to follow you from the beginning."

Qiao Zhenting pinched Qiao Bailu's shoulders in a flattering manner: "Sister, you will definitely not let me be taken advantage of, right?"

Qiao Bailu was speechless: "With you being like this, who would want to seduce you? Forget it, the contract has been signed anyway, I won't say anything else, just read the script quickly and memorize the lines, don't embarrass me, otherwise, I will definitely not give you another role later."

Qiao Zhenting smiled and raised his hand to salute: "Yes!"

December 8th is a great day, the TV series Fate for a Thousand Years begins filming. Unlike other idol dramas, this drama is divided into two parts, the past life and the present life. Nanzhu was a prince in his past life, and the heroine was the daughter of a poor scholar. The difference in status makes their love very difficult and is obstructed by all kinds of obstacles.

Finally, Nanzhu joined the army to improve his voice and status. Of course, he died. The heroine got the news and hanged herself.

Nanzhu's family finally regretted their decision and buried the two people together.

Next is the present life part. Nanzhu is a rich second-generation, and the heroine is the daughter of an ordinary teacher. Because they met in the same university, they continued their previous relationship. Although Qiao Bailu was previously positioned as an idol drama, there would not be too many loopholes.

"Everyone, take your positions! Act One, begin!" The director gave the order, and the boy in black climbed over the wall and entered. The heroine, who was standing under a peach tree with a book in her hand, looked at the uninvited person with a surprised look on her face. She opened her mouth and was about to shout, but the boy had already rushed over, put his arm around the girl's waist, leaned close to her ear, and said with a smile, "Don't shout, I'm being chased. I'm leaving now."

After saying that, he stuffed a piece of silver into the girl's hand and climbed over the wall from the other side.

Before the girl could react, there was a knock on the door: "Is anyone home? Open the door!"

The girl frowned slightly and went over to open the door a crack: "Who are you?"

"Miss, we are from the Prince Yi's Palace. We are looking for a boy of fifteen or sixteen wearing black clothes..." The middle-aged man in the lead was wearing a guard's uniform and asked the girl to look at the token.

The girl hesitated for a moment and pointed in a direction: "That's where he went over the wall."

The direction he pointed to was exactly the direction the young man had just walked. Obviously, the young man's identity was unknown, so who knew if he was good or bad? This group of people were from the Yiwang Mansion, they spoke very politely, and they had tokens, so they were definitely not bad people.

The guard thanked him and led a group of people to chase him to the other side. As soon as the girl closed the door, she heard a grinning voice: "I just thanked you, but you betrayed me!"

When she turned around, she saw the boy who had disappeared just now, standing behind her with his arms folded. The boy pouted unhappily: "You are so disloyal! I thanked you for nothing!"

"Cut!" The director frowned for a long time, and finally couldn't help shouting, calling Qiao Zhenting: "Your expression just now was quite good, but this action is a little bit not smooth, and lacks a bit of meaning. You have to know that Nanzhu comes from a noble family, and this wall climbing must not only be cool, but also look good, understand?"

Qiao Zhenting nodded quickly, stroking his chin while thinking about how to make climbing over the wall look better.

"Your performance just now was a little off..." The director pulled the heroine over and began to explain: "The heroine's setting is calm and smart. You were calm just now, but a little too wooden..."

Qiao Bailu sat next to him, holding the script in one hand and a pen in the other, waiting to make some changes from time to time, either in the lines or in the actions. Zhou Mengyao poached a director who had just graduated from graduate school and had not even produced a single work.

When new people meet, they are all in the stage of getting to know each other. Fortunately, they are all new people, so they can understand each other.

Sometimes, Qiao Bailu herself was unsure of what to do, for example, when filming a scene where Nanzhu went to meet the heroine before joining the army and the two of them said goodbye, she always felt that everyone's emotions were not in place. But the expressions and language were not a big problem.

So, Qiao Bailu took the script to ask Teacher Zhou for advice.

"You are still a little restrained. Just looking at each other in silence with tears in your eyes is a kind of love, but letting the other person be free of worries is also a kind of love, and chasing each other after parting is also a kind of love..." He is indeed a veteran screenwriter. Even if he was not at the scene, he could still analyze everything.

"For a crew, the words of the screenwriter account for nearly half of the weight. Sometimes, even if the director doesn't say anything, you have to figure it out yourself and then modify the script. Just a small move can make the show go smoothly..."

It was another hour of class, and it was important that Qiao Bailu take notes.

At the end of the year, the siblings did not go back. Qiao's father and mother were also busy, and it was difficult to buy tickets at the end of the year, so they simply waited until next year, when Qiao Bailu's house was completely finished and ready for people to live in. They came to feel the way and see the siblings.

During the Chinese New Year, the crew had two days off, the 31st day, the first day, and the second day. Even for an idol drama, you have to strive for perfection, plus the newcomers have to get used to each other, so time really can't be wasted.

The brother and sister went to buy some vegetables, and came back to chop the dumpling stuffing. As they were wrapping the dumplings, two phone calls came in. One was from Zhou He, who felt sorry for his little apprentice who had to stay alone at home during the Chinese New Year, and asked them to come over to eat reunion dumplings.

Qiao Bailu quickly refused, saying that although there were only two of them, she would video chat with her parents later and would not be lonely. Besides, it was Chinese New Year and the family was reunited, so she would not go over to disturb them.

Next was Zhou Mengyao, who also asked the siblings to go over, but Qiao Bailu was also pushed away. After hanging up the phone, she instructed Qiao Zhenting: "Chop the meat into smaller pieces, hurry up, use your strength, you grown man, how come you have so little strength?"

Qiao Zhenting's mouth twitched, and he swung the knife tightly. Then, he wiped the sweat off his face and spread his hands: "I've chopped it."

Qiao Bailu enthusiastically kneaded the dough, cut it into smaller balls, and then rolled out the dough. In her previous life, she lived alone for many years. Although she couldn't make a big meal, she was still good at making ordinary buns and dumplings.

Qiao Zhenting followed the instructions and added the radish, onion, ginger, the salt that Qiao Bailu had sprinkled in, and the minced meat and mixed them evenly.

When the firecrackers started to go off outside, the brother and sister also ate dumplings. Qiao Zhenting was also well-behaved and served a bowl to Qiao Bailu first: "Sister, Happy New Year, good luck and good fortune."

Qiao Bailu nodded and smiled as she picked one for him: “You too, Happy New Year and good luck.”

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Qiao Zhenting pestered Qiao Bailu for a red envelope. Qiao Bailu had no choice but to give it to him. She originally wanted to give him a hundred. But the boy was still not satisfied and insisted on a thousand. It was the Lunar New Year, so Qiao Bailu couldn't lose her temper. Then she thought that since his parents didn't come this year, the boy didn't receive any red envelopes. He must be feeling depressed.

He himself has no salary and his living expenses are all given by Qiao Bailu. It is a rare opportunity to earn a red envelope, so naturally he doesn't want to miss it.

So, Qiao Bailu had no choice but to accept it. She felt sorry for her brother after all, so she not only gave him the money, but also doubled it to two thousand. The boy was so happy that he was so excited when he went to work on the second day of the Chinese New Year.

In early April, the filming was finished. The next step was to find a TV station to schedule the show. The first choice was naturally the B City Satellite TV Station, but the prime time slot was a bit tight. After all, there was not a single famous person in the entire TV series, so it was hard to say.

Qiao Bailu could also help in this regard, as Zhou He had introduced many people to her before. In addition, this was Qiao Bailu's first script, so Zhou He was very optimistic about it and helped her out.

So, smoothly, the satellite TV station was closed. However, the broadcast time is a bit bad. Although it is scheduled after the prime time, it is from 10 pm to 12 pm from Monday to Friday, which is the bedtime for normal office workers.

But, fortunately, this is an idol drama, and there are many young people who still like to stay up late. Besides, there is a replay the next morning, so it is not too tragic.

Unlike "Ten Miles of Red Makeup", Qiao Bailu only provided a plot, an outline, and an idea, and did not participate in the rest of the process. This is Qiao Bailu's first script, the first time she participated in filming, and the first time Qiao Zhenting played the leading role, and the first leading role.

Therefore, on the first day of the show, the brother and sister were restless from 5:00 onwards, waiting in front of the TV just to fast forward. At the same time, they were also very nervous, because this show was related to their future path. If you take the first step well, everything will go smoothly. If you stumble in the first step, by the time you get up, others will have already walked a long way.

Not only do they have to worry about the broadcast, the brother and sister also have to worry about the ratings. I guess they won't be able to sleep that night.