Chapter 128: This Day Was Destined to Be Unusual

The sun outside was blazing, and the beach the car passed by grew increasingly deserted.

Being full and satisfied always makes people feel lazy. With no money and the sweltering heat outside, both felt it wasn't the right time to wander about. They decided to enjoy the air conditioning in the car and have the vehicle drive along Highway 9, heading straight to the best viewing point at Haribu Port.

"I didn't expect the production team to actually arrange this for us."

After finishing an unforgettable lunch, Lu Zhou and Ye Fangfei began to find amusement in a corner of the RV's instrument storage area.

"What is it?"

Ye Fangfei turned her head at the sound, glancing at the black rectangular box Lu Zhou was holding, noting the many large and small circular buttons and knobs on it.

"A Boss effects processor, a Loop Station."

Lu Zhou glanced at the text on the device and began tinkering with it in the corner with keen interest.

Ye Fangfei was slightly surprised and looked around the instrument corner.

There were microphones, speakers, and a chaotic mess of cables, along with a violin, cello, keyboard, guitar, bass, cajon, and various other instruments scattered about. It was clear this wasn't organized by a professional music team; it was haphazard, with no clear priority or structure—just a random collection.

She had no idea where they had sourced these instruments; they were probably rented as temporary backups.

She couldn't help but laugh. "There’s a bit of everything here. If someone didn't know better, they’d think we were heading off on a concert tour."

"Given our current situation, I'm afraid we have no choice but to hold one," Lu Zhou replied with a smile. "A busking concert."

He bent down to find a plug, powered on the Loop Station, and then connected the speakers and microphone.

"The production team has truly mastered the art of creating 'show effects'," Ye Fangfei remarked.

The livestream audience burst into laughter:
[Ye Fangfei: Production team, I've tolerated you for a long time.]
[The comment above is bold—daring to call Feifei 'old lady'.]
[Although it’s not very kind, I’m siding with the production team on this one, hahaha.]
...

Once the power was connected, the buttons on the Loop Station lit up.

Lu Zhou pressed the recording button for track 1 and whistled into the microphone, the sound immediately playing back. He then pressed track 2 and rhythmically started saying "ha-ha-ha."

Ye Fangfei: "..."

She looked on, slightly speechless, as he pressed his face to the microphone to make bizarre sound effects.

Lu Zhou noticed her expression and held the microphone to her lips, signaling for her to join in.

Ye Fangfei improvised a series of "beep-beep-beep" sounds.

Lu Zhou, meanwhile, whistled in a different key...

The sounds from multiple tracks blended together, instantly forming a small backing track. Played in sequence, it actually sounded surprisingly professional.

The two became more uninhibited as they played. Each held a microphone, making all sorts of sound effects while Lu Zhou managed the track switching.

"Boots! Cats!"
"Woo-hoo! Woo-hoo!"
"Dee-dee-lee-dee, oh-oh, dee-dee-lee-dee~"
"Meow~"
...

By the end, it had become quite eccentric. Ye Fangfei couldn't help but cover her mouth and laugh. "What a mess."

"Isn't this thing pretty fun for pranking?" Lu Zhou said.

"Indeed, you seem to have a lot of experience with being a prankster."

Ye Fangfei leaned over to look at the button functions on the Loop Station.

"This kind of loop features five stereo audio tracks that can play simultaneously, and each track can have its playback mode adjusted." Seeing her interest, Lu Zhou took the initiative to explain.

"Adjust this, and you can set it to single-track loop, multi-play, or playback."

"Watch."

Lu Zhou pressed track 1, hummed a short melody, then set it to multi-play mode, and the effect took hold.

Ye Fangfei nodded in realization and began to play with it enthusiastically.

After messing around for a while, the resulting music wasn't quite what she wanted. She yawned lazily; the full meal had made her drowsy, and her interest in the Loop Station began to wane.

Lu Zhou found her expression amusing. He stood up, set out a few instruments, and placed the Loop Station in a position easy to operate by hand.

He sat on the cajon, quickly tapped out a rhythm with his hands, and recorded the effect into the Loop Station.

Ye Fangfei, originally feeling lazy, felt a sense of familiarity when she heard the drum beat, and her attention was drawn back to him.

Lu Zhou busied himself among the various instruments.

At one moment, he walked to the keyboard and nimbly played a fast-paced melody, adjusting the effect to an electronic sound.

At another, he picked up the guitar and strummed it quickly, then switched to the cello to pull off an arpeggio, recording them into different tracks and blending them with single-loop or multi-play settings.

Finally, Lu Zhou made a few tongue-clicking sounds into the microphone, followed by whispering a few short words, all recorded into the track with an electronic filter applied.

With all tracks synthesized and playing together, the prototype of the song became obvious.

Ye Fangfei’s eyebrow arched involuntarily. The drowsiness from moments ago was long gone. This mixed melody, with its increasingly familiar backing track—wasn't this her own song?

In just a short time, he had used various instruments to perform live, outputting through the Loop Station, and had almost perfectly replicated the backing music of her pop dance track, "Say No."

Compared to the original version, there were quite a few differences; he had even taken the liberty of adding new elements to slightly adapt the song, making the music sound even more mischievously satirical than the original.

The dynamic electronic dance music filled the RV, making one feel refreshed.

She liked this adaptation.

Ye Fangfei smiled. At that moment, her eyes seemed glued to Lu Zhou.

Sure enough, she hadn't misjudged him from the start. When she first met him, she had vaguely felt that his talent was not simple and that he shouldn't be an entertainer languishing on the fringes of the industry.

Looking at it now, he was far more than that; he deserved the industry's serious attention.

With such great talent, it was baffling that he had remained unknown in the entertainment world for so long. She was starting to get annoyed on his behalf.

Lu Zhou, having finished recording his tracks, operated the Loop Station with one hand and smiled as he handed the microphone to Ye Fangfei.

Ye Fangfei stood up, took the mic, and began belting out the high notes over the chorus backing he had created. As the rhythm continued, the dance genes in her body stirred, and she couldn't help but sing and dance while holding the mic.

Livestream comments:
[Ahhh! What kind of gods are you two?]
[I love this Ye Fangfei song so much, Lu Zhou, you understand me so well!]
[I suddenly feel that Lu Zhou is terrifyingly talented—replicating a dance track backing all by himself?]
[Singing live, dancing, and keeping those high notes so steady and amazing—I only admire Ye Fangfei!]
[I love it to death, please get together!]
...

One song finished, and the two ended their play.

"Still sleepy?" Lu Zhou asked with a smile.

Ye Fangfei shook her head, smiling as she put down the microphone. Her breathing was a bit rapid from the dancing. She sat down, looked at Lu Zhou deeply, her eyes brimming with an indescribable light.

"You were actually able to fully arrange this song live by yourself. Have you studied my music before?" she asked.

"I really liked listening to this song of yours for a while, so I memorized it. My memory is actually quite good," Lu Zhou said, lightly tapping his temple.

Ye Fangfei suddenly felt as if she had been subtly insulted, as she herself couldn't replicate the arrangement. She couldn't help but laugh, "The way you play this Loop Station makes me, the original singer, look dim in comparison to my own song."

Lu Zhou turned off the Loop Station. Hearing her praise, he teased, "Is this the legendary 'killing with kindness' from a big shot? This little nobody is trembling."

Ye Fangfei rolled her eyes at him slightly. "Is your Chinese okay?"

Lu Zhou laughed aloud. Feeling a bit thirsty, he stood up to pour some water, pouring a glass for Ye Fangfei as well.

After playing the dance track, their spirits were much higher. They chatted casually about their views on music, finding themselves very much in tune.

Growing sleepy midway through, and with still some distance to go to the prime viewing point at Haribu Port, they ultimately decided to return to their respective rest areas for a short break.

Lu Zhou let Ye Fangfei sleep in the RV's bedroom, while he lay down on the living room sofa.

He had slept briefly on the plane, so although he felt a bit tired, he couldn't actually fall asleep. Lu Zhou lay quietly on the sofa, staring at the ceiling in deep thought.

Today was a special day. He didn't know why, perhaps a sudden shift in his state of mind had triggered something.

The dream he had on the helicopter was long, and many memory fragments from that dream were suddenly piecing themselves together. The truth of the matter made him uneasy.

It turned out his identity as a transmigrator from another world wasn't as simple as he had first thought; what had awakened before was only a part of him...

Looking back at what he had experienced, it was truly lamentable.

His mind felt bloated, severely overloaded with information. Right now, his impression of certain events wasn't entirely clear.

After getting off the helicopter, he hadn't had the time to sort through it. Now, in the quiet, Lu Zhou was finally able to organize his thoughts.

Previously, he had thought that he had talent, and even though the civilization of his former world was completely different from this one, he was confident that with his ability, he could carve out his own music world here.

He had originally planned to slowly play the music he liked in this world, create works he had never tried before, and fulfill his dream of being on a music stage.

This was the plea from the depths of his soul just before he died young in his first life: if there is an afterlife, please let me enjoy the stage.

But now, Lu Zhou realized clearly that he couldn't slow down, and he couldn't just bury his head in his music.

In fact, from the moment he hit his head and awakened, his time had been counting down rapidly.

This program was no coincidence; it was only the beginning of everything.

If he didn't rise to become strong enough within the limited time, then this life would have been lived in vain.

Lu Zhou turned over on the sofa, facing the backrest. In the blind spot of the camera, his expression looked a bit serious.

How should he play the next move?

That was the question he needed to think about deeply.

...

The RV drove on, finally stopping at the most beautiful scenic spot in Haribu Port. The location was excellent, with the most stunning coastline. Half-hills and half-sea, various characteristic luxury villas were lined up along the mountainous area.

Lu Zhou and Ye Fangfei got off the car here. Due to budget issues, they had to solve the problem of having no money for dinner, so they brought the "tools" they needed for eating down with them.

While admiring the unique scenery, they looked for a suitable place to set up shop.

At this time, the sun had already become gentle. Many people on the beach were playing beach volleyball, and others were surfing or doing water sports.

Lu Zhou figured this crowd probably didn't have money on them, so after strolling along the coastline, the two headed toward the mountains, entering a residential area built against the hills.

Finding a street with decent foot traffic, they occupied a relatively open and flat area and began setting up their performance equipment.

It took them quite a while to get everything ready.

They didn't have a firm idea of what to perform. Without a phone or internet access, the music output relied entirely on memory.

"What should we perform?" Ye Fangfei asked.

"Wallets are empty, oh so poor, no dinner for us tonight, kind souls please spare a coin, and I'll perform for you..."

Lu Zhou was still fine-tuning the instruments. Hearing Ye Fangfei, he laughed and improvised a nonsensical song.

Ye Fangfei was amused, kicking his calf gently. "You've had enough, are you really begging?"

The corners of Lu Zhou’s mouth curled up. He picked up the violin, tucked it under his left chin, pressed his fingers to the strings, placed the bow, and sawed at it randomly five times. A familiar melody rang out.

"Do you know this?" he asked.

"It's so familiar... but I can't recall it for a moment." Ye Fangfei searched frantically in her mind. "Ah, is it that... that... what's it called again?"

"Pirates of the Caribbean," Lu Zhou prompted directly.

Ye Fangfei clapped her hands suddenly. "Right!"

Lu Zhou: "Remember it? If you do, shall we do it together? You on the cello, me on the violin, how about it?"

"I only remember the gist of this one... the details are a blur," she said.

"Listen closely."

Lu Zhou’s bow immediately began to move. The violin in his hands seemed to have magic; the notes flowing from the strings burst with vitality and passion.

The passionate violin performance drew the attention of passersby, who gradually gathered around.

Ye Fangfei watched his handsome posture as he played, a brilliant smile spreading across her face. To boost the atmosphere, her body moved to the rhythm of the tune Lu Zhou was playing.

The music and her dance had a powerful infectious quality. The crowd's mood was lifted by them; suddenly, men, women, and children were either nodding their heads, swaying their bodies, or secretly tapping their fingers and toes to the rhythm.

Lu Zhou walked to Ye Fangfei's side while playing, smiling as he watched her while he performed. The notes swirled around them—a talented man and a beautiful woman—the image of the two lost in the music was so beautiful that one couldn't look away.

The final notes came to an abrupt stop. Ye Fangfei spun and came to a halt, ending up right in front of Lu Zhou. She looked up at him slightly.

The wind lifted her hair, letting it dance in the air. Her beautiful brows and eyes, her gaze full of smiles, the sweet curve of her lips—at this moment, it felt like a lifetime ago, giving him a sudden impulse to lean down and kiss her regardless of everything.

The passersby broke into applause and cheers.

Ye Fangfei stepped back with a smile, turned to the pedestrians, bowed with a grin, and said, "Did you like our performance?"

"Yes!" some responded enthusiastically.

"If you liked it, would you mind showing some appreciation?"

When she said this, Ye Fangfei felt a bit embarrassed, but to have a good meal tonight, she had gone all out.

Lu Zhou watched her from the side, laughing silently, his eyes full of affection.

Livestream:
[Lu Zhou, you're acting suspicious.]
[Both of them are acting suspicious.]
[I'm acting suspicious too; my mom is asking why I'm looking at my phone with a goofy grin.]
...

In the end, Lu Zhou and Ye Fangfei successfully earned enough money for a grand feast at Haribu Port through their hard work. The two went to a local restaurant with great reviews and had a meal.

After dinner, night had fallen.

A day of dating had come to an end, and it was time to return to the group.

Lu Zhou and Ye Fangfei took a helicopter to the city designated by the production team.

Before they reached the designated meeting point, Lu Zhou suddenly asked, "Did you have a good time today?"

"Mhm! It was quite fun. How about you?"

Ye Fangfei felt that today had been the most comfortable and pleasant day she had experienced since joining the program.

"I also..." Lu Zhou turned his head, looking at her deeply through the dim light, "...had a great time."

May it always be this happy.

Ah~~~ why do I have to type every day? I suddenly feel so tired. I want to slack off, lie flat, and rest...