novelraw Chapter 33, "Weekend Arts and Literature," recorded for a cable TV program.
Chapter 33, "Weekend Arts and Literature," recorded for a cable TV program.
More than a week passed after the graduation performance, but Li Si'an still hadn't received a call from Producer Sun of the cable TV station. He thought the deal was off.
On Monday, May 6th, right after the second period in the afternoon, his homeroom teacher called him to the office and handed him a notice.
"BJ Cable TV contacted the school directly and said that your program has been selected for 'Weekend Arts and Literature,' and you'll be recording it at the station this Friday. The school has arranged for Teacher Liu to take you there, and there will be a car."
Li Si'an took the notification slip, glanced at it, and put it in her pocket.
"Just the three of you—you, Tang Yun, and Zhang Ziyi," the homeroom teacher said. "Teacher Liu will contact you to discuss the specific time."
At eight o'clock on Friday morning, a white van pulled up in front of the music store. Teacher Liu, sitting in the passenger seat, rolled down the window and called inside, "Li Si'an, let's go!"
Li Si'an came out of the store carrying a dust bag containing clothing, followed by Tang Yun and Zhang Ziyi. The three of them got into the van, started the engine, and drove towards the television station.
The car turned onto a main road, and the BJ Cable TV building came into view in the distance. It was a gray-white building, not very tall, but it stood out among the surrounding low-rise buildings.
The bread truck stopped briefly at the gate. Teacher Liu spoke a few words to the security guard, who then let it through. The truck drove into the compound and parked in the parking lot in front of the main building.
"We've arrived," the driver said.
The three of them got out of the car. Li Si'an took out a dust bag containing clothes from her backpack and handed it to Tang Yun and Zhang Ziyi.
Teacher Liu walked ahead and explained her purpose to the receptionist in the lobby. The receptionist made a phone call, and after a while, Producer Sun Huaijin came out of the elevator.
"Xiao Li! You're here!" Sun Huaijin walked over quickly and shook hands with each of them. "Teacher Liu is here too? Welcome, welcome. Let's go up to the third floor first, the makeup artist will do your makeup."
The elevator went up to the third floor. Sun Huaijin led them through a corridor and pushed open a door, revealing a small dressing room. There were two large mirrors, several chairs, and the dressing table was covered with bottles and jars.
A female makeup artist in her thirties was tidying up her tools. Seeing them come in, she smiled and said, "You're here? Who wants to go first?"
"Do their makeup first," Li Si'an said, pointing to Tang Yun and Zhang Ziyi.
Tang Yun and Zhang Ziyi sat down in front of the dressing table.
The makeup artist looked at their faces and said to Tang Yun, "Your skin is really good." Then she looked at Zhang Ziyi and said, "Your bone structure is really good, you don't need much makeup."
Zhang Ziyi glanced at herself in the mirror and suddenly said, "Makeup artist, please give me a base, don't make me look too dark on camera."
Li Si'an leaned against the wall and couldn't help but laugh.
Zhang Ziyi glared at him in the mirror.
The makeup artist applied a thin layer of foundation, drew eyeliner, and applied a light blush to Tang Yun. Tang Yun already had good natural features, so she looked beautiful with just a little touch-up.
When it was Zhang Ziyi's turn, the makeup artist only did her eyebrows and lipstick, then applied a very thin layer of foundation, and said, "That's enough."
"With your bone structure, you don't need much makeup at all," the makeup artist said. "You'll look absolutely stunning on camera."
Zhang Ziyi looked at herself in the mirror from left to right and nodded in satisfaction.
After finishing her makeup, Sun Huaijin returned and led them to the studio.
The studio was located at the far end of the third floor, and it was larger than Li Si'an had imagined. There was an arched backdrop with the words "Weekend Arts and Literature" in 3D on it.
The floor was gray, and the lights were mounted on the ceiling, densely packed. The cameraman was already adjusting the camera positions—two cameras: one fixed camera facing the center of the stage, and one mobile camera.
"The stage is a bit small, but it's enough for you to dance on," Sun Huaijin said. "Change your clothes first, then walk through your positions, and we'll adjust the lighting."
Tang Yun and Zhang Ziyi went to the dressing room to change. Li Si'an stood alone in the studio, looking around. This was his first time entering a television studio, and a strange feeling suddenly welled up inside him.
Three years ago, he was a programmer sitting in an office building in Zhongguancun, typing away at his code. Three years later, he stands in the studio of Beijing Television, watching his work about to be broadcast on television.
Fate is a truly unpredictable thing.
The locker room door opened, and Tang Yun came out first.
She stood in a red dress, a long, flowing skirt that reached her chest, the hem trailing on the ground. Under the studio lights, she looked like a burning flame.
The makeup artist applied just right under the lights—not too heavy, not too light, with clear eyebrows and eyes, and rosy lips.
Zhang Ziyi followed behind, wearing a black modified long dress and her hair tied up. She walked up to Tang Yun and stood next to her. The two looked at each other and nodded in tacit agreement.
"Alright!" Sun Huaijin clapped his hands behind the control panel. "Music ready! Let's run it through first!"
Li Si'an walked to the control panel and confirmed the music cue points with the sound engineer. The tape was put into the player, the sound engineer pushed up the fader, and the sound of the pipa resounded throughout the studio.
Tang Yun squatted down, her red dress spreading out. Zhang Ziyi's fingers trembled slightly as she held the silk thread between them.
The dance begins.
Li Si'an stood beside the control panel, arms crossed, watching them dance. He had seen this dance hundreds of times, but each time he watched it, he had new feelings.
This time, he noticed Tang Yun's expression—when she danced, the expression on her face was no longer the soft, gentle look she usually had, but a focus and strength that he rarely saw.
As the music entered the chorus, the operatic vocals echoed in the studio—"Orchid fingers pluck at the world's fleeting beauty, a three-foot red stage where all things are sung and played." Tang Yun's body swayed to the rhythm of the music, her red dress billowing like flames.
Sun Huaijin stood behind the control panel, his eyes fixed on the monitor.
His hands tapped lightly on the table, his expression shifting from serious to relaxed, and then to a slight smile.
Four minutes later, the music ended, and Tang Yun and Zhang Ziyi were frozen in their final poses.
Sun Huaijin was the first to applaud.
"Okay!" He turned to the sound engineer and asked, "Was that part recorded?"
"It's recorded."
"Let's do it again, from a different camera angle."
Second time, third time, fourth time.
Sun Huaijin had them dance four times, changed three camera angles, and recorded wide shots, medium shots, and close-ups. She also recorded several shots of Tang Yun and Zhang Ziyi separately as editing material.
By the fourth take, beads of sweat had appeared on Tang Yun's forehead, and a small patch of sweat had soaked the cuffs of Zhang Ziyi's black long shirt.
"Alright, that's enough!" Sun Huaijin finally called for a stop. "We have enough material."
After recording the dance, Sun Huaijin led them to a small studio next door.
A female host sat on the sofa and asked a few questions: Where did the inspiration come from? What was the most difficult part of rehearsing? What did you want to express?
Zhang Ziyi said that the puppeteer and the puppeteer are actually connected by the same thread. Tang Yun said that the most difficult thing is to hand over control of the body. Li Si'an then told the story of the old man and the puppet in the dilapidated temple again.
The recording took no more than five minutes.
Li Si'an didn't leave in a hurry. He told Tang Yun and Zhang Ziyi to go change their clothes first, while he stayed behind to help Sun Huaijin pack his things.
The sound engineer was winding cables, the cameraman was dismantling scaffolding, the studio was a mess, and the two chatted idly.
"Teacher Sun, my program is pretty unconventional, I'm worried your station might not dare to broadcast it." Li Si'an took the cassette tape out of the player and put it back in the case.
Sun Huaijin leaned against the control panel, took out a cigarette, thought for a moment, and then put it back.
"We are a wired station, unlike wireless stations. Wireless stations rely on Google, while we rely on users paying for our services."
People spend over ten yuan a month to install this cable TV. If we don't show them anything new, why should they be willing to pay that money?
Besides, your show isn't exactly groundbreaking; it's just innovative in format, but the content is still dance.
Li Si'an thought for a moment and smiled. "That's true. HBO in the US is a cable channel that broadcasts content that terrestrial channels can't. They'll do anything, since the users pay for it, they have to show them something different."
Sun Huaijin paused, looking at him. "You know about HBO?"
"I love reading, I read all sorts of books, so I know a lot more," Li Si'an said.
Sun Huaijin glanced at him and smiled. "Alright, you've got some skills."
Li Si'an handed the cassette case to the sound engineer and dusted off his hands. "Mr. Sun, if I have any new ideas next time, can I come and talk to you about it?"
"If you have anything new, just call me or come to the station to find me." Sun Huaijin took out a business card from his pocket and handed it to him. "My pager number is on it. Call me and I'll call you back."
Li Si'an took it, glanced at it, and put it in her pocket. "Okay. Thank you, Teacher Sun."
Tang Yun and Zhang Ziyi changed their clothes and came out of the dressing room. The three of them said goodbye to Sun Huaijin and left the TV station through a side door.
The bread truck was still parked where it was. Teacher Liu was sitting in the passenger seat. When she saw them get out, she rolled down the window and said, "Finished recording? Get in the car, I'll take you home."
The car started and headed towards Haidian. The May sunshine streamed in through the car windows, warm and pleasant.