Chapter 35: A Theme Song? I Can Write That.

Beep! The room card swiped, and the door clicked open. Two entangled figures stumbled into the room.

"Wait, I don't want to go that fast yet," Tang Yan gasped, pinning down Xu Ming’s wandering hands.

"Then I'll take it slow. Half an hour minimum should satisfy you, right?" Xu Ming didn't stop, his hands still busy. What kind of joke was that?

"That’s not what I meant... At least, at least let me take a shower first."

"That, I can agree to." Xu Ming noted that the bathroom was part of his repertoire anyway.

However, just as the two were heating up, poised and ready, a shrill phone ringtone shattered the moment. Tang Yan fumbled for her phone, and upon seeing the name on the screen, her clouded mind suddenly cleared.

"Hold on, I need to take this."

"Go ahead, it doesn't bother me."

Tang Yan sat on Xu Ming’s lap, her face flushed as she answered. "Hello, Shi Shi?"

"What’s your room number? I’m in the hotel lobby. Surprise, surprise!"

The voice of Liu Shi Shi on the other end felt like a bucket of cold water poured over the two of them.

"Wait, aren't you finishing filming soon? I happened to be in Beijing, so I came to see you. Let’s go visit Mi Mi on the set of *Beauty's Rival in Palace* in Hengdian later."

"Ah, right. Just a second, I’ll be down to get you," Tang Yan replied, hung up, and scrambled off Xu Ming’s lap in a panic. "My friend is here. Next... next time..."

As soon as she said it, she wanted to crawl into a hole. She’d misspoken.

"Next time? It’s a deal." Xu Ming immediately seized on her slip of the tongue. He was incredibly frustrated. Why did Liu Shi Shi have to visit now of all times? If this weren't reality, he would have...

"I didn't mean it like that! Oh, just go out and hide in the stairwell for a bit. I’ll text you when it’s safe to leave," Tang Yan said, smoothing out her wrinkled clothes. As the alcohol began to fade, the memory of her recent actions made her face burn like fire.

"Fine. Give me a kiss, and I’ll leave right now," Xu Ming said, pointing to his lips. He had been the initiator before; now he wanted Tang Yan to take the lead. She hesitated, but as time ticked by, she finally gave in to his persistence and leaned in. Another moment of intimacy followed.

A while later, Xu Ming finally let her go, set the softened Tang Yan down, and left the room. As for hiding in the stairwell, he had too much pride for that. He walked openly to the elevator, descended to the lobby, and immediately spotted the cool, detached girl standing at the entrance in a trench coat.

Liu Shi Shi actually had soft features, but her nearsightedness made her gaze appear indifferent. He exchanged a brief glance with her before brushing past.

A few moments later, Tang Yan walked out of the hotel with a complicated expression. "Did you see anyone just now?"

"No, I was too busy looking at my phone," Liu Shi Shi shook her head. "Why?"

"Nothing, just asking." Tang Yan let out a sigh of relief and smiled.

Liu Shi Shi looked at her friend curiously, a fleeting image of the figure she’d just passed crossing her mind—he had looked somewhat familiar.

***

Another acquaintance had left the set, and for once, Xu Ming found some peace. Fortunately, with the filming schedule picking up, they were getting closer to wrapping up, so the pressure on everyone wasn't too intense.

"Cut! That’s a good take. Let’s eat, and we’ll do one more for safety after lunch." Teng Huatao checked his watch; it was nearly two o'clock. The actors could handle it, but he was reaching his limit.

Everyone cheered and headed toward the catering truck that had been waiting for a long time.

"One chicken leg per person! No one is allowed to take more. Mr. Xu increased the budget out of the kindness of his heart," the production manager shouted.

"Thanks, Brother Ming!" the crew shouted toward Xu Ming.

Teng Huatao looked at the large chicken leg in his own lunch box and decided not to bicker with Xu Ming over who held more authority on set. He waved him over. "Mr. Xu, come here. I have something to discuss with you. And Song Jia, you come over too."

The two of them walked over, carrying their lunch boxes. They hadn't chatted privately in a while, and it felt a bit awkward.

"What's up, Director Teng? Tell us what you need."

As Xu Ming spoke, his eyes drifted to the chicken leg in Song Jia's lunch box. Before he’d even finished his sentence, his chopsticks darted out: "Aren't you on a diet lately? Let me take care of that for you."

"Hey, have you no shame?" Song Jia glared at him, blushing with annoyance. Xu Ming chuckled, and the tension between them eased instantly.

"Alright, let's talk business," Teng Huatao said, putting aside their bickering. "I expect we'll wrap up this film in a week. I'm thinking, shouldn't we have a theme song? That’s the trend these days, isn't it?"

He had poured his heart and soul into this film, even risking a rift with Huayi Brothers for it. If anything could help the box office, he wanted to do it. But a theme song meant increasing the budget—song acquisition, recording, and promotion all had to come out of the production budget. The production manager wouldn't budge on that, so it had to be Xu Ming. Everyone knew the investors listened to him.

"That's a great suggestion. Didn't Jay Chou go that route with *Secret* the year before last?" Xu Ming clapped in approval.

"Right, that’s where I got the inspiration," Teng Huatao took credit without missing a beat.

"Why look elsewhere? We have someone right here," Xu Ming laughed.

"Someone right here? What do you mean?" Teng Huatao was confused.

"Me. You might not know, but I’ve written a couple of songs before—'My Good Brother' and the more recent hit, 'My Name is Xiao Shenyang'," Xu Ming said. The former was a KTV staple, especially beloved by men in their thirties and forties, and the latter was currently quite popular, helping Xiao Shenyang find success in the music scene.

"You mean... you'll write it?" Teng Huatao’s mind raced. "My memory is failing me—you sang quite well on the Spring Festival Gala, but songwriting takes time."

"Let's prepare both ways. You work on writing, and we'll keep looking for other songs in the meantime," Teng added, still not entirely convinced of Xu Ming's musical prowess.

Xu Ming didn't mind. He cleared his throat and said, "I have some stock. See if this fits."

*"Hold me, as if we were never together..."*
*"Is it alright? It's too late for explanations..."*

This song would become a massive hit in streets and alleys when *Ex-File 3* was released. Used here for *Love Is Not Blind*, it felt remarkably fitting.