Chapter 22 – There is a successor

Translator: ChuRen/ YuQiChen

Longfeng Entertainment.

In the SAP practice room, everyone was preparing for the upcoming album release.

Dance rehearsals during the day, songwriting at night.

Guan Shuo broke the tips of eight 2B pencils, his frustration visible to all.

“I say, ge, if you can’t handle it, just use a tablet to type. You’re wasting pencils,” You Qi remarked, playing with the broken pencils like a mischievous cat.

Guan Shuo gritted his teeth, scribbling lyrics on an A4 paper, pressing so hard it seemed like he wanted to tear the paper apart.

“I’m a rapper, I’m going to diss them! Diss them!” Guan Shuo muttered to himself as he wrote.

Among their team, Guan Shuo was the one with the most background and energy to help Yan Shu.

The recent media storm caught these youths off guard.

Guan Shuo even went to ask his family for help…

He didn’t regret his decision to leave behind his comfortable life and enter the entertainment industry, causing a rift with his family and moving out intentionally.

Phone calls that had gone unanswered for years were now being dialed, without hesitation, in light of this recent incident.

However, the responses from his family were all the same: “Don’t get involved.”

Yan Shu had offended a young master from the Jia family, and they didn’t need to intentionally oppose the Jia family for a soon-to-be-blacklisted artist like Yan Shu.

Guan Shuo understood this reasoning, but he was still angry. The instigator wasn’t just Jia Chong, but also their manager.

If they couldn’t get back at the Jia family, then they could surely take on the idiot Old Wang, right?

“The new manager is coming today, right? I heard they’ve brought out many talented artists before,” You Qi inquired.

“Yeah, my dear big brother arranged it for me. Should be decent, I guess,” Guan Shuo said, crumpling and throwing another useless piece of paper into the trash.

He didn’t care who the new manager was, as long as they could kick Old Wang out of the industry.

He rarely asked his elder brother for help, but on this matter, he believed his brother could handle it.

If Wang Shigang could still survive in the industry in the future, Guan Shuo would write his name backwards.

“I hope the new manager’s arrival will allow us to access our own Weibo accounts. The company has kept them locked for so long, it’s time they unlock them, right?” You Qi lay on the ground in frustration, rolling around.

Song Shi’an remarked, “The company is probably afraid we’ll impulsively post on Weibo and cause trouble…”

Especially referring to someone in particular.

Everyone turned to look at the visibly agitated Guan Shuo.

He was the most impulsive one among them.

But they all knew that on that day, everyone had wished to act impulsively.

Now that the storm had passed temporarily, bringing up Yan Shu’s situation online again at this point would only make marketing accounts and gossip media collectively rejoice. It would undoubtedly rub salt in Yan Shu’s wounds and disrupt the peace.

Moreover, Yan Shu had sincerely requested them on the day he left not to let his situation affect their future. He didn’t want to see that scenario play out.

If it weren’t for Yan Shu’s wishes, they might have actually done something crazy.

Suppressing their impulsive emotions now didn’t mean they were willing to let Yan Shu continue to be wronged.

Since they couldn’t respond directly, they could only convey their feelings through their work.

There were things they would definitely address to the outside world, but not now…

Guan Shuo said, “When I called home yesterday, my brother told me that it seems someone with the surname Jia has offended someone and has been targeted these days. Well, serves him right!”

Guan Shuo finished writing another page, finally putting down the pen and stretching lazily.

Now, the cohesion within their SAP boy group was unprecedented. Everyone was united, cursing Jia Chong daily to get hit by a car while walking, choke on rice while eating, and get struck by lightning in the rain.

Guan Shuo, who usually avoided discussing family matters, had been more vocal lately, talking more with his buddies and even seeing a slight improvement in his relationship with his brother.

Yan Shu’s departure seemed to have changed many things, yet it also felt like things were meant to be this way.

You Qi exclaimed, “Alright, alright, thanks to that big shot, I hope he crushes that jerk! Serves him right for bullying our little Yanzi!”

Yu Chenzhou added, “People will reap what they sow. Those who disregard the law will eventually face consequences.”

Song Shi’an mused, “I wonder how Yan Shu is doing at home now. It hasn’t been long since he left, but I’m starting to miss him a bit…”

…

Yan Shu, deeply remembered by everyone, now sat on a bamboo chair beside his grandmother, watching her embroider on a round frame.

“What’s the matter? Feeling bored, Shu-er? You used to love watching me embroider when you were little. It’s nice to see you haven’t changed.” Zhou Huaixiu smiled warmly.

Since her grandson returned home, she had been in a great mood every day.

“Grandma, I’m actually very interested in embroidery too. Sometimes I do it privately for fun. Can I sit with you every day to embroider?” Yan Shu noticed some slight differences in Zhou Huaixiu’s embroidery technique compared to what he learned from Dayun, igniting a spark of interest within him.

The embroidery he now did was collectively referred to as “Yun Embroidery” in Dayun, but here, there were many different types, with the most famous being the “Four Great Famous Embroideries”.

Zhou Huaixiu was one of the inheritors of the “Su Embroidery”, one of the “Four Great Famous Embroideries”. She had been a top embroiderer in the village since she was young.

Later, women in the village seeking to learn embroidery would come to Zhou Huaixiu for lessons, and she was always willing to teach them.

Yan Shu admired his grandmother’s dedication to promoting intangible cultural heritage, without commercializing it for profit. She only sold a portion of her works to reputable embroidery collectors each year to sustain a simple livelihood.

Zhou Huaixiu had been searching for a suitable successor, ideally her own child, but Yan Jin was too impatient with needlework, preferring to focus on woodworking and designing houses he liked. As for Zhou Lan, he was quite rough and couldn’t handle needlework at all.

Zhou Huaixiu didn’t push the issue and believed everything should happen naturally.

To hear Yan Shu say he occasionally did embroidery in private surprised Zhou Huaixiu and filled her with joy.

“Of course you can!  I couldn’t be happier to know my obedient baby¹the word she uses here is 乖乖 which is basically a good boy/well-behaved child enjoys embroidery!”

Yan Shu blushed at the endearment “obedient baby”.

“Grandma, your stitching techniques are quite varied, some of which I’m not familiar with. Could you teach me?” Yan Shu asked.

“Shu-er, if you’re truly interested, I’m more than willing to pass on my knowledge to you. I just hope that when you create an embroidery piece, you’ll see it through from start to finish.”

Zhou Huaixiu was afraid that Yan Shu’s interest might be short-lived, as children often had trouble staying focused.

While there were boys in the village skilled in embroidery, very few could persevere to the end.

Yan Shu’s rebellious nature had left a deep impression on his family, and Zhou Huaixiu wasn’t sure about his current temperament.

“I promise Grandma, I will see every embroidery creation through from start to finish, never abandoning halfway. Not only that, I also want to establish myself firmly in this industry and achieve a position like yours, Grandma.”

Yan Shu’s heartfelt words shocked Zhou Huaixiu.

The boy’s eyes sparkled with determination.

In that moment, Zhou Huaixiu felt like she had found the successor she wanted.

He had been right beside her all along, and she had overlooked such a determined young man.

Setting aside her embroidery frame, Zhou Huaixiu took Yan Shu’s hand with infinite tenderness and love. “I don’t have any special status, those… are just titles. But I believe in you, Yan Shu. You will become a great embroiderer in the future.”

Yan Shu: “You haven’t seen what I can embroider yet. Why are you so confident in me?”

Zhou Huaixiu: “Because my obedient baby, you have always been my pride… I trust my instincts and believe in you.”

At that moment, Yan Shu felt a pang of emotion in his heart.

In truth, the original owner could have been happy, even if misunderstood by the world, having family members who steadfastly believed in and supported him.

“Well, I will learn diligently.”

And so, from that day on, Yan Shu would wake up early every day to learn the art of embroidery from Zhou Huaixiu.

He didn’t hide the skills he already possessed, surprising Zhou Huaixiu once again.

She had been impressed by Yan Shu’s determination, but she hadn’t realized her dear grandson was truly gifted.

Yan Shu’s hands were steady, every stitch landed precisely where it needed to be. His embroidery was solid, and he had a perfect grasp of the pattern’s form and color.

It could be said that Yan Shu had his own aesthetic style in traditional handicrafts, a consciousness that needed time to develop.

Zhou Huaixiu was overjoyed; the skills she had learned in her lifetime would finally be passed on.

“This is a plain round fan, your father helped me make many of these. Although he doesn’t like needlework, he’s quite skilled at woodworking. You can embroider on this.”

Zhou Huaixiu handed Yan Shu a fan with a clean white cloth, the wooden circular fan frame polished smooth, not rough to the touch.

His father’s craftsmanship was quite meticulous…

Thinking back to the plum blossoms on the balcony of the SAP dormitory, Yan Shu had a design in mind. He lightly sketched it on the fan with a fine pencil and prepared his needle and thread.

“I see you’ve drawn plum leaves. I’m not sure where you learned your embroidery techniques before, but here, we generally use the stabbing needle method for leaf embroidery.”

Zhou Huaixiu demonstrated her own pattern, embroidering while explaining slowly.

“You see, use a short straight needle to follow the shape of the leaf, with the back stitch following the front stitch.”

Yan Shu had his own insights into embroidery craftsmanship, so when Zhou Huaixiu talked about the Su embroidery needlework and skills in this world, he quickly grasped the concept.

Almost as soon as she completed a stitch, he was already preparing for the next one.

“Yes, just like this, one long stitch followed by a short one, following the direction of the leaf veins, embroider from the outside to the inside, then after a while, change the thread to begin shading.”

Yan Shu listened attentively, only when doing this could he forget about the passing of time.

Jing City. Wei Tingxiao’s studio.

The nanny car at the door was already prepared.

After a brief half-month break, Wei Tingxiao was about to start the next project.

The day before, Xiao Lin had helped him pack his luggage and placed it in the car. Wei Tingxiao had some matters to attend to at the company this morning, which he had now taken care of, ready to depart immediately.

This time, he wasn’t going into the project alone; even his agent, Luo Hui, was in the car.

“It was hard work finishing the last project. Couldn’t you rest for another month? Why rush into the next one? And this time, it’s deep in the mountains, far removed from the city. The conditions will be much harsher than before.”

As soon as they got into the car, Luo Hui began grumbling.

“If I stay in the Jing City any longer, my parents, who are always on my case, will brainwash me completely, especially that old man. You know how eager he is for me to retire from the industry…”

Wei Tingxiao rebelled fiercely, “Ha! I won’t!”

Luo Hui: “…”

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  the word she uses here is 乖乖 which is basically a good boy/well-behaved child