Chapter 106: A Gift!

After returning home, Jiang Lun immediately dove into his recording studio. First, he searched online for information about the game "Mech Warrior." Then he visited a streaming platform to watch several game streamers play this game, listening carefully to their commentary. Only after that did he begin searching for related songs from other worlds using his second-hand laptop.

There were quite a few songs that fit the game's theme, but very few matched the game perfectly. After much deliberation, he finally chose one. Then he set about producing a demo and recording, staying busy until six in the evening before finally stepping out of his room.

Upon exiting, he saw Chen Yingying sitting on the sofa watching TV, so he casually asked, "What’s for dinner tonight?"

To his surprise, Chen Yingying looked at him oddly and said, "Why haven’t you changed your clothes yet?"

“Why…” Jiang Lun began, only to suddenly realize that Chen Yingying was dressed neatly, her hair styled and makeup carefully done.

This surprised him even more. Scratching his head, he asked, "Are you going out?"

“What? No, it’s us!” Chen Yingying replied. “Don’t you remember? Today’s Professor Wang’s birthday! Professor Jin specially called to ask us to be at his place before 7:30!”

“Before 7:30?” Jiang Lun suddenly recalled the event. Glancing at his watch, he saw there was less than an hour left. “Ah, I better get ready quickly. Why didn’t you remind me earlier?”

He dashed back into his studio. Chen Yingying couldn’t help but ask, “What are you dawdling for?”

“I’m going to get the birthday gift for Professor Wang!”

A moment later, Jiang Lun emerged again, holding a brown paper bag. Chen Yingying frowned. “What kind of gift is that?”

He smiled mysteriously. “You’ll see when we get there!”

“Tch! You won’t even tell me. Playing secretive, huh?” Chen Yingying was quite displeased.

While Jiang Lun changed his clothes, she tried to sneak a peek inside the brown paper bag, but as soon as she reached out, Jiang Lun came out fully dressed. Startled, she quickly withdrew her hand and pretended nothing had happened.

Leaving the house, the two hailed a cab. The driver glanced at Jiang Lun, who wore sunglasses and a mask, and eyed him suspiciously. Along the way, he cautiously asked what Jiang Lun did for a living.

Jiang Lun found it frustrating and gave a vague excuse. He thought to himself that maybe it was time to buy a car since traveling like this was too inconvenient.

Resolved, he decided to find time to visit a dealership soon.

About twenty minutes later, Jiang Lun and Chen Yingying arrived at the residential complex where Wang Kai lived.

Since Chen Yingying had been there before, she confidently led Jiang Lun to the door.

“Xiao Jiang and Yingying are here! Come in, come in!” Jin Chanju opened the door. She had spotted them through the peephole. “Old Wang started going on about it this morning, wondering if Xiao Jiang, so busy lately, would even make it!”

“Of course I’m coming!” Jiang Lun smiled. “No matter how busy I am, I must come to Professor Wang’s birthday!”

Chen Yingying pursed her lips, thinking, If I had reminded you, you’d have forgotten!

But she kept that to herself.

“Who’s here?” came a shout from the kitchen. Moments later, Wang Kai appeared, holding a spatula. Seeing Jiang Lun and Chen Yingying, his face flushed with a warm glow. “Haha, Xiao Jiang, I’ve been looking forward to having a drink with you. Wait a minute, I’ll finish this dish, then we’ll have a good chat!”

Jiang Lun smiled and nodded repeatedly in agreement.

Jin Chanju stepped forward and snatched the spatula. “Alright, I’ll handle the cooking. You go chat with Xiao Jiang.”

“All right then!” Wang Kai said happily. “But this dish is half my handiwork! Don’t go claiming all the credit for making it delicious!”

“Go on and talk!” Jin Chanju smiled and gave him a warning glance, then turned to Chen Yingying. “Yingying, wash your hands and come help inside!”

“Okay!” Chen Yingying readily agreed, changed clothes, washed up, and entered the kitchen.

With the two men left alone in the living room, Jiang Lun said, “Professor Wang, shall we go to your study for a chat? I have something to show you.”

“What is it?” Wang Kai said, standing and leading Jiang Lun toward his study.

Jiang Lun smiled, “Consider it your birthday gift.”

“Oh?” Wang Kai glanced at the brown paper bag in Jiang Lun’s hand. It didn’t look like an expensive item like a watch or jewelry, but he sensed there was something special inside.

Once inside the study, Wang Kai grew impatient. “Come on, show me! What is it? Why so mysterious?”

“Here!” Jiang Lun handed the bag over for him to open.

Wang Kai opened the bag and found a stack of papers. Taking out the top sheet, he saw a large title: The Musical Script for "Steady Happiness."

He flipped to the next page and kept reading—

Synopsis:

Qiu Chen and his wife Lin Mo attend their 20-year class reunion. The only absence is Qiu Chen’s former first love, Tong Yao. A phone call from Tong Yao in Yunnan causes a stir. At the urging of old classmates Pan Xiaozhi and Li Dehui, Qiu Chen flies alone to an inn in Lijiang, only to be discovered by Lin Mo...

...

Main Characters:

...

Act One

Scene One

(The curtain rises with blue lighting. A door in the center opens. Qiu Chen, with hands in his pockets and holding a phone, stumbles out, visibly intoxicated.)

Qiu Chen: Hello? Who’s this?

A voice comes from the phone: I’m Tong Yao...

...

This musical, "Steady Happiness," is the first part of Xiao Ke’s trilogy of love musicals. The next two parts are "Waiting for Your Love" and "Because of Love."

The musical features many classic songs such as “Waiting for Your Love,” “The Most Familiar Stranger,” “Because of Love,” “We Seem to Have Met Somewhere,” and “Steady Happiness.”

After watching some videos about the storyline, Jiang Lun wasn’t very confident in it. The plot seemed somewhat clichéd, and some settings felt stiff.

But since he wanted to give a musical as a gift, he didn’t have many options.

Large-scale musicals like "Mamma Mia" or "The Lion King" were not yet within his reach—the timing wasn’t right.

What attracted him to "Steady Happiness" was its songs.

Each piece was a classic and would be useful sooner or later. Synchronizing their release with the musical could create greater value.

“Why did you think of giving me this?” Wang Kai asked, puzzled after reading the script.

“Actually, I want to collaborate with you!” Jiang Lun smiled. “I’ve already composed the songs marked in the script. You can listen to the demos first.”

He opened his phone, launched the player, and played each song for Wang Kai.

As the music played, Wang Kai’s expression changed. “Can I be honest?”

“Of course!” Jiang Lun anticipated his point. “You think the music is better than the script?”

“Yes!” Wang Kai said. “If you want to stage this musical, the script definitely needs more polishing and refinement.”

“No problem. The script was rushed anyway,” Jiang Lun said. “If you agree to collaborate, I’ll hand everything over to you.”

“How do you plan to collaborate?”

“My idea is to release the musical and the original soundtrack simultaneously on Valentine’s Day next year.”

“Next year?” Wang Kai laughed. “Looks like you’ve planned this for a while. Valentine’s Day is a great date. That gives me enough time to get the script properly polished.”

He added, “Honestly, I’m pretty confident. Just based on these few songs of yours alone, I have to make this musical a success!”

“Then it’s settled!” Jiang Lun smiled. “I only need the rights to these few songs. The rest doesn’t matter.”

“Heh!” Wang Kai tapped Jiang Lun’s finger playfully. “You’re clever. The essence of this musical lies in those songs!”