MMLDU Chapter 88

Xie Xuan and Zhao He ran ahead, while Pei Lang had eaten too much earlier. He had just finished eating and was now running, taking in large gulps of cold air, which made his stomach uncomfortable. At first, he could keep going, but soon he had to slow down.

Many staff members were filming, but since Pei Lang was falling behind, only two cameramen were following him closely.

Pei Lang couldn’t hold on any longer. He swayed and almost fell, but the cameraman quickly caught him. “Be careful.”

The cameraman’s voice was deep. His broad hand steadied Pei Lang.

“Thank you.”

Pei Lang thanked him, his face pale. He saw his two teammates getting further and further ahead, and he felt anxious. He forced himself to catch up, but the cameraman was worried. “Take a break for a bit. You’ll cause trouble for the crew like this.”

If an artist gets injured during filming, the crew would bear a large responsibility.

Pei Lang nodded in agreement and decided to rest for a while. The cameraman stayed by his side the whole time. Pei Lang started to observe the cameraman more closely. He was tall, with an impressive presence. He wore a loose, fleece-lined hoodie and light-colored jeans—very young and casual. Unfortunately, his face was hidden behind a mask and large black-framed glasses, so Pei Lang couldn’t see it clearly, though he assumed his face shape was nice.

Feeling Pei Lang’s gaze, the cameraman lowered his head and remained silent.

Earlier, when he spoke, his voice sounded a bit familiar, which was why Pei Lang had paid attention. Seeing how shy the cameraman was, he stopped staring.

“I’m feeling better now. Let’s go, and thanks for your help.” After the discomfort in his body eased, Pei Lang increased his speed to catch up.

By the time they arrived at the store, the boss had already agreed on the price. The pay wasn’t bad, and it was based on a per-task rate. Since Xie Xuan didn’t understand musical instruments, he could only sit and plan the next job while the others worked.

Zhao He didn’t know that Pei Lang was also skilled. When Pei Lang tuned an expensive piano precisely, Zhao He looked at him with admiration. Their work became much easier after that.

This was a large music store with a wide range of services.

They sold, repaired, tuned, and even modified instruments. Many instruments were brought in for tuning, and it took them quite a bit of time. The instruments were expensive, so they had to handle them with great care. Before long, they were exhausted.

Sometimes, when the store’s staff were too busy and customers would come to buy instruments, Pei Lang would help. His explanations and demonstrations were very persuasive. In the process, they sold two high-end pianos, two flutes, and a guqin.

The sales commission for these sales was calculated by the store manager and given to Pei Lang. They had worked there for just two and a half hours, and the total earnings from commissions and tuning fees came to over four thousand yuan. After subtracting their meal expenses, they now had just under ten thousand yuan.

They had no idea how much their competitors had earned, so they couldn’t afford to slack off. They had to make every second count in order to earn more. It was still not yet three in the afternoon, so what could they do related to sound that would make money…?

Xie Xuan thought for a long time and finally came up with an unconventional idea.

They could work at a haunted house as ghosts. Although it seemed a bit odd, it was at least related to the theme. They could scare players with ghostly voices—exciting and a bit ridiculous.

With no better ideas, the three of them decided to check out the amusement park.

Just as they were about to head out, the program crew suddenly issued a new task: they were required to organize a public welfare event related to the theme. If they failed to complete it, they would lose points.

They had already been struggling to figure out ways to make money and now they had to handle a public welfare task as well. They weren’t sure what kind of public welfare activity could be related to the theme.

There was no choice but to try one by one.

They found a local public welfare organization’s official account and started calling about the different events. After a lot of effort, they finally found one that worked.

They organized an educational activity for blind children.

Blind children cannot see the world, but they still have the right to understand and perceive it. Since they cannot see, they rely on sound to recognize the world. What Pei Lang and the others had to do was help the children learn through sound.

After coordinating with the people involved, they set out to do the public welfare work.

The public welfare work was free of charge. Many university students also volunteered. Each of the three took two children. Today’s lesson was about identifying sounds made by different spherical objects.

To prevent interference, three rooms were prepared. Pei Lang first dropped various spherical objects onto the ground to make sounds, explaining what they were and their uses.

After demonstrating with a basketball, ping-pong ball, glass marbles, and others, he scrambled the order and asked the children to identify the objects and their features. If they got it wrong, he patiently explained again, until the children could correctly name them no matter how the order was mixed up.

The three of them completed the task in an hour. After saying goodbye to the children, they prepared to head to the amusement park.

Perhaps it was because of their celebrity status and they could advertise while working, the staff at the amusement park were quite accommodating and allowed them to play the roles of ghosts in the haunted house. After applying terrifying makeup, the amusement park staff led them to the designated spots and explained a few things before leaving.

Their spots were close to each other, so they hid in the dark, waiting for players to pass by before jumping out to scare them. Xie Xuan enjoyed it immensely, producing a chilling and eerie sound that scared the players into screaming, some even on the verge of crying.

After Xie Xuan scared some players, Pei Lang jumped out for the next round. Although the players were terrified, the three of them were enjoying themselves. They took turns scaring the players, some of whom were so frightened that they ran around wildly without thinking. One male player was so scared that he called for his mom. In his panic, he accidentally bumped into Pei Lang, who had just jumped out to scare him. Pei Lang was knocked back a few steps and ended up falling directly into the cameraman’s arms.

“Are you okay? Does it hurt?” the cameraman asked anxiously.

It did hurt, but thinking of the male player who was so terrified, Pei Lang couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m fine, it doesn’t hurt. Hahaha~~”

In the darkness, Pei Lang couldn’t see the cameraman’s face, but he felt an odd sense of familiarity. He had sensed it before, but it was even stronger now. “You are…?”

Pei Lang was startled when he heard the urgent question about his injury. In the rush, the cameraman forgot to disguise his voice. Pei Lang thought back carefully and soon figured it out. He quickly turned off the camera and switched off the microphone on his body, asking, “How did you get in here?!”

He was shocked—it was none other than his jealous and clingy husband.

He had never seen him in this casual outfit and almost didn’t recognize him.

“I missed you so much, I snuck in,” Yan Han said innocently. “See, if it weren’t for me, who knows what kind of trouble could’ve happened.”

He acted as though he had predicted everything. Pei Lang should have praised him instead of questioning him.

Pei Lang was speechless. He had only eaten too much, run too fast, and felt some discomfort in his stomach. He had been accidentally bumped into, but none of these were big issues. But now that the person was here, what else could he do? “Just be careful not to reveal your identity. Well, with your outfit, no one will pay attention anyway.”

He had his face mostly covered and still managed to run so fast. Who would have guessed he was the disabled big shot, Yan Han?

The director had asked if there was anything unusual, why the camera had been turned off, so Yan Han turned it back on. The two of them pretended like nothing had happened and continued working.

Xie Xuan got so addicted to the fun that he couldn’t stop. He spent three hours in the haunted house before finishing. When it was time to settle up, they earned over a thousand yuan, which was quite high. Other university students who worked part-time only made about two hundred a day. A lot of that thousand was from advertising fees.

By the time they removed their makeup and changed back into their team uniforms, it was already dark. After working all day, they were ready for something better to eat, although not at a high-end restaurant, just somewhere a little better than what they’d had for breakfast.

Pei Lang ordered a nicely presented dessert. When he tasted it, it was delicious, so he decided to take two with him. Zhao He and the others thought Pei Lang was saving it for later, but instead, he handed the packed desserts to the cameraman who had been following him. “This is really good, try it. Thanks for your hard work today.”

Pei Lang smiled gently and sweetly as Yan Han took the offering from his wife, holding it tightly in his hand.

Xie Xuan couldn’t help but tease. “Why only give it to him? The other cameramen worked hard too.”

“Because he took such good care of me today,” Pei Lang said, rewarding his own cameraman.

Moreover, this is my husband—when has he ever done such tiring work? To sneak in for me like this, it’s so tough and pitiful.

“Thank you.” A smile appeared in Yan Han’s eyes, but because he was wearing large black-rimmed glasses, only Pei Lang, who was close, could see it.

“You’re welcome.” Pei Lang smiled and replied before returning to the team.

It was now evening. They decided to check out a bar.

The nightlife was just beginning, and bars were a fast way to make money. Plus, it fits the theme well.

When they arrived at the bar, they spoke with the manager. Originally, the bar had invited a band, but the lead singer was late due to personal reasons, and they weren’t sure who to bring in to replace them. That’s when Zhao He and the others stepped in.

Stars, good-looking, and able to sing—that’s a live advertisement.

The manager didn’t hesitate for a second and agreed to hire them. When they started negotiating the terms, Pei Lang thought of something. “Manager, can we add one more condition?”

“Mr. Pei, please go ahead,” the manager said. As a cautious manager, it was instinct for him to let Pei Lang speak first.

“Could we get a 3% commission on the drinks sold during the performance?” Pei Lang had learned during their time at the instrument store that sales commissions were a fast way to make money. Of course, he didn’t ask for too much—he just wanted a bit more income from the performance fees.

This was their last job for the day. Once they finished here, they would head back to the hotel to see the results. If they could secure the maximum profit, that would be ideal.

The manager thought for less than five seconds before agreeing.

Honestly, the request wasn’t unreasonable. With their fame, the performance fee would surely be substantial. Anyone who didn’t grab such a good deal would be foolish.

The performance fee was set at 3,000 yuan per person. The contract was signed. They began discussing how they would perform.

Zhao He said, “I can play and sing.”

Xie Xuan: “I’m pretty good at dancing. I can get the crowd into the vibe. Once the atmosphere is right, the drinks will start pouring in.”

The two of them shared their strengths, then turned to Pei Lang, who paused for a moment and smiled. “How about I switch with Zhao Ge and take turns performing?”

“Xiao Lang, you can sing too?” Xie Xuan asked in surprise. Pei Lang nodded, and Xie Xuan understood. “That makes sense. You know instruments and you’ve played in dramas, so singing shouldn’t be a problem. Alright, let’s do it this way—you two will take turns singing and I’ll dance to set the mood.”

“Sounds good.”

“Great.”

---