The program entered its final half-hour countdown.
In the contestants' lounge, all producers had finished their work and were sitting around, drinking coffee.
However, with so many people present, the atmosphere was rather subdued. It seemed everyone was unsure how to interact, as everyone in this competition was an opponent, not a teammate.
"By the way, has Ting Yu from China arrived yet?" Jin Chengxian remembered how Ting Yu had stolen his spotlight at the reception.
He had deliberately paid attention to Ting Yu's movements from the beginning of the day, but he still hadn't seen Ting Yu, even at this point.
Because the production studios were special broadcasting halls, eight rooms were arranged side-by-side. The producer's name was posted on the door, and if someone was inside the studio, the nameplate of that room would light up.
Several times while writing his songs, Jin Chengxian had come out of his room and specifically checked Ting Yu's room, but the light had never turned on.
It was still off even now.
"I haven't seen him anyway," Sean said, leaning back on the sofa and taking a sip of his coffee.
For a world-class competition like this, the coffee provided by the program team was naturally the best. Sean was also a big coffee drinker, so this moment was a form of enjoyment for him.
"Could he be sick?"
"No way. I heard China has been hyping this Ting Yu up so much. If he's absent on the first day, does he even dare to go back home?"
At this moment, the Russian producer, Loss of, let out a sneer.
Because Victor from Russia had been completely defeated by Ting Yu in "King of Masked Singer," Russia had lost face to some extent, so their attitude towards this Ting Yu was naturally not friendly.
Moreover, if it weren't for Ting Yu, Victor would definitely have won the King of Singers championship, and at that time, they would have had absolute control over the Chinese music scene.
Having had so many things ruined by Ting Yu, Loss of didn't mind belittling Ting Yu before the competition. Besides, what he said was reasonable and not malicious provocation. His mission this time, in addition to ranking in the top few in "Time Music King," was also to regain the lost face from Ting Yu.
"Perhaps he's already on a plane back home. This time, there might be a lucky contestant who gets a bye."
"Ah… that's no fun. I'd rather crush him than get a bye. After all, Ting Yu has been praised by a world-class piano master."
"Heh heh, he stole the show at the reception; he'll have to spit it all back out later."
Once Loss of started talking, the discussions in the room became more lively.
Speaking of which, discussing Ting Yu was truly the best choice for these people.
Suddenly!
Just as the discussion they had just started was heating up,
Everyone instantly fell silent.
Then they all looked in one direction.
The Ting Yu they were discussing was walking towards them with Lin Yanyu's small hand in his, smiling.
"Oh, there's coffee here, and snacks too?" Su Yu, seeing the coffee machine in the lounge and snacks and pastries on display, walked over in surprise.
"Wife, do you want any snacks?" he asked Lin Yanyu, turning back.
"No, I'm on a diet recently," Lin Yanyu quickly shook her head.
Su Yu put the snacks back in their place: "Alright then…"
Then, he smiled at Lin Yanyu and said, "I'll go in first, can you make me a cup of coffee?"
Lin Yanyu nodded obediently: "Yes, yes, I'll make it and bring it to you, husband."
Su Yu waved his hand upon hearing this: "It's okay, by the time you're done, I'll be coming out."
With that, he prepared to head towards the production studio.
Lin Yanyu, however, held his hand and refused to let go.
Just as Su Yu stopped and was in a daze, he felt a fragrant breeze, and then his face felt a hint of coolness.
"Husband, good luck." Lin Yanyu then let go of Su Yu's hand.
Humming a tune, she took coffee beans from a box next to the coffee machine.
Su Yu was no longer the young man who would be flustered by a kiss. He chuckled and said to Lin Yanyu, "Remember not to put too much sugar."
"But I remember you used to have low blood sugar and loved sweets. Don't you like them too sweet now?"
"No, it's because having you is sweet enough. If I add more sugar, I'm afraid I won't be able to handle it."
With that, Su Yu winked at Lin Yanyu and turned to walk towards the production studio.
Su Yu did not greet any of the producers during the entire process.
This wasn't because he was impolite, but because he knew it was unnecessary. None of these producers thought highly of him.
Su Yu wasn't someone who would offer a warm greeting only to be met with indifference.
Besides, these people were all opponents, and there was no need to chat with them.
After Su Yu entered the production studio, Lisa, who was in charge of the live broadcast, quickly followed him and closed the door. The light on the nameplate Ting Yu also lit up.
From the moment he arrived, everyone in the lounge had been silent.
Their gazes followed Su Yu.
They were all bewildered.
When the door closed, everyone looked at each other.
"There are only twenty-something minutes left, is he going in to write a song?" someone couldn't hold back.
Jin Chengxian looked at Lin Yanyu's incredibly beautiful figure making coffee in the distance and suddenly felt his girl group was not as appealing. He said somewhat sourly, "I know a little Chinese. He just said he'd come out after the coffee was ready."
Everyone was stunned at first, then wore strange expressions.
"Not bad, very impressive," Sean chuckled.
"Is it possible he wrote it beforehand and is just going in to pretend?" the Russian producer Loss of teased.
Jin Chengxian waved his hand: "Heh heh, how is that possible? The program team records the songwriting progress throughout. Otherwise, why would they let us come here to write? They said there's only one day to write songs, and anything brought in from outside doesn't count."
"Hahaha, maybe he doesn't know?"
"Then let's wait for the program team's announcement. If he really doesn't know, then this competition will be interesting."
The lounge was filled with mirth.
The coffee machine was boiling water. Lin Yanyu stood with her arms crossed, leaning against the cabinet holding the coffee machine, looking at them with a half-smile.
It seemed that in the eyes of these people, the Chinese music scene and Ting Yu were not even worth researching.
Even if they had watched one episode of "King of Love Songs," these people wouldn't have said such things.
After the water boiled, she stopped paying attention to the group and began to brew the coffee.
She even frothed some milk and drew a multi-layered heart for Su Yu.
Looking at her masterpiece, she smiled with great satisfaction.
*Crack!*
Just then.
The door to Su Yu's production studio opened.
He walked out from inside.
Following behind him was the camerawoman named Lisa.
Her face still wore a shocked expression, and her steps were slightly stiff.
"Husband, it's ready!" Seeing Su Yu come out, Lin Yanyu said with a beaming smile.
Su Yu couldn't help but smile at that and walked towards Lin Yanyu.
Ten minutes to complete.
Just as Guan Yu defeated Hua Xiong with wine in ancient times, now Su Yu makes coffee and writes… or rather, "carries" songs.
…
"Why didn't the program team intervene?"
"Did he really write a song in ten minutes?"
"Impossible. There must be something wrong here!"
"Hmph, we'll know when we watch his live broadcast playback after the competition ends."
As Su Yu had come out, the discussions here had also intentionally lessened.
After Su Yu finished his cup of coffee, the program staff came to notify them to draw lots at the venue.
In other words, the first episode of "Time Music King" was about to begin!