Shoutout to nyanmaru for the commission!
Group posters differ from individual ones; they not only need to highlight the theme and balance the visual composition, but the positioning also matters.
The program’s director, along with the producer and photographer, carefully considered the positions before finalizing the current arrangement—
The children were placed in the front row, with Song Hao, who was tall, sitting on the ground with one leg bent. Behind the children were the parents, with Song Tao and his wife, and Cheng Jingyao and his husband in the center positions. Ji Linfeng and Shen Sisi were on Tang Min’s left side, while Zhao Jun and Sun Ruru were on Ye Yunqing’s right side.
Switching the positions of Sun Ruru and Shen Sisi’s families wouldn’t really change anything.
However, Sun Ruru smiled and explained, “I’m not as tall as Sister Sisi, and standing next to Yunqing is too much pressure.”
Tang Min and Shen Sisi, who were more observant and sensitive, immediately saw through Sun Ruru’s real motive—it was because of Ye Yunqing’s face.
Zhao Jun and Sun Ruru were not unattractive, given their place in the entertainment industry, but standing next to Ye Yunqing, the man wasn’t as tall or handsome, and the woman wasn’t as “beautiful,” making it a bit awkward.
So the couple wanted to switch to Tang Min’s side. Tang Min didn’t mind; after all, both Sun Ruru and Shen Sisi were younger and more attractive than her. If she were to worry about such things, she might as well not participate in the photo shoot.
But Shen Sisi wasn’t happy about it.
If Sun Ruru didn’t want to be compared unfavorably, did that mean she and Ji Linfeng would have to go over and be overshadowed?
Even though she didn’t think she and her husband were less attractive than Ye Yunqing, there’s still a difference between being in your thirties and twenties. There was no need to create trouble for herself and give critics a chance to pounce.
“There’s no need for us to switch places,” Shen Sisi smiled at Sun Ruru and affectionately linked arms with Tang Min. “Tang and I are wearing outfits that match perfectly today.”
Tang Min was wearing a simple cheongsam-style dress with pastel colors, featuring light yellow accents on the buttons and belt that brightened the outfit, complementing Shen Sisi’s yellow dress, but clashing with the red French-style dress that Sun Ruru was wearing.
Shen Sisi’s outright refusal, with such a “reasonable” excuse, left Sun Ruru with no choice but to give up, lest she offend someone by pushing the issue.
After all, it was her husband who was closest to Ye Yunqing. Though she’d lose face if her husband was ridiculed, it was better than being outshone by a man herself.
So, she decided to compromise and go ahead with the shoot.
Ye Yunqing wasn’t aware of her thoughts, but being next to her, he couldn’t help but feel a bit awkward when she requested a change of position.
Cheng Jingyao noticed his discomfort and nudged Tuntun closer to him, saying, “Hold onto Daddy.”
Tuntun immediately grabbed onto Ye Yunqing’s leg and looked up at him with a big smile.
Ye Yunqing looked down at him, his lips curving into a smile. Cheng Jingyao’s gaze naturally landed on Ye Yunqing, and he, too, smiled gently.
This moment was captured in the final shot.
In the end, the published poster featured a harmonious family of three, creating an atmosphere that made it seem as if no one else around them mattered.
After that, no one caused any more trouble, and the rest of the photo shoot went smoothly.
The production team arranged for the guests to have lunch and rest at a nearby hotel, and around 3 PM, they moved to the recording studio to record the theme song.
***
To save time, the production team rented four small recording studios, and each family recorded separately. Once they finished, they could leave early, and the final version would be put together in post-production.
The lyrics were pre-assigned, and the melody was relatively simple. Each family had practiced in advance. The parents recorded first, while the children stayed in the lounge and had some snacks.
Tuntun’s family went first, with Ye Yunqing recording while Cheng Jingyao stayed in the lounge to look after Tuntun.
Ye Yunqing, who had studied dance and had a good sense of rhythm, had also learned piano with Cheng Jingyao when they were younger, so the recording process went very smoothly.
He finished first, and then it was Cheng Jingyao’s turn.
While waiting in the lounge with Tuntun, Ye Yunqing noticed that Sun Ruru was constantly practicing with her daughter Zhao Yin in a corner. After listening for a while, he realized Zhao Yin’s part was a bit more challenging and longer than Tuntun’s.
The little girl struggled with the high notes and was repeatedly interrupted by her mother to start over.
This atmosphere made everyone else a bit tense.
Ji Linfeng turned to his son Ji Xingjia, his deep voice, characteristic of a CEO, asked, “Are you nervous, sweetheart? Do you want Daddy to help you practice?”
Ji Xingjia protested in a low voice, “Dad, don’t call me ‘sweetheart.’ It’s embarrassing.”
Ji Linfeng: “…”
Tang Min also patted her son Song Hao and said, “Stop playing games. Look at how hard that little girl is working.”
Song Hao, a top-ranked gamer: “…” How hard does she expect him to work on singing a nursery rhyme? He’s not three years old.
Tuntun, who had been quietly sitting next to his dad, nibbling on a cookie and sipping water, was gradually drawn to the commotion around Zhao Yin. When he saw Sun Ruru’s increasingly stern expression, he nearly dropped his little water bottle.
“What’s wrong?” Ye Yunqing asked as he took the bottle from him and patted his head.
Tuntun climbed into his dad’s lap and whispered in his ear, “Daddy, Auntie is really scary.”
Ye Yunqing: “…”
Sun Ruru was indeed being a bit too strict with her child, but every family has its own way of educating their kids, and he didn’t feel it was his place to intervene.
After thinking for a moment, he pointed to the small water bottle on the table that belonged to Zhao Yin and softly asked Tuntun, “Would you like to ask your sister if she wants some water?”
Tuntun glanced at Sun Ruru and then turned his head to hide in Ye Yunqing’s arms.
He didn’t dare.
Next to them, Ji Xingjia heard this and adjusted his glasses before directly saying to Sun Ruru, “Auntie, little sister should have some water.”
Sun Ruru was momentarily stunned and, with an awkward expression, told Zhao Yin to drink some water.
Tuntun turned his head, his eyes shining as he looked at Ji Xingjia: Brother is so brave!
Ji Linfeng, however, didn’t think his son interrupting others was a big deal. He patted his son’s head and praised him in a low voice, “Well done, son. You successfully caught your sister’s attention.”
Ji Xingjia, with a look of disdain, turned his head away and quietly protested again, “Dad, stop using your CEO catchphrases. You’re embarrassing me.”
Ji Linfeng: “…” Ugh, wife, our son is so hard to handle.
At this moment, Zhao Jun finished recording and returned to the lounge, allowing Sun Ruru to head to the recording studio. Sun Ruru handed Zhao Yin’s lyrics to Zhao Jun and said, “Practice with our daughter some more.”
Zhao Yin had just taken a couple of sips of water and immediately wiped her mouth when she heard this, standing in front of Zhao Jun.
But if you looked closely, she seemed even more nervous than before.
Zhao Jun sat beside her, smiling gently, and asked softly, “Which part are you still having trouble with?”
Zhao Yin pointed to two lines, and the father and daughter began practicing again.
Afterward, Song Tao and Shen Sisi also finished recording, and their spouses took over.
Tuntun stopped eating his little cookies and stared at Zhao Yin as she practiced.
He was starting to get nervous too, unconsciously wringing his small hands together, trying to remember his part and softly humming to himself.
Halfway through, he suddenly paused, tugged on his dad’s hand, and said anxiously, “Daddy, I forgot the words!”
Zhao Jun, who had just paused to let his daughter take a break, overheard this and looked at Tuntun with a smile, asking, “Tuntun, haven’t you learned it yet? Do you want to practice with your sister?”
The uncle’s expression and tone were gentle, but Tuntun shrank back into his father’s arms, opened his mouth but couldn’t answer, and turned to look at his dad. He knew the words; he sang them perfectly at home!
“Tuntun practiced well at home,” Ye Yunqing answered for him, patting his little head and soothing him softly, “Don’t worry, Daddy will record with you later.”
Zhao Jun smiled slightly at this, “That’s good. Actually, it’s okay if you don’t sing it perfectly. Tuntun is still young, so it’s normal to make a few mistakes. Just don’t be nervous later. If you need help, Uncle can teach you.”
Though his words were meant to be comforting, Tuntun found the always-smiling uncle even more “scary” than the stern aunt. He timidly looked at his dad, his eyes turning red: “Daddy…”
He didn’t want Uncle to teach him.
At this moment, Cheng Jingyao and Sun Ruru finished recording one after the other and came in.
Cheng Jingyao noticed that Ye Yunqing and Tuntun didn’t look well and asked, “What happened?”
“Nothing,” Ye Yunqing replied as he picked Tuntun up. “Tuntun, do you want to go to the bathroom with Daddy?”
The little guy had drunk a lot of water earlier, and when his dad asked, he suddenly realized he needed to go. He quickly wrapped his arms around Ye Yunqing’s neck and shyly answered, “Yes.”
Ye Yunqing took Tuntun to the bathroom, discreetly mouthing to Cheng Jingyao who followed them, “He’s nervous and forgot the lyrics.”
Cheng Jingyao understood and didn’t offer any specific comfort. Instead, he casually whistled the melody of the theme song as they walked.
Tuntun quietly rested his head on Ye Yunqing’s shoulder, seemingly not hearing the tune.
Ye Yunqing also started humming softly.
After using the bathroom, Tuntun seemed to relax a bit. He began singing along as he did at home, his little head gently swaying to the rhythm. After washing and drying his hands, he continued singing while holding his dad and big dad’s hands, his voice light and cheerful, matching his footsteps.
Ye Yunqing and Cheng Jingyao exchanged smiles.
***
In Recording Studio 2, Zhao Yin’s recording session wasn’t going well.
The recording engineer reluctantly took off his headphones and said, “Let’s call it a day. The child’s voice is hoarse; we can’t record like this.”
Zhao Jun’s expression darkened as he looked at Zhao Yin. Tears as big as beans immediately rolled down the little girl’s cheeks, and she hid behind her mother.
Sun Ruru hugged her daughter and looked at her husband, “What should we do?”
***
Ye Yunqing and Cheng Jingyao came out of Recording Studio 3 with Tuntun and ran into the program staff and Zhao Jun’s family. Shen Sisi waved at them from the lounge door and made an “X” gesture.
Ye Yunqing’s eyes flickered as he looked at the staff member, “What happened?”
The staff member looked troubled and hesitated, “Well, Mr. Zhao here—”
Zhao Jun interrupted him, smiling, “Just now, I noticed that Tuntun seemed a bit unfamiliar with his part, so I was wondering if we could reassign some of the lyrics. There are a few lines in Yin Yin’s part that overlap with Tuntun’s, and they’re quite simple, so Tuntun could sing them instead.”
Ye Yunqing frowned and glanced at Zhao Yin, who was crying behind Sun Ruru. “I remember Yin Yin’s part was more challenging.”
Zhao Jun maintained his smile, “Yes, some parts are a bit difficult for a child, but we could assign those to an adult. The remaining parts could be swapped between the two kids, which would also lighten Tuntun’s load.”
“No.”
Cheng Jingyao flatly refused, giving Zhao Jun a cold glance before holding Tuntun’s hand and walking with Ye Yunqing toward the lounge.
Zhao Jun’s smile froze, and a shadow passed through his eyes.
Just then, the recording engineer from Studio 3 stuck his head out and asked, “Are you guys switching parts? But the child’s already done recording.”
Zhao Jun frowned, “The child finished already?”
The recording engineer replied, “Yes, the child sang very well. His tone and pitch were spot on, and the recording was very well done. It hardly needed any editing.”
“…”
The staff member sneaked a glance at Zhao Jun’s livid face, thinking, Well, this is awkward, isn’t it?
***
After finishing the recording, Ye Yunqing and Cheng Jingyao left early and took Tuntun to Pizza Hut to reward him with a kids’ meal before heading home.
After a long day, Tuntun fell asleep earlier than usual that night.
Once Ye Yunqing finished his evening routine, he laid down and opened Weibo on his phone.
Although the morning’s short pre-show livestream of “Wonderful Moon” was brief, it generated a lot of buzz and was still trending in the mid-range of the hot search list.
When he clicked on the topic, the first post he saw was a video of Tuntun mimicking Ji Xingjia’s upright posture while proudly declaring, “I’m cute too.” Following that was a meticulously edited family photo of Shen Sisi and her family, along with a humorous interaction clip posted by her fans.
There was also a nine-panel Q-version fan art of Tuntun drawn by Cheng Jingyao’s fans, a video compilation of “sweet moments” between Cheng Jingyao and Ye Yunqing, and various memes and gifs derived from the live stream, with Song Tao’s son, Song Hao, contributing the most meme material.
Ye Yunqing hadn’t expected that the brief 30-minute live stream would yield so much content for fans. He kept scrolling and saving pictures, his lips unconsciously curling into a smile.
After a while, he refreshed the page again, and a new post suddenly appeared in the topic, from Zhao Yin’s father, Zhao Jun.
Ye Yunqing frowned slightly.
