Shanghai, Hongqiao Airport.

The early March air still carried a hint of the late spring chill.

Lu Zhixian pulled a simple suitcase out of the arrivals gate and immediately spotted the person waiting to pick him up.

It wasn't Lin Shiya, but a capable woman in her early thirties, dressed in a well-tailored business suit and wearing gold-rimmed glasses. Her eyes were sharp behind the lenses as she sized him up discreetly.

"Teacher Lu, I am Shiya's manager, Chen Zifang." She proactively extended her hand, her grip firm and brief.

"Sister Chen, hello. Thank you for making the trip," Lu Zhixian responded with a smile.

"It's my duty." Sister Chen handed over a folder.

"This is the specific itinerary for the concert and the preliminary plan for the guest segment. You can take a look on the way."

Her tone was polite, but within that politeness was a professional distance.

Lu Zhixian took the folder, his mind as clear as a mirror.

This was Lin Shiya's personal home turf; not a single detail could go wrong.

As a manager, it was perfectly normal for her to have a scrutinizing and evaluative attitude toward a "parachuted" guest like him who had appeared out of nowhere.

He didn't say much, simply opening the folder and starting to read seriously.

The car drove smoothly all the way toward the city center.

An hour later, they arrived at a large rehearsal base located in the suburbs.

Pushing open the heavy soundproof doors, a simulated stage large enough to accommodate thousands of people appeared before his eyes.

The stage was brilliantly lit, with a professional band, backup singers, a dance team... dozens of people were each attending to their duties.

This setup was even more extravagant than the backstage of a TV station on New Year's Eve.

The music came to an abrupt halt.

Lin Shiya, wearing a loose tracksuit, walked over from behind the control console. Her long hair was casually tied into a ponytail with a hair tie, and her face was bare of makeup, her clean complexion glowing white under the lights.

"Welcome, Teacher Lu. You've traveled a thousand miles to grace us with your presence." A slight smile played at the corners of her mouth, her words carrying a hint of teasing.

Lu Zhixian closed the folder in his hand and raised it slightly. "Since it's Teacher Lin's show, I had to come."

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, everyone sat around the lounge area below the stage.

The Music Director, a middle-aged man in his forties with long, artistic hair, cleared his throat and began explaining the plan for the guest segment.

"Teacher Lu, according to our team's preliminary concept, the guest segment will last for a total of two songs."

"For the first song, you will perform one of your representative works solo. Considering popularity and the live atmosphere, we have tentatively chosen 'airport 10:30'."

"For the second song, you and Shiya will perform a classic male-female duet love song. We have three options shortlisted, all of which are gold hits with extremely high national recognition, ensuring a full-house sing-along."

After the Music Director finished, he pushed up his glasses confidently and looked at Lu Zhixian.

This plan was absolutely foolproof.

The entire team felt that the matter was settled.

However, after listening, Lu Zhixian remained silent for a few seconds.

He looked up, scanned the room, and finally let his gaze fall on Lin Shiya.

"The plan needs to change."

Four words, light as a feather, yet they were like a stone tossed into a calm lake.

The air in the lounge area instantly froze.

The Music Director's brow immediately knotted into a frown.

The gaze behind Sister Chen's lenses also became serious.

"Teacher Lu," the Music Director's tone was somewhat urgent.

"This plan was developed through multiple rounds of discussion by our team and is considered the safest and most effective. There are less than two weeks left until the concert; making major temporary changes is too high-risk."

"I understand." Lu Zhixian nodded, his tone remaining calm. "But it's too safe."

"Safe means there are no surprises."

He looked at Lin Shiya and continued.

"Fans pay for tickets not to hear a classic duet they can order anytime at a KTV. What they want to see is Lin Shiya—you—creating a unique moment on this stage that belongs only to tonight."

"Covering classics is the safe card, but it's also the lazy card. We should do something new, or use a completely new way to perform one of our own songs."

These words made the expressions of several core team members present turn somewhat subtle.

Sister Chen's brow furrowed even tighter as she spoke in a low voice.

"Teacher Lu, your idea is very creative, but the reality is time. Arranging, rehearsing, and coordinating all require a lot of time. We cannot gamble the quality of Shiya's entire concert on an uncertain surprise."

"I understand your concerns." Lu Zhixian turned to her. "So, I won't use too much of the team's energy."

He paused and said something that stunned everyone again.

"Replace the originally planned duet with 'the beach'."

"'the beach'?"

The Music Director was the first to shake his head. "No! The structure of 'the beach' is too unique; its mood is lonely and private. It will fall apart."

"That's the conventional arrangement logic." Lu Zhixian was unhurried. "What if I can produce a live version that satisfies everyone?"

Lin Shiya had been listening quietly without interrupting.

At this moment, she finally looked up, her clear eyes staring directly at Lu Zhixian with a searching look.

"How long do you need?"

"One night." Lu Zhixian gave a startling timeframe.

The room erupted in an uproar.

One night to rearrange a complex male-female duet version capable of being performed in a ten-thousand-person stadium?

This was simply a fantasy!

Although the Music Director was skeptical, the man before him was a formidable figure who had swept five categories at the Golden Song Awards.

Sister Chen felt that Lu Zhixian was being unrealistic.

Only Lin Shiya, looking at Lu Zhixian's certain expression, remained silent for a full half-minute.

Finally, she made the final call.

"Fine, I'll give you one night."

She turned to her team, her tone brook no argument.

"Tomorrow morning at ten, we will listen to the demo here. If it doesn't work, Master Lu, we will proceed with the original plan."

...

The next morning at ten o'clock, in the rehearsal hall.

The atmosphere was even more tense than yesterday.

All the core team members were present, including Lin Shiya's exclusive band.

Lu Zhixian took a USB drive and plugged it into the console's computer.

He didn't say any unnecessary words, simply giving the sound engineer an OK gesture.

The next second, a melodious yet majestic strain of orchestral music poured out from the multi-million dollar sound equipment.

Just the intro alone was completely different from the original version.

Everyone's expression changed.

The Music Director suddenly sat up straight.

Sister Chen also took off her glasses, seemingly wanting to hear more clearly.

When the verse performed by Lu Zhixian's male vocals ended, a newly added instrument abruptly elevated the song's emotion.

Immediately after, Lin Shiya's female vocal part began.

In the demo, this part was simulated by Lu Zhixian using falsetto, but even so, that ethereal and powerful feeling was already palpable.

The most explosive part was the chorus.

The originally layered sense of loneliness had been rearranged into a tension-filled dialogue and resonance between the male and female parts, magnifying the emotional intensity several times over.

When the last lyric faded, the entire rehearsal hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

A full minute passed.

Clap, clap, clap...

The band's drummer, a burly man in his thirties, was the first to stand up and clap vigorously.

Applause instantly filled the room.

The Music Director's face was filled with shock and disbelief; looking at Lu Zhixian, only pure admiration remained.

"This... this arrangement is simply the work of a genius!"

Lin Shiya closed her eyes, seemingly still savoring the melody.

A few seconds later, she opened her eyes and looked at Lu Zhixian, a light never seen before deep in her gaze.

It was the kind of light a top-tier singer has when encountering a perfect work that can push them to even greater heights.

She didn't look at anyone else, directly giving the command to the Music Director.

"Change it."

"Overturn all the plans; follow what he says."

During the subsequent rehearsals, Lu Zhixian completely awed Lin Shiya's entire team.

He not only perfectly completed his own singing parts but could even offer incisive modification suggestions for the band's instrumentation, the vocal harmonies, and even the live sound parameters.

During a break, the drummer leaned over to the bassist and whispered in amazement, "This guy is definitely the best singer among producers and the best producer among singers. He's a monster!"

The high-intensity rehearsal continued until nine o'clock at night.

Team members left one after another, leaving only Lu Zhixian and Lin Shiya in the vast rehearsal hall.

They sat side by side on the edge of the empty stage, legs dangling in the air, each holding a bottle of mineral water.

"Tired?" Lin Shiya suddenly spoke, her voice sounding exceptionally clear in the empty venue.

"I'm alright." Lu Zhixian unscrewed the cap and took a sip.

"What about you? You've been rehearsing for nearly half a month straight, right?"

"I'm used to it." Lin Shiya turned her head to look at him.

"Seriously, thank you."

"Thank me?"

"Yes," she looked at the empty seats below the stage.

"Thank you for giving me a version of 'the beach' that I never even imagined myself."

Lu Zhixian smiled and didn't respond.

The two sat quietly like that, chatting idly.

However, neither of them knew.

Late that night, a piece of news quietly began to ferment online.

Early the next morning, the hashtag #Lin Shiya Concert Guest# directly landed in the top ten of Weibo's trending searches.

Clicking in, a blurry candid photo was being widely circulated.

In the photo, Lu Zhixian and Lin Shiya were standing side by side in the rehearsal hall.

The comment section completely exploded.

Fans were ecstatic, and passersby were curious, but soon, some harsh voices also began to surface.

"Lu Zhixian? What right does he have to be Lin Shiya's guest?"

"A newcomer who just transitioned from behind the scenes? Don't let it be a car crash on site and lower the standard of the entire concert!"