mijobooks Chapter 3183: Has the news spread that Xi'er has difficulty eating?
Chapter 3183: Has the news spread that Xi'er has difficulty eating?
Chapter 3183: Has the news spread that Xi'er has difficulty eating?
When Xiaobai returned from Huangjia Village, it was already getting dark. She told Old Zhang about exposing the swindler that day, and Old Zhang praised her for being reasonable.
“Our little Bai has really grown up,” Zhang sighed with a smile.
"Hahaha~~~" Little White felt a sweet warmth in his heart. "Old man, you can rest assured that you've entrusted Little Red Horse to me. I will definitely manage it well. You can relax."
Zhang Tan smiled and said, "Yes, I'm very relieved. With your help and Grandma Huang in charge, you will definitely be able to manage Little Red Horse well."
Xiao Bai nodded emphatically and said with a dream, "In the future, we will open many more Little Red Horse stores. Old man, we can not only open one, but also a second, a third, and a fourth, so that more children can come to the school."
She felt that if she opened so many Little Red Pony academies, she would definitely surpass the old man.
Zhang Tan praised, "This is a great idea, I fully support it. In this way, I will be responsible for making money, and you will drive the little red cars in the future. You will be responsible for planning, and all these little red cars will be managed by you in the future."
“No problem, old man! I can ask Xiwawa, Liuliu, Dudu, Xiaomi, and Chengcheng to help out. Each of them can take care of one family, and I'll pay them a salary…”
Xiaobai envisions a wonderful future where Little Red Horse Academy will be located all over Huangpu River.
After having imagined it all, Xiaobai had to face reality; another important matter awaited her.
Robin's parent-teacher conference.
She promised her niece that she would attend her niece's parent-teacher conference.
After dinner, Xiaobai, with Robin looking on expectantly, headed straight to his aunt's jianbing (Chinese crepe) shop.
Malanhua's Jianbing Guozi shop is doing brisk business in the evening, with the sizzling sound on the griddle and the aroma wafting far and wide.
Wearing an apron stained with grease, Malanhua twirled her bamboo dragonfly rapidly, her voice booming, "Next! Two eggs, extra spicy!"
Upon seeing Xiaobai and Robin, she didn't stop what she was doing, but shouted, "Where are you staying?!"
Robin glanced at her aunt, hesitant to speak, afraid that her grandmother would beat her. She knew she had to rely on her aunt in this crucial moment.
Xiao Bai first looked around and calculated his escape route before saying, "Auntie, it's the parent-teacher conference, Robin's. Can you not go? I'll go. You can stay home and rest."
Malanhua scoffed, "What good would it do you? What do you know? If there's a problem, would you honestly bring it home? You'd definitely cover for Xiaobai. No way! I have to go."
Xiao Bai said, "But Auntie, Robin doesn't want you to go, you... Ah~ Run!"
She suddenly saw her aunt come out of the store to beat her up, so she quickly grabbed Robin and ran away. Once they were far away and she was sure her aunt wasn't chasing them, she stopped.
However, the two dared not go over again, much less mention the matter of not letting their aunt attend the parent-teacher conference.
The aunt and niece stood nervously on the street. After discussing it for a while, they could only back down, since neither of them dared to cause trouble for their aunt again.
However, in the end, it wasn't Ma Lanhua who went to the parent-teacher meeting, but Bai Zhiqiang.
Bai Zhiqiang took half a day off to attend Robin's parent-teacher meeting in the morning. He received positive feedback from the teachers and classmates. Robin is very popular in kindergarten, has a lively and friendly personality, and everyone likes her very much.
There's something that might need a little improvement: sometimes you're too lively, even a bit too lively.
-
Little Red Horse Music Company has been very active in the new year, one of its major initiatives being the holding of its third songwriting competition, which recruited a new batch of songwriters and composers, making it a company with a wealth of talent.
Li Yan is a young and talented songwriter who joined Little Red Horse Music Company this year. He recently wrote a new song with vivid and interesting lyrics and a catchy melody. It tells the story of a little girl who begs everyone not to feed her anymore because she has eaten too much and her belly is bulging.
After Li Yan finished writing this song, the more he listened to it, the more he felt that it was tailor-made for little Tan Xier.
He had heard rumors that Xi'er had "difficulty eating" when she was a child, and that eating was like a battle every time, requiring her older sister Tan Jin'er to coax her for a long time.
"Just think about it," Li Yan said excitedly to Wang Shilong, the general manager of the music company, holding the sheet music. "Xi'er is just a child; she'll definitely be able to really connect with this song! How adorable! It's bound to be a hit!"
Wang Shilong frowned and shook his head repeatedly: "Li Yan, the idea is good, but do you know that Xi'er is our company's ace in the hole?"
“I know she’s a top singer, so this song should be sung by her even more!” Li Yan said, puzzled.
“You don’t understand,” Wang Shilong sighed. “Xi’er has three principles for accepting songs: First, the lyrics must be positive and uplifting, without any negative influence; second, the melody must be beautiful and not too noisy; third, and most importantly, she only sings songs that resonate with her. Besides, she’s a primary school student, so her studies are her main focus; singing is just a hobby. To convince her to sing your song, you first need to convince Chairman Zhang.”
"Then...what should we do?" Li Yan asked anxiously. "I really think this song is perfect for her!"
“It’s difficult,” Wang Shilong said.
Let alone the newcomer Li Yan, even he himself had not seen Xi'er since after the New Year.
Although Xi'er is a singer under Little Red Horse Music Company, the only person who can actually manage her is the big boss, Zhang Tan. As the general manager, he has no say in this matter.
Li Yan did not give up. In order to get Xi'er to sing this song, he began to pull strings.
He first contacted the music arranger at the music company, hoping to pass on a message through the arranger.
The arranger gave a wry smile: "I wanted to arrange a song for her last month, but I've been waiting for half a month and still haven't seen her. Your new song is going to be difficult."
Next, he found Xi'er's agent, Li Qian. Li Qian thought for a moment and said, "Ms. Li, I've heard your song, it's quite good, but Xi'er just started school recently and might not be willing to sing. How about this, I'll accept the song first, and I'll find an opportunity to talk to Xi'er about it, but I can't guarantee anything. If it works out, that would be great, but if not, you'll have to find someone else."
Li Qian was originally Li Yuxiao's manager, then became the manager of the Dada Band, and then took over the management of the Xiao Tan sisters, helping them handle their music-related matters.
Li Yan was overjoyed and thanked him repeatedly.
In the following days, word spread within Little Red Horse Music Company that he wanted to hire Xi'er to sing.
That day, in the break room of Little Red Horse Music Company, several employees were huddled together, whispering among themselves.
"Have you heard? It's said that Teacher Li Yan is even going to wait outside Little Red Horse Academy so that Xi'er can sing the new song he wrote."
"That's normal. It's not that easy to get Xi'er to sing. She's a Grammy Award winner, but now she's focused on her studies. Apart from Chairman Zhang and Teacher Jin'er, who in the company has seen her more than a few times?"
"That's right. Chairman Zhang treats Xi'er like his own daughter, afraid that work will interfere with her studies. He doesn't usually accept any songs. Teacher Li Yan is probably going to suffer a setback this time."
These words were overheard by Li Yan, who happened to be passing by. He gripped the sheet music tightly in his hand, feeling even more uncertain.
Just as he was hanging his head and preparing to return to his studio, his assistant rushed over: "Teacher Li! Director Wang says he wants you to go to his office on the top floor!"
"Director Wang? Which Director Wang?" Li Yan asked, puzzled.
"It's Director Wang Wenming, Vice President Wang. I heard Chairman Zhang is looking for you," the assistant said.
Li Yan looked up abruptly, thinking he had misheard: "Chairman Zhang? Looking for me?"
"Yes! And...Teacher Tan Jin'er was also there."
In the chairman's office on the top floor, Zhang Tan was flipping through the sheet music written by Li Yan, while Tan Jin'er sat beside him, holding a glass of warm water.
Seeing Li Yan enter, Zhang Tan raised his eyes and said in a calm tone, "Teacher Li, please sit down. Jin'er told me about your situation."
Agent Li Qian found Tan Jin'er, who then asked Zhang Tan to vet the case.
Li Yan sat down nervously, unsure of what to do with his hands: "Chairman Zhang, I really think this song is perfect for Xi'er. If you don't think it's suitable, I'll revise it..."
"Don't rush," Zhang Tan interrupted him, pointing to the lyrics on the sheet music. "'Little belly round and plump, Mom always says just one more bite,' these lines are very relatable. But how do you know Xi'er had trouble eating when she was little?"
Li Yan blushed: "...I heard it from a casual conversation among my colleagues. I mentioned it without verifying it. Hehe, sorry."
Zhang Tan put down the sheet music and tapped his fingers lightly on the table.
Li Yan continued, "Chairman Zhang, I guarantee it! The recording of this song will only take half a day, and I will oversee the post-production. It will definitely not interfere with Xi'er's studies! Moreover, the little troubles in the lyrics will definitely resonate with children, and it might even help children who, like Xi'er when she was little, don't like to eat."
Zhang Tan glanced at Tan Jin'er, and only after seeing her nod did he relent: "Okay, we will bring the song to Xi'er, but whether she accepts it or not is up to her."
In the evening at Little Red Horse Academy, Chengcheng was telling stories to the children, while Xier was helping to maintain order.
Zhang Tan waved to her, and Xi'er ran over and sweetly called him "godfather."
Zhang Tan walked over and ruffled her hair: "Come on, let's go upstairs. Your godfather wants to talk to you about something."
Tan Jin'er followed behind. When they arrived home, Zhang Tan took out his phone and played the demo of his new song. As soon as the upbeat melody started, Xi'er's little head swayed gently.
"Don't feed me! My tummy's about to explode!"
Upon hearing this lyric, Xi'er suddenly chuckled and turned to Tan Jin'er, saying, "Sister, you used to always say 'Just one more bite'!"
Tan Jin'er nodded with a smile: "Yes, back then you ate like you were fighting a battle. You owe your sister so many meals that I can't even count them all."
Zhang Tan asked, "Xi'er, this song is about a child's little trouble of not wanting to eat more. Do you think it's nice?"
Xi'er tilted her head and thought for a moment, then listened to the melody again. "It's beautiful."
Zhang Tan asked, "What do you think if you were to sing this?"
"Should I sing it? Was it written by my godfather?"
“I didn’t write it, someone else wrote it, and he wanted you to sing it.”
Xi'er whispered, "It sounds nice, but... I don't have trouble eating now, so wouldn't it sound strange to sing this?"
Zhang sighed, "No, Xi'er can sing about her childhood anecdotes so that other children can know that it's okay if she doesn't want to eat more; she doesn't have to force herself."
Xi'er looked at Tan Jin'er again, and seeing her sister nod, she whispered, "Then...then I'll give it a try."