172: Chapter 172 Liu Shishi ponders the mystery of the word "tight".

"Stop!"

Inside the top-tier professional recording studio of Fengxing Tianxia.

Wearing monitoring headphones, Lin Chen sat before a complex, million-level mixing console and shouted into the microphone.

Inside the booth, Dilraba, who was sitting on a high bar stool, quickly took off her headphones. Her big, watery eyes looked at Lin Chen through the thick soundproof glass: "What's wrong, Hubby? Was I a beat early on one of the notes just now?"

Lin Chen shook his head: "The beat and pitch are fine, it's just that your voice is too tense. This is a light, sweet little song; don't treat it as seriously as Singing opera. Relax."

"Oh, oh! Got it!"

Dilraba nodded obediently and put the headphones back on. She closed her eyes to find the feeling for a moment, then started Singing from the beginning again.

As a result, she didn't even finish half of the verse this time before she was mercilessly interrupted by Lin Chen again.

Lin Chen sat with his legs crossed, habitually rubbing his chin with his thumb: "Don't rush to record the final track yet. Let's just do a run-through to find the feeling."

"This time, don't worry about any of those rules like breathing techniques or vocal articulation. Just pretend you're at KTV Singing a duet with me; do whatever feels comfortable. Ready, go!"

The accompaniment music started playing in the headphones again.

Lin Chen's fingers tapped gently on the mixing console, keeping the beat.

Looking at the focused Lin Chen outside the glass, Dilraba couldn't help but curl her lips into a sweet smile.

Those enchanting peach blossom eyes were filled with an unmelting tenderness and sweetness.

Just as the intro was about to end and she was preparing to enter,

Lin Chen outside the glass suddenly winked at her without any warning.

"Pfft!"

Dilraba was amused, and the tension she felt just moments ago vanished instantly.

She didn't show any weakness either, blowing a kiss toward the microphone, then, hitting the precise beat, she sang the first line of lyrics with ease:

"A quiet summer, stars dotting the sky, there's some longing in my heart, longing for your face. I can pretend not to see, or I can miss you secretly..."

Because she knew this was just a sound check run-through, Dilraba shed all her psychological baggage.

She no longer worried about what technique to use for this line or how to handle that high note.

She swayed her slender figure as she pleased, completely following the upbeat rhythm of the music.

While Singing, she also made heart gestures, flirted, and even made faces at Lin Chen through the glass.

She was completely immersed in this sweet little song full of summer vibes.

After the song finished, Dilraba took off her headphones and walked to the nearby rest area to take a sip of warm water to soothe her throat.

Then, she took a few deep breaths to adjust her state, preparing to turn around and re-enter the recording booth.

After interacting with her husband, she now felt relaxed all over, and her voice had opened up.

This official recording would definitely be a one-take success!

"Wait a second."

Lin Chen suddenly took off his headphones and waved her over.

"What's wrong, Hubby? Do you need to adjust the arrangement?"

Lin Chen shook the master copy disk in his hand, a satisfied smile curling his lips: "No need. It's already recorded."

"Huh?!"

Dilraba opened her mouth in shock, standing there stunned like a silly goose.

Not just her; the four others sitting on the sofa behind, including Yang Mi and Tong Liya, who were scrolling through Weibo checking comments, also stopped what they were doing, all raising their heads in unison, their faces full of astonishment.

"Just now... wasn't it agreed that it was just a test run to find the feeling? You secretly started the real recording?!" Dilraba asked, blinking her big eyes in disbelief.

Lin Chen nodded: "That's right, it was a real recording. Not only did I record it, but the effect is surprisingly perfect."

"I don't believe it! I didn't even perform properly just now! Let me listen!"

Dilraba rushed eagerly to the mixing console.

To get closer, she simply sat right on Lin Chen's lap, snatched the monitoring headphones, and put them on her head.

What came through the headphones was indeed her sweet voice with a touch of exotic flair.

However, this voice lacked the deliberate grace and restraint of a studio recording; instead, it had an unadorned laziness and lightness.

The best part was that in the blank space of the chorus interlude, it even clearly recorded the crisp "pfft" laughter when she was amused by Lin Chen earlier.

This laughter didn't seem abrupt at all; instead, it was like a stroke of genius, perfectly matching the light and playful mood of the entire song, like the finishing touch on a painting!

"Hubby, is... is this really me Singing?"

After listening to the playback, Dilraba took off the headphones, turning back to look at Lin Chen in disbelief.

Lin Chen reached out and pinched her soft cheeks, his eyes full of praise: "Excellent. It's even more perfect than I imagined. The soul of this song is that girlish, coquettish, and lazy feeling, and you captured that state perfectly just now."

"Hee hee!"

Hearing the praise from the man she loved, any lack of confidence Dilraba felt was instantly thrown to the nine heavens.

A brilliant smile blossomed on her face.

She wrapped her arms around Lin Chen's neck, happily kissing his face several times.

"I understand now, Hubby! This is called 'flaws do not obscure the jade,' right? So-called good music isn't about pursuing absolute perfection in every pitch like a machine. Sometimes, a few unintentional little flaws and the reveal of real emotions are more moving, right?"

Lin Chen took the opportunity to wrap his arms around her slender waist and nodded with satisfaction: "You are teachable. The essence of Singing, to put it plainly, is the transmission of human emotion. So-called vocal skills and articulation techniques are just tools to serve you in expressing those emotions better. They are just the means, not the goal."

"If you put the cart before the horse and sing just to show off your skills, picking at every note until it's as rigid as a textbook, you will instead lose the most precious soul of the music."

"Hee hee~ My husband's teaching is effective! Of course, it's also because I am naturally gifted! Don't look at who I belong to!"

Dilraba sat on Lin Chen's lap, her tail held high.

She waved triumphantly at Yang Mi, who was sitting on the sofa: "Big Sister! Did you see that! This fairy didn't even need an hour, and I finished perfectly in one take! This is definitely a genius voice that God is chasing to feed! Are you feeling the pressure?"

Yang Mi unhurriedly picked up her thermos cup and took a sip of warm water to soothe her throat.

She didn't even give this cocky little girl a proper look.

She stood up, walked with elegant steps straight into the recording booth, and sat down on the high chair.

Then she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and began to adjust her mood.

The song she was going to record, "Fruits of Midsummer," was completely different from Reba's cheerful and bouncy "Ningxia."

This was a slow ballad filled with faint sorrow, reminiscence, and regret.

Two completely different musical styles required two completely different emotional adjustments.

She had to immerse herself in that loneliness of unrequited love.

Lin Chen slapped Dilraba on her pert bottom, signaling her to get off his lap and go wait on the side.

Then he crossed his arms and looked at Yang Mi inside the glass with focused eyes.

He didn't rush her, waiting quietly.

About three or five minutes passed.

Yang Mi slowly opened her eyes.

The originally sharp gaze of a powerful woman was now covered with a layer of faint melancholy and sorrow.

She made an "OK" gesture to Lin Chen outside the glass.

Lin Chen returned the gesture, and his long fingers pressed the play button; the slightly sorrowful guitar intro flowed slowly.

"Perhaps by giving up, I can get closer to you. If I stop seeing you, only then will you remember me. Time accumulates, these fruits of midsummer, the lonely scent in memories. I must try to leave you, and stop missing you..."

Yang Mi held the stand of the upright microphone gently with both hands, her eyelids drooping slightly.

Her body swayed rhythmically with the soothing music and Singing.

Objectively speaking, in the Mandarin music scene, Yang Mi and Dilraba's innate vocal conditions are not really the kind of top-tier, God-given heavenly voices.

They both have some shortcomings in vocal range and absolute pitch control.

But when God closes a door for you, He always leaves a window open.

If you look at it from another angle, in terms of emotional resonance and immersion, these two women are absolutely gifted players who have cheated.

After all, they are top-tier actresses who have won Best Actress awards; their ability to manage emotions is absolutely masterful.

At this moment, Yang Mi's performance of "Fruits of Midsummer," although still looking a bit raw and immature in the details of a few breathing spots.

But that doesn't matter at all.

What can truly pierce people's hearts is the deep affection and helplessness in her Singing that is almost overflowing.

That sense of loneliness, as if licking one's wounds alone in the dead of night, was performed vividly by her, making people involuntarily feel heartbroken and shed tears.

"Are you nervous?"

On the sofa outside the recording booth, Shishi leaned over to Dilraba and asked curiously in a low voice.

In the metaphysics of interpersonal relationships, sometimes it's just about fate.

Logically, Shishi and Dilraba should belong to different camps and see each other as eyesores.

But it just so happened that both of them had a bit of heartless, coquettish innocence in their personalities, so they inexplicably clicked, and now they stick together all day, playing closer than real sisters.

"What's there to be nervous about? It's just recording a song; I'm not a young maiden getting on the bridal sedan for the first time."

Dilraba brushed her big wavy hair hanging in front of her chest, crossed her legs, and leaned on the sofa, her little feet swinging back and forth.

That exquisite, pretty face was full of a cocky expression that said, "I am invincible, and the life of a master is lonely like snow."

Shishi was stunned for a moment, blinking her eyes in confusion: "But... since you aren't nervous, why did Hubby remind you from outside while wearing headphones earlier, saying you were 'clamping' too tightly and telling you to relax?"

Dilraba's big, watery eyes rolled, and she gave a wicked smile: "This word 'tight'... it's not describing nervousness; it's a verb, and it's also an adjective."

"The mystery behind this... anyway, you wouldn't understand even if I told you. As a maiden who hasn't even dated properly, why are you asking about such inappropriate boudoir secrets?"

Shishi rested her chin on her hands, her delicate eyebrows slightly furrowed, as she seriously pondered the meaning of this sentence in her mind.

"Tight" is an adjective?

Can you sing with that kind of feeling in your throat when Singing?

This sounds... why does it feel like the car is driving too fast, and the scene is inappropriate for children.