210: The chapters preceding Chapter 197 are ready; the subsequent major updates will be released after the update.

Lee Tima puffed out her little chest, but it quickly deflated: "Still, Oppa is better... The tracks I compose always lack a bit of 'soul'."

"How long have you been learning?" Jiang Zhiyu ruffled her hair, "You're already doing quite well."

Kim Taeyeon watched their interaction, and that complex emotion welled up in her heart again. She picked up her glass of milk—Mother Kim had also heated one up for her earlier—and took small sips, her gaze shifting between Jiang Zhiyu and the screen.

"Can I ask... why do you insist on doing all this yourself?" she asked softly. "This work could easily be outsourced to a professional music production company."

Jiang Zhiyu was silent for a few seconds, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the table. The rhythm was exactly the main melody of the track from just a moment ago.

"Because music is a part of the variety show," he finally spoke, his voice soft but firm, "It's not just background noise, but an element that participates in the storytelling. Outsourced music, no matter how good, is still 'generic.' But by doing it myself, it can perfectly fit the rhythm, mood, and even the personality of each member of the program."

He looked at Kim Taeyeon, his eyes exceptionally bright in the reflection of the screen light: "Just like Noona's solo tracks. If you just ask a producer to write a 'good' song, versus tailoring a song that 'belongs to Kim Taeyeon,' the effect is completely different, right?"

Kim Taeyeon was stunned.

This sentence precisely struck a chord with what she had been pursuing all along. From "I" to "Four Seasons," she had always been searching for those songs that "belonged to Kim Taeyeon," rather than songs that "any female singer could sing."

And Jiang Zhiyu, this young man eleven years her junior, actually understood this point so profoundly.

"So," Jiang Zhiyu turned back and continued to adjust the audio tracks on the screen, "For all content at TG Entertainment, I hope to achieve 'tailor-made' results. It's like this for variety shows, music, and it will be the same for other future projects."

When he said this, his tone was calm, but there was a near-obsessive seriousness in his eyes.

Lee Tima added from the side: "Oppa says this is called a 'closed-loop content ecosystem'! Only when all links are under our own control can we guarantee the final quality and stylistic unity!"

She spoke with great conviction, evidently having been instilled with quite a few of Jiang Zhiyu's philosophies.

Kim Taeyeon listened quietly, a long-lost feeling of being touched welling up in her heart. In an industry that was becoming increasingly impatient and fixated on quick success, encountering someone who still insisted on the "clumsy way" gave her a strange sense of comfort.

She watched Jiang Zhiyu's profile as he worked—his eyes slightly narrowed behind his glasses, his brows lightly furrowed, his lips pressed into a line. That was the expression of a creator immersed in their own world.

Once, she too had worn the same expression in the recording studio, facing the microphone.

"Um..." Kim Taeyeon suddenly spoke up, "Can I make a suggestion?"

Jiang Zhiyu looked up, somewhat surprised: "Of course."

Kim Taeyeon pointed to a melody on the screen: "Here, what if you added a little... sound like wind chimes? Something very light. Because in the variety show, this segment is outdoors, and it should feel like the wind is blowing through."

Jiang Zhiyu's eyes lit up: "Great idea!"

He immediately got to work, adding a new track to the sequence and starting to search the sound effect library. His movements were swift and skilled; he was clearly extremely proficient with the software.

Lee Tima leaned over to Kim Taeyeon and whispered: "Unnie is amazing! Oppa loves it when others make suggestions; as long as the suggestion is reasonable, he will seriously consider it."

Kim Taeyeon smiled but didn't speak.

The atmosphere in the guest room became warm and focused. Jiang Zhiyu was focused on arranging, Lee Tima was learning on the side, and Kim Taeyeon was watching quietly, occasionally offering a suggestion or two.

The night outside the window grew deeper, and occasionally the sound of distant dogs barking could be heard. The wooden structure of the Hanok creaked slightly in the night, as if the house were breathing.

Kim Taeyeon watched Jiang Zhiyu work and suddenly remembered the meaningful looks from her family at dinner, and those hints about the age gap.

But right now, in this quiet room, age seemed to become irrelevant.

What was important was that they both had the same passion and pursuit for music.

What was important was that she could see a long-lost, pure dedication to creation in this young man.

"It's finished."

Jiang Zhiyu's voice interrupted her thoughts. He clicked the play button, and the complete piece flowed out.

A light rhythm, clever sampling, a perfectly timed sense of humor, and the crisp sound that Kim Taeyeon suggested—like a breeze brushing against wind chimes.

A completely "tailor-made" variety show interlude.

Lee Tima bobbed her head to the rhythm, and the corners of Kim Taeyeon's mouth lifted involuntarily.

Jiang Zhiyu took off his glasses, rubbed his eyes, and revealed a tired but satisfied smile: "Thanks for the suggestion, Noona. After adding this sound effect, the whole feeling is different."

"It's because you arranged it well," Kim Taeyeon said sincerely.

Their eyes met.

The light from the screen cast flickering shadows on both their faces.

At that moment, time seemed to stand still.

Until Lee Tima let out a big yawn: "Oppa... I'm sleepy..."

Jiang Zhiyu checked the time; it was already nearly one in the morning.

"Go to sleep," he said to Lee Tima, then looked at Kim Taeyeon, "Noona should rest early too."

Kim Taeyeon nodded and stood up. When she reached the door, she looked back.

Jiang Zhiyu had already put his glasses back on, the light from the screen reflecting on his face. His figure seemed a bit lonely in the spacious guest room, but his back was straight, focused and determined.

"Good night," she said softly.

"Good night, Noona."

The door closed gently.

Kim Taeyeon stood in the hallway, holding the empty milk glass, her fingertips still able to feel the residual warmth of the glass.

She looked down at her wrist—there, the scent of the perfume Jiang Zhiyu had given her wafted up faintly, elegant and tranquil.

Just like the atmosphere in the room tonight.

Warm, focused, and full of creative passion.

She suddenly felt that this trip to Jeonju might be more meaningful than she had imagined.

At least, she had seen another side of Jiang Zhiyu—not the "Devil PD" who loved playing pranks in variety shows, but a musician with an almost devout dedication to creation.

This realization made her heart skip a beat and accelerate irregularly again.