Chapter Fifty-five: Return to Water Buffalo Village

For several consecutive days, Zhou Miao attended graduation banquets for his classmates. Each time, he felt like a spectacle under the gaze of others. Fortunately, most of the banquets were held within the same few days. Once they concluded, it signified their complete farewell to their high school days.

With those matters settled, Zhou Miao once again set out on his journey northward. According to Cumin, the recording of the album’s arrangements would still take some time to complete, so to save time, the company decided to shoot the music videos first.

Normally, the standard process would be to record the songs before shooting the music videos, but since Zhou Miao would have no time after the school term began, he first recorded a demo for the director. The final edits would be made after the official recordings were finished.

Each song on the album was worthy of its own music video, but due to budget constraints, it was decided that only three—“Rice Fragrance,” “Nunchaku,” and “The Sun and Moon in My Heart”—would be filmed.

Additionally, “Sweetness,” which Zhou Miao wrote as a jingle for CuteMore, had already been scheduled for them to find their own director to shoot the MV. Zhou Miao’s only task would be to show up and pose.

For the first shoot, following Zhou Miao’s suggestion, they chose Buffalo Village, the place where he had once filmed “Metamorphosis.” The scenery of the fields there was beautiful, and with the village nestled against the mountains, it was perfect for the mountain valley scenes required by “The Sun and Moon in My Heart.” This way, two songs could be filmed at a single location.

Apart from Zhou Miao, a trainee from the company named Lin Ke’er also came along. She was the next artist Rainbow planned to debut. Zuo Qiu arranged for her to appear as the female lead in the MV for “The Sun and Moon in My Heart,” to give her some exposure.

Zhou Miao’s first impression of her was quite good. She looked pure and sweet, with a clean and fresh aura, though she seemed rather reserved and barely spoke during the trip.

As Zhou Miao discussed ideas with the director, he gazed out at the familiar scenery through the window. As Buffalo Village drew nearer, he was surprised to feel a sense of returning home after a long absence.

Upon entering the village, the crew searched for suitable filming locations and set up their equipment, while Zhou Miao, carrying gifts, headed to Grandpa Lin’s house.

The gate was open, so someone must have been home. Zhou Miao pushed the door open and entered. Lin Yanan, who was sweeping the yard, was momentarily stunned when she saw Zhou Miao smiling at her, then broke into a delighted grin. “Miao, what brings you here?”

Zhou Miao set the gifts aside. “We’re filming here, so I thought I’d drop by and see you. Is Grandpa home?”

At the mention of her grandfather, Lin Yanan’s face darkened. “Grandpa went to work as a day laborer at a construction site in town a while ago—he had a fall and was hospitalized. I still need to bring him his meal later.”

Zhou Miao frowned. “How did that happen? Is it serious?”

“He hurt his bones. The doctor said he’ll need to stay in the hospital for a while and probably rest for several months.”

“Why did he go work as a laborer? Is the family short of money?” Zhou Miao had heard from his mother that Lin Yanan had done well on her exams and was admitted to Xiamen University. Was it a matter of tuition?

Lin Yanan shook her head. “No, we have enough. Grandpa just can’t sit still—he always wants to find something to do whenever he has time, no matter how I try to dissuade him.”

Zhou Miao sighed helplessly. Since it was already late and filming was out of the question for the day, he said, “I’ll go with you, then. We have a car, so it’ll be more convenient.”

Lin Yanan didn’t want to trouble Zhou Miao, but he insisted, and together they went to the hospital.

A year had passed, and Grandpa looked a bit older, with more white hair. He was surprised to see Zhou Miao, then grinned cheerfully. “What brings you here?”

“I had business nearby and thought I’d drop by,” Zhou Miao replied, noticing the cast on Grandpa’s leg. He advised, “You shouldn’t do such dangerous work anymore, not at your age.”

Grandpa shook his head. “I’m old now, I can’t deny it. After I crushed my leg, the foreman told me not to come back and to go play mahjong instead.”

“Luckily, we’ve saved a bit over the years, enough for Yanan to finish university. I plan to rent out all the fields at home, just keeping one or two acres to grow our own food.”

Seeing that Grandpa had come to terms with the situation, Zhou Miao felt reassured. After Grandpa finished his meal, Zhou Miao and Lin Yanan headed back.

The next day, filming officially began. A few village children gathered to watch, so Zhou Miao simply roped them in to appear in the shoot, offering each a popsicle as payment.

Also making their debut on camera were Zhou Miao’s lifelong nemeses—the few mongrel dogs from the village. Zhou Miao sat on a tractor with the children, strumming his guitar and singing, while the dogs chased along behind.

The children giggled as they teased the dogs with wild grass, the scene brimming with warmth and childlike joy.

Filming went smoothly. The music video required no real acting, and the script for “Rice Fragrance” was simple—it was finished in just two days.

Then the crew packed up their tents and headed into the mountains behind Buffalo Village. Shooting “The Sun and Moon in My Heart” would be more challenging and was expected to take several days. Climbing up and down the mountain was troublesome, so they simply decided to camp up there.

Because the area was remote and rarely visited, the mountain remained undeveloped. On ordinary days, aside from the villagers at the foot of the mountain, almost no one came here.

This perfectly suited the crew’s requirements. In the MV’s storyline, Zhou Miao was a backpacker with a wandering spirit. While climbing the wild mountain, he accidentally fell off a cliff and was rescued by Lin Ke’er, who lived in the mountains. The two soon developed feelings for each other, but Zhou Miao loved to roam and disliked settling down. In the end, with reluctance, he left this idyllic valley that seemed like a paradise apart from the world.

All in all, it was a story about a fool deserving to be single, with no technical complexity. The focus was on three things: making Zhou Miao look handsome, Lin Ke’er look beautiful, and the valley appear like a fairyland—that was enough.

The mountain path was rough, and it took the crew an entire morning to reach the summit, though the filming location was on the other side. Lin Ke’er’s slender legs were trembling from exhaustion, her face pale.

Zhou Miao grew concerned. “Are you alright? You don’t look well.”

Lin Ke’er shook her head, panting. “I’m fine…”

Before she could finish, she suddenly collapsed. Zhou Miao quickly caught her and called loudly for the team doctor.

The doctor came over and examined her. “It’s nothing serious—she’s just too tired and a bit hypoxic. She’ll be fine after some rest.”

Lin Ke’er hadn’t said a word the whole way. She only stopped to rest when others did, never once admitting she was tired. Zhou Miao had thought she had good stamina; this girl was really quite stubborn.

After a while, Lin Ke’er gradually regained consciousness, to everyone’s relief. The director instructed the crew to rest for an hour.

Zhou Miao asked his assistant, Yang Xiaoya, to fetch a bottle of water for Lin Ke’er, and asked, “If you were struggling, why didn’t you say so?”

Lin Ke’er was a little embarrassed. “I was actually okay. I just suddenly felt dizzy.”

“I heard from Qiu that you’re planning to debut as an actress?” Zhou Miao inquired.

Lin Ke’er nodded. “Yes, my voice isn’t very distinctive, but I’m quite interested in acting. President Qiu asked if I wanted to try, and I agreed.”

Zhou Miao nodded in understanding. Rainbow had always focused on music, but these days, the entertainment industry was increasingly centered on film and television. Lin Ke’er was evidently Zuo Qiu’s foray into that world.