N-M Chapter 1357 Songs and Characters
Chapter 1357 Songs and Characters
Chapter 1357 Songs and Characters
"Is it okay to use Oppa's name?"
Sana Minato tilted her head back, her smile a little affectedly shy, and her tone was somewhat tentative, but that smile didn't seep into her eyes; instead, it had a kind of provocative directness.
Chi Jingyuan was stunned for a moment, then stared at her eyes, which were filled with a fake smile, for a few seconds.
The furrowed brows relaxed, and a soft smile appeared on her face, as if she had finally relaxed completely.
"It's nothing, these are all minor matters... If you don't want to go, it's fine if you don't want to go."
With a peculiar smile, he looked Minatozaki Sana up and down as if she were a delicate doll, his gaze lingering slightly on her right foot. He casually pursed his lips and nodded gently as if he knew her well: "Suddenly being able to control some power like this is indeed a very happy thing for some people."
Originally, because of the smooth and harmonious cooperation during the recent period of practice, and seeing Minatozaki Sana's focus and dedication, Chi Jingyuan did not intend to specifically mention what happened a couple of days ago.
But clearly, some things don't cease to exist just because they're not said.
Moreover, the tone of Minatozaki Sana's voice... Chi Jingyuan could clearly sense a very awkward feeling as soon as he heard it.
However, he wouldn't tell Sana Minatozaki that he had actually reflected on his actions that night and realized he had taken his anger out on others.
"correct."
After finishing his sentence, Chi Jingyuan was about to turn and leave, but he turned halfway and looked back. His gaze inadvertently swept over the phone that Minatozaki Sana was holding face down in her hand, and he casually said, "If you encounter any problems or burdens, you can tell me, or just say my name."
He smiled slightly at Sana Minatozaki, who was staring at him, and winked: "If it's you, Sana, I don't need to say anything more, right?"
Consider this a reward, or... compensation, for you.
After saying that, he turned and left without looking at her reaction.
"..."
Sana Minato's breath hitched. She tried to maintain her smile, but as she watched Chi Jingyuan's departing figure, she gripped her phone so tightly that the veins on her knuckles bulged. Her chest felt like it was blocked by something, and even her breath caught in her throat.
…………
After rehearsing together for another two hours, today's practice came to an end. After leaving SM, Sana Minatozaki went to the TV station to meet up with the members who were waiting for her, and they prepared to continue their schedule for the rest of the day.
As soon as I entered the lounge, I was spotted by the other members.
"Sana's back~"
"Did you see Jingyuan oppa? How did the collaboration go?"
Nayeon, Chaeyoung, and other Twice members surrounded Sana Minatozaki, chattering excitedly and asking questions, instantly turning the previously quiet dressing room into a lively space.
The other members, of course, knew about Sana Minatozaki and Ji Kyung-won's collaboration stage, and also knew that she went to SM to practice today. They were just discussing what was going on with their collaboration.
"Hmm...it went pretty smoothly, didn't it?"
When asked by the other members, Sana Minatozaki pursed her lips, the shadows in her eyes earlier long gone. She found a seat and looked up, recalling the scene from just now: "We started by dividing the parts, in Kei... Keiwon oppa's music room, and then we learned the stage process..."
She briefly recounted the process of the collaboration, her tone light and cheerful.
"Is your foot alright?" After listening to her for a while, Mina suddenly spoke softly, looking at Minatozaki Sana's right foot with concern.
"By the way, Sana, is your injury alright?" As soon as Mina mentioned it, the others immediately remembered and expressed their concern.
Sana Minatozaki's right foot was injured quite badly this time. Although it was just a soft tissue contusion with redness and swelling, it was probably because the impact was really too strong. The swelling was so bad that she almost couldn't put her shoes on on the first day.
These past two days, I've already suffered enough just trying to keep up with the team's activities, and today's stage practice was even worse.
"I'm... I'm alright~"
Sana Minatozaki's voice faltered slightly. She pursed her lips absentmindedly, then smiled and shook her head: "The lump has gone down a little more today."
It actually hurt a lot. She had been forcing herself to endure it during rehearsals, but after a few hours, she was in unbearable pain.
However, she has already caused a lot of trouble for others these past two days, and Sana Minatozaki doesn't want to keep making others worry about her because of this.
"The stage setup for the live performance of 'Uchiage Hanabi' is... quite simple. We just need to rehearse it again the day after tomorrow."
She added an explanation, but as she spoke, she seemed to remember something and involuntarily glanced at Mina.
Although this collaboration stage was requested by the organizers and the company, no matter what, this song by Mina has now become her performance. Even a live stage that Mina didn't participate in has become hers. Minatozaki Sana feels a little guilty and ashamed every time she talks about this in front of Mina.
Moreover... during the argument at the gym a few days ago, Chi Jingyuan also clarified some things.
Mina clearly sensed it too, but she just chuckled and showed no sign of anything amiss: "I've never even seen the stage for 'Uchiage Hanabi' before, and now that Sana-chan has mentioned it, I'm really looking forward to it too."
Looking forward to it?
Sana Minatozaki exchanged a glance with her and smiled gently.
After everyone else had finished celebrating and left, only Hirai Momo and Nai Mina, one of the two generals, remained by her side. Compared to the others, she seemed more concerned with other things:
"What was the attitude of the fireworks guy?"
Hirai Momo whispered in her ear, "He didn't do anything to you, did he? Didn't you say you hadn't been in contact for a long time?"
"..."
Sana Minatozaki fell silent for a moment upon hearing this, then shook her head: "No... I didn't say much besides work."
Actually, I already said it.
She thought she could do it, but after hearing Chi Jingyuan's response, she felt like she was suffocating and couldn't breathe.
But isn't this exactly what she's been hoping for?
Isn't she just trying to fit the other person's 'bad impression'?
What else could she be thinking, given the way she acted in front of him?
She looked at Hirai Momo's curious eyes, her smile forced yet carrying a hint of inexplicable relief.
So be it……
After saying a few words, she suddenly remembered something, took out her phone, and scrolled to the text message she had just received... She hadn't replied since the beginning of the practice session.
Seeing those annoying words in the text message, Sana Minatozaki could only hear the light, airy words of Jingyuan Chi echoing in her ears.
She remained silent for a moment, bit her lip, lowered her head, and typed a few words in reply.
"I'm sorry, Oppa, we're both quite busy and might not have time lately."
…………
After practice ended and Sana Minatozaki and her manager left, Ji Kyung-won returned to the music room to continue his previous work.
The warm yellow light fell on the mixing console, where the unfinished sheet music was still on the screen. He pulled up a chair and sat down, tapping lightly on the keyboard with his fingertips. His gaze swept over the lines of lyrics on the screen, and after a moment of contemplation, he typed "Stay" in the title bar.
This was his first attempt to incorporate electronic music elements, which had become incredibly popular in the past two years, into his work, and he was quite satisfied with the overall result.
He was particularly pleased with the intro, which was a very simple yet incredibly catchy synthesizer melody. He listened to it several times and it still stuck with him.
The lyrics are about a jerk who regrets breaking up with his girlfriend and begs her to stay with him...
The lyrics flowed exceptionally smoothly... He himself had to admit that the emotions conveyed the essence of Mina.
It wasn't written for her, but I can't say it wasn't because of her... The feelings from back then, though so long ago, are still familiar. There was the breakup, there was guilt, and there was some regret.
But while 'prayer' exists, people act in the opposite way.
I wonder if they'll have any other thoughts after hearing that.
After giving the song a final review, Ji Jingyuan successfully added it to his music library.
He's composed quite a few songs recently, and he's particularly satisfied with three of them: one is "Lover," inspired by Tzuyu's letter, with English lyrics; another is "Way Back Home," with Korean lyrics; and the third is today's song, "Stay," also with English lyrics.
These songs are not K-pop style pop dance songs, and they have nothing to do with boy groups, so Ji Kyung-won does not plan to have EXO sing them, but plans to put them in his next solo album.
The project for his next solo album had already been initiated. Compared to his first solo album, both he and his company intend for this album to be more international, adding some English and even Japanese songs in addition to his core Korean and Chinese songs.
These songs are quite suitable.
but……
Chi Jingyuan looked at the lyrics of several songs.
"Lover" is a very warm and pure love song, inspired by a handwritten letter from Tzuyu... That letter is still kept in his bedside table in his bedroom. The extremely straightforward words and emotions in it make him grimace every time he reads it, but...
But I was genuinely touched.
However, this song "Stay" is a confession song full of regret from a scumbag, completely different in style from "Lover", and it inevitably feels disjointed when put in the same album.
Otherwise, should one of them be treated as a solo single?
Thinking about the previous arrangements made by New Vision Mirror, Chi Jingyuan had an idea.
Although EXO has only just gained a foothold in the US market and is still focused on group activities, with no individual single plans yet, it's not entirely without a chance.
It depends on the person.
After finishing his thoughts on the music, Chi Jingyuan closed the music notation software and opened the script document for "Peeping".
His second solo album is still a long way off, at least until next year. EXO's group album is progressing smoothly, so he doesn't need to worry about it.
For Ji Kyung-won, the most important thing for the next period of time is the TV series "The Spy".
The actors have been selected, the crew is about to be assembled, and filming is just beginning. But for Ji Kyung-won, the real difficulties and challenges are only just beginning.
Ji Kyung-won was involved in the entire scriptwriting process, and under his instruction, Choi Ran deliberately reduced the importance of the second and third male leads and increased the male lead's screen time. Apart from the two distinctive female characters, his performance was crucial to the entire drama.
As the director said before, although the script and actors are excellent, the final quality of this drama depends entirely on Ji Kyung-won's performance.
Chi Kyung-won is aware of this, so he is under a lot of pressure.
Even though his acting skills have been honed through numerous dramas, gained recognition both within and outside the film and television industry, and even won the prestigious Baeksang Arts Awards for Best Actor, he is actually quite confident in his talent.
But playing a psychopathic killer who is born without empathy and is good at disguising himself is truly a first for me.
"...combining the cold-blooded nature of a carrier of psychopathic genes with the outward appearance of a righteous police officer under the discipline of society, and later undergoing personality awakening and memory reconstruction, the extremely distinct character setting requires an approach from three levels: character logic deconstruction, psychological mechanism simulation, and detailed behavioral implementation."
Of course, Ji Kyung-won had read the script countless times, and he had written a lot of his understanding of the script and the characters, as well as short biographies, on it.
But that wasn't enough. Chi Jingyuan continued to ponder and type, adding his own new understanding to the keyboard:
“Jung Ba-rin: The character’s layers encompass three dimensions: ‘pretended goodness’, ‘instinctive evil’, and ‘broken redemption’.”
The protagonist is designed to be 'emotionless,' not 'illogical.'
"Don't treat the character as a 'pervert,' but rather as a 'special human being with their own logic.'"
"Throughout the story, in terms of performance, the various plot points can be categorized into four types of perversion: 1. Pure perversion, 2. Perversion disguised as a good person, 3. A kind pervert in a state of amnesia whose perverted genes have not yet awakened, and 4. A pervert whose perverted genes have awakened after gaining the ability to empathize..."
“A purely evil person without emotion, a good person, a bad person pretending to be a good person, a good person with amnesia, a bad person with emotions... Each state must be differentiated in the performance, and they must not be homogenized.”
"Set up specific performances that match the disguised personality. The behavior must show signs of deliberate control. When playing the role of a police officer pretending to be a good person, show formulaic sympathy for the victim. Note: For example, deliberately frown and softly comfort the family members at the scene of the investigation."
Showing appropriate enthusiasm towards colleagues, note: initiating conversations, sharing snacks, and exhibiting stiff hand gestures and a lack of genuine emotional resonance in eye contact when comforting others…
"While disguising yourself, maintain a secret excitement for violence. Note: When you see the murder weapon and the corpse, your pupils will slightly constrict but you should quickly conceal it..."
"When lying, deliberately touch the tip of your nose..."
Chi Jingyuan gradually added to the character biography, enriching his understanding of the character.
Just as he was engrossed in his research, his phone rang. It was his assistant, Cui Zhichang, calling.
"Jingyuan, I've already bought all the books you asked me to find. Can you just send them over?"
"I'm in the music room, just bring it over, bro."
Upon hearing this, Chi Jingyuan raised an eyebrow and immediately responded.
Just thinking about it won't give you a deep understanding. For this role, Ji Kyung-won had his assistant find a lot of books and materials about psychopaths and psychology.
A short while later, Cui Zhichang brought the books over. Chi Jingyuan picked one up at random, "The Man Without Conscience," by Martha Stout, a clinical psychiatrist at Harvard Medical School.
The content happens to analyze the core traits of antisocial personality disorder from the perspective of clinical psychology: lack of empathy, manipulation of others, and lack of remorse.
It's a good match for my major.
I started reading it seriously right away, and as I read, I continued to deepen my understanding and learn more about the characters.
The role of Jung Ba-rin was a very high challenge for him.
Given his personality, he would absolutely not allow himself to become a burden.
As he delved deeper into the character, he continuously tried to immerse himself in the role, attempting to capture its essence:
"What kind of person is a psychopath who lacks empathy...?"
…………
Time slipped away quietly as they focused on their work. The next day, Sana Minatozaki came to practice again, and the two became even more in sync. The rehearsals for their collaborative stage performance were basically finished.
However, their brief time together did not change their relationship in any way.
Meanwhile, as Chi Kyung-won delved into his research on perversion, he unknowingly entered the latter half of November.