"But we don’t have one or two years right now. *Panda Hero* will finish filming next month and will have its global premiere on Christmas. That only leaves you with two or three months to prepare." Shen Yibin was also a bit disappointed. He had heard both Sun Qian’s and Phoenix’s songs, and at her current level, Sun Qian really couldn’t compare.
If it were just a matter of embarrassing herself, Sun Qian wouldn’t have been too worried. The opportunity to collaborate with a top global singer like Phoenix was incredibly rare, so what was a little embarrassment? But this was also tied to the success of *Panda Hero*. Sun Qian was already full of gratitude toward Shen Yibin and Director Kong; it would be terrible if her own shortcomings affected *Panda Hero*’s box office performance.
"Let’s just forget it. Have Director Kong find someone more suitable." Sun Qian could only give up this great opportunity, though deep down, she was incredibly reluctant.
"Uh, don’t be so quick to refuse. There’s still a while before the official recording anyway. Why don’t you hang out at the shop for a few days and think it over?" Shen Yibin felt it was a shame to refuse so directly, so he suggested Sun Qian take it slow. "You’ve been touring everywhere and must be tired. You just started your break. In another two days, the new batch of Monkey Wine will be ready. This time it’s brewed with Jabuticaba and Brazilian Raspberry as the main ingredients. Cheeky will definitely love it."
"Bin, what did you say? There’s wine brewed from Jabuticaba in two days?" It was unclear where Cheeky had been hiding, but upon hearing this, it immediately flew over, landed on the table, and urged, "Qianqian, look, since Bin is being so sincere, let’s do him a favor. We can condescend to put up with his place for a couple of days!"
’Holy crap, you can even use idioms now! But the stuff you’re saying is still so ridiculous. Dammit, you make it sound like you staying is doing me some huge favor! You’re clearly the one who wants to drink the wine, you little punk!’
Shen Yibin was so exasperated by Cheeky’s words that he rolled his eyes. Sun Qian couldn’t help but laugh. "Sigh, this guy is great in every way, except for that sharp, unforgiving tongue. Bin, don’t make it any fig salad later. Let’s see if it still dares to spout nonsense."
"Fine, I won’t eat it! I still have my Amazon fruits anyway," Cheeky wouldn’t admit defeat so easily, tilting its head to look at Shen Yibin and mumbling under its breath.
"Oh? So you won’t even eat fig salad now? I guess you probably don’t want to drink the wine the day after tomorrow either, huh? Maybe I should just mail some extra to Egg!" Shen Yibin said, drawing out his words. ’I refuse to believe I can’t handle you.’
"If you don’t give it to me, I’ll ask Qianqian for it!" Cheeky had long since figured out Shen Yibin’s temperament and didn’t take his threats seriously. However, it didn’t continue to mock Shen Yibin. Instead, it fluttered up to a tree branch, landing next to Xiaoliu. Before leaving, it didn’t forget to snatch two kiwis from Shen Yibin’s table.
"Sixth Master, you must be hungry. I brought you two kiwis. Please, try them. If they’re good, I’ll get you more!" CLANG. Shen Yibin stumbled and fell right on the floor. ’What the hell? Cheeky has a sycophantic side?! Doesn’t it look down on everyone except Sun Qian? Back when it was at the store, it would mock both Hah’Er and Egg relentlessly. Why does it suddenly turn into a bootlicker when it comes to Xiaoliu? It’s probably never even been this nice to Sun Qian, has it?’
"CHEEP! CHEEP!" Xiaoliu wasn’t shy, directly taking the kiwis from Cheeky’s claws and starting to gnaw on them. Even though it didn’t even bother to give Cheeky a sideways glance, Cheeky was still very happy. ’At least we’ve sort of had a conversation, right?’
After finishing the kiwis, Xiaoliu lazily returned to its hammock to rest. With nothing to do, Cheeky set its sights on Maphario. The little guy was lying on his own miniature reclining chair, eating a sugar wafer Shen Yibin had just made for him.
"Come on! Lord Cheeky will teach you to fly and be awesome!" With a dive, Cheeky grabbed Maphario’s shoulders with its claws and lifted it into the air. The pets in the store used to be too big, so Cheeky never had a chance to try this move. Seeing Maphario finally gave it the opportunity.
"SQUEAK! SQUEAK!" Maphario was timid to begin with, and Cheeky’s sudden attack nearly made it faint from fright. Seeing someone bully his godson, Hah’Er grew anxious too. But with Cheeky flying in mid-air, there was nothing he could do but stay on the ground and roar furiously. For a moment, the store became even more chaotic than when Hah’Er, Egg, and Xiaoliu were all messing around in the pool. It was giving Shen Yibin a massive headache.
"CHEEP! CHEEP!" Hearing the commotion, Xiaoliu poked its head out of the hammock and waved its claws, issuing a warning to Cheeky. This time, Cheeky didn’t dare to continue its antics and quickly put Maphario down.
Cheeky usually accompanied Sun Qian by itself. Although its days were happy, it didn’t have any playmates and would inevitably get a bit lonely. That was why it went so wild upon returning to the store, which was understandable. But while its roughhousing with Hah’Er was one thing, teasing Maphario like this was going a bit too far.
No matter how you looked at it, Maphario was just a hamster, and hamsters are naturally timid. After being scared like that, Maphario lay on the ground, trembling uncontrollably, which made Shen Yibin and Hah’Er’s hearts ache with pity.
"Cheeky, apologize to him right now." This time, Sun Qian didn’t shield Cheeky, sternly demanding that it apologize to Maphario at once.
"I was wrong. I really didn’t mean to." Cheeky had only wanted to take Maphario for a joyride in the sky; it never expected Maphario to be so terrified. It quickly and obediently went to Maphario’s side to apologize.
But Maphario had been genuinely terrified. Seeing Cheeky approach, it couldn’t help but shrink further into Hah’Er’s embrace.
"Uh, how about I sing a song for you?" Seeing this wasn’t working, Cheeky resorted to its specialty. It began to sing and dance in front of Maphario, "...I planted a seed, and it finally bore fruit. Today is a great day. I’ll pluck the stars for you, pluck the moon for you..."
You had to admit, the song was a surprisingly good match for Maphario. Isn’t that exactly what Maphario did for a living now? Hearing Cheeky’s singing, Maphario slowly calmed down. It even got up and started to do a clumsy dance with Cheeky. Slowly, Hah’Er joined in, and Xiaoliu started bouncing up and down on its branch.
Thankfully, Maphario had finally been coaxed back to normal. Seeing the little guys getting along harmoniously again, Shen Yibin and Sun Qian both breathed a sigh of relief.
Huh? Seeing Cheeky sing, Shen Yibin couldn’t help but have a new idea. ’Sun Qian’s current singing skills are no match for Phoenix, but what if it were a duet between her and Cheeky?’