Of course, he ended up not going to Scheduling after all. Since Lovecast was on break, he wanted to sneak in some laziness too.
The result was waking up unusually early the next day.
Nan Que woke up early and, feeling utterly bored, decided to get up and grab an 8 AM slot in the Mic Queue in the group chat.
Winter Hall Casual Chat Group:
Sha Zi: Oh, Teacher Nan Que, what a rare sight!
Sha Zi: Zhe told me you usually don’t get up until after dark. Seeing you in the 8 AM shift today—did you even sleep at all?
Nan Que: Hehe, it’s all so I can schedule shifts with you guys~
Sha Zi: Oh, really? Will we see you again tomorrow at 8 AM?
Nan Que replied without blushing or skipping a beat: Absolutely! (Puppy patting chest)
Private Chat:
Sha Zi: Sweetie, you mentioned before that we should Co-create. Have you put it on the agenda yet?
Nan Que slapped his forehead—oops, he’d completely forgotten!
He hadn’t brought it up earlier because he hadn’t passed the Hall Selection Assessment yet and wasn’t officially part of the Hall. Co-creating might not have had much impact then. But now that both of them were in the Hall, it was indeed time to get their Co-create project going.
With one thing after another happening lately, if Sha Zi hadn’t mentioned it, he would have totally forgotten.
Nan Que: (Puppy kowtowing) Hehe, Teacher Sha Zi, any good suggestions?
Sha Zi: Our voices are quite similar. Simply dividing lines and lyrics like others do wouldn’t stand out. Can we try something special?
Nan Que thought for a moment: Then… how about speeding up the tempo? Or adding some flair to the lyric distribution?
They decided to act immediately. Since they were already in a shift, they tested the waters with a duet. If the response was good, launching their Co-create would go more smoothly.
At 8 AM, none of the eight people in the Mic Queue were high-Traffic Streamers. The Hall only had about two to three hundred people lurking, most of them just listening to songs passively. The chat scroll was slow.
Everyone was either heading to work or school, mostly drowsy and half-awake, when suddenly, the sound of a duet burst through their headphones.
Qu Hui was an office worker who loved listening to Voice Hall singers during her commute to kill time and lift her spirits. The Streamers were working hard too, so she wanted to earn more money for her favorite Lovecast, to help him avoid taking early morning shifts.
She had only been in the Hall for a few minutes today when she heard the duet through her headphones.
“Love, however you do it, feels wrong However you look at it, seems hard How can it make people follow each other through life and death?”
“Lovers in the World.”
At the beginning, Nan Que deliberately lowered his voice, turning his originally clear, youthful tone into something deep and steady. Sha Zi’s harmony was bright and crisp. One voice was low and lingering, the other clear and penetrating. Though their voices shared a similar origin, they sounded distinctly different yet intertwined seamlessly, complementing each other perfectly.
During the verses, their voices blended with restraint and caution. But the moment they hit the chorus, their emotions surged forth completely.
“Ah~ Who truly understands the taste within—” Nan Que no longer deliberately lowered his voice, releasing his clear, youthful true voice fully—high-pitched and powerful, climbing with unabashed, fervent emotion.
Almost simultaneously, Sha Zi’s highly penetrating voice soared upward as well—not in opposition, but in intertwining and harmony, like two birds chasing the sun, arcing together toward the peak.
[Wait, a duet?]
[Holy crap, who’s with Sha Zi? This sounds amazing!]
[What, what? What’s this program?]
[Did anyone record this? A masterpiece!]
[They woke me up! Which two guys are these?]
Nan Que: “Love is a cycle of lifetimes, again and again, whether in the east, south, or northwest.”
Sha Zi: “Love is a series of rights and wrongs, strand by strand, teaching lovers they can no longer…”
Together: “Say goodbye~”
As the final accompaniment faded, the two softly sang the last line in unison:
“No matter how love is given, it turns wrong No matter how it’s viewed, it seems difficult How does it teach people to follow through life and death”
(Offstage note: Search “Deep Breath Xi’s pseudo-duet of ‘Lovers Under Heaven'” on Bilibili – it’s divine!)
[OMG OMG! My ears are pregnant!]
[Is that Nan Que? The voice sounds similar]
[I thought this song could only be done with deep voice + milk bottle style, never expected two youthful voices could sound so beautiful]
[What about Big Head? Big Head! Please co-create!]
[Hui Hui Will Surely Earn Big Money sent Sha Zi hearts (99 coins) x10]
[Eating Dates sent Sha Zi hearts (99 coins)]
[Can’t Wake Up sent Sha Zi a rose bush (666 coins)]
Qu Hui was screaming internally, whimpering and sniffling, her small face flushed with excitement, nearly missing her stop.
Her fingers kept typing comments nonstop:
[Please co-create!]
[Want to hear more!]
Sha Zi was also very satisfied with the audience’s support. “Thank you everyone for your love. This song ‘Lovers Under Heaven’ is a duet between me and Teacher Nan Que. We might consider co-creating in the future. If you like it, you can follow me and Teacher Nan Que on Mic 6!”
The host was shocked too. “You two really gave us a huge surprise!”
Actually, duets weren’t common in the Hall since everyone had their own tasks. If they dueted and gifts were only given to one person, the other might lose out.
Moreover, when two people were on the same shift, after dueting, the other person still had to sing their own song, which meant extra work.
Sha Zi had offered to let Nan Que sing from his position, but Nan Que refused – no big deal, they were brothers.
Hearing the host’s words, Sha Zi puffed up slightly: “Haha, just warming up. Everyone please support my brother Nan Que too, help him complete his tasks.”
Meanwhile, Nan Que on mic was like a hyperactive child, vigorously sending heart emojis to Sha Zi.
Host: “Hahaha, alright alright. Thank you Teachers Sha Zi and Nan Que for your deep brotherly bond and the performance of ‘Lovers Under Heaven’. Next mic goes to…”
After their shift ended, Sha Zi and Nan Que met up, both extremely excited.
Nan Que: “The effect was good!”
Sha Zi: “Very good!”
The two laughed heartily.
Having done much secondary creation editing, Nan Que was quite familiar with video completion rates and bounce rates. He offered new suggestions: “We should refine the lyric distribution, make it more elaborate. There’s some difference between making videos and singing during shifts – we need innovation to hook listeners.”
Sha Zi agreed.
After redistributing the lyrics, they sang it again using Nan Que’s account during his shift, and the effect was indeed better.
[I’ve already listened to them sing twice, never get tired of it]
[Who understands – I’m at work but I can’t bear to leave]
[Are you singing again, bro? Are you two going to improve further? My salary won’t be enough for the deductions]
[Delicious Delicious sent Nan Que a bouquet of roses (299 coins) x10]
[For My Peanuts sent Nan Que hearts (99 coins)]
[Hui Hui Will Surely Earn Big Money sent Nan Que hearts (99 coins) x10]
Nan Que looked at these delightedly: “Hahaha, thank you everyone for your support. That’s all for today. Everyone, focus on your classes and work~”
[Blank sent Nan Que a rocket (10001 coins)]
[Blank: Sounds great]
[Blank sent Nan Que a rocket (10001 coins)]
[Blank: Hurry up and record]
[Blank sent Nan Que a rocket (10001 coins)]
[Blank: I’ll be watching you]
Nan Que: ……