Xu Qingyan and Pei Muchan had spent nearly two months together, experiencing both the mundane intricacies of daily life and moments of heartfelt communication. He felt that he had come to understand her somewhat.
She seemed more like someone whose inner self was being oppressed step by step by public opinion. She wanted to prove herself but ended up trapped in endless internal consumption, until she finally gave up struggling and chose to leave the industry.
If it were anyone else, they might find it difficult to cope.
However, Pei Muchan very rationally gave herself a year, even though she almost always stayed at home and did not go out. She waited until after the year to confirm the outcome.
She was harsh with herself, not even taking sleeping pills when she suffered from insomnia, instead treating it as a process of tempering her will.
She was fragile yet strong, holding brightness within her heart, enduring the pain without succumbing to despair. She even forced herself to accept mediocrity, letting go of persistence, and not allowing herself to be saddened by her failures.
Self-pity, that was the path of the loser. She would just keep on living, even if it meant leading a life devoid of meaning; she would go on, becoming life itself.
âBeing swayed by others is easy to deal with; you could learn from meâI have the âthree donât hears,ââ Xu Qingyan didnât continue with consoling words like âIâll help you write songs,â because saying too much might actually be counterproductive.
âWhat are the âthree donât hearsâ?â Pei Muchan could always hear some novel opinions from him.
âFirst, I donât listen to people I donât know because my mom told me not to talk to strangers,â Xu Qingyan lifted a finger, âSecondâ¦â
Pei Muchan pursed her lips into a smile, and the sorrow in her eyes instantly lightened.
âI donât listen to those who oppose me, because that means I must be doing something right,â he said, âIâm afraid I wonât be able to resist smashing their mouths in, and I donât want to incur sin.â
âThird, if someone I donât know opposes me, I listen even less, because that precisely proves that what I am doing now is right, and I am on the correct path.â
âThese things you say⦠where did you learn them?â Pei Muchanâs shoulders shook slightly; she turned her head, pursing her lips to suppress her amusement. Somehow, these words just seemed especially fitting coming from his mouth.
âSelf-taught, because Iâm a rapper.â
In the afternoon, Xu Qingyan arrived at Lin Wanzhouâs studio in a hurry.
Running back and forth every day, he had thought about setting up his own studio, ideally located between the two of their studios. But then he thought again, considering the exorbitant prices of Xinghaiâs real estate, it wasnât necessary.
Unless he spent four days a month selling potatoes to make a daily profit of nine thousand, he could offset the rent.
Upon entering, he found that Shen Jinyue was also there.
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âHello hello!! Xu Qingyan!!â
âMm-hmm, happy to see you, but Iâm leaving now,â Xu Qingyan took a few steps back, turning to leave, âI must have remembered the time wrong.â
âStop right there! Xu Qingyan!â Shen Jinyue hurried in front of him, morphing into a road-blocking fierce tiger.
Xu Qingyan glanced down at her, seeing someone who looked gullible and easily fooled. A few words might make her cry, and she could be lied into going out for a barbecue in the evening.
âWhat is it?â
âHmph! Why do you start leaving the moment you see me?â Shen Jinyue puffed up with anger, âArenât you here to listen to the new song?â
âHow do you know?â Xu Qingyanâs gaze involuntarily swept across Shen Jinyueâs chest. He really didnât want to look, but someone with her figure definitely couldnât engage in archery.
He remembered reading somewhere that busty girls playing archery would get slapped around painfully by the bowstring. Unless they were veterans who had made proper archery preparations, and speaking of which, even fatties could get their chests slapped while playing archery.
Mainly, why would someone wear a maid outfit in broad daylight, hmm⦠it would be quite strange even at night. The fluffy collar was propped up high, cleverly tied with a red ribbon.
The entire arm was clad in white puffed long sleeves, with wrists tied with black ribbons, revealing only a pair of fair hands. Uncommonly, the waist design was fitted.
His eyes traced the black lace hem, with white thigh-high stockings stretching up into the hem of the skirt. Her calves were pale and smooth, devoid of any abrupt bends.
âIâve been here for the past few days.â Shen Jinyue had just finished speaking when she suddenly paused, âAh, you⦠you, you, you, did you not realize I wasnât around?â
âWell, not exactly, but I occasionally felt like something annoying was missing.â
âXu!! Qing!! Yan!!â Shen Jinyue looked aggrieved, yet she could do nothing about him, âHow on earth do Sister Muchan and Sister Zhou Zhou put up with your mouth!â
âYouâd have to ask them that, but Iâm not this cordial to everyone,â Xu Qingyan showed off his polite and amiable side, then made up his mind to leave.
Just walking into the studio, I had no idea what kind of state my vocal skills had reached.
I felt like my singing voice, well⦠might be a case of âyou are who you hang out with.â Basically, everyone I was in contact with was a singer, so I must have been influenced somewhat.
To put it simply, I got carried away with the competition.
Even though I couldnât compare to top players like the âLittle Queen,â I at least moved beyond the realm of a KTV âWar Godâ and could truly be called a singer.
âYour maid outfit looks really nice, much better than those Iâve seen online,â
Shen Jinyue followed closely behind, echoing Xu Qingyanâs âsudden realization.â She was fuming just a minute ago, but in the next second, she became a happy puppy.
âRight? Let me tell you, this is my favorite maid outfit! I also likeâ¦â
âYeah, yeah.â Xu Qingyan walked ahead leisurely, listening to the chattering voice beside him, âYou look so good in a maidâs outfit, youâd definitely look even better in a JK uniform.â
âReally? Then Iâll try it tomorrow, but I have to order one now⦠I actually have one at home, but I didnât bring it,â Shen Jinyue said naively.
Shen Jinyue chattered all the way while Xu Qingyan lazily pushed the door open.
Behind the door, Lin Wanzhou stood calmly. She was wearing a pink short-sleeve top and shorts, her tender thighs were exposed, glowing white.
The room where the three of them were was not large, with a computer and a bunch of expensive-looking sound equipment that could make oneâs hair stand on end when music played.
The innermost room should be the recording studio, with equipment that seemed to have been upgraded. Lin Wanzhou had mentioned on WeChat about installing a complete Dolby system.
After appearing on a show and earning some money, besides paying him for the songs, she had also invested all her earnings into creating a 360-degree surround sound recording environment.
Arriving here, I didnât see Qi Ting at the door; she probably went somewhere to smoke.
Shen Jinyue cheerfully pounced forward, calling out, âSister Zhou Zhou!â
âHasnât Ting Ting come back yet?â
âSome equipment arrived at the door; she went to receive it,â Lin Wanzhou said with a smile, her eyes slightly downcast, âJinyue, the milk tea has arrived outside, could you help bring it in?â
âSure, sure! Is there one for me?â
âYeah, I ordered your favorite flavor,â Lin Wanzhou nodded.
Shen Jinyue shouted âhurray,â spun around, opened the door, and ran off foolishly. Her giggling voice echoed down the hallway, her mind seemingly conquered by the thought of milk tea.
Xu Qingyan didnât like milk tea; it was too sugary and cloying. If it wasnât sweet, he wouldnât drink it. Better to drink water. If it wasnât sweet or flavorless, he wouldnât drink it either, just a pure waste of money.
But it seemed that now wasnât the time to think about milk tea, as the surroundings quieted down.
The door closed, and the spot the two of them were in was the control room, somewhat cramped.
The afternoon sunshine streamed in from the recording studio. After reflecting off every direction and refracting through the large transparent glass, the control room filled with sound equipment was bright even without lights.
Xu Qingyan stood by the door, almost leaning on it. There was a height difference between the two, with Lin Wanzhou looking up at him. Her expression was calm, her eyes deep.@@novelbin@@
âYou really like maid outfits?â
At that, he immediately sensed something was off and looked slightly embarrassed.
âNot really, just said it in passing.â
âIs that so?â Lin Wanzhou tilted her head and glanced at Xu Qingyan.
âErr⦠maybe a little, just kidding.â Instantly feeling socially dead, why did he feel like he had been caught cheating? It must be because the person in front of him was Lin Wanzhou.
âJinyueâs maid outfit is quite cute; I like it too,â she said, her face suddenly coming closer, yet without any expression.
Shorter in stature but inexplicably imposing,
âI thought you liked Jinyue.â