Chapter 20 – Stars

Zhou Yi’s talent show started filming before the New Year, and after all the preparations, it finally aired in mid-July. Zhou Yi sneaked over to Xiang Ning’s place, bringing snacks and fruit, and they sat together to watch the show.

The show had put a lot of effort into promotion, but they kept Ye Wu’s identity a secret, only showing a black silhouette in the promotional images, building up the audience’s anticipation. By the time the show had been on for about twenty minutes, Ye Wu’s back was shown, causing a wave of discussion.

Once all the other mentors were in place, the camera slowly panned to reveal Ye Wu’s face.

Zhou Yi, munching on chips, was practically glowing.

“Haven’t you already met him in person, and you’re still this excited?” Xiang Ning teased, pulling out his phone.

“It’s different,” Zhou Yi said, stuffing another handful of chips into his mouth. “He’s even more handsome in person, and he’s so talented and kind…”

Xiang Ning watched a young singer being scolded to tears on the screen, remaining silent.

“Ye Ge is really nice to me…”

Xiang Ning nodded and continued watching, but to his surprise, there was no interaction between Ye Wu and Zhou Yi throughout the show.

…?

“He didn’t scold me, and he’s much nicer to me than to others,” Zhou Yi avoided Xiang Ning’s gaze, hugging the cat and petting it harder. “We’ve talked, really. Don’t look at me like that…”

The cat yawned, its tail swishing impatiently.

Xiang Ning decided to believe him and tidied up the mess on the table.

“Are you staying for dinner?”

“Is President He coming back?” Zhou Yi asked.

Xiang Ning nodded, checking the time. “Soon.”

“Then I’ll pass,” Zhou Yi huddled, petting the three kittens. He suddenly remembered something and asked, “President He didn’t scold you, right?”

Xiang Ning shook his head, his eyes on the door. He Rong entered, the heat of the day still clinging to him, and he closed the door. His eyes met Zhou Yi’s frightened face.

“Then… then I’ll go, President He, you have a good day.” Zhou Yi forced a smile and lowered his head. He Rong watched him shuffle to the door, then called out, “Stop.”

“What… what is it?” Zhou Yi hunched, fearing He Rong would fire him.

“Our cat,” He Rong said, looking at the cat in Zhou Yi’s arms. The cat meowed and finally jumped down, rubbing against He Rong’s ankles.

Zhou Yi managed to close the door.

Once he was gone, He Rong picked up the cat and walked over to Xiang Ning, eyeing the sunflower seeds on the coffee table. “What was he doing here?”

Xiang Ning knew he was just venting and smiled at him.

It was time for dinner, and the two younger cats came running, meowing. He Rong picked them up and followed Xiang Ning into the kitchen. “What are you making?”

Xiang Ning pointed to the empty plate, indicating he hadn’t started. He Rong patted his head, placing the kittens in Xiang Ning’s arms. “You go play, I’ll cook.”

Xiang Ning nodded and left the kitchen with the kittens.

A few episodes of the show aired, and Zhou Yi was sent back to filming by Director Lin. Zhou Yi, with his good nature and cute appearance, had gained a fan base. The competition was getting more intense, and Zhou Yi had narrowly made it through several rounds.

Xiang Ning had been coaxed by He Rong to accompany him on a business trip, but he received a call from Director Lin that day.

“Xiang Ning, are you home? Tap once if you are, twice if you’re not.” Director Lin sounded urgent.

Xiang Ning tapped twice on his phone as a response.

“Alright, I’ll tell you over the phone then,” Director Lin said, taking a sip of water. “Zhou Yi has a shoot next week, but there’s a problem with the song he was supposed to perform.”

Director Lin was fuming. “The show’s production team arranged a group of songs, and Zhou Yi drew an English song. They had almost finished practicing when they said there was a copyright issue.” She scoffed. “What were they doing all this time?”

“It’s too late to communicate now, so I was wondering if you have any pre-written songs?”

“I’m sorry, I forgot you can’t write easily,” Director Lin said. “Let’s continue over text.”

Xiang Ning held his phone, hesitating to respond.

He simply said he would look, but his fingers tapped into He Rong’s chat window, hesitantly asking, “Are you done?”

“Almost,” He Rong replied quickly. Xiang Ning sighed in relief, but his frown didn’t disappear.

Soon, He Rong returned to the hotel. He immediately noticed Xiang Ning’s unhappiness, ruffling his hair and handing him a wrapped rice noodle roll¹. “Eat something first?”

Xiang Ning thought for a moment and nodded.

He Rong watched him eat, then pulled him to sit down, asking gently, “What’s wrong?”

Xiang Ning showed him the chat history and wrote, “I have one, but it’s from a long time ago.”

“If you don’t want to give it, don’t. I’ll have them find another way,” He Rong said immediately.

Xiang Ning held his arm and continued, “I’m worried it’s not good enough.”

“You can send it to them first,” He Rong held his hand, rubbing it soothingly, as if to ease Xiang Ning’s worries. “What you write is always good. Besides, they’re in a hurry, and you don’t have time to rewrite it.”

After a short discussion, Xiang Ning finally felt reassured and sent the sheet music.

Director Lin was about to celebrate when she received a message from President He: “Don’t contact Ning Ning unless it’s an emergency.”

She pretended not to notice and immediately found Zhou Yi with the printed sheet music.

Xiang Ning’s composition had solved Zhou Yi’s urgent problem, but due to the tight schedule, there hadn’t been enough time for thorough rehearsals. Zhou Yi stepped onto the stage with trepidation, but as he sat in the center, the blinding lights cast down, and a strange sense of calm washed over him.

His stage makeup was surprisingly simple today. He wore a long white robe, with a golden belt adorned with leaves around his waist, and sat barefoot on a stool, eyes slightly closed.

A beam of blue spotlight illuminated his right cheek, almost making it look unreal on camera. His eyelashes trembled, and blue glitter sparkled on his eyelids, like tiny stars or shimmering ripples on water.

He lowered his eyes and began to sing. The tiny particles in the air seemed to freeze, and the fine light dancing on his eyelashes made him appear almost untouchable, like a sacred son.

Xiang Ning sat in the audience, his hand held by He Rong. When the song ended, the audience was silent for two seconds before erupting into thunderous applause. Xiang Ning, however, remained seated, blinking as if uncomfortable.

He gripped He Rong’s hand tightly, almost to the point of leaving marks. After a long while, he seemed to wake from a dream and released his grip, turning to meet He Rong’s worried yet understanding gaze.

He opened his mouth, but only a harsh, raspy sound emerged, barely audible in the noisy environment.

He Rong, ignoring the flashing lights, pulled him into a tight embrace, repeating in his ear, “It’s okay, we don’t have to rush, alright?”

Xiang Ning pressed his face against He Rong’s shoulder, rubbing against him like a spoiled child, hiding his tears.

Author’s Note: Just to clarify, Ning Ning’s distress was because of the brilliance on stage, not because of any rift with Zhou Yi. ฅ( ̳• ◡ • ̳)ฅ