Shen Yan had not woken up from his stupor for a long time.
He had heard "My Identity" a couple of times already, but he thought he was prepared enough for the live version. Who would have thought Mingyan's skill would surpass his expectations?
She was casually singing, wearing a light pink shirt and the same blue shorts she had tried to wear on their first date. Her hair was let down, and the sunlight shone on her in the background.
Shen Yan felt like he was at a concert, but the scene in front of him was anything but.
Mingyan's voice was, in one word, ethereal.
He'd love to listen to her sing for an entire day, and he bet he wouldn't get bored. He wanted all of her to himself, but then he saw that Mingyan had already uploaded her post, splashing him with cold water. He snapped out of his dark thoughts.
It was fine if he couldn't have all of Gu Mingyan, but he would make sure she became his Madame Shen. Shen Yan narrowed his eyes in thought.
The oblivious Mingyan happily closed the laptop, showing no interest in checking whether her post had caught the attention of the netizens.
Just then, her phone rang. She picked it up without checking who it was. "Hello?"
"How's my cousin?" A male voice asked gently on the other end.
"Cousin Lu Feng?" Mingyan replied, slightly surprised. She wondered why he had called her.
Lu Feng, who was standing near the floor-to-ceiling window in his office, let out a soft laugh, scaring the rigidly standing secretary behind him. The poor secretary immediately chanted "don't think about it" continuously in his mind.
Lately, the boss had been wearing a demonic face ever since one of his family members was reportedly shot. So although he was surprised that his demonic face finally softened, he was terrified to show it on his face.
Lu Feng's expression turned serious. "How's your wound?"
"It scarred," Mingyan answered simply. Her wound had finally closed, leaving only a white mark that reminded her of that traumatizing event. She lazily leaned her side against Shen Yan's, her phone still in hand.
Lu Feng's demonic face returned, and the secretary behind him nearly burst into tears. Then, after a moment, Lu Feng's face softened again, leaving the secretary speechless. 'Boss, is it the time of the month? Why are you having mood swings?'
"I'll send you some ointments. Be sure to use them, alright?" Lu Feng's voice was tinged with concern.
Mingyan shook her head, humming in refusal. "Hmm, Yan gege gave me some."
Something snapped in Lu Feng's mind, and he cursed under his breath. So it was true. That bastard was actually staying with his adorable cousin! Should he send his secret forces to guard her?
Shen Yan gently took Mingyan's phone from her hand. "Don't worry, cousin. She's well taken care of," he said before hanging up. Mingyan blinked in bewilderment, wondering what had just happened. Then her phone rang again, and she picked it up.
"Hello?" She forgot to check the recipient and assumed it was Lu Feng.
But this time, a female voice answered. "Miss Gu, my name is Xiao Xi. I will be your manager starting today."
"Xiao Xi?" Mingyan was surprised. From what she remembered, Xiao Xi was the manager of Douxin, the now-retired top female singer in China.
"Yes, Miss Gu," Xiao Xi's voice was very respectful. "Boss Lu asked me to take care of you, although he said not to mind your familial relationship, so I'll treat you the same as I treated Douxin." Xiao Xi was an expert in her field. She had initially wanted to refuse to take on a new artist due to her background, but "My Identity" had shut her up. This girl didn't need underhanded methods to be popular; her voice alone was enough.
Mingyan: 'Boss Lu? Lu Feng? It couldn't be... right?'
Lily: 'Yup! I just checked and it is Lu Feng~'
Mingyan: 'Thanks, babe ~' sends kisses
After making the poor stuffed bunny in her mind blush, she also decided to tease her new manager.
Mingyan sweetened her voice, "Please take care of me, Sis Xi ~"
Xiao Xi, on the other end, felt her ears heating up. It seemed her new artist was a bit... naughty. But it didn't seem intentional, so Xiao Xi just attributed it to Mingyan's naturally cute and slightly seductive voice. She let her continue calling her that.
Xiao Xi cleared her throat. "I've already booked your schedule for tomorrow and the day after that. Tomorrow, you have a live performance at a radio station for 'My Identity,' and the day after that, a singing competition for rookies on a television show. Should I pick you up, or will you come to the station by yourself?"
Mingyan didn't answer right away but turned to Shen Yan instead, her eyes silently asking if he could drive her to the station tomorrow. Shen Yan looked troubled before shaking his head. Mingyan nodded, understanding.
"Sis Xi, please pick me up. I'll text you my address later."
Xiao Xi immediately agreed and politely ended the call. She was not strong enough to handle being called like that for the third time.
Mingyan excitedly looked at Shen Yan. "Come watch me sing in two days?" She wanted to dedicate her first live performance on stage to him.
Shen Yan's troubled expression resurfaced. He had an appointment with Mingyan's parents that day. What should he do? He couldn't possibly postpone it, or they would never accept him as their son-in-law. But he couldn't tell Mingyan that. He wanted to surprise her.
"I have an important business meeting that day," Shen Yan said carefully, watching Mingyan's face change to disappointment.
Seeing her disappointed, Shen Yan quickly tried to hug her to make up for it, but Mingyan dodged. Instead, she grabbed a pillow and looked out of the window. 'What's so important that he can't come to my first live? It was supposed to be a memorable event.'
Lily, observing her master's reaction, was stunned. 'Ey, what happened? Why are you so upset?' No one knew her master's true emotions better than her. After all, their souls were practically molded together.
'Hmmph! He won't come to my live! I'm pissed! I want my sword! I want to punch a minotaur!' Mingyan pressed her lips together. She didn't understand why she was so affected, but she couldn't control her emotions.
Lily was speechless. Her master was throwing a tantrum? Over this? What did she miss? It's been 10,544 years since she's seen her this... immature?
Lily was shook.
Shen Yan felt incredibly helpless. That evening, Mingyan completely ignored him. Even when night fell, he couldn't get her attention.
Lily: 'Master~ Stop bullying Shen Yan already' *sweat*
Mingyan stood in front of the guest room where Shen Yan was staying. She decisively knocked on the door, ignoring Lily's words.
The door opened to reveal Shen Yan in his white shirt and black-and-white striped pajamas. Despite it being 10 p.m., he was still awake.
Shen Yan saw Mingyan holding a teddy bear in her hand and wearing a white oversized shirt. All he could see were her legs, making him wish she was at least wearing shorts underneath. "What's wrong?"
Mingyan strode inside and buried herself in his bed, pulling the blanket over her until only her head was visible. Her actions clearly indicated that she wasn't planning to leave.
Shen Yan stood near the door, speechless. He knew he wasn't perfect. If he slept beside her, he wasn't sure he could control himself. So, he turned toward the door, deciding to leave.
"Where are you going?" Mingyan asked, pouting. "You won't come to my live, and now you won't even let me sleep with you?" She murmured, pulling the blanket over her face.
Shen Yan was immediately defeated. Fine, he could sacrifice his sleep for today if it would make her happy. He closed the door and lay beside her. Mingyan's aggrieved face softened. She moved closer to clutch his shirt while still hugging her teddy bear.
As she said, she wasn't letting him go.
Shen Yan helplessly lay down. After a while, Mingyan finally fell into a deep sleep, and he tried to pry her hands off, but they wouldn't budge. It seemed he couldn't escape his fate.
Shen Yan didn't sleep properly that night. By morning, he had pulled Mingyan into his embrace. She instinctively let go of her teddy bear and hugged him instead. His sleepiness faded away. Sacrificing his sleep was worth it for the hug.
Mingyan woke up in Shen Yan's arms, instantly turning red from head to toe. How did she end up on his chest?! She ran back to her room with her teddy bear and patted her face and chest to calm herself. Not good—she must stay calm even in a situation like this.
Mingyan: 'They do say that practice makes perfect. I'll just start sleeping in his room again tomorrow ~'
Lily: 'What a horrible excuse to take advantage of someone' *speechless*
Mingyan: 'Teehee~!'
Mingyan was finally in a good mood. She made breakfast for both of them and sent the sleepless Shen Yan off to work with a bright smile. Shen Yan, seeing her smile while waving goodbye, once again thought that sacrificing his sleep had been justified.
In Mingyan's house, there was a studio with various musical instruments and recording equipment. Her manager had sent an email with her schedule for the month, and she saw that the radio station performance was at 4:00 p.m. So she decided to practice for the time being.
She sang "My Identity" a couple of times and memorized the lyrics by heart. Then, she tried to put her own spin on it, adding a rap. She felt her rap wasn't excellent, but it was more than good enough.
Afterward, she decided to sing a Chinese version of "Say Something" by A Great Big World for her competition. She discussed this with her new manager and got her approval before practicing.
When she was ready, wearing a white baggy overall with an off-shoulder top and ankle-length lace-up heeled boots, Xiao Xi arrived and rang the doorbell.
She saw Mingyan's outfit and nodded in approval. It seemed like she didn't need to worry about her artist's fashion sense. She also appreciated that Mingyan wasn't the type of peerless beauty who could take down kingdoms. Those beauties were, well, a bit too troublesome.
"Hello, Sis Xi!" Mingyan's face remained emotionless, but after spending so much time with Shen Yan, it looked more relaxed.
Xiao Xi was startled—an emotionless cute face paired with a cute and slightly seductive voice was actually quite destructive. Her heart raced, and she suddenly wondered if her sexual preferences had changed.
Xiao Xi was an attractive woman. She looked very mature in her white suit, and her ponytail styled black hair reached just above her waist. She was also quite tall—about 170 cm.
"You have a good sense of fashion! Are you ready?" Xiao Xi remained professional, forcing herself not to blush as she nodded sternly.
"Yes." Mingyan sent a text to Shen Yan, informing him that she was heading to the radio station. Although she was still disappointed that he wouldn't be there tomorrow, she didn't hold a grudge. She just hoped he'd be there for her first concert.
Xiao Xi drove them to the radio station and led Mingyan to her waiting room. She instructed the stylist she brought along to give Mingyan a natural makeup look and waited for their turn.
Meanwhile, in another room, Sam was leisurely sitting on a couch near a window. His phone was connected to the radio, where he was scheduled to appear in about thirty minutes.
"Sam, are you sure about this?" his manager, the same person who had accompanied him during the recording of "My Identity," asked worriedly.
"Shut up, Claude," Sam reprimanded coldly, causing Claude to stiffen.
Claude could only sigh. Why did that poor girl have to attract this brat's interest?
Sam had a plan. He thought it was brilliant, but Claude thought it was stupid. If he wanted to win a girl's heart, boycotting her live performance was definitely not the way to do it! That girl seemed to have pride embedded in her bones. She would never beg Sam to attend the live event, no matter what.