Chapter 61

The first song was a cheerful foreign nursery rhyme.

Several students understood the lyrics; Hua Luoyue had tweaked a few words, and the group below burst into laughter, while the other customers watched on, bewildered. But they recognized the catchy, upbeat tune and felt Hua Luoyue sang quite well, so they followed along with applause, calling for another song.

The second song was also a foreign track, but more lyrical and gentle. The singer’s voice was soft, like a lover whispering in one’s ear, narrating affection. It was a classic foreign love song; though most couldn’t understand the lyrics, they knew the melody. The rowdy crowd quieted down, and the person sitting in the corner seemed to possess a natural magnet, easily drawing everyone’s gaze toward her.

During the song’s bridge, they broke into applause, sincerely praising her singing as being no worse than a professional cover.

When Hua Luoyue looked up and smiled to say thank you, she saw Yu Zhezhi in the corner. Surprise flashed across her face. Yu Zhezhi raised her glass to her, signaling that it was nothing urgent—she still had that much grace.

Thus, Hua Luoyue didn’t stop; she smiled, lowered her head again, and continued to pluck the strings.

This small interlude was noticed only by Cai Xinyue. She followed Hua Luoyue’s gaze and spotted Yu Zhezhi immediately. Yu Zhezhi was staring only at Hua Luoyue and didn’t notice her.

For a long time, only a few people had consistently appeared around Hua Luoyue. Initially, it was that “Sister Li” who showed up more often, clearly showing great respect to this “Sister Yu.” Since this year, however, it was the latter who appeared more frequently. Aside from them, there was only Xiao Hu, who occasionally invited Hua Luoyue to dinner, though Hua Luoyue had explicitly said she wasn’t close to her. The rest were just passersby.

Cai Xinyue stood dazed for a long time, something churning constantly in her heart.

As Hua Luoyue reached the end of the song, the protagonist wakes up to find no one beside her—mournful yet resolute. Even if no one blesses her, even if her lover has left, she still loves them. She fantasies about returning to the beginning, where she would still unhesitatingly run into the other’s arms.

This was one of Cai Xinyue’s favorite songs, and she understood every word. She wasn’t particularly moved by the love story itself; she just liked the original singer, the melody, and the imagery of the lyrics. She usually found it hard to empathize with something as heavy as love tinged with regret. But hearing it now, she felt an inexplicable weight, her heart sinking slightly, making her uncomfortable.

As the soft closing notes still vibrated on her heartstrings, Hua Luoyue glanced at Yu Zhezhi in the distance. Amidst the applause and cheering of other customers, she added a third song.

It was another foreign song that most people couldn’t understand, in a language that wasn’t commonly used. Yu Zhezhi likely didn’t understand it either. Hua Luoyue took advantage of this and chose it with a hint of playfulness—it was a song centered on gratitude.

No one noticed the little private joke under everyone’s noses, and Hua Luoyue was in a good mood. The limit of the jokes she could play on Yu Zhezhi was just this much.

Once this relatively lively song ended, Hua Luoyue stood up and bowed, returning the guitar. She pointed to her throat, saying she couldn’t sing anymore. Only then did the other customers realize she wasn’t a singer employed by the bar but a fellow patron; they were quite disappointed but couldn’t force her.

One of them, who had likely drunk too much, found a pen and paper from somewhere and approached Hua Luoyue, asking for an autograph while muttering that he’d be rich when she became famous—this would be the first [bailiantales.com]edition signature. He even bumped the dazed Cai Xinyue aside.

Hua Luoyue quickly steadied her, frowning as she called for the manager. The manager and a waiter escorted the drunken customer back to his seat.

“Are you okay?” Hua Luoyue looked at Cai Xinyue.

“I-I’m fine.” Cai Xinyue finally snapped back to reality from the bump. She rubbed her nose, not quite daring to look Hua Luoyue in the eye, and hurriedly packed her notebook and draft papers. “Oh, we’re pretty much done anyway. Shouldn’t we head back?”

But the other classmates wanted to sit a bit longer. They had originally been introduced by a senior to support the new shop, and upon arriving, they found the snacks were quite good—a pleasant surprise. Two of them wanted the owner to bring a few more skewers and side dishes.

Cai Xinyue said, “Can’t we just get them to go? Didn’t you say you wanted to bring some back for your roommates to try?”

The classmates thought it made sense. Seeing the owner return, they asked if they could get takeout. The owner rubbed his hands, nodding enthusiastically with a face full of smiles. “Yes, yes, of course. Whatever you want to eat, consider it on the house.”

As he spoke, his gaze kept drifting toward Hua Luoyue. His true intention was obvious; even a blind person could see the owner was being generous only because they were benefiting from Hua Luoyue’s presence. The girls generally had a good relationship and weren’t the type to sell out a teammate; they also possessed basic vigilance. Seeing this, they looked at each other hesitantly and didn’t take the owner up on his offer.

The owner then spoke directly to Hua Luoyue: “Would you consider being a resident singer here? I’ll pay you a salary! It’s definitely more cost-effective than handing out flyers in the wind and sun or looking after kids. I know you have classes, and my hours are Read on BaiLianTalesflexible. You don’t have to come every day—three times a week is fine, whenever is convenient for you…”

In the time it took to sing those three songs, he had already attracted four or five customers. When Hua Luoyue finished, they even pulled the owner aside to ask if they could request songs. The owner felt Hua Luoyue was a “growth stock”—beautiful and talented. Sitting on stage singing a couple of songs could turn her into the bar’s living billboard. If she ever debuted and became a star, his little bar could ride her coattails to fame.

Moreover, he had once been a student himself and knew that university students of this age had little concept of money and had allowances from parents. He didn’t need to offer a high price for it to be a significant sum to them. With such loose conditions, few students could resist the temptation. The owner was confident, excited and expectant at finding such a good prospect right at the opening.

The female classmates nearby, lacking life experience, couldn’t help but feel a bit swayed by the salary the owner quoted. Although they said nothing, no one jumped in to oppose.

But before Hua Luoyue could give an answer, a voice from behind rejected him decisively: “No!”

Hua Luoyue didn’t need to turn around to know that Yu Zhezhi was standing behind her. The owner looked up, initially annoyed that someone was crashing his pitch, but seeing her face, his expression immediately softened—she was a great beauty. However, his tone remained slightly stiff: “And who might you be? I’m talking business with my junior; I don’t think it has anything to do with you.”

Yu Zhezhi took two steps forward. The students standing near Hua Luoyue instinctively moved aside, allowing her to walk through unobstructed. Yu Zhezhi placed a hand on Hua Luoyue’s shoulder and said to the owner succinctly: “Her guardian.”

“…” The owner opened his mouth, then closed it. A student who had seen Yu Zhezhi before followed up with: “Hello, Sister…”

The owner looked at Yu Zhezhi, then at Hua Luoyue. Hearing she was the “sister,” he still wanted to struggle: “Even if you’re the guardian, you should ask the sister’s opinion. You probably went through this age too; it’s not illegal for a student to have a hobby, and it earns some extra cash—doesn’t it lighten ​bailiantales.com​the family’s burden? Worst case, we can list the terms and sign a contract—”

Yu Zhezhi listened calmly to his rambling, finally offering two simple words: “No…”

As for the reason, saying it to the owner’s face wouldn’t be pleasant and would cause him embarrassment; Yu Zhezhi didn’t care to find a tactful excuse, directly blocking all his efforts. Hua Luoyue would never go against Yu Zhezhi’s wishes in public. Seeing the girl herself shake her head, the owner could only regretfully choose to give up.

The students watched their confrontation, not daring to speak. Yu Zhezhi settled the owner in a few sentences, then turned to the students and asked, “Are you ready to head back?” Her tone was relatively gentle, yet it made several of them so nervous they could only nod.

The young students didn’t yet understand the aura of a high-ranking individual cultivated by a long-term environment; they only felt a vague, invisible pressure. Even though she wasn’t angry, they didn’t dare misbehave, and any teasing words were swallowed back. Yu Zhezhi told them to go back to school early and not to stay out too late; they all nodded obediently and complied.

Only Hua Luoyue was “borrowed” by her.

Cai Xinyue looked at Hua Luoyue, her words catching in her throat, but seeing Yu Zhezhi standing not far away, all her questions were swallowed. “I’ll talk to you after you’re done,” Cai Xinyue said, but she couldn’t help but lower her voice to ask Hua Luoyue, “Are you really okay?”

Hua Luoyue was confused. “What do you mean, okay?”

Cai Xinyue shot a quick glance at Yu Zhezhi and [Read on BaiLianTales]said, “Your sister… is she angry?”

Hua Luoyue also turned to look at Yu Zhezhi. The woman clearly wasn’t in high spirits, but as for being angry at her, it probably wasn’t the case. “Maybe something else is bothering her,” Hua Luoyue said. “She probably doesn’t care that much about my affairs.”

It was this final sentence that made Cai Xinyue suddenly realize something. But since Yu Zhezhi was standing right there, she couldn’t say more; she could only give Hua Luoyue a complex look and promise to see her back at school.

Hua Luoyue waved goodbye and followed Yu Zhezhi into the car. Yu Zhezhi was actually getting a bit impatient, wondering how these two could have so much to say when they spent every day together. However, she wouldn’t lose her temper at two children—from a mental age perspective, the students in her eyes could only be considered “children.” Naive but lively and optimistic, they could be thrilled by things an adult would find nonsensical. And they were very innocent, lacking vigilance.

Yu Zhezhi thought about the hungry look of a certain customer not far away while Hua Luoyue was singing, and she felt a surge of fire in her heart. A middle-aged man who looked respectable enough—likely already married with children—yet still leered at the beauty of a young girl. When the owner sent the drunken customer back to his seat, this middle-aged man had even pulled the owner aside and stuffed money into his hand, saying he wanted to meet the girl on stage. Fortunately, the owner wasn’t that muddled and declined him with an embarrassed smile. After all, Hua Luoyue was a customer, not an employee.

But if Hua Luoyue really took this part-time job, who knew where the owner’s bottom line would be? Besides, with her around, Hua Luoyue didn’t lack money; why should she sink to singing in a place like this?

While Yu Zhezhi was privately fuming, Hua Luoyue was occasionally looking out the car window, appearing reluctant to leave. In fact, she was worried about Cai Xinyue, whose dazed state lately made one concerned. Hua Luoyue wasn’t entirely ignorant of what was troubling her. But precisely because she had a vague suspicion, she didn’t dare bring it up—and couldn’t.

Yu Zhezhi was oblivious to the subtle undercurrents of campus life; she assumed Hua Luoyue was thinking about the bar.

“What, you feel it’s stolen content a pity you couldn’t take that ‘good job’?” Yu Zhezhi could hardly suppress the sarcasm in her tone.

“Huh?” Hua Luoyue turned to look at her. “No…”

“Is that so? You seemed quite reluctant to leave.”

Hua Luoyue couldn’t say she was worried about Cai Xinyue, so she could only say perfunctorily: “I was wondering if I forgot anything.”

Yu Zhezhi was currently acting like a sensitive parent; no matter what the “child” said, she first suspected a lie or a tendency to go astray. She could only try her best to stay calm. “A place like that, no matter how clean it looks, isn’t truly safe. Alcohol isn’t a good thing. If someone drinks too much and goes into a drunken rage and hurts you, it’ll be too late for regrets—”

“Oh…” Hua Luoyue didn’t know if she was agreeing or had just snapped back to attention. “Okay, I understand.”

Yu Zhezhi glared at her. “Is this funny?” She felt Hua Luoyue’s attitude was far too casual.

But Hua Luoyue wasn’t on the same wavelength at all. “Hmm… I thought…” she said hesitantly, “you just thought it would be embarrassing for me to work in a place like that.”

“Is it not embarrassing?” Yu Zhezhi countered without thinking.

“…” Hua Luoyue didn’t want to argue. She bypassed the topic and said, “I never intended to agree anyway. Such places attract trouble, I know that. And I don’t have time to waste on things like this.”

Yu Zhezhi’s expression softened slightly. “It’s best if that’s true.”

“Even if it weren’t such a place, or such a matter… if President Yu thinks it’s bad, or is unwilling, or thinks I shouldn’t do it, I won’t do it,” Hua Luoyue said.

Because of that single agreement. Because it was her “duty.” She had to pretend to be Yu Zhezhi’s partner, so she had to consider her at all times. Face or mood—as long as it was Yu Zhezhi’s thought or will, she would do her best to comply. After all, this was a job.

Yu Zhezhi heard the subtext. She should have been at ease, yet her brow furrowed involuntarily, repeating the girl’s words as a question: “As long as it’s what I say?”

“Yes…” Hua Luoyue said. “As long as it doesn’t affect my schooling and isn’t illegal.” She was joking, but the words were sincere. Yu Zhezhi fell silent. Hua Luoyue couldn’t tell if she was satisfied or not, but the matter seemed to pass.

The next morning, Hua Luoyue had to go back to school to pick up some things, and Yu Zhezhi was rushing back to City A. Since her flight was near noon, Yu Zhezhi wasn’t in a hurry and gave Hua Luoyue a ride.

The car stopped at the intersection in front of the [stolen content]school gate. As Hua Luoyue got out, Yu Zhezhi called her back and gave a final reminder: “That bar—don’t go there again.”

Hua Luoyue nodded. “Okay…”

Yu Zhezhi waved her hand and drove off. Hua Luoyue turned toward the school and had only taken a few steps before seeing Cai Xinyue standing under the shade of a tree.

“Xinyue?” Hua Luoyue walked over. “What are you doing here, waiting for someone?”

Cai Xinyue shifted her gaze from the departing car to Hua Luoyue’s eyes. She stammered, “Just… walking…” Afraid of being questioned, she quickly asked, “It’s Sunday, why are you back?”

“I left some books in the library; I hope they’re still in the locker,” Hua Luoyue replied. Cai Xinyue had nothing to do, so she naturally accompanied her.

The missing books were there; she needed some of them for her freelance work. Having found them, Hua Luoyue was ready to head back. But Cai Xinyue hesitated behind her, showing no sign of leaving.

Hua Luoyue stopped and asked, “Didn’t you say you had an appointment today?” It was a friend from outside school, a fellow townsman who wanted to learn an instrument but didn’t know much about it, so they asked Cai Xinyue for help. Hua Luoyue hadn’t met the person and had a pile of manuscripts waiting, so she wouldn’t go along. No matter how good the friends were, they didn’t need to be glued together—especially after Hua Luoyue had developed some concerns about her.

“Oh, she has a sudden thing today,” Cai Xinyue unauthorized copysaid absent-mindedly. “It’s pushed to the evening.”

“Then don’t wander too far tonight; get back to school early,” Hua Luoyue said.

“Oh…” Cai Xinyue nodded reluctantly. Seeing Hua Luoyue was still about to leave, she instinctively grabbed her. “Are you… going back to be with that… that sister?”

Hua Luoyue paused and looked at her intently. Cai Xinyue must have guessed something about her and Yu Zhezhi. Aside from introducing her as a sister, Hua Luoyue hadn’t gone out of her way to lie about Yu Zhezhi, but they usually didn’t talk about it. If one thought about it even slightly, the truth was easy to find. After all, no strange man had ever appeared around her.

Cai Xinyue looked conflicted, but not repulsed or disgusted.

“She went back to City A,” Hua Luoyue explained.

Cai Xinyue looked as if she’d breathed a sigh of relief.

“So…” Cai Xinyue looked left and right, then lowered her voice. “You two will divorce in the future, right?”

They were standing on a shaded path with no one around. Cai Xinyue’s face held a mix of stolen contentexpectation and nervousness, her eyes fixed unblinkingly on Hua Luoyue.

Hua Luoyue’s heart skipped a beat. But on this subject, she had mentioned it several times before and couldn’t lie. She weighed her words and said: “Yes…”

“She doesn’t actually like you, does she?” Cai Xinyue pressed. In the past, she would never have asked such a blunt question to Hua Luoyue’s face—she would have avoided it. To ask it so abruptly only meant she was beginning to desperately want to know about the situation between Yu Zhezhi and Hua Luoyue.

Why the sudden thirst for knowledge?

Hua Luoyue began to regret coming out today—at least she shouldn’t have let Yu Zhezhi drop her off, and so coincidentally be seen by Cai Xinyue. But was the root of the incident really just this? Hua Luoyue knew it wasn’t. She wanted to brush it off, but she couldn’t give a dishonest answer to either of those two questions.

To the latter, she could only answer: “Right…”

Yu Zhezhi didn’t like her. She liked someone else. So they were bound to divorce in the end.

Cai Xinyue’s eyes lit up. These two simple questions seemed to have solved a major worry in her heart, making her mood brighten and allowing her to reach a certain resolution. Or perhaps, it catalyzed an impulse.

Hua Luoyue’s heart sank bit by bit, a sense of unease growing. She had an impulse to turn and run, to hear nothing and see nothing. But logic pinned her feet to the spot, forcing [stolen content]her to face the sentence that blurted out of Cai Xinyue’s mouth.

Cai Xinyue said to her: “I like you.”