Chapter 9: Just Friends?
Wang Wei took a seat in a pre-reserved front-row spot. The boss had called earlier to have him save two seats. Although the boss only mentioned two people, Wang Wei had saved a four-person table just to be safe.
The seats at Night Color could be reserved, but only a few people held that right. To prevent other guests from taking the seats, a glowing sign was placed on the table displaying two red words: Occupied.
“The Male God is too handsome!” a more rational, mature woman praised.
“His voice is too good; I feel like my ears are getting pregnant!” a fangirl squealed, clutching her ears while staring at Xiahou Qian on stage with glowing eyes.
“Han-shou, do you feel like you can’t close your legs after seeing the Male God? Haha~” a fujoshi teased a certain submissive “shou” boy.
“King, Iām going to be a regular at Night Color from now on. So what if itās not a gay bar? Being able to hear him sing every day is enough.” Another gay man.
“Heavens, if I see him and hear him every day, Iāll eventually have a change of heart!” a woman with a boyfriend struggled, biting her nails. If her eyes could actually leave the stage, her words might have been more convincing.
“Should I come or not? I feel like my ‘straight man’ career is in grave danger!” a straight man, enchanted by the beauty and song, fretted internally.
” I feel itās dangerous too, but I can’t bear not to come… Ugh, such a hard choice.” Another straight man, equally conflicted after hearing his friend.
…
The conversations from the surrounding tables reached Wang Weiās ears. He was beyond speechless. With Xiahou Qian here, was Night Color going to capture every man, woman, and gay person in one fell swoop? How did Xiahou Qian seem like a real-life “Gary Stu”?
The noise in the bar quickly died down as the intro to the first song began. Even those who were chatting lowered their voices.
“Youāll ask me to cry with you, let me listen to your grievances all night, you always love having me help you choose clothes, Iām always by your side when youāre lonely… You find me to accompany your boredom, to watch your favorite channel… Itās okay, weāre just friends, so thereās no reason to part. I only occasionally ask myself: Have you had enough?“
As the song ended, the audience began chanting “Male God” again.
“Although itās incredibly good, why start so sadly~”
“Actually, it felt quite sweet at the beginning, but then it got so sad. Such a bittersweet feeling~”
“The Male God sings better than the original. How is the original singer supposed to live if they hear this?”
…
After the song, Xiahou Qian said a few simple words, announced the title of the second song, and began singing again.
“I’m holding on your rope, got me ten feet off the ground. I’m hearing what you say, but I just can’t make a sound. You tell me that you need me… I’m holding on your rope, got me ten feet off the ground…”
After returning home last night, Lu Ke had taken the profile shot from the AE Hotel surveillance and magnified it several times to compare it with Xiahou Qian in his mind. He was originally 80% sure Xiahou Qian was the one, but now he was 90% certain.
He had originally planned to tell Chi Shaochen immediately, but then his mind took a turn and he decided to be a bit “scheming.” He used every method possible to get Chi Shaochen to agree to stop by Night Color after work. Fearing Chi Shaochen would break the promise, he even waited in Chiās office from 5:00 PM. He successfully abducted him at 6:30 PM, they had dinner, and by the time they arrived at Night Color, it was just past 7:00 PM.
Lu Ke was very much looking forward to seeing Chi Shaochenās expression when he recognized Xiahou Qian. He wondered if he could maintain his usual composure.
Just as Xiahou Qian began his second song, Lu Ke led Chi Shaochen to the reserved table. This was the closest to the stage with the best view, ensuring that when the lights hit, one could clearly see Xiahou Qianās face.
Lu Ke had planned to find a way to make Chi Shaochen notice Xiahou Qian, but it turned out he didn’t need to do a thing…
Chi Shaochen was a bit impatient being dragged to Night Color by Lu Ke. He still had much work to do and didn’t like clubbing. But Lu Ke had been pestering him since yesterday and had practically hunted him down in his office today. Considering Lu Ke was one of his few friends, he reluctantly agreed.
Sitting directly facing the stage, he habitually glanced at the performerāand that one glance made him freeze. After a moment, as if sensing something, he turned to look at Lu Ke. He saw Lu Ke with an ambiguous smile, wiggling his eyebrows with a “claiming credit while watching the drama” look.
Heād found it odd why Lu Ke insisted on dragging him here. It turned out he was waiting for this. The other day heād asked Lu Ke to keep an eye out, but he hadn’t held much hope. Who would have thought Lu Ke would actually find the person so quickly? His own people, on the other hand, had yet to find a concrete lead.
“Thank you.” Although he knew Lu Ke wanted to see him make a fool of himself, he was still very grateful that Lu Ke had helped find him.
“Surprised? Actually, I was shocked too. He came to Night Color for an audition yesterday. The manager said his singing was amazing, so I came to see out of curiosity. The moment we met, he looked familiar… His name is Xiahou Qian, a recent graduate of the Huaxia Conservatory of Music.” Lu Ke briefly recounted yesterday’s events.
Even though the patrons were relatively quiet, the music made it impossible to hear clearly from a distance. So, when Lu Ke spoke, he leaned close to Chi Shaochenās ear. It was only “slightly” close; Chi Shaochen definitely wouldn’t accept anything more. However, from a different angle, the gesture looked quite intimate.
A mature, handsome, cold-faced man looking impatient yet indulgent while a flower-like, smiling man chattered in his ear…
This image overlapped perfectly with the photos Xiahou Qian had seen before his death in his last life.
Chi Shaochen wore a white shirt with no tie and one button undone, paired with dark suit pants and leather shoes. He looked out of place in a bar, but with his looks, aura, and physique, he stood out like a crane among chickens wherever he went.
Lu Ke was dressed casually, a completely different style from Chi Shaochen, but he radiated the aura of a pampered young master. His “peach blossom eyes” were always smiling, as if he were constantly flirting.
Two people with completely different personalities, yet they looked very harmonious together.
So theyāve known each other for this long. Are they already together?
Xiahou Qian didn’t know why, but he felt a sudden intuition to look in that direction, and then he saw this scene. It felt a bit sour, a bit stifling. He even missed a beat in the lyrics, though he quickly regained his composure and smoothed over the error.
When the intro for the third song began, Xiahou Qian felt he had chosen the wrong song. He didn’t want to sing this at all right now, but it was unrealistic to change it on the spot. The result was that this song sounded eight times sadder than intended, tormenting the listeners’ hearts.
“This familiar weather, the memories left in the depths, it seems that time we met was fate accumulated from a past life, that melody of the past… But the distance, we are on different tracks, no matter how much effort, it is only sorrow… I just haven’t told you yet: I’m sorry, I love you… Even if one day I leave this body, I will still be this devoted… It seems that time we met was fate accumulated from a past life…”
Xiahou Qian was afraid his gaze would uncontrollably drift toward Chi Shaochen, so he simply kept his head down and focused on singing.
“Qian Chen, don’t be sad! We love you!”
As the song ended, a group of women shouted. From the voices alone, Xiahou Qian knew it was the same group that had started the “Male God” chants.
“Why is he called Qian Chen?” Lu Ke was puzzled.
“Xiao Qianās stage name,” Wang Wei replied.
“It really feels like listening to a concert, doesn’t it?” Lu Ke laughed.
“It was even crazier earlier. I think the number of gay patrons in our shop is going to increase sharply. Many straight men are almost being turned ‘bent’ by Xiao Qian, and for the gay guys, heās irresistible. And you saw the madness of those women. CEO Lu, I think we need to give Xiao Qian a bonus at the end of the month.” Wang Wei laughed along with Lu Ke.
“Haha~ Shaochen, looks like you need to hurry up. This kid kills both men and women.” Lu Ke laughed loudly, looking at Chi Shaochen with a gloating expression.
Wang Wei didn’t know Chi Shaochen. Although heād seen him twice before, Lu Ke had never introduced him. However, he could guess this manās status was not simple. He seemed to have a good relationship with his boss. From his bossās words… did this man know Xiahou Qian? And did he have “that kind” of intention toward him?
Xiahou Qian sang the remaining songs somewhat absentmindedly, though non-professionals could hardly tell. His ability to multitask seemed quite good; even while his mind was filled with thoughts of Chi Shaochen, he made no more mistakes in his singing.
Just like yesterday, he ignored the crowd’s calls for an encore. He stood and left the stage without any lingering looks.
“CEO Lu wants you to come over.”
Xiahou Qian looked at Wang Wei. It seemed he had been waiting here to notify him. If any other guest wanted to see him, he would definitely refuse, but since it was the boss, he naturally had to go.
He knew Chi Shaochen was with the boss who had just started yesterday. He didn’t understand why they wanted him to come over.
Following Wang Wei toward Lu Ke and Chi Shaochen, he couldn’t help but feel nervous. His usual free spirit had vanished.
What attitude should he use to face Chi Shaochen?
Did Chi Shaochen remember him?
What was the relationship between Chi Shaochen and Lu Ke?
By the time he reached them, he had already made a decision: he would pretend not to know him.
If Chi Shaochen remembered, he would show it. If he remembered nothing, why should Xiahou Qian bring it up? Perhaps Chi Shaochen was already with Lu Ke. What would it even mean if he brought that night up now?
“CEO Lu, you needed me for something?” Xiahou Qian sat directly in the remaining seat. He still had a smile on his face, but it was slightly distant. He completely ignored Chi Shaochen sitting diagonally across from himānot even giving him a single glance. It was a very deliberate act of being ignored.
“…” Did I find the wrong person? Lu Ke wondered if the person who had a one-night stand with Chi Shaochen wasn’t Xiahou Qian after all. But he might misidentify someone, but Chi Shaochen, the other protagonist, shouldn’t! If that was the case, Xiahou Qianās performance was quite interesting.
Xiahou Qianās behavior made Chi Shaochen frown, his expression turning a bit colder. The boy clearly didn’t want to mention that night. Was he afraid of the awkwardness? Since that was the case, he would cooperate, even if he wasn’t particularly willing. He looked toward Lu Ke.
“That… oh, right. My friend really likes your… your songs. He asked me to introduce you.” Lu Ke introduced them with a wicked grin. His ambiguous tone was far too obvious. Xiahou Qian felt he might have guessed wrong; these two didn’t seem like a couple at all.
Are they really just friends?
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