Chapter 5: Congratulations

The next day dawned bright and clear.

Warm sunlight slipped through the gap in the curtains, falling across Su Chen’s face. The gentle heat awakened the muscle memory in his body; he furrowed his brows, cracked open his eyes just a slit, then threw off the covers, climbed out of bed, and groped his way toward the bathroom.

Half-awake, relying on instinct, Su Chen managed to find the toilet, tugged down his pants, and just as he was about to relieve himself—a deafening scream exploded right in front of him!

“Aaah!!!”

Han Jiangxue shrieked, choking on a mouthful of toothpaste foam.

“Cough, cough… Cough, cough, Su Chen, you pervert!!!”

Startled awake, Su Chen barely had time to react before Han Jiangxue, her mouth still frothy with toothpaste, shoved him out of the bathroom.

Bang!

She locked the door behind him, leaning back against it, gasping for breath, her face as red as a boiled shrimp.

“This is the end… I’m still a maiden!” she wailed inwardly, staring at her disheveled reflection in the mirror, mortified to the point of wanting to die.

Last night, acting on some mysterious impulse, she had brought Su Chen home and laid him on the guest room bed. She’d taken off his shoes and jacket, fetched warm water for him to drink, fussed over him endlessly, and by the time she’d finished washing up and removing her makeup, birds were already singing outside the window.

Maybe she’d been too exhausted and had gone to bed too late; she’d completely forgotten there was a grown man in the house and hadn’t even locked the bathroom door!

Which resulted in her sitting on the toilet brushing her teeth, staring blankly as Su Chen walked in, stood right in front of her, and began to undress…

“Oh, get a grip, Han Jiangxue! If he’d been a bad guy, you’d be in real danger right now!” she raged at herself in the mirror. She didn’t usually think of herself as this stupid!

“But… if the intruder were him…” No, no, what are you thinking! Han Jiangxue recalled that terrifyingly large… and gulped, shaking her head hard.

That size… she’d be ruined…

Su Chen, oblivious to Han Jiangxue’s current turmoil, just wanted to get into the bathroom.

Embarrassment was one thing, but if he waited any longer, he really wouldn’t be able to hold it in!

“Open up, I swear I’m not a pervert! Or why don’t you come out first and let me use the toilet!” Su Chen knocked on the door, calling.

“There’s a bathroom on the left, it’s closer to the guest room!” came Han Jiangxue’s exasperated voice from inside.

Su Chen immediately turned and, after a few steps, found it just as she said.

After relieving himself, Su Chen felt light as air and finally began to ponder a few questions.

Where am I?

What happened last night?

Why is Han Jiangxue here too?

He pieced together the fragmented images in his mind and managed to reconstruct the events of the previous night.

Then he recalled what had just happened…

“She took care of me out of kindness, and I… Sigh!” Even with two lifetimes behind him, Su Chen couldn’t help but blush at the memory. “It’s all… the layout of this house! Why does it have to be just like that old apartment?”

Tiptoeing out of the bathroom, Su Chen planned to apologize to Han Jiangxue, but saw she had already retreated to the master bedroom, with the door firmly shut.

“Looks like I really scared her… Forget it, alone with a girl, I’d better not bother her. I’ll just pack up and leave,” Su Chen muttered with a wry smile.

He returned to the room where he’d slept, dressed himself in the neatly folded clothes on the nightstand, straightened the bed meticulously, and picked up his phone, ready to head out.

Just then, his phone suddenly buzzed.

Su Chen glanced at the screen and found three or four messages on WeChat, all from a contact named Rainfall on Lotus.

He paused—only then remembering that this was the pop diva Zhang Fuyu, whom he had added just the previous night. He hadn’t even set a note for her yet!

While everyone else worshipped the diva, Su Chen had left her hanging!

If her fans found out, would they tear him apart?

He forced a smile, opening the chat.

Zhang Fuyu: Hello Su Chen, this is my personal WeChat. You can sell me your album, but please don’t sell my contact info!

There was even a sticker after the text.

Zhang Fuyu: dT-Tb

Judging by the time these messages were sent, the concert must have still been going on then. The diva still found time for this?

Su Chen couldn’t help but laugh.

There were a few messages sent early that morning as well.

Zhang Fuyu: Congratulations!

Zhang Fuyu: Don’t tell me you’re still not up yet?

Zhang Fuyu: =͟͟͞͞(꒪ᗜ꒪‧̣̥̇)

“…Congratulations? What on earth is she congratulating me for this early?” Su Chen was baffled, so he kept reading.

The last message had just come in.

Zhang Fuyu: Are you there? I wanted to ask if you’d sell the copyright to the song you performed last night, ‘The Diva’? I really love it, the price is negotiable~

Su Chen raised his eyebrows. “She wants to buy the copyright?”

He thought for a moment, then tapped out a reply on the numeric keypad.

Su Chen: Hello, Diva. Sorry, I drank too much last night and only just woke up. I must have made a fool of myself.

Su Chen: As for the copyright to ‘The Diva,’ I’m not planning to sell it for now. Besides, I don’t think the song’s mood fits you—it’s too subjective and not really suited for a woman to sing.

After some further thought, he added another line.

Su Chen: When I have time, I’ll compose a song especially for you. I promise it’ll be just as good as ‘The Diva.’

After sending the message, Su Chen pocketed his phone and left the room.

Passing by Han Jiangxue’s bedroom, he called out apologetically, “Um… I’m really sorry, it wasn’t on purpose.”

“I’ll be going now—thank you for everything last night. If you ever need my help with anything, just let me know. I’ll be there whenever you call.”

He waited quietly for a few seconds, but hearing no response from inside, he turned and headed for the door.

Just as he was about to step out, Han Jiangxue burst out, phone in hand, shrieking!

Su Chen froze, and if she hadn’t been holding a phone instead of a knife, he might have bolted in terror.

“Aaah!”

“Su Chen, you’re famous! You’re famous!” Han Jiangxue shouted at him.

Su Chen blinked in confusion. “…Famous? What’s famous?”

Han Jiangxue shoved her phone into his hands. “Look, look!”

On the screen was an app called Douyin, playing a video.

Though a bit blurry, one could make out a handsome young man with an extraordinary presence, playing and singing on stage.

It was Su Chen!

Someone had filmed his performance of “The Diva” last night and uploaded it to Douyin!

In just one night, the video had racked up an astonishing five hundred thousand likes!

Su Chen opened the comments, all of which were full of praise.

Kun Kun Flies a Plane: This street performer sings with such emotion, he made me cry in the middle of the night!

Puff Pastry Cookie: Can’t really see his face, but his vibe at the piano is just incredible. Please debut!

Peppa Escaping Disney: “You don’t want me, just a sense of vanity. Only when someone loves you do you seem so special…” Those lines hit me right in the heart!

Night 1007: Hey brothers, where can I hear the full version? I won’t be able to sleep until I do!

Su Chen was stunned.

Just like that… he was famous?

……

In the back of a Mercedes van driving through Hang City, Zhang Fuyu stared at her phone, a hint of disappointment in her eyes.

Her main reason for adding Su Chen was to buy the copyright to “The Diva.” Now that he’d refused, her interest quickly faded.

Did he really think songs of that quality could just be churned out on demand? “Especially composed for me”… She took it as a polite brush-off.

Zhang Fuyu: Haha, then I’ll be waiting!

She replied casually.