Chapter 21 Part 3

【How come I feel like Yaya Baby is super skilled at this? A bad baby who plays with push and pull. Gotta pinch little darling’s cheeks hard.】

【Enough, enough, I really can’t talk about it anymore.】

【You better be “can’t talk about it anymore”.】

【Adding one more point: He prescribes the right medicine based on age. In front of Fanta, a Little Wife. In front of Picky, a hot-and-cold, cold-and-ruthless femme fatale who has that younger boy wrapped around her fingers. T_T】

【None of that! It was because ‘This is my Promotion Match!’ (Eyes firm like they want to join the Party)】

【My little notebook can’t hold any more. These few points are already enough for me to study for a year.】

【I’m different. I’m not interested in guys at all. Been licking my baby’s face all night. My baby being willing to be a streamer is Wolf Fang’s fortune, a blessing upon us.】

【Checked the profile above, and as expected, it’s a guy. Can you guys just stop pretending to be girls and sneaking in? I seriously can’t stand it.】

【This thread ends here. Posting a few of baby’s meme packs below. Save if you like. (Yaya looking up and fanning himself, not letting tears fall.jpg) (Yaya disdainful.jpg) (Yaya heart finger.jpg)】

【So cute. Love my baby’s “looking at trash” eyes the most. After a whole night, I instantly let it all out. Thanks OP.】

【So the dudes should get lost already!】

…

At 7 PM, Lin Linya left the house right on time. Carrying a large guitar case on his back like a high schooler, he took a cab. When he reached the mall location pinned on his phone, a tall boy with a head of fluorescent blonde hair was waiting for him.

Seeing him, the boy waved excitedly, greeting him enthusiastically: “Cousin!”

His voice was so loud it drew attention from passersby. They first glanced at the blonde guy, but upon seeing Lin Linya, their eyes filled with admiration.

Lin Linya slowly walked over. He stared at the blonde hair for a few seconds and then averted his eyes in disgust. “What’s up with your hair? It’s so ugly.”

“Huh? Doesn’t it look good?” The tall boy subconsciously tousled his bangs and let out a couple of silly laughs. “Alright, I’ll dye it back later.”

Blonde Guy was Lin Linya’s maternal uncle’s kid. He’d been rebellious since childhood, always butting heads with his dad. Every time Lin Linya visited their house to play, this cousin of his would be getting beaten. Every time he got hit, he screamed bloody murder.

Lin Linya was well-behaved and beautiful, naturally the neighbor’s perfect kid and his complete opposite. But since young, this cousin had always admired his outstanding older cousin. Unexpectedly, he listened to Lin Linya very well—even their own relatives were shocked by it.

Lin Linya took off the guitar case, and the boy immediately, attentively took it over, even fanning him with his hand. “Cousin, you absolutely can’t tell my dad I hooked you up with this part-time job. He’ll beat me to death.”

Lin Linya huffed. “I’m not stupid. If I tell Uncle, Uncle will definitely tell my mom. Of course I won’t tell.”

Blonde Guy silently said nothing.

In their family, everyone treated Lin Linya like a little treasure. Their bias was off the charts. Even if his dad told Lin Linya’s mom, she wouldn’t do anything to Lin Linya. The only one getting into trouble in the end would be him.

The part-time job he’d recommended was at a music bar near S University. It was pretty unique, so students frequented it.

The bar was opened by a friend of his from outside school. They were temporarily short a guitarist for emergency help. The pay for one night was indeed quite good. He’d also scoped it out beforehand—it wasn’t some shady place—before daring to let Lin Linya come.

It wasn’t late at night yet, so the crowd wasn’t huge.

Blonde Guy brought Lin Linya to say hello to the bar owner. The owner had a full sleeve of tattoos on one arm. He looked Lin Linya up and down, gave an ambiguous smile, and said, “You’ll be the center of attention for sure.”

He lifted his chin. “Just go up when you’re ready. Use the house guitar or your own, whichever.”

Lin Linya used his own guitar. The other band members were all in their twenties, easy to communicate with. They quickly finalized the setlist.

One of them, the DJ, looked Lin Linya up and down with fresh eyes. “Never seen someone come to a bar dressed like this.”

A white trendy t-shirt under an off-white short-sleeved shirt, light-colored shorts. On a campus, it’d be a refreshing, youthful look. But in a setting like this, it was a bit too conservative.

Lin Linya’s gaze landed on the impressive muscles beneath the DJ’s form-fitting black tank top.

The Handsome DJ subconsciously tensed his abs under that direct stare. But Lin Linya just smiled at him. “I think I look fine like this. You think it doesn’t look good?”

After saying that, he turned around to tune his own guitar.

On a high stool, one leg dangled lazily on the footrest, the other propped on the round stage. He held the big guitar. The lights suddenly went dark.

A single white spotlight shone down on him. Lin Linya lightly plucked a few strings, a smooth, flowing musical intro sounding out, drawing the attention of the entire crowd.

Under the white light, his skin was as white as cold jade. Every strand of hair glowed. At first, with his head down tuning the guitar, it wasn’t too clear; he just seemed like a sleeping angel.

The moment he looked up, people in the Frontline couldn’t help but cry out.

Clenched between his soft, red lips was a black guitar pick. In that instant, he fell to the mortal world. With a hooked corner of his mouth, he tapped the rhythm with his foot, his body swaying along.

They hadn’t rehearsed even once, yet they played like they’d performed together countless times. The bass and keyboard came in at the perfect moment. The Lead Singer’s voice was hoarse. The first song, a warm-up track with strong rhythm, was already effective enough to make everyone stand up.

The most eye-catching, however, was the new guitarist. His stunningly beautiful face was even more alluring in the dim lighting. When his gaze occasionally swept down toward the audience, it provoked even wilder reactions.

Two warm-up songs ended, and they switched to a more lyrical track. The Lead Singer handed the mic to Lin Linya.

Since Lin Linya had to hold his guitar, he used a standing mic. His opening song was Jacky Cheung’s “Song of Troubles.” The Lead Singer sang harmony for him. The humming section was as pleasant to the ear as heavenly music.

After that, they transitioned to “Happy Breakup.”

A chorus of howls came from below. “What kind of god would ever break up with someone like this? I’d kneel for him! If my brother just looked at me once, my heart would shatter.”

“Forget breaking up. If I dated someone like this, even if we argued, I’d slap myself first.”

“Finally know why everyone wants to find a White Moonlight at a bar. This destructive power is way too strong.”

As one song finished, everyone was still immersed in the emotion. Suddenly, all the lights went completely out. After a few seconds of quiet, restless murmurs, multi-colored spotlights blazed on across the entire venue. Along with them rose a drumbeat, followed by the intro to “Do You Want to Dance.”

The screams of the entire crowd nearly blew the roof off. The bar felt more like an open-air live house concert.

The air was thick with the scent of alcohol. Lin Linya also stood up from his high stool. He played his guitar. During the instrumental break, the Lead Singer suddenly shouted, “Let’s welcome our temporarily added guitarist! He is way too COOL!!”

As if finally finding an outlet for all their pent-up emotions, everyone went wild, cheering and screaming.

Lin Linya took a moment to raise a hand and wave. The hem of his white shirt swayed along with his body wave. Sweat slid down his cheek, flowing along his neck into his collar. The smile on his face was like a bewitching demon.

Free and radiant.

This kind of contrast drove people even crazier. The screams of men and women blended together, pounding against eardrums.

As the night drew to a close, Lin Linya only felt he hadn’t played this exhilaratingly in a long time. He had absolutely no idea how many people were asking for his contact info.

He found time to pull out his phone and glance at it. The first message was a check-up text from Chen Chun. 【Where are you?】

If he told the truth, Chen Chun would definitely nag him again. He guiltily blinked and replied: 【Weekend, where else could I be besides home?】

He’d originally thought Chen Chun would be out partying at this time and too busy to care about him. Didn’t expect a near-instant reply.

【Is that so?】

【Look up. Two o’clock direction. Come over and toast your old man. I’ll treat you to a fruit platter and barbecue.】

Lin Linya looked up and sure enough, spotted Chen Chun at a glance in the crowd. Slouching lazily on a black leather sofa, he was beckoning Lin Linya with a crook of his finger from afar.

He quickly said goodbye to the other band members, hopped off the stage, and ignored the pick-up lines from others. Like a little wife, he trotted over to Chen Chun’s table.

Chen Chun was so exasperated he was about to laugh. As soon as Lin Linya arrived, Chen Chun clamped a hand on his shoulder, his voice laced with a threat. “At home?”

It wasn’t the first time Lin Linya had been caught lying by him. Calm and collected, he greeted Fang Wenxue at the same table. Looking around, quite a few were familiar faces from the same major.

Fang Wenxue had her long hair pulled back into a high ponytail. She looked at him, smiling broadly. “Baby, you were devastatingly handsome just now.”

And it wasn’t just her. Everyone else was dumbstruck.

Chen Chun’s tone dripped with sarcasm and a frosty edge. “Yo, who knew you had another side like this, you little thing. Your waist sure knows how to move. Have you any idea how many gays down there were shouting ‘wife’?”

“Happy? Getting so many new husbands in one night. These damn fujoshis went crazy. If the law wasn’t protecting you, you’d have popped out a whole litter by now.”

Lin Linya felt a belated rush of shame. His ears turned red from Chen Chun’s words. All he could do was cover Chen Chun’s mouth to hide his own embarrassment. “I didn’t! Stop talking! You’re so annoying.”

Fang Wenxue watched him look utterly mortified, practically searching for a crack in the floor to crawl into. She thoughtfully slid him the fruit platter from the table.

Lin Linya had almost finished the free fruit platter before he finally complained softly to Chen Chun, “Shouldn’t have come. This is so embarrassing.”

“This is embarrassing to you?” Chen Chun propped his head up, watching him pop cherry tomatoes and watermelon into his mouth, one bite at a time. He lifted his chin, gesturing for Lin Linya to look over. “Those people over there are also from our school. Speaking of which, you should recognize that freshman Little Junior Schoolmate.”

Lin Linya still had a small tomato in his mouth. Dumbly, he looked up. Not far away, Lu Qingyuan stood with his arms crossed, watching him. Seeing Lin Linya look over, he waved his hand at him.

Because they were so far apart, he just assumed this schoolmate was greeting him in a friendly way. Like a fool, he even waved back in response.

He had absolutely no way of seeing how fiery the gaze was in the depths of that recently acquainted junior’s eyes.