Chapter 33: The Song Went Viral?
"Hey, you two handsome guys, sorry to bother you. Can I see the name of the video creator?"
Shen Xi smiled politely as she approached the two young men.
They looked like college students, their eyes clear and bright with youthful energy. The moment they heard her crisp voice and turned to look at her, they both froze.
The girl standing before them was far more stunning than any of the campus beauties at their university.
Both of their faces flushed red at the same time.
"Uh... s-sure..."
One of them quickly handed over his phone. Shen Xi leaned in slightly and saw the username, Yinhai Feiyu?
"Thanks."
She turned around, about to leave with Keke, when one of the young men behind her suddenly gathered his courage and spoke up, his face even redder than before.
"Uh… Miss?"
The boy looked nervous and shy, a hint of hope in his eyes.
He thought Shen Xi looked like she was in her early twenties. If she wasn’t dating anyone, maybe he’d have a chance.
Shen Xi hesitated for a moment, then turned back.
"Hmm?"
"C-can we add each other on WeChat?"
Hearing this, Shen Xi almost burst out laughing. The guy reminded her so much of her past self when she had awkwardly confessed to the prettiest girl in her class.
Keke, watching from the side, covered her mouth, giggling. Her eyes curved with amusement as she nudged Shen Xi’s arm playfully.
Shen Xi shot Keke a side-eye glare.
Most girls might feel flattered when someone asked them out, but she just found the situation awkward and a little annoying.
Looking at the boy, she put on a polite smile and said in a calm voice,
"Sorry, but I’m already married."
"Ah? M-married?! I… I didn’t know. I’m sorry!"
The boy’s face turned an even deeper shade of red, like a defeated puppy. He quickly grabbed his friend and ran off in embarrassment.
Watching them flee, Shen Xi chuckled softly.
Guess there is one benefit to my contract marriage with Gu Hanling.
At least when rejecting confessions, it was the perfect excuse. A one-hit KO with maximum damage.
……………………………………
Back at the villa, Shen Xi happily enjoyed a five-star dinner all by herself.
At 9 PM, Gu Hanling still hadn’t come home.
After taking a shower, Shen Xi got into bed, only to suddenly sit up again.
She walked to the door, turned the lock with a click, and nodded in satisfaction.
"Yep, much safer this way."
Even though she wasn’t sure if Gu Hanling would return tonight, locking the door just in case made her feel more secure.
Not that she really thought he would do anything to her… but still.
Lying back down, she opened TikTok and searched for "Yinhai Feiyu."
In just half a day, the most-liked video had gained another 800,000 likes, reaching a total of 3.8 million.
The clip was only a few seconds long. The dim lighting made the video a bit blurry, and under the soft glow of the moon, the woman in the footage looked even more graceful.
It was her.
The video was from the last time she sang. She had no idea who had secretly recorded it and uploaded it online, but it had already been re-shared countless times.
However, none of the other reposts were as popular as Yinhai Feiyu’s.
Why?
Because he had added background music to it!
That was exactly why Shen Xi took this so seriously.
The accompaniment wasn’t an exact match to the original song from her past life, but it was at least 80% similar.
Curious, she clicked into the comment section, which already had over 100,000 comments. Most people were drawn in by the deep emotions in the song.
"If only there was an intro… I think I just fell in love."
"Why is it only a few seconds of the chorus? Where’s the full version?!"
"Please, I need the full song! I’ll do anything!"
"Even though I can’t see her clearly, with a voice this beautiful, she must be gorgeous too."
"Not necessarily. There are plenty of online ‘cute voice Godzillas’ out there."
…………………………………
Many netizens were asking the content creator to release a full version of the song, but Yinhai Feiyu had pinned a comment explaining that the clip had been leaked from an internal group of an entertainment company, only that short segment existed.
Shen Xi closed the comment section and opened a private message window.
"Hi, if I have the full version, could you help me complete the accompaniment? I’ll pay generously."
She wasn’t a professional singer and didn’t know how to compose music, but she firmly believed that professionals should handle professional tasks.
Seeing this person’s talent, she was confident that with a few tweaks from her, the instrumental could perfectly match her memories from her past life.
And if they collaborated on an album, it would be a game-changer. A musical bombshell in a world lacking the peak Chinese pop songs from the late '90s and early 2000s!
Shen Xi waited for a reply but received none. She closed her eyes, deep in thought, planning out her future, until she unknowingly drifted off to sleep.
……………………………………
Late at Night.
Gu Hanling, dressed in a black silk pajama set, walked to Shen Xi’s bedroom door. He turned the handle...
No response.
The door was locked.
The man frowned slightly, immediately guessing what she was thinking. He raised his hand, intending to knock, but after a brief pause, he chuckled softly, lowered his hand, and walked away.
The Next Morning.
Shen Xi instinctively reached out beside her, empty.
She opened her eyes and remembered that the man hadn’t come back last night.
Or rather, she had locked the door.
"Mmm~"
Stretching lazily, she got out of bed and went downstairs.
Gu Hanling was still nowhere to be seen.
"Did he not come back all night?" she wondered.
"Ahh, if only this could happen every day! That way, if you round it up… this multi-million-dollar villa would basically be mine!"
"Good morning, Madam."
"Morning, Butler Wang. Did Mr. Gu not come home last night?"
The butler smiled reassuringly.
"Sir returned at midnight, but he left again early in the morning."
"Oh?"
Shen Xi was surprised.
So he actually did come back in the middle of the night? She wondered if he had tried to open her door…
She quickly put the thought aside and enjoyed another delicious breakfast all by herself.
…………………………………
Shen Xi stepped out and saw the car waiting to pick her up.
A broken-down car?
Well… not exactly broken, it was quite new, but compared to the luxury SUV she was used to, its price was at least ten times cheaper.
"Zekai, where’s your car?"
Shen Xi got into the passenger seat, frowning in confusion.
"Hehe..."
Shen Zekai scratched his head awkwardly.
"Uh… I sold it. Susie’s new design needed funding, and our family doesn’t have much money right now, so I…"
"But don’t worry, Sister! She said once her business deal goes through, she’ll buy me an even better car. Hehe."
Shen Xi facepalmed.
Based on what she knew, these two had only held hands once. And yet, he already sold off his beloved luxury car.
Now, she finally understood why the villains in the original novel had such a tragic ending.
Each one was more pathetic than the last.
This was like one of those cheap scams, "I'm your mother, please send money."
And Shen Zekai actually fell for it, selling his most prized possession.
"If you needed money, why didn’t you ask your broth—uh, why didn’t you ask me?"
"Oh, come on, Sister! I don’t want you to be one of those ‘spoiling-your-younger-brother’ types. I’m an adult now, I can solve my own problems."
Shen Xi let out a helpless sigh.
"My foolish little brother…"
Love truly makes people stupid. It was frustrating, but also kind of heartbreaking.
She couldn’t just sit back and watch. Unfortunately, by the time she finished handling Keke’s situation, his car was already gone.
She could only hope she’d find a way to get it back later.
Seeing how deeply trapped Shen Zekai was in this, she knew a few words wouldn’t snap him out of it.
She’d have to take it step by step.
Arriving at the Hotel. Shen Zekai parked at the entrance of a five-star hotel.
As soon as they stepped out, a woman in a high-end Chanel-style short dress was already waiting at the door. Her looks were about on par with Lin Yueyue.
Susie.
When she saw Shen Xi stepping out from the passenger seat, looking incredibly close to her target, her face froze in shock.
Especially because Shen Xi was too beautiful, a rare, stunning beauty.
A strong sense of pressure instantly filled Susie’s heart. She bit her lip angrily, frustration rising inside her…