Chapter 58

Xu Yueliang walked Lin Qimian all the way to the entrance of the apartment complex.

They didn’t exchange many words, but every minute and second felt extraordinarily precious. Xu Yueliang glanced down at her own toes, which had come to a stop.

She wiggled them lightly, then lifted her gaze and pointed for Lin Qimian. “I live right here.”

Lin Qimian looked in the direction she indicated and memorized the name of the complex. “Okay.”

Xu Yueliang’s lips parted. “These two tall buildings—I’m in the north one.”

Lin Qimian: “Okay.”

Xu Yueliang: “Twenty-second floor~”

Lin Qimian: “Mm.”

Xu Yueliang: “Room 220…”

She hesitated on the final digit.

She wanted to lay everything bare, at least the facts that already existed, for Lin Qimian to see.

But it was the middle of the night, and having someone see her all the way home was one thing—reciting her exact door number felt a bit off.

That wasn’t her intention at all. She was terrified Lin Qimian might misunderstand.

“I…” Xu Yueliang lowered her head again. “I’ll think seriously about what Doctor Lin said.”

“Good.” Lin Qimian’s palm settled on the crown of her head, rubbing gently.

Xu Yueliang truly loved it when Lin Qimian ruffled her hair like that. It felt as if the tip of her heart was being tugged along with her strands, swaying lightly.

Xu Yueliang nudged a small pebble in front of her foot, mumbling hesitantly, “Well then… Doctor Lin, I’ll head in now… Drive safe on the way back~”

“Okay, good night.” Lin Qimian smiled. “Get some rest soon. See you in the live streaming room tomorrow.”

“Mm!” Xu Yueliang nodded vigorously.

She turned to head inside when a car pulled up at the complex entrance. The door swung open, and the scent of alcohol wafted out.

Xu Yueliang glanced over. A slender girl dressed in sexy fishnet stockings and a tight skirt had stepped out, her upper body still bent into the car. After a burst of laughter and some fumbling, she finally extricated herself.

Lin Qimian looked that way and said, “I’ll walk you in.”

“No need, no need.” Xu Yueliang waved her off, her eyes fixed on the girl. As the girl turned and started walking toward them, Xu hurriedly gave Lin Qimian a shove. “Doctor Lin, you should head back. It’s late, and Senior Sister Xiaoyi is waiting for you.”

Lin Qimian’s brow twitched. She didn’t glance at the girl again. “Alright, then be careful.”

Xu Yueliang nodded eagerly. “Mm-hmm!”

Lin Qimian chuckled. “Text me when you get home.”

Xu Yueliang: “Mm-hmm-hmm!”

Before the girl’s face came into clear view, Lin Qimian turned and walked away.

Xu Yueliang let out a long breath of relief.

Lin Qimian’s figure soon vanished around the corner. The girl reached Xu Yueliang, her steps unsteady, reeking of booze, her disheveled hair covering most of her face.

The remaining half was hidden beneath heavy makeup.

Xu Yueliang steadied her and whispered, “Weiwei.”

You Weiwei looked up at her, stared blankly for two seconds, then broke into a grin. “Moon~~~”

“Mm.” Xu Yueliang supported her as they headed inside, swiping the access card at the gate.

You Weiwei staggered forward a step, slipping free from Xu Yueliang’s grasp to peer at her face.

Xu Yueliang’s features were shadowed by the night, appearing pale and delicate under the streetlamp’s glow.

“Xu Yueliang.” You Weiwei jabbed a finger at her, enunciating each word. “What have you been up to, coming home in the middle of the night like this?”

Xu Yueliang reached out to steady her again, afraid she’d fall. “I was out for a late-night snack with a friend.”

“Oooh~~~~~~” You Weiwei tilted her head back to the sky. “Right, I remember—your streaming schedule changed. You go off at 11, so grabbing a snack with friends…”

She counted on her fingers. “Getting home at two… totally normal, haha, yeah, normal.”

Her high, thin heels caught in a crack between the bricks, and she twisted her ankle.

Xu Yueliang quickly looped an arm around hers, letting her lean against her side.

But You Weiwei refused to move forward. She turned her head to gaze at Xu Yueliang and whispered, “So guess what I was up to?”

Xu Yueliang felt a pang of sadness. “I can’t guess.”

“You totally can! Come on!” You Weiwei laughed and smacked her arm. “What do you mean you can’t? We’re in the same line of work.”

“I went to hang out with my top donor. Hahaha. That Big Bro who’s been showering me with gifts these past two months—you know what he looks like?” You Weiwei pitched her voice playfully. “Holy crap, you wouldn’t guess. He doesn’t even have a beer gut! He’s a skinny guy, hahahaha, a skinny dude in a plaid shirt with thinning hair on top. I asked him, ‘Bro, bro, what do you do?’ And he says he’s a programmer. Programmer, hahahaha… yeah, figures for a programmer, hahahaha… balding before thirty…”

Xu Yueliang let her carry on without a word, just trying to drag her forward.

You Weiwei’s laughter cut off abruptly. Her face fell as she said, “He was generous enough when it came to showering me with gifts, but his car was nothing special, and the hotel was just some budget chain. When he dropped me off, there was a photo of his wife and daughter dangling from the rearview mirror. Fuck, what a scumbag.”

Xu Yueliang shuddered.

You Weiwei jabbed a finger at herself. “Vicious bitch. Homewrecker. Whore living off her body.”

Xu Yueliang’s voice was faint. “Don’t… don’t say any more…”

“What’s the matter? Can’t even bear to listen?” You Weiwei shook her off. “Ah, right, of course you’re different. You never stoop to that. You don’t do it, and people still throw money at you. You don’t do it, and you still blow up online, break out of your circle…”

“Feels good to break out, doesn’t it? The whole site’s plastered with your posters. I’m not as pretty as you, not as cute, not as hardworking. I’ll never know what that’s like in my lifetime.

“That bigshot you tossed aside? I threw myself at him, and he barely gave me the time of day. Talk about a beggar who can’t even scrounge a bite.

“And here I was telling you not to talk to old classmates. Who am I to give advice like that? Your old classmates aren’t like mine. Mine either want to fuck me or laugh at my misery. Yours—the big doctor, so gentle and beautiful, doting on you, treating you with such respect…”

You Weiwei paused. Then her mouth fell open, and she pointed at Xu Yueliang. “Oh! That was Doctor Lin standing with you at the door earlier, wasn’t it? And the one who went out for late-night snacks with you—Doctor Lin!”

Xu Yueliang pressed her lips tight and said nothing.

You Weiwei slung her bag over her shoulder and staggered ahead. “Hahaha, so there really are angels in this world. Wow. But what does an angel have to do with me? Some people have it all… and some have nothing…”

Xu Yueliang didn’t follow.

You Weiwei hummed a tune as she entered the building. Soon, even her voice faded away.

Xu Yueliang’s phone buzzed twice in her pocket. She fished it out. It was a message from Doctor Lin.

Doctor Lin’s WeChat profile was just a simple “Lin.” Her Moments featured only stunning photos of celestial bodies—the kind that conjured visions of Xibai Mountain for Xu Yueliang, that took her to watch hearts raining down from the night sky.

She was pure and untainted, possessing the world’s finest qualities. She truly was an angel.

An angel had descended into Xu Yueliang’s life, bringing good fortune with her. It felt like she’d finally clawed her way out of that inescapable quagmire, like she’d found a real path upward.

Doctor Lin had messaged: 【Moon, not home yet?】

Xu Yueliang bolted back, dashed into the building, jammed the elevator button, and didn’t relax until she’d unlocked her door. Only then did she reply: 【Just got here~~~】

Lin Qimian: 【Okay.】

Xu Yueliang’s fingers hovered in the air above the screen. After a long moment, she typed: 【Thanks, Doctor Lin.】

The next day, Xu Yueliang went live right on schedule.

The forum threads had already turned over two pages. She’d read every last discussion from the night before—every accusation, every jeer, every insult.

She’d read the voices supporting her, too, the ones from fans who loved her. For the first time, she’d boldly searched her own name across the entire web. The results weren’t as bad as she’d feared.

Right now, those anonymous forum users who’d bombarded her with gifts and demanded she “know her place” were waiting for her to cave. Waiting for her to retreat, to go back to being their obedient little toy.

Xu Yueliang switched on her camera. She waved at the lens with a brilliant smile.

Her eyes crinkled with the same warm enthusiasm as always, but her outfit and makeup were worlds apart from before.

It was autumn, after all, so she’d chosen a form-fitting brown striped knit top. She paired it with a muted Morandi green skirt.

Striped socks and short boots completed the look, her hair tied into two fluffy braids. It was the perfect grab-a-backpack-and-hit-the-streets style.

“Hi~~~ everyone~~~” Her sweet greeting sent a wave of ecstatic comments flooding the screen from her female fans.

【Daughter looks stunning today!】

【Aaaah, she’s way too pretty, oh my god!】

【Links! Daughter, links please, I wanna buy these clothes and stun everyone at school, waaah!】

【I’m different. I just wanna thirst over my wife’s face. slurp slurp】

【Can’t wait to see Moon dance! She’s def got a new routine, waaah!】

…

“Thanks for all the compliments~~” Xu Yueliang stood and did a little spin. “This outfit’s perfect for heading out right now. If your legs get cold, just swap in some dark tights—still looks great~~~ But I can’t share links, guys. Against the rules~~”

She returned to the camera, blinking her eyes. “I’m so happy to provide outfit references for everyone~ I’ll keep working hard from now on! There are new dances coming up, and I even want to lead you all in some radio calisthenics to build strength and stay healthy!”

【I’m moving into this live streaming room for good】

【Let’s see if Little Moon can motivate a lazybones like me】

【Where’s the class rep? Class rep, please share Moon’s OOTD!】

【I feel myself getting prettier already. I don’t know why, but I’m suddenly so confident】

【Staring at beauties makes you beautiful too. Sisters, confidence is key!】

【Bunch of basic bitches】

【Fuck this shit, I’m out】

【Orange doesn’t give a damn? Can’t the mods see the forum posts?】

【Ungrateful streamer pulling a bridge-burner. Got what she wanted and now playing the saint】

The last few comments flashed by for just a moment before the mods deleted them.

【Ban my account? You fucking rock】

That one got deleted too.

Xu Yueliang spotted those bullet comments but didn’t so much as flicker an eyelid.

She only replied to those engaging with her normally, smoothly carrying on with her stream.

Some viewers showered her with negative gifts—thumbs-downs, piles of poop, even mass reports on the room.

But plenty more kept sending Little Hearts her way, launching Rockets and fireworks nonstop.

An hour later, the live streaming room had quieted down considerably.

Lin Qimian logged into the “z92565611” account and opened the Voyage Group. Half the members were gone.

But the admin who’d been with Xu Yueliang for years was still there, along with many of the original supporters who’d hit the charts for her back in the day.

Lin Qimian scrolled up through the messages, reading about the nonstop arguments of the past few days that had finally boiled over.

She saw the admin at wits’ end, saw Xu Yueliang come into the group to apologize.

But that was it—just an apology.

No backing down.

She might hesitate, might waver and second-guess herself, but once she made up her mind, she was exactly as Lin Qimian had hoped: fearless in the face of hardship, charging straight ahead.

Someone in the group was fretting that after this mess, Little Moon might drop from the top spot in the Dance District rankings.

Lin Qimian smiled. She entered the live streaming room and, cloaked in the “11” persona, showered gifts without restraint.

A yacht followed by fireworks, then more fireworks exploding into another yacht.

She tapped through every big-ticket gift, looping back for seconds. Soon enough, the long-vanished z92565611 reclaimed the number-one spot on Little Moon’s monthly gift leaderboard.

Xu Yueliang stared at the screen in surprise, then said with a stunned look, “11, you’re back~”

【Yeah.】 Lin Qimian replied.

Two seconds later, she sent another: 【Looking pretty today.】

The Voyage Group lit up with excitement. The admin and members were just as stunned.

No one had expected the top donor—who’d vanished amid all the mysterious drama—to return on this day of all days, throwing their full support behind Little Moon without a second thought.

The admin led the charge: 【Welcome back, 11 Bigshot Dragon King!】

A flood of 【Welcome back, 11 Bigshot Dragon King!】 followed, evoking echoes of the group’s former glory.

Xu Yueliang grinned. “Thanks, 11~~”

She rubbed her hands together and asked, “What would 11 like me to do? So many options now~”

She slid a sheet of paper in front of the camera. Scribbled on it in various colored pens were all sorts of game ideas—from dressing as Zhu Bajie to kicking a footbag. It was a total mishmash.

The handwriting was neat and earnest, her letters round and plump, without sharp edges but impeccably tidy. There was something magical about it that made anyone who saw it smile.

Lin Qimian knew that handwriting well. She could perfectly picture Xu Yueliang racking her brains to come up with these options.

This was Xu Yueliang’s current idea of her value to the live streaming room audience.

Lin Qimian’s bullet comment: 【Closer.】

Xu Yueliang adjusted the paper so it filled the entire screen.

The bullet comments exploded with laughter:

【Daughter’s too cute. What even goes through her head?】

【Putting ‘on-camera makeup removal’ as an option? Ballsy.】

【Screenshotting like crazy!】

【Wondering if any bigshot can help me binge all these in a month. Broke, but a girl can dream】

【Dreaming 1】

【Dreaming 2】

【Begging 11 Bigshot to pick Zhu Bajie! I wanna see a beauty as Pigsy!!!】

From there on, it was all pleas for 11 to pick their favorites.

Lin Qimian sidestepped the crowd-pleasers, leaving those for the viewers behind her to enjoy in their own interactions with the streamer.

She chose a perfectly wholesome option: “One Minute Relief for Desk Jockey Back Pain.”

The bullet comments: 【？？？？？】

In the Voyage Group chat, someone @’d her: 【11, your waist can’t handle it?】

【Sigh, a man can’t say he’s no good.】

【Bigshot, I’ve got an exclusive secret recipe pill here—want some?】

Lin Qimian naturally didn’t reply.

Xu Yueliang was delighted by her choice. She immediately stood up and began demonstrating for the viewers. “Since I sit for hours during my streams, my lower back often aches. This stretch is super simple and really effective. Give it a try, everyone—do it a few times a day, and you’ll feel so much better!”

The comments flooded in:

【Record it, record it!】

【If I learn this, will I get a slim waist like Moon’s?】

【Welcome to Little Moon’s Fitness Channel!】

【Quit yapping and just do it with her!】

…

Lin Qimian rose to her feet and followed Xu Yueliang’s movements, stretching effectively.

It felt amazing.

With the schedule adjusted, the afternoon stream wrapped up in no time.

Xu Yueliang waved goodbye at the camera, the screen went dark, and Lin Qimian grabbed her other phone to check if Xu Yueliang had messaged Lin Mumu.

Surprisingly, Lin Mumu had received nothing.

Instead, the long-silent chat for “11” lit up.

Host Little Moon messaged her: 【11, are you a girl?】