052 As Expected of You
After dinner, it was karaoke time.
The commercial district near the school was not high-end or large, but it had everything one could need. The top floor of the restaurant building was a KTV. After dinner, the twenty-something young men and women took the elevator in batches to the final stop of tonight’s activities.
Just like the previous two stops, Sun Xingsi had already booked a large private room, big enough to accommodate so many people.
“Alright, everyone, pick your songs!”
After leading everyone into the private room, Sun Xingsi pointed to the song selection station and said loudly.
The boys and girls looked at each other, and the atmosphere was a bit cold for a moment.
There was no shortage of “mic hogs” among these students, but today’s occasion was a bit special after all. There were too many people in the room. As soon as you picked up the microphone, you would become the focal point of more than twenty people’s gazes, and there were so many people of the opposite sex…
At this moment, Sun Ruimin stood up.
She chose an old song from several years ago, Dai Ailing’s “Say You Love Me,” and then picked up the microphone. “I’ll go first and make a fool of myself. Don’t be shy, everyone. Don’t be embarrassed.”
A familiar melody drifted from the speakers, the volume just right. Following the rhythm of the drumbeat, Sun Ruimin gently swayed her head and glanced over as if unintentionally.
Over there, Wang Heng had lowered his head to look at his phone again.
Sun Ruimin couldn’t help but feel a little dejected, but at this moment, the intro had just finished, and she started to sing along with the lyrics:
“My world has become wonderful and even more indescribable,
I thought it was a dream that fell from the sky,
Until I was sure that the warmth of your hand came from your heart,
At this moment, I finally bravely say I love you…”
Singing up to this point, Sun Ruimin glanced over again. This time, her gaze finally met Wang Heng’s.
However, in that fleeting glance, she didn’t see any surprise or emotion. It seemed there was only… indifference?
But Sun Ruimin continued to sing:
“In the beginning, I was only focused on looking at you,
Pretending to be casual, but my heart had already drifted over,
And I was secretly happy that you hadn’t noticed me, hiding in the corner…”
Just then, Wang Heng held his phone to his ear, pretending to be on a call, and walked quickly out of the private room. Although there was no proof, Sun Ruimin felt that he must be faking it, that there was no call at all.
“About love, there was no fanciful ending in the past,
But from that day on, my own logic was overturned,
My doubts, all the answers were understood because of you,
Turning and turning, I really met ht…”
A strong sense of grievance welled up in her heart. Sun Ruimin was still singing, but her vision suddenly became a little blurry. She blinked, as if she were singing with extra emotion.
That annoying figure had already disappeared from the private room, and the angrier she got, the sweeter the lyrics she was singing, which made her even more frustrated. In the end, she even raised her voice an octave, turning a perfectly good “Say You Love Me” into something that felt like “Too Aggrieved.”
When the song ended, everyone applauded. The girls were mostly being polite, but many of the boys were clapping very hard.
Sun Ruimin had already adjusted her expression and said with a smile, holding the microphone, “I’ve made a fool of myself. Who’s next?”
Another girl took the microphone.
Sun Ruimin sat back down on the sofa, took out her phone, and sent a text message to her cousin:
【To hell with that Wang Heng. I’m not playing anymore.】
Sun Xingsi: 【???】
Sun Ruimin sent another one: 【Send me that Wang Ke’s phone number.】
Sun Xingsi couldn’t be bothered to continue networking and lowered his head to text his cousin: 【What on earth happened??】
Sun Ruimin: 【Nothing. Just kidding.】
Sun Xingsi: 【You’re changing your target?】
Sun Ruimin: 【No. I’m too lazy to date. Going back to study.】
Sun Xingsi was completely bewildered. Not long ago, his cousin had been so determined, acting as if she would take down that Wang Heng in minutes. What was going on now? And that Wang Heng was also strange. Logically speaking, his cousin had already been so proactive. What was he playing hard to get for?
“Really…” Sun Xingsi sighed to himself. “People’s hearts are so fickle!”
**
Wang Heng waited in the bathroom for a few minutes. Estimating that the song was over, he was about to go back to the private room. But just then, a real call came in.
The call was from Pei Ningle.
“Student Manager, this is so troublesome!” The girl’s voice on the phone was obviously a little anxious. “The video you asked me to make, I’ve already recorded it, but I just can’t upload it!”
Wang Heng: “Are the format and file size okay?”
Pei Ningle: “They’re fine! If you don’t believe me, come and see! And also, that music editing software you told me about last time, it’s all in English! I got less than 60 on my English college entrance exam. Are you deliberately making things difficult for me?”
“You can learn while looking up the dictionary,” halfway through, Wang Heng also felt that it was indeed too difficult for her. “Forget it. I’ll come over and help you with it. But the video you’re making now probably doesn’t need music editing, right?”
Pei Ningle: “Not for now, but when my new song is finished, I’ll need it for the recording! If I don’t learn it now, should I look for you again when it’s time to record?”
Wang Heng: “By the way, those songs you posted online before, you didn’t use any software, and it was fine, wasn’t it?”
“That’s why the quality was so bad! With such poor sound quality, you can tell at a glance that it’s purely amateur! And aren’t you the one who told me to learn these things, my dear Student Manager?”
When she said the word ‘manager’, the girl’s enunciation was quite heavy, as if she were placing the word right in front of him and making it bold, extra large.
Wang Heng sighed. “Alright, I’m on my way now. You wait.”
For the past week, his contact with Pei Ningle had been through his phone, either by calling or texting. As her manager, and since she was asking for help, it was probably right for him to go and see her.
And thinking about it another way, the trouble now was all an initial investment. When Pei Ningle really started to become famous, how much would he earn back?
He returned to the private room, found Sun Xingsi, and said in a low voice, “A friend just called me. Something came up, so I have to leave first.”
“Leaving so early?” Sun Xingsi subconsciously tried to persuade him. “Don’t. It’s just getting started.”
Wang Heng waved his phone. “Let me put it this way: a girl is looking for me, for something important.”
“Important… alright!” Sun Xingsi was enlightened, and in a second, he had already imagined many scenarios.
Wang Heng turned and left.
Sun Xingsi looked at the back that had disappeared behind the door, then at his cousin sitting in the corner, sighed, and sent her another text message:
【Sis, no wonder you gave up. So it was a love triangle!】
A moment later, Sun Ruimin: 【???】
Sun Xingsi: 【As expected of you, sis. To pull out before investing too much in sunk costs, you’re still so rational!】
Sun Ruimin: 【Thank you for the compliment, but what do you mean by love triangle?】
Sun Xingsi: 【Wang Heng and his girl.】
Sun Ruimin: 【???】
