Chapter 64: Beauty and Talent

  No one would have thought that Xīn Yè's song would start a popular trend among students.

  It's not just 'reunion' that Starry Night was forced to record three popular songs by Xue Bing and others, all of which are highly sought after in KTV. Starry Night is naturally familiar with them, as long as they say the song name, she opens her mouth and sings, very familiar.

  Although the recording equipment is simple, Xing Ye's singing voice is like a veil of gauze, vaguely and indistinctly, giving the song a hazy and ethereal feeling.

  At the beginning, several good classmates were listening to it at night, and it was heard by people in the same class or dormitory. Then they recorded it again because they wanted to learn English. Almost everyone had a portable recorder with them, which greatly facilitated the recording and dissemination of the song. Unconsciously, Xing Ye's voice had spread throughout the school.

  It's impossible to keep a low profile now, wherever she goes, someone will call out her name, and more often than not, it's behind her back, "That's her, isn't she beautiful? Not just beautiful, but she sings better than the stars themselves, don't believe me? You were listening to her song yesterday, weren't you?"

  Jiulang even brought out the fact that she had ranked seventh on the red list after studying hard for several nights, and won the first prize in the national essay competition. Now people's topic has been upgraded again, "She is not only a beauty but also a talented woman, don't believe it? If you can bring back national awards, then you are also a talented man."

  Until a professional record company came to the door, people's attention to Xing Ye was pushed to a peak. Originally, a music-loving student played her repeatedly recorded tape for her father, who was a professional record producer. Despite the constant noise during the singing process, this father still heard that the girl who sang was a rare good seedling, which could be packaged and made red.

  So the parent directly found the school, and upon seeing Xing Ye was overjoyed. This didn't even require any effort to package her as an idol singer. Immediately, they extended an invitation to Xing Ye, promising that professional personnel would help plan and package her image. Within a year, she would release an album, and within two years, become a top-tier female singer in the country. If it were another girl, she might have already been deceived and lost her way.

  Xīng yè què xiǎng bù xiǎng de jù jué le, zì jǐ cóng méi yǒu xiǎng guò wǎng gē chàng fāng miàn fā zhǎn, wén yì yuán de shuǐ tài shēn le, hái shì bú yào qù shì de hǎo, zì jǐ de mù biāo hěn míng què, kǎo shàng suǒ hǎo dà xué, yuán mǔ nǚ liǎng dài rén de mèng xiǎng, zài bù yǐng xiǎng shàng xué de qián tí xià, zhēng diǎn xiǎo qián huā huā, ràng zì jǐ yǔ jiā rén de shēng huó gèng shū shì xī.

  The manager was also surprised that no one had ever rejected his offer, and he repeatedly came to persuade Xing Ye. Seeing that Xing Ye would not change her mind, he wanted to use a roundabout policy to meet with her parents. You little girl probably don't know how much fame and fortune can bring, your parents are adults and will understand, right?

  The whole night was also annoyed by him, he said many times that he had no interest, but he still asked to see his parents. At this time, he bluntly said: "My parents have passed away, if you want to see them, I'm afraid you'll have to wait for a long time, and I think you can't wait."

  In the end, it was Auntie Liang Huiru who stepped forward and clearly rejected that manager, which finally put an end to this matter.

  Xing Ye was filled with regret, thinking that she shouldn't have agreed to record a song with Chu Yuanyuan and the others in the first place. Now her life had become a mess, and people even knew about her being an orphan living with her uncle's family, giving them more gossip to talk about.

  Xing Ye's beauty and talent have earned her a reputation, with some even saying that the four school flowers can step down, as Xing Ye is a standout, outshining all others.

  At night in school, I wish I could wear a mask every day, so that no one can recognize me. But when I return home, my heart is still uneasy.

  Her uncle, like a treasure, gave his own article to her uncle to read, and that weekend he was busy with his uncle, took the time to come back and see her, and had a good chat with her in the study.

  The content of their conversation was naturally about the things that Xing Ye wrote at night. In fact, Xing Ye's previous life didn't care about economics and politics. What she knew wasn't anything that the country hadn't already implemented with great success, and many were just superficial knowledge. Although it might seem plausible when roughly explained, an outsider looking in would be unable to grasp the underlying meaning, but an insider like her uncle, who had been involved in politics for many years and dealt with these political developments every day, could understand some things from Xing Ye's simple descriptions.

  Xing Ye was also very careful with every word he said, and didn't dare to say too much for fear of being overheard by his uncle and revealing something unusual. This actually helped to avoid arousing Yu Zhongliang's suspicion, because Xing Ye's words were often empty, miscellaneous, and even childish, leading him to think that Xing Ye was just more meticulous and sensitive to politics. If Xing Ye had come out talking boastfully and making perfect sense with everything he said, it would have seemed abnormal instead.

  Yu Zongliang couldn't help but praise his sister for giving birth to a good daughter. Every weekend, he would try to find time to come back and gradually discovered that those things that used to give him headaches, such as the closure of state-owned enterprises, the placement of laid-off workers, and the development zone's investment promotion, were all trivial matters when discussed with Xing Ye. At the time, what she said sounded like nonsense, but if he calmed down and recalled her naive words, he would always gain some inspiration and clarity on things.

  Xīng Yè's birthday is on November 8th of the solar calendar, which coincidentally falls on Lì Dōng (the beginning of winter). Xīng Yè didn't want to celebrate her birthday, and it wasn't a habit in her family either. Usually, only older people or young children would have a celebration, just having a bowl of noodles was enough. But someone remembered her birthday, which was Jiā Luò, because his own birthday was just a few days apart from Xīng Yè's.

  "How's that? I gave you a birthday gift, are you satisfied?" Jialuo had a self-satisfied expression on his face, as if waiting for Xingye to praise him.

  The person who was crying and laughing uncontrollably at night pointed at the three people squatting by the wall and asked, "You're not saying that they are the birthday gifts, are you?"

  Zhang Jia and three others huddled together with their heads down by the wall, and upon closer inspection, it was not hard to notice the bruises on their faces.

  "Yes! It's those three people who bullied you," Jialuo was puzzled, why did Xingye look unhappy when he saw them last night? He had finally caught up with them today and his eyes were shining brightly when he saw them, with his basketball teammates as witnesses.

  "What am I supposed to do with these three? They're useless and can't even be eaten," Xīng Yè glanced at the injuries on their faces, unable to help but say: "Are we going to have to pay for their medical expenses when we get back?"

  "This" Luo hung his head, he was just excited a moment ago, how did two words from Xing Ye make him feel like he had done something wrong? "Why don't you go kick them and vent your anger?"

  "I'm not that barbaric! Let them go quickly, or else Jia Kai will come soon and we'll have to listen to his nagging." Xing Ye said.

  Jia Luo shrunk his head, focusing on catching his breath, and forgot that he was still hiding this from his brother. He quickly walked over and dismissed the three people who were stunned by the beating with just two sentences.

  They watched them leave in a flurry, just to think they weren't worth it. These three unlucky eggs were first beaten up by Lin Yan, took a week off, came back to school, and then were caught by Jia Luo again after being suffocated for several days. Although Jia Luo didn't have Lin Yan's good skills, he had a group of friends who feared the world would be too peaceful, so the three were beaten up again. They were already in their third year of high school, but they still didn't know how to cherish the opportunity to learn.

  "It was originally intended to give you a chance to vent," Jialuo explained.

  Xīng yè bái le tā yī yǎn, "zǎo jiù gēn nǐ shuō le, bù zhuī jiū le, jīn wēi wēi yě dào qiàn le."

  Translation:

  He gave him a white eye in the starry night, "I told you early on, I won't pursue it anymore, Jin Weiwei has also apologized."

  "My brother is here." Jialuo's sharp eyes saw Jiakai walking from afar, "Don't tell him, okay?"

  Jia Luo carefully asked Xing Ye, Xing Ye smiled but did not answer.

  Jia Luo hastily clasped his hands together in a pleading gesture, and Xing Ye laughed, saying: "Can't understand you, nobody in school listens to you, yet they're all so afraid of your brother."

  "What's up?" Jia Kai came before them, busy with company matters over the weekend, always missing each other, and hadn't seen each other for more than half a month.

  "Let's have a good meal today," said Xing Ye.

  Jia Kai looked at Xing Ye's small face, which had been reddened by the wind, and smiled: "It should be, I completely forgot your birthday. If it wasn't for Jia Luo reminding me, I wouldn't have remembered. Buying a gift was too late, so this meal will serve as the birthday present."

  Xing Ye pouted, and Jia Kai thought she was unhappy, so he quickly said: "Let's owe the gift for now, I'll make it up to you when we get back, okay?"

  Xing Ye said, "Don't keep mentioning birthdays, okay? I don't think our family has this habit, and I don't want to be an exception. Today is just a chance for us to finally meet up after so long, let's just have dinner together."

  "Alright," Jia Kai said with one arm around Xing Ye and the other around Jia Luo, "Let's go eat together."

  "What about Hao Tianyang?" Xing Ye knew that Lin Junjie was a local and would sometimes return home, but Hao Tianyang was from the provincial city and usually stayed with Jia Kai.

  "He's with Junjie," Jia Kai replied.

  "What?" Xīng Yè didn't understand.

  Jia Kai let out a soft sigh and said: "Zhuang Xiaomin has proposed breaking up with Junjie."

  "Ah" was startled, the last time they saw them, their relationship had made significant progress, how could they break up in just a few days? And it was Zhuang Xiaomin who wanted to break up, what did Jin Weiwei do?

  "Jun Jie seems quite serious this time, and now he's heartbroken," said Jia Kai. "Tian Yang is keeping him company."

  "Why don't we call them together then? We can still persuade him, right Xia Luo?" Xing Ye said.

  Jia Luo smiled and laughed, but he wasn't really interested in those romantic feelings. However, he didn't mind eating with them either.

  "Alright then, Lin Jun Jie is shouting that he wants to drown his sorrows in wine, Tian Yang accompanied him to the front tavern." said Jia Kai.

  Drowning one's sorrows in drink is indeed what one should do after a lost love.

  Lin Junjie and Hao Tianyang, who were drinking beer with ease, asked Jia Kai: "Is it more suitable to use Erguotou to drown one's sorrows? Can beer do the trick? He doesn't look like he's heartbroken at all?"

  It turns out that Lin Junjie just looked a bit indifferent, not at all like the disheveled and unkempt Xing Ye thought he would be, clutching a wine bottle and drinking while crying, with a look of desperation. That's what someone who's lost love should look like.

  "You silly girl, can't you see that I'm struggling? You come and laugh at me, is it funny?" Lin Junjie said with a bitter smile.

  "Under the starry night, he sat down and greeted Hao Tianyang before saying: 'I thought I would see a lovesick man who was dying of heartbreak?'"

  "Yes, Junjie" Home Kai also spoke up, "This afternoon you still looked a bit heartbroken, are you better now? Tianyang, how did you comfort him? It's quite effective."

  Before Hao Tianyang could respond, Lin Junjie interrupted, "Actually, sitting down and calming down, it doesn't seem as bad as this afternoon. It's not like I'm extremely heartbroken either. What I don't understand is, with how excellent I am, why would she still suggest breaking up with me? Can she really find someone better than me?"

  Xīng yè tīng Lín Jùn Jié zhè me shuō, wēi zhòu le méi tóu, hǎo xiàng xiǎng míng bái le yì xiē shì.

  Translation:

  Starry night heard Lin Junjie say this, slightly furrowed his brow, as if he understood something.

  "Didn't you go ask Zhuang Xiaomin? Ask us how we know," said Jia Kai.

  "She asked, and I just said one sentence, 'We're not suitable,'" Lin Junjie said helplessly, his expression suddenly turning stern. "I suspect it's because her good friend must have said something to her again, otherwise why would Xiaomin suddenly bring up breaking up?"

  Xing Ye knew that Lin Jun Jie's good friend was Wu Jing, right? What benefits would she get from Lin Jun Jie and Zhuang Xiao Min breaking up? If Lin Jun Jie and Zhuang Xiao Min were a couple, wouldn't she still be able to get close to Jia Kai through Zhuang Xiao Min? Is it that she gave up, so not only can't she get what she wants, but also doesn't want others to be happy? This seems a bit far-fetched!

  Xīn yè kàn jiā kǎi, xiǎng zài tā liǎn shàng kàn chū yì xiē duān lǐ lái, kě jiā kǎi tīng dào wú jìng biǎo qíng hěn píng jìng, méi yǒu yī diǎn yì cháng.

  It's also possible that Jin Weiwei's words stimulated Zhuang Xiaomin, making her feel that the gap between her and Lin Junjie was too big, so she wanted to give up this not-so-deep feeling. Looking at Lin Junjie's performance, it can be seen that the two are actually not yet at the point where they can't leave each other, at most it's just a liking.

  Hao Tianyang persuaded Lin Junjie to go and talk to Zhuang Xiaomin again, after all, the two of them didn't have any conflicts.

  Jia Kai suddenly shouted, "Where is there no fragrant grass at the end of the sky? Let's part ways if we must, anyway it's not your first time."

  Lin Jun Jie heard what Xia Kai said and exclaimed: "Every time we break up, it's me who dumps her, but this time she dumped me, how can that be the same? Moreover, I invited her to my sister's engagement party on the 12th, to formally introduce her to my family, but instead she broke up with me. Can you say I'm not heartbroken?"

  "Is your sister getting engaged? Is it with Jin Weiwei's older brother?" Xing Ye asked curiously.

  "It's not him, who else? That flirtatious man." Lin Junjie said with a bad tone.

  Xing Ye's gaze turned to Jia Kai, exchanging eye contact with him. Seeing Jia Kai's bitter smile and helpless nod, he knew that he had already told Lin Junjie about what happened in the provincial city, but still couldn't stop Junjie's sister from getting engaged to Jin Da Shao.

  "I've never been so serious about it, I'm going to introduce her to my sister and all, isn't that serious enough? Isn't that good enough for her?" Lin Junjie started muttering again, "It must be because of Wu Jing's woman, Jia Kai, you're asked to make a sacrifice to comfort her, but you don't listen, look, you've driven my girlfriend away."

  Jia Kai, although Lin Jun Jie was joking, still refused to give in. "You're still saying that for your own sake, you can be with Zhuang Xiao Min, but you disregard brotherly love and clearly know I dislike that woman, yet time and again you push Wu Jing onto me. Now you still have the nerve to say this."

  "If I were Zhuang Xiaomin, I would also break up with Brother Junjie." Xing Ye's soft words made several men quiet down.

  "Midnight, why? Am I still not good enough?" Lin Jun Jie couldn't help but ask.

  Xīng yè xiào le, "xiǎng zhī dào wèi shén me gēn nǐ fēn shǒu ma? ná fěn hóng piào piào lái jiù gàosù nǐ."

  Translation:

  The starry night smiled and said, "Want to know why I broke up with you? Bring the pink ticket over and I'll tell you."