Su Yue sang softly in the bathroom as she showered.
Weekends were really nice. She could get up whenever she wanted, not having to worry about classes.
She continued humming as she prepared herself, wrapping a towel around her body and brushing her teeth in front of the mirror.
As she was grooming herself, the doorbell rang.
Then came Lin Feng's voice.
Lin Feng?
She paused, surprised.
What was he doing here at this hour? He always came at stream time and never earlier.
Could it be...
Her face flushed slightly.
She heard him calling again, asking if she was there.
She looked down at herself, still in nothing but a towel.
Maybe I should be braver.
She looked at herself in the mirror.
She tightened the towel and put on a confident expression.
Then she walked toward the door.
...
Lin Feng stood at the door with Mengqi.
"Doesn't look like anyone's home," Mengqi said.
They were about to turn away when the door slowly opened.
"Lin Feng."
Su Yue's voice came from behind the door as she stepped into view.
Lin Feng and Mengqi's eyes landed on her.
"You..." Lin Feng began.
It was then that Su Yue noticed there was another person.
"Ah, sorry!"
She slammed the door shut.
Inside, she covered her face with both hands.
I wish the world would just open up and swallow me whole.
...
A few moments later, Lin Feng and Mengqi sat on the couch.
Su Yue walked in carrying tea for the two of them. She placed the cups on the table.
"Sorry about earlier."
She didn't even know what she had been thinking. She was planning on "tempting" Lin Feng? Where had she even gotten such thoughts? Maybe the hot shower had made her lightheaded.
Luckily, the other person was a woman.
Lin Feng just smiled.
"It happens."
Mengqi observed her quietly.
Happens, huh?
Su Yue went to the kitchen and came back with her own cup of tea and some snacks. She set them on the table and sat down next to Lin Feng.
Lin Feng gestured between them.
"Su Yue, this is Shen Mengqi - the trainer I've been telling you about. And Mengqi, this is Su Yue - the talent I've been telling you about."
The two stood up and shook hands.
"Nice to meet you," Mengqi said. "You're even prettier in person."
Su Yue smiled.
"Thanks."
But internally…
Mengqi? You're even on a first-name basis? How come you don't call me that?
She looked at the woman before her.
They seem somewhat close. Is this the legendary childhood friend?
But as she studied her face closer, a flicker of recognition crossed her mind.
"You... you're that girl from that group?"
Mengqi nodded.
"Yeah, that's probably me."
Lin Feng glanced between them.
"You know her?"
"Yeah," Su Yue said. "I used to listen to them when I was young."
Young? Mengqi thought. I'm not that old, am I?
The two women stared at each other, smiling brightly.
Lin Feng observed from the side.
Why does this scene look so ominous?
…
The three of them settled in.
Su Yue turned to Lin Feng.
"What brought you here so early?"
"I wanted to introduce you two to each other," he said. "And also explain a little about the talent agency I'm making."
He paused.
"Actually, I might've lied a little when I first told you about the agency. Well, more like I didn't tell you the full picture."
He looked at her.
"Remember the rebrand we talked about?"
Her eyes widened.
She grabbed his arm.
"Ah, I just remembered! You never told me what it was about. Even last time you brought it up, you changed the subject and didn't tell me everything."
Her grip tightened.
"This time you have to tell me everything."
He raised his hands.
"Calm down, calm down. This time, I'll definitely tell you everything."
She finally let go after he promised.
He exhaled and began explaining.
"First, the company is called Xingyao Entertainment. Its registration is still in progress, but it should all be done by the end of the week."
He continued.
"There will be two departments. First is a streaming department that will recruit streaming talents. The second is the idol department."
"Idol?"
Su Yue asked in surprise.
She turned to look at Mengqi.
Lin Feng nodded.
"Yes, that type of idol."
He clarified.
"But she won't be the idol this time. For now, she'll just be training the idols."
"Training the idols?" Su Yue murmured.
Then her eyes widened as she finally understood what he was getting at.
She pointed at herself.
"You don't mean..."
He nodded.
"Yes, it's exactly like that."
He smiled.
"This is the rebrand I was talking about. What do you think?"
She waved her hands frantically.
"Idol? No way! I'm not that talented. I mean, I can sing a little, but... idol? No way."
Lin Feng smiled.
"You're wrong. You're definitely talented."
He turned to Mengqi, who nodded.
"Yeah, the talent is definitely there."
He gestured toward her.
"See? Even the expert agrees."
He explained further.
"All that's left is to polish your talent. And for that, I brought the best person for the job."
He pointed at Mengqi.
He looked at Su Yue. She still seemed a little reserved.
He smiled brightly, looking directly into her eyes.
"How about it? Do you think you can give it a try? Just like you did with streaming."
She met his gaze.
Seeing how confident he was in her, she wavered a little.
She looked to the side.
"Well... I guess I could give it a try."
Lin Feng smiled.
"Great."
He extended his hand toward Mengqi, and she retrieved a contract from her bag and handed it to him.
He passed it to Su Yue with a smile.
She took the contract and began looking around.
"What are you doing?" Lin Feng asked in confusion.
"Looking for a pen," she said.
Lin Feng and Mengqi facepalmed.
"What?" she asked, confused.
"What did I tell you about contracts?" he asked.
"Ah."
She scratched her cheek sheepishly.
"Have my manager go through it first, and then go through it myself," she recited.
"And what are you doing now?"
He sighed.
"Well, it's just a sample anyway. We have yet to receive a license, so we can't really sign you."
He looked at her.
"Anyway, does this mean you didn't listen at all? What would've happened if you signed a bad deal?"
"Well," she said, "I knew Lin Feng wouldn't cheat me."
"How do you even know that?"
He sighed.
"What if it was someone else?"
She chuckled.
"Hehe, I definitely wouldn't sign if it was someone else."
She looked at him.
"I only sign because it's you."
Mengqi's gaze moved from Lin Feng to Su Yue and back.
Hmm, this isn't good.