Chapter 15

Chen Mo turned to say something to Yang Qindong, then shook off Yuan Haobin's grip on his arm and darted out of the rehearsal room. He even locked the door behind him.

When he turned around, he saw Sister K standing behind him with her arms crossed. Her exquisite makeup could not hide the cold sneer on her face. She gave Chen Mo a disdainful once-over, raised an eyebrow, and said, "Is that all you've got? Can't hold on anymore, so you're trying to run away? Though I can understand. With A-Bin's abilities, it wasn't easy for you to last this long. After all, you're just a newcomer without professional training."

Chen Mo smiled speechlessly and looked at Sister K. "In some ways, you really are a lot like Yuan Haobin." Both of them were not quite right in the head.

After thinking it over, Chen Mo added, "But it's not entirely a bad thing. At least having people like you around has given me more confidence about making it in this industry."

With that, he walked straight past Sister K.

"What?" Sister K did not understand what Chen Mo meant. She turned to look at his retreating figure, wanting to ask more, but she did not dare raise her voice in the hallway. All she could do was sneer resentfully before turning back into the rehearsal room.

Chen Mo took the elevator straight down to the first floor. His father and mother were indeed resting in the café. Since it was lunchtime, several of the company's artists were scattered around the café in small groups. There were recognizable second- and third-tier celebrities with high exposure, as well as newcomers who had only recently debuted. Chen Mo's parents looked a little restrained in such an environment.

"How long have you been here? Have you had lunch?" Chen Mo asked as he sat on the sofa opposite his parents. "If you have, come back to the apartment with me and get some rest. If not, we can eat lunch here before going back."

"No need. Let's go back to the apartment first. You probably haven't had lunch either, and you don't like Western food—" Mother Chen suddenly remembered something and quickly corrected herself. "I mean, you used not to like Western food. If your tastes have changed now—"

"What a coincidence. I still don't like Western food." Chen Mo smiled. "Then let's head back first. I'll order some takeout from a nearby Chinese restaurant later. You can rest after eating, and I need to come back to work too."

Father Chen hurriedly said, "Let's not order takeout. You don't like food from outside anyway, and it isn't hygienic. Is there a supermarket nearby? Take us there to buy some groceries, then we'll go home and cook for you. Oh, didn't you say the other day that you wanted spicy crayfish? Can you eat that with your work now?"

"Probably. It's not like I have to sing." Chen Mo stood up with a smile. "Let's go, then."

Father Chen and Mother Chen nodded. They also pulled out two handbags and several branded shopping bags from beneath the sofa. Noticing Chen Mo's gaze, Mother Chen said, "We'll be staying for more than ten days. You left in such a hurry that you didn't bring any extra clothes. When your father and I rushed over from home, we specifically stopped by the mall to buy you a few outfits."

As for why they had bought new clothes, Chen Mo's parents had considered that his current work environment was special. If he dressed poorly, his coworkers might laugh at him or look down on him.

Chen Mo looked at his parents in surprise. He had never expected them to be so thoughtful. His lips pressed together with emotion, but he said, "There was no need to buy new clothes. The company already prepared some for me. Besides, your taste is so bad that I might not even wear them if you bought them!"

Before he had even finished speaking, he grabbed the two handbags and several shopping bags, smiling as he said, "Enough talking. I'm starving. Let's hurry home."

Seeing that Chen Mo was clearly delighted despite his protests, Father Chen smiled as well. "You actually think we have bad taste. Fine, next time we'll just give you the money and let you buy your own clothes. By the way, your company's benefits are pretty good. They even buy new clothes for employees?"

"...That's because I, as his agent, am so attentive and also very good at investing. So I provided some friendly support in advance. Once A-Mo starts making money, I'll deduct the clothing expenses directly from his earnings." Yang Qindong, who had somehow appeared at the café entrance, smiled and teased him.

He gave Chen Mo a meaningful look, then smiled at his parents. "It's a pleasure to meet you again. I'll drive you to the supermarket to buy groceries first, then take you back to A-Mo's apartment. I trust you won't refuse to let me mooch a meal?"

Father Chen and Mother Chen naturally remembered Yang Qindong, the agent who had brought a contract to their home two months ago and asked them to sign it. Hearing this, they immediately welcomed him with smiles. Mother Chen even took Yang Qindong's hand and said warmly, "Our A-Mo is young and still in school, and he has a bad temper. Please take good care of him..."

Their interaction quickly drew the attention of everyone in the café. Seeing this, Yang Qindong calmly led Chen Mo's parents out of the café.

They chatted as they drove to the supermarket. While Chen Mo's parents were picking out vegetables, fresh meat, fish, and shrimp in the fresh food section, Yang Qindong quietly said to Chen Mo, "You're in big trouble!"

Chen Mo said, "Huh?"

Yang Qindong smiled. "Your unique way of lighting cigarettes has alerted every music producer in the company, including the music director. So... don't be late at two this afternoon."

"By the way, I'm looking forward to your performance this afternoon too."

Yang Qindong gave Chen Mo an approving look. "You really are... I can't take my eyes off you for a moment without you giving me another surprise!"

Chen Mo and Yang Qindong settled Father Chen and Mother Chen in the apartment, and by the time they returned to the company, it was already two in the afternoon.

The rehearsal room was empty. When the young assistant from the adjacent recording studio saw the two of them, he said enviously, "The director told you to go straight to the studio on the thirty-ninth floor. All the music producers and relevant staff are already there. President Yan and several major shareholders are there too."

After saying that, the assistant could not help giving Chen Mo several curious looks. Thanks to Yuan, the Heavenly King's big mouth, in just one afternoon almost everyone in the company knew that Dong had signed a musical genius. Someone who could actually light a cigarette by playing the piano.

The assistant's blazing stare was a little too intense. Yang Qindong smiled at Chen Mo and said, "No wonder they say gold will always shine. Looks like you're about to become famous in the company with one battle."

Chen Mo shrugged indifferently, shoved both hands into his pockets, and followed Yang Qindong into the elevator to the thirty-ninth floor.

After a tense afternoon of preparations, the studio had already been arranged. A white Steinway piano stood quietly in the middle of the stage. Soft lighting fell over it, making the entire instrument gleam with an enchanting metallic luster.

Below the stage, professional lighting and camera crews were getting ready as well. The stage director continuously instructed staff through a headset to adjust the lights and sound system. Around twenty people sat scattered throughout the audience seats. From their clothing and bearing, it was easy to tell that those in suits were mostly shareholders or Administration Department staff, while the ones dressed more casually or in eccentric outfits were probably music producers. There was also one imposing superstar who wore sunglasses even indoors—naturally, Yuan Haobin. Sister K sat beside him, and the two were whispering to each other.

Yuan Haobin was the first to notice Chen Mo and Yang Qindong slipping in through the entrance out of the corner of his eye. He immediately raised a hand and called with a smile, "Over here, over here."

That single sentence immediately drew everyone's attention toward them. A middle-aged man with dark chestnut hair and black-rimmed glasses rose from the audience seats. He walked over to Chen Mo and Yang Qindong, extending a hand with a smile. "As expected of our company's top agent. I heard Dong has a sharp eye and has signed another musical genius for the company."

Yang Qindong smiled at that. He shook the man's hand with a touch of restraint and said with a smile, "The musical genius part really did come as a surprise to me. I signed Chen Mo because of Director Zhang's recommendation. Director Zhang thinks very highly of him. He says Chen Mo not only has outstanding looks and excellent acting skills, but can write songs as well. His future is limitless."

Then he introduced the man to Chen Mo. "This is our company's music director. Just call him Director Fang."

Chen Mo nodded to Director Fang and greeted him politely.

Director Fang discreetly sized Chen Mo up, then smiled and held out his hand. "I heard from A-Bin that you're an excellent pianist. You can even light a cigarette with piano strings. You'll have to open our eyes later."

Chen Mo smiled and shook Director Fang's hand. Once Director Fang let go, he discreetly put his own hand behind his back and gave it a shake. He did not know when people had developed the habit of using overly forceful handshakes to demonstrate enthusiasm, resolve, and strength of character. Some even absurdly believed that if their palm felt soft and weak during a handshake, they would place themselves in an inferior position. Thus, a handshake had turned into a hand-grip. Perfectly good business etiquette had become like an arm-wrestling contest.

Chen Mo did not agree with it. He even disliked the practice. But at this stage, his preferences did not matter. His status was too low, and his words carried too little weight. Still, Chen Mo believed that the days when others would follow his preferences in deciding how to conduct themselves were not far away.

After exchanging a few polite words with the music director, Yang Qindong led Chen Mo over to several business elites dressed in suits and introduced them one by one. The leading man was Gu Huaiyin, the entertainment company's chairman and executive president. He was in his forties. Though he could not exactly be called handsome, his sharply defined face always wore a perfectly measured smile, making him seem like a very approachable boss.

The rest were all major shareholders of the company, each varying in height and build. Under normal circumstances, Chen Mo's matter would not have reached these people. But the company had held a shareholders' meeting that morning to discuss certain operational decisions. By the time the meeting ended, rumors about Chen Mo had spread throughout the company. Perhaps lighting cigarettes with a piano was simply too refined and shocking a stunt, so these bosses unanimously decided that they would rather sacrifice their time and stomachs to eat the employee cafeteria food than miss the spectacle.

Thanks to the unanimous support of the big bosses, Chen Mo's second performance had been elevated from a rehearsal room audition to a high-standard recording session in the studio.

An ordinary newcomer might have grown nervous and backed down upon suddenly encountering such a grand scene. But Chen Mo had spent a long time honing himself in the Training Space. Not only had his skills become polished, but his nerves had grown stronger as well. A rehearsal of this level could no longer affect his performance.

Taking a cigarette from Yang Qindong, Chen Mo strolled onto the stage. As he passed Yuan Haobin, the man sneakily stuffed another cigarette into his hand. The meaning was obvious. Apparently, he had not gotten enough from the one that morning and was bothering Chen Mo again.

Without changing expression, Chen Mo placed the two cigarettes of different brands on the piano. He quietly calculated how much one cigarette might sell for if he began auctioning off cigarettes lit from that day onward.

The stage lights went out the instant Chen Mo sat at the piano. A beam of white light descended from above, enclosing Chen Mo and the white piano in a halo. Chen Mo's long, fair hands slowly settled over the piano strings. In that second, the notes of Flight of the Bumblebee rang out once more.

Everyone in the audience apart from Yuan Haobin was caught completely off guard. In that instant, it was as though countless bullets and arrows had surrounded them from every direction, stirring the instinctive terror of a wild animal facing danger. At that moment, they felt like small boats tossed about in a storm, battered across the sea by violent wind and rain, rising and falling with the raging waves—at times dragged beneath the water, at times cast back onto its surface. Under such an overwhelming auditory assault, no one had time to think. They could only helplessly allow Chen Mo's piano to control their emotions. It was as if a huge hand had gripped their throats, leaving them so breathless and focused that they forgot how to breathe.