I'll do my best to protect your smile and stay by your side through every spring, summer, autumn, and winter to come

Wen Jiu turned sideways. "No!"

Apparently, he was. Zhang Guozhong scanned the gathering. Only the two big-money backers were missing. He had a rough idea of what had happened and patted Wen Xiaojiu on the shoulder.

"There's no shame in being captivated by President Feng's good looks. So many netizens across the country have their eyes on him too. As his official partner, you'd better keep a close watch on him."

Wen Jiu's face darkened. What did any of that have to do with anything?

He simply hadn't been onstage in too long and was a little nervous.

Wait... nervous?

Wen Jiu was an entertainment industry veteran, after all. He'd even performed onstage the very day he transmigrated. The one who hadn't been onstage in ages should have been the original owner.

Because opportunities were scarce, he treasured every one. He cared too much, so he grew nervous and worried he wouldn't perform well-

But why would that make Wen Jiu nervous?

He wasn't the original owner!

Wen Jiu found it a little strange. Could it be because he'd empathized with him?

A remark from the chief director pulled him out of his thoughts. "Look at President Li. Didn't he take a fancy to him too and call him out alone?"

"That's why, since you're together, you need to cherish-"

"It's not because of that!" Wen Jiu said, then instinctively argued, "He wouldn't fall for that baldy. The one he likes is clearly..."

His voice abruptly stopped.

Zhang Guozhong's eyes curved as he gave him a sly look.

"Who is it? Come on, tell me, tell me! It's definitely you, right?"

Wen Jiu said, "...Are you really a director who's won a grand slam of awards?"

"Oh, please!" The director waved a hand, signaling that he should keep it low-key. "I'm just an ordinary melon eater."

The corner of Wen Jiu's mouth twitched.

That's fucking ridiculous, Wen Jiu thought. Why did I think that just now?

The big shot being blind enough to fall for me... who would believe that?

Though Wen Jiu loved reading clichéd domineering CEO romance novels, he wasn't stupid.

How could someone who'd spent seven years in the entertainment industry and remained firmly seated among its top stars be some simple-minded, naive sweetheart?

This outdoor bonfire performance had been arranged in advance. Leaving aside whether the guests had prepared anything, the villagers were certainly well prepared, with speakers and microphones all ready.

Several trendy young people in the village had prepared performances too, and some had even brought guitars.

Village Chief Liu had even brought out the DJ decks and mixer left over from earlier episodes.

Wen Jiu: ...

"Friends, let's get hyped!" Shen Huaian went first. In charge of warming up the crowd, he'd prepared a high-energy DJ medley of several well-known songs and started laying down a beat on Village Chief Liu's decks.

The villagers couldn't understand the lyrics, but they could still sway and dance to the beat. The atmosphere instantly caught fire.

The bullet comments grew lively too.

"Hop on my little camel, I'll take you where the sun never sets..."

"A wild goose takes flight, treading through clouds and mist, amid countless rivers and mountains..."

Wen Jiu's thoughts were instantly swept off track.

He had to admit that Shen Huaian deserved his reputation as the pinnacle of idols. His stage presence and vocals were far beyond the average performer's, and the moment he opened his mouth, he brought the atmosphere to a climax.

Wen Jiu couldn't help bouncing along too, tugging the ordinary melon eater beside him into singing to the beat.

"I came into this world and weathered its storms and sorrows,

Accidentally shattered the sunset, only to be sent back to heaven."

The bullet comments: [Holy shit!!!]

Zhang Guozhong: "Holy shit!!!"

Wen Jiu was sitting close to the production crew, directly facing the cameraman's lens. For a moment, he'd forgotten to turn off the microphone clipped to his collar, and that burst of singing was picked up and carried straight into everyone's ears.

It was a stunningly beautiful youthful voice.

The bullet comments exploded, and the fans went wild, frantically promoting this dust-covered pearl in the livestream.

Wen Jiu froze, then fumbled to switch off his microphone.

Yu Qing and Shen Yu exchanged a glance, each catching a fleeting smile in the other's eyes.

Yu Qing looked at Shen Huaian onstage. The young man looked slightly stunned, as though he hadn't yet processed it.

Once he recognized Wen Jiu's voice, he immediately jumped high in excitement, grabbed another microphone, and came flying down.

He didn't mind in the slightest.

Smiling, Yu Qing walked over and gave the dazed young man a gentle push toward the stage.

The lively music drowned out his gentle, smiling voice, but Wen Jiu heard him anyway.

He said, "Go on."

Go meet the stage that belonged to you.

Before Wen Jiu quite knew what was happening, a microphone had been pressed into his hand. He stared blankly into Shen Huaian's expectant puppy-dog eyes, then slowly looked over at Yu Qing and Shen Yu beside him. As expected, they urged him on with smiling eyes.

The surrounding villagers thought the young man was shy and cheered and applauded, encouraging him to take the microphone up onstage and sing along.

The director, who had just heard that burst of singing at close range, was already hopping around like a monkey. He clapped Wen Jiu hard on the shoulder and roared excitedly, his booming voice loud enough for everyone to hear even without a microphone.

"Wen Jiu, get up there! Sing!!!"

[Wen Jiu, get onstage!]

[Wen Jiu, go meet your stage!]

[Sing it out! Let more people hear your voice!]

Under everyone's gaze, Wen Jiu finally moved. Step by step, he climbed onto the little square stage built from wooden posts and planks in Peach Blossom Spring Village, like a dazzling star walking onto a grand stage before tens of thousands.

There were no spotlights overhead, nor a shifting, surging blue ocean below, but as Wen Jiu stood onstage, the pounding of his heart in his chest was still clear.

He heard the passion and desire clamoring deep inside him, never once cooled.

Feng Chi, who had quietly left, had returned too. Wen Jiu was the first to notice him, the first to turn his gaze toward him.

The man stood in the crowd, his coldness gone, the corners of his mouth lifting into a bright smile.

He seemed no different from anyone else below the stage.

Yet Wen Jiu felt that the light in his eyes was more penetrating than anyone else's.

As though it could pierce the boundless darkness, pass through a chest built of flesh and blood, and gather upon that long-silent heart from another world.

Wen Jiu raised the microphone and couldn't help lowering his head with a soft laugh.

Wen Xiaojiu, you're truly beyond saving...

Shen Huaian raised a hand and cheered to signal that the music was ready. Wen Jiu lifted the microphone and continued singing along to the earlier medley. "I came into this world, once young and reckless too, but life was ever-changing, and in the end my wishes went unfulfilled..."

He sang, "A lifetime spent rushing about, wasting the hours; those dreams of poetry and faraway places remain mere luxuries."

He sang, "I came into this world hoping to shine with boundless light, only to find people living for a few scraps of silver."

He sang, "I came into this world and weathered its storms and sorrows, accidentally shattered the sunset, only to be sent back to heaven."

It was a DJ medley with such a strong beat, and the crowd was so lively, the villagers dancing around the bonfire. Everyone was smiling, yet Wen Jiu sang until his eyes reddened.

The bullet comments had long since gone wild, with fans flooding them with heartbroken cries of "Wen Jiu, don't cry." Yet when the song ended, tears still spilled from the corners of his eyes.

Wen Jiu handed the microphone to Shen Huaian, bowed to him and then to the people below, and gave the camera an utterly radiant smile.

Fans soon captured that smiling face in screenshots and posted them online. Even many years later, people still held up that photograph and told Wen Jiu:

"I like you. I started liking you because of this performance. I'll do my best to protect your smile and stay by your side through every spring, summer, autumn, and winter to come."

Note:

Songs referenced: "Come Dance," "Treading Through Snow," and "I Came into This World."