Chapter Fifty: A Chance Encounter

Chapter Fifty: A Chance Encounter

(The author apologizes for the delay, as something came up today.)

The next live singer wouldn’t perform until half past ten. At the moment, the speakers were playing gentle love songs, and the bar’s noisy chatter nearly matched the volume of the music, neither quite overpowering the other.

Cheng Xiaoyu kept repeating “Sorry, excuse me,” as he struggled to push his way toward the center.

The bar’s middle section was scattered with tables; some patrons perched on wooden high stools, others, lacking seats, simply stood. With so many people packed in, the chubby Cheng Xiaoyu’s progress resembled a great salmon swimming upstream, creating ripples throughout the central area as he moved.

Xu Qin Ning watched Cheng Xiaoyu about to blunder, laughing so hard she was almost breathless, and urged Li Ling’er to hurry after him and witness the scene.

Having just finished his own performance, Cheng Xiaoyu wandered through the crowded bar twice, now drenched in sweat, his pimply, round face looking even greasier. By the time he finally squeezed his way to the central table, the rose in his hand had already shed several petals, drooping limply, its appearance rather pitiful.

As he approached to present the rose, he realized there were now two young men at the table, one sporting a baseball cap. The handsome guy had clearly noticed Cheng Xiaoyu’s intent. Cheng Xiaoyu hesitated, but his hand, already outstretched, couldn’t be withdrawn in time—it landed on the shoulder of a girl with long, flowing hair who was busy texting.

The girl turned slightly, seeing the battered rose in Cheng Xiaoyu’s hand and his sweaty, comical grin.

Cheng Xiaoyu was a bit surprised by her beauty: arched brows, almond-shaped eyes, skin white as snow, a delicate, straight nose, lips glossed with a charming hue, and a tiny beauty mark near her mouth that brought her gentle features to life. Noticing her inexplicable, barely concealed disdain in her eyes, Cheng Xiaoyu knew he’d guessed wrong, and forced himself to ask, “Sorry, but are you Tang Wenqian?”

The girl frowned with disgust, barely glancing at him as she replied coldly, “You’ve got the wrong person.”

Embarrassed, Cheng Xiaoyu smiled, withdrawing the flower. Across the table, the baseball cap guy turned to the beauty mark girl and asked, “Do you know this fat kid?”

Cheng Xiaoyu felt relieved—his task was complete, but the scene was humiliating.

He didn’t hear the beauty mark girl respond, but suddenly someone called out.

“Cheng Xiaoyu?” A female voice, not particularly familiar, sounded nearby.

Cheng Xiaoyu was puzzled—had he guessed right after all? How else would someone know his name? Turning, he saw it was the daughter of the music shop owner he knew: Fu Xiyue.

The baseball cap guy immediately asked Fu Xiyue, “Your friend?”

Fu Xiyue, her delicate face shy yet lovely, nodded and softly replied, “Mm.”

Cheng Xiaoyu’s heart sank. Fate had played a trick; he hadn’t expected to meet Fu Xiyue in such an awkward situation. He managed a wry smile and said, “Hello, Yue. I didn’t expect to run into you here.”

Fu Xiyue greeted Cheng Xiaoyu warmly, switched seats with the beauty mark girl, and pulled him over. “Weren’t you going to visit my shop? Why haven’t I seen you lately?”

Cheng Xiaoyu smiled, “I’ve been busy these days, haven’t found the time yet. I’ll drop by once things quiet down.”

Fu Xiyue leaned closer, warmly introducing the baseball cap guy. “This is Du Xing, a senior from Fudan University’s music club.” Then she introduced Cheng Xiaoyu, “This is Cheng Xiaoyu, a talented guitarist in his final year at Fudan High School.”

Cheng Xiaoyu gave Du Xing a polite smile; Du Xing smiled back, but there was nothing but contempt in his eyes. Cheng Xiaoyu didn’t mind, only wanting to find an excuse to leave as soon as possible.

Fu Xiyue then introduced another long-haired boy, also from Fudan’s music club, named Qin Yi. Qin Yi wore thick-framed glasses and several earrings, exuding a cool, rebellious vibe—the sort girls liked.

Finally, Fu Xiyue laughed as she introduced the girl Cheng Xiaoyu had mistaken, “The beauty you tried to chat up is Liu Huaming, a resident singer at the Whispering Wind Bar. Her fame spans Fudan and Jiaotong University! Cheng Xiaoyu, were you secretly admiring her and came over just to meet her?” she teased.

Cheng Xiaoyu couldn’t explain he’d made a bet to identify someone he hadn’t met yet, so he awkwardly said, “I was betting with my friends—they said I wouldn’t dare bring a flower, and I acted on impulse!”

When Fu Xiyue introduced Cheng Xiaoyu, Liu Huaming hadn’t spoken, hardly bothering to acknowledge him. The reason she was here was because Lantern Forest had become so popular it was affecting Whispering Wind’s business. She’d brought her band’s guitarist Du Xing and drummer Qin Yi to Lantern Forest to see what was going on. She was genuinely stunned—lyrics, composition, arrangement were all unmatched. The gap left her, usually proud, unable to accept it, and her mood was particularly sour; especially since the other band’s lead singer was not only stunning but sang astonishingly well. Naturally, all attention at the table was on Xia Shamo, leaving Cheng Xiaoyu unnoticed in the shadows.

Even Fu Xiyue hadn’t realized this so-called “guitar expert” was actually the keyboardist for Guilty Crown. Nor did she know all the music was Cheng Xiaoyu’s own creation.

Feeling irritable, Liu Huaming looked at the somewhat foolish Cheng Xiaoyu with increasing annoyance. She couldn’t understand why Fu Xiyue was so friendly with such an unremarkable fat kid.

Fu Xiyue poured Cheng Xiaoyu a glass of beer; he planned to toast everyone once and then slip away. He could tell he wasn’t welcome.

Cheng Xiaoyu toasted Du Xing and Qin Yi, drinking each glass in one go, while they merely sipped. When it came to Liu Huaming, Cheng Xiaoyu smiled and apologized, “Sorry about earlier, Liu, please drink as you like, I’ll finish mine.”

Liu Huaming raised her eyebrow at the clownish Cheng Xiaoyu, “That tiny glass isn’t very sincere, is it?”

Cheng Xiaoyu was a bit stunned. He felt he hadn’t done anything particularly offensive, though his appearance was admittedly awkward. Suppressing his smile, he asked, “Then what would you suggest?”

Liu Huaming’s smile suddenly brightened; she lifted a pitcher and placed it before him, “This is more sincere.”

Du Xing and Qin Yi laughed, egging him on, “Liu’s personally offering you a drink—what an honor! If you’ve got the guts to chat her up, surely you can handle a pitcher. Maybe if she’s in a good mood, she’ll give you her phone number!” To them, Cheng Xiaoyu wasn’t even a toad—just a joke.

Fu Xiyue felt embarrassed. She didn’t know how things had gotten so awkward. She’d joined the music club to learn guitar, but hadn’t been there long, so she wasn’t close to the already famous seniors. Liu Huaming had invited her out today, and she’d hoped Cheng Xiaoyu’s guitar skills would give them common ground, not realizing some people judge others solely by appearance.

Had Cheng Xiaoyu been handsome, Liu Huaming might have been pleased. Had he been ordinary, she wouldn’t have minded. But his foolish look and actions made her feel insulted by someone overreaching. The more she looked at him, the more she disliked him.

Cheng Xiaoyu saw Liu Huaming’s half-mocking smile and felt irritated, ready to leave.

Fu Xiyue pushed the pitcher aside and forced a smile, “Liu, Cheng Xiaoyu’s just a high schooler—he can’t drink that much. Don’t make things difficult for him.”

Du Xing, who had a bit of a crush on Fu Xiyue, was annoyed by her friendliness toward Cheng Xiaoyu, so he sneered, “Barely grown, yet trying to pick up girls. Even brings a ten-yuan rose—how ridiculous. Is he stupid or what? Xiyue, how do you know such an idiot?”

Fu Xiyue felt uncomfortable but didn’t show anger, merely replied blankly, “You’re being a bit harsh. I don’t know what gives you the right to look down on others. Cheng Xiaoyu plays guitar better than anyone in the music club. Can you stop being so arrogant?”

Du Xing burst out laughing, “Xiyue, don’t let him fool you. You’ve only just started learning guitar—how do you know his level? He doesn’t even have calluses on his hands. How good could he be?”

Cheng Xiaoyu heard the callus joke again and was even more exasperated. He also found the baseball cap guy quite irritating, so he coldly retorted, “Do you want to compete?”

Du Xing grinned at the pale, chubby kid, amused, “Where do you get your confidence? How should we compete?” He happened to want to show off his guitar in front of Fu Xiyue, to let her see what real skill was. He’d been unimpressed by Guilty Crown’s guitarist earlier.

Cheng Xiaoyu replied expressionlessly, “Let’s compete on stage.” Inside, he was delighted—someone had come up to be humiliated, and he was happy to oblige.

Du Xing, himself a resident performer, wasn’t intimidated, and sneered, “Fine, let’s follow the rules: whoever gets more roses wins. The loser drinks ten bottles of beer in a row—how about that?”

Cheng Xiaoyu grinned sincerely, “Only children refuse to admit defeat.” With that, he squeezed toward the stage.

The surrounding crowd had already noticed the commotion, making way. Du Xing, Qin Yi, and Liu Huaming followed, joking and smiling, as if they could already see Cheng Xiaoyu vomiting and crawling out of Lantern Forest.

Fu Xiyue felt conflicted—no matter who won, the outcome wouldn’t be good for her. She followed anxiously, regretting ever calling out to Cheng Xiaoyu.

Cheng Xiaoyu stepped onto the stage and picked up the microphone. Regulars at Lantern Forest recognized the amusing fat kid and immediately applauded, thinking Guilty Crown had another show.

Du Xing and his companions sensed something was off, but didn’t worry. Du Xing was confident in his guitar skills; his teacher was Duan Hongliang, one of Shanghai’s top three guitarists.

Cheng Xiaoyu smiled and said, “Everyone’s so supportive—you know there’s a show and you’re already applauding. Just now, Du Xing from Fudan’s music club challenged me to a guitar duel. If you want to support me, please throw me a few roses, or I’ll have to crawl out of Lantern Forest drunk!” The audience, always up for a spectacle, cheered and clapped louder; such contests were common, usually sparked by rivalry between performers.

Chen Jinglong stood below the stage and hurried up to ask Cheng Xiaoyu what was happening. Cheng Xiaoyu smiled, “Just a little personal dispute, nothing serious.”

Chen Jinglong saw Cheng Xiaoyu’s confidence and knew he was reliable, so he let them go ahead; it would be good for the bar.

At Xu Qin Ning and Su Yuxi’s table, things were in an uproar. After Li Ling’er exaggeratedly recounted the story, Xu Qin Ning wished she could go punch the clueless idiots herself. To her, Cheng Xiaoyu was her exclusive plaything—how could anyone else play with him?

Su Yuxi remained expressionless.

Amid the raucous cheers, Du Xing took the stage first, picking up an electric acoustic guitar.