SGSHE87

The argument outside was still ongoing.

Qu Liuguang wore an arrogant expression that practically screamed, ‘Don’t push your luck’.

He reacted this way because he remembered seeing the sycophancy the original owner used to hide when trying to curry favor with the wealthy. Back then, the original owner was still in the early stages of his career, before his massive breakout success.

Qu Liuguang wouldn’t have broached the subject so bluntly if he hadn’t been confident he could persuade Jing Heguang.

It just goes to show how dangerous preconceived notions can be.

Jing Heguang touched the voice recorder in his pocket and raised his handsome brows. “Tell me, which eye of yours makes you think I’m haggling? Xing’an is a gem of the music world, not a commodity to be traded.”

He hadn’t expected to need the recorder so soon after preparing it.

He had analyzed Qu Liuguang’s personality that morning. Objectively speaking, Qu Liuguang was a young man who was conceited and somewhat talented, with high emotional and intellectual intelligence. However, he was also stubborn and prone to jealousy, a person with an aggressive and destructive streak.

This wasn’t the first time Qu Liuguang had tried to steal the spotlight or target Luan Xing’an. It was safe to conclude that Qu Liuguang had definitely recognized Luan Xing’an.

In the previous timeline, Qu Liuguang had conspired with the original owner to harm him, causing Luan Xing’an to disappear quickly. The Qu family had only discovered Qu Liuguang’s wrongdoing by chance. It was only after the truth came to light that they took action against both the original owner and Qu Liuguang.

So, how would Qu Liuguang make his move this time around?

If Jing Heguang were in his shoes, he would consider the most foolproof method to make the person he feared disappear.

But Luan Xing’an has already appeared on the show, for him to vanish quietly, cutting out all of his footage would be a necessary step.

Qu Liuguang certainly wouldn’t dare alert the Qu family about this, which meant there were very few people available to carry out such a plan. Jing Heguang counted them up and realized only three people held that privilege: himself, the director, and the producer.

In his past life, Qu Liuguang had targeted the original owner because the latter was easily manipulated regarding Luan Xing’an. Would he become a target in this life too?

With this realization, Jing Heguang had made sure to carry a voice recorder. The words he’d just spoken were a deliberate attempt to draw Qu Liuguang out.

Qu Liuguang was utterly bewildered, he found Jing Heguang’s behavior completely baffling!

A man whose personality didn’t match his looks, in Qu’s eyes, had suddenly transformed into a senior figure in the music industry known for his integrity? And he was acting like a protector of his juniors, too?

If Jing Heguang were truly as aloof and dignified as he was acting now, Qu Liuguang would have to tip his hat to him.

Qu Liuguang’s chest heaved with anger.

Since neither threats nor inducements worked on Jing Heguang, what else could he do?

He had no choice but to let the matter drop for now. Qu Liuguang calmed himself down. “If we can’t reach an agreement, forget it. Pretend I never said anything.”

After all, Jing Heguang wasn’t the only person he could turn to.

Qu Liuguang stormed out with a dark expression, slamming the door shut with a loud bang.

Jing Heguang gave a soft harrumph. “You’d better watch out. If you break it, I’ll make you pay for the repairs.”

In the darkness, Luan Xing’an, who had been deeply moved just moments ago, was left speechless…

Jing Heguang looked at the closed door and glanced around the training room. “Xingbao has gone to get something to eat, I suppose? No telling when he’ll be back.”

He muttered under his breath, “Sigh, being too honest just means getting the short end of the stick.”

Luan Xing’an: ???

In brother Xing’s eyes, was he still just a child?!

Luan Xing’an rubbed his eyes and spoke up, “I’m not a child anymore.”

Jing Heguang jumped, startled both by the sudden voice and by the odd tone in which Luan Xing’an had spoken.

“Xingbao, why are you hiding? I thought you weren’t around.” Jing Heguang used his phone’s flashlight to illuminate the area as he walked around behind the wall.

As he walked, it suddenly occurred to him: he had said some pretty harsh things earlier just to trick Qu Liuguang into revealing his hand, he needed to explain himself immediately!

Jing Heguang quickened his pace, his long legs covering the distance in a few strides, and he soon cornered Luan Xing’an.

Luan Xing’an knew his eyes must be swollen. He buried his head against his own arm, keeping his face down to avoid letting Jing Heguang see.

Yet, seeing him huddled there looking so pitiful, even without seeing his face, made Jing Heguang’s heart ache.

Jing Heguang crouched down and said, “Xingbao, everything I said to him earlier was a lie, only the parts where I praised you were true! Please don’t misunderstand. No matter what kind of lucrative offer he made, it wouldn’t have worked on me. Really.”

Luan Xing’an felt like crying again. He whispered, “I heard it all. I didn’t misunderstand, brother Jing.”

Looking at him like that, it was hard to believe he actually trusted Jing Heguang.

So, Jing Heguang took out a voice recorder and pressed the playback button.

The clear sound of their earlier conversation rang out from the recorder, making Luan Xing’an’s eyes widen in surprise.

That was such a slick move!

Qu Liuguang certainly wouldn’t have guessed that brother Jing was capable of such a cunning trick…

Jing Heguang asked patiently, “You believe me now, right? You aren’t allowed to be sad anymore, thinking I’d trade your future for anything else.”

Luan Xing’an thought about how he’d cried his eyes out over a misunderstanding. Blushing, he denied it: “That’s not why I was sad.” He just felt embarrassed about crying so easily.

Jing Heguang looked down at the top of his head and suddenly frowned: “Did you skip dinner?”

As a mentor, Jing Heguang ate a little earlier than the trainees. Besides, Jing Heguang had practically inhaled his meal. There was no way Luan Xing’an could have finished any faster, unless he hadn’t eaten at all!

But to eat, one had to show one’s face. Luan Xing’an didn’t want Jing Heguang to worry, so he lied: “I…I ate.”

He rarely lied. The moment he tried to deceive someone, his entire demeanor betrayed his guilt.

Jing Heguang sensed something was wrong. Recalling the tone of Luan Xing’an’s voice, he reached out, cupped the younger man’s chin, and said firmly, “Let me see.”

“No!” Luan Xing’an lowered his head, trying to hide his face.

But his face was small, and Jing Heguang’s hands were large. A single hand was enough to cradle his face.

Realizing he couldn’t hide it any longer, Luan Xing’an reached over Jing Heguang’s shoulder and threw his arms around him.

Jing Heguang hugged him back. “Have you been crying?”

He knew Luan Xing’an hadn’t been in a good state that afternoon, but he hadn’t realized the pressure was so intense that the younger man was hiding away to cry.

“Don’t put so much pressure on yourself,” he said, his heart aching for him. “If you’re feeling down, we can switch to singing those depressing songs instead, or if it really comes to it, we don’t have to sing at all.”

Jing Heguang didn’t think his own words were the cause, after all, he had only briefly misled Qu Liuguang before immediately clarifying the situation. Judging by the sound of Luan Xing’an’s voice, it wasn’t from vocal practice, he had been crying quite hard.

Luan Xing’an was momentarily dazed, then followed Jing Heguang’s lead and began talking about the performance.

“I feel like I stole Qu Liuguang’s chance to perform.”

“In today’s battle, he was clearly the better performer.”

Jing Heguang thought to himself: You little fool, he’s the one who stole your entire life. We’re the ones who should be taking it back!

However, Luan Xing’an didn’t know he was the true child of the Qu family. He believed he was an unwanted child who had been discarded, thrown into a trash can.

He knew his parents must have really disliked him. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have dumped him in a trash can. Even leaving him at the doorstep of an orphanage would have been far better than a garbage bin.

Jing Heguang understood that Luan Xing’an’s guilt stemmed from his innate kindness, a shining quality of his character.

“How could you have stolen it? This is Voice of Heaven, a show centered on vocals, not a stage for singing and dancing. Battles shouldn’t rely on those old clichés anyway,” Jing Heguang said, analyzing the nature of the program. “This is a stage to cultivate singers.”

As he spoke, Jing Heguang gently patted Luan Xing’an on the back.

Luan Xing’an felt much better after this reassurance, though his face soon began to flush.

He realized he was…taking advantage of brother Jing! He had been hugging him for quite a while now.

But if he let go, his tear-reddened eyes would give him away.

Just as he was feeling conflicted, Jing Heguang reluctantly let go of him. “I’m taking you to get something to eat. You can’t go without a meal.”

Luan Xing’an clutched his small stool tightly. “I’m not hungry!”

Jing Heguang reached out and simply lifted Luan Xing’an up, stool and all.

Luan Xing’an covered his face. Jing Heguang smiled at him. “Your voice has gone hoarse from crying, but so what if your eyes are red? I’m not going to laugh at you.”

Luan Xing’an said, “But once we go out, everyone will know. It’s so embarrassing!”

“It’s not embarrassing. They’ll all be crying later, too,” Jing Heguang said naturally. “Crying isn’t shameful. Crying, then working hard and taking good care of yourself, that is a sign of maturity.”

Jing Heguang firmly led him to the dining area.

Luan Xing’an kept his head down while eating, still worried that everyone would laugh at him.

After finishing just a small bowl of rice, Luan Xing’an said, “I’m done!”

“?” Jing Heguang asked. “Just that little bit? You need to eat more!”

“We have rehearsals tonight, too. Even if we aren’t singing, we still have to coordinate with the band musicians, it’s exhausting work. Have a bit more. Seriously, eat some more.”

It wasn’t just Jing Heguang insisting he eat. Luan Xing’an was a growing young man, half a bowl of rice certainly wasn’t enough.

Luan Xing’an glanced around, and only after seeing that no one was watching did he nod and go back to scoop another half-bowl of rice.

Jing Heguang watched him eat obediently with a sense of satisfaction and urged, “Don’t worry about gaining weight. At your age, your metabolism is fast, and creative work burns a lot of mental energy, you need to eat well to replenish that.”

“What was that saying again? ‘Interesting souls are all alike, but cute bellies jiggle and bounce!'”

As he ate, Luan Xing’an secretly reached out to touch his stomach.

Back when he was carrying a bit of ‘soft’ weight, his belly had felt a little squishy, ​​but that softness was long gone now.

Maybe…I should put on a little weight? Luan Xing’an lowered his head and focused on his meal.

***

From that night on, Luan Xing’an became the most enthusiastic eater among the forty trainees.

It was evening, two days later.

Qu Jialiang, the eldest son of the Qu family, received a call from the director of Voice of Heaven while he was in a meeting. Thinking of his younger brother, Qu Jialiang asked the meeting attendees to wait a moment and stepped aside to take the call.

On the other end, the director struggled to suppress his anger: “Boss Qu, are we really aiming to make this show fair and impartial?”

Qu Jialiang was puzzled. Back when he invested, the director had seemed quite enthusiastic about creating a fair and unbiased talent show.

Qu Jialiang asked patiently, “Has a problem come up?”

“Let me just confirm, Qu Liuguang is your younger brother, right? If you want total transparency and the fairest possible show, why is your brother telling me to kick out the most talented contestant?”

The director was furious with Qu Liuguang.

The two brothers were pulling him in opposite directions, were they just toying with his genuine passion?

He wanted to make this show because he truly hoped to cultivate some rising stars for the music industry! Was it too much to ask to have a little idealism?

Qu Jialiang was taken aback: “Could there be some misunderstanding?”

In the Qu family, a child’s future was of the utmost importance. When Qu Liuguang wanted to enter the entertainment industry, the family first sent him for extensive training and education, then strove to provide him with the fairest possible environment.

While they called it fair, Qu Liuguang’s starting point was already far above most people. This fairness was more of a litmus test, a way to see just how much he had actually learned over the past few years.

If he succeeded, he could keep pursuing a career in the industry. If not, he would settle down and come home to take over part of the family business.

However, if he tried to use the family’s influence to bully others during the competition, that would be a matter of character.

Although Qu Liuguang had a bad temper, Qu Jialiang refused to believe his brother was truly petty or narrow-minded.

Qu Jialiang frowned. “I’ll come over in half an hour and handle this. Rest assured, Director.”

With that assurance from the investor, the director hung up the phone in a huff and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

If the investor hadn’t previously dangled such a tempting prospect in front of him, he might not have had the nerve to make this call.

As it turned out, that young scion was simply making trouble for himself…

Qu Jialiang’s attitude gave the director food for thought.

***

Qu Jialiang arrived just as the trainees were having dinner.

Qu Liuguang was eating too, seated alongside the fellow performers from his act.

Dressed in a sharp suit and accompanied by the director, Qu Jialiang immediately drew countless gazes the moment he entered the dining hall.

He scanned the crowd of young men for his younger brother, yet his eyes didn’t land on his brother first, instead, they were drawn to another young man.

Luan Xing’an, thinking his brother Jing might prefer someone with a bit more meat on their bones, was busy shoveling food into his mouth.

Noticing the person beside him look up, Luan Xing’an puffed out his cheeks and lifted his gaze as well.

Qu Jialiang smiled at the young man who bore a striking resemblance to his mother, then straightened his expression and turned his eyes toward Qu Liuguang: “Liuguang, come out here.”

T/N: the real saying is something like this: beautiful appearance is a dime a dozen, but an interesting soul is one in a million