SGSHE89

He’d been kissed. He absolutely had to make Xingbao take responsibility!

But the show still had to wrap up, the new rankings and class assignments had to be determined.

Jing Heguang could only force himself to appear composed, returning to the front of the stage with a faint, barely perceptible, goofy grin.

Backstage, the director recalled the scene he’d just seen in the close-up shot and felt like he knew a little too much.

Did Luan Xing’an just…kiss Jing Heguang?

And Luan Xing’an had run off blushing, while Jing Heguang was now standing on stage grinning like a fool.

The director rubbed his balding head, mentally tearing down and rebuilding his impression of Jing Heguang yet again.

At first, he’d thought Jing Heguang was a big-shot star who was hard to get along with, but later, he realized the guy actually had a pretty good temper.

When he saw Jing Heguang go out of his way to confront Qu Jialiang for Luan Xing’an’s sake, speaking with such conviction and backbone, the director had almost considered him a kindred spirit!

Standing up to power, dedicating oneself to the cause of music! It was just like him.

But now it turned out that while he was fighting for the spark of music, Jing Heguang was doing it for…his little boyfriend.

The director wore a complicated expression, his feelings equally conflicted.

***

The first live performance concluded with Luan Xing’an securing 284 votes and the buzz-cut guy getting 270, the two of them far ahead of the rest.

Qu Liuguang took third place with 178 votes.

Standing among the new members of Class A, Qu Liuguang realized the gap between himself and Luan Xing’an had widened even further.

He was gripped by a sense of urgency and agitation.

He desperately wanted to get rid of Luan Xing’an, ideally making him disappear completely, but Luan Xing’an was set to remain with the production for the next few months.

As long as Luan Xing’an stayed, protected by the head mentor Jing Heguang and with the director waiting to report any misconduct, there was simply no way to make a move against him! By the time the show ended in a few months, he might finally have a chance to take action but by then, the opportunity would likely have long since passed.

He couldn’t gamble on the hope that no one in the Qu family would figure out the truth upon seeing Luan Xing’an. Qu Liuguang had to find a way to eliminate Luan Xing’an, that potential threat.

As this sense of urgency mounted and Qu Liuguang realized he couldn’t come up with a solution, he grew increasingly agitated.

***

The ranking announcement followed the usual formula, after a round of suspense building, it finally concluded.

Jing Heguang spotted his well-behaved younger brother in the crowd and wanted to corner him to make him take responsibility.

But just as he took two steps forward, the director called out to him.

Left with no choice, Jing Heguang could only watch as Luan Xing’an darted away.

He arrived at the director’s office.

Jing Heguang sounded a bit impatient: “Director, what is it? I have things to do.”

Urgent things!

The director took a sip of his herbal tea. “What’s the rush? Take a look at this.”

He played the cheek kissing video, the one that couldn’t be aired, for Jing Heguang to see.

Jing Heguang was stunned for a moment, then said, “Director, this can’t be broadcast.”

“I know it can’t be broadcast, only I’ve seen it. I’m deleting it right here in front of you.” The director spoke earnestly. “Xing’an shows great promise, and so do you. Since the show is currently airing, it’s best to keep any romance under wraps.”

Jing Heguang: …If only things were actually the way the director described!

Still, Jing Heguang could sense the director’s good intentions.

He said, “Thank you, Director, and I’ll take that as a good omen. I owe you a favor, feel free to call on me anytime, and I’ll definitely show up if I’m free.”

The director understood the first part.

But what did ‘taking it as a good omen’ mean? He felt there was a generation gap between him and the young man.

Did it refer to his optimism about Luan Xing’an’s performance? After the director had a change of heart, he smiled and said, “I think both Xing’an and the buzz-cut have the potential to become stars this season. Qu Liuguang probably could too, his only disadvantage is that he really should have gone on an idol survival show instead.”

Jing Heguang quietly sounded the director out: “Are there any backup candidates for the show?”

Director: ???

The director asked in confusion, “We do have some, but the show has already started, there’s no chance for them now.”

Jing Heguang smiled. “You never know, life is full of coincidences.”

After dropping that hint, Jing Heguang suddenly remembered something. “Wait! The deleted files, they’re still in the recycle bin, right?”

The director looked up. “I will delete those too.” He was a thorough man.

Jing Heguang: “Copy a set for me before you delete them!”

Director: …

***

On the Saturday following the recording of the first live performance, Voice of Heaven officially premiered.

When Qu Jialiang received the thick stack of documents from the private investigator, he felt like he was losing his mind.

Back when his younger brother was born, a single mother in the same hospital had been in such agony after giving birth that she tried to jump off the building, only to be saved by others.

Upon hearing the news, Qu Jialiang’s mother, herself a new mother, immediately launched a charity project aimed at helping mothers in difficult circumstances. The goal was to provide them with better postpartum care and help them get through the hardest period of their lives.

That project had continued for over twenty years, right up to the present day.

But now, Qu Jialiang knew the shocking truth: the woman who had threatened to jump had staged that entire incident specifically to swap her own child with his younger brother.

As Qu Jialiang read the file on Luan Xing’an, noting how he had been found in a trash heap by a lonely elderly person who kindly took him in, his breathing grew heavy.

Just as Qu Jialiang sat with his eyes closed, struggling to suppress his anger, his phone rang.

His mother’s voice came through the receiver.

“Eldest, aren’t you coming home yet? Mom is stewing chicken tonight. It’s the premiere of your youngest brother’s variety show, so you’d better not be late.”

His mother sounded cheerful on the other end, but Qu Jialiang couldn’t bring himself to smile.

Thinking of how Qu Liuguang had long since been in contact with his biological mother and how he had repeatedly tried to bully Luan Xing’an after meeting him, Qu Jialiang found he could no longer muster a shred of affection for Qu Liuguang.

“Mom,” Qu Jialiang said, his voice dry. “Wenyuan and dad are home tonight too, right?”

“Of course. They’re both already here. You’re the only one missing.”

“I’ll be home right away.”

Qu Jialiang exchanged a few more words before hanging up.

He then gathered everything on his desk, packed it up, and took it with him.

***

Seven o’clock in the evening, one hour before the show aired.

Qu Jialiang arrived home.

As soon as he stepped inside, he was greeted by the rich aroma of chicken soup.

His mother was still busy in the kitchen, while his father waved his eldest son over. “Come have some soup, it’s good for the brain.”

Qu Wenyuan spat out a chicken bone and teased, “Say, dad, if you just retire a bit later, my brother won’t need any brain supplements at all!”

His father cleared his throat and picked up the remote to turn on the large-screen TV.

“Let’s watch TV. Let’s watch TV.” His father didn’t dare take the bait. Retirement was great, spending his days traveling with his wife, and he certainly didn’t want to go back to work.

Qu Jialiang, who had been carrying a black briefcase tucked under his arm, set it down. “Since mom hasn’t come out yet, why don’t you and Wenyuan take a look at this?”

Qu Wenyuan looked bewildered. “Which one of our companies went bankrupt?”

His father looked equally bewildered. “Which few of our companies went bankrupt?”

Surely not, his eldest son was far more capable than he had ever been!

Qu Jialiang was in a foul mood, he said helplessly, “You two take a look first, I’m going to have some soup.”

Qu Jialiang sat down and ladled some soup into his bowl.

Father Qu opened his briefcase and pulled out two folders.

Qu Wenyuan sat down next to his father, muttering, “What is this all about? Being all secretive.”

Once the folders were opened and they had read a couple of pages, the smiles and playful expressions vanished from their faces.

Father Qu’s face grew darker the more he read, until finally, his hands were trembling with rage.

Qu Wenyuan, meanwhile, simply blurted out, “Fuck.”

Qu Wenyuan’s eyes turned red. “That is fucking outrageous! Throwing a newborn baby onto a trash heap?! That’s attempted murder for the sake of money!”

Mother Qu was just bringing out the last two dishes, hearing this, she asked in surprise, “What’s this about murder for money?”

The three men of the Qu family looked at their mother, momentarily at a loss for words.

If there was anyone Qu Liuguang was closest to, it was naturally their mother, the one most susceptible to charming, affectionate behavior. Yet, the three men also knew very well that their mother was no saint, she was a straightforward woman who detested wrongdoing.

Seeing that they remained silent, mother Qu widened her large eyes, which were framed by fine lines, her gaze clearly conveying that something was amiss.

Qu Jialiang, who had met Luan Xing’an in person, stared in a daze. His mother and his younger brother looked so much alike, no wonder Qu Liuguang had been able to recognize him.

Mother Qu placed the dishes on the table and glanced at the folders. “Why are you looking at documents at home? Eldest, maybe dad can go help out tomorrow. Don’t overwork yourself.”

As she spoke, she curiously reached out a hand, wanting to see exactly what the documents were.

In her younger days, she had managed the Qu family business alongside her husband and was familiar with all aspects of their operations.

But just as she reached out, her second son, Qu Wenyuan, immediately clutched the documents to his chest. Qu Wenyuan smiled and said, “Mom, it’s nothing.”

The three men, father and sons, were all acting strangely: the second son looked guilty, the eldest looked miserable, and the old man looked furious.

Mother Qu furrowed her brows slightly and held out her hand firmly toward her second son. “Give it to mom.”

Father Qu let out a breath. “Just give it to your mom.”

Mother Qu took the documents from Qu Wenyuan’s hands and opened them.

After skimming just a few pages of the two documents, she felt a sudden wave of dizziness from the rage and nearly collapsed.

Qu Wenyuan steadied her, and she looked toward Qu Jialiang. “Eldest, is all this true?”

“It was a preliminary check, but the events from back then were investigated thoroughly.” In other words, the fact that the babies had been swapped was certain.

Bracing herself against the table, mother Qu grabbed a dinner plate in a fit of fury and hurled it at the television screen. “This is absolutely outrageous!”

Had it merely been an accidental mix-up at birth, she wouldn’t have been this enraged to the point of wanting to kill someone.

What infuriated her was that while she had cherished someone else’s child like a precious gem, that person had tossed her child into a garbage heap!

If her child hadn’t been lucky enough to meet a kind stranger, he might well have lost his life long ago!

On top of that, Qu Liuguang had known about this all along but kept it tightly under wraps, terrified she might find out. Had he never stopped to consider how devastated she would be upon learning the truth?

It was all part of an elaborate scheme orchestrated by that mother and son pair, making fools of her entire family.

After the initial surge of anger, mother Qu glanced at her watch, reverting to the decisive, commanding style of the powerhouse businesswoman she once was.

“It’s 7:15 now, the show airs in forty-five minutes. Eldest, contact the director of Voice of Heaven, have every single one of his shots cut out.”

She paused, feeling a sharp pang in her chest. But fueled by the rage of having been played for a fool, she didn’t have time to dwell on that. Yet, after the initial pang of stifling pain, a wordless sense of satisfaction quietly spread through Qu Jialiang’s heart.

Perhaps because he had met Luan Xing’an in person, Qu Jialiang held a strong fondness for his genuine little brother.

He also knew that cutting out all of Qu Liuguang’s footage was precisely the very thing Qu Liuguang had once intended to do to Luan Xing’an!