Volume Two: Shadows of the Past, Episode Seventy-Nine: A Live Broadcast on the Same Stage with the Heavenly Queen

Hearing Lin Xi's question, Lin Zitan instantly blushed all over. She twiddled her fingers and said coyly, "Ah～ Sister Xi, why would you suddenly ask something like that?"
"Uh... Nothing! Just curious. After all, with a pretty girl like our Zitan, there must have been plenty of suitors back in college, right? Hehe." Lin Xi explained with a smile. Naturally, she wouldn't say it was because she had just seen Lin Zitan so deeply moved by the song Chen Jing had just sung that she burst into tears, leading her to assume Lin Zitan had experience in relationships.
Finally, Lin Zitan gave a shy reply to Lin Xi's question, "No way. There were quite a few guys chasing me back then, sure. But as Sister Xi, you should know, I was busy getting certificates during college, preparing to graduate early. Where would I find the time to date boys?" After saying this, Lin Zitan pouted in mild dissatisfaction and added, "Besides, I didn't think much of those guys chasing me anyway. None of them were even half as good as Ah Jing. Well, thinking about it now, I was pretty wise back then."
"Oh." Lin Xi nodded in understanding. Putting aside Lin Zitan's little inner thoughts, she secretly wondered, "How can someone who has never been in a relationship be so deeply moved by Chen Jing's song? Am I really just getting old in my mindset?"
Thinking of this, Lin Xi could not help but furrow her brows slightly.
Just as Lin Xi and Lin Zitan were both lost in their own thoughts, the door of the vocal practice room was suddenly pushed open from the outside, and a figure walked in.
Both Lin Xi and Lin Zitan were startled. They quickly turned their heads to look, only to discover that the person who entered was none other than Ling Ruohan.
Lin Zitan immediately let out a sigh of relief, patted her plump chest, and said, "I was wondering who it was. Turns out it's you, Sister Ruohan. You gave me quite a scare."
Ling Ruohan glanced stealthily at Chen Jing, who was still live-streaming and had not yet noticed her arrival. She walked over to Lin Xi and the other girl and whispered, "Hehe, I was just getting ready to head home when I saw Ah Jing was live-streaming. Then I realized he was streaming right here at the company, so I wanted to come and take a look. Watching a stream on a phone could never compare to watching a live stream in person, right? Hehe."
Lin Xi glanced at Ling Ruohan and said with amused exasperation, "I hardly think you just came here to watch the live stream."
Ling Ruohan let out a hearty laugh and readily admitted, "Haha! Nothing gets past you, Sister Xi. Actually, I just wanted to see if I could help boost the stream's entertainment value for Ah Jing. Hehe!"
Lin Xi shook her head helplessly. Figuring that Ling Ruohan doing this wouldn't cause any harm, she said indifferently, "Do as you please then."
Ling Ruohan replied with confident promptness, "Will do!"
Over there, seeing that everyone had been pulled into their own romantic memories by his singing, Chen Jing smiled and said, "It seems everyone has plenty of feelings about this song! I believe you all feel, just as I do, that no matter what, the process of being in love is the sweetest part. Those memories... are also the most beautiful ones.
Here, I also hope all the viewers who have partners will cherish the time spent with your significant others. No matter what, do not casually speak of breaking up. Of course, I also hope my single friends currently in the chat room can find their life partners as soon as possible..."
At this point, Chen Jing drifted off slightly, as a certain face flashed through his mind.
Snap back to reality, Chen Jing was just about to continue when he noticed Ling Ruohan and Lin Xi standing together, waving excitedly at him.
Chen Jing was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said to the audience in the live stream, "Hehe, today truly seems to be a day of endless surprises. Just now, an unexpected guest has arrived in my live stream—let me correct myself, not my live stream, I should say a guest has arrived right here in my practice room. Let's have everyone guess who is here. Here's a hint: she has sung in a duet on stage with me before."
As he spoke, Chen Jing waved toward Ling Ruohan, signaling her to come over.
The viewers in the live stream began to guess frantically, typing the names of the people they suspected in the bullet comments.
However, given that Chen Jing had explicitly stated this person had performed a duet on stage with him, there were very few candidates left for the audience to choose from.
Soon, the bullet comments on the screen were narrowed down to just two names: "Li Qingwei" and "Ling Ruohan". After all, those were the only two who had ever shared a stage with Chen Jing for a duet.
More people felt it must be Li Qingwei, considering he had just released a song written for him by Chen Jing a couple of days prior, making it entirely normal for Li Qingwei to drop by the company and show support for Chen Jing's live stream. However, all these people guessed wrong.
Once Ling Ruohan walked over, Chen Jing smiled and said, "Hehe. Come on, say hello to everyone."
Ling Ruohan wasn't shy at all and appeared generously in the frame. She waved at the camera and said with a sweet smile, "Hello everyone! So glad to see you all."
"Holy crap, Heavenly Queen Ling Ruohan!!!"
"It really is Hanhan! What a pleasant surprise!"
"Ah!!! Hanhan, I love you!"
"Hanhan, I'm your fan..."
Seeing Ling Ruohan appear on screen, everyone in the live stream instantly lost their composure, and bullet comments flooded the entire screen like a blizzard.
Seeing the screen filled with comments calling out Ling Ruohan's name, Chen Jing had a flash of inspiration and came up with an idea. He teased playfully, "Hey, this is my live stream, you know. If you keep this up, I'm going to get jealous of Sister Ruohan!"
Ling Ruohan covered her mouth with a chuckle, gave Chen Jing's shoulder a light tap, and joked, "Hehe, I've never seen you get jealous before, Ah Jing. Come on, try getting jealous for big sis here to see."
"Oh, ho! What did I just witness? Boss Jing is actually being flirted with."
"Heavenly Queen Ling Ruohan flirting with musical talent Chen Jing! I approve! I love this storyline!"
"Hahaha, go get him, Hanhan! We'll wave flags and cheer you on."
"Charge! Attack!..."
Seeing this scene, the old scoundrels in the live stream could no longer contain themselves either. They began typing bullet comments, abandoning all seriousness along with Ling Ruohan.
Chen Jing didn't pay much attention to the banter teasing him and Ling Ruohan; instead, his eyes caught some other comments.

"Wait ~ Sister Ruohan!? Chen Jing actually calls Ling Ruohan 'older sister'?"
"What's so strange about that? Ah Jing is only 23, right? Hanhan is older than him, so of course he has to call her sister!"
"...... If you guys hadn't mentioned it, I completely forgot about Boss Jing's age."
"Same here. Boss Jing gives off such a steady vibe, nothing like a young guy at all. Instead, he feels like a seasoned, mature... um ~ how should I put it?"
"A mature middle-aged uncle?"
"My ass! Do middle-aged uncles look as handsome as Boss Jing?"
"Uh, true..."
Chen Jing shook his head helplessly as he looked at these comments. In truth, he really *was* a middle-aged uncle, at least in terms of his state of mind.
Fortunately, Ling Ruohan didn't notice these comments, otherwise Chen Jing couldn't guarantee she wouldn't blow her top. After all, casually commenting on a woman's age was one of the ultimate taboos.
Ignoring the chaotic comment section, Chen Jing stated the idea he had just come up with: "Since Sister Ruohan happens to be here, let's do something a little different for our very last song tonight.
Hmm ~ as for this final song, I will handle the accompaniment, and Sister Ruohan will handle the vocals. What do you all think of that?"
There was hardly any need to ask. As soon as Chen Jing's proposal was spoken, the screen was filled with the single character: "Good."
Chen Jing sought Ling Ruohan's opinion as well: "Sister Ruohan, what do you think? Is this okay?"
Ling Ruohan smiled knowingly and nodded in agreement, "Of course it is. You know I love singing songs written by you the most. I'm actually getting a little excited and can't wait."
In truth, this was the ultimate goal of Ling Ruohan's sudden visit to Chen Jing's live stream. Although she hadn't discussed it with Chen Jing beforehand, she believed that given their tacit understanding, once he saw her, he would surely catch onto her intention.
And sure enough, didn't it work out?
Knowing that Ling Ruohan would definitely agree, Chen Jing spoke to the camera, "Alright, then the audience in the live stream, please hold on for a moment. I'll show Sister Ruohan the sheet music so she can familiarize herself with the lyrics." As he spoke, Chen Jing pulled out a musical score and handed it to Ling Ruohan.
Fortunately, in order to prepare the demo for this song, Chen Jing had already written out the arrangement beforehand, otherwise there truly would have been no way for Ling Ruohan to memorize the lyrics and melody on the spot.
Next, Chen Jing went to fiddle with the instruments, while Ling Ruohan earnestly studied the sheet music in her hands. Watching the two of them, the audience didn't feel bored at all.
After studying it for less than ten minutes, Ling Ruohan gave Chen Jing an 'OK' hand signal, indicating that she was ready.
At this moment, Chen Jing was already seated at the drum kit off to the side. Seeing Ling Ruohan signal that she was ready, Chen Jing spoke directly into the camera, "Alright, thanks for keeping the viewers in the live stream waiting so long. We are now about to begin performing the final song of tonight. This song, titled *Youth*, is dedicated to all of you." With that, he started playing the instrumental backing track.
Since it wasn't time for him to play the drums just yet, Chen Jing decided to show off some flashy drumstick tricks for the audience. The drumsticks spun flexibly between Chen Jing's fingers, picking up speed until they blurred into a rapid rotation.
"Holy crap, Boss Jing even knows how to play the drums!?"
"Hehe! Is there any instrument our Boss Jing *doesn't* know how to play? If there is, it just means it's not a mainstream instrument."
"Look at the speed of those drumsticks spinning in Boss Jing's fingers! That's not something an ordinary person can pull off! Hehe!"
"One word: handsome..."
Following the musical backing and hitting the rhythm precisely, Chen Jing struck the drums, and Ling Ruohan's vocals rang out right after:
"Change your lifestyle
Make yourself happy
Let go of your obsessions
The weather will start to look good
..."
Ling Ruohan's exceptionally crystal-clear voice instantly captured the attention of every single viewer in the live stream.
"As expected, I utterly adore Hanhan's voice."
"This song feels like it was tailor-made for Hanhan's voice!"
"Actually, I think Boss Jing's songs and Hanhan are a perfect match."
"Hehe, it's not just Boss Jing's songs that match Hanhan; Boss Jing himself matches Hanhan, doesn't he?"
"Now that you mention it, I kind of feel that way too..."

At this moment, Ling Ruohan naturally had no spare attention to spare for the bullet comments, and thus had no idea that the audience in the live stream had already started shipping her and Chen Jing as a couple.
Starting off this song, Ling Ruohan found it a bit taxing. After all, she had only looked at the score for less than ten minutes; being able to remember the melody was already pushing it.
Chen Jing was aware of Ling Ruohan's situation. He could sense that in some parts, Ling Ruohan's delivery wasn't entirely polished, but it didn't matter. While he could pick out these minor flaws, the audience in the live stream wouldn't be able to tell.
Besides, the charm of Ling Ruohan's vocal timbre was more than enough to cover up those tiny imperfections.
"......
Wu oh oh
I am still that same youth from before
Without the slightest change
......
Say never never give up
Like a fire
......"
As Ling Ruohan grew more familiar with the song, slowly building up to the chorus, she finally found her groove.
And thereafter, the audience felt as though Ling Ruohan's singing had somehow become even more breathtaking. They thought it was just their imagination, but only a handful of professional singers watching Chen Jing's stream knew that Ling Ruohan had entered "recording mode."
As everyone knew, a singer's best vocal state was precisely the state they achieved when recording a song in the studio. Before recording a track, every singer would adjust their mental and physical state to the absolute peak, striving to record the song as close to perfection as possible.
This state was notoriously difficult for singers to enter; generally, it required repeatedly singing the track many times before gradually slipping into the zone.
Yet, Ling Ruohan had entered this state in less than half a song's duration. One had to admit, Ling Ruohan's title as a Heavenly Queen was by no means an undeserved reputation.
The song continued. When Ling Ruohan finished another chorus and it came to the rap section, Chen Jing took the mic:
"Chasing every ray of light that graces your life
Making the world shine brighter because you exist
......
Hold on tight, and you will own your blueprint"
"Woo oh!!! Boss Jing is rapping."
"As expected, Boss Jing's rap is still as amazing as ever."
"I deeply love Boss Jing's rap. Although I love all the songs he sings, my absolute favorites are his rap tracks, like *Nocturne* and the likes."
"Same here, Boss Jing's rap is just so deeply resonant..."
Hearing Chen Jing's rap, the viewers in the live stream began to cheer wildly.
Off to the side, Ling Ruohan watched Chen Jing rap while drumming, her gaze burning with intensity.
Only the songs Chen Jing sang could set her heart completely ablaze.
As Chen Jing finished his rap, the turn came back to Ling Ruohan to sing, and this time, she carried the vocals all the way to the end of the song.
"......
The youth right before my eyes
Still wears that original face
......
I am still that same youth from before, miya～"
(Tribute: Meng Ran - *Youth*)