Chapter 568: We

After eating, Mai Sui went to retouch her makeup and review her lines, busy with her tasks and without time to keep him company.

Before leaving, she asked: "Will you leave right after your performance?"

The original plan was yes, but Li Heng, sensing the situation, changed his answer: "It's New Year's Day today—I'll take a break and wait for you to finish hosting before we leave together."

Hearing this, Mai Sui seemed delighted. In the past, he had said several times how much he liked seeing her in red, so two days ago she had specially bought a bright red coat at great expense—imported goods—based on his preference.

Just having him stay with her for the entire evening made her feel it was worth every penny.

As Mai Sui went to rehearse her lines, He Xiao came over and asked: "Li Heng, you're performing too—do you need makeup?"

Li Heng asked: "Where's Zhou Shihe?"

He Xiao said: "She's in the dressing room, doing her own makeup—she's very skilled."

This reminded Li Heng of last year's New Year's Eve, when Zhou Gu Niang had helped him with his makeup; he immediately said: "I'll go take a look."

He hadn't wanted makeup to begin with, but he didn't want to stand out, and besides—performing on stage, makeup looks better on camera.

Arriving at the dressing room, He Xiao asked: "Do you want Zhou Shihe to do your makeup, or shall I?"

Well, since she'd asked like that, he wouldn't make a choice himself.

He plopped down on the chair beside Zhou Shihe and said casually: "Either's fine."

He Xiao, eager to build a good relationship with a big shot like Li Heng—whether at school or later in society—seized the chance: "Shihe won't finish for a while. My makeup skills are decent too—let me try?"

Li Heng readily agreed: "Sure, thanks, senior."

As the saying goes: don't take on a job you're not equipped for.

He Xiao had dared to volunteer because she had real skill; Li Heng couldn't find a single flaw, and ended up lounging comfortably in the chair, letting her do as she pleased.

Zhou Shihe, watching the two through the mirror, took it all in but remained unaffected, focused entirely on her own work.

He Xiao brushed his eyelashes with a pencil: "Big writer, your eyelashes are prettier than a girl's—your mom must be stunning, right?"

How do you even respond to that?

Admit it, and you sound arrogant.

Deny it, and you do Tian Run'e a disservice.

Li Heng chuckled: "Everyone who knows me says I look just like my mom."

He Xiao nodded: "Then she must be truly beautiful—I heard she came to our school?"

Li Heng said: "She came once during the start of the semester."

He Xiao was deeply interested in Li Heng.

This interest wasn't romantic—it was fascination with his legendary rise from obscurity to prominence; as she applied makeup, she kept talking, constantly finding topics to chat with him about.

At one point, Li Heng joked: "Senior, you're student union chair—so many things to organize. Spending time doing my makeup won't delay anything?"

He Xiao laughed: "I do have things to do, but nothing's more important than you—I'll take care of you first."

As they chatted, she naturally shifted from calling him "Big Writer" to "junior"—adding warmth and familiarity.

Zhou Shihe glanced at the two from the corner of her eye, then began wrapping up her work. About two minutes later, she packed her makeup tools, stood, and bid them farewell before leaving.

Watching Zhou Shihe depart, He Xiao sighed: "Ah, so beautiful, such grace—Shihe is the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. Junior, you're with her every day—don't you feel anything? Honestly, if I were a guy, I'd fall for her at first sight."

Li Heng replied instantly: "There are probably many guys who've fallen for her at first sight—most just don't dare show it. But my wife is great too, Senior—next time, praise her more. I'll be happy."

He Xiao laughed, teasing: "Your wife really is great—but which one should I praise?"

Li Heng opened his eyes and looked at her.

He Xiao didn't flinch: "I saw Mai Sui feed you meat earlier."

"Huh? Wasn't that subtle?" Li Heng winced.

He Xiao said: "It was subtle, and Mai Sui moved fast, even tiptoeing to cover it up afterward—but none of that fools someone paying attention."

Li Heng countered: "Oh? Are you one of those observant people?"

He Xiao didn't dodge: "I've never done makeup for anyone before—not for women, not for men."

She added: "Junior, don't worry—I won't develop any designs on you. I'm just doing your makeup. Later, I can brag outside: look, this is my junior—the one on the newspaper—I did his makeup."

Li Heng chuckled and played along: "Alright, next time I need makeup, I'll come to you."

He Xiao happily agreed.

After the makeup was done, Li Heng left the backstage area and entered the packed Xianghui Hall through a special passage, heading toward the performers' reserved seats.

As He Xiao was tidying her makeup tools, her best friend walked in: "You did Li Heng's makeup?"

He Xiao said: "Yep—jealous?"

Her friend was clearly envious: "Of course I am—this is Li Heng, after all: talented, good-looking, rich—who wouldn't want to spend time alone with him? Even if you can't get him, just remembering him would last a long time."

He Xiao said: "Don't think like that. If you think like that, you'll never get close—he won't give you a chance."

Her friend asked: "So you mean he let you do his makeup because he sensed you had no romantic interest?"

"Of course. He's sharp—surrounded by stunning women. For me to snatch the chance to do his makeup away from Zhou Shihe? That's no small feat."

Her friend grew curious: "Could you have offended Zhou Shihe?"

He Xiao was confident: "No. If doing his makeup offended her, she'd be a fraud—wasting heaven's unique gift to her."

That gift referred to her beauty and aura.

Her friend agreed: "So you really have no feelings for Li Heng?"

He Xiao smiled: "Stop probing—I really don't. The last one, Ye Zhanyan, is still bleeding in the wilderness—I've learned my lesson."

Her friend sighed: "I never thought Ye Senior was so beautiful and still got rejected—Li Heng really is hard to pursue."

He Xiao said: "It's all about method. Ye Senior had the credentials to knock on his door—she just moved too fast."

Her friend shook her head: "Still seems tough. Look at Mai Sui tonight—doesn't she feel like she's broken out of her cocoon, transformed? If we ranked the Little Kings again now, Mai Sui would be undisputed #1."

He Xiao said: "I can't deny your point. But they each have their own charm—many guys prefer Wei Xiaozhu's type. The older she gets, the purer her aura remains—it's truly heaven-sent."

Her friend recalled the Little Kings and asked: "If you had that kind of beauty, would you fall for Li Heng?"

He Xiao smiled: "If I had that kind of looks, and wasn't thinking ahead, I wouldn't dare rush into it—I don't want to become the second Ye Zhanyan."

…

Xianghui Hall.

Front-left performers' reserved area.

Seeing an empty seat beside Zhou Shihe, Li Heng sat down naturally.

He made small talk: "Is my makeup too heavy?"

Zhou Shihe tilted her head slightly, studied him carefully, then gave an objective assessment: "It's quite good. He Xiao adapts well to each person—her skill is high."

Li Heng asked casually: "How does it compare to yours?"

Zhou Shihe gave him a quiet glance and smiled without answering.

Li Heng sensed the quiet pride of a Little King and pressed on: "Then when we get to Singapore, you'll do my makeup."

Zhou Shihe said: "There are professional makeup artists there—big-name ones."

Li Heng blurted: "Big-name or not doesn't matter—what matters is suitability. Your skill suits me best."

Hearing this, Zhou Shihe fell silent for several seconds, then said nothing.

Seeing Li Heng and Zhou Shihe whispering, Huang Ziyue, from the back row, forced herself past her psychological barrier toward the Fudan Little King, wrote a note, and passed it to Li Heng through the person beside him.

Li Heng felt a tap on his back, turned, and saw a note.

He asked: "Whose?"

The girl behind him said: "Huang Ziyue."

He thought for a moment, opened it, and read: Senior, my grandfather invites you to dinner at our home.

Li Heng was speechless—the girl had zero experience pursuing boys, using her grandfather as a shield.

He didn't reply.

A while later, the girl behind him passed another note.

He opened it: Senior, I want to be friends with you.

He still didn't reply.

Huang Ziyue sent two more notes afterward—he didn't even bother opening them.

Seeing Zhou Shihe glance at the notes with a strange look, Li Heng spread his hands: "Don't look at me like that—I didn't ask for any of this. They're all her own initiative."

Zhou Shihe smiled knowingly, checked her watch—three minutes until seven.

Three minutes passed in a flash—the New Year's Eve gala began.

Huang Ziyue was unreliable, but Principal Sun was practical—she gave her speech on stage without notes, speaking offhand for about a minute and a half.

Time had given her an inner allure—even the rustle of her fingers turning pages felt seductive. That summed up Mai Sui on stage.

As Mai Sui hosted the gala with passion and emotion, Li Heng noticed many eyes—overt and hidden—stealing glances at him.

Clearly, the more outstanding Mai Sui became, the hotter the gossip between them grew.

Li Heng even saw school administrators turning their heads to look his way.

In this moment, he murmured to Zhou Shihe: "Have you ever heard rumors about me and Mai Sui behind my back?"

Zhou Shihe looked up at Mai Sui and replied succinctly: "Yes."

Li Heng asked: "Tell me a couple—look, even the vice president is staring at me."

Zhou Shihe said gently: "Many are guessing whether Xiao Han or Suisui will ultimately win."

Li Heng froze, feeling like he'd picked up a stone only to hit his own foot: "Zhou Gu Niang, be honest—were you just trying to mess with me?"

Zhou Shihe mimicked his expression with a blink, then remained silent.

The host announced the next act. Amidst the crowd's anticipation, Li Heng and Zhou Shihe exchanged a glance, then rose in perfect unison and walked toward the stage.

"Clap, clap, clap…!"

The entire audience erupted in thunderous, unceasing applause.

Last year's New Year's Eve, both of them were immensely popular.

But this year's New Year's Eve, their statuses were different; whether teacher or classmate, everyone's gaze toward them carried respect.

Pure admiration!

After all, these were the ones who topped the Billboard charts!

Not necessarily the last to ever achieve it, but certainly the first. Especially given their dual identity as Asians and Chinese, this honor was no small feat. The international climate of this era was far from friendly toward Asians and Chinese.

A purely instrumental album breaking through such barriers was like the most famous editorial in this week's People's Daily: They are heroes! They are international masters!

As the two stepped onto the stage, the previously roaring crowd fell silent, thousands of eyes instantly locking onto them.

Men stared at Zhou Shihe; women stared at Li Heng, unable to suppress their fluttering hearts.

Suddenly, a loud female voice rang out from the audience: "Li Heng! Zhou Shihe! Get together! You two are made for each other!"

Yes, it was the voice of some crazy woman!

Everyone turned to look—the girl had buried her face in her hands and crouched beneath her seat, instantly triggering a wave of laughter throughout Xianghui Hall.

Li Heng looked at Zhou Shihe.

Zhou Shihe sensed it and lifted her gaze toward him; after two seconds, their eyes parted, one fixed on the piano before her, slender fingers resting on the black and white keys.

Li Heng waited for the piano's melody.

Tonight's piece was "Rain's Mark," with Zhou's piano as the lead and him merely providing accompaniment.

Not long after, the exquisite piano melody began, each note brimming with emotion and artistry. At one moment, Li Heng joined in, and his thoughts scattered.

He remembered last New Year's Eve—he'd spotted Huang Zhaoyi in the corner, and Teacher Yu had said nothing about the Yu family's gathering; Mai Sui's feelings toward him had been murky then, oh, and Liu Yue, that bastard, had been there too.

His mind kept wandering until the audience erupted in applause again, snapping him back to reality.

The two rose and stood side by side, bowing to the audience, then descended the stage.

Those few steps felt like walking a Hollywood red carpet; teachers and students with cameras rushed to photograph them.

One female teacher even leapt from her seat, handed her camera to a colleague, then smiled at Li Heng and Zhou Shihe: "Li Heng, Shihe, let's take a picture together."

These were their own school's teachers, and in this setting, neither Li Heng nor Zhou Shihe had any reason to refuse—they gladly agreed.

Under countless eyes, Zhou Shihe stood in the center, Li Heng on the left, the female teacher on the right, and they took a group photo.

Not just one camera was snapping—it was dozens, all crowding in with a chorus of "clicks."

Many in the crowd were seething—why hadn't they thought of this? The female teacher had scored a huge win.

After the photo, the teacher echoed the crazy girl's joke, sighing: "Your performance on stage was perfectly unified—you two are truly meant for each other."

Zhou Shihe stole a glance at him from the corner of her eye, then quietly walked back to her seat.

Li Heng smiled at the teacher and followed.

Along the way, many classmates reached out to shake their hands. Zhou Shihe offered only polite, faint smiles—no hand extended.

Li Heng, however, took the approachable route—he shook fingertips with everyone, male or female, as quickly as he could.

Those few dozen steps felt like enduring the Long March.

Back at their seats, Zhou Shihe stared intently at Mai Sui as she returned to the stage. Once the second act began, she softly asked: "You were distracted on stage just now?"

Li Heng asked urgently: "Did it affect the performance?"

Zhou Shihe said: "Yes, but not much."

Li Heng exhaled in relief.

Zhou Shihe asked: "Were you thinking of Huang Zhaoyi?"

Li Heng was startled: "Why bring her up?"

Zhou Shihe said: "Last year she sat in the right corner. Today, you stared at that direction for a long time."

Li Heng's eyelid twitched. "You're supposed to be focused on the piano—why are you watching me?"

Zhou Shihe replied calmly: "We're partners. When you lose focus, I feel it."

Li Heng froze, then muttered irritably: "I'm really afraid of you. But you're wrong—last year Wei Xiaozhu and Dai Qing were also in that direction, and they're there today too."

Zhou Shihe instinctively studied the corner of his brow, judging whether he was lying. But who was Li Heng? A seasoned veteran—he'd been burned before and was prepared now. He feigned exhaustion, rubbing his temples to block her view.

Seeing this, Zhou Shihe withdrew her gaze, losing interest in pressing further, and spoke gently: "When are you planning to leave?"

Li Heng answered: "I promised Mai Sui I'd leave with her tonight."

He then asked: "Do you want to go back early?"

Zhou Shihe hesitated for a few seconds, then said: "Yes."

Li Heng asked: "Something wrong?"

Zhou Shihe gave a soft hum.

Li Heng said: "Then after this act ends, I'll take you back first, then come back for Mai Sui."

Zhou Shihe instinctively wanted to refuse, but it was freezing outside, and darkness had already fallen—going alone wasn't safe. She said nothing.

Since their opening was so high, frankly speaking, even though the second act was excellent, the contrast was painfully obvious.

After the second act ended, as the stage lights dimmed, the two left their seats together and walked toward the back.

The previously crowded aisle parted automatically as they approached, people instinctively squeezing aside to make way.

This!

This was sheer charisma!

Among all the students, who else had this kind of influence?

Many thought so.

One male student called out to Li Heng: "Big writer, aren't you staying for the show?"

Li Heng smiled back: "No, I've got something to take care of first—I'll be back."

He led the way; Zhou Shihe followed like a small bird, head down, closely behind him, as countless eyes watched them until they finally exited Xianghui Hall.

Outside, heavy rain had begun, mixed with gritty particles—snow was coming.

Neither had an umbrella. They were stuck.

Li Heng asked: "Did Mai Sui and the other two bring umbrellas?"

Zhou Shihe replied: "They arrived at noon, when the weather was fine—they didn't bring any."

Hearing this, Li Heng pulled her back to the entrance and instructed: "Wait here for me. I'll go ask Xiaozhu—she usually keeps an umbrella in her bag."

Zhou Shihe said okay and stood under a patch of light.

Wei Xiaozhu, sitting in the back row, was intently watching the stage when her left shoulder was lightly tapped. She turned.

Seeing him, she smiled: "Why come looking for me? Something the matter?"

Li Heng got straight to the point: "It's raining outside. Borrow your umbrella."

Wei Xiaozhu cheerfully opened her bag and pulled out an umbrella, handing it to him.

Li Heng took it, thanked her, and turned to leave.

Watching him vanish so quickly, Liu Yanling said: "Why leave so fast? I've got an umbrella too. Li Heng's so tall—how's one umbrella enough for him and Zhou Shihe?"

Hearing this, Wei Xiaozhu involuntarily recalled the question she'd asked at Xuhui Hospital.

He'd forbidden her from asking about Zhou Shihe.

Actually, she'd just thought to hand him both her umbrella and Yanling's—but the next second, she rejected the idea herself.

Perhaps this rain was fate—just like them on stage, perfectly matched.

She smiled and said: "You gave him your umbrella—how are we going back?"

"Oh! Right! If we give him both umbrellas, we can't go back. No wonder he's a genius—he's so thoughtful." Liu Yanling cupped her 36D, trying to keep them from bouncing—too tiring.