Mu Wan: “…”

She was both exasperated and amused. Finally, she grabbed a pillow from the room and playfully swung it at Fang Li. “You little brat!”

Fang Li quickly opened the door and ran out, glancing back every so often to tease, “You can’t catch me, you can’t catch me!”

The others had been waiting outside for a while. When they saw Fang Li emerge with red eyes and Mu Wan chasing after her with a pillow, they assumed the two had actually fought and rushed to intervene.

“Hey, hey, let’s not resort to violence!”

[Wait, are they really fighting?]
[Fang Rui looks like she’s been crying, but her expression seems a bit off. What on earth happened in that room?]
[I’m so curious! Ugh, wasn’t this supposed to be a fully live-streamed show? No one mentioned the guests could just shut the door!]

With the others holding her back, Mu Wan took a moment to explain to the camera. “Fang Li’s been hanging out with Shuqin and Yi-ge, the actors, and picking up their bad habits.”

“She faked crying, saying she’d lost the money, bawling her eyes out. I was about to lose it when she suddenly whipped the money out of her bag!”

The group, hearing the story, immediately released Mu Wan. Zhong Yi was the first to shift blame. “Hey now, don’t pin this on me. I didn’t teach her that stuff—must’ve been Xiao Li!”

Li Shuqin waved her hand in protest. “Why me? I didn’t teach her anything, not me!”

Zhou Yang, ever the instigator, added fuel to the fire. “Ah, yes, yes, it was me. I taught her. A singer teaching a dancer how to act—it makes perfect sense!”

Mu Wan turned her pillow toward him instantly. “Aha! I knew Li-Li wasn’t capable of such trickery at her age. So, it was you!”

Zhou Yang quickly darted away, wailing, “I was kidding! Li-Li, help me explain!”

The previously tense atmosphere dissolved into laughter and good humor.

[Haha, poor Mu Wan, the only victim in this chaos.]
[Someone really needs to scout Fang Li for acting. I’m not saying anything about her idol career, but her acting chops are legit. I was totally convinced when she ran out just now.]
**[+1 to that!]**

[Fang Li finally came through for once.]

With the money in hand, the group immediately went to buy tickets. Luckily, they managed to get them.

There were still more than three hours before the show started, so everyone used the time to rehearse their own performance.

At 4 p.m. local time, the Muses orchestra’s performance began right on schedule. Typically, theaters like this don’t allow live streaming or recording equipment, but the production team must have pulled some strings since no staff intervened.

[They each spent 200 bucks on the tickets, but we get to watch for free. It’s like we made 200 bucks!]
[Wow, the camera just scanned the audience. So many people are dressed so formally—completely different from concerts back home.]
[Uh… sharp-eyed me just spotted someone familiar in the crowd.]
[Oh, what a coincidence!]
[No, you should know this person too, especially anyone watching this live stream with their “boyfriend bro.”]

Mu Wan noticed someone sitting in the same row as her—a man in a suit, Qin Jie, who she had met briefly twice on the second day of the show. Her expression faltered slightly. Qin Jie, spotting her as well, looked equally surprised. His previously relaxed posture immediately straightened up.

“What a coincidence,” he said.
Mu Wan nodded. “Yes, this orchestra is very famous.”

After sitting down, Li Shuqin glanced at Mu Wan with a questioning look: *”You know him?”*

Mu Wan leaned closer to whisper a brief explanation.
Li Shuqin asked, “Want to switch seats with Zhou Yang?”

Mu Wan’s current seat was right next to Qin Jie. Given that she had a boyfriend and Qin Jie clearly had some interest in her, the situation was a bit awkward. However, Mu Wan felt that switching seats would be too deliberate, and Qin Jie hadn’t made any inappropriate advances. It would seem impolite to change seats now. She shook her head.

Li Shuqin said, “If anything comes up, just let us know.”
Mu Wan replied, “Got it!”

Soon, the symphony performance began. Everyone was quickly absorbed in the elegant and moving music.

[So this is a symphony? So many different instruments blending together, each distinct yet harmonious. Amazing.]
[That violin soloist earlier was incredible. Even as someone who only listens to TikTok hits, I’m impressed.]

Mu Wan also focused on the violinist. She knew his name because he was the winner of the previous Paganini International Violin Competition.

The Muses orchestra had prepared a total of ten pieces, and by the time they finished, over an hour had passed. Mu Wan was thoroughly satisfied with the performance.

As the audience was preparing to leave, the host suddenly came on stage, announcing that the theater was offering a bonus performance for free, and those interested could stay to watch.

Zhou Yang chuckled, “These tickets were so worth it—now they’re even giving us an extra show.”

But the moment the host revealed the name of the bonus program, Zhou Yang’s smile froze. He stiffly turned to look at the other four.

“This program’s name… why does it sound exactly like ours?”

Just then, several spotlights shone down on the five of them in the audience.

The host exclaimed, “Let’s welcome our performers to the stage!”

Mu Wan, Li Shuqin, Zhong Yi, Fang Rui: “…”

From below the stage, the director popped out, frantically waving for them to come up.

[Hahaha, these tickets are such a great deal—you even get a bonus show. But you have to perform it yourself!]

The tricked group of five exchanged helpless glances.

Darn it!