As the lights of the city began to shine, the various karaoke and dance halls on Entertainment Street started to liven up.

Lu Yan hugged her knees, squatting on the wet street after the rain.

Vendors on the roadside were selling skewers. She sniffed the air, and her stomach began to growl again.

She should have known better than to be so honest and give all the money to Shen Kuo. Now, she was penniless, and dinner had become a problem.

Lu Zhen, along with his group of brothers, had been taken by the police, and now she didn’t even know where to find her father.

Sighing, Lu Yan stood up, touched her stomach, and walked into the nearest karaoke bar.

The karaoke halls back then were similar to modern-day nightclubs and bars, but with simpler facilities. The floor was covered with mosaic tiles, and the ceiling was adorned with star-shaped lights. Rotating glass balls reflected colorful spots of light.

By the dance floor, there were booth seats with foldable tables and chairs, and a few ceiling fans lazily blew air.

People danced in the center of the floor, not like the wild dancing of modern bars, but more like ballroom dancing.

Lu Yan found the manager of the karaoke hall and asked if there were any jobs available for her.

The manager asked, “Can you sell alcohol?”

Lu Yan shook her head blankly.

“Can you do accounting?”

She shook her head again.

“Then what can you do?”

“I can sing.”

The manager, busy attending to guests, didn’t have time to pay attention to her. “We don’t need any singers here.”

Lu Yan looked at the woman on stage, twisting her body while singing. Honestly, she said, “I sing better than her.”

Upon hearing this, the manager turned around and gave her a once-over. Seeing her clothes were dirty and her face messy, he laughed. “Stop boasting. Yingying is our professional singer. Who do you think you are, saying you sing better than her? Don’t overestimate yourself. Go on, go on, don’t disrupt my work.”

Several of the waitstaff nearby wore expressions of disdain, looking at Lu Yan as though they were watching a joke.

“Yingying is the most popular singer here. Saying you sing better than her? Isn’t that just ruining the show?”

“She’s probably just bluffing.”

“If she really got on stage, she probably wouldn’t be able to sing a single note.”

Lu Yan ignored their mockery. She wasn’t one to argue with others.

She wasn’t just boasting when she said she sang better than the woman on stage, her sweet voice was one of those rare gifts that seemed like it was given to her by the heavens.

In her past life, after she became famous for singing and playing folk music in live broadcasts, many entertainment agencies had wanted to sign her. However, Lu Zhen strongly opposed it.

He even went as far as locking her up to prevent it.

Lu Yan had fought with her father, even going on a hunger strike in protest. But… Lu Zhen was unwavering in his stance.

Uncle Liang Ting had once mentioned that her father’s hatred for the entertainment industry seemed to be related to the death of her mother.

Thinking of countless lonely nights, when Lu Zhen sat on the sofa smoking, her heart softened. She stopped arguing with him.

She gave up on her own dreams and the thing she loved the most.

Reborn in the year 2000, perhaps this was her chance to reclaim her dreams.

While Lu Yan was lost in her memories, the “most popular singer” Yingying ran into a bit of trouble. A customer interrupted her performance.

“Why are you singing the same songs over and over? Can’t you sing something fresh?”

“I’m sick of these songs. Sing something new.”

Yingying was interrupted and clearly annoyed. She frowned at them. “What do you want to hear?”

“Sing something new.”

“These are the songs on the set list. If you want something new, you come up and sing.”

The customers started causing a fuss. “Are you stupid? We’re not here to sing, that’s your job.”

Yingying was used to being pampered and had a temper. She immediately dropped the microphone and quit. “If you want to hear something, go somewhere else.”

As the scene was about to spiral into chaos, the manager, frantic like an ant on a hot pan, finally noticed that Lu Yan hadn’t left. He quickly called her over. “Aren’t you a singer? They want to hear something new. Can you do it?”

New songs? That was easy. Every song she’d sung in her live broadcasts, which had made her famous, could be considered new by today’s standards.

“I can, but didn’t you say I was overestimating myself?”

The manager urgently pleaded, “Ah, as long as you can save the situation, tonight’s commission is yours to set.”

Had this been before, with Lu Yan’s temperament, she would have likely snapped back at the arrogant manager. But now, she was starving and decided to take the opportunity. She went straight to the stage.

The manager asked her, “What kind of accompaniment do you want? We can provide anything.”

“No need. The accompaniment I need, you don’t have.”

Lu Yan turned around, saw a piano on the stage, and walked over to it, adjusting the tuning.

Yingying looked at her with a somewhat complicated expression.

She was the star of the show. If she refused to perform, no one would be dancing tonight.

Originally, she had planned to wait for them to beg her to come on stage, but she didn’t expect the manager to find a replacement so quickly. And this replacement could play the piano?

It was well-known that in this era, those who could play the piano weren’t ordinary people. Pianos were the standard for cultured, wealthy young ladies, not something you could just pick up from the street!

Lu Yan adjusted the tuning and soon began to sing. She performed several love songs she was particularly good at, capturing the attention of everyone in the room, both men and women.

The songs were indeed new, and they were her hits from recent years that had exploded on internet platforms. They were widely circulated and loved by young people.

Most importantly, these were songs they had never heard before.

Lu Yan’s voice was clear and captivating, blending perfectly with the lively, upbeat piano melody. The atmosphere in the dance hall reached a new high, livelier than ever before.

Just as this was happening, Shen Kuo happened to pass by the entrance of the dance hall. He leaned against the doorframe, watching the girl in the center of the stage playing the piano.

She wore a sweet smile, with two small, adorable dimples at the corners of her mouth. Her brown eyes were clear and innocent, exuding an air of purity.

Shen Kuo immediately recognized the look in her eyes — she was the type of rich, well-behaved girl who had never suffered. Only those who had been loved and pampered since childhood had such an untroubled, joyful expression in their eyes.

It was different from him. Even when he smiled, there was always a layer of insincere cunning behind it.

Shen Kuo turned his gaze away and lowered his head to light a cigarette.

The manager paid Lu Yan 30 yuan for her performance fee. In this era, when a bowl of noodles only cost 2 or 3 yuan, thirty yuan was enough for her to live comfortably for several days.

The manager seemed thrilled, as if he had struck gold. He wanted to hire Lu Yan as a permanent singer, offering her whatever price she wanted.

Lu Yan turned to glance at Yingying, who was gritting her teeth in frustration, and smiled as she politely declined. She said she might come back to do part-time work if she had time.

The manager eagerly agreed and mentioned that talent scouts often visited their club. If Lu Yan performed here, with her heavenly voice, she would surely be discovered by one of them.

All in all, what was most important to her now was finding her father!

Lu Yan took the money and walked to a nearby late-night food stall, ordering a bowl of lamb soup noodles, eating hungrily.

She thought to herself that tonight she could stay at a small inn for the night, no need to sleep on the streets.

When she thought about it, that 30 yuan was her first-ever earnings in this life.

She recalled the days when she went to entertainment clubs with her best friends, casually swiping credit cards for bills that were in the four or even five digits, living an extravagant, money-to-burn lifestyle every day.

It felt like a lifetime ago.

Just as Lu Yan was lost in her bittersweet thoughts, several motorcycles roared up to the food stall.

She watched in astonishment as her tall, handsome father got off a Harley motorcycle, walked up to her, placed his helmet on the table, and casually sat down, ordering a bowl of lamb noodles — only the lamb, no noodles.

“I’ve been asking around everywhere, and finally found you.”

“Dad!”

Lu Yan was deeply moved. She didn’t expect Lu Zhen to actually come find her. After all, he was her real father!

Lu Zhen grabbed Lu Yan’s face, inspecting it from left to right. He then pushed her bangs up to reveal her smooth, full forehead, scrutinizing her carefully…

She looked so much like his sister, who had been kidnapped years ago. Even the expression in her eyes was identical!

Lu Yan blinked. “Dad, what are you looking at?”

Lu Zhen patted her face. “Come on, tell me, what’s your name, how many people are in your family, do you remember anything from when you were a child?”

Lu Yan was confused. “My name is Lu Yan, there’s only me and Dad in the family. When I was young, I lived with Dad.”

“And your dad?”

“That’s you.”

“……”

Lu Zhen’s expression grew somewhat complicated, as though he was deep in thought. Even when the steaming hot lamb noodles were placed in front of him, he didn’t bother eating.

“You’re very likely my sister, whom I lost many years ago,” Lu Zhen said seriously. “My sister had a bit of a mental disability, she was born with intellectual impairment. I really think you look a lot like her.”

Lu Yan: …

She suddenly recalled what her dad had said before—that he had a sister, her little aunt.

Once, Lu Zhen had taken his little aunt to an amusement park, but she was kidnapped by human traffickers and was never heard from again.

The loss of his sister had caused Lu Zhen years of deep guilt and self-blame. After Lu Yan was born, in memory of his lost sister, he had named her after his sister—Lu Yan.

As Lu Yan grew up, her family often remarked that she looked more and more like her young aunt.

Lu Yan had once seen an old, yellowing photo of her aunt, and they really did look alike, especially their delicate, bright eyes, which were strikingly similar.

It wasn’t uncommon for a niece to resemble her aunt, especially when they were of similar age, so it made sense that they might be mistaken for each other.

It turned out that Lu Zhen had mistaken her for his sister, which was why he had been looking for her so desperately.

But Lu Yan didn’t want to let the mistake continue. She needed to set things straight with Lu Zhen.

“Dad, I’m not Aunt, I’m not your sister. I’m Lu Yan, your only biological daughter in this world.”

Lu Zhen looked at her as though she were crazy, then spoke to Liang Ting in a low, measured tone: “It’s really her.”

“Mm, she really looks like your sister.”

Lu Yan took a deep breath and continued, “Although saying this might make you think I’m crazy or mentally unwell, I still need to tell you—when I was 20, I had a car accident, and then I was reborn. I’ve been reborn to the present. It sounds unbelievable, but believe me, I really am your daughter!”

She spoke all of this in one breath, then looked at Lu Zhen with hopeful eyes. However, he simply reached out and ruffled her hair. “My sister’s condition seems to have gotten worse.”

Lu Yan, seeing that he didn’t believe her, quickly started thinking about how to prove that everything she said was true.

“By the way, Dad, my mom’s name is Jian Yao. Do you know a girl named Jian Yao? She’s my mom! You really care about her!”

Lu Zhen and Liang Ting exchanged a glance, both indicating that they had never heard of that name.

“I’ve already got a girlfriend, and it’s not the person you’re talking about,” Lu Zhen said unhappily. “You girl, what exactly is going on with you? If you keep spouting nonsense, I’m not going to deal with you anymore.”

Lu Yan looked at him pitifully. “I’m not making things up.”

Liang Ting pointed to his head. “Isn’t your sister a bit off in the head? What can she explain? For now, just treat her like your ‘daughter.’ Take her home, and when the time comes, a paternity test will clear everything up. Also, didn’t old Lu keep saying he wanted a daughter? Even if the paternity test doesn’t prove anything, a girl who looks so much like your sister? Let her stay and be raised as his goddaughter. Your family won’t be lacking any food.”

Lu Yan looked at Liang Ting, stunned, and said, “Uncle Liang, so you were this smart when you were young!”

Liang Ting smiled awkwardly, scratching his head. “Thanks.”

Lu Yan knew that her dad’s close friend, Uncle Liang, was a man of high intelligence. When her dad fell out with her grandfather and left the family to strike out on his own, it was all thanks to Liang Ting, the strategist, that her dad was able to successfully grow the company to become one of the world’s top 500 companies.

When she was younger, Lu Yan was very rebellious and often went against her dad. Once, Lu Zhen scolded her for being useless, and she shot back at him: ‘You’ve spent your whole life trying to prove to Grandpa that you’re not useless. What right do you have to say that about me?’

That line had hurt Lu Zhen deeply for a long time.

Later, Liang Ting told Lu Yan, ‘You were wrong. Your dad left the family and went out on his own without hesitation. He lived in basements, ate cold rice with water, and he didn’t do it to prove anything to anyone. He wanted to be your mom’s and your little princess’s eternal support.’

Lu Yan couldn’t help but press her hand over Lu Zhen’s.

In any case, it felt so good to be back.

To be able to see her dad from when he was young, it really was wonderful!

Lu Yan looked at Lu Zhen again and noticed that his eyes were slightly red.

Could it be that he was about to burst into tears and cry with her? Lu Yan hadn’t even fully gotten herself emotionally ready for that.

Lu Zhen stared at the girl for a long time in silence, then without saying a word, he pulled Lu Yan out of the lamb soup noodle shop and walked toward the motorcycle.

Finding his long-lost sister, his heart, which had been tormented by extreme guilt, finally felt at ease.

“Dad… did you cry?”

“I didn’t cry.”

Lu Zhen said this while rubbing his red eyes, then placed his protective helmet on Lu Yan’s head and pulled her onto his Harley motorcycle.

“Come on, let’s go home.”