Chapter 3

The program recording continued until the early morning, lasting nearly ten hours. This lengthy recording was not only tormenting for all the bands waiting backstage, but also a tremendous physical drain for the mentors who were tirelessly providing evaluations.

After the end of the show, Chen Jia approached and asked the mentors not to leave immediately, mentioning that Director Shi and Sister Qi wanted to treat everyone to a late-night snack.

Qin Qingzhuo checked his phone and noticed several missed calls, all from Ji Chi.

On WeChat, Ji Chi had already sent a few messages:

—— “Qingzhuo, I was sleeping just now and missed your calls.”

—— “Qingzhuo, when can you come back? I just received a message from the director, and they’ve arranged my scenes early. I need to leave early this morning.”

—— “The latest flight is at 3:30 in the morning, and I have to leave by 2:00.”

Qin Qingzhuo glanced at the time in the upper left corner of the screen. There were still forty-five minutes until 2:00, and if everything went smoothly, he should be able to make it to see Ji Chi off. He quickly grabbed his coat and told Chen Jia, “You guys go ahead and eat; I have something urgent to attend to.”

Chen Jia was considerate, realizing that Qin Qingzhuo had a genuine urgency. Without much hesitation, she took out her phone and said, “Qingzhuo Ge, I’ll arrange for the program’s driver to take you. Shall I send you the driver’s contact and license plate through WeChat?”

“Sure, thank you, Chen Jia.” Qin Qingzhuo replied and swiftly walked out of the broadcasting hall.

Descending in the elevator to the underground parking lot, he was met with a sight of a densely packed and slowly moving sea of vehicles. Qin Qingzhuo felt a visual shock.

The underground parking lot was filled with at least a hundred cars, which would be considered a normal volume during regular times when vehicles entered and exited smoothly. However, now that the program recording had concluded, and everyone was in a hurry to go home, it resulted in a traffic jam.

Fortunately, the park’s management had arranged for security personnel to handle the situation, preventing the underground parking lot from turning into a traffic nightmare.

When Qin Qingzhuo reached the spot where his car was parked, the driver was already standing by the car, ready to open the rear door for him.

But after sitting on the mentor’s seat for nearly ten hours straight, Qin Qingzhuo now felt sore and stiff, completely unwilling to huddle in the cramped car compartment.

He pointed outside in the direction of the driver, “I’ll walk to the roadside first. When the car is ready to go, give me a call.”

“Sure thing, Mr. Qin,” the driver replied.

As Qin Qingzhuo walked toward the exit of the underground parking lot, he replied to Ji Chi’s message, “I’m on my way back now. I’ll try to get there before 2:00.”

His phone vibrated, and Ji Chi’s immediate response came, “Okay, I’ll wait for you.”

Two seconds later, another message popped up, “Don’t rush too much. Ask the driver to drive steadily.”

Putting away his phone, Qin Qingzhuo stepped out of the underground parking lot, pulling his black mask down to his chin.

The night was dark, and he figured he wouldn’t be recognized by many people, especially since he had been retired for four years, and most people in the world were so forgetful… Qin Qingzhuo took a deep breath of the night air.

The air outside the parking lot was slightly less polluted by car exhaust, but it couldn’t be considered fresh either.

Walking along the road, Qin Qingzhuo felt a bit guilty towards Ji Chi.

Ji Chi had been filming outside for nearly half a year, and after the crew gave him a three-day break, he rushed back to be with Qin Qingzhuo that very night. However, the week before the program started happened to be the busiest time for Qin Qingzhuo. He was so busy preparing for the first episode that he worked tirelessly, barely getting a few hours of sleep, let alone going home to be with Ji Chi.

Three days had passed in the blink of an eye, and Qin Qingzhuo could finally catch his breath briefly after the first episode recording ended, but now Ji Chi had to leave.

If he couldn’t make it back in time to send Ji Chi off this time, it would truly be unreasonable. Qin Qingzhuo sighed.

Outside the broadcasting hall building, rows of vehicles were stuck in a standstill on the road. Drivers honked their horns in frustration, causing a constant wave of honking that echoed through the night.

The subway had stopped running, and thousands of audience members poured out within a short period of time. Taxis, private cars, program group cars, and buses all converged on this slightly cool late summer night, causing a traffic jam on the ring road.

At a nearby intersection, traffic police, who had been contacted in advance by the program group, were trying to clear the congestion, but it seemed to be of little avail for the time being.

Qin Qingzhuo reached the roadside, surveying the traffic conditions around him, feeling a slight sense of impatience creeping up in his heart.

With such a traffic jam, it seemed he might really not be able to make it back in time to send Ji Chi off.

Just as Qin Qingzhuo was hesitating whether to give Ji Chi a call, he caught sight of Jiang Ji not far away.

Jiang Ji leaned against a heavy black motorcycle, holding a guitar, his gaze seemingly lost in thought as he stared into the distance.

The program group had arranged transportation for the bands, but Jiang Ji obviously hadn’t taken it; he had ridden his own motorcycle here.

Qin Qingzhuo looked at the motorcycle leaning against the side—the fact that it managed to navigate through the crowded underground parking lot and onto the main road outside when other vehicles couldn’t move an inch indicated the advantage of motorcycles in such situations…

The person leaning against the motorcycle moved his arm, revealing muscular lines that exuded a sense of strength. Qin Qingzhuo then noticed the cigarette between his fingers, the ember flickering as he took a drag before exhaling white smoke.

Subconsciously, a thought crossed Qin Qingzhuo’s mind: why would someone with such a gifted voice be willing to tarnish it with smoking?

Did he truly not care, or was he unaware of how smoking could affect his voice?

A nineteen-year-old young man, if he smoked persistently for ten years, who knew what impact it would have on his vocal cords by Qin Qingzhuo’s age… He almost wanted to step forward and give him a reminder.

However, he wasn’t familiar with Jiang Ji. Although they had formed a brief mentor-student relationship during the program recording, their interactions were limited to a few interactions on and off stage. It might be overstepping to approach him suddenly to give advice.

Two meters ahead of Jiang Ji, the vendor of the grilled noodles cart shouted, “Hey handsome, your two portions of grilled noodles are ready!”

Jiang Ji snapped out of his thoughts, glanced at the grilled noodles cart, extinguished the nearly burnt-out cigarette, tossed the butt into a nearby trash can, then straightened up and walked toward the cart, reaching out to collect the two portions of grilled noodles.

Sensing someone’s gaze on him, Jiang Ji turned around and glanced in Qin Qingzhuo’s direction. After identifying who was staring at him, his gaze lingered on Qin Qingzhuo’s face for two seconds, as if trying to decipher his intent.

This could be a good opportunity to speak up about the smoking, Qin Qingzhuo thought.

But the person exuded an aura of “mind your own business” from head to toe; he was definitely not the type to readily accept others’ advice. Even if Qin Qingzhuo approached him to give advice, it would probably end up fruitless. In that moment of eye contact, Qin Qingzhuo abandoned the idea.

Just as he was about to look away, Jiang Ji raised the grilled noodles in his hand and spoke, “Want some?”

Qin Qingzhuo: “…”

So this person thought he had been staring at him because he was eyeing the grilled noodles in his hand?

Qin Qingzhuo was speechless.

…He had to admit, he was feeling a bit hungry now.

Seeing Qin Qingzhuo’s silence, Jiang Ji didn’t waste any more time. He put down his hand, diverted his gaze, and walked toward his motorcycle.

When he reached the motorcycle, Jiang Ji hung the grilled noodles on the handlebars, put on his helmet, and swung his long leg over to straddle the motorcycle.

With a roar, the engine started up, emitting a deep rumble.

Qin Qingzhuo glanced at his watch on his wrist. There was still half an hour before Ji Chi’s departure, but the long line of cars in front showed no sign of moving forward.

Just as he was about to take out his phone to call Ji Chi, amidst the roar of motorcycle engines, a voice suddenly cut through the noise, “Where are you headed?”

Qin Qingzhuo was somewhat surprised as he looked up. A young man seated on a motorcycle a few steps away was looking at him, his eyes obscured by the helmet.

Was he offering to give him a ride?

“…Near Minglei,” Qin Qingzhuo replied.

“Get on,” the young man said.

Qin Qingzhuo approached him, asking, “Are you going in the same direction?”

Jiang Ji didn’t answer, as if he hadn’t heard, and reached behind to take off the guitar strapped to his back, handing it to Qin Qingzhuo. Qin Qingzhuo took it and slung it over his own back, then swung his leg over the motorcycle, sitting behind Jiang Ji and holding onto the handlebars.

A faint smell of smoke emanated from the young man, prompting Qin Qingzhuo once again to feel the urge to advise him to smoke less.

The next moment, the motorcycle surged onto the road, and a cool breeze swept over them, dispersing the smell of smoke.

Jiang Ji’s motorcycle skills were excellent. He navigated through the various congested vehicles with ease, carving out a path among them.

Ten minutes later, they left behind the flashing lights, blaring horns, and smoky exhaust fumes, disappearing into the distance.

As they rode on the wide road, the speed increased, and the wind lifted Jiang Ji’s shirt, creating a curved bulge that brushed against Qin Qingzhuo’s face. He instinctively leaned back.

The sparsely populated streets in the early hours of the morning were refreshing, with the gentle night breeze caressing their faces.

If it weren’t for the urgency to see Ji Chi, Qin Qingzhuo might have wished the journey could be longer.

The scenery became increasingly familiar, and they arrived near Minglei. Jiang Ji turned his head slightly and asked, his voice carried away by the wind, “Where should I stop?”

Qin Qingzhuo was about to answer when the motorcycle suddenly slammed on the brakes, and Qin Qingzhuo’s nose collided heavily with Jiang Ji’s stiff spine due to inertia.

With a sharp pain in his nose, Qin Qingzhuo pushed himself away from Jiang Ji, only to see a stray dog happily running ahead a short distance away. If Jiang Ji hadn’t braked in time, the dog might have met with disaster.

“F*ck”

Qin Qingzhuo heard Jiang Ji curse softly, his voice tinged with anger.

Then Jiang Ji turned his head again and asked, “Where should I stop?”

“Here is fine,” Qin Qingzhuo looked around, dismounting from the motorcycle and handing the guitar to Jiang Ji, “Thank you.”

Jiang Ji grunted in acknowledgment, taking the guitar and strapping it onto himself.

“You’re still young, smoke less, it’s not good for your vocal cords…”

Before he could finish his sentence, the roar of the engine sounded again, and the motorcycle made a sharp turn, heading towards the other side of the road.

Forget it. Qin Qingzhuo shook his head.

Being a rebellious nineteen-year-old himself, Qin Qingzhuo doubted anyone would have the patience to listen to him at such a defiant age.

His phone vibrated, and the driver finally managed to break free and call him.

“It’s good that you’re out,” Qin Qingzhuo answered the phone. “You don’t need to drive me anymore, just head home.”

After hanging up, Qin Qingzhuo saw several new messages from Ji Chi:

“How much longer until you get home? I need to go out, Qingzhuo.”

“I’m in the underground parking lot, where are you?”

“There seem to be paparazzi in the parking lot. I found a secluded spot to wait for you. I’ll send you my location.”

Qin Qingzhuo called Ji Chi back. “The traffic was really bad. I hitched a ride with one of the musicians and just got back… I didn’t let him stop too close. I’m at the traffic lights near Minglei… Yeah, I’m already on my way there. I’ll be there soon.”

**

Jiang Ji didn’t drive the motorcycle very far before stopping.

He remembered passing by a vending machine in a small alley last time he was here, and it seemed his memory was correct. He dismounted and walked over to buy a can of soda.

Water droplets clung to the rolled-out can, and with a light “pop” as he pulled the tab, a burst of cool mist escaped.

Jiang Ji took a few sips of the soda, watching Qin Qingzhuo’s figure turn into an adjacent side street about tens of meters away.

This area was home to a high-end villa community for the wealthy, and Jiang Ji guessed that Qin Qingzhuo probably lived there.

It was several hundred meters from here to the residential area. Did Qin Qingzhuo choose to get off here to avoid revealing his privacy?

Celebrity sure are cautious. Jiang Ji chuckled.

He knew about the villa community because two months ago, as the bar where he performed was about to close, a customer suddenly called, claiming to have left an earring behind at the bar. The earring was quite valuable, and they hoped Jiang Ji could help deliver it.

Jiang Ji didn’t know how they got his phone number, but he still rode his motorcycle to the address provided by the person.

After knocking on the door, a drunken man in his thirties opened it, leaning against the doorframe as he scrutinized Jiang Ji from head to toe before drawling, “Where’s the earring?”

“Money,” Jiang Ji replied expressionlessly.

The man paused for a moment. “Money?”

“Even if you’re just asking someone to run an errand for you in the middle of the night, you should still pay, right?” Jiang Ji replied.

“Money, huh…” The man chuckled, then turned to grab his wallet from a nearby shoe cabinet. Pulling out a few hundred yuan bills, he took the earring from Jiang Ji’s hand. As he did so, he pressed the bills into Jiang Ji’s forearm, leaning closer with a suggestive tone. “It’s late, why don’t you stay a bit longer? There are more lucrative jobs you can do, if you’re interested.”

The man exuded a mixture of perfume and alcohol, sickly sweet enough to make Jiang Ji feel nauseous.

“Get lost.” Jiang Ji had looked at him coldly then, resisting the urge to kick him away and instead grabbed the money, shrugged off the man’s hand, and turned to leave.

The memory came flooding back along with a sense of disgust. Jiang Ji took a sip of the cold soda, pushing down the nauseating feeling and clearing the detestable memory from his mind.

The night breeze was pleasantly cool on his face as Jiang Ji leaned against the wall, drinking the soda slowly.

In the late night, the alley was deserted, and strolling through it felt relaxing.

During the first six months in this city, he had performed at two bars, and at this time, he would typically be rushing to the next one. The gigs at both bars were scheduled very close together in terms of time, but they were quite far apart in distance. He had to ride his motorcycle at speeds exceeding 80 kilometers per hour just to arrive on time.

After arriving at the next bar, his throat, filled with the cool breeze, would feel a bit tight, and he would have to exert extra effort to control his breath while singing.

After finishing the soda, Jiang Ji carried the empty can back.

Ahead, another alley seemed to darken slightly, as if someone had turned off a light.

As Jiang Ji passed by, he glanced inside and saw, under the dim light of the only street lamp, a valuable black sedan parked a few meters away at the end of the alley.

It seemed the person in the car had just turned off the headlights, causing the sudden darkness.

Just as Jiang Ji was about to pass the alley and continue walking, he suddenly saw the person sitting in the passenger seat – it was Qin Qingzhuo.

And sitting next to Qin Qingzhuo was another man. He looked somewhat familiar, probably another celebrity, but Jiang Ji couldn’t remember where he had seen him before.

Qin Qingzhuo was fastening his seatbelt while turning his head to face the man. At the same time, the man’s profile was getting closer and closer to Qin Qingzhuo, until their lips met.

Jiang Ji’s footsteps came to a halt, and he turned his body, hiding behind the corner of the wall.

Meeting a man deep in the alley in the dead of night – should one say the people in this wealthy neighborhood have peculiar tastes, or that they are all too desperate?

Jiang Ji crouched down against the wall, took out his phone from his pocket, and leaned against the corner.

A hand with distinct knuckles extended from behind the wall, and a black lens was aimed at the car deep in the alley. Two fingers lightly slid across the screen, zooming in until the picture could clearly capture the two faces inside the car.

With a gentle touch of the shutter button, the image of the two men kissing froze on the screen of the phone.

As the two men inside the car separated, Jiang Ji withdrew his phone, his gaze falling on the yellowish picture.

A faint smirk formed at the corner of his mouth, and a slight hum escaped his nostrils, as if he had chuckled.

Then Jiang Ji straightened up and left the alley.

---

Author’s Note:

Remember, always wear a helmet when riding a motorcycle. The author took the opportunity to give a harsh critique to the two individuals breaking traffic rules.

TN:

Uhm…WTF ML?!! Is he collecting blackmail material or sth