You've worked hard, get some rest.

The Star Showdown will premiere live on the Manchester streaming platform MHB at 5:00 AM Manchester time, ending at 3:00 PM. A high-definition replay will be available for paid subscription during prime time at 7:00 PM.

At 11:30 a.m. Jingting time, Jiang Songhe woke up Jonathan, gave him the home Wi-Fi account, and let him out of the room. Then he locked the bedroom door and frowned as he studied how to use the MHB platform app.

While in Manr, Jiang Songhe was able to watch the game by accompanying Jiang Songyun in person. However, after returning to China, he searched online and found out that to use the app, he actually needed something called a VPN to "circumvent the Great Firewall".

Jiang Songhe tried downloading a few apps based on recommendations from netizens. After connecting to each one, the apps did have a video, but they were incredibly choppy and unresponsive, making it impossible to watch live streams smoothly. The people on the screen, panting and out of breath, looked like they might just disappear from the phone at any moment.

Out of consideration for good karma, Jiang Songhe finally put aside his usual self-sufficient style. At 12 o'clock sharp, he unlocked the bedroom door, slowly went downstairs to the living room, and quietly sat down next to Jonathan, who was using the Star Show judges' exclusive app to connect remotely.

During the stage of Jonathan's evaluation and scoring of contestants, he only needed to make voice calls. It was only when the top 20 list was officially announced and the judges and contestants selected each other to determine the lineup of the four teams that he needed to use a camera for video calls.

A tablet computer, resting against a piece of porcelain, sits on a small table next to the sofa armrest, displaying a multi-camera split-screen presentation of the judges' opening show.

The floor-to-ceiling curtains were half-drawn. Jonathan rested his chin on one hand, his upper body on the armrest, and curled up on one side of the sofa, a small ball, completely unaware that the other side had sunk.

When the camera focused on the opening show of the preliminary round, Jonathan, the female judge who played a mermaid, exclaimed "Wow!" and raised her other hand to tap on the tablet. The close-up of that grid then enlarged to fill the entire screen.

The female judge's solo part featured a segment from the Broadway classic musical "Chicago".

She abandoned her previous gentle and delicate mermaid image, now wearing a top hat, a fitted suit, and rhinestones glittering along the lines of her bodysuit and stockings. Her equally rhinestone-encrusted cane tapped the stage floor, exuding the aura of a dark DIVA.

Even through the screen, the dazzling light was still captivating. Jiang Songhe only squinted slightly, and fragments of the merman, the sea monster, and the elven prince with their cascading hair inexplicably entered his mind.

"Jiang Songhe." A light kick landed on his knee. "Rosa looks beautiful today, doesn't she?"

Jiang Songhe followed the barefoot long legs and looked up at the face that was resting its cheek on its hand and looking at him. The upper half of that face had high eyebrows, thin lips with an ambiguous curve, and eyes that reflected bright starlight. He looked like he was proving that the evaluation was true.

"Beautiful, sir." Jiang Songhe thought to herself, but responded nonchalantly, "Yes, beautiful."

As if encouraged by the echo, Jonathan got up from one end of the sofa, crawled to the other end, wrapped his arms around Jiang Songhe in front of the armrest, and continued to comment with great interest: "Rosa is also very cute!"

"During the preliminary round, she and I squeezed onto the throne set to wait for Tre to appear, but Tre's bass solo was really too long, and the throne was really sharp! We were afraid we wouldn't be able to hold on, so we secretly muted our microphones for a while and gossiped about each other's relationship status using ventriloquism."

Oh, so it turns out it wasn't a real-life affair after all.

Looking at it more closely, it actually looks quite beautiful.

Jiang Songhe heard what she had said in her own mind and suddenly laughed at herself. For a moment, she forgot her manager's rule of not listening to inappropriate things and blurted out, "Really? What gossip have you found out?"

"She and her boyfriend are planning to get engaged secretly next year." Perhaps because she was no longer under the screen's light, Jonathan's smile remained, but her eyes dimmed considerably.

Hearing the revelation with his own ears made him realize something was wrong, let alone asking it himself. Jiang Songhe frowned and froze.

"She asked me that too, and guess what I said?"

Jonathan moved closer, and Jiang Songhe instinctively leaned back. Jonathan didn't stop, so Jiang Songhe had to lean back even further until her lumbar spine was pressed against the sofa armrest. Jonathan still wouldn't give up.

This position reminded Jiang Songhe of their last night together in Maner a week ago, and also of what Jonathan had said: "Since you also like playing games, then I, an old player, will play with you. Don't worry, I'm very good with my hands..."

Guess what? What can I say?

I bet you're talking about a clueless, simp-like older man lately?

"I won't guess." Jiang Songhe used his elbow to support himself and placed a palm against Jonathan's chest to stop his retreat. "You'd better keep your celebrity privacy to yourself."

“You’re not interested,” Jonah added for Jiang Songhe, his tone both questioning and stating.

Jiang Songhe was interested, but he couldn't openly express his opinion. If he did, and then received the same answer again, it would confirm that he was a complete idiot for knowingly being played and still inviting the person who was playing him to his home and treating them like royalty.

After a long silence, a loud "God bless you (to live to be one hundred)" came from the tablet on the table.

The two looked over at the same time; the live stream had progressed to the opening show, where the celebrity judges were exchanging compliments. Rosa was covering her mouth and nose on stage, clearly having just sneezed.

Jiang Songhe didn't know how long Jonathan would stay at Jingting, nor how long Jonathan was willing to stay with him, but he knew that since he had already invited him in, they would see each other all the time, and since he had already made offerings, he had to see it through to the end.

"Isn't it uncomfortable to watch this from this huddled position?" He got up from the lock, drew another floor-length curtain, and then pointed to the TV. "Can we cast the screen? My speakers are pretty good."

...

The live stream, now using a different medium, offered an excellent viewing experience; the huge screen and surround sound made it feel almost like being there in person. However, the atmosphere in the living room was strangely awkward, a noisy, deathly silence, a feeling Jiang Songhe had.

So, after a short while of enjoying a sumptuous morning tea, he secretly and passionately placed another order on his phone, sweeping through the snack section of a convenience store and then mindlessly ordering the signature menu of a private restaurant that he thought was quite good.

Then, quite naturally, he called out Vasin, who had been ordered to hide in the basement maid's room, and invited him up to join the spectators while they ate.

Although the competition segment had more time for interaction than the preliminary round, each contestant's performance, feedback from the judges, and waiting for the voting results would take no more than fifteen minutes on stage.

Jonathan would pick up his tablet and get into character every six or seven minutes or so, so he didn't have a chance to eat what Jiang Songhe ordered. At most, he would squeeze in a sip of the energy drink that was next to him.

Even when working, top singers remain focused and serious, completely devoid of their carefree and unrestrained nature, even when remotely connecting with the Maner Arena via voice.

Jiang Songhe's gaze gradually shifted from the live broadcast on the TV screen to the silver hair of the person beside her.

What kind of person would be able to treat relationships with such focus and seriousness?

Will it happen in the future? Or perhaps it already has?

His gaze drifted down a little further, landing on the exposed silver glint on the back of her fair neck. Jonathan had mentioned more than once that he had worn that necklace for many years. Even though he had a new one, he still couldn't take off the old one.

How arrogant he was, thinking that sending an identical one would make up for the lack of a replacement.

The symptoms of alcohol poisoning had long since disappeared, but the intense hunger and thirst from fasting and water deprivation came on fiercely, and a tremendous sense of emptiness permeated Jiang Songhe's internal organs and body from the inside out.

He had a slight urge to go upstairs, back to his bedroom, and lock himself away, just like he always did on February 7th.

But not yet. It was still early in the night, and he wanted to witness firsthand how Jiang Songyun, who was leaving his grasp for the first time, would earn him a truly meaningful birthday gift.

Birthday gift... How could he forget? His younger brother has officially come of age today.

The withdrawal period ended so quickly; the initial estimate was wrong. He hadn't even accompanied Jiang Songyun through the entire competition.

A dark emotion surged within Jiang Songhe's heart. He even began to hope that his younger brother would stop here so that he could return to this home and his protection as soon as possible.

Everything before my eyes suddenly became utterly tasteless.

Jiang Songhe sat blankly on one side of the sofa, two voices locked in a fierce battle in his mind: one condemning the darkness that should not exist, and the other mocking the unworthy delusions.

"Song Yun is about to go on stage."

The tightly closed curtains blocked out the sunlight. Jiang Songhe snapped out of her reverie, took out her phone, and turned on the screen saver. It was already 8 p.m.

Jiang Songyun soon appeared on the TV, holding the drumsticks that Jonathan had given him in his hands and wearing the sneakers that Jiang Songhe had given him, sitting confidently behind a drum set.

At the very moment when Jiang Songhe should not have been distracted, he lost focus again. The melody playing from the speakers became the background music for reminiscing about Jiang Songyun's growth from a tender bean into a proud young man.

...

Jiang Songyun ranked third overall.

Jiang Songhe refocused his gaze. The living room was already brightly lit. Jonathan adjusted his hairstyle and sitting posture, placed the tablet horizontally between the fingers of one hand, and turned on the front camera with the other.

"I'll go first," Jiang Songhe said, knowing that the judges and contestants were about to choose each other, and prepared to get up to avoid any appearance of impropriety so as not to affect Jonathan's professional judgment. "I'm going upstairs."

Suddenly, a cool object pressed against the back of my hand.

Just as he was about to repeat himself, Rosa's voice came through the tablet's speaker: "Although it's a little bit late, but happy birthday, Janus!"

Amidst the rising waves of congratulations, Jiang Songhe tried her best to move out of the frame.

At 21:37, the judges of the Star Show finals were upgraded to mentors, and the lineups of the four teams they led were finalized. Jiang Songyun's name was prominently displayed at the top of the stage, burning brightly on the panoramic screen dedicated to Jonah's team.

After the live stream ended, Jonathan released Jiang Songhe's hand, rubbed his shoulders and neck, and smiled as he congratulated the families of his knights.

Jiang Songhe also smiled faintly in return.

"You've worked hard, get some rest."