Chapter 54 Old Love Letter "Thank you for becoming Chen Jingchi."...
Hearing the sound of the packaging being torn open, Zhou asked distractedly, "When did you buy it?"
"I didn't buy it," Chen Jingchi said. "Du Heng gave it to me."
Mature men only consider practicality for adults when giving gifts, saying that they have personally tried the product and found it to be the best. The assistant next to him looked at him with a speechless expression and said, "When will we ever finish using all of these?"
"What do you know? Young people have plenty of energy." Du Heng glanced at him. "Don't be envious. I'll give you a case when you get a girlfriend."
The assistant, his ears turning red, said he was useless.
Zhou Yu felt more and more that Du Heng played an extremely important role in her relationship with Chen Jingchi, and calling him "Dad" was not an exaggeration.
Despite it being their first time doing something like this, Chen Jingchi possessed an innate ability to control the entire situation. It took Zhou Yu a long time just to adapt to this phase before she realized that the root of her previous fear wasn't her small hands at all, but rather his problem—he was even excessively superior to normal people in this aspect.
Zhou Yu quickly realized that the gentleness he had shown in the early stages was just a facade. Only after she gradually got used to it and her tightly furrowed brows relaxed did the affair officially begin.
He was indeed as Du Heng said, with terrifyingly abundant energy. The fact that she accused him of deliberately delaying was already a sign that he had toned it down.
He kept drawing her into wave after wave of passion.
Chen Jingchi remembered her preferences from their previous conversation. He leaned close to her ear, bit the soft flesh of her earlobe, and reserved his breath and voice for her alone, making her blush and her heart race, almost unable to distinguish between reality and illusion.
In the latter half, Zhou Yu was already out of consciousness, only remembering that they were tightly embracing each other, covered in sweat, and the sticky feeling on their skin was very uncomfortable, yet they were reluctant to separate.
His heart was pounding wildly, his chest heaving violently, and sweat trickled down his forehead, sticking to her cheek and the corner of her lips, giving her a slightly salty taste.
This kind of thing can be addictive.
Zhou Yu vaguely thought about it before his memory was completely fragmented.
She fell asleep while Chen Jingchi carried her to the bathroom, and had no memory of him helping her take a bath. When she woke up, it was already 7:30 in the morning.
Zhou Yu had a class in the first period. She glanced at the time and, worried that she would be late, nudged the person who was still holding her. When she spoke, she realized that her voice was so hoarse: "Chen Jingchi, I have to go to class."
He held her tightly even in his sleep, making it difficult for her to break free. Chen Jingchi didn't open his eyes, his hand gently massaging her lower back as he asked, "Does it hurt?"
It didn't hurt at first, but after his massage, it became incredibly sore and weak. Zhou wanted to dodge but had nowhere to hide, so she could only beg him to let her go.
He seemed to have said this several times last night, but it didn't seem to have any effect. However, this time he listened to it. Chen Jingchi let go of her and got up, taking clothes from the dressing room to help her put them on.
Even though they had already done the most intimate things, Zhou Yu was still a little embarrassed and insisted on changing clothes in secret, not letting him see. Chen Jingchi walked out with a smile, and only after she took off her pajamas did she see the scattered marks on her body, his handiwork.
She vaguely thought that Chen Jingchi probably wasn't in much better shape either. Last night, he was too strong and almost broke her apart. When he couldn't take it anymore, he would bite her. She couldn't remember how many times.
She didn't have time for breakfast. After washing up, Chen Jingchi took her to the classroom. A few minutes before the bell rang, she asked before getting out of the car, "Will you make it in time?"
"No class in the first period." Chen Jingchi's gaze fell on her neck, and he reached out to pull her collar up a little. "Go upstairs."
Many people came to scout the location, and many people downstairs glanced at them. Zhou Yu didn't have time to think much, waved to him, and hurried upstairs to find a classroom.
Arriving before the teacher came in, she found a seat next to An Kejia and sat down. Belatedly realizing that Chen Jingchi's actions were to cover something up, she turned on her phone's front camera and glanced at it, then swept her hair forward to cover the not-so-obvious hickey.
Next time I need to tell him not to kiss too hard in obvious places, because it would be too embarrassing if he found out.
Fan Xin turned her head to look at her and asked, "Zhou Zhou, have you had breakfast?"
"No." Zhou Yu had a full morning of classes and planned to buy some food during the break.
Fan Xin handed over a small bread roll she had in her bag: "Luckily, I brought one with me before I left. Here you go."
"Thank you, Xinxin." She took it.
After the first class ended, Zhou Yu was about to go out to get water when a commotion suddenly broke out in the back row, and the students in front all turned around to look back.
Zhou Yu was puzzled when she saw a tall figure walk up to her, with a breakfast takeout box on the table.
The surrounding area fell silent instantly, and Zhou Yu could feel all eyes on her focused on her.
Chen Jingchi didn't say anything, but simply raised his hand and touched the side of her face. When she looked up, their eyes met for a few seconds, and he smiled faintly before turning and leaving.
The surroundings became noisy again. Zhou Yu knew he had already left the classroom, her heart still pounding. She opened the takeout box; it wasn't breakfast from the cafeteria, but Cantonese breakfast he had specially bought outside.
An Kejia looked on with envy: "Wow, I finally understand what it means to speak louder than words in silence."
Fan Xin's focus wasn't on this: "I saw netizens say that Chen Jingchi's ring wasn't a couple's ring, so why does he wear it in private?"
The hand he just touched was his right hand, and the ring on his middle finger was very noticeable.
An Kejia asked with a grin, "Zhou Zhou, did you give this to me?"
Zhou Yu shook her head and quickly pulled up the necklace pendant hidden under her collar to show them.
"Holy crap, no wonder!" Fan Xin exclaimed in shock. "You two are such good at hiding things!"
"Shh." Zhou Yu held up a finger to silence them. "It's a secret."
An Kejia knew that she was always low-key, while Chen Jingchi was the exact opposite. Yesterday, she and Fan Xin discussed Chen Jingchi's Weibo post showing affection last night, and they concluded that the vinyl record he posted on his birthday last year was also a gift from Zhou Yu.
It turns out that the signs had already appeared so early on.
Zhou finished her breakfast and checked Weibo in the few minutes she had left. After the previous incident with stalker fans, those who disapproved of Chen Jingchi's relationship were purged, and the comment section was much cleaner. The picture of the gift he posted last night with the caption "girlfriend" did not trigger an attack from fans. It seemed that everyone had become accustomed to the matter and no longer discussed it.
This is already the best possible outcome.
Zhou Yu glanced at the results of the new song released yesterday. Fans were still promoting it diligently. Although it couldn't match the massive breakthrough that "Out of Control" had achieved, this song was more suitable for live performances, and with the support of a stage, its popularity would be even higher.
She habitually opened the trending topics list; the hype from last night had subsided. After glancing at it, she noticed one particular entry:
#Do celebrities really have a "love-obsessed" mentality?#
Zhou Yu didn't care at all about trending topics unrelated to Chen Jingchi. When he saw them, he didn't associate them with him at all until he saw Du Heng's alternate account repost a post from a netizen.
@YoungMasterIsHandsomeAndSingsSoHot: Our young master is incredibly intelligent; he's been reciting the alphabet backwards since he was little, you know? //@CollidingWithSummerEveningBreeze: #DoCelebritiesReallyHaveLoveBrains# His girlfriend's in-ear monitor even had a hidden agenda—Z first, C last [pity]
Top comment:
It all comes down to how well my father taught me.
Seeing that he spoke up for him, Zhou Yu couldn't help but give the Weibo post a thumbs up.
*
In early December, during the fifth episode of the variety show, Chen Jingchi sang "Sleepwalking Patient" in a collaborative performance with the trainees, and publicly used the in-ear monitors she gave him for the first time.
Meanwhile, the tour arrangements have been largely finalized, with specific plans for the cities and setlist. This national tour will last approximately six months, ending at the end of the summer.
Regarding the third album, Chen Jingchi proposed an idea: to perform the remaining unreleased singles at concerts, and then include them in the album after the tour, officially releasing the studio version.
This also gives him more time to release new songs gradually, without having to rush to complete all the tracks at once.
Unlike the first half of the year, when Chen Jingchi turned down all his work and devoted himself entirely to preparing for his second album, they had plenty of time back then. As the year drew to a close, his performance schedule became increasingly packed, with rehearsals and recordings for several TV galas on New Year's Day and the Lunar New Year, filling almost every day of his schedule. Zhou Yu had no idea how long it had been since Chen Jingchi had had a proper rest.
Chen Jingchi tried to use all his rest time to see her. Although they had only recently entered the honeymoon phase, they didn't have many opportunities to be together. Many times, in order to be with her, he would fly back to hold her and sleep for a while, and then have to rush to work in other places before dawn.
After a while, even his fans lost the energy to follow him around the airport so intensely, but he still went regardless of the weather, just for that one sentence: "I'll go see you, no matter how busy I am."
Zhou Yu felt sorry for him always running back and forth like this, so she lied to him, saying that the college had increased the frequency of dormitory checks, and that he couldn't stay at her place on weekends either. Only then did he finally stop making these trips.
On the eve of the Spring Festival, Chen Jingchi announced his New Year tour plan on Weibo, which immediately became a hot topic, and netizens began to make wishes for the cities where he would perform.
The third album is also in full swing of post-production, with three previously released singles included, along with three unreleased songs. Chen Jingchi has named the album "Clouds and Mud". Since these are new songs that are only intended to be performed at the concert, the remaining songs will not be released online. They are planned to be released for free after this tour ends, and only physical albums will be sold.
Chen Jingchi's Spring Festival holiday only included New Year's Eve and the first day of the Lunar New Year. Unfortunately, Zhou Yu couldn't leave Liu Xianya alone at home during those two days, so they didn't even get to see each other. She could only wait until the ninth-grade boys went to Jiangbei for rehearsals, and she went with them, planning to stay until the start of the next semester.
Before the tour, Chen Jingchi finally felt much more relaxed. Compared to variety show recordings, interviews, and brand events, singing was the most relaxing thing for him, especially with Zhou Yu accompanying him every day.
Tan Bei lamented that the last time they rehearsed, she was the only one there, and later the pieces were all the same, so the novelty wore off, and she was so bored that she could only play on her phone. This time, with her there, the two girls would occasionally go out shopping or watch movies together, and life was getting more and more comfortable.
The first stop of the tour will be in Jiangbei, scheduled for after the Lantern Festival, in mid-March.
The Lantern Festival was the last day of rehearsal. After it ended, everyone gathered together for dinner. Du Heng, after drinking too much, started to daydream: "If this tour does well, we can really consider entering the overseas market."
He looked at Zhou Yu and said with a smile, "Can you write English songs?"
Zhou Yu shook his head: "I've never written one before, I'm afraid I won't be able to write it well."
"English songs only feel right when written by native English speakers," Xu Yue said. "If you translate them directly into Chinese, wouldn't it sound jarring to foreigners?"
"What's so difficult about that?" Zhuo Wencheng suggested from the side. "If it's not your native language, studying abroad will provide you with a language environment, right?"
Upon hearing this, Zhan Li smiled and said, "Brother Chi, are you willing to part with it?"
Chen Jingchi looked at Zhou Yu, and the two stared at each other for a few seconds. He didn't say anything, but Zhou Yu vaguely got the answer from his eyes.
“They’re not like you two, always sticking together,” Zhuo Wencheng complained. “They’re so clingy, they’re calling each other ‘my baby’ and ‘my darling’ every day they haven’t seen each other.”
Tan Bei gritted her teeth: "Watch your mouth! We're not that disgusting!"
Zhan Li told her not to be angry: "He doesn't even have a girlfriend, just let him have his fun."
Chen Jingchi, unusually, didn't participate in their noisy chatter; he was unusually quiet at the dinner table. Until the meal ended and the two returned to their apartment, the overhead lights suddenly went out for two seconds as the elevator was going up.
Zhou Yu felt the hand holding hers suddenly tighten. She realized something and was about to speak when the light came on again, as if it had just flickered due to an unstable current.
She quickly turned to look at him; Chen Jingchi seemed perfectly normal. She asked softly, "Why are you afraid of the dark?"
He first discovered it in the school's rehearsal room when, due to a power outage, he held her hand tightly and wouldn't let go.
Looking at the changing floor numbers, Chen Jingchi explained, "For a while, I locked myself in my room for days without eating or drinking, which may have left me with a psychological scar."
He glossed over it in one sentence, but the actual situation is probably much more serious than he described.
Zhou Yu didn't ask any questions, but after returning home, she became more proactive in kissing him.
They didn't have many opportunities to meet last year. During the two weeks they spent rehearsing back in Jiangbei, he made up for all the time he had missed before. Zhou Yu deeply realized how terrifying his energy was. He had been worried that the non-stop work would exhaust him, but now he was only worried about himself.
The two were vastly different in strength; Chen Jingchi could lift her completely into the air and still have the strength to slam her even harder. Zhou Yu's voice was drowned out by their intertwined lips and tongues, her whole body enveloped by his breath, and she could vaguely hear his murmurs.
"Don't leave me."
Zhou Yu's shattered thoughts cleared a little. She remembered what Zhuo Wencheng had mentioned at the dinner table. Finally finding her voice, she asked breathlessly, "Reluctant to part with it?"
How could a couple deeply in love not want to be together every single day?
He's just too busy; his current focus is still on his work.
Chen Jingchi went to an unprecedented depth, causing her to frown uncontrollably and leave a scratch on his shoulder and back.
A sigh escaped his throat: "How could I possibly bear to part with it?"
Zhou Yu didn't respond, nor did he give her another chance to speak.
He was unusually ruthless tonight.
It was past midnight when they finished. Chen Jingchi held her in the bathtub while they showered. Looking at the hickeys on her shoulder, he suddenly asked, "Have you considered moving in with me?"
Zhou Yu, who had been dozing off on his shoulder, felt more awake upon hearing his words. She opened her eyes and heard him add, "I don't live in the dorms."
The dorms do weekly room checks. Last semester, if I wanted to stay overnight with him, I had to ask my roommates to cover for me beforehand, for fear of being caught and reported by the dorm supervisor.
Zhou wanted to know why he made this request at this juncture. Zhuo Wencheng's mention of studying abroad seemed to have made him feel a little threatened, even though it wasn't really necessary for them at the moment.
She raised her arms and hugged him tightly, their skin pressed together without any barrier, and she could clearly feel the vibration of his heart hitting her chest through their skin.
She became increasingly addicted to such intimate contact with him.
Zhou Yu waited a long time before speaking: "I only have those two friends in my class."
If she moves in with him, she won't be able to eat or go to class with Fan Xin and An Kejia anymore. Given her not-so-proactive personality, they will most likely gradually drift apart and become just ordinary classmates.
Zhou cherishes every friend. She is very grateful for the care they gave her when she first moved into the dormitory. Between her boyfriend and her friends, her scales tip towards the latter.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
"No apologies allowed." His tone was forceful, but his touch on her hand was gentle.
Zhou Yu tilted her head and nuzzled against his palm, knowing that he would understand her.
Chen Jingchi took a bath towel to dry her off, then changed the subject: "You're not an art student, so why did you choose to study at Jiangxi University of Media and Communications?"
When Chen Jingchi first met her, he learned from Zhuo Wencheng that she had been admitted through the general education entrance exam, which piqued his curiosity. Chinese Language and Literature wasn't considered a top-tier major at Jiangchuan University, a university renowned for its arts programs; with Zhou Yu's scores, she could have easily gotten into a better university than Jiangbei University.
Zhou Yu wrapped a bath towel around herself, lowered her head and dared not look at him. Her legs trembled slightly as she walked. He noticed this, bent down, hooked her legs, and carried her to the bed.
She doesn't like sleeping naked, so Chen Jingchi would help her put on her pajamas afterward and check for any marks on her body.
"I applied to several universities and was finally accepted by Jiang Chuan University," she lied.
In fact, she only filled in Jiangbei Media University as her college application.
Chen Jingchi nodded in belief, turned off the bedside lamp, and asked, "What do you want to do in the future?"
It was a very ordinary conversation, yet they rarely talked about the future. When Zhou Yu couldn't find an answer, he finally said, "I don't know yet."
She has earned enough money to live on as an ordinary person for a lifetime. Every day she spends with Chen Jingchi, she only thinks about the present and takes things one step at a time.
She hadn't thought about the future.
She dared not think about the future.
Chen Jingchi held her tightly and asked calmly, "Will you be my wife?"
Zhou Yu's mind went blank for several seconds. His tone wasn't joking; he was asking her very seriously.
She lifted her head from his embrace, snuggled up his arm, looked into his eyes in the darkness, and said, "You're not of legal marriage age yet."
Chen Jingchi chuckled and said, "You've arrived."
Zhou Yu didn't want him to ask any more questions, so she pressed her lips to his and gave him a sweet kiss.
Chen Jingchi knew her intention and bit her lightly: "Let's not talk about it anymore, go to sleep."
*
The first day of school happened to be the day tickets for Chen Jingchi's Jiangbei concert went on sale. At 6 PM, Fan Xin and An Kejia sent their ID numbers to Zhou Yu, asking her to help them grab tickets as well.
When Zhou Yu saw that the number of people who had made reservations on the ticket-grabbing page was as high as 500,000, while the stadium only had about 40,000 seats in total, he thought it would be quite difficult to get a ticket.
As expected, the three of them failed to buy tickets for three consecutive days. In the end, Zhou Yu had to ask Du Heng to help her reserve two seats.
The two were overjoyed to learn that they could enter the site through a special passage.
"Let them gloat about getting tickets." Fan Xin finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Now we're in the front row of the inner field, in the family seats."
The girls in the class also joined the ticket-buying frenzy, and only three people managed to get tickets. That night, they bragged about it in the college group chat.
An Kejia quickly told her to keep a low profile: "Don't let anything slip these next few days."
"I know." Fan Xin chuckled. "I'm just saying this now."
Even after the start of the school year, Zhou Yu didn't rest. She continued to write songs. When the tour was officially announced, Chen Jingchi promised the audience that he would sing a brand new, unreleased single in each city as a gift to the fans who came to the concert.
This tour will cover a total of twelve cities, which means they will need to write six more songs in the next six months.
To avoid requiring too much time off work, the concerts are scheduled for Sundays, leaving Saturday for rehearsals. In cities with a large fan base, two or three shows are usually arranged to make it easier to get tickets.
Starting in March, the monthly concert became Zhou Yu's most anticipated day, as it meant they could see each other every week. Even just watching him from the audience made her feel satisfied.
Travel with your friends to cities you've never been before, experience the local customs and specialties, listen to your favorite singers perform with tens of thousands of people at night, feel the most exciting and passionate atmosphere, leave your mark, and then leave with a wealth of memories.
This was the happiest period of Zhou Yu's life. Every weekend was incredibly fulfilling, spent with her closest friends and favorite people, and witnessing Chen Jingchi's progress and growth.
The days flew by.
The second city in May was Sushan.
There will be a mystery guest at the concert on the 16th, Ye Yunzhou, the music mentor who recorded a variety show with Chen Jingchi in Sushan last year.
He has won numerous popular music awards both domestically and internationally and is a renowned and powerful singer in the music industry. He is a senior whom Chen Jingchi greatly respects and has given him a lot of constructive musical advice during the recording of the variety show.
After taking the stage, he sang two solo songs, and then sang one of his signature songs with Chen Jingchi.
After the song was finished, Ye Yunzhou suddenly said to the production team, "Could you give me a minute or two more? I have a few words to say."
Zhou Yu looked at the people on the stage. This segment wasn't in yesterday's rehearsal, and Chen Jingchi seemed unaware of it either.
"It is an honor to be a guest at your concert. Seeing so many enthusiastic young listeners today makes me feel excited, as if I have found my younger self again."
Ye Yunzhou smiled.
“When we recorded the show together before, everyone called you Xiao Chen, but you really have a lot of energy. I think the phrase ‘young and promising’ is very suitable for you. You are a very talented singer, and I am particularly looking forward to seeing what kind of waves you will create in the Chinese music scene in the future.”
Ye Yunzhou continued, "I saw the news just before going on stage. I want to say that no matter what the outcome is this time, the medal with your name engraved on it is just waiting for the right opportunity to be removed. If not this time, then next time. I wish you a long and harmonious journey, and may your solitary path be illuminated by a guiding light. Keep going!"
After he finished speaking, the audience suddenly began to shout in unison, and because of the large number of people, the voices were somewhat chaotic.
Tan Bei looked around: "What are they saying?"
Zhou Yu couldn't hear very clearly either. She turned her head to look at a blue sea of stars. After repeating it several times, tens of thousands of people were finally able to shout out the most unified version.
"Thank you for being Chen Jingchi."
A warm feeling welled up in Zhou Yu's heart, and he suddenly turned around to look at him on the stage.
Chen Jingchi took off his in-ear monitor and heard their entire sentence clearly.
He stared blankly for several seconds on the big screen, his expression somewhat moved.
He thanked Ye Yunzhou, then bowed to thank all the listeners.
As Zhou Yu was about to get up after the concert, Tan Bei suddenly pulled her aside and handed her her phone to look at. Only then did Zhou Yu finally understand the meaning of Ye Yunzhou's words and why the audience had shouted those words.
Several topics trended on Weibo, all related to Chen Jingchi's concert tonight.
The top-ranked term was followed by a deep red "explosion":
#Chen Jingchi nominated for Golden Melody Awards again#
The nominees for the Golden Melody Awards were announced tonight, and "To My Dear You" received two nominations: Song of the Year and Best Lyricist.
-----------------------
Author's note: *"A long song has its harmony, a solitary journey has its lamp" is from Wang Zengqi's "A Long Song".
May you find kindred spirits to harmonize with when you sing aloud, and may you find guiding lights when you walk alone.
Happy National Day everyone!
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