You hidden in my heart - Chapter 63.4

Chapter 63.4

The young couple left the tomb, and Zhao Hailan came out from behind the rockery. He stepped towards Lu Rongyue’s grave with shaky legs. 

Her tombstone was black, and the black-and-white photo on it had been taken when she won the literature and art competition that year – it was the posthumous photo she personally chose for herself before her death – she was wearing a strapless dress and holding bright flowers; she was incredibly beautiful.

Zhao Hailan burst into tears as soon as he saw the photo, and he sobbed uncontrollably. Later, he didn’t know whether it was because the pain was too heavy for his body to bear or because the guilt was too heavy; he knelt weakly in front of her tombstone, crying and shaking all over.

He had been looking for her for nearly twenty years, thinking about her for nearly twenty years, but he didn’t expect that what he would see in the end would be her grave.

Later, he looked at her black-and-white photo with red eyes, with tears streaming down his face. “Do you hate me so much?”

No one could answer his question.

“I’ve been looking for you…”

“I miss you…”

Finally, he cried and said to her, “I’m sorry, Yue’er, I’m sorry…”

But his beloved couldn’t hear or answer him. She would not be able to hear his regretful words for the rest of her life.

***

On her way home, Li Xining couldn’t stop thinking about Zhao Hailan. She thought Zhao Hailan was both pathetic and annoying. However, since she was in Lu Yuling’s car at that moment, she couldn’t bring it up. So, she waited until she got home to ask her mom, “Do you think Zhao Hailan will visit Lu Yuling’s mom?”

Yu Wenyin didn’t hesitate. “He will.”

Li Xining: “But even I can see that the eldest lady would rather die than see him. How can he not realise that?”

Yu Wenyin sighed and said, “If he had understood that, he wouldn’t have cheated.”

Li Xining thought her mom had a point, but she was too lazy to ponder what Zhao Hailan was thinking. She just hoped Zhao Hailan wouldn’t use her to fulfil his own path to redemption later on. She didn’t want to exploit his feelings for her under the guise of helping Lu Yuling.

***

The first round of “Sounds into Ears” was set for March 1st, where 80 contestants would be chosen from 200. At the same time, mentors would be selected through a lottery. There were four mentors, and each would take on 20 students. After that, contestants would face elimination in a PK system where team members compete against each other.

The preliminary round was conducted at Xifu TV Station.

During the preliminary round, mentors could only vote, and if all four mentors supported a candidate, they would advance to the semi-finals. Therefore, the preliminary round relied heavily on luck.

On the day of the competition, Li Xining accompanied Lu Yuling.

Zhao Hailan took a seat in the audience. He created this programme to help his son make a successful debut, but he didn’t control everything from the start. The competition was completely fair and transparent because he understood that with Yuling’s talent, there was no need to get involved with the behind-the-scenes politics so soon. He allowed his son to handle the first few less significant competitions independently.

So, from the auditions to the preliminaries, Zhao Hailan stayed out of every aspect.

This time, Lu Yuling didn’t play a guitar; instead, he played and sang “Thousands of Songs” on the piano.

The studio was quite spacious and was a professional recording venue built by Zhengxing. Both the stage and the equipment were of the highest domestic quality.

The stage backdrop was a deep sea blue. Under a bright white spotlight, Lu Yuling sat composedly in front of a sleek black piano.

He had chosen a white shirt and suit pants. With his handsome features, fair complexion, and an alluring Adam’s apple, he looked every bit the gentleman.

Li Xining was taken aback when she saw him like this this morning. Her heart raced like a young girl’s experiencing her first crush.

She had only witnessed him playing the guitar before, never the piano.

When he played the guitar, he looked very handsome, like a dashing young man “riding a horse in the spring breeze, taking in all the flowers of Chang’an in a single day.” But when he sat at the piano, he radiated an elegant and noble vibe, perfectly matching the description of the refined young man in the poem “The man on the street is like jade, and the young man is unparalleled in the world.”

Lu Yuling’s performance started, and Li Xining, who was watching from the audience, held her breath. Even though she completely believed in him, she couldn’t shake off the nerves for him.  

The tune of “Thousands of Songs” was both beautiful and elegant, yet it carried a sadness that was hard to conceal, especially when played on a classical instrument like the piano; every note resonated deeply with the audience.  

 Zhao Hailan’s thoughts went to the past. He remembered that Rongyue liked singing this song as well.  

~Even if there are countless stars in the future.

Brighter than the moon tonight.

Nothing can match the beauty of this night.

It can never make me appreciate it more.

Ah, because you sang with me tonight.

Ah……~

 Lu Yuling’s voice was rich and enchanting, and the emotions he showed while singing were sincere. 

People with broken hearts were moved to tears by his performance. Plus, his stage presence was incredibly steady, rivalling that of professional singers who have already done multiple concerts.  

  When the song ended, the entire studio went quiet for a few seconds before bursting into loud applause, mixed with the excited screams of little girls.

 It was no surprise that all four mentors voted unanimously in favour.  

  After the contestants stepped off the stage, there was an area for interviews. Lu Yuling was surprised when he walked into the interview space, not expecting to see Li Chenming as the host.

During the high school graduation ceremony, Li Xining was so touched by Lu Yuling’s confession that she ended up in tears, and it was Li Chenming who came to the rescue.

Zhengxing Entertainment selected Li Chenming to train as a host, so he ended up there. 

He welcomed Lu Yuling with a smile, but they didn’t reminisce about the past since it was a recording for the programme. 

Li Chenming threw out a few standard questions, like, “Who did you bring with you today?”

Lu Yuling beamed and replied, “It’s definitely my girlfriend.”

Li Chenming asked with a knowing glance, “Is she a goddess?”

Lu Yuling answered, “Absolutely!”

The editor had originally included this segment in the post-match editing because he thought it was really sweet and would connect with the audience. 

However, Wang He frowned after reading it because romance could be a tricky subject for newcomers, especially male artists, as it might affect their careers.

He then called Zhao Hailan to update him on the situation and asked what Mr. Zhao wanted to do. He wanted to know whether to let Lu Yuling’s relationship go public or keep it a secret.

Zhao Hailan had understood Lu Yuling’s personality well. He realised that Lu would never agree to keep their relationship a secret, so after some careful consideration, he came up with a plan. “Let’s not announce it now, but also not completely hide it. If there’s any chance of it leaking to the media, just stay quiet and handle it discreetly. If it spirals out of control, we’ll have to look into other options. The aim is to keep it under wraps during the peak period and maintain silence.”

“Understood. I’ll have the editor remove that section.” Once that issue was settled, Wang He, looking a bit downcast, brought up another problem. “I’ve met with him several times, and he insists he won’t sign a contract with us. I even mentioned our investment in this programme and how the top three winners would collaborate with us. His response was blunt: ‘Is it too late for me to back out now?’ Mr. Zhao, I’m really at a loss on how to handle Mr. Lu.”

Wang He had never encountered someone so cool and arrogant over ten years in the industry. Yet, after watching a few of this kid’s performances, he found it hard to stay annoyed. In all his years, he had seldom seen such a confident and free-spirited young talent. ‘Plus, this kid has real skills. He’s very cooperative during recordings and shows great versatility. He’s definitely cut out for this line of work.’

Wang He truly appreciated and cherished talented individuals; otherwise, he wouldn’t have become a top agent in the entertainment world.

Zhao Hailan grinned and added, “Don’t worry about it. “I have it covered.'”

Wang He hesitated for a second and shared his honest thoughts. “I’ve interacted with this person a few times, and despite his youth, he clearly has his own beliefs and isn’t readily swayed by others. I feel it will be difficult to persuade him to sign a contract with us because he has already decided not to do so.”

Zhao Hailan replied with a sweet smile that rarely could be seen on his face, “There’s always someone out there who can make him comply.”

End of chapter 63

Have a nice day!