You hidden in my heart - Chapter 64.2

Chapter 64.2

The intra-group PK was held on a Friday. 

Li Xining accompanied her boyfriend to the competition.

Among the contestants, Lu Yuling was the most popular one as well as the most anticipated one by all the instructors and the audience. Because of that, Zhao Ge specially arranged for Lu Yuling to be the last group to perform.

The form of intra-group PK was that two contestants sing duets on the same stage.

Li Xining was in the audience, waiting for nearly two hours until Lu Yuling finally took the stage. She was on the verge of dozing off for some time, but as soon as Lu Yuling appeared, she snapped awake. Before the event, she had even ordered a light board for him on Taobao, and she lifted the light board the moment he stepped on stage. And in the next instant, she was screaming and cheering just like most of the other girls in the crowd.

This was the peak of her star-chasing excitement.

In the beginning, she chased some idols and got disappointed. So why not chase her boyfriend? At least his character won’t change, and he was still her actual boyfriend.

The songs for the competition were chosen by the instructor.

The song Zhao Ge picked for Lu Yuling’s team was “Hill,” which was pretty tough and really tested their basic singing skills.

Two contestants perform in sections. The one who started first had the upper hand because the audience tended to have a habit of singing along, but the first singer also faced a tougher challenge since the pressure and tension were higher than for the second contestant.

Lu Yuling was arranged to participate first by Zhao Ge because the latter felt Lu Yuling had good psychological qualities.

As soon as the contestant stepped on the stage, the lights dimmed, and the whole audience became silent. 

Li Xining held her breath and stared at Lu Yuling who was standing in the center of the stage.

She was nervous and excited, and all she could hear was the sound of her own heartbeat.

Lu Yuling raised the microphone and opened his lips slowly and accurately cut into the main part of the song. His breathing and stage presence were as steady as ever.

Zhao Ge was satisfied with Lu Yuling’s performance from the bottom of his heart. 

Other than his singing abilities, Lu Yuling’s appearance was the other thing that got the audience excited. He stood upright on the stage, looking very handsome.

While being a singer wasn’t all about looks, having a good appearance and figure definitely helped. Zhao Ge was well aware of this.

In comparison to Lu Yuling, the young man beside him seemed a bit lacklustre.

After Lu Yuling wrapped up the first part, another contestant took over for the second section. That one did a decent job too, but when it came time for the chorus, he suddenly went off-key.

The worst thing that could happen in a chorus was someone singing out of tune. If one of the contestants in the group made a mistake, it would affect the whole group.

Before the second one could finish a line, Zhao Ge frowned slightly, thinking the group was in trouble. Luckily, Lu Yuling held it together, and the others even raised their voices a few pitches to help the one get back on track.

Their ability to adapt in the moment was truly impressive.

After the singing, although Zhao Ge looked very conflicted, praising this and that, he finally chose Lu Yuling to advance.

Although the result was no surprise, Li Xining still breathed a sigh of relief when Zhao Ge said Lu Yuling’s name.

The host stood between the two contestants, and after the mentor made his choice, he raised Lu Yuling’s hand.

The whole audience burst into warm applause and cheers again.

Li Xining’s voice was almost hoarse.

After Zhao Ge’s group finished their team PK, the recording was paused and there was a 20-minute break. After that, 20 contestants led by another mentor would have a team PK.

The recording started at 4 pm and ended at around 8 pm. 

After the recording, each group of mentors held a meeting with their students, briefly summarizing today’s competition and explaining tomorrow’s recording arrangements.

Li Xining had been waiting for Lu Yuling downstairs at the TV station. The moment he came out of the elevator, she wanted to throw herself into his arms. Unfortunately, there were too many people in that elevator, so she was embarrassed and just held his hand. When they arrived at the parking lot and there was no one around, she stood on tiptoe and kissed Lu Yuling on the face.

Lu Yuling looked at her with a squint and said proudly, “Why didn’t you kiss me earlier? Kiss me now? It’s too late, I’m angry! Really, really angry!”

“There were too many people just now.” Li Xining said angrily, “You are so pretentious!”

“Ah… what happened to your throat.” 

“Oh, that’s…because…I shouted loudly…” Li Xining muttered with a red face.

“Why are you shouting so loudly?” Lu Yuling thought his girlfriend was silly and cute at the same time.

Li Xining: “Then I just want to cheer for you.”

Lu Yuling felt sorry for his girl, but he thought she was really good to him. He was once again moved by his woman. “Don’t talk if you are uncomfortable. Let’s buy some medicine, okay,” he said softly as he took her into his embrace.

Li Xining: “What do you want to buy? Golden Throat Lozenges? I have some at home.”

Lu Yuling responded bluntly, “We don’t have it at home.”

Li Xining: “Who cares about your family? I want to go back to my own home!”

Lu Yuling frowned, and said, “How many weeks has it been since you’ve been home with me? Are you still living like this?”

Li Xining found it amusing but replied haughtily, “Who wants to live with you? You go by yourself.”

Lu Yuling looked down at her, and said casually, “I think your voice is still hoarse.”

Li Xining was taken aback for a moment before catching the meaning of his words, and she immediately smacked him. “Shame on you!”

Lu Yuling let her go, then took her hand again. “Come on, go home with me.” He led her toward his parking spot.

Li Xining also wanted to go with her boyfriend, but since her mother’s warning, she felt scared. “I’ll ask my mother first.”

Once she fastened her seat belt, the first thing she did was send a WeChat message to her mom. 

[Mom, I won’t go home today.] 

After a moment of thought, she quickly deleted it and typed it again. [Mom, it’s a bit late today, so I won’t go home.] 

After another round of contemplation, she deleted it again and crafted a third version. [Mom, I just came out of the TV station. It’s too late. I’m going back to the dormitory today.]

Taking a deep breath, she hit send.

She waited for her mother’s reply while biting her fingers. When the note “Mom” at the top of the chat changed to “The other party is typing…”, she held her breath, worried her mom would scold her.

But luckily, her mom replied. [I know, be careful. ]

Li Xining let out a sigh of relief, feeling like she had just hit the jackpot. “My mom said I can stay out!”

Lu Yuling smiled and asked as he drove, “What do you feel like eating? Sichuan food or hot pot?”

Li Xining loved spicy food and was about to say “Sichuan cuisine”, but then she thought about Lu Yuling’s throat. This was the first time she had ever considered it.

In the past, whenever they dined together, whether it was picking a restaurant or choosing dishes, Lu Yuling always let her decide, taking her wherever she wanted without any complaints.

She usually picked Sichuan cuisine or hot pot, and he never mentioned that he didn’t like spicy food, but when they had Sichuan, he rarely ordered anything spicy. He also drank a lot of water while eating and only had clear broth when they had a hot pot. She thought he just couldn’t handle spicy food, so she tried to avoid those options later on.

Now she realised it wasn’t that he couldn’t eat spicy food; he was just looking out for his throat. Yet, to make her happy while eating, he never brought it up.

‘There probably isn’t another guy in the world who treats me as well as Lu Yuling does.’After thinking for a few seconds, she replied, “Have some porridge.”

Upon hearing that, Lu Yuling was a bit taken aback and asked with a grin, “What’s up today? So light?”

Li Xining looked at him seriously and replied, “To prepare for pregnancy ahead of time, you should eat light meals,” she said in a serious tone.

Seeing Lu Yuling’s shocked face, Li Xining chuckled. “Hey, relax. I’m just messing with you!”

“Can you really joke about this?”

“Anyway, I’m never eating spicy food again.”

Lu Yuling turned to glance at his girlfriend and realised she didn’t seem to be joking at all.

Lu Yuling took her to a well-known porridge shop in Xifu City. It was nearly ten o’clock, and the shop wasn’t too crowded. 

Li Xining and Lu Yuling found a table and sat down.

While waiting for their food, Li Xining noticed the LCD TV on the wall was showing “Sounds in the Ears”. Then she remembered that the show premiered at 8 o’clock tonight! So she excitedly pointed at the TV and said to Lu Yuling, “Look, look!”

Lu Yuling glanced at the TV and smiled. “It’s airing today.”

Li Xining looked at him with admiration, as if he were her king, and said confidently, “Lu Yuling, you’re going to be famous!”

Lu Yuling: “How do you know?”

Li Xining: “I just know, I have a feeling! You’re going to be famous, you’re going to debut!”

She always had so much faith in him and never doubted him.

For a moment, Lu Yuling was at a loss for words, feeling like nothing he could say would truly convey his feelings for her.

Just then, a waiter approached with a plate. He froze when he spotted Lu Yuling, staring at him for a few seconds before suddenly exclaiming. “Hey! Aren’t you the one who played the piano on TV just now? Your name is, Lu what?”

This was the first time a stranger recognised Lu Yuling. While surprise and a bit of unfamiliarity washed over him, he didn’t feel shy or embarrassed. He responded. “Lu Yuling.”

“Yes, it’s Lu Yuling!” The waiter said, glancing curiously at Li Xining, who was sitting across from him.

With a smile, Lu Yuling introduced her to the other person. “She is my girlfriend.”

The waiter looked at Li Xining with a hint of envy, and said, “You’re so lucky to have such a great boyfriend.”

After the waiter walked away, Li Xining turned to Lu Yuling, and said with a hint of pride in her voice, “See, I told you that you were going to be famous.”

Lu Yuling paused for a moment before responding. “I’m the lucky one to have such a wonderful girlfriend.”

Have a nice day!