The ice cream was suggested by a fan, supposedly a newly released flavor they wanted Shi Yuhuai to try first.
Shi Yuhuai’s manager felt out of place with the group next to him, as others were discussing artists’ work and tips for maintaining their figures, and whether artists are obedient or not.
Only he, a grown man, was squinting as he ordered something called Peach Meat Tower Ice Cream. Plus, it was the second one half-price, which tempted him into ordering two, saving one for himself.
This is how all this weight came to be, quite a sorrowful affair.
After ordering the ice cream, he turned his phone sideways and continued watching the live broadcast.
Why not go out and watch live? Because it’s too sunny.
In the broadcast, the impromptu performance was already at the final act.
Cheng Zhirang was holding a violin in one hand and the strings in the other, bowed gracefully, and stepped down from the piano stand.
Shu Ran walked out from the shell house, going in the opposite direction.
Guan Yu dragged a chair onto the small balcony of the shell house, took a bite of melon, and shouted into the microphone.
"Next up, we have the last performer! Shu Ran! Let’s give her a warm welcome!"
"What kind of performance will Shu Ran bring us? Will it be a grand song and dance? Will it be as enjoyable as the beautiful performance from the previous group?"
Shu Ran: "You can shut up now."
She seated herself at the piano.
Guan Yu exclaimed: "Are you going to play ’Heroic Song’ on the piano?!"
"... It’s ’Flower Dance’ on the piano! Just shut up already!"
Whenever she opened her mouth, half of her momentum seemed to dissipate.
Guan Yu reluctantly zipped her lips.
Shu Ran took a deep breath, and without any musical accompaniment, her slender fingers pressed the black and white keys.
Surprisingly, it sounded rather lovely.
Mu Qiu stopped eating melon and leaned against the railing with Guan Yu and the others to watch Shu Ran.
A straight but thin figure, a swan-like neck held high, if her uniform was swapped for a gown, it would look just like a stage performance at a gala.
"Our elegant female star does have some skills," Guan Yu said while munching on melon.
"Sister Shu Ran plays the piano so well," Mu Qiu turned his head to ask, "Does she have to perform at the company annual party too?"
"That’s all you can think of?" Li Yang rolled his eyes, "Performances are usually the idol’s business."
Bai Shu chimed in with a smile: "Besides, I heard that Sister Shu Ran used to work 350 days out of 365, so she probably didn’t have time to prepare for performances."
"It just shows that being an elegant female star isn’t easy at all."
A woman needs to be fierce to maintain her position; to hold onto the title of a rising star for so long, who knows what she sacrificed in private.
She’s indeed the centerpiece of our show.
A row of people crowded on the small balcony, waving and cheering along.
Standing tall, Shi Yuhuai didn’t need to compete for a spot; he stood behind them eating watermelon while casually tossing out comments.
"Earlier, during the guys’ performance, you were the most excited, and now during the girls’ performance, you’re still the most excited."
He didn’t finish, but one could almost guess his next words might be, "How can you be so fickle?"
Or perhaps, "Do you really enjoy cheering everyone on, or is it just for show?"
Those are some typical macho thoughts.
Mu Qiu didn’t turn but directed her words at him: "Performances are either good or bad, not divided by gender."
Shi Yuhuai: "So you think Guan Yu’s performance wasn’t good."
Guan Yu immediately turned to her.
"... Brother Huai, how have you become so devious?!"
She looked as if she found a beloved pet turning bad, caught in a moment of heartfelt grief.
Shi Yuhuai took a bite of melon, wiped his mouth, nonchalantly walked back to his seat, and picked up another wedge.
Jiang Zhufeng softly reminded him: "Brother Huai, you’ve already eaten a lot of melon, aren’t you worried about feeling full?"
Shi Yuhuai paused, then put down the melon.
"Good point. Dinner is soon."
Jiang Zhufeng didn’t expect him to jump to the dinner topic, was momentarily dumbfounded, then nodded along:
"Right, and after Sister Shu Ran’s performance, it should be dinnertime, with hot pot too."
He thought about it; after eating so much melon, could he still manage hot pot later? Plus, aren’t models supposed to be more figure conscious than idols or actors? He had taken in a ton of sugar just from the melon this afternoon.
He zoned out for a couple of seconds, then moved all the melon in front of Mu Qiu’s seat.
Jiang Zhufeng: "... Brother Huai, isn’t this not right?"
"Only she can eat with no problem," Shi Yuhuai stated righteously.
Such strong reasoning, irrefutable.
So when Mu Qiu, worn out from cheering on Shu Ran, returned to her seat for some water, she found a row of watermelon set out for her.
Even one slice was partially cut, with a slightly uneven cross-section.
"What’s this? Who’s so kind-hearted?"
Shi Yuhuai casually pointed.
Mu Qiu was quite surprised: "Jiang Zhufeng? You gave all the melons to me?"
Jiang Zhufeng: "... Haha, um, Brother Huai said you liked it."
Got it.
She glanced at the nonchalant Shi Yuhuai: "Brother Huai, if you’re not eating, just don’t; can’t you distribute them evenly, or secretly place them at Sister Guan Yu’s seat rather than letting someone else take the blame?"
Saying so, she distributed the row of watermelon to others’ seats.
Shi Yuhuai: "I’m still too young."
Mu Qiu: "You’re just lazy, stop pretending to be young."
Without further comments, she grabbed a melon, then ran to the railing to watch Shu Ran’s performance on tiptoe again.
In the front row were Li Yang and the others, a group of tall guys, she had to tiptoe, peering over their shoulders to see Shu Ran.
"Come here."
Cheng Zhirang reached out and pulled her by the wrist to stand nearby.
Although there were still many people around, she couldn’t shake the sense that it felt like standing with her sweetheart on a luxury yacht, watching the sunset together.
Li Yang, standing nearby, silently scooted a bit away from them.
A moment later, the piano sounds from the lake center faded, Shu Ran’s fingers gently rested on the black and white keys, she took a deep breath, stood and curtsied princess-like towards them.
Mu Qiu and Guan Yu, stirring up the atmosphere, led others in loud applause and cheers.
Mu Qiu: "Sounds amazing!"
Li Yang: "Sister Shu Ran is incredible! All-around great!"
Guan Yu: "Played great! A reminder of my tambourine-playing years!"
Shu Ran: "...Can you shut up?"
At this point, Shi Yuhuai finally squeezed back into the viewing group and asked, "Now that her performance is over, can we eat?"
"Eat, eat, eat, all you know is eating," Guan Yu looked at him disapprovingly, "Brother Huai, these past sessions, have you come here to retire?"
Shi Yuhuai, with a straight face: "Been running around so much, I’m starving. Aren’t you hungry?"
"Of course I’m hungry!"
"Then what are you talking about." He retorted calmly and coldly.
Guan Yu was stuck for a moment, ready to catch up and give him some words of wisdom, but Mu Qiu stopped her.
"No, no, no, Brother Huai only has this much ambition. If he didn’t want to retire, our session wouldn’t end so quickly. Always be grateful and forgive his occasional rebellion."