——Wednesday, 8 PM.
This was the meeting time Bai Xing had chosen.
This timing was not arbitrary; it carried a lot of thought behind it.
From the girl’s perspective, if she had chosen to meet tomorrow, which was Monday, she would have had no time to prepare and would have been unable to conduct a more detailed "investigation" on Lubia.
That was absolutely unacceptable.
Considering that Tuesday didn’t leave enough time, and Thursday was too close to the Friday broadcast, leaving no room for preparation, neither of those days would work.
Only Wednesday made sense. After school at 5:30 PM, she could take her time to dress up, soak in a bath, get her hair done, hire a professional makeup artist for a paid session, and even skip class early to get some extra sleep to ensure her skin was in perfect condition.
Combined with not eating on Monday and Tuesday to slim down her stomach, she could fit into the smallest size dress, don her most expensive white stockings, and throw on her "winning coat" (an ill-fitting trench coat borrowed from her senior). She was ready to go all in.
Heh heh heh.
With all this, could she regain her peak form?
Lubia, huh?
What’s there to fear?
Would she be scared of her?
Just a succubus, right?
No big deal.
Bai Xing laughed.
Her laughter was innocent.
Last time, right outside her door, Su Ling had suddenly appeared, landing a critical hit and instantly defeating her...
That incident was still fresh in her memory.
Because she could never forget how humiliating she had looked.
Such a scene must never repeat itself.
"I can’t lose again."
"I have to give it my all."
"This time, my senior has already informed me in advance, even letting me make the decision myself."
"So, I won’t make the same mistake twice. This time, I’ll be fully armed to face you, Lubia. Whether you’re a human succubus or have some secret weapon, it doesn’t matter. I’ll be fully prepared."
"Hmph. We’re evenly matched. Neither of us has any advantage over the other."
Bai Xing was confident now, no longer as timid as she once was.
No matter who the opponent was, even if it was Su Ling again, she would...
...still prepare thoroughly to avoid losing as badly as before.
Even if she couldn’t win, she had to salvage her dignity...
The girl pouted, her face scrunching up like a disgruntled kitten.
She hesitantly sent the message, "Then let’s make it 8 PM on Wednesday," to her senior.
...
...
After putting down her phone,
"Sigh."
"So it’s not a one-on-one date after all..."
"I thought he was going to take me to a private cinema..."
Damn it, damn it...
Her face turned beet red, and she rolled around on the bed in embarrassment.
She hugged her plush bear, "Bang Bang Bang," hitting it three times with her head, leaving a small dent in the bear’s stomach from her twin-tails.
Then she let out a sigh of relief: "Ah, I’ve calmed down a bit."
She muttered to herself, dejectedly smoothing out the bear’s stomach before slumping back onto the bed, all her earlier joy and confidence gone.
How did it come to this?
She had gotten ahead of herself again.
Why wasn’t it just the two of us? Why did he have to bring someone else?
While it was reasonable to meet the artist before the broadcast, putting that aside,
didn’t he feel anything when he saw the message I just sent?
Bai Xing felt indignant.
She felt a little wronged.
After some thought,
"...I get it. It’s because my senior doesn’t think I’m reliable or strong enough yet to be someone he’d invite out. So, this meeting is also a test for me. If I handle it well and use the succubus avatar to make him a lot of money, then he’ll reward me and give me what I want."
That’s what she concluded.
"In other words, I have to pretend to cooperate with Lubia. At least on the surface, I can’t clash with her."
"Moreover, I have to leverage her abilities, step over her, and earn an insane amount of money, surpassing my previous limits."
"Only then will I catch my senior’s attention. Only then will he truly understand that I, Bai Xing, am not just a pretty face. I’m not just a vase!"
"Right."
"So, if I succeed, even if he doesn’t bring it up, I can take my achievements and confidently ask him for a reward. That would give me more leverage."
Bai Xing licked her lips, plotting to herself:
"Given his personality, even if I suggest things like 'a late-night rendezvous,' 'watching a movie together,' or 'sitting in a couple’s seat,' he definitely wouldn’t think it’s too much."
"Of course, that’s only if I can really make him his first big profit."
The girl narrowed her eyes, thinking for a long time.
Finally, she set a small goal for herself.
"——First, let’s aim to earn my senior a simple 500,000 in gift revenue."
Her eyes sparkled:
"If I can’t even manage that, then I don’t deserve to use such a high-level 'Unit-01.'"
"Hmph."
...
Lu Qing quickly forwarded her available time slot to Tang Hua.
"Lubia, are you free at 8 PM on Wednesday? It’s a bit late, but I’d like to take you to meet the person we’re collaborating with. Since you’ll be working closely together in the future, I don’t want to always be the middleman relaying your ideas to each other."
Lu Qing was very clear in his explanation.
After all, when he first approached Lubia, it was because he didn’t like communicating with artists through third-party platforms.
That’s why he came up with the "directly emailing the artist" workaround,
which led to him hitting the jackpot and finding Tang Hua.
Now, Tang Hua had turned down all other commissions, focusing solely on his project.
To ensure she could thrive in Tianhai, he needed to continuously provide her with financial support, and it couldn’t be too little either.
Only then could she feel fulfilled both materially and in terms of self-worth.
Lu Qing’s reasoning was clear—
"Tang Hua is pure, so pure that she’s willing to go all-in for one thing, to dedicate her life to one person."
"So, if what I give her doesn’t help her find a sense of 'meaning,' she’ll remain an unstable time bomb."
[She’ll self-destruct, but she won’t harm others.]
Even when the pain becomes unbearable,
she wouldn’t even consider
seeing a doctor.
Such a thought had never crossed Tang Hua’s mind.
Not even once.
[When in pain, she lashes out at herself.]
[To stay awake, to snap out of the numbness.]
[Once she’s awake, she can stay calm, and the pain will fade.]
[After all, pain is also a way to suppress pain.]
This was the mindset Tang Hua had lived by before receiving "genuine attention."
Lu Qing couldn’t allow this to continue.
With that in mind, he had considered—
"If we make a lot of money, should I rent a separate studio and move Tang Hua in, so she doesn’t have to live in that dark, cockroach-infested hole?"
This was one of his plans for the next phase.
He thought,
Since he’d need to rent a new place anyway, why not go all out and get a big studio?
A perfect (and ridiculously expensive) space where she could practice music, write, stream, cook, sunbathe, and sleep.
Considering the rent in Tianhai’s city center, it might be better to look in more remote areas like Songhai or Minhang Districts, where the rent would be cheaper, and the space larger.
That way, he could accommodate Tang Hua, meet with Bai Xing, and have a new base for deeper work.
Perfect.
Absolutely perfect.
Lu Qing nodded to himself.
"First, let’s get the streaming going, then focus on the new book. Two birds with one stone."
"Once we’re flush with cash, then..."
He couldn’t help but glance at his "workstation."
"..."
The one he pretended to use for writing, where he only listened to music but never touched any audio editing software (though all the installation files were hidden in a folder, ready to be reinstalled at any time). A workstation that cost him 30,000 yuan.
——《Just fooling myself.》
"Forget it, I shouldn’t get too excited. Setting up a flag too early is a bad idea. Besides, Su Ling is just starting out. I can’t let myself get carried away by her illusions and fall back into that bottomless pit. Absolutely not. Nope."
He shook his head, barely suppressing the "desire" in his heart.
Lu Qing has always adhered to one truth: "Never let success get to your head, no matter the circumstances."
For a human being, it's perfectly normal for fortunes to shift—what goes around comes around. After the incident with Dr. Qi, he began to believe in the "Way of Heaven," in "karmic cycles," and even more so in the "moral magnetic field."
He believes that doing good deeds and accumulating virtue will bring about some form of ineffable reward;
while those who commit evil deeds, even if they live in luxury in this lifetime, will eventually face retribution one day, at some moment, in a specific way, through the people or things they care about the most.
This is the concept of "universal balance."
The same principle applies to music—
there will always be someone better, someone greater.
Many true masters, once you meet them, you realize they are often very humble. They are nothing like the stereotypes people imagine, such as "rock musicians are pretentious" or "even masters must look down on amateur listeners."
Such prejudices were completely absent in Lu Qing's photos with seniors like Kotaro Oshio, GIN, and Samurai-san.
Uncle Kotaro's kindness, GIN's humor, and Samurai-san's shyness—none of them carried an air of arrogance. They were all very gentle.
On the other hand, those who are half-baked tend to show off everywhere. After all, it's one of humanity's flaws to get carried away with a little success. If one can overcome this, the chances of "joy turning into sorrow" decrease, allowing one to progress steadily, step by step, until reaching the pinnacle.
Take Tommy Emmanuel, Australia's national treasure of fingerstyle guitar, for example. He lived a low-key life yet left a legendary legacy.
The same goes for many giants in other fields.
Music is tied to character. Those who are restless and impatient will struggle to grasp its true essence.
"Sigh, I should focus on what's in front of me first."
Lu Qing shook his head, deciding to resist the fatal allure emanating from a certain kitten in the room's humidity-controlled cabinet.
Su Ling was in the shower, so only he and "her" were left in the room.
"Hah."
Lu Qing let out an eerie chuckle.
Finally, his gaze settled on the "black cat."
"Don't think you're so beautiful that I'll fall for your charms," he muttered to himself.
"You better understand this: I brought you home to be her life mentor, got it?"
"Stop swaying your body in front of me, no matter how cute you are."
"And don't suddenly let out that enchanting meow in front of my sister, okay? Even if she's the one playing it, I have every reason to suspect it's you trying to seduce me. That's off-limits, understand?"
"Also, put in some effort and communicate more with Su Ling. Don't be so aloof, alright?"
"These are our three rules."
"If you understand, give me a meow."
……
……