Chapter 125 - 121: The Tsundere Only Has ’Dere’ Left

Chapter 125: Chapter 121: The Tsundere Only Has ’Dere’ Left

Lin Zhengran briefly glanced at the chat history, closed his phone, and started thinking. Jiang Xueli, however, was nowhere near as composed.

She sat there in a panic, her eyes glazed over. When she snapped out of it, she grabbed his arm and started shaking it relentlessly.

"It’s such a huge competition! What am I going to do, Zhengran?! Is it even possible for me to win now?!"

Seeing her freak out, Lin Zhengran said, "What’s there to panic about? This competition might be bigger than we imagined, but your musical talent is already at a very high level. Besides, I’ve been teaching you for so long. I don’t think many other newcomers could beat you, even if they have teams behind them."

"Really? Do you really think so?!" Still agitated, she kept shaking Lin Zhengran’s arm with her eyes squeezed shut.

"But I’m so nervous right now! And how am I supposed to write two original songs? The competition is just a few days away! I feel like the songs I’ve written before aren’t good enough for such a serious stage!"

Lin Zhengran sighed and reached out, giving her a light TAP on the head with his knuckles. "Calm down!"

Getting tapped on the head seemed to work. Jiang Xueli cried out, "Ow!" and clutched her head, instantly quieting down.

"Why’d you hit me?!"

Lin Zhengran knew she was still young and had lost her cool the moment she heard the small stage had turned into a big one.

"What are you getting so flustered for? The competition may be bigger, but isn’t the format actually simpler than before? There aren’t any elimination rounds. Everyone just has to sing two songs on stage. After they weed out the contestants who are just there to fill the roster, the rest will be put on the Rising Star chart for online users to rate. That’s all there is to it."

Jiang Xueli clutched her head. "I know, I know, but... but this is my first time in a competition this huge! Of course I’m nervous!"

She shook her little fists.

Lin Zhengran reached out and tapped her again. Jiang Xueli yelped, and again, she calmed down.

’I’m getting hit all day long.’

Lin Zhengran said seriously, "You just need to believe in yourself. As for the original songs, I’ll help you write them over the next couple of days."

The moment she heard Lin Zhengran would help her, most of her confidence came rushing back. "Really! Zhengran, you’ll help me write them? Then I won’t be so nervous anymore!"

"Well, I said I’d help you write, but that mostly means I’ll just help you with revisions and give you some pointers."

"That’s more than enough! Let’s start right now! It’s already the second, and the competition starts on the fifth. We don’t have much time!"

"Then let’s get right to it. Go find some paper and a pen."

"Okay!"

Jiang Xueli quickly hopped off the bed, found a notebook and pen, then climbed back on. She placed the notebook on Lin Zhengran’s lap and leaned over it, pen in hand.

She was still in her usual W-sitting position, and she began to think about what to write.

And then... half an hour went by.

Jiang Xueli hadn’t written a single word.

She turned her head with a nervous chuckle. "Zhengran, do you have any good ideas? How am I supposed to write lyrics for a ’Void Spirit’ theme? My mind is a complete blank."

Lin Zhengran: "..."

In a rare display of coyness, Jiang Xueli pursed her lips and stared at Lin Zhengran with wide, pleading eyes.

The very picture of helplessness.

Lin Zhengran sighed. "Alright, let me walk you through how to approach this."

「For the next three days, Lin Zhengran spent almost all his time in Jiang Xueli’s room.」

Thanks to his proficiency with Affinity for All Things, Lin Zhengran got an idea almost as soon as he heard the term "Void Spirit." Sitting on the bed, he explained the key elements of the theme to Jiang Xueli.

It was a moment of sudden realization for Jiang Xueli. Her small, sharp canines often peeked out as she talked, her eyes now sparkling with energy.

"I get it! Doing it that way really gives it that ’Void Spirit’ feel. So, should we set the song’s theme in the ocean?"

"Any of those would work. The deep sea, a forest, even a silent city—they can all create an immersive ’Void Spirit’ atmosphere," Lin Zhengran explained.

"The deep sea it is, then! I’ve got it, I’ve got it!" Jiang Xueli scribbled and doodled on the paper. With Lin Zhengran’s occasional suggestions and edits, and after three days of playful back-and-forth...

...a song themed around "Void Spirit," titled "Whale," was finally complete.

For the second original song, they did a quick rewrite of a piece Jiang Xueli had composed herself long ago: "You Are My Star."

In the end, they decided she would use these two songs for the competition on the fifth and sixth.

"It’s done!" On the afternoon of the fourth, she looked at the two freshly-minted songs that had been polished over the past few days, holding the notebook high above her head as she sat on the bed. "With these two songs, I can definitely make it into the top ten."

From his spot on the bed, Lin Zhengran asked with a smile, "Not first?"

Jiang Xueli looked at Lin Zhengran and grinned. "Well, I’m setting a smaller goal for now. But I’m still aiming for first, of course. After all... if I get first place, I get to go on a date with Zhengran."

As she said this, she tried to sit up properly, but her legs had gone numb from being in the W-sitting position for so long. When she tried to move, her whole body pitched forward.

Lin Zhengran reached out and steadied her.

Jiang Xueli yelped, "My legs fell asleep!" She looked up, only to find her face resting against Lin Zhengran’s shoulder.

Gazing at the concerned face of Lin Zhengran, so close to her own, a blush and a racing heartbeat were an inevitability.

Lin Zhengran said, "Since we’re all done, let’s take a break."

Jiang Xueli stared at him blankly, then suddenly bit her lip. Her words were classic tsundere, but her tone was more pleadingly cute. "I... I’m telling you right now, it’s not that I want to hug you. I just... I really can’t help myself! It’s not like I’m initiating this on purpose!"

"Huh?"

Jiang Xueli suddenly threw her arms around Lin Zhengran’s, hugging it tightly as she rested her blushing face on his shoulder.

Even her attempts at being affectionate seemed forceful.

"Thank you for staying with me these past few days." After calming down a little, her voice softened, her entire face glowing red.

"It’s nothing. Didn’t I used to spend time with you all the time?" he replied.

"It’s different. For the past few years, whenever I was with you, my mind was always filled with worries. I mean, I still have them now—after all, I’m not your only girlfriend—but at least... these last few days have made me feel so incredibly happy. Because now, you’re my boyfriend."

Lin Zhengran reached out, intending to pat her head, but when he saw her pigtails, he cupped them both in his hands instead.

Jiang Xueli felt him touching her hair. She was shy at first, but then her mind inexplicably flashed back to that thing she’d seen online the other day.

She remembered the phrase she saw online—that pigtails were for a boyfriend to hold.

The shy Jiang Xueli immediately lost her composure. She quickly let go of him, grabbed her pigtails and clutched them to her chest, stuttering shyly.

"Zhen... Zhengran, it’s too soon! I can’t let you do... that kind of thing! At least... at least we have to do the other stuff first!"

Lin Zhengran hummed in confusion.

Jiang Xueli looked away, utterly mortified, and stammered, "I mean... we haven’t even held hands yet! How can we jump straight to... to doing... *it*? We have to start with holding hands, and hugging... and... and all that, one step at a time!"

Lin Zhengran blinked.

’She’s certainly direct,’ he thought. ’But what did I even do? How did her mind jump straight to that?’

’Oh, right. The pigtails.’

So, he deliberately reached out to touch her pigtails again.

Jiang Xueli was so embarrassed that she dove under the covers. "No! No! No! It’s too soon!"

Seeing her hiding under the blanket, Lin Zhengran chuckled softly.

’Teasing these girls really is fun.’

「The next day, the music competition was finally set to begin.」