“I’m no happy-go-lucky person; I’m a firecracker. Whoever dares to hide me in their pocket, I’ll blow them up until they don’t have a single coin left!”

Bai Yingchuan’s expression didn’t change, but the disappointment in his eyes towards Jiang Ruotang was too obvious. Anyone who was looked at by such a pair of eyes would feel a reluctance in their heart. However, Jiang Ruotang remained unmoved. He held the microphone and walked over to Lu Guifan. “Class monitor, please critique my performance!”

“Next time, you can sing songs that make you happy,” Lu Guifan replied.

“Like what? Class monitor, do you know what songs make Jiang Ruotang happy?” Cai Ji asked curiously.

“I don’t know the song title.”

Now Jiang Ruotang was curious too, “No, class monitor, you have to sing it! I don’t even know what makes me happy when I sing!”

Lu Guifan remained seated, quiet as ever. His lips parted, and he sang acapella.

“I could be your worry partner, I could be your socialite… I could be your tenderhearted child, I could be ordinary, I could be the one.”

Suddenly, everyone fell silent. Because Lu Guifan’s voice was beautiful. Unlike his usual speaking voice, it was clearly evident that he was imitating Jiang Ruotang’s joyful singing tone. Both his enunciation and pitch, while lacking the original singer’s sweetness, somehow moved the listeners.

Jian Sha was the first to remember the song’s title, “It’s ‘I Could Be the One’ by Donna Lewis! Class monitor, you sang it so well, like a heartfelt confession!”

But Jiang Ruotang was stunned.

One evening, after art class finished early, Jiang Ruotang found that the day’s math practice paper was difficult, so he asked Xiao Gao to drive him to Lu Guifan’s house. At that time, Lu Guifan was showering, so Jiang Ruotang sat at his desk waiting for him. Perhaps he got bored waiting, so he held Lu Guifan’s school uniform sleeve, pretending the uniform was his dance partner, and spun around the small bedroom, singing this song as he spun.

When Lu Guifan entered the room with a towel on his head and saw this scene, the moment their eyes met, Jiang Ruotang, without blushing or a racing heart, said, “I’m practicing square dancing in advance! Sixty years from now, I’ll be the most popular old man in the square!”

He thought Lu Guifan had long forgotten, but he didn’t expect him to remember even the lyrics and melody. Wait, doesn’t this mean… that when I was engrossed in it, Lu Guifan was actually listening from outside the door for quite a while?

Jiang Ruotang gasped.

Lu Guifan asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, just social death.”

Jiang Ruotang placed the microphone on the coffee table and sat back in his seat, his ears so red they looked like they were about to bleed.

---

At this point, everyone started egging Bai Yingchuan on to sing the movie’s theme song. He didn’t decline, stood up, and took the microphone. He didn’t need to turn to look at the lyrics; instead, he faced the sofa. When the music began, Bai Yingchuan’s delicate and weathered operatic voice instantly captured everyone’s attention, like a string tied to their hearts. With a single melodious note, he drew everyone’s focus. It also made Jiang Ruotang’s cheeks less flushed.

Bai Yingchuan was truly born for this. His expressions, whether spirited or melancholic, resonated with people, and his acting aura shone through from his eyebrows to his lips. When the most powerful melody arrived, he spoke with conviction, varying his tone, his voice completely different from the operatic style before. Everyone could even see a cold killing intent in his eyes. This ability to stir the audience’s emotions was why Jiang Ruotang believed he could develop into a strong actor in his previous life. However, as he grew older and spent more time immersed in the world of fame and fortune, this innate charisma in Bai Yingchuan faded, making him ordinary. This made Jiang Ruotang wonder what would become of Bai Yingchuan’s acting career after his own death, under the machinations of the Lin father and son.

When the song ended, everyone applauded.

“Finally heard a live version! Truly the nation’s male Daji!” Jiang Ruotang, as the host, gave a generous compliment to the guest.

Jian Sha suddenly tilted her head and said, “Jiang Ruotang, you’re a flirt!”

“Huh? I’m a flirt now?”

“You said before that the class monitor was Bao Si, and you were King You of Zhou, and even lighting beacon fires for nobles couldn’t make Bao Si smile.”

Jian Sha, who sent you here? My face, which finally wasn’t so red, is going to burn up again!

Now Bai Yingchuan looked at Jiang Ruotang with interest. Lu Guifan probably never imagined he’d one day be compared to Bao Si. Cai Ji actually made a brilliant comment: “An ice beauty who caused the downfall of a kingdom with a smile? Class monitor, you’d better not smile; I’m afraid Jiang Ruotang’s kingdom will be lost.”

Jian Sha and Zhao Changfeng, surprisingly, began to sing in unison, acting crazy.

“When I offer my kingdom for your delight~”

“Tens of thousands sing praises that echo through eternity~”

Jiang Ruotang pressed them both down. “You two are amazing; you made ‘Ai Bu Shi Shou’ sound like ‘Unity is Strength’!”

At this moment, Lin Lu suddenly asked a question that directly put Jiang Ruotang on the spot. “Then… Ruotang, would you rather be King Zhou, or King You of Zhou?”

The meaning was obvious: King Zhou loved Daji, and King You of Zhou loved Bao Si. Lin Lu was asking Jiang Ruotang to choose between Bai Yingchuan and Lu Guifan. Cai Ji, that little fool, was still giggling innocently. Jian Sha, on the other hand, looked at Bai Yingchuan’s expression as he watched Jiang Ruotang, and then at the class monitor’s calm demeanor, vaguely sensing that this question was strange. She put a hand on Jiang Ruotang’s shoulder, “Of course, our Ruotang chooses neither! Why be a monarch of a fallen kingdom when you have such a prosperous one?”

In that moment, Jiang Ruotang truly wanted to call Jian Sha “Dad,” thanking her for saving his life. Bai Yingchuan smiled faintly, put down the microphone, and sat back on the sofa.

Next was Jian Sha’s karaoke hogging moment. She sang three songs in a row and even pulled Bai Yingchuan up for a duet, truly a social butterfly. Suddenly, Jian Sha stopped. She stepped aside, and the MV screen showed the male and female leads kissing passionately.

“Oh my! Jian Sha, how can you deliberately stop to watch this, aren’t you ashamed!” Zhao Changfeng twisted his long legs, not knowing where to put them. Cai Ji also lowered his head, looking at his fuzzy slippers.

Jiang Ruotang, on the other hand, propped his chin, showing some interest: “They’re kissing so beautifully!”

“Right! Right! I love it too, unlike those fake kisses, their lips moved! Their tongues definitely touched!” Jian Sha’s girlish heart overflowed, “They’re definitely dating!”

“Mhm, they’re dating. This gossip is solid.” In Jiang Ruotang’s memory, the male and female leads in this MV not only dated but also achieved a happy ending, becoming a rare model couple in the entertainment industry.

“But what are fake kisses?” Cai Ji asked dumbly.

Jiang Ruotang turned his face, his smile three parts teasing and seven parts mischievous: “You want to know?”

“Mhm, I want to know!” Cai Ji nodded.

“Then I’ll teach you.” If anyone else deliberately made such a playboy expression, it would seem greasy, but Jiang Ruotang’s eyes shone like stars, radiating a captivating liveliness. His expression was seen by Bai Yingchuan, and the heavy barriers deep within his heart seemed to crack open, with desire seeping out.

“Let me do it,” Bai Yingchuan stood up.

“Oh my god! Bai Yingchuan, are you going to act for us?” Jian Sha looked up in surprise.

Lin Lu realized something and reached out to grab Bai Yingchuan’s sleeve, but Bai Yingchuan had already stood up. He walked over to Jiang Ruotang, knelt down halfway, one hand resting on his knee, his posture truly handsome. Even an eighteen-year-old Bai Yingchuan, with the youthful awkwardness in his eyes, possessed an inherent seductive quality that not everyone could resist. Especially with such a pair of eyes, if the person staring back wasn’t Jiang Ruotang, their heart would probably feel weightless, dragged into desire by Bai Yingchuan. But Jiang Ruotang had long developed immunity.

“Shall we demonstrate for everyone?” Bai Yingchuan said.

“Bai Yingchuan – you heartthrob! You crazy heart-stirrer!” Jian Sha was so excited she was almost stomping her feet on the spot.

Everyone’s eyes turned to them. Lin Lu’s eyes held unconcealed jealousy. Cai Ji was genuinely curious how fake kiss scenes were filmed. Zhao Changfeng was worried Jiang Ruotang would fall into Bai Yingchuan’s deep pit again. Jian Sha’s girlish heart was overflowing, while Lu Guifan’s brows furrowed, a rare sight. He was hesitant to speak. Even the most difficult competition problems, he could find answers for, but at this moment, his mind was racing to find a reason for Jiang Ruotang to refuse, yet he couldn’t find the right solution.

Two seconds later, Jiang Ruotang suddenly tilted his head and, like a capricious child, said, “I don’t want to! It’s no fun at all!”

“Huh? What else would make it fun?” Jian Sha asked.

“As a director’s son, I want to show you top-tier sexual tension!” Jiang Ruotang looked at Lu Guifan, “I choose the class monitor!”

Bai Yingchuan’s expression didn’t change, but his heart felt as if the last dam had been overwhelmed by a huge wave, collapsing into disarray yet still trying to feign calm.

“Oh, why choose the class monitor?”

“Because the class monitor is pure and aloof, seemingly immune to desire. Choosing him would be impactful! Plus, the class monitor has a very important prop,” Jiang Ruotang said reasonably, but his palms were sweating and his heart was pounding in his throat. Would Lu Guifan be willing to cooperate? Would he feel offended? Would he… be unhappy because he felt I crossed a line?

“Prop?” Lu Guifan tilted his head to look.

Jian Sha clapped and laughed, “Interesting! So interesting! I get Jiang Ruotang’s point! The class monitor is a scholar-god, a god among mortals! Watching a deity descend from his altar for a kiss, how interesting!”

Zhao Changfeng scratched the back of his head, “Though I don’t understand, I feel like… Bro, you’re really good at this!”

Lin Lu’s heart, which had been sour to the core, finally settled back into place and he immediately joined the cheering, “This is good! Class monitor, are you scared?”

Lu Guifan couldn’t possibly be scared. In fact, when Jiang Ruotang mentioned him, he felt a sense of stability, as if a weight had finally been lifted. Even if it was a fake kiss, he hoped Jiang Ruotang would be cherished, treated seriously by the other person, and that Jiang Ruotang would find joy. Or perhaps, compared to everyone else present, Lu Guifan trusted himself more.

“I’m not scared, but I’m not an actor, I don’t know what to do,” Lu Guifan replied.

Jiang Ruotang smiled, a smile that lit up the night like countless stars, “You don’t need to know how; I will!”

That one sentence caused everyone to start cheering wildly again. Lu Guifan grew up in a fishing village in Chengtan, and his grandparents who raised him were conservative and traditional people. Whenever intimate scenes appeared on television, they would definitely cover Lu Guifan’s eyes.

Later, when he moved to the city with his parents, his most important task every day was studying.

Aside from movie trailers played on LED advertisements, upon careful reflection, he didn’t seem to have watched any kissing scenes. Or perhaps he simply hadn’t paid attention. And agreeing to perform a fake kissing scene with Jiang Ruotang was probably the most outrageous thing he had ever done in his eighteen years of life.

Jiang Ruotang stood up and walked towards Lu Guifan. “Class monitor, here I come!”

It was clearly a joyful, childish voice, without any evil intent, yet it touched a thin membrane in the heart, and blood surged madly into the ventricles, as if fragile blood vessels were about to burst.