When the prelude of "Hello Tomorrow" began, the barrage of comments suddenly fell silent for a few seconds.
As the intro faded, Chen Xiaoxi's voice filled the livestream room.
"In the center of Destiny Square, I wait…"
"For those blurry shoulders…"
"The more I run, the smaller I feel…"
"Partners who once walked beside me…"
"After raising our glasses in blessing, all drifted apart…"
"But that night…"
"Every moment was carved deeply into my heart…"
"After growing up, all I can do is run…"
"I fear falling in the dark so much…"
"Hello tomorrow, smiling with tears…"
"The more beautiful it is, the more afraid I am to reach for it…"
When she reached the line, "Every time I cry, I still run with a smile," her reddened eyes brushed past the camera.
One year ago, the despair she felt when her parents pushed her into the fire pit—All of it flowed into her voice now.
"Xiaoxi, let's cheer on together!"
"Xiaoxi, we're with you!"
"Xiaoxi, let's work hard together!"…
During the chorus, the screen suddenly filled with:
"Xiaoxi, we're cheering for you x…"
The constantly increasing "×number" after the message proved one thing—Her true fans were still here, still countless.
(Note: "×" means multiplication. "×number" represents how many times the message was sent.)
A few minutes later, the song ended.
Wiping her eyes, Chen Xiaoxi glanced at the screen again.
Just then, a comment floated by:
"Xiaoxi, have you been well this past year?"
Chen Xiaoxi stared blankly at the words.
"This past year… when I disappeared…"
Her voice was hoarse from holding back tears.
"I was actually sick."
"Sick? Xiaoxi, please take care of yourself!"
"Take care!"
"Take care!"
"Please take care!"…
In an instant, the entire livestream was flooded with:
"Xiaoxi, take care of your health!"
She shook her head gently.
"No, it wasn't anything serious. I just needed to stop and sort out my emotions."
After steadying herself, she smiled softly.
"Thank you for waiting for me. The second song is called 'Woman Flower.'"
The accompaniment began.
Her voice rose.
"I have a flower…"
"Planted deep within my heart…"
"A bud waiting to bloom…"
"Morning and night…"
"I wait with longing…"
When she reached the line, "Waiting for the one with a heart to enter my dreams," a pinned comment suddenly popped up:
Zhang Yichen: "Sister, can I be the one to enter your dream?"
Immediately after, his username lit up across the screen as he sent Super Fireworks ×…
The entire livestream room exploded in colorful fireworks.
Chen Xiaoxi almost laughed mid-note.
"Can a certain little kid stop causing trouble?"
The comment section instantly turned into a sea of lemons.
"Is this… an official announcement?!"
"Xiaoxi is mine!"
"Let go of my goddess!"
"This hatred for stealing my wife is irreconcilable!"
"Is this the legendary mutual love?!"…
Zhang Yichen didn't respond—His meat was still boiling in the pot.
Chen Xiaoxi didn't respond either—she had to continue singing.
"A woman's flower, swaying in the mortal world…"
"A woman's flower, lightly dancing with the wind…"
…
"Top Student, you know how to play! Teach us how you sent fireworks!"
"Yeah! Why can't we do it? I want to send fireworks too!"
"Top Student! Where are you? Come out!"
"Top Student! Come out!"
"Top Student! Come out!"
The screen was flooded again.
From the comments, it was obvious—Her fans didn't dislike Zhang Yichen at all.
Even the rumor about "sugar mommy sponsorship" was surprisingly easy for them to accept.
When she finished singing, the barrage was still filled with:
"Top Student! Come out!"
Chen Xiaoxi: "…"
Guys… fireworks cost money.
She cleared her throat.
"Um… everyone, listen. That's a feature in the 'Joy' app. I turned off the gift feature. Today we aren't accepting gifts—just chatting and singing."
She had to explain.
Otherwise, that line would keep flooding the chat forever.
"Then why can he send fireworks?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Why can he?!"…
The spam finally changed—
But still…
Chen Xiaoxi: "…"
Could she tell them that he didn't have to pay for gifts?
Absolutely not.
Never.
"Um… well…"
She stuttered slightly.
"He's the developer of this platform. He can bypass the restrictions I set."
After thinking it through, she felt the excuse was perfect.
And it could even boost Zhang Yichen's public image.
"He's the developer?! Top Student really is top-tier! Then… did he write these two songs too?"
This comment flashed by at the perfect moment, right where her eyes landed.
"These two songs were written by me," she replied calmly.
To be honest, she still suspected Zhang Yichen wrote them. He just refused to admit it.
Well, if he wouldn't admit it—she might as well claim the credit.
After all, he wasn't an outsider.
And in the past few days, with all the blatant and subtle teasing,
She'd been losing ground left and right.
She was about ready to explode.
But never mind.
Sooner or later, she would pin him beneath her and reclaim every win she had lost.
A little man like him—
How could she not handle him?
Not convinced!
"Next is a song written by Zhang Yichen. It's called 'Invisible Wings.'"
Shaking off her messy thoughts, she began singing again.
"Every time…"
"I stand strong in loneliness…"
"Every time…"
"Even when deeply hurt…"
"I won't let tears fall…"
"I know…"
"I always have a pair of invisible wings…"
"Carrying me…"
"Past despair…"…
By the time she reached the chorus, the viewer count had already surpassed three million.
Looking at the flooding comments, Chen Xiaoxi suddenly reached out and turned off the accompaniment.
She continued with a clear, pure voice:
"I know… I always have a pair of invisible wings…"
Her unaccompanied vocals cut cleanly through the noise, sinking into the ears of every viewer.
Unfortunately, beautiful moments never last long.
Among the comments, someone suddenly typed:
"Can you talk about the rumor of you sponsoring Zhang Yichen?"
More black fans instantly joined in.
In seconds, "Can you talk about sponsoring Zhang Yichen?" filled the screen.
But in the next moment, their attempts were drowned out—
"Xiaoxi, stay strong!"
"Don't listen to them!"
"We support you!"
Seeing her fans defend her so fiercely, her eyes reddened again.
The song entered its final lines.
Her voice lowered, growing softer.
"Invisible wings…"
"Let dreams outlast the sky…"
"Leave a wish…"
"For myself to imagine…"
Maybe this was how the song was meant to be sung.
Or maybe her fans' loyalty had moved her.
She felt that this live version surpassed the studio recording.
But she didn't dwell on it.
Life was like this sometimes—
Nothing was ever truly perfect.