Senior, Stop Pretending to be an Alpha - Chapter 11

The crowd fell silent in perfect unison for a few seconds before breaking into a wave of knowing laughter.

“Exactly! She really did sing quite well!”

“It was beautiful, friends. It was like hearing celestial music that suddenly clears the ears!”

“That detached and stoic vocal style was a critique of the cruelty and pedantry of modern society; it was an indictment of the blood-sucking evil of capitalists. It truly makes one ponder!”

Even the instructor could not help but chuckle. “Indeed, it wasn’t bad. There is a lot of room for improvement! Keep it up!”

Yu Qiao: “…”

The flattery was becoming increasingly ridiculous.

Tang Sijia, who hadn’t even found the chance to start her mockery, listened to the unanimous praise. She was so furious she nearly crushed her teeth, her fists clenched tight.

In terms of vocal skill, she was leagues ahead of Yu Qiao, yet the tide had shifted effortlessly just because of Xie Bufei’s appearance. Not only was her spotlight stolen, but everyone had also taken Yu Qiao’s side.

Worse yet, someone nearby gave Yu Qiao a direct shove and teased, “Yu Qiao, Senior Xie came all this way for you. Aren’t you going to go say something?”

Yu Qiao met Xie Bufei’s smiling eyes. A ripple appeared in her usually calm expression. After a moment’s hesitation, she walked through the sea of people toward Xie Bufei.

Tang Sijia could only watch helplessly as the Goddess walked away side-by-side with that little vixen, Yu Qiao.

“Come on down! What are you still staring at?” Yao Rudong shouted at her with schadenfreude. “Envious? What a pity. You won the battle of vocals but lost the battle of life.”

Amidst a chorus of friendly laughter, Tang Sijia slunk off the stage with a dark face.

Yu Qiao walked quickly to Xie Bufei’s side and asked, “Senior, why did you suddenly come over?”

“I just wanted to see what you were doing.”

Xie Bufei curled the corners of her mouth, her eyes dancing with amusement. “I didn’t expect… well, it was quite a surprise.”

Yu Qiao felt a bit embarrassed hearing this. She pursed her lips and said softly, “I don’t sing well. I’ve made a fool of myself in front of you.”

Xie Bufei blinked, her tone innocent. “Who says it didn’t sound good? It was clearly very interesting.”

Detecting the playfulness in her voice, Yu Qiao sighed. “Senior, please don’t tease me anymore.”

Xie Bufei pulled back her smile and intentionally put on a serious face, saying sternly, “Who’s teasing you? I’m serious. Qiaoqiao, your singing is beautiful. I’ll pick a fight with anyone who says otherwise.”

Yu Qiao was speechless. “That’s really not necessary.”

Xie Bufei burst into laughter and stopped walking.

She was tall, though slightly shorter than Yu Qiao. When she tilted her head up slightly, her eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings. Her narrow fox-like eyes curved into crescents, giving the illusion of a sea of deep affection.

Yu Qiao stopped with her. The cool night breeze brushed against their faces, tossing strands of hair by their ears.

Xie Bufei looked at her and suddenly leaned in. She lowered her voice, her tone becoming soft and husky. “Do you want to hear me sing?”

Yu Qiao looked at her in surprise. “Is that okay?”

“Of course it is,” Xie Bufei said. “It’s been a long time since I’ve sung.”

She sat down cross-legged on the spot and patted the green grass beside her, gesturing for Yu Qiao to join her.

Deep in the night sky, the half-moon hid behind the mist, quietly peeking its head out.

They sat side-by-side, their shoulders inevitably touching. They could feel the heat radiating from their skin where they met, and their hair became inextricably tangled together.

A sudden, indescribable emotion welled up in Yu Qiao’s heart. It felt like sharing a secret; it was furtive, yet filled with a private joy.

Xie Bufei was quiet for a moment. She gently closed her eyes and parted her red lips.

The moment she opened her mouth, Yu Qiao seemed to forget everything around her.

The light scent of lily of the valley drifted in the night wind, flowing toward Yu Qiao in silken threads.

She felt as though she were sinking into a dream, falling onto a soft cloud. As far as the eye could see, a field of snow-white lilies of the valley bloomed quietly under the silver moonlight.

The drooping petals swayed with the wind, seemingly making a tinkling sound.

The voice was ethereal and misty, as if drifting from a very distant place, echoing between the fog-covered sea and the depths of the reefs.

It was like the song of a siren.

Yu Qiao suddenly remembered the legends of Sirens she had read in books and suddenly felt a surge of empathy for those bewitched sailors and pirates.

Even when Xie Bufei finished, Yu Qiao couldn’t snap out of it for a long time.

Her shoulder was nudged gently. Yu Qiao turned her head and met Xie Bufei’s bright, fox-like eyes.

When Xie Bufei spoke, the end of her sentences curled upward, like a kitten’s paw gently teasing a ball of yarn—soft and sweet. “Qiaoqiao, why aren’t you saying anything?”

“Because you are too amazing, Senior.”

Yu Qiao covered her chest and took a deep breath, saying honestly, “I feel like my soul has been purified.”

Xie Bufei was stunned. her thick eyelashes fluttered rapidly as she lowered her head and suddenly laughed out loud.

“It really was wonderful. You truly live up to being a student in the Music Department.” Thinking Xie Bufei didn’t believe her, Yu Qiao asked with total sincerity, “What song was that just now?”

Xie Bufei couldn’t stop the smile on her lips as she said leisurely, “Hmm, I haven’t decided on a title for it yet.”

A title?

Yu Qiao was stunned for a moment before the realization hit her. Her eyes widened behind her glasses. “Is it… a song you wrote yourself?”

Xie Bufei replied, “Yes.”

She turned her head to observe Yu Qiao’s reaction, her lips curving upward with a touch of mischievous humor. “Qiaoqiao, you are my very first listener.”

Yu Qiao didn’t speak. She seemed dazed, her dark eyes reflecting tiny fragments of light, like night stars flickering above the clouds.

She never expected that Xie Bufei could write songs, nor that the melody would be so beautiful, yet she had never shown it to the public.

Yu Qiao’s lips moved slightly as she weighed her words, saying each one carefully: “I really, really like this song.”

Yu Qiao had a rigorous personality. Even when she was being earnest, she looked as though she were proving a mathematical theorem.

Xie Bufei tilted her head and watched her for a while, then said, “I’ve thought of the title.”

She rested her face on one hand. Her long, curled lashes cast two shadows in the warm yellow light. Her red lips curved into a bright, unrestrained smile.

“Qiaoqiao.”

Yu Qiao instinctively replied, “Hmm?”

“That is the name of the song,” Xie Bufei said. “It’s called Qiaoqiao.”

When they woke up the next day, Yao Rudong was indeed exhausted with an aching back and sore legs. Her voice was as coarse as sandpaper.

She lay paralyzed on the bed and let out a long sigh. “Save me, family! My whole body is falling apart!”

Lu Yun: “You should say less with that broken throat of yours. It tires me out just listening to you.” Having said that, she took a tray of throat lozenges from her drawer and handed them over. “Here, take some.”

Yao Rudong unwrapped one and popped it into her mouth, giving her a sweet smile. “Thank you, beautiful and kind Yunyun.”

Suddenly, a light melody rang out in the dormitory. A female voice, misty and clean, flowed through the air.

Yao Rudong: “Whose phone is ringing?”

Lu Yun leaned over to take a look and said, “It seems to be Qiaoqiao’s.” She raised her head and shouted toward the bathroom, “Qiaoqiao, someone is calling you!”

Yu Qiao gave a response and walked out of the bathroom a moment later. She was carrying a washbasin, having just finished washing up. She wasn’t wearing her glasses yet, and her clean, cold, white face was wet, with water droplets trickling down her elegant features.

Her looks were actually somewhat heroic and spirited, a classic example of a “refined beauty.” Her brows were lifted, her eyes slightly upturned, her nose bridge high, and her contours well-defined. She might not seem strikingly lush or cute at first glance, but the more one looked, the more captivating she became.

Lu Yun couldn’t help but daze for a second, feeling that Yu Qiao looked much better without her glasses than she usually did.

Yu Qiao glanced at her phone; it was a missed call from her mother, hung up just a few minutes ago. She set down the basin, pressed the redial button, and walked out of the dormitory.

The morning corridor was empty. The sun had not yet reached it, and the distant mountains and high-rises looked gray and dusty.

The phone rang a few times before being answered. Yu Qiao said softly, “Mom.”

The gentle voice of a middle-aged woman came through the line: “Xiao Qiao, what are you doing?”

“Just finished washing up, getting ready for military training,” Yu Qiao said. “Mom, is something the matter?”

The woman was silent for a moment, then spoke with a hint of reproach: “Listen to you. Can’t I call you if nothing is the matter? How can you say that?”

Yu Qiao pursed her lips and whispered, “No, I just thought you had an emergency.”

“I’m fine. I just wanted to ask how you’re doing.” The woman chuckled a few times, clutching her phone with a touch of nervousness. “Is it cold over there? Winter is coming soon; remember to add a quilt to your bed.”

Yu Qiao said patiently, “Yes, I know. It’s still hot here, and the air conditioning is on all the time. I won’t need a quilt.”

The woman said repeatedly, “Good, good. Then you…” She paused, her breathing becoming shallow. “Qiaoqiao, your father… he still has one year until…”

Yu Qiao remained silent for a long time, her voice cold and steady: “Mom, don’t worry. We’ve already moved. He doesn’t know the address. And I won’t let him hurt us ever again.”

“No… that’s not what I meant.” The woman’s fingers trembled, and her unstable voice traveled through the receiver. “I was just thinking, he is your father after all.”

Yu Qiao: “Are you thinking of forgiving him?”

The woman seemed as if she were being choked, her words becoming jumbled: “I just feel that, no matter what, his blood flows in your veins, and I also want to give you a complete home. If he comes out this time and truly repents, then we might as well talk to him properly again.”

“I will never forgive him.” Yu Qiao’s fingers turned white from gripping the phone, and she interrupted coldly, “Mom, you know. Domestic violence is either zero times or infinite times.”

The woman’s lips trembled. She fell silent and did not say another word for a long time.

Yu Qiao hung up the phone. She took several deep breaths to steady herself. Once her heartbeat returned to normal, she walked back into the dormitory with a calm expression.

“Qiaoqiao, did you change your ringtone?” Yao Rudong leaned in. “I heard it just now. It’s really nice.”

Yu Qiao paused and then nodded.

After last night, she had changed her ringtone to Xie Bufei’s song.

“Since Qiaoqiao is the first listener, this song is dedicated to you,” Xie Bufei had said. “Any objections?”

Thinking of Xie Bufei’s smiling face, Yu Qiao felt her mood gradually steady.

Yao Rudong looked at her eagerly: “What’s the name of this song? Play it again; I really like it.”

Yu Qiao hesitated and shook her head.

She had made a promise to Xie Bufei last night not to tell anyone else about this song.

This was a secret belonging only to the two of them.

“I don’t know the title. I just downloaded it randomly online,” she lied without changing her expression. “Even music recognition apps can’t find it.”

Lu Yun looked at her expression and raised an eyebrow.

Yao Rudong sighed with regret: “Huh? How can that be?”

Yu Qiao tapped the music player and said, “I can play it once more, though.”

The ethereal female voice flowed through Dorm 301, dreamlike and surreal.

The three finished breakfast and headed toward the playground.

They arrived early today. There weren’t many people around yet. A few members of the Student Union were sitting under large umbrellas chatting; they were responsible for taking care of freshmen who suffered from heatstroke.

Yao Rudong looked around and said in surprise, “Hey, Senior Xie isn’t here today.”

Yu Qiao: “Maybe she has class.”

Lu Yun glanced at her meaningfully: “Aren’t you going to ask?”

Yu Qiao looked bewildered: “Ask what?”

“Ask what she’s doing or if she’s busy today,” Lu Yun said. “I told you to be more proactive. If it were anyone else, they would have pounced on her like a hungry wolf long ago.”

Yao Rudong said with a grin, “Maybe Senior Xie likes Qiaoqiao’s style—a reserved and pure college student. It’s more exciting to pursue that way.”

Yu Qiao didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Hearing their teasing, she explained, “Senior and I are just friends.”

Facing the skeptical gazes of her two friends, Yu Qiao shook her head. After a moment of thought, she opened the WeChat chat interface.

Her chat with “Gary” had ended last night. After Yu Qiao heard the song, Xie Bufei had sent her a demo version.

Yu Qiao typed a line and sent it: “Are you in class, Senior?”

After a moment, Xie Bufei sent a reply.

“I had to go home for something. Why?”

Just as Yu Qiao was about to reply, another line popped up from the other side: “Do you miss me?”

Yu Qiao locked her phone as if she had been burned.

On the other side of the screen, Xie Bufei rested her chin on one hand, her fox-like eyes curving as she typed those words. She imagined Yu Qiao’s flustered look on the other end and smiled with satisfaction.

Just as she was about to send something else, a single word suddenly popped up in the window.

“Yes.”

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