She Adopted Me After My Biological Mother Passed Away - Chapter 44

Chi Yeyu: That’s right, this is my goddess, Shi Shuxue.

Shi Shuxue didn’t dare perform on stage in front of Chi Yeyu.

Chi Yeyu was the person who taught her the drums and had personally taught her the bass, hand to hand.

Even though the person who truly led her into the world of bass, teaching her with more depth and detail, was Li Lingling, Shi Shuxue could pluck the strings without inhibition in front of Li. She dared to experiment with bold, imaginative techniques, feeling not a shred of shame even if her fingertips missed a note or her rhythm faltered.

During her first performance, she knew Li Lingling was standing backstage. That gaze falling upon her didn’t cause stage fright, instead, it felt like it injected strength into her fingertips, making the notes land with steady resolve.

She was never afraid of the stage and never cared about the eyes below. Hundreds, thousands, even if she faced tens of thousands of eyes in the future to her, they were merely background noise. She even craved the feeling of standing under the spotlight, enjoying the vibration of the drums and bass entwined together, savoring the vivid sensation of her heart beating to the rhythm.

After Li Lingling left, she performed many times with the band. Initially, she paired with Song Liulan, their rhythms syncing perfectly. Later, when the drummer changed to Ci Cheng, they developed their own unique chemistry after a few shows.

She had played casual small-scale sets at live houses for a few hundred people and performed at massive venues seating over ten thousand in joint shows with other bands.

Regardless of the stage’s size, she never once underperformed, instead, she always felt more liberated than during rehearsals, consistently delivering “beyond capacity” performances.

She truly loved the bass, and she loved the atmosphere of standing shoulder to shoulder with her teammates.

But during all those moments, Chi Yeyu was never there.

She couldn’t imagine Chi Yeyu sitting or standing down there, in a spot she could see just by glancing down, clapping with those same hands that had taught her to read sheet music and adjust effect pedals, flashing her a brilliant smile.

The mere thought made her fingers tighten instinctively against the strings.

She worried that all her tiny flaws, the ones masked by applause and all the brief hesitations glossed over by technique would be exposed without mercy under that gaze.

In the bedroom, Chi Yeyu propped herself up on her hands, looking down at her from above.

The warm orange glow of the bedside lamp traced the falling strands of Shi Shuxue’s hair, casting a flickering shadow in her eyes. The meaning in that gaze was too complex to decipher, scrutiny or insight, confusion or understanding.

Shi Shuxue hated it when Chi Yeyu looked at her like that.

“Chi Yeyu. I don’t play well,” Shi Shuxue said.

Chi Yeyu blinked. “Are you serious?”

Shi Shuxue didn’t want to mess up tomorrow’s performance. She nodded. “I’m serious. So don’t go watch, okay?”

Though she spoke words of request, her tone lacked the soft sweetness that usually accompanied acting spoiled.

Chi Yeyu wasn’t going to let her off that easily. “Then you’ll have to show some sincerity, won’t you?”

Shi Shuxue fell silent for a long moment. She tilted her head up to brush against the corner of Chi Yeyu’s lips and whispered two words.

“Not enough sincerity,” Chi Yeyu said.

Shi Shuxue’s eyes grew damp and red with shame. She looped her arms around Chi Yeyu’s neck and moved in to kiss her soft lips.

Chi Yeyu wanted to laugh at her clumsiness. She cupped the back of Shi Shuxue’s head, her tongue prying open the teeth to enter the warm, soft mouth, intentionally sucking and licking with a hint of playfulness, only letting go when Shi Shuxue was nearly out of breath.

Shi Shuxue’s lips remained slightly parted from the passion, appearing somewhat swollen and glistening.

She didn’t forget her original goal: “Don’t go tomorrow.”

This behavior was exactly like an elementary schooler who failed an exam and didn’t want their parents to attend the parent-teacher conference.

Chi Yeyu pressed her cheek against Shi Shuxue’s fair neck, feeling the skin as delicate as almond tofu. She gave it a soft squeeze and said affectionately, “No can do. Your bribe failed, so I’m going.”

The Next Afternoon.

Outside the venue, Shi Shuxue was wrapped in an oversized black heavy hoodie, the brim pulled low, revealing only a sliver of her porcelain jawline.

She carried a stack of storage boxes half as tall as a person, followed by two staff members also carrying items, walking toward the designated pickup point.

Ci Cheng was on his tiptoes organizing sticky notes on the display board, reading them one by one and occasionally snapping a photo.

Seeing her arrive, Ci Cheng turned and smiled, pointing at the storage boxes. “Want to hand these out for a bit tonight? Don’t let those hand-strung lanyards go to waste.”

Shi Shuxue opened a storage box. The fragmented silver light was a bit dazzling, in the center of each bracelet was a small edelweiss flower with frosted silver edges, the back engraved with the band’s English initials.

“Okay,” she said softly, her voice carrying a hint of sleepiness, a total contrast to her cold-faced persona on stage.

A line of fans soon formed. Under the lights, many could be seen clutching various fan support items, their faces filled with irrepressible anticipation.

Standing beside Ci Cheng, Shi Shuxue took the ticket stubs from the fans and carefully handed over the bracelets. she spoke very little, mostly just nodding slightly, her lips pressed into a shallow, straight line.

“Xue! I absolutely love your bass solos!” A girl with twin tails blushed as she handed over her ticket, her voice trembling. “I couldn’t make it on Christmas Eve, I finally get to see you today!”

Shi Shuxue looked up, meeting the girl’s eyes, and uttered two words: “Thank you.”

As she handed over the bracelet, she adjusted the lanyard so the edelweiss faced the girl directly.

The girl clutched the bracelet excitedly. Every knot on the lanyard was perfectly tied, and it even featured a tiny pearl. “Wow! Mine has a pearl! Is it a special one?”

Shi Shuxue nodded. Ci Cheng chimed in from the side, “This is our Little Xue’s little token of appreciation, a hidden surprise for everyone~”

Ten minutes later, a girl dressed in black wearing a hat and mask walked up. Her high-pitched, thin voice was full of mirth: “Sister, can I get a high-five?”

Shi Shuxue paused, looking at the outstretched hand, hesitating for two seconds. She usually avoided physical contact and maintained a sense of aloofness on stage, but even though she couldn’t see the face, she could feel the other person’s expectation.

She slowly raised her hand and gave a light high-five. The brief touch of palm temperature felt like a burn; she retracted her hand quickly and handed over the gift.

At that moment, the person opposite suddenly grabbed her wrist, pulling her closer without explanation, and whispered: “How can you just say yes to a girl you don’t know?”

It only took a second for Shi Shuxue to recognize her. “…Chi Yeyu, are you that bored?”

“Keep your voice down, we’re doing the ‘underground’ thing right now,” Chi Yeyu leaned in and whispered in her ear.

Which underground thing?

Shi Shuxue pushed her away wordlessly, telling her to stop talking like Mickey Mouse and not to interfere with her work.

Before leaving, Chi Yeyu gave her a lingering, reluctant look. She saw the girl tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear, revealing a sliver of her white neck. The eyes under the hoodie were like obsidian soaked in warm water, extraordinarily bright.

Her kid is so cute.

There wasn’t enough time to prepare Christmas themed stage outfits, so the band adjusted their plan overnight.

Ci Cheng offered to contribute his collection of vintage corduroy jackets. Shi Shuxue believed the music was more important than the clothes and suggested their usual rehearsal gear.

The two were at a stalemate until Tiangua, feeling a headache coming on, made the final call: “Stop arguing, I’ll go rent New Year themed sets!”

Ultimately, Chi Yeyu solved everything with a single phone call.

The self-proclaimed “overbearing CEO” customized a set of outfits for each of them. The color scheme was primarily black and red, featuring black cinched vests with deep red satin trim, layered with sheer gauze shirts or short capes.

In short, it perfectly matched the band’s style while nodding to the New Year theme. None of the four had any complaints.

8:00 PM. The venue lights went out.

A single spotlight pierced the darkness in the center of the stage.

A tidal wave of cheers erupted from below, glow sticks merging into a flowing river of stars.

Yu Xiu looked at his teammates on either side and smiled. “Let’s go, up on stage together.”

Tiangua nodded and walked out calmly. Ci Cheng followed, but Shi Shuxue remained still.

Yu Xiu walked up to her, resting a hand on her shoulder. “Do you need some psychological counseling before going up, Little Kid Shi Shuxue?”

“No, it’s too late,” Shi Shuxue shook her head, gripped her bass again, and started moving.

Today she wore a tiered black and white bubble skirt, the hem trailing thin red velvet ribbons. On her feet were high-top leather boots with metal buckles. As she stepped onto the stage and the white lights hit her, another roar of screams followed.

Shi Shuxue’s fingertips on the bass were slick with sweat. She knew Chi Yeyu was out there somewhere in that river of stars, watching.