Transmigrated as the CEO's Top-Tier Stand-in - Chapter 57

Chapter 57

Even though it was only the third public performance, Ji Yu found herself more nervous than when she faced the debut night.

Her stylist, as usual, enjoyed drawing new patterns near her eye, as if this had become a different surprise she offered her fans at every meeting. This time, her hair was dyed a gradient red, looking like gentle ocean waves from afar, but up close, it appeared to be a cluster of burning flames, yet these flames were so gentle.

In contrast, there was a spade-shaped pattern near her eye.

Her necklace was a diamond shape, and she had circles of club-shaped bracelets on her wrist. These poker elements gave a magical feeling of the Queen of Hearts from a fairy tale walking out. However, because Ji Yu’s own image was gentle enough, these elements combined on her created a contradictory feeling of being both cool and soft, seemingly capable of displaying different facets with her varying expressions.

If she smiled at you, it was the fairy tale kingdom unfolding before you.

If she looked down upon you with disdain, you would have to surrender and submit beneath the gaze of this cold queen.

Jiang Lianque was the center for the other Vocal group. Since it was a slow song, her styling was more modern and graceful. Dressed in a long dress, even the curve sweeping past her ankle looked subtle and reserved, fitting the image of a goddess in everyone’s minds.

At that moment, Jiang Lianque was in the makeup chair next to her, glancing over to see Ji Yu sitting upright, her back straight, facing the mirror, as if she were looking not at a mirror but at a severe interviewer in the workplace.

She conveniently found a small bread from her personal makeup bag on the table, handed it over from a slight distance, and asked Ji Yu with a smile:

“Why do you look exceptionally nervous today?”

Ji Yu glanced at the unwrapped small bread, thanked her, and initially wasn’t in the mood to eat. But remembering the cards she had drawn from the System, she suddenly reached out to take it, accidentally brushing Jiang Lianque’s fingertips. The card “Heaven looked upon me with exceptional favor today” instantly took effect.

However, Jiang Lianque’s eyes didn’t even move. Ji Yu observed and observed, still unable to confirm whether the luck buff had been applied to the other person. She could only hold the bread, put it away, and then check with the System for confirmation.

At the same time, she replied: “I’m not that nervous… Is my nervousness really that obvious?”

Jiang Lianque leaned back in her chair. Seeing that even the makeup on Ji Yu’s face couldn’t hide the apprehension in her eyes, she nodded. Yet, she didn’t easily believe Ji Yu would be nervous about the stage itself, especially since she heard Ji Yu’s votes were still the highest before the voting channel closed a few days ago. Therefore, this change must be because of today’s performance.

The stage? Or the audience?

“Right—is there someone important coming to watch?” Jiang Lianque asked softly.

Ji Yu gently clenched her fingers, only to realize she had just gotten a beautiful manicure. Because her nails were always trimmed, for overall aesthetics, she had used nail tips, making them longer than her usual nails. With a slight squeeze, the nail tips dug into her palm, causing a dull ache.

She quickly let go, subtly exhaling, and then said to Jiang Lianque: “Yes… I’m nervous because I don’t know if she’ll come.”

She didn’t know if Si Tian would be in the audience.

Meng Rendong had promised her that if she could still rank in the top nine this time, she would let Si Tian come and meet her. She missed Si Tian so much, yet she didn’t know what kind of mood the other person would be in when they met.

Jiang Lianque had already guessed who she was talking about. Her long golden hair was braided into a long plait cascading down the side of her neck, making her look like a natural goddess stepped out of Greece, possessing innate beauty. She smiled, her eyes curving into crescent moons:

“Don’t be nervous.”

She said, “When facing a dear old acquaintance you care about, no matter how you perform, you will surely be perfect in their eyes.”

Ji Yu smiled in response, nodded, and felt a little comforted: “Mm.”

Outside the Venue.

Si Tian was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and light blue jeans. Despite barely wearing any makeup, she was surrounded by three layers of fans of ‘Yu’ (Ji Yu’s fans). Of course, most people’s attention wasn’t on her appearance but was peering into the box in front of her.

—Inside were the flashlight-style support bracelets she had specifically commissioned.

Thanks to CEO Meng’s financial sponsorship, the bracelets were made with the highest quality and presented to the fans. The costs were not low; the bracelet itself was 925 silver, and the four miniature flashlights decorating it were made of metal that was non-rusting, highly luminous, and sufficiently sturdy. As for the precise, realistic electrical design that allowed them to light up, it was even more popular.

Not all fans could receive such interesting merchandise. Si Tian used her fan account to run a lottery, limited to three thousand pieces, and only Ji Yu’s fans were drawn. They could claim them on the day of the public performance with the winning information from the backstage.

Even with three thousand units paid for out of her own pocket, it created a sense of short supply. Si Tian was surrounded by several fan group admins, and after giving everything out, she almost couldn’t escape the crowd, gaining a new understanding of Ji Yu’s popularity.

After saying goodbye to her friends, walking against the tide of fans taking commemorative photos, Si Tian held two sets of other support merchandise and went to the roadside across from the venue. She knocked on the window of a Mercedes-Benz and then opened the door to sit in the back seat.

She let out a soft sigh, carefully placed the pile of merchandise by her legs, patted her chest, and said to Meng Rendong: “It’s a good thing they didn’t recognize me… With so many people, I was genuinely terrified at first.”

Si Tian was still not adept at socializing. She could chat happily online in her rental house, but when suddenly surrounded by fans today, she almost broke out in a cold sweat, even though the first people she met were the top fan leaders she was closest to online.

Meng Rendong handed her a packet of tissues. She looked out the window at the bustling scene outside the venue, where masses of people had gathered. Besides Ji Yu’s fans, there were also many fans of Chu Nanxing, Rong Bai, Ling Lan, Jiang Lianque, and others. Most conspicuous were the mentor fans of Qi Feng from TEB and Night. The fans carved out their own territories, and hardly any ordinary passers-by without support items could be seen.

She turned back and asked casually:

“Are the bracelets all distributed?”

Si Tian, surprisingly, was able to catch the main point in her words. Due to her many years of ‘acquaintance’ with Meng Rendong, she was now gradually showing a more uninhibited side in front of her, at least allowing Meng Rendong to feel that being a fan made her much happier:

“Of course!”

“Many fans wanted them. I was initially worried they wouldn’t like my bracelets, so I thought three thousand was enough… But my friends and I verified the information and distributed them, and they were gone so quickly… Yu fans are truly adorable!”

As she spoke, she lightly shook the bracelet on her right hand, happily wanting to hum a tune to the rhythm.

Meng Rendong said casually, “If there are still people who like them, let them leave their information. I’ll have someone rush the factory, and after the second batch is made, we’ll mail them out.”

Si Tian: “…!”

She cupped her face and exclaimed with emotion: “It’s great to be rich.”

A hint of a smile appeared in Meng Rendong’s eyes, then quickly dissipated. She then extended her hand toward Si Tian.

Si Tian very knowingly pulled out one set of each support item from the pile of merchandise by her legs and handed them to Meng Rendong. She also noticed the flash of gold on Meng Rendong’s wrist, exposed from her suit sleeve today.

It was a bracelet Meng Rendong had commissioned from a brand she partnered with after Si Tian gave her the design, using pure gold material. Compared to the ordinary fan version, it was more like a high-end custom piece.

For this, she deliberately did not wear a watch today, ensuring no other accessories stole its shine.

Si Tian only glanced at it lightly, noticing a tiny light flashing in the center of the miniature flashlight charm on Meng Rendong’s bracelet. She didn’t know if it was a crystal or some other gemstone embedded there, radiating a sense of wealth that almost blinded her with the evil of money.

But then, thinking about how this wealthy person’s progress toward reconciliation was still at zero, she couldn’t help but feel anxious for Meng Rendong again.

So, she looked outside and urged Meng Rendong to get out of the car:

“It looks like people have been entering for a while now.”

“Isn’t Ji Yu’s performance even earlier today? Did you buy an internal ticket? Should we prepare to go in?”

Meng Rendong was actually uninterested in the other performances, especially not wanting to see Chu Nanxing. Just the thought of having blindly supported Chu Nanxing like a fool in the past few years made her genuinely feel nauseous.

Due to her relationship with Wang Luoshui, she had once again learned Ji Yu’s performance order in advance. A message had just arrived on her phone, and she said lazily to Si Tian:

“You go ahead first.”

“I’ll be there shortly.”

She lowered her eyes, looking at the message on her phone:

“Boss, there’s a new development. We found a new eyewitness, but she was ignored seven years ago because she was too young. Someone in her family is ill and needs a sum of money. I’m currently negotiating the price with her.”

Meng Rendong immediately sat up straight. After Si Tian got out of the car, she immediately dialed the number that sent the text message:

“Where are you now?”

“I understand… Wait until I arrive before saying anything else. Yes, check if the hospital situation over there is urgent. If not, try to delay it until tomorrow, or this evening. If it’s urgent, advance them a portion of the medical fees first. In short, everything waits until I get there.”

Her dark eyes looked out at the bustling traffic, but the noise of the human world that fell into her gaze turned into a cold indifference, like deep winter: “Yes, I need to speak with her personally.”

When Meng Rendong entered the venue, it was exactly when Ji Yu’s song began.

The venue was silent. When the first note sounded, the ethereal vocal line immediately drew everyone’s attention.

Ji Yu’s group consisted of members with strong vocal abilities, singing the theme song of the currently most popular TV drama. Because the drama’s director was ruthless and constantly delivered painful plot twists, many viewers who had heard the song felt tears welling up just by hearing the theme song.

This was also a way the program group achieved alternative popularity: by linking up with current popular or classic songs and dances, purchasing the copyright, and then adapting them. This easily increased the audience’s recognition of the program. Of course… adaptation always causes controversy, which can be seen as another form of high-risk, high-reward endeavor.

The song was about a story set in a Western background.

A princess lived in the palace from a young age, forbidden to go out, with almost no personal freedom. When she came of age, the king would marry her off to a neighboring country for political alliance.

She yearned for freedom, wanting to go outside the palace, but neither her mother nor the maids serving her were willing to fulfill her wish. She could only secretly talk to the floor late at night when everyone was asleep.

She had a secret.

She could hear the sounds beneath the palace floor.

Since childhood, whenever she felt tired or unhappy, a hoarse, deep voice would emerge from underground to comfort her and keep her company.

In reality.

She was the Witch who initially helped the King create the Empire. She had a precious Dragon as her contracted spirit beast. After the Empire was established, the King found her power too terrifying and sought to weaken her. He fabricated a legend of an Evil Dragon, encouraging warriors to slay the dragon to protect the nation.

The dragon’s remains were used to construct the Empire’s palace, meant to trap the Witch. The Witch, heartbroken over the death of her contracted beast, was eventually killed by the mages summoned by the Empire within the palace. But this was not enough, because the Evil Dragon and the Witch were too powerful; even after their souls died, they would be reincarnated carrying hatred. The Empire would not allow this.

They trapped the Witch’s soul in the royal bloodline for generations, intending to preserve the Witch’s power. At the same time, whenever the Witch was born as a princess, they would marry her off. At her wedding, her future husband would be made to retrieve a Dragon Bone from the underground palace as a wedding prize.

Because every time the Witch married, the Dragon’s resentful soul would be weakened by one part.

After this cycle for a hundred years, all the power within the Witch’s soul would be used to nourish the royal bloodline and bless the prosperity of the royal family, while the Giant Dragon would only leave behind the grand and glorious throne, its resentment dissipated, finally dying in this world.

When the song ended, many weeping sounds arose from the audience.

Even Si Tian was secretly wiping away tears with a tissue. Meng Rendong opened her eyes and asked her, “What TV show is this?”

Si Tian whispered, “I have a secret.”

Meng Rendong nodded. She heard the same question ring out in the front row. Someone asked why the Dragon’s resentment faded every time the princess’s husband entered the underground palace and took a Dragon Bone.

Si Tian looked toward the front row, held back her tears, and whispered into Meng Rendong’s ear: “This drama is so good… The tragedy of the Dragon and the Witch is too cruel. He loved the Witch deeply, so every time he saw the reincarnated Witch and heard her getting married, saying that phrase ‘yes I do’ at the wedding, he felt pain, yet he could only silently bless her, even tacitly allowing her husband to take his bone as a wedding gift for her.”

She started to cry again as she spoke: “Wuwuwu! So painful!”

“The Witch was reincarnated so many times that she forgot him and didn’t know he loved her. Every time, she was like it was the first time, curiously hearing the voice underground in the palace, getting to know him, and then leaving to marry and leave the palace—”

“She thought she was meeting him for the first time.”

“But for him, this was the innumerable time in his memory.”

Meng Rendong watched Ji Yu finish the song on stage, bowing to the audience with her companions. She couldn’t help but softly agree with Si Tian’s words:

“Yes…”

Four years ago.

That winter day that was cold enough to make people stomp their feet, when snow began to fall lightly.

She also thought she and Ji Yu were meeting for the first time.

But now, she realized that all encounters in this world were reunions after a long separation.

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