Her voice was still soft and slow. "I knew Lin Qingye wouldn't accept her confession, but I never tried to persuade her against it. In the end, when she rushed over, I even told her where he was. I knew he would definitely treat her badly then."

"She's an adult, okay? She has to bear the consequences of her own decisions. Does she really think we're her parents? That we have to warn her beforehand that she might get hurt if she falls?"

The more Zhao Qian spoke, the angrier she got. "Besides, she was the one who said she didn't need Lin Qingye to accept, that it was just so she wouldn't have any regrets. Your business with Lin Qingye is your private matter. Why should you have to go out of your way to persuade her in that situation? Our relationship with her was just so-so to begin with."

"Believe it or not, even if you had persuaded her not to confess, who knows what she would have said about you behind your back."

While Zhao Qian was ranting, Jiang Yue had already helped her pick everything up.

"Ah Nan." Zhao Qian looked at her seriously and said, "Dating is the most normal thing in the world. Some people are discreet and want to wait until the relationship is clear before telling others; that's only human. Breaking up is, too. Who cares if it's Lin Qingye or someone else? Isn't he just some guy?"

To think that after hearing Zhao Qian praise how handsome Lin Qingye was every single day in the dorm, she could now actually hear her say "isn't he just some guy"—it was truly a rare occasion.

And that relationship Xu Zhinan had always found so hard to talk about, after hearing Zhao Qian put it that way, seemed to be nothing more than a very normal, failed romance.

"Thank you." Xu Zhinan thanked her very seriously.

Zhao Qian, who had been ranting with the force of a cannon just a moment ago, had her fire instantly extinguished by the serious thanks. She waved her hand. "With our relationship, there's no need for thanks."

Xu Zhinan insisted, "I mean it."

"..."

Zhao Qian wasn't used to being so formal with friends and quickly changed the subject. "Seriously, if I looked like you, I'd probably get a new boyfriend for morning, noon, and night."

She presented Ah Nan with a vision of a beautiful future life: "If you wanted a boyfriend, all you'd have to do is crook your finger, and they'd all come running eagerly."

"..."

Jiang Yue rolled her eyes. "Give me a break. If Ah Nan dated other guys, who knows who'd be the lucky one."

"That's true." Zhao Qian took out her phone and started walking out. "Anyway, I've got to go to battle."

Xu Zhinan was taken aback. "Battle what?"

Zhao Qian didn't stop, waving a hand behind her as she walked out of the dorm room without looking back, like a female warrior.

Jiang Yue explained for her, "She definitely went to chew out Ruan Yuanyuan."

"..."

Half an hour later, Zhao Qian returned, refreshed and invigorated. She held her head high and announced, "I fought three hundred rounds with Princess Ruan and pissed her off so much that she's decided to switch dorms next semester."

Xu Zhinan: "..."

Jiang Yue: "..."

After a few seconds of silence, Xu Zhinan asked, "What time is your train?"

Zhao Qian let out a yelp. "I'm screwed!!"

She quickly and haphazardly stuffed her things into her suitcase, beginning a race against time, and didn't even have a chance to double-check if she had missed anything.

Fortunately, both Jiang Yue and Xu Zhinan would be around for the summer break, so they could mail anything back to her.

In her entire life, Xu Zhinan's personality was such that she had never had a falling out with anyone. Ruan Yuanyuan was the first.

At first, she felt a little uncomfortable, but after hearing Zhao Qian's words, she stopped thinking about it.

With the end of the last exam, Ruan Yuanyuan moving out of the dorm, and the official broadcast of the first episode of Here for the Song, the summer break had arrived.

Here for the Song garnered high viewership ratings as soon as it aired.

Besides a few popular celebrities who already had large fanbases, the one who received the most attention was Lin Qingye.

No one found it strange. Whether it was his looks, talent, or aura, Lin Qingye was bound to attract people's attention.

Xu Zhinan was very busy these days. The appointments that had been postponed due to finals week all had to be completed within these few days. She didn't have time to deliberately follow the show, but she still ended up watching the entire first episode of Here for the Song thanks to a client.

The client was a woman in her twenties, a professional photographer. It was her first tattoo, yet she wanted a full back piece.

Xu Zhinan told her the pre-tattoo precautions in advance and also reminded her that a full back piece would take a long time, so she could prepare some videos to pass the time.

Unexpectedly, the video she prepared was Here for the Song.

The client lay face down on the worktable. Xu Zhinan leaned over her back, concentrating on the tattoo, with the sound of the show in her ears.

When Lin Qingye came out, she exclaimed, "Ah!"

Xu Zhinan immediately stopped and tilted her head to ask, "Does it hurt?"

"No, no." The client smiled and pointed at her phone screen. "So handsome! I'm in!"

Xu Zhinan happened to see the close-up shot of Lin Qingye on the phone.

His features could withstand scrutiny from any close angle. From a distance, one would be drawn to his aura, but up close, it was impossible to look away.

His features weren't so overly refined as to look generic; instead, they were sharp and piercing.

Xu Zhinan averted her gaze and turned the tattoo machine back on. "Okay, please turn back. Don't move."

Mixed with the buzzing of the tattoo machine was the sound of Lin Qingye's singing from her phone.

Xu Zhinan recognized them as the lyrics from 'Black Locust'.

Lin Qingye had actually rarely sung this song in recent years. When he performed at the bar, he always sang his newer songs.

A song with the style of 'Black Locust' wasn't suited for a noisy, chaotic, fast-paced place like a bar, but it was perfectly suited for the stage on the show.

The camera occasionally swept over the audience, and you could see fans holding his banners and light sticks.

After the song ended, the female client said, "I can't take it, I've fallen in love with him."

"..."

Xu Zhinan didn't reply. The client then asked, "Are tattoo artists not allowed to talk while working?"

"...We can," Xu Zhinan said.

She then began to chat freely. "By the way, have you seen this show?"

"No, I haven't."

"It's really good, the quality is so high! I bet my favorite will definitely get first place in the first round!"

"Your favorite?"

"Oh, Lin Qingye. I've been a fan for exactly one minute."

"..."

She shivered uncontrollably and wailed, "Too handsome, too handsome! What kind of divine looks are these! His face, it has this bad-boy, cold vibe. At first glance, he seems like a player, but when you look closer, you feel like he couldn't even be bothered to play you. He's aloof and arrogant."

Startled by the dual shock of her movements and words, Xu Zhinan almost misplaced the needle.

"By the way, I saw in the bullet comments that Lin Qingye is from Pingchuan University. Is he a top student?"

"Mhm."

She didn't know that Xu Zhinan was also a student at Pingchuan University, let alone what had happened on the school forum. She asked, "Your shop is so close to his school. Have you ever seen him?"

Xu Zhinan wasn't good at lying, so she nodded and hummed in agreement.

She immediately perked up. "Really!?"

"Really. The bar where he used to be a resident singer is also nearby, very close."

"Then I'll go check it out later!"

Xu Zhinan reminded her, "You just got a tattoo. You have to avoid alcohol."

"..."

Xu Zhinan had tattooed so many people, but the one before her now was the least afraid of pain. Even after all this time, she hadn't cried out in pain at all and was still chatting with her energetically.

She was suddenly reminded of when she had tattooed Lin Qingye, and how the rims of his eyes had turned red from holding it in.

The shoulder blade...

Xu Zhinan glanced at the phone screen. The main show had finished and it had jumped to the follow-up individual interview. Lin Qingye was holding a microphone, being interviewed.

Xu Zhinan stared, thinking, 'Does his back have my name tattooed on it right now?'

Maybe after some time, when the impulse has passed, he'll go get the tattoo removed.

That type of tattoo is relatively easy and clean to remove.

But removing a tattoo is much more painful than getting one.

The female client asked again, "By the way, when you saw Lin Qingye, what did you think of his looks? You can't tell if he's wearing makeup on screen."

Xu Zhinan withdrew her gaze and said coolly, "He's okay, I guess."

The author has something to say:

Ah Nan: Just so-so.

Meanwhile, Lin Qingye is secretly singing the song he wrote for Ah Nan on the show.

Our Nannan is about to start her career storyline and go compete