Chapter 64

As Su Xingyao finished reading the two messages, a shadow fell behind him.

Turning around, he saw Lu Jiuxu standing behind him, unsure when he had arrived.

The person who had just texted him was now standing right in front of him.

Su Xingyao wasn't sure if he was hallucinating.

Backlit, he couldn't quite see the other's face, but he heard a gentle, familiar voice.

"Su Maomao, I'm back."

The lazy, deep voice sent a shiver through Su Xingyao's entire body.

...

With Lu Jiuxu's return, Sunset was undoubtedly the most excited in the house.

The moment it heard his voice, it dashed straight between them.

"Woof woof woof!!"

Sunset's tail wagged furiously as it excitedly circled Lu Jiuxu.

"Woof woof woof!!"

After barking a few times and seeing Lu Jiuxu still hadn't noticed, Sunset gently bit the hem of his suit pants, tugging him toward the sofa.

Su Xingyao's words were interrupted by the little dog.

Looking at the anxious little dog, his eyes filled with confusion.

"Sunset's been acting strange lately, always biting your clothes."

Last time it was your tie, this time it's your pant leg.

He thought the dog was going through a rebellious phase, but later realized Sunset was otherwise well-behaved.

Hearing Su Xingyao's words, Sunset whimpered pitifully, "Whine whine whine~~~"

Su Xingyao didn't understand Sunset, but Lu Jiuxu got it immediately.

He crouched and patted the dog's head, stopping it from heading to the sofa.

Leaning close, Lu Jiuxu whispered to Sunset, "This is our secret."

The large villa suddenly felt lively again.

Though it was just one more person, everything felt different.

After Lu Jiuxu showered, Su Xingyao was setting up the projector.

Seeing Lu Jiuxu, he looked up, his light-colored eyes sparkling, and asked, "Want to watch a movie? Xu Huan recommended two mystery films."

Xu Huan recommended two low-budget mystery films by promising young foreign directors.

He hadn’t had the chance to watch them before, but today he finally had some free time and decided to catch up on them all at once.

However, just as Su Xingyao enthusiastically invited Lu Jiuxu, he suddenly noticed the subtle signs of tiredness in the other’s eyes.

Immediately, he closed his mouth.

He couldn’t bring himself to explain the films in detail.

From what he gathered online and Lu Jiuxu being so busy he was almost unreachable these past few days, Su Xingyao could guess how tired he must be.

So he was well aware that, compared to watching movies, what Lu Jiuxu needed more right now was to rest properly and catch up on some sleep.

Realizing this, he decided not to push the invitation.

Unexpectedly, however, Lu Jiuxu sat down on the sofa and responded with a light smile, saying, "Sure."

After saying this, he looked up at Su Xingyao and asked with interest, "I usually watch movies just as a viewer. Could you, Mr. Su, explain the technical parts to me?"

Su Xingyao paused before asking the question he was most concerned about.

"Shouldn’t you rest first?"

Lu Jiuxu replied nonchalantly, "I’m not sleepy right now."

As if to ease Su Xingyao’s worries, he continued with a smile, "Staying up late really wears you out, but my mind is wide awake right now, so I can’t sleep at all."

After saying this, Lu Jiuxu glanced at the movie already playing.

"Su Maomao, the movie has started."

The home theater lights had been off for a while, leaving only the light from the projector shining on Su Xingyao’s face.

Taking a quick glance at Lu Jiuxu under the dim light, Su Xingyao quietly acknowledged with a hum.

"Wait for me for a moment."

With that, he dashed to the kitchen and grabbed the previously cut fruits and the watermelon popping boba he had whipped up out of boredom that afternoon.

Su Xingyao hurried back, and by the time he brought the items, the movie was just starting with its opening long shot.

He placed the spoon in the glass bowl and handed the watermelon popping boba to Lu Jiuxu.

The man’s slender fingers naturally took it from Su Xingyao’s hand, and then he dug in eagerly.

Su Xingyao also looked down and popped a few boba into his mouth with a spoon.

As his tongue pressed against the roof of his mouth and gently squeezed, the popping boba immediately burst open.

The sweet, refreshing taste of watermelon filled his mouth.

"You made these boba?"

Hearing Lu Jiuxu’s question, Su Xingyao looked at him curiously, "How did you know?"

Lu Jiuxu smiled and immediately gave him the answer, "Auntie Zhang never makes stuff like this."

So that’s how it was!

Su Xingyao gave a faint smile in response.

"I just followed a tutorial video I stumbled upon today."

Hearing Su Xingyao's explanation, the smile in Lu Jiuxu's eyes deepened.

"Then I must be pretty honored to be the first to try it."

Su Xingyao didn't reply, just quietly chewed on two more popping boba.

The sweet taste filled his mouth, making him feel like he'd eaten honey.

Even though he'd only done something simple.

But coming from Lu Jiuxu, it seemed to become something remarkable and important.

They quickly finished half a bowl of popping boba.

As the plot developed, Su Xingyao and Lu Jiuxu started discussing the storyline in hushed tones.

When they came across some professional film techniques, Su Xingyao patiently explained them to Lu Jiuxu.

They chatted and watched the movie, and before they knew it, over half an hour had gone by.

Sunset and Coral had somehow snuck in too.

Now they were each curled up against Su Xingyao and Lu Jiuxu's legs, snoring softly.

The plot had reached its first minor climax.

In the past, Su Xingyao would have been completely focused on analyzing the plot and piecing together clues.

But today, after watching for a while, he found himself inexplicably losing focus.

He wasn't sure why, though.

But the sound of Sunset's soft snoring reached his ears, and from his left, a faint, intermittent scent of grass and wood kept drifting over.

He felt as if this familiar scent had thrown him off balance.

Su Xingyao was lost in thought when Lu Jiuxu's soft voice suddenly reached his ears.

"I'm sorry about the past few days. I didn't mean to ignore your messages."

Completely distracted and not following the plot, Su Xingyao was startled by a woman's scream from the speakers, his fingers trembling slightly.

"Huh..."

Only then did he realize what Lu Jiuxu was saying and immediately turned to look at him.

"After all, it's your father... You don't need to apologize to me for something like that."

When Su Xingyao looked over, he found Lu Jiuxu already watching him.

Meeting his gaze, Lu Jiuxu corrected him with a hint of helplessness, "I didn't mean that."

Su Xingyao blinked his long lashes, his eyes filled with confusion.

Then what did you mean?

In the dimly lit room, the two of them looked at each other from just inches apart.

Finally, Su Xingyao, feeling a bit embarrassed from being stared at, turned his head away and averted his gaze.

He lowered his eyes and casually glanced at the phone placed on the table.

Still, he had replied to every message, hadn’t he...

It's just that the responses were a bit delayed.

The plot became increasingly intense, and Su Xingyao finally became engrossed in the unfolding story.

When he saw a scene that he thought was exceptionally brilliant and wanted to share it with Lu Jiuxu, he suddenly realized that the other person had fallen asleep, his head leaning barely an inch away from him.

Although the room was not well-lit, the occasional strong light from the projector brightened the room momentarily.

For the first time, Su Xingyao got a clear look at Lu Jiuxu's sleeping face.

Staring at the other's face for a long time, Su Xingyao suddenly remembered the candid photo he had seen online during the day.

Thinking about how netizens were praising Lu Jiuxu as "husband" for his handsomeness, he felt an urge to tell everyone.

That photo couldn’t capture how good-looking the real person was.

Just as Su Xingyao was thinking this, the head of the person next to him tipped gently toward him.

Thus, that serene face naturally rested on his shoulder.

*

Having a rare few days of leisure, Su Xingyao was swamped in the following days.

Because he had revealed his identity as a contestant on "The Voice of Heaven," his account LostTide was bombarded with private messages since the day the competition ended.

In addition to fan declarations, more than a dozen talent agencies had contacted him.

Each one was vying to sign him, offering exceptionally lucrative contract terms.

After all, almost everyone knew that after the next episode of "The Voice of Heaven" ended, LostTide, this rising musical prodigy, would definitely become the new top star in the music industry.

And such a remarkable new star not yet signed to any agency naturally sparked a bidding war, with everyone wanting to sign him under their banner.

Of course, besides talent agencies, Su Xingyao was also approached by over a dozen advertisers and major TV stations.

Several TV stations had already reached out early, wanting him to participate in this year's New Year's Eve gala...

Even the national TV station sent a director to invite him, hoping he could create a song for a children's program.

The sudden fame came with immense attention and various commercial activities.

Su Xingyao found it a lot to handle all this alone.

Seeing Su Xingyao so busy that he didn't even have time to eat, Lu Jiuxu placed a hand over his phone and asked,

"Mr. Su, it's been a while since you left your old company, have you thought about signing with a new one?"

Su Xingyao was taken aback, not understanding why Lu Jiuxu suddenly brought this up.

He nodded anyway, "Yes..."

He had actually been considering signing with a new company lately.

But due to his circumstances, he was torn about the future direction of the LostTide account...

After Mr. Su finished speaking, Lu Jiuxu immediately lowered his head to look into his eyes.

"Why not consider my company first?"

Mr. Su was completely baffled by Lu Jiuxu's words and asked in confusion, "What company?"

Lu Jiuxu didn’t explain directly but instead lowered his head and opened his phone.

A few moments later, Mr. Su's phone screen lit up.

He swiped to unlock it and opened WeChat, a popular Chinese messaging app, finding that the other person had just sent him a file.

Curious, he opened it and scanned the document, realizing it was an entertainment contract...

In less than a minute, Lu Jiuxu had already sent the drafted management contract to him...

Seeing such efficiency up close, Mr. Su was stunned.

"So fast?"

The man across from him smirked and spoke casually, his words carrying a double meaning.

"Yeah, I was worried someone else might snatch Mr. Su if I didn’t act fast."