Pu Jing’s words resonated throughout the hall.
As a veteran singer in the industry, although he had stepped back from the front line, his prestige remained high in front of the contestants, and his words were convincing.
And his counter-question was clearly aimed at clarifying the issue.
Lu Mian had not purchased any trending searches, nor had she sought to ride on their popularity.
Lu Xinnuan and Xue Lu were super embarrassed.
Their conversation just now had clearly been accusing Lu Mian of chasing popularity, intent on becoming famous.
The result was that the trending topic hadn’t even stayed up for a few minutes before she actively reduced its heat.
What did this indicate?
Li Aiqi and several contestants with whom she had good relations whispered among themselves for a moment, then lowered their heads and started chuckling.
"Lu Xinnuan, it seems your sister isn’t so keen on becoming famous after all!"
Lu Xinnuan’s smile was almost too difficult to maintain, "My sister is still in her first year of high school, it’s probably not allowed by the school."
Her excuse came readily.
Li Aiqi shrugged her shoulders and said no more.
But Lu Xinnuan felt humiliated, already unhappy with her third-place finish. Having lost face in front of her rivals, she felt even worse, and was out of sorts for the rest of the banquet.
It wasn’t until the gathering ended that she couldn’t help but approach Pu Jing alone.
"Teacher, did I say something wrong tonight?"
Pu Jing was her mentor, who had guided her from the beginning, teaching her to sing and helping her rehearse.
She was also the only one from Pu Jing’s team to place in the top three.
She should have been the teacher’s pet, yet she couldn’t comprehend why Pu Jing would embarrass her publicly when he clearly could have said nothing at all.
Pu Jing’s eyes, slightly bleary, gave Lu Xinnuan a chilly glance.
"You realize you said something wrong?"
"Teacher, I..." She really hadn’t known that Lu Mian would withdraw the trending search. Given Lu Mian’s calculating nature, it was conceivable that she would oppose Lu Xinnuan at her moment of spotlight to vie for attention.
She certainly hadn’t smeared Lu Mian’s name!
"My family’s situation is a bit complicated...I actually..."
Pu Jing snorted, "I don’t need to know all that. I only know that someone I’ve mentored shouldn’t be so foolish. You’ve spelled out your petty schemes all over your face and still expect others not to mock you?"
"If I don’t expose you, others will, and they’ll be harsher than me."
Lu Xinnuan suddenly looked up.
Pu Jing had sobered up, speaking gravely, "Take a cold approach. During this period, refine your professional skills. You cannot disappoint me again at the music festival in August."
Lu Xinnuan’s eyes brightened, and she nodded repeatedly.
Sikong Jian had been closely monitoring the trending search situation, and when he saw the entry disappear, he excitedly sent a thumbs up emoji to Yuren.
[Yu, you’re really damn reliable!]
He genuinely disliked seeing those comments, and his concern about her being overexposed to danger was also real.
The peace he had finally secured was not something he wanted threatened by any potential danger.
Yuren replied to him: [Mianmian asked me to do it.]
[Why? Did she come to her senses?]
In the spirit of shared brotherhood which calls for enduring hardships together, Yuren replied nonchalantly.
[She said someone at home would get jealous.]
Sikong Jian: [I shouldn’t have opened my big mouth!]
He replied to Yuren’s message feeling glum, then flung his phone onto the bed, images of Lu Mian earnestly telling him at the office to "stop liking me" and "the man at home is petty" flashing across his mind.
Sikong Jian laid back on the bed, gazing at the ceiling in a daze.
Until a middle-aged woman’s voice sounded from outside the room.
"A-Jian, your godfather is back."
Sikong Jian immediately sat up, a sly smile playing at the corners of his mouth as he shouted towards the door.
"Got it, godmom, I’ll come downstairs right away."
Mo Si drove Lu Mian all the way to the school entrance.
"Miss Lu, aren’t you going home?"
Looking towards the residential area across from the school, Lu Mian said, "I’m going to see Yuanyuan first."
"Oh, then I’ll accompany you."
Mo Si directly drove into the campus.
The security guard recognized it as the head teacher’s car at a glance and didn’t stop them at all, allowing unobstructed passage.
Lu Mian checked the time, there were ten minutes left before the dorms closed, and she quickly sent a text message to Sui Yuan.
The car stopped near the girls’ dormitory, and Lu Mian alighted, meandering slowly to the dormitory building to wait.
Mo Si, who stayed in the car, watched from a not so near yet not so far distance, reflecting on how understanding, affectionate, and capable Miss Lu actually was.
Their Mo family’s young master would probably never find anyone better than Miss Lu.
Mo Si sneakily reported back to Xiao Qimo.
"Master, the trending search issue has been taken care of. Miss Lu saw the screenshot and thought it was quite inappropriate, so she had someone take down the trending topic. It shouldn’t be searchable online now."
Xiao Qimo smiled slightly, feeling relieved in his heart.
He asked, "Who did she ask for help?"
"She asked Boss Yu. Miss Lu didn’t hesitate to call him and take down the trending search."
Xiao Qimo’s expression cooled slightly.
"Master, in Miss Lu’s heart, you are definitely number one, unbeatable by anyone! Nothing is more important than you! Miss Lu is now completely smitten with you!"
Mo Si, truly at the pinnacle of flattery, managed to blow Xiao Qimo’s mood into full bloom with just a few words.
"Always full of words, aren’t you? How much do you want to add to your salary?" The refined man seemed to scold but was actually in a very good mood.
The man chuckled again and asked, "Have you guys returned yet?"
"Oh," Mo Si glanced in the direction of the girls’ dormitory, "Miss Lu came to school to find Miss Sui Yuan first."
"Master, about the salary, whatever you say to add, I’ll take. Your subordinate will listen to you," Mo Si chuckled happily like a simpleton.
Xiao Qimo responded with a cold tone, "Add zero."
After waiting a few minutes downstairs, Sui Yuan came running out wearing pink and blue flip-flops.
Lu Mian frowned slightly, unsatisfied, "Go back and change your shoes."
Sui Yuan looked down at her exposed ten toes, smiled shyly, and said, "I was in a hurry to come out, just for a little while, it’s fine..."
Lu Mian looked away, "It’s still a bit chilly."
"It’s already the end of April, it’s warmer." Sui Yuan leaned her forehead against Lu Mian’s shoulder, rubbing against it like a docile and adorable kitty, "Only one more month until the college entrance exams."
"Yeah." Lu Mian rubbed her hair.
"I have a lot of senior year notes here, do you want to... take a look?" Sui Yuan asked tentatively, though she already knew the answer.
Lu Mian waved her off, "No need, I’d rather read novels."
Well, even if she didn’t study, she should be fine for the college entrance exams.
Sui Yuan didn’t insist, simply stating, "After I graduate, I will continue to write novels, write a lot."
"Good. After you graduate, do whatever you want," Lu Mian said, her words full of indulgence. After teasing enough, she asked somewhat nonchalantly, "So... after watching my show, have you been studying harder?"