Chapter 32

Mu He, though heavily drunk and unable to focus her vision, kissed precisely, lips meeting his, noses touching.

The soft warmth pressing against him made Huo Si Heng’s chest tremble, as if gripped by invisible little hands. He waited for her next move, but she simply stayed quiet, pressing against him, her intoxicating breath filling his nose.

Huo Si Heng softly called her: “Yang Yang?”

Mu He didn’t respond. Two seconds later, her lips brushed his cheek, sliding to his shoulder, her breath softly burying into his neck.

Was she… asleep?

A trace of helplessness appeared on Huo Si Heng’s face, more than that, a look of indulgent affection. He supported her body, moved the small round table aside with one hand, and lifted her up.

The sudden lift made Mu He instinctively panic, but after wrapping her arms around his neck, her brows finally relaxed.

This was Huo Si Heng’s second time holding her; clearly experienced, he effortlessly laid her onto the bed, brushed her long hair to the front, then pulled the nearby blanket over her. He went into the bathroom to wring a hot towel to wipe her face. As he wiped, he realized something was wrong.

Not only wasn’t it clean, it had ruined her makeup.

Huo Si Heng chuckled lightly, brushing her nose: “Little flower cat.”

He couldn’t let her sleep with a ruined face, so he found a box of makeup remover wipes at the bathroom sink and carefully wiped her face according to the instructions. In a short while, her face was restored to smooth and radiant.

Huo Si Heng washed his hands and returned to find she had kicked off the blanket. He bent down to tuck it in again. She seemed deliberately defiant, stretching her legs out. Sitting at the bedside, he held her ankles, feeling their warmth through the thin stockings. After a brief distraction, he tucked her legs back under the blanket.

“Xi Heng.”

Huo Si Heng paused mid-motion, thinking she had woken, but she was just murmuring, flushed from alcohol, muttering softly. He leaned in to hear:

“Ya liu bu liu ji bi ya.”

He had never taught her that phrase. Clearly self-taught, her pronunciation wasn’t standard, but he recognized it—it was I love you in Russian.

His heart suddenly overflowed with tenderness.

Even if she tried to hide it, how could Huo Si Heng not see her wholehearted affection for him?

Moreover, her blushing face, flushed ears, and infatuated gaze could not conceal her feelings at all.

Silly girl.

You don’t need to move a step; stay there and wait for me to come.

If you want, my body, my heart, my everything, is yours.

Huo Si Heng lowered his head, gently kissed her forehead with a look of tenderness: “Let me handle the family troubles first, okay?”

Mu He, whether hearing him or dreaming something pleasant, let a faint smile spill across her lips.

He stayed by her bed until the early light of dawn, then returned to the next room.

Just after nine, Mu He awoke from a hangover with a splitting headache. Sitting up and rubbing her brows, memories of last night slowly returned. She had come back from the TV station, pulled Xi Heng to sit by the floor-to-ceiling window; he had refused the drinking invitation, so she drank alone.

Then the countdown, and she told him Happy New Year.

The memory stopped there; the rest was fragmented. Did he reply Happy New Year to her?

Mu He tried hard to recall, but had no impression. Another memory popped up: did he drink?

And share the same glass with her?

Finally, she seemed to have kissed him?

!

Impossible!

!

Could it be she was dreaming?

It wasn’t like she hadn’t had such embarrassing dreams before, but this time she had kissed him proactively. Could she really be that thirsty for him…

Mu Yangyang, you’re too se!

Looking down at the white dress she wore, the only certainty was that he had carried her back to the room again.

She sighed silently. Why was every “princess carry” from him happening after she lost consciousness? Couldn’t it happen while she was awake?

Maybe next time she should try pretending to sleep.

Mu He considered the feasibility of this plan, walked into the bathroom, filled the bathtub with hot water, added some rose essential oil. Steam swirled around as she sank in, stretching slowly like a blooming flower.

After the bath, her headache had lessened. Wearing a light purple silk nightdress, she stood in front of the mirror blow-drying her hair.

Bright eyes, delicate and captivating.

In fact, she was so beautiful; constantly around Xi Heng, it was natural he would have thoughts about her, wasn’t it?

Or maybe because they were so familiar, he simply didn’t see her as a woman?

The double-headed eagle ring symbolizing lasting friendship was the best proof.

All that talk of “water next to the moon gets it first” was nonsense.

Mu He finished drying her hair, lazily flopped back onto the bed, and played on her phone.

Weibo was flooded with news from various New Year’s Eve galas. As always, fans were most interested in whether the performances were live or lip-synced. Mu He was listed as a live singer because she had slightly gone off-pitch during the Russian lyrics.

She noticed herself at the time—focusing too much on pronunciation made her pitch drift slightly. Not too serious, but the audience’s ears couldn’t be fooled.

One famous singer’s obvious lip-syncing was directly criticized and trended. By contrast, Mu He gained much goodwill; even passersby defended her. She hadn’t gone off-pitch, she had sung with heart.

She wasn’t a professional; expectations shouldn’t be too high. Singing live mattered most!

Scrolling through the square, all the comments praised her: fairy descending to earth, devilish figure, heavenly voice, especially the Russian performance being stunning. She felt both shy and thrilled.

In a sense, this was a work shared with Xi Heng.

Scrolling further, she saw a post about gowns. The blue long dress was found by fans to be a new custom design from the H family, but different from what she wore last night. The model’s dress had a deep V in the back, revealing alluring butterfly bones.

She imagined wearing it, twirling before Xi Heng, and set herself ablaze with excitement.

Stop, stop.

Returning to her Weibo homepage, overnight her followers had increased by six million. Her simple four-character New Year greeting post from the previous night had 210,000 comments and over a million likes.

She screenshot it to Tan Mian: “The company didn’t manipulate the stats, right?”

Tan Mian replied immediately: “Absolutely not!”

“Yang Yang, I’m not being modest. Your popularity is now nearly top-tier! Xi Xi just received several scripts, some specifying you for the female lead!”

Mu He: “Popularity is superficial. Without good works, the audience will forget sooner or later.”

Tan Mian: “Mm! Just wait for The Immortal Love to air.”

She trusted the role of Xi Yin would leave a deep impression.

She sent another link: “By the way, Yang Yang, here’s the annual night vote. Share it, okay?”

The Annual Night vote reviews and selects popular figures each year. First, netizens vote, then experts weigh in for final decisions. One category is for female artists within three years of debut—the Most Popular Newcomer. Mu He was nominated.

Which fan wouldn’t want to fight for this honor for their idol?

The thousand paper cranes had already received news, rallied friends, ran Weibo lottery campaigns, set alarms, voting day and night. When Mu He clicked the link, she saw she was ranked third. First was Qin Zhi, far ahead in votes.

Qin Zhi.

The name hit Mu He’s heart like a stone in a lake, sending ripples, then quickly vanishing without a trace.

Mu He V: If it’s not too much trouble, please vote for me [meow meow] [link]

After posting on Weibo, she prepared to go make breakfast.

Unexpectedly, Xi Heng had already prepared egg flower porridge on the table. Starving, Mu He went over, pulled out a chair, and started eating with a spoon.

Huo Si Heng appeared from the kitchen, almost sleepless, but showed no fatigue, still magnificent and handsome.

Mu He turned to look at him: “Why didn’t you wake me up last night?”

She hadn’t showered or changed clothes before going to sleep.

He placed a cup of hot milk beside her hand, pursing his lips and humming softly: “If I could have woken you up.”

Mu He touched her ear, slightly embarrassed.

“Miss Mu,” the man stood by the table, sunlight glaring on his left side, with her on the right. He bent his long fingers and lightly tapped the tabletop twice. “Is your tolerance for alcohol really that low?”

Mu He straightened her back, mimicking his action with chopsticks tapping his hand, then met his gaze: “Mr. Xi, do you think someone who has never drunk alcohol has the right to comment on another’s tolerance?”

It seemed she had completely forgotten.

He had not only broken his rule and drunk, but also tasted the intoxicating fragrance of her lips.

Huo Si Heng turned his head, lightly coughing against his lips, concealing the slight curve of his mouth, but not the smile in his eyes.

Mu He took two sips of milk, vaguely catching that strange expression at the corner of his eye: “What’s wrong?”

“You make a valid point.”

His hand rested on the back of her chair, posture relaxed and casual. “But, your tolerance for alcohol is really very low.”

Mu He was confused by his logic.

Since her words were valid, didn’t that mean he had no right to comment on her tolerance?

!

After breakfast, Mu He still couldn’t figure it out. She picked up her phone and was surprised to see the new poll Weibo had dozens of high-profile accounts forwarding it. She nearly thought she had read it wrong.

Zhong Li Fei V: Save the child! //@Mu He V: If it’s not too much trouble, please vote for me [meow meow] [link]

Beloved fans: Save, save, save immediately!

Zhong Yang CP fans: After this bite of candy, we’re going to vote!

Ai Qing V: Everyone remembers that well-behaved little Alu eating a banana in the pavilion, right? //@Mu He V…

Sunshine Dolls: Got it! Awaken the Witch’s favor, we’ll vote in return!

The Adoration CP coming from the cold palace, afraid to fall behind, dashed to vote like spring lightning.

Even Qi Hao, Zheng Youyou, and Teacher Dai joined in the fun. Mu He even saw a repost from the Best Actor Lin Xi Yu—

Lin Xi Yu V: Repost Weibo

Though it was only the cold, default four characters, the devoted fans were always at the forefront of voting for their idol, their fighting spirit formidable, unmatched by ordinary people. Furthermore, under Xing Yu’s banner, actors, top stars, and major traffic celebrities who normally had little contact with Mu He also reposted her Weibo. The poll numbers shot up like a small rocket, holding second place and fiercely challenging first.

Fans: “@Mu He, this is the pace of being Xing Yu’s group darling.”

“Gathering so many male and female gods of the entertainment circle at once, this treatment… jealous, jealous [lemon emoji].”

Mu He felt flattered and called Ye Xi to ask what was going on. Ye Xi also didn’t know, only saying it wasn’t a company requirement—it was all voluntary behavior.

When did she become so well-connected?

Her phone vibrated again; Zhong Mingyu sent a WeChat message: “Mu He, Happy New Year.”

Mu He looked at it several times before replying: “Happy New Year.”

Seeing those distant four characters, Zhong Mingyu felt a bitter taste. They had once run minor roles together, seeing no future, but able to rely on each other.

Later, she couldn’t bear it and chose another shortcut, thinking with support she would succeed easily. She even planned to help Mu He after achieving success, but cruel reality left her stuck in hardship.

In contrast, Mu He, after splitting paths, seemed to have a cheat code. She gained Director Xie’s recognition for the role of Xi Yin, magazine sales surged to top three, appeared on Strawberry TV’s New Year Gala, and now even voting had so many celebrities helping her.

Zhong Mingyu knew how hard Mu He had worked, and of course felt happy for her, but more than that, she couldn’t stop the bitterness and jealousy flooding in.

Zhong Mingyu’s pride prevented her from shamelessly chatting with Mu He. She opened the trending video, watching the bright, lively blue figure singing beautifully in Russian, her heart breaking piece by piece.

Meanwhile, in the Ding family of South City:

In the living room, the old housekeeper Granny Xu, wearing reading glasses, sat in front of the TV, watching the replay of Strawberry TV’s New Year Gala intently. Ding Wu came downstairs, and she pointed at the TV, smiling: “The singing actress resembles the old madam quite a bit.”

“Really?”

Ding Wu looked and saw girls holding up light boards with “Mu He” and “Mu Yangyang” written on them. He laughed: “Objects can be similar, people too. Nothing surprising.”

“Granny Xu, I’m stepping out.”

“All right.”

After Ding Wu left, Granny Xu continued watching Mu He on screen, mumbling: “How can she look so similar?”

Qin Zhi, since debut, had no remarkable works. Her fame relied on her nickname “Miss A” and her ABCDEFG pronunciation. Her fan adhesion was low; poll numbers were mostly bought. In contrast, with support from a thousand paper cranes and top fans in the circle, Mu He’s votes exceeded hers by 1.02 million after the online poll closed. If the expert panel had no surprises, the Most Popular Newcomer award would go to the Mu family.

But there could always be surprises—after all, Qin Zhi was the wealthy Qin family’s little princess.

Their backstage was strong.

Tan Mian didn’t want to hurt Mu He’s confidence, but also didn’t want her to face disappointment during the awards. She subtly said: “The Qin family won’t sit idle. There’s a high chance of backstage manipulation.”

Mu He said “Oh” and left it at that, pretending not to care. But at home, Huo Si Heng immediately saw her faintly hidden disappointment: “What happened?”

“Nothing major.”

Mu He, who never hid things from him, briefly explained. Perhaps she wasn’t completely carefree—she still harbored some resentment from being abandoned. She wanted to prove to that woman she was no worse than Qin Zhi.

Unfortunately, she had been naive; from start to finish, this wasn’t a fair competition.

Some things couldn’t be changed by effort alone.

After speaking, Mu He felt better: “Actually, this kind of thing is common in the industry.”

She had faced unfair treatment many times, only showing her vulnerable side in front of him.

She wiped the accidental tears on his shirt, leaned on his shoulder, and took the opportunity to be cheeky.

Huo Si Heng patted her back lightly in comfort, holding his phone in the other hand to send a message to Huo Si Wen: “Predetermined?”

Huo Si Wen responded quickly: “Fourth Uncle, I just got the insider info. The Qin family has indeed predetermined the slot.”

He received an unusually long reply: “I think it’s better to rely on merit. Don’t you agree?”

Huo Si Wen sensed rare anger in the calm words: “I certainly agree. Everything should be based on merit.”

Look at what the Qin family was doing, setting things in advance. Did they really think the entertainment industry was theirs to control?

This upset Fourth Aunt, which inevitably displeased Fourth Uncle.

He pressed the internal line and instructed his assistant to contact the Annual Night organizers.

Huo Si Heng didn’t reply further, set the phone aside, expression dark as water.

The past could not be undone; from now on, she would suffer no more injustice.

Mu He noticed the dark pattern on his shirt sleeve resembled half a wing. Unable to resist, she touched it, heart tingling, and casually asked: “Xi Heng, why did you give me the double-headed eagle ring?”