148: Chapter 148 If you lose, you'll be punished by having to wear a ponytail every day.

When Shen Nian opened her eyes, something felt a bit hard under her neck.

She shifted and realized her entire head was resting on Jiang Fan's collarbone.

Her back was pressed against a patch of warmth.

One of Jiang Fan's arms was wrapped under her neck, while his other hand rested casually on her chest, his fingers unconsciously pinching twice.

Just as Shen Nian wanted to move, she immediately noticed something pressing against her lower body.

She even softened her breathing, freezing there without daring to move.

About two minutes later, the arm loosened slightly; Jiang Fan turned over, facing the ceiling, a muffled nasal sound rolling from his throat.

"Are you awake?" his voice was hoarse.

"Yeah." Shen Nian pulled back the quilt and sat up. "It's already nine o'clock."

Jiang Fan rested the back of his hand over his eyes and sat up as well.

He turned his head to look at her, his gaze lingering for a moment on the area below her collarbone.

Shen Nian followed his gaze, looked down, and immediately pulled the quilt up to cover herself tightly.

"What are you looking at?"

She grabbed the clothes scattered at the end of the bed, jumped off the bed barefoot, and rushed into the bathroom.

"I'm going to take a shower first."

The shower turned on, and the water cascaded down, finally letting her breathe a sigh of relief.

Just as she rubbed the shampoo into a lather, the door lock clicked.

She had her eyes closed and couldn't see, but she felt a warm body press against her, wrapping her in an embrace from behind.

"What are you doing... I'm washing my hair."

"It's nothing, go ahead and wash yours."

Jiang Fan rested his chin on her shoulder, his hands not behaving at all.

The shampoo foam was washed down her back, getting between them, slippery and smooth.

"Jiang Fan, stop messing around..."

"I'm not messing around." He lowered his head to kiss the back of her neck. "I'm helping you scrub your back."

A minute later, Shen Nian bit her lip tightly.

The sound of the water drowned out all the movements that followed.

Thirty minutes later, Shen Nian came out wrapped in a bath towel, her legs still a bit weak.

Jiang Fan casually wiped his hair with a towel and pulled on a T-shirt.

"I'm going downstairs to buy breakfast."

He opened the door and looked back one more time.

Shen Nian was wiping her hair in front of the mirror, her eyes in the reflection darting away.

By the time they had almost finished breakfast, the phone in Shen Nian's pocket buzzed.

It was a WeChat voice message from Zhou Yutong.

She tapped it open, and the young girl's voice came crackling through: "Sister Nian! We've arrived downstairs at your place! Brother Fan's phone won't go through!"

In the background, Li Cheng's muffled voice could be heard: "Tell them to hurry up, don't miss the flight."

Shen Nian pressed the voice button: "Got it, we'll be down in ten minutes."

Jiang Fan had already packed the suitcase and was standing in front of the wardrobe changing into a shirt.

"Brother Cheng is waiting downstairs."

"I heard." He buttoned the top button and picked up the suitcase to walk out.

Shen Nian quickly put on her mask and hat and followed him out.

In the back seat of the Buick business van, Zhou Yutong sat next to Shen Nian.

As the car drove onto the elevated highway, Zhou Yutong leaned in closer, staring at Shen Nian's face from left and right.

"Sister Nian, why is your face so rosy? What foundation are you using?"

Shen Nian glanced at her: "A secret homemade recipe, you can't buy it."

"Stingy." Zhou Yutong pouted and dug a tube of throat lozenges out of her bag. "Sister Nian, try this, it's loquat flavor. It's really soothing for the throat."

Shen Nian took it, unwrapped one, and popped it into her mouth.

It was sweet, with a hint of minty coolness.

"Sister Nian, are you nervous?"

"Not nervous."

"I'm nervous for you!" Zhou Yutong patted her chest. "It's the finals! If you beat Chen Hao, you'll be the champion! I want a seafood feast for the victory banquet!"

Li Cheng, driving in the front, glanced through the rearview mirror: "Yutong, your Sister Nian is preparing for the battle, and all you think about is eating."

"You need to be full to have the energy to cheer!" Zhou Yutong said righteously. "Besides, with Brother Fan here, can Sister Nian lose? Which song written by Brother Fan isn't a trump card?"

"It's not that easy." Li Cheng turned the steering wheel. "I heard Chen Hao hired a vocal coach from the national team and has been in seclusion practicing for five days. They say the song he chose is also a big song, the type that hits high notes."

"So what?" Zhou Yutong snorted. "Our Sister Nian has Brother Fan's exclusive coaching."

Shen Nian listened to the two bickering, lowered her head to flip through the sheet music on her phone, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.

At 4:30 PM, the flight landed in Star City on time.

The show's pickup car was already waiting at the exit. The three of them got in and headed straight to the hotel.

Arriving at the hotel, Zhou Yutong went back to her own room.

Jiang Fan put Shen Nian's suitcase into the bedroom.

"Are you nervous?"

Shen Nian just wanted to shake her head, but paused for two seconds and nodded: "A little."

Jiang Fan walked over and reached out to tuck a strand of hair that had slipped to her face behind her ear.

"Tomorrow is the stage rehearsal, just get a feel for the stage."

"Yeah."

Shen Nian turned around to face Jiang Fan.

She hesitated for a moment, then raised her hand to hook the hem of his shirt and tugged it gently.

"Tonight... will you practice with me one more time?"

Jiang Fan looked down at her and ruffled her hair.

"Sure."

In the evening, the three of them grabbed something casual to eat at the hotel restaurant.

Zhou Yutong insisted on sleeping with Shen Nian, but was mercilessly chased away by Jiang Fan.

The reason was that Shen Nian still had to practice songs at night.

"Yutong, go back and get some rest early. You have to get up early to go to the venue tomorrow." Shen Nian pushed her out the door.

"Then Sister Nian, sleep early, don't stay up too late." Zhou Yutong clung to the doorframe, urging her.

The door closed.

Only two people were left in the room.

Jiang Fan walked to the window to close the curtains and turned on the accompaniment on his phone.

Shen Nian stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window and closed her eyes.

Her voice was soft, starting from the lowest point and spreading out little by little.

Jiang Fan stood behind her, his fingers tapping the rhythm on her waist.

In the second verse, the melody began to climb.

Shen Nian's voice grew brighter and brighter, her breath steadily supporting every note.

The chorus arrived.

That most critical high note.

Shen Nian steadied her breathing and pushed her voice upward—

"Ah~~~"

The note steadily reached the peak, with extreme penetrating power, echoing in the enclosed room for several seconds before fading.

They practiced the song for a full hour.

Jiang Fan's tightly furrowed brows finally relaxed.

After singing the whole song, Shen Nian stood by the window for a few seconds, taking a while to recover before turning around.

Her face was a little red, and beads of sweat seeped from her forehead.

"How was it this time?"

"Very good." Jiang Fan nodded. "Better than in the bedroom, it saves on bed sheets."

Shen Nian was stunned for a second, then realized what he meant, and her face turned even redder.

She grabbed the tissues on the coffee table and threw them at him.

Jiang Fan tilted his head to dodge, catching them easily.

Then he pulled out a few tissues and wiped the water stains on the floor.

Shen Nian leaned into his arms, listening to his steady heartbeat.

"Jiang Fan."

"Hmm?"

"If I win tomorrow, what reward are you prepared to give me?"

Jiang Fan looked down at her, his fingers twirling a strand of her hair.

"I'm already yours, what other reward could you want?"

Shen Nian raised her head, stood on tiptoes, and kissed his chin.

"Then what if I lose?"

"If you lose, I'll punish you by making you wear a ponytail every day."

Shen Nian snorted. She didn't agree out loud, but she thought to herself—isn't that also a reward?