61: Chapter 61 The Queen: Who said I wanted to sleep in the bed?

Saturday.

It rained all day in Magic City.

Jiang Fan stayed at the Studio until four in the afternoon before he finally received Xu Qingya's call.

"I've landed. Send me the address."

Jiang Fan gave her the Studio's address.

Li Cheng overheard the entire conversation from the side.

"You're letting her come to the Studio? Su Yuyan was just here two days ago, and that spendthrift girl Zhou Yutong's Moments post is still up."

Jiang Fan glanced at the sofa.

Specifically, the spot where Su Yuyan had sat that day.

He walked over to the cabinet, rummaged through it, fished out a can of air freshener from the bottom shelf, unscrewed the cap, and gave the sofa over a dozen heavy sprays.

A lavender-scented mist spread through the air.

Zhou Yutong poked her head out from her workstation. "Brother Fan, what are you doing?"

"Shut up and delete your Moments post."

"Which one?"

"The one with the tear mole."

Zhou Yutong looked down and scrolled through her phone, the expression on her face gradually freezing.

"Too late... Sister Qingya's assistant, Yang Lele, already liked it."

The air freshener in Jiang Fan's hand almost slipped to the ground.

"You and Yang Lele follow each other?"

"We're online friends..." Zhou Yutong shrank her neck, her voice growing quieter and quieter.

Jiang Fan deeply realized that a confidentiality system was indeed something that needed to be put on the agenda.

Li Cheng took the air freshener, sprayed it a few more times in other directions, and then stuffed it back into the cabinet.

"I'm heading out first."

"Why are you running?"

"If I don't run, am I supposed to stay behind and be cannon fodder?" Li Cheng was already grabbing his bag.

He walked to the door and then turned back.

"Zhou Yutong, let's go!"

"Huh? It's not off-work time yet—"

"We're leaving early today! Go, go, go!"

The two of them rushed out of the office one after the other, hurried footsteps echoing in the hallway as if they were fleeing for their lives.

Jiang Fan sat on the swivel chair outside the Recording Studio and spun it a couple of times.

The office fell silent, with only the sound of rain tapping against the windows.

Before long, the office doorbell rang.

He got up to open the door.

Xu Qingya stood at the entrance.

She was fully geared up in a black trench coat, sunglasses, and a face mask, holding a dark blue paper bag in her hand.

She took off her sunglasses, her gaze sweeping past Jiang Fan to look around inside.

The new office spanned 680 square meters, and the renovation still carried the scent of fresh paint.

The front desk was empty, and the computers at the workstations still had their screensavers active. No one was there.

"Where is everyone?"

"They've off work."

Xu Qingya walked inside, her high heels making a crisp clicking sound on the wooden floor.

As she passed the sofa, her nose twitched slightly.

"What's that smell?"

"Air freshener," Jiang Fan said without changing his expression. "It's a new office, and the smell was a bit strong, so I sprayed some."

Xu Qingya stared at him for two seconds before dropping the subject.

She took off her mask, sat on the sofa, and crossed her legs.

Jiang Fan sat down beside her.

There was only a fist's distance between them.

Xu Qingya took out a square box from the paper bag and opened it.

Resting on the dark blue velvet lining was a wristwatch.

A patek philippe Nautilus with a blue dial and steel bracelet.

"A gift for you."

Jiang Fan picked it up and examined it.

He didn't know much about watches, nor did he know how much it was worth.

"What's this for?"

"Nothing in particular," Xu Qingya said casually.

"Stop going out to meet people dressed like a college student all day. You're a champion now, after all. Pay some attention to your image."

Jiang Fan put the watch on and turned his wrist.

The dial reflected a cold gleam under the fluorescent light.

"Thanks."

"Just a 'thanks'?"

"Then what do you want?"

Xu Qingya tilted her head, looked at him for a few seconds, and finally let out a small smile.

"Show me around?"

—

The two of them took a walk down the hallway.

They visited the office area, the meeting room, the pantry, and finally arrived at the Recording Studio.

The Recording Studio was newly built; Li Cheng had spent a lot of money on soundproofing and acoustic treatment.

A Steinway piano stood in the corner, next to Studio monitors and a mixing console.

Xu Qingya sat down in front of the piano, her fingers gently gliding across the keys.

"Play something?"

Jiang Fan walked over and stood behind her.

"What do you want to hear?"

Xu Qingya didn't turn around.

"Anything."

Jiang Fan leaned forward, reaching his hands past both sides of her to rest them on the keys.

In this posture, his chest pressed against Xu Qingya's back, and his chin was almost resting on her shoulder.

Xu Qingya's shoulders tensed for less than a second before she relaxed and leaned back slightly.

The back of her head rested right below his collarbone.

With a thought, Jiang Fan opened the system store.

He typed into the search bar: Famous Piano Pieces.

A long list popped up.

"Mariage d'amour" — Exchange Price: 300 Lifespan Value points.

In his past life, this piece was played in music stores on every street and alley. It was romantic, but not cloying.

[Would you like to exchange?]

"Exchange."

[Deducting 300 Lifespan Value points. Remaining Lifespan Value: 17,900 points]

The melody and fingering spread out in his mind.

Jiang Fan's fingers fell onto the keys.

As the first note of the prelude rang out, Xu Qingya's breath hitched.

The melodic progression of this piece was completely different from any of the songs Jiang Fan had played before.

It had the texture of classical piano music, carrying a clean, pure sadness.

As the piece progressed to the middle section, the left-hand chords thickened, and the right-hand melody line soared into the higher register, pushing the emotions up layer by layer.

One minute. Two minutes.

When the entire piece finished, the final note faded away between the walls covered in soundproof cotton.

The Recording Studio remained silent for several seconds.

Xu Qingya's eyelashes were already damp.

"What is this called?" Her voice was slightly raspy.

"Mariage d'amour."

Xu Qingya tilted her head, looking up at Jiang Fan.

From this angle, she could see the curve of his jawline and the outline of his Adam's apple.

"What do you mean by playing this piece?"

"You told me to play whatever."

"Stop playing dumb with me." Xu Qingya grabbed Jiang Fan's hand resting on the edge of the keys, interlocking her fingers with his.

"Jiang Fan."

"Yeah."

"What on earth are your thoughts regarding Su Yuyan?"

"She helped Shen Nian."

"So you're repaying the favor with your body?"

Jiang Fan dragged a chair over from the side and sat down opposite Xu Qingya.

"Xu Qingya."

He rarely called her by her full name.

Xu Qingya raised an eyebrow.

"Do you want to hear the truth or a lie?"

"The truth."

"The truth is, I can't give you any promises."

Xu Qingya's expression gradually faded.

It wasn't anger, but rather the reaction of someone who had known the answer all along yet still felt uncomfortable upon hearing it with her own eyes.

"But—"

Jiang Fan continued.

"When it comes to writing songs, you are different from her."

Xu Qingya's eyes locked onto him.

"The song for Su Yuyan was a transaction, one song in exchange for a spot," Jiang Fan said in a low voice.

"The songs for you shouldn't be compared to hers."

Xu Qingya didn't speak.

The silence lasted for over a dozen seconds.

She stood up, walked to the door of the Recording Studio, and clicked the lock shut from the inside.

"The soundproofing in this Recording Studio of yours is quite good."

Jiang Fan looked at her back.

The waistline of the trench coat was tightly cinched, outlining her sexy figure.

"There's a lounge next to my office. The bed is brand new."

"Who said anything about sleeping in a bed?"

Xu Qingya turned around, leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed over her chest, jealousy still lingering deep in her eyes.

"Come here," she said.

Jiang Fan obediently stood up from the chair.

The Recording Studio wasn't large; two steps were enough.

Xu Qingya reached out, grabbed the collar of his shirt, and pulled him in front of her.

This Recording Studio's soundproofing was exceptionally well done.

Back then, Li Cheng had insisted on using double-layer soundproof doors and a floating floor.

Looking at it now, that money was extremely well spent.

————

Outside, the rain was still falling.

The hallway of the office building was completely empty.

Li Cheng sat in the cafe downstairs, with two cups of lattes placed in front of him.

Zhou Yutong sat opposite him, taking small bites of a piece of tiramisu.

"Brother Li, how much longer do we have to wait?"

"Until Jiang Fan sends me a message."

"What are they talking about that's taking so long?"

Li Cheng glanced at her.

"Talking about music."

"Oh." Zhou Yutong nodded and took another bite of the cake. "Then why did they chase us away just to talk about music?"

Li Cheng picked up his latte, took a gulp, and didn't answer.

His phone lit up.

A message from Jiang Fan.

"No need to come back today."

Li Cheng stuffed his phone back into his pocket and stood up.

"Let's go, we're off."

"Oh. What about Brother Fan?"

"He's working overtime."