chapter 39 – midnight singing

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chapter 40 will be out in a week! i have a midterm soon that i need to study for 🙁 additionally, i'll be changing the days i upload new chaps to every three days instead of every day, because i'm too busy to keep up T_T if i have any extra time though, i'll upload an extra chapter!

 

When the tram stopped, the crowd first got up and waited around for awhile before getting off, one by one.

 

Xie Ning got up from Zhuang Yan’s embrace and followed everyone else out.

 

After two steps, someone caught his suit sleeve.

 

“Slow down,” Zhuang Yan said leisurely.
“There’s too many people, be careful to not fall.”

 

Xie Ning was very speechless for a while.
“How come I feel like…you treat me like a child?”

 

Zhuang Yan got up and, going along the sleeve, very naturally held Xie Ning’s hand.

 

Wang JianJian just happened to walk past the two of them and heard these words.
He couldn’t help but complain, “Not a child, but he clearly protects you like a porcelain doll.”

 

Zhao Yang felt the same in his heart.
“Isn’t it, though? Holding you in his palm, afraid that you’d fall, or holding you in his mouth, afraid you’ll melt…”

 

Teased by these two, Xie Ning’s originally already red face finally blew up.

 

Until he got out of the car, he sullenly walked forward, completely ignoring Zhuang Yan.

 

Zhuang Yan helplessly spread his hands.
“I’ve offended him.”

 

Turning around, he reprimanded Zhao Yang and Wang JianJian.
“You two couldn’t say a couple of sentences less?”

 

Xie Ning is thin-skinned and soft-hearted.
As shy as he got, he couldn’t show an unhappy expression because of Zhuang Yan in front of so many people.

 

When he walked to the entrance of a song and dance hall, the embarrassment in his heart had dissipated, and he sneakily held Zhuang Yan’s hand.

 

Zhuang Yan slowly curled up the corners of his lips.

 

The song and dance hall was considered one of the necessary locations for the filming of a Republic of China drama.
The Paramount in Shanghai was not only an entertainment venue, but had several connections and relationships with all sorts of society.

 

Even after a hundred years, the “Number One Entertainment House of the Far East” still appeared several times in various dramas that took place in the Republic of China.

 

It was as if without many scenes of graceful dances in the song and dance hall, then there would be less of the romantic charm of the Republic of China.

 

Wang JianJian the dandy looked around, very interested.
He asked, “Let’s go and take a look?”

 

Zhao Yang complained, “Even if it’s a possible shooting location, we’re not sure if there’s anything we can use inside, and it’s still broad daylight.
Are you expecting to meet some red roses and white lilies inside?”

 

Wang JianJian replied seriously, “I just want to experience the atmosphere!”

 

There really were a few scenes and shots in the dance hall in the script.
Xie Ning hesitated, wondering if he should follow them to go and see, when Zhuang Yan pulled him forward.

 

“Those shots aren’t important, so just let Wang JianJian take a glance at it,” Zhuang Yan said.
“Let’s leave them behind and go to the opera house up ahead.”

 

Xie Ning hesitated.
“Isn’t that not good?”

 

Zhuang Yan calmly replied, “What’s not good about it?”

 

Xie Ning looked behind him towards the dance hall, and everyone else was walking in already, so only the two of them were on a different path.

 

There were some others who noticed the direction they were going in and hesitated for a moment, but they didn’t follow.

 

Zhuang Yan firmly pulled his arm and dragged him forwards.
“Stop looking; there’s only some tables and chairs inside, and there’s a small stage.
There’s not much to look at.”

 

Xie Ning said, “I’m not curious about that.”

 

Zhuang Yan raised his eyebrows.
“Are you curious about red roses and white lilies?”

 

He stopped walking, but Xie Ning didn’t stop in time, and bumped into him.
Zhuang Yan grabbed his waist, saying, “Baby, am I not handsome enough or not talented enough for you to be interested in the wild flowers and weeds outside?”

 

Xie Ning was startled, and half of his body softened when he was called “baby”.
“…”

 

Zhuang Yan had never called him so frivolously before, so it was probably because he’d been in Wang JianJian’s company for too long these days.

 

Wang JianJian was always saying baby this and baby that to tease them, so Zhuang Yan was unconsciously infected and couldn’t stop himself from saying it today.

 

But seeing Xie Ning’s expression, he felt like it wasn’t bad to call him like that.

 

“What’s the matter, baby?”

 

This time, it seemed deliberate.
Xie Ning blushed and glared at him, saying, “You’re the baby!”

 

“And…” he turned his head and explained, “I’m not interested in the red roses and white lilies, but I feel like it’s not good to just leave them there.”

 

Zhuang Yan stroked his chin and thoughtfully said, “It isn’t good.
We didn’t even say a word to them, so it feels like we’re eloping.”

 

Xie Ning was completely speechless.
“…That’s not what I meant.”

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Zhuang Yan chuckled, but he didn’t loosen his hand on his waist.
“Didn’t I tell you a long time ago to treat this outing as vacation? There’s no need to be so nervous.
It’s only the second day, so while our interest hasn’t lessened yet, we’ll naturally have to find a chance to sneak out on a date.”

 

Xie Ning, with red ear tips, whispered, “Who said I wanted to go on a date.”

 

Zhuang Yan pondered.
“Then…I’ll change the word to elope.”

 

Xie Ning: “…” Forget it, just call it a date.

 

There was an opera house in front of them.
The doors to the entrance were open, and there was a vintage poster in front.
Xie Ning glanced at it, but before he could see what was drawn on it, Zhuang Yan pulled him into the opera house.

 

The hall at the entrance was magnificent, and there were a few wooden chairs placed inside the railings of the customer line.
It looked a little bit like the public chairs in a park.

 

A graceful woman wearing a qipao, who was probably doing receptionist tasks, stood behind the ticket booth and smiled at them.

 

“Welcome to Broadway.”

 

Zhuang Yan introduced it to Xie Ning.
“This is the Broadway theater modeled after old Shanghai from the 1920s to the 1940s.”

 

Xie Ning had heard of Broadway before, and in a sense, it had become synonymous with musicals.

 

The woman in a qipao brought them into the hall.
“Although there aren’t any opera performances right now, there’s a theater on the second floor with a holographic experience performance, which will show you the romantic love during the Republic of China.”

 

Zhuang Yan frowned.
“Holographic…what performance?”

 

“A holographic experience performance.
The poster outside mentioned it.”

 

Oh, looks like we didn’t pay attention when we came in.

 

Zhuang Yan wasn’t interested at all.

 

What romantic love?

 

Were they as romantic as the scripts he made and movies he filmed?

 

Was it as romantic as the love story between Mr.
Rabbit and himself?

 

After looking around the performance hall, Zhuang Yan and Xie Ning decided on a couple of spots that could be used in a scene, and started to walk out.

 

The receptionist was still promoting their new performance.
“…is based on a well-known movie.”

 

After hearing the word “movie”, Zhuang Yan’s steps slowed down and stopped.
The receptionist, seeing an opportunity, immediately started boasting about how their 4D, holographic experience was advanced, interesting, and realistic, allowing the viewer to completely immerse themselves in the performance.

 

Zhuang Yan turned his head and asked Xie Ning, “Let’s take a look?”

 

Although Xie Ning didn’t know why he suddenly changed his mind, he didn’t really mind.
“Whatever is fine.”

 

The two of them were taken to a small hall in the second floor, and first listened to a long spiel from an old-fashioned record, apparently specifically designed to help tourists get a sense of immersion with this background information.

 

The voice was obscure and misty, as if it was coming from far, far away.

 

Zhuang Yan commented, “It does sound nice, but it’s too unclear and I can’t hear what she’s singing.”

 

Xie Ning blinked, remembering the poster he glanced at at the entrance, and felt like the voice was inexplicably ethereal and peaceful.

 

He asked Zhuang Yan, “What film is this based on? It probably has to do with opera, right?”

 

Since Zhuang Yan had stayed overseas for a long time, he involuntarily remembered a name.
“?”

 

Xie Ning was silent for a few seconds.
“There’s also a movie within China that was based off of , set in the Republic of China…”

 

“.” Zhuang Yan replied immediately.

 

Xie Ning silently glanced at him.

 

Whether it was or , they both included elements of horror in the film while telling a romantic love story.

 

Zhuang Yan raised his eyes, held Xie Ning’s wrist, and asked in his low voice, “Are you scared?”

 

Xie Ning shook his head, replying, “I’m not scared.”

 

Zhuang Yan smirked.
“If you’re scared, just say so.
It’s not anything embarrassing.”

 

Xie Ning still shook his head.
“I’m really not scared.”

 

Zhuang Yan raised his brows after Xie Ning said that, and looked surprised.
“With how you’re so shy normally and blush at the drop of a hat, I didn’t think that you’d be so brave.”

 

“…”

 

Xie Ning lowered his eyes, and after a long while, said quietly, “Actually…my ability to empathize is really poor.
Most times, I can’t understand other people’s emotions.”

 

Zhuang Yan was stunned for a moment.

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The sorrows and joys of the world are not perceived in the same way.

 

Some people can shed tears when reading a book, as if they’d experienced the joys and sorrows of the characters in the book for themselves, while some others only felt disconnected, or merely sighed with emotion after reading, then turned around to promptly forget.

 

Xie Ning is the latter.

 

He knows that others are sad, but he doesn’t know why they’re sad or what they’re sad for.

 

Zhuang Yan’s heart moved, and with a regretful expression, said, “Then doesn’t that mean I can’t see a frightened Xie Ning?”

 

Xie Ning: “…”

 

Zhuang Yan continued, “I thought that when you’re scared and start trembling, you might shrink into my arms and not let go of me.”

 

Xie Ning, speechless, looked at him.
“What are you thinking of all day…”

 

Zhuang Yan raised his eyebrows and smiled, replying without hesitation, “Thinking of you.”

 

Xie Ning had utterly nothing to say.

 

Zhuang Yan felt like it was a pity.
“Since you can’t feel it, then isn’t playing with this a waste of time?”

 

Xie Ning pursed his lips.
“It’s…it’s not that I can’t feel anything.”

 

Zhuang Yan raised his eyes.
“Oh?”

 

“It’s just…very little.” Xie Ning organized his words with a little difficulty.

 

Zhuang Yan pondered for a little, and asked, “Is this a better analogy? If someone added a cube of sugar into a glass of water and can taste the sweetness after it’s dissolved, then yours is like adding a cube of sugar into the ocean?”

 

Xie Ning mumbled, “It’s not as serious…as the ocean, I think?”

 

Zhuang Yan asked, “Then how much water?”

 

Xie Ning thought about it, and hesitated before saying, “A bucketful?”

 

Zhuang Yan lifted his hand and softly caressed Xie Ning’s face, with an inexplicable feeling.

 

Xie Ning nervously moved his body.

 

There were still some things he left unsaid.

 

It wasn’t just empathy, but his perception and understanding of his own emotions was also very weak.

 

It was as weak as the thread that connected a broken lotus root.
It was still connected, but one day, it might completely break.

 

Zhuang Yan asked softly, “Do you still want to stay and play with this?”

 

Xie Ning looked at him.
“What?”

 

Zhuang Yan said, “This holographic…something emotional experience.”

 

“…It’s an experience performance.” Xie Ning blinked, “Weren’t you very interested in the adaptation of the film?”

 

Zhuang Yan shrugged and said indifferently, “I was just curious as to which film it was before.
Whether it’s or , I’ve seen them both, so it’s the same whether we stay or not.”

 

Xie Ning glanced sideways at the old-fashioned record, hesitating.

 

Zhuang Yan continued, “It’s not too late to leave now, actually.”

 

He’d just finished saying this when the old-fashioned record’s singing stopped abruptly, and a staff member appeared to take them to the next room.

 

Zhuang Yan stood up but didn’t follow.
He told Xie Ning, “I’ll listen to you.”

 

“Let’s go,” Xie Ning hesitated for a long time before deciding.
“…It’s not good to have the staff prepare for nothing, and it might not be the two movies that we guessed.”

 

Zhuang Yan laughed for some reason.

 

……

 

If Xie Ning had seen the poster clearly when they entered the opera house, he probably wouldn’t have said such a thing.

 

Reality proved that their guess wasn’t wrong.
The holographic scene was adapted from , and even the name was left unchanged.

 

All the lights in the room dimmed.

 

Xie Ning was sitting on a chair, and in front of him, a vanity dressing table with a mirror shined white in front of him.

 

Before leaving, the staff specifically told them that once the scene started, they must not leave the chair, so Xie Ning straightened his back and didn’t dare to move.

 

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This so-called 4D holographic experience was more of a sensory stimulation.

 

For example, the flickering lights, the faint singing floating by his ear, and the slight sound of the wind passing by behind him, made him feel numb involuntarily.

 

The chair would even shake slightly occasionally, making him tremble along with it.

 

Xie Ning shook reactively when something suddenly held his hand.

 

Then he found out that it was Zhuang Yan who, sitting next to him, had reached out and grabbed his hand.

 

Xie Ning turned his head and muttered quietly, “Why are you holding my hand even now?”

 

Zhuang Yan’s voice carried a slight smile.
“The lights are dim anyways, so nobody else can see it.”

 

There was a tour group with about a dozen people who was also participating in this round of the performance along with them.

 

There were sounds of chatter coming from around them, and two screams in response to a certain scene.

 

The two of them were talking in this weird atmosphere, as if they were a couple that couldn’t help but whisper to each other during a movie.

 

There seemed to be something happening on stage, and even though Xie Ning was looking at it, it was like he didn’t watch it at all.
His attention was completely drawn to Zhuang Yan.

 

Then, he heard the sound of a woman’s laughter.

 

The speaker was probably installed on the back of the chair, and the sound traveled directly into Xie Ning’s ear, as if the woman was right next to him.

 

Xie Ning’s head went numb for a moment.

 

Zhuang Yan, acting like he was bored, held Xie Ning’s hand tighter and said casually, “You said you’re not scared, but your hand is shaking.”

 

Xie Ning said, “…It’s okay.”

 

The mirror in front of him suddenly lit up, and a face full of hair slowly came out.

 

Around them, there were screams one after another.

 

Xie Ning wasn’t scared by the face in the mirror, but was startled by the screams.

 

Actually, if he looked carefully, he could tell that it was the back of a head that was turning around slowly.

 

Xie Ning then could see the woman’s face.

 

“She looked average.” Zhuang Yan commented.

 

Xie Ning took a look, and nodded.
“…She’s okay.”

 

Zhuang Yan turned his head and smiled at him in the dark.
“She doesn’t look as good as you do.”

 

Xie Ning: “…”

 

Comparing his looks to the female ghost’s felt weird.

 

Zhuang Yan asked, “You’re really not scared?”

 

Xie Ning thought about it.
“I’m not completely unafraid, since there’s still horror effects.
It’s just…for this kind of sensory stimulation, as long as I cover my eyes and ears, the terror is reduced by a lot.”

 

Zhuang Yan chuckled.

 

As the plot went on, the lights dimmed even further.

 

All the lights disappeared, including the mirror that shone with a white light, and silence settled over the room again.

 

There seemed to be white shadows floating across the room.

 

“Xie Ning.”

 

Zhuang Yan called out softly.

 

Xie Ning turned his head.

 

A pair of hands touched his face, and then held his chin.

 

“What…” Xie Ning had just said one word, when his voice suddenly disappeared.

 

Zhuang Yan leaned his head over in the darkness and kissed him gently.

 

At that moment, there was something that starkly contrasted the thin fear he felt.

 

It was as if his feelings for Zhuang Yan were going to overflow and spill from his chest.

 

The feelings surged up violently, breaking through his previous knowledge and understanding of his own feelings, and made him feel at a loss.

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And today, in the midst of darkness and screams, he and Zhuang Yan exchanged a lingering kiss.

 

He put his hand on his heart, feeling his wild heartbeat that seemed to pound right next to his ears.

 

So strong and obvious.

 

Everything around him receded like a tide.

 

The only thing he could feel was Zhuang Yan, right next to him, whose heart was beating just as forcefully.

 

……

 

The schedule for the following few days was completely full.

 

Xie Ning finally understood why Zhuang Yan had pulled him out sneakily for a date the first two days.

 

Because there was absolutely no time or energy for something like that afterwards.

 

Most of the Republic of China locations were about the same, and there wasn’t much to choose between.
Towards the end, there wasn’t a sense of novelty anymore.

 

But they had to finish looking at all of them.
Sometimes, after visiting one place in the morning, they had to drive to another location in the afternoon.

 

Every night, when they returned to the hotel, everyone was physically and mentally exhausted.
Xie Ning would fall onto the bed, only thinking about taking a shower and having a good night’s sleep.

 

He could spare no effort to think about this and that.

 

Zhuang Yan, seeing Xie Ning fall onto the bed and not wanting to move, walked next to him, chuckled and said, “Take a shower first?”

 

Xie Ning mumbled, “Mmn.”

 

“We’ll go back tomorrow.” Zhuang Yan reached his hand out and pulled him up.
“I’ll give you guys a couple of days off to get some good rest.”

 

Xie Ning breathed a sigh of relief, then couldn’t hold back his yawn.

 

He was seriously way too tired.

 

Their things were scattered all across the room, on the floor and on the bed.
If it was in the past, they’d definitely clean it up first, but today, they really didn’t have any energy at all.

 

When Xie Ning went to take a shower, Zhuang Yan sat on the edge of the bed with his laptop on his legs.
He flipped through the photos that they took recently, and occasionally made a few marks and notes.

 

A phone on the bed rang.

 

Zhuang Yan subconsciously felt around, and it was only when he picked it up did he realize that it was Xie Ning’s.

 

It was a text message.

 

Zhuang Yan had no intention of violating Xie Ning’s privacy, and glanced at it before planning to put it back.

 

But his gaze stopped.

 

On the sender’s line, the words [Psychologist: Ji WenBin] were especially eye-catching.

 

Zhuang Yan involuntarily looked towards the bathroom, and the look in his eyes darkened.

 

Xie Ning had never mentioned a psychologist to him before.

 

He threw the phone back onto the bed and quietly memorized the name Ji Wenbin.

 

Psychologist…

 

When Xie Ning finished showering and came out, he found Zhuang Yan standing in front of the only small window in the room, with an almost-finished cigarette lit in his hand.

 

He turned his head and glanced at Xie Ning, put out the cigarette, and said, with the corner of his lip twitching, “I’m sorry, I couldn’t hold back and smoked a cigarette.”

 

Although he was smiling, Xie Ning inexplicably felt like there was no smile in his eyes.

 

“What’s wrong?” Xie Ning wondered.
He felt like there was something strange about the Zhuang Yan standing in front of him right now.

 

Was he craving a smoke?

 

Zhuang Yan took a deep breath.
“Nothing’s wrong, I’m probably just tired from these past two days.”

 

Xie Ning didn’t doubt him.
“Oh.”

 

Zhuang Yan looked at him, picked up the clothes on the chair, and strode into the bathroom.
“I’m going to take a shower.”

 

Xie Ning nodded.
Since he just finished showering, he felt refreshed, and climbed onto the bed.

 

There was a new text message on his phone.
It was the appointment time between him and Ji Wenbin, when they both had time.

 

Xie Ning looked at the text message coolly and replied.