Many boys had confessed to Xu Zhinan, and Qin Tang was one of them.

The reason he was so memorable was that the experience of being pursued by him was not a pleasant one for Xu Zhinan.

She had a quiet and soft personality. Someone like Fan Li chasing her to the tattoo parlor and saying he wanted to get her name tattooed on him was already over the top, but Qin Tang was even more exaggerated.

Back then, they were still in high school. Xu Zhinan studied at Yancheng No. 1 High School. Qin Tang wasn't from No. 1 High School, and Xu Zhinan never made an effort to find out which school he was from.

Qin Tang's pursuit could be described as harassment.

Every time after class when she went home, Qin Tang would be waiting for her at the school gate. Xu Zhinan would ignore him, but he didn't need her to acknowledge him. He would just follow her all the way, striking up conversations like a hooligan.

Eventually, Xu Zhinan couldn't take it anymore and finally got annoyed.

That day after school, she was holding a city-level essay competition award certificate. As she was about to go home, she saw Qin Tang at the school gate again.

He was straddling a bicycle with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, waiting for her.

The classmates around Xu Zhinan already recognized him. They laughed and joked as they walked away. Xu Zhinan paid him no mind and walked directly towards home.

"Hey, Classmate Xu, didn't you see me?" Qin Tang rode his bicycle up beside her.

When Xu Zhinan quickened her pace, he sped up. When she slowed down, he slowed down too, consistently following her at a steady pace.

She stopped walking and frowned. "Aren't you annoying? Stop following me!"

Qin Tang grinned cheekily. "I like you. If I don't follow you, how can I see you?"

"I would never like someone like you."

The sunlight shone down brightly. Xu Zhinan had her hair in a ponytail, with a few stray wisps of hair falling on the nape of her neck. Her features were delicate and beautiful, without a trace of gloom. The words on the award certificate in her hand glittered like gold.

She tilted her chin up slightly, her brows furrowed, her expression cold and distant. She didn't realize it herself, but in Qin Tang's eyes, she was as proud as a swan, keeping people at arm's length, looking down on him from the bottom of her heart.

Qin Tang looked at her for a moment, then suddenly smiled. "You're quite something, aren't you."

Xu Zhinan ignored him again. She had never encountered a boy like this.

With the final exams approaching, she didn't want to be disturbed by him. She turned and continued walking, not sparing him a single extra glance.

"Don't be so fucking shameless." Qin Tang stood behind her and yelled, his tone malicious. "What's with the high and mighty act? I'd like to see how long you can keep it up."

Xu Zhinan muttered "psycho" under her breath and quickened her pace.

Qin Tang didn't chase after her again.

After that, Xu Zhinan never saw him again. From that day on, Qin Tang stopped pestering her.

Regarding this matter, Xu Zhinan's reaction was one of relief, and she focused on preparing for her exams.

By now, she had almost forgotten what Qin Tang looked like, but the sly wickedness in his tone remained unchanged, stirring up her old memories.

It was just, how did Lin Qingye know Qin Tang?

She had never seen such a person around Lin Qingye before.

She lifted the hem of her dress and walked towards the backstage, still able to hear the teasing voices of the group behind her.

Then came Qin Tang's voice, playful and disdainful. "You're really something else, you still have lipstick on you."

Xu Zhinan's face flushed. She gathered her skirt and ran back to the backstage, revealing a small section of her fair, slender calves, which looked like a piece of smooth suet jade.

Lin Qingye retracted his gaze, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, and let out a faint, amused hum.

Her female co-host saw Xu Zhinan run back and asked, "How is it? Is Lin Qingye here?"

She was still in a daze and didn't answer.

The female host waved a hand in front of her eyes. "Ah Nan?"

"Ah," she came back to her senses. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong with you? The show is about to start." The female host repeated her previous question.

She nodded. "He's here, I've handed things over."

"Why is your lipstick so faded? Did you eat something just now? Let me touch it up for you." After speaking, she pulled Xu Zhinan to sit in front of the vanity, reapplied the lipstick, and demonstrated by pressing her lips together. "Like this."

Xu Zhinan followed suit and pressed her lips together.

Even with red lipstick, her features didn't carry any hint of aggression. They remained soft, but were now more radiant and dazzling, making it impossible for people to look away.

The female host snapped her fingers. "Perfect. But really, why do you look like you've lost your soul after just stepping out for a moment?"

"I'm fine." Xu Zhinan pressed her temples and arranged her host cards.

Just before going on stage, her phone vibrated. It was a message from Ruan Yuanyuan. She forced herself to pull herself together.

[Ruan Yuanyuan: Holy crap!! Is the gala about to start!!]

[Xu Zhinan: Yeah, what's up?]

[Ruan Yuanyuan: Old Hag Fan is telling me to go over and work on that midterm design draft now. If I don't go, she'll fail me. Fuck. Do you know around what time Lin Qingye's performance is?]

Xu Zhinan's fingers paused. She thought of what had just happened, and her chest felt heavy.

[Xu Zhinan: He's the final act, so it should be in about two hours.]

[Ruan Yuanyuan: I don't know if I can make it in time. Why is Old Hag Fan so annoying!]

[Ruan Yuanyuan: Ah Nan, if I can't make it in time, you absolutely have to help me stop him!!!]

Xu Zhinan didn't know how to reply and just sent back, "Just get here as fast as you can." The other hosts called for her. Xu Zhinan turned off her phone, put it in her bag, and went on stage with them.

The school placed great importance on this gala, and it was being filmed in its entirety.

The lights shone down as the four hosts, two male and two female, took the stage to give the opening speech together.

"Hey, isn't that Xu Zhinan?" a student in the audience craned their neck.

"Yeah, didn't you hear? It was announced a long time ago that Xu Zhinan would be one of the hosts this time."

"She's so beautiful. I used to think a face like hers would look better without makeup, but now that I see her, holy crap, she's absolutely stunning."

...

The murmurs of discussion rustled through the audience.

Xu Zhinan had already memorized the script thoroughly. Despite the turmoil in her heart, she didn't make a single mistake.

She could see Lin Qingye in her peripheral vision.

He hadn't taken a seat with everyone else but was standing off to the side. His group of friends was all around him, laughing and talking, carefree and casual.

She thought again of Qin Tang's words, "You're really something else, you still have lipstick on you." Her heart skipped a beat, and she glanced over, wanting to see if he had wiped it clean.

But the dazzling lights spread down from above, making even the floating dust in the air visible, yet she couldn't see the details in the shadows.

Lin Qingye noticed her gaze and looked directly back at her. He lazily raised an arm to greet her.

Xu Zhinan's dark lashes trembled, and some of the heaviness in her heart dissipated. She lowered her eyes to her host card and introduced the first part of the program.

They had rehearsed several times before, and the other three hosts were all top students from the broadcasting major. The entire gala went smoothly.

However, towards the end, the audience's enthusiasm began to wane. They stopped watching the show and started taking selfies with their friends, as they would all be going their separate ways after graduation soon.

It was time for the last performance.

Xu Zhinan sent a message to Ruan Yuanyuan and went on stage. She was in charge of announcing the act. After she finished the introduction, everyone had already guessed it was Lin Qingye, and their enthusiasm was reignited.

"Next, please welcome the performance by fourth-year music major graduate, Lin Qingye."

Applause and screams mingled in the audience.

It was completely different from before.

Lin Qingye walked onto the stage amidst the cheers. Staff members brought out a standing mic and secured a keyboard.

Unlike the video he had filmed before, it seemed he had made a last-minute decision to change it. He didn't use a guitar, switching to a keyboard instead.

Lin Qingye could play many instruments, all of them well. You could almost say he alone had the ability to form an entire band.

His fingers were long and slender. He lightly placed them on the keyboard, pressing three keys in succession to play a melody, effortlessly capturing the attention of the entire audience.

The music swelled from soft to heavy. The bangs on Lin Qingye's forehead fell, catching colors under the mottled lights.

The song had also been rearranged; it was different from the version she had heard when he recorded the video.

Rock elements had been added. Xu Zhinan didn't know if it had been prepared beforehand or was improvised.

"We're pretty lucky," the other female host said, standing with Xu Zhinan at the side of the stage to watch Lin Qingye's performance up close.

She whispered, "This might be the last free Lin Qingye performance we'll get to see. I heard he's going to record a show right after this."

His performance was the shortest, lasting only for one song.

Xu Zhinan couldn't go backstage again to get her phone and see if Ruan Yuanyuan had arrived.

When the song ended, the audience spontaneously started chanting Lin Qingye's name in unison.

He always had this ability to stir people's hearts.

He was wearing a white shirt, half of which was casually tucked into his waistband, outlining his broad shoulders and narrow waist under the lights. Then, breathing lightly, he raised his eyes, a half-smile on his face, looking roguish and unruly, and brought his lips close to the microphone again.

His voice was low and husky as he said lazily, "Happy graduation."

The screams threatened to blow the roof off.

One could almost predict the frenzy that would erupt on the school forum in a little while.

The atmosphere created by Lin Qingye didn't dissipate even after the hosts announced the end of the gala.

Xu Zhinan returned to the backstage and changed back into her own clothes. The teacher in charge walked over, clapping her hands. "This gala was a complete success! Thank you all for your hard work!"

She gave everyone a bottle of mineral water.

Xu Zhinan took it and said her thanks.

"Ah Nan, aren't you going to remove your makeup!" a friend called out to her.