Life countdown begins, ice queen bursts into security room

Jiang Fan held Shen Nian's hands down, preventing her from removing the two ponytails from her head.

The person in the mirror was so angry that their face turned red, and their twin ponytails were sticking up and down. The more you looked at them, the more they resembled a character from an anime.

"Jiang Fan, let go—"

Jiang Fan didn't relax.

He looked at Shen Nian in the mirror, his gaze sliding down from the two ponytails sticking up on her head, past her flushed face, the thin straps digging into her shoulders, and a large expanse of white skin below her collarbone.

Shen Nian was still struggling with him when suddenly an arm appeared around her waist, and she was lifted up and pulled toward the bed.

"What are you doing—"

Her lower back hit the edge of the bed, causing her body to lean back. Jiang Fan supported the back of her head with one hand and pushed her down.

Shen Nian's back slammed onto the mattress and bounced.

Her twin ponytails were spread out, one on the left and one on the right, and laid out on both sides of the pillow.

Jiang Fan leaned over her, his nose almost touching her collarbone.

"What's wrong with you today—"

The suspenders were pulled down over her shoulders.

Shen Nian's words were cut off in her throat.

-

Jiang Fan's demeanor tonight is different from usual.

The first thing Shen Nian noticed was that the rhythm had changed.

Although his movements weren't exactly gentle before, they were at least within her reach.

Not tonight.

Did you take the wrong medicine today?

Jiang Fan did not answer.

Or rather, he answered in another way.

Shen Nian's voice changed from questioning to intermittent breathiness, and she pushed his shoulder, but it was as if she didn't push at all.

"Jiang Fan—slow down—"

Useless.

Her twin ponytails swung back and forth on either side of the pillow, trembling with the rise and fall of her body.

Shen Nian turned her face to one side, rested her forehead on her forearm, bit her wrist, and lowered her voice.

"Be gentle..."

Before he could finish speaking, he was flipped over.

Kneel on the bed, hands supporting the mattress.

The pink nightgown was bunched up at her waist, all wrinkled up.

Jiang Fan's hand slid up her back, slowly moving upwards.

Then—he grabbed two ponytails.

Shen Nian was forced to arch her upper body, her spine bending into an arc.

"No—this position won't work—"

Her answer was a profound one.

Shen Nian's unfinished words were shattered into a distorted scream.

"...You're insane..."

The angle was so bad that she couldn't even bury her head in the pillow; her voice was exposed to the air, one sound after another, completely out of control.

She didn't know if the soundproofing was good enough, but she didn't care about that now.

"Jiang Fan, that's enough—"

-

Later on, Shen Nian couldn't even remember which round it was.

Her legs were propped up, and her ankles were resting on Jiang Fan's shoulders.

The flexibility I've developed through years of dance training finally came in handy today.

"No—Jiang Fan—it's really no good—"

His voice was terribly hoarse, completely different from how he usually spoke.

My body tenses up to its limit and then relaxes, one layer recedes and another appears, it just keeps going.

Shen Nian collapsed onto the bed, her fingers trembling.

The left ponytail was completely undone, while the right one was still hanging there, crooked and twisted.

Jiang Fan turned and lay down next to her, placing one hand on her lower abdomen.

The room quieted down.

There were only the heavy breathing of two people.

It took Shen Nian about three minutes to calm her breathing.

She moved her toes—she could still feel them, that's how it was.

"...Will I be able to walk tomorrow?"

"It should be possible."

Shen Nian turned to look at him, her sweat-dampened hair sticking to her forehead.

"We're going to Xu Tianhou's concert tomorrow. If you make me walk with a limp—"

The second half of the sentence was left unsaid, but the meaning was conveyed.

Jiang Fan reached out and brushed the stray hairs from her forehead. "It's not that exaggerated."

Shen Nian stared at the ceiling for a few seconds, then reached out and pulled off the last remaining ponytail on the right side, throwing the hair tie under the bed.

"Don't touch my hair anymore."

Jiang Fan chuckled.

"What are you laughing at?" Shen Nian punched him, but with almost no force. "It's all your fault for wearing those awful pigtails."

"What does this have to do with twin tails?"

"It's related." Shen Nian buried her face in the pillow, her voice muffled. "You went crazy because you saw me with my hair in pigtails. Don't think I don't know."

Jiang Fan did not deny it.

Shen Nian cursed as much as she wanted, but she didn't even have the strength to turn things around.

After a while, she pressed her forehead against Jiang Fan's shoulder and rubbed it against him.

"Pour me a glass of water."

Jiang Fan got up, went to the living room, got a glass of warm water, and brought it back.

Shen Nian struggled to sit up, took the glass, and drank most of it, her throat dry and sore.

She placed the cup on the bedside table, pulled a thin blanket over her waist, and stretched her feet out to rest on Jiang Fan's calves.

I fell asleep immediately.

The system panel flashed briefly in the corner of my field of vision.

[Deep Compatibility x4, Lifespan +2000]

Current lifespan: 40800 points

[Remaining lifespan: 31 days and 8 hours]

-

The next day.

The weather in Shanghai wasn't cooperating; it was overcast, and the air was stuffy and humid.

But this does not diminish the hype tonight.

Hsu Ching-Ya's "Elegant Charm" World Tour - Shanghai Station.

The Shanghai Stadium, with over 70,000 seats, sold out in three seconds after tickets went on sale.

The price on scalpers has increased sixfold, and some people still can't get their hands on the items.

Jiang Fan went out at noon and first went to the studio.

Li Cheng was already there, with a pile of documents spread out on the table.

"The Wind Rises" has been played 87 million times on Tencent Music in three days, and is expected to surpass 100 million today.

Li Cheng pushed the data report over.

"The comments section is also very positive. Shen Nian's Weibo followers reached 5.2 million last night and are still rising."

Jiang Fan glanced at the numbers and nodded.

"I'll finish writing the song for the next episode of 'The Voice of China' in the next couple of days."

After finishing my work, I went back to my apartment at 3 p.m. to change my clothes.

A black shirt, and I just randomly picked a dark pair of pants.

She was wearing that Patek Philippe watch on her wrist.

At 4:30, he knocked on the door of Shen Nian's apartment.

Shen Nian stood at the door.

She wore a blue dress, the hem falling just above her knees. Her hair was loose, with slightly curled ends draped over her shoulders.

She wore light makeup, with a thin layer of lip gloss on her lips.

Jiang Fan glanced at it a couple more times.

Shen Nian stood there without moving, her eyes asking – Is it pretty?

Jiang Fan didn't speak, but his eyes already answered.

Shen Nian took out her handbag and locked the door.

When they reached the elevator, Jiang Fan noticed her walking posture—it was a beat slower than usual, and she was taking smaller steps.

"Does it still hurt?"

Shen Nian's face flushed red to her ears, and she turned her head to glare at him.

"Try saying one more word."

-

By 6 p.m., the area outside the stadium was already packed with people.

Fans holding up signs with Xu Qingya filled the square, and a sea of ​​blue and white glow sticks covered the entire street.

The line of people waiting to enter stretched from the main entrance all the way to the corner of the parking lot.

Jiang Fan used the VIP channel and scanned the exclusive QR code.

Shen Nian followed beside him, fully armed with a mask and hat.

The VIP area is located in the first three rows on the left side of the venue.

The two seats were right next to each other, with a great view; the lighting rig and lift platform in the center of the stage were clearly visible.

Shen Nian sat down and looked around.

The seats were almost full.

The lights were still on, and people inside were already chanting "Xu Qingya" in waves.

The roar of tens of thousands of people surged in from all directions, and you could feel the chairs vibrating as you sat there.

Shen Nian stared at the huge stage for a long time.

The light fixtures were stacked up in seven or eight layers, and the LED screen covered the entire wall.

She had seen the concert recording, but seeing it in person is a completely different thing.

"What are you thinking about?" Jiang Fan handed her a bottle of water.

Shen Nian took it, unscrewed the cap, and took a sip.

"I wonder when I'll be able to stand on this kind of stage."

Jiang Fan glanced at her.

"Soon."

7:55.

The lights in the stadium went out one by one.

The entire stadium fell silent for two seconds.

Then--

Everyone screamed together.

The blue and white glow sticks illuminated the darkness, stretching from the front row all the way to the last row of stands, seemingly endless.

On the stage, the first spotlight shone down.

Xu Qingya's concert has begun.