Life countdown begins, ice queen bursts into security room

The night breeze blew in through the half-open window, carrying the coolness unique to early autumn.

The long-pile carpet felt soft and sinking into my knees.

Shen Nian knelt there, her hands gripping the hem of Jiang Fan's shirt.

Jiang Fan's palm was placed on her lower back, his fingers hooking the hem of her T-shirt along her waistline.

The T-shirt was pulled over his head and casually tossed onto the back of the sofa behind him.

Shen Nian's skin was naturally fair, and under this dim light, it shone with a delicate luster.

The shadow beneath her collarbone swayed with each breath.

Jiang Fan reached out and pinched her chin with his index finger and thumb.

His thumb rested on her lower lip and gently rubbed it.

Her lips were very soft.

Shen Nian opened her mouth and, as if possessed, pushed it forward.

For a normal adult male, this is an extremely dangerous sign.

Jiang Fan's Adam's apple bobbed violently.

Shen Nian lowered her head, her long hair falling down, covering most of her face, only revealing a section of her reddened ear tips.

The living room was so quiet that only two sounds could be heard.

Jiang Fan leaned back on the sofa, tilted his head back, and rested the back of his head against the leather cushion.

He closed his eyes and let out a long breath.

Midway through, Shen Nian turned her head and coughed violently twice, covering her mouth.

Her eyes were red at the corners, tears welled up in her eyes, and one slid down her cheek.

Shen Nian haphazardly rubbed the corner of her lips with the back of her hand.

I took a couple of breaths to calm myself down.

Shen Nian's knees had been pressed in the same spot for too long, and the soreness spread up her calves.

Jiang Fan's breathing was much heavier than usual, and his chest was heaving.

He looked down at her.

From this angle, you can't see her expression clearly, only her slightly tense, snow-white nape.

Shen Nian's movements became slower and slower.

Finally, unable to hold on any longer, she lay weakly on Jiang Fan's lap.

Jiang Fan looked at her for a few seconds.

Reach out and lift her chin.

Shen Nian's eyes were somewhat unfocused. When she met his gaze, she looked away again.

Jiang Fan didn't give her a chance to dodge.

-

Ten minutes later.

The long-pile comforter on the carpet had several messy, deep creases pressed into it.

Shen Nian felt completely limp; her legs had long since gone numb.

She swayed and collapsed onto the carpet.

Her long hair was spread out, and she lay there staring at the ceiling, panting heavily.

Jiang Fan looked at her.

His trousers were not zipped up, and his belt was hanging loosely.

Shen Nian opened her eyes and looked at the face so close to hers.

She pressed her hands against his chest.

"No..." The voice was hoarse, with a strong nasal tone, "Not here."

His fingers gripped the carpet fibers tightly.

The dark water stains were particularly noticeable on the newly replaced carpet.

Jiang Fan scooped her up from behind and held her in his arms.

Shen Nian buried her face in the crook of his neck, and it took her a while to find her voice again.

She angrily opened her mouth and bit Jiang Fan's shoulder, leaving a shallow tooth mark.

"I just changed the carpet!"

Jiang Fan lowered his head and kissed her forehead.

"Go buy another one exactly the same."

Shen Nian snorted and leaned back into his arms.

Jiang Fan carried the person into the bathroom.

The sound of rushing water continued for over an hour.

-

The next morning, sunlight streamed in through the gaps in the curtains that weren't fully drawn, illuminating the foot of the bed.

Jiang Fan opened his eyes and raised his hand to press his brow.

The blanket beside her bulged out in a small bulge, and Shen Nian huddled inside it, only half of her head showing.

She was up until the wee hours last night, but she's sleeping soundly now.

Jiang Fan threw off the covers and got out of bed, stepping barefoot onto the wooden floor.

As he passed through the living room, he glanced at the long-pile carpet.

The dark water stain had dried, but the fuzz was stuck together, making its shape somewhat jarring.

Shen Nian came out around 10 o'clock.

Her hair was still messy, and she put on an oversized sweatshirt, dragged her slippers, and walked to the dining table to sit down.

Jiang Fan had already set out breakfast.

Shen Nian picked up the milk and took a sip.

My gaze fell on the empty living room floor, and I paused for a moment.

"Where's my rug?"

"Throw it away."

Shen Nian put down her cup and glared at her.

"You just throw away something worth over a thousand yuan?"

"You want to keep it? Wipe it clean and hang it on the balcony to dry?"

Shen Nian's face turned red all the way to the roots of her neck.

He stopped talking, lowered his head, and took a big bite of bread.

-

The two finished their meal quickly.

Jiang Fan's phone rang.

Li Cheng: "They're downstairs. Have you two finished getting ready?"

Ten minutes later, the two came downstairs with their suitcases.

Zhou Yutong was also sitting in the car.

She insisted on going to the semi-finals, saying that "Sister Nian needs mental support."

Li Cheng couldn't stop him, so he took them along.

The car got on the highway.

Li Cheng drove for a while, then handed a black clothing bag to the back seat.

"These are the clothes you asked me to prepare."

Jiang Fan took it, unzipped it, and glanced at it.

Shen Nian peeked out.

"For me?"

"Hmm. If I draw the sad one, I'll wear this outfit on stage."

Shen Nian took the bag of clothes, looked at it carefully again, said nothing, and zipped it back up.

-

Saturday night at 8 PM.

The semi-finals of "The Voice of Heaven".

The number of viewers in the live stream exceeded 20 million as soon as it started.

First was the ranking competition for the bottom four. The singers took turns on stage, and their performances were mediocre and unremarkable.

After the last four are ranked, the real show begins.

The four finalists are Chen Hao, Shen Nian, Zhang Yihan, and Fang Xiaoxiao.

As the names and photos of the four people lit up one by one on the big screen, the cheers from the audience surged to an even higher level.

Teacher He stood on the stage, holding a transparent box in his hand, inside which were four white spheres about the size of billiard balls.

"You should already know the rules for the semi-finals. There are two themes: 'joy' and 'sorrow,' which will be determined by drawing lots among the four singers. The two singers who draw the same theme will face off directly."

He shook the box twice.

"Who wants to go first?"

Zhang Yihan was the first to raise her hand.

"Teacher He, let me go first."

She walked to the center of the stage and smiled at the camera.

Teacher He handed the transparent box to her.

She looked at the four small balls, stuck her finger in, and lingered inside for a few seconds.

In the end, I chose one.

She took it out, opened the small ball, and glanced at it herself first.

Teacher He took it and held it up in front of the camera.

"sad."

A low murmur rippled through the crowd.

The second one to come up was Fang Xiaoxiao.

She reached in and groped around for a while before pulling one out.

"happiness."

The remaining two balls represent a contrasting fortunes.

Shen Nian and Chen Hao exchanged a glance.

"Who's coming up, you two?" Teacher He asked with a smile.

Chen Hao raised his chin: "Teacher Shen, you can go first."

Shen Nian walked up to the box.

There are only two balls left in the box.

She reached in, grabbed one at random, and pulled it out.

Teacher He took it and held it up in front of the camera.

"sad."

The whole place erupted.

Shen Nian and Zhang Yihan – “Tragedy”.

Chen Hao and Fang Xiaoxiao – “Joy”.

The speed at which the live stream chat is flooded with comments is simply too fast for the naked eye to keep up with.

"It's all over, all over, all over! Shen Nian is doomed to face Zhang Yihan!"

"That foreign vocal coach that Universal Music hired at a high price, is he specializing in this area?"

"Thomas! That foreigner makes sad music, Zhang Yihan's in the bag this time."

"Zhang Yihan's hand lingered inside the box for so long when she was drawing lots; there's definitely something wrong with this box!"

"What should I do about Shen Nian?!"

In the lounge, Zhou Yutong's face turned pale.

She tugged at Jiang Fan's sleeve.

"It's over, Fan-ge. The worst-case scenario..."

Jiang Fan leaned back on the sofa without moving, his expression calm.

Shen Nian walked back from the stage and pushed open the door to the dressing room.

She didn't seem too nervous as she walked up to Jiang Fan.

Jiang Fan took the black bag of clothes and put it in her hand.

"Go change your clothes."

Shen Nian looked down at the bag of clothes, then looked up at him again.

"You already guessed it?"

"What does it matter whether you guess or not?" Jiang Fan tugged at the zipper of his clothing bag. "I've prepared two songs for you, one sad and one happy. You'll win against anyone who challenges you."

Shen Nian pursed her lips and turned to go to the changing room.

Jiang Fan snorted coldly.

A foreigner who performs funeral music.

Tonight I'll show you how amazing Chinese songs are.