Plan A
Heavenly Voice 15
Trouble Strikes
Yan Shuang wasn’t the type to be indecisive or hesitant. Once she decided on something, she would definitely see it through; once she grasped something, she would hold on stubbornly and not let go.
It was precisely because of Yan Shuang’s personality, along with her latent abnormal tendencies1, that Yan Xi felt strange when she received her call.
In Yan Xi’s heart, her older sister was practically an omnipotent existence, with a god-like mind. Clearly, they came from the same womb, clearly only separated by a few minutes, yet the structures of their brains were just different.
For her sister to feel fear, to hesitate—that was truly an unbelievable thing2.
Yan Shuang admitted she was extremely selfish. Even as a child, she wasn’t a kind person, very cold and indifferent. You couldn’t say she was a bad person, but you couldn’t call her a good person either. She possessed the necessary sympathy, just a bit less than the average person.
Yan Shuang was just scared. She discovered with some astonishment that she actually had this kind of emotion. Just imagining the young girl speaking harshly to her made her unbearably upset.
From love arises sorrow, from love arises fear; if one is detached from love, there is no sorrow and no fear.3
But Yan Shuang couldn’t bear to leave. Since she couldn’t bear it, then what was wrong with taking the plunge4? Who knew what the result would be after trying? Yan Shuang was never afraid of failure, because the last failure could provide experience for the next success.
Su Xin was in her room practicing her singing, adjusting her tone, striving to familiarize herself with the song’s melody.
Making music was a very happy thing. Su Xin strummed the guitar; this guitar was a gift from Yan Shuang. After all, Su Xin was a broke dog5, basically freeloading food, drink, lodging, and use of things6.
But strangely, Su Xin didn’t feel it was unreasonable at all.
She usually wouldn’t get too close to people, let alone be so indebted.
Lord Fourteen, I feel like something’s a bit off with me.
【Hm?】
Fourteen monitored its data flow. It was an AI; running twenty-four hours a day wouldn’t make it feel tired.
How can I feel this is so natural?
Feeling that Yan Shuang being good to her was natural, and her being good to Yan Shuang was also natural, completely lacking the indifference she showed towards strangers.
【Perhaps this is fate? Apologies, I do not quite understand complex human emotions, so I cannot relieve the Host’s worries.】
Su Xin just wanted someone to talk to, and Fourteen, who was always by her side, was undoubtedly a good choice. The only problem was, Fourteen wasn’t a ‘person’, just an advanced intelligence. No matter how personable it felt, it ultimately wasn’t human.
Fourteen wouldn’t feel sorrow or sadness. It might be able to simulate some emotions, making its hardware heat up, but overly complex, high-level emotions were still beyond its comprehension.
Actually, wasn’t this a good thing? If robots developed their own thoughts and emotions, then humanity’s position would be precarious.
Su Xin put down the sheet music, set the guitar aside properly, and flopped onto the bed, letting herself relax.
As dusk approached, Su Xin received a message from the production team, added her mentor’s contact information, and learned that she would have to go to the training room every day from now on.
Su Xin replied to the message and sat up from the bed.
When she went out, Yan Shuang happened to be setting things out.
“Hm? Is it takeout today?”
“Yeah, there’s no food in the kitchen, so let’s just have takeout tonight.”
“Okay. Shuangshuang, I need to tell you something. Starting tomorrow, I have to go over there for training. Just giving you a heads-up.”
“Okay. I also plan to join a project. The location is quite remote, so it might be a while before I come back.”
“How long?”
“Not sure. Your side should get busy very quickly, right?”
Performing outstandingly on stage allows the audience to remember you quickly, and then your name will appear on more and more people’s lips. Your future prospects will be great, a wide path in stardom.
“Mhm, when are you leaving?”
“Tomorrow.”
“So soon?”
“You need to take good care of yourself. I’ve transferred some money to you. Don’t neglect yourself while I’m gone, don’t let me come back and find you’ve lost weight. If anyone bullies you, you must tell me. Telling my sister is fine too; I’ve already sent you her contact information.”
“The way you’re talking makes it sound like I’m the one going on a long trip. I know, I know. You take care of yourself out there too.”
“Okay.”
Yan Shuang ate her meal, head lowered, concealing the dark glint in her eyes.
Yan Xi expressed great confusion about her sister’s actions. Wouldn’t a normal person actively pursue someone after realizing their feelings? Why was her sister running further away? Yan Xi absolutely didn’t believe her sister would just give up like this, nor was it definitely because of sadness or anything. She still remembered the tone Yan Shuang used when calling her yesterday to give instructions—full of vigor7.
Yan Xi couldn’t be bothered to dwell on it; she could never figure out her sister’s thoughts anyway.
Two weeks later, the first episode of the show aired on television. Su Xin was scheduled for the first episode; because of her outstanding performance, she was placed at the beginning to attract attention.
Before long, video clips were edited and circulated wildly online.
#High Face Value8 Miss’s Ethereal Voice#
Many marketing accounts9 reposted one after another. Su Xin hadn’t paid any advertising fees; some marketing accounts were quite unscrupulous, directly changing the description of someone else’s video and publishing it without even asking for authorization.
In any case, riding this initial wave, Su Xin had made her first appearance before the public.
Her Weibo also attracted quite a few face fans10 and song fans11. Su Xin’s profile page was simple, her avatar a cool-looking selfie, her bio only stating “Delete-Post Maniac”12.
There was only one Weibo post, a cover song video recorded by the original owner previously; it was already from an earlier time.
@GhostlyZhou Diandian: Face fan reporting in! Miss, this video is from half a year ago, huh? You were already singing so well then, and even better on stage! I’ve decided not to be just a face fan!
@GentlemanOnDuty: Tourist checking in13.
Exploding in popularity14 was, of course, impossible and non-existent. Su Xin had merely participated in a variety show and sung one song.
Singers gain fame much slower than actors; the visual aspect accounts for a much larger proportion than the auditory. It just made a small portion of people pay attention to her. Su Xin was very satisfied because this was just the beginning.
This show would run for four months per season, then wait for the next season after four months. After all, it was a variety show, not a TV drama.
However, as long as it’s a show, there will be times of decline. No show will stay popular forever; it will always experience a process of exploding in popularity and then leveling off.
Su Xin received several olive branches15 extended by various management companies. She decided to discuss it with Yan Shuang.
There were record companies and entertainment companies. The direction depended on whether she just wanted to focus on singing well or expand into other domains later, such as television and movies.
People from the entertainment companies felt it was too much of a waste for Su Xin’s face to just sing silently behind the scenes. If placed on screen, as long as her acting skills were passable, she might even be able to rake in some cash16.
Even though Su Xin wasn’t professionally trained, lacked sufficient academic qualifications, and even had no experience in this area.
In the end, Su Xin and Yan Shuang decided to sign with a record company.
Su Xin felt she hadn’t learned enough yet and wanted to continue studying in the future. After all, learning is endless. She didn’t want to restrict herself, nor did she particularly want to act—it was too tiring.
The original owner’s wish was to have everyone remember her through her singing voice, not her face or anything else.
Five months passed. Su Xin had finished everything with the show, successfully winning the championship, but Yan Shuang still hadn’t returned.
They contacted each other every two or three days because Yan Shuang was extremely busy and couldn’t stay in constant contact with her.
Su Xin lived in the accommodation arranged for her by the company, sitting on the bed feeling somewhat empty.
Her schedule wasn’t packed full: study, activities, study, activities. She had plenty of free time to sing and write songs.
While Su Xin’s popularity hadn’t faded yet, the company continuously worked on crafting her persona.
Heavenly Voice, something unique, and so on.
Su Xin felt her own face flush hearing it; the praise was too excessive, like looking through incredibly thick rose-tinted glasses.
For a full half-month, Yan Shuang did not contact Su Xin.
The calls Su Xin made went unanswered, met with the response that the phone was switched off. The text messages she sent received no reply, as if she had vanished into thin air17.
Su Xin asked Fourteen to check the situation over there.
【Host, she is safe and sound, just conducting experiments in a closed laboratory. Her phone was lost, so she temporarily cannot contact you.】
As long as she’s okay.
Su Xin breathed a sigh of relief, snapping back from her distracted state.
The company secured excellent resources for Su Xin, getting her the opportunity to sing the ending theme song for a TV drama. The music was composed by someone at the big boss level18, and the lyrics were written by the gold-medal screenwriter19 themselves.
Su Xin went for the audition, wiping the sweat from her palms.
In the recording booth, Su Xin sang with her eyes closed. Though it was a woman’s voice, it evoked the clash of blades and the heat of battlefield slaughter20.
Along with the accelerating and increasingly impassioned rhythm, Su Xin’s pitch continuously rose, with the force to shatter mountains and rivers, like the first light breaking through dawn, making the listener’s heart surge along.
But then the rhythm dropped suddenly. This part was extremely difficult, severely testing whether the singer’s technique was up to par. Su Xin executed the breath transitions and changes with exquisite precision.
“I thought she wouldn’t be able to sing this song; after all, its difficulty isn’t something everyone can handle. Her vocal range is wide, and her technique is very rich. This part here is particularly good, very natural.”
The person outside the recording booth let out a sigh of relief. Honestly, he had been mostly reluctant to agree to let this newcomer sing this song, but the facts proved that this junior was truly outstanding.
The singing voice seemed to narrate a past event, from impassioned fervor to final resolution, just like the fate of the drama’s female protagonist.
“It’s her.”
Su Xin sang several times before achieving the most satisfactory result. When she walked out of the recording booth, her manager nodded at her approvingly.
But at that moment, Su Xin heard the voice in her mind.
【Host, Yan Shuang is in trouble.】
Simultaneously, Su Xin’s phone rang. It was Yan Xi calling, her voice fast and urgent.
“Tangtang, my sister’s in trouble!”
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