Chapter Ninety-Nine: The Power Outage

Mi Xue turned around with an exclamation, and finally noticed the object on the floor. Her cheeks flushed red as she hurried back to pick it up, then quickly turned and ran away, still blushing.

"How disgusting are you?" Jiang Yingying shot Qin Tian a look of disdain.

Qin Tian scratched his head; he thought he had been quite tactful with his words.

"We're all adults here. Do you think people don't understand?" Jiang Yingying rolled her eyes at him.

Qin Tian pouted, looking aggrieved—wasn't he just kindly reminding her?

"I'll go check on her," Shen Xiaoqing said, chasing after Mi Xue. She was genuinely concerned for her idol.

Soon, Mi Xue and Shen Xiaoqing returned, chatting and laughing as if they had known each other for years. Mi Xue showed no trace of a celebrity's airs.

But when Mi Xue caught sight of Qin Tian, her face flushed bright red again; she lowered her head, unable to meet his gaze, thinking to herself how embarrassing she'd just been.

Still, if Qin Tian hadn't reminded her, she would have been even more mortified when she went to the restroom.

Rehearsals proceeded as usual. The three of them had already watched nearly all of that evening's performances. They wondered if they'd still have any interest left for the actual show.

"I'm starving. I need food," Shen Xiaoqing slumped into a seat in the audience, sighing.

Qin Tian glanced at the time—it was already one in the afternoon. No wonder they were hungry. That morning, thanks to Shen Xiaoqing's urging, they'd only managed to munch on a few crackers in the car.

"I'm here, I'm here! You must be famished!" At that moment, Mi Xue finally finished rehearsing and hurried over.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. We usually eat pretty late," Mi Xue apologized sincerely.

"It's fine. Let's go," Qin Tian replied with a smile.

"I'll get you your boxed lunches," Mi Xue offered.

"Boxed lunches?" Qin Tian was momentarily taken aback.

"Boxed lunches?" Shen Xiaoqing echoed, surprised. She'd thought they would be going out to a restaurant.

Qin Tian touched his nose—so his guess was right; it really was just boxed lunches.

"Yes, the rehearsal schedule is tight. But how about we go out for a late-night snack together after the show?" Mi Xue said, a bit embarrassed.

"No problem! With my idol, anything is fine," Shen Xiaoqing quickly replied.

In the end, the group sat together and enjoyed their boxed lunches, which tasted quite good. Everyone was satisfied.

That afternoon, they spent several more hours watching rehearsals. Qin Tian felt he could barely stand another minute, and Jiang Yingying seemed to feel the same. For a long time after this, they probably wouldn't want to attend another concert.

Shen Xiaoqing, however, seemed to regain all her energy after eating, remaining in high spirits throughout—she really was a true fan of Mi Xue.

By six in the evening, the audience began filing in. Thanks to Mi Xue, Qin Tian and the others were seated in the very center of the front row.

To outsiders, these seats looked enviable, but in reality, because of the stage design, they had to tilt their heads back to watch the show. After a while, it became uncomfortable—not an ideal spot, really. Of course, this was mostly due to the old stadium’s poor layout.

"Liang Jun, is this our row?" A middle-aged woman approached, standing in front of the three.

"Let me see. I think it is," said a middle-aged man who joined her, glancing at Qin Tian and his friends—or rather, at their seats.

"Young man, are you sure you're in the right seats?" the man asked.

"I don't think so," Qin Tian replied, surprised. These were the seats Mi Xue had arranged for them—how could they be wrong?

"That's odd. Did our daughter make a mistake?" the man frowned in confusion.

"Sir, may I see your tickets? I'll check for you," Qin Tian offered, though he found it strange—a couple their age, squeezing into a concert with young people. Their enthusiasm was impressive.

"We don't have tickets—our daughter arranged these seats for us. Do you have tickets? Maybe you're the ones in the wrong place," the man explained.

Qin Tian was even more surprised. Their daughter had arranged the seats for them?

His mind raced, and soon a suspicion formed. He asked with a hint of uncertainty, "Is your daughter Mi Xue?"

Both Jiang Yingying and Shen Xiaoqing were startled by the question.

"That's right," the man replied earnestly.

Qin Tian was dumbfounded. He hadn’t expected to meet Mi Xue’s parents, nor to find he might be sitting in their seats.

Jiang Yingying and Shen Xiaoqing were equally astonished; they hadn’t expected to meet Mi Xue’s parents either.

From their attire, Mi Xue’s parents didn’t seem like wealthy elites—more likely middle-class. To have raised such an accomplished daughter, they must have invested a great deal of effort.

"Well, these are the seats Mi Xue arranged for us. Perhaps there’s been a mix-up," Qin Tian offered.

"Oh? Are you friends of Mi Xue?" the middle-aged woman asked eagerly.

"You could say that," Qin Tian replied with a smile.

"Really? Our Mi Xue hardly has any friends!" The woman began chatting warmly with Qin Tian.

That surprised him—Mi Xue was such a pleasant girl, how could she have so few friends? It didn’t seem possible.

"Uncle, Auntie, please, you sit. I’ll stand," Qin Tian said, offering his seat.

"I’ll stand too—my backside is sore from sitting all day," Shen Xiaoqing added.

Jiang Yingying quickly stood as well.

"No, no, you all sit," the woman insisted, pressing them back down.

In the end, under the couple’s gentle insistence, the three sat down, albeit a bit awkwardly.

Mi Xue’s parents were talkative and gracious—Mi Xue must have inherited her good nature from them.

Her father’s name was Mi Liangjun, her mother was Liao Yingmeng. Both came from ordinary working-class backgrounds. After marrying, they started a small factory, earning a comfortable income each year.

Mi Xue’s rise to stardom began with a peculiar event. One day, an elderly man told them Mi Xue had great potential and offered to help her succeed. At first, her parents thought he was a fraud, but he really did take them to a film crew—and Mi Xue was cast instantly.

From then on, her career soared—within a year, she was making a name for herself internationally.

Mi Xue’s parents were deeply grateful to the old man, but when they went back to find him, he had vanished. They never even learned his name.

Qin Tian listened, somewhat spellbound. It was quite the extraordinary story. It seemed every young person dreamed of meeting a master who would declare, “You are chosen by destiny—let me bestow upon you my gift.”

Click. Click. Click.

The spotlights gradually dimmed, and the entire arena plunged into darkness. All the lights went out at once.

Countless audience members switched on their phone flashlights, their faces tinged with confusion and curiosity.

Snapped out of his reverie, Qin Tian looked around, puzzled—had the power gone out?