A Star Reborn: The Queen’s Return

Xia Yu was trying to rattle Xia Ling and destabilize her emotions.

Although Xia Ling had come to terms with leaving Pei Ziheng, her heart still ached at the mention of her son. This vile woman was her son’s murderer, and she could stand here as if nothing had happened.

She swore that she would make Xia Yu lose everything she loved.

The head-to-head competition today was only the beginning!

She spoke into the microphone, “My child died an unnatural death, and the most I can do is to get the police to investigate. The investigation is underway, I’m sure we’ll be able to catch the murderer. I don’t have to carry my sadness around for the world to see, because I know that my child in the Heavens wouldn’t want his mother to lose herself over this. My return to the arena is in the hopes that my baby can see from above that his mother is amazing.”

This speech had a lot of people immensely touched.

Initially, many of them were not in favor of Xia Ling after hearing what Xia Yu had said, thinking that her child had only passed on two months ago and she must be heartless to be able to stand on stage for such a head-to-head competition. But now, hearing that she was already doing her best and getting an investigation going over her child’s death, many of them expressed understanding towards her—sadness was only meaningful in action, there was no good in writing it on her face to gain sympathy from everyone else. Moreover, the people that the deceased had left behind should continue to live their lives in a fulfilling way.

Many of them began admiring her for her strength.

Applauses started ringing out in the audience.

Some fans even screamed, “Ye Xingling, all the way! We support you!”

Xia Ling bowed slightly to express her gratitude towards them.

She was simply that charismatic. Even in her sadness was a sort of strength that brought about an explicable beauty. The reporters were touched by her words as well and hurriedly snapped more shots of her. They even had a title in mind—”Ye Xingling returns to the arena, paying tribute to her son with her voice—the greatest possible act by a singer.”

Xia Yu felt uneasiness as she watched everyone cheer. Her intention was for everyone to see Xia Ling as a heartless person, but who would’ve expected her to turn this around and gain sympathy instead.

Some people in the audience were already wiping tears from their eyes.

“So, on this stage today, I’ll be the one who emerges victorious.” Xia Ling looked at Xia Yu straight in the eye, almost as if her gaze could penetrate her skin. “My baby is watching from above.”

Below the stage.

Li Lei had both his hands in his pockets as he stood in the crowd, looking up at the stage. Out of the blue, a man appeared next to him. He didn’t know who that was, but Xia Ling would’ve recognized him if she were there. He was the researcher who helped her analyze Xia Yu’s voice and statement with a lie detector.

“This woman…” He said as he watched Xia Yu on stage. “is too calm to be a first-time murderer. A first-time criminal is typically more self-conscious and guilt-ridden, but I don’t see this on Xia Yu at all. Just look at the way she’s smiling… she’s enjoying this. She enjoys seeing Miss Ye suffer.”

Li Lei turned somber.

He didn’t have much of an impression of Xia Yu initially. But now that she was rubbing salt onto Xiao Ling’s wound, and even appeared happy doing that, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of disgust towards her.

He would not let her come to a good end.

“The police took her statement and didn’t find anything amiss,” Li Lei said.

In the police station, Xia Yu had admitted that she had bought the invitation card on her own and that it wasn’t given by Pei Ziheng. She also admitted that she had slipped into the villa secretly and was not welcomed by Pei Ziheng. But according to her, it was out of curiosity and the desire to be included in the event, it had nothing to do with harming the child.

The police didn’t any find further clues and failed to confirm that she was the murderer.

The researcher besides Li Lei said, “There are two possibilities. The first being that we’ve accused her wrongly. The second is that… she’s a habitual criminal.”

“Habitual criminal?” Even someone like Li Lei who was so exposed to the oddities of the world was shocked.

“Yes, only a habitual criminal can be this calm and composed.” The researcher went on, “I suggest you investigate on Xia Yu’s criminal history or find out whether any suspicious and unresolved cases are relevant to her.”

Li Lei slowly nodded his head.

Onstage.

The emcee smiled at Xia Ling. “According to our rules, we’ll have our contestant sing first. Xingling, are you ready? What kind of song will you bring us today?”

Xia Ling said, “It’s a new song, ‘The Butterfly Can’t Transcend The Seas.’”

The emcee was surprised. “Xingling, are you saying that you’re bringing us your new song today?! Wow, we’re truly honored! You haven’t released any song in about a year, and today you’ll be performing for us your new song! This is such a surprise, we’re all in for some good music today!”

“Ye Xingling! Ye Xingling! Ye Xingling!” The fans were screaming at the top of their lungs.

At this point, most of them had taken their attention off whether or not Xia Yu would continue her winning streak. All that mattered to them now was Xia Yu’s new song. They were curious about how it would sound like. Up till now, every song she had produced was a hit, and everyone had their expectations up for “The Butterfly Can’t Transcend The Seas.”

“Can you tell us a little bit about this song?” The emcee echoed the wishes of the audience and asked Xia Ling. “Like how it came about, what the inspiration was, and so on.”

Xia Ling’s voice was crystal clear. “This song is a farewell to my past. And in this song are also words that I never made it in time to tell someone.”

“Tell who?” The emcee’s eyes widened. Something told her that there was some juicy news behind it!

Xia Ling did not answer her question. She simply said, “Just listen to it.”

The instrumental began, sounding hollow and distant—a melody hinting at sadness.

Li Lei stood at the periphery of the crowd and remembered how Xiao Ling told him earlier in the day that she wanted a “landslide victory.” She said that her current songs weren’t suitable—be it “Glass Fingertips” or “Meteor Wings,” they simply weren’t sensational enough. They were melodious but were more suitable to be listened to in a quiet and leisurely environment, such as when one was sipping coffee. In short, they didn’t have the power to get the floor moving with the beat.

Feng Kun had agreed with her.

He even made some almost-statements to Li Lei, the Big Boss of Skyart Entertainment. He said, “Ah Wei is too artsy with his compositions, they’re not suited for the masses. That’s why he hasn’t managed to beat me.”

Li Lei ground his teeth but couldn’t come up with a rebuttal to that.

Xia Ling had said, “This time, I’ll perform my new song.”

She sent Feng Kun a file of her new song. “Please help me with the music mixing. The time is a little tight now, so it doesn’t have to be perfect. It just has to have enough of a groove to it so it’ll appeal to the audience.”

Feng Kun smiled. They had been partners for 10 years, and he knew full well what she wanted with just the look of an eye and some instructions. He looked at the file, plugged in his earphones, and got to work.