Chapter 406 - 205: Folk Song Solo
Chapter 406: Chapter 205: Folk Song Solo
7:00 PM.
Pine Drink.
As usual, Xia Nuonuo walked into the lounge after school with her guitar slung over her back.
This was the resident singer gig she’d found for herself. She performed every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, with weekends off.
Although Xia Nuonuo wasn’t short on money, she was short on opportunities to perform on stage.
It was something she had always dreamed of.
But other bars had seen how young she was and refused to hire her.
Only Huang Jie had taken her and Luna in, even letting them have free rein to sing whatever they wanted.
Xia Nuonuo was very grateful for this.
WHOOSH—!
As the time approached for her to take the stage, Xia Nuonuo took a deep breath, trying to relieve her nervousness and anxiety.
Fortunately, it was a weekday, so the lounge wasn’t too crowded.
"Nuonuo."
After her piano solo, Luna jogged off the stage and came over to Xia Nuonuo with a grin.
"It’s your turn. What are you thinking of singing today?"
"Cross Road Blues."
"The Robert Johnson song? The one that started the whole ’deal with the devil at the crossroads’ myth?"
Luna’s face lit up with excitement.
"I’ve never heard you sing this one before!"
"I wanted to give it a try,"
Xia Nuonuo said humbly before stepping onto the stage, enveloped by the bright, warm lights.
Down below, the lounge’s patrons didn’t seem to pay any attention to who was performing.
They kept laughing and chatting with each other, treating the background music as nothing more than ambiance.
It didn’t matter who was up there.
This complete lack of attention was both a relief and a little disheartening for Xia Nuonuo.
She wanted to be acknowledged, but she was also afraid of being acknowledged.
She had a bit of social anxiety and was terrified of being on stage, feeling as if the whole world was staring at her.
And yet, she craved the stage.
It was a profound contradiction.
Every time she was about to perform, Xia Nuonuo would be tied up in knots.
Fortunately, she had Luna by her side to encourage her.
"Nuonuo! You can do it!"
Amidst all the laughter and chatter, only Luna noticed Xia Nuonuo’s unease and shouted encouragement to her.
A wave of warmth spread through her heart, and her body and mind gradually began to relax.
She sat on the stool, her fingers plucking at the guitar strings. Once she found the perfect rhythm, she decisively jumped in, her low, raspy voice conveying the unique beauty of the blues all on its own.
♪~I went to the crossroad, fell down on my knees~♪
♪~Asked the Lord above, ’Have mercy, now, save poor Bob, if you please’~♪
...
Song after song, Xia Nuonuo slowly lost herself in the world of music, savoring the feeling of solitude that set her apart from the noisy crowd.
The customers around her laughed, the clinking of their glasses a friendly signal to one another.
Meanwhile, Xia Nuonuo sang all by herself, noticed only by Luna in the audience.
And, of course, by one other person.
Lin Shen.
In the middle of a game with Zheng Yanfei and her friends, he would occasionally sneak a glance at Xia Nuonuo on the main stage, musing to himself.
’Shen Yun tasked me with helping her daughter with her troubles...’
’What kind of troubles could she have?’
Lin Shen was a little puzzled. Since he’d run into her at the lounge by chance, he figured he should find an opportunity to talk with her.
So he kept an eye on the main stage while sipping his drink.
After Xia Nuonuo finished her set, Lin Shen made an excuse and got up to leave.
"You guys go on, I’m just going to the restroom."
Lin Shen left the private room and slipped over to the side of the stage, but he couldn’t find any sign of Xia Nuonuo.
’Where’d she go?’
’She couldn’t have left this quickly, could she?’
Lin Shen went backstage to look for her. The area was hidden by a black curtain, so people usually didn’t come back here. As he was looking around, he suddenly spotted a couple not far off.
Lin Shen raised an eyebrow. Feeling a bit awkward, he was about to turn back the way he came, but when he got a clear look at who the couple was, he froze.
Just then, her gaze flickered over and she noticed someone in the distance. Her heart skipped a beat, and her mind went completely blank.
’It’s over!’
’I’ve been discovered!’
Xia Nuonuo instinctively wanted to grab Luna’s hand and run, but to her surprise, the person called out her name.
"You’re Xia Nuonuo... right?"
?
Hearing the familiar voice, Xia Nuonuo paused. She turned to look more closely and realized the person walking toward them was Lin Shen!
’What is he doing here!?’
Xia Nuonuo felt her heart leap into her throat. She was panicking, completely at a loss for what to do.
’How could I run into someone I know even here?’
’And it’s my mom’s boyfriend, of all people!?’
"Um..."
Seeing that the two seemed to know each other, Luna was clearly a bit bewildered, but she still instinctively pulled Xia Nuonuo behind her and timidly asked Lin Shen,
"Excuse me, who are you?"
"He’s the one I told you about. My mom’s new boyfriend."
Xia Nuonuo patted Luna’s shoulder.
"Luna, you can head back first. I’m going to talk with him."
"But..."
Luna’s expression was full of worry, but after seeing Xia Nuonuo’s gentle gaze, her apprehension eased a little.
"Okay... If anything happens, be sure to contact me. I’ll wait for you at the entrance, and we can go back to school together."
"Okay."
After Luna left, Lin Shen gestured toward the front of the bar with his thumb.
"Let’s go over to the bar. This isn’t a good place to talk."
"Okay."
After her brief moment of panic, Xia Nuonuo reverted to her usual distant demeanor, one that kept everyone at arm’s length.
She wasn’t like Qin Yuenan.
An ice queen’s coldness is only on the surface, a kind of protective camouflage.
If you could get past that, you’d find she was more passionate than anyone.
But Xia Nuonuo was cold inside and out.
Her exterior was indifferent, and her heart was even colder. She was unwilling to say more than a few words to anyone.
There was even a huge rift between her and her own mother, Shen Yun.
So... ’can I really help her with her troubles?’