Previously, Xia Yu used the piece “White Horse” to exchange with Liu Manman for a sapphire crown. However, during the performance, he presented another piece, “White Horse in the Rain,” which meant Liu Manman now owed him another piece of jewelry.
Xia Yu wasn’t surprised by Liu Manman’s refusal. If one song equaled one sapphire crown, then this ornate scepter was undoubtedly more valuable than a sapphire crown. However, how much more valuable it was compared to the sapphire crown, Xia Yu couldn’t determine.
He first considered whether he should exchange for another piece of jewelry, but he was certain that Xu Youxiang would definitely like this scepter.
After giving the sapphire crown and seeing Xu Youxiang’s delighted surprise, Xia Yu conducted some exploration and learned that Xu Youxiang didn’t like flashy jewelry but rather enjoyed dramatic, flamboyant pieces.
The more classical, the better—this scepter was a perfect match.
“Shall I add another song?” Xia Yu raised the stakes.
“It’s not about the number of songs. This was the first gift my grandma gave me; it has sentimental value,” Liu Manman explained.
“Two songs then.”
Liu Manman still refused.
“Three songs?”
“I’ve already said it’s not about the quantity. Pick something else.”
After thinking for a while, Xia Yu called Liu Manman.
Once the call connected, he directly said, “What if I compose a custom song for you?”
“Custom?” Liu Manman was intrigued but still refused, “I’ve already told you, this was the first gift from my grandma. I’m keeping it for memor…”
“The title will bear your name,” Xia Yu added.
Liu Manman’s voice immediately stopped.
In her mind, she suddenly envisioned a scene from decades later: on various stages, male and female, young and old performers all announcing the name of a guzheng piece named after her, followed by thunderous applause from the audience after the performance.
Liu Manman couldn’t resist this temptation.
Looking at the scepter in front of her, she gritted her teeth and said to Xia Yu, “You devil.”
“Devils believe in equal exchange; God demands selfless devotion. You should be glad it’s me, the devil, you’re dealing with,” Xia Yu said joyfully, knowing Liu Manman had already agreed.
“Hmph, how could I be so foolish as to give selflessly?” Liu Manman retorted.
The devil-and-God analogy was meaningless, but Liu Manman was clearly looking for an argument.
“Well—how about making you fall for me, then you’d willingly give it up?” Xia Yu replied casually.
Unexpected by this response, Liu Manman blushed slightly. She quickly covered her face, only then remembering that Xia Yu couldn’t see her.
“You wish!” Liu Manman snapped.
“Alright, alright. Just send the item to this address as soon as possible,” Xia Yu said, providing Xu Youxiang’s address.
“You have a house in Nanming too?” Liu Manman asked curiously as she noted down the address.
“Xu Youxiang lives there,” Xia Yu replied.
Liu Manman was shocked, surprised that Xia Yu could so openly tell her that this was a gift for Xu Youxiang.
Liu Manman immediately wanted to ask about the exact nature of Xia Yu’s relationship with Xu Youxiang but felt that asking might cause trouble. Her curiosity was piqued, but she ultimately decided not to ask.
“What are you going to do about my song?” Liu Manman asked.
“You can decide that yourself. ‘Liu Manman,’ ‘To Liu Manman,’ ‘Ode to Liu Manman,’ take your pick. The instrument is also up to you—you can even go for a symphony if you want,” Xia Yu said. “As for the style, you can specify a general direction.”
“I’ll think about it,” Liu Manman said before hanging up. She immediately called someone to collect the scepter and began considering what kind of song she wanted.
She was so excited that she couldn’t sleep all night, while Xia Yu slept very comfortably.
The next morning, Xia Yu woke up, washed up, and had breakfast. At nine o’clock, Liu Manman informed Xia Yu that the scepter had already been signed for by Xu Youxiang; she had someone deliver it directly to her.
Nodding in satisfaction, Xia Yu knew that Xu Youxiang’s stubbornness was no longer an issue.
He didn’t immediately go to see Xu Youxiang. Now that she had just received the scepter, she must be excited and busy admiring it.
Returning to his bedroom, Xia Yu browsed online using his laptop.
On the forum he shared with Tina, there was a new coded message. The first floor was a missing person notice titled “Looking for My Cousin,” and the second floor read, “November 11th, flight tickets already booked.”
The second post meant that Tina would arrive on November 11th, and her flight tickets were already booked.
Below the post, many clueless users were commenting, wondering what it meant.
Clicking into Tina’s profile, Xia Yu found that the account was still online, indicating that Tina was still playing with her father’s or mother’s phone.
After hiding his tracks, Xia Yu logged out of the forum.
He then browsed a few other forums but found them boring.
The netizens in this world weren’t funny enough, and there were no amusing memes.
He randomly clicked into a forum and posted a thread pretending to be a southerner criticizing northerners. On the second floor, he posted another comment pretending to be a northerner criticizing southerners. He then used alternate accounts to stir up the discussion for about ten more floors.
Then, sitting in front of the computer, he kept refreshing the page, watching as the southerners and northerners on the forum started debating regional superiority and discrimination.
To his surprise, a third faction later emerged, declaring war on both southerners and northerners.
The northerners and southerners stopped arguing with each other, joined forces to confront this third party, and eventually developed mutual respect and made peace.
This was the charm of reality—no one could predict what would happen next.
After watching the online drama unfold for the morning, Xia Yu felt satisfied. He closed his laptop and logged into Xu Youxiang’s body.
After a moment of darkness, what appeared before Xia Yu was the golden scepter and the silver crown.
Sure enough, Xu Youxiang was admiring the scepter and had also taken out the crown to play with.
This was also the first time Xia Yu had truly seen the scepter. It was slightly shorter than an arm, about two fingers thick. A thin snake coiled around the shaft, its head forming the top of the scepter. Its mouth was open, holding a ruby.
The entire scepter looked dazzling.
“Well, do you like it?” Xia Yu asked, picking up the scepter.
“Hmph,” Xu Youxiang ignored Xia Yu.
Xia Yu didn’t mind and continued watching the scepter silently.
After about ten minutes, Xu Youxiang couldn’t help but speak up, “I don’t want this one. Take it away.”
“Aren’t you supposed to like it?” Xia Yu was somewhat surprised. He hadn’t expected Xu Youxiang to be so upset over a minor issue that she would refuse a gift meant to apologize.
“You ignored me completely, and now you’re giving me a gift, making it seem like I’m greedy for your presents,” Xu Youxiang said unhappily.
Xia Yu hadn’t expected that this was what was bothering Xu Youxiang.
“It doesn’t matter. I’m happy to give it to you,” he said.
Xu Youxiang indeed liked the scepter very much and was reluctant to part with it. She reluctantly said with a tone of forced compliance, “Don’t do this again.”
Xia Yu couldn’t help but smile slightly.
“Take the crown and the scepter, and wear that outfit from my closet. I want to see how it looks,” Xu Youxiang, now cheerful after resolving her gift dilemma, said.
Following her instructions, Xia Yu called the nanny, changed into the outfit, put on the crown and held the scepter, and stood in front of the full-length mirror.
He was wearing a gothic dress, paired with the crown and scepter, giving off a medieval princess vibe.
In Xia Yu’s mind, Xu Youxiang continuously sent waves of delighted emotions.
They spent the afternoon admiring the outfit together, and just before Xia Yu was about to leave, Xu Youxiang asked, “Are you free next weekend?”
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