Chapter 44 - North Tower
translator: xiin
editors: apricot & juurensha
Crosson Show’s broadcasting hall.
Twelve cameras all turned to focus on Wu Jin, and it was obvious to all that his reaction was half a beat slower than usual.
In the audience stands, the mama fans and girlfriend fans grew excited almost simultaneously, countless eyes brightening with alertness, flashing with a faint green sheen in the darkness.
Wu Jin reflexively sat up straight, “I haven’t thought about it…”
Off-stage, the director was ecstatic over the sudden increase in traffic and hurriedly prompted Ying Xiangxiang to continue to drag it on so that they could insert another round of advertising.
Ying Xiangxiang’s expression didn’t change at all as she accepted the order, smiling broadly as she asked, “Has Little Witch ever had a girlfriend? What about a boyfriend?”
Wu Jin shook his head emphatically, “No.”
Ying Xiangxiang was superb at driving the atmosphere, “Eh, you’ve never dated before? Does that mean you’re currently dating?”
Wu Jin was dazed, “No…”
Contestant Wu, who had been full of seduction and enticement on the stage just an hour ago, was now frozen in his seat––he was caught off guard by the questions that were unrelated to the compet.i.tion, but his control over his expression was still excellent despite feeling slightly hot behind his ears.
His ears looked like pink, soft rabbit ears, making people want to move closer and rub them so that he would lose his prim and proper expression.
The sudden contrast overwhelmed the fans in the live steam room almost instantaneously.
“Little Witch is shy ahahahah––save me, how can he be so cute!!”
“Little Witch, you’re only nine years old, mama won’t allow you to fall in love!!! Mama is very satisfied with your emotional life right now, Little Witch, do you hear me?!!”
“Anti-counterfeiting master pa.s.sing by, my brain is really a blank right now because that little expression of his is too enticing. To be honest, with such a good dance foundation, the star-chasing young girls can be 100% certain that his dance skills come from training 24/7. There’s absolutely no time for him to have held a girl’s small hand.”
“Hahahaha, clearly it’s Little Witch’s small hand! Wiping up my nosebleed while guessing that other than practicing dancing, he only has time to do mathematics questions and train with guns. No wonder he stole a rabbit during the audition to keep him company… Hahaha Little Witch, be more open!”
“My G.o.d, my predator’s blood is boiling… one second ago, I had a nosebleed from how hot he was, and the next second, I discovered that it was an inexperienced little rabbit howling while wearing a wolf’s skin… my G.o.d, mama doesn’t want you to fall in love!! Put down that Little Witch and let me do it ahhh––”
In the broadcast studio, the program producer tsked and marveled, “Didn’t these fans just end their mother and child relationship with Little Witch? Why are they suddenly turning back?”
The little director was in high spirits after collecting the numbers from the end of the advertising just now, “It doesn’t matter! Just keep letting them have what they want. Anything is okay as long as it makes money…”
In the contestant seating area, Red’s neck was stiff, his eyes as wide and round.
That day, he’d clearly watched contestant Wu Jin accept Brother Wei’s champagne, then show up in the middle of the night to get all lovey-dovey together. The next morning, the quilt on Brother Wei’s bed had been fluffed into a ball, and it was obvious that it was Contestant Wu’s handiwork…
It was already like that, yet he said they weren’t in a relationship?!
Could it be that they hadn’t made it official yet… Red suddenly turned back and saw that Wei Shi’s expression hadn’t changed at all. He seemed barely satisfied with Wu Jin’s reply.
On the stage, Ying Xiangxiang was actually quite moved.
She’d been in the entertainment circle for decades, and had been in contact with countless fresh, new faces. She could tell if Wu Jin was hiding something or being honest with just a glance.
He was reallyk2026; young and green.
The youth sat in the high chair prepared for the team performance interviews. His limbs were slender and long, and he was like a newly adult leopard, full of youthful explosive power, yet the look in his eyes was solemn and pure. When put together, it was a complex mix that made people unable to help themselves from wanting to tease him even more.
Ying Xiangxiang repeated the question again, “Little Witch, you still haven’t answered. Do you like boys or girls, hm?”
Wu Jin could only answer, “That’s not important, as long as there are feelings!”
Ying Xiangxiang nodded. This could be considered one of the standard answers within the circle. She then continued to ask, “In that case, what is Little Witch’s ideal lover like?”
Wu Jin breathed a sigh of relief.
He’d memorized an answer to this question!
When he was a preparatory trainee for a boy group, the company had prepared standard answers for everyone. They were ambiguous and would never create any misunderstandings––
Wu Jin, who had finally encountered an answerable topic in the examination room answered very smoothly, “Lively and cute, gentle and intelligent, likes to act spoiled, shares common interests with me…”
Wu Jin had only recited half of it when he recalled that the original topic was ‘the ideal girlfriend’, but he couldn’t concern himself too much about this at this time.
The scrolling comments were filled to bursting once again, but the content was polarized.
Girlfriend fans – “Little Witch is mine ahhhhhhhh! Me! Me! Pick me! Pick me now and I’ll act spoiled immediately! What kind of shared interests?! Let’s turn off the lights and work on it––”
Mama fans – “My son! Who taught you to memorize this?! Wake up, my child; it’s 3018, and we don’t use that kind of criteria anymore. Where’s your sincerity, my son––”
Off-stage.
Every time Wu Jin came up with an adjective, Red would stiffen further.
Lively and cute, Brother Wei…
Gentle and intelligent, Brother Wei…
Acts spoiled…
He trembled as he turned his head back.
Wei Shi sat there casually, his eyes lifted up to the stage, and the pupils that reflected no light were intimidating.
His stare continued until Wu Jin finished speaking.
Wei Shi took back his gaze.
Red felt a chill run down his back, “Well that, Brother, Brother Wei––”
The second half of the sentence stuck in his throat, forced into retreat by the man’s indifference. Wei Shi’s right hand rubbed casually against the obviously prohibited gun’s handle, his arm muscles tense as he curled two of his fingers. Red suspected that if he used any additional strength, the barrel of the small handgun would be crushed completely––
How could this be called gentle or lively?! This was simply like wanting to skin someone alive!
The stage suddenly fell into darkness.
The advertis.e.m.e.nt that the director had worked so hard to force in, cut into the live broadcast. It was already 9:23––less than ten minutes from the end of the Crosson group performance.
In the dark, the shadows of Wei Shi’s eye contours were more prominent, making it impossible for anyone to read his expression.
Red was in the midst of coming up with strange speculations in his head when both their terminals suddenly lit up at the same time.
It was news from Floating City.
Red was delighted, “The deal went through?! Brother Wei, in that case, do we still need to continue––”
Wei Shi: “You stay.”
Red stilled, then suddenly watched as Wei Shi took off his coat and casually tossed it to him. The Crosson Show’s combat suits were all uniform, lined with black cotton and coated with waterproof combat material. The man revealed his powerful shoulders and arms, then disappeared into the darkness.
Red scurried to catch up to him, “… What did you say? Give him the coat? … Ah, fine… And then have him go to the North Tower at night, right? … Don’t worry, Brother Wei! I definitely won’t disturb…”
Half past nine.
The first segment of the Crosson Show group performance ended, and topics related to it soared on the hot search list once again.
Wu Jin was about to follow the main group outside when he was caught off guard and pulled aside by the director, “Little Witch, listen to elder sis and leave from the back!”
Wu Jin’s eyes widened. From the surveillance cameras, it could be seen that the front entrance was packed and bustling, with the program producer holding a loudspeaker and yelling desperately, “Friends in the audience, please leave in an orderly fashion. There are contestants out in the front hall who are waiting to take photos with you. Yes, we do not provide any physical contact services for the time being…”
Wu Jin was shocked by the program producer’s ‘for the time being’, and was pulled back by the director in the blink of an eye. There were many people in the contestant seating beneath the stage, and quite a few people were also exiting from there.
Some contestants who were more familiar with Wu Jin greeted him happily when they saw him. Wu Jin looked through the crowd for a long time, and he seemed to be looking for someone as voices discussed behind him––
“Where’s the coat that Little Witch threw down while he was dancing?!”
“The program producer put it up for auction… they’re still bidding for it outside… the logistics team will get a new one tomorrow.”
“They’re letting him out just like that…”
Wu Jin turned slightly, and the two little stage managers immediately turned red.
The body of the youth who was still on the cusp of adulthood was coated in an ambiguous honey color beneath the lights. Because the stage lamps were hot, his skin was still covered in the crystal clear sheen of sweat. The pure black combat vest hugged his body, outlining details that were enough to set their pulses racing.
Wu Jin spoke very politely, “h.e.l.lo, may I ask if the contestants all left from here?”
The little stage manager nodded quickly, “Are you looking for someone? They haven’t gone far––”
Someone suddenly jumped up near the entrance, the garish Red exposing himself, “Little Witch! Over here!”
Wu Jin’s eyes brightened, and he approached delightedly, but he only saw Red crouching by the door by himself.
Big brother had said that he would come tonight…
Red suddenly stuffed the coat in his hands at Wu Jin, “Wear it. It’s from Brother Wei.”
Wu Jin was surprised as he accepted it, his eyes opening wide involuntarily.
This coat was obviously one size larger than his own. When the waterproof combat coat slid over his tight fitting black vest, Wu Jin stilled briefly.
A strong, aggressive aura seemed to be imprinted on the coat like pheromones, and the inner lining still carried traces of warmth––Wei Shi’s body temperature had always been on the high side. The moment he put on the coat, Wu Jin suddenly had the illusion of being held by the big boss and pressed into a shooting position at the shooting range.
Wu Jin blinked. His small curls curled tight from tension, and the back of his ears were slightly red. It took a while before the flush synced with the temperature of the coat.
Red nodded and pulled him over very naturally, “There’s a week off starting tomorrow. How about you come over to the North Tower tonight?” He then lowered his voice, “About that, hehe, Brother Wei will also be there tonight––”
At this time, a 300 pound Caesar suddenly rushed out of the back door and firmly corralled Wu Jin into a corner, “Little Witch! Let’s go; back to the company––hey, who gave you this clothing? Isn’t it the wrong size?! Hey, Red, why are you here? Bro, let’s go down a few pints! If you don’t leave, you’ll be caught for more dance practice––”
Red took this opportunity to wink at Wu Jin: Are you going to the North Tower or not?
Wu Jin’s small curls bounced up: Going!
Red: How will you deal with Caesar?
Wu Jin was just about to come up with an excuse, and was taken by surprise when Caesar stiffened abruptly.
Not far away, Thin Fire slowly and leisurely drifted over with a selfie stick in hand. He seemed oblivious to the outside world, “Good evening, my darlings.”
“What were we discussing yesterday? Crosson’s second elimination match, where Thin Fire stormed into cellular automata single-handedly, purposely destroying his make-up in order to clear his mind. Unexpectedly, he was ambushed by a villain. It was White Moonlight’s bandit Caesar…”
Caesar was furious, “How dare you, grandson!”
Thin Fire froze, then slowly removed his headphones.
Five meters away.
Red quickly stuffed the bedroom key into Wu Jin’s hand, “Now’s our chance, Little Witch, run!”
Juurensha: Ohohoho, sneaking Little Witch into the dorm room. Also Little Witch’s canned response was so cute.
xiin: this canned response is gonna bite him in the b.u.t.t…~