Chapter 122 – Silky Egg

Bang!

After bringing Lin Xi to the Discipline Committee’s office, Chu Wenmu swung the door shut behind them.

Lin Xi turned around, about to ask what her senior wanted with her, only to find Chu Wenmu glaring at her darkly.

Then she erupted.

“Miss Lin Xi!”

“You spy! You rebel! You treacherous turncoat! Your ambitions are as obvious as Sima Zhao1‘s!”

Lin Xi stared at her. “???”

“Wait, what? Senior, what did I do?”

Chu Wenmu snorted. “Even now, you’re still trying to hide it? Haki Xi, you-!”

Lin Xi fell silent.

“Senior, if you don’t start speaking plainly and keep making me guess, I’m leaving. My teammates are still waiting for me to practice with them.”

Lin Xi rose to her feet.

Chu Wenmu said, “Sit down, Haki Xi.”

She began listing Lin Xi’s crimes one by one.

“Have you forgotten that you’re the vice president of the Xia Xun Fan Club?!”

“Not only have you failed to make a single contribution, but you secretly founded your own fan club?!”

“You’re blatantly raising an army in rebellion!”

“I have serious reason to suspect that you agreed to become vice president of the Xia Xun Fan Club because you had ulterior motives from the very beginning.”

“You joined as a spy, all to lay the groundwork for your future rebellion.”

“You’re not even trying to hide it anymore! You came to school in a helicopter today and openly claimed that Su Tang, the Magical Girl of District 1, was your personal pilot.”

“What a big shot you’ve become, Haki Xi!”

“If this were fair competition, I wouldn’t have anything to say. But what you’re doing is a betrayal of the Xia Xun Fan Club-and a betrayal of Xia Xun herself.”

“It’s unforgivable, unpardonable, and I will not let it stand!”

After listening to Chu Wenmu’s accusations, Lin Xi burst out laughing.

Chu Wenmu looked astonished. “And what, pray tell, is so funny?!”

She had assumed that once she openly confronted Lin Xi, the two of them would end up arguing.

Lin Xi said, “I’m laughing at your lack of both strategy and wisdom.”

“I know you’re upset, Senior, but calm down and hear me out.”

Lin Xi then gave Chu Wenmu a concise explanation: founding the fan club had never been her idea in the first place.

She placed the blame squarely on Su Xiangxue.

Though it wasn’t really shifting the blame. Su Xiangxue had been the one pushing for it from the start.

“As for taking a helicopter to school this morning, Su Tang did arrange it. But its main purpose was to bring her younger sister, Su Xiangxue, back to school. I only got a free ride thanks to Miss Su Xiangxue.”

“The pilot wasn’t Su Tang. That post you saw was just a rumor.”

“Miss Su Xiangxue already found the student who started it this afternoon. That student will post a clarification later.”

Lin Xi answered every one of Chu Wenmu’s accusations clearly.

Chu Wenmu fell silent.

“Um, Haki-I mean, Miss Lin Xi, I’m sorry!”

Chu Wenmu bent into a perfect ninety-degree bow and apologized.

“But-” Her tone abruptly shifted. “It’s still true that you have a fan club, and it’s also true that you’ve gotten more attention than Xia Xun today. Are you… trying to compete for this year’s title of Moe Queen too?”

Lin Xi shook her head. “I don’t have any such ridiculous delusions. It’s all those unhinged classmates and fans fooling around.”

“It’s not like I can stop them.”

“It might be my fan club, but no one in it listens to me.”

“Huh?!” This was the first time Chu Wenmu had ever heard of such an absurd fan club. “But I still feel like you’ve stabbed Xia Xun in the back. If she finds out, she’ll definitely be hurt…”

Chu Wenmu wasn’t angry because Lin Xi had betrayed her. She was upset on Xia Xun’s behalf.

Lin Xi asked, “Did you tell Xia Xun about all this? Is she angry with me?”

“No.”

“Then aren’t you just making wild guesses and fighting enemies that don’t even exist?”

“I’m doing this for your own good. I’m warning you in advance so you’ll be prepared to face Xia Xun’s wrath.”

“Huh? I don’t think Xia Xun would get mad at me over something so trivial.” Lin Xi stood up. “I need to get back to the clubroom for practice. Just tell Xia Xun about it yourself.”

With that, Lin Xi sauntered off.

…

By the time she returned to the clubroom, everyone else had arrived.

“Xi, we were just about to go look for you,” Zhao Xinning said with concern. “What happened? Did Senior Chu Wenmu give you a hard time again?”

“No,” Lin Xi said. “She invited me to the Discipline Committee office for a cup of tea.”

“Anyway, enough about that. Let’s focus on the band.”

All the instruments had already been set up in the clubroom.

Lin Xi was the guitarist, Su Xiangxue played the keyboard, Yang Shanshan was the bassist and lead vocalist, and Teacher Huang Haiyao was on drums.

Before coming to the clubroom, Huang Haiyao had made a point of changing out of her elegant professional attire. Now, she looked like a vibrant, energetic big sister.

“Um… has everyone decided what song our band will perform?” Huang Haiyao asked.

“No,” Su Xiangxue replied. “We haven’t found anything suitable yet.”

Zhao Xinning was a little disappointed. The song she had written for Lin Xi couldn’t be used as the band’s debut song.

But that was okay. After all, it was meant for Xi alone…

“In that case, I have a song here. Why don’t you all take a look?” Huang Haiyao sent the lyrics to the band’s group chat.

Then she added, looking a little embarrassed, “If you think it’s bad, please don’t laugh at me to my face.”

Everyone carefully studied the lyrics to the song, titled “Silky Egg.”

“It’s good! It’s perfect!” Su Xiangxue exclaimed. “This is exactly the kind of song we need-something bursting with youthful energy!”

Inspiration struck her at once. “Everyone, wait for me-“

With a new idea in mind, Su Xiangxue began arranging the song right then and there.

Lin Xi also thought it was wonderful.

Light, playful, and full of life.

Yang Shanshan exclaimed that it felt like something straight out of a girls’ anime.

Zhao Xinning agreed. Her own song was a little too heavy, while Teacher Huang Haiyao’s was just right.

The members unanimously decided to perform this song at the school anniversary celebration.

“Thank you… Thank you, everyone-” Huang Haiyao was deeply moved by their approval.

So moved that tears welled up in her eyes.

“Huh? Teacher, are you okay?” Lin Xi thoughtfully handed Huang Haiyao a tissue.

Huang Haiyao wiped away her tears and broke into a smile.

“I’m just so happy. It’s been a long time since I cried tears of joy.”

“‘Silky Egg’ isn’t just a song. It’s the youth I left behind…”

Every generation had its own girls’ band.

The members of the light music club might come and go, but “Silky Egg” would endure forever.

The light music girls would never graduate…

Huang Haiyao didn’t explain any further. She was already happy enough to have recreated those wonderful memories of the past through this opportunity-and to have received the approval of her new bandmates. She had no regrets.

“An all-girl band really is a place filled with happiness,” Huang Haiyao said with heartfelt delight.

Like Huang Haiyao, Lin Xi found being in a band surprisingly enjoyable.

And as long as Lin Xi was there, Zhao Xinning and Yang Shanshan were happy too.

Su Xiangxue was busy arranging the song, so Huang Haiyao, Yang Shanshan, and Zhao Xinning worked together to teach Lin Xi, a complete novice when it came to music.

Lin Xi curiously asked Zhao Xinning how she knew so much about music too. Zhao Xinning replied that if Lin Xi was interested in something, then she was interested in it as well.

Then, the moment she started learning, she mastered it.

Lin Xi: “…”

Should we just make Xinning the guitarist and let me be the manager instead???

Footnote:

• Sima Zhao(司马昭): A historical Chinese figure whose ambition to seize power was widely known; the phrase means someone’s hidden intentions are obvious to everyone.