Chapter 11：Heavenly Melody

Snake Lord nodded his head. "When I complete the mission, I'll pay you your commission." 

"Great, it's indeed a joy working with you." The fat youth grinned lasciviously and said, "The gear that you ordered is on its way. Recently, there have been more stringent inspections at the customs so that the delivery might be delayed by a day or two."

"No hurry, I'm only scouting the situation for now. The real operation still needs some time." 

"Well, in that case, I'll be taking my leave first, when the gear is ready, I'll inform you." With that, the fat youth stood up and got ready to leave.

"Wait" 

"Is there something else?" 

"You specialise in selling information, so your intelligence must be the most up-to-date. I want to confirm something with you." 

"Speak"

Snake Lord solemnly asked, "Is Blood Wolf really dead?"

The fat youth smilingly raised his index finger. "That information is worth a million dollars." 

"Deal." There was not a shred of hesitation in Snake Lord's reply. "He's dead for sure. Two world-renowned organisations have verified the authenticity of this news; it can't be false." His one sentence was actually worth a million dollars, the fat youth was gleeful and smiled so widely that his eyes narrowed into a thin slit.

"I see… That's a pity."

"It's indeed a pity. Such a legendary figure was actually caught in a hotel explosion and died. Tsk, but then again, it's not that surprising, considering the number of enemies he made. Although the death of Blood Wolf is a pity, those in your line of work would find it a joyous event. After all, the majority of the assassination and mercenary requests had been monopolised by that man. That caused everyone to have a hard time getting by. Now that he's dead, everyone has an easier time making a living, wouldn't you agree?"

Snake Lord nodded his head and stared out of the window.

In the lobby, after Lu Yao had sung a few songs, the excitement of the audience reached a boiling point. "Big Brother Ling, isn't her voice so angelic?"

"It's alright, nothing compared to your singing."

He meant what he said. To him, Tang Shiyun's sweet and melodious voice was absolutely more pleasing to his ears than the one onstage. "I'm not as good as you say I am. Lu Yao is much more professional than me!"

Although she said that, her eyes were twinkling with happiness. After all, nobody disliked being complimented. "I'm telling the truth. Instead of spending a hundred and eighty dollars to hear her sing, I much rather listen to your voice."

"Cheh!" At that point, a voice brimming with irritation rang out from behind him. "This brother, I understand that you want to coax your girlfriend and make her happy, but there's no need to put down my goddess! Our Lu Yao is a much better singer! If you don't know how to appreciate her voice, then you should stop running your mouth."

Ling Chen frowned at the words of this troublesome fan, whose face was covered with pock marks. "She's your goddess, not mine. You can't stop me from expressing my honest opinion. Why are you so unreasonable?"

"Did I ask you for your opinion? I'll just say what I think. Nobody wants to hear you butt in with your stupid comments." Ling Chen continued.

The pockmarked face fan's face was flushed red, and he waved a finger threateningly at Ling Chen, sputtering with rage. "You brat, you're asking for a beating!"

"I..."

"Big Brother Ling, can you stop antagonising him?" Tang Shiyun hurriedly cut him off and tugged his sleeve, an imploring look in her eyes. Seeing the pleading expression in her eyes, Ling Chen could only helplessly shake his head. Fine, who would want to argue with this fella anyways?

The fan noticed that Ling Chen had chosen to shut his mouth and stop arguing with him. However, he did not back down, but instead gleefully taunted. "Wanting to fight with me even though your chest hair has not fully grown out yet? Hmph, dream on! The lady must be blind to fancy an unsophisticated brute like you."

His words instantly incurred Ling Chen's ire, and he angrily grabbed the collar of the fan, giving it a hard tug to bring his face close to the other man. "So what if I'm an unsophisticated brute, what does that have to do with you? Who are you calling blind? If you have the guts, I dare you to say that again!"

The fan actually dared to scold Tang Shiyun in front of him. As a man, how could he take the insult lying down?

Scolding Tang Shiyun was a huge taboo and scolding him… was even more so.

"Esteemed guests, please come to a mutual settlement and avoid causing a ruckus. You're affecting the viewing experience of other guests."

A resonant voice suddenly rang out amidst the song and instantly the gazes of everyone present fell on Ling Chen and the fan.

Ling Chen turned his head and saw Lu Yao intently staring at him from the stage.

"Big Brother Ling, stop messing around!" Ling Chen did not give two whits that he was being stared at by so many people, but Tang Shiyun seemed to be affected, her face flushing red with embarrassment.

Cheh I'll let off this guy then.

Ling Chen unhappily loosened his fingers and relaxed his grip on the fan's collar. "Brat, I'll let you off easy because my goddess intervened. Be grateful to her." The fan viciously cursed at him, which Ling Chen ignored.

Seeing the two ceasing their argument, Lu Yao then smilingly turned her attention back to the audience. "Thank you, everyone, for coming down today. For the following song. I would like to invite a member of the audience to come up and sing with me. Can I have a volunteer, please."

Instantly, numerous hands flew into the air, and Tang Shiyun was no exception.

"Goddess, pick that girl! The bloke beside me kept shamelessly boasting that she sings better than you, why not let her have a go?"

The fan loudly shouted while pointing at Tang Shiyun, instantly making her the centre of attention for the surrounding audience.

"I have seen many shameless people, but not one as shameless as him. How could he claim that she sings better than our goddess?"

"You're right, to think there are still people these days that overestimate their capabilities."

"Why not let her have a go? She might really have some ability!"

"Young Lady, go up and sing."

Hearing the crowd urging her on so enthusiastically, Tang Shiyun bit her lips nervously and her face burned hot with shyness, tugging at Ling Chen's hand.

"Big Brother Ling, why don't.… we go home?"

"Go home? Why should we go? Since they want to hear you sing, then just sing a few songs for them. Furthermore, weren't you raring to go on stage just now?"

"I'm… I'm scared I'm going to mess up." Tang Shiyun stuttered while looking flustered.

Previously, when she raised her hand to volunteer, it was because nobody would care whether she was good at singing or not. However, it was different now, if she sang badly, everyone would mock Ling Chen, and she wanted to spare Ling Chen that embarrassment.

Ling Chen patted her delicate hand and gave an encouraging smile. "Just go on stage. Don't be scared, I believe in you!"

"Little girl, since everyone is putting you on a pedestal, you mustn't disappoint their expectations."

Sensing Lu Yao's gaze on her, Tang Shiyun took a deep breath and calmed her racing heart, courageously walking onstage.

Receiving the microphone over from Lu Yao, she stood in the centre of the stage with her head lowered, not daring to make eye contact with the audience directly in front of the stage. She only swiped a glance at Ling Chen secretly from the corners of her eye.

Seeing Ling Chen's encouraging smile, the tension in her heart gradually eased.

At this moment, Lu Yao was cradling the guitar in her arms, and her slender fingers gently strummed the guitar strings. Suddenly, a beautiful melody slowly filled the lobby.

Paying attention to the accompaniment flowing in her ears, Tang Shiyun closed her eyes slightly, as if her entire soul was immersed in the music.

Her mouth opened slightly, and her sweet voice flowed into the audience's ears like a clear spring.

The strong wind blew but left no traces

Our love was like the wind, blowing and vanishing

The strong wind blew but left no worries

We both moved on separate foreign paths

A heavenly melody that can only be described as sung by an angel, gently brushed the hearts of the audience, like a breeze that blew away the heat of the summer and allowed them respite.

Ling Chen observed the enraptured expressions of the audience with an incomparably smug grin.

My taste is absolutely impeccable. There are those who practise singing for dozens of years unrelentingly. Still, they can't hold a candle to those born with a natural angelic voice. Tang Shiyun was definitely the latter.