Before Mi Cai arrived, CC took the stage to warm up the crowd. Without the accompaniment of a band, CC strummed her guitar and began to sing.

The chatter among the crowd gradually quieted down due to CC’s singing, and they became immersed in her voice.

CC might not be a beauty at first glance, but she was a woman worth appreciating. Her voice was filled with stories and vicissitudes, which was extremely attractive to men.

After her song, the applause was enthusiastic. Some customers began to comment on CC, thinking she was quite good, which increased their anticipation for Mi Cai.

In fact, I didn’t think CC was inferior to Mi Cai. It’s just that everyone’s aesthetic standards are different. Mi Cai’s beauty and voice were more easily accepted by the public.

After CC sang a song, Robben took the stage. His wooden-like voice brought out the essence of folk songs, which was also highly praised. Especially the women in the crowd showed great interest in Robben and asked him to sing another song.

Finally, after Robben’s second song, Mi Cai, dressed in women’s Martin boots and punk attire, arrived at the bar. Immediately, all the attention in the room was drawn to her.

The man known as Mr. Bai by everyone was the most excited. Looking at Mi Cai, he said, “It’s her…”

Someone immediately echoed, “Not bad… Mr. Bai has a good eye!”

The man nodded and said, “She sings very well too. Everyone, be quiet and give her a peaceful singing environment.”

Everyone nodded and stopped talking, but their eyes were still focused on Mi Cai. It seemed that her every move had a great attraction to them.

Mi Cai, however, seemed indifferent to these concentrated gazes. She calmly walked towards us and handed her shoulder bag to CC.

I looked at her and exclaimed, “Your outfit is really cool! I’ve never seen you dress like this before.”

CC took over the conversation and said, “I went shopping with her last time and helped her pick it out.”

“You’re really trying to assimilate her, aren’t you!” I exclaimed.

CC, however, didn’t think so and said, “That’s what best friends do, influence each other!”

“I only see you influencing her, not the other way around.”

“Who says?” CC retorted, pointing to her bag on the sofa, “See that bag?”

I took a closer look and it was Prada’s new model for the season. I sighed, “You two are really good friends. You teach her to drink beer, and she teaches you to spend money recklessly!”

My words made Mi Cai and CC smile at each other. The waiting customers couldn’t hold back any longer and urged Mi Cai to perform by clapping.

After making an apologetic gesture to them, I handed my guitar to Mi Cai. Unexpectedly, she didn’t take it, but instead asked Robben, “Can I use yours?”

I awkwardly put down my guitar. Robben gave me a puzzled look, but still handed his guitar to Mi Cai.

A waitress brought a bar stool for Mi Cai to sit on, and CC, holding a bass, stood beside her to accompany her.

At this moment, the two women, one standing and one sitting, one beautiful and one sexy, unconsciously paired together, creating a perfect chemistry. This was, to my recollection, their first collaboration.

“Sealedwithakiss, okay?” Mi Cai asked CC.

“No problem, I also like this song.” CC nodded and made an OK gesture to Mi Cai.

So the two women, one on the lead and one on the chords, quickly entered a state of harmony despite it being their first collaboration. As listeners, we were quickly immersed in their music.

As the performance was about to end, I joked with Robben beside me, “I think if they form a group, they will definitely be a new force in the music scene!”

Robben scoffed, “Stop it, don’t drag them into that cesspit!”

I looked helplessly at Robben. He was too proud and had a strong aversion to the pop music scene. So my joking suggestion provoked his overreaction. After all, considering Mi Cai’s status in the business world, why would she be interested in wading into the murky waters of the entertainment industry!

However, I could understand him. Over the years, several of his original songs had been plagiarized, and he had not been able to defend his rights successfully, which had left him disheartened. The entertainment industry was deep and full of transactions and unfairness, not suitable for a man with a strong idealistic tendency like him.

After Mi Cai and CC sang two songs, they didn’t want to continue. CC had to apologize to the eager crowd.

Everyone was concerned about when Mi Cai would come again, and CC could only give them an apologetic answer. In fact, it was already a great favor for CC that Mi Cai could come today.

Just as everyone was sighing, Mi Cai, who had put down her guitar, unexpectedly said to the crowd, “If I have time on weekends, I will come to play. I hope you all can continue to support my friend’s bar!”

The crowd below the stage responded as if they had regained something, “We will, we will.”

After giving a polite smile to the crowd, Mi Cai walked towards us. I was a bit confused. The friend she mentioned, was it Le Yao, CC, or me?Mi Cai handed the guitar back to Robben, and I gratefully said to her, “Thank you for your hard work!”

“It’s okay, CC is the one who’s really working hard!” Mi Cai responded in her usual indifferent manner.

I looked at CC, who was still singing on stage. She had indeed been working hard recently. Not only did she have to manage the “Empty City” music restaurant, but she also had to take care of Le Yao’s bar, and even work part-time as a resident singer, all without any pay.

As Le Yao’s friend, CC really had nothing to say. What I didn’t understand was why Robben couldn’t forget the girl from Beijing and start a new relationship with CC, a kind and unique woman.

Didn’t he know that even I, who could never forget Jian Wei, had compromised with reality and started a new relationship in Xuzhou? So, I was even more curious: what magical power did that girl from Beijing have that made Robben so steadfast?

Temporarily setting aside my curiosity, I asked the waiter to bring a cup of hot milk for Mi Cai.

Mi Cai said “Thank you,” took it from my hand, took a sip, and put it down. Then she looked at me and asked, “Zhao Yang, the customers who came tonight must have given you some ideas for running the business, right?”

I looked at Mi Cai in surprise. As expected of the CEO of Zhuomei Shopping Center, even though I hadn’t expressed my thoughts, she had already guessed that I had some business ideas.

I smiled and asked, “How did you know?”

“If you don’t even have this much business sense, I don’t think you’re capable of running this crisis-ridden bar.”

I nodded, looked around the bar, and said, “The unexpected customers today indeed gave me some inspiration for running the business… My renovation starts with the name of the bar… From now on, this bar will be renamed ‘The Fifth Season’!”

—————

There was a power outage today, and the power just came back on, so I’m updating now. I apologize for the delay. Also, I might not be able to update three times today, I’ll try my best, depending on my condition later!