Chapter 137: Where Has All the Time Gone?

"Hey, Panties, your name is quite pathetic. Don't blame me, it was all your mother's idea."
"Hey, Panties, I'm not accusing you. Besides you, who else pees everywhere?"
"Hey, Panties, your belly is all bloated, so stop looking at the cat food with such pitiful eyes."
"Hey, Panties, stop being so shameless. Having your mother is already enough for me to handle."

Strumming her guitar, Zhao Jing sang this song, "Hey Panties," with a surprisingly fresh, refined, and lively flair.

But just as everyone started to think she had finally found the right pitch, Zhao Jing predictably began to sing off-key during the chorus: "I want to take you for a walk, because you always sit by the window staring longingly. Come, come, come, drink some milk, eat some canned food; the world outside is dangerous, there are so many dogs..."

The kitten, Ollie, seemed to realize that Zhao Jing's singing was disharmonious. It meowed, trying to wiggle away from her to avoid being embarrassed by her performance. Zhao Jing, however, grabbed the kitten into her arms, refusing to let it run, and brazenly continued to sing with a cheerful grin:

"Hey, Panties, I think you're asking for a beating. It's five-thirty in the morning and you're slapping your mother's face."
"Hey, Panties, you must be asking for a beating. Whenever your mother isn't around, you slap my face."
"I know you must be very lonely, that's why you sit at the door waiting for us to come back."
"I know you want to fall in love, just like your mother and I are in love."

Zhao Yan, standing nearby, felt like burying his face in the sofa. Ollie’s life as a cat was effectively ruined by Zhao Jing. He didn't know how he would face Ollie in the future.

However, everyone else found Zhao Jing’s performance with the kitten quite amusing. Many of the male viewers cheered her on. The live chat was filled with excitement, with everyone teasing Zhao Jing:

"I'll bid one million... Vietnamese Dong for those leopard-print pants! Don't fight me on this!"
"Brother Jing is on fire today! A stingy person like me couldn't help but send a 'Rainbow' gift. You're welcome!"
"Is Brother Jing singing Song Dongye's 'Panties'? Why does it feel so off-key? It’s got a bit of that Hua Zhou style."
"This streamer is pretty, but her singing is nowhere near Goddess Lan's. No wonder she's not famous."
"Is this your first time hearing Brother Jing sing? Singing off-key is her signature style! Don't you dare change it!"
"She actually hit the right notes for half the song, thumbs down!"
"Brother Jing looks so kawaii while singing!"
"What do I do if I’m falling more and more in love with Brother Jing? How am I supposed to live without her live streams?"
"I just realized today, Brother Jing has such long legs!"

Teasing and tipping always went hand in hand. Zhao Jing’s rendition of "Panties" certainly grabbed everyone's attention, and the gifts in the chat room never stopped coming. A conservative estimate suggests that in the time it took her to sing that one song, she raked in over 3,000 RMB worth of gifts! She received over twenty "Rainbow" gifts alone—she was truly making a fortune.

Knowing that singing wasn't her strong suit, Zhao Jing quickly invited Huang Guolun and Bai Yao back to the stage after her atmosphere-building performance. She whispered to Huang Guolun that her senior, Chen Lan, had come to "check the room" and brought a massive influx of new viewers. They needed a high-impact performance to keep them. Huang Guolun thought, "High impact? Then let Bai Yao sing 'The Beautiful People' and use the opportunity to promote 'You Are the Beautiful Corpse' as well."

After Zhao Jing left the stage, Huang Guolun sat at the piano, leaving the center stage to Bai Yao. Speaking into the microphone, he introduced her: "I assume many of you have already seen the best zombie movie in China, 'You Are the Beautiful Corpse'."

Huang Guolun and Bai Yao had already said "the best zombie movie in China" dozens of times that night. Hearing him say it again made many in the cafe chuckle. Huang Guolun, shedding any sense of shame, continued: "Those who have seen the film must be deeply impressed by the ending theme song. Now, let Little Bai perform 'The Beautiful People' for you live. I hope you enjoy it!"

Feng Zheng shouted excitedly: "Let's get wild! This song is so cool!" Many college students were already hyped before she even started. Liu Xiaowei played the backing track for "The Beautiful People." Matching the aggressive drum beats, Huang Guolun improvised a sophisticated piano melody, adding even more momentum to the song's opening.

Though it was called an improvisation, they had rehearsed it. Bai Yao knew she wasn't fighting alone; Huang Guolun would provide backing vocals and join her in singing this metal anthem that had swept across the zombie world. Listening to the familiar war-drum beat and feeling the support of Huang Guolun’s exotic piano chords, Bai Yao’s expression shifted—becoming cold yet filled with confidence. As soon as she opened her mouth, she unleashed an arrogant, heavy bass that sent shivers down many people's spines, kicking off the prelude to the battle:

"And I don't want you and I don't need you. Don't bother to resist, or I'll beat you. It's not your fault that you're always wrong. The weak ones are there to justify the strong..."

Huang Guolun provided the backing vocals, and the two joined forces once again, their chorus far more aggressive than before, turning the entire cafe into a dark battlefield. Their hoarse, manic duet cracked everyone’s brains like a wrecking ball! The atmosphere on site was like a stampede, with the metal accompaniment surging like a tidal wave. Huang Guolun, playing the piano while providing harmonies, seemed to transform into a dark, demonic maestro, his fingers dancing as if to turn the world upside down!

"Hey you, what do you see? Something beautiful, something free? Hey you, are you trying to be mean? If you live with apes, man, it's hard to be clean..."

Bai Yao’s tearing, throat-straining screams, combined with Huang Guolun’s grand, imposing harmonies, formed a metal shockwave that cut through the digital signals, spreading across the country, shattering countless eardrums, and igniting the passion in millions of hearts.

Those watching the live stream had never seen such a performance online. Many were stunned as they watched Bai Yao roar with such intensity. They couldn't imagine how such a small girl could harbor such terrifying explosive power. They were even more amazed that the mature-looking uncle could turn the piano into a wild, arrow-firing rhapsody. Not only that, he could play and roar at the same time; this raw, heroic energy was truly awe-inspiring.

Zhao Jing’s senior, Chen Lan, originally intended to just drop by and leave to continue her own broadcast. But after seeing this performance, she stood dumbfounded in front of her camera, completely stunned by the act. For a moment, Chen Lan couldn't even define what she had just witnessed—she had never seen such a "crazy" live performance! What was this?

Both Zhao Jing’s and Chen Lan’s chat rooms exploded. Comments of shock flooded the screens like a tidal wave. Many viewers, hands shaking, sent "Rainbow" gifts to Bai Yao and Huang Guolun, seeing them as divine beings. The movie they were promoting, "You Are the Beautiful Corpse," was deeply etched into everyone’s mind. At that moment, tens of thousands of people wanted to know what kind of film it was that could inspire such burning, passionate music.

This song launched Zhao Jing’s live room to the very top of the homepage. In just a few minutes, the number of viewers surged past 150,000! After the song, Huang Guolun and Bai Yao pressed their advantage, singing several more classics. Even the money-hungry Chen Lan forgot about her own stream, staying in Zhao Jing’s room for over an hour to watch them perform. By the end, the viewer count in Zhao Jing’s room far exceeded Chen Lan’s, becoming the most-watched music live room of the night, peaking at a record-breaking 380,000 viewers.

The gifts received also far exceeded Zhao Jing’s expectations, reaching 170,000 RMB before the special event even ended! This night’s earnings were equivalent to a year’s salary for many people. By 10:00 PM, the viewer count remained above 300,000. Not a single customer left the cafe. Many had arrived around 5:00 PM and sat for over five hours, yet they felt neither tired nor willing to leave. If they could, they would have happily listened for the entire night! They wished this musical event could last longer.

Huang Guolun also wished he could sing more for these enthusiastic fans, but considering the limits of Bai Yao’s voice and his own dwindling stamina, he knew he would collapse from exhaustion if he continued—he wouldn't even have the strength to drive home. Finally, he had to conclude this unprecedentedly successful musical night with a sentimental piece about the passage of time.

The closing classic he performed was his own "original" song, "Where Has the Time Gone":

"The old tree in front of the door sprouts new buds; the withered wood in the courtyard blossoms again. Half a lifetime of words, hidden in a head full of white hair."
"The little feet in my memory, the chubby little mouth. A lifetime of love given to you, all for that single call of 'Mom' and 'Dad'."
"Where has the time gone? Before I could properly feel my youth, I’ve grown old. Raising children for a lifetime, my mind is full of their tears and laughter."
"Where has the time gone? Before I could look at you properly, my eyes have blurred. Half a lifetime of daily chores, and in the blink of an eye, nothing is left but a face full of wrinkles."

It was as if they had experienced a life that reached a climax and finally returned to tranquility. Huang Guolun’s final piano performance poured a bowl of warm chicken soup for the soul into everyone’s hearts. As the saying goes, "crows have the sense to feed their parents, and lambs know the grace of kneeling to suckle." After hearing this song, in a lingering state of reflection, almost everyone thought of the loved ones who had raised them.