Chapter 73: The Empress Qin Summons

Brother Hao? Sun Hao?! Lin Feng frowned. He hadn't expected the man entangled with Feng Yao to be Sun Hao; this was a surprise. Thinking back to last night's events, Lin Feng sensed the faint aroma of a conspiracy.

“Lin Feng, you’re back?” Chen Qiao stepped out of her room, spotting Lin Feng standing in the corridor.

“Shh!” Lin Feng hurriedly gestured for silence, quickly walking over to Chen Qiao.

“What’s wrong?” Chen Qiao looked puzzled.

Lin Feng smiled. “Nothing much, I just don’t want to disturb anyone.”

“Disturb?” Chen Qiao’s confusion remained.

“It’s nothing. Did you finish your work?” Lin Feng changed the topic.

“Not yet. The melody is done, I’m working on the lyrics, but my head feels fuzzy. I was just thinking of going out for some air,” Chen Qiao said, rubbing her forehead.

“By the way, I just saw your news online. Are you all right?” Chen Qiao asked, worry in her eyes.

“I’m fine. It’s all small stuff.” Lin Feng shrugged, unconcerned.

“Small stuff? I bet the basketball association’s leaders are flipping their tables right now. No player has ever dared to contradict them like that!” Chen Qiao remarked.

“They can flip all they want. Even if they tear down their office building, it’s none of my business, right?” Lin Feng chuckled.

“You really have a calm mindset,” Chen Qiao conceded, giving him a look of admiration.

“That’s my one virtue—staying calm,” Lin Feng said.

Chen Qiao pursed her lips. Just then, Lin Feng’s phone rang. He glanced at the screen and frowned—Qin Ruolin was calling.

“Is it inconvenient to answer here?” Seeing Lin Feng holding the phone without picking up, Chen Qiao teased, “Is it the diva Qin?”

Lin Feng paused, then laughed. “You’d be wasted not reading fortunes at the bridge.”

“So it is!” Chen Qiao exclaimed, her mouth wide with surprise.

Lin Feng shrugged, answered the call, and didn’t shy away from Chen Qiao.

“Ruolin, is there something you need?”

“Oh, Ruolin? So that’s how you address her in private. Nothing too special after all.” The word “gossip” was practically written across Chen Qiao’s face as she leaned closer to Lin Feng.

“Where are you?” Qin Ruolin’s voice on the other end sounded cold and a bit unhappy.

“Just arrived at the hotel.”

“How’s your work coming along?” she asked.

“It’s finished.”

“Finished?” Qin Ruolin was clearly surprised. “So soon? I saw you all over the sports pages and thought you wouldn’t have time.”

“Time is like water in a sponge—you can always squeeze more out,” Lin Feng replied, sounding philosophical. In truth, he wanted to say time was like cleavage, always more if you squeeze, but with Chen Qiao present, he held back.

“Don’t get smart with me. Since you’re free, come up to the twentieth floor. I have something to discuss,” Qin Ruolin said.

“All right, I’ll be right there.”

Lin Feng hung up. Chen Qiao’s eyes sparkled. “The diva invited you! Oh, I’ve uncovered your secret rendezvous—will I have to be silenced now?”

“Then why aren’t you gone already?” Lin Feng shot a glare at the little gossip.

“Hmph, I’m not afraid of you!” Chen Qiao puffed out her not-so-prominent chest.

“Haven’t you seen my videos? Haven’t you heard I’m the guy who roughs up fans?” Lin Feng put on a fierce face.

Chen Qiao laughed. “Never seen someone poke fun at themselves like this.”

“Well, you’ve seen it now. Anyway, I’ll catch you later.” Lin Feng said goodbye, took the elevator to the twentieth floor.

This floor was where Qin Ruolin’s team stayed. As their mentor, Qin Ruolin had her own room here. Both her team and Fan Quan’s team were in the midst of their first round of the internal PK—the extreme 48-hour creative challenge. To help her team at any time, Qin Ruolin remained at the hotel these days.

Lin Feng followed the room number Qin Ruolin gave him, arrived outside, and knocked.

“Coming.” The door opened, but it wasn’t Qin Ruolin—it was her agent, Kelly.

“Hello, Kelly.” Lin Feng and Kelly had met before when signing the song buyout contract; they weren’t strangers.

“Come in,” Kelly invited, letting Lin Feng inside.

At that moment, Qin Ruolin was lounging lazily on the sofa, entirely free of any goddess airs. Since it was her own room, she wore only a loose t-shirt and denim shorts. Her two slender, pale legs were casually crossed, fully exposed before Lin Feng, making him swallow involuntarily.

“Sit down,” Qin Ruolin said, not bothering to rise, pointing to the seat opposite her.

Lin Feng complied. Qin Ruolin then called toward the balcony, “Xiao Li, bring Lin Feng a drink…”

She paused and asked Lin Feng, “What would you like?”

“Just plain water.”

“Bring him a glass of water.”

Soon, a girl with black-rimmed glasses brought Lin Feng a glass of water.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I’m a fan of yours,” the girl said, smiling. “You’re even more handsome in person than on TV.”

“Really?” Lin Feng smiled. “Then I must say—you’ve got good taste.”

“Pfft! Lin Feng, you’ve gotten thicker-skinned these past few days,” Qin Ruolin threw him a glance, then pointed at the girl. “This is Xu Lili, my assistant.”

“Hello, Lili,” Lin Feng greeted politely.

“Just call me Xiao Li. Ruolin and Kelly always do,” Xu Lili replied with a sweet smile. She wasn’t particularly pretty, but her smile was charming.

Lin Feng nodded, then turned to Qin Ruolin. “Ruolin, what did you want to see me about?”

“Can’t I call you up without a reason?” Qin Ruolin retorted.

“Uh…” Lin Feng was caught off guard, not expecting this response.

“I suppose you can…”

“You look so reluctant, as if I could eat you up,” Qin Ruolin complained, shooting him another glance. “When I first met you, I never imagined you’d be such a troublemaker. Today you even went head-to-head with the basketball association. You have no idea—whenever something happens to you, my Weibo becomes a disaster zone. Let me read you some of the comments…”

Qin Ruolin scrolled through her phone and began to read the comments beneath her posts.

“Your Lin Feng didn’t make the men’s training squad…”

“Go comfort your Lin Feng, he’s so pitiful—not even on the first national team roster.”

“Lin Feng schooled America’s three-point king Smith—your man’s awesome!”

“Big trouble—your Lin Feng’s gotten into it again! Uh, why ‘again’?”

“Ruolin, Lin Feng’s clashed with the basketball association, you better check it out.”

“Lin Feng announced he’ll never play for the national team again—Ruolin, you have to do something!”

“Ruolin, I still hope Lin Feng wears the national jersey. Can you talk him into it?”

And so on…