"You said your group is called what?"

In the car, Gu Xingyi looked at the two girls, a bit stunned. Wang Xinyi and Wu Peiling glanced nervously at Gu Xingyi, and quietly responded.

"Landlord's Cat."

"......"

Gu Xingyi looked at them, his expression full of surprise. He really wanted to say, "Landlord's Cat? I'm the tenant's dog!"

"You guys sing folk songs?"

Gu Xingyi, not quite believing it, asked again, which made the two girls even more nervous. For them, Gu Xingyi was one of the top figures in the entertainment industry, far beyond their reach.

They were a bit afraid, worried that being folk singers might cause them to be looked down upon. But seeing the encouraging looks from Xia Xiyao and the others, they answered.

"Yes, folk songs."

Gu Xingyi finally nodded. Seeing their nervousness, he quickly comforted them.

"Folk songs are great! There are three main themes in folk songs: love, ideals, and the distant horizon. They are the dreams in everyone's heart!"

Hearing Gu Xingyi's words, the two girls felt a little warmth in their hearts, their expressions calming a little. Since Gu Xingyi said so, they figured it should be okay. Feng Xiaoxiao, sitting on the side, still felt guilty. He looked at Gu Xingyi and lowered his head, speaking.

"Mr. Gu, I'm sorry, it's all because of me that I made things hard for you..."

"It's no trouble! We're not people who can't show ourselves! Plus, you brought two singers to Xingyao Entertainment, I should be thanking you!"

Seeing Feng Xiaoxiao about to apologize again, Gu Xingyi quickly waved his hand. He had heard apologies all along the way; his ears were almost getting calloused from it.

"We're actually short on people right now! As you've seen, many entertainment companies have already made it clear that in the upcoming rounds of competition, things will get really serious! Having more people at this time is a good thing!"

Gu Xingyi wasn't just comforting Feng Xiaoxiao; he was genuinely happy to welcome two more talented people. As for Tianmei Entertainment and other companies, he had some guesses about their plans.

No matter the field, it's always about strength. Regardless of what others do, as the ones defending their ground, Gu Xingyi had only one thing to say: when soldiers come, I'll block them; when water comes, I'll dam it!

When the car arrived at the company, it was already late at night.

Gu Xingyi and the others just settled Wang Xinyi and Wu Peiling in the artist apartment for now. They would officially join tomorrow.

Just two hours later, news about Xia Xiyao and the others appearing in the tavern was all over the internet.

Especially on Douyin, numerous live videos flooded in, each one racking up tens of thousands of likes. The video of Xia Xiyao singing "The Wind Rises" even surpassed a million likes.

All the night owls who stumbled upon the video were left in regret, wishing they could turn back time and rush to the scene.

Ever since Gu Xingyi and Xia Xiyao appeared, they had never publicly shown up before. But now, pulling off such a surprise appearance?

Netizens flooded the comment section, each one expressing their disappointment as if they had been betrayed.

   "I'm so jealous! I admit it, I'm jealous! I missed my chance to get close to Xia Xiyao and Gu Xingyi! Didn't seize the opportunity!"

   "This brat Xingyao! Couldn't he give a heads-up in advance? This surprise appearance really caught me off guard!"

   "No concert! No fan meet! And now this?!"

   "And folk songs too! I'm in awe! Folk songs are poor! Guitars are expensive! The girl is beautiful! I'm not worthy!"

   "The fans on-site weren't helpful! How could they just let them slip away so easily?"

   "Sigh! When will they hold a concert? Can they ever do things properly?"

Facing the flood of live videos online, netizens were turning into "lemon" fans, filled with jealousy. This string of Douyin posts quickly climbed to the trending list.

At this point, everyone had gotten used to it. Now, if they don't see news about the two on the trending list, they just feel uneasy!

The main characters, Gu Xingyi and Xia Xiyao, had already returned home. Xiao Nainai had been lulled to sleep earlier by Gu Xingyi's fairy tale.

The couple only had a light dinner before indulging in some shameless late-night activities.

A whole night of talking, skipping over...

The next day, as the morning sun rose, Gu Xingyi dragged his sore back and was preparing breakfast in the kitchen, while Xia Xiyao, her cheeks flushed, assisted him.

The first rays of sunlight streamed in through the window, and Gu Xingyi suddenly realized he hadn't done his morning exercise in a long time!

No wonder! His body was getting more and more fatigued! It's all because he hadn't been exercising in the mornings!

Meanwhile, Xia Xiyao felt her face burning with embarrassment. Just thinking about the things from last night made her so shy she wanted to die. She had no idea where Gu Xingyi had learned all of those things. It made her feel both embarrassed and frustrated.

"Darling, it's time to wake up Nainai."

Gu Xingyi tasted a spoonful of freshly made porridge, nodding in satisfaction. He then grabbed the side dishes from the table and turned to Xia Xiyao.

Xia Xiyao was still in a daze, her eyes wide, staring blankly ahead, completely not hearing Gu Xingyi's words.

Gu Xingyi saw her spaced-out look and smiled. He quickly kissed her on the cheek.

"Darling! If you keep dawdling, Nainai will be late for school!"

Surprised by the sudden kiss, Xia Xiyao finally snapped out of it. Her face turned even redder, and she quickly lowered her head, rushing out of the kitchen, her small steps almost matching those of a racewalking champion.

By the time Xia Xiyao emerged from the bedroom, holding the still-sleepy Nainai, Gu Xingyi had already set the porridge, stuffed buns, and side dishes on the table, smiling happily, waiting for the two to come.

Looking at the almond-shaped eyes of both the mother and daughter, Gu Xingyi felt even more content.

Indeed, with a lovely wife and adorable child at home, life was just so pleasant!

After breakfast, as usual, they took Xiao Nainai to kindergarten before heading to the company.

The people at the company had mostly arrived and were busy with their own tasks. Wang Xinyi and Wu Peiling had also arrived early, having just walked out of Yang Chenglin's office after signing their contracts. Compared to yesterday, their smiles were unusually bright.

Neither of them had ever imagined they would one day join such a famous company, and the contract they signed was even more of a free contract—something they had never dared to dream about before.

Although Xingyao Entertainment didn't have many resources to offer them right now, everyone knew that the future of Xingyao Entertainment was limitless!

As Gu Xingyi and Xia Xiyao entered the break room, Yun-jie walked in.

It's worth mentioning that, in addition to being Xia Xiyao's manager, Yun-jie also managed the company's operations. Xingyao Entertainment was still in the development stage, and Gu Xingyi was very strict about recruiting management talents.

Not only did they have to be trustworthy and have good character, but their professional abilities also had to be strong. Talented people like this were rare, so Gu Xingyi wasn't in a rush.

Right now, the company was still focused on "Hua Country's Strongest Voice," and he didn't have the energy or time to recruit and screen management-level staff.

"Yun-jie! Good morning!"

Gu Xingyi smiled at Yun-jie, who looked even more energetic than before.

Xia Xiyao walked over, took Yun Jie's hand, and sat beside her. In front of Yun-jie, Xia Xiyao always acted like a little girl.

Compared to when she first met Yun-jie, she now looked much younger, even having dyed her white hair back to black. Her smile was also much brighter.

Everything was progressing in a positive direction, and that was wonderful!

"Mr. Gu! Xiyao! Good morning! Just the right time to talk to you both. Tianmei Entertainment's diva, Mu Baiwei, has been urgently called back to the country! She's already trending! Also, the king of Shengshi Entertainment, Qi Hua, was spotted this morning at the Shengshi Entertainment building!"

"And some other top singers from various entertainment companies have also dropped what they were doing. They must be preparing for 'Hua Country's Strongest Voice' with full force!"