Chapter 49: Even Simps Have Their Springtime

It was hard to refuse such warm hospitality.

"Go for it, Senior Jiang!"

Fan Feiyu gave a mischievous grin.

Jiang Chen was never one to be overly modest or coy. He tilted his head back, drained the beer from the can in one gulp, and stood up.

"Senior, here."

The boy handed the guitar to Jiang Chen and stepped aside to make room.

"So that's Jiang Chen."

"I didn't expect him to be quite so handsome."

"I heard he's participating in this event for Li Shurui."

The girls whispered among themselves, their gazes toward Jiang Chen filled with varying degrees of curiosity.

Almost everyone had heard of Jiang Chen's reputation, but very few truly knew him.

Having thick skin had its advantages; Jiang Chen remained calm and composed, ignoring the eyes watching him from all directions. He sat on the stool and tentatively plucked a guitar string.

"I'll try my best, though I'm no expert."

Someone whistled to build the atmosphere.

"This guy really knows how to act cool," Zheng Jingjing muttered.

Li Shurui watched quietly as the figure began to play.

"Fascinated by your eyes, The Milky Way leaves a trail to follow. Through the cracks in time, It still truthfully Attracts my trajectory."

"Wow, it's *Mercury"! "He sings so well?"

"A guy like this is actually a simp?"

Good news travels slow, but bad news travels fast. That was the rule of society.

Jiang Chen's bad reputation was widespread, yet his virtues were little known.

"This fleeting moment, The closest distance. Along the texture of your skin, Down the curves of your arms, I'll make a dream for you."

Setting the girls aside, even the boys were immersed.

"So emo. You can't sing with this kind of feeling unless you've been dumped seven or eight times."

"I'm impressed. He managed to sing out the desolation of a man whose parents divorced, who is terminally ill, whose son went astray, whose daughter became a sex worker, and whose wife ran off with someone else."

"Hearing this song reminds me of my ex-girlfriends: Wenwen, Jingjing, Huihui, Leilei, Yiyi, Weiwei, Qingqing, Lanlan, Minmin, Jiaojiao, Tingting, Sisi, Chunchun, Jiajia, Qiqi, Qiqi, Mengmeng, Xiaxi, Wanwan, Xinxin... are you all doing okay?"

"How much further until I enter your heart? How much longer until I get close to you? The person so near yet so far, Is also waiting to meet you. The orbiting planet, How can it Possess you?"

Many people couldn't help but start humming along.

"This fleeting moment, The closest distance. Along the texture of your skin, Down the curves of your arms, I'll make a dream for you, I'll make a dream for you..."

As Jiang Chen lightly plucked the strings, with his clean face and comfortable aura, he looked nothing like a simp; he looked exactly like a "Guitar Prince."

Under the spotlight and the beautiful, ethereal moonlight, he seemed to be draped in a halo.

Many girls stared blankly, their eyes growing misty and dazed.

"How much further until I enter your heart? How much longer until I get close to you? The person so near yet so far, Is also waiting to meet you. The orbiting planet, How can it Possess you?"

*The sunset drowns in the orange mountains, the evening breeze falls for sincere love, and I lose myself in your graceful charm.*

When Jiang Chen's fingers finally stopped, everyone was still lost in the lingering melody, unable to pull themselves away.

"Go, go quickly!"

As Jiang Chen stood up, a sophomore girl, urged repeatedly by her friends, grabbed a bunch of foxtail grass from somewhere to use as flowers. Finally gathering her courage, she ran up to him.

"Senior Jiang, you sing so beautifully!"

Stuffing the foxtail grass into Jiang Chen's hand, the girl didn't dare look him directly in the eye, keeping her head lowered with a face full of bashfulness.

Even simps have their springtimes.

"Thank you."

Jiang Chen hadn't expected to actually have "fans," but he wasn't the type to be embarrassed. After a brief moment of surprise, he graciously expressed his thanks to his first fan.

"Give her a hug!"

"Give her a hug!"

"Give her a hug! Give her a hug! Give her a hug!"

Someone started shouting randomly, and soon everyone began to join in the heckling.

The girl's cheeks flushed as red as peach blossoms, but she stood her ground in front of Jiang Chen, refusing to run away.

Even a pig could understand what this meant.

The cheering grew even louder.

Jiang Chen was a gentleman who cherished women; he couldn't let a girl lose face, especially since she was his fan. He took the initiative to give her a gentle, considerate, and gentlemanly hug.

"OHHH!!!"

The cheers were like a mountain collapsing or a sea surging.

Jiang Chen acted as if nothing had happened, but the girl couldn't take it anymore; she let out a soft whimper and ran off, her face crimson.

"Shurui, look at him, he's such a jerk!"

Zheng Jingjing watched with gritted teeth. If one didn't know better, they would think Jiang Chen was her boyfriend.

"And here I thought he was devoted, turns out he's just a lecher!"

Li Shurui, however, remained unmoved. Her expression was calm as she turned her gaze away to admire the beautiful night view that couldn't be seen in the city.

"Impressive!"

Watching Jiang Chen walk over, Fan Feiyu gave him a thumbs up.

"Senior Jiang, I think you sing better than those professional singers. No technique, just pure emotion."

Jiang Chen sat down. "Why do I feel like you're insulting me?"

"No, I'm being sincere."

Fan Feiyu looked at the bunch of foxtail grass on the table and teased, "Senior Jiang, that girl was quite nice—a sweet, simple type. Very well-behaved. Why not consider her?"

"With my reputation, why would I want to ruin someone else's life?"

Jiang Chen shook his head and cracked open another beer.

"Then why aren't you afraid of ruining Li Shurui?" Fan Feiyu asked quickly.

Jiang Chen was momentarily speechless.

Fan Feiyu couldn't help but glance toward Li Shurui.

"Senior Jiang, you're hugging and kissing other girls right in front of her. Aren't you afraid she'll..."

To be honest, he admired the guy's courage. If it were him pursuing Li Shurui, let alone such intimate behavior, he probably wouldn't even dare to speak to the opposite sex.

This wasn't a simp.

Are simps this brave?!

"Shurui isn't that narrow-minded," Jiang Chen said simply, unconcerned.

Setting aside the fact that Li Shurui's personality was different from most girls, if she actually got jealous because of this, he would actually be happy.

If Li Shurui were jealous, it would mean she truly cared about him.

But right now, Li Shurui was likely hoping he would make progress with that girl just so she could be rid of him.

"Jiang Chen, can I have a drink with you?"

It turned out there were benefits to a man learning a talent.

Someone else had approached to strike up a conversation.

If the previous sophomore was the "sweet and simple" type, the girl standing before Jiang Chen now was more mature—an oval face, smooth long hair, gentle and intellectual.

"Senior Jiang, you guys chat."

Fan Feiyu was tactful and stood up to leave, yielding the space.

Seeing yet another girl sit down next to Jiang Chen, Zheng Jingjing, who had been secretly watching, widened her eyes in disbelief.

Since when did this guy become so popular?!