Chapter 121: The Grand Finals

Mo Qi walked into the backstage area with Shen Yijue, where the staff greeted her with knowing, ambiguous smiles, their gestures clearly aimed at currying favor.

"Mo Qi, you're here! Have you eaten yet? We still have some catered meals."

"I've already eaten, thank you."

"Oh, stop being so formal with us!" Several people stepped forward with familiar ease to greet Mo Qi, then turned to offer polite salutations to Shen Yijue.

"Heavenly King Shen, here in person to drop off Mo Qi again?"

Shen Yijue nodded. "Thank you for taking care of Mo Qi during this time."

"It's nothing at all." They chatted and laughed for a while.

Mo Qi offered a faint smile, opting not to provide any elaborate explanations. She nodded in greeting and headed straight to the dressing room to get ready.

"Heavenly King Shen," the makeup artist greeted him respectfully.

Shen Yijue gave a stoic nod and sat down on a sofa nearby.

Only then did the makeup artist lean toward Mo Qi, who was seated at the vanity, and give her a thumbs-up. Lowering her voice, she said excitedly, "Mo Qi, you’re amazing. You actually managed to invite Heavenly King Shen as your guest performer."

"Guest performer?" Mo Qi paused for a moment before laughing. "When a disciple is in trouble, the master must naturally step in."

"Yes, yes, of course, just master and disciple." The makeup artist gave a knowing smile and stopped talking, focusing on Mo Qi’s makeup.

Mo Qi lowered her eyelids. She hadn't received any notification that the finalists were required to invite guest performers; the message had likely been intercepted by Shen Yijue.

Her mind raced. Catching a glimpse of Shen Yijue sitting on the sofa behind her in the vanity mirror, she asked in a low voice, "Do you know which seniors the other contestants have invited as guests?"

"I'm not sure about the others, but I heard that He Shuai is coming to support Lin Zheng, mostly out of consideration for his junior, Xie An," the makeup artist said. "You two are the top favorites for the championship, so everyone has been guessing who you would invite."

"Heh, I didn't disappoint you, did I?"

"Disappoint? It’s a total shock. But thinking about it, it almost feels expected. Do you understand that contradictory feeling?"

"I think I can imagine it," Mo Qi smiled, saying no more.

She only had today to escape, but how could she pull off a flawless getaway?

He Shuai? He Shuai! Mo Qi tapped her fingers against the armrest, her escape plan gradually becoming clear.

As the makeup artist finished her work, she whispered, "I noticed Heavenly King Shen didn't bring his personal makeup artist, so..."

Mo Qi understood. She turned around and asked, "Heavenly King Shen, would you like to have your makeup done?"

"No need."

Mo Qi nodded and gave the makeup artist a faint smile. "I'm sorry for the trouble."

"It's fine." The makeup artist smiled. "I'll go attend to other things; call me if you need anything."

"Go ahead, I'm all set here."

The makeup artist cast one last regretful glance at Shen Yijue before leaving. Heavenly King Shen had such a good canvas; he looked great even without makeup. She really wanted to get her hands on that face.

Once the makeup artist had left, the smile on Mo Qi’s face faded. "I didn't know about the guest performer requirement, so I haven't prepared a duo performance."

Shen Yijue couldn't miss the resentment and distance in her tone. He had indeed received the message the production team forwarded to her, but Mo Qi had been giving him the cold shoulder, locking herself in her bedroom except for meal times.

He wasn't a saint; he had been in a bad mood, and some things had simply slipped his mind.

"It doesn't matter," Shen Yijue said. "Just perform what you prepared, and I will follow your lead."

Mo Qi raised an eyebrow, slightly provocative. "You don't even know what I'm performing. How will you follow along?"

Shen Yijue looked at her. Mo Qi rubbed her nose, feeling foolish, and looked away.

For a moment, silence fell between them.

A knock sounded at the dressing room door. Before anyone could respond, Liu Yi pushed it open and walked in, acting entirely at home. "Oh, Heavenly King Shen is here too. If I had known, I would have brought an extra coffee."

Liu Yi set a coffee down in front of Mo Qi. "Drink it while it's hot."

Mo Qi noticed the note tucked under the cup and glanced at Liu Yi calmly.

Liu Yi smiled. "I’m here specifically to apologize for the accident last time, so don't look at me with such guarded eyes!"

"You're being too modest, Editor-in-Chief Liu." Mo Qi casually pulled the note from under the coffee cup. It contained four words: *Pick you up at the back door.*

The smile on Liu Yi’s face widened. "That’s sincere enough, right?"

It wasn't strange that Liu Yi knew a certain director, but Mo Qi hadn't expected him to be willing to take on a task that would clearly offend a superstar like Shen Yijue.

Mo Qi crumpled the note and tossed it into a pile of cosmetics on the vanity. She replied teasingly, "If I let the Editor-in-Chief deliver coffee to me personally, it would be hard for me not to make the headlines tomorrow, wouldn't it?"

"Don't worry, as long as you don't want it to happen, no one would dare report it," Liu Yi said, implying more than he stated. "You have to believe that such things aren't something only Heavenly King Shen can handle."

Shen Yijue didn't even look at Liu Yi. He stood up and said, "The competition is about to start."

Mo Qi took a symbolic sip of the coffee and stood up as well. "I'm going to change."

After Mo Qi left, Liu Yi sighed with lingering interest. "Mo Qi is becoming more charming by the day. To be able to kneel at her feet would be a life without regrets. Don't you think so, Heavenly King Shen?"

Shen Yijue seemed not to hear him and walked out, opening the door himself.

Liu Yi watched the door close and hummed dismissively. "So cold. Let's see if you can stay so calm once Mo Qi is gone."

When Mo Qi emerged in her performance outfit, she saw Shen Yijue waiting across from the doorway.

"Is it interesting to follow me every step of the way?"

Facing her challenge, Shen Yijue said nothing. He turned and walked toward the back of the stage.

For today's grand finale, all five contestants had to appear together before the competition officially began to sing the theme song, "Let Dreams Take Flight."

Lin Zheng nodded awkwardly when she saw Mo Qi. Mo Qi smiled and responded with polite distance.

Anyone could see that something had gone wrong between them.

Shen Yijue gave Lin Zheng a cold glance, then suddenly reached out and pulled Mo Qi into his arms. He held her and said in a comforting tone, "Don't waste your time worrying about things that aren't worth it."

The other contestants looked at Mo Qi with envy; she must have accumulated lifetimes of good karma to be backed by a titan like Shen Yijue.

Lin Zheng looked away, her expression unnatural. It was clear that the Heavenly King was intentionally saying this to protect Mo Qi, implying that a friend like her wasn't worth Mo Qi’s sorrow even if the friendship was lost.

Mo Qi knew his intention, and while she felt helpless, she was also touched.

Putting aside the unpleasantness, Shen Yijue was truly good to her.

"Thank you."

The two short words caused Shen Yijue’s face, frozen for days, to slowly thaw.

Though his expression remained stoic, the look in his eyes softened. "I'll be waiting for you offstage."