The deafening standing ovation continued for several minutes. Everyone was still feeling high from the incredible performance.
Back on the stage, Thunder was now sobbing like a baby because of pure happiness. The other Pandemonium band mbers also looked emotional. They still couldn’t believe that they just perford with their ultimate rock star idol, Enrique Valdez!
When the applause started to die down for a bit, Enrique Valdez took the mic and made an announcent.
"I’ll stay here in China to make music with Iris Long."
One second. Two seconds. Three sec—
"WHAT?!!!"
In the audience, JJ used his pinkie to clean his ears. "Huh? Maybe I’m getting old. Sothing is wrong with my hearing today. I think I misheard Enrique Valdez saying that he wants to make music with that brat. Ahahaha! Yes, must’ve misheard it..."
"No, Old J. You didn’t mishear it! I heard it, too! Enrique Valdez really said that he’s going to make music with Iris!" DJ Song couldn’t contain his excitent. He was literally jumping up and down like a hyper little kid.
All around them, the other guests were whispering to each other, trying to confirm Enrique Valdez’s surprise announcent.
"What did Enrique say? I’m not really good in English."
"OMG!!! He said that he’ll be staying here in China to make music with Iris Long!!!"
"Boss Iris! You’re the best forever and ever!! Our mighty slippers are so proud of you!!!"
"Kyaaaaaaah! Music by Enrique Valdez and Iris Long?! I can’t wait to hear it!! It’s going to be so aweso!!!"
In another part of the audience, Tang Yiyi and Bright Summit’s big boss and higher-ups almost had a collective heart attack. This was big! No, this was gigantic! Ginormous!
"Miss Tang, anything Iris Long needs for her music collaboration with Enrique Valdez, just ask and you’ll get it," Bright Summit’s big boss said.
"Yes, sir! Thank you very much, sir!" Tang Yiyi was, of course, excited.
"Since this has been announced in public already, it would be a great embarrassnt if it gets cancelled for whatever reason. It would damage Iris Long’s reputation and make her a laughingstock by her detractors. This music collaboration needs to happen, even if we have to beg Enrique Valdez if he ever backs out. Make sure that Enrique Valdez’s stay here in the country is as comfortable as possible."
"Yes, sir. Please leave everything to . I’ll pay attention to Iris and Mr. Enrique’s needs in order to make their music collaboration happen," Tang Yiyi promised.
"Good."
The other Bright Summit higher-ups nodded, their eyes sparkling with excitent.
On the other side of the grand hall, Jin Chonglin clapped along with everyone else. However, his mind was far away from the celebration. He watched Iris Long and Enrique Valdez on the stage, the surprise announcent playing again and again in his mind. Various emotions swirled inside him.
Shock. Amazent. Disbelief. Pride for Iris. Envy.
The positives and the negatives mixed inside him, making him unable to differentiate one emotion from the next.
In the end, all he could do was sigh and smile helplessly.
’It looks like your star will only get bigger and brighter. Big Bro might be right. You might really beco an even bigger superstar than one day. But right now, this prince’s star is still bigger and brighter than yours. I didn’t reach my superstar status for nothing. My foundations won’t be shaken that easily. I won’t try to stop your rise to superstardom. If I did, my brother will surely kill .
’Co, Iris Long! I’ll be waiting for you here at the top. Co and see how beautiful the view is here. But at the sa ti, you’ll also learn that it isn’t as easy to maintain your foothold here. After all, the top is narrower than the bottom, the height more treacherous. It could only hold a limited number of people. Once you reach the top, soone will definitely fall to make space for you. And I sure as hell will make sure that it’s not gonna be !’
Jin Chonglin’s inner monologue gave him an even fiercer determination to improve his craft not only as a musician but as an overall celebrity. Seeing Iris Long’s accomplishnts in such a short period of ti motivated him to try new things. Perhaps he could have another breakthrough and strengthen his superstar status.
A seat away from him, his older brother Jin Liwei felt the proudest out of all the people present in the grand hall. Not even Long Tengfei, Wei Lan, Grandpa Lu, or even Lu Zihao could compare to the mixture of love, devotion and pride in his eyes. However, only the people close to him could see these emotions dancing in his love-filled eyes. To the rest of the people, his expression remained cold as usual.
Back on the stage, Iris was also surprised. Although Enrique Valdez kept telling her before that he wanted to make music with her and release it together, she thought that it would be years before that happened. She didn’t expect that it would be so soon. In addition, he announced it to everyone all of a sudden.
Her music ntor turned to her and asked, "Do you accept?"
"Of course. Yes!" Iris laughed in delight despite her surprise.
Blaze: "Congrats, Senior Iris!"
Eros: "You’re so amazing. You’re actually going to make music with the rock god. Wow."
Night nodded, happy for her.
Thunder: "Goddess Iris, I’m so stoked! This is the best news ever!"
Iris smiled at them. "Thank you. I’m very excited."
"Prepare yourself. I’m not an easy person to work with," Enrique Valdez told her. "I’m demanding and a perfectionist."
"I work well your kind," she replied. "Because I am one, too."
"We’ll see about that."
The starstruck Eros couldn’t take the easy banter between Iris and Enrique Valdez any longer. He clutched his chest and fainted right there on the stage.
After reviving poor Eros, the party continued. Other celebrities made impromptu performances on stage. Even Jin Chonglin was pressured to sing a couple of songs. For his final song, he dragged Iris back to the stage to sing "Shining Eyes" together, their current #1 hit song of the season.
The Black Stars and Jin Chonglin’s army of fans went crazy. Since it was a very popular song at the mont, almost everyone sang along with it.
Iris played the keyboard while Jin Chonglin played the acoustic guitar, the very sa one Enrique Valdez used earlier. Their voices soared together, filling everyone with sweetness.
"Smitten I had followed you around
Not expecting anything in return
But you always knew
So your shining eyes saw "
Jin Chonglin looked at Iris but she looked at his brother in the audience instead. Disappointnt, sadness and regret flashed in his eyes, making his solo part more emotional.
"Smitten I had followed you around
Not expecting anything in return"
Iris’ continued to give loving gazes at her darling, singing him the love song.
"But you always knew
So you gave all I could ever want"
Then both Iris and Jin Chonglin sang the last part together.
"I got you~"
It was only when the song ended and the audience was giving them a standing ovation that Iris finally looked at Jin Chonglin in the eyes. They bowed together. Jin Chonglin thought about holding her hands but decided against it. His brother might finally forget about their flesh and blood brotherhood and murder him in front of their mother, grandmother, and everyone.
"Sister Xiulan, congratulations for tonight," he told her as they walked back to their seats.
She smiled at him, montarily dazing him with her beauty. "Thank you, Brother Chonglin. I’m looking forward to our future projects together."
He nodded and watched her return to his brother’s side. Right at that mont, he felt lonely. He sighed, wondering why he had lost interest in playing around with the ladies when this new Iris Long appeared after her showbiz coback. If he could just return to the party animal that he was before, then he wouldn’t have to dwell on these unpleasant feelings that were making him extrely uncomfortable.
’Too bad that she’s already with soone else. And that soone is my own brother.’
He sighed once again, forcing himself to look away from the happy image his brother and future sister-in-law was making. Then his eyes fell on an annoying sight.
Chen Fei stood in front of him, her arms crossed over her chest. "I want your n’s skincare line finalized in two weeks."
"Bossy," he muttered.
"I know. Thank you!"
Jin Chonglin scowled but his mood inexplicably felt lighter. He wondered why.
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