### Chapter 32: What a Beautiful Melody, What a Beautiful Love
“Don’t you just want money? I’ll give you whatever you want, just stop the foot washing and come with me to the hotel!”
“Seriously?! Are you pretending to be all high and mighty?! Isn’t this what you do for a living?!”
“You filthy hag, do you seriously think you’re worth diamonds?! Get lost!!”
In Qingzhou City, in a certain neighborhood.
At five in the morning, 24-year-old Zhang Yan was heading home after work with her bag slung over her shoulder.
On her face, remnants of a slap from a customer still lingered.
This was the quietest time in the city.
The neighborhood was eerily silent, and as far as the eye could see, the tall buildings were cloaked in darkness, with only a couple of lights from homes, likely from kids playing video games.
Those who were getting off work at this hour were probably what everyone calls societal outcasts.
Zhang Yan pushed open the door to her home, and as soon as she kicked off her shoes, she heard a barrage of insults from the living room:
“Hey, just got off work again? You little sl*t, how was business today?”
“You better enjoy it while you can; flaunt your looks now. When you get older, good luck finding a decent guy!”
“At that point, you’ll just wait to be married off to a divorced guy who’ll beat you! I wouldn’t care if you got killed!!”
The voice belonged to Zhang Yan’s father.
A 50-year-old, unsuccessful man, buried under a mountain of gambling debts.
Zhang Yan had long grown accustomed to her father’s insults.
“I’m not planning on getting married,” she replied blandly before retreating to her room.
However,
Once she closed the door, Zhang Yan collapsed onto the floor.
Tears she could no longer hold back began to flow.
Didn’t she know what he said was true?
A dad drowning in debt, a mom hospitalized from illness, and a younger brother in school.
If she didn’t hold this family together, who would?
The only thing she could do was to stand firm against the men who offered money for her services.
But this line wouldn’t earn her any respect.
From the moment she entered this line of work, she had known love would forever be out of reach.
Marriage was a luxury she could no longer afford.
From her window, she gazed out at the bustling city.
Yet in this vast metropolis, there was no place for her.
Zhang Yan tried to compose herself and returned to bed, but sleep escaped her, and she started scrolling through her phone.
Dancing, skimping, viral marketing.
The same old pointless videos.
Occasionally interspersed with lengthy movie commentaries.
Zhang Yan didn’t know why she was watching these, but during her TikTok scrolling, it was her only brief escape from reality.
One video after another.
Her finger kept swiping down.
Then, her finger paused.
A video caught her eye.
A girl in a school uniform was holding a cello, seemingly ready to perform.
Perhaps it was the school uniform that drew her in, but Zhang Yan didn’t swipe it away.
After all, her job was all about cosplaying high school girls and serving them at foot-bath lounges.
Technician No. 7—that was her name in other people’s eyes.
Someone like her didn’t deserve a real name.
Seeing the high school girl in the video, Zhang Yan suddenly remembered the young couple she’d seen a few days ago.
The girl was stunning, leaving a lasting impression on Zhang Yan.
From her, Zhang Yan recognized what a true high school girl was like.
After that day, Zhang Yan had been studying hard, constantly reviewing and finally learned three important tips.
These three tips caused her business to skyrocket over the past few days, with numerous bosses coming to seek her services.
Today, one boss even spent big bucks trying to take her away.
Logically, she should be happy, but instead, Zhang Yan felt more and more disheartened.
She started questioning whether the path she had chosen was the right one.
Seeing the girl in the video filled her with a profound envy.
If she were a genuine high school girl, maybe her fate would be different.
Unfortunately, she only graduated from a vocational school; ‘vocational’ isn’t exactly prestigious.
As the girl in the video began playing the cello, a serene melody filled Zhang Yan’s room.
Zhang Yan was immediately mesmerized.
What a beautiful tune!
Soft and heartfelt, like a pair of hands gently caressing the tear stains on her face.
Just like love.
One could easily lose themselves in its embrace.
In the dim room, with her icy sheets,
Zhang Yan, lying in bed, thought of many things.
Once upon a time, she too was a girl with dreams of a beautiful love.
Longing for a sweet romance like in the novels.
In fact, she had experienced a love story.
From vocational school to graduation, for three years.
But after she chose to work at the foot bath city, that man who’d stood by her for three years, after realizing reasoning wouldn’t work, finally asked for a breakup.
She had cried her heart out over it.
But why had she, now, become so numb?
Zhang Yan’s heart ached.
As the music crescendoed,
The cello turned from passionate to softly spoken.
Zhang Yan was deeply moved.
In this world, there were so many beautiful loves waiting for her to discover!
But why, why was she willing to be a mere scrap on the outskirts of society?!
Was there really no other path for her to take?!
Finally, Zhang Yan couldn’t hold it in any longer and sat up in bed.
She kicked open the door and looked at her father, who was smoking in the living room.
Biting her lip, she choked out,
“After this month, I’m quitting!”
“From now on, I’m not going to help you with your gambling debts anymore!”
After using all her strength to say that,
Zhang Yan returned to her room and reopened the video.
It was then she noticed the caption beneath it.
The name of the piece was… “Ode to Love”?
What a beautiful melody.
The girl’s name was “Cat”?
This “Cat,” despite not showing her face, gave Zhang Yan a feeling.
She must be another one of those youthful girls, just like that girl from a few days ago, brimming with spirit!
The cello was played beautifully.
Next to her, there must be a love as beautiful as this melody.
The next day, when Lin Tian got out of bed, he was surprised to find his TikTok notifications had blown up to “99+.”
He jolted upright and checked the creator’s dashboard.
23,000 likes, 110,000 views, and over 6,000 comments.
Lin Tian was in shock.
The ratio of likes to comments was outrageous.
Typically, the number of comments should be about one-twentieth of views, with some better ones going up to one-tenth.
When the ratio surpassed this, especially hitting over a third—
Aside from people fighting in the comment section, it usually meant one of two things.
Either it was a total mess, with people battling it out in comments,
Or, the video quality was phenomenal.
Lin Tian admitted that when he opened the video, a part of him was gambling on luck.
【OMG, I actually stumbled upon such a high-quality performance video on TikTok!】
【Even a basic dude like me felt enlightened!】
【I got goosebumps! This is so good, right?!】
【I can’t believe I saw the most beautiful side of love in a single song.】
【Is this an original piece? Anyone who understands, please analyze the level—because I’m clueless and just think it’s incredible!】
【.】
A flurry of comments streamed by.
At that moment, Lin Tian finally believed it.
The video was a hit!
(The end of this chapter)
