You were supposed to have a fake marriage with the diva, so how did you become her father?

On the morning of the Golden Melody Awards, Lu Ran woke up very early.

He lay on the bed staring at the ceiling for a while, mentally reviewing the things he needed to bring today: admission ticket, ID card, phone charger, Shen Yuege's flat shoes, and thermos.

Because of Shen Yuege's health condition, Lu Ran always brings her a thermos when he goes out.

After confirming that everything was in order, he sat up in bed, opened the bedroom door, and went downstairs.

Shen Yuege was already sitting on the living room sofa, with an open makeup bag in front of her and a lipstick in her hand, comparing the color in a small mirror.

Today she wore a champagne-colored long dress with a loose A-line silhouette and a high waistline that perfectly concealed the curve of her lower abdomen.

Her hair was styled in an updo, revealing her slender neck and a pair of pearl earrings.

Priscilla Chan sat next to her, holding a glass of warm water, and kept saying, "Don't wear too much makeup, you're pregnant now. Wipe off some of your lipstick, it's too red. And do you want to wear a shawl over your dress? The venue is cold."

Shen Yuege responded with "uh-huh" as she continued applying lipstick. After finishing, she took out a tissue and blotted it to lighten the color.

Lu Ran stood at the stairwell for a while watching the mother and daughter until Shen Yuege put down the mirror, looked up, saw him, and said, "What are you standing there for? Go change your clothes."

He then turned and went upstairs.

When Shen Yuege came downstairs after changing her clothes, she was already waiting at the door, carrying a small handbag and wearing a pair of light gold low-heeled sandals with heels that were only about three centimeters high, so walking in them shouldn't be tiring.

She looked Lu Ran up and down, her gaze lingering on his dark gray suit for a couple of seconds before she reached out to straighten his tie knot.

"Your tie is crooked." She gently flicked his collar twice with her fingers, the motion so practiced it seemed she'd done it many times before. Lu Ran looked down and saw a trace of lipstick still lingering on her fingertips.

As the two were leaving, Priscilla Chan stood at the door and called out, "Send a message when you arrive." Shen Yuege waved without turning her head and got into the car.

The car was arranged in advance; Chen Mo helped arrange a driver who drove a black sedan, steady and low-key.

When we arrived at the Shanghai Grand Theatre, the road in front of it was already congested.

Looking out the car window, Lu Ran could see that the red carpet was already surrounded by photographers with telephoto lenses and bloggers who were live-streaming on their phones.

A long red carpet stretched from the theater entrance all the way to the curb, separated by metal railings on both sides. Outside the railings, fans and passersby crowded together. Some held up light sticks, some held up banners, and some stood on folding chairs, holding up their phones and shouting the name of a certain singer.

Lu Ran had the driver stop at the intersection and pointed out the window to Shen Yuege: "Look over there, people have already started walking the red carpet."

Shen Yuege turned her head and glanced out the window, seeing the female singer waving and posing for the camera on the red carpet. She joked with Lu Ran, "Who's that? Why did she come wearing just a curtain?"

Lu Ran leaned closer to take a look and recognized the face, but swallowed the name back. In the end, he said, "Anyway, I'm just here to keep you company today."

Shen Yuege chuckled but didn't reply. She took out a small mirror from her handbag, checked her makeup one last time, and adjusted the position of her earrings.

After the car stopped at the designated drop-off point, Lu Ran got out of the car first, then turned around and reached out to help Shen Yuege.

When she got out of the car, her skirt got caught on the metal frame of the car door. Lu Ran squatted down to help her untangle it, his movements as natural as if he were picking something up in his own living room.

People nearby were already taking pictures with their phones, but neither of them paid any attention.

There is a short red carpet between the drop-off point and the theater entrance, about twenty or thirty meters long.

Lu Ran walked half a step to Shen Yuege's right, with one hand lightly resting on her lower back.

Shen Yuege walked steadily, at a pace that was neither too fast nor too slow, with a smile on her face that was specially prepared for public occasions, the corners of her mouth curving into a just-right arc, neither too much nor too little.

The flashbulbs on both sides started popping the moment they stepped onto the red carpet. Some people were shouting, "Shen Yuege, look this way!" Others were shouting, "President Lu, look this way too!" Still others were shouting, "Could you two come a little closer?"

Shen Yuege was quite generous; upon hearing the shouts, she turned her head and smiled at the camera. Lu Ran followed her rhythm, smiling when she smiled and waving when she waved. The two coordinated as if they had practiced together.

As they approached the theater entrance, a staff member in a black suit came up to check their invitations and then led them into the lobby.

The lights in the lobby were a shade dimmer than outside, and warm-toned light shone down from the ceiling, giving the marble floor a warm glow.

Dozens of guests have already arrived, chatting in small groups.

Some people were holding wine glasses, some were holding only a mobile phone, and some were standing next to a sofa in the corner talking quietly to someone.

Lu Ran glanced around and recognized several familiar faces.

Standing by the window is Chen Jianbin, who won Best Male Singer last year. He is talking to a female singer in a red dress next to him. They both laughed halfway through their conversation.

Sitting next to the sofa in the middle was a producer wearing round-framed glasses. Lu Ran remembered that his name was Sun Li, and he had written several popular songs that were widely sung.

Not far away were a few young faces, who looked like juniors who had been promoted this year. They stood together chatting with a kind of restraint that was typical of someone who had just entered the industry.

Shen Yuege whispered in his ear, "I'm going to say hello to Sister Li; she's over there."

Lu Ran followed her gaze and saw a middle-aged woman in a dark green cheongsam sitting on a sofa in the corner, drinking juice.

Shen Yuege released his hand and walked over, her steps neither fast nor slow, her skirt sweeping lightly across the ground.

Lu Ran stood alone in the middle of the hall, holding a glass of freshly poured warm water. He was wondering whether to find a seat or get another glass of water when someone patted him on the shoulder from behind.

He turned around and saw a smiling face. The owner of the face was Zhang Yuanfan, who had won the Best Album Producer award last year. His hair was a shade whiter than when he saw him last year, but he looked to be in good spirits.

"Mr. Lu! Long time no see!" Zhang Yuanfan extended his hand and shook it firmly. "You look so energetic today; you must have had a great evening. I heard from the organizing committee that you've been nominated for several awards this year. Congratulations!"

Lu Ran smiled and said, "Teacher Zhang is joking. It's all thanks to everyone's support." She responded with a perfectly polite remark.

After all, the two had only met a few times on a certain program before, and were not very familiar with each other.

Zhang Yuanfan clearly wasn't planning to leave easily. He took another half step forward, holding his wine glass, and lowered his voice, saying, "I heard from Lao Zheng that your votes for Best Lyricist this year are ridiculously high. Someone on the judging panel joked that we should just rename that award the 'Lu Ran Award'." He then laughed at himself.

Lu Ran knew in his heart that he should just listen to these words and not take them seriously, but he still politely said, "The judges are fair and just, whoever writes the best will win." Zhang Yuanfan didn't say anything more after hearing this, raised his glass and said, "Then I'll see you on stage tonight," and turned to walk away.

No sooner had Zhang Yuanfan left than people began to gather around him.

This time, she is one of the nominees for Best Female Singer last year. Her name is Lin Ya. She is in her early thirties, quite pretty, and wearing a bright blue short dress. When she smiles, her eyes curve into two crescent moons.

She walked up to Lu Ran, first calling out "Teacher Lu," and then said, "Teacher Lu, I listened to every single one of the songs you wrote for Teacher Shen last year; they were all masterpieces. Especially 'A Thousand Songs,' I've been listening to it on repeat for months, and I still haven't gotten tired of it."

Lu Ran, holding his water glass, said a few modest words. Lin Ya then said, "I also released a new album this year. I originally wanted to ask you to write a song for me, but I heard you've been very busy lately, so I didn't want to bother you."

She spoke with a sincere gaze, but Lu Ran noticed that she glanced at Shen Yuege between sentences. Seeing that Shen Yuege was chatting with Sister Li and not looking in their direction, she continued speaking.

Lu Ran didn't respond to the suggestion of asking for a song, but only said, "Teacher Lin has excellent singing skills. We hope to have the opportunity to collaborate in the future."

The word "later" was used very lightly, but the meaning was already conveyed.

Lin Ya was a smart woman. She smiled and said, "Then I'll remember this appointment." She then picked up her wine glass, lightly touched his water glass, and turned to leave.

Lu Ran had just caught her breath when another person walked over.

This time it was a young male singer with gray-white hair, who looked to be under thirty. He was wearing a black leather jacket over a white T-shirt, and he exuded a "I'm cool" vibe.

He walked over with long strides, and after stopping, he introduced himself: "Hello, Teacher Lu, my name is Qin Tian, ​​I sing rock. I was nominated for Best Rock Song this year."

Lu Ran vaguely remembered the name; he had indeed heard a pretty catchy rock song last year, and he hadn't expected that the person in front of him had written it. He reached out and shook hands with Qin Tian: "You sang 'Wildfire,' right? That song is pretty energetic."

Qin Tian's expression brightened upon hearing this, but he suppressed his joy and simply nodded slightly, saying, "It's good that you've heard of it."

He paused, as if taking a few seconds to think, before continuing, "Mr. Lu, I actually wanted to ask you something—are you interested in making rock songs in the future? I don't mean you're changing careers, but if the opportunity arises, could you try writing one or two songs with a heavier focus?"

Lu Ran thought for a moment, and realized that there were indeed a few famous rock songs from his previous life that he had never actually thought of.

He didn't agree immediately, but said, "I'm considering the direction, it depends on the timing."

Qin Tian nodded after listening, didn't ask any further questions, said "Then I'll wait for your news" and left.

Lu Ran watched his back as he walked to the other end of the hall to greet others, and realized that there were indeed more people present than expected today.

After that, several more groups of people arrived.

An independent music producer came over and chatted for a bit about creative concepts, saying that he wanted to take a more experimental approach to his new album and asked Lu Ran if he was interested in collaborating.

A female singer who had just debuted came over and handed over her business card, saying she wanted to ask Lu Ran to listen to her demo.

There was also an elderly gentleman with gray hair. Lu Ran didn't recognize him, but he recognized Lu Ran. He walked over, shook hands, and said, "Good job, young man. Keep up the good work." Then he took his teacup and left.

The hall grew larger and larger, filled with a mix of voices and laughter, occasionally punctuated by the clinking of glasses.

The air conditioning was on full blast, but the temperature still rose a bit after more people arrived, and some people started taking off their suit jackets and draping them over their arms.

Lu Ran stood there holding the glass of water he hadn't drunk much of, feeling like a flower that had been visited by all sorts of bees and butterflies—each person would come and collect a little nectar and leave, leaving him standing there alone with that "come and chat anytime" expression on his face.

Shen Yuege returned from Sister Li's place at this time.

She walked over with steady steps, a good complexion, and the smile from her conversation with Sister Li still lingered on her lips.

She stopped next to Lu Ran, first scanning the scene in the hall, then whispered, "It's quite lively over there."

"It's alright. A group of people came, but they all left after a few words." Lu Ran handed her a water glass and asked if she wanted a sip. Shen Yuege took it, sipped a small amount, and then returned the glass.

She stood very close to him, her shoulder almost touching his upper arm, the hem of her champagne-colored skirt lightly brushing against the edge of his dark gray trousers.

At this moment, the lights in the hall suddenly brightened, and the organizing committee staff began to guide the guests toward the inner theater.

Lu Ran glanced at the entrance to the inner venue following the direction of the crowd. It was a double dark brown wooden door with gold decorative strips on the door frame. Above the door hung an electronic screen, which displayed the schedule of tonight's awards ceremony.

He turned his head to Shen Yuege and said, "Let's go," then extended his arm for her to put it on.

Shen Yuege gently placed her hand on his forearm, and the two of them followed the flow of people toward the door.

As Lu Ran entered the theater, he looked up and glanced at the screen.

The venue wasn't particularly large, seating around 800 people in a fan-shaped arrangement, extending from the front of the stage to the higher rear rows. The stage itself wasn't large, but the equipment looked quite professional. The backdrop was a single curved LED screen playing a pre-show video that flashed classic moments from past Golden Melody Awards.

Two sets of speakers stood on either side of the stage, their black mesh covers gleaming slightly matte under the stage lights.

Staff guided them to the second row.

That row of seats was slightly wider than the one in the back, and the backrests and cushions were covered with dark blue velvet, providing a very supportive and comfortable feel when you sat down.

Lu Ran's seat was slightly to the left of the center, and Shen Yuege was to his right; their seat numbers were consecutive.

Two seats to the right sat Zhang Yuanfan, who nodded slightly across the people after they sat down.

To the left sat a young female singer whose name Lu Ran couldn't recall, who was whispering something to her companion beside her with her head down.

Several elderly figures with gray hair sat in the first row. Lu Ran recognized one of them as the vice president of the Dragon Musicians Association and the other as the chairman of the jury for the previous Golden Melody Awards.

There was a subtle distance between them and the others in the front row—not a deliberate attempt to put on airs, but a natural state that develops after being in the industry for a long time.

As the lights dimmed, the LED screen in the center of the stage switched from a warm-up video to a line of large golden characters: "The 33rd Golden Melody Awards Ceremony".

The font slowly emerged against a deep blue background, with each stroke's edge shimmering with tiny sparkles of light.

Lu Ran sat up a little straighter and put the water cup into the storage pocket behind the front seat.

Shen Yuege adjusted her posture next to him, and her champagne-colored skirt spread out on the seat.

The sound of a piano prelude began to emanate from the speakers on both sides of the stage.

The sound wasn't loud, but the texture was very clear; every note seemed to grow from the air right in the center of the theater.

The main overhead light began to gradually narrow, leaving only a spotlight shining on the dark wooden floor in the center of the stage that had just been wiped clean.

The main characters for tonight are all in place.

Lu Ran and the other person were also among the main characters of this event, or perhaps the only two true main characters.

...