I became a movie star at the age of three; Dilraba and I are childhood sweethearts.

He stretched out his frighteningly strong arm and put his arm around Wang Jinhua's shoulder.

"Money is something you only need enough to get by."

Wang Jinhua glared at him.

"That's a shortfall of hundreds of millions! Do you know how many people at Shishiba Culture are currently waiting for money?"

Xiao Chen blinked, his tone carrying a hint of the slyness of someone from the hutongs of Beijing.

"I need to find a place to sunbathe this body of mine, otherwise all my hard work will be for nothing."

He pointed to his heart.

He is still the same Xiao Chen.

The boy who would take her back to the courtyard house to drink soy milk and hand her a tissue when she cried.

But he's grown up.

She grew into... a man she could not resist at all.

"Speaking of which, the current state of the Western music scene is really..."

Avril sighed, finally finding her area of ​​expertise.

"Adele's 'Rolling in the Deep' is absolutely dominating the charts."

"And then there's Lady Gaga, her style is always so crazy."

"Sometimes I feel that there are too many newcomers, and too many monsters."

These words carried a hint of the genuine anxiety that comes with being a superstar.

Xiao Chen listened quietly, his obsidian-like eyes fixed on her.

"No one can shake your status as the rock sweetheart."

His voice wasn't loud, but it was like a pebble thrown into Avril's heart, creating ripples.

Rock and roll sweetheart.

She once strongly resented this label that the media attached to her when she debuted, feeling that it limited her.

But when Xiao Chen said it, it sounded like it was coated with honey.

Avril's heart skipped a beat.

She raised her head, met his gaze, and mustered the greatest courage of her life.

"And what about you?"

Her voice trembled slightly.

Do you think... I'm a sweetheart?

The air seemed to freeze.

Xiao Chen didn't answer immediately, but just looked at her with deep eyes, as if he wanted to suck her soul in.

Avril felt her palms were sweaty.

The next second, she made a decision that shocked even herself.

She reached out and, across the table covered with a pristine white tablecloth, took Xiao Chen's hand for the first time.

His hands are large, warm, and full of strength, with thin calluses from years of fitness training on his palms.

The rough touch sent an electric current through Avril's body.

"I have waited for you for many years."

She spoke these words almost in a breath, each one uttered with all her strength.

From their first encounter at the villa when she was fifteen, that Eastern boy had taken up residence in her heart.

Over the years, so many people have come and gone in her life, but that position has always remained empty.

She is waiting for him.

Wait until he grows up, wait until he looks at himself.

Xiao Chen's fingers twitched, but instead of pulling away, he gently grasped her slightly cool fingertips.

"I know."

His answer was only three words.

There were no vows of eternal love, no passionate responses, just a calm statement.

But for Avril Lavigne, those three words brought her more peace of mind than any "I love you."

he knows.

He always knew.

Even the whole world knows about it.

Her eyes instantly welled up with tears.

Avril quickly lowered her head, not wanting him to see her loss of composure.

"Um... how long are you going to stay in Los Angeles this time?"

She quickly changed the subject, her voice thick with a nasal tone.

Xiao Chen answered.

"The production team will need some more time to prepare."

Avril's voice grew softer and softer until it was almost inaudible.

"Then... during this time, could I... stay by your side?"

"I won't disturb your work. I can cook for you, or... or I can do nothing at all, as long as I can see you."

She was like a prisoner awaiting sentencing, so nervous she could hardly breathe.

Xiao Chen looked at her lowered head, her long golden eyelashes seemingly still glistening with tears.

He released his grip, picked up a napkin, and handed it to her.

"Can."

Avril looked up abruptly, unable to believe her ears.

A faint smile played on Xiao Chen's lips.

"However, please don't cook. I'm afraid I'll end up in the hospital from eating something bad."

Avril paused for half a second, then burst out laughing, tears streaming down her face.

She hastily wiped her face with the napkin Xiao Chen handed her, but her heart felt as sweet as honey.

During the meal, Ivy-Er ate absentmindedly, her mind filled with Xiao Chen's words, "Okay."

On the way back, she even hummed her debut song, "Complicated".

The lighthearted melody mirrored her soaring mood at that moment.

The car smoothly drove into a villa located halfway up the mountain.

The villa was brightly lit.

As soon as the two got out of the car, a smartly dressed woman with a commanding presence came out of the house to greet them.

It was Wang Jinhua, the queen of Shishiba Culture, and also "Aunt Hua" who raised Xiao Chen from childhood.

Wang Jinhua first glanced at Xiao Chen to make sure he was alright before her gaze fell on Avril behind him.

She looked Avril up and down, her eyes showing no surprise, but rather a hint of understanding and a subtle, almost imperceptible, teasing.

"Hey, isn't this our world-renowned rock star?"

Wang Jinhua's tone was neither warm nor cold.

Avril instantly lost her courage in front of her, and greeted her shyly like a primary school student meeting her homeroom teacher.

"Good evening, Aunt Hua."

Wang Jinhua wasn't buying it at all.

She knows this girl too well.

From the age of fifteen, whenever Xiao Chen was on a film set, she could be found within a 500-mile radius.

Back in the Titanic crew, this girl even bribed the production assistant to sneak in disguise as a food delivery person, just to catch a glimpse of Xiao Chen.

Who in the industry doesn't know about his dedication?

"Alright, stop pretending to be innocent."

Wang Jinhua waved her hand and spoke directly to Xiao Chen.

"Your room is the first one on the left on the second floor. I've had the housekeeper tidy it up for you. As for this one..."

Her gaze then turned to Avril.

"The guest rooms are on the right. Stay as long as you want. Anyway, our great actor Xiao has plenty of money to pay the rent."

Avril's face flushed bright red instantly, all the way down to her ears.

Xiao Chen glanced at Wang Jinhua helplessly.

"Aunt Hua, can't you give me a little face?"

"To save face for you?"

Wang Jinhua raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest.

"The first thing you asked my mom after you came down from the Oscar stage was what we were having for dinner."

"Why didn't you care about saving face back then?"

"When you used your Grammy trophy as a kimchi jar, didn't you care about saving face?"

"Now look what's happened, you've lured that young girl home, and now you know you have to save face?"

These words left Xiao Chen speechless.

Avril listened from the side, but couldn't help but want to laugh.

Only Aunt Hua would dare to speak to Xiao Chen like this now.

Only in front of Aunt Hua would this man, who shines brightly in the outside world, reveal such a helpless, "childlike" side.