She debuted after having a child with a celestial being.

Xiao He pushed open the door of the Shunyi villa and heard someone humming a song in the living room as he was changing his shoes.

"They threw mud at me, so I used the mud to plant lotus flowers..."

It's the chorus of "Mud".

Liu Yifei squatted on the backyard steps, holding a handful of cat food in her hand, with more than a dozen cats circling around her.

The orange cat squeezed to the front, its tail standing upright like an antenna.

She was wearing a cream-colored knitted cardigan over a misty blue satin slip dress.

Her hair was casually tied back, with a few stray strands hanging down beside her ears. As she scattered cat food, she hummed, "They throw mud at me, I use the mud to plant lotus flowers," the last syllable of her voice rising, making all the cats look up at her.

"Sister Sisi, are you in a good mood?"

"You're back?" She turned to look at him, brushed the cat food crumbs off her hands, and stood up. "How did work go today?"

"It was alright." Xiao He leaned against the doorframe, not mentioning the audition or that Yang Yang had chosen him for Gu Qianfan. He changed his shoes and walked into the living room, picking up her water glass from the coffee table and taking a sip. "Tell me, what made you happy today?"

Liu Yifei walked to the sofa and sat down, straightening the hem of her cardigan. The orange cat followed her in and jumped onto her lap. She stroked the cat's head, a smile still playing on her lips.

Do you know what made me happiest today?

"have no idea."

"I had lunch with the brand representatives today, and I finally understood something completely. Why those investors suddenly came back to me."

She put the cat off her lap, leaned forward slightly, and rested her elbows on her knees.

"They showed me some data. My public image is even better now than before I hit rock bottom, and it wasn't built up by Uncle Chen's resources. Those investors said themselves that after Uncle Chen withdrew his resources, everyone thought I was going to flop. But what happened? Not only did I not flop, I also stood up on my own. That's why they said that Liu Yifei's continued popularity was never due to Chen Jinfei's support."

"What is that?"

"Of course, it's because I'm irreplaceable."

Liu Yifei looked arrogant and smug.

"They say my position in the Chinese entertainment industry is too special. I debuted at the peak of my national-level fairy image, then was criticized as box office poison, and then I changed to a completely different track and made a comeback. This kind of national popularity, this kind of resilience to climb out of the bottom, and this kind of ability to change tracks and still reach the top, I am unique in the entire Chinese entertainment industry. It's not that the capital likes me, it's that they can't find a second person who can replace me. In the past, when brands asked me to be their spokesperson, Uncle Chen was behind the scenes pushing things. Now they ask me because every song I sing in front of the microphone stand is included in their data reports."

She paused for a moment when she said this.

The calico cat jumped off the sofa armrest, rubbed against her calf, and she bent down to touch its ears. When she straightened up, her eyes shone with a new light.

It wasn't excitement, but a sense of relief that had been weighing on my heart for a long time and could finally be let go.

"In other words, my initial success was entirely due to my own efforts. And it still is now."

"Your current emotions are the Liu Yifei I know."

Liu Yifei nodded with a smile: "From a resource-backed actress to being irreplaceable—this comeback is more valuable than any endorsement. By the way, my mom accompanied me to dinner today."

"What did Auntie say?"

"My mom was even happier than I was. When Uncle Chen's resources dried up a while ago, she was so anxious that she started looking for projects herself. She's such a proud person, but she had to ask for favors for me—you know she never used to ask for favors."

She put down the cushion and looked at Xiao He.

"It turned out that I actually made it through all by myself. Not only did it not flop, it actually got better and better."

"That's true. Now you really don't need to rely on anyone else; you rely on me."

"You're so vain." She picked up a cushion as if to throw it at him, but didn't actually do it. She just swung it at him once and then pulled it back, hugging it to her arms again. "But seriously, thank you."

"What are you thanking me for?"

"Thank you for staying with me since last winter." She put the cushion aside, her voice becoming very soft.

"I know you could have become famous on your own. You didn't need to bring me, a box office poison, into any group, write songs for me one by one, or accompany me in the recording studio to polish them over and over again. You could have been there by yourself—you are Xiao He of 'Wild Wolf Disco,' Xiao He of 'Qilin,' and the founder of Hechao Music. But you chose a different path. You chose to take me with you."

Xiao He leaned back on the sofa armrest, watching her speak with her eyelashes slightly lowered. The orange cat in the living room jumped onto the coffee table, its tail brushing against her water glass. He reached out and moved the water glass to the side.

"Sister Sisi, you think I'm mentoring you. But what you don't know is that you're also mentoring me."

"Without you, it would be difficult for me to be promoted as a top label by a music company on my own. The unlimited budget was only because of you. So without you, there would be no 'Insomnia Flight,' no 'Mohe Dance Hall,' no 'Mud,' and no 'The Only One.' Those songs weren't written by me alone. You stood in front of the microphone stand and sang them over and over again until Han Dong said there was no need to fix them anymore, and until Lao Zhou took off his headphones and applauded. The HF duo was never just Xiao He leading Liu Yifei; it was the two of them together."

She put the cat down, then suddenly looked up at him, something flickering slightly in her eyes. But she quickly regained her relaxed, "older sister" demeanor, leaning back on the sofa and crossing her arms: "What exactly are you trying to say? Every time you launch into a long speech, I always feel like you're up to something."

"I think it's a bit fake for you to just thank me verbally. Isn't there a lot of unspoken rules in the entertainment industry?"

"What do you mean?"

"I've heard that some actresses are willing to give up everything for a role."

Liu Yifei's expression shifted from confusion to sudden realization, and then to a dangerous narrowing of her eyes. She leaned back on the sofa, lightly flicking her finger on a cushion, then looked up at him, a slow smile playing on her lips: "So, you want to sexually harass me?"

"That's one way to understand it."

"You're asking for it." She picked up the cushion and slammed it squarely into his chest. But he caught it.

She sat on the sofa, wearing a misty blue satin slip dress with a cream-colored knitted cardigan over it, her hair draped over her shoulders.

She raised her chin, her gaze slowly sweeping over him from bottom to top, and said with feigned arrogance, "Xiao He, it seems you've forgotten who I am. I'm Liu Yifei. If anyone's going to be involved in any kind of 'sexual favoritism,' it should be you who gets 'sexually favored' by me."

She leaned back slightly on the sofa, one hand resting on the armrest, and beckoned to him with her other finger.

The orange cat jumped off her lap and wagged its tail in dissatisfaction.

Xiao He placed the cushion he was holding aside. He took a step forward, bent down, and placed his hands on the back of the sofa beside her—enveloping her completely in front of him.

It's not about pressing down, it's about stopping, like a pause button.

She tilted her head slightly to look at him, her eyelashes fluttering gently in the light, her breath brushing against his chin. He lowered his head, their noses almost touching.

"Fairy Sister, I miss yesterday's kiss so much today. I'd like to relive it...may I?"

"Granted."

She turned her face slightly to the side, her lips almost brushing against his earlobe as she whispered.

"But don't be reckless."

He slowly lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers.

Liu Yifei's lips were soft, carrying a lingering, refreshing taste of the lemonade she had drunk that day.

His fingers slowly moved up her wrist, which was resting on the sofa armrest, his fingertips gliding over her wrist bone, forearm, and elbow, before stopping on her back.

He leaned forward half an inch, his palm cupping the middle of her shoulder blade.

She raised her hand and gently placed it on his shoulder.

Liu Yifei's hands are very soft, as if they possess a magical power that brings immense joy.

The tortoiseshell cat leaped down from the coffee table and landed silently next to the sofa, its tail brushing against Liu Yifei's bare feet.

She didn't dodge, but gently touched the cat's ears with the toe of her other foot, and then continued to respond to his kiss.

A few crumbs of cat food were scattered on the long-haired carpet. The orange cat jumped back onto the sofa armrest, its tail tip brushing against Xiao He's wrist again and again.

He gently brushed the cat's tail aside, and Liu Yifei tilted her head slightly, a smile playing on her lips.

"Even the cats are watching us." Liu Yifei said, catching her breath, her face flushing.

"You're the one watching—the fairy sister is being pinned down on the sofa."

"Try saying it again."

Liu Yifei bit Xiao He's shoulder.