My Landlord is an Idol Singer - Chapter 162

“What are you spacing out for?” A warm voice came from above her head. Xia An’ge looked up and saw Gu Zhinan tossing a blanket onto the other sofa.

“If you don’t go back and get your own blanket, I won’t give you mine. It’s freezing tonight!” Gu Zhinan warned.

“Oh.” Xia An’ge responded lightly, her voice crisp. She stood up quickly.

When she picked up her blanket, she noticed Gu Zhinan standing at the door. Had he been following her this whole time? She placed her blanket on the sofa where she had put the pillow earlier. With her peach-blossom eyes, Xia An’ge glanced at Gu Zhinan.

“What are you looking at? Not going to sleep?”

“I’m not sleepy.”

“…” Gu Zhinan was speechless. He checked the time, it was only a little after nine. Still, in this kind of weather, staying up felt like tempting fate. It was heaven-sent sleeping weather! “So, what do we do then?”

“Sunny Day isn’t finished yet!” Xia An’ge wrapped herself snugly in the blanket, only her head poking out. Clearly, she was used to this routine.

“I can’t sing the later parts yet. You must’ve noticed when I sang just now, some notes went off. Didn’t it sound weird to you?”

That song, Sunny Day, he never wanted to sing poorly. In his past life, he only ever sang along in his heart, silently. It was a song that struck deep in him, as powerful as the original singer.

Xia An’ge thought for a moment and obediently nodded. “Yeah, it was a little weird.”

“Why don’t you sing then? I’ll listen. It’s been a while since I’ve heard the landlady sing.”

Gu Zhinan suggested. In the candlelight, his gaze locked straight onto Xia An’ge. She hesitated for a moment before nodding, her cheeks flushing.

She pulled the blanket away, revealing her loungewear, and sat on the floor. Picking up the guitar, she looked at Gu Zhinan, who was sitting cross-legged on the sofa with his chin propped on one hand, watching her. Xia An’ge lowered her head.

“What should I sing?”

“Anything you like, just not Summer Wind or Love Song. Sing something I haven’t heard before.”

“Okay.” After thinking it over, Xia An’ge remembered a cheerful, lighthearted song she used to listen to often. It didn’t have Gu Zhinan’s kind of poetic flair, but it was pleasant and uplifting.

Her fingers landed on the strings, strumming softly before pressing down, and soon a lively melody filled the air. Xia An’ge began to sing in a gentle voice, her song reflecting her current mood: being with the person she liked. No summer, no breeze, yet it felt just right.

When Gu Zhinan heard the melody, he froze. It was the first time he’d heard her sing such a cheerful love song. Watching her lower her head, focused on playing, singing without pause, a similar song suddenly surfaced in his mind.

He listened carefully, recalling the tune in his heart. When Xia An’ge finished, he smiled confidently. “Wait here.” 

With that, he returned to his room. Moments later, he came back with paper and pen. Xia An’ge was puzzled, watching as Gu Zhinan lit another candle for brighter light and began scribbling on the white sheet.

In just a few minutes, he was done. He handed the lyrics to Xia An’ge and took the guitar from her arms. Seeing her stunned expression, Gu Zhinan waved his hand in front of her face until she blinked, then said,

“I’ll play the chords once. You read along with the lyrics, and let’s try singing it together, okay?”

“Lime?” By candlelight, Xia An’ge read the lyrics. Her eyes widened in surprise, it was a duet, with parts clearly marked for male and female voices.

And the lyrics… her face flushed bright red. They were strange, yet unbelievably sweet. It was a fresh, lighthearted love song.

She snuck a glance at Gu Zhinan, who sat upright with perfect composure, and couldn’t figure him out. She’d just sung one cheerful song, and he immediately turned around and wrote something with the same vibe.

“What a freak!”

Gu Zhinan had no idea what was running through her mind. He’d simply been inspired. He’d long thought about changing her musical style, and her song just now gave him the push. This was the Long March and this was step one!

“Look at the lyrics against the melody. I’ll hum through it once.” Gu Zhinan sat on the floor as well, strumming the guitar. The tune was similar to the one she’d sung earlier.

“Here we go.” As soon as he plucked the strings, the room filled with an even sweeter, lighter sound than before. Gu Zhinan chuckled softly and began to sing.

The moment he opened his mouth, Xia An’ge froze. She stared in disbelief, but soon her own soft voice followed along, guided by the lyrics in her hand. A smile spread across her lips, refusing to fade.

Two short minutes later, Gu Zhinan stopped the strings, laughing at Xia An’ge, who was happily bobbing her head to the melody. She glared at him in embarrassment. “How dare he casually come up with something like this!”

“Can we sing it now? If not, I’ll play it again for you to follow along.”

Xia An’ge shook her head softly. “I can sing it.”

The song was simple. For someone with her level of training, one listen and a glance at the lyrics were enough.

“I thought you only wrote sad songs.” She said it as if casually, though her heart was pounding nervously. Singing a sweet duet with Gu Zhinan, how was she supposed to survive that?

“Just dabbling,” Gu Zhinan replied. He seemed to have adopted ‘just dabbling’ as his catchphrase after writing songs.

“Alright then, let’s start.” He pulled out his phone and started recording. Xia An’ge didn’t notice, still dazedly staring at the lyrics, recalling how he had just sung them.

Gu Zhinan smirked to himself. In his memory, this was the first time the landlady was singing this kind of song. He had to record proof, something to brag about to her fans later!

His fingers strummed again, the guitar’s bright melody filling the air. Gu Zhinan’s gentle voice carried the rhythm.

“Summer, daylight, red beans from Ming Dynasty. One bite, the sweetness melts away the weariness! The wind passes over the sea, suddenly, it takes away the unease in your dreams!”

When he finished, he swayed to the beat and looked at Xia An’ge expectantly, eager to hear her part. Blushing, Xia An’ge hid her face behind the lyrics, but her soft voice followed his without missing a beat.

“I catch the scent of midsummer lime leaves, your gentle smile, beside me, green limes swaying lightly, oh, oh, I understand your shy hesitation, like the lingering notes of lime, guiding me straight to your heart.

I catch the scent of midsummer lime leaves, your gentle smile, beside me, green limes swaying lightly. I understand your shy hesitation, like the lingering notes of lime, guiding me straight to your heart!”

When her part ended, Gu Zhinan beamed, his fingers moving more smoothly across the strings. Her voice was better than he had imagined, soft yet clear, perfectly in tune, without a single slip despite it being her first try.

When Xia An’ge lowered the lyrics sheet, she found Gu Zhinan gazing at her with smiling eyes, still strumming and swaying. After the interlude, Gu Zhinan began again.

“Ice-cold cola, sweet mango, one sip feels like embracing the whole world! A kind of temptation, with a name called pineapple, let’s see if your dreams hold a rainbow!”

Xia An’ge joined in immediately, her voice still soft and airy.

“I catch the scent of midsummer lime leaves, your gentle smile, beside me, green limes swaying lightly. I understand your shy hesitation, like the lingering notes of lime, guiding me straight to your heart.”

She swayed unconsciously with the rhythm, waving the lyrics sheet in her hands, her face glowing with laughter. The words were odd, yet strangely sweet. 

When her verse ended, she kept singing, and Gu Zhinan hummed along with her. Their eyes met, both smiling, both caught up in the moment. Xia An’ge had forgotten her earlier worries, right now, she just wanted to finish this song with him.

“Summer daylight, wind passing by, I understand your shy hesitation. I catch the scent of midsummer lime leaves!”

Together, they rocked to the beat, their voices overlapping.

“I catch the scent of midsummer lime leaves, your gentle smile, beside me, green limes swaying lightly. I understand your shy hesitation, like the lingering notes of lime, plucking stars to place on your shoulder…”

Gu Zhinan slowly let the guitar fall silent, then, under Xia An’ge’s shocked gaze, pressed the save button on his phone recording.