Chapter 48: Extroverted Lonely Patient

Chapter 48: Chapter 48: Extroverted Lonely Patient

Seeing his boss and Mr. Su appear at the door pedaling their bikes furiously, Gu hurriedly rushed over.

"Boss, you’re finally here! I was about to lose control of the crowd..."

Jiang Shiyue wiped the fine sweat from her forehead, glanced at her phone, and panted, "What are you panicking for? Aren’t there still three minutes left? Do you know how many things can be done in three minutes?"

"Uh..." Gu was already used to his boss’s unreasonableness. She had the nerve to call him panicky when she was the one sweating and panting. However, she was the boss, so whatever she said was right. He chose to ignore her completely, turning to greet the equally sweat-drenched Su Yunzhou. "Mr. Su, what are you singing tonight? Should I go announce you first? That way, you’ll have some time to rest."

Su Yunzhou nodded. "Let’s start with ’Lonely Patient’ for the first song, and we’ll see how it goes for the second."

Gu nodded and turned to head inside, with the two following closely behind. Seeing the boss and Su Yunzhou appear, many regulars waved in greeting.

"Boss Lady, you’re finally here! You really know how to cut it close!"

"Handsome, we didn’t even go to the movies tonight just to hear you sing."

"Are there any free craft beers tonight?"

Jiang Shiyue snapped playfully at the regulars, "I told you to call me Boss, don’t add the ’Lady’ part. What are you rushing for? It’s not even eight o’clock yet, is it?"

"Yes, yes, yes~ Boss, your timing is impeccable."

Jiang Shiyue let out a haughty harrumph and dragged Su Yunzhou to the backstage area.

The band members were visibly thrilled to see Su Yunzhou and eagerly greeted him. Their previous collaboration was still fresh in their memories. As a band, that was exactly the kind of performance atmosphere they craved the most, but without Mr. Su, they couldn’t achieve it.

The guitarist walked up to him with an embarrassed expression. "Mr. Su, I’m sorry. We only just found out you’re singing ’Lonely Patient.’ We haven’t performed this song before, so..."

"It’s no problem." Su Yunzhou waved his hand dismissively.

Outside, Gu’s voice rang out as he introduced the act. The guy was quite good at warming up the crowd, successfully riling up the guests’ excitement. A moment later, his impassioned invitation echoed through the venue.

"Let’s go!" Su Yunzhou encouraged the band. "Let’s give them an unforgettable night."

The band members nodded heavily. Because they loved music, they cherished every single performance even more.

Su Yunzhou strode confidently onto the stage. The audience immediately erupted into enthusiastic cheers and applause. He pressed his hands down in a placating gesture, and the crowd instantly quieted. Everyone held their breath, waiting for his opening remarks as the band took their positions.

Looking at the expectant faces below the stage, Su Yunzhou’s heart surged with excitement. He finally understood why so many people loved standing under the spotlight; the feeling of being the center of attention was truly extraordinary.

He smiled and said, "Thank you all for coming to my performance today. The next song I’m going to sing is actually a bit out of place, but it helped me get through a very difficult period in my life. I hope you’ll like it too."

With that said, Su Yunzhou gave the band a slight nod.

[Laughter and cheers,

Heating up the atmosphere, yet my heart is so cold]

The first line of lyrics was sung in his deep, profound voice, accompanied by an incredibly infectious melody. It instantly created a powerful sense of immersion, immediately captivating everyone in the venue.

[The spotlight is a kind of blessing,

Yet I cannot shout, wait a minute,

I really admire myself, still able to be humorous,

Masking tears with a smile when I cry,

Afraid of being seen through, with so many worries,

If we don’t talk about loneliness, we can all be happy.]

As the song played out, the vast majority of the audience experienced a strange illusion. It was as if a frustrated figure with an obscured face had appeared right before their eyes.

They tilted their head slightly upward—seeming to cry, yet seeming to smile—just sitting blankly on a sofa, lost in thought. Finally, the grievances, insecurities, and anger in their heart could no longer be suppressed. They wailed loudly, pounding the sofa, sobbing and screaming time and time again.

Why did things turn out like this? Why couldn’t they do anything right? Why did they give so much only to end up with this result? Why...

A long time passed. They stopped their tears and curled up wearily on the sofa. The moonlight, cool as water, poured into the messy room.

The Moon! Sixpence! This multiple-choice question? It was hard to choose. But there had to be an answer, right?

They made a decision in their heart and began to clean up the home that had been trashed during their outburst. They swept the broken glass from the coffee table and sofa into the trash can, picked up the empty liquor bottles and placed them by the door, mopped the floor...

When they turned around, you would finally realize that the person who had just lost control was your past self.

There is a saying: "Did you become an adult on the night you cried so heartbreakingly?" "No. I became an adult the moment I held back my tears."

The evocative singing continued to perform.

[I don’t sing hoarse, exhausting love songs,

It doesn’t mean I don’t have heartbreaking moments.

I’ve never laid my wounds bare to be slaughtered,

Once healed, no one will ever know

My inner frustrations.

Living like a lonely patient, tearing myself apart,

An extroverted lonely patient, what’s wrong with that?]

The live audience could no longer control their emotions. A line about "tearing oneself apart." A line about "what’s wrong with that." These were the inner voices of so many people.

Young people were actually a minority among the patrons of Pharmaceutical Factory. The vast majority were middle-aged individuals who had been battered by society. They hummed along softly, their emotions churning with the melody. When first listening, one doesn’t grasp the tune’s meaning; upon listening again, one has already become the subject of the song.

Sigh! Reaching middle age meant losing control over one’s own life, and the bitter taste of that reality was something only they themselves could understand.

Jiang Shiyue stood backstage, looking at the young man standing in the center of the stage under the spotlight. Hearing that soul-stirring voice, a strange feeling suddenly welled up in her heart. For some unknown reason, Jiang Shiyue felt a rare sense of relaxation and ease in front of him. It was as if he was accommodating her...

[Affinity +3]

As Gu listened to the deeply resonant lyrics, his past memories hit him like a tidal wave—his young and frivolous self, and the mother who had always believed in him. It turned out that on this lonely road, he had already encountered so much...

[The louder the laughter, the crueler it is,

Packed with body heat, yet the room feels even colder.

If the lights go out, the emptiness disturbs me,

Yet I cannot shout, wait a minute.

You say you love me, yet you keep saying,

Saying I shouldn’t hide in the corner.

Is planning an escape a mistake too?

You even plunder my right to be fragile.]

As the song reached this part, the band members on stage felt even more emotional. These few lines seemed to be writing out their very lives. They all loved music, but sometimes, when you persisted in pursuing your dreams, you couldn’t even guarantee putting bread on the table, let alone finding love.

In the early days of the band, there were more of them, but only these few were left now. They had sacrificed so much along the way. But sometimes, clinging to a dream was just like that—even if you worked hard and struggled, it wouldn’t necessarily come true.

Forget about those chicken soup for the soul quotes. If you didn’t have talent, you had to accept your fate. But accepting your fate didn’t mean compromising. Rather, it meant finding another way to persist and love what you do, while making sure you and your family were taken care of. That was true maturity. That was truly cool.

[I don’t need a hoarse, exhausting love song,

To remind me of the moments I need you.

My calm facade isn’t a protective color,

Instead, I want you to understand.

I don’t know why,

Living like a lonely patient, tearing myself apart,

An extroverted lonely patient needing validation.]

The song came to an end. The entire venue erupted into thunderous applause and cheers, each wave louder than the last.

CLAP CLAP CLAP

"Bravo! Well sung!"

"Amazing! I’ve had the fortune to hear the original singer live, and this really stands on its own merits."

"I made the right choice coming tonight. This is absolutely professional-level singing."

"So good! It’s so good it’s unbelievable!"

Meanwhile, in a booth on the second floor of Pharmaceutical Factory.

Qi was completely lost in her memories. It was easy to imagine what a woman who loved both drinking and music had been through.

Annie, however, looked at her male best friend in confusion. Earlier, he had suddenly left his seat and walked up to the railing, looking so agitated that his body was even trembling slightly. She had to admit that the song was sung exceptionally well—even better than most singers in the industry—but as the music director of an entertainment company, her best friend shouldn’t be this worked up!

They had known each other for many years, and she rarely saw her friend lose his composure like this. Because she understood him so well, she knew better than to bother him at this moment; she had to wait until his emotional tide ebbed. Harboring her doubts, Annie waited with a hint of anxiety...