After the Top Idol Omega and I Started Living Together - Chapter 17

Chapter 17

The next day, the weather was clear and bright.

In the morning, a light rain fell, and at that moment, the sun had not yet risen. The leaves outside the window were lush green and vibrant.

The tree shadows, pushed by the wind, swayed in clusters past the window by Lu Zhao’s bed, shading her small face buried in the pillow.

The late-night snack gathering last night didn’t last too long. At that moment, she showed faint signs of waking, her whole body in a half-dream, half-awake state.

“Buzz buzz…”

The phone’s vibration, right next to the pillow, reached Lu Zhao’s ears instantly.

She thought it was her alarm ringing. She lifted her hand and swiped messily on the screen. The next second, a man’s voice came through: “Lu Zhao, it’s me.”

“!”

Suddenly, Lu Zhao opened her eyes wide.

This was no alarm—it was clearly a phone call!

And it was from her manager, Chen Ruozhi, who never actively contacted her.

What a disaster.

Lu Zhao showed no good expression on her side, and Chen Ruozhi’s tone on the phone wasn’t exactly kind either. He asked bluntly, “There’s a music talent show preparing to start filming. Are you going or not?”

Lu Zhao held no hope that the company would give her any good resources. Lying lazily on the pillow, she asked, “What show is it?”

Chen Ruozhi said, “Hear Your Voice, Season Three. You should know about it, right?”

Of course, Lu Zhao knew about this show.

It was a singing competition program with two seasons so far, launching many singers now active in the music industry. When Lu Zhao debuted, her group’s manager had used this show to paint a rosy picture for them.

She never expected that one day she’d get a piece of that pie.

Chen Ruozhi’s unusual kindness gave Lu Zhao a sense of unease, like a weasel paying respects to a chicken. But after thinking it over, she decided that if it was an opportunity, she had to seize it.

“I know,” Lu Zhao replied calmly.

“Since you know, go to the audition at the end of the month. I’ll send the materials to Chenchen later,” Chen Ruozhi said, as if issuing an order, his tone carrying a hint of complaint. “Lu Zhao, if you can’t seize this, that’s your problem. Don’t say the company isn’t giving you resources.”

Lu Zhao listened to the meaning behind Chen Ruozhi’s words and recalled the comments fermenting under Si Liaoliao’s trending post from last night.

So, it wasn’t a weasel paying respects to a chicken—it was the weasel getting beaten up along with its den.

Lu Zhao glanced at the time on her phone with a smile and replied, “If you could always give me resources like this, there wouldn’t be those comments scolding you, right? Did you stay up all night?”

Chen Ruozhi, stung by her words, gripped his phone tightly in anger.

He could never outtalk Lu Zhao. This time, he wisely chose to stay silent. “If there’s nothing else, I’m hanging up.”

Lu Zhao curved her lips, rare friendliness laced with sarcasm. “Wish you a good nap, then.”

As her words fell, the sound of the call ending reached Lu Zhao’s ears.

Thinking of Chen Ruozhi’s helpless rage at that moment, Lu Zhao felt an indescribable joy.

She got out of bed briskly, unable to help but marvel in her heart what a great day it was.

Humming a tune, Lu Zhao went downstairs.

The familiar smell of cooking came from the kitchen. The ham had been fried to a fragrant aroma, especially enticing.

Sheng Jingyu woke up earlier than Lu Zhao and was already preparing breakfast in the kitchen.

She stood very straight, her movements carrying a calm and unhurried air. She looked like someone who never touched mundane tasks, yet she skillfully flipped the perfectly formed egg pancake.

The morning light, with a hazy tone, draped a faint golden veil over Sheng Jingyu’s back.

Her thick, long hair was casually tied up at the back of her head. Two thin straps of her dress revealed half of her slender back, faintly showing the outline of her shoulder blades, like butterfly wings.

Lu Zhao stepped lightly on the floor tiles, then suddenly paused.

She thought she should go up and greet Sheng Jingyu but didn’t want to disturb the beauty of the moment.

But just then, Sheng Jingyu turned around.

Lu Zhao didn’t know how Sheng Jingyu noticed her approach. She looked up to see Sheng Jingyu gesturing to her, “Come get breakfast.”

Lu Zhao was surprised.

—Sheng Jingyu’s breakfast actually included a portion for her?

On the white porcelain plate were two neatly cut sandwiches. The brown whole-wheat bread showed the fresh, watery green of lettuce, with meat and eggs, perfectly matching Lu Zhao’s usual breakfast portion.

“Since you’re learning vocals from me, starting today, your diet will be the same as mine,” Sheng Jingyu said, handing the plate to Lu Zhao with one hand, calmly instructing her. “Protect your throat well. What you do in your youth, good or bad, will all come back to you after thirty.”

It had been a long time since anyone cared for Lu Zhao like this. Something inside her seemed to come alive.

She nodded, her attitude serious. “I will do it, Teacher.”

With those simple words, the two sat down at the dining table.

Lu Zhao took a bite of the breakfast Sheng Jingyu made. The simple ingredients stacked in her mouth—not complex, but clean and pure in flavor.

Chenchen always said this whole-wheat bread was tasteless, dry, and bitter.

But Lu Zhao liked it very much.

After half a sandwich, Lu Zhao remembered something. “By the way, Teacher, my manager got me a spot for the audition of Hear Your Voice, Season Three. He called me this morning.”

Sheng Jingyu listened to Lu Zhao and recalled the show’s setup.

She swallowed the food in her mouth unhurriedly, then raised her hand to analyze. “This show is very good. It’s on prime TV, with good exposure and high popularity. I remember Zhou Huanyin will be a mentor for the third season. With her, the lineup is decent.”

Lu Zhao let out an “Ah?” upon hearing this. “Zhou Huanyin is coming back this season too? How does Teacher know? The mentor lineup hasn’t been officially announced yet, has it?”

Sheng Jingyu paused for a moment.

Her hand lightly tapped the table edge, and she explained vaguely, “I have a decent relationship with her. She mentioned it to me before.”

Lu Zhao didn’t notice Sheng Jingyu’s subtle change at all. Her attention was entirely on the fact that Sheng Jingyu’s circle included Zhou Huanyin. She couldn’t help but get excited. “Then, Teacher, have you met Jing Yun?”

“Our Jing Yun’s only friend in the industry is Zhou Huanyin. Since you have a decent relationship with her, have you also met Jing Yun?”

Lu Zhao’s curiosity about Jing Yun always spiraled out of control. Her amber eyes sparkled under the incandescent light.

In that moment, it was as if a sun rose high outside Sheng Jingyu’s world, its intense heat shining into her world too.

This person really liked her.

Sheng Jingyu lowered her eyes slightly, then shook her head. “No.”

“Oh…” Lu Zhao felt a bit of regret and pursed her lips.

As she reached for the sandwich to take another bite, Sheng Jingyu raised her hand again. “What’s the plan for today?”

The topic returned to normal.

Lu Zhao thought for a moment and reported to Sheng Jingyu, “I’m going to visit my grandma’s grave later. It’s her birthday, and I go every year. I’ll probably be back before lunch. In the afternoon, I don’t have work, so I want to prepare well for the audition at the end of the month.”

Family ties and serious matters intertwined, as if coloring the day with a different hue.

Sheng Jingyu sat across from Lu Zhao but only nodded. “Good. I’ll make a plan this morning. We’ll have lunch together when you’re back at noon.”

Time flowed like water, impossible to hold. People often only realized a day was different from the past in a moment of reflection.

Fortunately, this time, Lu Zhao seized it.

She translated Sheng Jingyu’s gestures into words, each stroke comforting.

Someone was in this house again, waiting for her to return.

.

The sun rose a bit higher, and the cemetery shimmered with sunlight.

Lu Zhao stopped by the shade of a tree, holding a bouquet of flowers. The large, heavy double tombstone bore photos of two women—one stern, one kind.

Both were Lu Zhao’s grandmothers.

She poured wine for both, then sat casually on the stone ledge beside, talking about recent events. “Old ladies, I rented out your house. Now I’m sharing it with someone.”

“My housemate is called Sheng Jingyu, an Omega.” Lu Zhao recalled as she introduced Sheng Jingyu to the two elders. “Miss Sheng is very beautiful, like snow on a high mountain, the kind of person you can only admire from afar.”

Lu Zhao smiled as she spoke, then added proudly, “Miss Sheng isn’t just beautiful—she’s amazing. She taught me a small trick, and I crushed Si Liaoliao!”

“So now she’s not just my housemate but also my teacher. I really…”

At this point, Lu Zhao paused.

She suddenly didn’t know how to define Sheng Jingyu’s place in her life. It seemed natural that when an Alpha and an Omega were together, any relationship felt ambiguous.

After hesitating, Lu Zhao plucked a fitting but unfamiliar word from her mind. “Respect her.”

She didn’t like this word much.

But for the moment, she couldn’t find a better one.

“Let’s not talk about that.” Lu Zhao changed the topic.

“Grandma, I’m going to a singing talent show at the end of the month. This time it’s pure singing, not like the singing-and-dancing one from a couple of years ago.”

Lu Zhao’s words carried a playful, childlike tone, as if breaking it down for elders out of touch with the times.

She smiled, clasping her hands to plead with the two elders. “Grandma, bless me to get a little closer to Jing Yun this time, okay? Ah Zhao loves you the most.”

Suddenly, a breeze blew from one side, rustling the lush green branches.

A shadow passed over Lu Zhao’s head, like an elder’s gentle hand.

The sweat on her forehead from the journey eased, and her body felt lighter.

As the visit came to an end, Lu Zhao poured the wine from the cups into the soil beside the tombstone. Seeing the wine soak in, she stood to leave.

The sun gradually climbed to the center of the sky, its scorching light making the surrounding cement glow white.

Just as Lu Zhao stood up from the stone ledge, she saw three people standing at the end of the path lined with tombstones.

As if coordinated, the family of three all wore black-and-white clothing.

The woman on the left held the arm of the woman in the middle, their intimacy clear. On the right, Lu Zhao saw someone she had just met a few days ago.

Si Liaoliao.

The bright, intense smile was now completely gone, and Lu Zhao’s face darkened instantly.

But she had to walk over and call out to the woman in the middle, “Mother.”

The woman nodded gently, but she didn’t care much for the address.

Looking at Lu Zhao, who didn’t speak again, she reminded her with dissatisfaction, “Ah Zhao, why aren’t you calling Liaoliao ‘Sister’ again?”