After speaking with JJ, the call barely ended when her phone rang again. This time, the call was from one of her music mentors, the legendary hitmaker, Enrique Valdez.
“Hello, Teacher Enrique?”
“I watched the livestream,” the taciturn man said.
Iris grabbed her husband’s hand and walked away from everyone else. Jin Liwei followed her without saying anything, allowing her to lead him to a quiet part of the indoor forest.
“Did you like my impromptu song?” she asked.
“Very coarse. Not up to your usual standards at all. If I were to grade the song in its current state, I’ll give it a barely passing mark of D-minus.”
She sighed but accepted her mentor’s criticism. Even she thought the same way. “I know, Teacher.”
“But you sang it from the heart. The technical difficulty in both the musicality and the vocals might be low and simplistic, but in terms of emotional impact, you sang it beautifully. The song is heartfelt and your listeners felt what you wanted to convey to them. That’s what’s the most important. A song might be impressive with all kinds of bells and whistles in techniques, but if it doesn’t have a heart and soul, then your listeners won’t be able to connect to it. So for that reason, I’ll increase the grade to C-minus. But I know that you can do better than this. You’re a Cross Academy student. Aim for an A-plus. Always.”
“Yes, Teacher. I’ll work on polishing the song. Mr. JJ and I plan to release the studio version of the song as a special single once it’s done.”
“Good. The song is a rough gem. It needs some polishing but don’t overdo it and make it lose its original charm. Sometimes a few rough edges here and there are better than over-refinement.”
“I understand, Teacher. Thank you for the advice. I’ll certainly keep it in mind. Is it okay if I consult with you while I’m working on it?”
“Of course. I’m your mentor. That’s what I’m here for.”
Iris smiled. “Thanks again. I also made a small progress on the music for our collaboration.”
“Don’t rush it. Take your time.”
The mentor and student talked about music for a while before the phone call ended. Then Iris threw herself at her husband, wrapping her arms around his waist, and inhaling his comforting scent. She immediately felt better.
It was only after the livestream ended that the tiredness registered to her. She sighed. She only sat during the livestream and performed one song near the end but she already felt this tired. Pregnancy really took a lot from her energy reserves.
“Tired?” Jin Liwei asked, hugging her back.
“Yeah.”
He kissed her forehead. “You can rest when we return to our room.”
She lifted her head to look at him. “Thanks for today, darling. It’s because of you that I now feel more connected to my fans. This special contest has surpassed my initial expectations. I love it.”
“I’m glad. We’ll do it again next year. We’ll make it into a big annual end-of-the-year event for the Black Stars.”
She laughed. “Excellent idea! I’d love that. I want to contribute to the prize pool next time. And maybe also involve my charitable foundation, Iris of Hope. If we’re going to give, then it’s better to be thorough about it and help those who need it the most, not just my fans.”
“En. If that’s what you want.”
She pulled his necktie down, forcing him to lower his head. Then she kissed him in the mouth. They were standing behind a tree and some tall bushes so the others couldn’t see them making out. Although they didn’t mind being seen, at least they didn’t have to worry about showing some tongue action when nobody was watching. They could make out as much as they wanted.
“If I don’t feel so tired right now, I would have already pushed you to the ground and have my wicked way with you,” Iris teased her husband.
Jin Liwei’s eyes darkened before pushing her and pressing her back against a tree trunk. “This husband’s body is always ready to accept my wife’s wicked ways.”
“I bet.” She pulled him for another hot kiss and only stopped when she felt his growing hardness pressing against her belly.
He was panting when the kiss ended. He nuzzled her neck and focused on regaining control of his beastly instincts to ravage his woman. This wasn’t the right time or the right place, not to mention that his wife was tired. They stayed behind the cover of the trees and bushes until his erection was no longer that noticeable. However, it was still semi-erect. He couldn’t do anything about it. His wife was too tempting for him.
They finally joined the others. Although the people didn’t say anything, their knowing looks indicated that they were aware of what the husband and wife did behind the bushes. Iris’ red and slightly swollen lips were already the biggest evidence.
After thanking the crew and everyone who helped to make the livestream happen as smoothly as possible, Iris and Jin Liwei announced that they would all get a big buffet lunch. Everyone cheered.
The couple didn’t join them and instead ate a light lunch by themselves in their suite. Although Iris already felt a lot better after following Theresa Blipsburg’s health plan, some foods still made her nauseous.
After lunch, the couple took a shower and changed into more comfortable clothes. Iris conducted a quick system scan on both Ketchup and Bacon while listening to their report about what happened during the livestream.
“Great job, Ketchup. You protected the livestream well. Bacon, you too. Well done. You led ShaWn and chased away Eagle by yourselves. I’ll reward both of you with red packets.”
“Yay yay! Thanks, Mommy! Love ya lots. Mwah mwah tsup tsup! Meow~”
“Bacon thanks Mother.”
“I’ll make more adjustments on both of your systems when I wake up from my nap later,” Iris told them. “The Eagle hackers has become stronger since the last time you faced them. Fortunately, you also grew so much stronger than them after waking up from your recovery sleep. But you should never grow complacent. The Eagle hackers are not the ones we should worry about but the master behind them.”
