Do not question why he was able to spot General Du in the crowd at first sight.
The box was much larger than Xu Zhuo's, and its decoration was quite different from that of other karaoke clubs. The black walls were painted with colorful large patches, forming distorted symbolic figures and landscapes, with demons dancing around a large golden ball, the shining sun. And it was under this visual focus that Du Ziyu, exuding an icy demeanor, was sitting.
There were quite a few people in the box, but upon closer scrutiny, at least two-thirds were lively young men and women who had come to please and flatter a few central figures. However, Du Ziyu was sitting alone, with a little girl looking restless half a meter away from him, apparently mustering up the courage.
On the way, William told him that this shop was owned by Wu Dao, and the only luxurious box in the shop was designed by him personally and only used to entertain close friends and relatives.
When William opened the door and brought him in, Du Ziyu was busy staring at the MV on the screen with disinterest, not bothering to lift his eyelids. However, the man who was singing "Shan Dan Dan's Blossoming" noticed them and exclaimed, "Hey, wow," which was heard through the microphone. Those who were singing and playing games immediately followed his gaze, and suddenly the two of them became the focus of the crowd.
The man who had exclaimed stood up and casually tossed the microphone, and a slender boy behind him skillfully caught it and started playing the song "Courage" by Liang Jingru.
"He is Wu Dao," William said to Xu Zhuo in a low voice amidst the music.
Xu Zhuo made a great effort to put on a smile. Wu Dao, who looked to be in his twenties, had messy short hair around his chin, a half-face of stubble, and was wearing a faded printed T-shirt and a pair of work shorts with a hole in them. He came up to Xu Zhuo with enthusiasm, smiling so wide that his cheekbones were visible, like a fox that had spotted a chicken, and his eyes were almost glued to Xu Zhuo's body.
"Where did you find this handsome man, William?" he shouted loudly.
The words "handsome man" gave Xu Zhuo goosebumps, and he almost couldn't maintain his smile. Darn it, where was he "handsome"?
"Mr. Wu Dao," William also shouted amidst the music, "this is Xu Zhuo, the manager I mentioned to you last time."
Wu Dao had already started to touch Xu Zhuo, circling around him, pinching his arms and waist, extending his arms and bending to measure his leg length. If Xu Zhuo hadn't received William's warning in advance and prepared himself psychologically, he would have already flipped him over and punched him to the floor.
"Witness this bicep," Wu Dao exclaimed, "this leg length," using both hands to circle his thighs, "these thigh muscles," and then stepped back, still lingering with a look of satisfaction, "and this bone structure--bro, you are at least 185cm tall, right?"
Even more. Xu Zhuo modestly responded, "More or less."
"Your muscles are well-defined but not excessively bulky, tall figure with straight shoulder lines. Oh man, I want to take a nude photo of you right now," Wu Dao's words were shocking, and he came closer and asked, "Do you have time?"
Goosebumps fell off Xu Zhuo, feeling awkward, "Haha, I've been a bit busy lately..."
"Alright, give me your phone number, and contact me anytime," they exchanged contact information in less than half a minute, and started to treat each other like brothers. William secretly gave Xu Zhuo a thumbs up, and Xu Zhuo responded with a sarcastic eye roll.
Speaking of Wu Dao, he was quite a character. Many people didn't even know his real name, as he had considered himself an artist since a young age, particularly fond of directing and photography, insisting that others call him "Wu Dao." He came from a wealthy family, and his elders thought that his youthful rebellious period would pass and he would return to the family business, but as the years went by, the spirit of rebellion remained, and he actually made a name for himself in the film industry, winning the Golden Bear Award at the Berlin Film Festival, and was currently considered a top director in China.
However, he didn't have much pretense, was good at making friends, loyal, and had come to shoot an advertisement for Bing You last time to help out a friend.
"Wu Dao has a good singing voice," Xu Zhuo said as they walked back arm in arm, while William returned to his seat.
"Do you want to sing? Let's sing a song together!" The slender boy was still swaying and singing, and Wu Dao picked up another microphone and looked around, shouting, "Where is another microphone? Who's not singing and hiding the mic...ha ha, well, I'm old with poor eyesight, ha ha..."
Suddenly, there was a new grandpa, Du Ziyu, staring at the microphone on the table in front of him, and he slowly tapped his face with his index finger as he propped up his head, remaining motionless.
The group of people nearest to him, who had just been rolling dice, also paused, staring at each other in stunned silence, accusing each other, silently, which jerk had placed the microphone in front of Du Ziyu just to free up a seat!?
Now that the words were spoken, Wu Dao couldn't go without taking it, as all eyes were fixated on him. He was in a dilemma. This small group was built on the basis of their parents' relationships and had been friends for over a decade. Du Ziyu was the youngest, but also the most capable and the most difficult to handle. No one dared to make fun of him. It was even scarier to hear the rumors about him outside. These old friends had built up resistance over many years, and they couldn't just run away and leave Xu Zhuo in trouble.
So, like a person suffering from rheumatism, he took the first step with uncoordinated movements.
Xu Zhuo sneered. He had a problem. It was considered a problem, yet many people would be grateful for it; it was not a problem, but it had indeed caused him a lot of trouble.
For example, now, his "instinct to step in when faced with an awkward situation, much like the instinct to pop bubble wrap" had kicked in. His right hand, disregarding the protests of his brain, grabbed Wu Dao's shoulder, interrupting his generous offer. With his other hand, he took the microphone from him and walked towards Du Ziyu, greeting loudly, "General Du is here too. What song do you want to sing? Let me help you choose."
The people around who had just not reacted stopped, their faces frozen in shock, and all eyes in the box were on the two of them.
"...I know, it's not easy; I have been trying to convince myself all this time..."
Xu Zhuo, looking seemingly composed on the surface, was actually as anxious as a dog in his heart, but his smile was still bright and charming, much like the blazing golden sun next to Du Ziyu.
Perhaps his smile was too dazzling, or he was shocked by his courage, or for some other inexplicable reason, Du Ziyu was stunned for a moment, lowered his eyelids slightly, slowly reached out his hand, and the long, slender fingers touched the microphone in Xu Zhuo's hand, and the entire room took in a breath in silence.
"...Love really needs courage, to face all the gossip and rumors, as long as you give me a nod of approval with your eyes..."
Xu Zhuo was ready to scream "Aaa" with the excitement in his heart, but he forced himself to calm down, coughed softly, bent down to look at the song selection screen and asked, "What song do you want to sing?"
Du Ziyu said plainly, "Anything."
"...If my strength and willfulness unintentionally hurt you..."
Xu Zhuo was speechless. He didn't know the songs of these two great men. General Du, do you actually not know how to sing at all? What should he do, the situation was getting out of control!
His mind worked quickly. He needed something popular, easy to understand, catchy, and with low difficulty, preferably a duet. Scanning through the song selection screen, his gaze stopped at the next song being performed.
"...Love really needs courage and how to stop, who switched off my music?" the slender boy asked in confusion, holding the microphone.
Xu Zhuo replied with the microphone, "Sorry, I'm going to sing with General Du. Here, let's play the next song."
The melodious accompaniment of "Courage" stopped, and another cheerful prelude started playing. Suddenly, the expressions on the faces of everyone in the box--except for the ice-cold General Du and the unfazed Mr. Xu, remained constant, and the baffling colors on the walls, with the modernist color blocks, seemed to echo the wide range of emotions showing on their faces.
The song that everyone found so terrifying, easy to understand, catchy, with low difficulty, and a duet, was "Today You Are Going to Marry Me."