Chapter 50

Xia Xi: “...” Not exactly thrilled.
Da He took one look at Xia Xi's clearly constipated expression and chuckled inwardly, feeling like he'd stumbled upon a treasure. It was no easy feat to get Xia Xi this worked up.
"And now I'm Sister Xia Xi's die-hard fan!" The young boy, oblivious to Xia Xi and Da He's reactions, continued talking to himself. He looked incredibly proud, and Xia Xi couldn't shake the feeling that she even detected a sense of mission in his expression. "From now on, if anyone dares to say Sister Xia Xi's beauty is fake, I'll be the first to disagree! Sure, her acting might be a bit lacking, but her looks are undeniable. I'll be the one to protect Sister Xia Xi's visual appeal from now on!"
"…" What the hell?
After clearly hearing what the boy said, Xia Xi was both amused and annoyed. She narrowed her eyes and looked at the young boy, "Are you deliberately trying to provoke me?"
"No, I’m not provoking you. I’m telling the truth, and I’m being very serious! Because Sister Xia Xi’s appearance perfectly matches my aesthetic taste. I’m already your die-hard fan now. Sister Xia Xi, I really like you so much." The young boy’s expression looked incredibly earnest, which made Xia Xi involuntarily find it a bit funny.
"What does a kid like you know about liking someone?" Xia Xi’s tone was full of disdain.
"I do know! And I’m not that young anymore." Hearing Xia Xi’s words, the boy puffed up his cheeks indignantly. He widened his round eyes and looked at Xia Xi pitifully, "I’m not that young anymore. I’ll be in high school next year. I already have the right to choose what I like. You can’t treat me like a child."
Looking at the boy’s expression, Xia Xi smiled noncommittally. She didn’t take what the boy said seriously because his entire demeanor radiated the naive energy of a child seeking approval from adults.
"I’m going to follow Sister Xia Xi on Weibo right now!" As he spoke, the boy took out his phone, opened Weibo, and happily followed Xia Xi. He also liked all of Xia Xi’s posts and gave thumbs-up to all the comments praising her looks. "Sister Xia Xi, do you have a fan group? Can you add me to it?"
"What’s a fan group for?" Xia Xi looked confused.
"Fan groups serve many purposes. Some are for fans to coordinate data efforts and communicate with each other, while others are for chatting with their idols and getting closer to them."
"Oh, then I probably don’t have one." A hint of awkwardness flashed across Xia Xi’s face.
"No fan group?" The boy looked surprised. "Then where do your fans communicate? Hurry and add me to it."
"I don’t have any fans yet…"
Xia Xi felt her expression must be perfectly normal, she was just stating a fact.
But when the young boy heard this, he detected a hint of grievance in her words. He froze for a few seconds, but his expression quickly turned extremely happy. "That’s great! I’m actually Sister Xia Xi’s first fan. What an honor! Let me create a fan group for Sister Xia Xi then!"
"Are you serious about being my fan?" Xia Xi looked at the boy’s impulsive energy and his seemingly genuine expression. She set aside her joking attitude, feeling that what he had said earlier might not have been a joke. She awkwardly rubbed her nose, and her expression gradually turned serious. "If you’re serious, I have to tell you, you’re too young to be chasing celebrities. Don’t waste your parents’ money."
"Of course, I’m serious!" The boy’s expression was very earnest. "I’m not that young anymore. I’m already in ninth grade, and I have the right to choose what I want to do. Of course, I won’t recklessly spend my parents’ money, and I won’t neglect my studies. Please rest assured, Sister Xia Xi. As your fan, I won’t embarrass you either!"
Xia Xi gave a perfunctory nod, but she had to admit she felt a small flicker of emotion.
"Ah, it seems I'm going to become the president of Xia Xi's fan club now, what a huge responsibility!" The young boy quickly set up the fan group and, looking at his title as group owner, narrowed his eyes as he spoke.
As Xia Xi watched the boy, she noticed his expression unconsciously taking on a sense of mission, which made her feel a bit weary.
"Oh, right, I actually wanted to ask you earlier." Xia Xi pursed her lips as if suddenly remembering something. "How exactly did you get in here? Aren't there any security guards? Is it really that easy to sneak in?"
The little boy thought for a moment and nodded with great certainty. "Yeah, it was super easy to get in! And I came with my dad. No security guards stopped us at all. My dad told me to look around here and then go home by myself later."
Xia Xi: “...”
Da He: “...”
Xia Xi found it really hard to describe her feelings about this boy. She felt like every word he said was either infuriating or left her speechless.
Sometimes, even when he was trying to say something nice, it would come out sounding particularly hurtful.
Are young kids these days all this hard to communicate with?
Xia Xi thought gloomily to herself.
But even though this kid was so irritating, Xia Xi couldn't bring herself to say anything more. After all, he'd just declared himself her fan, and since he was her first fan, even if he was annoying, what could she do? She'd just have to indulge him.
After exchanging WeChat IDs with her first fan, Xia Xi watched as the boy bounced away under Da He's guidance. She let out a long sigh of relief, finally able to relax.
Xia Xi felt that negotiating with the "Cross-Border Singing Joy" production team earlier hadn't been as exhausting as dealing with this young kid. Interacting with younger people sometimes felt like pushing her limits, and there was clearly a generation gap.
From now on, she'd leave these headache-inducing interactions with young people to Da He to worry about. She would focus on singing well and acting well, after all, Xia Xi's actual age was already past thirty and heading toward forty.

"Teacher Xia Xi, hello." Just as Xia Xi had relaxed and was happily settling on the sofa to space out, the staff member from earlier unexpectedly showed up uninvited. "Sorry to disturb you again."
"Oh, is there something else?" Xia Xi blinked, looking at the staff member with curiosity.
"It's about what we discussed earlier. I just wanted to ask if you've made a decision yet?" The staff member smiled politely, their attitude humble and particularly pleasant. "If not, I can come back and ask again later?"