Chapter 276 Price of fame

It looked as if a hurricane went through the kitchen. Books and cutleries were on the table and there were lots of cracked eggs everywhere.

Xiaolei couldn't help but imagine her chibi husband cooking while messing everything up and the thought made her giggle. She wished she'd seen the whole process of her breakfast being made.

Noticing that someone was watching him, the big panda's head snapped towards the door and he saw his wife standing there. Seeing her glance at the mess he had created, he gulped.

When she stepped closer, the big panda quickly donned the apron lying on the counter, causing Xiaolei to halt in her tracks and look at him. She almost whistled upon seeing how cute he was, wearing that colorful apron. The man was absolutely an adorable husband material at that moment and she just loved the sight of him so very much.

"I'll clean this up." He said and he started picking a plate when Xiaolei chuckled.

The next second, she glommed her husband's back.

Yu Chen froze, almost dropping the plate.

"Ahh… why are you so cute?" Xiaolei uttered as she buried her face into his back. After a big grin, she let go. "Let me help…" her hands reached out, but Yu Chen swiftly grabbed her shoulders as he faced her.

"No, you're tired Xiaolei. Don't worry about me, I can do all these." the panda cutely insisted – serious and determined, with a slight puff to his cheeks.

Xiaolei was about to protest but the man didn't give her time as he quickly carried her out of the kitchen, saying that she should rest.

"I'm fine, okay? You're worrying too much, hubby. It's true that you had me exhausted to my limits last night, but I had a good sleep and a great meal. So, my energy is now back to 100%. I'm really alright now." Xiaolei told him and the man finally put her down.

"Really? You're not just saying it to make me feel better?"

"Yep. 100%." She assured the big panda as he stared intently at her.

Xiaolei was about to go back into the kitchen to help with the cleaning, when the man suddenly leaned in on her, blocking her way.

"Then, that means… we can do it again now, right?" he asked, his voice abruptly became hoarse as the look in his eyes changed.

Xiaolei's mouth dropped. She was utterly speechless. That came like a bolt from the blue!

Before she could snap out of her shock, the shameless panda had already transformed into the big bad wolf, capturing her lips hungrily once again.

Xiaolei moaned against his lips but the big bad wolf easily made her succumb to him and once again, he ate her dry.

…

The next morning,

"Are you sure, you're alright?" Yu Chen was looking worried as he opened the car door for his wife.

"I'm perfectly fine, hubby. No worries." She smiled at him. Actually, Xiaolei was more worried if they spend another day together at home by themselves. Apart from the fact that this big bad wolf was insatiable, she should shoulder some blame for not being able to resist him at all!

"Fine, don't overwork yourself, okay?" he told her and Xiaolei kissed him one last time before she entered the car.

Finally, the couple parted.

Once Xiaolei arrived at Star Castle, she buried herself in the pile of work awaiting her. When she finally took a break, her assistant and manager rushed over to report on the headlines related to her surprise performance. Everyone in Star Castle was in disbelief. They thought that Xiao Mimi's sudden performance would impact their company negatively but to their utmost surprise, there was no backlash at all!!

"It's unbelievable there was totally no backlash for this. Your fans are amazing. It's like… everyone likes you whatever you do. Everyone knows how the music industry works in our country right? An idol's tiny mistake, like… being late, would surely receive heavy criticism. Yet, you're actually getting away with it scot-free?!" Yeng, Xiaolei's manager, was bewildered. When XiaoMimi – her artist and boss – suddenly decided to perform that night, apprehensive and nervous could hardly describe her state at the time.

"Well, I have absolutely no plans on becoming your run-of-the-mill perfectly robotic, and flawless idol everyone is expecting. Besides, I'm not truly aiming to compete with anyone for anything. All I want right now is to have the people listen to my songs." Xiaolei replied in all honesty. She wasn't aiming to be the top artist as she knew that solo artists couldn't compete with idol groups now. If she wanted Star Castle to grow and reach the top, she must focus her attention on the boy band she had created and help them dominate the world. That was the easiest path in reaching the peak she desired.

Since the beginning, this was her true goal – to have the boys break through a worldwide success. From there, she would take over the music industry. Her plan had already started long time ago and it hasn't changed. The only variation was her decision to continue singing. She had decided on this that night she sang on stage for her husband.

"I don't understand. You're such a great singer. You are already labeled as the new queen of ballad. Why don't you want to compete with others? You're a big asset to the company as well."

"Well, I'm not saying that I am giving up on my singing career. I don't have any plan to stop singing. As long as I continue writing songs, I will keep on singing. It just won't be my top priority. That spot belongs to Star Castle. Besides, I don't like being in the spotlight that much. In pursuing fame, I'd be sacrificing my freedom. That's the price to be paid. All I want now is to spend my days with my family in peace. I want us to be able to move freely without being at the center of unnecessary and unwanted attentions."

"But you've already revealed your face in the music video."

"I just did that to confuse some people. And, people don't get attached just with the face alone. It's like when one sees a beautiful painting, admires it for a moment, then forgets all about it later on. Unlike songs – they aren't that easily forgotten. Even after many years, the memory of it still remains."

"So… you're planning on staying lowkey and never showing your face?"

"Hmm… I cannot truly say never... There's no guarantee I can hide this forever. Ah, wait! I almost forgot about that annoying fly that needs dealing with later."

"A fly?"

"Yep. An annoying-turned-nasty little fly."