Chapter 1652: Chapter 1954: Withdrawing from the Music Scene (Part 1)
"Lin, there’s still a long time before the concert starts, are we really going to wait here all this time?" Luo Xianxian started to complain after standing for less than half an hour. Because this was a public commercial event, the organizers didn’t provide any seating for the audience, nor was it feasible to do so, so everyone who came to watch had no choice but to stand.
For someone like Ling Chen, standing for half an hour, or even a whole day and night, wouldn’t be a problem. But for girls like Luo Xianxian and Su Lin, there’s no way they could endure that long. There were at least four to five hours before the concert started, if they continued to stand, they’d surely get sore legs.
"Lin, why don’t we find a place to sit for a bit?" suggested Gao Liang.
"But if we leave, what if someone takes our spot?"
"No worries, we’ll leave someone here to keep our place, and we can come back when it’s almost time."
"That doesn’t seem quite right," said Su Lin. "How about this, one person stays here, and we switch every half hour, that way it’s less tiring for everyone. What do you think?"
"Lin’s suggestion sounds good, I agree," Luo Xianxian was the first to chime in.
"So, who should stay first?" Gao Liang asked, his gaze falling on Ling Chen nearby. The latter smiled slightly and said, "You all go rest, I’ll stay here."
Gao Liang’s face lit up with joy, and he grinned, "Great, thanks for your hard work. Lin, let’s go, I think there’s a Starbucks nearby, we can go sit there."
Su Lin glanced at Ling Chen, her lips parted slightly as if wanting to say something, but before the words came out, Ling Chen smiled and said, "Go rest, I’m fine, are you really worried I might get tired?"
Su Lin nodded gently, choosing not to say more, and followed Gao Liang’s group out of the crowd. Watching them leave, Ling Chen folded his arms, slightly closed his eyes, and seemed to enter a state of selflessness. Everything around him vanished, no noisy clamor, as if the whole world had sunk into tranquility.
Ever since his breakthrough in the Heavenly List, he had often entered this state. Whenever he wanted, he could enter this state anywhere, discarding everything, his mind an empty lucid space. In the Heavenly List, this state was known as self-forgetting, forgetting oneself and everything around. In this state, time ceased to be time, for he had no concept of time in his mind.
When he opened his eyes again, a whole day might have passed, yet he would feel no passage of time. Since he had a few hours to spare here, instead of standing idly, he thought it better to enter the state of self-forgetting and practice the Prajnaparamita Sutra.
As for Gao Liang’s group returning to switch with him after half an hour, Ling Chen didn’t even consider it, knowing well they wouldn’t come. Although Gao Liang was around his age, he was too naive, and Ling Chen could easily read his thoughts.
Besides, he had nothing to do, so it didn’t matter if they came or not.
Time ticked away, minute by minute, and before long it was past five o’clock in the afternoon. By then, the organizers had announced the precise timing of the concert to start at 7:30 in the evening, leaving two hours from now.
As Ling Chen had anticipated, Gao Liang’s group didn’t come back to switch with him. Nearly two hours later, the stage lighting crew and band had gone on stage, and the performance was about to commence, yet there was no sign of Su Lin’s group.
Could it be they’re not coming? Ling Chen pondered to himself, hesitating whether to call Su Lin. Turning around, Ling Chen then realized that the stage was now surrounded by a vast crowd, with ’sea of people’ being no exaggeration. Even the mall had organized a large group of security guards to maintain order, preventing traffic chaos.
It was undeniable, Tang Shiyun had such a powerful draw, not limited to the young folks; there were even quite a few middle-aged men and women present.
Seeing the scene before him, Ling Chen finally understood why Su Lin and the others hadn’t come; with such a mass of people, there was no way to squeeze in.
At this moment, outside the crowd, Su Lin, with a troubled expression, surveyed the overwhelming spectacle ahead, saying, "What should we do now, we definitely can’t get in."
Luo Xianxian chimed in, "Thankfully your friend left early; otherwise, even if he had saved us a spot, we wouldn’t be able to get in." Saying this, she glanced at Gao Liang beside her. He chuckled and said, "Lin, why don’t we find a higher spot outside to watch the concert instead?"
"Alright, that’s our only choice," said Su Lin, somewhat helplessly. She had hoped to watch the concert up close for the excitement it would bring. Unfortunately, Gao Liang had told her earlier that when he went to switch with Ling Chen, the latter had left due to an urgent matter. If Ling Chen were still there, he would have surely found a way to bring her in.
Just as she was thinking this, a hand suddenly reached out from behind and touched her shoulder.
"Finally found you."
A familiar voice came, and Su Lin quickly turned her head, only to see Ling Chen standing behind her with a faint smile on his face.
"You..." Su Lin was momentarily stunned, then joyfully asked, "Didn’t Gao Liang say you left because of something urgent? Why are you back again?"
"Did I leave?" Ling Chen replied with a faint smile, his gaze sweeping over Gao Liang’s embarrassed face beside him. However, he didn’t intend to hold him accountable. In his mind, Gao Liang was nothing and not worth wasting energy on.
"Let’s go, the spot has been saved for you all along; I’ll take you in." He had guessed that Su Lin might be held up outside the crowd. He wanted to call and check, but presumably due to the noise at the scene, Su Lin hadn’t answered her phone, which prompted him to come out and find her.
As he watched Su Lin being wrapped in Ling Chen’s embrace and slowly making their way through the crowd, Luo Xianxian and Gao Liang hesitated momentarily before quickly following in their steps.
Before long, Ling Chen guided the crowd back to the spot they originally selected, which was very close to the stage, just two to three meters away, allowing them to see everything on stage clearly.
Due to the proximity to the stage, the surrounding people were densely packed, body to body, making it hard to find any space. Ling Chen wrapped his arms around Su Lin, pressing her against his chest. His arms spread slightly outward, forming a circle, blocking the movement of the people around, preventing them from touching Su Lin.
Though it was only a small gesture, Su Lin’s heart felt warm. She had never received such care before, not even from a previous boyfriend.
"Thank you!" Su Lin whispered the three words. But the environment was too noisy, and she didn’t know if Ling Chen heard her.
"Lin."
Seeing Su Lin stand safely in front of Ling Chen, Gao Liang felt a bit displeased. Their interactions seemed quite intimate, which made him inevitably jealous.
