Chapter 236 - 97: Top Star of the 60s Cultural Troupe (36)
Chapter 236: Chapter 97: Top Star of the 60s Cultural Troupe (36)
"When the time comes, I won’t go easy on you!"
He spoke the last line with a mock ferocity, a blunt expression of his raw desire for her.
But this was exactly when a woman wanted to be doted on. To her, a man acting like this was the epitome of masculinity, making it impossible to let him go. That pathetic little look in his eyes was enough to make her drown.
In the end, Xia Zhaoyun’s heart ached for her man. Worried he wouldn’t get enough sleep, she lingered for a few more minutes before giving him a gentle push. "Tianhao, why don’t you get a room at the guesthouse? You can get a full night’s sleep and head back early in the morning."
"It’s fine. I have lights in the car," Huo Tianhao said, pinching her plump, smooth cheeks. "Remember to always protect yourself. If you have any problems, call Kun right away, understand?"
"Don’t try to be tough and handle everything on your own. You have a man now, so don’t just endure it by yourself when you’re feeling wronged or facing difficulties. I’ll do my best to call you whenever I get to a new place."
Xia Zhaoyun nodded, meekly agreeing.
The woman was stunningly beautiful, and in the hazy, interwoven glow of the lamplight and moon, her beauty was a constant, breathtaking assault on the senses.
Now, as her shimmering, foxy eyes blinked up at him, Huo Tianhao cursed under his breath. His defenses finally crumbled. He pushed open the courtyard gate, and once inside, he pressed her against it and devoured her in a frenzied kiss.
By the time he left, Xia Zhaoyun’s head was spinning. It took a long moment before she could purse her slightly sore lips, a smile playing on them as she tiptoed to bolt the gate and slip inside the house.
"Tsk, tsk," He Qingran said, seeming to materialize out of nowhere. "I’m thinking I should just stay in the dorms from now on. Otherwise, I feel like a wicked stepmother, cruelly splitting you two lovebirds apart and forcing you to sneak around just to be affectionate."
The blush had just faded from her cheeks when Xia Zhaoyun felt her entire body temperature shoot to a boiling point all over again.
"Ranran..."
He Qingran giggled. "I’m not unreasonable. Next time you write to Little Hero Huo, just tell him to give a heads-up before he visits, so I can clear out and give him some space."
"It would save him from coming all this way just to get a glimpse of you, only to have to rush back for an hour in the dark. It’s exhausting, not to mention unsafe."
Xia Zhaoyun pursed her lips and glared at her. "Aren’t you... aren’t you asking me to announce it to the whole world?"
"What’s the alternative? You two stay at the guesthouse? That probably wouldn’t work either. But you can’t make Little Hero Huo suffer just because you’re worried about gossip, can you?" He Qingran couldn’t resist teasing her. Xia Zhaoyun was always so clever and fearless; it was a rare treat to see her so shy and flustered.
Now that she put it that way, Xia Zhaoyun had to agree. Of everyone involved, Huo Tianhao was the truly pitiable one.
’Otherwise... maybe when he gets back, I could go visit him on the weekend?’
The next morning, Xia Zhaoyun taught He Qingran how to make savory egg crepes. She whisked eggs, flour, chopped scallions, and salt into a batter. Then, she brushed a thin layer of oil on a pan, poured in some of the batter, and used a spatula to spread it into a thin circle. After two or three flips, it was ready to be served.
The savory crepes were simple, nutritious, and delicious. They were satisfyingly chewy with a rich, eggy fragrance, and paired with some soybean paste, they were another culinary masterpiece people would go crazy for.
They were so good that He Qingran wished she could share them with the other factory staff and their families right then and there.
After Xia Zhaoyun finished leading the girls in their stretches, He Qingran, having just finished her morning broadcast, came looking for them carrying recording equipment.
The group found a large, well-soundproofed music room and began the dubbing process, piece by piece.
The ten-minute program had parts that were purely instrumental, some that needed a character’s internal monologue, and others that used singing to push the atmosphere to a climax. Every part required a solid grasp of the rhythm.
The girls were in good form, and since everyone had participated in writing the lyrics, the cassette tape was successfully recorded in no more than five takes.
To prevent any unexpected situations, Xia Zhaoyun had He Qingran make several extra copies of the cassette.
After that, it was time for high-intensity group training. Xia Zhaoyun developed a detailed plan tailored to each girl’s needs, determined to elevate their skills rapidly in a short amount of time so they could deliver a perfect performance.
Everyone in the art troupe knew Team Three had been putting themselves through the wringer lately. Solo dances for everyone? Them? They were always half a beat behind, only remembered half the choreography, couldn’t even manage a full backbend, and their splits were less impressive than a basic horse stance. Were their solo dances even going to be watchable?
Even Teacher Su had simplified the choreography over and over again just to accommodate the clumsiness of the girls in Team Three, hoping to spare them too much embarrassment during the auditions.
If the girls in Team Three didn’t have minor connections, they wouldn’t have lasted a month in the art troupe, let alone get a chance to perform on stage!
So no one expected this motley crew to produce anything of note.
Even Master Yuan felt a headache coming on as she watched the chaotic scene of everyone in the room dancing their own individual parts. Though she had to admit each girl’s skill was improving by leaps and bounds, they still lagged far behind the members of Team One.
Besides, their dance moves were simple and lacked any real difficulty. It would be a challenge for them to even make it into the top twenty.
After peeking through the window three times, Master Yuan stopped paying attention to them.
Before the audition, every act was given two rehearsal slots. Xia Zhaoyun merely led her girls through the motions. She used their allotted fifteen minutes to meticulously explain positioning and key points to everyone, but they never performed the routine in its entirety.
The factory workers who had come to watch the spectacle also sensed that something was off. After all, their counterparts from other affiliated factories were also there. In this circle, who didn’t know everyone else’s business?
Everyone there had extensive stage experience and cherished these rehearsal opportunities. No matter how many issues, large or small, they had, they would always do a full, proper run-through on stage. It was the only way to spot things that needed improvement—things they’d never notice in the practice room.
This was the first time they had ever seen a group like Team Three from the Zhaoyang Clothing Factory. Each member just gestured through a few moves, and just like that, their ten-plus minutes were wasted!
But it didn’t matter. Everyone had already written them off as serious competitors.
Neither Mr. Xue nor Teacher Su said a word. But Master Yuan, putting on a show, laid into them after their second rehearsal ended. A few employees from the other factories were lingering nearby.
"Xia Zhaoyun, what exactly is the point of a rehearsal? As a veteran, you should know better than anyone that this is a rare opportunity to identify and fix your mistakes. This has happened twice now. If you have problems, can’t you solve them during your own practice time? Do you have to wait for the official rehearsal?"
"Are you even capable of performing? If not, just withdraw now and save yourselves the trouble of wasting the judges’ time during the audition!"
Xia Zhaoyun chuckled. "Master Y—... Director Yuan, we have been taking this performance very seriously. It’s just that our program is presented differently from the others, so we used the rehearsal time to go over specific positioning."
"Rehearsals are important, yes, but there’s no explicit rule that says you absolutely have to do a full performance."
"As long as we can guarantee a perfect performance during the actual competition, that should be enough, shouldn’t it?"
The girls from the art troupe were all suppressing their laughter.
Master Yuan’s face turned ugly.
She was well aware that everyone secretly called her "Master Yuan," but this was the first time anyone had almost let it slip to her face.
"Hmph. Fine," she scoffed. "I was just giving you a kind reminder. Since you’re so ungrateful, I’ll be waiting to see just what kind of performance you can possibly stage."
"Remember, this performance determines the slots for the August arts festival. If you don’t make it to the stage, you won’t even get a chance to fight for it."
As the host, the Zhaoyang Clothing Factory couldn’t blatantly have all three of its acts qualify. Even if all three were outstanding, they would have to cut one as a matter of appearances.
Team One was a shoo-in to perform, and Team Two’s chances were also very good. As for Team Three, they had always just been filler.
To this day, no one had seen Team Three’s performance as a whole. But judging by their eclectic, mismatched costumes, it was hard to imagine how such a chaotic mix could ever blend together into a perfect performance.