Chapter 55

◎The Arts Festival is finally here◎

As autumn deepens, students stop leaving their school uniforms open whenever possible; instead, they zip them up high, and some are even wearing long sleeves underneath.

As the weather got cooler, Zhan Xinyue stopped going to the classroom to study so early. After getting up, she would sit at her desk at home with a desk lamp on for a while.

Shi Ziqian was the same; he started arriving later and later in the mornings, often just as the morning reading bell rang. And when he got to the classroom, he always looked exhausted. During breaks, he would either be sleeping with his head down or disappear as soon as the bell rang.

One day, she looked up from a stack of unfinished worksheets and suddenly realized that she and Shi Ziqian hadn't spoken a single word to each other for two or three days.

She felt something was off. She wanted to say something to him, but couldn't find a reason to start. It seemed like the two of them didn't really have anything to talk about.

After hesitating for a while, Shi Ziqian had already slumped down to sleep again, his face turned to the other side, and she could only see his dark hair. Zhan Xinyue hesitated for a long time before giving up.

At this point, she finally realized, albeit belatedly, that Shi Ziqian seemed to be deliberately avoiding her.

She didn't quite understand. The only conflict between them was that night at the karaoke bar, but when they met at the shop the next day, everything seemed normal again. It couldn't be that he was still upset about that little thing.

But if she had to think of anything else, she really couldn't think of anything else.

The atmosphere between the two continued to be strangely subtle, and even gradually reached a certain balance, as if the two were meant to keep to themselves and not interfere with each other.

From that day on, Xu Shen started visiting Class 10 more frequently again, coming to find her every afternoon to rehearse together. Zhan Xinyue wasn't overly enthusiastic towards him, but she never refused him either.

It rained heavily in the morning. She walked towards the teaching building with an umbrella. Her school uniform trousers were completely soaked and felt cold against her legs.

As she passed the bulletin board, she saw the promotional poster of her and Shi Ziqian again. Through the rain, the two in the photo looked at each other, their eyes full of smiles.

Rain dripped down the edge of the umbrella in strings, then slammed heavily onto the ground. A gust of wind swept by, and the rain became even colder. Zhan Xinyue shivered slightly, unsure whether it was from the cold rain or something else.

She stared at the photo and suddenly felt a sense of disorientation. If it weren't for this photo, she would almost think that the process of going from strangers to acquaintances with Shi Ziqian had never actually happened.

The day the photo was taken was early autumn, still carrying a hint of summer heat. In the blink of an eye, autumn has deepened so much.

Even stranger than Shi Ziqian was Xie Wanzhi. Ever since that party, she had been secretly sulking, acting indifferent to her as if she was deliberately trying to give her a hard time.

Zhan Xinyue had no interest in trying to guess what was going on in her mind, so she didn't bother with her and simply pretended not to understand her little schemes.

After class that day, Teacher Zhou lashed out at several students who were talking amongst themselves. He then coldly scanned the classroom for a long time before announcing without warning, "We haven't changed the seats since the class division. I think you've all become a little too familiar with each other, talking so much all the time! None of the other parallel classes are as restless as you. I think I need to rearrange the seats to prevent this classroom from becoming like a marketplace. Here's the arrangement: don't rush to leave after class on Friday. We'll rearrange the seats according to the rankings from the last monthly exam."

Zhan Xinyue didn't look up; she continued to bury herself in her work.

In her previous life, she sat with Xie Wanzhi after changing seats, so naturally she didn't want to sit with her again now. However, she didn't seem to have any particular preference for the other people in the class.

However, this was not something she could worry about. If the seating was chosen according to the monthly exam rankings, she wouldn't have any choice at all based on her previous results, so it was best to just let things take their course.

Before we changed seats, the arts festival started.

On the day of the arts festival, the official performance started at 4 p.m., and everyone had been waiting to get their makeup and costumes done since noon.

Zhan Xinyue sat in front of the mirror, while the makeup artist styled her hair from behind. Through the mirror, she saw her long, loose hair falling to her chest, which was gently lifted up by the makeup artist.

"Such long hair!" the makeup artist exclaimed. "It seems like you rarely see girls with such long hair these days."

Zhan Xinyue tilted her head to look at it; it was indeed quite long. She had always cherished her hair, spending a lot of time grooming it in her past life, but in this life, she hadn't paid much attention to it. However, being young, her hair still looked quite good.

"Ah, it's so good to be young. At your age, you don't even need concealer. A little makeup is enough to make you look so vibrant." The makeup artist quickly finished her makeup and looked at the young girl's reflection in the mirror with great satisfaction. "Look, how beautiful you are. Your temperament is really suitable for this kind of ancient style."

She smiled gently: "It's because of your good cooking skills."

The girl in the mirror has jet-black hair and delicate eyebrows. She is beautiful in a subtle and gentle way, but her eyes reveal a calmness and weariness that are not commensurate with her age.

Just like in her previous life, Xu Shen came yesterday to give her a lyric card, which caused a stir among her classmates.

Compared to her previous naivety and shyness, she now only felt the exhaustion of knowing everything about the plot yet having to pretend to be oblivious and keep acting. Fortunately, she didn't have to act for too long.

Zhan Xinyue and her group's performance was the first, and they had been waiting backstage for a long time. Their costumes were long, simple dresses with a vibrant pink hem that spread out like flower petals. Just before going on stage, she stood among a group of girls and quickly spotted Xu Shen in the chaotic crowd.

He had already done his makeup and styling, with silver highlights in his hair and silver sequins adorning his suit, giving him a handsome yet wild look.

Several girls in the group who knew him well were teasing him from a distance:

"Wow, you look really handsome, Minister Xu!"

"It just looks a little frivolous—"

"I mean, isn't this style a bit too flashy?"

A burst of laughter erupted around him, startling Xu Shen, who quickly gestured for silence. "Ladies, keep your voices down. The audience can hear you all. Everyone's almost seated."

Everyone then quieted down.

Xu Shen gestured for everyone to line up properly, then came over and gave them a few instructions before going on stage.

"When you go on stage, find your spot, especially those at the very front, don't lean to the side. Everyone exits from the right side, and be quick, the lights will only be off for a short time..."

In the pause between words, he also spotted Zhan Xinyue in the crowd.

She was wearing makeup, her long hair cascading behind her ears, and a flower ornament adorning her brow. She was quietly looking at him, graceful and elegant, like a delicate flower bud in full bloom.

Xu Shen quickly looked away, his tongue pausing for a second before repeating what he had just said: "Yes, we need to be faster."

A girl in the front row, who was in the same class as him, immediately seized on his slip-up and exclaimed with a grin, "What's wrong? Why are you suddenly talking nonsense? Where are you looking?"

Xu Shen smiled, composed himself, and continued, "Alright, that's all. It's about to begin, so everyone should calm down." He glanced at the time. "Three minutes left."

The pressure of the impending match intensified with those words, and everyone fell silent.

Zhan Xinyue heard the people around her taking deep breaths, so she took a step back and slowly leaned against the wall.

Xu Shen didn't go far. After stepping back, he naturally walked around to her side and stood beside her.

"Are you nervous?" Xu Shen asked her.

Zhan Xinyue shook her head: "I'm not nervous."

"That's amazing, such a great mindset," Xu Shen said. "Although I've been on stage many times, I still get a little nervous before each performance."

Zhan Xinyue: "Are you in Versailles?"

“How could that be?” He thought for a moment, then laughed. “Well, it does sound a little bit.”

After a pause, he ran his fingers through his hair and asked, "Is my makeup and styling a bit over the top?"

She glanced at Xu Shen. He was wearing stage makeup, which made his features appear more defined and striking. A strand of silver hair on his head was flamboyant and eye-catching. Standing next to this group of classically dressed girls, he had a striking and handsome appearance.

"I think it's great," Zhan Xinyue said. "He's quite handsome."

"Really? A lot of people were teasing me earlier, saying my outfit was too flamboyant." Xu Shen smiled. "But if you say it's good, then I think it's alright. I trust your judgment."

"The stage is meant to be a bit exaggerated for the best effect."

"You're quite experienced."

Zhan Xinyue said, "No, I've never eaten pork, but I've seen pigs run."

Xu Shen laughed again, "You're right, I'll listen to you."

Two emcees in formal attire walked past us and entered the stage from the side. Their opening remarks were soon heard from the front of the stage.

Zhan Xinyue straightened up without thinking. Xu Shen saw her movement and encouraged her, "It's okay, just like you usually do in rehearsals. I'll cheer you on."

"good."

"Then I'll be going." Xu Shen paused. "And... um, it's the third to last program."

Zhan Xinyue nodded: "Understood."

"Okay, then I'll be going." Xu Shen took a few steps, then suddenly stopped, turned back and looked at her seriously. "By the way, Xinyue, you look really beautiful today."

"Today's performance officially begins—" The host's rising voice rang out from the stage as soon as the words were spoken. Zhan Xinyue lowered her head and straightened her skirt. Accompanied by a cascade of applause, she followed the crowd toward the light.

There's no time to be nervous while dancing. Under the blazing lights, your mind goes completely blank, and all your movements are just muscle memory. The dance ended without incident, and everyone left from the other side. Zhan Xinyue changed out of her dress, put on her school uniform jacket, and went around to the back of the auditorium to sit back down in her class's seat.

There was an empty seat left in the last row. The girl next to me wasn't someone I knew very well. Seeing that she had sat down, I deliberately brought up what had happened yesterday: "Did you bring the lyrics that Brother Shen gave you? There was a show just now, and I actually saw Brother Shen playing the drums on the side. He was super cool. It's a pity you missed it backstage, but it's okay. I saw on the program that his solo was the third to last."

She unfolded the program and handed it to her. Zhan Xinyue thanked her and glanced at it.

All the performances had been rehearsed with great care, and the live performance looked fantastic. However, she had overheard Shi Yuesheng not showing up in the end while waiting backstage, and she wondered what Gao Qiang was feeling right now.

Halfway through the program, Zhan Xinyue glanced at the program schedule again, stood up, and said, "I'm going to the restroom."

"Then you should come back soon, Xu Shen's show should be starting soon." The girl next to her reminded her kindly, and even winked at her, "You can't miss it this time."

Zhan Xinyue smiled, waved, and left the auditorium.