After the cold snap of early spring, the temperature in Haicheng rose rapidly. The sun shone directly on the earth, and the warm air blowing in the wind already felt like midsummer.

Most of the students in the classroom had left.

"Shuyao," her companion called out, and when she didn't respond, she raised her voice, "Shuyao, it's time to have lunch."

Guo Shuyao turned to look at the two people still in the classroom and asked thoughtfully, "Did you know that the teacher has been privately teaching Fang Zhi to dance recently?"

"It wasn't about teaching her, I heard that Fang Zhi adapted a dance herself and asked our teacher to give her some pointers when she had time."

Another person said, "I've heard about it too."

Guo Shuyao pursed her lips, "Do you believe me?"

"What's the meaning?"

"The list of performers for our department's arts festival has already been finalized." Guo Shuyao's tone was tinged with coldness as she looked at her companions. "Have you heard anything about this year?"

Her companion pondered for a moment, "Yeah, I really haven't heard anything about the cultural performance. Logically speaking, with important guests visiting this year's performance, it shouldn't be so low-key." But she still didn't believe it, "Fang Zhi didn't participate in the previous two years, why would she suddenly participate this year? And even if she's to lead the dance, the others haven't received any notification to be backup dancers."

"Maybe we're all being kept in the dark." Guo Shuyao sneered, a thought flashing through her mind. Her gaze drifted into the distance, her hands hanging at her sides slowly tightening. "Perhaps this year it won't be a lead dancer, but a solo performance?"

Before she could finish speaking, her companion immediately retorted:

"How is that possible?"

Guo Shuyao lowered her eyes. How could it be impossible? Their dance teacher had always held Fang Zhike in high regard.

The two companions exchanged glances.

They took Guo Shuyao's arm on either side, who was silent, and comforted her, "Let's go, let's go eat first, don't overthink it."

The two walked together toward the cafeteria, the words carried on the wind, "I hope I'm not overthinking it."

The cafeteria was bustling with people.

After getting her food and sitting down, Guo Shuyao's mind was still racing. The thought of Fang Zhi's solo dance made her lose her appetite as she looked at the food on her plate.

-

Dance studio.

Fang Zhi sent the photos of the restaurant she had saved beforehand to Qi Shen and then put her phone away. She looked up at her dance teacher and said apologetically, "Teacher, aren't you going to eat again? Actually, I've memorized most of the dance moves, so I should be able to follow them on my own."

She waved her hand, "I'm not going, I've gained weight recently."

Women of all ages are somewhat concerned about their weight and age, especially those who study dance.

"No way." Fang Zhi smiled shyly, speaking calmly and steadily, "Teacher has always maintained a great figure."

"You've learned to say nice things to me now." The dance teacher said with some emotion, "I'm getting older, and my metabolism isn't as good as it used to be. As your teacher, I always teach you to control your weight, so I have to set an example for you."

"Let's not talk about that anymore. Since you said you've memorized all the dance moves, then show me how to dance them together."

"good."

As classical music began, the graceful young woman standing in the center began to dance slowly, her figure swaying beautifully. Her originally pure eyes, transformed by the graceful movements of her dance, gained a touch of allure and elegance.

As the song ended, the dance teacher's eyes were filled with amazement. She walked a few steps to Fang Zhi and unconsciously clapped her hands in praise.

“Great job, you’re more talented than I thought.”

This dance is very difficult; even some veterans in the classical dance world could not achieve the same level of expressiveness as Fang Zhi.

"Thank you for the compliment, teacher." Fang Zhi's face was flushed, partly from exhaustion and partly from being shy about being praised.

Wipe your sweat.

Fang Zhi took the tissue the teacher offered and thanked her again. While wiping her face, she said, "I think some parts of this dance could be modified, such as the backbend in the intro..."

When the girl mentioned dance, her eyes were dark and bright, and her meticulous demeanor made the dance teacher slightly distracted.

After Fang Zhi finished speaking, she subconsciously said, "Fang Zhi, watching you dance reminds me of someone."

The woman's reminiscence piqued Fang Zhi's curiosity. She paused for a moment, then asked, "Could I ask who the teacher was?"

“Of course.” The dance teacher chuckled. “She was none other than the undisputed number one dancer in the classical dance world back then.”

Fang Zhi's eyes widened. "You like her too?"

The dance teacher smiled and said, "It seems you like it too."

"Yes." Fang Zhi nodded with undisguised joy. "A large part of the reason I learned classical dance is because of Teacher Xia."

Seeing the overjoyed girl, the dance teacher patted her on the shoulder and said, "Fang Zhi, make some technical changes to this dance according to your ideas, and then dance it again."

She had a premonition that if her student Fang Zhi could step into the public eye and onto the stage, he would reach the same level as Xia Mianyi.

Fang Zhi looked at her obediently and said, "Okay."

Outside the classroom, the flowers and plants rustled in the wind, their slender branches swaying gently. The classroom window was open, and the white gauze curtains swayed with it. The girl, immersed in her dance, was like a star rising slowly in the night sky.

-

High-end private dining rooms near SQ.

Qi Shen lowered his eyes and looked at the chat box. The conversation on the phone screen had stopped forty minutes ago.

The girl sent him a picture of her lunch, and he replied "okay"; ten minutes ago he asked her if she had finished eating, but she hasn't replied yet.

"Time to snap out of it." Fu Shaosi rested his chin on his hand, staring at the man opposite him who was engrossed in his phone, and tapped the table with his other hand. "I treated you to dinner, and you let me come and watch you spacing out."

After saying that, he muttered to himself, "Shi Yan just got married a few days ago and has already gone abroad again."

Qi Shen then slowly raised his eyelids, his tone tinged with a lazy nonchalance, "What's it to you?"

“It has nothing to do with me.” Fu Shaosi clicked his tongue, his tone seemingly meaningful. “But I feel sorry for his new wife. Women are usually quiet and gentle. If you really piss her off, she’ll regret it.”

His mother is a living example; when she's in a good mood, she's incredibly gentle, but when she gets angry, even his father avoids her.

Qi Shen picked up his chopsticks, took a bite of food, and asked in a calm tone, "What exactly do you want?"

He didn't believe Fu Shaosi's nonsense on the phone—that he wanted to reconnect with him as brothers and had specially invited him to dinner.