After saying goodbye to the makeup artist, Fang Yang arrived at the dressing room. Because he had two performances, the director specially approved a dressing room for him to change clothes and rest. This was a special treatment compared to most guests who only performed once and could only wait backstage in the studio.

Of course, there are ten lounges. Besides Fang Yang, there are nine other top-tier guests occupying them. As for who they are, Fang Yang didn't ask. He wasn't familiar with any of them and had never dealt with them. He guessed that Liu Hua probably had one. As a triple-threat superstar, he was entitled to one.

There were ten dressing rooms, and it was estimated that Fang Yang was the only one getting her makeup done outside. Everyone else had their own teams, and makeup artists were a standard feature. After guiding Fang Yang into the dressing room, Xiao Hu said goodbye and went out to get her costume, leaving Fang Yang alone to look around the dressing room.

The entire lounge was only twenty or thirty square meters, small but complete, with a dressing table, sofa, and TV. It was still early, so Fang Yang sat on the sofa and opened his phone to browse short videos. Outside, there were staff members and guests' agents or assistants coming and going. More people meant more trouble, so Fang Yang didn't want to go out.

After waiting for more than ten minutes, Xiao Hu hurriedly came in with two sets of clothes. "Mr. Fang, please try them on and see if they fit?"

Fang Yang looked at the clothes in Xiao Hu's hands—a gray Zhongshan suit and a bright red Tang suit, both brought according to his requirements—and laughed, "Xiao Hu, you have quite a complete selection of Taoist uniforms here. I thought it would take some effort to find them."

Xiao Hu smiled and said, "Mr. Fang, your request is very simple. We have clothes like these all the time, and they come in all colors and sizes. Just like suits, they are standard."

Fang Yang didn't know what standards CCTV prepared its martial arts uniforms according to, but he could imagine that with several major events every year, the number of martial arts uniforms in the warehouse might be more complete than that of a typical clothing factory.

With a chuckle, Fang Yang asked Xiao Hu, "Has Director Zhang said when rehearsals will start? After so many rounds of rehearsals, the program list should be finalized by now, right?"

"It was finalized a month ago, but we still kept two reserve programs. They might not actually go on stage, but they're just in case. They'll bring these up after all the other programs have been rehearsed. Your first program is at 9:30, so you still have some time to rest and adjust."

Fang Yang nodded. Actually, there was nothing to adjust. Although he had never been to such a major event as the CCTV Gala, for a mature artist, the mindset is the same regardless of the size of the venue, as long as they take it seriously.

Time flew by. After watching a few short videos, Fang Yang received instructions from the director team on Xiao Hu's pager, asking him to rush to the entrance of the passageway to prepare for his performance. It seemed that the rehearsal had officially begun.

Xiao Hu stood up immediately. "President Fang, we're about to go. Keep a good attitude, just like when you sing. It will be over soon."

Fang Yang put away his phone and handed it to Xiao Hu. "It's okay, keep the phone safe for me. I'll just go upstairs for a bit and then come right back down."

Ignoring the prying eyes cast from all around the corridor, Fang Yang and Xiao Hu arrived at the entrance. The dark corridor was silent and deserted, with only the faint sounds of warm-up songs and dances drifting in. Xiao Hu smiled and said, "To prevent the front desk staff from seeing what's going on here, all the lights in the corridor are off. After the dance team comes down, just go up there. Go up as soon as you hear the host's invitation, because time is very tight, so don't be late."

Fang Yang nodded, and a few minutes later, he heard Xiao Hu's pager ring, "Get ready to go on stage." As soon as he finished speaking, Fang Yang saw the dance troupe hurriedly walk off the stage. After the last person left, Fang Yang lifted the curtain in the dark and went on stage. To be honest, he didn't know what the production team was thinking. On one side, the lights were on, while on the other side it was pitch black. Weren't they afraid that someone might not be used to it and would accidentally slip and fall? You know, there are several flights of stairs after you exit the passage!

The emcee, microphone in hand, warmed up the audience, announcing, "Next up is Mr. Fang Yang, winner of this year's Golden Melody Awards for Best New Artist, Best Song, Best Composer, and Best Lyricist. Mr. Fang Yang has had an incredible year, winning nine awards at the Golden Melody Awards ceremony. He is the hottest singer this year, especially with his New Year's greeting anthem 'Gong Xi Fa Cai,' which has been sung all over the country and is loved by audiences. Today, we have invited him to the stage. Please welcome Mr. Fang Yang to the stage!"

Upon hearing the host's invitation, Fang Yang quickly emerged from the darkness and walked to the front of the stage, waving to the audience as he went. Although there were only a dozen or so people scattered around the audience, Fang Yang felt as if there were hundreds of people filling the entire hall.

Today's hosts are Li Luo and Chen Xi, pillars of CTV. When Fang Yang came on stage, Li Luo came over and hugged him. "Teacher Fang, you are wearing a bright red wedding robe today, which is very festive and fits the atmosphere of today's New Year's Eve party. Teacher Fang, is there anything you would like to say to the audience across the country?"

Fang Yang took the microphone from Li Luo and said, "Today is a wonderful day for people all over the country to bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new. It is also the eve of the annual gala to celebrate the Spring Festival. Here, I would like to extend my early New Year's greetings to all the audience members across the country. I wish all the audience members a happy new year and all the best. I also wish all the leaders and guests here today a happy new year. Let's spend this special New Year's Eve together. I hope everyone will have a smooth and healthy new year."

Chen Xi stood on the other side of Fang Yang, "Teacher Fang, your song 'Gong Xi Fa Cai' is a New Year's greeting anthem. Today, we are honored to invite you to the venue to sing a song for our guests and viewers in front of the TV. At the same time, we would like to say to Chinese friends all over the world: Gong Xi Fa Cai. No matter where you are, the blood flowing in your veins always belongs to China. The first thing I want to say in the New Year is: Gong Xi Fa Cai!"

After Li Luo and Chen Xi finished speaking, they left the stage. The lights in the venue gradually dimmed, and the colored lights shone on Fang Yang. The familiar intro began, and Fang Yang raised the microphone and sang the New Year's greeting song that almost everyone in the country could hum a few lines of. Under the illumination of the colored lights, Fang Yang, dressed in a bright red Tang suit, perfectly matched the mood of the song.

Ni Sufen sat in the center among the dozen or so people in the audience. Today was the last rehearsal before New Year's Eve, and also the most important one. Leaders from various departments were present to check the final results of the rehearsal. Although it was just a formality, no one in the TV station dared to relax. Even the deputy ministerial-level leader of the TV station was on tenterhooks at this moment and could not relax until the rehearsal was over.