Chapter 40: Implicit Meaning

"Li Meng, look at my hands, they're all red. Playing the banggu is so hard, but it's so meaningful. When I think about how we can let more people know about the banggu during the live performance, I feel so strong. All the efforts have paid off. We are awesome!"

Xu Chichi raised his hands and showed Ren Limeng his hands, which were red after clenching the drumsticks. There were obvious red marks on his white palms, which were particularly conspicuous in the camera next to the sofa.

Ren Limeng responded with an "hmm", and there seemed to be some concern in her smiling eyes, but her hands were playing with the water bottle in her hands under the camera, secretly pulling at a corner of the packaging bag on the bottle. She did not respond to Xu Chichi's idea of ​​opening her hands to "sell misery".

If they are full of energy...can they continue practicing?

Anyone can boast about nice things, but the performance on the live stage will never lie.

"It's a pity that I don't seem to be as talented as you and Brother Xingzhi, and my physical strength is not as good as yours. If it weren't for me, you would have already gone down the mountain just now, and your progress would be faster now."

Thinking of this, Xu Chichi's tone was a little depressed. She lowered her head and stared at her open hands. As she spoke, her voice became tearful, as if she was asking, or as if she was talking to herself, "Am I holding everyone back?"

"Sister Chi Chi, you're overthinking it. Everyone's been so busy these past two days, it's amazing that we were able to walk down the mountain this afternoon! If I hadn't felt like we were already here, I would have taken the cable car. Actually, I was almost giving up, but I thought, 'Shan Hai' is all about breaking through ourselves and challenging our limits. Like you said, we're already amazing, so don't underestimate ourselves!"

Ren Limeng comforted Xu Chichi softly, then changed the subject with a somewhat feigned liveliness in her tone. The somewhat sad atmosphere suddenly became inspirational. In the camera, she looked at the banggu placed not far away, with a determination to win in her eyes.

The atmosphere seemed to subtly stagnate for a second. Xu Chichi paused, hesitated for a moment, and then whispered, "Li Meng, you're tired too. How about... we talk to the teacher and change the tapping movements for the last two eight beats, or just repeat the first eight beats. It won't affect the performance. I'm worried... we can't remember this movement now. The song "Heaven and Earth Chant" itself has so many movements and positioning to practice, and we have to visit many tourist attractions in such a short time. I don't have any basic skills. I haven't been able to sleep these past two days, worried that there will be problems with Zhou Tian's live broadcast."

Xu Chichi explained his inner concerns, saying that simplifying the banggu movements was not just a way of being lazy, but the result of careful consideration.

She was just afraid that her suggestion would be too quiet.

Xu Chichi grabbed Ren Limeng's left arm with his right hand, looked at Shen Xingzhi who had continued to practice silently, and then looked at Ren Limeng with anticipation.

Reasonably and emotionally, Ren Limeng should agree with her suggestion.

At this moment, Ren Limeng's choice to agree with her was just going with the flow. When the show was broadcast, she would be more likely to be the controversial person, but simplifying the actions would reduce the burden on everyone.

It's not worth it to devote so much time and energy to the so-called banggu for just a few days.

In the same team, Yan Baiwei and Li Qingzi chose to check in at other attractions. Not only could they earn money by completing tasks, but there would also be more highlights during the broadcast. However, all they saw in the camera were boring and repetitive exercises.

Xu Chichi subconsciously clenched her right hand, and when she noticed Ren Limeng frowning slightly, she realized her unconscious action, quickly let go, and whispered "sorry".

Ren Limeng was slightly stunned and shook her head. "Sister Chi Chi, there are only two days left. Changing things up all the time will easily disrupt the morale of the troops. Besides, we have almost learned enough. We are laymen and may not feel that the differences between the several sets of movements are much. But for the banggu, every subtle movement must be different. The teacher's arrangement must have her reasons. It would be disrespectful for us to change it at will."

Just like learning to sing opera as a child, every movement and expression in singing, reciting, acting and fighting requires the actors to repeatedly practice. For example, the "cloud hands" that express the character's dynamics and emotions through arm swings. When playing a Huadan, the wrist only needs to be slightly turned to grasp the softness, while when playing a Xiaosheng, the arm swing amplitude is moderate, and the softness needs to reflect grace and elegance.

A layman looks at the doorway, while an expert looks at the skills. They certainly cannot perfectly master the banggu skills in just one week, but at this moment they should force themselves to work harder.

If she had to compromise for the sake of so-called live broadcast safety, she would not be willing to do so and would look down on herself now.

"Li Meng..."

Xu Chichi was stunned for a moment, then grabbed Ren Limeng's arm again and wanted to persuade her a few more words, but Ren Limeng had already slowly stood up.

"Sister Chi Chi, let's continue. We can rest for a while if we finish the training sooner."

The whole team still has to practice the stage together in the evening, and as the first public performance is approaching, they don’t have much time.

Time is tight and the task is heavy, even Yan Baiwei became visibly serious during the evening training.

As well-known actors, Yan Baiwei, Chen Xingzhi and Li Qingzi all have experience in many large-scale performances, and are very sophisticated in singing and stage presence. Ren Limeng has been learning opera since childhood and is also a host, so she has no shortcomings in this aspect. In comparison, Xu Chichi's problems are very prominent.

The instructor once again interrupted the five people's joint practice of "Song of Heaven and Earth", turned her back to the mirror, and looked at Xu Chichi behind her on the right. Before she could say anything, Xu Chichi had already apologized repeatedly.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I misremembered the words, I was in a panic and didn't follow the movements, I'm sorry..."

"How many times! Xu Chichi, have you practiced on your own these past two days? It's just a small thing, and you've done it so many times tonight, how come you still got it wrong again!"

Yan Baiwei's voice was laced with unconcealable emotion. She frowned, tilted her head, glanced at Xu Chichi, and then looked irritably at the clock by the entrance, "It's almost ten o'clock. Is it still possible tonight?!"

"Bai Wei, it's okay. We've basically finished the process, don't worry."

Li Qingzi stepped forward gently, stood beside Yan Baiwei and comforted her repeatedly, then looked up at the camera, hinting at Yan Baiwei.

Yan Baiwei glanced at the camera, her face slightly brightened, but she still clasped her hands together and stared at Xu Chichi silently.

She understood Li Qingzi's good intentions, but as the company's "number one lady", it was no big deal even if she was a little willful in front of the camera. It was just to maintain her "simple and honest" personality to the end.

Xu Chichi avoided Yan Baiwei's sharp gaze and looked at the other people around him helplessly, as if asking for help.

"How about we split up into groups and go through it again, then reunite at ten o'clock and finish?"

Li Qingzi gently put forward her ideas and acted as a peacemaker to ease the atmosphere.

Yes, Sister Chi Chi, I will help you go through it again."

Ren Limeng nodded and looked at Li Qingzi for a moment. Feeling that Yan Baiwei was close to freezing point, her thoughts coincided with Li Qingzi's.

Although Xu Chichi made many mistakes tonight, they had no time to get angry. Solving the problem was the only way.

"Divided into groups again? Then why are we in the training room tonight? I told everyone to just practice at the hotel, but you insisted on practicing together! Let's just call it a day! Everyone learn your parts first, and then we can practice together tomorrow!"

More than an hour ago, Yan Baiwei had already mastered most of the movements and songs, and she almost never made mistakes in each performance. More than half an hour ago, she expressed her wish to leave first, but was stopped by Shen Xingzhi.

At this moment, she suggested ending it again. Although she was still facing Xu Chichi, Ren Limeng and the other two could hear that she was "taking advantage of the situation."

Yan Baiwei's "everyone" was just referring to Chen Xingzhi. After spending a few days together, everyone knew what was going on.

Among all the people present, the only person Yan Baiwei cared about was Shen Xingzhi, who was of a higher status than herself.

"I'm so sorry, Bai Wei, why don't you go back first! Li Meng can stay and help me."

Xu Chichi spoke timidly, also stealing glances at Shen Xingzhi. After a little hesitation, she mustered up the courage to express herself again. She had obviously worked very hard these days, but things went against her wishes. Her current situation was very different from what she had imagined before recording the variety show.

Hearing Yan Baiwei's complaint, Shen Xingzhi, who was standing beside her, looked at Yan Baiwei with a half-smile and said directly, "There is a long section of banggu in the middle of this "Song of Heaven and Earth". The rest of the performance is not very stressful. If you feel that you have practiced well and want to go back by yourself, you can do so. The same goes for others."

Ren Limeng tilted her head to look at Chen Xingzhi. She didn't expect that he had also learned the art of roundabout speech. He seemed to agree with Yan Baiwei, but no one could ignore the obvious implication.

Compared to Xu Chichi, who made frequent mistakes, Yan Baiwei, who did not practice banggu, had much less pressure during rehearsals.

Yes, they are all veterans in the entertainment industry, and some stars only speak and act impulsively.

"Bai Wei, don't worry. I know you have good intentions, but you're just worried that something might go wrong."

Li Qingzi's ears moved slightly and she lowered her eyes.

She could tell that the "other people" he was referring to were just her who was "like a shadow" to Yan Baiwei.

But she wasn't Yan Baiwei after all, so she couldn't be so unscrupulous. She raised a helpless smile and continued to gently persuade Yan Baiwei, "I heard that Sister Chen Xi and the others next door practiced until two o'clock yesterday. Why don't we practice a few more times together? We can't be the last one!"

“How could he be at the bottom? Shen Xingzhi is on our team.”

Yan Baiwei took over Li Qingzi's words without thinking, and when she saw everyone's focused eyes, she was suddenly awakened from her dense and depressed mood.

Popularity has always been the "unspoken rule" of the performance evaluation of "Shan Hai". Big names like Chen Xingzhi have always been among the most popular among the audience, so his team naturally won at the starting line.

This is a reality known to everyone and an unspoken understanding, but in front of the reality show "Mountains and Seas" which focuses on the saying "Only by working hard can you win", it seems too blatant to say it directly.