Chapter 36
Qinglan City’s annual music festival arrived as scheduled.
Like previous years, the organizers invited many well-known bands and musicians, attracting a large number of music lovers from all over the country.
The stage lights shone brightly, illuminating the night like day. On a large, high-definition screen, a sleekly dressed singer belted out a rock song with rapt attention. The music blared, and below, a sea of people gathered, young faces beaming with smiles as they waved glow sticks wildly, creating dazzling arcs of light.
Shen Fengni stood quietly at the back of the crowd.
After a few days of running-in, she and Zhou Luoying have become very proficient in singing the song "Chang'an Bright Moon". During yesterday's rehearsal, they amazed everyone in the audience and there was no need to continue practicing.
The two's performance was scheduled for the middle of the night, near the end of the festival, with several hours still to go. With nothing better to do, Chen Fengni decided to join in the fun, blending into the crowd and acting as a spectator.
She hadn't put on any makeup yet, wearing only a simple, light-colored T-shirt and denim shorts, revealing a pair of long, straight legs. She wore a baseball cap, and her cool brown curls flowed down her back, gently falling to her waist.
The feeling was good at first, but after listening for a while, Shen Fengni began to feel uncomfortable.
The high density of people on a scorching summer day made the air even more oppressive, making her feel increasingly suffocated. The singers' skills and expressiveness were impeccable, but the music was so loud it made her dizzy.
Chen Fengni loves music, but if she has a choice, she would rather tune in to the right volume at home and enjoy it quietly, rather than traveling to a concert venue and squeeze in with others, where she has to shout to be heard clearly.
After a moment's hesitation, she turned around and walked quickly out of the crowd.
The fresh air blowing in her face made her feel a lot more comfortable in an instant.
For the convenience of tourists, there is a temporary snack street near the entrance of the venue, which offers a variety of special foods.
Chen Fengni bought a bottle of iced mineral water from a nearby stall and found a relatively quiet corner to sit down and rest.
She raised her phone, took a picture of the stage from a distance, and sent it to Zhezhi.
Feng Ni: Look
Feng Ni: This is where I’m performing tonight.
She took two sips of the mineral water and a message popped up.
Zhezhi: It’s a very beautiful stage.
Zhezhi: I will watch the live broadcast.
Zhezhi: Come on.
In order to facilitate music fans who cannot arrive at the scene, the entire music festival in Qinglan City will be live broadcast on the "Moment" app, and during the singers' performances, the organizers will mark their corresponding homepage links to achieve the effect of attracting fans.
Based on past experience, the number of people in the live broadcast room will remain stable at over tens of thousands.
This is obviously a very good exposure opportunity for Chen Fengni, who is still a new anchor.
Chen Fengni typed a reply: Actually, I am a little nervous. This is my first offline stage.
Although there is no problem with her professional ability, she is an introverted person. At first, she was nervous when facing the audience behind the screen in the live broadcast room, let alone such a large-scale offline performance.
During the rehearsal, she tried her best to act calm and collected, not letting others notice anything. But in front of Zhezhi, there seemed to be no need to hide anything.
Zhezhi: I believe you can.
Zhezhi: What do you need me to do?
Although it was just words, Shen Fengni seemed to hear the sound of branches breaking, which was clear and shallow, and together with the cool evening breeze, gently brushed past her ears.
She typed in the dialog box: No, just stay with me...
Before she finished typing, her fingertips paused, deleted the line of words, and typed it again.
Feng Ni: No need, I can do it.
Given her current relationship with Zhezhi, her coquettish tone would have crossed the line.
She could only blame the deep scars from her previous life, which made her unconsciously want to rely on the other person.
Chen Fengni was a little annoyed. He put his phone in his pocket and let out a long sigh.
At this moment, the sound of messy footsteps was heard not far away, and then two figures suddenly broke into her field of vision, attracting her attention.
The two stopped a few meters away from Shen Fengni, each searching for something in their bag.
"I told you to take the electric bike, but you insisted on walking. It's such a long way, I'm going to be exhausted."
One of the cute girls with twin ponytails complained unhappily, "Now that's good! My legs are sore from walking and I didn't make it to the show, and I even fell. Was it worth it? Xu Weiyi, can you please stop being so obsessed with money in the future?"
The girl known as Xu Weiyi had her back to Chen Fengni, so her features were invisible. She wore a cropped top and shorts, revealing a thin waist. There seemed to be some kind of tattoo on her waist, but it was too far away to make out clearly.
Judging from her back, she must be a beauty, but because her clothes and pants were covered in dust, and her knee was cut and bleeding, she looked a bit disheveled.
"Oh, it's already like this, what's the point of saying this, just be optimistic."
Xu Weiyi turned her own bag upside down, then leaned over to look inside the bag of the girl with the twintails. "I don't seem to have any Band-Aids with you. Do you have any?"
"Yes, you should clean the area around the wound with wet wipes first, then use it."
The girl with twin ponytails stuffed the wet wipes and band-aids into Xu Weiyi's arms, but she was still unforgiving, "It's only 20 yuan to take an electric bike, and you can't even bear to spend 20 yuan?"
"What's wrong with twenty yuan? Twenty yuan affects my life, do you understand? Hiss, it hurts."
Xu Weiyi showed no regrets as he bent over to tend to the wound on his leg. His long hair flowed down his back like a waterfall.
"You still feel the pain? I should let you fall harder so you can learn your lesson."
…
The bickering between the two was carried into Chen Fengni's ears by the cool evening breeze, and she smiled gently.
The venue for the music festival is a square by the river, close to the suburbs, and the geographical location is a bit remote.
There are almost no ride-hailing services in this area, and most people drive themselves or carpool.
However, there are also some people with poor financial conditions who do not have cars and cannot afford the cost of carpooling. They choose to take the bus to a nearby station first, and then find other ways to get to the scene.
The nearest bus station is three kilometers away, which is neither too close nor too far. So some nearby residents saw a business opportunity and picked up passengers on their electric scooters, charging them twenty or thirty yuan per person, which was also a side income.
The two girls in front of me looked young, like college students who had not yet graduated. Their financial situation was probably not very good. They had no money left after buying the tickets, so they had to save even the money for the electric car.
"Alright, alright, let's leave it at that for now. It's just a minor injury."
Xu Weiyi treated the wound and stood up.
The atmosphere on the stage reached a climax at this moment, the beams of spotlights swaying and dazzling. At a certain moment, Xu Weiyi was enveloped by the light, and a few strands of blue highlights became clear in her long hair.
Shen Fengni's gaze paused, and then her eyes suddenly widened.
She felt her heartbeat quicken as she heard the girl with the twin ponytails continue, "Hey, where was your previous rich girlfriend? Why didn't you seize the opportunity to escape poverty?"
"What the hell." Xu Weiyi turned around, smiled, and pushed the person next to him. "We're no longer in touch, and that wasn't my girlfriend."
The light outlines the girl's profile, with delicate features, a bright smile, and a little bit of ruffian spirit.
The last time I saw this face was in the photos of Yu Qian cheating.
Shen Fengni stood up suddenly, and the mineral water bottle in her hand accidentally fell to the ground with a muffled sound.
The lid was not screwed on tightly, and water flowed all over the floor, leaving a large stain. The two girls not far away heard the sound and turned to look at her at the same time.
Their eyes met, and the air seemed to freeze for a moment.
"Oh, it turned out that the water was spilled. I was so scared."
The girl with twin ponytails rubbed her chest and said, "Let's go...Xu Weiyi, why do you look like that? What the hell?"
Xu Weiyi's smile froze, and a flash of panic flashed in her eyes. She took a few steps back, then ran away.
It was obvious that the wound was still painful, so his running posture was a little awkward and he was limping.
"No, what's wrong with you? Wait for me!"
The girl with twin ponytails chased after them, and their backs quickly merged into the crowd and disappeared from view.
Shen Fengni stood there with mixed feelings.
She had long lost all affection for Yu Qian, so even when she saw the person he had cheated with appear before her, she did not feel sad or angry.
But meeting in such an occasion still made her feel very surprised and embarrassed.
But there are so many people at the music festival, if we meet again, I'll just pretend I didn't see you.
Shen Fengni pulled the corner of his mouth and smiled.
She recalled Xu Weiyi's panicked and guilty look just now, and suddenly found it very interesting.
Xu Weiyi obviously knew her.
I don’t know why she got together with Yu Qian.
Shen Fengni thought carelessly.
Many people think that waiting is a boring thing, but Chen Fengni doesn’t think so. She enjoys and cherishes the time she has to free time.
Her thoughts wandering, aimlessly and unrestrained, brings her great peace.
More than half an hour passed like this, and the phone in her pocket vibrated, and she came to her senses.
Shen Fengni took out her cell phone and saw Jiang Zhuoyan's name on the screen.
She picked up, "Hello?"
"I'm here, where are you?"
The performance on stage had just reached the interlude of a song, and the music faded. Jiang Zhuoyan's voice, accompanied by the sound of the wind, reached his ears clearly.
Shen Fengni's eyes curved slightly, "I'm near the entrance, on the northeast side."
After learning that she would be performing at a music festival, Jiang Zhuoyan immediately asked about the specific time and location and said she would go to watch it.
Shen Fengni was naturally happy to have her friend come to see the show, but she was also worried about disrupting their work. Jiang Zhuoyan's explanation that he had recently finished a project and was looking for a chance to relax put her mind at ease.
After a brief pause, a voice rang out simultaneously from the receiver and behind him, "I see you."
Shen Fengni turned her head and saw a familiar figure in her field of vision.
Jiang Zhuoyan, wearing a simple moon-white dress, walked towards her through the crowd.
The hem of her skirt swayed in the hazy night, like a ray of starlight, lighting up the dark twilight.
Shen Fengni smiled and waved at the newcomer.
"Sorry, I'm late."
As Jiang Zhuoyan approached, a familiar fragrance immediately came over and spread around his nose.
Chen Fengni waved her hand, "When we're out having fun, there's no such thing as being late or not."
Jiang Zhuoyan was over an hour later than expected, but she certainly didn't mind. As the company's president, Jiang Zhuoyan had a busy schedule, so it was normal for her to have to deal with unexpected matters. She was already very happy that he had come all the way to show his support.
"Have you had dinner yet?"
Jiang Zhuoyan asked.
"Not yet." Shen Fengni answered truthfully, and then extended an invitation, "You haven't eaten yet, right? They will send lunch boxes to the backstage soon. Let's go eat together."
"Okay." Jiang Zhuoyan nodded, and then, as if she suddenly remembered something, she took out a small box of chocolates from her bag. "Want to have one first? It's not sweet."
After saying that, Jiang Zhuoyan opened it and took one piece for herself first.
Shen Fengni readily agreed, "Okay."
The metal box was only the size of a palm, but more than ten centimeters deep. She put her finger inside and found that only the last piece was left.
Chen Fengni opened the package, then her eyes paused and she let out a soft "Huh".
A small pendant peeked out from the golden tinfoil. Made of smooth white jade and shaped like a cute cat's head, it rested quietly in her palm, strung on a thin gold chain.
Shen Fengni looked up in confusion, "What is this?"
"This is for you. Wear it on stage later."
Jiang Zhuoyan raised her lips and said in a gentle voice, "With it by your side, you won't be nervous."
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