Chapter 101 Intentional
When Zhu Fan and Yi Jia arrived at the playground, the stands were already packed. Those without tickets simply sat in circles on the rubber track and green lawn, making the central stage even more lively.
The athletes' waiting area is located on the side of the stands, and there is also a dedicated viewing area.
As the two walked, they drew waves of cheers and screams, with many spectators waving glow sticks and shouting Yi Jia and Zhu Fan's names.
Yi Jia wore a long down jacket over her dress. She pulled the jacket tighter around herself and kept saying to Zhu Fan, "You're so enthusiastic!"
Zhu Fan helped her finish her sentence, "Give us more of this enthusiasm."
Yi Jia burst out laughing and hugged Zhu Fan, saying, "As expected, you understand me best."
Not far away, He Qianya was touching up her makeup with a powder compact when she caught a glimpse of the commotion caused by Yi Jia and Zhu Fan. Her expression darkened. She rolled her eyes at Yi Jia's retreating figure before snapping the powder compact shut.
Zhu Fan placed his cello case against his feet and glanced at the performance order label on his seat.
The positions were arranged according to the performance order. Yi Jia shivered as she took off her down jacket, asking Zhu Fan to help her attach the performance tag to her waist. A cold wind blew into her thin dress, and Zhu Fan instantly got goosebumps when he saw her bare arms.
"Hiss... It's so cold!" Yi Jia couldn't stand it anymore and quickly wrapped her down jacket around herself before Zhu Fan could say anything.
There were two empty seats next to the two of them.
Zhou Song and Zhong Fei have not yet arrived.
He Qianya's gaze swept over Zhu Fan's casual yet warm attire, then landed on Yi Jia's exquisite updo, makeup, and evening gown, a cold smile playing on her lips. She'd dressed so meticulously herself, yet let her best friend dress so casually—who would believe she wasn't afraid of being overshadowed?
She was secretly chuckling to herself when she heard someone around her whispering praises of Yi Jia's look tonight.
He Qianya pouted and stuffed the powder compact back into her bag.
A refreshing fragrance of winter plum blossoms suddenly wafted closer.
When she looked up, Zhong Fei was smiling and greeting her.
He Qianya's gaze was instantly drawn to it.
Zhong Fei wore a pearl-white cheongsam, with ink plum blossoms embroidered on the skirt, which perfectly outlined her well-proportioned figure and gave her a dignified and elegant temperament.
“Boss lady,” He Qianya couldn’t help but praise sincerely, “Your outfit tonight is practically a testament to the saying ‘peace and prosperity for the nation.’”
Zhou Song walked beside her, dressed in a bamboo-embroidered Tang suit, exuding elegance and refinement. The two walked side by side, looking perfectly matched.
Zhong Fei smiled and said, "Thank you."
She followed Zhou Song to sit in an empty seat, but her gaze couldn't help but fall on Zhu Fan diagonally in front of her.
Zhu Fan was looking down at her phone, a gentle smile curving her lips.
She's smiling so sweetly... Is she chatting with her boyfriend?
Zhong Fei rested her chin on her hand, her eyes calm, yet a thin layer of frost seemed to linger in her depths.
"Two beautiful ladies!"
Qiu Chen, carrying two cups of milk tea and two large bouquets of flowers, swaggered over to Zhu Fan and Yi Jia.
Yi Jia smiled and accepted the bouquet: "Didn't we agree that I would go on stage to present the flowers after I finished singing?"
Zhu Fan didn't reach out, but simply raised his chin towards Yi Jia, indicating that everything should go to Yi Jia.
Qiu Chen raised an eyebrow: "What, you have a boyfriend now, so you don't even dare to accept flowers from your buddies?"
Zhu Fan crossed his arms and smiled teasingly, "You knew that, yet you still gave it to me?"
“Okay, all that time I spent picking out flowers at the florist was for nothing.” Qiu Chen smiled and handed another bouquet to Yi Jia, his gaze falling on Zhu Fan’s cello. “I’ll carry your cello for you after you come off stage.”
Zhu Fan gave an OK sign.
Yi Jia clicked her tongue and said, "She has a boyfriend to take care of her, she doesn't need you to."
Qiu Chen wasn't annoyed. He took out a box of throat lozenges from his pocket and tossed it to her, pretending to be serious: "Sing well, don't embarrass yourself."
Yi Jia laughed and cursed, then casually plucked a small flower from the bouquet and tossed it toward his retreating figure.
A little while later, Wen Yuxing also came over with milk tea and a hand warmer. "Sister-in-law, Brother Zhou asked me to bring these to you."
Yi Jia, holding the hand warmer, sighed, "Why do I love this dog food so much..."
Zhu Fan held the hand warmer, and her icy hands slowly warmed up.
Wen Yuxing pointed to the stage and assured her, "You will definitely be satisfied with today's stage performance."
This is a little stage surprise that Zhu Fan prepared for Yi Jia.
Yi Jia was curious for several days, but Zhu Fan kept his mouth shut.
“Don’t leave after the match,” Yi Jia said to Wen Yuxing. “I’ll treat everyone to drinks and dinner.”
Wen Yuxing readily agreed: "No problem, let's celebrate your victory."
He Qianya, who had just gotten up and was walking around, overheard these words. She glanced over and said sarcastically, "The competition hasn't even started yet, isn't it a bit too early to be talking about this?"
Wen Yuxing smiled and counted on her fingers: "I've done the math, and they've got this first place in the bag."
Yi Jia laughed heartily, but He Qianya's expression turned even uglier.
As the host took the stage, the cold wind in the open-air venue picked up in gusts, and Yi Jia felt a sudden urge to urinate.
She stopped Zhu Fan, who was about to get up and join her, saying, "It's too cold. Don't run after me. I'll be back soon."
As the opening chorus of "Youth Peking University" was about to end, Yi Jia still hadn't returned.
Zhu Fan dialed her number, but the phone rang instead on the empty chair next to him.
Yi Jia didn't bring his phone.
Zhu Fan's heart skipped a beat. He looked at He Qianya's seat, but it was empty.
She had a bad feeling, grabbed Yi Jia's phone and got up.
She breathed a sigh of relief when she bumped into Yi Jia coming out of the restroom.
Yi Jia pressed her cold hand against Zhu Fan's neck: "The line was too long, I almost had to go to the men's restroom next door!"
As she spoke, she pulled Zhu Fan along and ran back, asking, "Is it almost our turn?"
As Zhu Fan calmed his breathing, he bent down and slung the cello over his shoulder.
Yi Jia took off her down jacket and draped it over the back of the chair. Just as she was about to leave, Zhu Fan noticed a few specks of red lip gloss splattered on the hem of her white gauze dress.
"It must have been accidentally thrown by someone touching up their makeup in the restroom."
Yi Jia frowned, her tone slightly annoyed, "It's too late to change clothes now."
In a corner of the waiting area, Zhu Fan squatted down and used a stain remover pen he carried with him to gently wipe away the few glaring red stains.
The color has faded considerably and should not be easily noticeable under stage lights.
When Yi Jia pulled her up, he saw her fingers, which were red from the cold, and his eyes suddenly welled up with tears.
"Don't cry," Zhu Fan said with a smile, squeezing her hand. "If you're so nervous that you cry on stage, I'll laugh at you."
"Next, please welcome Yi Jia from the School of Art and Zhu Fan from the School of Economics to perform 'As You Wish' for us—"
The announcer began. Yi Jia took a deep breath and flashed a bright smile.
She stepped onto the stage, followed closely by Zhu Fan, who was carrying a cello.
As I stepped onto the stairs, I suddenly felt a slight tugging sensation from behind—
While waiting backstage, Zhong Fei accidentally stepped on the hem of her skirt with her high heels.
Zhu Fan, holding the cello, shifted his weight, instantly protecting the instrument.
She fell sideways onto the steps.
"Banfan!"
Yi Jia quickly turned around to help her.
Zhu Fan felt a burning pain in her left arm through her clothes, and her left palm was scraped and bleeding.
Zhong Fei quickly stepped forward, her eyes filled with apology: "I'm sorry, your skirt was too long, I didn't notice. Are you alright?"
Yi Jia bit her lip, wanting to speak, but she suspected that Zhong Fei was doing it on purpose.
Zhu Fan gently nudged her: "Go on stage first."
She stood up and hid her scraped hand behind her back.
Standing on the stage, she nodded reassuringly to Yi Jia.
Waves of applause rose and fell.
The stage spotlights came on.
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