Chapter 352 Swing around freely! (2)
Before this moment, Lu Yanhe thought he didn't love the stage.
Therefore, when Chen Ziyan asked him to focus on acting and sing as a secondary activity, he didn't feel embarrassed at all, and he didn't even consider singing as a secondary activity.
Standing on the stage, dancing wildly with Li Zhibai and Yan Liang, chanting "la la la la" over and over again, with all the audience members raising their arms and dancing along with them, this scene, this moment, caused Lu Yanhe's emotions to surge like a bursting dam, washing away all his restraint, rationality, and thought.
He was simply immersed in the joyful moment that resonated with everyone present.
—What's your name?!
I love you!
—Don't you know?!
I need you!
This is Lu Yanhe's confession to his two teammates, and also to all his fans.
-
Helan burst into tears at this moment.
She didn't know why, but such a happy song made her burst into tears.
But she wasn't feeling sad or upset at all; rather, she was moved and inspired.
She had never seen Lu Yanhe like this before, singing a song on stage with the fullest passion and emotion.
There must have been tears in his eyes, right?
Helan believed she understood.
This song was written by Lu Yanhe.
She also believed that Lu Yanhe's other fans must have understood.
-
In the backstage dressing room of "Idol Era", Ma Zhiyuan and Chen Ziliang watched the performance on the screen, their expressions serious and silent.
The three people on stage performed with such passion, as if they were burning themselves out—a state that every performer understands.
That's a state that can only be encountered by chance.
Ma Zhiyuan's heart was filled with bitterness.
Why, why is it that even though he's tried so hard, given everything he could, he's still not as good as them?
That night, the ratings for "Idol Era" peaked on the stage of "Green Apple Paradise".
Less than an hour after the performance, the song swept across major social media platforms.
Almost all music bloggers inevitably talk about this song.
"This is a sincere performance by three young people who, after experiencing great fame and success, were still able to completely burn themselves out on stage."
"This is a retro stage performance of the 1980s and 90s. They changed into clothes and hairstyles from that era and sang songs in the style of that time. However, in such a retro expression, they sang out their own joy and hope, and expressed the love that resonates in every era."
"This was a night for Lu Yanhe. He performed three songs of completely different styles in one go, proving his musical talent. I can hardly believe that I would say such a thing. Lu Yanhe should not be an actor. He should be a singer. His creative talent can completely cover up his shortcomings in vocal condition. His creative talent is enough to make him a top singer."
"Tonight's live broadcast of 'Idol Era' will become a classic. Almost every artist delivered a high level of performance and expression. Among them, the most dazzling performance was undoubtedly 'Green Apple Paradise.' If 'Battlefield of Youth' was Yan Liang's reflection on his past and his self-singing, then 'Green Apple Paradise' was the three of them taking all the audience into their joyful world, singing out the exuberance and unrestrained spirit of youth. They all used their wholehearted dedication and empathy to infect every audience member with their performance."
"It's such a pity. Ma Zhiyuan's performance originally had top-notch choreography and delivery, but unfortunately it was overshadowed by Lu Yanhe and the others' performances that touched people's hearts. The most superb skills are no match for the most basic empathy."
...
The live broadcast of "Idol Era" has ended.
The discussion, however, was incredibly heated.
At 11 p.m., data from major platforms surged because of this program and these performances.
With the live broadcast over, audience voting for "Idol Era" began.
Only viewers who have watched the entire program and registered their real names in the background are eligible to vote. Those who do not pass the eligibility review are not eligible to vote.
In this situation, just thirty minutes later, "Green Apple Paradise" garnered 1.2 million votes, ranking first, followed by Yan Liang's "The Battlefield of Youth".
"Damn it, my 'Bewitched' is actually behind Ma Zhiyuan's show?" Li Zhibai cursed in the car.
Ma Zhiyuan still has a strong fan base, and his stage presence is indeed excellent.
After "Green Apple Paradise" took away some of Li Zhibai's votes, "Bewitched" was overtaken by Ma Zhiyuan's stage performance.
However, to the surprise of many, Ma Zhiyuan and Chen Ziliang's joint performance did not even make it into the top five, and is currently ranked only eighth.
The show's voting doesn't actually have much relevance to the rankings on the Tianxing Chart.
However, this also reflects the audience's level of enjoyment of tonight's program.
Even after Lu Yanhe and the other two finished their performance, they were still too excited to calm down, all the way to Ziyuan Bridge.
The reason for their excitement was that they could feel how different they were when performing the song "Green Apple Paradise." For an artist, encountering such a performance state depends on the right time, place, and people; it's something that can't be forced.
"Are you feeling hungry?"
"A little."
"How about we grab some late-night snacks before heading back?"
"Walk."
So, even though the car had already reached the entrance of Ziyuan Bridge, it turned around again.
The three of them suddenly felt an inexplicable urge to go back to the Hong residence to see if that mala tang (spicy hot pot) place was still open.
When they lived in the Hong Mansion before, they would have late-night snacks at either the barbecue restaurant next door or the spicy hot pot restaurant.
Fortunately, the mala tang shop was still open.
They greeted the boss.
The boss smiled broadly, his face beaming with delight: "It's been so long since the big stars have come!"
"We're not staying here anymore, but we really wanted to eat at your place today, so we came back," Li Zhibai said. "Boss, give us ten chicken feet first, and you can get the rest for us."
Besides the three of them, there were also their respective team assistants and bodyguards, a group of people who completely booked all three four-person tables.
Fortunately, this mala tang restaurant has its own storefront with a few tables inside.
Li Zhibai said, "Tonight's performance was the most exhilarating I've had all year. It was really great, absolutely fantastic! Lao Lu, you need to write more songs like 'Green Apple Paradise' in the future!"
Lu Yanhe: "I don't have that many songs like that."
“You always say that you can’t write it, or that you write it too slowly. But look, this time you wrote it right away!” Li Zhibai put his arm around Lu Yanhe’s shoulder. “You’re really good at hiding your talent. Look at everyone’s reaction now. ‘Green Apple Paradise’ is a complete hit. My WeChat Moments are full of posts about our stage.”
"The key is that you gave this song a very retro stage theme," Lu Yanhe said. "When I wrote this song, I was worried that it might be a bit outdated and not quite in line with the style of the show 'Idol Era'. But you guys directly created a retro theme, unifying the tone from our styling to the arrangement to our dance moves, which resulted in a complete theme expression."
“This was Yan Liang’s idea,” Li Zhibai said. “He’s quite good at this; he has a very complete idea for every stage. He’s an expert.”
"What expert? Don't embarrass me," Yan Liang said.
He rested his chin on his hand, seemingly having lost his initial excitement and becoming somewhat listless.
"Tonight was incredible. Before the performance, I guessed that our performance would be good, but I didn't expect it to be this good."
"The main reason is that the audience was very supportive. The whole audience was jumping around with us, and the whole venue was buzzing with energy," Li Zhibai said.
Lu Yanhe nodded, "Indeed, but Brother Bai, we almost messed up today because of you."
"Who told you to call us all of a sudden? It's about to start," Li Zhibai immediately complained.
Yan Liang: "You two should thank me. If it weren't for my quick thinking in saving the day, haha."
"I'm impressed," Lu Yanhe laughed.
Li Zhibai laughed, "The three of us have more than enough chemistry."
"The only downside was that we didn't get to see Ma Zhiyuan and Chen Ziliang's faces after the performance."
"How did they get here?"
"What's the point of those two idiots spouting all that nonsense before we even get on stage?"
"It worked! Didn't it almost provoke you? If you had successfully provoked me, how would you have performed on stage?"
"You're saying they're deliberately provoking us?"
“Both, anyway, their intentions are impure,” Lu Yanhe said. “When I run into Ma Zhiyuan, he rarely says anything harsh to me anymore. At most, he just gives me a cold look and ignores everyone. Occasionally, we’ll exchange a few sarcastic remarks when something happens, but he would never go to such lengths to mock us like he did today.”
"What a dirty heart," Li Zhibai clicked his tongue.
“He’s wholeheartedly trying to beat you and secure the number one spot, so it’s not surprising that he does anything,” Lu Yanhe said. “He did a lot of disgusting things when he was in MX, as you know. Now that you’re both Zhou Ping’an’s artists, he’s toned it down a bit.”
"He's toned it down?"
Lu Yanhe: "That's how I feel. Don't you feel the same way?"
“No,” Li Zhibai immediately shook his head. “Absolutely not.”
Yan Liang: "Old Lu is right. After he came under Zhou Ping'an's command, he did toned it down a bit. Before, when he attended an event with you, he would deliberately make sarcastic remarks to you in front of others, saying that Fengzhi was past its prime, that you were only able to stay in the entertainment industry because of your status as a rich second-generation, and that you bought trending searches to create fake popularity."
After being reminded by them, Li Zhi suddenly remembered.
"That's right, I'd completely forgotten. Damn, he even spread rumors before, saying I'm just a rich second-generation who got into the entertainment industry through connections and background." Li Zhibai muttered for a moment. "That bastard, he even told others that I'm arrogant and look down on everyone, and that they should stay away from me. Now, whenever I attend an event, people avoid me. Damn it!"
Lu Yanhe and Yan Liang looked at each other in bewilderment.
"This time they'll be taught a lesson." Li Zhibai suddenly chuckled twice, his shoulders twitching. "Let him be arrogant, let him be arrogant to death. Now his show is ranked third, ha!"
-
The car that took Ma Zhiyuan back was very quiet.
His team remained silent.
At that moment, no one was even looking at their phones; everyone was silently gazing out the car window.
Ma Zhiyuan didn't know how to describe his feelings, especially after logging into his Weibo account, where many people in the comments section were asking:
Why did you choose to collaborate with Chen Ziliang? His reputation is ruined now.
These words pierced Ma Zhiyuan's heart like arrows.
Originally, he thought Chen Ziliang was a secret weapon who could help him offset the impact of Lu Yanhe's help to Li Zhibai through cooperation. Unexpectedly, this cooperation not only failed to help him, but also brought him a lot of doubt.
When did Chen Ziliang's reputation become so bad?
...
Why did Ma Zhiyuan always regard Li Zhibai as his biggest rival?
Ma Zhiyuan recalled when he was still a trainee at the company. At that time, Li Zhibai and others had just debuted and were very popular.
Li Zhibai, in particular, is the company's most popular artist.
At that time, Ma Zhiyuan often saw Li Zhibai being escorted by a group of people at the company.
People in the company probably saw the envy in his eyes and laughed at him, saying, "Don't be envious, you can't get what you want just by envying him."
Ma Zhiyuan was very young at the time, and when he heard this, he was very unconvinced and immediately said, "As long as I work hard enough, I will definitely be more popular than him in the future!"
A mocking look immediately appeared in the other person's eyes.
They said, "Who do you think you are? What are you? Even if you become famous in the future, what are you in front of him? He has a father who can talk directly to our boss. Do you have that?"
At that time, the seed of resentment was planted in his heart.
Even after MX became an overnight sensation, even after he became a top idol artist, even after the person who said those words to him had left Star Entertainment, those words still stuck in his heart like a thorn, constantly reminding him of the humiliation he had suffered.
However, tonight, Ma Zhiyuan knew he had failed.
Even if Li Zhibai's "Bewitched" doesn't rank as high as his stage performance, it's still unknown who is number one on the half-year chart between him and Li Zhibai.
But at this moment, he had a feeling that he had already failed.
At that moment, Ma Zhiyuan suddenly realized something.
When he reached the mountaintop all by himself, he thought he had reached the summit, but there was no one by his side to enjoy the scenery with him.
He was constantly anxious and uneasy about being overtaken by others, and every day he looked around to see if the mountaintop he was standing on was the highest mountaintop.
Li Zhibai, on the other hand, can always be so carefree. Moreover, he has friends like Lu Yanhe and Yan Liang by his side.
Ma Zhiyuan used to think they were a burden to Li Zhibai, and even mocked them as Li Zhibai's lackeys and followers.
Now, Ma Zhiyuan can no longer say such words.
He thought of his MX, the MX he could never go back to.
Whether he regrets it or not, only he knows.
-
How popular is "Green Apple Paradise"?
The next day, imitations of the stage appeared on several social media platforms.
Extensive imitation.
Everyone changed into these somewhat loose suits, styled their hair in a 2:8 parting, and recorded their "Green Apple Paradise" in the dormitory, in the square, and in various other environments.
This song is incredibly catchy, which speaks volumes.
After a day of fermentation, a theme slowly emerged: My parents were once just as fashionable.
Many netizens posted photos of their fathers when they were young. Many of them looked just like Lu Yanhe and the other two on the stage of "Green Apple Paradise," wearing suits, with their hair parted in a 2:8 ratio, and their smiles were somewhat restrained and shy.
That evening, someone suddenly posted a short video in which he showed the camera a photo of his father when he was young, saying that he wanted to imitate his father's look when he was young and see his father's reaction.
So he changed into the suit his father wore in the photo when he was young, imitated the hairstyle and pose in the photo, and then the scene changed, showing him holding up his phone to take a picture of a middle-aged man wearing a polo shirt and sweatpants.
"Dad!" he called out, "Look at me."
His father looked up at the camera, and the camera captured his astonishment, disorientation, and shock the moment he looked up and saw his son.
The music of "Green Apple Paradise" started playing at this moment.
A comparison image appeared in the video.
After post-processing, the left side shows him now, and the right side shows his father in an old photo from twenty or thirty years ago. The two appear on the left and right sides in equal proportions and look remarkably similar.
He said, "The picture on the right is him from 23 years ago, and the picture on the left is me from 23 years later. I never imagined that I would look so much like my dad."
This video inexplicably touched a nerve with the public, garnering a large number of likes and shares.
One video blogger said, "I always thought my dad was old-fashioned. But after watching the 'Green Apple Paradise' stage, I suddenly realized that they were actually my age before. My mom said that my dad used to want to be a dance king and would go to the dance hall almost every day after get off work, but after I was born, he basically stopped going."
More and more people are starting to discover their parents' youth stories because of the stage of "Green Apple Paradise".
"Don't let my dad's current status as a retired cadre fool you. He had a great voice when he was young. He always won awards in singing competitions organized by his workplace. But look at him now... sigh... his voice is only good enough to win awards when he's yelling at me."
"I asked my mom who was more handsome when I was young, my dad or me, and she rolled her eyes at me."
"I dug out photos of my parents when they were young, and damn, why did my genes mutate to look like this?"
...
Li Xiaobin spent the whole day on his phone, and he kept coming across this kind of content every now and then.
It's already the end of June, and summer has arrived.
After finishing his last exam, he packed his bags and went home.
After getting off the bus with his suitcase, he walked home and saw a familiar figure walking towards him from afar.
"Mom!" he called out.
"I already told you to wait for me when we get to the station, and I'll help you carry all these bags."
His mother took a bag from his hand and complained to him.
“It’s not very heavy,” he said.
His mother said, "Let me tell you, I've signed you up for a program."
"Huh?" Li Xiaobin was taken aback. "What are you registering for? Mom, you didn't sign me up for some kind of tutoring class, did you?"
"Why are you taking extra classes now that you're in college?" His mother rolled her eyes at him. "I've signed you up for a singing competition."
"What?" Li Xiaobin looked at his mother in shock.
“Why don’t you give it a try?” his mother said. “I remember you used to love singing with your dad when you were little, right? Maybe you inherited your dad’s great voice.”
Li Xiaobin looked at his mother in disbelief. "Mom, you're not kidding, are you? I... I'm not going."
“Just go when I tell you to, stop talking nonsense,” his mother said firmly. “Anyway, you’re on summer vacation and have nothing to do.”
"Who said I have nothing to do? I'm going to become a tutor."
“Being a tutor won’t prevent you from participating in a competition; you might even be eliminated in the first round,” his mother said.
Li Xiaobin: "..."
-
After dinner, Li Xiaobin was covered in sweat, so he took a shower first.
His mother suddenly knocked on the door and came in.
"What's wrong, Mom?"
His mother held a plate of sliced apples and said, "I cut some apples for you. You'll definitely be staying up late again tonight."
Li Xiaobin smiled.
"It's so stuffy in this room, why don't you turn on the air conditioner?" His mother walked over, picked up the remote, and turned on the air conditioner.
"It's not that hot, just turning on the fan is fine."
“Turn on the air conditioner when you need to, save this little bit of money.” His mother glared at him again. “You can tutor if you want, but I don’t expect you to make a lot of money from it. I don’t have a lot of money, but I’ve saved up the money for your schooling, food, and diapers. You’re a grown man, don’t be so stingy and petty. No girl will like you if you’re like this!”
Li Xiaobin: "...I've only been back for a few hours, and you've already scolded me so many times."
"Then you're asking for it." His mother snorted and turned to leave.
Li Xiaobin pursed his lips.
Before sitting down and starting to prepare his lesson, he scrolled through his phone for a while.
On short video platforms, there are still a large number of bloggers sharing photos of their fathers wearing suits and sporting a bob haircut, and sharing their stories.
This made him feel a pang of sadness and a tightness in his chest.
Li Xiaobin walked into the living room as if possessed, and went to the cabinet next to the TV, looking at the family photo that had been displayed there for so many years.
Since his father passed away, he can only see his father in this family photo.
His mother said that because his father didn't like taking pictures, and because many photos were lost during a move, only this photo was preserved.
Even his father's portrait was edited from this photo.
"What are you doing?" His mother suddenly came out of the room and asked.
Li Xiaobin snapped out of his daze, said "Oh," and asked, "Mom, when was this family photo taken?"
"When you were five years old, about fifteen years ago," his mother said, walking over and standing next to Li Xiaobin. "Why are you suddenly asking this?"
"I was just curious, just asking casually," he said. Then, inexplicably, he heard himself ask again, "Mom, does Dad still have this suit?"
“Keep it. It’s his only suit, of course we’ll keep it,” his mother said. “I’ve kept it carefully all these years.”
"How about I try it on?" Li Xiaobin said. "The 'Green Apple Paradise' was very popular yesterday, and everyone was imitating that look. I want to try it too."
His mother paused for a moment, her face showing a fleeting look of surprise, before she reacted and said, "Okay."
-
Li Xiaobin looked at himself in the mirror. He had never worn a suit before, but he was seriously wearing a tie underneath. He styled his hair in a 2:8 split with water. When he looked in the mirror, the person in the mirror felt somewhat unfamiliar to him, yet strangely familiar.
He took out his phone, turned on video recording mode, and wanted to record a video of himself to keep as a memento.
Li Xiaobin switched his phone to selfie mode, placed it on his desk, and stepped back to slowly bring his entire body into the frame.
"Are you done yet?" his mother asked.
Li Xiaobin: "Okay, okay."
His mother opened the door and came in, saying, "You take so long to change your clothes. I can put on makeup faster than you change clothes..."
Li Xiaobin was looking at how much of himself appeared on his phone screen when he suddenly stopped hearing his mother's voice. Confused, he turned around and called out, "Mom?"
His mother stood at the door, looking at him with disbelief.
Li Xiaobin, unaware of what had happened, asked, "Mom, what's wrong?"
He watched as his mother's eyes turned red in an instant, and she suddenly lost control of her emotions.
She covered her mouth, looking at him with tears in her eyes.
Li Xiaobin was startled and quickly went over to hug his mother. "What's wrong? Don't scare me. Why are you crying all of a sudden? What happened?"
His mother hugged him and burst into tears.
Throughout the entire ordeal, his mother simply held him tightly without uttering a single word.
Li Xiaobin was completely stunned and at a loss. He just hugged his mother like that. Then, he suddenly remembered something, turned his head and looked at himself in the mirror, as well as his mother, whose head was resting on his shoulder and whose face was red from crying.
Did his mother see him like this and be reminded of his father?
-
Lu Yanhe came across this person named Li Xiaobin three days after the performance of "Green Apple Paradise".
This performance has become incredibly popular these past few days, sparking a wave of imitations across all sectors of society. People from all walks of life are copying this stage, and it's being widely reported in various media outlets.
The copyright revenue from just these few days has been substantial.
This performance resonated with young people's curiosity about the fashion trends of the last century and their interest in their parents' youth. On the other hand, it also evoked memories of their own youth for many middle-aged people.
A video of five middle-aged men in suits imitating this dance in a hot pot restaurant has gone viral online.
The main reason is that after their performance, they also posted a group photo of themselves when they were young. They were college classmates and have maintained a good relationship since graduation. Back then, they were all spirited and dashing, as if the whole world was at their feet.
Someone wrote in the comments section of this video: "Across the corridor of time, they return still as young as ever."
Then one of the five middle-aged men, who posted the video, replied: "We were still young, but across the long corridor of time, we are all middle-aged now! But hearing this song really touched our hearts. Back then, we were also young people dancing at our graduation ceremony!"
Many friends in the industry send them these popular imitation videos.
Lu Yanhe also liked their posts through his own account.
Li Zhibai and Yan Liang were also included.
Then, Lu Yanhe saw the video posted by the boy named Li Xiaobin.
This is also the only video on his account.
The title reads: When I put on my dad's suit and styled my hair like my dad, my mom cried.
In the video, Li Xiaobin briefly explained his family situation.
“My dad passed away very early, and my mom raised me all by herself. That day, my mom and I were watching ‘Idol Era’ and ‘Green Apple Paradise’ together. My mom said that if my dad were still alive, he could definitely have mastered the performance in one night.”
"Actually, I don't have much of an impression of my dad. There's only one family photo of me when I was five years old. My memories of my dad come almost entirely from the stories my mom told me. I never expected that when I wanted to imitate my dad's style like everyone else, my mom would suddenly burst into tears the moment she saw me."
Then, Li Xiaobin edited the video he had taken on his phone into the later part of the clip.
The phone captured the moment his mother opened the door and saw Li Xiaobin; her expression changed instantly, filled with shock and bewilderment, and her eyes quickly reddened.
And the scene of his mother holding him and crying.
In just a few short scenes, Lu Yanhe strongly felt that his mother's emotions, which had been taut for many years, could no longer be contained and burst forth at this moment.
The short video, only a few dozen seconds long, made Lu Yanhe's eyes red.
The name of this video also made it onto the trending list of this short video platform.
On the fourth day, this story was published by People's Daily Entertainment, with a homepage commentary:
"From the explosive popularity of 'Green Apple Paradise', we can see how the younger generation reminisces about their parents."
(End of this chapter)
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