Yu Zihan followed the staff into the classroom.
She looked up and saw a row of tables opposite her, behind which sat judges with different expressions.
Yu Zihan decided not to look at the judges, as perhaps a slight expression from the judges would affect her performance.
Yu Zihan introduced herself in English according to the competition rules.
The teachers were captivated by Yu Zihan's pronunciation and speed. Her introduction didn't sound memorized at all; it flowed naturally, as if she were having a face-to-face conversation. Furthermore, her pronunciation was pure and authentic, making it a pleasant experience.
Yu Zihan’s debut at the beginning is a sure thing!!
After listening to her self-introduction, the teacher had a preliminary understanding of her. Then the staff brought a lottery box to her and gestured for her to reach in and take out her test paper.
Yu Zihan smiled and thanked the staff, then reached into the raffle box and casually took out a slip of paper. The staff handed the slip to the judges.
After the judges took turns looking at the topic, they said to Zi Han, "The topic of your speech is, 'My Dream.'"
The moment Yu Zihan heard the topic, she immediately thought of her plans for her life after her rebirth. Her goal was clear. So, she decided to express her true feelings through a speech.
The teacher gave her three minutes to prepare and asked her to finish her speech within five minutes.
Yu Zihan went over the general idea in his mind.
"Hello, teachers. My dream is very simple and honest. I want to help my mother find her dream through my own efforts.
My mother was an educated youth who lived in a special era. She was a member of a special generation. She lost everything: her lover, her ideals, her studies and her career. But she protected me with her frail shoulders, allowing me to survive in such a harsh environment.
My mother and I lived a hard life, but I was happy because she always gave me everything she had. Now, my mother and I have escaped that ignorant little village, freed from the bitterness of hardship. We live a stable life through our own efforts. I think we are happy now.
But I know Mom wants to rediscover the dreams of her youth. She was once a beautiful woman, a daughter of the imperial capital, but now she's forced to live in a small town. I'm going to work hard to get into a university in the imperial capital, so I can take Mom back to where her dreams began. At the same time, I'm going to work hard to realize my own dreams. I want to build a powerful business empire for Mom and the people I love. Through my own efforts, I want to help kind people find work, love, and dreams.
After her speech, everyone in the room fell silent. They had imagined that speakers on topics like this would express passionate patriotism and love for the people. However, Yu Zihan's speech was about her love for her mother. This kind of true love is simple and unpretentious, but it has the power to touch the tenderest part of people's hearts.
Then came thunderous applause from the judges. The staff were moved to tears. They had wanted to applaud Yu Zihan for a long time, but seeing that Teacher Pingwu remained silent, they hadn't taken any action. Now that they saw the judges start clapping, their palms were red and painful.
"Is your mother an educated youth? What's her name?" Suddenly, a pleasant male voice reached Yu Zihan's ears. She looked in the direction of the voice and saw a handsome, elegant middle-aged man gazing at her with intense gaze. His eyes were like her own. She looked at the brand name plastered on her chest.
"Pei Xiao!"
Her head exploded as if struck by lightning. The person before her was actually her father. At this moment, she didn't know how to face him.
But out of politeness, she still answered her: "My mother's name is Yu Meijuan." The man staggered a few times when he heard the name. He slowly fell into the chair.
The other teachers saw this scene and knew that something was wrong. One of the female teachers said to Zi Han gently, "You did a great job. You can leave now. The results will be out this afternoon and posted on the bulletin board in the auditorium."
Yu Zihan knew the teacher was politely asking her to leave. She thanked the teacher and turned to leave. She resisted the urge to glance at Pei Xiao. She left in a very casual manner.
Pei Xiao knew he had lost his composure, but he was a man of professional integrity and was responsible for his work. He would handle his personal matters. He quickly adjusted his composure and said to everyone, "Let's get started!"
Everyone saw that he did not let his personal affairs affect his work, and they admired him but were also curious about him.
After the hiccup, the competition continued. With Yu Zihan's stunning performance, the remaining contestants' performances seemed rather lackluster, either passionately reciting or haltingly reciting. In short, no one surpassed Yu Zihan.
Yu Zihan had already hidden her emotions when she came out. Although this scene was unexpected and shocked her, it was also expected. She and he would meet eventually.
It’s just that the meeting just now was very exciting, and she didn’t pay attention to the judges at the beginning of the competition, otherwise it would affect her performance.
In her heart, she was looking forward to their meeting again. She believed that he would take the initiative to find him. Just at a glance, she felt that her father was a responsible man. Maybe she had wronged him before.
Pei Shuyan did not leave after the competition. She kept waiting for Yu Zihan to come out because she believed that her uncle would definitely pay attention to Yu Zihan. She didn't know how her uncle would deal with this matter.
She had a vague feeling that this girl was related to her uncle. But when she saw Yu Zihan calmly appear in the corridor, she began to wonder if her uncle hadn't noticed this girl. That shouldn't be the case; she could tell at a glance that she was a member of the Pei family.
As she pondered, she didn't notice the girl was no longer in her sight.
"We will meet again." She firmly believed that this girl could enter the semi-finals.
Yu Zihan and the others returned to the guesthouse and had lunch together. Seeing the students' expressions, the teacher didn't dare ask about the results. The preliminaries were over today, and they would receive the results by evening.
After finishing their meal, everyone went back to their rooms to rest.
"Zi Han, you will definitely make it to the semi-finals, but I'm not sure. My impromptu speech is terrible." Jiang Ying vented her bad mood to Zi Han.
"Maybe there will be a miracle." Yu Zihan didn't know how to comfort his good friend at this time, so he could only say this very meaningless sentence.
Yu Zihan waited all afternoon for no news from Pei Xiao, and the longer the time passed, the more disappointed she felt. Perhaps her mother's feelings were misplaced.
She was constantly struggling between denial and acceptance.
Pei Xiao knew his identity, yet he remained calm and didn't come to him to inquire about his mother's situation. What did this mean? It meant he didn't love her. At least not that much.
Pei Xiao, who was busy, didn't know that he had been labeled by his daughter.
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