Compared to her, the singing of other students is simply at the level of elementary school students.

Erniu's class teacher immediately decided on her as the lead singer.

Being praised by Shen Lie, Erniu smiled shyly, "Actually, Yingdi sang very well too. Teacher An originally wanted to appoint two lead singers."

"Yingdi?" Ning Tang was stunned. Why did this name sound so familiar?

Shen Lie reminded her, "Wang Di has three daughters, Wu Pan Di, Wu Zhao Di, and Wu Ying Di. Wu Ying Di is the youngest one, and she is in the same class as our second daughter."

Ning Tang remembered that she had seen these three sisters on the road several times, following Wang Dilai timidly. She could not see the appearance of the three sisters clearly, but she only remembered that they were thin and small, with dry and yellow hair, shorter than people of the same age, and didn't talk much.

"Then why doesn't Wu Yingdi lead the singing?"

Erniu said, "Because Teacher An said that our class has chosen the chorus, we need to spend an hour practicing every afternoon after class. Leading the singing is a very important position, and we need to practice for an extra hour. Wu Yingdi doesn't have the time."

That is to say, as a lead singer, I have to practice for two hours every afternoon after school.

Teacher An originally chose Erniu and Wu Yingdi to lead the chorus. Both little girls had loud voices, which were perfect for leading such passionate revolutionary songs.

Erniu is fine, but there is a problem with Wu Yingdi.

After rehearsing for a few days, Wu Yingdi quietly found Teacher An and said that she could no longer be the lead singer.

Teacher An was very surprised. Why not rehearse? Just do it properly? So he asked her why.

Wu Yingdi hesitantly said that it was her mother who disagreed.

The three sisters took turns doing all the housework, big and small, in the Wu family, including washing clothes, cooking, sweeping the floor and wiping the table.

Wu Yingdi has to participate in the class choir practice and, as the lead singer, she has to practice for an extra hour, which means she definitely won't be able to go home in time to buy groceries and cook.

Wang Dilai of course disagreed, so she asked Wu Yingdi to tell the teacher that she didn't want to be the lead singer anymore.

If the chorus didn't require the whole class to participate, she would have wanted Wu Yingdi to push it too.

Therefore, no matter how unwilling Wu Yingdi was, she had to find Teacher An and explain the situation.

When she said this, she looked at Teacher An with tears in her eyes, and it was obvious that she was reluctant to leave.

But Teacher An had no choice because this was the parents' request.

We could only do as Wang Di suggested, so Erniu was the only one left to lead the singing in the class.

School anniversary party, chorus, what a happy day, what a wonderful program, and so many leaders, parents, and teachers watching.

Moreover, Wu Yingdi was able to stand out from her classmates and become the lead singer, which really brought honor to her family.

But Wang Di feels that the trivial household chores in her family are more important than letting her children lead the chorus.

Ning Tang shook her head. She really couldn't understand what Wang Dilai was thinking.

In the next few days, the three little ones should practice chorus or poetry recitation.

Shen Lie cooked delicious food for them in various ways, such as chicken, duck, fish and meat, and sold them as if they were free.

After school that day, when Erniu came home, she asked Da Wa, "Brother, when you stand on the stage and recite poetry, do you get scared?"

The eldest child was stunned. "Why are you asking this?"

Erniu pursed her lips and said, "Today I was leading the singing on the stage. When I sang the line 'The East is Red, the Sun is Rising', I couldn't sing anymore. Teacher An thought my voice was hoarse and told me not to sing today and go home and have a good rest. In fact, it's not that I can't sing, I'm just afraid."

Sanwa asked, "Sister, what are you afraid of?"

Erniu couldn't explain it either, "I was just scared. Think about it, when we were practicing, we were just practicing in the classroom, with only teachers and classmates as audience. But on the day of the school celebration party, leaders, principals, teachers, and parents all came to watch our performance and sat in the audience, with countless eyes staring at us." She shuddered, "Just imagining that scene, I can't even sing a word."

The eldest child also imagined it and shook his head, "I don't think so." He said excitedly, "So many people are looking at us, how impressive and proud we are."

Sanwa's eyes showed a trace of doubt, "Could it be because we both recited together as a class, while her class had to sing a few lines alone? When she sang, everyone must have been looking at her."

Erniu nodded immediately, "Yes, yes, that's what I'm afraid of. Whether it's poetry recitation or chorus, the whole class recites and sings together. Even if one or two words are sung or pronounced incorrectly, no one will notice."

But it's different when she's leading the singing alone, because the whole audience's attention is focused on her. If she sings out of tune, someone will notice it immediately, and everyone will burst into laughter.

And there must be many uncles and aunts from the Military Academy who will also go to watch. If she doesn't perform well, it will be a disgrace to her parents.

When she thought of this, Erniu's legs and feet went weak and her palms started sweating from nervousness.

The more she feared making mistakes, the more she pushed herself to practice harder.

He stopped going out to play and just hid in his room, practicing the song "The East is Red" over and over again.

Unfortunately, things did not go as planned. The more Erniu practiced, the worse she sang.

Teacher An was a little disappointed, but still comforted Erniu, telling her not to put too much pressure on herself, and gave her two days off to adjust herself.

On Saturday morning, when Ningtang took Erniu to buy groceries, they ran into Wang Di.

Wang Dilai still had a grudge against Ning Tang for the previous conflict, and after hearing from Wu Yingdi that Erniu was not in good condition, she deliberately mocked, "If you can't sing, don't be the lead singer, otherwise you will drag down the whole class and not get a good ranking."

Ning Tang said with a fake smile, "Then you won't have to worry about it."

After returning home, Erniu pulled at the corner of her clothes and pursed her lips, "Mom, do you want me to go tell Teacher An that I don't want to be the lead singer anymore?"

Ning Tang placed a bowl of green bean paste with dried tangerine peel in front of her. "Isn't that just to please Wang Di? If she says you can't sing, then you can't sing? Who is she? The king of heaven?"

Erniu picked up a spoon and stirred the green bean paste. "But I really didn't sing well." She lowered her head and a tear fell into the bowl. "I feel like I have let down the expectations of Teacher An and my classmates."

She raised her head, tears welling up in her eyes, "How about I go and ask Teacher An to let Yingdi lead the singing instead?"

Ning Tang took a handkerchief and wiped away the little girl's tears. "We have been training for so long. Is it appropriate to change people now?"

Erniu choked up and said, "But I don't want to sing anymore. I'm afraid."

Ning Tang thought for a moment and said, "Are you afraid of singing, or are you afraid of the audience watching you?"

Erniu said, "I'm afraid of the audience. I get nervous when I think of them staring at me."

She really likes singing, otherwise she wouldn't sing along with the radio at home every day.

Ning Tang touched Erniu's head and said, "You have to believe that Teacher An chose you because she thought you had the ability to lead the singing. Your classmates felt the same way. Did they say anything when you didn't sing well?"

Erniu shook her head, "No."

Her classmates even came to comfort her and encourage her, saying that she must have been too nervous and that that was why she didn't perform well, and that as long as she adjusted herself, she would be able to sing as well as the first time.

Erniu remembered the encouragement from Teacher An and her classmates, and gradually calmed down and stopped crying.

Ning Tang patiently told her: "Erniu, it is normal to be afraid. Everyone is afraid."

Erniu raised her head in confusion, "Will Teacher An be scared too?"

Ning Tang was happy, "Of course they will. Your other classmates are the same. They will be afraid too. Everyone is the same. They will also have the same emotions as you have now. That's why they need you as the leader to lead them and calm their hearts."

Erniu thought carefully and recalled that during the practice, the classmate standing next to her didn't sing well and was also nervous with sweaty palms.

It turns out that we are all the same.

Erniu slowly relaxed and a faint smile appeared on her face.

Ning Tang teased her deliberately, "Don't say that your teacher An is scared. If I were asked to go on stage to lead a chorus, I would be scared too. I would probably go limp, my legs would tremble, and I would even sing out of tune."

Erniu imagined the scene and burst into laughter, "Hahaha, mom, you would be like this too."

"Why not?" Ning Tang said, "If you don't believe me, go ask your dad if he was nervous when he was called to speak at a military meeting."

Erniu looked at Shen Lie, "Dad?"

Shen Lie nodded, "Of course I am nervous, so I always prepare a good script in advance."

"So," Ning Tang concluded, "being nervous and afraid is a very normal thing."

Ning Tang pointed at the radio and said, "Don't you like to listen to Sister Lijun singing? Do you think she was born to be a singer? She is not nervous at all in front of the audience? How is that possible? She has practiced it slowly."

Erniu smiled and said, "Mom, after hearing what you said, I don't think I'm that nervous anymore."

Ning Tang: "It's fake. When you really get on stage, you will still be as nervous as ever."

Erniu was immediately deflated, holding her face, "What should I do then?"

"It's not a big deal." Ning Tang said, "In order to prevent you from being nervous, your mother is going to teach you a set of martial arts secrets."

"Martial arts secrets?" Big Boy's eyes lit up and he came over immediately. "What martial arts secrets? Like what's shown on TV? The ones that allow people to fly over rooftops and walls, and chop down a tree with one palm? Martial arts secrets?"

Sanwa pouted, "Okay, Mom, you kept it a secret that you knew such a powerful thing, and now you want to teach us."

Ning Tang waved away the two little troublemakers and said, "Go, play somewhere else. This skill is only for girls, not boys."

Shen Lie came over and asked, "What about Chuan's husband?"

Ning Tang glanced at him, and Shen Lie immediately stopped talking, covering his mouth and said, "Okay, just pretend I didn't say anything."

When Erniu heard that Ning Tang wanted to teach her the "martial arts secrets", and that it was only for girls and not boys, she became very excited. Lianlian urged Ning Tang, "Mom, tell me quickly."

Ning Tang glanced at her and said, "Listen carefully. The most powerful thing about this set of martial arts secrets is that it can make you no longer nervous when you go on stage to sing."

"Ah——" Erniu stretched out the sound, very disappointed.

She actually thought that she had really learned how to climb walls and fly over rooftops, and could cut down a tree with a single slap, just as Big Wa said.

Ning Tang glared and asked, "Do you want to learn?"

Erniu immediately pouts, "Learn, you must learn."

Ning Tang coughed and cleared his throat. "Actually, the method is very simple. Just imagine the audience in the audience as radishes and vegetables."

"Radish and greens?" Erniu repeated.

"Yes, radish greens." Ning Tang said, "It's what we usually eat at home, and the radish greens that your sister Luo grows in the yard." He added, "If you don't like radish greens, you can imagine them as mushrooms, tomatoes, potatoes, and peas, whatever is fine."

Erniu uttered an "ah" and wrinkled her face, "This? Is this possible?"

"Why not?" Ning Tang said, "Would you be nervous singing to a bunch of carrots, vegetables, potatoes and tomatoes?"

Erniu imagined herself singing to a group of radishes and vegetables and burst out laughing, "I won't be nervous, but I will laugh."

Shen Lie chuckled, "Laughing is better than being nervous. This is a good method and it's quite effective."

Ning Tang instructed Da Wa, "Go to your sister Luo's house and ask her for some radish greens." He added, "It doesn't have to be radish greens, just vegetables. See what your sister Luo has at home and pick some."

The eldest boy responded and left.

Not long after, he came back with a basket of vegetables.

Ning Tang took a look and saw potatoes, tomatoes, cucumbers, and a handful of cowpeas. She guessed that Mrs. Luo thought Ning Tang was going to cook, so she gave him so many things.

She picked out the vegetables one by one and placed them in front of Erniu, "This is your audience, sing."

Erniu looked at the round potatoes and red tomatoes and laughed, "My audience are so dirty."

Shen Lie went to the yard and picked two small peppers for her. "You can sing now, right?"

Erniu was so amused that her nervous mood disappeared immediately. She cleared her throat and sang the song "The East is Red" that she had practiced for a long time to these fruits and vegetables, "The East is Red, the sun is rising..."

Erniu's voice is very clear and loud, and because she is not nervous, she seems very stable. Listening to her singing is simply a pleasure.

The eldest and third child closed their eyes and listened, while Ning Tang and Shen Lie clapped the beat for them.

After the song "Dongfanghong" was played, the eldest child clapped and cheered, "One more song, one more song."

Erniu took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. It had been a long time since she had sung a song so happily.

Before, when I sang in my room, I would always hiccup nervously after singing a few lines. The more I was afraid, the more out of tune I sang, and my singing level was not up to par at all.

Ning Tang said, "On the night of the school anniversary party, you should do the same thing and treat the audience as potatoes and tomatoes. Just imagine that, just like now, you are singing to a group of potatoes and tomatoes. Will you still be nervous?"

Erniu shook her head and smiled, "I'm not nervous anymore."

Ning Tang nodded with relief, "Besides that, you also need to change your mindset."

"Change your mindset?" Erniu asked.

Ning Tang said, "Yes, just don't always think that you, Shen Erniu, are performing for us, the audience. Think from another perspective, and think that all of you, Shen Erniu, are here for your performance."

Erniu shook her head, "I don't understand."

Ning Tang exclaimed, "What I mean is, if you want to think like that, it is your honor to be able to watch my Shen Erniu perform!"

"Honor?" Erniu tilted her head.

Ning Tang said, "Yes, think like this. Whenever you are afraid and hesitant, think that everyone is serving you and you, Shen Erniu, are the protagonist."

"I am the protagonist." Erniu repeated, her eyes lighting up.

Shen Lie said, "Of course you are the protagonist. The school anniversary party requires setting up the stage, lighting, and inviting the audience, all for the purpose of listening to your class sing the chorus of "The East is Red" and listening to you, the lead singer, singing loudly. Your mother is right, just think of it this way."

Ning Tang said, "Let's take a step back. If you really didn't sing well, no one would blame you."

"No one will blame me." Erniu asked, "Really? No one will blame me?"

Ning Tang asked her, "Will Teacher An and your classmates blame you?"

Erniu shook her head and said, "No, I would only comfort her and cheer her up. After all, this is a show for the whole class."

"That's it." Ning Tang clapped his hands and said, "Your father, the eldest and the third, and I will not blame you. What's so strange about it? It's just that you sang out of tune. Who dares to laugh at you? Let him go on stage and sing by himself. There are so many people who sing out of tune or forget the lyrics."

Ning Tang looked at the eldest and third child, "It's the same with you two. If you don't recite the poem well, your father and I won't blame you. That is to say, even if you three mess up your performances at the school celebration party, it won't affect our family's meal tomorrow." He waved his big hand, "Eat fish when it's time to eat fish, and eat meat when it's time to eat meat."

Shen Lie said, "No, you should eat more. After all, you three worked hard last night."

Erniu felt warm in her heart, "I understand, Dad, Mom, don't worry." I will definitely not embarrass you.

There are still nearly two weeks until June 1st, the day of the school anniversary party.

A bunch of kids were practicing their class's performance with all their might, trying not to embarrass the class.

If you get a good ranking, will the school give you rewards?

This time they are even more aggressive.

On weekends, you can't even see kids playing on the streets. When you ask them, they are all practicing programs with their teachers at school.

Ning Tang took a piece of cloth and went to Zeng Xinlan's house to find her, "I want to ask you to make a little skirt for our second daughter."

Zeng Xinlan unfolded the cloth and praised, "What a beautiful cloth."

This is a piece of bright red polyester cloth, which feels very smooth and flat. Nowadays, most clothes on the streets are blue, green and gray, and this piece of red cloth stands out among them. Of course, the price is not cheap either.

This piece of cloth was given to Ning Tang by Sun Aiju when she came last time. She said that Ning Jun sent it back to make clothes for his sister.

Ning Tang hadn't bought new clothes for a while, and had originally planned to use this piece of cloth to make a set of clothes to wear during the Spring Festival, but there were many things to do during the Spring Festival, and Zhao Qing and Sun Minghui's troubles happened, so she forgot about it.

Now Erniu was going to be the lead singer of the chorus, so Ningtang thought of using this piece of bright red polyester cloth to make a little red skirt for Erniu as her performance costume.

Ning Tang gestured to Zeng Xinlan, "…when making a vest skirt like that, the hem should be a little fluffy, and you can sew a five-pointed star on the chest with yellow thread."

Zeng Xinlan took notes carefully while listening, "Don't worry, I will definitely do it well for you."

She acted quickly and delivered the finished little red dress on May 30th. "Take a look and see if it fits. If not, I'll modify it right away."

Ning Tang unfolded the little red dress and saw that it was exactly as she had imagined, or even better.

Zeng Xinlan followed Ning Tang's instructions and made a simple and elegant vest dress with a lapel collar. There was no five-pointed star sewn on the chest with yellow thread. She made some changes and instead sewed a five-pointed star facing each other on the corners of the collar.

Ning Tang called Erniu and asked her to come over and try it out, "See if you like it."

Erniu couldn't believe it, "This? Is it for me? "

"What else?" Ning Tang teased her, "Look at this skirt. Can I wear it, or can your Aunt Xinlan wear it?"

Erniu smiled, hugged the little skirt, ran upstairs to change, and jumped down the stairs, "How is it? Does it look good?"

Erniu is tall, and this little red dress fits her perfectly, making her look dignified and elegant, yet cute and lovely.

Zeng Xinlan was very supportive, "It's very beautiful, and it suits you very well."

Erniu said, "Thank you, Aunt Xinlan. I like you very much."

The eldest child puffed up his cheeks and said, "Why does the second child have a new dress to wear, but the third child and I don't?"

Sanwa also said: "That's right, you two are biased."

Ning Tang said, "Because there is only one piece of cloth left in the house, and you two boys are wearing red, don't you think it's dirty?"

The cloth was one reason, but the main one was that the eldest and the third child were not like the second girl, who led the singing alone. They recited poems together with the whole class. If they were given conspicuous new clothes, it would seem a bit abrupt. A touch of red suddenly appeared among a group of gray people, attracting the attention of everyone in the audience.

The eldest boy puffed up his cheeks and said, "No problem." As long as I have new clothes to wear, that's enough.

Ning Tang couldn't persuade the two brothers, so he asked Zeng Xinlan to use the leftover fabrics from making a little red dress for Erniu to make two red bow ties for them.

This is easy to make. Zeng Xinlan did it while chatting with Ning Tang, and it was finished in less than an hour.

Ning Tang tied the bow ties for them.

What the eldest and third sons wore today were white shirts, black pants, and red bow ties, looking quite like little gentlemen.

Sanwa was amused and imitated the people on TV to pace, "Brother, do you think I look like Charlie Chaplin?"

The eldest child shook his head and said, "It doesn't look like it. It needs a hat and a cane to look like it."

Ning Tang let the two of them go on and looked at Erniu with Zeng Xinlan.

Erniu was wearing a pretty little red dress and the plastic sandals she had bought earlier, and she was jumping around happily.

Look left and right, still? Something is missing.

Ning Tang caught a glimpse of Erniu's long hair. Oh, her hair hadn't been braided yet. He touched Erniu's long, thick, black, shiny hair and said, "What do you think? How about we braid Erniu's hair into a small braid?"

If only her mother were here, she wouldn't have to think about it, she would definitely be able to make a novel and beautiful braid.

Zeng Xinlan shook her head and said, "I can't think of it."

She can make clothes, but has no idea about braiding hair. After all, her family only has one boy, and Da Hu has a short flat head, so she can't practice her skills even if she wants to.

Ning Tang had a flash of inspiration and decided to give Erniu a Wanjun hairstyle, which was very popular in the 1990s.

Thinking of the lively appearance of Xiao Wanjun in his memory, and the overlapping appearance of Erniu, Ning Tang quickly came up with an idea.

She divided Erniu's hair into two strands, and then started to comb it into two pigtails from the top.

Erniu's hair is long and black, and the braided bun is as shiny as lacquer, just like a crow's feather.

Finally, tie two red ribbons into a bow at the end of the braid and you're done.

Erniu looked at herself in the mirror and opened her mouth wide, "Is this me?"

This? It's so beautiful.

Erniu doesn't want to let her hair down anymore and she can't wait to sleep with her hair in this braid tonight.