Words were spoken without intent, but perceived with meaning.
Even the seemingly ordinary conversation between Lu Nanchen and Yu Ting was enough to prick at Shen Ruchu’s heart. She sat in her chair, her head slightly lowered, feeling very uncomfortable.
Her unrequited love grew stronger and stronger.
It seemed like she could have him...but why couldn’t she?
Time slipped away as Shen Ruchu was lost in her struggle to understand, and soon, all four instructors arrived. The recording time was upon them, and the final episode of the show began.
The process was the same as the previous episodes, except this final episode had only eight dream-chasers. After they told their stories, the final ranking round would take place. The dream-chasers who had advanced from the previous nine episodes were once again invited on stage for the final voting, to decide who would receive the funding from Yuanmeng Foundation.
The host came on stage amidst the applause, gave his usual opening remarks, and then swiftly moved on to the first dream-chaser’s turn.
Yu Ting then appropriately placed her bets.
The stories of the eight dream-chasers were quickly told. Finally, as the inspiring music played, all the dream-chasers from the ten rounds took the stage—including a language teacher who aspired to travel the world, a mother longing to find her long-lost son, a small girl who, even after losing her legs in a car accident, wished to learn to dance...
Thirty individuals stood together on stage, their faces beaming with desires.
That spirit was beautiful.
Then came the final voting round, which involved 400 audience members and the instructors voting for the 30 dream-chasers. The winner would be decided based on the vote count.
From voting to announcing the rankings and presenting the awards, the whole process took a little over half an hour. Then the four instructors went up on stage to take group photos with the dream-chasers, capturing this momentous occasion.
The show then finally concluded amidst the setting off of firecrackers. The audience and dream-chasers dispersed, and the instructors separated after shaking hands with the production team. Yu Ting shook hands with all the members of the director team.
"We enjoyed working with you, Ms. Yu."
"We hope to collaborate again in the future, Ms. Yu!"
"Oh, wait, you shouldn’t work too hard during your pregnancy. Let’s work together again after you have your baby!"
The crew treated Yu Ting very favorably; after all, as far as they were concerned, she was a sponsor who was both easy to get along with and to deal with.
When the core members of the crew extended their invitations, Yu Ting replied with a smile, "Alright, I look forward to the good news."
"Alright."
"Will you join us for dinner tonight, Ms. Yu? We planned a gathering to celebrate the end of the show." The crew asked, glancing at Yu Ting’s belly. There seemed to be a lot of considerations during pregnancy.
They wondered if it would be convenient for her.
The answer was not convenient. Yu Ting declined swiftly, "I’m afraid I can’t join you. I’ve been having a severe reaction to the pregnancy, and eating out is quite inconvenient."
Everyone expressed their understanding and replied warmly, "Alright then, we will plan for another gathering with you, Ms. Yu."
"Alright, yes."
While the other side was engrossed in lively conversations, Shen Ruchu’s side was significantly quieter. After a brief handshake with the Director, her attention turned to Lu Nanchen waiting downstage, full of fantasy.
If only he were waiting for me... how wonderful that would be...
Lost in her thoughts, she noticed Yu Ting clutching Lu Nanchen’s hand, the two of them walking shoulder to shoulder.
Shen Ruchu: ...
She felt a sudden, sharp pang in her head.
After the show had ended, she returned to Southwest Entertainment. There were documents and files on the tables in the office.
She picked up a document and saw the company’s valuation for this year. It began to drop since the end of last year, stabilizing over the festive season, but then started falling again after the holidays. Now, come July, it was still falling.
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