Because An Yi and Lin Nian got involved, they quickly redistributed the lyrics, and things went much more smoothly this time. However, during rehearsal, Wen Lian stood in front of the machine and looked at the stage again, feeling that something was off.
"What's wrong?" Jin He moved closer to him and looked at him together.
“There’s an empty space here, and I feel like something’s missing,” Wen Lian said. “Actually, I was thinking of asking during yesterday’s rehearsal, ‘Brother Xiao He, could you do a sword dance here?’”
Jin He: "Huh?"
“This section has a flute accompaniment, which is really dry for us. It would be great if we could have a sword dance, but none of us have any experience with it,” Wen Lian added. “Didn’t you learn a bit on the set when you were filming a TV series? Could you give it a try?”
Jin He had studied it before, but that was several years ago, and he wasn't sure if he could do it well.
“Besides, your current ranking is very precarious,” Wen Lian continued. “If you don’t step up soon, you’ll be eliminated very quickly.”
disuse?
Jin He wasn't too keen on being eliminated yet, so she nodded and said, "I can give it a try."
Once the decision was made, everything went smoothly, but Jin He had one hurdle to overcome—Lin Nian.
"Is it okay?" Lin Nian frowned and looked worriedly at Jin He, who was holding a sword and practicing in his rest room. Only the instructor's rest room was not monitored. "The movements in this scene are soft on the outside but strong on the inside. It needs to hide some strength to look good. Can you handle it?"
Jin He seemed quite cheerful: "I haven't been feeling particularly unwell lately. And this segment is less than a minute long."
Lin Nian finally relented: "Alright then, show me a dance."
As soon as Jin He finished jumping, she started leaning against the wall, panting.
Lin Nian, with a "See, I told you so" look on his face, quickly helped Jin He take a slow walk around the house. After his heartbeat calmed down, he said, "What are you after? After all these years in the industry, are you really planning to compete with those kids for a debut spot?"
Jin He shook her head and replied, "I will withdraw from the competition after the third round and will not participate in the debut battle."
"Then what are you trying to achieve?" Lin Nian wanted to poke his head. "Are you out of your mind? It'll only get more and more tiring here. Can you handle it?"
“I have to endure it even if I can’t stand it. As long as there is one person who wants to see me on stage, I have to keep going. Although I’m not popular now, I still have fans, and I’m very grateful to them.” Jin He said with her eyes downcast, “Without them, I probably wouldn’t even have a place to sleep, and Xiao Miao wouldn’t have been able to get into university.”
"Anyway, after this show, I probably won't be on stage again. I'll just consider this time as saying goodbye to them."
Lin Nian pondered for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Da Yuan and Xiao Bai both called me a couple of days ago, saying they wanted to come see you. I was afraid you would get emotional, so I didn't let them come. Recently, your reputation has become somewhat polarized. You haven't been online, so you probably don't know that."
"I guessed it," Jin He replied.
“The company plans to hold another reunion concert for us,” Lin Nian said, “under the name AURoRA.”
Jin He paused, looking at Lin Nian whose eyes were red, and said, "But now, I'm not sure..."
“Dayuan and Xiaobai have agreed. They don’t know anything about you right now, but they feel they should have a good talk with you. After all, you didn’t give any explanation back then, and they are actually very worried about you.”
"Yes, I know."
“And An Yi.”
Lin Nian continued, her expression still showing some dissatisfaction: "Although I still think the two of you are not a good match, I can tell that you two like each other, right?"
"I don't like it anymore..."
"Xiao He, you can't lie to yourself about some things," Lin Nian said. "You can't just stop liking someone just like that. Didn't you notice that you didn't dare to look An Yi in the eye when you were talking to him?"
Jin He was probably genuinely afraid, afraid that she would soften her heart as soon as she saw An Yi, afraid that she would reveal all the grievances she had suffered over the years, and afraid that she would still be unable to resist going to his side.
“I can also tell that An Yi really loves you,” Lin Nian said. “When you two broke up, he was really depressed for a while. He couldn’t contact you, and he couldn’t come back from abroad because of his passport and the weather. He lost more than ten pounds in a week. Xiao He, please take pity on him and talk to him about it, okay?”
Jin He stared at the floor for a long time, then shook his head and said, "Actually, there's nothing else to say."
“Separation is an unbearable thing, especially when the most important person in your life leaves you. It’s even harder to bear.” Jin He’s eyes were getting redder and redder. He said, “I’m not sure how much longer I can live. My body won’t get better.”
“I don’t know when I’ll suddenly pass away. I can’t be so selfish as to keep him by my side in the last few days of my life. I hope he can fall in love with someone else and have his own life instead of always revolving around me,” Jin He said. “Without me, An Yi’s life should have been smooth sailing. I can’t, I can’t continue to interfere in his life.”
"Besides, the me he likes isn't the real me," Jin He said. "I'm so tired of pretending, Captain. Once you wear a mask for too long, you can't take it off. But the essence under the mask is still the same. He won't like the real me."
Some people are born to stand on the stage, their lives filled with flowers, applause, and red carpets... An Yi is such a person.
Jin He was never meant to be that kind of person.
"When it comes to feelings, unrequited love doesn't last long." Jin He recalled with a bittersweet sense of pride, "An Yi already thinks I don't like him anymore, so he'll probably forget about me soon."
That's fine too. If he perseveres for a few more years, when Xiao Miao grows up, he can go and see his grandmother.
Everyone has their own specific life script. Perhaps his life script is like this: a poor but carefree childhood, a family member who truly loves him, and a lover he once had a passionate love for. Then Jin He will not feel any regrets when he ends his life.
After all, he really missed his grandma. When he saw her in heaven, he could probably snuggle into her arms and act like he did when he was little: "Look, I supported Xiao Miao through college. She got into medical school and was the top scorer! She's such a good girl. Isn't she amazing?"
See? I'm not any worse than my cousin. Can you only like me and Xiao Miao from now on?
Look, this is my ex-lover. Isn't he amazing? Such an outstanding person once truly loved me. Aren't I amazing too?
Look, those girls are my fans. They've really helped me a lot. Let's both stay in heaven and bless them!
Jin He raised her hand, wiped away the tears that had streamed down her face, and said with a smile, "I feel much better, let's do it again."
Outside Lin Nian's lounge, An Yi slowly lowered his hand from the doorknob, looking at the tightly closed door. From inside, the mournful sound of a flute flowed out, as if someone was sobbing softly.
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