Chapter 120 The Red Star Cup competition officially begins […]
Chapter 120
This was Gu Xiaotang's obsession when she was eight years old. Now, at twenty-two, she will always remember the day Yang Jie rejected her. She stood behind her parents, looking at her timidly with expectation in her eyes.
She wanted to leave her parents' side and have Yang Jie become her teacher.
Yang Jie was young and beautiful at that time, and most importantly, she had a very pure and clean temperament, which Gu Xiaotang liked very much.
However, she did not expect that Yang Jie would ultimately reject her, preferring to leave the Central Ballet Troupe rather than accept her rejection.
Even after many years, Gu Xiaotang still remembers that day when Yang Jie rejected her, and it has become Gu Xiaotang's obsession.
That's why she asked the question again and again.
Yang Jie looked at Gu Xiaotang. The child's eyes had lost their former sparkle; his dark, piercing pupils were somewhat frightening.
Yang Jie looked directly into her eyes and said, "Gu Xiaotang, you are very good."
"It's just that we don't have the fate of being master and disciple."
Upon hearing this, Gu Xiaotang's dim eyes seemed to brighten for a moment. All these years, this was all she had been waiting for.
Gu Xiaotang, you are very good.
She had waited all these years, and no one had ever said such a thing to her.
But now that she has, she feels a little sad. "If I'm really good, would you take me on as your apprentice?"
Gu Xiaotang asked expectantly.
Yang Jie did not speak.
Fortunately, Lin Rujuan arrived and used force to pull Gu Xiaotang away.
They gave Gu Xiaotang absolutely no room to resist, as if in Lin Rujuan's eyes, Gu Xiaotang was nothing more than a puppet.
A puppet that can be manipulated at will.
As Gu Xiaotang walked, he said loudly, "What if I beat Meng Yingying?"
"If I beat Meng Yingying, will you make me your apprentice?"
Neither Yang Jie nor Meng Yingying spoke.
Lin Rujuan, however, grabbed Gu Xiaotang and pulled him away, her face extremely grim. "Gu Xiaotang, have you forgotten where you're from?"
"Remember this: you, Gu Xiaotang, are my apprentice, Lin Rujuan's disciple. I'm not dead yet, and you're already looking for another way out?"
Gu Xiaotang was scolded, but she just lowered her head and didn't say a word.
Yang Jie felt a pang of indescribable sadness. She had seen Gu Xiaotang when she was radiant and captivating, and she had also seen her when she was lifeless.
Meng Yingying didn't take Gu Xiaotang's provocation seriously. She whispered to Yang Jie, "Teacher, Gu Xiaotang is sick."
"He has a very serious illness."
Yang Jie's expression changed, and after a long while she murmured, "This has nothing to do with us."
Meng Yingying felt that Yang Jie's reaction seemed a bit too agitated, but as an outsider, she couldn't say anything.
Fortunately, the person in charge inside the auditorium was already using a loudspeaker to announce, "Participants in the Red Star Cup, please come to the auditorium within ten minutes to draw lots."
The loudspeaker's sound carried far, causing the small groups of people who were standing in twos and threes to instantly move into the auditorium.
Everyone has gathered this time, and they're just waiting for the draw.
Meng Yingying glanced around and, apart from Gu Xiaotang, didn't recognize most of them. She took advantage of the fact that everyone was still in line.
Yang Jie followed her and introduced, "The first one on the left is from the National Ballet of China. You need to pay attention to Gu Xiaotang and Zhou Lanxiang."
"The National Ballet of China has secured two spots in this individual competition, which means that Gu Xiaotang and Zhou Lanxiang will compete at the same time."
Meng Yingying seemed lost in thought. When she looked over, Gu Xiaotang was expressionless, as if she didn't care about the outside world.
Zhou Lanxiang, however, was very perceptive. She immediately looked up and met Meng Yingying's gaze.
Their eyes met.
Meng Yingying smiled slightly at Zhou Lanxiang, who raised an eyebrow, unconcerned.
It's clear that, apart from Gu Xiaotang, she doesn't seem to consider anyone else present as an opponent.
After Yang Jie saw that they had already met, she introduced them to the people from the Capital Cultural Troupe, saying, "Those people over there in uniforms are from the Capital Cultural Troupe."
“However—” she paused, “their strength lies in the team competition, where they have a strong sense of cohesion, but in the individual competition, there is no particularly outstanding player. If there is any real threat, it would be Yi Cailing.”
"She dances the red dance well and has a strong explosive power, but her weakness is that she doesn't have enough stamina, so for many years she has always been known as the third or fourth oldest."
Yi Cailing had short hair and looked dashing. She exchanged a glance with Meng Yingying, and then nodded to Meng Yingying.
She seems easier to get along with than Zhou Lanxiang.
Meng Yingying nodded, and Yang Jie finally pointed to Ning Lu from the Capital Film Studio, "Do you see her?"
Meng Yingying nodded, "Ning Lu is very good at dancing 'High Mountains and Flowing Water,' and she has only chosen this piece to dance over the years. She has won second place several times."
"The first one is Gu Xiaotang."
With a commanding lead, it has left everyone else in the dust.
As for Ning Lu, Meng Yingying seemed to have seen her on television before.
"She was a dancer in her early years, and later switched to acting. She has basically been involved in both industries, but dancing is still her main profession."
Ning Lu was talking to the person next to her and didn't look at Meng Yingying, or perhaps Ning Lu was just arrogant.
Meng Yingying didn't take it to heart. At times like this, knowing yourself and your enemy is the key to victory. What she needed to know was the opponent's strengths so she could go on stage and defeat them.
"The last one is from the Federation of Literary and Art Circles. They are just there to make up the numbers each time, so they don't feel much pressure."
"This time, your main focus should be on Gu Xiaotang, Zhou Lanxiang, and Ning Lu."
"Yi Cailing should keep a close eye on things; who knows, a dark horse might emerge this year."
Meng Yingying nodded, and just as Yang Jie was about to say something more, the person in charge at the front picked up a megaphone and started calling for people to line up.
"Queue up and draw lots in order of arrival."
“Each team should send one representative for both the individual and team competitions.”
As representatives of the Capital Song and Dance Troupe, Meng Yingying and Han Mingbing naturally went to the front. The two of them stood right behind Gu Xiaotang and Zhou Lanxiang.
Gu Xiaotang participated in the individual competition, while Zhou Lanxiang participated in both the individual and team competitions. Therefore, Zhou Lanxiang represented the team in the competition.
She stood side by side with Gu Xiaotang, watching Meng Yingying and Han Mingbing approach. She glanced at Han Mingbing and said, "I heard you gave up all your spots in the individual competition this year?"
Han Mingbing ignored her.
Zhou Lanxiang smiled and said to Gu Xiaotang beside her, "That's the one who stole your teacher. Why don't you go over and say hello to her?"
It's obvious that she talks to Gu Xiaotang like she's training a dog.
Gu Xiaotang was a genius driven mad by this high-pressure environment, while Zhou Lanxiang was the opposite. She adapted extremely well to this environment and was able to go along with it and instantly forge her own path.
Gu Xiaotang glanced at Zhou Lanxiang, then at Meng Yingying, and suddenly said, "I don't dislike you."
On the contrary, I envy you.
She envied Meng Yingying for her bright, outgoing, and confident personality, which she lacked.
I envy her for successfully becoming Yang Jie's student.
Meng Yingying paused, her expression complicated, and after a while she said, "Envious of me? What about you?"
"Gu Xiaotang, what do you like?"
Even though they were rivals, she felt a pang of sadness looking at Gu Xiaotang like this.
Gu Xiaotang looked blank. "What do I like?"
I want to win.
She didn't say she liked dancing; she said she wanted to win.
Meng Yingying knew that when she heard this answer, the original Gu Xiaotang had already been killed. The current Gu Xiaotang was raised by Lin Rujuan. She only had obsession and no self.
"Meng Yingying, I want to win."
"I'm going to beat you."
Gu Xiaotang wondered if Yang Jie would even glance at her and be willing to take her on as an apprentice if she won against Meng Yingying.
This is Gu Xiaotang's obsession.
Meng Yingying nodded and smiled slightly at her, "Then see you on the field."
"Let's see if I can beat you, or you can beat me."
Gu Xiaotang stared at her face, as if trying to memorize Meng Yingying's appearance.
"Alright, come over and draw lots."
The person in charge called out, and was also one of the judges on today's panel. Meng Yingying and Han Mingbing walked over, and the first to draw lots were members of the Central Ballet of China.
Zhou Lanxiang beat Gu Xiaotang to it, reaching into the red wooden box first and drawing a lot.
She picked it up and looked at it, and was very satisfied. "Number two, I am number two."
Gu Xiaotang, who was next to her, seemed to be in a daze. Zhou Lanxiang grabbed her hand and made her reach in to grab a lot as well.
Number four.
She raised her hand for Gu Xiaotang so that everyone could see it.
To be honest, when Meng Yingying saw this scene, she couldn't help but wonder if Gu Xiaotang could still go up and dance.
However, the teacher was right about one thing: this matter had nothing to do with her.
"It's our turn."
Han Mingbing called out, and Meng Yingying snapped out of her daze. She reached inside and pulled out a numbered item, "Number five."
After drawing a number, each person will read out their number.
Meng Yingying was no exception.
When she saw her number, she looked up at Gu Xiaotang. She was behind Gu Xiaotang; Gu Xiaotang was number four, and she was number five.
Then Han Rubing drew number three, number three for the team competition, not number three for the individual competition.
Next up were Yi Cailing, Ning Lu, and Lin Jiaojiao from the Literary and Art Association; all three had drawn their individual competition numbers.
Lin Jiaojiao from the Federation of Literary and Art Circles drew first place. When she saw the answer she needed, her heart finally died. She closed her eyes and said, "God, do you want me to die even faster?"
The Federation of Literary and Art Circles is always at the bottom of the rankings, and now they've managed to get her to draw first place.
This is simply leaving no way for people to survive.
Although the others didn't say anything, they all breathed a sigh of relief.
Ning Lu drew a third place, and Yi Cailing drew a sixth place.
They are all somewhere in the middle, not quite as good as some, but better than others.
Everyone looked at each other's numbers warily, and then began to think about the upcoming match.
The host of the Red Star Cup competition stepped forward and said, "Now that you have all drawn your lots, please return to your seats."
"The individual competition will begin in thirty minutes."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone dispersed. However, when passing by Han Mingbing, Ning Lu was a little puzzled. She casually remarked, "Han Mingbing, you didn't even manage to secure your spot in the team competition this time."
Every word he wrote was about Meng Yingying, yet every word he wrote was about her.
Han Mingbing looked up at her and said, "Ning Lu, I didn't know you were such a gossip."
"you--"
Ning Lu was annoyed after being rebuked by Han Mingbing, but Zhou Lanxiang next to her said, "Alright, alright, Ning Lu, don't take it to heart."
"The Capital Song and Dance Troupe has gotten used to being suppressed by our Central Ballet Troupe, and now they're resorting to desperate measures, sending any Tom, Dick, or Harry to represent them in competitions."
Meng Yingying, who had been silent until now, suddenly retorted, "Are you just some Tom, Dick, or Harry?"
Zhou Lanxiang never expected that Meng Yingying, who was born in a small town, would dare to talk back to her.
Her face immediately turned ugly.
However, before she could even refute, Meng Yingying pulled Han Mingbing away, saying, "Let's go, don't lower your status by talking to random cats and dogs."
After saying that, she turned around at the drawing area and returned to her seat. Han Mingbing looked at Meng Yingying with admiration the whole way, saying, "Yingying, you're amazing."
Meng Yingying shook her head. "Don't pay them any attention. They're all talk and no action." She had just finished speaking when she returned to her seat and was surprised to find Director He there. "Aunt He, what brings you here?"
Director He had just witnessed the previous exchange of words. "I just arrived."
"So, do you feel that the competition here is more intense than in the Northeast China League?"
Meng Yingying hummed in agreement. She couldn't think of any adjectives, but she knew Gu Xiaotang and Zhou Lanxiang. She paused for a moment and then came up with a metaphor.
"Back in the Northeast China League, everyone was still normal. But here—"
"I think they're all crazy."
Gu Xiaotang is.
Zhou Lanxiang was no different.
After hearing this, Director He paused for a moment, then patted Meng Yingying on the shoulder, "Let's participate in the competition later, don't think about so much."
Meng Yingying hummed in agreement.
On the other side, after drawing lots, Lin Rujuan took Gu Xiaotang and Zhou Lanxiang to the dressing room at the back.
The door closed.
Lin Rujuan then took out two pills from her pocket, handing one to Gu Xiaotang and the other to Zhou Lanxiang, saying, "Drink them."
Her expression was very cold.
It's as if it's saying the weather is nice today.
Gu Xiaotang looked at the medicine, somewhat reluctant, "Teacher, could you—"
"cannot."
Lin Rujuan looked at her scrutinizingly, "Gu Xiaotang, do you think you can win an award if you go on stage looking like this?"
"Do you really think Meng Yingying is as trash as we say?"
"Let me tell you, Meng Yingying has been learning to dance for less than three years. Three of those years were spent in the propaganda team, learning the unorthodox methods, and four months in the Harbin resident cultural troupe. First, she won the individual championship in the Heilongjiang Province preliminary competition, and then she won the championship in the Northeast China League."
"After that, she successfully obtained a spot to study in the Soviet Union. She should have come to our National Ballet of China after receiving her graduation certificate from the Moba School."
Do you know why she didn't come?
Gu Xiaotang was somewhat bewildered.
Lin Rujuan pointed to her nose and said, "It was me. I suggested to the higher-ups that this year's funding is insufficient and we cannot cover our own unit's expenses, so we should suspend the recruitment of students from the local area."
As soon as he said that, Gu Xiaotang's mind was still a little slow to react.
Zhou Lanxiang, clutching the medicine, suddenly looked up. She wasn't Gu Xiaotang; her mind was quite sharp.
"Teacher, I was wondering why there were students recruited from the local area every year before, but not this year."
"Oh, it's you."
She found Lin Rujuan to be terrifying; just as Meng Yingying was about to rise to prominence, she had already ruined Meng Yingying's future.
"What are you thinking?" Lin Rujuan raised her hand and smacked Zhou Lanxiang's head. "I'm not that good at calculations, and I wouldn't be eyeing a genius like Meng Yingying. There are too many geniuses like Meng Yingying in the whole country, but very few of them can stand out."
"The reason I'm paying attention to her is because Yang Jie has taken her on as her apprentice again."
She didn't understand others, but she understood Yang Jie. Her senior sister was aloof and arrogant, and only recognized geniuses.
Those who could be accepted as her apprentices must naturally be talented.
Because of Yang Jie, she started paying attention to Meng Yingying, but the more she investigated her past, the more alarming it became.
This is simply genius.
Lin Rujuan would naturally not allow such a genius to come to the Central Ballet of China, because the Central Ballet of China was her backyard.
She doesn't allow any outside geniuses to come in, especially since this genius is one of Yang Jie's subordinates.
She would not allow Yang Jie to use Meng Yingying's talent to re-enter the Central Ballet Troupe.
Therefore, she used the excuse of insufficient funds to submit an application to her superiors to reduce funding and stop recruiting local personnel.
Unexpectedly, the higher-ups also wanted to reduce funding, so they readily agreed.
Lin Rujuan's main intention with this move was to destroy Meng Yingying's path forward, but she didn't realize that she had blocked the path for all the local dance students who wanted to move up to the capital.
However, Lin Rujuan didn't care even if she knew.
Lin Rujuan couldn't understand why Meng Yingying could still appear in the capital, and even in the Capital Song and Dance Troupe, after she had completely blocked all avenues for advancement within the local performing arts troupes.
She tried to check, but didn't have the necessary permissions and couldn't find the information yet.
However, while these things are important, they are not that important.
When Meng Yingying arrives, just trample her to death.
If she couldn't get up, Yang Jie naturally couldn't get up either.
Having figured all this out, Lin Rujuan took a drastic step, saying, "I've already said all this."
“Gu Xiaotang, if we’re really talking about natural talent, you’re not as good as Meng Yingying, so you still have to take this medicine.”
Gu Xiaotang looked at the white medicine with some fear, but Lin Rujuan did not give her a chance to resist. She coaxed her gently, "Do you really want to lose to Meng Yingying in front of Yang Jie?"
Upon hearing this, Gu Xiaotang's expression changed.
Lin Rujuan knew her words had worked, and she smiled, "By then, Yang Jie will look down on you even less."
"She values Meng Yingying more."
Before she could finish speaking, Gu Xiaotang swallowed the pills in one gulp, without even using hot water, just dry swallowing them.
After swallowing the pills, Gu Xiaotang was momentarily dazed, but his mind gradually focused. "I'm going to win, Meng Yingying."
The evil in her heart was gradually magnified by Lin Rujuan.
They've turned the innocent Gu Xiaotang, who was as pure as a blank sheet of paper, into what she is today.
Zhou Lanxiang was a little scared when Lin Rujuan looked over. Zhou Lanxiang took the opportunity to put the medicine in her mouth and said, "Teacher, I'll take it."
"good."
"Only by taking the medicine can I possibly beat Meng Yingying, and also have a chance to beat others."
Lin Rujuan reached out and touched her head. "Didn't you want a spot in the individual competition? The teacher has given it to you. Go and compete for it now."
Even if you trample Gu Xiaotang underfoot, your teacher will still be happy for you.
This isn't teaching students; this is blatantly raising a treacherous snake.
However, neither Zhou Lanxiang nor Gu Xiaotang had a choice.
After Lin Rujuan left, Zhou Lanxiang lowered her head, spat out the medicine hidden under her tongue, and turned to look at Gu Xiaotang's silly expression.
She muttered under her breath, "You've been eating so much you're going to go crazy, and you still keep eating."
Gu Xiaotang ignored her. Every time she took this medicine, she would become very excited, and all she wanted to do was win.
All I want is to win.
He won against Meng Yingying.
Yang Jie will regret it.
So, Gu Xiaotang simply turned and glanced at Zhou Lanxiang, "Don't you want to win?"
Her tone was a little strange.
Zhou Lanxiang didn't speak. She tried to gag herself, wanting to vomit up the medicine she had already swallowed.
She wanted to win.
However, her obsession was not as deep as Gu Xiaotang's; the more of this medicine a person takes, the more confused they become.
Gu Xiaotang's obsession runs deep, which is why she eats so much, leading to the current situation.
Gu Xiaotang didn't receive a reply, which didn't surprise her. After she went straight out, Zhou Lanxiang composed herself and followed her out.
She wasn't worried that Gu Xiaotang would expose her, because Gu Xiaotang had never said anything about it over the years.
so.
Zhou Lanxiang wasn't really scared; she just pretended to be very excited. This pleased Lin Rujuan. "Go ahead."
"This year, our National Ballet of China will not only win the individual competition, but also the team competition."
"The most important thing is to beat Meng Yingying, remember that?"
Gu Xiaotang nodded, his eyes gleaming with ambition. "I've got it."
Zhou Lanxiang lowered her head and remained silent.
Lin Rujuan didn't take it to heart. Of the two students, Gu Xiaotang was the most useful, while Zhou Lanxiang was more cunning. However, if Gu Xiaotang's talent was fully utilized, it wouldn't matter whether Zhou Lanxiang was useful or not.
When they came out.
Meng Yingying sat in her seat and looked up. She was a little surprised. Gu Xiaotang had seemed absent-minded before, but when she came out of the dressing room again, her eyes were clearly focused.
He also seemed much more energetic.
She was somewhat surprised, "Teacher, look at Gu Xiaotang."
When she shouted, Yang Jie and Wu Yanzhou both looked over and realized something was wrong.
"Gu Xiaotang has recovered so well?"
Yang Jie asked a question subconsciously.
Wu Yanzhou pondered, "It seems that Gu Xiaotang is always in great spirits before the competition every year, and her performance on stage is always perfect."
“I’ve heard from private sources that Lin Rujuan would use the things they care about most to threaten them.”
"If she doesn't win the championship, she will be severely punished, to the point that she can't get out of bed for ten days or half a month."
Meng Yingying felt something was wrong, but just as she was about to grasp the key point...
The host on stage, holding a megaphone, shouted to the audience, "The Red Star Cup competition has officially begun."
"Please welcome our first individual contestant, Comrade Lin Jiaojiao, who will be performing 'The Army and the People Are One Family'."
Lin Jiaojiao stood on the stage, feeling very flustered. The Writers' Association always had a low number of spots, and in previous years they had always been there to make up the numbers. Those who came last almost always had to finish quickly.
But this year, she was chosen by lottery to be the first to perform.
This made Lin Jiaojiao's legs tremble. She stood on the stage looking at the crowd below. It took her a while to hurriedly finish dancing "The Army and the People Are One Family," and her dance was really not very good.
So much so that the judges frowned and gave extremely low scores, not even reaching eight points.
Lin Jiaojiao covered her face in embarrassment and anger as she left the stage, saying, "Our literary association was just there to make up the numbers, so there's no point in you laughing at me."
"Why don't you be the first to come up and try?"
No one spoke, they just laughed. "Lin Jiaojiao, your dancing is worse than even the local performing arts troupe."
"Not to mention the units in the capital, they really bring shame to us units in the capital."
Lin Jiaojiao couldn't stand it, glared at Meng Yingying, and then followed her out.
Meng Yingying, “?”
She was genuinely puzzled. She didn't understand why Lin Jiaojiao was jumping around like that and glaring at her.
Han Mingbing kindly explained, "You're the only one here who's from this area."
Meng Yingying, "..."
I'm really caught in the crossfire.
Fortunately, the broadcast came again—please ask Zhou Lanxiang, contestant number two of the National Ballet of China, to prepare.
The dance she performed for us was "Fisherman's Song of Honghu Lake".
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