June.
The dance drama that Ye Zhiqiu and the others had been rehearsing began its official performances.
“Zhiqiu, are you nervous?” Fan Xue held Ye Zhiqiu’s arm. “I’m a little nervous.”
Han Siyang spoke up from the other side. “I’m a bit nervous too.”
From backstage, they could see the audience packed full in the seats below.
Ye Zhiqiu was actually a little nervous too, but at the same time, she felt excited and thrilled.
It felt like she had worked hard for a long time, and today was finally the exam.
How things had gone during this period would all come down to whether tonight’s audience was satisfied.
“Zhiqiu, why aren’t you saying anything? What are you looking at?”
Fan Xue and Han Siyang followed Ye Zhiqiu’s gaze and saw Yue Mingyuan holding Yaya, with Huo Jiusi sitting beside them.
“That’s Yue Mingyuan, and my goddaughter.”
Fan Xue quickly straightened her clothes and hair flowers. “No, no, I have to perform really well in a bit. I need to let my goddaughter see her godmother Xue’er’s elegance.”
Han Siyang hadn’t been able to go to Guojing for certain reasons, so she had never met Yaya. Now, looking from afar, she had already fallen in love with Yaya.
“Zhiqiu, Yaya is even prettier and cuter than in the photos. Oh my god, how can there be such a cute child?”
Han Siyang wished she could go over right now, pick Yaya up, and kiss her little cheeks a few times.
“No way, Zhiqiu, I want to be Yaya’s godmother too.”
Before Ye Zhiqiu could agree, Han Siyang decided on her own. “It’s settled then, okay?”
“Did Yue Mingyuan specially bring Yaya to see your premiere?” Fan Xue gently nudged Ye Zhiqiu’s arm.
Ye Zhiqiu was still immersed in surprise. “He probably did.”
Fan Xue could tell. “You didn’t know beforehand?”
Ye Zhiqiu shook her head. “I didn’t know.”
If she had known, it wouldn’t have been such a pleasant surprise.
For the past few months, they had rehearsed every day. Every expression, every dance movement had been deeply imprinted into their bones.
The moment she stepped on stage, Ye Zhiqiu became completely immersed in her role, immersed in the dance.
“Wow, Mom dances so well.” Yaya clapped her little hands hard, clapping until they turned red.
She had watched Ye Zhiqiu dance many times, but every single time, she was still amazed.
Yue Mingyuan felt the same way.
He felt very fortunate that he hadn’t been like others and stopped Zhiqiu from continuing to dance.
If he had, she probably would have been very sad. She wouldn’t smile so happily, and she wouldn’t shine so brightly.
The entire dance drama lasted over two hours, and applause never stopped throughout.
When they finally took their curtain call, the whole audience stood up and cheered. Many people even threw the flowers they had prepared onto the stage to show their appreciation.
Ye Zhiqiu and the others looked at each other and knew they had succeeded.
Knowing that Ye Zhiqiu and the others needed to change clothes and remove their makeup, Yue Mingyuan, Yaya, and Huo Jiusi waited at the theater entrance.
Ye Zhiqiu also wanted to see Yue Mingyuan and Yaya quickly, so she changed clothes and removed her makeup fast, said a quick hello to Tang Xuejun, and went out to find Yue Mingyuan and the others.
“Mingyuan, Yaya.”
Ye Zhiqiu ran up to them, picked Yaya up, and kissed her cheek. “Mommy’s baby, Mommy missed you so much.”
“Yaya missed Mommy too.”
Yaya kissed Ye Zhiqiu back, hugged her neck, and rubbed her face against hers.
Ye Zhiqiu looked at Yue Mingyuan with sparkling eyes. “Why did you and Yaya come? You didn’t even give me a heads-up?”
“Of course we had to come for your premiere. We wanted to give you a surprise.”
Yue Mingyuan handed her the flowers in his arms. “Congratulations on a successful premiere.”
“Thank you.” Ye Zhiqiu took the flowers, feeling as sweet as if she had eaten honey.
There was another performance the next day, so Ye Zhiqiu had to go back to the dormitory.
There were three performances in Jiangning in total. After that, they would perform in Guojing. Currently, ten performances were scheduled domestically, including Guojing and Jinhai.
After these ten performances, there would be a cultural exchange at the end of July, and then they would go abroad for a tour.
They probably wouldn’t return to the country until October or even later.
That meant Ye Zhiqiu would again spend more than half a year unable to stay by Yaya’s side, separated from Yue Mingyuan by distance.
She couldn’t help but feel guilty, but dance and family were equally important to her.
Fortunately, both Yue Mingyuan and Yaya understood Ye Zhiqiu. Yaya especially gave Ye Zhiqiu great comfort.
“Even if Mommy isn’t by my side, I’ll still grow up. Yaya likes a mommy who dances, and likes a mommy who shines on stage. Yaya is proud to have such a beautiful mommy.”
Yue Mingyuan, Yaya, and Huo Jiusi spent their days wandering around Jiangning, and in the evenings, they went to watch Ye Zhiqiu’s performances.
Then, when Ye Zhiqiu and the others headed to Guojing, they went back to Guojing together with them.
On the last day of performances, after Ye Zhiqiu and the others took their curtain call and changed clothes and removed makeup as usual, Tang Xuejun walked in with several people.
“Let me introduce everyone. These are leaders from our Jiangning Cultural Department. They were very satisfied after watching our performance.”
The leaders came forward to shake hands with Ye Zhiqiu and the others. The gaze of one of the leaders made Ye Zhiqiu and the others feel very uncomfortable.
“Professor Tang, the performance is already over. How about we go out and have a meal together? To celebrate your great success.”
Tang Xuejun was just about to refuse when the man spoke up. “Professor Tang, you’ll still be going abroad for a tour later. You’ll definitely need our help then.”
Ye Zhiqiu’s eyes shifted as she thought of a solution. “Professor Tang, we are soldiers of the people. How can we let the people treat us to a meal? Our discipline doesn’t allow it.”
Among them, some came from the art troupe, and some were from local song and dance troupes.
Ye Zhiqiu, Fan Xue, and Han Siyang were all from the art troupe. Of course they could use this method to avoid going to drink with them, but what about the others?
Ye Zhiqiu was still anxious. She could tell this man had bad intentions. He said it was just a meal, but there would definitely be drinking involved.
Local song and dance troupes often encountered this kind of thing. They had all heard about it.
“Professor Tang, we appreciate the leaders’ kindness. Thank you, leaders.” Han Siyang took the lead in bowing, and the others bowed as well.
But the man clearly wasn’t going to let them off. “Since you want to thank us, you can’t just do it with words. It’s just a meal. How would that violate discipline?”
As he spoke, the man even reached out to grab Ye Zhiqiu. Ye Zhiqiu was just about to fight back when a figure rushed over. The man immediately let out a pig-slaughtering scream. “Ah—it hurts, hurts, hurts! Let go!”
“Who the hell are you! I’m telling you, no matter who you are, let go right now, or I’ll make you pay! My dad is Zhao Gang!”
Yue Mingyuan grabbed the man’s hand and twisted it behind his back.
He didn’t let the man go. Instead, he dragged him straight to the telephone and made a call. “Who is Zhao Gang?”
After a moment, the person on the other end replied to Yue Mingyuan. Yue Mingyuan sneered. “Help me pass on a message to him. Tell him he’s quite good at raising his son.”
