Chapter 568: ...we are one step closer, variables (Please subscribe!)

After finishing the meal, Mai Sui had to touch up her makeup and review her lines; she was busy and had no time to accompany him.

Before leaving, she asked, "Are you leaving right after your performance?"

The original plan was to do so, but with the words on the tip of his tongue, Li Heng tactfully changed his tune: "Today is New Year's Day; I'll rest for a while and leave with you after you finish hosting."

Upon hearing this, Mai Sui appeared quite happy. In the past, he had mentioned several times that he liked seeing her in bright red clothing, so two days ago, she had specifically spent a large sum of money to buy a bright red coat based on his preference; it was an imported item.

The fact that he could accompany her through the entire evening gala made her feel it was worth more than the price.

Seeing that Mai Sui had gone to review her lines, He Xiao came over and asked, "Li Heng, you are also going on stage to perform; do you need to put on some makeup?"

Li Heng asked, "What about Zhou Shihe?"

He Xiao said, "She is in the dressing room. Her makeup skills are very high; she is doing it herself."

This reminded Li Heng of New Year's Day last year, when it seemed that Zhou Gu Niang had helped with his makeup, so he immediately indicated, "I'll go over and take a look."

He originally didn't want to wear makeup, but he felt embarrassed to act special; furthermore, since he was performing on stage, the effect would be better on camera.

Arriving at the dressing room, He Xiao asked, "Are you going to let Zhou Shihe do your makeup? Or should I do it for you?"

Well, since she had asked, he wouldn't be the one to make the choice.

He plopped down on the chair next to Zhou Shihe and said casually, "Either is fine."

He Xiao had the intention of building a good relationship with a big shot like Li Heng, which would be of immense benefit whether in school or after entering society in the future, so she seized the opportunity and said, "Shihe won't be finished for a while. My makeup skills are also decent; shall I try helping you?"

Li Heng agreed readily: "Sure, then I'll trouble you, Senior."

As the saying goes, one shouldn't take on a porcelain job without the diamond drill.

He Xiao dared to volunteer, so she naturally had some skills; Li Heng couldn't find a single fault, and in the end, he slumped comfortably in the chair, letting her fuss over him.

Zhou Shihe, from the side, took in the state of the two through the makeup mirror, but it didn't affect her; she continued busy with her own work.

He Xiao used a brush on his eyelashes, "Great writer, your eyelashes are even prettier than a girl's. Your mother must be a great beauty, right?"

How was he supposed to answer that?

If he admitted it, it would be a bit lacking in humility.

If he didn't admit it, he would be doing a disservice to Comrade Tian Run'e.

Li Heng laughed happily: "Everyone who knows her says I look a lot like my mother."

He Xiao nodded: "Then she must be truly beautiful. I heard she came to our school?"

Li Heng said: "She came once during the time school started."

He Xiao was very interested in Li Heng.

This interest wasn't about romantic relations, but rather a special interest in his legendary experience of rising from a grassroots background to become a superior person. While she applied makeup, her mouth didn't stop either, constantly finding topics to chat with Li Heng about.

During this, Li Heng joked: "Senior, you are the Student Union President; you have many things to organize. Will specifically doing my makeup delay things?"

He Xiao smiled and said: "There are indeed things, but they aren't as important as you, Junior. I'd better serve you well first."

As they chatted, she was very good at handling things; the form of address shifted unconsciously from "Great Writer" at the beginning to "Junior," adding a bit more intimacy.

Zhou Shihe glanced at the two with the corner of her eye and began her finishing work. About two minutes later, she packed up her makeup tools, stood up, greeted them, and left.

Watching Zhou Shihe leave, He Xiao sighed with emotion: "Hey, she's really beautiful, her temperament is super good. Shihe is the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. Junior, you spend every day with her, aren't you moved? Honestly, if I were a boy, I reckon I would fall in love with her at first sight."

Li Heng spoke right up: "There should be many boys who fall in love with her at first sight, it's just that few dare to express it. However, my wife is also quite good. Senior, praise my wife more next time; I will be very happy."

He Xiao was successfully amused by him and teased: "Your wife is indeed quite good, but which one should I praise?"

Li Heng opened his eyes and looked at her.

He Xiao wasn't afraid, but said: "I just saw Mai Sui feeding you meat."

"Ah? Wasn't it very subtle?" Li Heng felt ashamed.

He Xiao said: "It was subtle, and Mai Sui's movements were fast, and she even stood on tiptoe to cover it up afterward. But these things simply couldn't be hidden from those who pay attention."

Li Heng asked back: "Oh, so Senior also counts as someone who pays attention?"

He Xiao didn't avoid it at all: "I never did makeup for anyone before, whether it was girls or boys."

At this point, she added: "Junior, please rest assured, I won't harbor any covetous heart toward you, ha. It's just purely doing your makeup. In the future, I can still brag outside: Look, this is my Junior on the newspaper, and I, He, even did his makeup."

Li Heng laughed and cooperated: "Fine, if there's another makeup opportunity next time, I'll look for you too."

He Xiao agreed happily.

The makeup was finished. Li Heng left the backstage, entered the crowded Xianghui Hall through a special passage, and walked toward the exclusive seating area for performers.

Just as He Xiao was organizing her makeup tools, her best friend walked in: "You did Li Heng's makeup?"

He Xiao said: "Yeah, jealous?"

The best friend was indeed full of envy: "To say I'm not jealous would be a lie. After all, this is Li Heng. He has talent, looks, and money. Which girl wouldn't want to spend some time alone with him? Even if you can't get him, you could reminisce for a long time."

He Xiao said: "Don't have such thoughts. If you have such thoughts, you can't get close to him at all; he won't give you the chance."

The best friend asked: "Are you saying that he only let you do his makeup because he felt you didn't have those kinds of intentions toward him?"

"That's for sure. He is very shrewd. With top-notch beauties all around him, it really wasn't easy for me to snatch the opportunity to do his makeup from Zhou Shihe's hands," He Xiao said.

The best friend became interested: "Will it offend Zhou Shihe?"

He Xiao was very confident about this: "No. If this offends her, then she is just famous in name only, and she would be wasting the unique favor Heaven has bestowed upon her."

This favor refers to "looks and temperament."

The best friend felt it made sense and asked: "You really have no thoughts about Li Heng?"

He Xiao smiled: "Stop fishing for information, I really don't. The previous Senior Ye Zhanyan's blood hasn't even dried yet, and she's already exposed in the wilderness; I have to learn the lesson."

The best friend sighed: "Sigh, I didn't expect that even with Senior Ye's beauty, she would still be turned away. This Li Heng is really hard to chase."

He Xiao said: "Everything requires method. Senior Ye's conditions were actually enough to be a stepping stone, she was just too impatient."

The best friend shook her head: "I'm afraid it's still difficult. Look at Mai Sui tonight; compared to a year ago, isn't there a feeling of breaking out of the cocoon and being reborn? I think if we were to rank the 'Kings' now, Mai Sui would definitely be the undisputed 'Little King' number one."

He Xiao said: "I can't deny your point. But actually, they each have their own characteristics. Many boys also like Wei Xiaozhu's type; the older she gets, the pure temperament hasn't diminished in the slightest. I have to say, this is also a gift from Heaven."

The best friend recalled the few 'Little Kings' and asked: "If you were that beautiful, would you be moved by Li Heng?"

He Xiao smiled and said: "If I had these external conditions, if I didn't have deep foresight, I wouldn't want to rashly court death. I don't want to become the second Ye Zhanyan."

Xianghui Hall lobby.

The exclusive area for performers on the front left.

Seeing an empty seat next to Zhou Shihe, Li Heng sat down quite naturally.

He made small talk: "Is the makeup on my face too heavy?"

Zhou Shihe tilted her head slightly, observed carefully, and then objectively evaluated: "It's actually quite good. Senior He adapts to the person, her level is quite high."

Li Heng asked casually: "Then compared to you?"

Zhou Shihe swept a glance at him quietly, smiled, and didn't speak.

Li Heng felt the faint self-confidence unique to the 'Big King' and immediately followed up: "Then when we get to Singapore, you help me with my makeup."

Zhou Shihe said: "There are exclusive makeup artists there, all big names."

Li Heng blurted out: "I don't care if they are big names or not; what's suitable is the most important. Your craftsmanship is the most to my taste."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Shihe calmed her breath for a few seconds, and then there was no sound.

Seeing that Li Heng and Zhou Shihe had been whispering, Huang Ziyue in the back row tried hard to restrain her psychological barrier toward the Fudan 'Big King', wrote a note, and then let the person next to her pass it to Li Heng.

Li Heng's back was tapped, and when he turned around, he saw a note.

He asked: "Whose?"

The girl behind said: "Huang Ziyue."

He thought for a moment, opened it, and saw it written: Senior, my grandfather invites you to eat at home.

Li Heng was speechless; this little girl had absolutely no experience in chasing boys, even using her grandfather as a shield.

He didn't reply.

After a while, the girl behind passed another note.

He opened it, and it said: Senior, I want to be friends with you.

He still didn't reply.

Huang Ziyue passed two more notes from behind, but he was too lazy to even open them.

Seeing Zhou Shihe looking at those notes with a strange expression, Li Heng spread his hands and indicated: "Don't look at me like that, I didn't ask for this, it's all voluntary on her part."

Zhou Shihe smiled knowingly, looked at her watch; there were 3 minutes left until 7 o'clock.

Three minutes passed in a flash, and the New Year's gala officially began.

Huang Ziyue was unreliable, but Principal Sun was indeed a pragmatic person. He didn't even bring a script for his speech on stage, just spoke casually for about a minute and a half.

Time endowed her with an inner charm; even the rustling sound of her fingertips sliding across book pages was bewitching. One sentence summarized Mai Sui on stage.

When Mai Sui was hosting the gala on stage with great passion, Li Heng discovered that there were many pairs of eyes stealing glances at him from all around, both openly and secretly.

Clearly, the more outstanding Mai Sui was, the more intense the rumors between the two became.

Li Heng even saw a school leader turn his head to look over.

In this situation, he muttered to Zhou Shihe: "Usually, behind my back, have you heard any rumors about me and Mai Sui?"

Zhou Shihe looked up at Mai Sui and answered concisely: "Yes."

Li Heng requested: "Pick two sentences to tell me; look, even that Vice Principal is looking at me."

Zhou Shihe said gently: "Many people are guessing, between Xiao Han and Sui Sui, who will be the final winner in the future."

Li Heng was stunned for a moment, feeling like he had lifted a rock only to drop it on his own feet: "Zhou Gu Niang, touch your conscience and tell me, are you doing this on purpose?"

Zhou Shihe blinked like him, quiet and without reply.

The host on stage announced the program. Amidst the anticipation of the masses, Li Heng and Zhou Shihe looked at each other, stood up simultaneously with tacit understanding, and walked toward the stage.

"Clap clap clap...!"

The applause in the hall was thunderous and enduring.

On New Year's Day last year, both were very popular.

But this year's New Year's Day, their identities were different; whether it was teachers or fellow alumni in the audience, the eyes looking at them carried respect.

They all carried fanaticism!

After all, this was a big shot who had topped the American Billboard!

Not to say there were no successors, but it was definitely unprecedented. Moreover, achieving this honor with the dual identity of a person of color and a Chinese person was truly not easy. One must know that in this era, the international environment was not very friendly to Asians and Chinese.

A pure music album being able to break through the barriers in one fell swoop was just like that most famous recent editorial in the "People's Daily": They are heroes! They are international masters!

The two stood on stage, and the scene that had just been boiling gradually quieted down; thousands upon thousands of eyes fell on them.

The men looked at Zhou Shihe, the women looked at Li Heng, unable to help but feel a bit restless.

Suddenly, a loud female voice came from the audience: "Li Heng! Zhou Shihe! Get together, you two have such a husband-and-wife look!"

That's right, it was the crazy voice of a woman!

Everyone turned their heads to look; this girl had already covered her face with both hands and hidden under her seat, and in an instant, the entire Xianghui Hall burst into laughter.

Li Heng looked at Zhou Shihe.

Zhou Shihe looked up at him with a feeling in her heart; two seconds later, their gazes separated, and one focused on the piano in front, placing slender, soft hands on the black and white keys.

Li Heng was waiting for the piano sound.

Today's piece was "Kiss the Rain," with Zhou Gu Niang's piano as the main focus, and he was just providing support.

Not long after, the beautiful piano melody rang out, the notes filled with emotion and artistry; at a certain moment, Li Heng joined in, and at the same time, his thoughts flew away.

He still remembered New Year's Day last year, when he saw Huang Zhaoyi in the corner, and Teacher Yu in the audience didn't mention the Yu family's family gathering at all; Mai Sui's feelings for him were confusing at that time, oh, and there was that bastard Liu Yue there too.

His thoughts were constantly wandering, until the enthusiastic applause rang out again from the audience, and he came back to his senses.

The two stood up side by side, thanked the audience, and then walked down.

In just a few short steps, the two walked out with the feeling of a Hollywood red carpet; teachers and students with the conditions took out cameras one after another, taking pictures of the two.

Even a female teacher sprang up from her seat, handed her camera to the teacher next to her, and smiled at Li Heng and Zhou Shihe: "Li Heng, Shihe, let's take a group photo."

They were all teachers from their own school, and in such an occasion, neither Li Heng nor Zhou Shihe had any reason to refuse! They agreed happily.

Under the eyes of everyone, Zhou Shihe stood in the middle, Li Heng stood on the left, and the female teacher stood on the right, taking a group photo.

It wasn't just one camera taking pictures, but many cameras crowded over, emitting bursts of "click" sounds.

Many people felt extremely depressed inside, wondering why they hadn't thought of doing that; this allowed the female teacher to pick up a big bargain.

After taking the photo, the female teacher inherited the joke from the crazy girl earlier and sighed: "Your performance on stage was one, you are really a perfect match."

Zhou Shihe glanced at someone with the corner of her eye and walked quietly toward her seat.

Li Heng smiled at the teacher and followed.

On the way, many students reached out, wanting to shake hands with the two. Zhou Shihe at most smiled shallowly and pleasantly, with no intention of reaching out.

Li Heng, on the other hand, took the grassroots route, regardless of gender, shaking fingertips one by one at the fastest speed.

In just a few dozen steps, they walked out the hardship of the Long March.

Back in their seats, Zhou Shihe first stared intently for a while at Mai Sui, who was appearing again, and after the second program began, she asked softly: "Were you distracted on stage just now?"

Li Heng asked urgently: "Did it affect the performance?"

Zhou Shihe said: "Yes, but the impact wasn't big."

Li Heng breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhou Shihe asked: "Were you thinking of Huang Zhaoyi?"

Li Heng was stunned: "How could you mention her?"

Zhou Shihe said: "Last year she was sitting in the corner on the right, and today you were lost in thought looking in that direction for quite a while."

Li Heng's eyelids twitched, "You weren't focusing on playing the piano, why were you paying attention to me?"

Zhou Shihe said gently: "We are partners; if you are distracted, I can feel it."

Li Heng paused, dizzy and annoyed: "I'm really afraid of you. But you guessed wrong; last year Wei Xiaozhu and Dai Qing were also in that direction, and today they are still in that direction."

Zhou Shihe subconsciously observed his eyebrows to judge if he was lying. However, who was Li Heng? An old hand, having suffered a loss last time, he was prepared this time; he pretended to be a bit tired, rubbed his temples with his hand, blocking her line of sight.

Seeing this, Zhou Shihe withdrew her gaze, with no intention to delve deeper, and asked gently: "When do you plan to leave?"

Li Heng answered: "I promised Mai Sui that I would wait for her to leave together tonight."

Later he asked: "Do you want to go back early?"

Zhou Shihe hesitated for a few seconds and said: "Yes."

Li Heng asked: "Is something up?"

Zhou Shihe gave a light "hmm."

Li Heng said: "Then after this program is performed, I'll send you back first, and then come back to pick up Mai Sui later."

Zhou Shihe instinctively wanted to say no need, but now it was deep winter, and it was already dark outside; it wasn't safe for one person, so in the end, she didn't say it out loud.

Because the two had set the bar too high at the beginning, honestly, even if the second program was very good, it still made people feel what a gap was.

After the second program was performed, taking advantage of the dim stage lights, the two left their seats together and walked toward the back.

In the originally crowded aisle, seeing them coming, everyone consciously squeezed to both sides, spontaneously making a path.

This!

This damn thing is charm!

Among the students, besides them, who else had this kind of influence?

Many people thought so.

There were also boys who asked Li Heng: "Great writer, are you not watching the gala anymore?"

Li Heng responded with a smile: "No, I have something to do, I'll leave for a bit and come back later."

He cleared the way in front, and Zhou Shihe followed closely behind him with her head down like a little bird. Under the greetings of many eyes, the two finally got out of Xianghui Hall.

At this time, it was raining heavily outside, and the rain was accompanied by sand; it was estimated that it was going to snow.

Neither brought an umbrella, and they were in a difficult spot.

Li Heng asked: "Did Mai Sui and the other two bring umbrellas?"

Zhou Shihe answered: "They came over at noon; the weather was still good then, so they didn't bring any."

Upon hearing this, Li Heng pulled her back to the door and instructed: "You wait for me here; I'll go find Xiaozhu and ask. She usually keeps an umbrella in her bag."

Zhou Shihe said okay, then stood in a place with light.

Wei Xiaozhu, sitting in the back row, was focusing intently on the stage when her left shoulder was tapped lightly; she turned her head.

Seeing it was him, Wei Xiaozhu asked with a smile: "Why did you come to find me? Is something up?"

Li Heng stated his purpose directly: "It's raining outside; lend me your umbrella."

Wei Xiaozhu opened her bag quite readily, took out an umbrella, and gave it to him.

Li Heng took it, said thank you, and turned to leave.

Watching him disappear in a flash, Liu Yanling next to her said: "Why did he walk so fast? I have an umbrella in my bag too. Li Heng is so tall, how is one umbrella enough for him and Zhou Shihe?"

Upon hearing this, Wei Xiaozhu couldn't help but think of that question at Xu Hui Hospital.

Regarding the question about Zhou Shihe, he didn't allow her to ask at that time.

Actually, she had just thought of giving Yanling's umbrella to him too, but the next second she denied it herself.

Perhaps, this heavy rain was Heaven's will, just like them on stage, who were so harmonious and well-matched.

She smiled and said: "You gave the umbrella to him, how are we going to go back later?"

"Oh! That's right, if all the umbrellas were given to him, it wouldn't be easy for us to go back. He is worthy of being a great talent, truly understanding." Liu Yanling used her hand to support her 36D, not letting them sway; it was too tiring.