Chapter 469: Thunderous applause

January 22, 2012, 10:05 PM, in the living room of a villa in the suburbs of Hankou, Wuhan, Hubei.

"It's coming, it's coming! Dad, it's coming!!!"

Following the high-spirited voice of a girl, more than a dozen people, big and small, who were originally scattered in the living room playing mahjong, chatting, and playing cards, all stopped what they were doing and gathered around one by one.

Someone laughed, "Finally here. If we couldn't wait any longer, it looked like Dad was going to sleep."

"No, no, I'm in high spirits." An old man with silver hair but still looking energetic waved his hands happily. "Happy today, even if you told me to sleep, I wouldn't be able to."

"Xiaofeng, look, your grandfather is so happy that you're back." Beside Liu Yifei, a middle-aged woman dressed in gold and silver laughed. "You should come back to see your grandfather more often in the future."

Liu Yifei nodded without saying a word, her eyes fixed on the TV screen.

At this time, a middle-aged man with a refined appearance and glasses frowned and said, "Your aunt is talking to you, you..."

"Alright, alright." Before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by the middle-aged woman just now. "It's the New Year, say less. Come, come, sit, sit on the sofa, let's watch TV together."

Someone else laughed, "Big sister, Feng'er's boyfriend is singing at the Spring Festival Gala, and I'm nervous here, what's going on?"

The woman laughed, "You're worrying for nothing, wasting your expressions. Feng'er's boyfriend has seen all kinds of big storms, he's been to the American Oscars and Golden Globes many times, going to the Spring Festival Gala is probably about the same as you going to dance square dance. A small matter."

"Big sister is right, second sister, you can put your heart at ease." A fat man in his 40s said happily.

The acrobatic performance titled "Empty Mountain Bamboo Language" had ended, and on the 50-plus-inch TV screen, the male host with a shoe-shaped face and the beautiful female host were singing and harmonizing the transition lines.

"Thanks to the Shenyang Forward Acrobatic Troupe for the wonderful performance they brought us. Bamboo, in our traditional Chinese culture, is an important symbol. Dong Qing, whenever bamboo is mentioned, what do you think of?" The shoe-shaped face said with a smile.

Dong Qing smiled, "Zhu Jun, that brings to mind too many things. Speaking of bamboo, I think of the Four Gentlemen of Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, and Chrysanthemum, I think of the sound of firecrackers removing the old year, and I also think of rising step by step."

"Good!" A loud shout came from the audience, and thunderous applause erupted instantly.

Zhu Jun smiled and said, "Dong Qing, you said it very well. But the bamboo I'm talking about is more than that."

Dong Qing smiled, "Then what is it?"

"Give you a hint, an animal, it, it likes to eat bamboo the most."

Dong Qing suddenly realized, "Bamboo? You mean, Panda!?"

Zhu Jun said, "Yes, what I'm talking about is our country's national treasure, the panda."

"Then does the panda have anything to do with our next program?"

"Of course it does, the song we are going to perform next, the song title is Hometown of the Panda..."

"Are these Zhu Jun and Dong Qing drunk? This transition line is just hard-forced. Shaokang, it would be better if you went up and wrote a script for him." The chubby man said.

"Hahahaha."

Several people laughed, even the white-haired old man laughed.

Someone next to him took the conversation and said, "Shaokang is the principal of the Confucius Institute, promoting Chinese culture in foreign countries. Doing this is absolutely a waste of talent."

"Shaokang, you've been doing publicity abroad in recent years, tell everyone, what is the effect of this thing..."

Amidst the chatting and idle talk, they only heard Zhu Jun and Dong Qing on the TV screen say in unison: "... Next, let us enjoy the song, Chengdu."

Immediately following, a melodious guitar sound came from the TV.

A pitch-black figure slowly rose from the lifting platform at the back of the stage.

"What made me shed tears is not just last night's wine..." A male voice, neither high nor low, and not particularly pleasant, came through the TV speakers.

The conversation in the living room did not stop.

"Objectively speaking, work in recent years has indeed become easier. Like in France, the number of people who came to our school to sign up for Chinese this year is more than 200% of last year, creating a new high."

"Huh? Really or fake, are the French so interested in us?"

On TV, accompanied by the singing, a hazy beam of light hanging from the top of the stage enveloped the figure in the darkness, and the outline gradually appeared.

He was wearing a black casual jacket with dark embroidery, inside was a gray-black T-shirt with sequin embellishments, the lower body was well-tailored dark blue jeans, and on his feet was a pair of pure white unmarked sneakers. The whole look was fashionable, yet deliberately appeared very restrained and simple.

Liu Yifei watched very carefully, but the words in her ears did not stop.

"Shaokang is telling the truth, I felt it when I went to the United States to play in the first half of the year. Before, when I asked for directions, people wouldn't even ignore you when they heard your Chinese accent, but now it's much better."

"Really?"

"I experienced it personally, why would I lie to you."

"Wow, then Shaokang, your work is really well done."

In the lens on the TV, the singer continued to sing: "... What makes me feel difficult is the struggle for freedom." After singing, he slowly walked down the steps and came to the center of the stage.

At the same time, a slender female dancer quietly appeared on the right side of the stage.

She was wearing a light white floral dress, the long skirt swayed with her steps, and the hem of the skirt rippled like water waves. She was barefoot, with thin silver chains wrapped around her ankles, like a Jiangnan woman walking out of the old days, her steps were light, and her dance posture was graceful.

"Then are you busy usually?" The chubby man asked with his eyes on the TV.

The refined middle-aged man replied, "There are more students this year, so there is a little bit."

On TV, the male singer stood in the center, holding the microphone, looking at the end of the stage with focused eyes, his lips slightly parted, and continued to chant in a low voice:

"Parting is always in September, memory is the sorrow of missing..."

"Hahahahahaha."

After this sentence was sung, many people in front of hundreds of millions of TV sets laughed.

In the home in Changping, Beijing, Zhao Lei, who was sitting on the sofa, also felt a "thump" in his heart—he was out of tune.

Although it was only for a moment, the melody immediately stabilized, but it was still a very obvious out-of-tune.

Zhao Lei's heart tightened at this moment.

If he had such a problem on the Spring Festival Gala stage, he would definitely want to die at this time.

What about him?

I saw on TV that the camera slowly pushed in, giving the singer's face a close-up.

There, there was no panic after being out of tune.

Unlike the heavily made-up and brightly lit faces of other performance guests tonight, there was almost no trace of makeup on his face.

His eyebrows were distinct, flying diagonally from the center of his eyebrows to his temples, with a natural sharpness. His eye sockets were slightly deep, his nose bridge was straight, his lips were slightly thin, and his facial features were clear and distinct. Under the stage lighting, there was no trace of greasiness, but rather a cold and calm feeling.

The naturally falling hair rested lightly on his forehead, the hair was smooth and layered, just like his singing voice that returned to the tune.

At that moment, Zhao Lei was stunned.

Then he turned his head and looked at the dressing mirror in the living room beside him.

I saw a dog sitting inside.

Instantly, his heart settled down.

Not only Zhao Lei, but when the close-up of this person's face came out, those musicians who originally showed smiles didn't laugh much.

The living room of Liu Yifei's grandfather's house, which was originally lively, also suddenly quieted down under this shot. Her third uncle stopped discussing Confucius, her aunt stopped talking about travel itineraries, her second aunt didn't ask questions anymore, and her father didn't talk about work anymore.

Everyone closed their mouths.

Liu Yifei didn't look back and didn't know their expressions.

She couldn't care about these now.

At this time, on the TV screen, pictures began to appear on the LED background wall behind the singer.

On the pitch-black screen, small pink cherry blossoms suddenly began to fall. They flew on the screen at a speed of 10 millimeters per second, and segments of handwritten Chinese lyrics appeared in columns among the petals and disappeared.

"Walk with me on the streets of Chengdu."

"Don't stop until all the lights go out."

"You hold my sleeve."

"I put my hands in my pockets."

He sang as the lyrics wrote.

There was no expression on his face. On this stage, he could be said to be somewhat calm to the point of indifference. Such emotions were slightly inconsistent with the overall warm and festive atmosphere of the Spring Festival Gala.

But—strangely, Liu Yifei didn't feel it was wrong.

She looked at his face and was fascinated.

The female dancer cooperated with his singing and began to dance.

Slowly rotating, light steps, turning, bending down, as if interpreting a farewell ceremony in the night, just like the artistic conception expressed in the lyrics.

He didn't have any movements, didn't dance along, just stood there quietly, following her dance posture with his eyes, the 45-degree light refracted in his eyes, like starlight shaking in it.

"In that rainy little city, I have never forgotten you. The only thing Chengdu can't take away is you..."

The singing echoed in the living room.

Around Liu Yifei, it was now a situation where you could hear a needle drop on the ground.

Suddenly, someone said "Eh~" with dissatisfaction.

Liu Yifei also frowned.

Just as she was watching well, the CCTV director went crazy, suddenly cut a long-range shot, the picture turned from the stage, and actually shook to the audience. Originally, this kind of picture switching was not uncommon, flashing by, often to embellish the atmosphere and reflect the heat of the scene in the gaps of the stage.

But this was really not the right time.

The emotions that were originally coherent were interrupted all at once.

Fortunately, a few seconds later, the picture cut back to the stage. At this time, the girl who was dancing was originally on the left side of the singer, but now she was on the right.

Fortunately, after this, the director didn't cut the picture randomly.

In Liu Yifei's feeling, it seemed to be just a moment later, and the song entered the end.

"Don't stop until all the lights go out, you will hold my sleeve, I will put my hands in my pockets..." The man on the screen looked at the dancing girl and sang softly, with an unspeakable tenderness hidden in his tone. The movements of the dancing girl also gradually slowed down.

Finally, she no longer rotated or jumped, but approached him gently and stood still two steps in front of him.

The two looked at each other.

Then switch to the full view of the stage.

He stood in the center of the stage, looking up slightly.

At this time, Liu Yifei had already learned, she gently followed his mouth shape and voice on TV, and sang the last sentence together: "Walk to the end of Yulin Road, walk past the door of the small tavern~~"

But this time, he dragged the tail sound long. It was like a long and gentle sigh.

And then it stopped abruptly.

There was no applause on the TV immediately, but a silence.

Liu Yifei was also in a daze.

The unspoken "goodbye" that was sung throughout the song was never said in the end.

Immediately after, a children's singing voice sounded in the background, "Walk with me on the streets of Chengdu oh oh oh, don't look back until all the lights go out."

At this time, the man on the stage suddenly raised the corners of his mouth, revealing a joyful and warm smile.

This moment was like spring returning to the earth, and spring flowers blooming.

The sad atmosphere created in the previous few minutes was instantly swept away by this smile.

Many viewers in front of the TV returned to reality and remembered what day it was today.

This is the New Year.

So when he smiled and bowed slightly to the audience, the most enthusiastic applause of the night rang out like thunder.

"Feng'er, how long has it been since we sat together like this?"

Liu Yifei tilted her head and thought for a while, "Quite a long time."

"Yes, it's been a long time. For many years, our father and daughter haven't had a good heart-to-heart talk. Usually, Dad is always busy with work and rarely cares about you... Here, Dad apologizes to you."

"It's okay." Liu Yifei turned her head uncomfortably and looked at the sky.

She was currently sitting in a glass room built on the second-floor terrace of the villa, and she could see the night sky when she looked up.

The suburbs of Hankou were not like the city center, with much less light pollution, the sky was deeper and farther, and the stars were dotted. At that moment, she suddenly remembered the night of the Serengeti grassland, thinking of that vast galaxy.

That period of time, looking back now, was like a distant and clear dream.

However, soon, the man's voice pulled her back to reality.

"This time your mother let you come here for the New Year, I am very grateful to her. Remember to bring a word for me when you go back, thank her."

"Okay."

"Your mother has changed a lot in the past year or two, is it my illusion?"

"No."

"Oh? She doesn't manage you as much as before?"

"No more. She is very busy now, and has been busy with things in Japan since the second half of last year."

"Japan? Does she have a project there?"

Liu Yifei nodded and briefly explained Liu Xiaoli's work situation in Japan in the second half of last year.

The man was surprised after listening, "Is her Japanese company under your name?"

"Ah, yes."

The man chuckled, "So that's it... Hey, speaking of which, time is really fast. You have also grown up, you are a big girl, and you have started to fall in love."

"..."

"How does he treat you usually? Tell Dad the truth."

Liu Yifei said: "He is quite busy, we don't see each other much. Other than that, everything is quite good."

"Do you fight?"

"No, never." Liu Yifei said, a smile appearing on the corner of her mouth, "He is quite accommodating to me."

"Is that so. Then are you living together in Beijing now?"

Liu Yifei hesitated for a moment, but nodded: "Yes."

The man nodded and asked: "Then, have you planned for the future?"

"Future?"

"Yes. Has he mentioned it to you?"

Liu Yifei was silent for a while before saying in a low voice: "No."

"No?"

She didn't speak.

"Hehe." The man chuckled and asked again: "Then what do you think? Do you still want to continue to be with him?"

Liu Yifei nodded without hesitation: "Yes."

The man was silent for a while. After a while, he exhaled gently and said: "Actually, you are still young, maybe it's too early to say these things, right? Walk slowly, look slowly, your life path is still very long, and there can be many choices."

Liu Yifei frowned tightly and didn't speak.

The man continued: "Dad doesn't mean anything else, just want to tell you some real, personal experiences. If a man pays too much attention to his career, his family will often not be very happy. Gathering less and parting more, this is a destined thing. Think about me and your mother, didn't we separate because of this? And I was nothing compared to him now."

"Do you still remember, just now I told your aunt downstairs that the students our college recruited in 2011 were more than twice that of 2010?"

"Yes."

"More than half of them are interested in our country and Chinese culture because of him. It makes our work much easier than in previous years. In such a situation, I have lived for most of my life, let alone seen it, I haven't even thought about it. Ambassador Kong and I have talked about it, and our common view is—as long as he continues to develop like this, it is absolutely a great thing for the promotion of Chinese culture. Otherwise, do you really think everyone can be on the News Broadcast?"

Liu Yifei listened to him and asked: "And then?"

"Then, if he really grows into an international star who is more powerful and influential than he is now one day, how many things will he have to think about every day? How many people will he meet every day, and how many temptations will he experience? Even I can't imagine. Feng'er, have you ever thought—in that kind of life, will your status in his heart slowly become lower? Will your weight in his heart become smaller and smaller?"

Liu Yifei looked at the man and shook her head slowly: "No."

The man smiled bitterly and said: "Feng'er, Dad said these things, not to stop you from being together, I just want to remind you—if you are with him, life will definitely not be easy. Instead of this, finding a simple, not so successful person who can accompany you every day, care about you, and love you, would it be a better choice? Have you thought about it?"

"I haven't thought about it, and I don't want to think about it."

Liu Yifei said, "I love him."

Her short sentence, every word was like a pearl falling on a porcelain plate, crisp and clear, firm and crisp.

The man was stunned for a moment, a complex look appeared in his eyes, and his face couldn't help but move.

Finally, after a long while, he took a breath, exhaled slowly, and smiled: "Since you are so confident, then next year for the New Year, you invite him to come over and sit. Feng'er, what do you think?"

Liu Yifei hesitated for a while, and finally nodded: "Okay."

That's what she said, but her father's teaching still made Liu Yifei feel depressed. After talking, she didn't want to go downstairs to deal with the relatives on her father's side, so she made an excuse that she was sleepy, went into the room she was staying in tonight on the second floor, lay on the bed, and took out her phone.

She first found Chen Nuo's number, but hesitated before dialing. She was also a person who had participated in parties, and knew that it was just after the end, and it should still be a busy time.

So she found Liu Xiaoli's number and dialed it directly.

The moment Liu Xiaoli picked up the phone, she was clearly playing cards, with the sound of mahjong tiles clattering in the background. She said excitedly, "Xixi, what's up? Let me tell you, your aunt lost a lot today, hahahahaha..."

"Mom, there is something I want to ask for your opinion."

"Okay, you say. Pong, three strips!"

"Well, it's like this, Dad just told me............"

As a result, before she said two sentences, she only heard an incredible voice from the receiver: "What did he say? I @#￥! #@! @! He An Shaokang told you these?! Is he crazy!"

After she finished scolding him, the phone went quiet for a moment. "Xixi, don't listen to that father of yours. His brain doesn't work right; if his brain worked any better, I wouldn't have taken you away back then!"

"Huh?"

"Really, what is the more successful the less happy, that's nonsense! Success will be happy, unsuccessful men will bring you unhappiness! Your father was too unsuccessful back then, so unsuccessful that he couldn't even arrange your future, so I... otherwise, I would have eaten too much to take you away alone. Think about it, if President Chen... Chen Nuo is your father... no, hey, I'm so angry that I can't speak well. My meaning is that what your father said is fart, don't take a word to heart. Do you know?"

"Giggle giggle giggle." Liu Yifei let out a laugh, "I know, Mom. I think so too."

"It's the New Year, I don't want to be angry, otherwise I would have called him to scold him now. In his whole speech, only one sentence makes sense, this man, indeed, the more successful he is, the more temptations there are outside, but, if you surrender, wouldn't that be cheap for those vixens? Can you think it through? Is there this truth?"

"Hehe, Mom, you are right, I think so too. And Chen Nuo, I don't think he will."

This time, there was a silence in the receiver, and then a voice came: "No matter what, don't listen to your father, he is a defeatist idea, it is a literary youth's self-pity. If it weren't for his dead appearance, I wouldn't have been angry and divorced him back then, so many years, still haven't changed at all! Okay, you come over tomorrow, I'll tell you slowly then."

After listening to Liu Xiaoli's words, Liu Yifei's mood completely improved, and she smiled and said: "Okay."

"Well, you come over early in the morning, just say I have something here."

"Got it, Mom."

"That's it, I..."

"Mom."

"Well, what?"

"I love you, Mom. Happy New Year."

PS:

Today's 6000 words took the time to write 10,000 words.

(End of this chapter) **CHAPTER 470**