Chapter 189: The Leading Lady on Stage

Modu, 5:30 in the afternoon.

Cheng Chen stood backstage, listening to the enthusiastic cheers of the fans coming from the front, and took a deep breath.

"Go for it!"

"No problem, Boss Cheng, go for it!"

"Go for it, Boss Cheng!"

Backstage, a group of people gathered around Cheng Chen, cheering him on.

"Relax, it's not my first concert."

Cheng Chen's mindset was actually pretty good, even though he was about to face eighty thousand people live.

But he'd been through thick and thin after all, and he actually felt a little eager to give it a try.

Cheng Chen nodded to everyone, finally letting his gaze fall on Ceng Li and Zhang Jie, who were dressed in blue opera costumes.

"I'll be counting on you two later."

Cheng Chen said with a smile.

"Brother Cheng, no problem here."

Zhang Jie patted his chest, his eyes full of excitement.

This was his second time serving as Cheng Chen's guest singer, and he had never experienced such a huge stage before.

In Cheng Chen's words, having him come over now was, on one hand, to sing backup for himself.

After all, he couldn't carry a two-plus-hour show on his own.

On the other hand, it was also to train Zhang Jie's individual ability and stage presence, laying the groundwork for his own concert later.

As for Ceng Li's appearance, that was something Cheng Chen had repeatedly invited her to do.

Although the two of them hadn't met often, since the last time he visited her set, they had kept in touch through text messages.

Occasionally Cheng Chen would also ask her out to meet up—ordinary eating, drinking, and having fun, nothing deliberate on his part.

"Even though it's my first time appearing on a concert stage, the pressure is definitely all on you. I'm just here to join the fun."

Ceng Li said with a hand covering her mouth, laughing.

At this moment, Ceng Li was wearing an opera costume, with stage makeup on her face.

Every smile and glance carried a flowing, captivating charm.

A slender waist one could span with a single hand, and an indescribable grace in every gesture.

"Then Sister Li, just stand on stage and listen to the song later, hahaha."

Cheng Chen teased.

In the concert rehearsals of the past two days, Ceng Li had been unusually intense; for every performance and show, she always strove for perfection.

So her saying she was just here to join the fun was nothing more than a joke, and of course Cheng Chen wouldn't take it seriously.

"Hoo."

Cheng Chen exhaled a breath, then stepped onto the elevator and slowly ascended onto the stage.

"Ahhhhhhhhh!"

"Boss, boss, I love you!"

"My love for you never changes—not one step of the way!"

"Go for it, boss, we'll always support you!"

!

The moment Cheng Chen's figure appeared on stage, the entire venue immediately erupted.

The fans below were wildly waving the things in their hands.

In an instant, it surged like a mighty wave.

Standing on stage, Cheng Chen felt the concentrated burst of passion from the audience; he felt every nerve in his body being struck.

Hearing the audience below express their love for him in almost the most direct way possible, Cheng Chen's chest was filled with satisfaction.

He was seen wearing a black leather jacket, an electric guitar cradled in his arms, giving off quite a hip-hop rock vibe.

Seeing him dressed like this, just as everyone thought he was about to sing "Compendium of Materia Medica."

Cheng Chen suddenly strummed the electric guitar in his hand hard, a restless sound suddenly rang out, and the drum kit pushed in tightly.

"Whenever the tide comes, will you feel sad too?

In a crowded, lonely room, I can barely breathe.

In this cold, heartless city, at a modern, decadent party.

Whenever the guitar noise sounds again, the current runs through me and you…"

Cheng Chen held the electric guitar, stepping to a lively rhythm on stage, the lyrics slowly singing out from his mouth.

The audience below was immediately stunned.

A new song!

Cheng Chen had released another new song.

The intense drumbeats and the wild electric guitar instantly lit the flame in everyone's heart.

Combined with Cheng Chen's slightly hoarse voice and the exceptionally atmospheric lyrics, it immediately caught everyone's ear.

Making people unconsciously sway their bodies with the notes, this intense feeling reached its peak in the songs that followed!

"You you you you wanna dance?

You you you you wanna dance?

You you you you wanna dance?

You you you you wanna dance…"

Cheng Chen felt as if his body were electrified,

waving the electric guitar nonstop in his hands, his gaze sweeping across every person below the stage.

Each of those unfamiliar faces was the true manifestation of an inner soul.

He seemed to be using his gaze to send an invitation to the strangers below the stage:

"Do you want to dance?"

Everyone at the venue was going wild; in Cheng Chen's singing, everyone was swaying their bodies crazily.

The things in their hands kept waving, the atmosphere was incredibly hyped, the shock beyond imagination.

"I, holy crap, Cheng Chen's song is absolutely killer!"

"This new song is just too lit, Cheng Chen is so handsome, isn't he!"

"The first song of the concert is a royal flush; just based on this song, I haven't come to this concert for nothing!"

Cheng Chen on stage still wore that cool look; at some unknown moment, he took the electric guitar from his hands down.

"Whenever the guitar noise sounds again, the electric current passes through you and me…"

Singing to this point, Cheng Chen pointed the microphone in his hand toward the audience below.

The audience immediately understood, and sang in unison:

"Do you you you you want to dance?

Do you you you you want to dance?

Do you you you you want to dance?

Do you you you you want to dance…"

Eighty thousand people in the entire venue sang in chorus; the whole arena echoed everywhere with joyful and wildly enthusiastic voices.

Backstage, Ceng Li stared blankly at the fans going wild at the scene, murmuring:

"Even when youth is gone, rock can still awaken the restlessness in these fans' hearts — this is the unique charm of rock music."

Hearing this, Zhang Jie nodded hard in agreement, saying:

"Indeed, and Brother Cheng's explosive power is really strong, his stage presence is getting steadier and steadier."

Looking at that radiant man on stage, Zhang Jie's eyes were full of envy.

If one day he also stood on stage, could he also reach a height like Cheng Chen's?

He didn't dare to think, could only hold a small expectation in his heart…

On stage, this song reached its end; Cheng Chen let out a breath and said:

"Thank you, thank you for coming; to be honest, I prepared for a long time for this day…"

"Boss, we should be the ones thanking you, thank you!"

"Thank you, boss, for bringing us this feast for both the eyes and the ears!"

"We will support you forever, boss!"

"Aaaaaaaaaa!"

Hearing the fans' feedback below the stage, Cheng Chen smiled; he waved his hand, and the audience immediately stopped their restlessness.

"On this day last year, at this same time, I also held a concert in Jingcheng.

You may not believe it when I say it, but I have a really good memory — like this guy in the first row wearing a camel-colored down jacket.

You also went to my Jingcheng concert last year, right? Hahaha, I shouldn't have remembered wrong."

In the first row in the direction Cheng Chen pointed, a man wearing a camel-colored down jacket immediately stood up excitedly.

The director at the broadcast booth immediately cut the man's shot to the big screen; the man was seen with an excited face.

Although they couldn't hear what he was saying, from his lip movements and gestures, it could be seen that he agreed with Cheng Chen's words.

"This past year I've gone through too much, especially that thing not long ago, but now it's all in the past.

Walking this road, it's precisely because of your support that I can meet you here.

You've walked ninety-nine steps to see me, and I am the one taking this one step to meet you — a song 'Confession Balloon' for you."

After Cheng Chen finished speaking, the fans below the stage immediately let out screams.

Cheng Chen, however, closed his eyes and sang with a smile:

"By the Saina He, coffee on the left bank.

A cup in my hand, tasting your beauty.

Leaving a lip print, on the lips.

Flower shop roses, the name written wrong, who.

Confession balloon, the wind blows to, the opposite street.

A smile, flying in the sky~"

This song, among all of Cheng Chen's songs, can rank in the top five in terms of how widely it's sung.

With its direct and cheerful rhythm, that sweet atmosphere captured the hearts of countless fans the moment it was released.

The fans below the stage also sang along in chorus with Cheng Chen's voice.

The scene instantly fell into an ocean of love, emanating a strong romantic atmosphere.

"Wow~"

"Mmm mmm mmm!"

"Yooo yooo yooo~"

A wave of boos and cheers rose from below the stage, as Cheng Chen sang:

"Oh, creating a romantic date

Not afraid of messing everything up

"Having you, I have the whole world~"

Many couples in the audience immediately embraced and kissed, and some even proposed on the spot.

The director immediately projected these onto the big screen, which immediately drew sighs from many people.

At the same time, news of Cheng Chen's concert today was also pushed straight to the top of the trending searches.

After hanging there all day, the number one trending topic on Weibo was:

"Cheng Chen's Modu concert has begun."

Right after, the second one was:

"Cheng Chen's 'Do You Want to Dance?' blows the roof off the whole venue!"

Third:

"Concert confessions and proposals — the ultimate matchmaker Cheng Chen!"

The discussion online never stopped the entire day.

There were even short videos recorded by fans at the concert venue that got uploaded to Weibo.

Seeing the exceptionally heated concert scene, many netizens shed tears of anguish.

"Wuuuuh, the venue is way too lit, I really want to be there!"

"The boss actually dropped a new song at the concert again, and it's a rock style totally different from before — I really want to dance!"

"I'm at the venue, it's lit, gotta go dance now, talk later!"

"Are you really at the concert venue upstairs? It's already been over forty minutes, how could they still be singing 'Do You Want to Dance?'!"

"I'm speechless, my boyfriend actually resold the concert tickets we had such a hard time snagging.

But seeing this scene, I'm really heartbroken — although he did make over two thousand yuan on the resale!"

……

Topics related to Cheng Chen's concert quickly broke a hundred thousand.

By the time the concert started, the related reads on Weibo directly broke a million!

Six out of ten spots on the trending search list were occupied by Cheng Chen, and even the latest news about the Spring Festival Gala was crushed by several ranks.

At this moment, the concert was still going on. Cheng Chen, holding the microphone, said:

"Earlier when I sang the opera-style vocals, you all thought I sang terribly…"

"No way, the boss's opera vocals are the best under heaven!"

"I absolutely love the boss's opera vocals, the boss's opera vocals are definitely the best!"

"Don't listen to others, be yourself, keep going — you're the best!"

Cheng Chen hadn't finished speaking before he was immediately cut off by the fans below the stage. Cheng Chen smiled and pressed his hand down at them, signaling them to be quiet, then continued:

"My opera vocals do have some issues, after all I'm not a professional, and I never learned any of this growing up.

But I know a sister, she's amazing — she's been singing qingyi roles since she was little…"

Hearing this, Ceng Li in the backstage hurriedly straightened her clothes, preparing to go on stage.

"This person you all know too — an actress I deeply respect, and one who's especially dedicated to her craft."

Ceng Li backstage, listening to Cheng Chen's introduction from the stage, blushed without realizing it.

Hearing someone praise you so seriously does make one a bit embarrassed.

"Alright, enough about that for now, I'll keep you in suspense — you'll see soon enough.

Next up is still a new song, a China-style opera-vocal piece called 'Silk-Pulling Puppet.'"

Hearing it was another new song, the fans below the stage immediately erupted.

The fans all said Cheng Chen's concert was the best deal, because you could hear Cheng Chen's newest songs live.

This was what fans of other singers envied the most — by comparison, their idols did seem a bit lacking.

Mhm, Cheng Chen had kicked off an era of singers outcompeting singers…

"Mocking who for flaunting beauty and power — without a heart, how can we be a match?

The copper bells ring clear, between the curtains the lamplight is faint.

You and I, the most heaven-made pair — without you, it would be the original sin.

Without a heart we make a fine match, you in tatters and I in painted hues, walking side by side through mountains and rivers.

You grow haggard, I take on your radiance…"

When Cheng Chen finished the first verse, the fans below the stage immediately froze.

"Wh-what style is this?"

"It sounds like China-style, but a little different — keep listening."

"From this opening section, it's very easy on the ears, very fresh, very distinctive — it grabs you, it's stunning!"

Cheng Chen's voice seemed to depict two ill-fated characters dependent on each other for survival.

Just as the fans said, this vocal style was very fresh, very easy on the ears.

The song's tone was sorrowful, making it easy for people to get pulled into the emotion.

"It was you who kissed open the brush and ink, dyeing the pearl-like tears at the corner of my eye.

Performing partings and reunions, encounters of sorrow and joy — for whom do they circle in misunderstandings?

Yet I am only commanded by you — ask, in this world, what could be more perfect…"

The moment Cheng Chen's voice fell, the audience below immediately erupted in cheers of astonishment.

There, Ceng Li appeared slowly from the lifting platform, dressed in opera costume, opera makeup on her face.

As her long water sleeves swept through the air, she moved like a startled swan — a pool of clear eyes like water, a sweep of dark brows like smoke, a faint trace of sorrow locked between her brows.

There was an opera performer at the concert, and she had even taken the stage in full opera costume.

Cheng Chen's modern outfit stood in sharp contrast to the opera performer's costume, creating a powerful visual impact.

Only Cheng Chen would dare to do something like this at a concert…

Ceng Li flicked her water sleeves, and everyone heard her slowly begin:

"The orchid-finger twirls the mortal world like water, a three-foot crimson stage, ten thousand things enter the song and flute.

Singing of long partings, grief fails to become grief; at the height of redness, it turns to ash.

May someone remember someone, the best of years…"

The moment she opened her mouth, the fans below broke out in goosebumps, scalps tingling.

"This… this is way too good!"

"What kind of immortal is this? The singing is incredible!"

"This song is absolutely killer. The boss really is the boss—every guest singer he invites is this amazing!"

"I declare this the best ancient-style song I've heard this year. The boss really delivers a surprise every single time!"

Hearing the fans below screaming nonstop, Ceng Li, who had been a little nervous, immediately felt her mood settle.

She glanced at Cheng Chen and found him looking back at her; her clear black-and-white eyes couldn't help but playfully blink at him.

As if asking:

How did I just perform?

Cheng Chen gave her a thumbs-up, then continued singing:

"When you take my hand, I dance like flying; when you lead, I understand advance and retreat.

Bitterness and joy both follow, every gesture obeys.

Turning humility and gentleness into absolutes…"

……

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