Chapter 181

"You're like that flame~"

"Your blazing fire lit up my world~"

Just as Kong Junxiang reached the climax of his song again, Ding Xiang's figure appeared beneath the stage.

But Kong Junxiang, caught in the fervor of singing, lost sight of Ding Xiang again and failed to notice she had already arrived beneath the stage, climbed up the side steps, and stood behind him holding a bouquet of flowers.

Meanwhile.

Just as Ding Xiang was about to pat Kong Junxiang on the shoulder, he happened to sing—

"Though I'm happy, I never told you~"

"I know you truly like me!"

As soon as he finished, the music entered the interlude.

Kong Junxiang exhaled in relief and glanced again at Ding Xiang's seat in the audience, only to find it empty.

This startled him; after confirming Xu Yinghuan was beside him and he hadn't mistaken the seat, Kong Junxiang felt an inexplicable sense of disappointment.

But the students below erupted in cheers at that moment, leaving Kong Junxiang bewildered—he thought they were simply applauding his performance.

Yet the next second, his shoulder was tapped.

Kong Junxiang instinctively turned his head.

The moment he saw Ding Xiang, he froze in place, utterly stunned.

Ding Xiang placed the bouquet into his hands and gave him a gentle hug.

Then, amid the cheers and teasing of classmates, she blushed, covered her face with both hands, and fled offstage laughing.

Only then did Kong Junxiang realize what had happened.

He was overwhelmed by a surge of joy and happiness, his face stretched into a wide, crooked smile.

Fortunately, Li Luo in the wings was quick—he intensified the drumbeat just before the next verse, snapping Kong Junxiang back to reality, who hurriedly resumed singing.

Whether due to encouragement or not, Kong Junxiang sang more freely this time, feeling as if his chest had opened wide, his voice no longer tense as before.

When the song ended, the entire audience erupted in thunderous applause.

Kong Junxiang bowed slightly to the audience with a satisfied expression, then carried the bouquet offstage.

"Professor Kong, congratulations!" Li Luo greeted him with a grin.

"Thanks to your drumbeat cue—I'd have messed up without it," Kong Junxiang patted Li Luo's shoulder, now as radiant as a horse galloping in spring wind, his spirit utterly transformed.

He was completely different from the nervous man he had been backstage just moments ago.

"Teacher Ding is still waiting for you," Li Luo said cheerfully. "Keep pushing—try to get us to meet little Kong before graduation."

"You little rascal," Kong Junxiang laughed and tapped his head. "You're getting bolder by the day—saying anything that comes to mind."

"It just shows how close our teacher-student bond is," Li Luo said with a grin. "If you two ever get together, just remember to give me a red envelope."

"It's not even settled yet," Kong Junxiang waved his hands. "Don't go spreading rumors."

"Relax—if any rumors start, it definitely won't be from me."

"True…" Kong Junxiang smirked; he still had full confidence in Class Eight's gossip machine. "I'll head back now—good luck with your performance later."

Li Luo gave him a thumbs-up and watched as he walked toward the audience seats.

On his way back to his seat, Kong Junxiang glanced down at the bouquet he hadn't properly examined earlier—and suddenly noticed something odd.

This bouquet… why does it look so plain?

It wasn't that he minded—it was from Ding Xiang, so no matter how simple, he was delighted.

But it just felt strange… Ding Xiang couldn't have known he'd sing today, so logically, she couldn't have prepared the flowers in advance.

So were these flowers hastily gathered?

He wondered where they'd come from.

As he thought this, Kong Junxiang had already returned to Class Eight's seats.

He was immediately greeted with enthusiastic cheers.

Zhang Guohuang, acting like a monkey, slapped his mouth and let out bizarre howls, then shouted: "Professor Kong sang great!"

Kong Junxiang laughed and patted him back into his seat, then sat beside Ding Xiang.

The two whispered to each other, both smiling broadly.

Xu Yinghuan, seated beside Ding Xiang, grinned so hard her face twisted.

Meanwhile, Yan Zhusheng had returned backstage and gave Li Luo a victory sign: "Mission accomplished."

Li Luo gave her a thumbs-up: "Comrade Yan Zhusheng, you did well."

"What's the reward for this mission?" Yan Zhusheng asked seriously.

"What reward do you want?"

"Can you wash my hands?" Yan Zhusheng blinked, extending her hands. "I was in a hurry—my hands are covered in dirt."

Li Luo looked down and saw her hands were filthy, with soil still lodged under her fingernails.

This made Li Luo feel slightly embarrassed. "Come on, let's get you cleaned up."

Saying this, he informed Niu Qingling, then led Yan Zhusheng away from the basketball court to the nearest restroom.

At the sink, Yan Zhusheng looked at Li Luo, Li Luo looked at Yan Zhusheng—they stared at each other.

"You wash."

"Reward," Yan Zhusheng extended her hands.

Li Luo: "... You're acting like a three-year-old."

He grabbed her hands and placed them under the faucet, then carefully rinsed off the dirt, scrubbing even under her fingernails.

When done, Li Luo patted his pocket—no tissues. So he simply pulled her hands and wiped them dry against his school uniform.

"All set. Let's go," Li Luo said. "We still need to tune the instruments."

"Oh." Yan Zhusheng fell into step beside Li Luo, and the two quickly returned to the backstage.

Niu Qingling, Shao Youpeng, Xie Shuchen, and Qian Siliang were all already ready there.

After Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng joined them, the six of them checked their instruments and microphones one by one.

The bonfire party at Fu Yi began at seven p. m. and ended at half past eight.

When the time reached eight fifteen, the third-to-last performance was about to end.

Ying Chanxi appeared backstage and immediately spotted Li Luo, who was hugging his guitar and chatting with Yan Zhusheng.

"Why are you here?" Li Luo raised an eyebrow, instantly noticing Ying Chanxi's presence.

"I came to help," Ying Chanxi tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, speaking as if casually, "I was assigned to come backstage at this time for some backstage duties."

"Didn't you pick this time yourself, class president?" Jian Zhenyuan, the vice class president who had just arrived, looked bewildered.

Ying Chanxi: "… Go help over there first."

Sensing Ying Chanxi's tone was off, Jian Zhenyuan quickly slipped away.

But Li Luo looked at Ying Chanxi with a half-smile. "You're the vice president of the student union—don't tell such easily exposed lies, okay?"

"Shut up," Ying Chanxi glared at him. "I just wanted to come see how you're doing. Are you satisfied now?"

Li Luo's satisfaction was unknown.

But Xie Shuchen nearby was deeply moved: "Class president, you… I'm almost embarrassed. I was feeling relaxed before, and now I'm nervous again."

"Cough…" Ying Chanxi felt a bit awkward at his words, but still went along: "Anyway, good luck, and I'll go take care of my duties now."

Ying Chanxi went to hand over her duties to other student union members.

Xu Youyu, after patrolling the venue, returned to the backstage and walked over to Li Luo. "How's everything prepared? They're about to call you on stage."

"All set," Li Luo brushed his fingers along the strings, then glanced at Yan Zhusheng. "Just hope someone doesn't step on the mic cable again."

"Don't worry," Xu Youyu glanced at him. "This time we got Yan Zhusheng a wireless mic—she can do whatever she wants with it."

"So thoughtful?"

"Thoughtful?" Xu Youyu chuckled. "Last time, the mic cost was paid by Yan Zhusheng's family. After that, her mom just spent a bit more and had the school replace it with a brand-new wireless one."

"Actually, the wired mic is fine too," Yan Zhusheng muttered quietly.

"Alright, good luck, everyone," Xu Youyu cheered on the rock club members.

Shao Youpeng, beside him, felt a swell of pride—he thought following Li Luo really paid off.

He'd never seen Xu Youyu pay so much attention to the rock club before, but now Xu Youyu often came by to say hello.

Even though Xu Youyu mostly talked to Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng, it was still better than never seeing her at all.

Especially after the sophomore stream division—Shao Youpeng was in Class One, Xu Youyu in Class Sixteen; they rarely crossed paths.

Now, only through Li Luo's connection to the rock club could Shao Youpeng occasionally see Xu Youyu.

It was like basking in reflected glory.

As for Li Luo's threats?

This guy was always hanging around Yan Zhusheng—how could he possibly be a threat?

In Shao Youpeng's view, Xu Youyu only got close to Li Luo because she was good friends with Yan Zhusheng and Ying Chanxi.

"Next, please welcome the six members of our rock club, performing a song originally composed by Li Luo from Class Eight, Grade One—"

"The Sky Has No Limits!"

Onstage, the host had just announced the next performance.

The student union members backstage immediately sprang into action, helping Li Luo and the others carry their equipment onto the stage.

After a brief sound check onstage, Niu Qingling scanned the group, exchanged glances with her teammates, then gave a slight nod.

Meanwhile, behind the stage, under Xu Youyu's direction, a curtain slowly rose.

The projector, already prepared, turned on, projecting the lyrics of the new song "The Sky Has No Limits" onto the curtain, making it easy for the audience to follow along.

In the audience, when people saw Yan Zhusheng appear onstage, many instantly grew excited.

More than a month ago, at the sports meet, everyone had already witnessed Yan Zhusheng's talent.

Now, seeing her perform live again, not just the boys—even some girls—couldn't help but lean forward.

But the most extreme was Zhang Guohuang.

As soon as he saw Li Luo and the others step onstage, he jumped onto his chair and shouted: "Class president, I love you!"

Li Luo's head filled with black lines, but he still waved at him—though he wished the kid would just shut up.

But after Zhang Guohuang set the tone, Xu Yinghuan couldn't help but shout toward the stage: "Yan Zhusheng! I love you!"

Yan Zhusheng remained calm, waving back in Xu Yinghuan's direction.

Then—

Niu Qingling sat at the drum kit, raising her drumsticks.

Chak, chak, chak.

With three crisp strikes, following Niu Qingling's rhythm, Li Luo and the others instantly joined in—the music erupted.

The rock band, having rehearsed countless times, operated with perfect synergy under Niu Qingling's lead.

Yan Zhusheng closed her eyes, slowly pressing her lips to the microphone.

The instant the rhythm entered the verse, she snapped her eyes open—her gaze clear as a mirror, fully immersed in flow state.

"When I curiously pounded the black and white keys~"

"When I hid in my room, lost in ecstatic performance~"

"…"

In Yan Zhusheng's singing, the verse gradually drew the students into its atmosphere.

Until the chorus reached its climax—

"The sky has no limits!"

"My future is boundless~"

As the chorus lyrics rang out, Yan Zhusheng unleashed his full power, instantly making everyone's mind buzz—a sudden surge lifting them high into the sky, as if their souls had left their bodies.