Chapter 566: I Will

On the basketball court's cement ground, a massive bonfire burned fiercely, requiring several people to encircle it.

The orange-gold flames leapt in the cold wind, casting a ruddy glow on Kong Junxiang's face, clad in a white shirt.

When he took the stage, Li Luo took a guitar from members of the rock club, while Yan Zhusheng walked straight toward the electronic keyboard left on stage.

Glancing at Kong Junxiang walking ahead, Li Luo noticed his homeroom teacher's arms were trembling.

Although Kong Junxiang and Ding Xiang's relationship was stable and they had both met each other's parents, their future together was essentially assumed.

But at such a critical moment, anyone would be extremely nervous.

Down on the audience seats, Ding Xiang was also slightly nervous, but purely because her beloved was about to take the stage and she feared he might perform poorly.

She had even promised Kong Junxiang she'd bring flowers onstage for him.

Glancing at the bouquet of roses already prepared beside her, Ding Xiang's cheeks flushed as she thought of showing affection to her boyfriend in front of all the students—it was a little embarrassing.

It would undermine her authority as an English teacher…

"What song is 'The Rest of My Life'?" asked Xu Yinghuan, sitting beside Ding Xiang. "Ding teacher, do you know? What song is Kong teacher singing today?"

"I don't know either," Ding Xiang laughed and shook her head. "He said it's a new song Li Luo wrote, and he wanted to keep it secret—I'm hearing it for the first time too."

"No way," Zhu Yufei couldn't help but whistle. "How come the monitor writes songs like he's bulk-producing them—just opens his mouth and out it comes?"

"We've known each other for ages—get used to it," Zhang Guohuang patted his shoulder. "Old Kong's on stage!"

With his two students beside him, Kong Junxiang stood at the center of the stage.

Li Luo held his guitar, Yan Zhusheng placed both hands on the keyboard, yet neither played immediately—instead, their gazes fixed on Kong Junxiang's back.

At that moment, Kong Junxiang, facing nearly two thousand audience members, immediately spotted Ding Xiang seated in Class 8, Gao San, on the west side.

Then he took a deep breath, forcibly steadying his trembling body, and slowly picked up the microphone:

"This song is a new composition by Li Luo."

"I deeply love its lyrics and the emotions they carry."

"I'm not good with words when it comes to feelings, so I want to use this song to convey something to you."

The audience below, mostly teenagers, all yearned for beautiful love and held hazy dreams of romance.

So when Kong Junxiang spoke these words, the crowd erupted in noise, many students growing excited.

Class 8, Gao San burst into loud cheers, making Ding Xiang blush furiously—she silently scolded Kong Junxiang for uttering such romantic words in public.

But soon, as Li Luo's fingers touched the guitar strings and Yan Zhusheng's hands descended, gentle notes flowed like a soft caress.

Outside the stage, silence instantly fell.

The slow, melodious intro began, like distant murmurs carrying a faint nostalgia and longing—like ripples on a lake under moonlight, gentle yet piercing the heart.

As the intro deepened and the audience gradually sank into the song's emotion, Kong Junxiang finally lifted the microphone again, breathed slowly, and sang in a calm, low voice:

"Find the sun where there's no wind~ Be the warmth where you're cold~"

"The world is chaotic~ You're always too innocent~"

"For the rest of my life~ I want only you~"

At this point, Kong Junxiang had tightly shut his eyes from nervousness.

Down below, Ding Xiang stared intently at Kong Junxiang.

On the screen behind them, the lyrics appeared, bringing a flush to Ding Xiang's cheeks—under the bonfire's glow, she looked especially beautiful.

"For the rest of my life~ The wind and snow are you~"

"The plainness is you~ The poverty is you~"

"The glory is you~ The tenderness in your heart is you~"

"Wherever my gaze falls~ It's you~"

Li Luo played a simple, soothing melody, listening to Kong Junxiang's singing, and occasionally turned his head to look at Yan Zhusheng beside him.

Yan Zhusheng, sensing his gaze, turned her head at the same moment, meeting his eyes directly.

Li Luo smiled at her.

But Yan Zhusheng turned back, still mulling over the fact that he hadn't given her a ring.

At this point, the song entered its middle transition.

Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng played the interlude.

Down below, Ding Xiang had already picked up her bouquet of roses, pushed through the crowd, and stepped onto the stage.

Just as she reached to hand the roses to Kong Junxiang, he seized her hand in his and pulled her to stay on stage with him.

Instantly, the audience below erupted again—cheering, hooting, clamoring.

Ding Xiang's cheeks burned red; she clutched the roses with one hand, her other hand held by Kong Junxiang, and lowered her head, unable to meet the gaze of the thousand eyes watching.

"What are you doing?" she whispered shyly. "You never said I had to stay up here too."

Hearing this, Kong Junxiang only smiled, then raised the microphone again, gazing lovingly at his girlfriend in time with the music:

"I want to take you to see endless blue skies~"

"I want to shout loud that I'm obsessed with you~"

"Time flies fast~ You're always moved~"

"For the rest of my life~ I want only you."

As he sang these lines, Kong Junxiang suddenly turned Ding Xiang to face him, then reached into the depths of the rose bouquet in her arms and pulled out a small box.

The next second, Kong Junxiang dropped to one knee.

Ding Xiang's mind went utterly blank.

Especially when he pulled the ring box from the roses she had brought up—she was instantly enveloped in overwhelming joy and surprise.

Only when Kong Junxiang opened the box, revealing a clear, sparkling diamond ring resting quietly within, shimmering under the bonfire's glow, did Ding Xiang snap back to reality.

At that moment, Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng behind raised their own prepped microphones and softly sang in harmony as background vocals.

"For the rest of my life~ the snow and wind are you~"

"Spring's blossoms are you~ summer's rain is also you~"

"Autumn's gold is you~ the warmth and chill of all four seasons are you~"

"Wherever my gaze falls~ it is also you~"

Kong Jun held the diamond ring in one hand and picked up the microphone with the other, smiling up at Ding Xiang, who still looked dazed:

"Will you marry me?"

When had any of the students from Fu Yi High ever witnessed such a scene?

In the past, scenes like this only ever appeared in idol dramas or romantic novels.

When this moment suddenly unfolded, everyone erupted, shouting from the stands: "Say yes! Say yes!"

"Marry him! Marry him!"

"Teacher Kong, you're so handsome!"

At this moment, the girls' cheers were even louder than the boys', clearly moved to the core. Ding Xiang had now fully come to her senses, covering her mouth, speechless, her eyes filled with mist.

The students' shouts echoed in her ears; before her eyes was the man she loved, kneeling on one knee, proposing.

Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng's soft singing lingered in the air as Ding Xiang slowly extended her hand toward Kong Jun.

Before Kong Jun could slip the ring onto her finger, she snatched the microphone from his hand, laughing through tears: "I do."

Below the stage, the students erupted in cheers.

The crowd from Class 8, Gao San, exploded in joy.

Zhu Yufei and several other boys even climbed onto their chairs, stripped off their jackets, and waved them wildly in celebration.

Normally, at a moment like this, the student union members responsible for order would rush over immediately to stop it.

But now? No one cared about such trivial matters.

Kong Jun's hands trembled as he slipped the diamond ring onto Ding Xiang's finger, then stood up.

The two embraced tightly on stage.

!

No one knew who started it first, but soon the students below the stage chanted in perfect unison:

"Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!"

The atmosphere had been built to this point; Kong Jun was still a little shy, but the more emotional woman paid no mind to the stares—she rose onto her toes and pressed a kiss to his lips.

The entire audience erupted in cheers.

But they still had to mind their image, so they only brushed lips lightly before pulling apart.

Holding hands and facing the crowd, they bowed in thanks, then Kong Jun led Ding Xiang offstage.

Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng also stopped playing their guitar and keyboard, and followed along, ending this deeply meaningful performance.

When they returned to the backstage area, the staff for the final group choir had already taken the stage; Kong Jun and Ding Xiang were nowhere to be seen, having vanished somewhere.

Aside from a few staff members, only Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng remained here.

Li Luo didn't rush to take Yan Zhusheng back to their seats—he strolled slowly toward the deepest part of the basketball court, beyond the reach of the bonfire's light.

Yan Zhusheng followed step by step beside him, then suddenly asked out of nowhere: "Li Luo."

"Hmm?"

"Aren't you planning to give me a ring?"

Li Luo: "... Uh, why are you saying that all of a sudden?"

"So you are, then?" Yan Zhusheng narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing him suspiciously, then couldn't resist rummaging through his pockets—swiftly sliding her hands into both of them.

"Hey, what are you doing?! Wait! I haven't—"

Before he could finish speaking, Yan Zhusheng's eyes lit up as she pulled a sky-blue ring from Li Luo's pant pocket.

On her usually stern face, a rare, beaming smile appeared; she hurriedly slipped the ring onto her ring finger and gazed intently at it under the bonfire's glow.

When she saw the engraving—"Yan Zhusheng & Li Luo"—she smiled contentedly, her lips curling slightly.

Behind her, Li Luo watched her expression—like someone who'd just discovered a long-lost treasure—and couldn't help but wear a look of amused exasperation, sighing and pressing his palm to his forehead.

"I wasn't refusing to give it to you. Why so impatient?" Li Luo laughed, shaking his head. "I was actually planning to..."

"Planning what?" Yan Zhusheng turned to face him, still pouting. "Xixi got hers last Wednesday. I had to wait ten days."

Li Luo: "... I think something like this should be given at the right moment, to make it more meaningful."

"I don't care," Yan Zhusheng shook her head. "As long as it's from you, it's meaningful."

Li Luo could only sigh again, recalling the Yan Zhusheng he'd known in his past life—compared to this jealous, clingy girl, they were truly two different people.

He felt his presence had completely twisted Yan Zhusheng's nature.

The kind of Yan Zhusheng from his past life probably wouldn't appear again.

She was meant to become a cold, reserved ice mountain beauty—but now she'd been shaped into this by him.

It had to be said: one's upbringing from childhood mattered greatly.

"If you like it, that's all that matters," Li Luo said, pulling Yan Zhusheng into his arms.

Just as he was about to move his hands, Yan Zhusheng turned and wrapped her arms around his neck—when footsteps echoed from deeper in the court.

The next second.

A cough rang out.

Li Luo instantly released Yan Zhusheng and turned toward the farthest basketball hoop, where he saw Kong Jun walking toward them, hand in hand with Ding Xiang.

The teacher and student exchanged glances.

As Kong Jun passed Li Luo, he murmured quietly: "Take it easy on campus. Get back to your seats."

"Cough..." Li Luo cleared his throat and immediately followed behind, dragging Yan Zhusheng along. "Understood."

Yan Zhusheng pouted slightly, dissatisfied, but still obediently returned to her seat.

At this moment, the stage chorus was nearing its end.

Ying Chanxi, seeing they had just returned, frowned and asked: "Why did you two come back so late?"

Yan Zhusheng said nothing, only lowering her head to fiddle with her fingers.

Ying Chanxi immediately noticed the sky-blue ring on Yan Zhusheng's ring finger, then looked down at her own, and immediately pressed her lips shut, asking no more.

Li Luo's foot had been stomped on hard by someone.

……

Around nine p. m., the New Year's Eve gala officially ended.

Li Luo brought the two girls home; as soon as they entered, they saw a figure in pajamas lying on the sofa.

Hearing the noise at the door, Xu Youyu lifted his head and sighed softly: "Ah~ How wonderful~ The New Year's Eve gala, bonfire, performances~"

"Stop whining," Li Luo reached into his pocket, pulled out the large white rabbit candy he had won in the morning's draw, tore off the wrapper, and shoved it into Xu Youyu's mouth.

"What's this?" Xu Youyu asked, chewing the candy.

"I collected stamps during the day and won it in the draw," Li Luo smiled. "Consider it a little sense of participation."

"Thanks a lot," Xu Youyu rolled his eyes. "I want noodles! Night snack!"

"I'll make it soon. I'm going to take a shower first."

"I'm going to shower too," Ying Chanxi changed into slippers and walked toward the bathroom down the hall.

Yan Zhusheng plopped down beside Xu Youyu, still silent, quietly playing with her fingers.

Only when Xu Youyu noticed the ring on her hand did Yan Zhusheng rise contentedly and head to the piano room to practice.

(End of Chapter)