Chapter 46: Childhood Sweethearts

“As for weapons, we can’t leave out the Heaven-Defying Sword, the Murdering Dragon Blade, the Azure Blood Sword, the Soul-Chasing Knife, or the Death-Bringing Spear!”

“Shaolin’s staff techniques are unparalleled!”

"Eastern Defiance's Kuihua Needle."

“Let me add one more—everyone’s seen The Divine Whip, right? That one’s a must.”

“Haha, talking about The Divine Whip, I just remembered Chen Baoguo’s portrayal of that traitor—perfectly done!”

That day, in the small courtyard of the Gong Mansion, everyone was enthusiastically discussing the weapons chapter of “Swords, Spears, Halberds, and Axes.”

Wu Yuchen glanced at the list of films already recorded: The Heaven-Defying Sword and Murdering Dragon, New Azure Blood Sword, The Six-Fingered Qin Demon, The Divine Whip, The Number One Blade in the Land, Five-Patriarch Eight-Trigram Staff, Soul-Chasing Death-Bringing Spear, Laughing in the Wind, and a long string of others—he would have to edit these films once the discussion concluded and the direction was settled.

At that moment, his pager beeped. Wu Yuchen picked it up, glanced at the message, and smiled faintly: “Sorry, I need to make a call.”

The others paid it no mind and waved him off casually. Wu Yuchen ran to a side room in the hall, dialed the number, listened as the paging operator relayed a message, jotted down a phone number, then dialed again.

Before Wu Yuchen could speak, a woman’s voice on the other end asked: “Chenchen?”

Wu Yuchen recognized the voice immediately: “Sis, what’s up?”

“Come over right away—the Eastern Dance Troupe, it’s urgent!”

“Tell me briefly what’s going on so I know what I’m walking into.”

“I’ve been stalked by someone and can’t shake him off!”

“Aren’t you at the dance troupe? Can’t they just chase him away?”

“Can’t chase him off—he’s a regular here, often sends flower baskets, never hits or yells, just follows me around with a stupid grin. The troupe doesn’t want to cause trouble.”

“So you’re sending me in as a shield, huh?” Wu Yuchen finally understood.

“Something like that. Hurry over.” The voice on the other end urged.

“Wait, wait, wait—I’m busy right now!”

“I don’t see any real danger. Wait two hours at the troupe—I’ll come after I’m done.”

The voice on the other end rose eight octaves:

“No way! Isn’t today Saturday? What could you possibly be doing? Playing soccer or video games? I’m about to go insane—come now or I’ll twist your ear next time!”

She hung up immediately, leaving Wu Yuchen to shake his head.

Wu Yuchen was an only child; the woman on the other end wasn’t his biological sister but his childhood friend, two years older, and his childhood crush before he turned eighteen.

After thinking it over, Wu Yuchen feared something might truly go wrong and decided to go quickly.

Walking into the courtyard, Wu Yuchen apologized: “Teachers, I’m sorry—I’ve got something urgent and need to take leave.”

Jia Zhangke said directly: “Little Wu, we’re not in a rush. Go take care of your business—we’re the ones taking up your time!”

The others in the courtyard didn’t mind; they laughed and urged him to hurry off.

After bidding farewell, Wu Yuchen went to the nearest intersection, flagged down a taxi, and headed straight for the Eastern Dance Troupe.

…

The Eastern Dance Troupe was the most renowned national dance troupe in Huaxia; only the elite were admitted. At this time, they were especially prestigious—in 1995, when the average citizen earned only a few hundred yuan a month, dancers in the Eastern Dance Troupe could earn several thousand yuan monthly.

Wu Yuchen entered the Eastern Dance Troupe directly—he’d been here before and wasn’t unfamiliar with the place.

As he approached the dressing rooms at the back, he saw a middle-aged man in a black trench coat sitting outside one door, holding a bouquet of flowers, with another man standing beside him—evidently a thug, like a henchman.

Wu Yuchen averted his gaze and pushed open a door, causing the middle-aged man to frown and study him carefully.

Inside, a beautiful, tall, curvaceous girl with luminously fair skin smiled warmly as she approached:

“Chenchen, you’re finally here!”

Wu Yuchen looked at his childhood friend—the later, fate-wracked actress Li Xiaoran—and felt a pang of nostalgia.

They weren’t from the same courtyard, but Wu Yuchen’s mother and Li Xiaoran’s mother were classmates and coworkers—both doctors at the same hospital, lifelong best friends—and so the two had known each other since childhood.

As a child, Li Xiaoran was wild, acting like a boy; Wu Yuchen always loved tagging along with her.

Because she was older and girls matured faster, Wu Yuchen couldn’t beat her; whenever they argued, she’d pin him down and twist his ear.

Later, when Li Xiaoran entered the Dance Academy, their meetings became less frequent, but they shared a new passion: video games. Every holiday, they’d spend hours glued to the Little Emperor red-and-white console.

Until one day, when Wu Yuchen went out with Li Xiaoran and several boys, learning he was her “little brother,” began fawning over him—this made him furious, and only then did he realize he was secretly in love with his “sister.”

But in his past life, he got into a university far away; after returning to Jingcheng for winter break in his freshman year, he heard Li Xiaoran had started dating someone, leaving him heartbroken for a long time, and he gradually drifted from her.

Later, when he called home, his mother told him Li Xiaoran had quit and gone solo, making her furious—she kept calling her a crazy girl—and after that, Wu Yuchen only saw her on television.

Thinking of all the messy relationships she’d had afterward, Wu Yuchen felt a deep sense of melancholy.

Seeing Li Xiaoran step forward, Wu Yuchen steadied his thoughts and asked:

“Sis Ran, aren’t there plenty of handsome guys in your troupe? Why’d you have to call me?”

As he spoke, he wondered whether Chen Kun was still there or had already resigned.

Li Xiaoran frowned and waved her hand:

“Don’t even mention it—he’s a regular here, knows every performer in the troupe. Talking to them is useless!”

Wu Yuchen understood now—no wonder she’d specifically called him.

“Do you know anything about the guy outside? How long has he been stalking you?”

“I heard he runs a bar. About a year ago—I can’t recall exactly when—he started sending me flower baskets after my performances. I went to thank him, didn’t think much of it.

A few months later, when our troupe toured elsewhere, I found he’d followed us—and still sent me flowers. Since then, he’s shown up at nearly every show. Last month, he confessed to me. But he’s nearly old enough to be my father, so I politely turned him down.

I never expected him to be so shameless—he’s been following me nonstop for the past month, even waiting outside the dressing room door now.”