Novel - Net Go

Chapter 5 of "The Exchange Student Chasing Dreams"

Sat, 16 May 2026 12:30:20 +0800

　　"So, our class's Halloween activity in a week will be at a horror-themed restaurant."
　　The teacher announced this, just as the bell rang. The students cheered. Matt even whistled and kicked Xia Meng's desk, while ordering one of his classmates to be quiet.
　　"How about we, the lucky underachievers, have a fair competition?"
　　"Huh?" Why are they picking on her? "
　　For Halloween, we'll each play a role. Whoever receives the fewest flowers or skulls has to stand during class, nap, and meals for the entire semester! Are you in?"
　　Xia Meng thought it best to learn from past mistakes and refuse, but the whole class had already started to jeer. A popular figure on a certain campus forum quickly posted a thread: "The ultimate showdown between the 'European Little Tyrant' and the 'Asian Little Sheep' has officially begun!"
　　Even the news department, passing by the classroom, barged in with cameras, snapping close-up photos of Xia Meng and Matt, and announcing: "On [date], please look forward to the exciting program presented by the news department: (Who will be crowned the Halloween Horror Star?)!"
　　Applause erupted, and surrounded by students betting on the outcome, only Xia Meng looked bewildered.
　　That evening, the three sisters dragged Lu Bin into a heated discussion about whether to cultivate Xia Meng's charm or her horror. According to the rules, to get the most roses, she had to go for the charm route; to get the most skulls, she had to go for the horror route. They had to win at least one to avoid losing.
　　The foreign girls' enthusiasm made it impossible for Lu Bin to remain a quiet, handsome young man; his opinions rained down on the most irrelevant "Lu the Passerby," completely ignoring the person in question.
　　However, Xia Meng was currently lost in thought. More than a week had passed since her birthday party, and Matt hadn't done anything to harm her. At most, he'd give her a mocking smile, but most of the time he treated her like she wasn't there.
　　Xia Meng, who usually cared a lot about what others thought, was surprisingly magnanimous, showing no resentment. The memory of being bullied when she first entered school had taught her that it was best for them to go their separate ways and not interact at all! Xia Meng
　　cherished every minute of this hard-won peaceful life, fully enjoying her time abroad.
　　Almost every day, as soon as she opened her eyes, walked down the spiral staircase, through the courtyard garden, and stepped through the eight-meter-high gilded gate, she would habitually greet the person with the surname "Thomson" engraved in English on the doorplate, get into the luxury car that would pick her up and drop her off at school on time, and enjoy all the privileges reserved for the wealthy.
　　Currently, everything seems too perfect, and there's something strange about it. She thought that even without making a mistake on the exam, her grades wouldn't be better than Shuqin's and the others. She still hadn't met Mr. Thomson and couldn't ask him the real reason she became an exchange student.
　　She couldn't believe she was sitting here, but she didn't want it to be just luck.
　　Therefore, initially, spurred on by Matt, she frantically tried to change his perception of her through hard work, desperately trying to find her strengths to prove that her selection was justified.
　　So, Matt's indifference over the past week was actually a little disappointing for her.
　　Lu Bin, overwhelmed by the three sisters' succession, asked, "Xiaomeng, what do you think?"
　　Yes, what did she really think? Xia Meng clearly realized that she still wanted to change Matt's opinion of her; she had to win this contest decisively.
　　"Success is the only option; failure is not an option!"
　　Suddenly, Xia Meng's pre-battle declaration echoed deafeningly throughout the entire building.
　　"Slay them all!"
　　On Halloween night, the Blue Maple Noble Academy was teeming with demons, awaiting an international version of the "Who Will Win the Horror Star" competition.
　　"Whoosh—"
　　Surrounded by "green tree spirits," the "Werewolf King" lay sprawled on the teacher's desk, his cloak billowing, chin raised at a 45-degree angle, letting out three high-pitched howls.
　　The classroom, now transformed into a spooky dining room, was shrouded in the eerie light of pumpkin candles. Students dressed in outlandish costumes, some waiting for food and others drawn by the spectacle, held roses in one hand and skulls in the other, eagerly anticipating the first contestant's appearance that evening. The
　　"Werewolf King," neck outstretched, displayed the wildness of a wolf, tail curled proudly, mouth agape to accompany a real wolf howl hidden in a player.
　　Some students were stunned by the piercing howl, clapping and cheering.
　　A dark gray fur collar, a black and red leather jacket, a wolf tail coiled around her waist, bronze skin, and exquisite features, with captivating eyes adorned with deep purple veils—this person, seemingly transported from an ancient kingdom, bore no resemblance to a naive, innocent Eastern girl.
　　"Gentlemen, I deeply miss you all." "Ahhhhhh!"
　　A burst of frenzied shouts erupted from the audience.
　　The "Werewolf King," Xia Meng, grabbed a handful of rose petals and tossed them down, supported by a masked "wolf cub" behind her, as she walked offstage.
　　Lu Bin, concealed behind the "wolf" mask, was utterly embarrassed and deeply ashamed. He couldn't believe it had actually caused a reaction. At this moment, he was quite glad he was wearing a mask, allowing him to shamelessly cooperate with Xia Meng's act.
　　Xia Meng was also giving her all to interpret and perform this role, determined not to let down the three sisters who had dressed up as "tree spirits" to accompany the village—this was their masterpiece after a whole night of hard work. From the moment Xia Meng decided to go for the alluring route, they had a plan. Unlike the deep and flamboyant features of Westerners, they dressed Xia Meng in an androgynous way, giving her a mysterious charm.
　　"Beautiful lady, may I have this rose?"
　　"Take it!"
　　A girl from another class who had come to watch the spectacle excitedly threw a rose at Xia Meng's face.
　　That incomparably handsome face was instantly pierced with two cuts.
　　The three sisters behind her were so angry that the branches on their heads trembled violently, their inner roars echoing: How dare they ruin their work!
　　"Werewolf King" Xia Meng waved her hand magnanimously, saying, "It's nothing, just a ripple on my future journey."
　　Her domineering lines and brilliant performance drew cheers from even the most rational and calm onlookers. Some girls had already offered her flowers, and the students who had bet on Xia Meng were now looking at her with newfound respect.
　　"Werewolf King" was secretly pleased, but as she reached out to take a flower, the girl suddenly withdrew it. Xia Meng noticed that the girl in front of her was staring intently at the direction behind her, her face filled with rapture.
　　Gasps and exclamations of surprise rose from the surrounding area. Xia Meng was bewildered, only knowing that even the "green tree spirits" around her seemed to have been bewitched and were ready to betray her at any moment.
　　Amidst a series of suppressed screams of excitement, Xia Meng felt a hand on her shoulder. She couldn't help but turn around—
　　oh my god, it was dazzling! The men inwardly exclaimed. "Move aside,"
　　a languid, seductive voice sounded behind her. Xia Meng felt as if she were hypnotized, unconsciously shifting her body.
　　The newcomer smiled coldly, then sat down on the medieval European bench carried over by "Bat's" subordinates. The man had deep red eyes, long blond hair, wore a magnificent, retro medieval robe, and a smirk revealing two sharp teeth.
　　Indeed, this was Matt playing the vampire. By fate, he and Xia Meng had become destined rivals.
　　Matt, the "vampire," tapped his fingers twice on the armrest, instantly radiating an aura of absolute dominance ten meters around him. He leaned back in his chair, his eyes gently closed. No one could enter his line of sight. His
　　"Bat" subordinates busied themselves, first bringing in an eight-meter-long square dining table, then setting out over a dozen dishes, all covered with domed lids. Once everything was ready, Matt opened his eyes, his narrow eyes slightly narrowed, a captivating smile playing on his lips.
　　"If you wish to dine with Earl Matt, simply present him with the flowers you hold," one of the "Bat" subordinates announced loudly.

Memories of my three years of junior high school

Sat, 16 May 2026 12:27:52 +0800

It's been over a month since I graduated from junior high. Thinking back to the military training in the first year of junior high, I missed it because I was physically weak, and now I really regret it. Junior high school flew by. When we first came to this school, as the teachers said, we were nothing special. We were the best version of ourselves back then, and our youth was beautiful. As time went by, we changed a lot. We became stronger and more hardworking. Not only did we make great progress in our studies, but we also made great progress in our character development. We became better and better. Before the high school entrance exam, our teacher had to stop teaching due to personal reasons. Our teacher, Mr. Ai, was over fifty years old and had high blood pressure, but he insisted on teaching us and eventually collapsed. The day before our exam, our teacher came running back breathlessly with his backpack, saying that he had sneaked out when the doctor wasn't looking. He told us the things to pay attention to during the exam and then happily said that he had finally seen off this graduating class. He said that after we left, he would set off firecrackers in the schoolyard and then dance in the square. Haha 😄, I have to say, it was quite funny.
Goodbye, my junior high school days.
Goodbye, the place where I shed my sweat.
Goodbye, my alma mater.

Memories of my three years of high school

Sat, 16 May 2026 12:26:48 +0800

　　Today is Wednesday, July 10, 2019.
　　It's been a month and a few days since I finished high school. Well, I have a lot of feelings. Every day I don't have to follow a rigid schedule, I don't have to get up early and stay up late, I don't have to study for exams, I don't have to work so hard. And our school's unique "Calories" textbook is all just a memory now. Lately, I keep thinking about some trivial things from high school: my political science homeroom teacher, the principles and methodologies, and even trying to memorize them; I remember Mr. Zhao, the math teacher who would joke around with classmates, especially his class representative; I remember my Chinese teacher, whose most striking feature was her hair; I remember my lovely English teacher, whom classmates said only knew how to use PowerPoint slides; I remember my humorous and witty history teacher; I remember my geography teacher who had just gotten married. All of these are memories of high school, the most beautiful ones. Thinking back to the military training in my first year, the march to Taoshan, I didn't make it to the end and had to take the bus back. To be honest, I could have persevered, but I chose to take the bus. If I had another chance, I would definitely have persevered to the end.
　　My first year of high school was the most enjoyable and relaxed, because I hadn't yet realized the harsh realities of high school. You could say I coasted through it. In my second year, the studies became more intense, and exams were frequent. Every exam score mattered because seating arrangements were based on grades, and nobody wanted to sit at the back. Since I chose humanities, memorization was essential, and thankfully, I was pretty fast at it. And so, slowly, I made it through my second year of high school.
　　My senior year was the most exhausting year of my life so far. They say without the college entrance exam, there's no youth. Indeed, the path to the college entrance exam was full of hardship. The exams themselves were getting closer and closer, not to mention the various school incentive activities, the praise wall downstairs, the honor roll outside the classroom, the Principal Dan Dan in the corridor every morning and evening self-study session, and the leaders checking classes during lessons. Every day when the inspectors passed by, the students would cough, saying, "The inspectors are here!" Haha, thinking about it now makes me want to laugh. I remember in the last few days, everyone was restless and impatient, all thinking about the post-exam celebrations.
　　The flag-raising ceremony on June 3rd was so solemn; it was the last flag-raising ceremony of the high school year. Each class shouted its own slogan, and the younger students from grades 10 and 11 cheered them on. The sad music "Don't Say Goodbye" was playing, but it really was time to say goodbye.
　　Entering the college entrance exam hall, I wasn't very nervous, just like any other exam. I had taken nine mock exams, and this was the tenth—a lucky number, a perfect ten, haha.
　　After the exam, it was indeed a celebration! We took graduation photos, had a farewell dinner, and played day and night for several days. Just like the teachers said, we had enough fun. Then, the exam results came out. They were about what I estimated, but still not ideal—probably only a third-tier university. To be honest, I really didn't want to retake it. I couldn't bear another year; it would be too much torture. So be it.
　　This is my three years of high school life. Looking back now, I feel warmth and emotion. Years later, when I look back again, the feeling will definitely be different. I was so lucky to meet those teachers and classmates during the most beautiful years of my life. I wish us all the best in the future, and I hope that at our class reunion many years from now, we can still talk about those old times, reminiscing and feeling moved together.
　　Let's leave our youth at Tieli No. 1 High School, in the most beautiful years of our lives!

In the end, there was no result.

Sat, 17 Jan 2026 12:57:49 +0800

　　A ringing phone yanked Xia Xi from her sweet dream. She reached for her phone; the screen displayed "Yao Ersha" (a nickname). I cursed inwardly, "I knew it was you! You ruined my dream!
　　" Xia Xi was about to say "Hello" when this silly girl abruptly interrupted her, followed by a barrage of voices:
　　"Xiao Xi Bao, aren't you up yet?"
　　"Mmm," I replied.
　　"Get up! Such an important day and you're sleeping in!" Lu Yao exclaimed.
　　"Okay, okay, I'll wash up and come down." I shook my head helplessly through the screen.
　　After saying that, I jumped out of bed and rushed to the bathroom. I quickly washed up, grabbed my bag, and headed downstairs. Before leaving, I told Xia's mother in the kitchen, "Mom, I'm not having breakfast, I'm leaving now."
　　As I closed the door, I heard Xia's mother mutter, "You little rascal, always in such a rush, never even eats breakfast..." Then I heard nothing more.
　　As soon as I stepped outside, I saw Yao Ersha across the street. Lu Yao waved to me, and I walked over at a leisurely pace. Before I could even speak, she pulled me towards the school. When we arrived, the school gate was already crowded with people, all there to see their exam results. Lu Yao pushed me to the front, and the first thing I looked at wasn't my own score, but Mu Yan's. Sure enough, it was first, and unsurprisingly, I was second. We
　　had made a promise to each other to take the entrance exam for E University together. To keep that promise, I had Mu Yan tutor me. I called it tutoring, but every time, I would just stare blankly at him. We'd been together for almost a year, doing all the things couples do every day.
　　"Xiao Xibao, look! I'm still in the same university as you!" Lu Yao was overjoyed.
　　"Yeah, Yao Ersha, not bad!" I was happy for her too.
　　"Xibao, why isn't your Mu Yan here yet? He's never late!"
　　"I don't know, I'll call and ask."
　　But the phone rang and no one answered until a woman's voice came through: "The number you dialed is temporarily unavailable." At that moment, I felt uneasy. Mu Yan never missed her calls; what was wrong today?
　　Lu Yao noticed something was wrong and asked, "Xibao, what's wrong? What happened?"
　　"His phone isn't answering," I replied
　　. "Try sending him a WeChat message; see if he replies," Lu Yao said hurriedly.
　　I hurriedly opened WeChat, opened his chat window, and a message popped up: "I'm leaving." I froze.
　　"I must be seeing things, I must be, Yao, you silly girl, look, am I seeing things?" I said. Lu Yao leaned her head closer to me, still muttering "I'm leaving." When I heard that, my phone slipped from my hand.
　　I took off running towards Mu Yan's house, ignoring Lu Yao's calls. My mind was filled with the thought, "Impossible, he can't be gone, impossible..."
　　A gloomy rain began to fall. I just kept running, feeling nothing, nothing stopping me. When I got to Mu Yan's house, I took out my key and opened the door. The house was empty, nothing was there, not even Mu Yan.
　　It's true, he's gone. I went out and walked in the rain, letting it soak me. He's gone,
　　really gone. He left three words and left without a word, leaving nothing behind. Our promise, just like that, is hidden away. I dare not think about it, afraid my heart will ache too much.
　　I spent four years of university alone. Four years have passed, and he never appeared. I never thought about him either. It just passed like that

　　. Meeting the right person at the right time doesn't necessarily mean meeting the right person. I haven't forgotten him, but I haven't mentioned him since.
　　A thousand miles of writing cannot compare to a few words from you; a gentle breeze and bright sunshine cannot compare to a fleeting glimpse of you.

Duck Leg Delight: You are my dish I can never get tired of.

Fri, 16 Jan 2026 12:56:41 +0800

　　1

　　Lin Zhixia's Life Motto -- I love three things: eating until I'm completely full, sleeping until I naturally wake up, and always having duck legs.

　　The first two are relatively easy to understand, but the reason for the last one needs to be traced back to elementary school.

　　When Lin Zhixia was in elementary school, a roast duck shop opened across from her house, and the aroma was irresistible. Lin Zhixia would drool every time she passed by the shop

　　. Her dream at that time was to be able to eat roast duck every day.

　　But this kind of life only lasted until junior high school, when the roast duck shop across from her house moved away. From then on, there was no more roast duck with its ten-mile-long aroma.

　　After that, in order to eat a roast duck, she had to ride her bicycle through seven or eight streets.

　　Her obsession with roast duck continued until high school.

　　When she was in high school, there was a Zhou Hei Ya shop across from the school. When she saw the word 'duck', she immediately became interested.

　　No matter if it was cold or hot, whether it was fragrant or spicy, she had to go and take a look.

　　Once she ate it, she was hooked. From then on, always having duck legs to eat became her lifelong pursuit.

　　In high school, everyone who was close to Lin Zhixia knew she was a foodie who could be bribed with a duck leg.

　　Actually, no one would try to bribe her with a duck leg or ask her for help, but Shen Yudong was an exception.

　　Shen Yudong and Lin Zhixia were childhood sweethearts; their names alone suggested their parents had a very good relationship, having been neighbors for over a decade.

　　However, good parental relationships don't guarantee good relationships between children. Although they were childhood sweethearts, they were constantly at odds. In front of others, they frequently teased each other about their shortcomings.

　　Once, Lin Zhixia, a freshman in high school, fell for the class monitor, who excelled academically. After pondering her feelings seven or eight times and experiencing countless moments of anxiety, she decided to confess.

　　But her confession turned into a complete blunder.

　　That afternoon, the sun was shining brightly. During PE class, Lin Zhixia held her love letter tightly in her hand, intending to hand it to the class monitor when he was alone.

　　For the first half of PE, Lin Zhixia was distracted, constantly staring at the class monitor. It wasn't until free time that Lin Zhixia finally found an opportunity to run to the class monitor and secretly call him aside.

　　Her actions went unnoticed by others, but they did attract Shen Yudong's attention.

　　Seeing Lin Zhixia furtively tugging at the class monitor's sleeve and gesturing to the side, Shen Yudong stopped playing ball, wanting to watch the spectacle. He secretly followed her.

　　Her blushing face, lowered head, and awkward, fidgeting posture made Shen Yudong instantly understand what Lin Zhixia was up to.

　　Just as Lin Zhixia was about to hand him the love letter, Shen Yudong ran up from behind.

　　Pointing at Lin Zhixia, he blurted out, giving her no chance to interrupt, "Lin Zhixia, no wonder I couldn't find you! Turns out you were here slacking off! You never exercise, you don't even move during PE class, all you do is eat duck legs, you'll turn into a duck sooner or later!" Lin Zhixia

　　's face instantly turned bright red, thinking: How embarrassing! She immediately wanted to retort, but before he could,

　　Shen Yudong acted as if he'd just seen the class monitor, pointing at him in surprise and saying, "Class monitor, why aren't you playing ball? The vice-monitor is waiting to cheer you on!"

　　The class monitor lowered his head in embarrassment, and Lin Zhixia stared at the back of Shen Yudong's head in astonishment.

　　So the class monitor and vice-monitor were a couple! Good heavens, thank goodness Shen Yudong stopped her, otherwise she would have been mortified.

　　After the class monitor left, Lin Zhixia remained sullen and head down.

　　This was her first time mustering the courage to confess, and it ended so tragically. From then on, even if Lin Zhixia met a boy she liked, she would keep it to herself.

　　This incident became Shen Yudong's gossip fodder, something he would bring up to mock her for no reason.

　　Lin Zhixia was speechless and could only silently wish him to stay single forever. Because of this

　　incident

　　and Shen Yudong's constant presence around her, she could only focus on her studies throughout high school, having no interest in romance.

　　And she also had to endure Shen Yudong's constant pressure, having to do his homework for an entire night for just one duck leg.

　　And Shen Yudong did this openly and honestly.

　　One day in the second semester of her junior year, a day that seemed ordinary yet extraordinary, was significant.

　　It had been three days since Lin Zhixia had last eaten a duck leg.

　　Because the duck leg was spicy and caused her to get a sore throat, her parents had cut back on her allowance, sternly telling her she could only eat it once a week.

　　Lin Zhixia stared at the food she had brought from the cafeteria, her appetite gone. Seeing her classmates enjoying their meals, she felt embarrassed to show her negative feelings.

　　She listlessly picked at her rice, when suddenly she smelled the spicy aroma of a duck leg.

　　Lin Zhixia thought she must be hallucinating from wanting to eat duck legs.

　　But Shen Yudong's voice told her it was real.

　　"Want some?" Shen Yudong asked.

　　Lin Zhixia nodded vigorously, staring longingly at the duck leg in front of her: "Yes."

　　"How much do you want it?" Shen Yudong waved the duck leg in front of her.

　　"I really want it." Lin Zhixia's head bobbed along with the duck leg.

　　"Okay, here you go. Don't forget to help me with my homework tonight." Shen Yudong put the duck leg in her bowl and patted her shoulder.

　　Lin Zhixia looked at the duck leg in front of her with a satisfied expression.

　　Her friend across from her said, "Zhixia, Shen Yudong is so handsome, so charmingly roguish."

　　Lin Zhixia chewed on the duck leg and said, "Handsome? He's definitely roguish, but I don't see how handsome he is."

　　Her friend said she didn't know how lucky she was; growing up with such a handsome person naturally made her not think he was handsome.

　　Lin Zhixia shrugged helplessly, thinking: These are all just the appearances of celebrities. The real Shen Yudong made her want to strangle him.

　　However, Shen Yudong's act of bribing Lin Zhixia with duck legs to do her homework only continued into the second semester of his junior year. By his senior year, he stopped his reckless behavior and genuinely needed to focus on his studies.

　　The

　　charmingly roguish Shen Yudong attracted girls, and his combination of roguish charm and diligent study made him even more appealing.

　　Even at this crucial senior year, many girls were still captivated by Shen Yudong's charming yet earnest appearance.

　　The bolder ones directly presented him with love letters, unafraid of rejection.

　　The majority, however, remained timid. So, after Shen Yudong stopped using duck legs to bribe Lin Zhixia, girls who liked him flocked to him, offering duck legs to bribe her into delivering love letters.

　　Lin Zhixia felt it was unfair that Shen Yudong was so popular with girls; why didn't she have such good luck with the opposite sex?

　　But considering the girls had bribed her with duck legs, she still helped deliver it; after all, it was just a errand.

　　Lin Zhixia, holding the love letter, ran to Shen Yudong with a grin and said, "Shen Yudong, this is the third love letter this week, not bad!"

　　Looking at her grinning face, Shen Yudong instead began to lecture her seriously: "Lin Zhixia, do you know you're in your final year of high school? Instead of studying properly, you're always messing around with this nonsense."

　　Lin Zhixia instantly flared up, slamming the love letter on the table and angrily saying, "Shen Yudong, it's not like I wrote it for you! Why am I getting angry?"

　　Shen Yudong also stood up from his chair, attracting curious glances from many classmates.

　　He dragged Lin Zhixia out of the classroom to a quiet corner.

　　"Lin Zhixia, a duck leg bribed you? You're all eager to deliver love letters like that?" Shen Yudong was somewhat angry.

　　Lin Zhixia found his anger inexplicable: "So what? You still asked me to do your homework all night for just one duck leg? They're fine, they only need to run an errand once."

　　Shen Yudong felt like all his anger was hitting cotton; Lin Zhixia hadn't grasped the point at all.

　　He said helplessly, "Lin Zhixia, I'll spic you to death sooner or later!"

　　"Tch!" Lin Zhixia pouted.

　　Shen Yudong said, "If any girls ask you to deliver love letters in the future, come to me, I'll give you two duck legs. I can't do this favor again."

　　Lin Zhixia's eyes widened instantly: "Two?"

　　"Yes." Shen Yudong nodded.

　　"Deal." Lin Zhixia's mood instantly improved.

　　But through this incident, Lin Zhixia also understood that Shen Yudong wouldn't be dating in his senior year of high school, so she secretly manipulated things, not only getting duck legs from the girls but also from Shen Yudong.

　　What she did was accept the love letters and duck legs from the girls, and then go to Shen Yudong to ask for two duck legs.

　　Two days later, when the girl approached her again, she told her that Shen Yudong hadn't agreed.

　　And just like that, she didn't worry about getting duck legs for the entire first semester of her senior year.

　　Time

　　flew by, and it was now the second semester of senior year. Shen Yudong studied even harder than in the first semester.

　　Lin Zhixia had initially thought Shen Yudong was just pretending to be a good student, but now she realized he was serious.

　　And at this crucial juncture, even if some girls still had ulterior motives, they no longer made any bold moves. Life returned to its usual routine, seemingly filled with studying every day.

　　That evening after school, the teacher kept them late. By the time she and Shen Yudong pushed their bicycles out of the school gate, the stars were already twinkling.

　　Lin Zhixia was feeling down because she hadn't had duck legs for a week.

　　She pedaled slowly, sighing.

　　Shen Yudong said, "It's okay. If you didn't do well on the math test this time, there's always next time. Anyway, it's not the first mock exam yet, there's still time."

　　Lin Zhixia pouted and glared at him, "I'm not upset about my math score."

　　Shen Yudong stopped the car and started rummaging through his bag.

　　Lin Zhixia didn't know what he was doing, so she stopped the car and waited for him.

　　Shen Yudong rummaged around in his bag for a while, pulled something out, took two steps towards her, and handed it to her, saying, "You must want to eat this."

　　Lin Zhixia immediately knew what he was holding, her gloom vanished, and she happily snatched it away, saying, "Shen Yudong, you really understand me."

　　Shen Yudong rolled his eyes at her, annoyed, "You'd go crazy if you didn't eat it for three days, but you managed to endure a week this time. That's rare, you've improved."

　　Lin Zhixia took it and was about to open it and take a bite when Shen Yudong quickly stopped her, saying, "Eat it when you get home."

　　"Okay," Lin Zhixia agreed, but still took a bite when he wasn't looking before putting the duck leg back in her bag, and asked with a grin, "Shen Yudong, when did you buy this?" "

　　I sneaked out for a little while at noon today," Shen Yudong replied.

　　Lin Zhixia was immersed in the joy of having a duck leg to eat, thinking that she would have to eat it secretly when she got home. If they knew she was eating a duck leg, they would definitely scold her again.

　　Completely oblivious to the fact that Shen Yudong's face had darkened and become extremely serious,

　　Lin Zhixia turned to look at him after he hadn't spoken for a while, only then noticing his sour expression.

　　Lin Zhixia asked, bewildered, "What's wrong? Why did you suddenly look so grumpy?"

　　Shen Yudong said earnestly, "Lin Zhixia, you're not a child anymore. You should know that if you want a good future, you have to work hard."

　　Lin Zhixia was a little confused by his words: "Huh?"

　　"I mean, you need to focus on studying hard, get into a good university, and after you get in, I'll buy you as many duck legs as you want." Shen Yudong said.

　　"Really? You'll buy me as many as I want?" Lin Zhixia asked, automatically ignoring the first part of his sentence, only focusing on the duck legs.

　　"Yes." Shen Yudong nodded: "But the prerequisite is that you have to get into the same university as me."

　　Although Lin Zhixia loved duck legs to the point of obsession. But she still didn't fall for Shen Yudong's trick. Thinking she'd seen through his scheme, she said, "You're clearly using the duck leg to lure me into going to the same university as you, so you can continue to exploit me, aren't you?"

　　Shen Yudong was speechless. "You think too darkly of me."

　　"You've always been like this, haven't you? Who offered me a duck leg and made me do all their homework for them? Wasn't it you?" Lin Zhixia asked.

　　"I'm trying to motivate you. Writing an assignment twice helps you remember it better. You're so slow; you need to write it several times to remember it clearly," Shen Yudong said.

　　"Go to hell, you're the stupid one." Lin Zhixia turned the handlebars, deliberately giving him a nudge. "And that's not the most important thing. The most important thing is that you always ruin my love life. You've made it so I can't even have a boyfriend. If I go to the same university as you, my whole life will be..."

　　"That's your crush, okay?" Shen Yudong said. "Besides, he already has a girlfriend. It would be so awkward for you to confess. I was trying to save you."

　　Lin Zhixia wasn't as eloquent as him, and what he said was true, so she was speechless.

　　In the end, she could only say resentfully, "Anyway, I'm not going to go to the same university as you. Don't even think about it ."

　　Shen Yudong wasn't in a hurry. He knew Lin Zhixia's personality. She was easily swayed by gentle persuasion but not by force, and she couldn't stand being goaded.

　　"Sigh, okay then. I already set my goals quite high. You can't get in anyway, so it's better to give up sooner rather than later," Shen Yudong said.

　　Lin Zhixia was displeased upon hearing this: "Are you looking down on me?"

　　"No, I'm just afraid you'll throw a tantrum if you don't get in," Shen Yudong said.

　　"Which university do you want to apply to?" Lin Zhixia asked.

　　"University A," Shen Yudong replied.

　　Even someone as stubborn as Lin Zhixia didn't dare to speak.

　　"University A! That's a good school. With her current grades, she needs to improve by at least 150 points to be guaranteed admission."

　　Seeing that she didn't speak, Shen Yudong couldn't help but provoke her again: "Hey, don't even think about it, you won't get in."

　　"Shen Yudong, you just wait!" Lin Zhixia angrily spurred her bike and sped off.

　　Shen Yudong lagged behind, a triumphant smile on his face.

　　5

　　From that night on, Lin Zhixia studied like a madwoman. During breaks, she wouldn't even go to the bathroom with her friends.

　　In the mock exam, Lin Zhixia scored 555 points, an improvement of 85 points from the previous exam. Shen Yudong scored 667 points, a score that would practically guarantee him admission to University A.

　　Because of Lin Zhixia's huge improvement, she jumped several places in the class and made it onto the honor roll.

　　Lin Zhixia wasn't happy at all. She couldn't understand why Shen Yudong, who did none of his homework, still got higher grades than her. It was unfair!

　　That evening, when she got home from school after the mock exam results, Shen Yudong miraculously produced two duck legs from his bag.

　　Lin Zhixia was happy and surprised to receive the duck legs, but she was still annoyed.

　　"You improved your score by over 80 points, and you get duck legs, two of them! You're still not happy?" Shen Yudong asked. Lin

　　Zhixia glanced at him unhappily and tapped his head. "You say we have the same brain? Why can you get such a high score without doing homework, while I work so hard and my grades aren't good enough?"

　　Shen Yudong wanted to laugh, but he held back to protect her pride. "That's the difference between a genius and an ordinary person."

　　"Get lost!" Lin Zhixia was even more unhappy. Shen Yudong had been smart since he was little; not only her parents said so, but all her relatives and neighbors said so too.

　　"Honestly, you've already done very well. There's still some time left, I'll help you," Shen Yudong said.

　　"Who needs your help? I'm smart too," Lin Zhixia retorted stubbornly, but for a while afterward, Shen Yudong tutored her.

　　Then came the second mock exam, and Lin Zhixia only improved by a little over 50 points.

　　Although this score was barely enough to push her way up, it was too risky, and she was still far behind Shen Yudong. She was unwilling to accept Shen Yudong's better grades; she was determined to score higher than him.

　　So, she worked even harder in the following days, with a tight schedule and heavy workload.

　　Shen Yudong carefully analyzed her scores for her. The two decided on a study strategy, planning to intensively study English and work hard on physics in the time leading up to the college entrance exam. Since these were the only two subjects, there was more room for improvement.

　　Lin Zhixia and Shen Yudong both chose science subjects. Shen Yudong excelled in math, physics, and chemistry, while Lin Zhixia's best subject was chemistry, and her worst was physics.

　　Finally, in the third mock exam, Lin Zhixia scored over 650 points.

　　She breathed a sigh of relief, and so did Shen Yudong.

　　But then the teacher said the first mock exam was the hardest, the second the next easiest, and the third the simplest, all to build everyone's confidence.

　　This statement plunged Lin Zhixia's confidence back into despair; she feared her only good score was just luck and an easy test.

　　A few days before the college entrance exam, the school gave them a break, ostensibly to relax and have some freedom, to reduce pressure.

　　However

　　, during the break, Lin Zhixia didn't feel relaxed at all; instead, the pressure increased.

　　Shen Yudong couldn't bear to see her like this anymore. On the second night before the college entrance exam countdown, he pulled Lin Zhixia out of her pile of review materials and took her for a walk on a narrow path.

　　"Don't put so much pressure on yourself," Shen Yudong said. "Be careful you don't scare yourself to death before the exam even starts."

　　Lin Zhixia nodded, "I thought you were going to treat me to duck legs."

　　"The college entrance exam is in two days, you can't eat anything during this time," Shen Yudong said. "After the exam, I'll let you eat your fill."

　　Lin Zhixia awkwardly pouted, trying to step on her own shadow, but she wasn't in a good mood. She was just using this method to distract herself and cheer herself up.

　　"Shen Yudong, I might not get into A University," Lin Zhixia said sullenly, head down.

　　"Then I'll change my goal and try to get you in," Shen Yudong said.

　　"But didn't you always want to get into A University since your second year of high school?" Lin Zhixia asked.

　　"What difference does it make which university I go to? If I don't go to the same university as you, won't you be completely fooled by all those boys?" Shen Yudong said.

　　"Although my grades aren't as good as yours, I'm smart enough, they can't fool me," Lin Zhixia said.

　　"You're so naive. The scariest people in university are the upperclassmen," Shen Yudong said.

　　"The scariest one is clearly you!" Lin Zhixia said.

　　The two walked along the path for a while longer, and Lin Zhixia's mood finally calmed down a bit.

　　"Lin Zhixia, relax, I'm here with you," Shen Yudong said before they parted ways.

　　"Mmm," Lin Zhixia nodded.

　　That night, Lin Zhixia slept well, a rare occurrence. Although she wouldn't admit it, she really wanted to go to the same university as Shen Yudong. They were childhood sweethearts, and despite their frequent bickering and teasing, they were the closest people in the world to each other besides their parents and relatives.

　　Having a familiar person by her side in a completely new city and a new university would be a wonderful thing.

　　After their conversation that night, Lin Zhixia felt inexplicably at peace and less anxious.

　　On the day of the college entrance exam, she still got up early and reviewed some classical Chinese texts required for the Chinese exam before going to the exam hall with Shen Yudong.

　　The tense and exciting two days of the college entrance exam passed quickly. During the days when everyone made way for the exam takers, she felt for the first time that being a student was actually quite a blessing.

　　7.

　　After the college entrance exam, Shen Yudong kept his promise to Lin Zhixia. He bought over a dozen duck legs, a bunch of duck necks, duck neck bones, side dishes, and beer.

　　The two of them sat on the rooftop, looking up at the stars and toasting each other with their beers.

　　Lin Zhixia loved the gentle, warm breeze, and she quietly closed her eyes.

　　While she wasn't looking, Shen Yudong took out his phone and snapped a picture of her. Lin Zhixia was completely unaware that Shen Yudong had captured that moment.

　　Shen Yudong put his phone in his pocket, holding up a beer bottle, and asked, "Lin Zhixia, we're about to be college students. What's the first thing you want to do after you get to university?"

　　Lin Zhixia answered almost without thinking, "One of them is to see if there's a Zhou Hei Ya (a popular braised duck brand) shop."

　　Shen Yudong thought to himself: I should have expected this.

　　"Besides that, what else?" Shen Yudong asked.

　　"You go first, you haven't said what you want to do first yet!" Lin Zhixia asked.

　　Shen Yudong looked at the stars in the sky and smiled, then turned to Lin Zhixia and said, "Get a girlfriend."

　　Lin Zhixia gave him a mischievous look: "Oh~ I thought you were going to be more reserved. So many girls in high school gave you love letters, and you didn't even consider them?"

　　"I don't like their type," Shen Yudong said.

　　"The girls who wrote you love letters were all kinds of people. So many, they probably cover all types. You didn't like any of them? Do you like..." Lin Zhixia's mind flashed through those BL (Boys' Love) online novels, and her eyes immediately lit up.

　　"What are you thinking about?" Shen Yudong smacked her on the head: "I've never seen you this smart when doing homework."

　　Lin Zhixia muttered unhappily: "It's because you rejected all the female suitors."

　　The two chatted on the rooftop for a long time, until all the duck meat and beer were finished. Then, slightly drunk, they went down from the rooftop and went home.

　　8

　　Some time later, the college entrance examination results finally came out. Shen Yudong performed as expected, scoring 664 points. Lin Zhixia, while not as high as her mock exam score, still performed well, scoring 642 points.

　　Neither of them were among the top students in their school; the top scorer in their city was only a dozen points away from a perfect score.

　　However, their scores were more than enough to get them into A University.

　　When Lin Zhixia first checked her scores, she thought she was seeing things, even suspecting the grader had made a mistake. It wasn't

　　until the day she filled out her college application that she came to her senses and accepted the fact that she had scored so high. The

　　holiday passed quickly.

　　In the days leading up to her departure for university, her family frantically packed her luggage, stuffing as many local specialties as possible into her suitcase.

　　Lin Zhixia kept complaining that she couldn't carry so much luggage, and Shen Yudong wasn't much better off. Just as her mother was about to stuff Lao Gan Ma (a popular chili sauce) into his suitcase, Shen Yudong finally couldn't help but say, "Mom, you can buy this anywhere."

　　Based on the principle that the two of them could take care of each other, and because Shen Yudong and Lin Zhixia had joined a freshman group chat where everyone was encouraging college students to register on their

　　own, they both convinced their parents not to send them to school.

　　On the train, Lin Zhixia admired her own independence.

　　But as the train traveled further away, she suddenly felt sad. This sadness reached its peak when they got off the train and saw all the other students accompanied by their parents, while they were the only two relying on each other.

　　Lin Zhixia, looking aggrieved, followed behind Shen Yudong, carrying her suitcase: "I really can't trust those upperclassmen in the freshman group chat."

　　"I told you, upperclassmen are dangerous creatures, stay away from them," Shen Yudong said.

　　"Upperclasswomen are dangerous creatures too, you should stay away from them too," Lin Zhixia advised.

　　Because it was the first day of freshman registration, the dormitories didn't prohibit members of the opposite sex from entering.

　　Seeing that Lin Zhixia was listless the whole time, Shen Yudong helped her carry her luggage upstairs and even helped her unpack.

　　There were six beds in the dormitory, but only two girls had arrived when Lin Zhixia came.

　　The two girls, seeing Shen Yudong's gentle and gentlemanly help with Lin Zhixia, immediately felt a surge of affection for him and were eager to strike up a conversation.

　　Lin Zhixia was all too familiar with these looks; she had spent the entire first semester of her senior year under such gazes.

　　So, before Shen Yudong had even finished unpacking her luggage, she hurriedly pushed him out.

　　She had originally wanted to go to Shen Yudong's dormitory to help him unpack, but Shen Yudong decisively refused. She thought to herself: What if my roommates have a crush on me?

　　After Shen Yudong left, Lin Zhixia began unpacking on her own. The two girls stared intently at her, their eyes full of gossip.

　　Adhering to the principle of maintaining good relationships with her roommates, Lin Zhixia answered their questions without reservation.

　　In short, no matter how she explained, the two girls unanimously believed that Shen Yudong was Lin Zhixia's boyfriend.

　　Lin Zhixia said they were just childhood sweethearts, pure childhood sweethearts, even playfully bickering. The two girls, their eyes sparkling, said, "You two are in a love-hate relationship."

　　Lin Zhixia said they grew up together and had no ulterior motives towards each other, and that Shen Yudong's first wish in college was to have a girlfriend. The two girls said that was a blatant hint.

　　Lin Zhixia felt she couldn't communicate with them at all, knowing that silence was her silent objection, but they interpreted it as tacit agreement.

　　After Lin Zhixia finished packing, Shen Yudong called, saying he wanted to treat her to duck legs.

　　Under the ambiguous gazes of the two girls, she left the dormitory.

　　When Lin Zhixia arrived, Shen Yudong had already bought the duck legs. She excitedly took them and asked, "Did you find a place to buy them?"

　　Shen Yudong pointed, and Lin Zhixia looked in the direction he pointed; it turned out there was a place selling them across from the university gate. After

　　a

　　few chaotic and neglected days, military training finally arrived.

　　They imagined it to be incredibly tough and unbearable, but when it actually began, it was just as they expected.

　　Lin Zhixia and Shen Yudong didn't choose the same major. Lin Zhixia had always admired the lawyers on TV who could eloquently defend their clients in court, so she chose law without hesitation. Shen Yudong, because his grandparents had both died from illness, chose medicine.

　　Therefore, although they were in the same university, they rarely saw each other except for their lunch and evening breaks.

　　Military training was also the busiest time for freshmen, as they had to deal with various club and organization applications and interviews in addition to training.

　　Lin Zhixia, being a first-time university student, didn't understand these organizations and applied for whatever her roommates applied for. After the initial applications and interviews, she stayed in the organization department of the university student union and the arts department of the department student union.

　　After that, she felt incredibly busy. It seemed like there were always meetings to be held, but once everyone arrived, besides taking attendance and saying some trivial things, nothing really happened.

　　She spent a whole month like this, not even knowing what she was busy with, before finally getting through the period.

　　When she finally relaxed, she realized she hadn't eaten duck legs for a month.

　　Normally, it was fine if she didn't think about it, but now the thought made her feel uncomfortable, her whole body screaming for duck legs.

　　But Lin Zhixia glanced at the sky outside and thought: It's too dangerous, I'll get up early tomorrow to buy some.

　　As Lin Zhixia munched on a duck leg, watching Shen Yudong and another exceptionally beautiful girl walk towards her, she realized they hadn't seen each other for a month.

　　A month, a whole month—they had never been separated for so long since they were born.

　　Lin Zhixia then realized that her eyes had been filled with hostility when she looked at the girl next to him.

　　Shen Yudong looked surprised when he saw Lin Zhixia, who glared at him disapprovingly.

　　Shen Yudong, seemingly oblivious to Lin Zhixia's displeasure, warmly invited her to have lunch with them.

　　Lin Zhixia thought to herself, particularly annoyed: "They really are heartless when it comes to the opposite sex."

　　She glared at Shen Yudong again, then turned and left. She didn't want to eat with them; she didn't want to be a third wheel.

　　After Lin Zhixia left, Shen Yudong finally couldn't help but laugh out loud, and the girl next to him also burst into laughter.

　　"Shen Yudong, she definitely likes you too," the girl said.

　　"I wasn't sure before, but thanks to you today, I'm certain now," Shen Yudong said.

　　This girl was his roommate's girlfriend, and the fact that they were both in front of Lin Zhixia was quite a story.

　　Boys always get to know each other quickly when they get together. After drinking, playing cards, and playing games, they became good friends.

　　So, when they first got completely drunk in their dorm, Shen Yudong poured out all his feelings that he had kept hidden for over a decade.

　　But no one expected that when he sobered up the next day, he remembered nothing, while his roommates remembered everything.

　　So, his good roommate, Xiao Zhang, told his girlfriend about it, and that's how this scene unfolded.

　　Shen

　　Yudong also joined the student union, but not in the same department as Lin Zhixia. Besides the student union, he also signed up for two clubs, the guitar club and the skateboarding club, so he was quite busy.

　　Lin Zhixia felt depressed, but couldn't explain why. Was it because Shen Yudong had a girlfriend? Or because he had a girlfriend but hadn't told her immediately, and didn't consider her a good friend? Even

　　when she was feeling down, the student union suddenly assigned her a task, requiring an impromptu meeting.

　　Lin Zhixia quickly ate a few bites of food and rushed to the meeting, and Shen Yudong, who was also in the student union, naturally received the news.

　　When Lin Zhixia arrived, she deliberately sat far away from Shen Yudong, clearly showing her displeasure.

　　However, the meeting was as lukewarm as ever, consisting of a bunch of pointless words before it adjourned. Even after the meeting ended, Lin Zhixia still didn't understand the point of the meeting. Couldn't they have explained things clearly in the group chat?

　　Although she was angry with Shen Yudong, she didn't want to break off their friendship. So, after the meeting, she deliberately stayed in the classroom.

　　Shen Yudong, as if sensing her intention, sat there, and only moved next to Lin Zhixia after everyone else had left.

　　Lin Zhixia awkwardly asked, "Looks like you've already completed the first thing you had to do in college."

　　"Huh? How come I didn't know I'd already completed it?" Shen Yudong feigned ignorance.

　　"Don't play dumb. The girl you walked with at noon today was quite pretty, and had a good figure too," Lin Zhixia said.

　　"You mean her? She is indeed beautiful and has a good figure," Shen Yudong deliberately echoed her sentiment.

　　Lin Zhixia raised her voice a few decibels and said, "Shen Yudong, you're so unfair! You have a girlfriend and you didn't even tell me. Aren't we still best friends who grew up together?"

　　Shen Yudong then looked like he suddenly realized something. "You thought she was my girlfriend?"

　　"Isn't she?" Lin Zhixia asked.

　　"Of course not, she's my roommate's girlfriend. Today, my roommate and I were out shopping when we ran into her on the way. My roommate was still inside the supermarket, so we chatted outside for a while," Shen Yudong said.

　　"Really?" Lin Zhixia asked skeptically.

　　"Of course it's true. If I had a girlfriend, I would have told you first, and you would be the first to know," Shen Yudong said.

　　Lin Zhixia nodded in satisfaction, "But because of this, I didn't finish my duck leg for lunch today, you have to make me one."

　　Shen Yudong gently patted her outstretched hand, "Okay, I'll make you two. It's just that you seem a little unhappy knowing I have a girlfriend."

　　Lin Zhixia then realized her reaction wasn't like that of a good friend. She was a little alarmed and couldn't help but wonder: Could it be that she likes Shen Yudong? 　　But

　　she suddenly wasn't sure, so she changed the subject and brushed it off. 　　After this incident, the two returned to normal, their relationship didn't progress further, and remained the same as before. 　　Shen Yudong's roommates started to worry about him, while Lin Zhixia's roommates began to offer her advice. 　　Lin Zhixia was a novice in relationships, so she recounted her feelings when she mistakenly thought Shen Yudong had a girlfriend. 　　Her dorm friends all went wild, shouting that she definitely liked him, that this was a golden opportunity, and that she should seize it. 　　Bombarded by her roommates' barrage of questions, Lin Zhixia instantly felt tense, as if Shen Yudong would be snatched away by someone else at any moment. She asked nervously and eagerly, "So what should I do?" 　　"Confess!" said the girl with the ponytail. "I could tell from your interaction on the first day of school that he definitely likes you. You must seize the opportunity to confess." 　　"No, even if a girl likes someone a lot, she should still be reserved. Hint at him, let him confess to you," said the girl with long, center-parted hair. 　　"Either you confess, or he confesses to you," said the girl with short hair. 　　The others nodded in agreement. 　　"And this kind of thing needs to be done with a sense of ceremony. You must first put on light makeup, then choose a pretty little dress, and finally pair it with a pair of moderately high heels," the girl with long, center-parted hair said experiencedly. "You're too plain right now; you need to tidy yourself up." 　　Lin Zhixia was stunned by their advice, finding everything they said very reasonable. 　　"Hey... I just checked the almanac, this Sunday is auspicious for weddings. Message him and ask him out on Sunday," said the girl with the ponytail. 　　"Oh, okay," Lin Zhixia nodded blankly. 　　She ran to the balcony and called Shen Yudong. Meanwhile, Shen Yudong's dorm was buzzing with excitement; all his good friends were urging him to confess his feelings, even calculating that a confession this Sunday would definitely be successful. 　　Seeing it was Lin Zhixia calling, Shen Yudong rushed to the balcony, his excitement still bummed from his roommates' teasing. 　　"Shen Yudong, come out for dinner with me this Sunday," Lin Zhixia said. 　　"How did you know I wanted to invite you to dinner this Sunday?" Shen Yudong finally realized what he was saying. 　　"You're inviting me to dinner?" Lin Zhixia asked. 　　Through the glass balcony door, Lin Zhixia's roommates, openly eavesdropping, looked excited. 　　"Ah, yes, yes, I have something else to tell you," Shen Yudong said. 　　"What a coincidence?" Lin Zhixia said subconsciously. 　　"What do you mean, what a coincidence?" Shen Yudong asked. 　　"Nothing, nothing, we'll talk about it when we meet on Sunday," Lin Zhixia said.

　　Lin Zhixia hung up the phone and returned to her dorm. Her roommates were even more excited than she was, and Lin Zhixia had a bit of insomnia that night.

　　Sunday

　　arrived quickly, and Lin Zhixia hadn't worn a pretty dress, high heels, or even used any makeup.

　　Her roommate, a girl with long, center-parted hair, generously picked out a nice dress for her from her wardrobe, paired it with high heels, and did her delicate makeup.

　　Lin Zhixia looked at herself in the mirror from left to right, feeling awkward and uncomfortable even walking.

　　But her roommates all complimented her on how beautiful she looked, so she inexplicably felt confident and left the dorm in that outfit.

　　They were both still students and didn't go to a fancy restaurant, just a small eatery across from the school.

　　When Lin Zhixia arrived at the agreed-upon place and pushed open the door, Shen Yudong's eyes widened.

　　Lin Zhixia smiled shyly, "Do I look good today? They all say I look good like this."

　　Shen Yudong suddenly chuckled, "This kind of outfit doesn't suit you."

　　Lin Zhixia's smile instantly vanished.

　　"You do look good, but you look even better normally," Shen Yudong added immediately, despite being a science major, he had the romanticism of an arts major.

　　Lin Zhixia was still a little sullen, but she felt much better than before.

　　The two of them were actually eating when Lin Zhixia asked halfway through, "Didn't you say you had something to tell me?"

　　Shen Yudong had been a little nervous from the beginning, and this made him even more nervous.

　　“Actually…actually, what I wanted to say was…” Shen Yudong took two duck legs from the chair next to him and arranged them in a heart shape: “Lin Zhixia, I like you. We grew up together, and I’ve always liked you. I wasn’t sure before, I always thought it was the kind of liking you have for a younger sister. But then in our senior year of high school, you delivered a love letter to me for another girl, and I felt really bad. From that moment on, I knew that my feelings for you were romantic, and I’ve never thought of you as a younger sister.”

　　Before Lin Zhixia could speak, Shen Yudong continued, “I was quite hesitant before confessing to you. I was afraid that if you rejected me, we wouldn’t even be able to be friends anymore. But seeing how angry you were last time, I knew you were jealous, so I was sure you probably liked me too, and that’s why I dared to confess.”

　　Lin Zhixia was about to speak when Shen Yudong interrupted her again: “Lin Zhixia, what I said on the rooftop back then was actually for you. I just wanted to confess to you when I got to college and ask you to be my girlfriend.”

　　Lin Zhixia seized the opportunity and immediately interrupted him: “Can you let me say something?”

　　Shen Yudong then stopped talking.

　　"I like you too," Lin Zhixia mumbled.

　　"What did you say?" Shen Yudong asked.

　　Lin Zhixia snatched the duck leg from his hand, raising her voice a few decibels: "I like you too."

　　Everyone in the restaurant stared at them. Lin Zhixia lowered her head shyly, feeling quite annoyed. Why did she have to speak so loudly?

　　Shen Yudong, however, didn't care at all, beaming with joy.

　　And just like that, they got together.

　　Lin Zhixia and Shen Yudong's roommates all exclaimed, "Congratulations to all!"

　　Although

　　they were dating, their way of getting along was still pretty much the same as before. Besides doing the things couples do now, they still talked and joked around as usual. They seemed even sweeter and more compatible than other couples.

　　One night, around 11 PM, Lin Zhixia saw a mukbang video and couldn't help but drool. She really wanted to eat duck legs.

　　Since everyone in the dorm was still up and scrolling through their phones, she called Shen Yudong and exaggerated her craving for duck legs a hundredfold.

　　Just as she was endlessly reciting how tender and fragrant the duck leg was,

　　Shen Yudong suddenly said on the other end of the line, "Lin Zhixia, get out of the dorm in ten minutes, or I'll destroy the duck leg."

　　Hearing this, Lin Zhixia jumped up from her bed and exclaimed to her dorm mates, "Shen Yudong actually brought me duck legs!"

　　"Wow..." The dorm erupted in commotion.

　　Lin Zhixia quickly put on her shoes and coat and ran downstairs. After much pleading with the dorm supervisor, she finally emerged from the building.

　　Shen Yudong was standing under a tree, carrying a bag, his phone screen still lit up, showing their call.

　　"Lin Zhixia, you really get itchy if you don't eat for a day," Shen Yudong said.

　　Lin Zhixia threw herself into his arms, "Shen Yudong, how could you be so silly, running out to buy this so late at night?"

　　"What could I do? My little idiot wanted to eat it," Shen Yudong said.

　　Lin Zhixia gratefully accepted the duck leg from him: "Shen Yudong, you're my duck leg."

　　"You mean, I'm just something to be eaten and then thrown away?" Shen Yudong asked.

　　"How could that be? Of course not!" Lin Zhixia said, "You're someone I can never get enough of."

　　The two of them were still being affectionate when the dorm supervisor couldn't stand it anymore: "Hey, weren't you affectionate enough during the day? And now you're still being affectionate at night? Go back to sleep, I'm sleepy."

　　Lin Zhixia playfully punched him: "Shen Yudong, I'll take you to meet my parents this holiday."

　　"Don't I meet my parents every day?" Shen Yudong said.

　　"Oh, it's different," Lin Zhixia said.

　　"Okay, I understand, you should go back now." Shen Yudong watched Lin Zhixia enter the dorm before leaving.

　　14

　　But in the blink of an eye, their university life was about to end.

　　Shen Yudong and Lin Zhixia both decided to take the postgraduate entrance exam, and Shen Yudong set a goal that Lin Zhixia would find difficult to achieve.

　　Lin Zhixia put in even more effort than she had during the college entrance exam, working tirelessly and crying countless times, finally gaining admission to the same university for graduate studies as Shen Yudong.

　　During their graduate studies, they registered their marriage and held their wedding. The wedding was an outdoor ceremony on a lawn, exceptionally romantic.

　　And at Lin Zhixia and Shen Yudong's special request, an extra dish was added to every table: duck legs.

　　Lin Zhixia explained: duck legs and Shen Yudong had been involved in some of the most important moments of her life, whether it was the college entrance exam, her confession, or her graduate studies; they were always there, so naturally, duck legs should be involved in such a significant event as her wedding. Shen Yudong

　　was quite helpless, but remembering Lin Zhixia's words, "You're like my duck leg that I never tire of eating," he relented.

　　And so, duck legs and Shen Yudong became a part of Lin Zhixia's life.

　　You are my duck leg, the kind I never tire of eating.

　　...

　　Wen Wan Qingtian has something to say .
　　This article is from Daily Story Reading, not original. If you like it, please give it a thumbs up.

　　(The End)

Chapter Five: The Princess's Dream

Thu, 15 Jan 2026 12:55:19 +0800

　　In the still of the night, the dim streetlights cast a warm glow.
　　In Macaron's room.
　　"Aren't you going to sleep yet, Xiaoli?"
　　"I haven't finished my diary." Xiaoli loved writing in her diary.
　　"You go to sleep first." Her teammates went to sleep first.
　　She picked up her pen and wrote: "Father, it's me, Xiaoli. How are you? I'm still the same, constantly striving to become a Dream Star. Although Macaron has debuted, this is just the beginning. I want everyone to know us, Macaron, and cheer us on." Memories flooded her mind:
　　we were practicing our dance diligently.
　　"Take a break." Teacher Caiwen told us to rest.
　　"Xiaoli, you should change your shoes." Xiaolan, sitting on the floor, noticed Xiaoli's shoes beside her.
　　"It's okay, I can still wear them." Xiaoli quickly waved her hand, shaking her head with a smile.
　　"I have several new pairs of shoes, why don't you take mine?" Taozi wanted to help Xiaoli.
　　"Really, no need, Taozi."
　　Xiaoli was completely absorbed in her practice, not caring about her princess image, and didn't mind her dirty shoes.
　　"Practice is tough, but I'm not alone. Everyone's here with me, caring for me." Yes, Macarons are always together, playing together when happy, and having Macarons as their strong support when facing difficulties. Not only that, she also met many new classmates, such as the lively and cheerful me, the hardworking Shiyu, the cute yet slightly shy Song'er, the handsome Ye Xi, the excellent Gao Yi, the elegant Xueyan, and so on. With the company of her lovely classmates, every day is happy and filled with joy.
　　"Don't worry, Father, for our hometown, I will definitely work even harder."
　　After finishing her diary, Xiaoli hadn't gone to sleep yet. She put down her notebook and pen and gently walked to the balcony, gazing at the dark moonlight, and made a wish: "One day, I will definitely become a dazzling star of Fei Meng."
　　The next morning,
　　the students from the debut class gathered together again. Xiaoli always smiled. "Xiaoli, you seem to be in a good mood today," Taozi said cutely.
　　"I think so too, did something good happen?" Xiaolan thought so too.
　　"Being with Taozi and Xiaolan is a good thing for me," Xiaoli said with a sweet smile. All three laughed. Isn't the companionship of friendship a happy thing?
　　Doles came in. Nothing had changed, except the captain had become Xia Ling. However, Xia Ling's appearance had changed. Her brown hair had grown longer, with a touch of pale yellow at the sides, tied in two long pigtails. At first glance, she looked like a completely different person, but upon closer inspection, her features were still recognizable. "You're Xia Ling?" Taozi recognized her.
　　"Don't call me that. I'm not the same person I used to be," Xia Ling said aggressively.
　　Everyone found her words inexplicable, their mouths agape. Ye Xi, completely bewildered, said, "What are you talking about?"
　　"Super Xia Ling. Call me that from now on."
　　"Listen carefully, I'm not the Xia Ling who had no presence anymore."
　　We found the name strange and funny: "You just changed your look, Xia Ling."
　　"Call me Super Xia Ling." Everyone covered their mouths and snickered.
　　"Really, what's so funny?"
　　Oliver arrived. "Everyone's here?"
　　Hearing Oliver's voice, the three members of the Duolus trio, who were standing at the door, quickly ran to their seats.
　　"Today we received a special invitation; Dreamy Notes wants Macaron to perform their final stage show," Xiaomin announced to Macaron.
　　"Are we going to perform on Dreamy Notes?"
　　The three of them excitedly raised their hands.
　　"This is a very important final performance, so I hope you'll give it your all," Oliver encouraged them.
　　"Here, these are special outfits prepared for you." They were going to wear these outfits for their performance. They saw that it was a set from the Nightfire Diamond brand's "Dazzling Galaxy" series. This set was quite different from Nightfire Diamond's usual rock and cool style; it was a cute style that suited them, yet still as exquisite as before. The three outfits were: "Rainbow Starfield," a sweet combination of cute and rock; "Flying Arrow Voyage," as dazzling as a neon rainbow streaking across the Milky Way; and "Universe Interstellar," sparkling like ice-blue stardust. Not only were they beautiful and exquisite, but the starry sky style of the outfits perfectly matched their new song, "Departure to the Star Kingdom." They were very happy.
　　"I hope you all do well."
　　"Okay, good."
　　"I want that one, then let's choose this one." They started choosing their clothes. Peach liked pink, so she chose "Rainbow Starfield," which was predominantly pink. Xiaolan, who liked purple, chose "Arrow's Wandering," which had purple tones. Xiaoli liked blue, so she took a liking to the blue "Universe Interstellar."
　　At this moment, Xiaoli's father wanted to take her home. The father was completely bewildered when he first arrived at Feimeng Academy. "This is Feimeng Academy? It's bigger than my palace. Where is it?"
　　He called the gatehouse. He walked into a room, which was actually our pre-debut class. But the father knew nothing about it. "May I ask what brings you to the pre-debut class?"
　　Song'er took out a sandwich. The father asked, "Is this some kind of high-class food?"
　　"It's just a sandwich. Would you like one?"
　　The father ate one piece, but wasn't satisfied. "Delicious, delicious, another one." He ate another piece.
　　"My sandwich!" This was clearly Song'er's breakfast!
　　"I'm full, you guys saved me!"
　　"By the way, do you know my daughter, Xiaoli?"
　　Xiaoli? Isn't that Xiaoli from the Macaron group?
　　"Are you Xiaoli's father?"
　　"You should say I'm her father, King."
　　"Then you're the king?"
　　"Indeed."
　　"If you know where Xiaoli is, please show me the way."
　　Macaron was in the practice room. They were discussing the upcoming performance. "Performing on Dreamy Notes is truly unbelievable." This is a very important program, and for newcomers like them to participate makes Xiaoli feel like she's dreaming.
　　"Now our Macaron group will definitely skyrocket in popularity and become a super popular group." Xiaolan also started imagining wonderful things.
　　"With Peach here, of course we can. We must do our best in this performance." Peach said.
　　"Our goal is to become Dreamy Star!"
　　"That's right, that's it. Xiaoli, work hard, work hard, and you can definitely become Dreamy Star." Xiaoli cheered herself on.
　　"Xiaoli," her father entered. "Father,"
　　"Why are you here?"
　　"It must be tough being here all alone."
　　"No, Father." How could she be alone? She was with Taozi and Xiaolan.
　　"As a princess, this is nothing." Yes, a princess can't be too delicate; a princess must learn to be strong.
　　"Xiaoli is completely different from usual." Song'er whispered to Taozi. She noticed something was off about Xiaoli. "
　　Taozi, this is the first time I've seen her like this either." Taozi also found it strange. "
　　She really has the air of a princess." In fact, she is a princess.
　　"Truly worthy of being my princess. But, it's time to end this. I've come to take you back. Come with me."
　　"But this is too sudden." Why did Father suddenly want to take her back?
　　"Because it's extremely urgent. Take a good look yourself. Look carefully." Father showed Xiaoli a photo. Wasn't that a photo of Xiaoli? She was wearing a school uniform, running on the grass. It looked like an ordinary photo, but there were many scars on her legs. It seemed that Xiaoli had indeed been through a lot.
　　"I accidentally bumped into this during practice last time, it's nothing," Xiaolan explained. "It's just a tiny scrape."
　　"What scrape? You're seriously injured! That's outrageous!" Father was angry. All three of them collapsed to the ground.
　　"Anyway, Xiaoli, come back with me."
　　"But, Father..." Xiaoli seemed to want to say something more.
　　"The performance is over. You should come back. Our hometown needs you. Come with me." Father wouldn't listen to her explanation.
　　In the recording studio, Taozi was practicing her part in their new song. Taozi's voice was sweet and beautiful. "Very good, but the ending could be a little cuter."
　　"Are you really leaving, Xiaoli? Didn't you want to become a Dream Star? Let's talk to your father again." Xiaolan still missed the three of them with their macarons.
　　"Our Candy Country is a little-known place. I want to become a Dream Star to promote it. Maybe Father thinks I can't do it," Xiaoli confided in her.
　　“Xiaoli, I know you’ve tried your best, and you don’t want to give up like this, right?”
　　“Xiaolan,”
　　“Xiaoli, go tell your father. Our Macaron will definitely become the Dream Star.” Xiaolan offered her advice.
　　“Thank you, Xiaolan.”
　　“This is the cafeteria.”
　　“It’s already twelve o’clock. It’s lunchtime. Would you like to eat with us? The food here is really delicious.” Song’er was very enthusiastic.
　　“You must be hungry after coming all this way, so please eat with us.” Shiyu said.
　　“Do you think doing this will change my mind?” Father was still thinking about this.
　　“How could we?” Actually, we just wanted to treat Father to something to eat. This is Xiaoli’s business; we don’t need to change his mind.
　　“The curry is delicious, and there’s roast spring chicken. Come on, eat up.”
　　“Then I won’t be polite.” Father wolfed down his food. Was this really acting like a king?
　　"It tastes great, give me another serving."
　　"Sure, coming right up."
　　"Wow, the food at Fei Meng Academy is so delicious! I really want to move this whole cafeteria to my hometown. And the environment here is nice too. Xiao Li said in her letter that she really liked it here, and it seems there's some truth to that." Perhaps Father doesn't know about the preparatory debut class yet.
　　Under the colorful cherry blossom trees, the King sat on a bench.
　　"Your Majesty, this is dessert, it's really delicious." We came over with our ice cream and sat down next to him.
　　While eating our ice cream, we asked, "Could you tell us why Xiao Li wanted to come to Fei Meng Academy?"
　　"From childhood to adulthood, Xiao Li has always been a very proud princess, someone I feel I've fulfilled my duty to. I really never imagined she would want to be a singer one day." Actually, Father was quite surprised that she wanted to be a singer.
　　"Didn't she tell you the reason?" I asked.
　　"She did tell you, before she came here, that she wanted to become the Fei Meng Star, so that more people would know about her hometown. She wanted to be a singer for her hometown. It's not what she truly loves." Father explained in detail.
　　"No, Xiaoli wouldn't have come to our academy just for this. Please go and ask her again." If it was just for her hometown, and that's not what she likes, why would she be so interested in those activities? Besides, she could promote her hometown in other ways, so why did she have to come to our academy? I think she's actually interested, but she's too embarrassed to tell her father.
　　"Macaron should still be in the recording studio. Let's go watch Macaron practice singing."
　　"Practicing singing?"
　　"Yes, Xiaoli is definitely practicing too."
　　"Quick, let's go." "
　　Wait, Kexing!"
　　"Wait!"
　　"Don't leave me behind!"
　　We arrived at the recording studio. Xiaoli was practicing singing. "No good, Xiaoli, your emotional delivery isn't quite there."
　　"What's wrong?" I asked Taozi.
　　"Well,"
　　"Let's try again."
　　"Look at me like this, isn't it cute? My steps are like a child's, hopping left and right..." It was Xiaoli's sweet singing voice. Although her voice was still very nice, something felt off. It was supposed to be a cute and lively song, but there seemed to be a hint of sadness mixed in.
　　“Look at me like this…”
　　“Start over!”
　　“Xiaoli, you need to control your emotions. You can’t let it affect the performance, do you hear me?”
　　Xiaoli was clearly still upset about that incident.
　　“Shut up!” Father snapped.
　　We all exclaimed “Ah!”
　　“Let’s go,”
　　Father pulled Xiaoli away.
　　“Really, who’s that?”
　　The teacher didn’t recognize Father. Peach said, “Xiaoli’s father.”
　　“Wait, Father!”
　　Father pulled Xiaoli to sit on a bench.
　　“I can’t watch you suffer. There’s nothing more to say, come back with me.” Father wanted to always cherish her, to be his princess, his precious jewel.
　　“I will go back.”
　　“But please, let me go on stage one more time.” This was a very important performance, how could Xiaoli be willing to give it up?
　　“You’ve already worked so hard, why do you still want to perform?”
　　“It’s for my dream.” Xiaoli wanted to go on stage not just for her hometown.
　　Father recalled what Kexing had said on the bench: "No, Xiaoli would never have come to our academy just for this."
　　Xiaoli explained her thoughts: "Originally, I only wanted to be a singer for my hometown, but slowly, it became my dream. I will definitely go back, please let me finish this last performance." Xiaoli bowed. "
　　Alright, but you must go back immediately after the performance."
　　"Thank you, Father."
　　"I will definitely let you see the best performance."
　　Macaron and we were backstage.
　　Xiaoli was crying, her head on the table. "What's wrong with Xiaoli?" Peach felt she seemed upset.
　　"Did her father scold her?"
　　"Don't cry, just tell us what's wrong."
　　"I'm leaving."
　　"What are you saying?"
　　"Why, Xiaoli?"
　　"Why are you leaving?"
　　"Are you really going home?"
　　"So I want my father to see our last performance."
　　"Melody, it's time to go on stage."
　　"Xiaoli, good luck with your performance later."
　　"We'll cheer you on."
　　"Thank you, thank you." Xiaoli cried again, but not from sadness, but from gratitude.
　　"Okay, let your father see our talent."
　　"We must show the best of our macarons!"
　　"We'll warm up the audience for you."
　　"Okay."
　　We went on stage and sang the uplifting song "Happiness Sense" again, bringing the audience a beautiful and happy melody.
　　"Do they also want to become Dream Stars?" The father saw our performance.
　　"Of course, that's the dream of everyone standing on that stage." Jinghao was right next to him.
　　"That performance was truly amazing! Melody, say a few words to the audience."
　　"Okay."
　　"Thank you everyone for your support."
　　"But this path has been so arduous, and defeating the current Dream Star is incredibly difficult," Father sighed.
　　"That's right, perhaps it's true, but striving so hard for your dreams."
　　"That's the most shining quality in a person."
　　"That concludes Melody's performance. Next, please welcome our final guest, Macarons!"
　　Macarons changed costumes and performed their new song, "Departure to the Star Kingdom." Exquisite night-fire diamond costumes, a dreamy stage, and lively, adorable singing and dancing transported everyone to a sweet and dreamy universe, allowing them to experience the unknown romance of the galaxy.
　　Father shed tears. Xiaoli truly gave her all for her hometown and her dreams!
　　Back in the dormitory. "Are you leaving today, Xiaoli?"
　　"Are you really giving up on your dream like this?"
　　"Xiaoli, let's go talk to your father again."
　　"Thank you, Peach."
　　"But I can't be so selfish. I'm a princess. I have my responsibilities; I can't just think of myself. I'm so sorry."
　　"Xiaoli, you really are a wonderful princess."
　　The three of them hugged each other and cried.
　　I gave Xiaoli the letter from her father. "Xiaoli, look! Father's letter!"
　　"Xiaoli, it's your father. Please forgive me for leaving without saying goodbye. I was afraid that seeing you practice so hard and shed tears would make me want to take you away again. That performance made me understand your true feelings, Xiaoli. I thought you were forcing yourself to perform for your hometown, but it was for your dream. I'm so happy because you've finally found what you want to do. Go and pursue your dream with your friends." This was the contents of the letter.
　　"Xiaoli."
　　"Father."
　　"I will definitely do my best," Xiaoli said through tears.
　　Her father left the school and wouldn't let Xiaoli go back.
　　"Work hard, your father will always support you."

Chapter Four: The Propaganda Campaign

Wed, 14 Jan 2026 12:52:22 +0800

Early morning, a quiet and beautiful campus.
"Let's begin."
"These are the promotional data for the debut album. Currently, all songs from the album are in the top ten on all platforms." With that, Xiaomin turned on the TV. "The promotional activities are also proceeding smoothly on various platforms. They are currently the most popular group."
The students in the debut class were secretly delighted to see their photos on TV and be called a "popular group." "In addition, the poster distribution and operational promotion have kept the online buzz going." The screen suddenly changed: "Macarons," "Dolais is the best!" "I will always love Purple Queen!" Many fans held up signs with their idols' photos and waved them, laughing. The students in the debut class in front of the TV squinted, their lips curving upwards. Nine youthful and lovely faces were like nine lively and vibrant flowers, blooming freely in the spring of Fei Meng Academy.
"This promotional offensive is amazing!"
"The school will also do its utmost to support the debut class. You must seize this opportunity and work hard," Vice Principal Olivier said earnestly.
"That concludes the meeting report. Thank you everyone."
"Okay." The students left the classroom one after another, leaving only Xueyan behind.
"Is there anything else, Ning Xueyan?" Xueyan seemed to have something on her mind, as if she had been preoccupied with something lately.
"I don't understand why, in the debut class, only our schedules at Dores are constantly changing." Xueyan said through gritted teeth.
"So?" Oliver asked coldly.
"I don't understand why our schedules are always scheduled with Melody's. Can't we have our own stage?" Xueyan was still agonizing over this.
"Are you afraid of Melody and the others?"
"No way," Xueyan pouted and said disdainfully, "Qiao Kexing and I are not even on the same level." Xueyan always felt that she was very capable, and that being paired with someone like Kexing would be a waste of her talent.
"I don't understand why we are always being compared?"
"I understand. You can go back now."
Xueyan calmly went back, but a trace of dissatisfaction lingered in her heart.
"No need to say anything more. I've already made up my mind."
We sat in the classroom, habitually opening the Fei Meng Assistant. Suddenly, we were drawn to a bunch of colorful things. What were these?
"These are the rankings of the debut class's albums,"
"Macaron is eighth,"
"Purple Queen is fourth,"
"First place is Dorex."
"Everyone's album rankings are so high," I said enviously. I really envy the debut class, but the principal made us come to this pre-debut class.
"Let me see."
"This is like scouting the enemy."
"I'm so envious."
"Our album is still in production."
"This won't do, I'll ask the principal about the progress." Why are other people's albums out, while ours is still in production?
"Where is he?"
I was about to push open the door when I was suddenly startled. The principal was outside doing his morning exercise. "Running is definitely the best thing to do early in the morning."
"Principal Gao Wei!" We tried to get him to stop.
The principal fell to the ground with a thud.
He suddenly stood up again.
"Okay, let me stretch again."
"Principal, our album..." I wanted to take advantage of his stretching to ask about the album.
"Album,"
"Don't worry, you'll see it soon." The principal was stretching and didn't have time to answer.
"Really? The album's already made!"
"This is our first album!"
We were looking forward to being like the students in a debut class, charting, attending autograph sessions, surrounded by a huge fanbase, and shouting, "I'll always love My Melody!" Mom and Dad sat on the sofa, cracking sunflower seeds, watching us on TV with satisfaction.
"It should be here soon. Look, it's over there."
As they spoke, Jinghao slowly pushed a handcart over, panting.
"A handcart?"
"He just pushed the album over like that?"
We thought it was a bit unbelievable.
"No way."
"Principal, why didn't you call a courier?" Jinghao was a little tired.
"No, no, I'm training you, kid."
"The album's promotion should be all set up, right?"
"TV, radio, and definitely online promotion too."
"Now we can chart too!"
We were immersed in wonderful fantasies.
"Nothing's right,"
"Take a good look at this handcart,"
the principal's words shattered our illusions,
"This is for you to promote it yourselves."
Promote it yourselves?
“Listen carefully,” the principal continued, “We’ve used up all our budget to produce this album. In other words, we don’t even have a single bit of budget left for promotion.”
“What kind of situation is this!” Pinky suddenly yelled.
I shooed Pinky away with the album in my hand.
“Then what should we do, Principal?”
“You’ll have to rely on yourselves.” The principal’s answer was unexpected.
It seems the entertainment industry is truly unfair!
“Why don’t the debut group have to promote it themselves?”
“Yeah, at most they’ll attend a signing event.”
“It’s all my fault. I’m just a poor principal with no ability, so I can’t help you promote it!”
We
said dejectedly. The principal continued, “But I wholeheartedly want you to become the best group. You have to believe me!”
As he spoke, tears streamed down his face. This was the first time I’d ever seen him cry!
“I understand, Principal, please don’t cry!” I said, tears welling up in my eyes as well.
Song’er’s tears also flowed down her cheeks.
"Alright, we still have to do our promotional work." The calm and collected Shiyu couldn't stand this sentimental scene.
Shiyu pulled the cart in front, while Song'er and I pushed from behind, like pulling an oxcart on a farm.
Jinghao, seeing our pathetic state, felt a pang of sympathy: "I'll go help them." I felt a glimmer of hope.
"No, they have to do this themselves."
The principal's words completely dashed our hopes. " That's so kind of
us
."
"Yeah, yeah."
Song'er and I saw the debut group's albums displayed in the record store.
They were all placed at the very front, along with beautiful posters!
Shiyu wondered what Song'er and I were looking at.
"Look!"
"The debut group's albums are all at the front!"
"And so many promotional posters!"
"This is amazing!"
"This is incomparable!" Shiyu exclaimed.
Pedestrians hurried past, noticing our cart.
"What is this? A roadside stall?"
It's definitely not on the same level.
"Let's go, we still have to do promotions."
I glanced back at the albums: "So many, can we distribute them all?"
"This task is too difficult."
Shiyu habitually picked up her notebook again: "According to my analysis, we each need to distribute two hundred copies to get all the promotional albums out."
"Two hundred?" Hearing such a large number, we were both startled.
"Okay, then I'll give it my all. It's just two hundred copies! I'll definitely distribute them all!" I thought to myself, since there's no other way, let's accept reality and try our best!
“Once you hear our songs, I think everyone will love our album!” Song’er started to “think positively about everything.”
“Me too,” Shiyu also became optimistic.
“Let’s all cheer up!”
We put our palms together, raised our hands in the air, and jumped up.
“Go, go, go!”
Go, Melody!
We then split up and went our separate ways to promote the album.
I walked several streets and found that nobody wanted our album. So I thought, I’ll give them to my parents.
“Dad, Mom, I’m home!”
I rushed home carrying a big bag of albums.
“Kexing, why did you come back so suddenly this time?”
“How have things been lately, my big star?”
To be honest, not so much. Preparing for debut… But my only goal is to give the album to my parents, so let’s not say too much.
I pulled the album over hard, “Look at this!”
“Melody’s freshly baked album!”
“That’s great! I didn’t expect you guys to release an album so quickly. That’s wonderful, wonderful.” My mother was moved to tears. "Dad is so touched." Even my usually calm and collected father said this.
It seems Mom doesn't know about Macaron, Dores, Purple Queen, and their album yet. High rankings, promotion on major platforms, the store is already overflowing with them… and posters too. Me…
"Then I won't be polite."
"Wait…" They don't know I'm promoting the album!
"This is Melody's most important first album, Mom and Dad will definitely support it wholeheartedly, right?"
Mom and Dad nodded with smiles.
"Okay, please accept all of these." I stuffed the albums into their hands.
"That's too many!"
There are two hundred copies!
"You can give them to your friends!"
"Don't forget to promote it for us!"
"Thank you, my daughter."
"Thank you then. I still have to promote it!"
"I'll go now, goodbye!"
Mom and Dad smiled.
I smiled and said goodbye to them too.
"Hello, Teacher Nanfei." Song'er probably felt her album wasn't popular, so she thought she'd give it to the teacher; maybe he'd help promote it.
"It's you, Yang Song'er. Your debut performance was great!"
"Thank you."
"Um, teacher, this is our first album."
"That's wonderful! It's my pride as a teacher that my student released an album!"
Perhaps Teacher Nanfei didn't know about the debut class.
"Then please send these out, teacher." She handed the teacher a large bag of albums.
"What, so many?"
Two hundred albums!
"Song'er, give me one too." Teacher Caiwen wanted her album as well.
"I'll prepare a special lesson to promote My Melody."
"Really?" She thought to herself, someone is helping her promote it.
"Thank you, Teacher Caiwen."
"It's nothing, I'll be going now."
"Here, I'll take one, I'll take the rest."
"No way, wait, you can lend a hand too, Teacher Caiwen." Teacher Nanfei couldn't carry two hundred albums.
At the bustling street corner, two students sat on a bench, leisurely drinking beverages. Shiyu arrived. "Long time no see."
"You scared me."
"It's Shiyu. It really has been a long time. What's up?"
Maybe her return was too sudden.
"I have something to tell you, we released an album!"
"Congratulations!"
Shiyu walked to a bulletin board with My Melody's information on it. "I think you all know how much potential My Melody has. Qiao Kexing, who was at the bottom of the class, and me, and Yang Song'er actually debuted as a group as first-level trainees. You could say that My Melody's future is incredibly bright. This time, our first album is limited to only 500 copies, which is extremely precious." She was clearly trying to "brainwash" the two classmates and get them to accept her album. The two classmates were completely confused.
"So, you want one too,
right?" "Here you go. You're welcome."
After saying that, she ran off. The two classmates "accepted" her album.
"We didn't say we wanted one."
But there are still so many left to distribute.
We gathered together at Sister Lena's shop to think of a solution.
Shiyu came up with the idea of giving away free gifts, and we all agreed.
So Shiyu tried to snatch my favorite Feiyang group poster.
We started a tug-of-war.
"No, no, this is really not allowed! This is a rare, limited-edition Feiyang poster!" I was looking forward to Junyu's concert! How could I let someone take it away so easily?
But Shiyu was strong, and she pulled it away: "The better the free gift, the more attractive it will be. It's a form of promotion, you know?"
I tried my best, but Shiyu still managed to snatch the poster away. "Song'er, what did you prepare?"
"This is my treasured dessert voucher. What about you, Shiyu?"
"The limited edition album for the 7th anniversary of the Four Seasons group," Shiyu said, a little reluctantly,
"That's my favorite."
Shiyu loved the Four Seasons group the most. She always thought they were amazing and popular, and she loved their songs and performances. But for this "promotional campaign," she still had to "reluctantly give it up."
"It's all that principal's fault! No way, I'm going to go settle the score with him!" Shiyu was furious, thinking, why do we have to promote the album ourselves? We can't even promote it, and we still have to "sacrifice" something we love.
"Calm down, Shiyu, don't be impulsive." Shiyu's sudden impulsiveness was a bit much for me too.
"Who's talking about me behind my back?"
The principal heard it.
But where were we going to promote it?
We walked and walked until we came to the base of a shed. I thought, this is the perfect place to promote. So we started promoting it here.
"Hello everyone, this is our Melody album, and it comes with a valuable gift!" A large crowd gathered around, and the albums were all gone in no time. Shiyu's method really worked.
"Finally all gone!"
"Our promotion was pretty successful!"
"Even though I sacrificed my voucher." Song'er was still a little reluctant to lose something she liked. They'd given out all the singles records, so what was this little thing?
"We got Fei Yang's poster!" Just as we were happy, we suddenly heard a sound. I looked, and there they were—the people who had just gotten the albums!
"How come?"
We went closer and saw that the trash can was full of our albums, all sorts of colors.
"Our albums?
It seems everyone took the freebies and didn't want our albums anymore. Are our songs that unpopular? "
We went back to school.
"How did the promotion go?" the principal asked us.
"No way, there are still so many left?"
They threw all our albums into the trash can.
"This is absolutely terrible! Do you want these to be Melody's last albums?"
"No, no," we hadn't thought that, we just had no other choice.
"We promoted very seriously." “
Stop talking,” the principal said, not wanting to hear our explanations.
“The facts are clear: if this continues, when will the audience ever recognize My Melody?”
“We still have so many left! What are we going to do?”
“I don’t want them all to end up in the trash.”
“Everyone, please take a look at our album! The singles are really good!”
We had no choice but to resort to this crude method.
“Please take a look at our debut album!”
“We are the My Melody group!”
But passersby hurried past, ignoring us completely.
“What do we do? They seem completely indifferent.”
Shiyu rushed to the riverbank, like Columbus discovering a new continent.
“I suddenly had an idea! Why don’t we perform somewhere?”
So we walked over to the stage.
“This seems to be a public stage.”
“I’ll ask Jinghao to come and help as a guest host.”
I was about to approach Jinghao when… “Who are you?”
I looked up and saw a woman, probably in her thirties, wearing a floral dress and with short blonde hair. She was holding a guitar and seemed to be a singer with a beautiful voice. "The performance is about to start." "
We're the new group Melody, and we'd like to perform here too. We'll also promote our album."
"Promote?" The singer rolled her eyes, then gave a dismissive smile. "You can perform on TV, but this isn't your stage."
"What do you mean by that?" Shiyu felt it was very impolite. "Besides, we were here first." Song'er and I nodded.
She took a few steps forward: "Here, are you capable of performing live?"
"We've been practicing, of course, no problem." "I feel like she looks down on us, making it seem like we're useless. Even though our popularity is a bit low, we debuted as first-level trainees and even won first place in our debut performance at a music festival. Surely we can sing live, right?"
"We might even sing better than you, sister," Song'er chimed in.
"What?"
"What did you just say?"
Song'er realized she'd said something wrong and quickly hid behind Shiyu.
"There's a performance!"
"Let's see!"
Passersby came over. It would be so embarrassing for us to fight here!
"A performance?"
"It's about to start."
"There's no fancy stage or effects here; it's not suitable for you at all."
"No matter the stage, it's all the same. Once we're on stage, we'll give it our all and show our best." We quoted all the lessons Jinghao had taught us.
"All you can do is lip-sync and move a few times—what good are you? Really." She glanced at us.
But her next words filled us with anticipation: "It's almost time for my regular performance, so you can give me the stage. I'll formally introduce you later, and you'll prove yourselves with your performance."
"Okay," Shiyu said, "I guarantee you'll be amazed."
"Okay, I'll wait and see. See you later, Melody."
After a whole day of hard work, and this mess at the end...
Her voice was indeed beautiful, clear and ethereal yet steady and sweet, captivating the entire audience. The delicate and lingering guitar accompaniment was like a cup of fine tea, very memorable.
"Thank you everyone. Next up is a special performance prepared by the new group Melody."
"What? A new group?"
"Do those newbies even have the ability to sing live?"
"I don't want to see them lip-sync."
"Everyone seems unwelcoming of our performance!"
"What if they all leave?" "
Should we skip the show?"
"Nobody wants to watch us."
"Melody, do you want to give up the performance?" A familiar voice came from beside me.
We looked up and saw Chu Jinghao!
What was he doing here? Jinghao always showed up at crucial moments.
“But nobody here wants to see us perform,” I told him, confiding in him about our situation.
“That’s the difficulty of a roadshow; it’s different from a stage performance where there’s already an audience. That singer probably wasn’t noticed at first either, but she didn’t give up. She worked hard little by little, eventually turning passersby into fans. If you give up now, you’ll lose people who might have become your fans.”
We felt that Jinghao was right. We had experienced something similar at the Baozi Festival and during the stand-in rehearsals. At first, nobody knew us and wasn’t very optimistic, but later everyone liked us, didn’t they? Someone at the Baozi Festival even wanted our autograph. Maybe if we perform well, people here will be surprised, and maybe someone will ask for our autograph! And maybe all these albums will be gone! “That’s right, it’s precisely because nobody will listen that we need to promote.”
“I want everyone to hear our song.”
“Let’s go on stage!”
So we went on stage, changed into the “Sunny Flower Rain” series outfits we won at the last music festival, and sang our new song, “Happiness Sense,” full of positive energy. "Who are they?"
"They seem to be some new group."
Someone said that as soon as they came up. I think everyone will like this song. Precisely because no one knows us, we should sing the melody of My Melody's happiness even more!
"Their voices are quite stable."
"The song is good too."
Even the singer from before said, "This kind of performance, how many days and nights must they have practiced?"
Jinghao is over there promoting our album.
Pinky exclaimed, "Come and see, this is My Melody's album!"
"I want one!"
"Give it to me, I want one too!"
There was no Feiyang poster or Four Seasons album included. No dessert vouchers. Nothing else that would interest people. But everyone was scrambling for our album. It seems everyone was attracted by our singing. This time, the album won't end up in the trash.
"Don't rush."
"My Melody?"
The singer couldn't believe his eyes. Just as Shiyu said, he was very surprised.
"Thank you everyone."
It was getting late. We sat by the roadside, the cool evening breeze blowing on us, making us feel refreshed. "That was awesome! All those promotional records were gone in a flash!" It was Pinky's voice.
"That's really great."
The singer walked over.
"You three did a great job."
"Thank you for giving us this opportunity."
"We really learned a lot."
"We're so sorry about what happened earlier."
We all bowed.
"It was all because I looked down on you first, we're really sorry. Consider this an apology."
We looked and saw a set of Nightfire Diamond brand "Hunting Beauty" Fimengka, full of passion and energy. We really loved it!
"Go Melody!"
We had to give a gift in return, but what should we give? I had a brilliant idea, our album! Maybe she'd help us promote it!
"Please accept our album," Shiyu said.
"Okay. Here's my business card."
"Record shop." "I'm planning to put your album in my shop. That way it'll help you with some promotion. How about that?"
Great! So that shop by the roadside was related to her?
The next morning, we went to the record shop to take a look.
Look, they had our album and posters! This way, more people will see it!
"Look at our rankings." Our album actually made it into the top 100! I can't believe it!
Luckily, we didn't give up on performing back then. "We have to work hard, and one day this place will be filled with our albums!"
Jinghao said. "They did a good job this time."
The principal said, "This way, they'll understand how grateful they are to be liked."
"Could it be that everything was planned by you?"
"You're only realizing it now?"
The singer suddenly popped up: "No way, isn't this all thanks to me?"
At school. "Wait, Ning Xueyan."
"Sorry, Vice Principal, I already stopped her." Xiaomin was helpless with Xueyan.
"It's okay. Tell me, what does Ning Xueyan want with me?"
Xueyan threw out the Dorles album. On the album cover, Lin Lili and Dai Jiali, as well as the background color, were unchanged, except that Xueyan in the center position had been replaced by Xia Ling. "Why did someone take my place?"
"That's a simple question, because I removed you from the list." Olivier said coldly.
"What exactly happened?"
"What's wrong? Isn't this the result you wanted?"
"What did you say? I didn't!" These seemingly innocuous words pierced her heart like a steel needle.
"Didn't you say you wanted your own stage? Now, please start looking for your stage again." Actually, she just didn't want to perform with Melody; she felt it would "tarnish" her perfect girl image.
"No, I just don't want to perform with Melody," she began, but was interrupted by Oliver before she could finish: "By the way, Melody's been promoting her album lately. Why don't you start from scratch like Melody?"
"Melody, it's Melody again!" Xueyan trembled with anger at the mention of that name.
"Of course, you've also been removed from the debut class."
"Sorry, you've been demoted to a trainee."
It felt like two knives were plunged into her. "Trainee? If that's the case, I might as well leave school."
She walked out the door and bumped into Lily and Carrie. She glared at them angrily and walked away without looking back.
"No way, Ning Xueyan is really leaving school?"
Despite encountering so many people along the way, she remained the same as before, like a proud swan. But deep down, she couldn't maintain that pride.
"What happened? And where's Xia Ling?"
"Yeah, we haven't seen her lately."
And Xia Ling was about to become the new captain of Dorles.
Xueyan got into Uncle Lin's car. Uncle Lin said, "Miss, are you really giving up like this?"
"This kind of childish dream, I was just playing around with it anyway." Clearly, it was sour grapes.
"But, Miss..."
"Let's go."
Tears streamed down Xueyan's face, but she covered her eyes, not wanting anyone outside the window to see her vulnerable side. She pretended she was just asleep. In front of others, she always wanted to be an elegant and proud swan.
The car drove further and further away, until it faded into the boundless blue sky. And Xueyan's "elegant" figure grew ever more distant...

Chapter Three: A Joyful Music Festival

Tue, 13 Jan 2026 12:45:30 +0800

It was another energetic day.
"My hands are still sore from making so many buns!"
"Well, it's not all bad," Song'er said, taking off her headphones.
"Weren't we performing there?"
"Yeah, and the buns were delicious."
"It all comes down to food!"
We reminisced about yesterday's events as we walked into the classroom.
"Good morning!"
"Finally here."
"Tell me now, Principal?"
What were they doing?
"Wh...what's wrong?"
"Could it be...something big happened?"
Jinghao feigned mystery: "Actually, it's like this,"
"You—"
"We?"
Then came a sudden piece of good news: "We're going to a music festival!"
Going to a music festival felt like a dream!
"Are we going to have our official debut performance there?" We couldn't get too excited yet, because the principal had already fooled us twice. We were afraid he'd make us stand-ins or do hard labor again!
Jinghao nodded.
We cheered with joy.
"It was your performance at the Baozi Festival that attracted the program director. I was so prescient! See? It's good you came to my class!" The principal finished with a few cold laughs.
Listening to the principal was always confusing. What did coming to the principal's class have to do with it? Didn't the debut class get to go too?
"Prepare well, this is a great opportunity."
Shiyu habitually pulled out her notebook again: "That day is our debut anniversary." Finally!
We're officially debuting!
"Won't you say you love me again? Even if I'm hurt, my tears will fall like rain..." The melody of Feiyang Group's "Genesis" played on the TV.
Xiaomin said, "This is a video of Feiyang Group participating in the Happy Music Festival last year."
Lin Lili's eyes were filled with envy: "When can we participate?"
Olivier arrived: "Listen, that's your next stage!"
Everyone's mouths gaped open, their eyes widened.
"Isn't that only popular singers can participate?" Xiaolan asked.
Xiaomin explained, "Because the theme of this grand event is welcoming future stars, and you are trainees trained by Vice Principal Oliver of Fei Meng Star, of course you are qualified to participate."
Gao Yi from the Purple Queen group asked, "Then, will Melody be going too?" She most wanted to see Shiyu's dance.
"Yes, Melody will be participating this time."
Xueyan heard this and thought, "What I lost on stage, I will take back on stage!"
Finally, they arrived at the music festival venue. It was packed with people, just like the TV station they saw when they went to the stunt double rehearsal. But the set was more exquisite. "This set is so exquisite, it truly deserves to be called a music festival!"
"It's so awesome! We're officially debuting here! Hooray!" It was my first time on a show, and I was as excited as a bird just released from its cage, having never seen the world before.
"Look over here, there are so many cameras! Do you think it will be filmed like this?" Song'er walked to the camera and imitated the photographer taking pictures.
At this moment, Doles walked over. "Seriously, don't embarrass yourself. Is this your first time on a TV show?"
They seemed to see through our naivety.
"It really is my first time," Song'er said. Those two times didn't count as being on a TV show; they were just rehearsals as stand-ins and at a food festival. The videos were just posted online and never aired on television.
"You guys have been on several shows already, that's impressive," I said, trying to flatter them. Lin Lili said haughtily, "Of course!" as if she didn't think much of it. When they arrived, they weren't as excited and curious as we were. They were already a "super popular group," like big stars, so appearing on TV once was nothing to them, and they had already seen what many TV stations looked like.
"Okay, everyone listen up. I'll go over the program schedule. The host will give an opening speech over there, and then you'll all be ready to go on stage at your own pace. Make sure you're energetic when you come on stage. Does everyone understand?"
"Yes."
"Okay, then get ready, the program is about to start."
"Has the special guest host arrived?"
"They're all in position."
"Turn the lights over there a little closer."
"Cameras in position."
"All departments, get ready. Begin!"
Unexpectedly, the hosts this time were Teacher Nanfei and Teacher Caiwen. It brought us back to the old days.
"Hello everyone, I'm Nanfei, the special guest host for this music festival."
"I'm Caiwen."
"I think everyone must be curious about why we're here. Actually, the answer lies with today's guests."
"That's right, they are the new group from Feimeng Academy."
Immediately afterwards, the four groups appeared in their school uniforms, looking pure and innocent.
"Freshly baked, we are the sweet and lovely Macarons!" The members of the Macaron group smiled sweetly, their hands supporting their chins, striking cute poses. They truly lived up to their princess titles, both cute and elegant.
"We are the cool group, the Purple Queen!" As expected of the Purple Queen, Ye Xi was as cool as ever, and Gao Yi and Ju Li also had great presence; even in their school uniforms, their charm was undeniable.
It was our turn to appear. "Hello everyone," we bowed first, "We are the melody of happiness surrounding everyone, Melody!" Then, as we spoke, we struck our poses, radiating youthful energy.
"The elegant princess on stage, Dolores!" Xue Yan, even at the music festival, was as haughty as ever, but her movements were also very elegant. Among all the students at Fei Meng Academy, who was more suited to the words "haughty" and "elegant"?
"Each group has a unique personality!" Teacher Nanfei exclaimed. Indeed, Macaron was cute and princess-like, Dolores was elegant, the Purple Queen was cool, and our style... well, it should be lively, cute, and youthful. We also need to develop our own style.
"Well then, please let Teacher Caiwen explain the rules first."
"Before the official performance, the guests will have to compete in a game. The winning group will receive a stage effect card, which can be used in their later performances."
"If there are no effect cards, then they can only perform on an empty stage, right?" Teacher Nanfei said, feigning confusion.
"Also, the winning group in the final performance will receive a special Fei Meng Card." This is a "Sunny Flower Rain" series set designed by the Liu Jingyue brand, consisting of the dreamy pink and girly "Sweet Flower Shop," the hazy spring-like "Drizzling Blue Poem," and the romantic and lively "Sunny Sky Song." The combination of pink, blue, and yellow, along with the gorgeous yet fresh and cute style, is perfectly tailor-made for us. I really want this Fei Meng Card set!
"Okay, let's start the first game, 'Charades, Guess.' One person acts out a clue, and their teammate guesses what they're acting out." Teacher Nanfei began explaining the rules. "This is a game that requires teamwork. First up, let's have Dolores."
"This group is guessing expressions."
"Arrogant." "Angry." "Unhappy."
"Skip."
"What expression is this?"
"Elegant." "Helpless." "Sad." "
Skip. "
"Disdainful." "Serious." "Stomach ache."
"That's it." "
It's a real shame, Dolores gets zero. The answer to the last question is 'hungry.'"
"How should I know? I've never been hungry." A pampered young lady like Xueyan, who eats well every day, how could she possibly go hungry?
But that's no excuse for losing the game.
There are plenty of people like that.
"Okay, next up, Melody."
We cheered each other on.
"This time, the questions are all about food."
"So, let's begin."
"Okay, first up is this."
"Chicken leg! This is Kexing's expression when she's secretly eating a chicken leg." Song'er's eyes lit up.
"Correct!"
"Okay, next question."
"Ice cream!"
"It's a giant parfait!" Song'er often eats giant parfaits with Juli, of course she knows!
"Correct."
"Looks like we need to increase the difficulty."
"It must be ramen."
"Amazing."
"Congratulations to My Melody for answering all the questions correctly this round, you get a spotlight effect card."
We got an effect card!
"The next game is 'You Hammer, I Block'."
"The loser of rock-paper-scissors has to react immediately and use their shield to block. If the winner is hit by the inflatable hammer, they lose."
"The first group, My Melody's Joker Star versus Macaron's Tong Xiaoli."
"Rock, paper, scissors."...
Xiaoli won, I lost. I didn't know how to block with my shield, so I knocked Xiaoli to the ground. The other groups, including Teacher Nanfei and Teacher Caiwen, all had their mouths wide open. Maybe this is the first time something like this has happened on the show.
"Are you alright, Xiaoli?"
"Kexing, that's not how you use a shield."
"I'm sorry, Xiaoli."
"Qiao Kexing, yellow card warning."
Everyone burst into laughter. This felt so embarrassing, like being made to stand in the corner by the teacher for not being able to recite a text when you were a child.
Jinghao was watching the live stream when Pinky jumped out: "Seriously, what is Kexing doing?"
"Next, Purple Queen Juli."
This was Juli versus Xiaolan. Juli was more reliable, defeating Xiaolan in one go. She won against a different opponent. "Amazing,"
"She's simply invincible." "
Congratulations to the Purple Queen for obtaining the firework effect card."
Ye Xi and Gao Yi smiled at each other.
"The next game is Who is the Candy Eater. The rules are simple, it's about who eats the most candy."
Four people: Peach, Kexing, Gao Yi, and Daijiali.
"Everyone, get ready!"
"Ready—Go!"
"Stuff, stuff like crazy! We're going to devour the candies at an astonishing speed!"
Soon, Ke Xing, Gao Yi, and Dai Jiali were all eating slower and slower, only the macaron captain, Peach Princess, was still speeding up. Was this the legendary gluttonous princess?
"Peach Princess wins!"
Her signature "macaron-style" smile flashed across her face.
"Next up is rearranging the 3x3 grid."
Shi Yu and Gao Yi. How could they be so destined!
Both contestants were incredibly fast, truly worthy of being top students at our Fei Meng Academy. Looking at the numbers "9.15" and "9.15" on the screen, they had completed it simultaneously!
"Then both of them get effect cards!"
Shi Yu and Gao Yi jumped up; this was the best outcome for them.
"Let's take a look at the results for each group now."
"Macaron is third, Purple Queen is second, and Melody, with five effect cards, is first."
"Although Torres is currently at the bottom, there's still a chance for a comeback, so stay tuned!"
"Torres at the bottom? Are you kidding me! If this continues, my stage performance will lose to Melody and the others!" Xueyan was furious; she couldn't tolerate this result. She was unwilling to lose to Melody.
"Xueyan, there's still a chance! If you answer the final question correctly, you can take someone else's effect card." Lin Lili told her some good news.
"Great, then let's snatch all of Melody's!"
"Okay, okay, great!"
"Go get ready."
"I'm going now."
"I can't believe we actually have five cards. I'm really amazing today, long live Kexing!" I happily muttered to myself.
"With five effect cards, the effect of the official performance is guaranteed!" Song'er also felt like she was dreaming.
Just as we were getting excited, Pinky suddenly exclaimed, "That's not necessarily true! Don't forget there's still the final quiz game!"
We thought, "This is it!" But then we remembered we still had Shiyu on our side. She was a very good student. "It's okay, it's okay, we have the super-achiever Shiyu here!"
Shiyu said smugly, and the three of us exchanged a smile. Whether our effect cards could be stolen this time depended on Shiyu's skills!
"We're doomed, we can't beat Song Shiyu and Gao Yi." They were determined to steal all five of our cards, but being poor students, they didn't know how to win. "Weren't you very confident just now?"
"How could I be!"
"Okay, okay, I got it. The questions are all here, I'll bring them over right away."
"What's this? Let me see."
"What's wrong? This is—" They seemed to have seen something. They thought, "We can cheat and beat them now."
"Welcome back! Next up is the segment the audience has been waiting for. Alright, everyone, are you all ready? It seems you're all eager to try."
"This round is a spinning quiz. If you answer correctly, you can take away the effect cards from other combinations. This is a great opportunity to turn the tide."
"The first question is math."
"What is the answer to the math problem shown in the picture—"
"This…this is way too difficult!"
Just as Shiyu was about to write down the answer, Daijiali suddenly stood up. She was just looking at the answers, not thinking at all. "It's 4941053."
"Correct."
"Dolores can take the effect cards from other combinations. Which one do you want to choose?"
"We'll choose Melody's Spotlight effect card."
"Melody, ranked first, has had her card taken. The Spotlight effect card is transferred."
"Our cards..."
"Come on, Dolores, please choose the type of the next question."
"We choose Common Sense." This should be the simplest... no, the easiest answer to remember.
"What is the radius of the Earth's equator in kilometers?"
Shiyu's eyes gleamed, as if she knew the answer. But Lin Lili
stood up again. "I'll go, about 6378.2 kilometers."
"Lin Lili's answer is correct, points awarded."
"Then I'll choose Melody's Smoke Screen effect card." Maybe if this continues, we'll be at the bottom. No, we really will be at the bottom.
"You guys are pretty good, I didn't expect that."
"Actually,"
"Carrie,"
"That's because we studied hard,"
Carrie actually misspoke, she should have said "cheated hard."
"That's it."
"It's the observatory."
"Correct."
"Dolphin."
"Correct."
"Cinderella."
"Correct." "
Dolores chooses a card."
"Amazing, that's a super reversal!" After saying that, we turned all the remaining cards to Dolores.
"This reversal is so unexpected, right?" Yes
.
"Sure enough, no one knows the result until the very end."
"Next, it's time for the stage performance."
"Let's take a break, see you in the stage segment later."
"Performers, go prepare."
Dolores was still cheering, his voice unusually shrill.
"We're number one!"
"Our stage effects will definitely be super gorgeous this time, Xueyan, you can give it your all!"
"Only the best stage is worthy of my performance." Xueyan loves the magnificent stage the most.
"We're doomed."
"There's no stage effect at all, how are we supposed to perform later?"
"I say, are you getting discouraged by such a small thing?"
It was Jinghao.
"Have you forgotten what you learned at the Baozi Festival?"
"How can this be the same as the Baozi Festival? This is our first time performing on TV, what if—"
"Look at this." Jinghao opened a photo of a stage performance.
It's the Stardust group! But where did this photo come from?
"This is an early photo from the music festival."
"This stage is too simple." Song'er felt uncomfortable.
"Back then, things weren't so fancy, an empty stage was all we needed." Jinghao nodded.
"But even so, Stardust gave a perfect performance and gained super popularity."
"So, stage effects aren't everything."
"That's right, no matter what stage it is, it's all the same. There's only one thing we need to do."
That is to perform well.
"Everyone, thank you for waiting, the music festival performance is about to begin!"
First up was the Purple Queen, who sang their new song "Fantasy Journey". The stage effects perfectly matched their song; the interweaving of starry skies and fireworks created a beautiful, fantastical atmosphere, sparking a captivating synergy with their exquisite singing and dancing. Combined with their glamorous costumes, it was a visual feast.
Next up was the equally distinctive princess-themed group, Macaron. They sang "Departure to the Star Kingdom," their rainbow-colored skirts fluttering as they danced, colorful bubbles weaving a beautiful dream. Coupled with the princesses' sweet voices and charming dance moves, it was filled with a sweet, dreamlike feeling.
"Next up is the dream group that achieved a miraculous comeback! Let's welcome the elegant princess, Dolores!"
"Fantastic!"
Their new song, of course, was the adorable "Fun," which had topped the new song request charts. While the singing and dancing remained unchanged, the stage effects weren't as "glamorous" and "dreamy" as Xueyan had imagined. Instead, spotlights, fireworks, and smoke swirled around chaotically, obscuring Dolores' performance; all that could be heard was the singing and a blur of white lights tinged with red, yellow, and green.
"It's so dazzling!"
"The effects are too chaotic!"
"I can't even see what Dolores and the others are dancing!"
No one praised the stage's magnificence.
Principal Gao Wei and Oliver were watching the show. He sighed in front of the screen, "Effects are just embellishments; too many become distractions."
"That's right."
"The performance is almost over. Now, please welcome Melody to the stage!"
It was our grand finale. We sang "Heart's Delight" once again, full of sunny attitude. Even without any special effects cards, we gave it our all. It's just a music festival, after all. Isn't it much better than the previous stunt double rehearsals and the dumpling celebration?
"It's really good. Although it's simple, it feels very comfortable."
"Without special effects, the performance stands out even more."
"It feels like the old music festivals."
No one said anything like, "This stage is too plain." Although there were no special effects, the music festival stage was beautifully set up in its true form. It didn't need any embellishments to be beautiful enough.
"The newcomers all performed very well this time!
" "The best performer here?"
"That's our number one today!"
"My Melody!"
We got first place!
"What? Last place? Our stage was clearly the most glamorous."
But, will the audience really like such a "glamorous" stage?
"My Melody, your performance successfully moved the audience. Here's your prize: the Liu Jingyue Sunny Rain series set.
" "Thank you, teacher."
We went back and sat on the bench watching the news.
"It's all news about the music festival!"
"So many people left us messages of encouragement!"
"The music festival's publicity is really amazing!"
"We'll definitely get a lot of invitations in the future!"
"It's only just begun, it won't be that smooth sailing."
"Can you stop being so serious?"
Pinky cried out.
Kyung-ho always ruined the atmosphere with his words.
"But we did pretty well, right?"
"Yes, I agree."
"Look who taught us!"
"That's right, it was me.
" "Yeah, right, it was me!"

Chapter Two: The Delicious Bun Celebration

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 12:43:20 +0800

"I really brought this on myself, having to come to this pre-debut class. Not only is the activity room in the warehouse, but as a manager, I'm also responsible for cleaning! Honestly," Jinghao muttered to himself, regretting his decision.
"Um…we're here to get volleyballs." Several tall female students walked in.
"There are no volleyballs here!" Jinghao shouted angrily.
"Why did I choose them?" Jinghao recalled his conversation with Oliver in the office yesterday:
"Chu Jinghao, I greatly admire your abilities; you deserve better development."
"Thank you."
"Don't waste your talent; the debut class is where you should be."
But Jinghao only replied perfunctorily, "I appreciate your kindness,"
clearly still unappreciative: "But I still want to be Melody's manager. If there's nothing else, I'll head out."
Just as Jinghao was about to leave, Oliver's assistant, "Lanmi," suddenly spoke up: "You actually rejected Oliver's invitation! You'll regret it!"
"It's okay, Melody is worth it."
Just as Lanmi said, he indeed regretted it.
“Why did I have to act cool? I should have just said yes!”
Jinghao scratched his head and plopped down on the ground.
“Is there really no volleyball here?” a female student asked doubtfully.
“I already said there isn’t!” Jinghao was exasperated.
“Today, we’re introducing a remarkable new debut group, the Dorles, who’s been trending on social media lately. Are you all ready? Let’s enjoy their work together.” Su Li started talking about the news again. This time it was about the Dorles group, who were said to be very popular recently.
“From the moment they entered school, Dorles has been a unique group. Their song ‘General’ exudes a cool charm unlike anyone else’s,”
“Put away your regret for breaking the rules,
the game’s outcome is decided,
checkmate on the chessboard,”
followed by the melody of “General,”
“And their other song, ‘Running Towards You,’ showcases a different youthful style.”
“We’ll also look towards the same sunset,
hoping in our hearts that you can be by
my side, running towards you,”
the melody of “Running Towards You” began.
"After joining the debut group, Dorles released a song titled 'Fun,' and the new song quickly climbed into the top ten of the new song streaming charts. Dorles' popularity is soaring! What's their secret to success?" "
Throw aside the boundaries of doubt, complete trust is the only way,"
comes the melody of "Fun."
"Today we've invited them,"
and then, the three members of Dorles appeared before us. They wore tutu skirts with cat paw prints, rabbit or cat ears on their heads, and cat paws on their hands. The bright and sweet colors of their outfits made them look incredibly cute, lively, and playful, perfectly matching the style of their new song. "Hello everyone, we are Dorles,"
they greeted the audience.
"Is there anything you'd like to say to your fans?"
"Thank you so much for your support. We will definitely work harder to bring you more wonderful performances. Please continue to support Dorles!" Ning Xueyan spoke, which was quite unlike her usual self.
At this moment, Pinky suddenly jumped out, taking up the entire screen. "I can't take it anymore!" We were startled. Why did Pinky suddenly appear?
"Pinky, what are you doing?"
"It's so fake. Ning Xueyan is never like this, don't you think?" Yeah, where did that proud and elegant Xueyan go? She's obviously faking it on TV.
But we were still envious of Doles, having so many opportunities to appear on TV. "I really envy Doles."
"I want to be on TV too!"
"We've been on before,"
Shiyu next to me nudged me, "That's different."
Pinky chimed in, "Last time was just a rehearsal, okay?"
Shiyu clenched her fist and vowed, "We must stand on a bigger stage!"
Suddenly, we seemed to see the principal and Jinghao doing something "bad." Pinky said, "What are Principal Gao Wei and Chu Jinghao doing?"
"Looking for me?"
"Principal?
" "Good morning, everyone."
Jinghao nudged him, "Why are you only arriving now?"
"I just arranged Melody's schedule."
Hearing this, we thought happily: Finally, we can perform! "We...we've got a gig!" the three of us exclaimed in unison.
"Get ready to participate in the Steamed Bun Festival!"
"The Steamed Bun Festival?"
"Are we going to perform there
?" "No, you're going to help make steamed buns."
Help make steamed buns? That's just making us do hard labor! We're supposed to be singers! Shiyu froze, as if petrified.
"Shiyu," we tried to move her, and Fendu
said unhappily, "Seriously, isn't this just being a laborer?"
"Making steamed buns is fine, isn't it?" the principal retorted.
Fendu was also worried for them: "Why isn't it a stage performance gig?"
"It's not that simple!"
"Fendu, calm down!"
"I'm just worried for you guys. You can't even get on a small stage like a festival, what are you doing making steamed buns?" Fendu's words seemed to make sense.
"Fendu,"
"Not officially debuted, so there's no way to perform on a big stage?" Shiyu sighed helplessly.
"Let me ask you, Shiyu, is all My Melody needs just a grand stage?"
"Think about it while you're making steamed buns."
So, what does it really need? But this isn't about what it needs. We can't even get on a small stage like the celebration, and we're here doing manual labor. Aren't you worried about us?
Jinghao came over: "Principal Gaowei, don't change the subject."
"I'm not!"
Shiyu looked at Jinghao, wondering how he could help us.
Fendu also spoke up for us: "No matter what, give My Melody's debut stage back, give it back!"
"Isn't there a stage over there?"
Shiyu disappointedly took out her notebook and wrote: "Our chances of getting on stage today are only 0.02%."
Song'er comforted her: "Shiyu, don't be so pessimistic."
I also said: "There's a stage here too, maybe."
"But it's just a small stage."
Although it hadn't been long, we were already feeling aches and pains in our backs. "My back, can't I even rest?"
Finally, it was over. "My hands are so sore! This is even more tiring than dance practice!"
Two children suddenly noticed us, a little boy and a little girl. "Sister, sister, are you singers?"
I stammered, "I...we are singers, of course!" I wanted to explain that we were singers, but no one would believe me.
The little boy said, "Yeah, right, why would singers be making steamed buns here?"
The little girl said, "Will someone be performing later?"
"Do you want to see a performance?"
The little girl nodded.
"I even made a candy necklace for the singer sisters!" The necklace was decorated with colorful candies and looked very cute.
Shiyu and Song'er walked over. "We are singers!"
the little girl said. "Really? Have you ever been on TV?"
We didn't know how to answer for a moment. Our situation as a pre-debut class was really terrible. We had only been to one rehearsal as stand-ins, and although the photos were posted online, we hadn't appeared on TV. Shiyu could only say, "I guess so."
The little boy, however, kept asking, "What show is it?"
"What...what was it called again?" I could only pretend to have forgotten the show's name.
The little girl found it strange: "Then why are the older sisters making steamed buns?"
The little boy said, "I get it, you're steamed bun singers."
"That's interesting."
"So corny."
Shiyu got angry: "What?"
"Sisters, I've never seen a steamed bun singer before, can you perform?"
Song'er quickly retorted, "No, no, no, we're not steamed bun singers!"
"Then you're lying!"
"We really are!"
Lying?
"Then you really are steamed bun singers!
" "No way!"
"In that case, we should show our true skills."
"Let me show you Melody's performance!"
We could only prove we were singers with our actions. After all, we had Shiyu and Song'er here, one a main dancer and the other a high-note specialist, and I later worked hard to reach level one, so singing and dancing weren't a problem for us. Since we couldn't answer the questions, we'd surprise them with our performance.
So, we turned on the music and sang our hit song, "Whispers." To the music, we felt like we were performing on a real stage, dancing with youthful energy and singing vibrant songs.
"You dance so well!"
"Amazing!"
they exclaimed involuntarily.
A passerby asked, "Who are they?"
Compared to the dazzling presence of Fei Yang, Si Ji, and even the popular newcomer group, we were practically invisible; nobody even knew who we were.
"I think their name is Melody, they're really good," the person said, perhaps having seen our online video or heard it from the students.
"Please, let them perform on stage!"
"I told you it's impossible!"
Jinghao and the host were still discussing this when they turned around and suddenly saw us dancing. Their eyes widened in surprise.
"Unfortunately, another group is performing today,"
Jinghao said, "Ah,"
and then the host said, "The guest performers have already been arranged, and I can't just change anything."
The grand finale performance was about to begin. Doles arrived.
"It's them, they're here!"
"Great!"
As soon as Dolores arrived, no one paid attention to us.
"So beautiful, so elegant!"
"They're here, are they about to start their performance?"
"Great, they're here!"
Everyone was waiting to see Dolores' performance. Even though we were singing and dancing on the sidelines, no one paid any attention. We had to stop. It seemed that, as Shiyu said, we wouldn't be able to go on stage today.
"We're going over there, Sister Baozi!"
The two little girls also ignored us.
"Everyone, today's grand finale performance is about to begin!"
The host cleared his throat and said,
"Let's welcome the super popular group!"
"Dolores!"
"How could it be them?"
We were completely hopeless.
"It's Dolores!"
"I really didn't expect them to come."
Everyone was so looking forward to Dolores. Compared to them, we were so pitiful; nobody liked us at all.
"Who wants to come?" Xueyan's eyes and voice were as arrogant as ever.
They recalled the scene from this morning:
"Any announcements today?"
"First, it's Macaron's schedule. They're shooting a variety show at 1 PM, a cover photoshoot at 3 PM, and recording songs for their new album starting at 5 PM."
"That's awesome!" The three Macaron members smiled sweetly.
Xueyan tossed her hair, looking quite arrogant. She thought to herself: I, Ning Xueyan, will have more to do than them.
Unexpectedly, this sentence struck like a bolt from the blue: "As for Dorles, they only have one small stage event announcement today."
"What? How come they have interviews and show recordings, while we only get to perform at a small event!" The strong-willed Xueyan was furious.
"This… this is my arrangement."
"Do you have a problem with that?"
"Isn't this pretty good?" Xiaoli smiled, trying to comfort her. "I heard it's a super, super amazing food festival."
Xiaolan made a "shh" gesture.
Xueyan stood up defiantly: "We should perform on a bigger stage!"
Oliver spoke up: "I heard Melody and the others went to help out at that festival. If you want to perform on the big stage, prove your abilities first."
Macaron left first.
Xueyan was indignant: "Melody? They're comparing us to them?"
They went up on stage.
Xueyan's hands trembled with anger: "I'll show you just how big the gap is!"
They can only perform at small events, while we can't even get to perform at these kinds of events—isn't that even more disheartening?
The three of them changed costumes, and the stage became dazzling, brimming with youthful sweetness. Two children sat in the back, only able to hear the beautiful sounds but unable to see the performance. "Let's go to the front!" They went to the front, no longer acknowledging us, "I want to give the candy necklaces to my sisters!"
Suddenly, with a creak, the little girl tripped over an electrical wire. The stage returned to its original state, and the music stopped. The entire audience shouted, "What happened? What's going on?"
The host helped the little girl up.
"I'm very sorry, the performance will resume immediately."
"No need, it's unnecessary." Xueyan didn't care, because she didn't want to perform here in the first place!
"What?"
"Our performance is over." Then she arrogantly left the stage.
"No way, she's leaving just like that? What kind of show is this?"
Xueyan took Uncle Lin's bottled water. "This kind of stage doesn't deserve us at all."
"Let's go, Uncle Lin, I want to go back now."
"Okay, Miss."
"What's going on? "
"What kind of performance is this, just leaving like that?"
"That's too much, really!"
It seemed everyone's expectations had been dashed.
The two children also said, "We waited so long, and it's just gone like that?"
"It's all my fault for being careless, I'm sorry," the little girl apologized.
Actually, even if she was careless, Xueyan's actions were still wrong!
"That concludes Toles' performance. Today's show is now over."
"No, I want to see the show!" the little girl cried.
"Then next one," the host seemed to hear her.
"Let's perform!" I saw a great opportunity to perform; maybe Kyung-ho would let us go up!
The little boy said, "Yeah, those older sisters are singers too!"
The little girl said, "The older sisters danced really well!"
"Okay, but what group are they in?"
Kyung-ho snatched the microphone: "Sorry for the wait, everyone, next up, please welcome Melody!"
It was us! "
It's Melody! Welcome, welcome, good luck!"
Everyone was cheering for us!
"Okay, let's go on stage!"
We changed into our sweet outfits and performed our new song for everyone. This was our debut stage. Although it was small and couldn't compare to TV stations or concerts, there were audience members cheering us on. We performed brilliantly with great joy.
As we left the stage, Kyung-ho said, "Today's performance was a great success."
"Really?" I was very happy.
Pinky said, "That was an exceptional performance!"
A large crowd of audience members gathered around.
"That's awesome, Melody!"
"I even posted the video online!"
"I'm a fan of yours from today onwards!"
"Can I get an autograph? I'm rooting for you guys, keep it up!"
Someone wanted our autographs!
The principal appeared: "How does it feel? You're happy to receive praise from the audience, aren't you?"
"Don't forget, no matter how small the stage is, there are still audiences supporting you."
The shopkeeper brought over the steamed buns.
"You've worked hard today."
"They look delicious, they must be delicious!"
Xueyan arrived at the school.
"What do you want, Vice Principal?
" "Why did you cancel the performance
?" "Do you know how bad this is?" It was Lanmi's voice, Xueyan's assistant, Lanmi.
Xueyan still acted as if it wasn't a big deal: "Is it that serious? It's just a small event."
"Ning Xueyan, you handled this very unprofessionally." Olivier turned around.
"I just didn't want to perform on this kind of stage, wasting my expressions." Xueyan argued.
"Are you going to give up your stage?"
"Let Melody and the others perform on that lousy stage."
Xiaomin opened something and gave it to Xueyan.
"What?!"
"Take a good look!"
It was a video of Melody's performance.
"An incredible, dreamlike performance!"
That was the title.
"The views are...25,000?"
Xueyan couldn't believe her eyes. "What happened? What happened to Melody and the others?"
"This is the video of Melody performing in your place today. The attention that should have been yours has been taken away. This is the price you pay for abandoning your stage."
"If you had arranged a big stage, I would definitely have performed well. How could this have happened?" Xueyan still wouldn't admit her mistake.
"Is that so?"
"What...what should we do?" Lin Lili and Dai Jiali said.
We went back there.
"Sister Baozi,"
it was the two children.
"See? We really didn't lie, right?"
"Don't call us by weird names anymore."
"Sisters, this necklace is for you."
"Really? It's for us?"
The little girl nodded. "Sisters are awesome!"
"Thank you! We'll definitely become an even better group!"
"I'm your fan now!"
"Me too, I'm a fan too!"
"Let's take a picture together!"
We took a group photo and said goodbye to them, feeling satisfied.
"Goodbye, sisters! Come perform again!"
We're back!
"Welcome back, everyone! I've prepared a super delicious dinner to treat you!"
"I'm starving!"
"Perfect! Try my all-you-can-eat feast!"
"We've been making buns all day, and here we are again, still buns!" Seeing the table full of buns, we felt a little disappointed. However, this disappointment was nothing compared to when we first entered the pre-debut class.
"We'll cook dinner ourselves."
Kyung-ho made us omelet rice.
"Eat it while it's hot!"
Kyung-ho's phone suddenly rang.
"Hello."
"Yes, that's right."
"Excuse me."
"You mean you want to invite My Melody to perform?"
We were overjoyed to hear this.
"No problem, of course we'll go back, thank you."
Finally, we can perform on TV!
“Great, the next target is Dream Star,” Pinky suddenly said.
“It’s still a long way off, don’t get too cocky.”
“I was just kidding!”

Chapter 1: Pre-Debut Class

Sun, 11 Jan 2026 12:42:41 +0800

"We've finally, finally arrived here!"
"Qiao Kexing, you finally, finally did it!"
"We're in the debut class! Am I dreaming?"
"This place is pretty good!"
Our long-awaited dream had finally come true, and the three of us couldn't help but cheer.
"Hello everyone, I'm Xiaomin, the secretary of Vice Principal Olivier. Welcome to the debut class directly under the Vice Principal's supervision." Suddenly, a woman in her thirties, dressed in a suit and wearing glasses, appeared before us. So she was Vice Principal Olivier's secretary?
"So, will we have more opportunities to perform for everyone?" Tong Xiaoli from the Macaron group asked cutely.
"As long as you become the most popular group,"
Xiaomin replied simply.
"That way, we can go on TV,"
"participate in various programs,"
"give performances?"
The three members of the Duoles, who loved the stage, certainly couldn't miss this opportunity to perform for everyone.
"We'll talk about it after you debut." Xiaomin simply cleared her throat and threw out this sentence. Our initial excitement was completely wiped out by this bland reply.
“She’s overthinking it,”
Ning Xueyan teased.
Everyone left, leaving Xiaoli alone. Her eyes lit up as if she had seen something, and she excitedly ran over. “This is the Fei Meng Microphone?” Xiaoli saw the honor that only Fei Meng Stars could receive. “Go for it, Tong Xiaoli, you can definitely succeed!”
“You will become super, super popular, and then become everyone’s Fei Meng Star!” She seemed to have already become a Fei Meng Star, her eyes sparkling with excitement, and a sweet smile appeared on her face.
Then, Xiaomin led us outside the playground. A row of brand-new and beautiful vehicles were displayed before us. “These are the special vehicles prepared for the debut class,” everyone finally understood, “For your comfort and safety, all the vehicle configurations are top-of-the-line, ensuring the quality of your performances.” The Purple Queen members looked at each other and nodded. They stepped into the car, looked around carefully, and exclaimed, "Such a cool car and us with such a powerful aura!" They got out, smiled, and waved to everyone, their eyes sparkling. "We're such a perfect match!" They imagined the sense of accomplishment of being surrounded by fans, as if they were the moon in the sky, surrounded by a galaxy of dazzling stars.
"Purple Queens, what are you doing?" The three, still immersed in their blissful daydreams of being the center of attention, were startled awake by Xiaomin's sudden words. "Come on, follow me!" "
Alright, this is your dormitory. Each group will share a room." With that, Xiaomin gently pushed open the door, and a burst of light appeared before them—their dormitory. "A rustic yet elegant wooden desk, refined European-style furnishings—all prepared for you." Could this be our dormitory? It's so beautiful, completely different from our previous rooms!
"No wonder it's the debut class!" Just as we were marveling at the wonderful environment of the debut class, "Okay, I understand, it's Melody, right? I know," Xiaomin was on the phone. She seemed to be calling Vice Principal Oliver. Then she called out to us as we were touring the dorms, "Melody,"
"Huh?"
"Sorry, you have to leave now,"
Xiaomin's words struck us like a bolt from the blue. Leave? Were we being kicked out of the debut class?
"Leave? What do you mean?" the three of us exclaimed in unison. Our dream, which we were about to realize, had burst like a bubble. How could we, as students of Fei Meng Academy who wholeheartedly pursued our dreams, feel such a sense of loss?
"There was a problem with the previous class arrangement. Your class is over on the playground. Go quickly."
We followed Jinghao out of the dorm, feeling somewhat unhappy. "No! Wait! If there aren't enough rooms, we can sleep on the floor!" I couldn't bear being kicked out of the debut class any longer
, and I pounded on the door while shouting loudly.
"Kexing, calm down," Shiyu couldn't stand me anymore, and Jinghao covered his ears too. "Yeah, even if we make a scene like this, it won't hurt..." Before Jinghao could finish speaking, "Hey, you're here, Chu Jinghao," Olivier walked over and called out to him. "Vice Principal Olivier," I was about to ask her why we were kicked out of the debut class, "Chu Jinghao, I've heard your compositions, they're quite good. Would you consider joining our debut class? Let's talk about it in my office." "Well, see you later."
"Kexing, let's go to the playground first," Shiyu tried to calm me down. We walked to the end of the playground and saw a blue building, which seemed to be the classroom. "Preparatory Debut Class," I looked at the big words on the paper and felt a sense of foreboding. I tried to take the paper down and go find Teacher Caiwen to ask about the situation. "Let's go find the teacher," Shiyu and Song'er nodded.
"No need for that," a voice came from inside. We went in and saw that it was Principal Gao Wei. “Melody,”
“Principal Gao Wei,”
followed by a few claps from Principal Gao Wei, “Welcome to the debut class I’m leading. I, Principal Gao Wei, promise to do everything I can to help you.” We were completely confused. “Go see your practice room, I guarantee you’ll love it,”
“Let’s go find Teacher Cai Min,” I suddenly had a bright idea. I thought, while they’re showing us the practice room, I can ask Teacher Cai Min what’s going on. Maybe she’ll let us into the debut class. “Okay,” Shi Yu and Song Er agreed.
“Let’s go, let’s go, super free, run and jump as you please…” Before the principal finished speaking, we were already running out of the classroom. “What’s going on?” Shi Yu muttered under her breath, slightly annoyed.
“I haven’t finished speaking yet!”
“Teacher Cai Min,”
we rushed towards her at lightning speed. “No,”
“I haven’t said anything yet,”
“You just want to switch to the debut class, don’t you?” She seemed to have read our minds.
"Gold will always shine eventually. What you need to do now is work hard." That was the only sentence she left us, a sentence that sounded like a famous saying. It was true, but did going to the debut training class mean we couldn't work hard, couldn't shine? Thinking about all the effort we'd put in, how we'd given our all on stage, all for this moment. How could we let the flower of our dreams, watered with our sweat, wither away like this? "But we don't want to be in the pre-debut training class!"
"That's right, Director Shi, I've trained many big stars, even the most famous one now, Oliver, was trained by me. Okay, let's talk again sometime."
"Welcome back to the pre-debut training class, come on, cheer up!"
But we really couldn't be happy. "I just want to rest now. Where's our dorm?"
"Dorm? Well, of course we have one." With that, the principal led us to a large tent. "How about it, not bad, right? This is the dorm I painstakingly prepared for you. By the way, don't be too touched."
"Who would be touched!" We were extremely disappointed. We wanted a dormitory, but they gave us a tent instead.
"What's wrong? Why are you shouting like that?" "We want dorms, not tents," Shiyu retorted. We both nodded. The principal, however, remained nonchalant: "Don't worry, don't worry, we'll have them later."
"Later? What about now?"
"My phone rang. Hello, hello."
"This is terrible," I complained to Shiyu and Song'er. Suddenly, I thought of Jinghao. He's been so good to us; he'll definitely help us. I felt a glimmer of hope. "Let's ask Jinghao for help." "Yeah, Jinghao will definitely have a way," Song'er smiled happily. "But didn't Jinghao go to the debut class?" Shiyu wondered. What should we do then? Our spirits sank again.
The next morning arrived.
Su Li started her news report: "Good morning, I'm Su Li, the school's special correspondent. Have you all heard? This year, Fei Meng Academy has a strange class—a pre-debut class."
"Get up!"
"There are only three students in the class: Qiao Kexing, Song Shiyu, and Yang Song'er." With that, Su Li turned the camera towards us, who were still half asleep.
"Let's interview Song'er first. There's a question everyone's curious about: why are the debut class students living in tents?" But we were doing our morning practice, so Song'er and we had to make a quick getaway.
"Wait,"
"From what I've observed, the teaching environment for the debut class is quite terrible. Why would Fei Meng Academy have such a class? Next time, our special correspondent Su Li will continue to unravel the mystery for you."
Unexpectedly, Su Li knew everything.
"Keep it up, don't sway, lift your feet, 26, 27, 28, 29." At this moment, the debut class students (Macaron, Doles, Purple Queen) were practicing their dance moves. "30 seconds, okay, that's enough. Breakfast is ready; there's a world-class chef waiting for you over there." We looked at the debut class students practicing in a place surrounded by flowers and green leaves, with fresh, sweet air, and eating such delicious breakfasts, and we were filled with envy. Meanwhile, on our table, there were only four packs of instant noodles.
"I understand that your goal is to become Dream Stars. But to become a Dream Star, you'll inevitably have to compete against other participating groups in the competition. The Dream Competition is a one-on-one competition; only by getting higher scores in each match and continuously winning can you advance and qualify for the final competition." Hearing this news, we couldn't help but imagine the future:
"What if we really made it to the final competition stage?"
"Then our opponents would be?"
"Vice Principal Oliver."
"That's all for later. Let's eat now."
"But, Principal..." Shiyu was clearly still full of doubt and helplessness about the pre-debut class.
"No questions today." With that, the principal began wolfing down his instant noodles. We sighed helplessly.
"I almost forgot,"
"Your debut performance is confirmed."
"Really?" Hearing this good news, the helplessness and doubt in our eyes vanished, replaced by joy for our debut and anticipation for the performance, and our usual youthful smiles returned.
"Finally, this day has come!"
We walked out of the school gate and saw the debut group members getting into their beautiful private cars one after another, ready to go to the TV station for their performance. I'm so envious of the debut group! "Alright, alright, we need to get ready for the TV station too."
"But how are we going to get there?"
Just as I finished speaking, the principal mysteriously pulled something out of his pocket. Its packaging looked like the packaging of the previous Fimeng Card. "Is it the new Fimeng Card?" I was very happy.
"No, no, no, this is what you newly debuted need most."
"What?"
We opened it and saw that it was a transportation card.
We were greatly disappointed.
"That's right, it's a transportation card."
"With this, we can go anywhere!"
Our mood plummeted to hell...
"Don't worry, what you've been waiting for is here."
We looked and saw that it was a cute series designed by the Sweet Maggie brand, consisting of the playful and cute "Sugar Jar Sweetheart," the refreshing blue "Crystal Bottle Narcissus," and the pure and blooming "Flower Box Vanilla." It was really beautiful and suited us perfectly. Is this what we'll wear for the performance? It's so great!
"I'm really looking forward to your debut!"
"Thank you."
"Okay, let's go then, let's go!"
We smiled and left the school, arriving at the TV station.
"There are so many people!" It was our first time in such a crowded place, and we felt excited and curious.
"Look, that's the poster for the Fei Yang group!" As a Junyu fan, I was naturally happy to see the Fei Yang group's poster.
"This is the TV station!"
"Our dream is finally going to come true!"
"No, it's still far from it."
"According to my analysis, after Fei Yang's debut, it only took seven days to reach the top of the charts!" "Really?" How does Shiyu know everything? Is there anything she doesn't know?
"We're going to break their record, Ke Xing, Song Er, what do you think? Are you confident?" We nodded. We're going to break their record too!
Walking through the door, the first thing that caught our eye was many colorful posters. "One day, our poster will also be hanging in this hall!"
We went closer and saw it was Zi Rou from the Four Seasons group. "By the way, I just thought of this new pose!" I said, imitating Zi Rou's pose. Actually, we really like the Four Seasons group.
"Get ready, Chika's here for rehearsal!"
It's Chika, the leader of the Four Seasons group! She's dressed to the nines, smiling, and walks over like an elf, radiating charm. "They're so popular! I didn't expect to see them so close." Seeing the famous Chika up close is really exciting. As she gets closer, she faces the people on both sides, confidently tosses her flowing blonde hair, and gives a sweet wink, exuding star power. "Aren't the other members here? I want to see Zirou too!" Shiyu loves Four Seasons the most; she likes every member and their songs. "Yeah, but seeing Chika is already great!" I
'm so envious of them! One day we'll become a group as amazing as Four Seasons, no, even more amazing than them, becoming Dream Stars! How wonderful that would be! We must perform well in our debut!
"You're Melody, right?"
"Get ready, you're going on stage!"
"Now?"
No way, they haven't even rehearsed much before going on stage?
"Yeah, it's not going to air anyway, let's hurry up."
"It's not going to air?" How can they not air our debut performance? What do you mean?
"It's just a stand-in rehearsal, of course it won't air."
"Why would it be a stand-in?"
"I want my parents to see our performance!"
"What should we do?" We were all filled with disappointment. The performance we had been looking forward to turned out to be just a rehearsal with stand-ins. Was the principal really going to fool us like this?
"If Jinghao were here, what would he do?"
Pinky appeared. "Listen, whether it's a stand-in or a rehearsal, as long as we're on stage, we should give it our all. If Jinghao were here, I think he would say the same thing ."
Our mood instantly brightened. Yes, let's give it a try! Even if it's not broadcast, even if we're just stand-ins for someone else, we'll still give our best performance!
Then, we changed into cute outfits from Sweet Maggie's collection and performed a lively and adorable song, "Heart Blossoms."
"Their stage presence is pretty good."
"Yeah, such a wonderful performance is rare."
After the song ended, we left the stage and returned to school.
The performance officially began. We saw the Doles group's performance on the live stream. So we were just stand-ins for Doles!
"That's right,"
"Although it's a bit depressing that it can't be broadcast, our debut performance was still pretty great, right?" Fei Meng's assistant rang again. When I opened the app, it was Dad: "Kexing, we all watched the performance! It was absolutely fantastic! You guys were amazing!" I was both happy and confused. How could he have seen it? Wasn't it supposed to be off the air? Shiyu's friends also said they saw the performance, and Song'er received many messages praising them.
"Everyone said they saw it online," Song'er said.
We checked, and sure enough, there was a video of us online.
"Even though they're newcomers, they performed really well!" "
From today on, we're going to be their fans!"
We have fans now!
"What's wrong? Did something good happen?" A cute, pink voice rang in my ears.
"Yeah, something super good!" I tossed my assistant, Feimeng, into the air. Pink was dizzy with excitement. We burst into laughter. In the laughter, all the unhappiness flew away, leaving only flower-like smiles. Yes, just like the lyrics of the new song "Heart Blossoms," "Hahahaha, hehehehe, heart blossoms!" "Don't worry, be happy, be happy!" "Carefree!" "Heart blossoms, heart blossoms, laugh freely, no worries!" As long as happiness comes, all worries and troubles will fly away.
"By the way, the principal said we'll have an activity room tomorrow."
"Hopefully only good things will happen from now on."
"Let's work hard tomorrow too."
"Let's go to bed early tonight, early to bed and early to rise
." Tomorrow is another new day.
We walked into a smelly and somewhat messy room. "So Fei Meng Academy has a place like this?"
We went in and saw that no one was inside. "Strange, where is the principal?"
"Anyway, let's go out first.
" "Stop right there!"
It's the principal!
"What are you doing here?"
"Listen, from now on, this is your activity room."
"No way, you mean this is our activity room?"
"But isn't this a warehouse?" I thought to myself, how could the principal fool us like this?
"Don't worry, even if it's a warehouse, we can tidy it up and use it as an activity room, right?" The principal coughed twice and said nonchalantly.
"Principal, can I get the ball over there?" A strong young man came in.
"Sure, sure."
Taking the opportunity, Shiyu had already prepared her lines: "Principal, yesterday you called the rehearsal stand-in the debut performance, and now you're trying to fool us with a warehouse." She felt this was too irresponsible towards them students. After all, they were all young and beautiful girls wholeheartedly pursuing their dreams to become Dream Stars! Everyone was working very hard, and treating them like this was too much, especially since they were still students!
"It's not a bad thing for young people to suffer a little; it's also a form of training that will help you learn more."
That was true, but the students in the debut class had such good food, accommodation, and activity rooms/classrooms. Did they learn less than us? They could train through other things, so why did they have to make us live in tents, eat instant noodles for breakfast, sleep in a warehouse in the activity room, and come all the way to a performance only to find out we were rehearsals stand-ins?
"I'm so incredibly handsome, every little thing I say is a famous quote!"
...
"By the way, Principal, did you see our performance yesterday?" I wanted to know what the principal thought, given that my parents, friends, and even strangers were praising us.
Unexpectedly, his answer was: "Yes, you guys are still far from good enough. At this rate, you'll never become a Dream Star!"
Couldn't the principal offer some positive encouragement? It felt like he only knew how to use reverse psychology.
"Oh, and there's something else to announce. Our pre-debut class producer has arrived."
"A new producer?"
A familiar figure appeared before us.
"You guys really want to replace me that badly?"
I recognized the voice—it was Jinghao!
"Everyone, let me introduce you. This is our pre-debut class producer, Chu Jinghao."
Pinky said, "Jinghao, weren't you supposed to be in the debut class?"
I felt like he might be a spy. "Welcome back. You're here to be a spy, aren't you?"
"Thank you."
"Explain yourself!"