Chapter 73

The head of the cultural troupe, Lin, was a woman in her forties. She was attractive and capable. Looking at Lu Wenchan in front of her, she saw a delicate face and a decent figure. At least her appearance passed the test.

“What can you do?” she asked.

Lu Wenchan cleared her throat and said, “Comrade Director, I’m quite good at singing. How about I sing a piece for you?”

Lin nodded. “Go ahead.”

Singing a cappella is a real test of skill, and a bad performance can be a disaster.

Unexpectedly, Lu Wenchan sang quite well.

Among those retiring recently was a singer, and Lu Wenchan could fill that gap perfectly.

“Alright, you can go home and wait for the news. If you pass the political review, remember to come and report in.”

Lu Wenchan couldn’t hide her joy and repeatedly said, “Yes, yes, Lin, I will definitely report on time.”

She knew her political review wouldn’t be an issue.

She and her brother had the same parents, and her brother was now an instructor. She had no fear regarding the political review for joining the cultural troupe.

Excited, Lu Wenchan left with a smile on her face.

However, once she returned home, she suddenly realized she hadn’t resigned from her current job. If they found out she had another job, it wouldn’t be good, even if it didn’t cause major issues.

Now, she just had to wait for the political review results. Confident she wouldn’t be rejected, she headed to the Women’s Federation.

As soon as she arrived, she saw a few people discussing something in front of the bulletin board.

Upon closer inspection, she found that the latest publicity bulletin was up.

But she calculated the time and realized it shouldn’t have been done so quickly.

At that moment, an older sister in front said, “Shi is truly amazing. She does the work of several people alone. We usually don’t have this speed.”

“It’s a pity she’s not one of us. If she were here, our work would be much easier.”

“Who says otherwise?”

Their salaries were standard, whether they had more or less work each month, so they naturally preferred having less work.

Moreover, their Women’s Federation was affiliated with the military, dealing mostly with conflicts between military wives or couples, with little room for advancement.

They had a very relaxed attitude.

Hearing them mention “Comrade Shi,” Lu Wenchan knew they were talking about Shi Tingyu. The surname Shi was rare; she had only ever encountered one.

She didn’t expect Director Liu to ask Shi Tingyu for help.

Normally, she would have felt uncomfortable, as no one likes being compared unfavorably to others by their boss.

But thinking about her imminent entry into the cultural troupe, her mood brightened.

Lu Wenchan went to Director Liu’s office, and before she could speak, Director Liu asked first.

“Have you taken care of your business and come back to work?”

Lu Wenchan’s face showed a trace of embarrassment. “Yes, it’s all sorted out…”

“Then hurry back to work. Others have been covering for you,” Director Liu said, somewhat displeased with the flighty young woman.

Lu Wenchan glanced at her and finally spoke, “Director, I’ve come to resign.”

Director Liu was extremely surprised. “Resign?”

It’s not that she was overly confident in her unit, but military family members finding a job wasn’t easy. The work at the Women’s Federation wasn’t difficult, and the pay was steady, a position many would vie for.

If she was resigning so easily, she must have found something better.

With this in mind, Director Liu’s tone softened, “Xiao Lu, have you found a better opportunity during your leave?”

Lu Wenchan’s eyes flickered, thinking it would be known once she joined the cultural troupe, so she didn’t hide it. “I’ve always admired soldiers, so I applied to the cultural troupe.”

Director Liu secretly scoffed. Admired soldiers? She had just found a better place.

She didn’t make it difficult for her and approved the resignation.

Keeping a restless person wasn’t useful, especially since she wasn’t a rare talent like Shi Tingyu. There was no point in persuading her to stay. Plenty of people would be eager to take the job.

Lu Wenchan hadn’t expected Director Liu to be so accommodating. After completing the procedures, she left.

After Lu Wenchan returned home, she began packing her belongings, ready to leave as soon as she received the notification from the cultural troupe.

That evening, she uncharacteristically helped Su Qiaoyue make dinner, which earned her several surprised glances.

When Lu Wenbin came home, Lu Wenchan announced at the dinner table that she would be joining the cultural troupe.

Lu Wenbin was genuinely happy for his sister.

Although Su Qiaoyue usually looked down on Lu Wenchan’s behavior, she didn’t dampen her spirits this time.

Having Lu Wenchan in the cultural troupe would only benefit them.

The notification from the cultural troupe came a week later.

As soon as she received it, Lu Wenchan happily grabbed her bag and went to report.

However, she didn’t expect that working in the cultural troupe wouldn’t be as simple as just singing and dancing.

New recruits had to undergo training with the new soldiers for a period.

During the hot summer days, an hour under the sun was almost unbearable for her.

She initially thought training at the camp might attract the attention of some officers, but reality quickly dashed those hopes.

In the scorching heat, after a day of training, let alone attracting the attention of any soldiers, she was so sweaty and sticky that she wished she could stay far away from them, as it completely ruined her image.

On the other side, Lu Weiguo also began arranging training for his wife.

He noticed that no matter how exhausted she seemed at night, by the next evening, she was full of energy again.

For the sake of her future safety, he decided to start training her.

Training began with running.

Since running in the residential area was inconvenient and there was no proper training track, he reported to his superiors and got permission for her to join the cultural troupe’s female soldiers for training in the camp every day.

With the cultural troupe present, it didn’t seem out of place.

Thanks to Shi Tingyu’s help with the portrait incident, the higher-ups were happy to grant Lu Weiguo this favor.

Lu Wenchan noticed that a few days into her training, there was an additional person in their group.

“What are you doing here? Did you also join our cultural troupe?”

Shi Tingyu glanced at her and simply said, “No, I’m just here to exercise.”

Lu Wenchan sighed in relief. She was already overshadowed by Shi Tingyu and didn’t want to be in the same batch as her in the cultural troupe, as it would diminish her chances of standing out.

Although Shi Tingyu had been out of practice for a few years, the daily intake of spirit spring water had significantly improved her physical condition, not to mention her skin. Her overall fitness had greatly improved.

Her endurance and flexibility were much better than the average person.

Especially since she had a partner who loved to exhaust her with various positions at night, without her improved flexibility and endurance, it would be hard to keep up with that “beast.”