Chapter 21 Performance

After her careful disguise, Su Niannian’s skin was even less fair than that of the other women, and although she stood in the lead-dancer’s spot, her movements were ordinary, without a single highlight.

Commander Yan, sitting in the first row, quietly breathed a sigh of relief. He had worried that Gu Zhiye might be blinded by capitalist temptation, but from the looks of it, this Comrade Su was completely free from its influence — just look at her skin color, a typical representation of a farmer. Proper and disciplined. She hadn’t even let her gaze linger in their direction. Her appearance certainly fell far short of a seductive troublemaker. Perhaps… they’d gotten it all wrong. A bad bamboo can produce a good shoot after all!

Commander Yan turned toward Gu Zhiye and said quietly, “This Comrade Su is not bad.”
Gu Zhiye raised his chin. “Not bad.”
“…”
To be able to become lead dancer immediately, there must be something outstanding about her — a match for Gu Zhiye. More importantly, he liked her. His expression remained stiff, but those who knew him could see the glimmer of happiness creeping into his eyes.

As the performance drew to a close, Commander Yan exchanged glances with Commissar Jiang. The former patted Gu Zhiye’s shoulder and said, “While you need to avoid suspicion in the open, as a leader, you should go and pay your regards to them on our behalf.”

Gu Zhiye straightened his uniform and furrowed his brows. “I’ll reluctantly go.”
“Don’t pretend you’re forced to when you’re secretly delighted.”
Commander Yan and the rest exchanged a few laughs and then turned their gazes toward Gu Zhiye as he walked toward the back. Meanwhile, in the rear seats, Gao Jianshe noticed the leaders’ departure and exchanged glances with Jin Chuan. Then he reluctantly tugged him to follow.

…the curtain fell amid a warm round of applause.

As soon as Su Niannian and the dancers came down from the stage, Instructor Fu began praising them. Her performance, as lead dancer, was ordinary by standard — but for someone in their first lead, it was a masterpiece. She hadn’t even rehearsed many of the routines, yet there hadn’t been a single misstep. This ability to remember and reproduce after just a brief observation was a kind of genius in Instructor Fu’s view.

In front of both the first and the second squads, she openly praised Su Niannian, especially noting that the disguise kept her from deliberately drawing the attention of the leadership — much to Instructor Fu’s surprise — even Liao Yu was taken aback. She had gotten her medicine back in time and hadn’t missed a moment of Su Niannian’s wonderful performance. As someone who had previously been recognized as a genius, Liao Yu could see at a glance that Su Niannian was holding back — that she hadn’t gone all out at all.

Liu Tao recounted to Liao Yu what Su Niannian had said, adding many favorable details. Liao Yu placed a cup of warm brown sugar water in front of Su Niannian and handed her a piece of cloth for removing her makeup, sincerely stating, “Thank you.”

Su Niannian slowly removed her disguise, allowing her fair, delicate skin to show. She lowered her lashes and smiled warmly. “I think I should be the one thanking you — for giving me the opportunity to perform under the spotlight.”

“Su Niannian, there’s a long road ahead — you’ll get your chance to blossom.”
Liao Yu was infected by her smile and impulsively gave her a brief embrace. The two then exchanged a few words, noting a few details in their routines. Just then, a commotion arose at the doorway, alongside a chorus of delighted gasps from the women soldiers.

Su Niannian put down the cloth and, together with Liao Yu, turned to look toward the group. Among them, Gu Zhiye stood out. His strong, piercing aura seemed hard to ignore — a dramatic contrast to his normally casual demeanor. His expression was a mask of discipline, causing the soldiers to step back in a circle, adding a bit of space between him and the rest — all except Jiang Xiaofei, who was still sweaty from the performance. She rushed forward, nearly flinging herself into his arms. “Captain Gu! How was my performance just now? Did you think it was good?”

Gu Zhiye quietly drew back and said casually, “Didn’t watch.” His piercing gaze cut through the bustling crowd and fell directly upon Su Niannian. In that moment, the icy chill seemed to fade, as if he were there for her. Su Niannian’s heart faltered a bit. She put down the cloth in her hands and said to Liao Yu, “Leader, I’m going to go change.”
Liao Yu’s lips still held a bitter smile. “Some people… are just born in Rome.”
Su Niannian didn’t hear him. She drew close and asked, “What?”
Liao Yu quietly picked up her uniform and, while avoiding the crowd, reminded her, “If you want to make a name for yourself in the art troupe, you must first learn not to conflict with Jiang Xiaofei. Did you see? Tonight’s show belonged to her — even the military leaders came to pay their regards. She’s different from us. If you keep advancing, there will come a day when you’re competing with her for that lead spot…”
“Thank you for your reminder.” Su Niannian’s tone was humble.
Jiang Xiaofei’s father was a military commissar — her background was formidable. Few people would even contemplate competing with her. Even Liao Yu, previously recognized as a genius, fell short. But when Su Niannian appeared in the rehearsal room, Liao Yu had a feeling Jiang Xiaofei was about to meet her strongest competitor. Tonight, Su Niannian’s performance might seem ordinary in the eyes of the rest, but in time, it could make a dramatic breakthrough…

Su Niannian lingered in the changing room for a long time. She didn’t know for whom Gu Zhiye had come, but there was one thing for certain — she couldn’t let the art troupe know their relationship. So to avoid suspicion, after changing, Su Niannian slipped out through the back door, down the long corridor toward the dorms. The moment she stepped out into the corridor, regret filled her. The clear moonlight fell upon the path, and there, leaning casually against the wall with a sophisticated demeanor at odds with the glow of his cigarette, stood Jin Chuan.

He turned his head upon hearing a sound and casually put out his cigarette. Su Niannian, with her face already scrubbed clean, acted faster than her own mind — turning to dart away — but instead fell directly into a strong wall of a man. Gu Zhiye’s calm voice fell from above her, “Where are you running?”
He heard heavy footsteps from Jin Chuan closing in. Without further thinking, Su Niannian turned and fell into Gu Zhiye’s embrace, holding him tightly against the wall, adding a dramatic softness to her voice. “DARLING! Did you enjoy tonight’s performance?”