Chen Yuanyuan was in so much pain in her stomach that she was sweating profusely. From 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., her condition did not improve at all; in fact, it got worse.
Everyone has seen it.
She looks like she's not fit to go on stage.
In the end, the teacher still asked Chen Yuanyuan's parents to come and pick her up.
Chen Yuanyuan was so anxious she wanted to cry, and she pounded her thigh in self-reproach: "It's all my fault for being so useless. All the other second-year students are fine, but I'm the worst off..." She has gastritis, so eating bad food naturally made her condition worse.
Jin Shuoshuo was also anxious, but could only offer a few words of comfort: "It's okay, if it really doesn't work... just play the accompaniment and sing along, it's not an important competition."
Chen Yuanyuan buried her head in He Qing's arms, feeling guilty and unsure of what to say.
"Congratulations to Class 4 of Grade 11! You achieved a record high score of 8.3!" Wei Teng seemed very satisfied, and his tone was very excited when he said this.
"Ooh!"
The students in Class 4 clapped and cheered each other, then walked off the stage with happy expressions, as if they were very confident that they would win first place.
The students in the audience were all very happy because of the party, but the atmosphere was different for Class 8 of Grade 11.
"I can play the piano."
When the air was quiet, a sound came from behind everyone.
Everyone looked at Shen Moyu, who was panting as he held the piano manuscript he had just printed out.
"I can play this song. Although I'm not very proficient, I can play it accurately from the sheet music." He was afraid that people wouldn't trust him, so he talked a lot while showing a confident look in his eyes.
That look in your eyes is like a comforting hand, like the last straw clinging to a precipice. It compels you to trust and feel safe.
"You..." Jin Shuoshuo's head was about to explode.
The series of events that happened today felt somewhat unreal to her. One unexpected event after another brought surprises and delights, leaving this teacher somewhat bewildered and unsure of what to do.
"Top student, don't joke around." Su Jinning stood up from her seat, her brows furrowed seriously.
"Forget it... let's just play the instrumental version of the chorus." Jin Shuoshuo didn't want to take any risks.
“Teacher…” Chen Yuanyuan’s weak voice came from behind.
The voice continued: "Shen Moyu does know this piece. There's a sheet of sheet music for this song tucked into the last page of the Chinese notebook he lent me."
"ah?"
"Holy crap..."
——
"Please welcome Class 8 of Grade 11 to perform the chorus song 'Summer Belongs to Youth'."
"Wuhu—"
Perhaps because the school's most attractive students were all in Class 8 of the second year of high school, the enthusiastic applause from the audience never stopped, and the screams were also very loud.
Shen Moyu took a deep breath and sat on the piano bench he hadn't sat on in a long time. He gently placed his hands on the keys, stroking their smoothness, slowly trying to find the feeling he had lost.
The light shone on Shen Moyu, illuminating his straight and slender figure as he sat at the piano.
Another shout erupted from the audience.
His slender, white fingers, made even whiter by the lights, pressed the piano keys, and as the lively notes flowed from his hands, the noise from the audience abruptly ceased.
Su Jinning looked up at the boy in the pure white shirt under the bright lights. His figure swayed with the music, and the sound of the piano was like a babbling brook, continuous and mysterious, ancient and melancholic, ethereal and resonant in her ears.
When all eyes were drawn to the boy in the white shirt on stage, the lights split into two beams.
This opened the way for the poems that would follow.
Holding her guitar, Su Jinning looked as gentle and quiet as a boy in a hazy dream. Her fingers plucked the strings rhythmically, and melodious music flowed out like water.
"I looked up at the moon in the sky, and its warmth fell on my shoulders..."
The sound is like the lyrics, the music is like the notes.
The gentle piano notes colliding with the melodious guitar strings were like a stone suddenly thrown into the shimmering surface of a moonlit lake. It stirred up ripples, "plop!"
Ripples spread across the tranquil, somewhat monotonous lake surface, creating a scene of serenity yet vibrant life.
Accompanied by the boy's newly matured, clear and cool voice...
Like the clear, melodious song of a nightingale in a starry night.
Like the mysterious and elegant lingering sounds in the Rose Castle.
"The boy's footsteps never cease, chasing his shadow, chasing the light."
The piano music intensifies here, the chorus builds gradually, and the grand chorus takes center stage.
The ripples on the lake grew more numerous, the nightingale's song grew louder, and the ancient castle, entwined with roses, seemed to unveil its mystery.
Like a youthful cry, it starts with a gentle opening and ends with a strong and passionate chorus.
Accompanied by the perfect chorus and the high and low notes, the students in the audience listened with rapt attention, as if they were in a cloud of mist.
The two boys left their seats together, took a step forward in unison, and bowed their heads.
Excited screams rang out again, and teachers and students alike applauded from the bottom of their hearts.
"8.5 points!" Wei Teng's usually stern face broke into a smile for this wonderful performance, and the score he gave was directly higher than the average score of Class 4, which had always been in first place.
"Whoa—" The students' shouts never stopped, noisy and prolonged.
“8.8 points” “9.0 points”
Jin Shuoshuo's sunglasses fell to the ground again.
“8.9 points” “9.3 points”
"Congratulations to Class 8 of Grade 11 for achieving the highest average score to date: 8.9 points!" Wei Teng's voice was very heroic, as if he was celebrating the victory of Class 8 of Grade 11 in advance.
"Tsk!" Jin Shuoshuo looked at the two boys walking towards him, feeling touched, surprised, and a bit of a headache.
"Does the teacher not know how much secret you two have been hiding?" Jin Shuoshuo laughed uncontrollably, tapping their foreheads with his fingers.
"I really didn't expect this! You two, top student and Ning-ge, your collaboration and the music are just too amazing!" Song Wenmiao put his arm around the two of them, looking like he was determined to win.
"Let me tell you, I've been singing this song off-key the whole time, and I've just been filling in the numbers during rehearsals! Ask Song Wenmiao! Oh my, after listening to you two play it, that feeling..." Chen Hang said hesitantly, looking like a music expert commenting on a song: "That feeling made me sing it with such enthusiasm!"
Shen Moyu was still looking forward to hearing what kind of praise he would give, but upon hearing it, she couldn't help but laugh.