Tang Liuli dragged her trembling legs along, her social anxiety raging as she forced herself to keep walking. To outsiders, she cut a cool, masterful figure as she slowly left the stage, her back radiating the poise of a victor.
Only after she entered the Waiting Room backstage did she bolt into the bathroom and dry-heave at the mirror until she nearly passed out. She trembled like a quail. Fortunately, there were no cameras inside; otherwise, the comments would have been full of laughter, mocking her as a paper tiger.
But to Tang Liuli, who was truly battling a psychological illness and fighting back against nightmares tangled up with fear, that ridiculous behavior only highlighted a kind of pathological stubbornness.
Time passed.
It took Tang Liuli half an hour to come around. She forced herself to stand and looked at her reflection: pale, gloomy, and dim, yet with eyes that shone ever brighter. Then, as if speaking in a dream, she murmured:
"If I can't even overcome something like this, how could I help you?"
"Flow State... The way I used it before doesn't work anymore."
"Maybe I should find another way to use it."
At the same time, another performance had just ended on the main stage.
A name connected to Chu Yuanqing was being mentioned again and again in the Live Broadcast Room:
"Waaah, my Yue Bao, she worked so hard!"
"Honestly, I'm a little surprised. Yue Bao didn't do too badly."
"Right, right! Yue Bao used to study folk dance! She didn't look out of place dancing to candy at all. Her movements were so detailed, and she's so flexible. I want to squish her???"
--Yue Bao.
The nickname came from Chu Wangshu's name. Her fans now called themselves the Little Moons, a guerrilla force that stayed out of the way of all the CP shippers.
"Yue Bao was a top student, and she's a top student as an idol too!"
"Ah, what a shame. Yue Bao's such a silly girl. She'd never been on a proper stage before, and she made too many mistakes at the beginning. Otherwise, she might've had a chance of making it all the way to A???!"
Onstage, the girl who had just finished performing came back to herself as if waking from a dream.
Chu Wangshu was dazed. She watched as the thousands of audience members slowly faded away. All the screams and shouts, all the fireflies of light surrounding her and the warmth they brought, receded like the tide, leaving her in desolate silence.
Yet for those few minutes onstage, that glittering illusion had truly made her the moon.
Perhaps that was why, even though the shock at the beginning had left her riddled with flaws, she had held on to that false light this time. Unlike during her Initial Evaluation, when she had nearly been swallowed by the stage, she had not been consumed by the stage turned swamp. She had given it everything she had, performing with all her strength until the very end.
--Her body was trembling.
--Adrenaline was surging.
--A jumble of complicated, bewildering emotions was colliding inside her.
Chu Wangshu had lost the beat, missed steps, failed to steady her breathing, forgotten some of the hand movements, and let her expression slip. But she really had been sinking into the performance, enjoying it, and growing on that stage, little by little. In the end, she had received a response unlike anyone else's.
Chu Wangshu knew that.
She was disciplined and self-aware. Her performance just now had been better than she could normally manage.
Even if she had been given three days to prepare, she might not have done any better on that stage.
But why?
She knew that. She was self-aware. She should have been satisfied. And yet she still felt... so unwilling to accept it.
So incredibly unwilling.
She had never felt this unwilling in her life.
It was like missing out on ice cream one summer when she was ten. It was as if some happiness had been left behind in that season of rampant growth, leaving her to remember the raucous cicadas from that day for the rest of her life.
This time was the same. Her performance in the Second Evaluation might have failed to express what she wanted to express, leaving some of her hopes lost forever in the past.
Chu Wangshu walked away with heavy steps, looking lost. Her eyes were lowered, and her expression was hard to make out.
The girl wandered forward aimlessly. In her mind, she replayed every mistake she had made onstage, going over and over ways to fix them like drawing water with a bamboo basket, worrying herself in circles with no way out.
Without realizing it, she reached the doorway of the C-Class practice room.
Chu Yuanqing had just finished a set of exercises and was drinking water when, on a sudden impulse, she glanced back and spotted her daughter in the distance. She had barely felt happy before years of experience told her that something was wrong with the girl's mood.
--Did she think she hadn't performed well onstage?
Chu Yuanqing didn't hesitate. She wasn't in the role of a father now, so she could comfort her daughter as a friend. She walked over, gently pinched the girl's cheek, and tugged her out of her own world.
"Xiao Shu, are you okay?"
But before the old father could move on to the inspirational pep talk,
Chu Wangshu froze.
The person before her was apparently one of the only two people who could undo her. The other didn't even need to do anything; just standing there and looking at her was enough to make all her emotions impossible to hold back. In an instant, they flooded over her like a tsunami.
The grievance, sorrow, sadness, and unwillingness buried deep in her chest had their defenses inexplicably pried open. They broke through completely and came tumbling out with a roar.
Chu Wangshu's mouth quivered. Her eyes reddened in an instant, and tears fell like pearls. She threw herself into the girl's arms like a puppy, clinging tightly to her slender waist and rubbing her pretty face against the full, soft curve of her chest. She sobbed uncontrollably, stumbling over her words.
"Waaah, Qingqing, I danced so terribly just now. I missed the beat, sang the wrong lyrics, and almost lost my breath in the middle. There were a bunch of moves I didn't do properly, and... and so many more!"
"The mentors are definitely going to call me an idiot and rate me F-Class. Waaah, if I danced that badly, they definitely won't include me in the show. I'm so useless."
The Live Broadcast Room erupted:
"Breaking news! After the Great Demon King, Little Sakura has successfully pulled off a second home invasion!"
"Fuck, this is hilarious. Silly Yue Bao, did she not even think about how the other contestants could've done in that situation? How did she jump straight to getting dropped to F-Class? Adorable."
"Yue Bao's so sad. She's crying so loudly, and I'm laughing so loudly too."
"No laughing! This is Yue Bao's strategy: turn into a silly puppy, dive into Chu Yuanqing's arms, and come out way ahead, folks???"
At first, Chu Yuanqing didn't know what to do. It had been so long since she'd hugged her daughter, and even more so with this completely new body. But the pain in her heart and the affection that overrode reason made her temporarily forget those details.
Overcome with heartache for her child, Chu Yuanqing's young, exquisite face—her usually calm, distant features—suddenly filled with tender affection. A compassionate, maternal warmth spread across her expression, like the clouds parting to reveal the sun.
The girl listened quietly and attentively to the person in her arms. Sometimes she stroked her hair; other times, she gently rubbed her trembling back. When the girl seemed to realize how embarrassing this was and quietly lowered her crying, Chu Yuanqing smiled and spoke softly:
"It's okay. This is already good."
"I really like Xiao Shu's dancing. I know how hard you worked for the stage. I know you aren't useless. Even if the mentors and the audience don't like it or understand it, I'll still like it and understand. I'll praise you more, too."
"It's okay if you made mistakes in the Second Evaluation. There's still the Public Performance. We can keep working hard."
"Besides, no one ever asked you to come in first, did they?"
"Everyone says you should do your best, but nobody ever said that not doing your best means you did badly."
"Come on, sweetheart. Don't cry."
Chu Yuanqing's voice was incredibly gentle. Compared with the comfort she had offered Xie Qingxuan, it held a thousand times more profound affection. It was like an ancient song sung softly beside a winter hearth, using epic tales, love, and fire to fight back against an entire season that had buried spring.
At that moment,
The Lantern Pendant hidden against her chest grew hotter than ever before. Its snowy, sacred purity burned like a flame. The cramped source of magic inside it was forcibly expanded, then collapsed. Deep in the underground base, the Cube Prison at the very heart of the facility fell silent at the faintest touch of the magical tide.
Grandeur, loneliness, selflessness, light, sorrow...
These qualities hidden in a corner of the soul were projected into the vast room amid all the strange changes. They passed through an invisible medium, transcended space and sea, and descended like a mirage. Then, like a mistaken dream, they faded away in the Lantern Pendant's repeated shattering and dimming, returning to stillness.
And even so,
The contestants in the practice room who had been watching with curiosity were stunned. The many viewers tuned into this channel fell nearly silent, too. Even the comments mysteriously vanished for a moment before flooding the screen in a rush:
"Folks, I really feel healed. It's like my spirit is soaring high in the sky, full of positive energy."
"Haha, I don't need to go to the Louvre anymore. I've met my Mona Lisa???"
"I repent. I atone. I regret everything."
"Haha, I must've gotten up too fast. I actually traveled back a thousand years to Jerusalem and saw the legendary Virgin Mary???"
"I used to call Qing Bao the dorm's mom as a joke, but now I can only say... that's so true, folks! Is this supposed to be a young wife and a kindergarten director? Hurry up and call her Qing Mom???!"
"Mom's so nice. Mom, say a few more words."
"I don't want to call Qing Bao Mom either, but she told me to be good???!"
Because of the curse of the Sea of Truth, Chu Yuanqing, busy comforting her daughter, still hadn't noticed anything strange about the pendant.
Chu Yuanqing had the girl in her arms turn her face toward her. Patiently, she brushed away the tears with her fingers. Looking at those red eyes and her twitching nose, she repeated:
"Don't cry anymore, okay?"
Chu Wangshu didn't know why she had become so unlike herself. Just hearing the other person's voice beside her ear was like being wrapped in warm sunlight. It made her negative emotions keep surging, and before she knew it, she was sniffing and stumbling over her honest thoughts:
"But if... I can't be included in the show, then I won't... I won't, I won't be able to let Dad see me."
Chu Wangshu sniffed, hurt and stubborn, nearly blowing a snot bubble. Like a little beast stripped of every shell, without her spikes or disguises, she was left with nothing but a naked, tender heart. She spoke quietly:
"I want him to see me."
"I want him to watch me become the moon."
These were words she should never have said to Chu Yuanqing in her entire life.
This was a tiny wish she wouldn't have confided even to her very best friend.
Yet now, these simple but profound words of sincerity slipped out without reservation, amid a motherly love as captivating as poppies and a care that felt strangely familiar yet unfamiliar.
--I want him to watch me become the moon.
Chu Yuanqing's heart was suddenly crushed. Bitterness and sorrow like a tsunami, along with a happiness tinged with loneliness, swallowed her up. Her iris trembled, then quickly steadied. Swallowing emotions that cut her throat like blades, she smiled and spoke in an even voice, one word at a time:
"Xiao Shu's dad will definitely see you. Even if you don't appear in the show, he'll still see you. Maybe he'll even sneak over to watch you at the Public Performance?"
Chu Wangshu quietly wiped away her tears. A little embarrassed, and a little reluctant, she let her small hands fall away from the girl's waist. Seeming to have come back to herself, she stood there and muttered:
"But he's really busy with work, and he's always going on business trips."
Chu Yuanqing's feelings were complicated. She stroked her daughter's hair and said:
"They'll broadcast the Public Performance, too. There'll be fan-shot videos, and you can find them online. If he wants to watch, he'll always find a way."
"Anyway, don't be sad yet. Maybe the mentors won't give you such a bad rating?"
The girl was just about to answer when she noticed the wrinkles and tear stains on the other person's chest.
Her face flushed redder and redder. Suddenly feeling guilty and embarrassed, she hurried to grab a tissue and wipe it off. But after only a little wiping, she felt the soft, snowy skin beneath her fingers and realized something was wrong. She quickly pulled her hand back.
Fortunately, the other person didn't seem to mind. She looked lost in thought.
But the more Chu Wangshu recalled her behavior just now,
The more she wanted to go back in time and punch some sense into her past self.
Damn it, how could she be so embarrassing and cry so much? She'd never been like this before!
Chu Wangshu wanted to evaporate on the spot. She copied Little Sakura and bowed deeply, saying her goodbyes at top speed:
"Qingqing! You're about to go onstage. I won't disturb your training any longer!"
With that,
The girl really did run off like a thief who'd stolen some motherly love, disappearing into the distance under Chu Yuanqing's puzzled gaze. Her hurried retreat was mixed with a hint of peculiar delight.
..
..
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PS1: My fever went down today. I napped until after seven in the evening, but I still feel really weak. I've been typing until now. Qing Bao will be onstage in the next chapter!
PS2: Thanks to the big shot who sent a silver treasure chest yesterday. But next time, please don't choose "Everyone Celebrate Together." I don't get a cent from that option. The problem is, I have too few followers, so half the cat biscuits in it go unclaimed and end up with Hedgehog Cat. It's such a frustrating tease. I nearly passed out when I saw it yesterday. I'm crying.
Volume One: 65. Qing God Says, "You May Come This Far, But No Farther." (6K)
The Live Broadcast Room erupted into a chorus of boos:
"Yue Bao knows how to be embarrassed now, huh? She rubbed her face all over Qing Bao's chest, got her fill, and then left. How can she show her face without leaving her panties behind????"
"Pathetic! She'd already let herself show a vulnerable side. Wasn't that the perfect chance to raise her affection level? What a useless little Yue Bao."
"Raise her affection level? Forget it. I've figured it out. Yue Bao isn't on the friendship route or the romance route. She's on the family route!"
"You're right. I couldn't get into Chu Yuanqing before, but now that I'm thinking of them as mother and daughter, I'm totally hooked. I can't stop shipping them???"
"Seriously. That was the first time I'd seen Chu Yuanqing look so gentle. For that moment, it almost completely covered up how young she looked. It was like she'd gone from a young wife to a mature wife. Amazing."
"Damn, tell us more about the mature-wife angle???"
Before you continue