Page 5

Back in school, because his parents were too busy with work, he had lived with his grandparents in the old part of town. He never cared about brand names when it came to clothes, rode his bike to school, and never left food unfinished. He was so low-key that he hardly seemed like someone from a wealthy family.

And because the Lu and Tang families' financial situations were worlds apart, Lu Hengzhi never treated him to meals for no reason. Instead, he preferred mooching food and drinks at their house, then using "labor compensation" as an excuse to help Mother Tang with housework and sell steamed buns. Yet today, he had suddenly offered to treat him to noodles...

Tang Shi raised a brow and got straight to the point. "What do you want?"

Lu Hengzhi chuckled, glanced around the classroom, which was already nearly empty of students, then shuffled closer and draped an arm over Tang Shi's shoulders. "Um... have you watched TV lately? That talent show that's really popular on Apple TV Station right now, Dance Miracle?"

Tang Shi's heart skipped a beat. He reflexively thought of certain things and asked, "What exactly are you trying to say? Stop beating around the bush."

Lu Hengzhi chuckled again. "I mean, why don't we form a group and go to the Auditions together?"

Tang Shi could not help falling silent.

He blinked quietly. In those distant, carefree days of his memories, he really had gone on that show with Lu Hengzhi. With their fairly solid street dance foundation, handsome faces, and explosive popularity, they had successfully advanced into the national top twelve. Unfortunately, the later stages only grew fiercer and crueler. And in one rehearsal, he had been terribly unlucky and broken his leg, forcing him to withdraw halfway through the competition and spend a considerable sum on surgery. Although the television station had covered the operation, hospitalization, and later cosmetic procedures, and even given Tang Shi two hundred thousand yuan in compensation afterward, it had done all it could. But that summer, Tang Shi had lost more than just a competition. He had lost his healthy body and perhaps a life that might have shone among the stars.

After receiving the television station's notice, Mother Tang, as well as Lu Hengzhi's grandparents and parents, had traveled all the way to Apple City to care for them. Father Lu's company had consequently missed out on a highly valuable business deal, and Mother Tang's steamed bun stall had been left unattended for over a month. By the time they returned to X City, someone had nearly taken over her spot.

But that was not even the worst part. Tang Shi's right knee had suffered a comminuted fracture, and even after it healed, it left lasting complications. His right leg limped when he walked, and on rainy days it would ache and swell. Worse, he had fallen from the air while suspended on wires, face-first toward the ground. His nose had been crushed flat. Though it was later repaired, it still looked wrong no matter how he looked at it. His body and face had both been ruined.

Thinking it over now, those memories were simply too painful to revisit!

Seeing Tang Shi sitting there in silence with a wistful expression, Lu Hengzhi was thoroughly confused. Somewhat impatient, he nudged Tang Shi in the chest with his elbow and said with a wink, "Quit pretending. You think I don't know you? Ever since we were kids, you've loved the admiring looks those little girls give you. If we make it through this time, even more girls will be crazy about you. And I heard on TV that if you do well, you can sign with them too. Then we can perform, film movies, and stuff. Maybe we'll become huge stars!"

You'll become a huge star, and I'll become disabled.

Tang Shi rolled his eyes and muttered under his breath, "I doubt it. It's not like I'm especially good at dancing. I might not even make it to the end. Besides, we're students. Would the school agree to us giving up our studies to dance? And there's no way my mom would let me go somewhere that chaotic."

With that time, he might as well solve a few more math problems or write a few more words. He was not some masochist. Had breaking his leg once not taught him enough of a lesson?

"Forget it. Let's stop talking about useless stuff and go eat. I'm starving." As Tang Shi spoke, he bent down and took the thirty yuan Mother Tang had put in his backpack that morning, then turned and headed out.

Seeing Tang Shi's actions, Lu Hengzhi grew anxious. He followed Tang Shi out while chattering nonstop. "I already looked into it. This round of Auditions is divided into three divisions. What they've been showing on TV these past few weeks are the Auditions for the Capital Division and the Three-Island Division. The Southern Division Auditions don't close until July, and we'll be on vacation by then. Who's going to care about us? I'm telling you, don't take this lightly. I really think this is our chance. And I heard on TV that the Dance Miracle champion gets five hundred thousand yuan! Even second place gets three hundred thousand, and third place gets one hundred thousand. I really think—"

At the mention of prize money, Tang Shi waved a hand, feeling irritated. In his previous life, besides the secret vanity of youth, the prize money had been what attracted him most to signing up with Lu Hengzhi. Unfortunately, all his efforts had ultimately come to nothing.

Lu Hengzhi scratched his head anxiously. He knew that even if he went, he might not make the top three, much less catch anyone's eye and enter the entertainment industry. But the restless passion of youth would not let him give up this chance. Yet he did not dare sign up alone, so he could only drag along this childhood friend who had grown up with him. If Tang Shi refused to go, his father would certainly not allow him to travel that far alone. Wouldn't that mean there was no hope at all?

Lu Hengzhi bared his teeth and immediately began enthusiastically rambling to Tang Shi about his dreams.

Tang Shi quietly watched Lu Hengzhi, who was animatedly gesturing in front of him. He knew Lu Hengzhi truly wanted to join this talent show, and that he really would use it as a stepping stone into the entertainment industry. From then on, he would soar upward. In only a few years, he would transform from a rising young idol king into a first-tier singer and actor known for his talent. While his career shone brilliantly, he would also pour money into investing in a number of popular dramas. After excelling as an actor, he would become a director; after excelling as a director, a producer. In the end, with his enormous capital, he would buy shares in Emperor Entertainment and become one of its top three individual shareholders after the company went public.

For Lu Hengzhi, this talent show was the starting point of a dazzling journey. For Tang Shi, even if it was not the beginning of his misfortune, it was certainly not something worth remembering fondly.

Now, standing at this crossroads in time and facing his still-passionate, hopeful best friend, Tang Shi could not help becoming conflicted. What was he supposed to do?

Should he take a bullet for his brother and continue down the path already laid out before him, or step back and embrace a brand-new life?

Tang Shi pressed his lips together uneasily. At this moment, no one could understand his hesitation. He had to choose between the hopes in his heart, the shadows in his memories, and his friend's future. But how was he supposed to make that decision?

No one could offer him advice.

Author's note: Lu Hengzhi, wagging his tail: "Wifey, wifey, come compete with me! Then we'll sign with Emperor Entertainment together, enter the entertainment industry, make movies, release albums, hold concerts, become directors, become producers, and finally smash Emperor Entertainment with money and reach the pinnacle of life. Just thinking about it makes me a little excited!"

Tang Shi: "Heh heh!"

Lu Hengzhi: "..."

Lu Hengzhi: "I was talking about our future with my wifey, and he heh-heh'd me... What do I do? Is he unhappy with me, or does he have someone else outside? What should I do? Waiting online for advice."

Tang Shi quietly wrestled with himself, because he knew that apart from himself, no one would bear the consequences of this decision. Foreknowledge sometimes represented wisdom, but more often, it was pain. While everyone else was still striving and dreaming of tomorrow, he had already seen the future clearly. While others still agonized over how to choose, he had already tasted the outcome of one choice.

Past choices were not necessarily right, but would living another way definitely be correct?

At this moment, Tang Shi, who had traveled back through time to the past, had no choice but to make a decision.

Setting aside Tang Shi's troubles for now, let us take a look at the talent show that had Lu Hengzhi utterly obsessed: Dance Miracle. It was actually a large-scale street dance talent show jointly organized by a game company to promote its game of the same name, Emperor Entertainment, and Apple Television. The country was divided into three divisions: the Southern Division, Capital Division, and Three-Island Division. During the Auditions, each division selected fifty dancers. Those fifty dancers then competed in regional PK rounds, with ten dancers from each division ultimately advancing to the national dance competition.

The dancers who performed well would ultimately sign with Emperor Entertainment or Apple Television and enter the entertainment industry. The Dance Miracle champion would not only receive a five-hundred-thousand-yuan prize, but also an endorsement contract for the Dance Miracle game, the most generous rookie contract with Emperor Entertainment, and a starring role in the Big Movie Dance Miracle, funded and filmed by Imperial Entertainment and sharing the talent show's name. They would become Imperial Entertainment's main focus in its upcoming work.

That year, Dance Miracle's champion was Su Minghe, a professional dancer from the Capital Division and the lead dancer of some professional dance troupe. His dance skills were indeed far stronger than theirs, but he was too aloof, and the restrictions of his profession constrained his dancing greatly. In terms of popularity, he could not compete with Tang Shi and Lu Hengzhi's duo at all. So whenever there was an advancement PK round, Su Minghe would receive praise from the professional mentors, while the two of them would cling on through sheer popularity until the end. They often came back from the dead in revival rounds and, with one close call after another, made it all the way into the top twelve.

Sometimes, Tang Shi even wondered whether, if he had not been unlucky enough to break his leg and disfigure his face that year, forcing the two of them to withdraw halfway through, Dance Miracle's championship might not have gone to Su Minghe at all. Otherwise, Emperor Entertainment would not have signed Lu Hengzhi separately after the competition ended and pushed him to the position of a popular young idol king within only a year and a half of his debut. Later, under the company team's plans, Lu Hengzhi gradually transitioned from an idol into a capable actor and singer. Afterward, he opened his own studio, invested in productions, and became a producer. Tang Shi had also ridden Lu Hengzhi's coattails, gradually going from an online novelist to a part-time screenwriter.

And now, fate had favored him and allowed him to return once more to this passionate, opportunity-filled age of sixteen. Should he abandon the life already set for him and choose another path that seemed orderly and uneventful, or should he still embark upon this unpredictable star-studded road with an uncertain future?

Tang Shi rubbed his chin, refusing to admit that he was indeed having a hard time with it.

Seeing this, Lu Hengzhi immediately realized Tang Shi was tempted and pressed, "So? Are we going?"

Tang Shi hesitated for a long while, but in the end he still could not make a decision. With a headache, he said, "Give me some time to think about it. I'll talk it over with my mom later and see what she thinks."

"You're really no fun." After watching Tang Shi stammer and hesitate for so long only to give such an ambiguous answer, Lu Hengzhi said somewhat dejectedly, "Can't you ever be decisive? You ask your mom about everything, but won't she end up listening to you anyway? I say we start practicing after school first. Once we get good enough, we can go tell them. Maybe if they see that we dance well, this might actually work out."

Tang Shi silently watched Lu Hengzhi gesturing grandly as though commanding the world, narrowed his eyes, and said nothing.

Damn it, he was supposed to be a reborn protagonist, yet he was getting lectured by some sixteen- or seventeen-year-old brat. Wasn't that a little embarrassing?

Lowering his head, Tang Shi rubbed his nose and said without any backbone, "I'm hungry. Let's go eat!"

When he turned around, he immediately jumped back in fright at the person who had suddenly appeared before him.

The female student wearing the same athletic school uniform had probably not expected Tang Shi to turn around so suddenly either. Startled, she took a step back too. Then, after recovering, she stepped forward and shyly held out the envelope in her hand. "You're Tang Shi, right? I'm Li Mingyu from Class Eleven. I really love watching you dance, and I also really like the articles you publish in the school magazine. If you really join Dance Miracle, I'll definitely support you."