“Son, thank you.”
On the phone screen, Zhang Deyi was still lying on a hospital bed, but thanks to Liu Fei, he was able to watch the live broadcast of the opening ceremony of the sports meet.
Aside from Liu Fei, many people at the scene had also taken out their phones, waiting for the ceremony to begin.
“Ahem, ahem.”
Before long, a heavy cough echoed from the stage, drawing everyone’s attention.
A man with graying hair walked up.
“Welcome everyone to the opening ceremony of Summer’s End University’s 50th Sports Meet. This is our school…”
He was the university’s vice principal. As was customary, the opening speech was handled by the administration—typically the kind of speech most people found boring.
At this point, a lot of people in the audience would put down their phones and take a break, ready to pick them up again when the performances began.
As soon as the first vice principal finished, the second one followed up seamlessly.
“Hello everyone, I’m the student representative of Summer’s End University. There are a lot of people here today. If anything happens, I’ll be leading the student council team to keep order…”
……
“Ugh…” Su Yun stood beside the podium, watching the student council president on stage making his speech with full confidence, her expression complicated.
“What’s wrong, Xiaoyun? Nervous?” Qin Xue appeared beside her, reaching out to lightly brush Su Yun’s face with a finger.
“That tickles, stop touching me.” Su Yun slapped the hand away instinctively, not in the best mood.
“I’m not nervous at all, okay? Everyone down there is just a bunch of small potatoes. I’m not scared one bit!”
“Small potatoes? Pfft, okay okay, not nervous, not nervous~ Xiaoyun isn’t afraid.” Qin Xue giggled behind her hand, her tone teasing.
Su Yun wasn’t dumb. She knew Qin Xue was making fun of her.
She wasn’t nervous about performing. She was afraid… of something else.
Su Yun couldn’t help sneaking a glance at Qin Xue, only to find her still laughing.
Damn it, all you do is laugh at me!
Su Yun glared at her hard.
Qin Xue quickly picked up on her little temper.
“Do your best. I believe in you~”
Qin Xue gave her a little wink, lips curved upward, her gaze seductive and bewitching, as if it could steal one’s soul.
“…”
Faced with that alluring look, Su Yun’s anger instantly deflated.
In that moment, she seemed to understand why some emperors in ancient times skipped court.
Forget it. No more arguing with this woman…
Better to relax and mentally prepare.
……
After a brief setup on stage, a popular girl group from the mainland stepped out from behind the curtain, walking gracefully with confident smiles.
“Jiang Ni! Jiang Ni!”
The fans in the crowd exploded at the sight of her, holding up their pre-made support signs and cameras.
Compared to the university students, these outsiders were clearly more professional in their support.
From the stage’s perspective, nearly half the crowd had some form of fan gear.
Even though today’s event was open to the public, it required early registration and subscription to the school’s official account, which was a hassle. The large turnout showed just how famous this girl group was.
Amid the heated atmosphere, an energetic and upbeat English song blasted through the speakers.
The curvaceous women on stage swayed naturally with the rhythm, and Jiang Ni stood front and center in the C-position.
The crowd below shouted along with their enchanting dance moves. For a moment, it was hard to tell whether the music or the cheers were louder.
……
The raucous energy lasted quite a while, until the electrifying song ended, signaling the end of the girl group’s performance.
Some people had come just for this. Once it was over, a small number immediately left.
Most of them were young men, sticking around just in case the school had another dazzling act up its sleeve.
But the next few performances were, frankly, terrible from the audience’s perspective.
Which made sense—starting with a bang only made the follow-ups seem even more lackluster, maybe even annoying.
As a result, more people left as the program went on.
By the time the final act came up, only about 60% of the original crowd remained.
The school’s scheduling had clearly missed the mark.
“The next performance is titled ‘Be Your Kitty Cat.’”
The host announced the next act as usual, but the reaction was noticeably less enthusiastic than earlier.
Still, some guys from the university raised their phones, remembering that the school belle was supposed to perform. She hadn’t appeared all night—this must be the final act, the grand finale.
Soon, the university’s dance club girls came onstage for their closing performance.
“Wahoo!”
Seeing them, the campus boys erupted in cheers, breaking the prior lull in the air.
The outsiders had been flashy and novel, but to these boys, the school girls were far more enticing.
They had a more youthful energy—and being fellow students, either juniors or seniors, they didn’t feel as out of reach. Maybe one could even become their girlfriend one day.
As for how the earlier performances were? Well, honestly, pretty forgettable. Today’s stark contrast had made them hard to watch.
The sudden return of excitement left some outsiders on campus or heading back to the dorms confused. Many looked back toward the commotion in curiosity.
“Ah! Oof… pfft—”
Just then, a loud, ill-timed thud and a girl’s startled yelp rang out from the stage.
Looking up, a girl had fallen.
Everyone held their breath, worried—but thankfully, she quickly stood back up.
“Sorry, I tripped…”
Su Yun picked up the mic from the ground and sheepishly moved to the front of the group.
The skirt was a bit too long, and she wasn’t used to wearing it. Too nervous climbing the steps, she misstepped.
She felt the confidence she had painstakingly built crumble in an instant. Holding the mic, she couldn’t bring herself to look at the audience.
Her soft, sweet voice quickly echoed through the speakers.
Many in the audience had already realized something: bad news, and good news. The bad—school belle never came. That promo was a lie.
But the good? Oh, it was very good.
Standing in front was a girl with snow-white hair, a sweet face, probably around 1.6 meters tall. She looked adorable—especially in that pure white dress. The two pale legs beneath looked like vanilla popsicles, and it was enough to make many guys weak in the knees.
“White hair… Isn’t this the rumored freshman school belle people have been talking about in the group chat?”
“Yeah! No one could catch a glimpse of her before. Thought that white hair was fake, but now seeing it in person—it’s real.” The boys stared in a daze.
Many recognized her and quickly took out their phones to capture the moment, all excited and thrilled.
But one person was not like the others.
“Huh? No way… Brother Yun lied to me?”
Zhang Deyi, eyes vacant on the phone screen, stared blankly.
“What do you mean lied? Look, isn’t this your favorite?”
Liu Fei raised the phone high, trying to give Zhang Deyi a better view.
“…”
……
Su Yun stood on what looked like a red carpet marking the C-position.
She remembered there hadn’t been one yesterday. Must’ve been added for today’s official performance.
She swallowed hard.
Su Yun steadied herself and looked up at the crowd.
“Goddess!”
The moment she lifted her head, it felt like her hearing improved—cheers of “Goddess” surrounded her in 3D, like the voices were right beside her ears.
“Snow White!”
Suddenly, someone shouted out a brand-new nickname from the crowd.
No one knew Su Yun’s name, so when they cheered, it was always some corny “goddess.”
But today she happened to be dressed all in white, very much like Snow White, and that nickname suited her far better.
“Princess! Princess!”
“Hey~”
At that moment, Qin Xue was kneeling at the steps behind the stage, the closest position to it.
She didn’t care whether her black stockings would snag, nor did she care about her usually cold image. She just kneeled there, peeking secretly.
The back of the stage was closed off. Due to the layout, no one would see her.
“Said she wasn’t nervous… Xiaoyun, you're so stubborn.”
Qin Xue stared at Su Yun’s petite, snow-white figure, worried that earlier fall might’ve rattled her.
As for the singing? She still believed in Xiaoyun—every promise Su Yun had made so far, she had kept.
You got this.
As the energy picked up again, people who had been on their way out of the campus or back to their dorms heard the cheering from the field and turned back out of curiosity.
Shi Lezhi was currently at the very front of the crowd, waiting for the right moment to offer “timely assistance.”
He looked up at the so-called “Snow White” the campus guys were going crazy over, a look of disdain on his face.
Mouthy. Headstrong. Shi Lezhi did like that kind of girl—but unfortunately, she wasn’t his target right now. Just a stepping stone.
He was very pleased with how his real target had dressed today.
……
Standing on stage for just one minute, Su Yun’s ears were already filled with passionate cries of “Princess.” In that moment, she felt like she had really become the princess of some kingdom. Her head nearly floated from the rush.
It was also the first time she realized how high the podium was. From up here, it looked like a four-meter drop. If she got too into the song and fell, that’d be the end of her.
But she wasn’t that dumb~
She thought of Qin Xue’s fiery encouragement before parting, took a deep breath, and raised the mic.
The music began.
“Meow~”
(End of Chapter)