Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Goodness! Sheng Ning, how did you get here?” A round-faced girl frantically ran over to her, but when she saw the huge crowd in the assembly hall, she became so embarrassed she couldn’t even raise her head.
When Sheng Ning came to, she said uncertainly, “Hongmei?”
“The show is about to start,” Zhang Hongmei said. “Director couldn’t find you backstage. She’s furious.” She grabbed Sheng Ning to pull her away. Zhang Hongmei was used to doing heavy manual labor, so she was very strong. Sheng Ning’s hand hurt from the yanking, but it helped her find a sense of reality after her rebirth.
“What are you doing in the front?” Zhang Hongmei asked. “Director doesn’t allow us to come here, and it would be bad if we offended that official.”
Sheng Ning remembered how in her past life she went to the front to seek Xu Qigang so she could make her attitude toward him clear. She would never marry him. Father’s letter from home said that he would marry her to his old friend’s son, Xu Qigang, which made her panic.
Back then, she was young and foolish. Relying on her beauty, she dreamed of landing a high branch and becoming a phoenix. Under Qin Cuifen’s coaxing, she shamelessly went into the audience to find Xu Qigang and tell him to give up on her.
This caused a huge commotion. Many officials were present, including Xu Qigang, a hero who had just returned from a rescue mission on the southern border. He was infamously known as a devil incarnate, and when the girls from the General Union Song and Dance Ensemble saw him, they acted like mice in front of a cat. Fearful, they didn’t even dare to raise their heads. Sheng Ning trembled at the sound of Xu Qigang’s name. She never considered that her father gave up his pride to find her this marriage.
Thinking about her past life, Sheng Ning’s heart twitched in pain. She felt a boundless guilt that nearly drowned her. She thought about how the only reason she was able to get into the General Union Ensemble was because her stepsister married the mayor’s dumb son. She made so many bad decisions, which caused her life to end in tragedy.
Qin Cuifen, who was waiting for the commotion to begin backstage, lost her patience. She sneaked to the front and saw Sheng Ning, who was the focus of everyone’s attention. She gritted her teeth in hatred. ‘Hmph! No matter how pretty you may be and how infatuated Shen Jianguo is with you, I’ll definitely make you lose your standing and become hated by everyone.’
Qin Cuifen concealed the calculation in her eyes and tidied her neat braid before walking up to Sheng Ning with a concerned face. “Ningning, how did it go?” she asked anxiously. “Did you tell him?”
Sheng Ning was shocked back to her senses, and her blank eyes became vibrant.
They walked to the exit of the assembly hall, but many comrade workers were still secretly eyeing her. Seeing her vibrant eyes, even Xu Qigang, who was of strong character, couldn’t help taking another glance.
“Tell him what?” Sheng Ning stared at Qin Cuifen unblinkingly.
“Obviously the fact that you will never marry him!” Qin Cuifen said matter-of-factly, a hint of derision and anticipation on the corner of her lips. ‘This idiot Sheng Ning is so ignorant,’ she thought.
Qin Cuifen heard all about Xu Qigang. He was the top rescue professional of the country and the leader of the War Wolf Rescue Troop. He saved many people from the edge of hell. If not for the fact that Xu Qigang was born in the countryside, even Qin Cuifen would want to marry him. Sheng Ning had beaten her in every aspect since childhood. Even if she herself couldn’t marry Xu Qigang, she refused to watch Sheng Ning marry such a good man.
Sheng Ning cocked her head and studied Qin Cuifen. “My father just wrote me a letter to ask for my opinion. I don’t even know who Xu Qigang is.”
“But I know him!” Qin Cuifen said excitedly.
“You know him?”
Qin Cuifen groaned inwardly. She was too careless. She didn’t expect an idiot like Sheng Ning to know how to think. But it was fine. Even if Sheng Ning didn’t fall for the trap now, Qin Cuifen had a better trick up her sleeve for the performance later.
When they returned backstage, Sheng Ning was fiercely reprimanded, as expected. She only just joined the General Union Ensemble this year, and because she didn’t really get along with other people, no one pleaded for her when she got yelled at.