Chapter 41 Part 1

The performance time soon arrived. The grand hall on the villa’s first floor, with its eight-meter-high ceiling, had already been cleared out by the staff in advance, who had set up a simple, decent-looking stage.

The first group to take the stage was Ruirui’s family, who had drawn the piano accompaniment for Zhenzhen’s family’s dance.

Since Ruirui was the only one in the entire family who could play the piano, it was switched to the little dumpling playing, while Chu Chengpeng and Peng Li, two veteran actors, put on gauze skirts to act as the child’s supporting dancers. They even painted on the red cheeks and the red dot between the eyebrows originally prepared for Zhenzhen.

The audience watched for the joy, and the production team sought the effect. At a time like this, naturally, no one blamed the two old swans for their clumsy, unaesthetic movements.

[LOL, Teacher Chu and Teacher Peng are so game!]

[To be fair, many Hong Kong stars from that era, though looking serious, actually have a strong sense of variety shows. They dare to play, dare to dress ugly, and are very game. Unlike many current minor celebrities who, without any real status, first learn to put on airs.]

[+1 For the 90s Hong Kong island celebrity charity galas, the superstar kings would do all sorts of fancy acrobatics. Breaking stones on their chests was nothing. Can you imagine that today?]

[Ruirui looks so handsome when playing the piano! Ahhh, baby is only six years old, how can he be so outstanding! I’m going to go beat up my dumb little brother first.]

[Hahahaha, after seeing Ruirui Ao’ao, I’m also very displeased with my own cub. But I heard before that Ruirui’s biological mother pushes him extremely hard with that tiger parenting. It’s more important for little kids to be happy…]

As the piece ended, Ruirui, dressed in a sharp little suit, walked to the center of the hall with his parents and performed a very gentlemanly curtain call. Thunderous applause erupted on the scene, and even the staff waiting on the periphery cooperated very enthusiastically, shouting “Encore!”

The second act was Zhenzhen’s family, who had drawn “Justice Bao.”

Hearing they had drawn the act of Ji Nuo and Ao’ao’s family, the little dumpling Zhenzhen was beyond delighted, just like a fanatical die-hard fan who had scored some exclusive merch of their idol.

Kang Feier slightly modified the skit’s lines. Not only would she play the unlucky plaintiff, but she would also take on a second role as the villain. She also appropriated some of the lines meant for Justice Bao’s daughter.

This way, with a staff member found in advance to crouch under “Lord Bao’s” table as a human teleprompter, the little dumpling only needed to chime in a couple of lines occasionally as a comic foil, making it not too difficult.

But for little Zhenzhen, a senior face-con who had loved beauty since the day she was born, the biggest obstacle was having her face painted black. Fortunately, upon hearing the carbon powder was prepared for Brother Ao’ao, the little girl thought it over and still agreed—

If the pretty little brother could do it, Zhenzhen could too!

After a cacophony of gongs and drums opening music, staff members manually holding up a simple fabric curtain parted to the sides, revealing a wide desk covered with a black cloth, and Zhenzhen, seated behind it, barely able to show her little blackened face.

Before she even opened her mouth, this getup made everyone burst out laughing. Many of Ao’ao’s mom fans, amidst their joy, also felt a bit of regret:

[This carbon powder would definitely be even funnier smeared on our Ao bao’s face. Such a shame, I really wanted to see Ao Ao with the little black face.]

[Friend in front, go watch the pilot episode. Fluorescent-green-black-skinned Little Ao is even funnier than this.]

[I’m different. I really want to hear Cheng-Nuo Ao sing, especially the Movie Emperor!!!]

On stage, the little dumpling was laughed at, and not understanding why, she giggled along with everyone, revealing a mouthful of pure white little teeth. Against the carbon powder on her face, they practically glowed, making the comedic effect even stronger.

The human teleprompter under the table, seeing the child only focused on laughing, anxiously poked her short leg. Zhenzhen rounded her little mouth and nodded heavily towards the bottom of the table, as if afraid people wouldn’t know there was something fishy going on underneath.

The little dumpling raised her short arm, using a milk carton as a gavel. With a splat, she smacked it on the table, pointing at her mother kneeling below and loudly asked: “The, the, the court…”

So nervous she completely forgot the line her mother had made her memorize before going on stage: “Who kneels before the court, and what grievance do you bring?” She scratched her head and began to ad-lib: “What flavor is candy? Zhenzhen likes strawberry soft candy. Do you have any?”

The live audience and stream viewers were immediately amused by this adorably silly black-faced little dumpling. After a bout of laughter, the little dumpling had already slumped onto the stool. Reminded by the human teleprompter, she propped herself back up to play Lord Bao: “What person is below?”

After speaking, she scratched her chin in confusion, instantly adding a few more white streaks to her face. She answered her own question: “It’s Mama!” Then, very smoothly changing the line, she said: “Mama below the court… wants to… to sue what-what?”

No matter how nonsensical it was, the little dumpling’s portrayal of Lord Bao was absolutely full of impact.

Kang Feier, too, used all her skill to hold back her laughter with difficulty. Having barely muddled through the little dumpling’s lines, she took a deep breath and began her performance.

There was a reason people still lamented Kang Feier’s retirement three years ago after marriage and motherhood. The entertainment industry didn’t lack good-looking female stars, but those who were beautiful and also had spirit and acting talent were always highly anticipated.

And although Kang Feier had only acted in one drama and wasn’t professionally trained, her learning ability and her grasp of character comprehension and control were no less than that of academy-trained actors. She belonged to the type with both talent and interest. It was just that back then, she had many interests, and with an unexpected pregnancy and having to balance studies and family, she could only temporarily give up her acting career.

Kang Feier’s vision was beautiful. She thought she would have a happy, fulfilling family. After completing her studies, her daughter would be at an age where she could be appropriately away from her mother, and she could take on some challenging yet not overly demanding roles while managing the family, satisfying her love for acting.

But reality slapped her hard in the face. Whether it was her poor judgment of character back then, or thinking the sacrifices she made for love and family wouldn’t be betrayed by the other party… Now, more than anyone, she understood that in life, the only person you can truly rely on is yourself.

Kang Feier knew that after this episode, there was a very high chance she wouldn’t be able to stay on. She needed to protect her daughter and face many challenges, while also fighting a tough divorce battle. So she cherished this final opportunity to perform.

Although the production team only gave them half an hour to prepare, Kang Feier still memorized all the lines of this skit, her first time doing one.

Even though it was just a comedic skit, Kang Feier, playing two roles, made distinct changes in both expression and vocal tone. Her lines were smooth, the characters vivid. Paired with Zhenzhen’s adorably silly version of Justice Bao, both the effect and laughter coexisted, successfully winning a full house of applause.

In the danmaku, Kang Feier’s few remaining career fans were practically moved to tears:

[Wuwuwu, is our Princess Yuelan coming back?!]

[Wow, the great beauty Kang has acting chops! I was just scared by her seamlessly switching sinister expression.]

[Tsk… I still remember the news about her acting like a diva. Let’s not market her as being serious about memorizing lines now, this is all expected of an actor, right? Didn’t Chu Chengpeng also seriously play the ugly role…]

[We old fans from back then all know Feifei always treats work super seriously. How could she, possibly pregnant later in the shoot, immediately turn into a diva? I only believe the Feifei I see. Hope Fei bao can get into a film crew soon with this comeback!]

[+1 My mom was just talking today about how spirited the actress for Princess Yuelan was. Great beauty Kang, hurry up, divorce, and focus on your career! A scumbag who goes to high-end clubs to “discuss work” should just be thrown back in the trash!]

The luckiest of the four groups was undoubtedly Tiantian’s family, who drew their own act. They were still performing “Snow White.”

Tiantian, wearing her favorite princess dress, played Snow White. Ming Yu was the Evil Queen. Weng Kai’s role was very heavy; he had to play the inherently cheeky Magic Mirror as his true self, and also portray the princess’s henchmen named the “Seven Dwarfs.”

Because they had performed it at a kindergarten gala before, Tiantian’s family had the highest degree of stage completeness. Thanks to Weng Kai’s antics, the effect was also very good.

The stream viewers waited all the way until the end, finally anticipating the main event: “Auspicious Three Treasures.”

Ao’ao’s mom and dad fans were beyond excited. In the original version, the little girl calls out to the father first, then the mother. Everyone had prepared their recording devices early on, planning to use Ao’ao’s soft, milky child’s voice as their ringtone.

Ji Nuo’s face fans and small number of true fans accumulated on the kid variety show were also very expectant. But among the viewers, the ones with the highest anticipation and the loudest voices were, unsurprisingly, Han Cheng’s fans.

The Orange Fans had been following Han Cheng for years; how could they miss their idol’s first time singing? They had long spread the word and gathered friends. Han Cheng’s supertopic was as lively as a New Year celebration.

Han Cheng’s voice was low, magnetic, and elegant, very distinctive. When he lowered his voice to speak lines in blockbusters recorded with original sound, it made countless fans scream, a voice so captivating it could make one pregnant just by hearing it.

For a long time, fans had thought Han Cheng hadn’t sung because he never had the opportunity.

After all, Han Cheng only had this one variety show debut, “Where Are the Cubs Going?”. Before this, it was normal not to have a chance to showcase his singing voice in movies, TV dramas, or endorsement ads.

And because Han Cheng’s performance since entering the industry had been too dazzling—quickly winning the Three Golds to become the youngest Grand Slam Best Actor, obtaining numerous related qualifications to fit roles, and even mastering Ancient Greek lines in a week to deliver the most standard pronunciation without dubbing—Han Cheng had delivered perfect scores in too many situations deemed impossible.

Therefore, all fans firmly believed that with Han Cheng’s vocal quality, even casually humming a couple of lines would outshine professional singers. Ji Nuo, a die-hard fan, also thought this way.

Especially regarding singing, which he viewed as being as easy and effortless as breathing, Ji Nuo trusted almost instinctively: if he could do it, then as the perfect idol, Han Cheng definitely could too.

So even after spending a lot of time persuading little friend Lu Ao’ao, and finally altering the song’s lyrics to fit Lu Ao’ao’s participation in the act, Ji Nuo still felt that regardless of how the little dumpling performed, with himself and Han Cheng carrying the main load for this simple, cheerful piece, “Auspicious Three Treasures,” everything would be fine.

As soon as the trio—two tall, one small—stepped onto the stage, the danmaku went wild:

[Ahhhhh my ears are ready!]

[Really afraid Brother Cheng will open his mouth and dominate the music scene across the straits. Wonder how Ji Nuo sings? Hope he doesn’t hold back the male god too much~ /starry-eyed.jpg]

[Just the family of three standing there is already a feast for the eyes. Ao Ao Ao Ao super excited!]

[I used to think this nursery rhyme type would be hard to find charming, but now that the intro’s playing, I’m super hyped ahhhhhh!]

The original version of “Auspicious Three Treasures” is divided into three parts. The first two parts center on the child, asking the parents questions in song lyrics, with the parents’ responses being spoken rhythmically to the tune.

So the lighting technician first shone the spotlight on the child standing to Ji Nuo’s left, finding it a bit odd while lighting. This “Auspicious Three Treasures” is mainly a child asking questions, so the child usually stands in the center position. Just as this question arose, the intro perfectly ended, and Ji Nuo picked up his microphone, starting first: “Ao’ao~”

Lighting Technician: ?

The cold-faced little dumpling on the left: “Mm!”

Ji Nuo cleared his throat, suppressing a laugh, and continued in his clear, bright voice: “When the sun comes out, does the moon go home?”