“Right, let’s celebrate it! How about it?” Zhang Zikai chimed in. Because Gu Ning was rich and they were very familiar with her, they didn’t hesitate to ask her to buy them a great meal.
“No problem.” Gu Ning agreed with alacrity. “Think about what you want to eat. I need to clean myself first.”
Although the lights were already turned off, the mobile phone flashlight was still very convenient, and the room was brightened up in a single instant.
Before Gu Ning went to clean herself up, she changed the quilt first. She hadn’t slept here for so many days, so it must be all dusty! It was time to change it after such a long time as well.
After Gu Ning came back from washing, they decided to eat spicy hot pot.
“You’re so economical.” Gu Ning thought they would ask to have a big meal! However, to her surprise, they only wanted to have spicy hot pot.
“It’s delicious!” said Song Miaoge. They weren’t picky eaters, so they preferred delicious food over expensive food.
“By the way, the orientation party is on Tuesday, October 25th. Gu Ning, will you attend it?” Zhang Zicen asked Gu Ning. Although she asked that question, she felt that Gu Ning wouldn’t take part in it.
“Not interested,” said Gu Ning with disdain. She wasn’t talented at all and was only good at playing piano. She hadn’t played it for a long time, so she was getting unfamiliar with it now.
“It’s only a day away. I’m still thinking about whether I should join in,” said Zhang Zikai. She was troubled about that these days.
“Sign up for it! Actually, even if you do that, you might not be able to go on the stage. Isn’t there a preliminary round?” said Song Miaoge. She was quite straightforward.
“Do you want to see me eliminated at the very first round and embarrassed?” Zhang Zikai argued once she heard that.
“I didn’t say that! You said you’re worried,” said Song Miaoge, looking innocent.
In fact, it was exactly the reason why Zhang Zikai was hesitating to join the party. She was worried that she couldn’t pass the first round, which would be embarrassing.
“It’s not a big deal even if you fail to pass. As long as you don’t care too much about the result, sign up for it. If you’re afraid to be embarrassed, then give it up, because you’re not going to show the best of you if you’re timid,” said Gu Ning. She couldn’t make the decision for Zhang Zikai, but she could give her some advice.
She was right. If Zhang Zikai didn’t have enough courage, there was no need for her to join in the party, because her performance would be affected by her mood.
“Right, I’ll see whether I still want to do it when I get up tomorrow.” Zhang Zikai found Gu Ning’s words reasonable, so she decided to make the decision tomorrow.
The next day, Zhang Zikai decided to give it up after she got up. Although she was interested in dancing and had learned it ever since she was little and was good at it too, she didn’t like it very much. Therefore, she was unwilling to spend much time practicing for the party. In addition, Gu Ning, Baili Zongxue, Song Miaoge and the other girls didn’t want to join in the party, so she gave it up too.
When Gu Ning went to their classroom the next day, her classmates all surrounded her to ask her about the bronze chimes. At the beginning, they had a bad impression of Gu Ning because someone said on the Internet that she got the bronze chimes by digging an ancient grave, but they changed their opinions after the Cultural Relics Bureau cleared Gu Ning’s name. Moreover, they admired Gu Ning more than ever now.
Because Gu Ning was absent during the past several days, they didn’t have the chance to ask her whether she would perform at the orientation party. Today, their head teacher seized the opportunity and asked her whether she would like to participate in it. He didn’t think Gu Ning would take part in it, but he still did his job.
Gu Ning said that she had no interest in it, so their head teacher stopped asking further.
…
At noon, Gu Ning took Song Miaoge and the other girls out to eat hot pot. The restaurant wasn’t far from the school, only requiring a 10 minute walk.
There was a separate food district near the school. Although it wasn’t big, it wasn’t small either. Moreover, it was quite popular because many students went there to eat every day.
Gu Ning and her friends came out as soon as their class was over, so there were vacant seats. In about 10 minutes, all the seats would be occupied.
Coincidentally, shortly after Gu Ning and her friends came, they saw Yuan Shuyan, Ge Qingqing, and two other girls.
Seeing Gu Ning, a touch of jealousy and anger flashed in Yuan Shuyan’s eyes, but she said nothing. Her sight fell on Gu Ning for a short while, then she withdrew it and walked towards another side.
Yuan Yilin had listened to Master Yuan and warned Yuan Shuyan to behave herself. She wasn’t allowed to have conflict with other people again for Rong Zechen. Besides, she had to give up on Rong Zechen and stay away from Gu Ning. Her family told her to focus on her studies instead of causing her schoolmates trouble.
After knowing that Gu Ning was familiar with Master Leng and other senior masters, Yuan Shuyan figured out how Gu Ning managed to get to know Leng Shaoxi.
Although Gu Ning only knew the Leng family and wasn’t a member of it, Yuan Shuyan didn’t dare to mess with her again for no reason.
Yuan Shuyan and her friends began to order once they seated themselves. Afterwards, they talked about a director who was planning to shoot a fantasy TV series which they wanted to join.
Yuan Shuyan was able to become the deputy minister of the Department of Arts not only because of her status, but also because of her own outstanding talents. Yuan Shuyan was good at dancing and singing. She was also proficient in many musical instruments, so she had the idea of joining the entertainment industry.
The Yuan family was involved in both politics and business.
Even though most people of power and wealth disdained stars in the entertainment industry, it actually depended on one’s background. If one had a powerful family background, he or she could still have a very high status as a star.
After all, in public opinion, people with a powerful family background wouldn’t give in to unspoken rules, so they had standards. On the contrary, those who without great support might gain fame by accepting unspoken rules.
No one cared whether he or she relied on his or her own abilities to become famous. Therefore, as long as Yuan Shuyan protected her reputation in the industry, the Yuan family wouldn’t disagree.
Instead, if Yuan Shuyan really stood out in the entertainment industry, it would be helpful for the Yuan family’s business.
Gu Ning had no intention of overhearing their conversation, but she had unusually good hearing, so she still heard it clearly even though their voices were very low. After all, there were only two tables between them, so the distance was very short.
Although Yuan Shuyan and her friends could only play unimportant roles in the fantasy show, they could show their faces.
Actually, the director gave them the chance for the sake of their family background. Common newcomers wouldn’t have that treatment.
