Jiang Nianxin hurried off to a meeting and told Li Yang to go to the third floor to find Minister Chen Lili, saying everything had already been arranged for her.
Li Yang knew Chen Lili—she was the female director who arranged yesterday’s performance and seemed to be the overall leader for this Northwest selection competition.
By now, almost everyone already knew Li Yang.
Chen Lili was polite and beckoned Li Yang over to her side.
Perhaps it was because Li Yang’s performance yesterday had impressed her, or because Jiang Nianxin had spoken to her in advance. In any case, Chen Lili’s attitude toward Li Yang could be described as exceptionally gentle.
“You’re Li Yang, right? Leader Jiang mentioned you—said you’re very outstanding. I’m not that formal here; you can call me Sister Li in private.”
“Alright, Sister Li.”
Li Yang responded with a gentle and obedient attitude.
Chen Lili smiled warmly. “Your household registration has already been transferred under our troupe. Also, don’t worry—everyone likes you.
Here, this is your work ID.”
Holding the work ID bearing her name and the troupe’s official seal, Li Yang felt a sense of novelty and anticipation.
After briefly explaining some basic tasks, Chen Lili personally took her to collect her practice uniform.
In the large dance classroom, more than fifty people had already gathered, including Jiang Nianxin’s niece Jiang Xue and her cousin Li Yao.
It looked like everyone was rehearsing a choir piece.
When Chen Lili arrived, everyone stopped chatting and stood in order.
Unexpectedly, she had brought another girl today. Upon closer look, wasn’t this the exceptionally outstanding girl from yesterday? Everyone already knew her name—Li Yang.
Another strong competitor had appeared. Naturally, no one felt happy about it.
“Li Yang, join the group first.”
Chen Lili pointed to a position in the front row near the center.
As Li Yang walked over, she could feel the reluctance of the girls around her as they shifted slightly to make space.
Of course, Li Yang knew what they were thinking.
It was simply a matter of the capable taking their place. She didn’t take it to heart at all.
These girls would have to work harder—otherwise, they wouldn’t even be able to see her back.
Standing in the last row, Li Yao’s gaze toward Li Yang was filled with venom.
Why did that wretched girl get to stand in the center of the front row as soon as she arrived? One day, she would ruin that seductive face.
Poor Li Yao still didn’t know that Li Yang could sing—and sing exceptionally well.
That English song had left a deep impression on the girls. Even Jiang Xue looked at Li Yang with admiration.
Next, it seemed to be time for the dance assessment.
A professional dance teacher was there to train them in styles and movements, while Chen Lili recorded everyone’s performance.
At this time, red song dances were the most popular. As long as one had solid fundamentals, the performance wouldn’t look bad.
The dance teacher’s surname was Zhang. Though her hair was completely white, she stood tall with an outstanding presence.
Except for Li Yang, everyone had already taken several basic training classes.
This was Zhang Guiyun’s first time seeing Li Yang. Seeing a new and beautiful face, she directly called her forward.
The fifty-plus people here were essentially the elite class of the troupe. Anyone appearing in this selection wasn’t just a pretty face—they all had solid dance foundations.
So Zhang Guiyun wasn’t surprised. She simply wanted to assess Li Yang’s abilities overall.
“What’s your name?”
Li Yang stood in a standard outward stance. “Teacher, my name is Li Yang.”
Zhang Guiyun nodded and asked her to step forward.
After carefully checking several key movements, Li Yang executed them all perfectly. Chen Lili was very pleased and marked her performance as excellent.
Zhang Guiyun was also satisfied. This new student was clearly very talented—her movements felt as if they had been refined through countless repetitions, almost flawless.
After arranging a full set of choreography, Zhang Guiyun began having everyone rehearse with music.
She chose a red song—powerful and stirring. Combined with the dancers’ flowing and synchronized movements, the visual effect was magnificent.
Unexpectedly, after only five or six minutes, the recorder malfunctioned. Even switching tapes produced no sound.
Zhang Guiyun was in a bad mood. Without music, dance lost its soul.
Everyone didn’t know what to do—dancing without accompaniment felt wrong.
Li Yang noticed an old piano in the corner of the studio. She took the initiative to speak to Zhang Guiyun, offering to play accompaniment so everyone could continue practicing.
Zhang Guiyun was surprised.
“You can play the piano too?”
Li Yang nodded.
It wasn’t strange for Zhang Guiyun to be surprised. In those days, even wealthy families couldn’t afford to have their daughters learn many skills—it required money, time, and energy.
Of course, Li Yang couldn’t tell them she had learned all this in a previous life.
She simply gave an awkward smile.
“Teacher Zhang, without music, everyone’s performance isn’t complete. I think I can give it a try.”
“Li Yang, this song is a Soviet military song. I don’t have sheet music—only a recorded tape.”
“That’s fine, Teacher Zhang. The sheet music is already in my mind.”
Not wanting everyone to stand idle, Zhang Guiyun agreed to her suggestion.
She brought Li Yang over to try a short section first.
Where there are people, there is rivalry. Many in the class were already jealous of Li Yang. Now seeing her seize another opportunity to impress the teacher, several girls rolled their eyes and whispered behind her back.
Li Yao was also shocked and let out a soft scoff.
“What a show-off! If Li Yang can play the piano, I’ll swallow that piano whole.”
A nearby girl turned to her. “You know her?”
Another clever girl made a connection.
“You’re both surnamed Li… are you relatives? You seem to know her well—why not tell us more?”
Li Yao almost blurted out some slander but noticed Chen Lili glancing in their direction with the evaluation sheet in hand.
Forget it. Better to speak behind her back. She wasn’t foolish enough to spread rumors openly.
Seeing Li Yao fall silent, the others lost interest.
The girls resting in place stared at Li Yang’s back as if they could bore holes through it.
“What a vixen!”
“Exactly. Always trying to curry favor—why doesn’t she go flirt with men instead?”
“Showing off so much. Let’s see how she embarrasses herself later.”
“Just because she can solve a few math problems and dance a bit, she thinks she’s amazing?”
Jiang Xue didn’t usually like people who were prettier and more capable than her.
But her aunt had told her to build a good relationship with Li Yang.
One sincere friend was worth more than countless fake ones.
Only after meeting Li Yang did Jiang Xue understand what it meant to encounter someone truly extraordinary.
At the very least, that face alone made it impossible to dislike her.
Hearing the endless sour remarks, Jiang Xue’s expression turned cold.
“That’s enough. Don’t act like you can’t get grapes and call them sour. She’s not someone to mess with. I heard more than thirty foreigners couldn’t gain the upper hand against her. And you? Just a bunch of rats barking in the gutter. If you’ve got the guts, say it to her face instead of picking on your own people.”
Everyone knew Jiang Xue was Jiang Nianxin’s only niece and was dearly cherished. No one wanted to offend her.
Li Yang had no idea she had missed such a scene. She was currently focused on recreating the Soviet red song at the piano.
Zhang Guiyun hadn’t expected Li Yang to actually be this capable. The melody she played matched the recording perfectly. So she immediately had Li Yang accompany the group while everyone continued rehearsing.
After finishing her meeting, Jiang Nianxin came to observe how the newly recruited members were performing. She had been watching quietly from outside for a while before finally walking into the classroom.
“Leader Jiang?”