Chapter 203: Post-Competition Outing
The results of the dance competition wouldn’t be announced on the same day, but since she had already performed—and heard so much applause—Xie Xiangxue was completely satisfied.
“Well?” Her eyes were bright as she lifted her chin proudly at Gu Qinghuan. “Does this count as the most beautiful dream?”
“It does!” Gu Qinghuan nodded vigorously. “Your phoenix is the best!”
Being praised so directly, Xie Xiangxue suddenly felt a bit shy. She lifted her skirt and hurriedly said, “I’m going to change and remove my makeup.”
Meanwhile, Gu Qinghuan waited outside with Jiang Chuchu and Yu Xin.
Yu Xin handed her a tissue. Gu Qinghuan took it, puzzled, but Jiang Chuchu snatched it away and wiped her face. “Why are you crying just from watching a dance?”
Backstage had been dim, but now the tear tracks on Gu Qinghuan’s face were clearly visible.
Gu Qinghuan quickly grabbed the tissue herself and wiped. “I was just… moved!”
On stage, Xie Xiangxue had been so radiant. Even though Gu Qinghuan knew every future had its own logic, she still couldn’t help thinking—
This was the future Xie Xiangxue deserved.
She was a dazzling phoenix, not meant to have her wings broken and be imprisoned.
Even now, Gu Qinghuan didn’t know if giving that memory to the most desperate version of Xie Xiangxue had been the right choice.
For someone who had already lost dreams and hope, would seeing her own brilliance bring even more pain?
Would it make her long even more to start over—to return to before everything went wrong?
When Xie Xiangxue came out, fully changed and refreshed, she was already ready to feast.
“Let’s go, let’s go! Competition’s over—today is cheat day!”
The four girls took the subway together toward the commercial street they had visited the day before.
It was just past morning rush hour, so the train wasn’t too crowded. There weren’t enough seats for all four, so Xie Xiangxue and Gu Qinghuan sat on one side, while Jiang Chuchu and Yu Xin sat opposite.
Mid-conversation, Xie Xiangxue remembered something and brought it up:
“About that person you mentioned before…”
Gu Qinghuan tensed slightly. “What about her?”
“You said ‘relief,’ right? Does that mean she’s about to die?”
Gu Qinghuan fell silent.
Maybe because she was facing the person herself—or maybe because she had been too busy lately—had she grown careless?
Seeing her not respond, Xie Xiangxue assumed she was right.
“I even wondered if that person was you,” she added. “That really scared me.”
“But it’s probably not. With your personality, class monitor, it must be someone you really care about.”
She looked straight into Gu Qinghuan’s eyes and said seriously:
“I don’t know if my dance can bring her relief. But your intention, and all the effort you’ve put in for her, will definitely help her let go.”
“If it were me… after suffering that much, if I discovered that someone was still working hard for me, trying to show me something beautiful at the very end of my life…”
“I would feel very happy. Even death wouldn’t feel scary anymore.”
Xie Xiangxue spread her arms and hugged her, smiling.
“Our class monitor is the best class monitor!”
Gu Qinghuan froze for a few seconds. Her eyes grew hot and stingy, but she forced the tears back, smiling until her eyes curved.
“Of course I am!”
Since the reward had already been given, worrying about it was useless.
What mattered most was living the present well.
They arrived at the commercial street at exactly 11 a.m. and immediately rushed to the snack stalls from the previous day, buying all kinds of food.
“Candied hawthorn is expensive, and the hawthorn itself is just average—but the fruit ones are fresh, worth trying.”
“You must get a roujiamo. The meat is rich but not greasy, and the filling is generous—one bite and the sauce-soaked meat almost spills out.”
“Fried chicken strips, plum blossom cakes, takoyaki, starch sausages—they’re all pretty standard. If you want them, go ahead. Oh, and the sauce on the chicken strips is pretty good—sweet, not overly salty.”
“The grilled cold noodles are terrible—don’t buy them! The noodles are stiff and tasteless, everything feels separate—ingredients are ingredients, sauce is sauce!”
As Gu Qinghuan spoke with authority, Jiang Chuchu glanced around.
Several nearby people were pretending to mind their own business, but had clearly stopped moving and were listening closely.
After their “raid,” they found a small restaurant, ordered a couple of seasonal dishes, and shared everything.
Xie Xiangxue ate to her heart’s content. “I’ve been controlling my diet since after the New Year for this competition.”
After all, whatever she gained during the holidays had to be shed over the past month.
“Do you feel confident about the results?” Yu Xin asked.
Xie Xiangxue crunched the sugar coating of her candied hawthorn. “Normally I should be modest, but…” she smiled, “today I’m especially confident! I think I’ll definitely win first prize!”
She had prepared for a long time, refining every movement, thinking carefully about how to express the posture of a bird.
She believed in her effort.
But before going on stage, she had still felt nervous—wondering if others were better prepared, more outstanding.
After hearing Gu Qinghuan’s words, though, she stopped thinking about those things.
She only wanted to show that person the most beautiful dream.
They had a joyful lunch, then took a ride to the outskirts.
There was a flower festival in the neighboring city that day. They took plenty of photos and even posted them in the class group chat.
Lian Fenghe: “Wow, is that the flower festival in the neighboring city?!”
Xie Xiangxue: “Correct! [Group photo.JPG]”
Ming Xiaolan: “You four went out without us? No team spirit at all!”
Gu Qinghuan: “We came to support Xiangxue’s dance competition, just stayed to play afterward.”
Jiang Chuchu: “Photo”
Lin Zhulu: “So pretty!”
Shi Guanghui: “!!!”
Shi Guanghui: “Damn it, why didn’t you tell me?! I wanted to take photos!”
Jiang Chuchu felt quite satisfied. Last time he had criticized her photography—now he could only look at the photos she took.
She put down her phone and saw Gu Qinghuan standing at a stall, carefully comparing different flavors of flower cakes.
“Still not full?” Jiang Chuchu glanced at her stomach.
“I’m full! I’m just choosing what to buy to take home!” Gu Qinghuan sucked in her stomach defensively.
“Why not just get a gift box?” Jiang Chuchu pointed at the display set with assorted flavors.
Gu Qinghuan raised a finger and shook it. “Gift boxes are like blind boxes online.”
“They say ten flavors, you get five. You think you’ll at least like two or three—but when it arrives, it’s all the ones you don’t want. Or worse, all the same flavor.”
Jiang Chuchu thought about it—fair point. If they could choose, better to pick what they liked.
When Yu Xin and Xie Xiangxue returned from taking photos of the potted landscapes, they found the two of them seriously selecting flower cakes.
Yu Xin & Xie Xiangxue: Is this really something that requires such serious consideration?
