LIGHTNOVELONLINE
Chapter 96
Backstage at the theater.
Meng Changsheng was patrolling backstage with his hands behind his back.
Suddenly, the theater manager rushed in, out of breath, his face flushed red, "Director Meng...Director Meng...the audience for your show today..."
Meng Changsheng became nervous, "What happened? Did the actual turnout fall far short, and the theater won't let us perform?"
The people backstage unconsciously lowered their movements and pricked up their ears to listen.
"No, your audience...sold out!" The theater manager finally got the whole sentence out in one breath.
Shi Tianya stuck his head over, "How did it sell out? Was it a terrorist attack? Were other people injured and taken to the hospital?"
The theater manager caught his breath and grabbed Meng Changsheng's hand, "Director Meng, your audience numbers exploded!"
Meng Changsheng froze for a moment, then his heart started pounding rapidly.
Could it be?
A play could still sell out nowadays?
Meng Changsheng hurried to follow the theater manager out to take a look.
Shi Tianya also wanted to tag along in shock.
Meng Changsheng pushed him back, "Don't add to the commotion, go tell everyone to get ready again!"
At the theater entrance, it was already chaotic.
The 2,000 tickets sold out in just an hour.
There was no telling how many people who didn't get tickets were still lingering around the entrance.
Meng Changsheng hadn't seen this kind of scene in over ten years. His eyes started watering for a moment, and he turned to the theater manager, "Open up the second floor balcony as well."
He had never imagined there would be another day when their play could have the chance to open up the second floor balcony at Jincheng Grand Theater.
"We're already preparing for that, and also preparing temporary admission tickets." The experienced theater manager had sensed something was off and immediately made arrangements.
The sudden increase in audience numbers meant they were completely understaffed.
Meng Changsheng busied about with the theater manager for half an hour, helping the staff arrange for everyone to buy tickets, running around without a moment's rest, with beads of sweat dripping down his forehead. Out of the corner of his eye, he happened to see Meng Yuanjie chatting.
Meng Changsheng strode over, "Yuanjie, go to the auditorium now and help the staff show everyone to their seats...She's your friend right, have her help out too."
Meng Changsheng walked away swiftly after speaking.
Meng Yuanjie: ...
Zhang Xiya: ...
Zhang Xiya looked at Meng Changsheng's departing figure in confusion, "Who is he?"
"My wretched uncle." Meng Yuanjie was vexed, snatched again for hard labor.
There were ten minutes until curtain.
Li Zhen heard the hubbub outside and asked Shi Tianya next to her in puzzlement, "Was it this noisy outside before the show started in the past?"
Shi Tianya scrolled on his phone nonchalantly, "I heard the theater manager say earlier that the audience exploded today, so there are a lot more people, that's why it's noisier."
"How many people is 'exploded'?" Li Zhen's heart, which had settled back down, shot up again instantly.
"Our tickets exploded once last year too, and there were around...600 people." Shi Tianya carefully recalled.
Li Zhen's lifted heart settled back down.
600 people.
That was still alright.
"Places, places!"
"Act 1 performers stand by for places!"
Li Zhen and everyone else stood in the wing beside the stage.
Only a curtain separated them from the stage.
Beyond the curtain, the stage below was now quiet.
Li Zhen's palms inexplicably began sweating.
From the slit in the curtain, she looked at the audience below the stage, but it was pitch black below and she couldn't make anything out at all.
"Snap", the stage lights suddenly blazed on brightly.
Li Zhen closed her eyes briefly.
She heard a voice in her mind psyching her up.
That person.
Was her nineteen year old self.
The smoke spread, the music sounded, the green snake that had cultivated for 500 years took human form and frolicked with the white snake in a lotus pond. Suddenly, a monk wearing a kasaya appeared holding a golden alms bowl, with refined features and a pure Buddhist aura. The white snake panicked and turned to flee, but saw that her sister was gazing longingly at the monk.
The white snake hissed in a low voice, "That's Fahai, sister do you know?"
The green snake's gaze didn't shift one bit, her eyes were tender and bewitching, delicate as a budding flower, pulled away by her elder sister but leaving behind a lingering lovesick gaze.
Love at first sight, enduring for thousands of years.
The scene on stage slowly transformed, meeting Xu Xian, the flood at Jinshan Temple, under Leifeng Pagoda...
Through one upheaval after another, the green snake finally understood what her sister had said.
He was Fahai, a monk.
She was a green snake, a demon.
He had taken advantage of her, harming her sister.
She slowly ascended on stage, her demonic energy thickening with the spreading smoke, delivering the final strike as she looked down from high above at the man collapsing below.
Her gaze was firm and indifferent, yet tears were on the verge of falling.
"Feiwende, let's not meet again in our next life."
She didn't call him "Fahai", but his secular name "Feiwende".
As the last word of her line fell.
"Snap", all the lights on stage and below lit up.
The thousands below stood up, applauding thunderously, the cheers sounded like ocean waves, continuing endlessly.
"Amazing! Amazing!"
"Li Zhen! Idol, you rock!"
"Li Zhen, Li Zhen!"
Li Zhen's performance was too moving, too astonishing. Most people had seen the most jewelry, but now felt that Li Zhen was the treasure they couldn't bear to part with.
Shi Tianya and everyone else were shocked into retreating a step, "Fuck! Where did all these people come from!"
Only Li Zhen remained standing in place, gazing up at the ceiling of the theater amidst the endless cheers.
She raised the corners of her lips lightly, her blood was boiling, yet her heartbeat was slowly and heavily pounding.
She murmured to herself, saying to her nineteen year old self: "Li Zhen, you're back."
Below, Lu Yanming stood in the front row, gazing up at Li Zhen.
That gaze was not like looking at a woman, but more like looking at the deity to whom he had devoted his flesh, blood and soul.
Li Zhen didn't know that her own soft murmur would receive a response from someone else in the surging crowd.
Lu Yanming pulled his lips into a smile, murmuring lowly: "Li Zhen, long time no see."
You who are radiant and glorious, long time no see.
Backstage, everyone was extremely excited.
They were all discussing how so many people had suddenly shown up today.
Shi Tianya laughed merrily, "Director Meng, you sure kept this from us! Coming up to thousands, yet you managed to restrain yourself from telling us."
Meng Changsheng also laughed, "Wasn't I afraid you'd get distracted and not perform well?"
In the corner, Li Zhen packed up her things while taking out her phone.
As soon as she unlocked it, countless people's messages flooded toward her.
All were congratulatory, praising...
Li Zhen finally opened the big company group to find out why.
Yu Sheng supporting her was rather unexpected.
It seemed that with their impending divorce, she truly no longer had any ties with him, so he didn't care what she did anymore.
After the show ended, it was close to 10pm.
Li Zhen went to the supermarket to buy some daily necessities and changes of clothes, then headed to her new accommodations.
The new place was right next to the company, also an old complex.
Without even an elevator, getting upstairs required climbing.
Li Zhen hauled her bags and packages up five flights of stairs, panting.
Yet she didn't feel tired at all, she was in too good of a mood today.
She took out her keys, about to open the door, then thought against it and knocked on the door instead.
"Who is it!" A man's voice sounded.
Li Zhen suddenly sensed something was off.
The next second, the man had opened the door.
Li Zhen looked at the man before her who was only wearing a towel around his waist, exposing his upper body, momentarily frozen in the doorway.
The man was even more surprised than Li Zhen. He yelled inside, "Xiao Xiao, trouble! That green snake from on stage came to our place!"