Joint Performance

On the night of Yinshan Academy, the usual lively atmosphere continued. Fireworks blossomed continuously in the night sky, painting it like a galaxy full of blooming flowers.

The stalls along the track attracted crowds of visitors. The summer heat only seemed to add fuel to everyone's excitement.

“I didn’t expect to be performing today myself,” Ye Shuang said. Kou Kou had sent over a formal suit since there were no appropriate performance outfits available, so this simple substitute would have to do.

“Mr. Ye, is there anything else you need?” Kou Kou asked, standing nearby. She had nothing much to do at the company this afternoon, thinking she could leave work on time, but she hadn’t expected Ye Shuang to ask her to deliver a suit.

“No, thank you for coming out here,” Ye Shuang said with a slight smile.

“Not at all. It’s my honor to help out,” Kou Kou replied immediately.

After all, she had pretty much slacked off for half the day, so she wouldn’t dare complain about anything her boss did.

In fact, if anyone dared to say anything bad about him, Kou Kou would be the first to step up and defend him.

…

After changing clothes, Ye Shuang arrived backstage. The place was packed with people—mostly performers waiting for their turn to go on stage. Everyone was chatting excitedly about the upcoming acts. He noticed a crowd gathered in one corner—

A girl in a pure white long dress stood there, quiet and still. Her beautiful eyes were lowered, as if she were mentally preparing for her performance.

But unlike her serene and aloof demeanor, the crowd around her was mostly male classmates of her age.

“Classmate Bai Yuyou, how about grabbing a meal together after the show?”

“Classmate Bai, my cat can do somersaults. My dog can play the guitar. Wanna come check them out? They’re super cute.”

“Classmate Bai Yuyou, are you going to sing later?”

Probably because Tang Keke wasn’t by her side, Bai Yuyou was surrounded by boys trying to chat her up. But the girl didn’t react much, standing there quietly, appearing somewhat out of place in the restless crowd.

It was no wonder people always called Bai Yuyou the hard-to-approach school beauty. She simply couldn’t be bothered with most things, and when nothing caught her interest, she turned cold and distant.

But to Ye Shuang, she was just a slightly dazed and adorable girl.

“Yu You, I’m ready,” Ye Shuang said, walking over and pulling her out of the circle of onlookers.

“Sorry, everyone. We’re about to go on stage soon.” Bai Yuyou gave the students a polite smile, then obediently followed Ye Shuang away, leaving the group staring in silence.

“You okay?” Ye Shuang asked, letting go of her small hand after they reached the railing.

“I’m fine,” Bai Yuyou replied softly.

“Sure enough, when Keke isn’t around, people still swarm over to you,” Ye Shuang said.

But Bai Yuyou replied, “I know what they want.”

“Oh?”

“Mm.” She leaned in slightly, then paused.

“Like…” she hesitated for a moment before saying quietly, “doing things like that.”

“……” Ye Shuang looked at the girl’s cool, clear eyes and the gesture that didn’t quite match her usual demeanor, then cleared his throat softly. He gently grabbed her soft hand to stop her.

“Alright, what number are we performing later?”

“Number seventeen. Right now it’s number five,” Bai Yuyou said, pointing to a nearby monitor that was playing the performance of the students ahead of them.

“Okay, so it’s soon… Yu You, stop touching.”

As Ye Shuang and Bai Yuyou were talking, Tang Keke returned, carrying several bags and boxes in her hands. “Yu You, Brother.”

“What’s that?”

“Makeup supplies, a makeup case,” Keke said as she opened a small box, revealing a variety of odd little items inside.

Ye Shuang looked surprised. “You’re going to do Yu You’s makeup?”

“Well, look—Yu You’s face doesn’t even need makeup. Pure bare skin can conquer the world.”

Even though Keke said that, she still took out some glittery stickers from the jewelry box and stuck them onto the girl’s face.

“And this!” Keke pulled out a swan-feathered hair clip and put it on Bai Yuyou—Yu You was already wearing a pure white long dress that matched the white clip and the sparkles on her face, or more precisely, just below her eyes.

She looked a bit like some pop stars dressing up for a concert performance.

“Pretty good, right? I call this ‘Yu You’s stage outfit,’” Keke said with satisfaction. “I even tailored the dress myself.”

“Oh?” Ye Shuang had heard before that Keke made her own cosplay costumes, but he hadn’t expected such an exquisite dress to be her work as well.

“Not bad. Maybe you should become a designer someday,” Ye Shuang said with a smile. Even though Keke was studying business management, given her habit of sleeping through class, she’d be better off doing something she actually enjoyed.

“I’d rather be a homebody,” Tang Keke replied.

“Well, no matter what your interest is, once it becomes a job, you end up hating the interest itself.”

“That’s true,” Ye Shuang agreed.

Soon it was Bai Yuyou and Ye Shuang’s turn to perform.

“Sister Keke, over here.”

In the audience, Keke was looking for the Light Music Club’s section and quickly noticed Little Yezi’s arm waving.

“Keke, over here!” Tang Keke saw Taozi and the others and hurried over with quick little steps.

“Is Yu You and them performing soon?”

As soon as Tang Keke sat down, Taozi and the others asked curiously.

“Number seventeen—they’re next,” Tang Keke said. “Oh, it was supposed to be just Yu You performing alone, but Brother joined in too. Yu You must be really happy, right?”

“Yeah, because Yu You likes Teacher Ye the most.”

“That’s true…” Tang Keke thought for a moment, then shrugged helplessly. “Ah, feelings are just too complicated. They can’t be summed up by a shoujo manga.”

Then Keke tidied up a bit and took out a camcorder.

“Recording?”

“Yeah, Yu You asked for it. She said she wants to capture this day,” Tang Keke said as she set up the tripod and fixed the camcorder on it.

After a pause, she smiled softly.

From today onwards, Yu You is going to shine brightly.

Over the loudspeaker, Luo Xi’s voice also rang out, "Next up, let’s welcome number 17, Class 23, Department of Business Administration, Classmate Bai Yuyou, and Ye Shuang from the Third School Clinic, performing the song Putting Our Memories Back Together for You."

The curtain pulled back, and under the spotlight—

The figures of Ye Shuang and Bai Yuyou appeared before everyone.