"Hmm, go ahead."
Manager Zheng? It should be Yuan, right? He had forgotten her full na, as he was so used to calling her Yuan.
"Yiyi, quickly bring my clothes! BOO HOO, it’s too cold here!"
"Sister Qiu, quickly put it on. Are we still rehearsing later?"
Xu Qingqiu shivered all over, her legs red. She shook her head while pulling on her clothes.
"No more rehearsals. This is the last ti. They will clear out this area soon, and then we just wait for the evening’s gala recording."
Seeing her like this, Yiyi felt heartbroken. Just then, Sister Hua seed to have finished her discussion with the production team and returned. Yiyi imdiately began to speak up for Xu Qingqiu.
"Sister Hua, you’re finally back! What’s the deal with this production team? Isn’t the stage too cold? And they have us wear these kinds of performance outfits. How can anyone perform well under these conditions?"
Li Chunhua glared at her fiercely and began to scold, "What? Are you throwing a tantrum now, acting like a diva? Look at all these celebrities; everyone is freezing, not just you."
The words were directed at Yiyi, but Sister Hua’s gaze still flickered to Xu Qingqiu, making her feel extrely embarrassed.
"Sister Hua, it was who said that. I just couldn’t stand the cold anymore."
In fact, Xu Qingqiu had only complained in passing and didn’t really think much of it. Yiyi was just sympathetic towards her and also wanted to act a bit playful with Sister Hua.
Unfortunately, Sister Hua was a sharp one. Where are we? People are probably watching our every move here—is this a place to speak carelessly?
Upon realizing it wasn’t Xu Qingqiu who had an attitude problem, Sister Hua’s expression relaxed considerably.
"Qingqiu, just hang in there a little longer. You know how it is; the venue is so big, and this is just the preparation phase. With people coming in and out, the temperature hasn’t risen yet. It will be better in the evening."
"I’m fine, Sister Hua. I’ll get used to it in a bit."
Xu Qingqiu knew what Sister Hua was worried about, so she didn’t mind and even pulled the scolded Yiyi closer to comfort her.
Once the final celebrity finished their rehearsal on stage, everyone was taken to the backstage lounge to wait for the evening’s recording.
This year, Lemon TV was also broadcasting live. However, even though it was called a live broadcast, they also had a backup recording prepared. The session they were about to do was for this backup recording, a practice similar to CCTV’s approach.
The recording of the backup tape allowed for errors and also aid to capture their best performance. After this recording, the actual live broadcast would begin. They would have to perform again then, though how that performance would turn out was anyone’s guess.
"WOW! WOW! WOW! Lemon TV really went all out this year, having invited four out of the eight popular Hua—it’s like owning half the kingdom!"
"I’m here to see our Zizi! Zizi is so handso!"
"Did I hear that the King of Songs from Hong Kong Island is also coming tonight? Talk about a blast from the past! How many years has it been since he last made an appearance?"
"I want to see Zhao Xiaong! I just saw her rehearsal video, and Xiaong looks absolutely divine tonight!"
"Xu Qingqiu is also here? She’s with Lemon TV too? Damn, I had no clue!"
"What? Xu Qingqiu is here too? When was that announced? Why didn’t I know about it before?"
"The list of participants was released a long ti ago; it seems none of you have checked, huh? It was decided more than half a month ago. It’s just that Xu Qingqiu has been busy with her new album and hasn’t done much promotion for this."
"Oh right, didn’t Xu Qingqiu release a new song from her album today? I knew I was forgetting sothing."
"You fake fan! Of course, she didn’t release one today. It’s New Year’s Eve; who has ti to listen to new songs?"
"That’s true..."
"Everyone, quiet down the live comnts! It’s about to start, so no more chatting!"
Indeed, it had started. Just as the audience watching on various devices realized what was happening, all the stage lights suddenly went out.
But soon, all the lights ca back on. At that mont, the cara for the live online broadcast switched from the introductory CG to the stage.
The first performance was, unsurprisingly, the perennial opener, also known as the warm-up dance.
As the dance reached its midpoint, the first group of chorus singers slowly ascended from the lift platform.
A dynamic and joyful dance number saw perforrs, including actors and singers, relay the song line by line, smoothly transitioning to the hosts.
When the music ended, the hosts skillfully took over the lively scene.
anwhile, unlike the viewers watching the live broadcast on their screens, countless city central squares and large shopping malls were holding their own New Year’s Eve ceremonies.
If anyone had been keeping count, they might have noticed—perhaps by sheer coincidence, perhaps not—that this year’s New Year’s Eve celebrations seed remarkably synchronized. Many large outdoor screens were playing background music that frequently featured so of Xu Qingqiu’s new songs.
Sotis, just after her song "Encounter" finished playing, it would be followed by "Finally Waiting for You," which had only been released the previous day.
For now, however, everyone’s attention was still on the New Year’s countdown itself. The real buzz about this phenonon would likely only begin once people from these public gatherings started posting videos on various online platforms.
"Alright, thanks to the Haha Group for bringing us this joyful song! Now, this next singer is quite sothing! Does everyone know who it is? Want to take a guess?"
"Can’t guess? Then let give you a hint: ’President Xu.’ Can you guess now?"
The host interacted with the audience below the stage, but to his surprise, the mont he ntioned ’President Xu,’ an instant uproar erupted from the crowd.
"WOW! WOW! WOW! Xu Qingqiu! Is it Xu Qingqiu?!"
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