From start to finish, Yuran never lifted that white cloth, and the ending came as she ended with a kiss upon the white cloth. Everyone saw her lips move, but there was no sound, yet it was clear to see as she said, "Why not wait for me?"
At this point, the entire performance concluded.
Yuran was still standing there, calming her emotions. She hadn’t performed it last night. When she performed it in front of Bo Yan the previous night, Bo Yan told her no, rejecting it over a dozen times, in over a dozen different versions.
Bo Yan almost took her by the hand to teach her, letting her contain her emotions before releasing them and even demonstrated it once for her. When Bo Yan performed, she was almost suffocated by his interpretation.
And her interpretation today perhaps didn’t register with her, but to onlookers like Xuan Ze and the others, that was the feeling.
Suppression, gloom, darkness, a storm brewing.
It hinted at Tang Wan’s inevitable fate throughout.
Xuan Ze clenched his fists tightly, then released them, and clenched them again, overwhelmed with an unspeakable sadness. While Yuran was up there stabilizing her emotions, they were down here trying to stabilize theirs.
A performance lasting less than five minutes managed to make people feel oppressively agitated.
Minutes later, as everyone recovered, Yuran bowed to them and slowly walked offstage. Annan, seeing that her mood was off, went up to support her to one side and hurriedly asked, "What’s wrong?"
She had been practically blinded by Yuran’s performance just now and was still somewhat upset. But as an audience member, she was able to detach faster than Yuran, who was immersed in her role and needed more time.
Yuran shook her head, taking a sip from the water Weiwei handed her, "It’s nothing, I’ll just need a moment..."
Her performance put so much pressure on the subsequent two competitors that it amounted to a sort of high voltage; having seen Yuran’s performance, they knew they couldn’t match her.
Zhou Lianjia approached Yuran, stopping in front of her. Yuran looked up, "What’s up?"
Zhou Lianjia gave her a small smile, "Yuran, you’re really amazing!"
This was no exaggeration, just pure admiration. Yuran managed a bittersweet smile, feeling a bit better, "Thank you."
Zhou Lianjia shook her head, "That scene, I’ve seen it, it’s hard to play, but your interpretation today, it’s as if you brought Tang Wan to life, yet it wasn’t Tang Wan. You’re really impressive."
Zhou Lianjia knew all too well that a newcomer like Yuran wouldn’t be one for long—once her work went out, and the company supported her even a little, she would absolutely skyrocket.
Great talent, perfect looks, she was truly blessed by the Gods with a meal ticket.
Indeed, with Yuran setting the bar so high, the subsequent two performances were completely overshadowed, unable to be compared on the same level. After it ended, the three of them left separately, and Xuan Ze remained seated without saying a word.
Austin seemed to still be savoring Yuran’s earlier interpretation, rewatching it on the monitor again and again, and summed up, "Tang, this must be fate. I didn’t expect your spur-of-the-moment decision to bring about our original vision."
It was indeed an unexpected gain.
Duan Chen commented, "Where did you dig up this gem? She can write, sing, and act, the second-top scholar from Diwai university, a real treasure!"
Austin, Xuan Ze: "..."
Austin said, "Tang, I think, it has to be her, only she can play Tang Wan in our minds."
Xuan Ze had basically no objections and nodded, "I agree."
Duan Chen expressed his opinion, "I second the motion, I second the motion. Just now’s performance spoke for itself, choosing her is absolutely well-deserved."