Night fell upon the manor.
Xiang Yi left the villa and found the lighting in the villa too dim, lit only by a few street lamps and the crew's equipment.
She headed into the toolshed and dug out the lanterns her and her brothers had made before.
Rong Huai and the others gathered as well.
"Wow, candle lit lanterns still exist?"
"Big Sister, are we hanging these? Should we bring the ladder?"
Xiang Yi: "It's alright, just hand it to me."
"Heh? Can you reach it though..."
Before he finished his sentence, the girl began proficiently embarking up the tree in a motion that was as smooth and fast as an action movie.
The teens: ???
The viewers in the stream: ???
——[Heh? Yiyi, your goddess reputation is lost, you know that!]
——[F*ck! I thought Simao bro and Sanmao bro were fast at climbing, but I didn't think Yi mei would be the fastest!]
——[I just remembered the PhD gege was injured because he went rock climbing with his little sister...]
——[Men will go silent, and women will cry at the sight... The Xiang family actually has such a unique passed down skill… If you don't repost this, you aren't Chinese!]
Calmly, Xiang Yi said: "Pass me the lantern."
Rong Huai, the tallest out of all of them, handed her a lantern, still in a daze.
She hung it, lit it, and then...
Xiang Yi climbed toward another tree...
After hanging them up, the courtyard lit up significantly and felt even slightly warmer.
The warm light of the lanterns dissipated faintly as some moths gathered around it, bumping into each other without hesitation.
Xiang Li was in a rare mood of indulgence tonight. He leaned back in his recliner lazily as he had drunk too much. The top two buttons of his shirt were open, revealing pale white skin and thin collarbones. The red mole at the edge of his eye seemed extra appealing.
Xiang Yi had drunk a decent amount as well to accompany him and felt dizzy. However, her consciousness was inexplicably clear.
Yin Jiangxue picked up a ukulele. It had been a long time since she touched an instrument, which felt foreign to her hands. Slowly, she stumbled and paused as she tried to play a children's song.
"I must practice hard, so I can play for our baby!" Her voice was full of anticipation.
Supportive of her, Sheng Guang clapped in accompaniment for her at the side. His eyes were full of happiness. She had been the only one for him from beginning to end.
Lights flickered in the gentle wind.
It was a beautiful night.
And with it, people felt their heart soften.
Yin Jiangxue finished her tune and was about to put the ukulele away when Xiang Yi received it.
She strummed it a few times and adjusted the strings.
Rong Huai and the others felt their eyes light up.
The hoard of rascals ditched their meat and compliantly surrounded the summer pavilion.
Li Jianyu didn't know whether to smile or cry. "Hey, hey, you're blocking Yi mei from the camera!"
In the stream.
——[Ahhhh Yi mei is going to sing?]
——[QQ these kids are completely different from earlier today, they're smiling!]
——[They must really love Yi mei. Afraid to block the camera, but standing on their tiptoes trying to look closer. I want to cry again Q_Q]
A simple and pleasant prelude rang out. The ukulele had a clear sound that might not have been impactful at first, but it became more harmonious as it blended into the warm night.
The red sun rises, and brightens the way,
The river flows, into the ocean and down
Lazily, the girl began to sing. Her voice instantly caught everyone's ear.
Lowering her brows, she was a tiny being, half-absorbed by the shadows in the corner. Yet, her dazzling existence among the crowd could be noticed in an instant.
Standing like mountains and rivers
Daring to contest the sun and moon
Xiang Yi raised her gaze and looked at the teeangers standing outside the summer pavilion. Softly, she smiled. Then humming as if she were coaxing a child, she began to sing with shocking power:
My heart is like a scorching sun
Unable to stop me going forward
This dynasty belongs to us youth*
The last chord rang out.
All around her was silence, so quiet that rustling wind and falling petals could be heard.
*Translator's Note: The song she sings here is called 'Shao Nian Zhong Guo Shuo', based on the late Qing Dynasty poem "On The Young China" by Liang Qichao. I couldn't find a decent translation of the song lyrics, so above is my interpretation. (It's a very eloquent poem as well if you can find a translated version!)