The night on the grasslands was incredibly beautiful, with the stars particularly bright, resembling gems embedded in the endless black cloth. Tian Sisi looked up at the starry sky, feeling as if her whole being had emptied, her heart especially clear.
"Brother Xin Hua, these stars are so beautiful! I don’t want to move, could you take some pictures for me?" Tian Sisi got lazy and pushed the task onto Tian Xinhua.
Tian Xinhua took several pictures of the starry sky over the grasslands, as well as a few of Tian Sisi and Zhang Jie. Not many boys were interested in having their photos taken, but Tian Lili, Lu Yunfei, and another girl watched with envy.
Having learned her lesson, Tian Lili politely asked Tian Xinhua to take some pictures of her. Tian Xinhua frowned but still took two shots for Tian Lili. Although unsatisfied, Tian Lili pursed her lips and did not make any more fuss, appearing to have learned her lesson, and the journey remained smooth.
Lu Yunfei sat next to Tian Lili, dignified, thinking that Tian Xinhua would surely come over to take her picture, but after waiting half the day, she ended up seeing him put away the camera and leave.
What’s happening? Lu Yunfei was dumbfounded. Why was Luo Jun’s relative just as tactless as him? Both embarrassed and annoyed, but still attracted by the idea of having photos taken, she timidly stood up and said to Tian Xinhua, "Tian Xinhua, could you take a picture of me?"
Tian Xinhua paused for a moment, turned around, and Lu Yunfei was delighted. She knew that Tian Xinhua must have been too shy before; no boy would refuse a girl like her. Lu Yunfei was very confident in her charm.
"I’m tired, why don’t you ask Zhifei to take it for you?"
Tian Xinhua spoke indifferently and tossed the camera to Han Zhifei, who was nearby, then walked back to Tian Sisi. He could see through Lu Yunfei who always seemed to target Ah Nan, but out of respect for Luo Jun and Lei Gang, he refrained from confronting her.
Over the moon, Han Zhifei carefully took photos for Lu Yunfei, but with her pride bruised by Tian Xinhua, she was hardly in the mood. After striking a few poses, she sat down to rest. Meanwhile, Ma Jiajia and Tian Lili were having a good time being photographed.
Han Zhifei wanted to accompany his goddess, but got entangled by these two, so he had to patiently take pictures for them. This added to Lu Yunfei’s frustration, even Han Zhifei was not as attentive as before! What on earth was going on?
Occasional wolf howls could be heard in the distance on the grasslands, but they sounded far away. Lei Gang, worried that Tian Sisi might be scared, smiled and said, "Don’t worry, these wolves generally won’t come near when they see a fire. Even if they do come, we have guns. One shot and they’re done."
"Mm," Tian Sisi nodded. She wasn’t scared; after all, she had Space.
Lei Gang was pleased with Tian Sisi’s compliance. A sister should indeed be as docile and cute as her. Unlike his uncle’s daughter, who was a real tigress, where was any of the compliance that Sisi had? Lei Gang grinned and even patted Tian Sisi on the head, drawing angry glares from Tian Xinhua and Luo Jun.
Lu Yunfei was all jumbled up inside. Could it be that Lei Gang had taken a liking to Tian Sisi? The moment she considered this possibility, Lu Yunfei instantly went on high alert and began to see Tian Sisi as her top rival.
Although she had heard about the rumors between Lei Gang and Zhang Jie last year when she first arrived at the military region, she never considered Zhang Jie a rival because the relationship between Zhang Jie and Lei Gang was simply too bland. Sometimes when they met, they didn’t even greet each other, more strangers than acquaintances. Such a pair having any secrets would truly be suspicious!
But Tian Sisi was different, not only was she very beautiful, which she had to admit, but the main thing was that Lei Gang was visibly different every time he saw Tian Sisi. When a man shows such excessive attention to a woman, it definitely means he is in love with her—this was the truth her dancer mother had warned her about, prompting Lu Yunfei to kick into high alert.
"Gangzi, it’s still early, let’s have some fun with a performance," Lu Yunfei suggested, an idea flashing in her mind.
"Sure, that sounds like a great idea. Gangzi, I love hearing you sing Soviet songs, especially ’Katyusha,’" Liu Datou was the first to respond.
The others also chimed in, urging Lei Gang to sing ’Katyusha’, with Liu Datou being the loudest. Lei Gang was generous enough to stand up, clear his throat, and then started singing loudly.
"’Katyusha stands on the steep bank, her voice like the bright spring light, the girl sings a wonderful song, she sings about the eagle of the steppes; she sings of her beloved, and she keeps her lover’s letters...’"
Lei Gang’s voice was high and clear, with a beautiful timbre, very pleasant to hear. Everyone followed along, humming softly and keeping the beat with their hands. Only on these vast steppes could they freely sing these captivating tunes.
After Lei Gang finished ’Katyusha’, he was persuaded by the crowd to sing ’Three Horses’. Later, Wu Tianfang also performed a harmonica solo of ’Hawthorn Tree’, which was melodious and lovely to hear, Zhang Jie as well sang ’Little Road’. It seemed that the second generation in the military region had a special fondness for Soviet songs!
Tian Weihua and Tian Qinghua sparred together, drawing rounds of applause. Then spurred on by Ma Jiajia, Lu Yunfei took to the stage, modestly walking to the center and asking Wu Tianfang to play ’There Is a Beautiful Place’ while she performed a Dai dance.
Wu Tianfang raised an eyebrow but said nothing; he put the harmonica to his lips and started playing ’There Is a Beautiful Place’. The beautiful melody began, and Lu Yunfei danced along to the music. It was evident she had put a lot of effort into her dancing; her body was very flexible, her hips swirled dramatically, and her hands moved beautifully, especially under the dim firelight, adding an extra allure effectively meant to attract men—didn’t Han Zhifei and Liu Datou almost drool?
After finishing her dance, Lu Yunfei was slightly out of breath, shyly glancing towards Lei Gang, but he was bent over talking with Luo Jun, oblivious to her dance. Lu Yunfei immediately felt disheartened, seeing Tian Sisi lowering her head to drink water from the cup in Tian Xinhua’s hands, she felt as ridiculous as a circus monkey!
"Sisi, everyone has performed, why don’t you come up and show us a talent too? Let us all enjoy it?"
Tian Sisi was taken aback, huh, why did Lu Yunfei’s gaze seem hostile? Performing was supposed to be voluntary, and from Lu Yunfei’s demeanor, it seemed like she was being forced to go on stage.
"If you don’t have any talents, that’s okay, just pretend I never asked!" Seeing Tian Sisi’s silence, thinking she lacked any skills, Lu Yunfei was secretly pleased but still graciously showed indifference on her face.
Damn it, you’ve already thrown down the gauntlet, how can I pretend you didn’t? Tian Sisi now fully understood that Lu Yunfei was deliberately targeting her. Indeed, Qiqi was right—being beautiful really does draw envy, Tian Sisi thought proudly.