CHAPTER 1
"Next, Shen Junshan!"
Xie Xiang's breathing couldn't help but got up quickly. After the person in the front came in, the next one will be her. Even though she's been mentally prepared for a long time, it's still making a little nervous.
"Huh, calm down."
Xie Xiang silently thought.
"Next, Xie Liangchen!"
"Here!"
Almost subconsciously, Xie Xiang replied very loudly, and the other students waiting in the corridor looked at her in surprise. She hurriedly lowered her head, uncomfortably tugged on the short hair she had just cut, holding her own medical report, and walked quickly to the infirmary.
With a "bang", Xie Xiang collided with the person who came out, and the report sheet scattered all over the place.
"I'm sorry."
Xie Xiang quickly apologized.
Shen Junshan knelt down, picked up the report sheet, and looked down at her.
The person in front of him is a head shorter than himself, the skin is very white, and the stature is very thin, with a thin neck as if it can be twisted with just a little effort, and there is a pale pink on the nails that can't be seen if you don't look closely. Obviously, nail polish has been applied before, and it was scraped off again with a knife. In just a few years, the Arsenal Military Academy was defeated like this. Can even this quality pass the entrance examination?
"Thank you."
Xie Xiang took the medical report sheet, turned around and entered the infirmary.
"Name."
"Xie Liangchen."
"Age."
"Nineteen."
"Okay, take off your clothes and lie down on the bed."
The doctor wearing a mask stood up. Looking a little serious, he rolled up his cuffs, pointed to the hospital bed beside him, and said.
Xie Xiang stayed still, and smiled, "Doctor, can I not take off my clothes? I'm a little embarrassed."
The doctor was obviously taken aback, looked up and down in surprise. He (Xie Xiang) is not tall and looks a little thin, but his eyebrows are very energetic. Wearing a new small suit, he seems to have a good family background.
"You're a big guy, what are you embarrassed about?"
Xie Xiang squeezed her collar, "I haven't taken off my clothes in front of others."
"Don't talk nonsense." The doctor was impatient: "Quickly take off and lie down."
"Doctor, just be accommodating."
Xie Xiang stepped forward, grabbed the doctor's wrist without a trace, shook it pleadingly.
"I think you don't want to pass, then go out and don't waste my time."
"Doctor……"
The doctor impatiently wanted to push Xie Xiang’s hand away, pulling back and forth, and suddenly felt that his wrist sank. He looked down and saw that a yellow orange gold bracelet with the thickness of a pinky slipped off Xie Xiang's wrist into his hand.
The doctor was taken aback and looked at Xie Xiang.
Xie Xiang smiled awkwardly, showing a mouthful of white and neat teeth. Cautiously, with obsequious flattery, asked embarrassedly: "Doctor, have I passed?"
The front door of the municipal hospital is full of greenery. There are few pedestrians and it is very quiet. It seems that the turbulent times have also affected the business here. It slowed down birth, old age, sickness, and death. Tan Xiaojun stood outside the door, biting her lip, pacing back and forth, waiting nervously.
Xie Xiang trot out, unable to hide the excitement, and patted Tan Xiaojun's on the shoulder.
Tan Xiaojun's eyes lit up and she asked in a low voice like a thief: "How is it?"
Xie Xiang nodded, and Tan Xiaojun yelled out with a "wow". Pedestrians walking in and out couldn't help but look at them. Tan Xiaojun stuck her tongue out, and forced the inconceivable pressure down.
"How did you do it?"
Xie Xiang leaned in mysteriously, turned her back to the hospital door, and quietly raised her sleeves. Can be seen that she was wearing more than a dozen "golden bracelets" on her wrists.
"Wow, where did you get so much money?"
Xie Xiang smiled and whispered: "Fake."
"Fake?" Xiao Jun was surprised: "Aren't you afraid they will find you later?"
"Come on, as long as they are willing to admit that they have accepted bribes."
Tan Xiaojun curled her lips and said with a thumbs up: "You are amazing."
Xie Xiang took Tan Xiaojun's hand: "Let's go, go eat, I'm starving to death."
"No hurry, I'll take you to a place."
"Where?"
Tan Xiaojun smiled mysteriously: "Where the men goes, do you dare?"
Xie Xiang didn't care: "I even dare to enter the male bathhouse now."
"What a boast."
Tan Xiaojun chuckled lightly. A military vehicle passed by, and it was full of soldiers, wearing leggings, high boots, armed belts, and rifles. The car drove very fast, raising dust all over the ground. The pedestrians coughed twice, and then left. No one cared, and no one looked at it. Everyone seems to be accustomed to such a scene and to be accustomed to such calmness. With a hint of tension, there are some dangerous days hidden in tranquility.
No one thinks anything is wrong, and the unfounded worries in the newspaper seem to be far from life. Assassinations, poisoning, and assassinations, are the days of big shots.
But in fact, it's not that far away.
Think about it carefully. But in just a few years, the country has changed hands several times, the situation of the country has changed, the emperor has stepped down for a democratic republic, the warlords has fought and continued to fight. Throughout the five thousand years of the country, there is rarely such a lively situation.
The heroes are like crucian carps across the river. All kind of slogans, all kind of thoughts, all kind of sounds. It's dizzying. They all wants to make a shout on the stage in this rare opportunity in a century.
This is an ambitious era, with fire buried in crisis. But it is also an era of impetuosity and erosion, and there are alluring singing among the decaying pavilions. Just like this Palimo Dance Hall in front of them, everyone can see its magnificent splendid golden wall. No one will believe that there are still hungry refugees outside Shunyuan City. They are lying in the pitch-black grass shed at the moment, waiting for the clear and visible rice soup to be issued by the government tomorrow morning.
Xie Xiang still wears the same men's clothing that she had during the physical examination. Standing in front of Palimo's gate, she couldn't help but think of the words of her elder brother again*, and she took a step back slightly.
(T/N. *I can't help but think that the paragraphs above was the words of her elder brother, but it's not really showed as it is.)
"Why are we here?"
"Bring you to meet a friend."
Xie Xiang was taken aback for a moment: "Do you have friends here?"
"Here, it's her." Tan Xiaojun points to the huge poster in front. A beautiful woman dressed in a blue-purple cheongsam, the neck is slender and white as jade. With a cigarette between her fingers, she looked sideways, winking seductively.
"Qu Manting is your friend?" A passing alcoholic asked incredulously.
Tan Xiaojun raised her chin: "Yeah, how about it?"
The alcoholic sneered. Without answering, he went straight to the ballroom.
"You!" Tan Xiaojun said anxiously, couldn't help but catching up with the first two steps, and Xie Xiang grabbed her.
"Okay, go in."
The door slowly opened, and the long red carpet was spread into the hall from the front door. The huge crystal chandelier was shining on the ceiling with silver light, and the light shone on the mirror-smooth ground. The silver stars were dotted, overflowing with color. And in a daze, Xie Xiang actuallly had the illusion of stepping on a starry river.
Xiaojun took her hand and walked all the way, passing by the waiters and finally stopped outside the ballroom.
In the magnificent hall, there is a grand stage in the center, and a small half-curved dance floor is spread around the stage like stars arching over the moon.
The huge red curtain fell down, covering the entire stage tightly. But the surrounding dance floor is full of liveliness. A woman with a graceful figure wearing a gorgeous cheongsam sings and dances on the stage, her slender waist swayed like flowing water, the misty and melodious singing is winding in mid-air, and there seemed to be countless tentacles of small bugs stratching between the ears and temples.
The seats are scattered around the periphery of the dance floor. The guests sat in one place in twos and threes, pushing cups and changing cups, it was so lively.
Xie Xiang glanced at the guests present, they all came dressed up. The clothes are expensive and the tailoring is exquisite. Men are in suits or gowns, while women are mostly in cheongsam. Few are wearing new style dresses. Several figures sitting in the front row are all celebrities from all walks of life in Shunyuan. From this point of view, the appeal of this actress is really extraordinary.
The singing and vocals were mixed together, and she quickly felt uncomfortable, "Xiaojun, I'll go to the bathroom." Xie Xiang amplified the volume and said to Tan Xiaojun's ear.
After asking the waiter, she squeezed in the crowd for a long time, and finally went up to the second floor.
In the women's toilet on the second floor at the moment, the big star Qu Manting, who was missing from the reporters, was sitting in the toilet cubicle. With the bright red nails coated her pair of jade hands even more whiter, she picked up a cigarette butt and placed it near her mouth. After a while, she slowly exhaled a smoke ring.
Since returning to Shunyuan, there has never been a moment as quiet as it is now. Wherever she appeared, reporters and flashlights were always in the shadows, making people unable to relax for a moment. In particular, an anecdote between her and Shen Tingbai, the president of the Shunyuan Chamber of Commerce, has become a story that reporters rushed to report. No matter how she explained, no one believed in the innocent relationship between them.
Compared with the truth of the matter, people seem to be more willing to pay attention to the heat it brings.
The sound of the door being opened is not loud, but Qu Manting was slightly surprised. Such a decadent appearance was not suitable for being seen. She threw the cigarette butt in her hand into the toilet and flushed it away, and then took out the perfume in her handbag and sprayed it on her body. Soon, the fragrant fragrance of perfume filled the entire toilet cubicle, and even the sideburns of her clothes were stained with a little bit of fragrance.
Stretched out her hand to smooth the wrinkles on the burgundy cheongsam, she twisted her waist and walked out of the compartment. A pair of butterflies embroidered with gold thread on the hem swayed with the pace, as if to flap their wings and fly. The pointed high-heeled shoes with the same color as the cheongsam knocked on the floor, making a pleasant, crisp sound.
The exquisite golden handbag was placed on the sink. Qu Manting glanced aside casually. Her eyes became sharp instantly, and she turned around, raised her arms to stare at Xie Xiang.
This gaze was too vicious, Xie Xiang couldn't even pay attention to it. She asked, a little puzzled: "This young lady……"
Before she finished speaking, a golden handbag was smashed over her head. Xie Xiang couldn't escape and was smashed upright. She covers her head and looking at Qu Manting angrily: "Hey! How are you hitting someone?"
"Little rogue! Doesn't learn well at a young age, following me? Is your hair all grown, dare to chase female celebrities to the women's toilet?"
The woman in front of her is curvy, gorgeous and incomparable, and the harsh words didn't quite match her dainty posture.
Xie Xiang looked up and just wanted to reason with her, but suddenly saw herself in the mirror, with a standard men's suit and neat men's short hair. The bright light reflected on her face, she suddenly realized that she would be regarded as a stalker, and the originally organized fierce words helplessly turned into an apology without deterrence.
"Sorry, this is a misunderstanding!"
"Misunderstanding my ass!" Qu Manting snorted coldly, obviously not believing her explanation, waving her small bag and attacking her again.
The first time was unprepared, and the second time would definitely not let her succeed. Xie Xiang leaned sideways and grabbed the arm Qu Manting was waving with her hand, and pressed her on the sink.
"I said it was a misunderstanding, why are you acting like a shrew?"
Qu Manting was panting, and was about to shout. At this time, there was a knock on the door, followed by a man's voice, "Miss Qu, are you inside?" Obviously, Qu Manting's yelling alarmed him.
Xie Xiang was surprised. She didn't want to cause trouble, so she quickly let go of Qu Manting, opened the bathroom door, and the person who smashed open the door ran out.
Qu Manting's shout came from behind. Xie Xiang looked around, the reporters on the stairs went there after hearing the movement.
She pointed towards the toilet: "Qu Manting is there!"
"Is it Qu Manting?"
"It's Qu Manting!"
"Miss Manting!"
The reporters came flocking. Seeing Qu Manting dumbfounded and quickly surrounded by reporters, Xie Xiang exhaled a long breath and went downstairs easily.
When Xie Xiang found Tan Xiaojun, she was chatting with the bartender enthusiastically.
With the delicate and euphemistic sound of the saxophone, the red curtain on the stage was slowly opened. The lights on the court turned from dark to bright, flickering with the appearance of Qu Manting. Immediately, thousands of neon lights turned into a beautiful shadow on the stage.
The beauty was dressed in a burgundy cheongsam, which makes her skin white as snow, and the waves of her eyes turned into countless amorous feelings. Just by appearing on the stage, she has firmly grasped the eyes of the audience.
Xie Xiang had no intention of admiring beauties, and her tone was a little urgent, "Xiao Jun, you didn't know that I just……"
Before the words were finished, the voice disappeared into the warm applause of the audience. Tan Xiaojun didn't know what was going on upstairs, so she put all her thoughts on the stage, pointed at Qu Manting and smiled: "Look, my friend is going to perform!"
Xie Xiang tugged her with a headache. Tan Xiaojun didn't realize it, excitedly cheered and clapped hands with everyone, cheering eminently.
Finally, after the song was sung, the audience applauded and whistled. Xie Xiang followed and clapped her hands cooperatively, wanting to tell Tan Xiaojun to go with her first.
"What big star, can only sing like this." A lazy male voice came from the second floor. Although the voice was not loud, it was particularly clear in this lively ballroom.
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T/N. The author doesn't use 她 (tā), or the gender pronoun for female, to refer Xie Xiang, often. It's still being used, but not much, I guess to take into account the current situation of Xie Xiang disguised as a man. It's hard to literally translate it literally since English and Chinese are two worlds apart, but I will try to match with the style as much as I can.
Though, I will use "he" for Xie Xiang in another people's mind that thought that she is a he, even though author never used 他 (tā), the gender pronoun for male, for Xie Xiang herself. For example, the situation of her "negotiating" with the doctor above.
Thank you for reading!
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