Translator: Cinder Translations
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"Haoshuai, right?" The woman with the ponytail nodded. "I'll remember you."
"Remembering my name is useless," Jiang Cheng raised his head and said seriously, "You need to remember my number. I'm Number 49 in the high-level group."
The woman then introduced herself. Her name was Yu Wen, and she was an expert in international relations.
According to her, she had been traveling abroad for years and didn't expect to be caught in a nightmare as soon as she returned to the country.
This was her fourth mission.
Soon, the timid voice of the woman in pajamas came through. Her name was Zhang Yinyin, an intern kindergarten teacher who hadn't yet officially started her job.
Finally, there was another man with a camera. He, along with Zhou Taifu, was one of the two newcomers in this group.
His ill-fitting shirt and straight bangs made him look rather dull.
"Hello, everyone," he introduced himself. "I'm Long Tao, and I work as an extra in a film crew."
Now, only the fat guy was left.
Just as the fat guy was about to introduce himself confidently, Jiang Cheng suddenly interrupted, "His situation is a bit special. He doesn't have a name because..." He pursed his lips, his eyes filled with sadness, "He's an orphan."
"Has he been without parents since childhood?" Zhang Yinyin's face was full of pity. "That's so sad."
"Just call him Fatty," Jiang Cheng suggested. "That's what everyone at the orphanage called him."
Fatty: "..."
After a while, the group stood in front of a school building.
Every now and then, beautifully dressed girls passed by, going in and out of the building.
"This is the place," Zhen Jianren said, pulling back his gaze. "Let's go in."
The inside was even bigger than Jiang Cheng had imagined. On both sides of the hallway were classrooms, and from some of them, sounds of singing and musical instruments could be heard.
Although there was an elevator, everyone silently agreed to ignore it and chose to take the stairs on the right.
The large music room was located at the end of the fourth-floor corridor. As they approached, a woman in high heels came running up to them.
She looked to be in her early thirties, wearing light makeup. She asked, "Are you the photographers?"
Upon receiving confirmation, the woman breathed a sigh of relief.
In the following conversation, the woman explained that she had been arranged by the director to meet with the photography team.
Today was the first rehearsal.
Yu Wen, after some thought, asked, "How many rehearsals are there before the celebration?"
"Three," the woman replied succinctly.
"When does it start?"
"Right now," the woman said, leading them into the music room.
Though called a music room, it looked more like an auditorium.
Under the spotlight was a choir stand, already filled with students in costumes.
People were moving around, adjusting the lighting and various equipment.
It was clear that the school was taking this anniversary celebration very seriously.
Once they learned Jiang Cheng and his team were the photographers for the rehearsal, some student organizers immediately brought over a few bottles of water. "Teachers, please have some water!"
Everyone politely declined, but after refusing three times, the students insisted. Seeing more and more students gathering, the group had no choice but to each take a bottle.
Unexpectedly, these students were persistent and insisted on watching them drink the water before dispersing.
"Teachers," the woman in charge of the coordination came back after speaking with the staff on-site. She waved to them, saying, "We're ready."
Jiang Cheng and the others had already set up their cameras.
The position was chosen by Long Tao.
After all, he worked in the film crew and knew more about filming than the others.
"We need to record four segments during this rehearsal," the woman said politely, tidying her hair as she continued, "The first three are choir performances by three different classes, and the last one is a combined performance by all three classes."
"Got it," Jiang Cheng replied. "Let's get started."
After returning to his position, Jiang Cheng took out another camera from the bag, the one that had been stored at the equipment center.
Fatty noticed and asked, puzzled, "Why are you using that?"
This camera's lens had gotten foggy. Although it could still shoot, the quality of the images would be affected.
"Better to use it than leave it idle," Jiang Cheng said as he turned on the camera and began taking shots of the choir stand from various angles, looking quite focused.
To Fatty's surprise, both Zhen Jianren and Yu Wen walked over when they saw Jiang Cheng with the camera.
Jiang Cheng stretched his shoulders, looked up, and waved the camera at Zhen Jianren. "Wanna give it a try?"
Zhen Jianren stepped back but kept his attention on him.
The first class's choir performance ended quickly, and they left the stage in an orderly fashion.
The next class of students began to take their places.
Since the camera was on a tripod, Jiang Cheng didn't have to hold it the entire time.
He aimed the lens at the choir stand and began observing the students.
They were dressed in uniforms: white tops and blue skirts with contrasting colors.
There were ribbon bows decorating the collars and sleeves.
The tailored, slim-fit design highlighted the girls' slender waists, and the lotus-like skirts complemented their classic British schoolgirl aesthetic.
Jiang Cheng's gaze swept across the students one by one, occasionally meeting their eyes.
The difference was that the girls would quickly look away, while Jiang Cheng remained carefree, not showing the slightest bit of restraint.
As the second group of students left the stage, Fatty quietly leaned over and whispered, "What are you up to?"
Jiang Cheng, displeased, retorted, "Don't talk nonsense. If a ghost hears that, what kind of mess would that be?"
Fatty: "...I really admire how you can still joke around at a time like this."
Without looking at him, Jiang Cheng simply said, "I don't think the NPC would ruin our equipment for no reason, so I suspect something's off."
Fatty was startled. "What could be wrong?"
"Not sure yet," Jiang Cheng glanced at him, his tone serious. "Don't worry about me. Keep an eye on the other camera and make sure no one messes with it."
Fatty nodded. "Got it."
Soon, the third group of students finished their performance.
The final combined choir performance was about to begin.
At that moment, Long Tao, who was in charge of filming, frowned. He clutched his stomach, his expression turning pained.
Luo Yi, who had been watching the camera, was the first to notice something was wrong and asked, "What's wrong?"
"I...I have a stomachache," Long Tao said, looking distressed.
Zhou Taifu glanced at the choir stand in the distance. It was full of people, and some were still moving around, holding different-colored cables or equipment, making final adjustments.
"Can't you hold it in?" Zhou Taifu asked, a bit annoyed. The place gave him an uneasy feeling.
Everyone looked perfectly normal, but there was something off about this normalcy. He couldn't quite put his finger on what it was.
"We'll leave as soon as we finish filming!"
"I'm afraid I can't," Long Tao was trembling, cold sweat appearing on his face. "It hurts too much."
(End of the Chapter)
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