Huayu: Reborn in 97, transferring to the Central Academy of Drama's star-studded class

The movie is called "When Flowers Bloom".

Gao Xiaosong said he was busy with something right now, and the movie was still in preparation, with filming expected to start in July. He then suggested that Jiang Lai learn to play the guitar, not necessarily to be a great player, but at least to be presentable, and recommended someone to him.

Jiang Lai said OK and headed to the address the other party had given him.

At the entrance of Dongsi Jiutiao Hutong, Jiang Lai looked at the gray storefront leading underground with a puzzled expression. There was a glowing lightbox at the entrance with the words "Mangfeng" written on it.

He craned his neck to look down and saw that the stairs leading down to the ground were narrow, only able to accommodate two or three people at a time.

In short, it all boils down to one word: broken.

Moreover, it's very inconspicuous; the kind of thing that ordinary people wouldn't even glance at if they passed by.

Are you sure this is it?

"Yes, this is the place. Let's go."

Zhou Xun responded playfully and took the lead.

"So, why are you following me?"

"I was just worried you wouldn't be able to find your way. I've been here before."

Jiang Lai sighed and followed.

The descending staircase is winding, and the walls on both sides are covered with colorful posters, some of which are stuck on again without being removed, creating a bulging pile.

The further down you go, the dimmer the light becomes, with alternating flashes of pale blue and white light making it difficult to see the path.

After walking to the end, this place was different from the inconspicuous storefront outside. It was full of people, in groups of three or five, shouting and laughing, drinking draft beer to their hearts' content.

There's a stage not far away, but no one's performing yet.

Zhou Xun led Jiang Lai through the crowd to a small booth where a thin man with long hair was drinking.

"Brother Ding Wu!" Zhou Xun greeted him.

"Hey, it's Xiao Xun."

The man responded and looked behind Zhou Xun, "You're the one Lao Gao introduced, right? Your name is Jiang Lai?"

"Yes, hello." Jiang Lai shook hands with the man.

Zhou Xun pulled Jiang Lai to sit down and began to introduce him formally, "This is Ding Wu, the lead singer of the Tangchao band. And this one, well... he's a good friend of mine, and also an actor."

Ding Wu glanced between the two men and suddenly asked, "Xiao Xun, what about you and Dou Peng...?"

"Dou Peng and I are on good terms!" Zhou Xun quickly interrupted. "We've been friends for so many years, right? Let's get down to business, Ding Wu, you have to teach my good friend a good lesson."

Ding Wu was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "Okay, Jiang Lai, do you have any musical background?"

Jiang Lai, of course, didn't know who Dou Peng was, nor did he know what the two in front of him were talking about, and replied, "Does taking vocal lessons at school count?"

Ding Wu nodded. "Of course it counts. Do you know how to read sheet music?"

"know."

Ding Wu didn't say anything more. He stood up, went to the stage, grabbed a wooden guitar, and picked up a book from the ground as he walked over.

"Old Gao said you should learn electric guitar, but beginners should definitely start with acoustic guitar. I'll teach you to recognize frets and read sheet music first. However, guitar sheet music is different from standard musical notation, so you might get confused. Don't worry, we'll take it slowly."

Next, Dingwu taught Jiang Lai how to press the strings, what frets were, and what note each string corresponded to.

Jiang Lai was fine with music theory; he had learned a little in school and could apply it to other situations. However, pressing this string made his fingers ache, and he couldn't press it too lightly, otherwise it wouldn't produce the correct note.

No wonder Ding Wu's left hand was covered in calluses; learning music must be quite grueling, Jiang Lai thought to himself.

Ding Wu and Zhou Xun leisurely smoked and chatted, while Jiang Lai practiced resentfully on the side. Before long, the three young people walked onto the stage, and the audience cheered, seemingly very familiar with the three.

"Hello, hello, hello! We are the Flowers Band!"

"I'm lead vocalist Zhang Wei! This is our bassist Guo Yang! And our drummer Wang Wenbo!"

Every time the young man in the main seat spoke, the audience cheered. Jiang Lai found it quite interesting.

Ding Wu turned his head and said, "Let's stop practicing for now. Let's watch the performance. We probably won't see this again here."

Jiang Lai put down his zither and was about to ask why when the performance on stage had already begun.

As the electronic instruments—guitar, bass, and drums—began to play, the young man named Zhang Wei also started singing.

"Loneliness surrounded the television, clinging on in its death throes, until it vanished at 2:30."

"How I wish someone would come and keep me company through the apocalypse. Emptiness is hammering at my will, as if time has stood still."

"I suspect that people's lives are somewhat concealed, ah~"

The song was very nice; Jiang Lai had heard it in his previous life as well. The only thing he didn't understand was...

The young men and women were all gathered below the stage, waving their arms and shaking their heads wildly, as if they wanted to vent all their energy in that restless agitation.

Even Zhou Xun stretched out her index and little fingers, making gestures that he couldn't understand, and the constantly flashing blue light shone on her small face, making her look hazy and dreamy.

"Together!!"

"What?"

The scene was too noisy, and Jiang Lai could only see Zhou Xun shouting, but he couldn't hear her clearly.

Zhou Xun laughed and whispered in his ear, "I said together!"

Then they forcibly pulled Jiang Lai up and dragged him into the group of men and women.

Jiang Lai felt very awkward. All around him were strangers dancing and gyrating, while he stood there helplessly.

Zhou Xun had no choice but to grab his arm and bounce around in place, but unfortunately, this short girl could only lift half of his arm.

Gradually, Jiang Lai got used to the atmosphere and started twisting and turning like a madman. When he saw a group of people walking around with their arms around the shoulders of the person in front of them, Zhou Xun immediately pulled him to join in.

Jiang Lai didn't know what was going on, but he was having a great time. He was shouting and spinning around with a group of strangers. He didn't know what he was shouting, but he was just yelling loudly.

Later, Zhou Xun told him that this was called "driving a train," which was quite a vivid description.

I don't know how long we were going crazy, but the music stopped.

The young man named Zhang Wei said into the microphone, "Thank you all so much for coming to hear us sing. This should be our last performance at Mangfeng. After this, we will start our tour. Thank you again."

The young man bowed and shouted into the microphone, "Rock and roll will never die!!"

The audience immediately cheered: "Rock and roll will never die!"

Jiang Lai and Zhou Xun returned to their small booth and watched the group of people cheering with delight. They suddenly felt that these young men and women were quite adorable.

Ding Wu didn't participate; he remained seated in the booth, chuckling as he asked, "How was it? Was it fun?"

Jiang Lai wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Awesome!"

Ding Wu turned and waved towards the stage, "Kid! Come here!"

Zhang Wei, who was packing up the equipment, looked up and came over excitedly. "What's up, Boss Ding?"

"Let me introduce you to two older brothers and sisters. This sister is named Zhou Xun, and this brother is named Jiang Lai."

"Hello, Sister Zhou Xun! Hello, Brother Jiang Lai! I'd like to propose a toast to you both!"

Zhang Weite readily poured himself a glass of wine and was about to down it in one gulp.

Jiang Lai grabbed him immediately, "Hey, wait a minute, how old are you? Kids shouldn't drink alcohol." He then raised his hand and called out to the waiter, "Do you have any juice? I'd like a glass."

Zhang Wei frowned and narrowed his eyes. "Oh dear, you don't look that much older than me, so let's not put on airs."

"How dare you talk like that?" Ding Wu slapped Zhang Wei on the back of the head.

"It's nothing, it's nothing." Jiang Lai waved his hand; he really liked this energetic kid.

Zhang Wei pursed his lips but didn't refuse the juice the waiter offered. He raised it and said, "Then I'll toast this lady with juice instead of wine."

Zhou Xun smiled, poured herself a glass of wine, and clinked glasses with Zhang Wei.

"And what about me?" Jiang Lai asked.

"Oh, thank you so much."

"Ha ha ha ha."

Jiang Lai laughed twice, then took out a business card. "If you ever need anything in the future, feel free to contact me anytime."

Zhang Wei took it and looked at it curiously. It only contained Jiang Lai's name and phone number.

He was at the height of his career, hailed as the future of rock and roll, and didn't think he would be in any trouble, but after thinking about it, he accepted it anyway.

After sitting for a long time, Jiang Lai and Zhou Xun got up to say goodbye, taking the wooden guitar with them.

Ding Wu told Jiang to start by practicing the basics, and that he would formally teach him after the New Year.

Carrying his acoustic guitar, Jiang Lai and Zhou Xun walked down the street at night. He suddenly asked curiously, "Why is that bar called 'Busy Bee'?"

"Just the literal meaning, busy bees."

"oh..."

Zhou Xun thought for a moment, then said seriously, "Everyone is busy like a bee, busy from birth to death. Maybe we just want to give these people a place to rest."