HuaYu: The most muscular director in history!

January 31, 2003, 7:15 PM, backstage of CCTV's Studio One.

In the public dressing room, Xiang Nan stepped aside to let the unfamiliar dancer pass, then lowered his head and went to the mirror.

Today's outfit was rather extravagant; his hair was styled in a slicked-back look with hairspray, and the red and gold-patterned robe he wore was specially made for him by director Jin Yue. I heard it cost several tens of thousands of yuan; I must say, the Spring Festival Gala really spares no expense!

"Xiang Nan, your makeup is done. Just apply a thin layer of foundation as you requested."

"Okay, thank you, sister." Xiang Nan understood what the makeup artist meant and stepped out of the public dressing room.

This was his first time performing on the Spring Festival Gala, singing "Gong Xi Fa Cai" solo. For Xiang Nan, who is not yet twenty, performing on the Spring Festival Gala was not just about glory or popularity; for him, the most important thing was the symbolic meaning.

Wherever he goes in the future, whenever people mention that he was on the Spring Festival Gala, the first thing that comes to mind is "pure and upright."

"Hey, Xiang Nan, what are you doing, just standing there in a daze?"

A familiar Northeastern accent came from behind him. Xiang Nan turned around and saw Zhao Benshan wearing a blue Zhongshan suit, holding a thermos in his hand, and smiling at him.

He was accompanied by Fan Wei, who was wearing a gray suit and holding a small hand warmer, a prop from the skit "Heart Disease".

"Teacher Zhao, Teacher Fan," Xiang Nan smiled slightly, extending his hand with neither humility nor arrogance, "Have you two just finished rehearsing?"

"You bet." Zhao Benshan shook hands with him, then pulled Xiang Nan to sit on a chair by the wall. "I just finished working on my lines with Fan Wei, but the director said we're overtime and need to cut two minutes. How about you? How's your preparation going?"

"It's alright, I'm only a little nervous," Xiang Nan said honestly, raising his large hand to make a fingertip universe.

"It's good to be nervous." Zhao Benshan put down his thermos and patted him on the shoulder. "Even the King of Heaven himself would be intimidated by the Spring Festival Gala stage. The first time I went on stage, my legs were shaking. I drank half a bottle of Erguotou before I dared to go out."

Fan Wei smiled and came over, mercilessly exposing his embarrassment: "Teacher Zhao is just being modest. The moment he opened his mouth on stage, the audience's applause never stopped."

"Don't listen to his nonsense." Zhao Benshan waved his hand. "Xiang Nan, you're going to sing 'Gong Xi Fa Cai' solo tonight, right? Ugh, I'm about to throw up from hearing it for a whole month."

"Huh? Hahahaha!" Xiang Nan wasn't angry; instead, he was amused and laughed.

This Teacher Zhao is indeed very different from what I imagined. The most direct impression is that he is straightforward and doesn't have any ulterior motives.

As for whether he had ulterior motives or not, that's not for Xiang Nan to decide; the two were just chatting during their free time from rehearsals.

The three chatted casually when the stage manager ran over with a walkie-talkie: "Mr. Zhao, Mr. Fan, the director wants you two to go to the studio again. Mr. Xiang, your program has forty minutes left, please prepare to go backstage."

"The audience has begun to enter."

"Alright." Zhao Benshan stood up, patted Xiang Nan's arm, and said, "Let's go, good luck!"

"Keep it up!" Xiang Nan watched them leave, then turned around and frowned slightly.

Are the audience members starting to enter?

Did they find a spot? These tickets were something I had to beg and plead with Director Jin Yue to get.

He was still a little uneasy, so he got up and walked towards the passageway to the stage.

Backstage, the air was thick with the smell of props and cosmetics, and staff members were coming and going, their steps hurried.

A female singer in a formal dress was practicing her voice, her voice clear and bright; some comedians were joking with each other to relieve tension; someone was sitting alone by the wall, meditating with their eyes closed.

The Spring Festival Gala is not just a stage, but also a social circle.

Xiang Nan didn't want to get too involved, but if he could gain some prestige and make connections along the way, then the trip would be worthwhile.

When Xiang Nan reached the middle of the passage, he was stopped by someone, so he turned back and sat down backstage.

He took out his phone, intending to send Liu Yifei a text message, but then remembered that it was during the Spring Festival Gala live broadcast and the signal might be bad.

I wonder if she has arrived yet, and where are her parents?

At the same time, in the audience seats of CCTV's Studio One.

The studio was brightly lit, the red curtain had not yet been drawn, and the audience seats were full of people, their chatter filling the room.

The audience seating is still arranged in individual tables. Yifei's small table is in the second row. Apart from two elderly people she doesn't recognize, there are only her and her mother at the table.

Today, Yifei wore a white turtleneck sweater as an inner layer, with a burgundy down jacket on top. Her hair was tied in a simple ponytail, and she wore only light makeup, making her look like a young girl still in school.

Where's Big Wood? Does he have to stay backstage all the time except when he's singing?

That would be so boring!

Perhaps seeing her daughter was bored, Liu Xiaoli pointed to a few people in the first row in the distance: "Qianqian, look, isn't that Teacher Ni Ping?"

Yifei followed her mother's gaze and saw a group of festively dressed hosts at the round table in the first row.

"And Zhu Jun and Li Yong. Haha, I know this Li Yong." A middle-aged man suddenly spoke up, his Mandarin still a bit off-key.

The mother and daughter looked at each other, neither responding to his words immediately.

The middle-aged woman beside them pinched the middle-aged man, then turned to the mother and daughter and smiled, saying, "Please excuse him. He's usually a rather dull person, but this is his first time on the Spring Festival Gala, and he's incredibly excited."

Still struggling to distinguish between level and oblique tones, Liu Xiaoli was still trying to figure out where the accent was from when her daughter, who was already chattering away, started talking to the two of them.

Yifei smiled sweetly at Chen Ju, her big eyes instantly curving into crescents, and as her ponytail swayed, an invincible aura of youth quietly spread.

"Auntie, this is our first time on the Spring Festival Gala too, that's normal, I'm quite excited too!"

"Hehehe." Chen Ju laughed heartily. "Thank you, young lady, you're so pretty."

"You flatter me," Liu's mother replied. "Qianqian is usually quite mischievous, always so loud and boisterous, not like a typical girl at all."

After speaking, Liu's mother glanced at the middle-aged man, who, as expected, fell silent after saying a sentence, his eyes fixed on the screen, looking somewhat dazed.

"What are you saying? I think it's Sissi, isn't it?"

"Yes."

Chen Ju looked at Yifei and was immediately delighted; this girl was so beautiful.

"Sissi is just like a princess!"

Yifei's eyes immediately lit up. "Hehehe... Thank you!"

Zhu Jun: Good evening, my dear friends!

All four of them together: Good evening!

Ni Ping: No matter how many unforgettable days I've had, the most unforgettable is still New Year's Eve every year...

"Oh? What's this?"

Liu's mother glanced at the stage, calmly crossed her legs, and said, "The Spring Festival Gala has begun."

At the same time, every household across the country turned on their televisions.

The 2003 Spring Festival Gala officially began.