0p0 Chapter 67 Flowers Blooming in the Desert
Chapter 67 Flowers Blooming in the Desert
Su Wanwan took the paper, borrowed a pen, and began to fill it out carefully while lying on the table.
Name, age, family background, whether she has dance or artistic talents... She wrote neatly stroke by stroke, and in the "talents" column, she wrote without hesitation: classical dance, folk dance, accordion.
Lin Weiwei watched from the side, feeling much more at ease.
Before transmigrating into the book, Su Wanwan was an art student with solid skills. Although the original Su Wanwan was spoiled, her family was wealthy, and she had been formally taught dance for several years, so she also had good physical attributes. Combined, these factors made her far superior to Wang Xiuying's amateurish approach.
When she handed in the form, the officer glanced at what she had filled out and then looked her over: "Tomorrow morning at eight o'clock, in the regimental auditorium. Bring your own dance costume and accompaniment; if you don't have accompaniment, you can dance a cappella."
"Okay, thank you, comrade."
After leaving the registration area, Su Wanwan let out a long sigh of relief, only then realizing that her back was soaked with sweat.
"Three more days..." she murmured.
"The final assessment is in three days," Lin Weiwei corrected. "The preliminary exam is tomorrow, the second exam the day after, and the final exam the day after that. But with your level, you'll definitely have no problem with the preliminary and second exams. The key is the final exam. Wang Xiuying will definitely try something funny."
Su Wanwan's eyes darkened: "I know. I'm not the original owner of this body, I definitely won't listen to her."
When the two returned home, Su Wanwan was no longer sleepy even after lunch.
She drank a large glass of cold water and said to Lin Weiwei, "I need to practice. My body is all stiff."
Lin Weiwei nodded: "You practice, I'll watch over you. Do you want to take a nap first?"
"I'm not going to sleep, time is tight."
As Su Wanwan spoke, she began to stretch her arms and legs in the yard.
The afternoon sun in the Gobi Desert was scorching, so she found a shady spot and started by stretching her legs, bending over, and moving her joints.
The movements were a bit clumsy, after all, it had been a while since the body had undergone systematic training. The muscle memory was still there, but the flexibility had decreased considerably.
She gritted her teeth and pressed down little by little.
My hamstrings were sore from the strain, and sweat quickly beaded on my forehead.
Lin Weiwei moved a small stool and sat at the doorway, watching, occasionally handing her saliva.
Su Wanwan practiced with great focus, repeating one movement over and over until she felt comfortable before moving on to the next.
She first reviewed a few basic classical dance combinations, the extension of her arms, the footwork, the stability of her turns... She didn't dance very smoothly, but her posture was still there and her figure was beautiful.
As Lin Weiwei watched, she couldn't help but exclaim in admiration, "Wanwan, you're amazing. I'll never learn this in my lifetime."
Su Wanwan stopped to catch her breath and wiped her sweat: "I haven't practiced in a long time, so I can't do many of the movements properly."
"Take your time, there are still three days."
Su Wanwan barely stopped all afternoon.
She went through several dance excerpts from her memory that were suitable for the assessment, and finally selected a selection from the classical dance "Spring River Flower Moon Night" and a segment from the Xinjiang ethnic dance "Why Are the Flowers So Red".
The former is graceful and expansive, demonstrating control; the latter is enthusiastic and cheerful, showcasing skill and expressiveness.
Once you've made your choice, start scrutinizing the details.
If one turn isn't steady enough, practice ten times.
If one look isn't quite right, you have to keep looking at the air to get the feel for it.
Lin Weiwei initially stayed with her, but later she got so dizzy from the sun that she went inside to wipe her face. When she came out, she saw Su Wanwan still practicing, her army green pants worn down to the knees.
"Wanwan, why don't you take a rest?" she couldn't help but urge.
"Let's practice a little longer." Su Wanwan's voice was a little hoarse, but she didn't stop.
As the sun gradually set in the west, the shade in the courtyard shifted, and Su Wanwan moved along with it.
She was drenched in sweat from jumping, her stray hairs sticking to her cheeks and neck, and the back of her shirt was soaked, clinging tightly to her spine.
But her eyes were surprisingly bright, and every movement she made carried a fierce edge, as if she wanted to force out all the dormant memories and potential within this body.
Lin Weiwei looked on, feeling both heartache and pride.
The Su Wanwan she knew was never truly weak.
Gentleness is a sign of good upbringing, but deep down there's a tenacity; once someone makes up their mind, nothing can sway them.
Just as dusk was about to fall, footsteps sounded outside the courtyard gate.
Bai Rongbei came back from get off work.
He pushed open the fence gate and the first thing he saw was Su Wanwan in the yard.
She was practicing a graceful movement from "Spring River Flower Moon Night": standing on one leg, slowly raising the other leg backward, her arm extending forward like a willow branch, her fingertips trembling slightly, yet she was trying her best to maintain her balance.
His body was taut in a supple arc, his neck tilted back, and his profile was edged with a faint gold in the twilight.
The sweat-soaked shirt clung to her back, outlining the defined shape of her shoulder blades and slender waist.
With each breath, the arc undulated gently, like ripples on water rarely seen on the Gobi Desert.
Bai Rongbei paused at the doorway, forgetting to put down the military cap he was carrying.
He had seen Su Wanwan in many different ways.
Shy, flustered, quiet, smiling.
But I've never seen anything like this before.
Focused, radiant, and possessing an almost sharp beauty.
She was soaked in sweat and twilight, like a flower blooming with astonishing vitality.
Bai Rongbei's throat moved, but he forgot to speak for a moment.
Su Wanwan was so engrossed in her actions that she didn't notice him returning.
She slowly pulled her leg back, but her foot slipped as she landed, and she almost lost her balance.
I trained for too long and suddenly my right calf muscle cramped up.
She hissed and gasped, then staggered and hopped twice on one foot, trying to rub her calf. But the muscles were spasming so badly that she frowned in pain, and the sweat she had just wiped off her forehead reappeared.
Bai Rongbei acted almost immediately.
He threw off his military cap, strode into the courtyard, and walked up to Su Wanwan in a few steps. Without asking anything, he bent down, put one hand under her knees, wrapped the other around her back, and picked her up horizontally.
Su Wanwan gasped in surprise and instinctively grabbed the fabric of his military uniform at his chest.
"A cramp?" Bai Rongbei looked down at her, his voice a little deep.
"...Hmm." Su Wanwan's face flushed red, half from pain and half from embarrassment. "Right...right calf."
Bai Rongbei didn't say anything more. He carried her straight into the house and gently placed her on the edge of the bed in the inner room.
Lin Weiwei quickly followed her in.
"I'll go get some hot water!" Lin Weiwei said as she ran outside.
Bai Rongbei squatted down in front of Su Wanwan and reached out to hold her right ankle.
His hands were large, with distinct knuckles, and his palms were burning hot.
Su Wanwan shrank back: "Dirty...it's all sweat..."
Bai Rongbei ignored her, firmly grasping her ankle with one hand and stroking her cramped calf with the other.
His muscles were taut like a stone, trembling slightly under his palm.
"Bear with it," he said, then pressed and kneaded the muscles gently along their lines.
The force was considerable, and Su Wanwan cried out in pain, her fingers gripping the bed sheet tightly.