Perfect Superstar.

You can read ahead up to 30 chapters on my patreon and I've also activated (date to date) subscription model on my patreon https://www.patreon.com/darkshadow6395

In Lu Chen's dream world, "These Flowers" is a classic created by a talented vagabond singer.

This simple, beautiful, and slightly melancholic folk song has touched countless hearts, been covered by many other singers, and is often performed at school cultural evenings. It is considered a divine song for graduation ceremonies.

Though in a different place, the charm of the song has not faded in the least.

It easily evokes the deep feelings hidden in people's hearts, especially those who have loved, dated, suffered and experienced the same farewells, and naturally resonates strongly with them.

So many girls were in tears; the song was filled with tender memories and thoughtful reflections, ultimately unable to overcome the faint sadness of parting - "And just like that, we each drift our own way.

In "These Flowers", Lu Chen poured out his most sincere emotions.

With this song, he said goodbye to his campus youth.

"These Flowers, thank you, everyone!"

Lu Chen bowed deeply.

Suddenly, applause erupted, as if cannon fire hit the battlefield, fierce and persistent!

Many girls stood up with tears in their eyes, clapping their delicate hands vigorously, not caring if they turned red or hurt themselves.

The boys joined in, their expressions more direct, shouting loudly.

"'Well sung!'" "'Sing it again!'" "'One more song!'"

Soon all the cheering turned into one simple word: "Encore!

"'Encore!'"

Without having experienced the harsh realities of society, these boys and girls mostly retained their pure and sincere feelings.

They enjoyed it, they were moved, and they weren't stingy with their praise and applause.

Lu Chen stood up and nodded, "Thank you!"

He took a deep breath and turned to go backstage.

It was over.

"'Encore!'" "'Encore!'" "'Encore!'"

But the synchronized shouts from the audience did not stop with Lu Chen's departure; instead, they became even more intense, their passionate momentum seeming to threaten to lift the dome of the auditorium!

The deep male voices and the delicate female voices merged into one sound.

"Encore!"

Several principals and teachers in the first two rows of the audience could no longer sit still. They stood up and turned around, waving their arms to signal the students to be quiet so as not to disturb the performances behind them.

But no one paid attention; their authority had lost its power on graduation day!

Many exchanged glances, unsure of what to do, as such a situation was indeed rare at a school cultural performance; it rarely happened.

Even Lu Chen didn't expect this.

He was about to walk down the stairs when the host of the event rushed over to stop him.

"Lu Chen, you need to go back on stage and sing another song!"

The university students were all passionate and impulsive; if the atmosphere wasn't controlled, something big might happen.

The host looked pale.

"'Okay!'"

Lu Chen realized the seriousness of the situation and quickly returned to the center of the stage.

When he reappeared, the enthusiastic shouts quickly calmed down, although everyone was still standing.

Lu Chen collected his thoughts and said into the microphone, "Thank you, everyone! Thank you for loving this song so much. Now, I'm going to sing another song for you that I've also written, and I hope you'll like it.'"

"Its name is Ballad of Time!"

Warm applause erupted, falling like rain on banana leaves.

But in a moment, it completely disappeared.

For Lu Chen began to sing.

"Time, you slow down a bit, the world is already one year old, 

How can I not be worried? 

My youth has already fled. 

So many years, 

You always say that this meeting has never changed, 

But the photo of our youth 

Still remains the same, 

This is foolish, 

What has changed is, 

This time. 

The years of our youth, 

Will never return, 

Nor will I meet those I long for. 

This world, still this world, 

But I am not yours.'"

Strumming his guitar freely, Lu Chen sang earnestly, transporting the audience back to the past, reminiscing about the beautiful moments and the people who had come and gone in his life.

This song shared a similar sentiment to "Those Flowers," but it was more nostalgic.

As expressed in the chorus:

"'… 

This time, rock and roll, 

This time, turn and turn. 

This time, rock and roll, 

This time, it turns and turns!'"

Accompanied by Lu Chen's clear, slightly melancholic voice, an indescribable atmosphere enveloped the auditorium, and everyone gradually and quietly sat back down to listen to him play and sing.

The backstage was equally quiet.

The auditorium was equipped with advanced facilities, and the backstage area had TV screens showing the live performance on stage.

Almost everyone in the large dressing room gathered around the screens.

Cao Xiuzhu was among them. She had just cried, and tears still glistened at the corners of her eyes.

It wasn't just her who was in tears.

"'… 

The years of our youth, 

Will never return, 

also meeting those whom I long for. 

But still remains the same, is this foolish, 

What has changed is, 

This Time! 

I want to sing you a 'Ballad of Time,' 

So that my youth will not grow old. 

I want to sing you a 'Ballad of Time,' 

So that my youth will not grow old.' 

…"

Our youth will not grow old!

After strumming the final notes, Lu Chen didn't thank the audience again; instead, he quietly bowed and stepped back from the stage.

The rest was left for everyone to savor slowly.

This time, no one tried to call him back for an encore, as everyone was still immersed in the atmosphere created by the song.

Lu Chen successfully returned to the backstage.

Just as he got down, a figure suddenly pounced on him and hugged him!

Lu Chen was startled and, upon closer inspection, quickly exclaimed, "'Hey, hey, hey, Great Class Leader Cao, no hugging without permission!'"

It was Cao Xiuzhu, the girl class leader, who released her embrace with red-rimmed eyes and said, "'Lu Chen, you sang so well! I didn't know you were so talented!'"

Lu Chen laughed, "'I just matured late.'"

At that moment, many people gathered around Lu Chen, all clapping their hands in unison.

Whether they were about to perform or had just finished, they paid their respects to Lu Chen with organized, enthusiastic, and sincere applause!

Lu Chen was surprised and moved; he couldn't express it adequately, only saying, "'Thank you, thank you, everyone! Thank you all!'"

Among the crowd was Su Xuan, smiling with blessings.

…

After the graduation party ended, Lu Chen and Gao He returned to the dormitory at 11:30 PM.

Everyone lay silently on their respective beds.

This was the last night in college.

"'Goodbye, you dog of a youth!'"

Suddenly, a hoarse shout broke the late-night silence, coming in through the glass window.

Like a wounded lonely wolf.

"'Goodbye, my university!'"

Boom!

A low, muffled sound of something exploding echoed.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The sound seemed to be infectious, rapidly spreading like a plague.

Gao He, who slept on the lower bunk, suddenly turned over and stood up, hitting his head hard against Lu Chen's bed frame.

But the Qilu man didn't care at all; he grabbed the thermos on the floor, then pushed open the window and hurled it down, shouting at the top of his lungs, "'Wang Xiaoling, I love you!'"

"'Come home with me!'"

Lu Chen, Wan Hongzhi, and Zhou Rui exchanged glances, speechless in consolation.

Wan Hongzhi quietly picked up his thermos and followed Gao He, shouting, "'Damn it!'"

Lu Chen laughed heartily and jumped out of bed.

Let's smash things together!

Thermoses, basins, toothbrush cups, trash cans, textbooks—the entire dormitory area quickly turned into a crazy battlefield as everyone threw out everything they could!

The sounds of crashing, shattering, shouting, and crying echoed in the quiet night for a long time.

This was our youth!

When they had smashed everything they could, Gao He bent down and dragged out a box of canned beer from under the bed, opening it.

He tossed several cans of beer to Lu Chen and the others, opened one for himself, and said in a hoarse voice, "'On our last night of college, let's stay awake with our eyes open; no one sleeps!'"

As soon as he finished speaking, the dormitory door was pushed open forcefully.

At the door stood a petite girl, her face streaked with tears.

She cried out, "'Gao He, I'll go home with you.'"

'Clatter!'

The beer can in Gao He's hand fell to the ground, splattering foam everywhere.

Drops of beer spilled onto him.

－－－－－－－－－

'(End of this chapter)'