Chapter 517: When Christmas Comes to Town
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Wang Yaning wanted to call over Little Celery and her classmates but Zhang Zian stopped them. He didn't say hi to Little Celery until they paused their rehearsals. "Little Celery! We're ready to help you!"
Lu Yiyun also smiled and waved at Little Celery. "Little Celery, I'm here to help you with your show!"
Little Celery ran towards them excitedly. Her small face was flushed from the cold weather, but she still was quite energetic.
Besides Little Celery, another young boy with glasses also came up to them. It was Yi Le, who was known for being a brat. In the performance, he would be playing as a customer at the pet shop.
The other students didn't know why Zhang Zian was there so they didn't come over. Still, their eyes were glued to Zhang Zian's pets and elves.
"Mr. Store Manager, what are you doing with all of those animals?" Little Celery was curious about the kittens and puppies that were on the tricycle.
Before Zhang Zian had the chance to answer, Wang Yaning told her about Zhang Zian's new plan. Her eyes lit up and Little Celery quickly turned around to get her classmates to join the conversation.
Yi Le, who was impressed by Galaxy before, was in awe of the kitten's silver-gray eyes. He was overly cautious in front of Galaxy, as if it were the principal of his school.
"We were going to rehearse the final part of our show, but we stopped to take a break because the dog wasn't here to pull the sleigh. Should we rehearse our show from the beginning now?" Yi Le suggested.
All the students agreed and went back to rehearsing with much dedication.
To comply with their rehearsal, Zhang Zian tied Famous and Zhan Tian's leashes to the sleigh. Just like there was a leading dog in an Eskimos sleigh-pulling team, he deliberately made Famous's leash a little bit longer than Zhan Tian's, so that Famous would be in the leading position while pulling the sleigh.
He wasn't going to take out the puppies and kittens yet, or else there wouldn't be any surprises left for the performance.
He nervously watched Zhan Tian, scared that it might mess up in the performance, and ruin the children's hard work.
Fortunately, however, Famous played the leading dog well and followed Little Celery's instructions as she sat down in the sleigh. Zhan Tian, who was behind them, only needed to follow Famous's footsteps.
The rehearsal was more successful this time because the kids corrected some of the mistakes they'd made before. In the end, Little Celery's scene where she entered the stage and got in the sleigh was perfected.
Before the few people watching could applaud, Wang Yaning's cell phone suddenly rang. She answered the phone and said a few words, then hung up. She said in panic, "That was a call from our teacher. She said that the class in front of us cancelled their performance. Our class should be on stage ahead of schedule. Let's go, everyone!"
The children who were just celebrating their successful rehearsal immediately got nervous, their faces looking panicked.
Zhang Zian took on the role of the calm adult and comforted them. "Don't worry! You've practiced enough, and all you need to do on stage is perform as you usually do. I know you can do it!"
However, his words weren't convincing enough because the children still felt anxious.
"You know what? I'm a professional from the entertainment industry. When I say you can do this, you know I mean it!" Zhang Zian knew that what the children needed the most at that moment was confidence. He pulled out his employee card from the Dog Warrior crew and the Binhai Studio pass from his pocket and showed both of them to the kids.
"See? I've worked in a movie shooting crew, and in my opinion, your performance is almost as good as professional actors," he put his hand on his heart to reassure them.
"Wow! Sir, you've really worked in a movie set?" A young boy asked in surprise.
"Of course I have, I'll show you pictures of me when I was in the crew." Zhang Zian showed them the pictures from his phone.
A sharp-eyed kid pointed to a group photo with Zhang Zian and Feng Xuan in it. "I've seen that person on TV. He's a really famous director!"
Another kid also pointed to a picture of Famous and Lin Feng. "Isn't that Lin Feng? My mom is a huge fan of him!"
"Do you believe me now? I'm not lying, your performance is really fantastic. As long as you can bravely face the audience and perform naturally on stage, you can defintely get a good ranking!"
The children became more confident from his motivating words.
There wan't much time left. Wang Yaning urged them again to head backstage, before they were counted as absent from the performance.
Zhang Zian and several other people followed the children into the assembly hall and went backstage. Since they had already put on their costumes, Little Celery and her classmates had saved themselves the trouble of changing clothes in the dressing room. They went directly behind the curtains and were ready to go on stage.
The program right before them was over. The moderator, who was also a student, introduced the next program with his childish voice. "The next show is The Pet Shop in a Fairy Tale. Actors, please come on stage!"
"Come on, everyone!" Zhang Zian whispered to Little Celery and her classmates as encouragement.
Several children started to enter the stage. Santa Claus, played by Little Celery, wouldn't appear on stage until the last scene. There was still some time for Zhang Zian to get ready. Following Wang Qian's actions, Li Kun and Lu Yiyun helped moved the carriers backstage. Little Celery stretched out the cloth bag while Zhang Zian place the kittens and puppies one by one inside of it. Though it was a bit crowded in the bag, the kittens and puppies only needed to be in there for a short time.
Since Fina was there, the kittens all closed their mouths tightly without making a sound. The puppies cried out occasionally, but their voices were completely hidden by the actor's lines, and the audience's laughter and applause.
Backstage, there were also a few teachers and administrative staff members who were shocked after seeing Zhang Zian bring in so many animals. Little Celery's teacher had probably informed them about their plans in advance, and as surprised as they may be, they didn't say anything or interfere with Zhang Zian's preparations.
While putting the animals into the bag, Zhang Zian took some time to observe what was happening on stage. All the children were performing well. It was inevitable for them to get nervous at the beginning, but they gradually got used to the stage, the lights, and the audience. They soon began to do as excellently as they did in rehearsals.
In front of the stage, almost every seat in the assembly hall was filled. The leaders of the school were sitting in the front row, followed by the teachers, students, and their parents. In the space between the stage and the front row, the young performers who had already finished their performances were sitting on the ground, focused on the watching current play.
"Mr. Store Manager, all the pets we brought are here." Lu Yiyun whispered, "Wang Qian and Li Kun went to the main entrance of the assembly hall, and they'll coordinate with you when it's time."
Zhang Zian made a gesture to acknowledge that he had heard her clearly.
Wang Yaning didn't participate in the show, but she had watched all the rehearsals, so she was familiar with the entire play. It was almost time for Little Celery to enter the stage, so she reminded her. "Little Celery, get ready, it's your turn to go on stage."
Little Celery self-consiously touched the beard and eyebrows that she had glued on by herself, scared that they would suddenly fall off. This was her anxiety thinking.
"Little Celery," said Zhang Zian.
She turned around.
"Do you see who's here with me?" As if performing a magic trick, he brought out two cages from behind him, which held the hamster and the lop-eared rabbit from his pet shop.
"It's Xiao Ling and Er Duo!" Little Celery was pleasantly surprised. "You brought them with you, Mr. Store Manager!"
"Yes, because they're your friends, and they secretly told me that they also wanted to see you perform, so I brought them here." Zhang Zian laughed, "Don't you let them down!"
Just then, Richard, who had been hiding in his hood, said in a soft and low voice, "Little Celery, I'm Er Duo. Good luck in your show!"
Hardly before it finished saying that, Richard had said in another voice, "I'm Xiao Ling, and I'm here to cheer for you, Little Celery!"
Little Celery clenched her hands excitedly. "Thank you, Xiao Ling and Er Duo. I'll try my best!"
Wang Yaning was confused. She clearly saw that Zhang Zian's mouth wasn't moving, but there were defintely two childish voices coming from him.Were the hamster and the lop-eared rabbit really talking?
Before she could understand what was going on, Little Celery pulled the leashes and said, "Let's go!"
Following their order, Famous and Zhan Tian immediately got up and moved. With Little Celery and a dozen puppies and kittens on the sleigh, it was difficult for Famous and Zhan Tian to pull all their weight. Their leashes were instantly stretched straight. Still, they managed to pull the sleigh and successfully enter the stage.
When they saw the two German Shepherds pull the sleigh and come on the stage, the audience, including the school leaders, immediately exclaimed in surprise. At the same time, they grew worried that the German Shepherds might bite the children.
Their worries were for nothing, because Famous and Zhan Tian behaved very obediently and showed no signs of hurting anyone.
Zhan Tian was a bit scared of the stage lights. Fortunately, Zhang Zian's training from the past few days was effective enough that it listened to Famous. It had done a great job at being the leading dog, and swiftly calmed Zhang Tian down.
"It's showtime." Zhang Zian said.
"Quack! Let me show what I can do!"
Richard jumped out of Zhang Zian's hood, fluttered its wings, and landed on Zhang Zian's shoulder. It took on a voice similar to a famous child star's from a Western country. Then, it stretched its neck and loudly sang the theme song When Christmas Comes to Town, from the movie The Polar Express.
"La la la la la...
"I'm wishing on a star and trying to believe,
"That even though it's far, he'll find me on Christmas Eve.
"I guess that Santa is busy, because he has never come around,
"I think of him when Christmas comes to town.
"The best time of the year, when everyone comes home, it's hard to be alone,
"Putting up the Christmas tree, with friends who come around,
"It's so much fun when Christmas comes to town.
"Presents for the children, wrapped in red and green,
"All the things I've heard about but never really seen.
"No one will be sleeping on the night of Christmas Eve, hoping Santa's on his way,
"When Santa's sleigh bells ring, I listen all around, the herald angels sing,
"I never hear a sound; And all the dreams of children, once lost will all be found,
"That's all I want when Christmas comes to town."
Richard's singing voice was melodious and beautiful, like the sounds of nature or the voice of a professional singer. The audience was mesmerzied by its singing, and they couldn't help but look around the curtains, trying to figure out who was singing so beautifully from behind the stage.
Even Little Celery's classmates were shocked—this was not part of their rehearsals, but the song had perfectly fitted in with the plot of their play.
Famous and Zhan Tian steadily pulled the sleigh and ran around the stage a few times. Along with Richard's singing, Little Celery also untied the cloth bag. One after another, the puppies and kittens emerged from the bag and happily jumped off the stage, running towards to the audienc, meowing or barking.
The assembly hall performance had succesfully reached its climax!