Huayu 93, I'm the ceiling of combat power from the moment I appear.

Liu Hongmei graduated from the 86 acting class of the Central Academy of Drama.

This class was a joint program between the Central Academy of Drama and the Beijing People's Art Theatre. Many of the teachers were veteran artists from the Beijing People's Art Theatre, including Su Min, who was the director of the theatre at the time.

Teacher Su is not only a veteran actor of the Beijing People's Art Theatre, but also a revolutionary artist of the older generation. Before liberation, he was engaged in literary and artistic work for our Party and worked with masters such as Guo Moruo and Cao Yu.

He later mentored students such as Song Dandan, Liang Guanhua, and Feng Yuanzheng, and is also the father of Pu Cunxin, a famous actor in mainland China.

The strong faculty has created a powerful class of students in the 86 Art Theatre.

Hu Jun, He Bing, Wang Ban, Han Qing, Xu Fan, Chen Xiaoyi, Jiang Shan, Liu Hongmei, Gong Lijun...

These are all future acting talents and veteran actors.

Many of them even joined the Beijing People's Art Theatre after graduation, achieving success in both drama and film/television performances—or rather, they flourished in both fields.

"The contact with Hongmei was rather rushed. Lao Wang and Lao Han are both out of town filming, and Shanzi and Xiaoyi are very busy, so it was just a few of us with free time who had time to come!"

After sitting down, Hu Jun spoke in a rough voice.

This tall, 185cm man from Beijing had a loud, boisterous voice.

He Xi, however, did not find it offensive.

During this period, he came into contact with a lot of martial arts instructors, mostly of this type, and he had gotten used to it.

In contrast, He Bing was more reserved, speaking little, but his eyes revealed shrewdness and scrutiny towards He Xi, this "Hong Kong Islander".

The last one is Xu Fan.

She, along with Liu Hongmei, Jiang Shan, Chen Xiaoyi, and others, were known as the "Six Golden Flowers" of the Central Academy of Drama's Class of '87.

Her looks are undeniably stunning, even slightly better than Liu Hongmei's.

(The older woman was quite young when she was younger.)

However, this woman seems to be a serial mistress.

When I was in school, I fell in love with my teacher, Wang Zhiwen, who had a long-distance girlfriend at the time.

When he started dating Feng Xiaogang after breaking up with his ex, Kuzi was married and his daughter was only about three years old.

He Xi didn't mean to look down on Xu Fan; even mistresses can have true love.

I simply don't like it.

I'm afraid that Sister Hongmei will be corrupted by her.

After a few drinks, the atmosphere at the table quickly became lively.

"You're Ah Xi, right? That's an awkward name. Since you're Hong Mei's friend, I'll call you Lao He."

"Old He, how long have you been in Beidu? Have you gone out to have any fun?"

"The Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven, the Summer Palace, the Badaling Great Wall, and the Ming Tombs—these places are all incredibly fun! Have you been to any of them?"

Perhaps it was He Xi's drinking capacity and temperament that suited Hu Jun's personality, but he immediately put his arm around He Xi's shoulder and began to introduce the famous historical sites of Beidu in a familiar manner.

This was the first time He Xi was called Lao He in this time and space. Lao He at nineteen years old sounded a bit strange.

However, this gave him a strange sense of familiarity.

It felt like stepping back in time and space, and seeing an old friend.

"Old Hu, I've learned about all the places you mentioned in books, but I've been busy since I came to Beijing. Just a few days ago, after class, Hongmei took me to visit Nanluoguxiang."

"I haven't been to any of those places you mentioned yet."

Hu Jun immediately frowned and shook his head.

"No way! You've come all the way to Beijing, how can you not go sightseeing? At the very least, you have to visit the Forbidden City and the Great Wall!"

"Oh, I don't have time..."

"Hey, if you can get up early tomorrow morning, I'll take you to Tiananmen Square to watch the flag-raising ceremony!"

"You're busy filming and don't have time to visit the Forbidden City, but you must have time to watch the flag-raising ceremony, right?"

"We've come all this way to Beidu, we can't just leave without seeing anything."

"Want to watch the flag-raising ceremony?"

He Xi's eyes lit up immediately.

In the original timeline, watching the national flag raising ceremony at Tiananmen Square had become a manifestation of national pride and a social phenomenon.

Every day, Tiananmen Square and both sides of Chang'an Avenue are crowded with tourists. In order to get a front row, many people go to queue up at midnight.

He Xi went there twice in the original timeline, but she was unable to squeeze to the front either time.

Now, I might just be able to fulfill one of my life's dreams: to watch the flag-raising ceremony from the front row.

There were probably fewer people watching the flag-raising ceremony in this era than in later generations.

It's a pity I didn't have a phone to record or take photos.

The film crew's cameras are too big, and even if they were borrowed, it wouldn't be convenient to carry them over.

"Okay, I've wanted to go to Tiananmen Square to watch the flag-raising ceremony for ages. Let's go together tomorrow morning."

Upon hearing his agreement, Hu Jun's smile widened even more.

"Then it's settled. This is my first time watching the flag-raising ceremony with fellow Hong Kong residents, so I'll have to dress up nicely."

Beside him, He Bing glanced at him and smiled wryly.

"You don't need to dress up anymore. In front of Lao He, no matter how you dress up, you're just a lackey or a bodyguard."

He Bing wasn't usually very talkative, but after He Xi readily agreed to get up early to watch the flag-raising ceremony, his smile broadened and he became more talkative.

Not to be outdone, Mr. Hu retorted sharply.

"You think you're so great? You're just an accountant at best!"

The two were classmates for four years and then joined the Beijing People's Art Theatre together after graduation. They had a very good relationship, so they naturally spoke more freely.

Across the table, Xu Fan and Liu Hongmei huddled together, whispering to each other.

Unlike Hu Jun and He Bing, Xu Fan did not believe Liu Hongmei's claim that He Xi was merely her colleague and student.

As soon as the two entered the room, she noticed something unusual about them.

"There's something fishy about these two!"

Xu Fan was very certain of this.

Don't ask why.

Asking is just a habitual third party's intuition.

However, she didn't ask directly, but instead used indirect methods and observed micro-expressions and subtle movements.

Soon, she discovered some clues.

He Xi acted very naturally, chatting and bragging with Hu Jun and He Bing the whole time.

However, Liu Hongmei would steal glances at He Xi from time to time. Although she hid her affection well, He Xi still noticed it.

Therefore, Xu Fan was certain.

Liu Hongmei likes He Xi, and...

unrequited love!

"Hongmei, you're not young anymore, don't you think about yourself?"

Xu Fan began to probe for information.

"I think this Ah Xi is pretty good. He's tall and strong, even more handsome than our class monitor Lao Hu, and he's from Hong Kong."

"If you could get together with him, maybe you could go to Hong Kong Island and enjoy the glitz and glamour!"

Liu Hongmei chuckled awkwardly.

"Ah Xi is only nineteen, and I'm already twenty-eight. How could that be?"

"So what if he's nine years older? Old Feng is nine years older than me."

Xu Fan snorted, pouting.

"Besides, there's a saying that a woman three years older than her husband is like a gold brick; you're three gold bricks in the picture, wouldn't he be ecstatic?"

Seeing that Liu Hongmei remained unmoved, Xu Fan instantly became more enthusiastic.

"If you're too shy to say no, then I'll have to take matters into my own hands!"

Liu Hongmei frowned.

"You weren't with screenwriter Feng...?"

Xu Fan waved his hand.

"He has a wife, and we have nothing. Don't listen to their nonsense."

"I really like Ah Xi now. If you don't want to, I'll go to Hong Kong Island with him!"