mtl008 Chapter 167 The Overlord Insists on Using Me as Bai Yueguang’s Stand-in (55)
Chapter 167 The Overlord Insists on Using Me as Bai Yueguang’s Stand-in (55)
Time passed slowly, and when Xin Yuan finalized the first rehearsal, it was already approaching midwinter.
Although it hadn't snowed on campus yet, the temperature was enough to make Zhao Feier, the delicate young lady, sneeze wildly.
Ji Lanlan completely cut off contact with her family. Due to the lack of daily income, Ni Fang simply recruited her to his own company to help him manage his affairs.
The school's year-end drama was scheduled for the new play of the drama club, with Duan Wei playing the leading female role. During those few days of class, Duan Wei walked in front of her with a sense of pride and complacency.
The adjective "complacent" was given by Zhao Feier. She felt that Duan Wei's expression was like that of a rooster that had won a fight.
Because he voluntarily gave up competing for the year-end drama, Liu Yin spent more time polishing the script. The newly revised script is excellent. In Shen Xiaojing's words, it can definitely be performed on any theater stage in City A!
"Have you memorized all your lines?" Liu Yin asked.
"I've memorized it." Ni Fang nodded affirmatively.
"That's fine with me." Xin Yuan memorized lines very quickly, all thanks to the foundation he laid in the drama club.
"Then let's start our first dress rehearsal!"
Liu Yin clapped his hands twice, the lights dimmed, and the curtain opened.
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[Growth, Act 1921: , Military Court]
In the winter of 1921, Country F.
The ceiling light in the center of the military court suddenly lit up, and the man sitting in the judge's seat raised his hand to cover his eyes. He hadn't looked directly at such a bright light for a long time, and he felt an extremely sharp pain in his eyes.
The door behind him opened, and the jury members filed in. They were of different genders, identities, and from all walks of life. The only thing they had in common was that they were all from Country F, and they were all furious about this intelligence leak that insulted Country F.
"Mr. Bernard, please confirm your identity."
"Phelan Bernard, Colonel of the French Army from 1896 to 1921."
"Mr. Bernard, you are accused of intentionally leaking French military intelligence. According to your subordinate John, you met Miss Lu Dong from Country Z in Luochuan in 1901, and you fell in love."
Ferran lit a cigarette, the flame burning through the tobacco made a slight crisp sound, and the smoke swirled up into the sky.
"Yes."
He admitted it.
"John said that you were almost inseparable from her during the five years you served as a colonel in Country Z. In 1903, during the battle between our country and our friendly ally Country Y to attack Country Z's Bazhou, Lu Dong stole high-level military secrets from you, causing us to lose thousands of outstanding young soldiers. Even though we won the war in the end, we still suffered heavy losses. Is what John said true?"
"Yes."
He did not hesitate.
The woman sitting on the jury was furious. She waved her fat arms and yelled, "You are a traitor to your country!"
"sinner!"
"My son died in a foreign country, on the land of Bazhou! You are the one who deserves death! Traitor!"
"Quiet!"
The judge banged his gavel heavily.
"Mr. Bernard, are you completely unaware of what Lu Dong did?"
Fei Lan was silent for a moment, and Lu Dong's mysterious and beautiful face flashed through his mind. "It's not that I'm completely unaware, I just ignored those unreasonable things."
"What's unreasonable?"
"The love she pretended to have made me indulge in it and unable to extricate myself."
As soon as Phelan finished speaking, the jury began to make even louder voices. They all questioned, "Love? You betrayed your country and your people just because you fell in love with a foreign woman!"
"You deserve to die!"
"Yes, damn you!"
"Quiet!"
The judge banged the gavel hard again.
"Mr. Bernard, when did you realize that Miss Lu Dong was deliberately approaching you and deceiving your pure and innocent feelings?"
"Five years ago, she mysteriously disappeared. I went back to Country Z to look for her, but found nothing."
"According to John's confession, you returned to your country in 1910 and took Miss Lu Dong with you. Because of the marriage law, you could not marry Miss Lu Dong, and she lived with you as a stowaway."
"Yes."
"After returning to China, you leaked important information from multiple countries, which was then transmitted back to China by Miss Lu Dong. Everything stopped only in 1916, when Miss Lu Dong left France."
"Yes."
"Have you nothing to say, Mr. Bernard?"
"No, I plead guilty."
The dying cigarette suddenly rekindled and burned Feilan's fingers. He frowned, as if in some pain.
"Okay, Mr. Bernard. Now please tell the jury and the reporters present the complete story. This will help me convict you."
Fei Lan threw away the cigarette butt and slowly said, "We met in a small town in Country Z where it rains all year round. She was wearing a green cheongsam. She was very beautiful, so beautiful that even in a crowd, she could be spotted at a glance."
Fei Lan suddenly smiled, looking past the judge and looking further away, "Do you know the color cyan in China? It's not the blue on our national flag, nor the green on military uniforms. Cyan is between blue and green, just like the first color you see when you wake up in the morning and walk out of the room. Lu Dong told me that cyan is the color of Country Z."
[Appendix: "Growth" is an independent script and will appear in full in the subsequent plot. The story content is partly based on the story of Peking Opera actor Shi Pei Pu, which was later adapted into the movie "M. Butterfly".]