Flag Raising Ceremony

At 4:30 a.m. in Beijing, the streetlights still exuded a cold and lonely atmosphere.

Mo Yu stood at the school gate, holding several still-steaming disposable lunch boxes in his hand. The cool morning breeze on his face made him feel particularly energetic after finishing his meditation.

Not long after I finished the call, I saw four figures, their necks hunched and supporting each other like little quails, slowly emerge from the school gate.

Bai Xue, who was walking at the front, could barely open her eyes and was practically hanging on Zhao Man.

"Good morning, Sister Yiyi... Lele... Sister Manman... Sister Xue."

Mo Yu waved to them with a smile.

"Hmm... Mo Yu, you're so energetic..." Liu Yiyi yawned. "Right now, Tiananmen Square feels so far away. I want to go back to my dorm and elope with my bed..."

Miler walked at the very back. Today she was wearing a loose, long sweatshirt, which made her small, delicate face look even more exquisite.

When she saw Mo Yu, her eyes lit up, and she quickly walked over and naturally took his arm.

"Why are you here so early?" Miler asked softly, her nose slightly red from the cold wind.

Mo Yu didn't say anything, but simply handed over the insulated bag in her hand.

As the plastic lid was lifted, an extremely strong aroma, with the distinctive sour and pungent smell of pickled bamboo shoots and the salty fragrance of fermented black beans, instantly exploded in the cold air.

"This smell..." Miler sniffed; she was all too familiar with that smell. Her eyes widened suddenly. "Old friend rice noodles?"

"My God, Mo Yu, where did you get this?" Zhao Man was also surprised, taking the steaming box of powder. "I remember this stuff is only popular in the Guangxi region. There aren't many places in Beijing that sell it, and besides, which shop in Beijing would be open to sell this in the middle of the night?"

When Mo Yu placed the lunchbox into Mi Le's hand, the moment their fingertips touched, he could feel her hand tremble slightly.

"After returning to the hotel last night, I contacted a fellow Nanning native who owns a shop in Beijing and spent a lot of time persuading him to start cooking early."

Mo Yu didn't explain much, but simply instructed, "Eat it while it's hot. It's sour and spicy, and it'll whet your appetite. You'll have the energy to practice your skills after you finish eating."

Actually, she had these Lao You Fen (a type of rice noodle) specially packed and placed in her personal space before leaving Yongning, so that she could have a bowl of her hometown's breakfast when things were inconvenient.

Since the space has a preservation function, why not make use of it?

Miler held the warm box, lowered her head and sniffed the familiar smell of home, and her eyes inexplicably welled up with tears.

Liu Yiyi and the others exchanged glances, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly. A breakfast naturally didn't cost much, but the sentiment behind it was the most precious thing. What incredible luck did Mi Le have to meet such a man who wholeheartedly cherished her?

Liu Yiyi took a big gulp of soup, a satisfied look on her face.

"It's so kind of you, Xiaoyu, to be able to eat such authentic Lao You Fen (a type of rice noodle soup) so early in the morning. No wonder you snatched my Lele away after only knowing her for a day."

Mo Yu was displeased: "Hey... Sister Yiyi... what do you mean by 'carried away'... I'm a person... not a dog..."

"Hey...you're still not happy about what I'm saying." Liu Yiyi glanced at him. "Go and ask around. Lele has been at our Beijing Dance Academy for a year now, and the line of guys chasing her could stretch from here to Dongzhimen, but she hasn't liked any of them. Yet she's only interested in you. You're not happy about saying a few words to you?"

"I... fine..."

The group chatted and laughed as they ate, and quickly finished their breakfast.

Liu Yiyi threw the lunchbox and chopsticks into the trash can, clapped her hands, and said, "Alright... breakfast is finished. Lele, Baixue, you two go to the practice room."

It's getting late, and the teacher will probably scold you.

Zhao Man... what about you... are you going back to sleep or watching the flag-raising ceremony with us?

Zhao Man said helplessly, "We're already up, what can I do? Let's go..."

"Alright... Little Fish... See you at noon..." Lele waved goodbye to Mo Yu with some reluctance and walked inside with Bai Xue.

The three walked to a parking space on the side of the road, got in the car, and headed straight for Tiananmen Square.

Liu Yiyi truly lives up to her reputation as a native of Beijing; she displayed extraordinary shrewdness at this moment.

She skillfully drove her BMW 3 into the parking lot of a hotel that looked full, handed a cigarette to the security guard, and casually swiped thirty yuan, all in one smooth motion.

"Hurry, hurry... there are already a lot of people queuing at the security checkpoint, Mo Yu, don't fall behind, you big man!" Liu Yiyi waved her hand and led the way to the security checkpoint, with Zhao Man, a girl who was usually quiet, following closely behind.

It has to be said that the girls from the Beijing Dance Academy can be quite intimidating when they run.

Especially her long legs, which exuded the agility of a professional dancer when she took a step. She was like a gust of wind on the streets of Chang'an in the early morning, and Mo Yu, afraid of being left behind, quickly followed behind.

As I walked through the underpass, the crowd around me began to grow dense.

They were lucky enough to snag a waiting spot with an excellent view at the intersection of Chang'an Avenue and the west side of the square.

More and more people gathered around, and the surging crowd behind them kept pushing forward.

Even though Liu Yiyi and Zhao Man were both quite strong, they were squeezed so tightly that they could hardly stand. In the crowd, they also expended a lot of energy, and a fine layer of sweat appeared on their small noses.

Seeing this, Mo Yu took half a step forward and stood directly behind the two of them, wrapping her arms around their waists and spreading her palms to protect their backs.

This position not only protected the two women from being pushed by the crowd behind them, but also allowed them to lean steadily against Mo Yu's chest.

"ah……"

Someone let out a soft cry and suddenly leaned back, colliding with Mo Yu. Their body tensed up instantly upon contact, but then slowly softened after feeling Mo Yu's body temperature.

Mo Yu could feel the muscles in her back trembling slightly, and the heat emanating from under her clothes was clearly transmitted to Mo Yu's arms.

Just when things were getting a little awkward, the flag-raising ceremony began.

"Da...da...da..."

The sound of uniform footsteps came from the direction of Jinshui Bridge; it was the sound of the National Flag Guard's leather boots striking the ground, steady and powerful.

The once noisy square instantly fell silent.

"They're here!" Liu Yiyi said in a low voice.

As the first rays of dawn pierced the clouds, the Tiananmen Gate Tower revealed its solemn outline in the morning light.

The moment the stirring March of the Volunteers began to play, the bright red flag unfurled in the wind and slowly rose with the rising sun.

Whether in her past life or this one, Mo Yu had never seen such a sacred and solemn flag-raising ceremony as today. When she saw the bright red flag slowly rising, a nameless emotion suddenly welled up in her heart.

At that moment, all distracting thoughts transformed into a profound sense of awe. Everyone in the square stared intently at that splash of red, their eyes shining with a clear and moving light.