After offending capital, my songs became more and more popular.

Chapter 285 The rivers and mountains are only in my dreams, I have not been close to my motherland for many years...

“*&%￥#@…”

The theater in Los Santos was bustling with people coming and going. After it opened for admission, the theater gradually became very lively as more and more audience members entered through ticket checks.

Everyone's face was beaming with anticipation, especially the group of guys and girls who had saved up tickets. Apparently, tickets for Shen Ming'en's "Silk Road Blossoms" troupe's scattered performances sold out in a second. Most people didn't even get a glimpse of a ticket, let alone try to buy one...

This morning, Shen Ming'en heard from nearby staff that scalped tickets here were being sold at exorbitant prices, which surprised him. He couldn't help but ask, "Are there scalpers here too?"

"Of course there is!"

The local staff member practically counted on his fingers as he told Shen Ming'en, "We can guarantee you'll pass your driver's license test, guarantee you'll get registered as a food delivery driver, we can handle all sorts of difficult-to-obtain licenses for opening a restaurant, and we can even guarantee you'll pass any of those tests for beautician, nail technician, or construction technician certificates. We can even boost your local credit score to a high level..."

"I go……"

Shen Ming'en was shocked when he heard this, thinking to himself, "Indeed, there are scalpers for everything!"

To be honest, these scalpers are really annoying. They make it so that many people can't get tickets and are forced to buy expensive ones...

However, at the same time, scalpers have also provided convenience for many people.

Most of the local men and women who stay at home are not short of money and are not afraid to spend money; what they are afraid of is not being able to get tickets.

It's tough on some of the older local overseas Chinese; many of them, the uncles and aunties, can't even find scalpers to help them...

Therefore, when Shen Ming'en arrived at the theater, he found the on-site director and asked him to discuss something: "Could you turn the sound up to the maximum during the performance?"

Upon hearing this, the chief director couldn't help but look utterly bewildered, staring at Shen Ming'en with a puzzled expression...

Shen Ming'en's meaning is actually self-evident. When he arrived, he saw many overseas Chinese and international students outside the venue who hadn't been able to buy tickets, so he thought he would raise his voice so that they could hear him too.

To put it bluntly: "A way to spoil our fans!"

But then again, if you turn up the volume so that people outside can hear it, wouldn't that make the people inside who spent money seem like they've been cheated?
Shen Ming'en's explanation was quite natural: firstly, since he was inside, people outside would inevitably hear his voice but couldn't see him; secondly, those who paid for tickets weren't being cheated...

Secondly, in this foreign land, singing revolutionary songs for people from the same country would surely not be objected to, even by those who bought tickets to come here.

After a brief consideration, the director decided to give Shen Ming'en some face...

To be honest, doing this kind of thing is really thankless and exhausting. Only Shen Ming'en would do it. No one else would do it.

Amidst laughter, the performance is about to begin.

As the most anticipated performer of the show, Shen Ming'en's performance was scheduled in the middle, neither too high nor too low, precisely during the time when the audience was most enthusiastic.

Seeing that the performance in front of him had already begun in full swing, Shen Ming'en went to change his clothes.

In the lounge, the staff bought him coffee and a hot latte, which seemed to have chocolate added—a veritable calorie bomb. Shen Ming'en frowned as he drank it, thinking to himself, "Damn it, we're in America now, can't they at least buy me a proper Americano?"
Forget it……

It's the dead of winter, and everyone's already having a tough time. Coffee is fine, but you can't expect to get a hot roasted sweet potato here, can you?
Haha, roasted sweet potatoes, this is probably what we miss the most in winter, right?

Shen Ming'en shook his head, not thinking much of it, and went to change his clothes.

After changing his clothes and waiting backstage, he only waited for about twenty minutes before he heard the staff calling him to wait.

Next up is Thunder Yatalia's showtime!
……

Inside the venue, as the previous singer's wonderful performance came to an end, the audience gave them the warmest applause.

To be honest, compared to the last time they went to Xiao Rizi, this performance in the US was much easier for the members of the Silk Road Blossoms Theatre Troupe!
When the show "Little Life" was held, although there were many local Chinese, the majority of the audience were locals.

You can imagine how their lives are related to ours. Their audience will definitely find fault with anything, even if the performance is very good, they will still nitpick and say that this is not good or that is not good.

When the performance ended, there was hardly any cheering, let alone applause...

Let's look at this trip to the Americans...

Over 80% of the people in the venue are local overseas Chinese and international students. For them, the "Silk Road Blossoms" troupe is like their own family. When their family comes to perform, they will definitely support them!

People don't care about minor flaws during the performance. As long as the performance is decent, there will be cheers and thunderous applause after the show!
The audience reacted enthusiastically, which naturally motivated the performers to work even harder, resulting in a fantastic atmosphere in the venue. It was already quite lively before Shen Ming'en even went on stage.

It was under these circumstances that...

After the previous performer finished their performance, the host went on stage and said:
"Let's give a warm round of applause to our next performing guest, Shen Ming'en, who will be bringing his original work: 'My Chinese Heart'! Welcome!"

The words fell...

"Oh!!!"

"Oh ho!!!"

"Spicy, spicy, finally spicy!"

"Ahhh, Shen Ming'en, I love you ahhh!"

"I want to have your babies!"

The crowd was already incredibly enthusiastic, but when Shen Ming'en's name appeared in everyone's ears, the cheers from the entire venue seemed to rise to an even higher level. Despite the studio having a roof, the volume of their voices seemed enough to lift the roof off.

Shen Ming'en was undoubtedly the most anticipated and watched performer at today's event. Even though there were many veteran artists present, including the renowned Chen Guangrong, it did not dampen the enthusiasm of the overseas Chinese and international students for Shen Ming'en.

Among them, some held up support signs for Shen Mingen, some carried pillows and standees with Shen Mingen's image, and many others brought flowers to place on the stage, paving a "flower path" for Shen Mingen.

The best thing about these offline theaters is that if audience members want to give gifts, they can simply place them on the stage, and that enthusiasm can be captured on camera when filming the stage.

It's just...

It's just that some "gifted weirdos" can't help but cause trouble!
Take Shen Ming'en, for example...

When the old man came out from behind the stage and saw the "flowers" and "gifts" covering the entire edge of the stage, he immediately burst out laughing.

He speaks without thinking; he just blurts out a sentence:
"Hey, what's going on here? Offering tribute?"

As soon as these words came out...

"puff……"

"Hahaha……"

The audience erupted in laughter. To be fair, Shen Ming'en is quite witty. From the audience's and the camera's perspective, the entire edge of the stage was covered with scattered flowers and gifts, making it look like a "tribute."

To whom are we offering tribute?
It feels like they're offering it as tribute to Shen Ming'en!
The live streams of the Silk Road Blossoms troupe's overseas performances in China had already begun. Many fans who hadn't managed to get tickets or were in other cities rushed to watch. One funny thing happened: one fan actually said:

[Damn... how high is my loneliness level? I actually feel a sense of warmth when I hear about offering tribute...]

As soon as these words came out...

【puff……】

【Hahaha……】

This immediately made many Chinese netizens laugh out loud, and while they were mocking him, they also felt a little sorry for the guy.

However, it must be said that many overseas Chinese and international students at the scene felt a strange sense of "closeness" when they heard Shen Ming'en's name.

Offering tribute is clearly not a positive term, nor is it a compliment, yet it's a term unique to our country.

It's like when Shen Ming'en met that crying female fan in white backstage after the performance of "The Yellow River Cantata: Defend the Yellow River" a couple of days ago, he said in his thick Northeastern accent, "What's wrong, sis?"

So warm and welcoming!

"Clap clap clap..."

"Oh ho!"

After the laughter subsided, a series of applause and cheers followed.

With a smile on his lips, Shen Ming'en walked to the center of the stage and bowed deeply to the audience from three directions, revealing the demeanor of a renowned performer.

Shen Ming'en has performed in every kind of occasion, big or small. He has stood in the Bird's Nest facing cameras from all over the world, and he has also faced potential life-threatening situations in the sanitation department of a small town. If he was a little nervous in the previous performance of "The Yellow River Cantata: Defend the Yellow River" because he was unfamiliar with the style of music and had to coordinate with others, then in this performance, when he came to the style of music he was most familiar with, Shen Ming'en showed only two words: composure.

When the spotlight shone on him, he seemed to truly glow on stage.

Shen Ming'en wasn't in a hurry to start the performance because the orchestra members were still preparing their instruments. It's worth mentioning that some of the orchestra members who came on stage with their instruments looked somewhat familiar. Keen-eyed people might have noticed that those people were exactly the same as the symphony orchestra of the Morning Light Orchestra during Shen Ming'en's previous performance of "The Yellow River Cantata: Defend the Yellow River".

Yes, that's right. Because the previous performance of "Yellow River Cantata: Defend the Yellow River" with the symphony orchestra was so incredibly exciting, and Shen Ming'en's work this time also requires a very grand string arrangement, after thinking about it, I simply talked to Dean Chen Ning. Since their orchestra has finally gone abroad, why not let the choir go back first, and then the symphony orchestra can accompany them for a few more performances when they return?

I don't let them help for nothing; I pay them and even take care of their food, drink, and accommodation in the local area!

Since the collaboration was going smoothly, Chen Ning agreed, although the vice dean Jiang Xu's expression was never very pleasant...

While the orchestra teachers were preparing their instruments, Shen Ming'en interacted briefly with the audience. Notably, he spotted Liu Zi, the girl who had been crying her eyes out in front of fans yesterday while wearing a down jacket, in the crowd...

As if afraid that Shen Mingen wouldn't recognize her, this woman, Liu Zi, wore yesterday's clothes and the same dark-rimmed glasses as yesterday, and waved to Shen Mingen from the crowd.

"Huh?" Shen Ming'en spotted the latter at a glance and couldn't help but tease, "Aren't you going to cry today?"

The girl was initially quite happy, but Shen Mingen's comment made her blush, or perhaps Shen Mingen had touched a nerve. She laughed for a moment, then suddenly let out a soft "Mmm," covered her mouth, and lowered her head...

"Hey...don't!" Shen Ming'en panicked, and anyone who didn't know better would think he was bullying her.

"Haha..." Many people nearby couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Amidst laughter, the orchestra teacher finally prepared the instruments and gave Shen Ming'en a notification.

Shen Ming'en nodded and then returned to the center of the stage.

"Well... thank you to our compatriots for coming to support us today," Shen Ming'en said with a grin, picking up the microphone. "Today, we've prepared two pieces, one of which is this one..."

He pointed to the girl who had just started crying again, and then most of the boys and girls in the audience instantly understood and chimed in, shouting:

"Written for us!"

"A letter to international students!"

"Ahhh, Shen Ming'en, I love you!"

……

"Ha, you can love me, but don't have my babies..." Shen Ming'en quickly waved his hand.

"Haha..." The audience burst into laughter again.

“Indeed, one song was one I promised you,” Shen Ming’en continued, “but the other song was something our troupe leader discussed with me after the performance that day. He asked if I could sing a song related to our local overseas Chinese, our compatriots. This coincided with my own thoughts, so the other song was written for our overseas Chinese compatriots…”

As soon as he finished speaking and Shen Ming'en waved, many local overseas Chinese were immediately excited and cheered!

"As everyone knows, the tasks assigned by the leaders are quite important, and higher-ranking officials have more authority..." Shen Ming'en said with a hearty laugh, "So, for the first round, let's dedicate it to all our overseas compatriots!"

"My Chinese Heart" is dedicated to you!

Today's performance was arranged to be very heartwarming. As Shen Ming'en finished speaking, he slowly stepped back, and the symphony orchestra's melody rose up!

"dududu~"

"Aah~"

"Dong Dong Dong~"

Violins, strings, harmonies, and drums resonated simultaneously at this moment, and a magnificent melody instantly filled the ears of everyone in the theater!

The performance came out suddenly, and the audience was not prepared at all. They were immediately filled with anticipation by this unexpected surprise!
Under those circumstances, Shen Ming'en picked up the microphone and immediately captured the hearts of every overseas Chinese present with the first line of lyrics!
He sang:

"The rivers and mountains only linger in my dreams~"

"I haven't been close to my motherland for many years~"

"But no matter what, it can't be changed~"

"My Chinese heart~"

……

(End of this chapter)