Chapter 296: Lemon

After saying this, the lights on the stage dimmed.

Then, Cheng Cheng went backstage and changed into Sakamoto Gintoki's clothes. At the same time, he applied hairspray on his silver-white hair and blew it into wool curls, making him 99% similar to Sakamoto Gintoki.

Then, he posed with the PK girl group.

He stood in the middle, and six girls from the PK girl group squatted on the ground around him.

Everything was ready. Cheng Cheng made an OK gesture and the lights suddenly turned on. When the fans in the audience saw Cheng Cheng's outfit, their eyes lit up. This was the first time that Sakata Gintoki appeared in this world.

Ahhh, is this the man who walked out of the comics?
So handsome!
The music starts.

The magical melody began to resound over the stadium, and Cheng Cheng and the six girls spread out and started dancing.

When PK girl group debuted, the song "Pure Land" was already extremely popular in Neon and Tianxia. The dance video has reached 1.1 million views on YouTube and more than million views on Bilibili.

It must be popular!

This is due to the magical melody of "Pure Land" and the strong rhythm of the dance moves, and also because the PK girl group is beautiful and dances well!

But at this moment, although the PK girl group danced very well and each of them was extremely beautiful, they also had long thighs to look at.

But everyone's eyes were on Cheng Cheng.

Cheng Cheng performed the movements of turning, changing legs, kicking, oiran steps and butterfly steps effortlessly and smoothly without any sense of lag. In addition, he deliberately imitated Sakata Gintoki's voice to sing "Pure Land of Bliss".

There are only two words to describe the feeling:

Devilish!
So magical!

Sakata Gintoki's voice is very mellow and funny, and then it becomes serious and gentle in the middle. But when you like this kind of voice, it starts to be funny and mean again. A very nice song "Pure Land" was sung in a different way by him.

But surprisingly, it fits Sakata Gintoki's character very well, and also fits Cheng Cheng's mental state.

And below the stage, the fans were going crazy.

The whole audience erupted with the greatest enthusiasm since the opening of this concert!
They all screamed like crazy.

Ahhhhh!

Cheng Cheng’s version of the Pure Land!

Especially Nanbu Chinatsu, she was almost fainting. How did this man on the stage manage to be so cute and yet still look so masculine? With this makeup and appearance today, he is so handsome, isn't he?
Anyway, she had never seen a human being more handsome and beautiful than Cheng Cheng.

As if there were no flaws.

The fans outside the concert were also dumbfounded when they heard the sound coming from the stadium. What was going on? Why was it "Pure Land of Bliss"? Did Cheng Cheng dance to "Pure Land of Bliss" at today's concert?
Or just singing?
I really regret not buying the tickets!

Soon, the song "Pure Land of Bliss" ended and the dynamic music stopped, but the fans still felt it was not enough!
I haven't heard enough of Cheng Cheng's magical singing voice, nor have I heard enough of this dynamic music, nor have I seen enough of Cheng Cheng's crazy dance moves. This song is too addictive! After watching it once, I want to watch it a second time!

After stopping, the six girls were slightly sweating, but Cheng Cheng was not even out of breath.

Cheng Cheng asked the audience:
"Do you like this song?"

The audience shouted:

"like!"

Cheng Cheng: "Do you like them?"

"like!"

Cheng Cheng: "Do you like my look today?"

"like!!!"

Cheng Cheng starts at 0 frame and introduces:

"Since you like it, let me introduce it to you. The outfit I'm wearing today comes from a comic book I drew called "Gintama". It's the outfit of the hero Sakata Gintoki in the comic. It will be released in Japan on June 6th. It tells the story of Sakata Gintoki, who adheres to the spirit of Bushido, and his friends from the "Yoromatsu-ya" and leads an incredible and wonderful life at the end of the Daikichi era. The comic's unique venomous, sarcastic, nonsensical and whimsical spoof style is its feature and selling point, but it is sometimes interspersed with touching stories and descriptions of life principles. It has some unique understandings of modern historical events and is a self-innovation within the shonen manga genre."

This is just a self-promotion from a third-person perspective!
Cheng Cheng asked with a smile: "Will you buy it?"

The audience responded with a loud voice: "Buy!"

Cheng Cheng:

OK, OK, we have a guaranteed 100,000 copies.

Cheng Cheng asked each member of the PK girl group to say one more sentence, and then they left the stage.

Cheng Cheng continued:
"Okay, since you said you want to buy it, I'll add another song today, 'Love Cycle'!"

The audience burst into even crazier screams.

Damn, love cycle!
This concert was really worth it!

Nanbu Chinatsu's eyes lit up and she was looking forward to Cheng Cheng's version of the love cycle!

Next, Risa Goto walked onto the stage cutely with her short legs. She was the invited guest of this song.

The music started and Cheng Cheng picked up the microphone. Nanbu Chinatsu stared at Cheng Cheng on the screen, wanting to see how sweet the love cycle her idol would sing would be.

But as soon as Cheng Cheng opened his mouth, Nanbu Chinatsu couldn't hold it anymore and almost fell down.

No, this deep voice, this strange singing style, why does it smell like the prairie where cows are chasing after each other? ! ! !

Other fans were also dumbfounded, showing expressions of disbelief and fear.

This love cycle, isn't it right?

But Cheng Cheng didn't care about the fans' lives at all, he just kept singing:
"Preparation"

でもそんなんじゃだめ(But that won’t work)

もうそんなんじゃほら (If that’s the case, look at it)
"Heart evolves"

Halfway through, he even yodeled a bit, really having fun.

The fans in the audience were shocked. There were originally 100,000 people at the concert, but it suddenly became 200,000! The key point was that Cheng Cheng's singing voice was so startling that it made people feel like they were having a myocardial infarction and vomiting blood.

At this time, Risa Goto started singing.

She sang the authentic "Love Cycle", which made the fans in the audience feel like they were listening to heavenly music.

But soon, Cheng Cheng started singing again, and the two people's singing alternately made the fans in the audience feel like heaven and hell at the same time, it was simply a world of ice and fire!
"What a lovely man." Even so, Nanbu Chinatsu gave such an evaluation.

Soon, the song ended, Risa Goto interacted briefly, and walked off the stage.

Next, one song after another.

When the last song ended, the concert in Neon Station came to an end, but everyone knew that Cheng Cheng had an encore segment, which was also a new song segment. Everyone shouted in unison:
"One more song!"

"One more song!"

Nanbu Chinatsu also shouted, “One more song!”

To be honest, she was really reluctant to leave this concert, because she didn't know if she would have the chance to attend Cheng Cheng's concert again in this life. This might be the only time in her life that she would be in such close contact with Cheng Cheng.

Cheng Cheng sat down with a guitar in his arms. "Before singing this song, I have something to say."

The whole audience fell silent, waiting with bated breath for him to speak.

But as everyone was waiting, Cheng Cheng thought for a while but didn't say a word.

The moment he opened his mouth, he forgot what he was going to say.

This means that what he wants to say doesn't seem to be that important.

He plucked his guitar and said:

“The song is called “Lemon”.”

Then he sang:

"梦(ゆめ)ならばどれほどよかったでしょう(It would be great if all this was a dream)"

Almost as soon as Cheng Cheng's singing sounded, Nanbu Chinatsu felt goose bumps all over her body!

It feels like being hit.

She looked at Cheng Cheng on the stage.

At this time, Cheng Cheng was the only one on the empty stage. He held his guitar, lowered his head slightly, and his bangs covered his eyes. He immersed himself in the song wholeheartedly. Nanbu Chinatsu actually felt a sense of loneliness from him.

An indescribable loneliness.

"Un(いま)だにあなたのことを梦(ゆめ)にみる(I can still find you in my dreams)"

"Forget(わす)れた物(もの)をtake(と)りに帰(かえ)るように(It's like returning home to retrieve something you forgot)"

"古(ふる)びた思(おも)い出(で)のAE(ほこり)を払(はら)う(Cleaning away the dusty memories)"

"Lemon" is a song that expresses the sadness and loss of someone important.

Lemon has three meanings here: the complex sour taste, the memories of the past restored by the lemon, and death.

Death, perhaps, is the eternal theme of mankind?
Just like the scent of bitter lemon that is deeply engraved in everyone's heart, at some point, the memory of "death" will always come to mind.

Maybe it’s the kittens and puppies you buried as a child; maybe it’s an elder you’ve never met but worshipped at home; maybe it’s the miserable cries of a family member you’ve seen on the news; or maybe it’s someone you’ve heard from others that someone you once knew has passed away; or maybe it’s a relative you’ve been separated from forever.
"Death"
It's the kind of thing that people try to avoid, but cannot avoid.

But what can we do?

This is what we should face~
"戻(もど)らない福(しあわ)せがあることを(Happiness can never be restored)"

"Last (さいご)にあなたが教(おし)えてくれた(You told me in the end)"

"The dark past that has never been told to others"

".(Without you they will sleep in darkness forever)"

".(Even the sadness of that day)
(Even the pain of that day)
(I'll give you everything, including the one I love deeply)
(All of them have become deeply engraved in my heart)
(The aroma of bitter lemon)"

Since there is no way to avoid it, let us remember it deeply.

Remember it as the scent of bitter lemon.

Because we humans are such creatures.
As she listened, Nanbu Chinatsu started crying without her knowing it.

She felt an intense sadness.

A sadness that has no end.

The entire stadium, with more than 100,000 people, was also caught up in this emotion. Some covered their faces, their shoulders trembling; some raised their heads as if remembering something; some smiled, and when they touched their cheeks, they were wet.

Especially in Japan, where discussions about and works revolving around death have become mainstream, they can empathize with the emotions in this song.

"so good."

There is humanity.

Even though it's about death, it's a really good song.

Cheng Cheng sings really well~
Backstage, Goto Risa looked at Cheng Cheng with fascination, and was deeply moved by the tenderness of the song:

Chengjun, you are truly a shining person.

The PK girl group also quietly lamented and sighed:
Master, you are really talented~
Nanbu Chinatsu's feelings are more intuitive:
She wanted to get close to him and blend in with him!
The songs build up layer by layer, and more and more people are moved by them.

Cheng Cheng raised his voice and sang loudly:

".(What have you experienced)
(What have you witnessed?)
(An expression I've never seen before appeared on his face)
(If you are somewhere like me, living a lonely life with tears all day long)
(Please forget everything about me)
(I pray from the bottom of my heart)
(You are still my light to this day)
(I love you deeply)
(Even beyond my imagination)"

Cheng Cheng emphasized over and over again, "I am very sad about your passing!"
This is the tonality of this song. It is not a song to comfort those who are hurt. It does not tell people to live on with strength or to fulfill someone's wish. There are already enough songs like this.

It was created from the perspective of facing death head-on.

Perhaps, it is songs like this that allow each individual to empathize and relate to the story so well?

Depicting human death with a danceable beat, a jumping tune, and a danceable rhythm is also a kind of beauty.

".(Even the sadness of that day)
(Even the pain of that day)
(I'll give you everything, including the one I love deeply)
(All of them have become deeply engraved in my heart)
(Bitter lemon aroma)
(You can't go back until the rain stops and the sky clears)
(Like a cut lemon in half)
(You are still my light to this day)"

Cheng Cheng played the last syllable, and finally——

The song is over.

More than 100,000 viewers were already crying uncontrollably.

This is really a divine song.
It's like walking alone in a long, dark tunnel, watching the faint light of the exit in the distance moving forward step by step. In order to find this little bit of light, you walk alone, staggering, using up all your strength. The moment you walk out of the tunnel, you embrace the light, but find that the light you thought it was is not the light you imagined.

The world is never beautiful, and indifference, bitterness and sadness always accompany you. But after walking this road, you are no longer the you who pursued the light alone. Facing everything, you no longer have despair and pain. One sentence:
"so what?"

After that, be more determined and keep moving forward.

Neon is a country that is quite obsessed with the aesthetics of death. Due to the often destructive influence of the natural environment, the thorough understanding of death (or a kind of despair and powerlessness) can be said to run through the national blood. In literature, there are very few people who complain about the heavens and the earth and endlessly argue with the heavens and the earth.

The main theme is to accept the departure of loved ones and live on with their last wishes.

The concert is over.

Chinatsu Nambu followed the slowly moving team out of the stadium. It was already early morning. She looked up at the starry sky, and even now she still couldn't believe it.

Tonight, Cheng Cheng danced to "Pure Land" and the funny version of "Love Cycle", and in the end he actually sang a song called "Lemon".

Cheng Chengjun is really a contradictory person~
But it's also really good~
Now, she still feels reluctant that the concert will end like this.

But she was satisfied with that.

I am so lucky to be able to listen to Cheng Chengjun's speech. Even if I encounter painful and difficult problems in my future life, as long as I think of tonight, I will be able to smile and grit my teeth to get through it, right?

She thought:
I will remember this night forever. If I have the chance again in the future, even when I am 80 years old, I will definitely attend Cheng Chengjun's concert again. It would be even better if I could get an autographed photo in person.

She would treat it as her own beloved thing and bury it with her in her own grave.

(End of this chapter)