"It’s certainly quite festive."

Cheng Ye nodded with a smile, his gaze sweeping across the surroundings.

All the shanties on the previously chaotic pedestrian street had been completely demolished, revealing the smooth concrete ground.

The sudden openness felt a bit unusual.

Near the Celestial Essence Mall, a simple wooden stage was set up, with a red banner inscribed with "Good fortune with the demolition of Celestial Essence Pedestrian Street," flapping noisily in the wind.

Elder Song and the other two elders, dressed again in their red robes embroidered with auspicious clouds, sat on chairs in the center of the stage.

Unlike their serious demeanor at the previous community meeting, today the three elders’ faces showed noticeable traces of nervousness, though they couldn’t hide the joy in their eyes.

After all, demolishing the pedestrian street symbolized getting rid of the old and welcoming the new, marking a fresh start.

The Celestial Essence Community, from its inception until today, was almost ten years old and finally embraced the next stage of development!

"Brother Long said you don’t like being in the spotlight, so he didn’t arrange for you to give a speech on stage."

Wang Kang scratched his head, a hint of regret in his tone.

Cheng Ye was taken aback for a moment, then couldn’t help but tease, "What? Do you want the two of us to go up and sing a song?"

"Of course!" Wang Kang’s eyes brightened, his voice rising with excitement, "Back in the Inner City, even though there were many people at the ceremonies, everyone was so quiet. It was never this lively! Now with so many people around, if we go up and sing a song, we’re sure to get a lot of cheers! Wasn’t that our biggest dream back then?"

"Dream..." Cheng Ye’s heart stirred gently, memories surfacing rapidly.

It seemed that when he first started learning to sing with Wang Kang, the two had secretly promised to perform on stage under everyone’s gaze someday.

But the ceremonies in the Inner City were full of rules, and everyone was so reserved, never experiencing the feeling of being surrounded by cheers.

Unlike now, where the crowd was dense, filled with community residents, spectators from afar, and nearby neighborhood dwellers, each face brimming with lively smiles.

If they really went up and sang a song, even if the singing was average, it would definitely draw large cheers.

After some thought, Cheng Ye suddenly smiled, "Alright, then let’s go up and sing. Once you become official, opportunities like these might become rarer."

"Really?!" Wang Kang’s eyes widened, unable to believe his ears.

"Of course it’s true." Cheng Ye nodded, adding, "But I have to wear a mask so that all these people won’t remember me, just in case it causes trouble later."

"Then I’ll wear one too!" Wang Kang immediately echoed, grinning widely, "After all, I’m an Intern Inspector now, can’t embarrass the inspection station!"

Whether the singing was good or what song they sang wasn’t important.

As the two approached the side of the stage, Cheng Ye inexplicably felt a surge of excitement.

After all, he was just a young man in his early twenties, with a playful heart hidden inside.

But the oppressive wasteland environment and repeated life-and-death crises forced him to stay calm and mature.

At this rare opportunity to relax, consider it a "milestone" for the hard work during this period.

After all, when heading to Dapo Town later to start solo projects, Chief Cheng would need to be more stable, no longer fit to be as carefree in front of people as he is now.

When they found Long and mentioned wanting to sing on stage, everyone in the community was dumbfounded.

Soon, waves of cheers erupted, even drawing people from the outskirts of the crowd to squeeze in, thinking something exciting was happening.

Long quickly had someone find two simple masks.

One was a black eagle mask, the other a brown bear head mask, handed to Cheng Ye and Wang Kang.

Cheng Ye took the eagle mask and put it on, covering most of his face, leaving only his sharply defined jaw visible.

Wang Kang put the bear head mask on his head, with his eyes peeking through its small holes, looking goofy yet adorable.

The little flame emerged from his shoulder, looked at Cheng Ye, tilted its head, wondering why the big friend was becoming more like the companions it saw in its dreams; in excitement, it chirped and flapped around, hopping from Cheng Ye’s shoulder to the top of the mask, then sliding down the edge onto the other shoulder like a playful little furball.

"Brother Cheng, will I accompany you or do you sing first?"

Wang Kang took his wooden guitar, something he insisted on bringing along when leaving the Inner City, considered a treasure.

"Switch it up, you go first, I’ll accompany you."

Cheng Ye took the guitar from him, wearing it over his shoulder, his fingertips gently plucking the strings, initially a bit clumsy, the metal strings sounding somewhat raw.

But as memories in his mind melded further, his fingers became more nimble, dancing across the strings, and a soothing prelude gradually flowed out.

"Great!"

Wang Kang’s eyes lit up, his neck flushing with excitement as he quickly took the mic from Cheng Ye and tested it at his mouth.

Before long, the three elders on stage began to speak.

Elder Song, holding the microphone, his voice slightly hoarse but powerful, talked about the past of the pedestrian street and looked forward to the future with new houses built.

The audience listened attentively, frequent applause erupting.

After the speeches, a few young people from the community stepped forward, cautiously carrying the elders’ chairs to the side of the stage, letting them sit and rest.

Long quickly walked on stage, taking the mic, his voice ringing like a gong, "Everyone who came to witness this, the elders have painted us a wonderful future. Now, let’s have some fun!"