Chapter Fifty-Eight: The New Year Holiday (1/2)

Amid the applause from the audience, Ye Zhao slowly stepped onto the stage, received his trophy, delivered a proper acceptance speech, and then returned to his seat. Though his face wore an appropriate smile, his mind was awash with questions: Had BRUNING lifted its hostility toward him, or was there some other reason?

This year, the grand annual prize ultimately went to Mr. Child for his famous song "Innocent World." The criteria for the award were a combination of single sales, votes from the audience, and the twenty-two judges—a comprehensive evaluation before the winner was decided. This was exactly why rumors persisted about the Machiko Kondo Record Grand Prize being rigged: the single that won had only sold 180,000 copies, barely qualifying for nomination.

In terms of sales, "Innocent World" was unrivaled in 1994, selling 1.8 million copies to top the annual chart. Musically, its greatness needed no further elaboration; without question, it was this song’s release that enabled Kazutoshi Sakurai to lead his band into an unstoppable mode, dominating the music scene. The worldview Sakurai crafted in his lyrics would influence countless successors.

The only awkward point was that Mr. Child did not attend the Record Grand Prize ceremony at all. In the end, the representative of the record company, Mitsugu Inaba, accepted the award on his behalf.

When the award ceremony concluded, Ye Zhao left the TBS Broadcasting Center, got into the back seat of a car, and casually placed the trophy beside him, yawning. "That was so boring."

Yuki Kamimura teased him, "Ye Zhao-san, if someone who didn’t win heard you say that, they’d definitely scoff. No matter how little prestige an award has, standing on the Record Grand Prize stage is recognition in itself."

"A prize is a prize, but boring is still boring," Ye Zhao stretched lazily. "Drop me off at Sangenjaya Station. It’s New Year’s; you should hurry home too."

"Ye Zhao-san, aren’t you going back to your hometown?" Kamimura asked.

"It’s too late tonight. I’ll go tomorrow; I’ve already told my family."

Seeing this, Kamimura said no more, quietly driving until he delivered Ye Zhao to Sangenjaya Station.

Spending New Year’s Eve alone is dull and lonely, especially for Ye Zhao. He had to endure not only solitude but also the reality of having bid farewell to all family and friends from his past life.

Returning to his apartment in Sangenjaya, he turned on the television. On NHK’s Red and White Song Festival, X-JAPAN was performing "Rusty Nail." Lead singer TOSHI, dressed in white and wearing black sunglasses, unleashed his innate high notes without restraint. Drummer YOSHIKI, even at the Red and White festival, performed shirtless, drumming and doing his signature head-whip. This year marked X-JAPAN’s peak; even the usually reserved festival audience was fired up by the legendary band’s performance, cheering fervently from below.

After X-JAPAN left the stage, the Red Team promptly sent out Shizuka Kudo. That year, YOSHIKI and Kudo’s romance had been exposed, and NHK, ever eager to ride the wave, arranged for the couple to compete at the festival. In a white dress, surrounded by four black-clad dancers, Shizuka Kudo performed "Blue Rose" with passionate energy.

Even by today’s standards, Kudo’s styling and makeup at the time were anything but provincial. Her brows and eyes combined beauty and charisma, and her exceptional talent made it easy to see why, after the disbandment of Kitty Club, she went from being the group’s “foot-washing maid” to a super idol with nearly fifteen million in total sales.

Beyond her career, Shizuka Kudo also captured the hearts of both YOSHIKI and Takuya Kimura, becoming the envy and object of jealousy for all women in RB.

After Kudo left the stage, there was another round of enka performances, followed by Kenichi Mikawa and Sachiko Kobayashi, continuing their costume rivalry. The elaborate outfits these two wore at the Red and White festival were always a highlight for the audience.

This year, the Red Team emerged victorious. After the live vote tally, NHK’s Director-General Kazuo Nakamura handed the victory banner to Red Team leader Emiko Ueno. As all the singers, under conductor Yasushi Miyagawa’s guidance, sang "Hotaru no Hikari"—the festival’s equivalent of the Spring Festival Gala’s "Farewell Tonight"—Ye Zhao raised his hand and switched off the television.

……

The next morning, carrying a sports bag with spare clothes in his left hand and a suitcase filled with local specialties from the tour in his right, Ye Zhao boarded a JR train bound for Yokohama alone.

On December 29, Ye Zhao had received a call from his younger sister Ye Qing, urging him to come home for New Year’s.

“I have to attend the Record Grand Prize live broadcast on the night of the 31st. It’ll be very late when it ends—I probably can’t make it back,” Ye Zhao explained.

“Then just come back on January 1!” Ye Qing set the date without room for argument. “Hey, big brother, you’re not still sulking about Mom and Dad, are you? Is that why you’re being so evasive?”

“You’re the one being evasive!” Ye Zhao retorted, “Don’t worry, I’ll definitely come back in the morning on the first.” After the scandal broke, reporters somehow found Ye Zhao’s family address and the schools where his parents taught, hounding them relentlessly. In such circumstances, Ye Zhao’s parents and sister firmly stood by him, angrily denouncing the false report by Mika Ogawa. Ye Qing even made a special trip to Tokyo, bringing Imagawa-yaki made by their mother You Xiangrong.

With Ye Qing reassured over the phone, she happily declared, “It’s settled then! Morning of the first! If you don’t come back, I’ll come to Tokyo and settle things with you!”

Ye Zhao’s hometown was in Wakaba Town, SZ District, Yokohama—a typical two-story Japanese detached house, apparently built when Lin Ye and You Xiangrong married. The property wasn’t large, but both the garden and house had a small, refined feel.

When he was expelled from the family, Ye Zhao’s predecessor, out of stubbornness, mailed the house keys back, so now, though Ye Zhao was returning to his own home, he had to ring the bell and announce himself.

After waiting a minute or two, accompanied by a drawn-out “Coming—” from behind the door, the sound of small running footsteps approached. With a loud “whoosh,” the door was pulled open and Ye Qing, petite as ever, poked her head out.

“Not up yet?” Ye Zhao pointed to Ye Qing’s messy hair and pink bear pajamas.

Ye Qing yawned and took the suitcase from Ye Zhao’s hand. “Can’t help it, I went to bed too late yesterday.”

Inside, after changing shoes at the entrance, Ye Zhao asked casually, “Where are Mom and Dad?”

“They must have gone out. Otherwise, they wouldn’t need me, still in bed, to answer the door.” Ye Qing found slippers for Ye Zhao from the shoe cabinet.

“Thanks.” After changing into slippers, Ye Zhao carried his sports bag upstairs, relying on muscle memory to find his own room.

“Brother, there’s another suitcase.”

“That one’s fine—it’s filled with local specialties I brought back from the northern tour. Open it and see if there’s anything you like.”

Ye Qing cheered, carrying the suitcase into the living room.

……