Chapter 2723: 2697: Nervous
New York Fashion Week, one of the four biggest fashion weeks in the world, is held twice a year: in February they show that year’s fall/winter collections, and in September they show the next year’s collections.
So the fashion week held in 2015 is actually called the Spring/Summer 2016 Fashion Week.
As one of the Big Four, New York Fashion Week’s status is beyond doubt. Getting to walk that runway is really something else. For a newcomer—strictly speaking, a complete amateur hobbyist—to appear there, besides sighing over Eileen’s good luck, you also have to thank Karl Lagerfeld for his guts.
And who exactly is Karl Lagerfeld?
Maybe nobody else on earth would dare use a total amateur doing her very first show at New York Fashion Week—but Old Master Karl dares. And people can only say he has a good eye; no one would dare question Karl over it.
Karl Lagerfeld is hailed as the Caesar of the fashion world. Huaxia People like to call him the Old Buddha. His name in fashion is not just “thunderous,” his fame is like a clear?sky lightning strike, super invincible rolling chained thunder, that kind of loud.
He’s fluent in German, English, French, and Italian. He’s also a photographer. Even though he’s already in his eighties, he’s still active in the fashion scene.
The best part is, Karl Lagerfeld was born in Hamburg, Germany, which means he’s German, and Eileen is German too, so the two of them can really talk.
Karl’s pretty hardcore when it comes to his work. Even though he’s already old, even though he has more money than he could spend in several lifetimes, in order to get the ideal effect he has in mind, Karl Lagerfeld is still willing to get personally involved. That’s a big reason he gets to enjoy such fame. But age is age, and Karl has lots of other things to handle, so he can’t possibly keep an eye on Eileen’s practice every single day. Still, whenever he has time, he’ll definitely check in on Ellie’s progress, just to make sure she doesn’t fall apart once she gets on stage for real.
At the most important show of fashion week, being personally packaged and launched by the most famous designer—Eileen’s path as a model is really: if she doesn’t fly, fine; but once she flies, she’s shooting straight to the sky.
Fashion Week runs for eight days in total. The last day is when the big brands come out as the grand finale, and Karl Lagerfeld’s show is of course one of the absolute highlights, scheduled for the afternoon of the last day.
New York Fashion Week doesn’t allow ordinary spectators in. Only big?name socialites, industry insiders, media, and buyers are allowed. But Gao Yang and his crew obviously don’t have to worry about invitations. Even if Eileen weren’t walking the show, getting invites would never be a problem.
The invitations had already been delivered: one for each person, all great seats. Everyone was just waiting to cheer Eileen on.
Logically speaking, Eileen should be under a ton of pressure. But whether she’s feeling it or not, Gao Yang doesn’t know—he only knows that his pressure is huge. Very huge. Extremely huge.
The night before, Gao Yang was actually so nervous he couldn’t sleep.
It was time to head out. Satan’s bunch was moving as a group, a whole line of cars gathered in front of Gao Yang’s house. Yelena had put on her best outfit and dolled herself up, looking radiant, but today she wasn’t holding onto Gao Yang’s arm. Instead she was chattering away nonstop with Catherine and Adele.
“Are we heading out? Catherine and Adele and I will take one car. It’s rare for us to get together—okay?”
“Okay. Are you driving yourselves or should I take you?”
“We’ll drive ourselves. It’s not convenient to talk in your car. We’ve got girls’ secrets to share. Bye?bye, see you later.”
Yelena gave Gao Yang a quick kiss on the cheek, then turned to Catherine and urged, “Let’s go, let’s go now, hurry up.”
Catherine was the one driving, and of course she’d already said hi to Gao Yang, but it was just the plain kind of greeting between friends. Adele, on the other hand, grabbed onto Gao Yang and kept talking, but Catherine smoothly pulled her away.
Yelena, Catherine, Adele—the three of them were going to watch Eileen’s fashion show. Now you see why Gao Yang was nervous, right?
There’s no direct connection, but Gao Yang was nervous anyway. Maybe there’s only one phrase that explains his mindset: a thief with a guilty conscience. Even though he really hadn’t stolen anything, he still felt like one, and what can you do about that.
Frey was holding onto his wife and said anxiously, “Shall we go already? What are we waiting for? Time’s about up, isn’t it?”
Gao Yang cleared his throat lightly and lowered his voice. “Okay, let’s run through the action plan one more time. Jinfang, you ready? Remember what you’re supposed to say?”
Li Jinfang rolled his shoulders, instinctively tugged at the tie around his neck, and nodded. “I remember. Relax.”
Gao Yang looked at the others. “Those who’re in charge of stirring things up, watch your timing. Andy He, don’t go overboard.”
Andy He said confidently, “Relax, relax. I’ll definitely not go overboard and I’ll still get the result we want.”
Albert chimed in anxiously on the side, “And me, don’t worry. No way I’ll mess this up.”
Gao Yang glanced up at Eileen’s mother, then lowered his voice. “Joseph will drive, taking me and Eileen’s mother. Jinfang, sit in the front. Once we get there, play it by ear. If Plan A can’t be carried out, then we’ll switch to Plan B or Plan C when the time’s right.”
Everyone answered in a roar, “Got it, Boss.”
Gao Yang waved his hand. “Let’s move out.”
Li Jinfang opened the car door and invited Eileen’s mother to get in, then he took the front passenger seat. Once several cars pulled out together, he turned his head and said, “Brother Yang, isn’t this trick of yours a bit too mean? I’m kind of nervous. Nothing’s going to go wrong, right?”
Gao Yang snapped, “What could go wrong? It’ll be fine. We’re just doing it.”
Li Jinfang muttered a couple of times under his breath, then said quietly, “All right. If something really does go wrong, you guys can’t blame me.”
Gao Yang said urgently, “I’ll take the fall anyway. What are you afraid of?”
Li Jinfang lowered his voice. “It’s not that I’m scared—forget it. The battle plan’s already set, no point talking nonsense. I’ll shut up.”
Gao Yang took a deep breath and said quietly, “The big event today is watching Eileen’s debut. Everything else is secondary, just piggybacking on that. Got it? Don’t be nervous. What’s there to be nervous about?”
Right then, Gao Yang’s phone rang. He picked up, and heard Eileen’s anxious voice: “Boss, are you guys here yet? Why aren’t you here?”
“What’s up? You nervous?”
“A little… No, I’m really nervous. I’m super nervous right now. I feel like I can’t breathe.”
Knowing Eileen was just as nervous, Gao Yang finally felt a bit more balanced inside.
“Don’t be nervous. What are you scared of? Is this more dangerous than being on the battlefield?”
“This isn’t about danger! What nonsense are you spouting. I’m just scared I’ll screw it up. Hurry and get here, okay? Once I see you I’ll feel calmer. My legs are shaking like crazy right now, I’m about to pee my pants, F**k!”
Even though he couldn’t see her, Gao Yang still straightened his face and said sternly, “Don’t swear. You’re about to be a famous model. What does it look like if you’re cursing all the time?”
“But I’m still scared…”
“Treat the audience as the enemy, treat the cameras as rifles and cannons, and go conquer them. How’s that?”
“Uh, that kind of works. I’m hanging up. I’m going to find a quiet spot and hypnotize myself a bit and get into the mood. You guys hurry up and get here, I’ll be waiting.”