Chapter 221: Could he be a connection hire!

Where does the bluestone path wind toward?

The old mailbox silently guards the old times.

The dim lights of the tavern at the street corner flicker.

The sound of guitar strings stirs the confusion of the night.

……

In the center of the stage, Zhao Lei, with just one guitar, played and sang quietly. His voice, possessing a quality of youth, paired with quiet chords—that musical quality unique to Zhao Lei—instantly captured the ears of the 101 audience judges on site.

"It's actually a new song!"

Li An, sitting in the corner, had his eyes light up, and he couldn't help but tap along lightly to the music.

He was a senior music editor for NetCloud Music and was very familiar with Zhao Lei, a newly emerged top-tier artist in the folk music circle. He had listened to all the songs Zhao Lei had released previously, but this one was clearly a new song!

"I didn't expect Zhao Lei to actually choose to release a new song on this stage. This episode's Singer has something worth watching!" Li An thought excitedly.

On one side of the stage, the four mentors listened quietly to Zhao Lei's performance, their expressions varied.

Li Zongsheng sat there with his eyes closed, shaking his head, looking like an old urchin.

Jiang Wenshan was listening quietly, also with his eyes closed, his fingers tapping lightly on the table.

Liao Changyong had his hands crossed on the table, his expression focused; he was clearly listening intently.

As for Celine Dion, who was in the position closest to the audience, her body swayed gently. When Zhao Lei sang the chorus, she even raised her arms high, swaying from side to side as if watching a concert.

As the song ended, Zhao Lei stood up, holding his guitar, and nodded to acknowledge the area below the stage.

Enthusiastic applause immediately erupted from below the stage, accompanied by huge cheers.

"Alright Zhao Lei, thank you for bringing us such a beautiful new song..."

After Zhao Lei's performance concluded, the host Hua Shao chatted with him briefly, and then they entered the voting segment.

According to custom, the four judges would first provide some commentary before voting.

"Zhao Lei is a Singer I started following a long time ago. His songs are very pure; it's that feeling of telling a story slowly. This new song is also excellent. I give him a pass," Li Zongsheng said, then pressed the pass button.

Each judge's pass vote was equivalent to 20 votes; the weight was quite significant.

"I am a lyricist. Speaking purely from the perspective of the lyrics, Zhao Lei's lyrics give people a sense of warmth. There are no flowery phrases, but between the lines, there is a flavor of an old alleyway permeating..." After Jiang Wenshan provided his commentary, he also gave a pass.

"The completion of the work is very high. Major key, two-part structure, the use of chords is very colorful!" Liao Changyong commented.

"A very beautiful song, it reminds me of my childhood..." Celine Dion provided her commentary and also gave a pass.

A unanimous pass. Seeing this result, Zhao Lei pressed his palms together and thanked the audience repeatedly.

Next was the voting segment for the 101 audience judges. In this segment, Zhao Lei also received a high score of 87 votes, losing only 14 votes, which counted as a successful start.

The next to go on stage was Zhang Shaohan. She sang an old song from before, "Green Light," but after a brand-new arrangement, it was also very innovative. She also received a unanimous pass from the four judges, but the votes from the audience judges on site were slightly lower than Zhao Lei's, with only 75 votes.

Seeing this result, a trace of disappointment appeared in Zhang Shaohan's eyes, but she still expressed her thanks with great grace.

Next to go on stage was Tan Jing. This talented contestant, who had once won the Youth Singer Competition, won a full house of applause with "Splendid Mountains and Rivers." She even surpassed the previous two contestants, obtaining a unanimous pass from the four judges and the support of 93 votes from the 101 audience judges, temporarily ranking first overall.

Of course, after the program is officially broadcast, there will also be an online voting segment, which also accounts for a very important proportion. As for what ranking each Singer's final score can reach in each round, who can advance, and who will be eliminated, the final result will only be revealed after the program is officially broadcast and before the next round begins.

In the waiting room, there remained three people: Pang Long, Guang Liang, and Lin Dazhi. Seeing Tan Jing's performance go so well, both Pang Long and Guang Liang felt a bit of pressure.

Pang Long and Guang Liang glanced at Lin Dazhi, and seeing his calm and collected appearance, they both felt a bit strange.

Is this newcomer not nervous at all?

"He couldn't be a connection hire, could he?" A thought like this rose in both of their minds simultaneously.

They were both professional Singers, but they had never heard the name Lin Dazhi in the circle before.

They had heard that this person was in medical aesthetic equipment; the Time Reversal Instrument released recently was a product of his company, and it was said to have high attention.

But what the hell does that have to do with music?

It's not that there aren't big bosses who like to play music; for example, that founder of TaoDuoDuo, Niu Feng, likes to play rock music very much and even showed off at the head office's annual meeting, but to be honest, his level was really quite average.

There is a saying that goes well: never use your hobby to challenge someone else's profession.

Professional Singers make a living by the craft of singing, having undergone years or even over a decade of formal training, day-in and day-out polishing of techniques and styles, and the accumulation of a massive amount of stage performance and competition experience, eliminating countless equally excellent professional Singers to reach their current position.

Where does someone who has never stepped into the professional music circle get the courage to compete on the same stage as them?

Thinking of this, and then looking at Lin Dazhi's calm and indifferent expression, both of them frowned.

"Teacher Lin, please prepare yourself, you are going on stage soon," a staff member said after pushing the door open to Lin Dazhi.

"Oh, okay." Lin Dazhi nodded, stood up, and greeted the other two Singers.

"I'm going up first," Lin Dazhi waved at the two of them and said with a grin.

Guang Liang nodded politely, and that was the end of it.

As for Pang Long, his gaze shifted, as if he hadn't heard Lin Dazhi's words at all, and he didn't respond.

Lin Dazhi didn't care either; he knew these two professional Singers seemed to have some opinions about him, but it didn't matter.

He is a man with a system; rather than bickering with these two minor Singers here, how could it be more satisfying than using his strength to slap their faces?

Lin Dazhi took the limited-edition Hummingbird guitar, walked through the contestant passage with a relaxed expression, and arrived at the center of the stage!

At the same time, the four musicians—Li Yanliang, Ye Shirong, Zang Hongfei, and Guli Nazha—had also each taken their places and were ready!

Seeing Lin Dazhi arrive at the center of the stage, they looked at each other and saw both nervousness and excitement in each other's eyes!

Heaven knows how hard this night was for them to endure!

Such an excellent—no, it should be said, such a badass song—that they could participate in it and bring it into this world; just thinking about this point made them tremble with excitement!

Every minute and every second of waiting was agony!

Fortunately, this moment had finally arrived!

In the center of the stage, Lin Dazhi stood before the microphone and gently plucked the guitar.

A burst of guitar music, like the sound of Zen in an empty valley, rang out, instantly making the scene quiet down!