Chapter 180: Pranking the Judges 2

The studio lights dimmed once again, and the murmur of the audience had yet to fully die down. Zeng Zhiwei stepped onto the stage with his signature quick little steps, a grin he couldn't suppress on his face.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Our next contestant is quite something!" He deliberately drew out his tone. "From Korea, Mr. Piao Dekuai! Best known for singing Director Xiang Fei's 'Blackguard'!"

"Pfft—" The audience erupted in a burst of laughter.

"Piao Dekuai? Is that name for real?" A bespectacled guy couldn't help but quip.

The uncle beside him picked it up: "Then does he have an older brother called Piao Deman?"

The whole audience cracked up again. The four judges couldn't hold it in either. Mei Yanfang covered her mouth and said to Zhang Guorong: "Isn't that name a little too casual?"

Zhang Guorong raised an eyebrow: "I'm curious how this Korean friend's Cantonese is."

At the center of the stage, a man wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses walked up with his head lowered. The audience went quiet for a second, then erupted into an even bigger commotion—although he was heavily covered up, that familiar gait and build...

The music started, and the prelude of "Blackguard" echoed through the studio.

"I sometimes get drunk~" (deliberately off-key)

"I love my free-dumb~" (voice cracking)

"Once loved hailing a cab~" (completely off-key)

The expressions of the four judges gradually shifted from curiosity to agony. Zhang Xueyou's brows had twisted into a knot, Chen Huilin was biting her lip hard, and Mei Yanfang had simply covered her ears with her hands.

Zhang Guorong, looking utterly desperate, turned and shouted at the production crew: "Can this part be cut? My ears are about to miscarry!"

Just as the judges were preparing to collectively endure the torture, the singing suddenly returned to normal:

"Why bother with me~ a blackguard like me~"

"Living half a lifetime~ and still a failure~"

Mei Yanfang slammed the button: "Wait! That voice!"

Zhang Guorong and Chen Huilin turned almost simultaneously, and the three swivel chairs spun around with a "whoosh." The next second—

"Ah Fei?!" The three said in unison.

Zhang Guorong took off a leather shoe and hurled it over: "Ah Fei, are you messing with me?! Is the production crew messing with us?!"

Xiang Fei nimbly dodged, kept singing affectionately, and even threw a wink at the judges' panel.

Zhang Xueyou, who hadn't turned around yet, looked utterly bewildered: "Wait... can judges hit contestants? Do the rules allow that?"

Mei Yanfang was already laughing so hard she collapsed onto the judges' desk: "Hahaha I can't... my stomach hurts so bad..."

Chen Huilin laughed while wiping tears: "Ah Fei, that's enough... hahaha... my makeup is ruined..."

Zhang Xueyou hesitated, pressed the button, and the chair slowly turned around. When he saw the person on stage—

"Holy shit!" The usually refined and gentle God of Songs swore outright, springing up from his chair.

Xiang Fei kept singing: "But you'll never change your heart~ laughing with me as I take the hit~"

The audience had gone wild with laughter, and someone shouted: "Director Xiang, give us another one!"

The music ended, and Xiang Fei took off his sunglasses, grinning at the four judges.

Zeng Zhiwei jogged onto the stage: "Come, come, come, let's have the four judges critique the performance of this... contestant Piao Dekuai."

Zhang Guorong was still looking for his other shoe: "I vote for immediate elimination! No, a lifetime ban!"

Mei Yanfang wiped the tears from laughing: "The first half is absolutely the worst performance of the year, the second half... hahaha... for the second half I'll give—contestant 'Piao Dekuai,' how about you come join my team!"

Chen Huilin rubbed her aching stomach: "Ah Fei, you're so bad... I almost swallowed my lipstick..."

Zhang Xueyou finally came back to his senses and shook his head helplessly: "Aiven, isn't this a bit much..."

Zhang Guorong suddenly stood up and shouted at the director's booth: "I demand a raise! This episode is way too torturous for the judges!"

Mei Yanfang raised her hand in agreement: "Exactly! First it was Ah Man, now it's Ah Fei, next time is it Long-ge's turn?"

Chen Huilin suddenly thought of something and looked at Zeng Zhiwei in horror: "Wait... Zhiwei-ge, you're not going to compete too, are you?"

Zeng Zhiwei pretended to seriously adjust his tie: "Actually, I've prepared 'Iron-Blooded Loyal Heart'..."

"Nooo!" The four judges screamed in unison.

Finally, amid the audience's heckling, Zhou Huimin was also invited onto the stage. The six of them stood in a row, with Zeng Zhiwei in the middle.

"Come on! Let's all say—" Zeng Zhiwei raised his hand.

"The biggest scam in the history of 'Xiangjiang's Got Voice'!"

Camera shutters clicked, freezing this joyful moment. Zhang Xueyou quietly said to Xiang Fei: "Aiven, if there's a role, remember me..."

Xiang Fei grinned wickedly: "Sure, but you'll have to pass the audition."