Chapter 193: Live audition?

"You don't understand this."

The young man with a worried face continued: "No matter how strict Han Zhizuo is, he still has to eat. This is a big production; the pre-promotion, the venue, and the stage equipment—every single item is burning money. Relying solely on his savings is simply not enough. For the sake of investment, he will definitely compromise and distribute some of the good roles."

"However, Xia Yuxuan is qualified enough to be the male lead. He previously collaborated with Han Zhizuo on an album, and Han Zhizuo gave him an exceptionally high evaluation and even made an exception to promote him on Weibo. You have to know that Han Zhizuo usually never promotes newcomers."

"Moreover, Xia Yuxuan is the top star of Yixing Media. Whether it's his connections or his own strength, he is impeccable. As long as he has the schedule, the male lead for this musical is undoubtedly his."

"By the way, I also heard that Han Zhizuo is considering Murong Xue for the female lead. I don't know if it's true..."

Xu Tian and Murong Xue walked into the audition studio built specifically for the second round of trials and heard the discussion among those minor artists.

The room went quiet for a second. Those people swept their gazes over Murong Xue's face, then pretended nothing had happened and looked away.

Suddenly, a sarcastic voice rang out.

"Heh, who is Murong Xue? I've never even heard of her... Does such a nobody deserve to be the female lead?"

"Don't say that. When she debuted back then, she became famous all over the streets with a commercial song. At that time, the milk tea shop next to our school played it on loop all day. My ears were calloused from listening to it."

"You also said that was 'back then.' Who knows who she is now?" The minor artist who started the sarcasm rolled her eyes in disdain.

The commercial song Murong Xue debuted with was indeed a hit, but she had no subsequent resources. Now, she was a non-entity in the entertainment industry. None of them felt that such a nobody had any competitiveness.

Xia Yuxuan, who played the male lead in her MV back then, was now a 30-million-fan traffic idol, flourishing in film, television, music, and variety shows.

For Murong Xue to dream of partnering with him again was simply wishful thinking.

"And I estimate that Han Zhizuo was just saying polite words. You guys actually took it seriously."

The minor artist kept a mocking smile on her lips: "I'll give you a piece of heavy news as a bonus. It is said that the position of the female lead has already been taken by Qin Zhitong."

"Qin Zhitong?" Everyone was shocked.

"Don't be so surprised. Qin Zhitong is from the investor's side. It's normal to bring capital into the production."

"Then Murong Xue probably has no chance." The minor artist next to her gave a light click of her tongue.

"She never had a chance to begin with. She thought that by filming a video paying tribute to Heavenly Xiao Tianhou and gaining some heat, she could soar to play the female lead? Keep dreaming!"

"Given her qualifications, having the opportunity to enter the second round is all thanks to the heat of that Weibo post, but that's all there is to it. This is the entertainment industry, not a 'cool' web novel. Where would there be so many rebirths from the ashes?"

These people did not avoid anything while speaking, letting Xu Tian and Murong Xue, who were standing to the side, hear everything clearly.

Murong Xue's face turned pale, and her hands were tightly clenched into fists.

Perhaps it really was her wishful thinking to actually dream of being selected this time.

"Worried that you will fail?"

Xu Tian saw the change in Murong Xue's emotions and patted her shoulder: "Don't let your imagination run wild. What you need to do today is to show the results of your practice during this period. You don't need to consider anything else."

"Mm." Murong Xue nodded.

Xu Tian's words gave her some confidence again.

She really wanted to perform in this musical. Besides admiring Heavenly Xiao Tianhou, she also didn't want to keep struggling at the bottom of the entertainment industry.

She wanted to sing and stand on a bigger stage.

She had to calm down; she absolutely could not be crushed!

Murong Xue took a deep breath and kept repeating to herself in her heart to cheer up.

Relax, do your best. Even if she lost, she would have a clear conscience.

A few minutes later, Qin Zhitong, dressed in a gorgeous outfit, and her entourage walked into the audition studio.

The minor artists who were gossiping just now immediately fell silent like cicadas in winter when they saw Qin Zhitong.

Qin Zhitong had a bright and atmospheric look, which quite fit the currently popular public aesthetic, but her singing skills were mediocre.

If you said her singing skills were bad, that wasn't entirely true; at least at various live events, she had never been seen going off-key or cracking her voice.

But if you said she sang well, she couldn't leave a memorable impression on the audience.

According to Xu Tian's words, it was "tasteless to eat, but a pity to discard."

In the previous life, without Murong Xue's competition, Qin Zhitong could barely qualify to play the female lead, but now with Murong Xue, she had absolutely no advantage in terms of strength.

If it were other producers, they might have given the green light and used the back door to select Qin Zhitong because of the investment.

But the general producer of this musical was Han Baoping, who was famous in the entertainment industry for focusing on quality and not bowing to capital.

Coupled with the fact that this musical was to commemorate his good friend, Heavenly Xiao Tianhou, he would definitely choose a female lead in his own mind.

In the blink of an eye, Qin Zhitong had arrived in front of everyone.

Her assistant eagerly took the coat she took off, smiling flatteringly: "Sister Tong, Han Zhizuo and the others haven't arrived yet. We need to wait a while."

"Mm." Qin Zhitong responded expressionlessly, then looked around. When she saw Xu Tian and Murong Xue, a flash of obvious surprise crossed her eyes.

At this time, Qin Zhitong's agent walked over. Seeming to notice her gaze, she immediately explained.

"Murong Xue is also here to compete for the female lead."

"Heh..." Qin Zhitong chuckled upon hearing this, then stepped in front of Murong Xue and Xu Tian.

Murong Xue was cheering herself up in her heart. Seeing Qin Zhitong and her team walking towards her, her body stiffened slightly, and she instinctively wanted to retreat.

But she seemed to think of Xu Tian's instructions and stopped her steps, standing stiffly in place.

"It's okay." Xu Tian comforted her softly.

Murong Xue hadn't received any announcements for too long and had no experience in participating in selections. It was human nature to have stage fright when participating in such a large-scale selection for the first time.

"You are Murong Xue?" Qin Zhitong raised her chin slightly, the contempt in her tone undisguised.

"Hello, I am Murong Xue." Murong Xue greeted the other party politely.

"The commercial song you sang when you first debuted was not bad."

Although Qin Zhitong was affirming Murong Xue, her attitude carried a condescending meaning, as if she were a judge commenting on Murong Xue's work.

"Thank you..."

Murong Xue knew that the other party was just saying polite words, but since she had received praise, she still had to thank her earnestly. However, before she could finish her second half of the sentence, she was interrupted by Qin Zhitong.

"You want to compete with me for the female lead position with just a commercial song that has long been outdated? That's a bit naive."

"Based on your qualifications and performance experience, you simply aren't qualified to take on a role like the female lead. You must know that the female lead is the signboard of a musical, not to mention it's such an important musical commemorating Heavenly Xiao Tianhou. You, a nobody, should stop daydreaming."

Qin Zhitong saw Murong Xue's face gradually turn pale and felt the pleasure of victory rising in her heart. She then changed the subject.

"Of course, Han Zhizuo thinks highly of you, and he won't be so unreasonable. I estimate that she will arrange a bit-part role for you so you won't have made the trip in vain."

"For a nobody like you who hasn't received any announcements after debuting for a few years and only having one commercial song, being able to play a bit part in Han Zhizuo's musical is a great honor. You must cherish it well!"

Qin Zhitong didn't even bother with polite words filled with hidden barbs; she directly mocked Murong Xue for not being qualified to compete with her. Her attitude could be described as extremely arrogant.

Those minor artists who already looked down on Murong Xue immediately chimed in to please Qin Zhitong.

"Sister Tong is right. Although the words are direct, they are facts after all."

"Murong Xue has no popularity and no works. What does she have to compete with Sister Tong? Just that 'little white flower' face of hers?"

"This is selecting a musical female lead, not a vase! You can muddle through by relying on a face when filming, but a musical is a live performance. As long as you open your mouth, the audience off-stage will know how much you're worth!"

"If I were her, I definitely wouldn't come here to embarrass myself. Look at her shabby appearance; the outfit on her body probably doesn't exceed a hundred yuan, right?"

"With this kind of virtue, she dares to compete with Sister Tong for the musical female lead? Overestimating her own strength!"

Qin Zhitong kept a smile on her lips, letting the surrounding minor artists flatter her while trampling Murong Xue into the dust.

She had enough confidence and capital to kill this nobody who hadn't made a name for herself after being in the industry for a few years.

Although her singing skills couldn't compare to those Heavenly Queen-level singers, in the current fast-food era of the entertainment industry, how many real Heavenly Queens could there be?

For a musical like this, Heavenly Queen-level figures wouldn't come. As for the remaining female singers, her singing skills were enough to give her an advantage in the selection.

Those with higher popularity than her, like Nie Jingjing and her ilk, although their looks and figures were outstanding, their singing skills were hard to describe. They relied on lip-syncing for live performances and sound editing for albums, and they hadn't dared to hold a concert since their debut.

And those with better singing skills than her had less popularity than her, basically being 18th-tier nobodies.

Therefore, in this musical female lead selection, she had an absolute advantage.

Not to mention she still had an investor godfather; this female lead was undoubtedly hers!

Facing the arrogant Qin Zhitong and other minor artists who were bullying others by relying on their power, Murong Xue lowered her head slightly, pretending she hadn't heard their discussion at all.

But she was only a little girl after all. Hearing those people's merciless mockery, she would still feel uncomfortable inside.

Xu Tian originally didn't want to pay attention to Qin Zhitong, but since the other party took the initiative to come over and provoke him to show her presence, he naturally wouldn't swallow this breath.

"My artist indeed doesn't have much fame, nor does she have a prominent backer. In the three years since her debut, she has had no other works besides one commercial song. Perhaps she is not even as good as you people who came to audition for supporting roles."

Xu Tian said these words lightly. In the eyes of outsiders, it felt like he was boosting others' morale and destroying his own prestige.

But immediately after, he changed the subject.

"However, the producer of this musical is Han Zhizuo. In today's second round, the strength of the singers is more important than any other factor."

"In terms of singing skills and appearance, Murong Xue doesn't lose to anyone present. If there is no shady business in today's second round, the musical's female lead is undoubtedly hers."

Xu Tian's words caused an uproar among the surrounding minor artists.

"Who is this person? His tone is too big, right?"

"The new agent from Qingguo Music. He probably doesn't have any strength either, otherwise how could the company hand over a nobody who hasn't become popular for years to him to lead?"

"I think he not only lacks strength but also lacks brains. He doesn't even look at what kind of occasion this is, and he actually dares to speak shamelessly about Murong Xue being the female lead. It's really laughable!"

"This kind of idiot who pulls hatred for himself before the second round even starts is simply not to be feared. Let's just watch a monkey show."

After Qin Zhitong heard Xu Tian's words, her face became extremely ugly.

Just as she was about to explode, the agent beside her spoke first: "You are the new agent from Qingguo, right? You might not understand the rules of the entertainment industry since you just entered the industry, otherwise, even if you had several guts, you wouldn't dare to be so ignorant of respect and inferiority, and speak such wild words!"

"The entertainment industry is a place that values seniority. It's harder than ascending to heaven for a nobody to get ahead. You are so confident now, but when you are eliminated and slapped in the face on the spot later, it will be a huge embarrassment!"

Xu Tian smiled faintly: "The one who should be slapped in the face shouldn't be me and my artist."

"Heh, arrogant!" The agent said indignantly.

"This is considered arrogant?" Xu Tian raised his eyebrows slightly: "Then I can be even more arrogant. For the second round later, do you dare to call all the media and have a live audition?" ===== CHAPTER 194 =====