Chapter 187

Ye Qing was about to go on stage and start singing.

Huang Zhengming dropped a bombshell.

He wants to win the championship—is he dreaming?

As Huang Zhengming's words fell, the other three mentors' gazes all turned to him.

This.

Nobody expected Huang Zhengming to be so direct, just as when Zhang Anqi said Jiang Cheng's song wasn't that good, which was beyond everyone's expectation.

At the peak of Jiang Cheng's support, they said Jiang Cheng couldn't make it.

But in the end Zhang Anqi wasn't proven wrong; her song, compared to Jiang Cheng's from the previous episode, was not inferior, and given a real vote with fan support, Jiang Cheng would probably lose.

Now Huang Zhengming is saying the same thing, and even more directly, saying Jiang Cheng is dreaming.

Ye Qing, standing on stage, was stunned; she was the one who initially said Jiang Cheng's song could win the championship, and if she hadn't said that, no one could have said her boss was dreaming.

In other words, her words were attributed to her boss, or she spoke on behalf of her boss without authorization.

Only then did she realize how serious her words were; if her boss didn't win the championship this episode, he would likely be mocked because of what she said.

Ye Qing immediately became nervous.

Jiang Cheng backstage saw Ye Qing's expression in the livestream and furrowed his brows.

Regarding Huang Zhengming's words, he didn't take them to heart; if he wasn't mistaken, Han Xiaoxun's Shuangxiong incident and his own plagiarism incident were probably orchestrated by Huang Zhengming.

Jiang Cheng could never take an enemy's words to heart.

But Ye Qing's condition, however, is very important.

Chen Shu, sitting beside him, seeing Jiang Cheng furrow his brows, thought he was affected by the livestream comments, and said: "It's okay, don't take it to heart; public opinion is like that, you never know which way it will swing next second, just get used to it, take it lightly and do your best."

"Huh? What's wrong?" Jiang Cheng turned around, momentarily not understanding what Chen Shu was saying, but seeing Chen Shu holding a phone in his hand.

He looked at his own phone.

In the program's livestream, Ya Ya had already made a mistake once; this time she was unusually careful, and upon hearing Huang Zhengming's words, she immediately responded:

"It seems our Teacher Huang Zhengming isn't very optimistic about Jiang Cheng either, so let's see if Jiang Cheng's song can actually move the audience!"

This time, Ya Ya resolved it lightly and calmly.

If not resolved, another show accident might occur, because the livestream is already in an uproar; Ya Ya can see via the teleprompter that the backstage report count has already started rising by tens of thousands.

She also didn't know the reason for the reports, but if the livestream gets too many reports, it will be banned or the stream stopped.

However, the livestream's bullet comments can be seen, and the conflict is intense:

"I said Jiang Cheng was just being hyped up, and now I believe it—even Zhang Anqi and Huang Zhengming say that, and Huang Zhengming is a long‑time big shot, so his judgment surely isn't wrong!"

"Ye Qing may be pretty, but she hasn't got much brain, like a fool; this episode is all big shots, even low‑key hangers‑on are making money, yet she actually said Jiang Cheng would take first!"

"Before seeing Zhang Anqi and Gao Yunyun perform, I also thought Jiang Cheng would still be first this episode, but after hearing their songs, I realized I had oversimplified things!"

"Jiang Cheng is just a joke; you believe what those marketing accounts say, really thinking there's only one Jiang Cheng through the ages? He's that amazing?"

The livestream comment section was entirely following Huang Zhengming's line; occasionally someone would say Jiang Cheng's song wasn't bad either, but they'd immediately be shouted down, and even called out specifically.

This is the difference between having a fan base foundation and not having one; those with a foundation always have supporters at any time, let alone when there's no obvious mistake.

And for someone like Jiang Cheng who suddenly emerged, public opinion is easily swayed.

Fortunately, at this point Ya Ya had already stepped down from the stage in the livestream.

Leaving the stage for Ye Qing.

Then the lighting changed, and on the screen behind the stage appeared a snowy field, with a fox slipping out from behind a snowdrift.

Then the light shone on Ye Qing.

Finally, the lyrics appeared on the screen behind her.

This is the question everyone had been curious about before the show aired: what song did Jiang Cheng write for this episode.

Now, the live audience and the livestream fans finally saw the name of this song for the first time:

"White Fox!" As the prelude sounded, people couldn't help but follow its rhythm, quickly becoming immersed in the song's emotion.

The camera panned over the audience below; their faces showed curiosity, looking curiously at Ye Qing on stage.

Then the camera focused on the protagonist, Ye Qing.

She slowly lifted the microphone and sang the first line of the lyrics.

"I am a fox that has cultivated for a thousand years."

Just as this first line was sung, the audience's eyes widened and they covered their mouths.

Amazing!

Every face showed amazement, gazing at the person next to them, seeing that everyone around was just as excited as they were.

But the performance had just begun, and no one clapped to disturb Ye Qing.

Then a clear voice came floating:

"I am a fox that has cultivated for a thousand years,"

"A thousand years of cultivation, a thousand years of loneliness."

"In the deep night when all is quiet, can anyone hear me crying?"

"Where the lights grow dim, can anyone see me dancing?"

"!"

"I am a fox that has waited for a thousand years."

"A thousand years of waiting, a thousand years of loneliness."

"In the bustling red dust, who has again planted the love gu?"

"In the vast sea of people, who has again drunk the poison of love?"

"When I loved you, you were dirt‑poor, studying bitterly by the cold window."

……

As Ye Qing's voice sounded, the camera swept over the audience seats; the previous look of amazement disappeared, and everyone's gaze gradually became profound, then turned vacant.

They gazed vacantly at Ye Qing on stage.

It was as if they were no longer listening to the song, but had sunk into some kind of memory of their own.

When the song reached the halfway point, someone was already silently wiping away tears, yet they remained trapped in their own emotions, unable to break free.

The four instructors sitting in the front row, listening to Ye Qing's song, all gradually furrowed their brows.

Meanwhile, the number of online viewers in the livestream had already surpassed the three‑million mark!

This is the highest viewer count since Jin Ge Shou went live, and the number is still rising!

But the livestream's bullet‑comment count still cannot compare to the three hundred fifty thousand from the first prerecorded broadcast.

In a livestream with three million viewers, the bullet comments are still fewer than those in a livestream with three hundred fifty thousand viewers.

Just like those who usually post bullet comments, at this moment they also forgot, and like the live audience, they sank into their memories.

「Can you dance for me once more,

Just for that one last glance when we part.

You see your sleeves fluttering, sleeves fluttering,

Forever and ever turn to nothing. 」 (End of chapter)