Entertainment: 1990

Chapter 134 Overdraft in Advance
1992 6 Month 12 Day.

After a ten-day hiatus, the battle for "I Am a Singer" has reignited, with a record-breaking 22 provincial television stations participating in the joint broadcast.

Unlike the previous ratings frenzy triggered by the 'ru-fu' incident, viewers now have a deeper understanding of the program through frequent reruns.

Tian Zhen, with his fiery temper and powerful singing voice; Han Lei, with his domineering and imposing presence; Lao Lang, whose songs perfectly capture the essence of campus folk songs; and Han Hong, who, despite his disability, is determined and stands out for his contrasting personality…

Each of them gained countless fans.

Even those singers who were eliminated from the top 32 are now commanding significantly higher prices for commercial performances.

After the start of the semi-final.

Zhou Tao appeared gracefully in front of the camera, starting with a rapid-fire opening speech before quickly getting to the point, addressing Tian Zhen: "Tian Zhen, in the current public vote, the voices supporting you to win are the weakest. Some people say this is because you have too fiery a temper, which makes many viewers dislike you. Do you have anything to say about this?"

Tian Zhen glanced at the eagle on the judges' panel and said, "I just said what I wanted to say. If anyone thinks I should follow the rules and swallow my pride, then I can only apologize—because I am who I am, a firework of a different color!"

The eagle's eyes widened instantly. These were lines Zhang Yan had specially written for her, and they were her favorite lines!
Originally, he was supposed to shout it out when he was in the top 32, but because of Han Hong's emotionally charged performance, he wasn't confident that he could completely overwhelm Han Hong, so he didn't get to say the line.

Who knew that Tian Zhen would...

This is practically NTR in person!

The eagle clenched its fists, wishing it could tear Tian Zhen's mouth apart.

This semi-final consists of three rounds of competition.

The total points from the first two rounds will determine who will participate in the finals, while the final round will be a battle for third place in the losers' bracket.

Han Lei was the first to perform, captivating the audience with his powerful rendition of "A Man Should Be Self-Reliant," a song that had spread throughout mainland China thanks to pirated CDs.

Han Hong and Lao Lang were visibly nervous.

Tian Zhen, however, remained calm and composed, and quickly retaliated with Zhang Weining's adapted version of "A Laughter in the Vast Sea," proving that women are just as capable as men.

After this segment ended, obvious signs of editing appeared on the television screen.

Because when they were on set, Na Ying deliberately gave a low score, which Tian Zhen naturally disagreed with, questioning whether Na Ying was qualified to be a judge. Na Ying, in turn, accused Tian Zhen of stealing his lines and lyrics.

So the two of them had another argument.

Tian Zhen even threw the microphone at the eagle, who retaliated with a script. Neither of them hit their opponent, but Jiang Dawei, who was blocking the way, was the one who got hurt.

This segment was cut from the broadcast because it involved fairness.

Finally, after repeated persuasion from Zhang Yan and off-field 'guidance' from Gu Jianfen, Na Ying reluctantly gave a new rating of 9.5.

However, when she revealed the rating, her face was full of 'story'—it's estimated that after the broadcast, the tabloids will have another collective climax.

Han Lei and Tian Zhen scored high marks one after another, putting considerable pressure on Lao Lang and Han Hong.

In the end, Han Hong's "Himalaya" and Lao Lang's "My Deskmate" won third and fourth place respectively in the first round of the competition.

Lao Lang had a bit of a "what's the use" attitude. When it was his turn to start in the second round of the competition, he still sang "My Deskmate" as usual, but he made a slight adjustment to his singing style, and the change was not very successful.

Han Hong gritted her teeth and pulled out "Hometown," a song she had originally planned to save for the finals.

"My hometown is Shigatse, where there is a beautiful river. My mother says that cattle and sheep cover the hillsides, because of the blessings of the Bodhisattva..."

This song, which should have been released in 9.8, revealed its unique style 6 years ahead of schedule, immediately winning high praise from the judges. Na Ying even gave it a high score of 98.

This wasn't particularly outrageous in a rating that generally stands at 9.6, but it still made Tian Zhen's face darken involuntarily.

So she decisively changed the old song she was going to cover to an original song called "Persistence".

…………

Beijing Apartments.

When Chen Hong saw this scene on television, she couldn't help but recall the chaos of that time.

"Persistence" is a love song that Xu Wei wrote for his wife, but Zhang Weining believes that the song is more suitable for Tian Zhen to sing.

The two sides negotiated this matter several times. Zhang Weining even had Tian Zhen record a demo for Xu Wei. Although Xu Wei was somewhat receptive, he had not yet officially agreed to give the song to Tian Zhen.

It was originally expected that the two sides would have reached an agreement by the time of the final.

As a result, in the semi-finals, out of spite and to advance to the finals, Tian Zhen actually sang "Persistence". Xu Wei was naturally very unhappy about this, so he took the case to Zhang Yan.

In the end, Tian Zhen gave up all future income from the song, and Zhang Weining also swore that he would do his best to help Xu Wei produce the album, which finally appeased Xu Wei.

All I can say is that Tian Zhen acted too impulsively.

Fortunately, this was an internal company issue. If Xu Wei hadn't signed the contract to fulfill his dream, the lawsuit wouldn't have gone to Zhang Yan; it would have been taken straight to court.

However, Tian Zhen did manage to retain his qualification for the finals with this song "Persistence," and even forced Han Lei to bring out his trump card, "Wandering Around the World."

Zhang Yan is now in the most trouble.

He had hoped to have at least one song to anchor the finals, but unexpectedly, Han Hong, Han Lei, and Tian Zhen all perished in the semi-finals.

To ensure the grand finale is not cancelled, Dream Records is currently searching the world for songs—fortunately, they have a cash cow, so paying a high price for two songs is nothing.

Just as I was thinking about my cash cow, there was a knock at the door.

Chen Hong went over and opened the door, only to see Wang Luyao standing outside with a flushed face and her legs seemingly wobbling.

"you've been drinking?"

"no way."

As Wang Luyao walked into the room, she said, "The owner of that newly opened bar insisted that I accompany him to toast a table of people—I was in a hurry to get here, so I didn't refuse."

One reason was that she was in a hurry to see Chen Hong, but another reason was that Wang Luyao herself wanted to have a drink. That way, even if she made an excessive request to Chen Hong, she could claim that she was drunk.

Upon entering the room, Wang Luyao glanced at the television playing music and asked, "Sister Hong, how far have we progressed in the competition?"

"The losers' bracket is about to start the battle for third place."

"Oh, then Han Hong should be crying by now, right?"

She did cry. After saying, "This should be my last song on this stage," tears welled up in Han Hong's eyes. When she sang "On the Golden Mountain of BJ," a song she knew best, her sobs grew louder and louder.

By the end of the song, he was almost in tears, and his voice became muffled.

After barely finishing the song, Han Hong immediately bowed deeply to the audience in apology: "I'm sorry everyone, I...I'm so sorry!"

Despite her poor performance, the audience erupted in thunderous applause. Although the score given by the four professional judges was almost the lowest since the start of the top 32 competition, Han Hong received the highest audience score ever.

When it was Lao Lang's turn to appear, he slowly raised the microphone, but instead of stopping at his mouth, he held it high above his head:

"I abstain!"

Upon hearing these three words, the audience fell silent for a moment, then erupted in thunderous applause.

After witnessing this scene, Wang Luyao turned to Chen Hong: "Sister Hong, is she really crying, or...?"

"Of course I was really crying."

Chen Hong sighed, "The emotions and pressure she had accumulated over the years of her illness have all been released this time. After the competition, I felt much more cheerful, but I also worked harder. I've been spending all my time in the company's newly built karaoke room lately."

Upon hearing this, Wang Luyao murmured, "This really proves what President Zhang said in his book: 'I'm not afraid of people who are more talented than you, I'm only afraid of people who are more talented than you and work even harder.'"

As she spoke, she moved from the chair to the bed and lay down directly next to Chen Hong.

Of course, it's not completely flat; those two prominent points of gravity are still stubbornly resisting gravity.

Chen Hong herself was considered to be of above-average skill, but after seeing this scene, she couldn't help but feel the urge to smash them.

She lay down on her side as well, smiling at Wang Luyao, and said, "This is the latest installment of the serial—there aren't many female readers for this supernatural novel. You don't happen to have any designs on my man, do you?"

Wang Luyao's breath hitched. She wanted to say something to cover it up, but then felt that it would be like trying to hide something obvious.

So, taking advantage of his drunkenness, he frankly said, "So what if it is? Mr. Zhang is handsome, talented, good at making money, and humorous. Who wouldn't have feelings for him after getting to know him for a while?"
To be honest, if you hadn't beaten me to it, Sister Hong, I would have already made my move on him!

After she finished speaking, she squinted and secretly observed Chen Hong's expression. She found that Chen Hong was not angry at all, but rather looked a little conflicted.

But what's there to be conflicted about?
Before Wang Luyao could ask what was going on, Chen Hong interrupted, "Last time on the phone, you said you were feeling a bit lost. What exactly are the reasons?"

(End of this chapter)