A band, or a battleground?

She felt she understood why Mengxue had specifically tied her hair in a ponytail today.

It's all written in the song!

What's next after tying your hair in a ponytail? If you go wild, will I drink with you for the rest of my life?

Are these two playing riddles in the songs they're playing together in a band?

Thinking of this, Jiang Yi felt no joy at watching others fall in love, but instead felt very uncomfortable. She even wondered if too much dry ice had been sprayed on the stage, causing the oxygen to be squeezed out. Otherwise, why was she having trouble breathing and feeling so tight in her chest?

Fortunately, after two days of intensive rehearsals, my bass playing has become quite proficient. Even though I was feeling increasingly upset, I still managed to play the accompaniment flawlessly at the end.

Even if I play something wrong, will the audience really notice? Will they notice the bass is scrambled?

Jiang Yi held the bass guitar in her arms and lowered her head.

Suddenly, enthusiastic applause erupted in the studio, like rolling thunder, seemingly omnipresent and ubiquitous.

Amidst the applause, several shouts were also heard. Only shouts could escape the applause and be heard:

"awesome!"

"It sounds so good! It sounds so good!"

"Brilliant!"

But Jiang Yi's attention was immediately drawn back to her side.

Qi Yuan glanced back. His gaze swept over Qiu Mengxue and Ning Qianyu, finally settling on her face, a warm smile in his eyes.

Unlike the singing just now, which was cool and beautiful.

Qi Yuan smiled and said, "We've succeeded again."

Ning Qianyu waved the drumsticks in her hand: "If we can be eliminated in this round, I'll eat the drum set."

Qi Yuan: "...There's no need to make such a bold statement."

Qiu Mengxue turned away from the microphone, smiled and whispered, "We can talk about it when we get back. I'm really looking forward to hearing what the judges have to say."

Ning Qianyu: "No matter what the judges say, do you think they can't see the audience's reaction? Hahaha... Hey, Yi Yi, what about you?"

Jiang Yi: "What's wrong with me?"

Ning Qianyu pointed to the corner of her eye: "Why do you look like you're about to cry?"

Jiang Yi raised her hand and touched the corner of her eye, only to find that there was indeed a tear hanging there, but she wiped it away with her finger before it could fall.

But why are I crying?

Receiving recognition on stage should be such a happy thing, but why do I feel so complicated right now?

Jiang Yi could only say, "Because I'm so happy."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

068 You're in trouble.

"Wow, wow!" He Dong exclaimed twice as he walked onto the stage, then said, "Music program hosts need to be tone-deaf so that they can truly be neutral and objective. But even a tone-deaf person like me has to say that the performance just now was really good. The audience's reaction speaks volumes."

The applause gradually subsided, but some audience members were still shouting:

"The best song ever!"

"genius!"

"This is true traditional style!"

He Dong made a downward gesture with one hand to signal the audience to be quiet, and then said, "Next, it's the work of us three mentors. Facing the stage just now, and this song, please give your professional opinions."

Liang Fei eagerly interjected, "I love this song! Sorry, I said I liked your 'A Thousand Years Later' song last time, but I must say, I like this song even more. I recommend everyone who likes traditional Chinese style songs to listen to it. It's subtle, beautiful, and deeply moving—absolutely gorgeous!"

Chen Jiashu and Zhou Taishan exchanged a glance.

Zhou Taishan gestured for him to proceed.

So Chen Jiashu spoke first: "Another new surprise. I have to say, you guys have really exceeded my expectations. Especially you, Qi Yuan, you wrote this song again, right?"

Qi Yuan nodded.

Chen Jiashu continued, "There are many ancient-style songs on the market now, and short videos have also made some of them popular. I've heard them all, but so far, I haven't heard any ancient-style song as beautiful as 'Hair Like Snow.' Really, no one can compare to this. There are quite a few fans of ancient-style songs, and I suggest that you all listen to this and cleanse your ears."

Qi Yuan took the microphone down from the stand and smiled, "Teacher, you flatter me."

Qi Yuan was well aware that the ancient-style songs in this world couldn't compare to the top works in his hometown, but it was best not to say such things publicly, otherwise he might make enemies.

However, Chen Jiashu's next words were even more outrageous.

"Actually, it's not just this song. In the last round, your song 'A Thousand Years Later' also left a very deep impression on me. With your songwriting skills, I'm honestly saying that the champion of this show may have already emerged."

He Dong asked, "Are you predicting that the Spring Shadow Band will become our champion?"

Chen Jiashu nodded without hesitation: "That's right. The only slight pity is that the songs that have already been performed cannot be performed a second time in the later rounds of the competition. But with Qi Yuan around, I believe this won't be a problem for Chunriying. I'm really looking forward to their performance in the next round."

He Dong smiled and reminded them, "The ancient style track hasn't finished performing yet, and the voting hasn't started."

Chen Jiashu shrugged: "You saw the audience's reaction just now. Is there any need to explain?"

He Dong: "I understand, you also have high hopes for the Spring Shadow Band. So, as the band's mentor, what are your thoughts, Zhou Taishan?"

Zhou Taishan cleared his throat and said with a serious expression, "I want to say, Spring Shadow Band, you're in trouble, you're in big trouble."

The four teenagers looked bewildered.

He Dong asked, "What do you mean by this?"

“I must share a piece of advice with you,” Zhou Taishan said, scratching his messy hair, “Never celebrate before the game is over. Especially when the advantage looks very big.”

He Dong: "Is it because it's easy to let your guard down?"

Zhou Taishan: "It's not just that. You have to understand, this is a music competition, not a sports competition. The audience's votes and the judges' approval all come from your excellent performances. But the better the performance, the higher everyone's expectations will be. So, what if you don't meet those expectations in the future?"

Whether on stage or off stage, every face displayed a thoughtful expression.

Zhou Taishan continued, "If you don't meet those expectations, even if you're already better than others, it's easy to fall if you can't surpass your former selves. You need to understand this, maintain your awe for the stage and respect for the audience, be cautious, and then keep working hard."

Qi Yuan replied earnestly, "Thank you for your guidance, teacher. We will never forget our original aspirations."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Chen Jiashu is trying to kill us with praise."

After finding a circular sofa in the waiting area and sitting down together, Qi Yuan said this in a very low voice.

The other three girls were with him, sitting close together on the sofa edge, their bodies leaning forward. As long as they spoke in low voices, no one else could hear them.

Qiu Mengxue nodded: "So Teacher Zhou is reminding us, and also reminding others, not to set too high a standard for us."

Ning Qianyu sighed, "People's hearts are so dirty. Some people, I don't even know how much money they've taken."

Qi Yuan smiled slightly: "It's also possible that it's because we're blocking someone's way. But it's okay, as long as we don't do it openly or underhandedly, there's nothing to worry about."

Ning Qianyu suddenly noticed another direction and whispered, "The people from Star Element are sitting over there too. Hey, isn't Su Muluo always trying to chat with you? Why isn't he here today?"

Qi Yuan shrugged: "Because we're direct competitors today. There are 500 audience members, and each person can only cast two votes, for a total of 1,000 votes. If we get more votes, they'll get fewer."

Qiu Mengxue smiled and said, "I guess they might be under a lot of psychological pressure right now."

“They are the first to perform, which has the advantage of not being affected by others during the performance,” Qi Yuan analyzed. “But the downside is that if someone performs much better than them after them, the audience may easily forget about them.”

"It's a pity that we're the ones who made the audience forget about them!" Ning Qianyu said, patting Qi Yuan's arm with one hand and Qiu Mengxue with the other.

Qiu Mengxue looked at Jiang Yi and asked, "Why are you so quiet today?"

Jiang Yi smiled and said, "I was just thinking that what Teacher Zhou said makes some sense. There are still several rounds to go after today. If we really make it to the finals, we'll need several more songs, and we can't sing the ones we've already sung. Won't that put a lot of pressure on Qi Yuan's songwriting?"

The other two girls also looked at Qi Yuan.

Qi Yuan calmly replied, "I just hope they don't come up with any really tricky topics later on. I've been gathering inspiration before going on the show, and I have quite a few songs saved up that I haven't used yet."

Qiu Mengxue: "How come your inspiration keeps coming in like bank deposit interest?"

Ning Qianyu: "Deposit interest rates can't compare to his abundance of inspiration..."

Seeing that her companions' attention had shifted, Jiang Yi secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

How could she say that what she was thinking about just now was actually the true relationship between Qi Yuan and Meng Xue?

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

069 It's up to you guys now.

"All seven bands in the Ancient Style category have finished performing, and the voting results from the audience are in. First place, without a doubt, is Chunriying's 'Hair Like Snow,' with 424 votes! Second place is Niguang Band's 'Wild Fox Zen,' with 96 votes..."

When He Dong announced the results, it was pure torture for Su Muluo.

But as time went on, the torment subsided, leaving only utter despair. Because the third place wasn't a Star Element either, not even the fourth, and so on, all the way down to the fifth.

"Fifth place, 'Moonlit Long Song' by Star Elements Band, 31 votes."

Several screens were mounted on the walls of the waiting area, displaying the progress on stage in real time.

Su Muluo suddenly found it somewhat amusing.

Especially when he recalled the first time he saw Qi Yuan, he was thinking of making a cost-free emotional investment to win over this unknown guy. At the time, he and his teammates were worried about whether that unknown band could even get through the first round of the group stage...

Suddenly, Su Muluo looked up and saw a slightly plump woman in an office lady dress walking straight towards her. The woman was very young, clearly not yet thirty, but Su Muluo still quickly stood up, her face respectful.

He greeted her, "Sister Liu, what brings you here?"

Liu Weiting said expressionlessly, "You were eliminated too early."

Su Muluo's lips twitched, speechless.

A teammate nearby quickly said, "We didn't know the Spring Film Festival would be like that..."

"Never mind Chunriying," Liu Weiting interrupted. "The company spent money on you, bought songs for you, and organized fans for you. And what was the result?"

Su Muluo whispered a reminder: "Sister Liu, this is the waiting area for the production crew."

Liu Weiting: "Of course I know, but there won't be any cameras pointed at you right now, so it's okay. The cameras won't be on the losers."

Su Muluo: "..."

Liu Weiting paused for a few seconds, then stared at him and asked, "Can you talk to Qi Yuan?"

Su Muluo nodded, then couldn't help but ask, "Is the company going to sign him?"

Liu Weiting remained expressionless: "That's none of your business. Do you have Qi Yuan's contact information? Could you call him?"

Su Mulu could only shake her head: "I can talk to him in person, but I don't have his contact information."

Liu Weiting said, "Then keep an eye on him, and take me to him when the show ends. Since he's already been eliminated, this is your only task going forward."

Three tall men, each over 1.8 meters tall, could only nod obediently in the face of this slightly chubby woman who was 1.6 meters tall.

Liu Weiting was about to turn and walk away when Su Muluo asked another question:

"Our band won't break up, will it?"

Liu Weiting glanced at them and said in a low voice, "That's not something I can decide. After this episode airs... no, we don't even need to wait for this episode. The last round of the competition should be enough for Chunriying to become famous. If your band wants to continue, it depends on your own performance. The company has already spent a lot of money on Xingyuansu. You'd better prove that you can recoup that money."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Before the recording of the style competition ended, Haruhi Kage and eleven other bands went on stage again to receive applause from the audience and listen to the host talk about the next arrangements.

This time, the rest and preparation time is longer. The next round of the cooperative competition will be held in a week.

It's called a collaboration competition because twelve crossover celebrities will temporarily join the stage.

Each band will collaborate with a celebrity to perform a song. Since it's a crossover project, the celebrities won't be famous for music, but rather for fields like film, television, talk shows, or sports.

Moreover, crossover celebrities must be deeply involved in the performance; they cannot simply be decorative figures or merely tap a triangle a few times.

In other words, they have to pick up a microphone and start singing—after all, most of those celebrities probably don't have a musical background and can't play instruments.

In He Dong's words, this is "a test of the band's ability to adapt to changing circumstances."

The audience's response was very positive, with everyone eagerly anticipating how the familiar stars would perform on this stage. However, the twelve bands on stage were quite nervous.

Those who are uneasy certainly include Kasuga Kage.

As Qi Yuan and the girls walked out of the studio, Ning Qianyu was still criticizing:

"Isn't this just a ridiculous mess? They're not even going to perform in order to attract an audience. We're a band, we're serious musicians, not some kind of prank show. What are those people who can't even sing in tune and don't know how many strings a guitar has coming here for?"