Chapter 161 Group Night 10.0
Under the breathless gaze of 50,000 spectators, amidst countless flashing comments in the live broadcast room, Qu Qinghuan slowly raised the gilded microphone.
"From the innocence and immaturity of their debut performance to the brilliance of tonight, we have witnessed together the moment when every dream chaser emerges from their cocoon and becomes a butterfly."
Her eyes swept across the expectant faces in the front row, "At this moment, all the sweat and tears will condense into the brightest stars - the list of the group will be announced soon.
This is not the end, but the beginning of a new chapter in our dream.”
Before he finished speaking, the pyramid area in the center of the stage suddenly burst into dazzling light.
Seven crystal chairs were faintly visible in the dry ice mist, and the throne at the top was simultaneously bathed in light from all directions. Its diamond-cut facets refracted the light, displaying supreme glory like the moon surrounded by stars.
Xie Qingyu looked at the glittering pyramid opposite, and a faint smile appeared in his amber pupils.
Is this the complete form? What are the stools that were released when the ranking was announced before?
The production team must have cut corners~ I’m giving a bad review!
When the lights of the pyramid were fully lit, a sudden beam of spotlight suddenly pierced through the darkness and hit the area where Xie Qingyu and the other twenty contestants were.
The strong light came too suddenly. Although they were mentally prepared, many contestants still blinked their swollen eyes slightly due to the sudden stimulation of the light.
Twenty young faces appeared simultaneously on the giant screens on both sides of the stage. The audience roared, and the white cheering sticks distributed by the program team in their hands formed a surging wave.
The first contestant to be announced is the 6th-ranked contestant, and the answer will be revealed by Rap mentor MCray.
Today, the mentor wore a leather jacket and sunglasses. He looked particularly cool as he took a step forward to the beat of the drum with an expressionless face.
After Qu Qinghuan handed the gold-stamped envelope to him, he suddenly pursed his lips, raised his hand to adjust his sunglasses, and his Adam's apple rolled slightly.
I wore this pair of sunglasses specifically before going on stage, for fear that I couldn't control my expression and it wouldn't match my image as a "domineering and cool rapper."
After all, I have walked such a long journey with ninety-nine contestants, but tonight I can only send seven people to the pinnacle of glory.
Seeing this, Lu Chuan, who was standing next to him, calmly poked him in the back with his palm.
This old friend's train of thought has always been straight. If he choked up in front of the live camera at this moment, I'm afraid he would definitely become a hot search #MCray tears shed into the group night#.
We're on live broadcast now, big brother. If you want to cry, go off the stage and hug the contestants and cry. So many people are waiting here. The kids behind you are going to be blinded by the sight!
The audience gave encouraging applause at the right time, and the fans who followed the show throughout the whole process could understand it best.
After months of tug-of-war, even those who only focused on one contestant were exhausted, let alone these mentors who were with them day and night and were both teachers and friends?
When emotions collide with the competition system, no matter how cool the appearance is, it cannot hide the softness.
MCray finally opened the gold-stamped envelope under the urging of the director in the in-ear monitor.
He was just like that, and didn't beat around the bush. He just read what was written on the screen. "This contestant has captivated the audience with his infectious vocal skills since the beginning of the show... The sixth-placed contestant in the 'Road to Stardom' finals is—"
As the instructor read out his speech, the camera kept switching back and forth between Gu Qiong and You Jinzhao, and even cut to Xie Qingyu's face once in the middle, causing Xie Qingyu's fans in the audience to almost curse out loud. The director then quickly cut away again, thinking it was just a clumsy move.
"You Jinzhao!"
"Total votes: 19,522,588. Congratulations!"
MCray turned around and looked at the contestant area. You Jinzhao had already squatted down with his hands covering his chest, gasping for breath.
From the moment the instructor began to describe the characteristics, his heart almost jumped out of his chest, until the moment the name was read out, his legs went weak and even breathing was painful.
It is enough to experience this kind of torment once in a lifetime.
He finally understood why those trainees who repeatedly participated in auditions would become more and more tired and could never match the aura they had the first time. This was not only a physical drain, but also a mental torture.
But fortunately... he succeeded, right at once.
When Wei Liangchen and other contestants scrambled to pull him up, You Jinzhao finally came to his senses, and the hysterical screams and cries of fans filled his ears.
On the big screen, the camera cut to the audience. His parents and grandfather were already waving banners with his name on them, tears in their eyes for his dream coming true.
His throat tightened, You Jinzhao swallowed hard, and walked towards the microphone stand at Qu Qinghuan's reminder.
Suddenly, an almost broken voice pierced through the clamor—
"You Jinzhao, don't cry!"
Crying? He was stunned for a moment, then raised his hand to touch his face, only to find that his cheeks were already wet.
The next second, he turned to the camera and gave a brilliant smile.
Yes, he is the first one to get the debut position, of course he should smile!
Xie Qingyu had a faint smile on her lips as she watched the orange head swaying as it finished its speech.
You Jinchao bowed deeply to the camera, then stepped forward to hug several mentors. Then, in the white cyclones gushing out from both sides of the passage, he walked towards the sixth throne of the pyramid under the special effects starlight.
Xie Qingyu's gaze followed his back upwards, and finally stopped at the vacant throne at the top - it was still waiting for its owner.
As the dust settled on the 6th place, the tense atmosphere on the scene became more and more tense.
Qu Qinghuan tapped the microphone stand with her fingertips, and everyone's attention focused on her again.
"Next, our dance instructor Su Jin will announce the winner of fifth place."
When Su Jin stepped forward to take the new, unopened envelope, she exchanged a brief glance with Qu Qinghuan.
They usually love to joke around, but now they are both quieter than the other, only nodding slightly when handing over.
The moment she unfolded the letter, the stage lights changed.
"This is a contestant with a very contrasting charm..."
Xie Qingyu's eyelashes trembled slightly, and she resisted the urge to glance at Leo. After all, Wei Liangchen's handsome face also hid a huge contrast.
It was not until Su Jin read out the keyword "superb rap skills" that his tense shoulders relaxed slightly.
It should be stable. After all, Wei Liangchen's Rap... emmm, is a special skill that can force Gu Yan, the smiling fox, to collapse.
However, it is also possible that the program team is playing abstraction. Xie Qingyu remained calm and continued to wait for the announcement of the results.
"He's Leo! Total votes: 23,099,705. Congratulations!"
As soon as Su Jin finished speaking, Xie Qingyu was knocked off balance by a figure rushing towards him from behind.
Leo's face was crumpled with tears, and his shoulders were soaked with hot tears.
The tears that Xie Qingyu had been brewing in her heart were shaken away by the earth-shaking cry. The little kid was really frightened by the ranking of the three best. She was on the verge of debut several times tonight during the spot-fixing segment.
As Leo sobbed and walked towards the microphone, the stage screen suddenly cut to a picture of his mother holding his sister.
The little girl was waving a glow stick desperately, while her mother was waving at the camera with a smile.
This unexpected shot made Leo, who had just managed to calm down, break down again, and he finally finished his speech with a heavy nasal tone.
The audience in the stage were crying and laughing, and even the director couldn't help but give a close-up of his trembling back.
After Leo took up another seat, there were only five vacant seats on the pyramid.
A tense atmosphere spread in the venue. Some players unconsciously pinched their palms, their nails digging deep into the soft flesh, as if only such real pain could ease the anxiety in their hearts - the opportunity was disappearing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
The person who announced the result of the 4th place was the creative mentor Lu Chuan. He was more rational than the first two mentors, at least that's what it seemed.
After taking the envelope, I opened it without hesitation. The results were all here. There was no point in delaying it any longer. It would be better to announce it early so that everyone could be relieved sooner.
"This is a cross-track player..." Lu Chuan's voice echoed in the venue.
Before he finished speaking, at least half of the people in the venue had caught a glimpse of the clue from this brief but clear clue.
"The fourth-placed contestant in the 'Road to Stardom' finals is Wei Liangchen!"
"Total votes: 23,516,676. Congratulations!"
Sure enough, the final result was the same as everyone expected.
The moment his name was called out, Wei Liangchen felt the emotions surging in his chest finally bursting forth.
To be honest, this was the first time in all the dozens of short plays he had starred in that he was able to let tears flow so naturally and sincerely without the help of any props.
Standing in front of the standing microphone, his fingertips unconsciously stroked the cold metal surface.
In a trance, he recalled a certain filming scene where he was struggling with an emotional outburst scene, and his stiff performance made the director call for cut repeatedly.
"It's not that your acting is dull, it's that you lack experience." The director's words still ring in my mind. "There are few truly gifted actors in this industry. How can you act so heartbreakingly if you haven't even experienced the most basic joy or sorrow?"
He didn't understand what he heard at that time.
At this moment, when hot tears rolled down his cheeks and joy and sadness intertwined in his heart, he suddenly understood the true meaning of the director's words.
Now, he should be able to interpret that scene perfectly, right?!
In the glistening tears, he seemed to see himself at a loss on the set, gradually overlapping with the tearful figure in front of him.
There are only four seats left - no, to be precise, only one is really up for grabs.
Everyone present knew the answer to the question of who would be the top three.
The suspense at this moment is just waiting for those predetermined names to be officially read out.
The all-round mentor Wei Qianze walked slowly forward and gently opened the gold-stamped envelope.
He glanced across the paper, paused slightly, then raised his eyes, his voice steady—
"This contestant, he..."
The lights in the studio seemed to dim at that moment, and everyone's breathing stopped.
There was a silent tension in the air, as if even time had slowed down.
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