From unemployment in crosstalk to top star in Chinese entertainment

Yang Mi seemed to realize something as well. She gently bit the inside of her lip, but a brighter smile bloomed on her face.

"Professor Yu Liang is very knowledgeable."

She pronounced the word "erudite" very clearly, as if she had chewed it in her mouth before spitting it out.

Yu Liang stood on the stage and bowed slightly to her.

"Teacher Yang Mi, you flatter me."

The two stared at each other for less than a second.

Yu Liang's eyes held that signature cunning, while Yang Mi's eyes showed a renewed interest after a second look.

Wang Han aptly picked up the conversation: "Thank you, Ms. Yang Mi, for your question, and thank you, Ms. Yu Liang, for your answer. Whether Yuan Zaju (元杂剧) counts as a drama series—I think the program team already has the answer."

He looked toward the judges' panel.

"Distinguished judges, please score Ms. Yu Liang."

Na-young was the first to raise her scoreboard.

98 points.

She was holding up a sign, while wiping the corner of her eye with her other hand.

"I never judge based on technical skill, but on whether it moves me. That last part gave me goosebumps."

Wu Yifan was the second to raise his sign.

98 points.

"Your voice control is incredibly strong. You switched between five different timbres without a break in your breath. Mr. Yu Liang, have you received formal training?"

Yu Liang picked up the microphone: "I previously studied crosstalk with Teacher Guo, and I also studied dubbing with Teacher Li Lihong for two days."

Wu Yifan suddenly realized and nodded: "No wonder, so he is Teacher Guo and Teacher Li's apprentice."

Yu Liang thought the scoring process was over and was about to bow and leave the stage.

"Wait a moment."

Yang Mi's voice came from the judges' panel again.

She didn't raise her scorecard; it remained face down on the table.

"I have one more question."

The studio fell silent. Wang Han, who had already taken a step forward, withdrew his foot.

She watched as Yu Liang leaned forward slightly, his elbows resting on the edge of the judges' table.

"The first and last paragraphs just now used the same phrase."

"Yet it feels like there's a distance of decades between us."

She paused for a moment.

"Yu Liang, how did you come up with this design?"

Yu Liang held the microphone and looked at her.

Under the spotlight, one was on stage, the other on the judges' panel. They were separated by a distance that was neither too close nor too far.

In this life, you will encounter many sentences.

"At different stages, we have different understandings of the same sentence."

"Some words may not be understood at first, but years later they can hit you right on the head like a bullet."

Everyone took a deep breath.

What a brilliant metaphor!

Yu Liang's words are no less impressive than the dubbing of the previous lines.

"Well said!"

"Someone in the audience remarked."

Yang Mi did not speak.

She looked at Yu Liang, and all the scrutiny and probing in her eyes vanished in that instant. In their place was pure and earnestness.

Then she looked down and smiled.

He held up the scoreboard.

97 points.

She held up the sign, looked at Yu Liang, and still had that smile on her lips.

"I originally wanted to give it 100 points."

"But I deducted three points."

Wang Han chimed in at the opportune moment: "Oh? Where is it deducted?"

"He hadn't added me on WeChat before."

There was a moment of stunned silence in the studio, then burst into laughter. The live chat went completely wild.

[Hahahaha, Yang Mi, you!!!]

What kind of divine revenge is this?

Yang Mi: You think I'd just sit here and suffer in silence?

The hashtag #YangMiDunksOnYuLiangThreePointersBecauseTheyDidn'tAddHerOnWeChat# already exists.

[Yu Liang, please approve this quickly!!!]

The entire live stream was urging you to add them on WeChat.

Yu Liang stood on the stage and smiled. He picked up the microphone and looked at Yang Mi.

"Hasn't it already been approved?"

Yang Mi put down the scorecard, leaned back in her chair, her face showing a mix of arrogance, stubbornness, and pride.

"Tch, too late!"

The rankings are updated in real time on the giant screen.

Yu Liang——97.6 points.

Rank: 1.

Zhai Tianlin's name slid down one space.

In the preparation area, Zhai Tianlin led the applause. Zhou Xiao'ou shook his head with a smile, while Jia Jialiang, who was at the bottom of the pack, gave a wry smile.

Dilireba covered his mouth with both hands, his eyes sparkling.

She remembered what Sister Honey had told her.

I just didn't expect Yu Liang to be so capable.

Moreover, Yu Liang's appearance... is exactly what she imagined Donghua Dijun to be.

Hua Chenyu sat in the corner.

He stood up, his hands trembling slightly.

He became more and more nervous as the time for his performance approached.

The elevator doors opened. He stepped inside and turned around.

Before the door closed, he took one last look at the real-time rankings on the giant screen.

Yu Liang – 97.6 points. Rank: 1.

The elevator began to descend.

He recalled the six distinct vocal positions that Yu Liang had used during his performance.

Six types.

He's a professional singer, and he's going up to read his lines later.

The elevator doors opened. Stage lights flooded in.

Yu Liang and I just walked into the same beam of light.

Hua Chenyu suddenly felt that the light was a bit dazzling.

On the stage, Wang Han was already standing there.

"Next, let's welcome our last contestant today—"

"Hua Chenyu".

Hua Chenyu walked out from the side of the stage. There was applause, polite and restrained.

This was completely different from the explosive reaction when Yu Liang stepped down from the stage earlier, when the entire audience stood up.

He walked up to the microphone. The beam of light shone down and enveloped him.

His performance clips appeared on the giant screen.

[Competition Excerpt: "Bright Sword" - Li Yunlong]

The comments section was quiet for a moment, then started scrolling.

[This show... he actually dared to voice such a character.]

Is an independent regiment something a mage like him can command?

Hua Chenyu stood in front of the microphone,

"Second Battalion Commander, where the hell are your Italian cannons? Bring them here right now!"

I got so excited that I choked.

Uh……

In the preparation area, Zhou Xiaogou and Zhai Tianlin exchanged a glance but remained silent.

Yu Liang leaned back on the sofa, quietly watching the giant screen.

In Yu Liang's opinion, Hua Chenyu's voice is good.

However, he was too excited when he went on stage, and his voice was distracting and didn't match the character.

Although she is a professional singer with trained timbre, breath control, and resonance, dubbing is different from singing. If the rhythm of the lines is not right, it is easy to mess up.

The feedback from bullet comments is more direct.

Well... how should I put it... it's alright?

Compared to Yu Liang's case, the difference is quite obvious.

It's not that Hua Chenyu is bad, it's just that Yu Liang was too strong just now.

Indeed. After hearing six different life stories, listening to this one completely shattered my sense of reality.

Yu Liang's attack was a case of overwhelming force, while the mage's performance was just normal.

If he had acted the way he did during the attack on Ping'an County, Xiuqin wouldn't have died.

The performance has ended.

Hua Chenyu had a fine layer of sweat on her forehead.

The applause was sparse, with only a few fans showing some enthusiasm.

He bowed and turned to walk towards the side of the stage. Halfway there, he couldn't help but glance back at the real-time rankings on the giant screen.

His score hasn't come out yet.

Yu Liang's score of 97.6 is still at the very top, like a nail.

Judges score.

Nayoung: 90 points.

"Your voice is very good, but dialogue and singing are different; it's not enough to just have a good voice."

Wu Yifan: 88 points.

"You could have put in more emotional investment. I can tell you're 'acting,' but I can't hear you 'living.'"

Yang Mi: 85 points.

"I deducted more points. Not because of technique, but because you chose something you weren't confident in yourself. If you're not confident in yourself, how can you expect the audience to believe you?"

Hua Chenyu stood on the stage, her hand holding the microphone tightening slightly.

The final score was displayed on the giant screen.

Hua Chenyu – 87.7 points.

Rank: 6.

Second to last.

Seeing Hua Chenyu's low score, people in the comments section couldn't help but feel sorry for her.

Let's not have too high expectations, after all, he's not a professional voice actor.

Yes, tomorrow's singing competition is Hua Hua's forte.