Life countdown begins, ice queen bursts into security room

Hua Xingyu's voice was amplified and broadcast throughout the studio.

That's all there is to it.

When those four words were uttered, the 500 audience members were stunned.

The chat in the live stream also paused briefly.

Immediately afterwards, a blinding red light flashed on the big screen.

That was the scoring device that Hua Xingyu pressed.

The number is frozen in the center of the screen.

61 points.

The minimum score set by the program team for the celebrity mentors is 60 points.

He gave 61.

That extra bit felt like charity.

There was a two-second silence in the studio, followed by a chorus of boos.

Everyone can see it—this isn't a rating, it's an insult.

Xue Zhiheng suddenly turned his head and stared at Hua Xingyu.

He grabbed the microphone right in front of him.

"Teacher Hua, are you serious?"

His voice was clearly filled with anger.

Hua Xingyu pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses, looking completely at ease.

"Teacher Xue, this is a talent show; we're selecting future idols."

He looked at Jiang Fan on the stage with a contemptuous tone.

"His song has a clichéd melody and a simplistic arrangement. If just strumming a few chords on a guitar could get you a high score, wouldn't every street performer be a big star?"

Xue Zhiheng laughed in anger.

"Old-fashioned? Simple?" He pointed to the big screen. "The core of this song is vitality. You're talking to me about arrangement? The most fundamental thing about music is touching people's hearts."

Hua Xingyu spread her hands.

"I only value professionalism. He may have some talent, but this stage isn't right for him. My score is already given and won't be changed."

The live chat exploded.

"61 points? Giving it only the minimum score? Hua Xingyu, you have no shame."

"A complete cover-up! An absolute cover-up!"

"He gave 61 out of a minimum of 60; that extra point was probably just a fig leaf for himself, wasn't it?"

The atmosphere on the judges' panel was tense.

Xu Qingya remained silent, her gaze fixed on Jiang Fan.

Faced with Hua Xingyu's belittling and Xue Zhiheng's defense, Jiang Fan simply stood there quietly.

There was no anger, no resentment, not even a furrowed brow.

He held the guitar in one hand, glanced indifferently at Hua Xingyu, then looked away, too lazy to look at her any longer.

"Jiang Fan." Seeing that the situation was about to get out of control, Teacher He quickly grabbed the microphone and went on stage to try to smooth things over.

"What are your thoughts on the evaluation of Teacher Hua Xingyu? You can defend your work."

All cameras were pointed at Jiang Fan.

The entire audience held their breath, waiting for his counterattack.

Zhao Tianyu sneered in the waiting area.

If Jiang Fan dares to lose his temper on stage or say anything offensive, he will immediately be labeled as "disrespectful to teachers" and "arrogant".

Jiang Fan raised the microphone.

"Are you done talking?"

Four words, utterly calm without a ripple.

Hua Xingyu's face darkened.

"I'm done talking, let's get on with the procedures. I'm very sleepy."

There was no explanation, no anger.

A person who only has four days left to live will not waste time on a mouthpiece for capital.

"You!" Hua Xingyu's face turned ashen from being choked, and she abruptly stood up. "What kind of attitude is this?!"

Jiang Fan didn't even turn his head; he looked directly at Teacher He.

"Can I rate it now?"

Teacher He swallowed hard; his professional instincts made him react quickly.

"Alright!" He raised his voice, quelling the commotion in the room. "The judges' scoring is complete. Xue Zhiheng 98 points, Xu Qingya 95 points, Hua Xingyu 61 points. Total: 254 points."

Lu Mingfei, who was in the waiting area, quickly did some calculations.

254 points.

His total score is 697.

In other words, Jiang Fan's audience must score above 443 points to surpass him.

At least 443 out of 500 people must vote for him.

That's unlikely.

"Next, please, the 500 audience members, press your scoring buttons for Jiang Fan's 'The Ordinary Road'!" Teacher He announced loudly.

The numbers on the big screen started to jump.

100.

200.

The speed was incredible, but Lu Ming wasn't nervous. Anyone can rush ahead, the key is the finish line.

300.

The growth rate has indeed slowed down.

350.

380.

The numbers bounced up one by one, like climbing a hill.

400.

Lu Ming sat up straight.

410.

His expression became somewhat unsettled.

420.

430.

wrong.

He stared at the screen, his pupils slightly contracted.

It's still rising.

440.

The air in the studio seemed to freeze. Everyone was mentally calculating the same math problem.

If Jiang Fan surpasses this 443, he will be number one.

441.

442.

With each tick of the numbers on the big screen, Lu Ming's heart skipped a beat.

443.

It's on par with him.

No one spoke; hundreds of eyes were glued to the screen.

444.

Ding--

A crisp notification sound echoed throughout the venue.

Voting channels are closed.

The numbers freeze.

444 points.

The scene was initially deathly silent, then someone screamed.

Teacher He looked down at the numbers on the flashcards three times, his voice trembling.

"Public jury score: 444 points! Adding the star judges' 254 points, Jiang Fan's final total score is—698 points!"

He paused for a moment and took a deep breath.

"Surpassing Lu Ming's 697 points—"

"First place!"

One point.

Just one cent.

Hua Xingyu gave a score of 61 with the lowest possible authority, but the public jury managed to fill the gap with 444 votes.

One more point.

Exactly one point.

In the waiting area, Lu Ming's fingers were digging into the edge of the seat, his nails sinking into the leather of the armrest.

697.

698.

One point.

He lost a point.

An ordinary person with no background, despite receiving only 61 points from Hua Xingyu, managed to turn the tide thanks to the public jury.

I beat him by one point.

On the judges' panel.

Hua Xingyu stood there, unsure whether to sit or stand.

He gave it a score of 61.

If he gave him the lowest possible score of 60, then Jiang Fan's total score would be 697.

He is ranked alongside Lu Ming.

Not number one.

But he deliberately gave him that extra point.

That one point used for charity, used for humiliation.

In the end, it turned into him pressing his own face to the ground and rubbing it.

Xue Zhiheng laughed and shouted directly into the microphone.

"This is real music!"

Jiang Fan looked at the score on the big screen, his expression unchanged.

He bowed slightly to the audience.

Then he picked up his guitar case and turned to walk towards the passageway.

He didn't give an acceptance speech, didn't thank his fans, and didn't even glance at the judges' panel.

They left decisively.

Because a notification flashed across the system panel just a moment ago.

[A highly compatible target's emotional state has been drastically altered.]

[The host's charisma field has been automatically activated and locked.]

Jiang Fan knew that the fish had taken the bait.

The live stream ended amidst a frenzied atmosphere.

The backend servers of Tencent Video almost crashed due to the sudden influx of bullet comments.

The live edited version of "The Ordinary Road" was uploaded to major short video platforms within ten minutes, and the number of likes increased exponentially.

Jiang Fan's name became incredibly famous.