Life countdown begins, ice queen bursts into security room

The bar was dimly lit, with only a spotlight shining on Jiang Fan.

He sat on a high stool, pressing down on the chords with his left hand and plucking the strings with his right thumb.

The minimalist intro flowed out from the speakers.

There are no fancy techniques, only the purest resonance of an acoustic guitar.

The two girls, who were about to push open the door and leave, stopped in their tracks.

One of them instinctively turned around and looked at the young man in black on the stage.

Front row booths.

The man in the suit who was chatting with Zhou Hai suddenly froze in mid-air with his wine glass in hand.

His name is Li Cheng, the music director and assistant director of the Tencent Video S-level variety show "The Rising Star".

"This melody..." Li Cheng's body involuntarily leaned forward.

Jiang Fan on stage leaned closer to the microphone.

"When you step into this place of joy."

"Carry all your dreams and aspirations on your back."

"Different faces, different makeup."

Nobody remembers what you look like.

Jiang Fan's voice carried a sense of world-weariness that didn't belong to a twenty-year-old, instantly filling every corner of the bar.

The atmosphere of the entire bar changed instantly after the four lines of the verse were sung.

The guests, who were either looking down at their phones or whispering to each other, all looked up at once.

Zhou Hai forgot to take out his cigar and turned to look at Li Cheng: "Old Li, this song..."

Li Cheng raised his hand and made a shushing gesture.

He stared intently at Jiang Fan on the stage, his eyes flashing with the light of a hunter eyeing his prey.

"After three rounds of drinks, you're in the corner."

"Stubbornly singing bitter songs."

"Listen to him being drowned out by the noise."

"You pick up your glass and say to yourself."

Jiang Fan closed his eyes.

He recalled the struggles of his past life and the despair he felt when this body was diagnosed with a terminal illness.

He swallowed the sense of urgency, the feeling of being on the verge of death, all of it.

The noise in the bar completely disappeared, and all conversations came to an abrupt halt.

In this Houhai bar filled with alcohol and desire, this song tore away everyone's pretense of dignity.

His fingers swept across the strings, and the guitar's sound suddenly soared.

"One cup to the rising sun, one cup to the moonlight."

"Awakening my longing, softening the cold window."

"So you can fly against the wind without looking back."

"I am not afraid of rain in my heart or frost in my eyes."

The girl who was originally going to leave had somehow returned to her seat, her eyes red-rimmed.

Li Cheng gasped, feeling a chill run down his spine.

As one of the top music directors in China, he has listened to countless so-called original works.

Ninety percent of it is just pointless whining and garbage.

But this song, these lyrics.

"Absolutely amazing."

These aren't lyrics; they're practically scraping bones with a knife.

The performance on stage continued.

The emotions build layer upon layer, giving the audience no chance to breathe.

"One cup to my hometown, one cup to the distant land."

"It is my kindness that has spurred me to grow."

"Therefore, the road between the north and south is no longer long."

"The soul is no longer adrift."

Jiang Fan's breathing began to quicken.

The physical exertion required for beginner-level singing is greater than he imagined.

He opened his eyes and looked at the unfamiliar faces below the stage.

He sang to himself for the last two drinks.

"One glass to tomorrow, one glass to the past."

"It supports my body and strengthens my shoulders."

"Although I've never believed in the idea of ​​mountains being high and rivers being long."

Life is too short to dwell on the past.

The guitar music suddenly stopped.

Jiang Fan paused for two seconds.

Those two seconds of silence made everyone's hearts leap into their throats.

Then, in an almost whispered voice, he sang the last line.

"One cup to freedom, one cup to death."

"Forgive my ordinariness, and the confusion will be dispelled."

"Well, I always leave hastily after dawn."

"The most absurd people are those who are clear-headed."

The guitar sound in the outro gradually fades out until it disappears completely.

Jiang Fan loosened the strings, stood up, and put the guitar back on the shelf.

The entire blues bar was deathly silent.

A full ten seconds passed.

"Smack."

Li Cheng was the first to stand up from the front row booth and clapped enthusiastically.

Immediately afterwards, the entire bar erupted in thunderous applause and cheers.

"Holy crap! That's awesome!"

"Sing it one more time! Number 16! One more time!"

"Boss! Give him a drink! It's on me!"

The two girls in the corner were wiping away tears while clapping their hands frantically.

Jiang Fan ignored the noise from the audience.

He nodded into the microphone, then turned and walked off the stage.

Li Cheng grabbed Zhou Hai's arm: "Old Zhou, do me a favor and keep him here."

Blues Bar, backstage lounge.

Jiang Fan sat in a chair, holding a bottle of mineral water in his hand.

The door was pushed open, and the bald man walked in with Zhou Hai and Li Cheng.

The bald man's attitude was completely different from a few hours ago; his face was full of smiles: "Brother Jiang, this is our Boss Zhou."

Li Cheng looked Jiang Fan up and down.

"Jiang Fan, right?" Li Cheng handed over a black and gold business card.

"My name is Li Cheng. I am the music director of Tencent Video's 'Rising Star'."

The bald man standing to the side stared wide-eyed.

"Star of Tomorrow"!

This year, Tencent Video invested 300 million yuan to create an S-level talent show, with all three star mentors being top-tier celebrities.

Posters for this show are everywhere now.

Jiang Fan took the business card, glanced at it, and calmly asked, "What's up?"

Li Cheng smiled.

In the entertainment industry, countless newcomers would kneel down and call him "father" upon hearing his name.

The young man in front of me was as calm as a stone.

"Your song is very good. The lyrics and music are both top-notch. Although your singing skills are still a bit flawed, the emotion completely makes up for the technical shortcomings."

Li Cheng cut straight to the point: "The first stage of 'The Rising Star' will be recorded next week. I have one more spot that can be directly entered into the main competition, which means I can skip the audition."

He stared into Jiang Fan's eyes: "I'll give you this spot."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Hai, who had come over from the side, was shocked.

"Old Li, are you crazy? Didn't you say you were going to reserve that spot for that trainee from Sheng Hai Entertainment?" Zhou Hai hurriedly reminded him.

Li Cheng waved his hand, interrupting Zhou Hai.

"I don't want to give the spot to a pretty face who can only wiggle her butt on stage. This song, 'Sorrow,' deserves it."

Jiang Fan finally showed a slight reaction.

He needs exposure, a bigger stage to reach high-value targets, in order to gain lifespan value.

A national-level talent show was practically tailor-made for him.

"What are the conditions?" Jiang Fan asked.

He doesn't believe in free lunches.

Every gift of capital comes with a hidden price tag.

A hint of admiration flashed in Li Cheng's eyes.

"The conditions are very harsh. I need you to sign a performance-based agreement. On this show, as long as you haven't been eliminated, you must sing all original songs. Not a single cover song is allowed."

"Moreover, the quality of each song must not be lower than that of 'Sorrow'."

Zhou Hai gasped.

This isn't a condition; this is forcing people to die.

Many top-notch songwriters in the Chinese music scene could not produce a masterpiece of "Sorrow" even after a year of hard work.

How can an ordinary person be expected to produce original content of the same level at a high intensity in a weekly talent show?

This is pure fantasy.

"Can."

He looked at Li Cheng, a very subtle smile curving his lips.

Completely original?

Jiang Fan sneered inwardly.

The system's store contains tens of thousands of artifacts representing the pinnacle of Earth's civilization.

You want me to sing a cover song? I'd think it's beneath me.

"Are you sure? If you lose, the copyright of 'Sorrow' will be given to the production team free of charge."

Li Cheng had expected Jiang Fan to bargain or even back down.

"Completely original, no problem. But I also have one condition."

"explain."

"If I can still win the championship without signing with an agency, you can't rig things to get rid of me."

Li Cheng stared intently at Jiang Fan.

mad.

That's outrageous.

An ordinary person who hasn't even stepped into the entertainment industry dared to warn capital against backroom deals.

"Great! As long as you can smash through the ratings with original content, I, Li Cheng, will guarantee you a smooth ride!" Li Cheng suddenly stretched out his hand.

Jiang Fan reached out his hand, and the two clasped hands tightly.

"Bring your ID card and come to Penguin Building in Pengcheng at 3 PM on Monday to sign the contract."