They don't actually think I like them, do they?

However, Coffee had a bit of a problem with the selection of contestants because the female leads all had roughly the same amount of screen time. In order to avoid splitting the votes, I decided to upload only one character.

So let's cast our vote here. Who do you think should be in the top spot? Let me know the number you vote for.

1. Yan Yuli 2. Mangzi 3. Su Ruxue 4. Lin Han 5. Xu Hui

007. Just hold my hand.

While getting her makeup done, Su Ruxue received her number tag – “8”.

"The last one," Su Ruxue murmured.

"You only have eight contestants in total for this competition?" Lin Han asked in confusion.

Is it a bit shabby to have only eight people in a city-level competition?

"Today is the finals, and now there are only eight people left."

"What about the preliminary round?"

Lin Han was even more confused. Judging from the reactions at the scene, it seemed that many people were seeing Su Ruxue in a competition for the first time.

"I was directly admitted to the finals."

Su Ruxue looked at Lin Han, revealing a smug and somewhat cunning smile.

Lin Han was speechless.

What's worse than slaughtering the newbie village is waiting until there are hardly any newbies left before entering to reap the rewards.

After Su Ruxue finished her makeup, she put her long white hair up with a hairband.

In her words, although there are no explicit rules, performing with hair down in such a formal setting as a concert hall would be very disrespectful to the stage.

At the very least, you should tie your hair up.

With her makeup done and hair styled, Su Ruxue stood before Lin Han. At this moment, the girl in the cheongsam had lost some of her playfulness and youthfulness, but gained a lot of maturity and composure.

Coupled with Su Ruxue's unique temperament, she now resembles an elegant noblewoman.

So beautiful.

Even Lin Han was momentarily stunned by what he saw.

In the dressing room, many envious and longing gazes were constantly drawn to Su Ruxue.

"Let's go, come with me to the lounge," Su Ruxue said with a smile to Lin Han.

Lin Han snapped out of his daze and helped Su Ruxue pick up her cello.

Under the watchful eyes of many, Lin Han and Su Ruxue left the dressing room. They walked along the corridor until they reached a large room on the left at the end of the corridor.

This is the room closest to the stage; the passageway to the stage is on the right.

The lounge has rows of seats, and in front of it is a large screen that can broadcast live footage from inside the auditorium.

By this time, there were already several people in the lounge, including not only the contestants but also companions like Lin Han.

Upon seeing Su Ruxue enter, the contestants already seated inside nodded and greeted her, a customary courtesy among musicians.

Lin Han and Su Ruxue found two seats and sat down.

With twenty minutes to go before the start of the match, the lounge was quiet. Everyone else was chatting in hushed tones, offering words of encouragement and reassurance such as "Don't be nervous."

Some musicians watch practice videos and repeatedly browse the sheet music. In fact, they already know the pieces by heart, but doing something related to the pieces now makes them feel more at ease.

The lights in the lounge were glaring, yet the atmosphere was oppressive.

With the finals approaching, and on a stage like the Jinchuan Concert Hall, everyone was very nervous.

Some people couldn't stand the oppressive atmosphere and chose to get up and leave their seats to clear their heads in the corridor.

Lin Han looked at Su Ruxue.

The girl was staring blankly at the auditorium on the screen, not playing on her phone or looking at the sheet music, just watching.

Lin Han waved his hand in front of Su Ruxue, and the girl trembled and looked at Lin Han.

"So you can get nervous too," Lin Han said with a smile.

"I haven't played a match in three years, of course I'm nervous."

Su Ruxue complained, seemingly very unhappy that Lin Han had suddenly startled her.

Su Ruxue, who maintained an elegant demeanor from the moment she entered the concert hall, exerted a strong sense of pressure on all the other contestants present.

Little did anyone know, Su Ruxue herself was actually secretly nervous, but she didn't show it.

"Relax, I've heard you play, you can definitely do it," Lin Han said.

"Really?"

"You don't trust Orange Marmalade's judgment?"

“There are quite a few people in the association waiting to see me make a fool of myself,” Su Ruxue said in turn.

At this moment, the audience members gradually took their seats in the auditorium, and a group of elderly people in suits walked in from another entrance at the front door and sat down in the judges' seat in the first row.

They are professors from the Cello Association.

Seeing this, Su Ruxue's expression turned serious again.

"Let's go out for some fresh air. I think you need to clear your head."

Lin Han stood up and suggested taking Su Ruxue for a walk in the corridor, as the lounge was ultimately too oppressive.

Now that he was here, Lin Han couldn't just stand by and watch; he really wanted to do something for Su Ruxue.

However, Su Ruxue grabbed Lin Han's hand.

"sit down."

Lin Han sat down, puzzled.

Su Ruxue did not let go, but stared blankly ahead, her sweet face slightly flushed, and said softly:

"If you really want to do something, just hold my hand until I go on stage."

Lin Han was stunned. He stared at Su Ruxue's beautiful profile for a long time.

"it is good."

If this would put Su Ruxue at ease, Lin Han was willing to do it.

Lin Han grasped Su Ruxue's hand, and the two looked at the big screen together.

The match started promptly at 9:20.

Contestant number one comes on stage.

This is a very young girl, and the piece she is playing is called "Silver Armor".

Lin Han didn't know much about the music in this world, only that it seemed to be a very famous "sofa music".

Despite its name, Silver Armor, the piece has a rather languid and pleasant feel, and the cello's long, drawn-out tone makes it quite enjoyable to listen to.

The only drawback was that the little girl played a note that was noticeably too high halfway through the performance.

However, such minor mistakes are not a problem. As long as it's not singing off-key or anything, everyone is very tolerant of such small mistakes.

The first piece of music received enthusiastic applause from the audience, and the judges nodded repeatedly in approval.

Although most of the participants in this "Star Cup" are young, it is clear that those who made it to the finals are indeed very strong.

The next few contestants also showed a very good level of skill. Su Ruxue watched the whole thing very attentively, but her face remained calm.

Until contestant number six appeared.

When a man who looked to be in his mid-twenties stepped onto the stage, Lin Han clearly felt that Su Ruxue gripped his hand a little tighter.

Lin Han looked at Su Ruxue with a puzzled expression.

"Ning Lei." Su Ruxue called out the man's name. He was the only contestant whose name she called out.

"What's the origin?"

“A very famous cellist in the association these past two years, a doctoral student at Jinchuan Conservatory of Music,” Su Ruxue said. “The champion of the last ‘Star Cup’.”

"Then this person must be someone important."

From this background, it is not difficult to infer that he is a typical "academic" pianist.

On the big screen, a middle-aged man on the judges' panel smiled slightly after seeing the contestant come on stage.

"Oh, Professor Liu Chuan, your star pupil has arrived," the professor next to him said with a smile.

008. Ning Lei, the Association's New Darling

The person who said this is Zhang Zhiping, professor of the Orchestral Department of Jinchuan Conservatory of Music and vice chairman of the Jinchuan Cello Association.

As the most influential person on the judging panel, he consistently maintained a relatively objective perspective when evaluating the competition.

Liu Chuan, who is standing next to him, is also a teacher at Jinchuan Conservatory of Music, and Ning Lei, who is about to perform, is his student.

"Teachers can look forward to Xiao Ning's performance this time."

Liu Chuan adopted a humble posture and spoke to the other judges, which could be considered as giving them a heads-up.

"Haha, of course, after all, they are students taught by our Professor Liu. While paying extra attention, my grading requirements will also be stricter. I'm sure Professor Liu won't mind, right?"

The person who said this, sitting to the right of Vice Chairman Zhang Zhiping, was an elderly man over sixty years old named Guan Han. His position clearly indicated that he, too, held a certain status within the association.

Guan Han and Liu Chuan are notoriously at odds within the association. They often argue because of their differing opinions on music, and their students have been rivals for many years.

At this moment, Guan Han's words clearly showed that he was not giving Liu Chuan any face.

Hearing Guan Han's somewhat sarcastic words, Liu Chuan felt a chill in his heart, but his face remained expressionless:

"Of course, it is understandable to use stricter standards to treat excellent pianists. I also hope that Xiao Ning can go further. Please, all the teachers, do not go easy on her."

"There are quite a few outstanding contestants in this competition. I'm afraid your star pupil won't be able to go very far this time," Guan Han said.

Upon hearing this, the judges showed expressions of great interest, as if they had remembered something interesting.

The emphasis on "outstanding contestants" here is clear to everyone; it doesn't mean there are actually many outstanding contestants, but rather it's an allusion to contestant number eight—Su Ruxue.

Three years ago, he was the pride of the entire Jinchuan music scene, and the association's former star pianist. After disappearing for three years, he has returned to the competition.

Ning Lei is Liu Chuan's student whom he has been cultivating with all his might. The young man is exceptionally talented and became a second-level cellist at the age of only 21. He is a true prodigy.

For the past two years, Liu Chuan has been intentionally grooming him to be the association's rising star, preparing him to become the next Su Ruxue and compete in the biennial Longqin Cup, which will begin this year. To participate in the Longqin Cup, one must first become Jin Chuan's top cellist.

However, Liu Chuan never expected that Su Ruxue would return at this very moment, becoming a huge obstacle in front of his student.

Although most people in the association don't have a good impression of Su Ruxue now because of what happened three years ago, and some even dislike her, it's still very interesting to see the "second generation of Su Ruxue" trained by Teacher Liu Chuan clashing head-on with Su Ruxue.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing Guan Han's "well-intentioned reminder," Liu Chuan not only did not get angry, but instead revealed a meaningful smile.

"I believe in my students."

As the audition ended, Ning Lei picked up his bow on the stage.

All the audience members held their breath.

Ning Lei lowered his bow, and melodious music began to fill the air.

The song, titled "White Crescent," is a pop song with a distinct style.

The melody is melodious and smooth, with a gentle and flowing prelude that rises and falls in the climax. The music progresses layer by layer, and the repeated changes in high and low make the music feel very rebellious.

Watching from backstage, Su Ruxue couldn't help but get a little hooked, her fingers gently tapping along to the rhythm.

It's a piece of music with a really strong auditory impact.

The fact that Ning Lei was able to perform this piece so well on the cello is enough to show his profound instrumental skills. He finished the entire piece smoothly without making a single mistake.

Compared to the previous five contestants, this level of skill is simply a game-changer. It's unbelievable that such a young man could possess such skill; his talent is truly terrifying.

Moreover, as expected of excellent pop music, even after it ended, the melody lingered in Lin Han's mind for a while.

Seeing how strong this contestant was, Lin Han was afraid that Su Ruxue would become nervous again.

After the performance, Lin Han quickly turned back to encourage Su Ruxue: "Although this guy named Ning Lei played really well..."

"It doesn't matter."

Su Ruxue turned her head and smiled faintly at Lin Han.

“I have you.”