Chapter 215: This Failure Is Totally Off The Charts
Yu Wei stood at the edge of the stage in the shadows, taking a deep breath, listening to Aunt Chen announcing vividly on stage.
Yu Wei, this name at the peak of popularity, now weighed like a heavy stone on everyone’s heart.
The mediocrity of the first two programs had dropped the entire concert atmosphere to freezing point, and he, as the mid-show finale performer, bore the heavy responsibility of reversing the situation.
The concert now urgently needed an inspirational song to salvage the scene…
“Next, please enjoy Yu Wei’s ‘Red Sun’!”
The lights dimmed, and Yu Wei had no time to react before stepping toward the center of the stage.
Chen Jinyi, coming off stage, met his gaze; in that instant, Yu Wei read the expectation and encouragement in her eyes, but unlike before the opening, her eyes this time were full of reverence.
It was reverence for the audience and the stage.
Those veteran artists who had persevered on stage for a decade like one day were not driven by obsession with art or soaring ambitions, but simply because they held reverence in their hearts.
They were not saints; they too would complain about being tired and underpaid, and had scheming and utilitarian thoughts, but the moment they stood on stage, they were responsible to every audience member.
This was the most important thing.
A spotlight hit Yu Wei, outlining his slightly youthful silhouette.
In fact, he was the second youngest among the guests at this concert; his brilliance was so intense that many had forgotten Yu Wei was only in his early twenties.
The audience in the VIP seats watched him with great interest; so this was Wang Qi’s trump card?
“Yu Wei is here, Yu Wei has arrived!”
“I have a feeling a new god is born.”
“Sing something more energetic, I’m about to fall asleep.”
Singing at a large concert is completely different from a program because there are too many songs; the audience’s attention continuously drops—at least when Yu Wei watched galas, playing on his mobile phone was the norm.
At such times, there’s only one method to break the deadlock: start crisp; slow builds can’t save a sluggish scene—only a direct explosion offers a chance.
“Even if destiny is turbulent and displaced
Even if destiny is twisted and bizarre…”
The intro had not fully ended when Yu Wei jumped the beat and started singing.
This sudden change stunned the accompaniment band; jumping the beat—how could Yu Wei make such a low-level mistake?
But the jump happened, and it was particularly obvious—even audience members who didn’t understand music could hear it clearly.
The sense of discrepancy between the singing and accompaniment was so strong that they even forgot Yu Wei was singing in Cantonese; this was a low-level mistake that neither the previous actor nor the young fresh meat would make—yet he made it?
Nervous?
But Yu Wei’s actions were faster than their reactions; after the first line rehearsal ended, it seamlessly connected to the real first line, with rhythm judgment extremely precise.
He showed no hesitation, finally properly joining the main verse.
“Even if destiny is turbulent and displaced
Even if destiny is twisted and bizarre
Even if destiny intimidates you into a joyless life
Don’t shed tears or feel sadness, and don’t give up
I wish to accompany you forever in this lifetime.”
The entire verse was sung in one go, and more importantly, the repeated first line was much more uplifting than the first time; the highly penetrating singing instantly pierced the stagnant atmosphere on-site.
From understated to passionate and grand, separated by just one breath—not too early, not too late.
At the center of the stage, Yu Wei gripped the microphone tightly; he completely abandoned the original bland first line, injecting blood and sharpness instead—the drastic change caught the audience off guard.
It was like a pair of hazy peach-blossom eyes unveiled after removing thick lenses, shocking all audience members’ hearts.
Even the most oblivious could see by now that Yu Wei did it intentionally; the jump was perfectly timed and obvious—not a mistake, but brewing…
After the brewing came a complete explosion.
The singing rose high again, not only conveying the inspirational essence of the song but also infusing an unyielding attitude toward life’s pressures, as if burning away all hesitation and insecurity.
He effortlessly pushed his voice to the peak, with breath steady as a boulder; his outstanding vocal music control was astounding.
Everyone instantly understood why the song was called Red Sun; this was the fire of the red sun igniting confusion.
This was more like it!
A few VIP audience members exchanged glances; it was about time—they were clearly very satisfied.
The audience in front of screens was already hyped; the rapid 132 beats per minute were very dense, paired with Yu Wei’s highly tense singing, instantly sweeping away the earlier boredom and lassitude.
If all the concert’s songs were at this level, they could listen until dawn!
Yu Wei’s voice was high, but the unique storytelling timbre in it did not fade; when singing “how many times fallen and tears shed in pouring rainy nights,” this feeling was especially evident.
He seemed to be recounting his days at rock bottom, ignored as bottom tier, despised as a replacement.
But immediately, his voice filled with strength again: “In this lifetime, crooked and winding, I must walk through!”
The crowd seemed to witness Yu Wei’s rise to prominence; this authenticity easily moved people.
The music entered the climax, with rhythm suddenly accelerating.
Yu Wei’s voice soared a few notches in a show-off-skills manner; the camera close-up captured the sweat beads on his forehead and the seriousness in his eyes.
This was not mere performance, but a musician’s reverence.
Chen Jinyi, seated below stage, smiled knowingly, rarely lifting her head with a proud expression; this was more like someone who could beat Old Chen…
Drums pounded fiercely, guitar wailed, Yu Wei’s voice slicing through the sky like a sharp sword.
“Like the fire of the red sun
Ignite the real me!”
The lights team’s cooperation was perfect; the entire stage was instantly flooded with red lights.
More and more people lifted their heads, focusing on the young yet fully immersed singer on stage, like watching a red sun slowly rising.
No need to fish anymore; he was indeed the newborn sun—stars could not hinder his steps; whether he blazed in the sky depended only on him.
The music entered the final loop; Yu Wei released all his energy without reservation—his white shirt soaked with sweat, yet his face bloomed with a smile rarely shown on stage.
Before, he always felt he was that failure writer, keeping a distance from the stage from beginning to end.
But these days of rehearsal made him realize that at least on stage, he should enjoy the music itself and be responsible to every audience member.
At this moment, on-site applause thundered, and online viewers broke 500,000.
Yu Wei’s singing was not only uplifting but also paved the way for the next two segments, leaving the audience with high spirits and expectation for the upcoming patriotic chapter.
“You scared me to death…”
Wang Qi breathed a sigh of relief seeing the surging online live broadcast data; earlier he really thought Yu Wei had made a mistake due to fatigue—the afternoon’s sudden rehearsal was indeed grueling.
He didn’t expect Yu Wei to feint; the mistake was fake, drawing attention was real—it had his heart racing up and down.
But precisely because of Yu Wei’s sudden whim with the first line rehearsal, the performance achieved far beyond normal effects.
This kid had nerves of steel; ordinary people wouldn’t dare do this on the spot—if mastery of the song was insufficient, it could easily backfire and cause the whole thing to collapse.
Though the process was thrilling, the result was perfect—not only did the concert sweep away the earlier low atmosphere, but those VIPs also looked clearly satisfied.
What the higher-ups wanted was not just positive songs, but the upward spirit of the youth; Yu Wei’s performance perfectly met the standard.
Moreover, singing this song in Cantonese was brilliant; for both returned and unreturned, it was an open display.
Singing it was one thing; singing it well was another.
Passing the ball to Yu Wei was indeed the right choice; old singers seek stability, young ones lack the ability—only he would choose high-risk playing style and deliver it.
But seeing the sweat-drenched Yu Wei taking his bow, Wang Qi couldn’t help but worry anew; after giving his all, would he have strength left for the second song?
Netizens didn’t know Yu Wei had another song; just this one already satisfied everyone—seeing such a shocking performance made the concert worthwhile.
“This song’s melody has something special; I can hum it after one listen.”
“The lyrics are impeccable; even in Cantonese, I understood it all.”
“It’s fired up; this is what an inspirational song should be.”
“For positive energy, it has to be Yu Wei—authoritative!”
Only after coming back to their senses did they realize Yu Wei might have been fishing from the start, deliberately singing casually to lure in haters, supporters, and netizens.
But he really succeeded; one listen and no one spoke—haters would get hyped too.
Qi Luo An screenshot bullet comments while watching the live broadcast, having a great time; first time seeing such a serious Yu Wei—full power was different.
She had seen Yu Wei’s rehearsal video; his singing then was unusually steady—didn’t expect him to go even further this time.
Qi Luo An thought Yu Wei would rest before replying, but right after going off stage, the message came, asking her to rate him.
“8.5, missing a bit of me.”
Got a bit excited listening to the song; no more acting, time to be arrogant.
“Rest well; there’s more later.”
Other audience didn’t know Yu Wei had another song, but Qi Luo An was the exception; in a sense, she had participated in the second song too.
The cost of giving full effort was being drenched in sweat; Yu Wei indeed needed to recover now.
Luckily, the second song was in the middle of the fourth part; his rest time was ample.
On the stage background big screen, a landscape scroll slowly unfolded; the concert’s third segment had begun.
The opening national team musician sang a red song powerfully, creating a hot-blooded on-site atmosphere, but everyone knew without Yu Wei’s rescue performance, the third stage wouldn’t hold up.
Even the most hot-blooded song following bland fare would cool off; Yu Wei’s performance could be said to have reversed the situation.
“Can the god of music bless me a little?”
Chi Leying, waiting in the wings, wanted to get a good luck charm from Yu Wei; half his performance would satisfy her.
“Go for it; and revere the stage.”
Just the bond, strangling generation after generation…
Chi Leying nodded as if understanding, then stepped into the waiting channel.
Soprano singer Yu Xia, in a modified red cheongsam, pushed the main melody to climax with “My Motherland.”
Seeing “Youth” following right after on the program list, netizens still couldn’t make sense of it.
If this song were in the inspirational section, the opening atmosphere wouldn’t have been so low; why put it in the patriotic sentiment part?
They were both curious and puzzled, but Yu Wei’s song was good anyway; listening to the real person version wasn’t a loss.
Lights gradually dimmed, music rose; Chi Leying, in a red long dress, slowly walked to the grand stage center, with golden year words appearing on the background big screen.
Wait, which “Youth” is this?
The familiar melody was still familiar, but the song info in the bottom right of the screen clearly read “Youth” (New Lyric Version).
Lyrics by Yu Wei, so this new lyric writing was also by Yu Wei?
Gentle intro rose; Chi Leying closed her eyes, gripped the microphone, and began the first line with a warm and powerful voice.
“1921, the solemn chapter begins.”
The audience seats gradually quieted; countless gazes focused on her.
Not ordinary—this new version was clearly not ordinary; the first line completely threw them off—what is this, tell me what this is?
Yu Wei really hid something, and hid a big one…
A few VIP audience below stage immediately showed joy—not just appreciation for the song’s theme, but also surprise at Yu Wei.
This kid is interesting; not only good at positive energy, but can deliver even more righteous stuff—got it all straightened out by him.
