Chapter 101: One Battle Decides Everything, This Must Be the Most Beautiful MV
There’s a saying that goes, “Love me, love my dog.”
When you like a celebrity, you’ll like watching all the shows they participate in, and you’ll like using the brands they endorse.
This is the celebrity effect!
“They’re all my favorite celebrities. Dragon TV, I’m officially a fan! The best TV station there is!”
“A genius music producer, a singing competition champion, and the exclusive lyricist for King Chou. You can’t find another judge combination like this. Only Jay Chou and Stefanie Sun coming here could compete.”
“Go, Xu Song!”
“Ma Tianyu is so cute.”
“…”
As the competition continued, the viewership kept growing.
When commenting on the contestants, Shen Qing, Zhang Liangying, and Fang Wenshan also contributed many laughs. All three of them were eloquent and had a sense of humor, especially the somewhat reserved Fang Wenshan.
Because it was live, it generated a lot of buzz.
However, their critiques were not vague at all; they were very professional and sharp.
Shen Qing, in particular, showed no mercy.
Ma Tianyu, who performed first, was almost brought to tears by him.
“It’s been almost half a month, and I still don’t hear any improvement in your singing skills. If you were to record songs in the studio now, the recording engineer would go crazy. You’re not recording line by line, but word by word… Keep working hard!”
Whenever this happened, Liangying would feel awkward saying anything harsher. She would explain on Shen Qing’s behalf.
Take Ma Tianyu, who was almost crying, for example. Zhang Liangying told him, “Don’t take it to heart. Teacher Shen Qing has a sharp tongue but a kind heart. When I sang poorly before, he said much harsher things, but I improved rapidly under his guidance…”
Wenshan also said, “Actually, you are a contestant with great potential. Teacher Shen Qing is strict with you because he sees your promise. I hope you continue to do your best in the next round…”
…
Until the moment the competition ended, the fans were reluctant to part, wishing for another two hours of overtime.
Finally.
The contestants who placed in the top five in the Wuhan Division, ranked from highest to lowest, were: Xu Song, Yu Haoming, Ma Tianyu, Wei Bin, and Chen Yichuan.
Among this group, Yu Haoming likely had the best singing skills. Xu Song winning first place was indeed a bit surprising.
However, if you understand the competition format, it makes sense.
Although the top five contestants were chosen by Shen Qing, Zhang Liangying, and Fang Wenshan, the final ranking of the five was determined by audience votes. Xu Song’s appearance was very appealing to younger students…
When the live broadcast concluded, Shen Qing and the other two judges went on stage to bid farewell to the eliminated contestants one by one, advising them on areas to focus on for their singing skills in the future.
It was meant to be encouragement for them.
Imagine, the Super Girl champion and the “celestial sister” telling them, “Keep it up, we believe in you, please work hard to achieve your star dreams.” Wouldn’t the contestants be excited?
Finally.
Shen Qing chatted with the top five contestants for a while longer before ending his work for the day and leaving the studio with Fang Wenshan and Zhang Liangying.
Meanwhile, far away in Changsha, Wang Peng, Vice Director Li, and others were silent, their heavy breathing deafening.
Vice Director Li leaned back in his chair and said expressionlessly, “Let’s talk. Share your opinions. How is Dragon TV doing? Wang Peng, you go first!”
Wang Peng: “They imitated us…”
Vice Director Li: “And then?”
Wang Peng stammered, “In some aspects, they surpassed us…”
Vice Director Li: “Just ‘some aspects’? List them for me. Let me see how many ‘some’ is. None of you are leaving until we clarify this tonight. All of you, write it down!”
…
The next day.
Major news headlines were dominated by 《 Come On! Boys 》.
【 Viewership crushed 《 Super Girl 》 during the same period. What magic does 《 Come On! Boys 》 possess? Let’s start with the three judges! 】
【 Fang Wenshan’s debut on a talent show was brilliant, with spot-on critiques. Jay Chou said Wenshan could debut. 】
【 Zhang Liangying and Shen Qing deeply analyzed contestants’ strengths and weaknesses, leaving people in awe. They truly are a genius music producer and a powerful singer. 】
【 Come On! Boys Chief Planner Long Danni: Last night’s 10-to-5 competition viewership has already surpassed Changsha Super Boy’s 50-to-10, and even exceeded the 2005 Super Girl Hangzhou Division finals. 】
【 … 】
Hotel Room 1705.
Fang Wenshan leaned against the headboard, flipping through the four newspapers he bought that morning. His name was on the front page of every single one.
Fang Wenshan had never seen such extensive coverage.
He felt secretly pleased!
His good impression of Shen Qing instantly soared.
That afternoon, he eagerly joined Shen Qing and Zhang Liangying to participate in Dragon TV’s entertainment program – 《 Entertainment Star World 》, where they discussed their feelings about the previous night’s live broadcast.
Fang Wenshan: “It felt very novel. Being a judge was a new experience for me, and it was also very stressful because every opinion I gave determined the contestants’ fate… Overall, last night was a perfect work experience, and I enjoyed it very much.”
Shen Qing: “Although it was Wenshan’s first time as a judge, his serious and responsible attitude earned him unanimous recognition from the contestants and the production team.”
Zhang Liangying: “Yes, even though Wenshan can be a bit shy, he’s truly very serious about his work. Before the live broadcast, he reviewed all the contestants’ profiles and even watched the preliminary selection videos twice. He was very familiar with each contestant’s situation!”
Finally.
It was time for the most important segment of their appearance on 《 Entertainment Star World 》 – promoting the new album.
Following the pre-arranged agreement, the host asked Zhang Liangying the final question: “Liangying, we heard your new album is releasing next month. Can you tell us how far along the album production is? Fans are really looking forward to it.”
Zhang Liangying: “Thank you, everyone. This album will definitely not disappoint you. Currently, all parts are completed except for the MV of the title song. Oh, and I have a surprise for everyone here: Wenshan will also make a cameo appearance in one of the MV’s roles…”
The host was very surprised: “Wow, really? That’s so exciting.”
Fang Wenshan: “I hope everyone will support Liangying’s new album. It’s truly fantastic, and every song is a masterpiece. Sometimes I wonder how Shen Qing’s mind works; the songs he writes are incredible.”
…
The next day.
Shen Qing first asked Liangying and Fang Wenshan to return to Beijing to shoot the MV.
Regarding the MV shoot, Shen Qing didn’t want to interfere too much, as he wasn’t particularly skilled in that area.
He always followed one principle: amateurs don’t direct professionals.
Moreover, the director for this MV shoot was also very famous – Kuang Sheng. He had collaborated with artists like Zhou, Wang, Tao, Lin, A-Mei, and Richie Jen, and was known as a genius in the MV industry.
Shen Qing planned to go to Nanjing first, stay for about a day, and then fly back to Beijing to focus on pre-release work for his new album.
In Nanjing, the preliminary selection for Absolute Singing had begun.
Tomorrow is Deng Ziqi’s first competition, and Shen Qing wanted to go support this 15-year-old girl from Hong Kong.
It was fortunate she had Hong Kong residency; otherwise, contestants from Mainland China wouldn’t even have had a chance to register.
