Chapter 57: The Taste of a Little Dreamer

With tears in her eyes, Xiaohan clutched the microphone, wanting nothing more than to run offstage. But Sweet Lu dashed up from behind, took the microphone from the host, and, with a loving glance, held Xiaohan’s hand. Her sweet voice rang out joyfully across the stage: “Though endless songs may drift far upon my journey, though countless stars may shine brighter than tonight’s moon, none can compare to this beautiful night, nor bring me more delight—because tonight, you sing with me…”

All the disappointment vanished from Xiaohan’s face, her big eyes curving into delighted crescents as she sang with Sweet Lu, growing more engaged with every line.

Dong Yanyan tapped the beat gently, thinking to herself what a touching display of sisterhood… But of course, this would mean a deduction in points! Still, a deduction was better than fleeing the stage in panic—at least it wasn’t so humiliating.

When the song ended and the judges buried themselves in their scoring sheets, Dong Yanyan glanced nervously at the beautiful Miss Yang. Miss Yang whispered a few words to Mr. Wang, smiled slightly, then raised her scorecard. Mr. Wang beside her gave a 6.0.

Dong Yanyan felt a bit more at ease. Breaking the competition’s rules and not being disqualified from scoring was already a stroke of luck.

“It’s a shame—forgetting those lines cost you at least three points. There were some understandable reasons, but the improvisation fell short,” Li Zhe remarked coolly, giving a 6.5.

Zhao Jing nodded, also giving a 6.5.

“The accompaniment malfunctioned—that’s just bad luck. But you rallied well afterward, so here’s an encouragement score.” Li Jian smiled, awarding the highest score: 7.6.

Zhao Jing stole a glance at Dong Yanyan, looking a little displeased.

The remaining judges displayed their scores in turn.

“Eliminating the highest score of 7.6 and the lowest of 6.0, contestant number three, Gu Xiaohan, receives a final score of 7.” Jiaxuan announced the total in a clear, ringing voice as the fourth contestant stepped onto the stage.

The final average was actually 7.0—seems luck plays a part in these competitions too. Dong Yanyan was a bit surprised at the outcome.

“I gave Xiaohan the lowest score. You’re not planning to take it out on our Jiaxuan, are you?” During a lull in the music, Li Zhe bit his pen and asked her in a half-joking whisper.

“Your scoring was fair and just, and I don’t abuse my authority,” Dong Yanyan replied with a lazy, squinting smile. “In fact, I’m looking forward to his performance—he chose one of my favorites this time.” This round, Ren Jiaxuan had selected an old Teresa Teng classic, “Strolling Down Life’s Path.” Being something of a Teresa Teng fan herself—especially after Jane Zhang’s cover—Dong Yanyan had become obsessed with the song, listening to every version she could find, so her anticipation was high.

As a fan of Ren, Dong Yanyan felt a flicker of excitement as he took the stage. The moment the familiar music started, she couldn’t help but tap her fingers along. Dressed in a sharp suit, Ren Jiaxuan strode confidently to the center, spun the microphone deftly in his hand, and launched into the first line with remarkable flair. Dong Yanyan sang along in her heart—his voice was so reassuring, as though strolling through a garden, and from the first note he held the audience captive. This upbeat song was particularly infectious; he only needed to sing a few lines to liven the entire hall. A professionally trained performer, his command of the stage was exceptional, and to top it off, his class of handsome boys and pretty girls joined in singing from below. For a moment, the whole world seemed set to a joyful rhythm.

Well, even Xiaohan’s backup singer had run onstage to help, and the teachers hadn’t objected—so why not?

Had Ren been born a few years later and joined “Super Boy,” his results would likely have been impressive, too. The only drawback was that his looks didn’t match Mango TV’s taste—they preferred faces with more “character,” not these conventional, indistinctly handsome types. Mango TV loved potato-faced boys, a whole crowd of potatoes watching meteor showers together—such harmony!

As Dong Yanyan let her mind wander, she suddenly noticed all the other judges sitting upright and smiling at the contestant, while she alone was swaying to the rhythm like a silly fangirl. She blamed her addiction to talent shows, stuck her tongue out mentally, then leaned back with a contented smile. Being a judge was wonderful—you could openly swoon over handsome guys.

This time, Li Jian was the first to reveal his score: a high 9.6. Zhao Jing gave a 9.5.

“Excellent, though two notes were a bit sharp—not quite perfect,” Dong Yanyan mused, awarding a 9.75.

The afternoon passed swiftly, and as Dong Yanyan had expected, apart from Gu Xiaohan, the other three from her class all made it to the semifinals.

Out of twenty semifinalists, their class had three—above average. For one of the school’s weakest classes, making it past the average line was no small feat. Of course, a class’s strength depended on its homeroom teacher. With someone like the beautiful Miss Yang, they were formidable indeed.

After the event, Zhao Jing went downstairs with Dong Yanyan, complaining, “Yanyan, why did you give the broadcasting class such high scores?!”

“You mean Ren Jiaxuan’s 9.7? He really did sing well. Besides, mine wasn’t even the highest—Mr. Wang gave him a 9.85,” Dong Yanyan replied nonchalantly. Why didn’t she mention that she’d given Xiaohan the lowest score? Only now did it occur to them that their classes were ‘brother’ classes.

From behind, Sweet Lu called her name. Turning, she saw Xiaohan too and stopped to wait for them. Xiaohan immediately pulled a long face and complained, “I was the only one from our class eliminated—so embarrassing!”

“You managed to get a 7.0 even after forgetting your lines. That proves you sang really well! You should be proud, right, Sweet Lu?” Dong Yanyan said with a smile. She had to comfort her properly—this girl was so easily wounded, and once hurt, she got angry, which always spelled trouble for others.

“That’s right! Even Xu Gang said you sang well,” Sweet Lu chimed in.

Xiaohan huffed and stomped her foot, but couldn’t hide her smile. Clearly, not all boys were the same—Liu Qiang could stutter around her for an hour and she’d be unmoved, but a single word from Xu Gang and she was over the moon.

The three of them made their way back to the first floor, where some students were playing ping-pong in the hall and others stood in line. Sweet Lu immediately spotted Xu Gang and waved.

Xu Gang hurried over, grinning from ear to ear. “Sweet Lu, you’re back! I was just about to ask you guys out.” He shook the movie tickets in his hand. “Three tickets—let’s all go together!”

“A trio! Then the three of us will go!” Dong Yanyan snatched the tickets from his hand, laughing.

Xu Gang scratched his head and chuckled.

“I’m just teasing—you three go ahead and have fun, but be back early!” she said, slipping the tickets into Xiaohan’s hand and giving her a knowing look.

“My mom’s coming over tonight, so I can’t make it. You guys go,” Sweet Lu said regretfully.

“Then the three of us it is. I’ll come find you at six,” Xu Gang said with a smile.