"Who is Xu Qingqiu? She looks so young. How old is this singer?"

Zheng Qiuming, originally sitting in a chair among the audience, was taken aback as Xu Qingqiu revealed her face, especially given the atmosphere in the venue at that moment.

But he genuinely didn't know who Xu Qingqiu was, so he had to ask the staff member next to him.

"Her... She's probably only 25, right? A singer who's become very popular recently; she just released an album a few months ago that was a massive hit."

"Album? Which album? Is it 'Set Sail with Dreams'?"

"Right, exactly that one. I heard the sales were explosive."

"Ah! Now I remember, she is Xu Qingqiu! I was wondering why that name sounded so familiar; I just couldn't place her for a moment!"

"I've listened to that album too. It's a classic! I even asked someone to get me a physical copy to collect. And now that I've met her in person, I didn't recognize her!"

Zheng Qiuming slapped his thigh, a look of annoyance on his face. He had previously thought this young singer was very impressive and had even planned to get to know her.

Hearing her name now, he couldn't believe he hadn't made the connection earlier. However, aside from annoyance, his face displayed more appreciation and happiness.

"Indeed, she really is incredible. When I listened to her album, I even said this young singer's skills were excellent; it was obvious she'd put in a lot of hard work. And yet, after we've competed on the same stage so many times, I never guessed it was her. Now I've experienced it firsthand. She's just 25 years old—truly, the new generation surpasses the old. The young people nowadays are something else."

The staff member beside him had a strange expression upon hearing Zheng Qiuming's words.

It wasn't like that at all! Not all young people were this freakishly talented. This Xu Qingqiu was an exception—she was a monster!

But for a moment, he didn't know what to say, and could only stare blankly at Xu Qingqiu on stage, his mouth agape, his own face filled with bewilderment.

"Could it be lip-syncing?"

"Who knows, they might have used a substitute singer. This isn't some kind of setup, is it?"

"How old is Xu Qingqiu anyway? She nearly caused Zheng Qiuming a major upset in her earlier performances, can you believe it?"

"I don't believe it, this is too fake. The others are veterans in their fifties, survivors of the golden age of music, and how old is she? Did she start practicing in the womb?"

After the immense shock, some in the audience gradually began to feel skeptical.

There was an uproar beneath the stage. Most of the spectators were staring at the figure on stage, utterly astonished.

Honestly, anyone would find it hard to believe that a singer in her twenties could go toe-to-toe with a veteran superstar in his fifties.

This was just too fantastical. They preferred to believe there was some foul play involved rather than accept this reality.

But the production team members, who had been involved in the entire recording process, could only look conflicted.

As staff, they knew very well that there were no substitute singers; the person on stage was the genuine contestant.

All her performances were sung live by her personally; the microphones were always on. They had never seen any body doubles, pre-recorded tracks for lip-syncing, or anything of that sort.

Yet they didn't know how to debunk the audience's speculation, because even they found the result hard to accept.

It was just too damned fantastical!

Chu Tian, watching this scene unfold, simply stood upstairs with a satisfied smile.

It wasn't fantastical at all. In truth, if it were a matter of sheer skill and experience, Xu Qingqiu was far behind these older generations. But this competition wasn't about overall strength; it was about stage presence, about the performance. He was guiding her—someone with his past life's vast experience and deep understanding of the industry's various operational strategies. By playing to her strengths while mitigating her weaknesses, and with full promotional packaging, bridging some gaps under specific conditions wasn't too difficult. This was a trick commonly employed by talent agencies. As someone who had debuted from a talent show, he was all too familiar with it. In his previous life, someone who couldn't hold a tune could be packaged as a top-tier singer, even cramming before a competition to win the championship. This was nothing in comparison.

"Host, don't zone out! Hurry up and proceed with the show!"

The director frantically cued the host to move on with the proceedings. This snapped Big Dragon on stage back to reality; he quickly closed his agape mouth and regained his composure.

"Are you really Xu Qingqiu?"

"Yes, I am. Is there a fake one?"

"No, no, it's just that I'm so shocked. Do you know who you're competing against?"

Xu Qingqiu honestly shook her head; she really didn't know.

"I'm not really sure, but they're all incredible. I feel like every one of them is a senior, and I get so nervous every time I go on stage."

"Well, let me tell you, I don't actually know either! But with you standing here, *I'm* the one who's a bit nervous."

"..."

With their exchange, the rhythm on stage finally returned to normal.

The champion and runner-up had been unmasked. Next, it was time for the other singers to come on stage for their reveals.

There were essentially no problems at this point. Chu Tian saw Xu Qingqiu return backstage, so he also left the control room.

"Wei, how's the preparation for the closing concert we talked about coming along?"

Arriving in the director's office, Chu Tian plopped down next to Wei Liangxiao and asked.

"I've already discussed it with them. But this time, the program's recording schedule was very tight, and it messed up everyone's personal schedules quite a bit, so it can't be arranged on short notice."

"We'll probably have to wait for half a month until everyone's schedule lines up. We've tentatively set it for then."

"Alright, you handle the rundown yourself. I have faith in your abilities."

"You say that as if you'd lift a finger yourself! Just keep working me like a horse!"

Chu Tian chuckled lightly, not taking the bait. He had long grown accustomed to their complaints.

That was nothing. President Hou Yichuan's teasing was on another level compared to Wei's; his remarks were far sharper and more acerbic, yet I still just played deaf.

"You handle the rest. I'm heading back. Oh, and remember the confidentiality agreements, especially for the audience. There are still dozens of days before the broadcast."

"Don't worry, they've all signed. Each person got an extra thousand. With hundreds of thousands invested, if anyone leaks this, I'll sue them until they're bankrupt!"

There was no choice. These six hundred audience members were all selected from the initial auditions and had been vetted multiple times. Besides appearance fees and travel expenses, they also received their full confidentiality fees.

A thousand yuan might not seem like much, but for six hundred people, that added up to six hundred thousand! If they leaked anything after being paid, they'd either be foolish or ignorant of the law.

After settling these matters, Chu Tian left in a hurry.

These past few days, he'd been away from the studio often and felt a bit uneasy, as if someone was constantly watching him.

Of course, there was another matter: Xu Qingqiu had won runner-up. Although she wasn't the ultimate King of Songs, achieving such a result among a field of such powerful contestants was already something to be incredibly proud of.

So, a celebration banquet was definitely in order. Chu Tian had already booked a place, originally intending it as a consolation dinner in case Xu Qingqiu was eliminated.

He hadn't expected it to turn into a victory celebration instead—a pleasant surprise, indeed.

[I've finished recording the show]

As he was busy arranging the private room, a message from Xu Qingqiu arrived, right on cue.

[Finished? How did it go?]

[Sorry, I let you down. I got eliminated~]

Heh, what an actress, Chu Tian looked at the message on his phone and couldn't help but smile. If he hadn't been there himself, he really might have been fooled by this girl. Who would have thought that Xu Qingqiu, with her honest-looking face, could tell lies so smoothly, without even blinking.

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