The wealthy military officer spoils his wife excessively

The three judges invited to this competition are from three major companies: Starry Sky Entertainment, Huayi Brothers, and Global Entertainment. The winner will receive a cash prize of one million yuan, a Volkswagen, and the opportunity to debut with any of the three companies. Suwen also learned from Ye Zi that Huayi Brothers sponsored the competition, so as a company-recommended contestant, she was directly placed in the top 50, skipping the fierce competition in the preliminary rounds.

Although the quality of talent shows varies from year to year, there is never a lack of outstanding individuals. Su Wen thought with a sense of luck: if it weren't for this, she would probably have been eliminated before she even had a chance to show her face.

"Numbers 26 to 30, get ready to go on stage—"

Suwen was number 28. She stood in the middle of the queue, nervously walking onto the stage.

They don't have a professional makeup artist yet; they style and do their own clothes and makeup. So, the five of them lined up on stage, each with a distinct style.

Among them were some who kept their talents hidden. Yuan Yuquan, number 26, was the first to perform. She sat in front of the keyboard, skillfully adjusting the microphone. When the judges asked her about the song she was going to sing, she replied casually, "I couldn't sleep last night, so I wrote a song on the spot. It doesn't have a name yet."

"A piece written in one night?" The three judges were either surprised or curious.

Yuan Yuquan sang and played the guitar, her expression one of deep concentration and focus. The clean, clear melody and the soaring vocals at the climax stunned the entire audience, leaving even the judges speechless. With all three red lights flashing simultaneously, unsurprisingly, she would be one of the advancing contestants.

The remaining spot will be chosen from the remaining four people.

When it was Suwen's turn, she sang one of her best pop songs. To add more flair to the performance, she also performed a pole dance.

When the singing started, the judges didn't show much expression, but when it came to the dancing, they couldn't help but widen their eyes. Wei Guang, a popular producer and lyricist and one of the judges from Starry Night, even clapped and laughed heartily without any attempt to hide it.

The judge sent by Huayi Brothers was Xue Shaofeng. He had just joined Huayi Brothers and needed more exposure. Moreover, he had released six albums in eight years since his debut, two of which were double platinum, a record he absolutely deserved.

"You danced very well, you really had the feel of a dancer. Many people can dance, but I saw that rhythm in you. As for the song, it was just average, the high notes were a little lacking, there's still a lot of room for improvement. If this were a typical singing competition, you might have been eliminated already, but our competition selects artists with star potential, not just those who sing well, so I'm letting you pass. I hope you can perform even better in the upcoming competitions," said Xue Tianwang.

Two of the three judges pressed the red light to advance, and Suwen barely passed.

Zhou Mo, who was waiting outside, gave her a big bear hug. Some were happy, some were sad. The eliminated contestants gathered together and cried their hearts out. She could understand their frustration, but she didn't have much time to be happy, because the road ahead wouldn't be easy. Judging from today's performance, she would be the one eliminated in the next round.

"Want to celebrate with you later? I'll sacrifice myself again and help you practice your singing." Zhou Mo made it sound nice, but when they got there, she just hogged the microphone and sang until she was completely out of it.

She looked up at the sky and said, "I'll go back to the company and discuss the song selection for the top 20 with the teacher."

She's received her entry card these past few days and started training with other trainees at Huayi Brothers. However, there are more trainees than available spots, and the other trainees also have their own debut plans, so the teachers can't dedicate more time to coaching her just because she's participating in a competition. Plus, sometimes when the artists need to rehearse, they have to give up their practice rooms, sit and watch, and then clean up after the artists finish.

As was the case today, after the teacher corrected a few of her pronunciations, she went to attend to other people, so Suwen simply took her paper and pen and went to the composition room by herself.

Choosing a song... this is such a headache. She had listed several song titles on a piece of paper and was repeatedly scribbling over them with a pen.

The door to the composition room was pushed open, and Suwen turned around and saw that it was the Heavenly King Xue Shaofeng himself. She couldn't help but stand up from her chair.

"It's you?" Xue Shaofeng was taken aback, clearly remembering her performance in the photography studio earlier.

Suwen composed herself and quickly introduced herself: "I am Nie Suwen, number 28, and also a reserve newcomer at Huayi Brothers." The Heavenly King is busy and may not remember her name.

Xue Shaofeng smiled meaningfully. In fact, when he accepted the invitation to be a judge in the competition, he was instructed by his superiors to pay special attention to a contestant named Nie Suwen.

He walked to the table, picked up the piece of paper she had scribbled on, glanced at it, and asked her, "Are you going to sing this song?"

Suwen, not knowing what he meant, nodded.

Sing it to me.

“Here…” she exclaimed, her eyes widening in surprise.

"Do you need accompaniment?" he said, reaching for his guitar.

It seems there was a misunderstanding. Suwen quickly shook her head, cleared her throat, and began to sing a cappella.

Xue Shaofeng leaned back in his swivel chair, listening while stroking his chin as if deep in thought. When still, he was as exquisite and perfect as a statue. As expected of an artist, every movement was impeccable.

After the song ended, she nervously rubbed her hands together, just like she had on stage. At that moment, Xue Shaofeng was like a judge to her. Just as she was about to speak, Xue Shaofeng suddenly asked her, "Have you ever listened to music?"

Suwen shook his head blankly.

The other person explained to her, "It's a type of Black pop music in the West, with an ethereal singing style that's almost like a cappella. Your voice is actually very distinctive, rich and deep, but its weakness is also obvious: it lacks high notes. There aren't many singers in China who can sing like this now, so if you can master it, it will be a huge advantage."

"Have you heard this song? 'Killing Me Softly with His Song'." He wrote the song title on a piece of paper and handed it to her.

Suwen shook his head again.

The king of pop looked somewhat dejected. This song was one of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time; how did this girl even get into the competition?

He buried himself in writing on the paper for a long time, then handed it to Suwen again—the lyrics and music for this song. But Suwen just stared blankly at the sheet music.

"Can't read music?"

"Hmm..." Suwen really wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

Xue Shaofeng reluctantly picked up his guitar: "Then I'll sing a line, and you sing along."

"That's not a good idea... I'd rather find the original singer and learn from them." Suwen blushed, thinking, "Letting the Heavenly King teach me to sing is really..."

There was a computer with internet access in the composition room, and she was about to turn it on when Xue Shaofeng stopped her.

"I suggest you don't listen to the original singer first, it's too easy to be influenced. The stage never needs unchanging copy machines. Blindly imitating the original singer has no future. If you can't sing in your own style, you will be eliminated."

Suwen stood there, motionless.

He picked up the pick and plucked a note: "Okay, let's sing it first. I'll only sing it once, and then you can figure out the singing method that suits you best."

The Heavenly King performed live, a cappella at that. If Zhou Mo were here, she'd probably have a nosebleed. However, Su Wen didn't have much time to be distracted, because she was about to sing the entire song herself. Fortunately, the piece was simple, with many repeated melodies, and after one listen, she had almost completely mastered it.

After finishing his song, Xue Shaofeng put down his guitar and said, "Wait a minute, the repeated parts here can be slightly modified, and here, add a humming section." As he spoke, he made changes to the sheet music and told her, "The judges are all creators. If the performance piece is recomposed by yourself, you will receive extra points."

Then he turned a knob on the control panel behind him and said to her, "Come on, sing it yourself."

With the Heavenly King giving her such dedicated guidance, she would be ashamed if she didn't take it seriously. So she put in her best effort and sang it carefully according to her own understanding.

Xue Shaofeng would sometimes lightly strum the guitar strings, and sometimes turn to the side and flick a few knobs on the control panel. After she finished singing, Xue Shaofeng pressed the button with satisfaction and said, "Listen to yourself."

As the sound waves rippled across the computer screen, her own voice came through the speakers. Suwen touched her throat in surprise, as if she couldn't believe it. It was the first time she had ever heard her own voice this way, and it felt so... different.

"Not bad, right? Practice more, and you'll gradually get the hang of it. Leave the accompaniment to the producers at the company; after all, they're the professionals, and I'm just a half-baked amateur. But you'll have to go to the recording studio yourself to help with the recording."

He was so thoughtful, even considering the accompaniment track for her: "I don't know how to thank you enough..."

Xue Shaofeng said calmly, "Then let's make it into the top ten. Don't embarrass the company."

"Okay, sure." She smiled slightly at him.

This surprised Xue Shaofeng.

Others either idolize him excessively or fawn over him with ulterior motives. Few are like her, who simply treats him as an equal friend. Should we say that she is a newcomer who is fearless because she is ignorant, or that she is naturally indifferent?

Inside the building, a group of people greeted the new owner like stars surrounding the moon on his first visit to the company. Today's main purpose was to finalize some previously negotiated shareholdings. Xiao Rong had arranged to meet Lu Zheng, and the two, introduced by a Huayi director, toured the company with several other senior executives.

Lu Zheng had no interest in this place to begin with; dealing with those sycophants was Xiao Rong's job. With his hands in his pockets, he idly looked around. As he passed a room, he heard a soft singing coming from the half-open door. His gaze pierced through the layers of blinds, and he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

When they stopped, everyone else stopped too.

"Lu Zheng, what's wrong?" Xiao Rong turned around and urged.

"It's nothing." Lu Zheng walked over without looking up, his face expressionless.