66: One meat and one vegetable tear gas

As Lu Qingyu stood on the stage, Chen Ting suddenly felt a bit nervous, as if his son were participating in a kindergarten arts performance. He sat below the stage watching, both looking forward to his child's performance and fearing he might fall asleep on stage during the act.

He had brought many artists onto shows before, but this was the first time he had ever felt this way.

When the name "one meat and one veggie" appeared on the screen, not only Chen Ting, but everyone was extremely curious.

Because no matter how you looked at it, this name didn't seem to have anything to do with the theme of "Family."

The audience members were all whispering to each other:

"Could it be that he couldn't come up with something for this theme, so he changed it at the last minute?"

"I think it's possible. But with a name like that, you really can't tell what he's planning to sing."

"Even if it's good, he probably won't get a high score. If it's unrelated to the theme of family, he's basically gone off-topic."

The melodious accompaniment slowly began to play, and the young girls who had been discussing below fell silent and began to listen.

Song Ke sat on the sofa watching Lu Qingyu. He admitted that Lu Qingyu's performance in the first two episodes was indeed brilliant, but he was sorry—now that he was here, he was going to end Lu Qingyu's glory.

On stage, amidst everyone's doubt and curiosity, Lu Qingyu began to sing.

"The sun rises and sets, deeper and deeper still"

"A small square table, with one meat and one veggie"

"A figure busily working with ease"

"A pair of hands giving warmth to this time"

"Those who are too young are always unsatisfied"

"Stubbornly unwilling to stop their distant steps"

"Gazing at the high sky, walking a long road"

"Forgetting to look back and see if she cried"

After the first verse, not a single distracted person could be seen in the venue. Even those who had been playing on their phones at the start, intending to just kill time during the song, had unknowingly put their phones down to listen seriously.

Song Ke was startled when the first verse finished. What had happened to him just now? Had he been immersed in the singing?

It was terrifying. When had he been drawn into the song?

Clearly, when Lu Qingyu sang the first two lines, he hadn't paid much attention and didn't even feel any sense of threat. But when he snapped out of it, how was he swaying his body along with the rhythm just like everyone else?

A cold sweat broke out on Song Ke's back. He suddenly had a bad premonition; his hopes for first place this time were likely in jeopardy.

Chen Ting looked at Lu Qingyu with eyes full of affection, feeling a sense of shared glory.

Meanwhile, Lou Qingran, Zhang Xiaoxiao, and several other veteran singers wore expressions of amazement, which only deepened as they continued to listen.

It was miraculous; the song's emotional resonance was incredibly powerful.

Even though the melody didn't have many ups and downs and the lyrics were plain and everyday, everyone immediately felt the breath of life within the song.

The more Song Ke listened, the more afraid he became. The imagery in the lyrics was too strong, and combined with Lu Qingyu's storytelling style of singing, it made one think of their own mother instantly.

On stage, Lu Qingyu closed his eyes and continued to sing:

"The moon is bright, the wind is light"

"But you are tapping on my windowpane"

"Hearing this, please don't worry"

"In fact, I'm doing quite alright"

Once this part was finished, the eyes of most of the audience members were red. Some who were deeply moved were already shedding tears.

They never knew that music could stir people's emotions so naturally.

Zhao Min was out delivering food. Having run around all day, he was so tired he didn't even want to speak.

He took out a steamed bun he'd bought at the market, preparing to eat to regain some strength before continuing his deliveries into the night. While resting, he opened his phone and happened upon this live stream. Hearing the singing, he left it on to listen for a while.

Who would have thought that upon listening, his tears would start flowing uncontrollably? Especially at the line "In fact, I'm doing quite alright." He remembered calling his mother just yesterday; she had asked how he was doing out there. To keep his family from worrying, he said he was doing well, eating well, living well, and that his work wasn't tiring.

He hadn't cried when he was lying, but now he suddenly couldn't stop the tears. He was actually very tired; the work was exhausting, he wasn't eating well, and he missed home so much—he missed the food his mother cooked.

Outsiders didn't know what was happening; they only saw a man in a delivery uniform, still chewing on a bun, covering his mouth with one hand while sobbing uncontrollably.

People were still guessing if he had made a wrong delivery and been fined.

But Zhao Min couldn't take it anymore. He wanted to go home; he wanted to go back and see his mother.

"The moon is bright, the wind is light"

"Have you ever come into my dreams again?"

"It must be that you were too careful when you came"

"Knowing that I am a light sleeper"

While other people's choruses were sung with increasing intensity layer by layer, Lu Qingyu's chorus, even without high notes or much technique, still made people feel the emotional surge.

As the camera panned to the audience, regardless of whether they were men or women, tears were falling like crazy.

A huge number of people in the live stream chat were also crying:

"For the first time, my tears are out of control. I don't know why, I just want to cry."

"I feel a resonance; this scene feels like it happened between me and my mom."

"I can understand what's written in this song so well. Listening to it makes me miss my mother so much."

As long as the music didn't stop, the audience's tears didn't stop.

"It must be that you were too careful when you came"

"Fearing I would think of you again"

After the last two lines were sung, the accompaniment had already ended. Lu Qingyu finished the song and opened his eyes, only to be stunned.

Wasn't it a bit too quiet below the stage?

No way, could it be that this song doesn't work here? People aren't buying it?

The longer the silence lasted, the more anxious Lu Qingyu became, until the Host came on stage and said a few words. Suddenly, a burst of thunderous applause erupted from below, and Lu Qingyu finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He almost thought he was going to fail. Fortunately, people's perception of music is universal, and everyone was deeply moved.

Bullet screen: "Who said Lu Qingyu couldn't write songs about family? Come out and face your punishment."

"Listening to this song makes me feel even more sorry for Lu Qingyu. He must really long for a family member to cherish him."

"Don't worry, little brother, from now on we are your mothers. We will definitely cherish you like our own son."

After giving his thanks on stage, Lu Qingyu stood quietly, waiting for the Host to announce his vote count.

In the previous round, Song Ke's vote count was 2.11 million, which was very high. No one knew how many votes Lu Qingyu would get this time.

Everyone watched the screen anxiously. Song Ke's heart also rose into his throat; on the surface, he looked calm and composed, but in reality, his eyes never left the screen. With every step that huge progress bar on the screen moved forward, Song Ke's heart pounded.

Don't surpass it, don't surpass it, let my vote count be higher than Lu Qingyu's.

Song Ke kept chanting to himself, but unfortunately, his chanting was useless. As it approached 2.11 million votes, the progress bar didn't stop; instead, it zoomed past. In the end, Lu Qingyu received 2.3 million votes.

Seeing the vote count, Chen Ting was the first to jump up: "Good, well done!"

Lu Qingyu gave Chen Ting a smile and then slowly walked off stage. Chen Ting really couldn't help but muss up Lu Qingyu's hair.

Lu Qingyu was a bit displeased: "Don't mess up my hairstyle."

Chen Ting: "I won't, I won't. I know what I'm doing."

As he spoke, he smoothed back the tufts of hair he had ruffled on Lu Qingyu's head.