14: Is Chapter 14 finished? I'm so sleepy.

Hua Xingyu's voice echoed throughout the Studio via the amplification equipment.

"It's nothing special."

As these four words landed, the five hundred audience judges at the scene were stunned.

The barrage in the Livestream Room also came to a brief standstill.

Immediately after, a blinding red light flashed across the big screen.

That was the scoring device Hua Xingyu had pressed.

The number froze in the center of the screen: 61 points.

The minimum score the production team allowed for a Star Mentor was 60 points. He had given 61.

That extra point felt like charity.

The Studio went silent for two seconds, followed by an eruption of boos.

Everyone could see it—this wasn't scoring; it was humiliation.

Xue Zhiheng whipped his head around, staring at Hua Xingyu. He grabbed the microphone in front of him.

"Teacher Hua, are you serious?"

His voice carried obvious anger.

Hua Xingyu adjusted the gold-rimmed glasses on the bridge of his nose, looking composed.

"Teacher Xue, this is a talent show. We are here to select the idols of the future."

He looked at Jiang Fan on stage, his tone disdainful.

"His song has a cliché melody and a crude Arrangement. If someone can get a high score just by strumming a few chords on a guitar, then wouldn't every street busker be able to become a big star?"

Xue Zhiheng laughed in anger.

"Cliché? Crude?" He pointed at the big screen. "The core of this song is vitality, and you're talking to me about Arrangement? The most fundamental aspect of music is touching people's hearts."

Hua Xingyu spread his hands.

"I only value professionalism. He might have some talent, but this stage isn't suitable for him. My score has already been cast; I won't change it."

The barrage exploded.

"61 points? Giving the minimum possible score? Hua Xingyu, you really have the nerve."

"Rigged! Absolutely rigged!"

"The minimum is 60 and he gives 61; that extra point is just a fig leaf to cover his own shame, right?"

The atmosphere at the judges' table was tense.

Xu Qingya had remained silent the entire time, her gaze locked onto Jiang Fan.

Facing Hua Xingyu's disparagement and Xue Zhiheng's defense, Jiang Fan simply stood there quietly.

There was no anger, no grievance, he didn't even frown.

He held his guitar with one hand, gave Hua Xingyu an indifferent glance, then looked away, not bothering to look again.

"Jiang Fan." Seeing that the situation was about to spiral out of control, Teacher He quickly took the microphone and walked onto the stage, attempting to smooth things over.

"Do you have anything to say regarding Teacher Hua Xingyu's evaluation? You may defend your work."

All cameras were aimed at Jiang Fan. The entire audience held their breath, waiting for his counterattack.

Zhao Tianyu sneered in the waiting area.

As long as Jiang Fan dared to lose his temper on stage or say anything harsh, he would immediately be labeled as "disrespectful to teachers" and "arrogant."

Jiang Fan raised the microphone.

"Are you done?"

Four words, calm and without a ripple.

Hua Xingyu's expression darkened.

"If you're done, let's hurry up with the process. I'm sleepy."

No excuses, no anger.

A person with only four days of life left would not waste time on a mouthpiece for capital.

"You!" Hua Xingyu was choked speechless, his face turning livid, and he stood up abruptly. "What kind of attitude is that!"

Jiang Fan didn't even turn his head, looking directly at Teacher He.

"Can we proceed with the scoring?"

Teacher He swallowed hard; his professional instincts helped him react quickly.

"Right!" He raised his voice to suppress the restlessness of the scene. "The Star Mentor scoring is complete. Xue Zhiheng 98 points, Xu Qingya 95 points, Hua Xingyu 61 points. A total of 254 points."

Lu Ming in the waiting area quickly did the math.

254 points. His total score was 697.

That meant Jiang Fan needed to get over 443 points from the audience judges to surpass him.

At least four hundred and forty-three out of five hundred people had to vote for him. That was tough.

"Next, I ask the five hundred audience judges to press the scoring devices in your hands for Jiang Fan's 'the ordinary road'!" Teacher He announced loudly.

The numbers on the big screen began to jump. 100. 200. The speed was fierce, but Lu Ming wasn't nervous. Anyone could start strong; the key was the final stretch.

300. The growth rate had indeed slowed down. 350. 380. The numbers were hopping up one by one, like climbing a hill.

400. Lu Ming sat up straight. 410. His expression was becoming uneasy. 420. 430. This wasn't right.

He stared at the screen, his pupils slightly constricted. It was still rising. 440.

The air in the Studio seemed to have frozen. Everyone was doing the same math problem in their heads. If he surpassed 443, Jiang Fan would be first.

441. 442. Every time the number on the big screen jumped, Lu Ming's heart twitched along with it.

443. He was tied with him.

No one in the audience spoke; hundreds of eyes were glued to the screen.

444. Ding—a crisp alert sound resonated throughout the venue. The voting channel closed. The number froze. 444 points.

The scene was dead silent at first, then someone screamed.

Teacher He looked down at the numbers on his cue card three times, his voice trembling.

"Audience judge score, 444 points! Adding the 254 points from the Star Mentors, Jiang Fan's final total score is—698 points!"

He paused, taking a deep breath. "Surpassing Lu Ming's 697 points—First place!"

One point. Just one point.

The 61 points Hua Xingyu had given by sticking to the minimum authority, but the audience judges had forcefully filled that gap with 444 votes.

One extra point. Exactly one point.

In the waiting area, Lu Ming's fingers were digging hard into the edge of the seat, his nails sinking into the leather of the armrest.

697. 698. One point. He had lost by one point.

An amateur with no background, facing Hua Xingyu's 61 points, had managed to turn the tables purely through the audience judges. He had beaten him by one point.

At the judges' table, Hua Xingyu froze there, neither sitting nor standing.

He had given 61 points. If he had given the minimum of 60, Jiang Fan's total score would have been 697. Tied with Lu Ming. Not first place.

But he had insisted on giving that extra point. That point used for charity, used for humiliation. In the end, it became the point that rubbed his own face into the ground.

Xue Zhiheng laughed and shouted directly into the microphone, "This is real music!"

Jiang Fan looked at the score on the big screen, his expression unchanged. He bowed slightly to the audience.

Then he picked up his guitar case and turned to walk toward the exit.

He didn't give an acceptance speech, didn't thank the fans, and didn't even glance at the judges' table again. He left decisively.

Because at that moment, the system panel flashed a notification. [Target with high compatibility detected experiencing intense emotional fluctuations.] [Host's Charm Field has automatically activated and locked on.]

Jiang Fan knew, the fish had taken the bait.

The livestream ended in a frenzied atmosphere. Tencent Video's backend servers almost crashed due to the barrage of comments flooding in instantly.

The live clip of "the ordinary road" was uploaded to major short-video platforms within ten minutes, and the number of likes grew exponentially. The name Jiang Fan had completely blown up.