531: Chapter 531 Savior, Celebrity Invitation

"Good!"

Fang Cheng was the first to react. He shouted loudly from under the stage and clapped hard.

Wen Xin beside him was even more excited that she jumped up, clapping her small hands until they were red, and shouted loudly:

"Sister, you are amazing!!"

Immediately after, it was as if a fuse had been lit.

"Whoosh——"

Applause rang out successively from all directions, quickly converging into a deafening wave of sound.

Many enthusiastic audience members even stood up, whistled, and let out cheers.

They did not know this girl named Zhou Xiumei; they were simply conquered by the infectious song just now.

On the judges' bench, Cheng Jiashu took the lead in raising his hands to applaud.

The other two senior musicians, who were originally a bit reserved, glanced at each other, saw the look of astonishment in each other's eyes, and then also clapped hard.

In the console area of the broadcast hall, the atmosphere instantly became busy.

"Quick! Switch to camera position two, give a close-up of the face! Catch that look in her eyes!"

"Push the jib up, sweep the panoramic view, I want footage of the audience standing and applauding!"

While shouting orders into his headset, the director stared fixedly at Zhou Xiumei on the monitor.

Their eyes were sharper than anyone else's in this business.

Most contestants in this audition were just here to join in the fun, and it would be good enough if they could muddle through for some show time.

But the girl in front of them was different.

"These physical conditions, this voice recognition, and this natural sense of story... definitely an unpolished gem!"

The director rubbed his hands excitedly, already calculating subsequent publicity plans in his heart.

As long as they packaged her a little and hyped up the persona of a "Genius sickly young girl", this would definitely be the next ratings explosion point!

"This contestant."

During the comments segment, Cheng Jiashu picked up the microphone, leaned forward, and his tone carried sincerity:

"Your timbre is very special, with a natural sense of fragility, like transparent glass."

"But when it reached the high notes of the chorus, your vocal transition point was handled extremely smoothly, bursting with astonishing power."

"This sense of contrast is very captivating. At that moment just now, I even forgot this was an audition site, thinking I was at a friend's ten-thousand-person concert."

Speaking of this, he paused, staring burningly at Zhou Xiumei:

"Is this song 'Until the End of the World' written by you?"

Holding the microphone, Zhou Xiumei shyly glanced at that corner off stage and said honestly:

"No, it was created by a friend of mine. He gave it to me and encouraged me to participate in this competition."

Following her gaze, Cheng Jiashu thoughtfully glanced at the tall figure in the crowd, and the smile at the corner of his mouth grew deeper:

"Your friend is very talented. And you have given this song a perfect life."

After speaking, he raised the green "Pass" sign in his hand without hesitation.

"Wow."

Holding the microphone, the female host's excited voice sounded at the right time:

"Judge Cheng Jiashu has given contestant Zhou Xiumei a very high evaluation."

Then, the bespectacled senior producer on the left also picked up the microphone:

"My opinion is the same as Teacher Cheng's. Nowadays, the music scene is filled with too many voices that show off skills just for the sake of it, but contestant Zhou Xiumei, your voice is as clean as unpolluted spring water, full of emotion and directly striking the heart."

"In today's impetuous market where everyone wears a mask, a singer who dares to dissect themselves and sing with the Soul is too rare."

"I give you a pass, and if possible, I am very willing to be your mentor."

After finishing, he also smiled and raised the sign.

The music critic on the right followed closely:

"The lyrics and Concept of this song are huge; ordinary young singers simply cannot handle it and it's easy to sing it into empty grandiosity. But you held it up with the most sincere emotions."

"I also give you a pass."

The third sign was raised.

"Incredible, it's actually a unanimous vote!"

The female host's voice rose again, full of undisguised excitement:

"This is the first contestant since the start of our auditions today to win a unanimous vote from all three judges!!"

"According to the special rules of this competition, a unanimous vote means that contestant Zhou Xiumei can skip the rematch and directly advance to the national main competition! Let us congratulate her!!"

As soon as the voice fell, the applause at the scene surged like a tide once again, even more enthusiastic than before.

"Thank you... thank you teachers, thank you everyone!"

Zhou Xiumei took the golden pass card symbolizing honor from the hands of the etiquette Young Miss, her fingers shaking slightly.

With red eyes, she bowed deeply to the audience below the stage.

Then amidst the full-house applause and camera lenses, holding her guitar, her footsteps light as a little deer, she ran all the way down the stage.

Just as she rushed into the crowd in the waiting area, a small figure rushed up.

"Sister Zhou! You are the champion! You are a big star!"

Wen Xin hung on Zhou Xiumei's waist like a koala, rubbing her cheeks against her clothes, yelling excitedly.

Fearing that the guitar would bump Wen Xin, Zhou Xiumei hurriedly protected the instrument with one hand and hugged the little girl with the other.

She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but her lips trembled uncontrollably.

Tears finally couldn't help but fall down.

This was both excitement and a release like surviving a catastrophe.

Standing aside and looking at Zhou Xiumei who was crying into a tearful mess, Fang Cheng smiled, reached out, and gently rubbed her hair with a tender and pampering movement:

"Xiumei, you sang very well. This is your true strength."

As he spoke, he then took out a tissue from his pocket and handed it over:

"But don't cry for too long, it won't look good if your makeup gets ruined. This is just an audition; there are bigger stages waiting for you in the future."

Zhou Xiumei sniffed, took the tissue to carefully wipe the corners of her eyes, nodded hard, her eyes filled with reliance.

Fang Cheng smoothly took the heavy guitar case from her back, slung it over one shoulder, and patted her shoulder with his free hand:

"Let's go, our future big singer, we must celebrate properly today."

Leaving the noisy broadcast hall, the outside world did not become a bit quieter because of this.

In the spacious public lounge and corridors, heads were still crowded.

Looking around, there were hurried staff everywhere, as well as other audition participants and accompanying family and friends.

Carrying the guitar case on his back, Fang Cheng forcibly carved a path through the crowd with his shoulder, protecting the two girls, one big and one small, to the elevator room.

The red numbers of several elevators were slowly climbing, obviously unable to arrive for a while.

It was noisy all around, and everyone was discussing the competition situation just now, as well as those lucky ones who passed the preliminary examination.

Fang Cheng found a slightly out-of-the-way position to stand still, protecting Zhou Xiumei and Wen Xin on the inner side, separating them from the surrounding crowd.

"Right, Xiumei."

In the process of waiting for the elevator, Fang Cheng asked with a seemingly casual smile:

"Just now on stage, I saw that you were quite nervous at first, but then you suddenly let go and performed very steadily."

"Is it because the Meditation Breathing Technique I taught you was very useful?"

Hearing this question, Zhou Xiumei was slightly stunned, then her cheeks turned slightly red, and she said softly and embarrassedly:

"Actually... I was really scared to fainting back then, my mind was a blank, and I didn't think of trying your method at all."

"But I saw you raising your hand under the stage, calling my name. For some reason, at that moment, it seemed like my eyes were playing tricks on me."

"Eyes playing tricks?"

Fang Cheng raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah."

Zhou Xiumei recalled that feeling earnestly:

"At that moment, I felt that everything around me went dark, and only your direction was exceptionally bright and warm."

"It was like... like seeing a sun. Then I felt my whole body full of strength, my thinking exceptionally clear, and I wasn't afraid at all."

Hearing this answer, Fang Cheng nodded thoughtfully.

Sure enough, it was related to the Sun Heart Network.

When standing under the stage watching Zhou Xiumei's performance just now, he had vaguely felt that subtle flow of energy.

That originally cowardly girl seemed to have undergone a baptism of rebirth, and her entire aura underwent an astonishing transformation.

This change was not only an emotional soothing, but also an enhancement and strengthening at the level of consciousness.

An invisible bridge seemed to be established between the two of them, triggering a deep Mind Resonance.

His Mental Energy passed through this bridge, becoming the pillar supporting Zhou Xiumei's Soul.

Previously, Fang Cheng had also tried to use this ability on Zhou Xiumei, but had never been able to establish a stable mental connection.

Because the feelings Zhou Xiumei held for him, although very sincere, were merely simple romantic love between man and woman.

They did not possess the near-religious fervent belief or absolute obedience of believers, so they could not construct the nodes of the heart network.

But just now, the connection had unawares cleared.

Not only was it cleared, but it even produced an unprecedented reverse feedback.

The Mental Energy within his body was continuously being transmitted to Zhou Xiumei through this network, becoming her mental fuel.

"Is it because in extreme fear and helplessness, I was regarded as the only savior..."

"No, not entirely."

Fang Cheng secretly shook his head, denying this inference.

Pure fear and helplessness would only bring reliance, not power.

This should be an essential sublimation of the relationship between the two under extreme pressure.

Admiration, worship, redemption in fear, unreserved trust, without any Impurities...

Numerous thoughts flashed through his mind, making him vaguely touch a certain threshold.

Fang Cheng turned his gaze slightly, glancing at the naive and romantic Wen Xin beside him.

Perhaps, after going back, he could find other people to try.

If this conjecture could be verified.

That would mean the Sun Heart Network could not only be used for connection and communication, and real-time monitoring.

Moreover, when needed, it could give believers powerful strength blessings from the mental level.

This was of extraordinary significance to his future layout.

"Ding——"

A crisp prompt tone interrupted Fang Cheng's thoughts.

"Brother Cheng, the elevator is here."

Zhou Xiumei reminded softly.

Fang Cheng glanced at the floor numbers on the display screen and nodded slightly.

Just as the three of them followed the crowd, preparing to walk into the elevator, a slightly hurried shouting voice suddenly came from behind:

"Please hold on a moment!"

Hearing this, Fang Cheng and Zhou Xiumei couldn't help stopping their steps and turning back to look.

I saw a middle-aged woman wearing a gray professional suit and black-rimmed glasses walking quickly through the corridor toward this side.

The surrounding contestants who were also waiting for the elevator also turned their heads one after another, their eyes full of curiosity.

"Isn't that Cheng Jiashu's manager? I've seen her on TV."

"Who is she shouting to?"

Someone exclaimed in a low voice.

This middle-aged woman walked straight up to Fang Cheng and the others, ignoring other people's gazes.

"Young Miss Zhou."

The woman pushed her glasses, her gaze quickly sweeping over the three of them.

When her sight touched Fang Cheng's handsome face that was completely no less than a star's, she paused significantly, a trace of surprise flashing in her eyes.

But she quickly recovered her professional smile, looked at Zhou Xiumei, and handed out a business card with both hands:

"I am Mr. Cheng Jiashu's manager, Zhang Hui."

"Mr. Cheng is very interested in Young Miss Zhou's performance just now. It happens to be the halftime break now, and he wants to invite you to the lounge for a chat."

As soon as these words came out, a gasp suddenly sounded all around.

"Oh god, it's really the gold-medal manager Zhang Hui!"

"This is too lucky, right? Could she have been spotted by Cheng Jiashu's agency?"

"I watched that Zhou Xiumei's performance, she really sang well. I didn't expect her to fly up to the branch and become a Phoenix..."

The gazes cast by other contestants were filled with envy, jealousy, and undisguised sourness.

Zhou Xiumei was somewhat at a loss, subconsciously looking at Fang Cheng, habitually waiting for him to make a decision.

Fang Cheng's gaze flickered slightly, and his heart moved.

The other party should be coming for him.

Thinking about it, he reached out to take the business card for Zhou Xiumei, gently flicked the hard paper with good texture, and looked up at Zhang Hui:

"Naturally, a big star's invitation cannot be refused."

Zhang Hui nodded, made a "please" gesture sideways, and turned to lead the way.

Under the envious gazes of other contestants, the three of them followed behind and walked toward the area on the other side of the floor.

Crossing the glass induction door hanging with the sign "Work Area, Unauthorized Personnel Keep Out", the noise behind them was instantly isolated outside.

Several people walked straight ahead along the quiet corridor.

Finally, Zhang Hui stopped in front of a mahogany door affixed with a golden nameplate and gently pushed it open.

"Please come in, you few."

This was a VIP lounge specially prepared by the television station for top stars.

The environment inside was worlds apart from the noisy and chaotic waiting area before.

The soft carpet absorbed the footsteps, and the air was filled with a faint Advanced aromatherapy.

The decoration could be described as luxurious, with genuine leather sofas, huge makeup mirrors, and even an independent bar counter.

"What would you like to drink? Coffee or tea?"

Zhang Hui asked politely, appearing very courteous.

"Plain water is fine, thank you."

Fang Cheng casually sat on a single sofa, relaxed in posture, as if he were in his own home.

"Okay, please wait a moment, Mr. Cheng Jiashu has gone to change clothes and will be right here."

Zhang Hui poured water for the three of them, then smiled and retreated, closing the door on her way out.

Only the three of them, Fang Cheng and the others, were left in the room.

Wen Xin curiously leaned against the dressing table, looking at those colorful bottles and cans, and exclaimed:

"Wow, this mirror is so big, and it has lights too! Is this the place used by those stars on TV?"

Zhou Xiumei sat on the edge of the sofa, holding the water cup with both hands, taking a small sip.

Although somewhat nervous, having just experienced the baptism of the stage, her spine was noticeably straighter than before, and she was no longer as timid as before.

"Brother Cheng... What is Teacher Cheng looking for us to chat about? Is he really going to sign me?"

She asked in a low voice, her eyes carrying a trace of expectation and unease.

"Perhaps so, after all, you are a Genius who passed unanimously."

Fang Cheng picked up the water cup, took a sip, smiled, and his tone was calm.

Just at this moment, the door handle turned.

"Click."

The door was pushed open, and a slender young man walked in.

"Sorry to have kept you all waiting."