Deputy Director Gu Jiayan wiped the sweat from his forehead and nodded. "Director, everything is ready. We can start the livestream in a moment."
After its revamp, *I Am a Singer* incorporated the nationwide trend of livestreaming, though this was limited to the auditions. The subsequent competitions would still be recorded in the television station's studio.
Moreover, as a well-known local program in Jishui City, *I Am a Singer* enjoyed support from the Douyin streaming platform. Accounts registered in Jishui had a certain probability of being recommended.
Livestreaming the auditions was not only a revamp to keep up with the trends, but also served as a massive, free promotional campaign for *I Am a Singer*.
Judging by the results over the two years since the revamp, the effect had been quite good.
Wu Xuemin let out an affirmative hum, then raised his head to scan the stage, checking for any potential flaws.
Wu Xuemin served as the director and producer for *I Am a Singer*. He had proposed the program, put it into practice, and personally directed and filmed it. His position was roughly equivalent to a provincial television station producer, wielding absolute control over all aspects. Yet, with greater power came greater responsibility.
Nowadays, television stations enforced a system of accountability for leaders. If anything went wrong with a program, the blame would fall squarely on him.
At that moment, seeing that the surrounding staff had all fallen silent, one of them spoke up, "Director Wu, an interesting thing happened during the registration earlier."
Wu Xuemin shifted his gaze to the staff member, raising an eyebrow. "What interesting thing?"
Not daring to keep him in suspense, the staff member said, "I don't know if you've ever heard of Tan Yue."
Wu Xuemin was momentarily stunned, failing to react to who Tan Yue was, until the deputy director, Gu Jiayan, chimed in, "Isn't that Qi Xue's ex-husband?"
Only then did Wu Xuemin remember Tan Yue, the man rumored throughout the station to be a freeloader living off a woman. "What about him?"
The staff member replied, "He came over to register just now. He's going to participate in our auditions."
Wu Xuemin chuckled, interested. "This is the first time someone from the station is participating in our program, isn't it? This should be interesting. Let's see how he does later."
Wu Xuemin had no intention of going over to greet him. He still did not know that Tan Yue had already assumed the position of chief planner for the Children's Channel, though even if he had known, he wouldn't have cared much. The Children's Channel and the Entertainment Channel were simply incomparable, not to mention that he was a director while Tan Yue was merely a chief planner.
Still, hearing that Tan Yue had also registered piqued Wu Xuemin's interest.
Deputy Director Gu Jiayan and the staff member both chuckled along.
The staff member grinned broadly. "Director Wu, he even said that he's only joining the auditions and won't participate in the subsequent recordings of our program."
Wu Xuemin let out an amused "Oh?" "Really? He certainly thinks quite highly of himself. Two-thirds of the people will be eliminated in our auditions. I wonder if he actually has some real talent or if he's just blowing hot air."
Deputy Director Gu Jiayan smiled lightly. "We'll find out soon enough."
......
At seven o'clock in the evening, the stage was already decorated with lights and festoons.
The auditions had not officially begun, but the livestream was already up and running, and staff members were making adjustments.
The massive livestream screen was located directly behind the stage, measuring seven or eight meters wide and five or six meters high. When contestants stood on stage, their figures were magnified on the screen. In the upper right corner of the screen, an area displayed real-time votes cast by netizens watching the livestream.
The final result of the auditions would be determined by the cheers of the live audience and the votes of the netizens in the livestream room, each accounting for fifty percent.
The production team moved quickly. By 7:20 PM, the host of *I Am a Singer* took the stage.
Following a passionate opening speech, the auditions for *I Am a Singer* officially kicked off.
"The first contestant to take the stage is Mr. Ma Guobao. He has prepared the song *The Most Beautiful Dark Night* for us."
......
Tan Yue and Zheng Guang sat and waited on the two small stools Xiao Wang had provided.
Watching the contestants take the stage one after another, Tan Yue thought that as a television station in the capital of Hedong Province, it certainly had its share of eccentricities. A few contestants actually sang quite well, eliciting enthusiastic responses from the live audience.
However, other contestants drifted so far off-key they might as well have traveled from Hedong Province to Xiangnan Province. Yet these contestants remained completely oblivious, singing with such intoxication and self-absorption that if the live audience hadn't been booing wildly and shouting for them to get off the stage, they probably would have blamed the production team for rigging the results when they inevitably got eliminated.
Tan Yue opened Douyin and searched for the *I Am a Singer* livestream room, which was equally bustling with activity.
"Hahaha, that guy who sang so terribly just now was my high school teacher! I never expected him to be such a terrible singer!"
"I'm on a business trip in Modu, otherwise I definitely would have gone to People's Square to watch it live. The auditions for *I Am a Singer* are so much fun, haha."
"This is a really great program. It's launched quite a few singers, you know."
"Little brother number three is so handsome, and he sings so well too. I wonder if he has a girlfriend."
"......"
Tan Yue was simply curious, wanting to see if many people were watching the livestream. Since he wanted to promote *Wisdom Tree*, naturally, the more people, the better.
Still, he was quite satisfied with what he saw. By now, there were already twenty to thirty thousand people in the livestream room, and the number was still growing.
"Teacher Tan, you can do it!" At this point, Zheng Guang could only offer words of encouragement.
Tan Yue smiled and nodded.
After several more contestants came on stage and stepped down, Tan Yue stood up—it was his turn.
The host spoke from the stage, "The next contestant to take the stage is Mr. Tan Yue. Let us welcome him with warm applause as he brings us the song *Song to Myself*."
Even the host felt a bit strange announcing the song title.
What kind of song title was that?
***
**Chapter 40: A Quiet Square**
When the host called out Tan Yue's name, Xu Nuo, who was currently agonizing over how to gracefully exit this blind date, suddenly froze. Then, he snapped his head up and looked toward the stage.
"What the hell, could it really be him?"
Xu Nuo stared wide-eyed, not blinking as he gazed at the stage.
The figure casually walking onto the stage was far too familiar!
Liu Jing, sitting beside him, noticed Xu Nuo's reaction and looked up, asking, "What's wrong?"
Xu Nuo took a deep breath, suppressing the astonishment in his heart, and pointed at Tan Yue on the stage. "That's my buddy."
Liu Jing's mouth parted slightly as she turned to look at Tan Yue on the stage. "Your buddy? He's so handsome."
Xu Nuo rolled his eyes speechlessly.
Liu Jing curled her lips slightly. "Still, where did he pick this song from? I've never even heard of it, and the title is so bizarre—*Song to Myself*?"
Xu Nuo remained silent, watching the stage instead. He remembered the last time Tan Yue had sung at the Blue Sea Bar.
The kid was actually pretty decent at singing—at least, from Xu Nuo's perspective, it was acceptable.
"Is he a good singer?" Liu Jing asked.
Xu Nuo thought for a moment. "Not exceptionally good, but not bad either."
Liu Jing hummed and turned her curious gaze toward the stage, waiting for this buddy of Xu Nuo's to perform.
......
Down below,
The audience members were also looking at Tan Yue as he stepped onto the stage.
"That young man looks quite spirited."
"Tan Yue? That sounds a bit familiar..."
"This handsome guy is quite good-looking. I wonder how well he sings?"
Below the stage, Wu Xuemin, the director of *I Am a Singer*, rested his chin on one hand, sizing up Tan Yue on the stage.
Now that he looked closer, no wonder Qi Xue had fallen for him; his appearance truly stood out, looking far more dashing than the program's own hosts.
On the stage,
Tan Yue came to a halt in the center of the stage. Looking at the thousands of audience members below, he still felt a nervous flutter in his chest.
He took a deep breath, gripped the microphone tightly, and waited for the accompaniment to begin.
Soon, a slightly melancholic piano melody slowly began to play, intermittently laced with the sound of a guitar.
As the accompaniment started, the noisy venue gradually quieted down.
Listening to the accompaniment, which was much like the version in his memory, Tan Yue nodded slightly.
This was also his first time hearing the accompaniment. He had copied it from the station's recording studio and handed it over to the production team staff right after registering.
Tan Yue's gaze drifted from near to far, passing over the dense crowd at People's Square, across the bustling streets, the colorful neon lights, and the towering skyscrapers, finally resting on the pitch-black night sky.
During this period, whenever Tan Yue was bored, he would occasionally sing songs using the guitar Qi Xue had left behind, and gradually felt that he had improved.
On the other hand, Tan Yue had his reasons for choosing this song. One reason was that he genuinely liked the song himself. Another reason was that what touched people most about this track wasn't vocal technique, but rather emotion—the perspective on life expressed through the lyrics.
In his past life, he had once heard an old professor from a conservatory of music say at a drinking party that honesty and precision are the standards for testing art. When creators are honest with themselves and possess sufficient experience and the ability to express it, the feeling they convey is precision. And precise things go straight to the human heart.
And this song, *Song to Myself*, displayed the old professor's words to the absolute limit!
Pulling back his gaze and closing his eyes slightly, Tan Yue began to sing along to the melody of the accompaniment.
"What you want is out of reach,
What can you do with life?
What you ought to let go, you cannot bear to part with,
Busy chattering away with the past.
By the time you realize that time is a thief,
It has long since stolen away all your choices."
When the first verse ended, because his vocal technique was lacking, Tan Yue's breathing sound was a bit loud. However, this was merely an audition for a local program, and the audience members were not picky professional musicians; it didn't affect their listening experience, and no one cared at all.
The faces that had previously been smiling and nonchalant were now all fixed on the stage, looking at the man standing there.
The young people merely felt that the song was overly monotonous, devoid of technique, and sounded just like ordinary conversation, though not terrible enough to be unacceptable.
Meanwhile, office workers, middle-aged individuals, and even the elderly felt a completely different wave of emotion upon hearing it. Life passed by in a flash; what one desired could not be obtained, and after a sudden awakening, only futility remained.
This was a life experience shared by many, evoking nostalgia, sorrow, and resonance in those who had experienced hardships and setbacks.
Pausing slightly, Tan Yue continued to sing:
"Love is nothing more than a high fever,
Yearning is the incurable cough that follows right behind.
It is unforgivable,
Yet impossible to stop,
Hatred climbs over the wall in the dead of night.
It is completely hollow,
Yet buzzing with noise,
Who fired a sniper shot in your heart?
The vows of an old lover,
Bear a striking resemblance to a slap in the face,
Every time you remember a single line,
You suffer a blow,
And for several years afterward, you cannot bear the smell,
Cannot bear the scent of a woman."
Down below, goosebumps broke out all over Wu Xuemin, and he stared blankly at the stage, completely dumbfounded.
As a middle-aged man who had worked in the cultural industry for so many years, he had fancied that listening to songs could no longer cause major emotional fluctuations in him, but this time he was wrong.
*Who fired a sniper shot in your heart!*
This wasn't singing at all; this was reciting poetry!
Human love and hatred—whenever they occurred, those caught in the middle faced a surging torrent of emotional impact, like a high fever, like an unstoppable hatred. By the time it was washed away by the passage of time, all that remained was a hollow sense of loss.
Wu Xuemin pressed his lips tightly together, afraid he would lose his composure.
In fact, Wu Xuemin only kept his eyes locked on Tan Yue on the stage, failing to notice that although he was the director of the program, no one was paying attention to him; everyone was looking at the man on the stage—looking at Tan Yue!
Tan Yue opened his eyes, took a light breath, chuckled, and shook his head slightly. On a face that was still quite youthful, whether due to the stage lighting or the hardships he had experienced, a trace of weathered maturity inexplicably appeared.
His voice was somewhat low and heavy.
"The past is not like smoke,
That's right,
Holding onto the past in love is no virtue,
Pity that romance is not like songwriting,
No matter how sincere, it forms no style,
I ask you, who has yearning ever spared?
Whether you are a repeat offender or have no record at all,
All I know are those who were together for a long time eventually split up,
I've never seen those who split up for a long time get back together."
In the vast People's Square, it was now chillingly quiet, save for the lingering echo of the song and the soft sound of the accompaniment.
Many young people transitioned from slight indifference when they first started listening to sheer shock now, their pairs of gaze fixed on Tan Yue on the stage as if he were a deity.
At this moment, even the air seemed to fall silent.
***
**Chapter 41: A Deafening Square**
This song, *Song to Myself*, belonged to the type that grew more flavorful the more one listened to it.
Tan Yue's vocal technique wasn't strong, but the focus of this song wasn't vocal prowess either. Combining it with his experiences of living two lives, Tan Yue still sang it with immense feeling.
Pairs of eyes filled with various emotions gazed at Tan Yue. Some looked at him while thinking of their own stories, while others looked at him while pondering Tan Yue's story.
Regardless of whether your path of love was monotonous or rugged, smooth or turbulent at the moment, in the end, you could not escape the arrangements of fate and human affairs.
People and timing were frequently out of sync, leaving behind nothing but regret and sighs. And in the unpredictable, fickle human heart, there were only those who split up after a long time together; he had never seen those who split up for a long time get back together.
As he sang on, Tan Yue became more and more immersed in the feeling. He thought of nothing in his mind, simply focusing on singing the song well. His vocal skills were inferior to those of professional singers, but he sang with sincerity and total dedication.
"Years, please do not rush,
What is meant to come, I will not push away,
What is owed, I will repay; what is given, I will give,
Years, please do not rush,
What has walked far away, I will not chase,
I merely wish to figure out the reason why.
Can anyone tell me what this is?
His love, buried deep in the heart, smoothed over for years, still retains its lingering might."
In the dark night, across the vast People's Square, it seemed as though only Tan Yue's solitary figure was performing wholeheartedly on the stage.
Tan Yue's performance tonight had no doubt shocked countless pairs of eyes.
Wu Xuemin, the director of *I Am a Singer*, took a sharp breath, staring blankly at Tan Yue on the stage. Ever since the program was founded, he had been on the front lines. From chief planner to director, he had seen too many outstanding contestants, and the best among them were now making a name for themselves in the entertainment industry.
Yet watching Tan Yue tonight, he suddenly realized that he had undoubtedly struck gold once again.
Although the song Tan Yue sang still had quite a few flaws, hearing it in his ears, it was exceptionally soul-stirring.
Zheng Guang listened in a daze, watching Tan Yue on the stage, a ghost-like expression slowly creeping onto his face.
Zheng Guang turned his head to look around, noticing that many middle-aged people had lost their composure, with many eyes brimming with tears.
For a moment, Zheng Guang even thought he was at the recording site of some variety show, and that these people were the highest-value, highest-quality audience members—the kind paid three hundred to cry through a show.
However, in reality, Zheng Guang knew these were not audience members rented with the production team's money. Setting aside whether the production team had that kind of budget, just looking at the complex, tangled, and sorrowfully poignant expressions on their faces—if they were acting, they could all win Best Actor awards.
"It is unforgivable,
Yet impossible to stop,
Affection climbs over the wall in the dead of night,
It is completely hollow,
Yet buzzing with noise,
......
And for several years afterward, you cannot bear the smell,
Cannot bear the scent of a woman,
And for several years afterward, you cannot bear the smell,
Cannot bear the scent of a woman,
What you want is out of reach,
What can you do with life?
What you want is out of reach,
There are no wise men in matters of love."
*Song to Myself* ended amidst Tan Yue's fading voice.
Tan Yue paused slightly, pulling his gaze back from the distance to the immediate surroundings, snapping out of his deep concentration in the song back to reality.
The square was frighteningly quiet, causing Tan Yue's heart to skip a beat and a rather ominous feeling to well up.
He clearly remembered that after the previous contestants finished singing, regardless of whether they sang well or poorly, there would always be applause of varying volumes.
So what was going on right now?
Tan Yue's expression stiffened somewhat, wondering if he had overestimated himself and if he had actually sung so terribly just now that it was unbearable.
He felt quite conflicted; if he had sung decently, he had planned to advertise his *Wisdom Tree*.
But with such a poor performance, the results could easily be imagined.
Just as Tan Yue was feeling somewhat conflicted, a round of applause suddenly rang out from somewhere in the audience, immediately startling many people back to their senses, who then began to clap frantically.
Following that, the applause grew louder and louder, erupting across People's Square like thunder—deafening!
***
**Chapter 42: Advertising for *Wisdom Tree***
Thunderous and cascading applause echoed across the square, allowing Tan Yue, who had been feeling rather apprehensive, to finally let out a sigh of relief.
If *Song to Myself* could be revered as a classic song on Earth, there was no reason it wouldn't be accepted in this world.
"Young man, you sang wonderfully!"
"Sing it again!"
"That weighed heavy on my heart!"
"Awooo~"
Audience members shouted at the top of their lungs.
In a certain corner of the square, Liu Jing, Xu Nuo's blind date partner, had her mouth formed into an "o" shape as she looked at Tan Yue on the stage in disbelief, finding it hard to imagine that Xu Nuo actually had a friend like this.
Excitedly, Liu Jing reached out and grabbed Xu Nuo's arm, saying eagerly, "Xu Nuo, your friend sings so well!"
Xu Nuo chuckled. "He's all right. Tan Yue this guy actually has quite a bit of talent."
As ordinary people, Xu Nuo and Liu Jing couldn't tell the difference between a professional singer and an amateur enthusiast; they simply felt that Tan Yue sang well.
Liu Jing clicked her tongue. "The song choice is also fantastic. I've never heard it before."
Xu Nuo shook his head. "It's my first time hearing it too."
......
When the audience's reaction began to die down, Tan Yue bowed slightly, raised the microphone to his mouth, and said, "Thank you, everyone."
"The song is finished. In these final moments, I'd like to say a few words to everyone."
Previously, some contestants had also shared a few thoughts after finishing their song. The most eccentric one had even launched into a live confession right on the spot after singing.
The audience assumed Tan Yue was also going to share some reflections, so none of them rushed him; instead, they listened with keen interest.
The song *Song to Myself* had been sung so brilliantly just now, and Tan Yue was also very handsome, leaving an exceptionally good impression on the live audience. Weren't exceptional people supposed to be treated specially?
Pairs of eyes focused on Tan Yue, waiting for what he was about to say next.
Could the fact that he sang that song so well be related to his own life experiences? Was he going to talk about that?
Could he be about to confess his love to some girl in the audience?