My Landlord is an Idol Singer - Chapter 184

Only one person’s eyes curved in delight, as though watching her most beloved shine freely on stage. But listening to this song Tianxia, Xia An’ge felt dazed. Were these lyrics about himself, or… about someone else?

Every story has a beginning, and it will also have an end.

Gu Zhinan still finished the song. Even though he was lost in his own emotions, the performance had to end. He stood up, bowed to the audience, signaling that he was done and it was time for them to vote.

But this time, a large portion of the audience stood up. A storm of applause surged like crashing waves. Xia An’ge stood up as well. This was probably the most heartfelt performance of Gu Zhinan’s she had ever seen.

Not just her, everyone around her also stood, showering him with applause without reservation. It was the best encouragement they could give a singer who had just delivered a perfect, self-written song.

“I think this is Frog’s most moving performance of the three rounds so far, the emotions ran so deep!”

“Damn, this guy’s an original-killer! What should I do? Another top-tier track with destroyed sound quality, but I can’t stop replaying it!”

“Absolutely brilliant! Bro Frog is forever god-tier!”

“Let me see who dares not to vote for him this time???”

“I’m crying. Even the upstairs neighbors and the property manager didn’t come knocking this time. I saw them down in the garden through my window, bawling their eyes out while listening to this song!”

“He sings about the world, but every lyric is about her. That’s so you, Frog.”

“The blend of guitar and traditional instruments is perfect. The moment the war drums started, I was already conquered!”

The host waited nearly a full minute before coming on stage, giving Frog the moment he deserved to soak in the thunderous applause. When the clapping finally died down, the host stepped forward. His eyes carried a trace of awe. Practically every episode, this contestant leapt to another level. He was too miraculous.

“Please, judges and audience, cast your most precious votes!”

The voting machines buzzed madly. Even the judges, rarely unanimous, all gave him their votes. 3226 votes! First place, for now.

Clearly, the combination of guitar, traditional instruments, and Gu Zhinan’s deeply emotional singing had left everyone completely enthralled. Seeing the score, netizens felt satisfied too, flooding the chat with strings of 666 and awesome.

But most of all, one phrase dominated, “Hand clasping the bright moon, plucking down the stars, there’s no one like me in the world!”

“Keep Bro Frog!!”

“Quick, ask the question already!”

“Yeah, don’t forget that! Hurry, I want to know Frog’s real identity!”

Online viewers suddenly remembered, there was still a question left to ask! 

Meanwhile, the judges’ panel was also discussing. The program’s hints all circled around one fact: he was a poet, someone whose poems had been published in school textbooks.

Finally, Lin Xi asked with a smile, “You wrote some poems recently that made it into textbooks, didn’t you?”

“Oh no.” Gu Zhinan knew there was no escaping. The prophet had checked his role, and next night, the knife would fall.

“Yes.” As an honest man, Gu Zhinan answered truthfully in the end.

“Alright. I think I know who you are. Surname Gu? Congratulations on your first-ever first place.” Lin Xi spoke with mock seriousness. His acting skills made Gu Zhinan want to ask if he was interested in starring in a movie.

The other judges all looked thoughtful, trying to guess which “Gu” he could be. They weren’t particularly familiar with poets.

Then suddenly, one judge seemed to have an epiphany. “Surname Gu?”

“Holy shit!!!!”

“It’s Gu???”

“Mom, I peed myself!”

“So he’s a straight man??”

“No way, is he really THAT straight man??”

“Call my Legend of Sword and Fairy fandom buddies! This is a big deal!”

“Don’t panic, let’s think rationally. Just because his surname is Gu doesn’t mean he’s Gu Zhinan!”

“Who’s Gu Zhinan?”

“Yeah, who are you all talking about?”

“You’ll find out later. For now, just yell ‘awesome!’”

Some netizens didn’t know Gu Zhinan, but Sword and Fairy fans were losing their minds. Either way, there was no escaping now. Next episode, he’d be doing a half-reveal.

“Half-hiding behind a guitar.”

With the identity question done, Gu Zhinan returned to his seat. But he caught sight of a pair of peach blossom eyes locked onto him from the assistant-singer section. They were smiling. 

Noticing his gaze, Xia An’ge quickly tried to look away, pretending to be nonchalant. But she saw Gu Zhinan lower his hand and secretly flash her a little peace sign. Her face instantly turned red, and she ducked her head to hide it.

Unfortunately, she wasn’t the only one who saw it. Wang Yuyan noticed too. She gave Xia An’ge a meaningful look. This girl, who’d never been good with words or smiles in the three years she’d known her, was now flustered by a man’s attention?

A surname Gu, always performing originals, every song top-quality, and a poet on top of that. Wang Yuyan already had a solid guess. The man who’d won the Golden Melody Songwriter Award, Gu Zhinan!

The same man who’d written not one, but two songs for Xia An’ge.

One of those love songs was still sitting at number five on the new song chart. If not for his lack of popularity compared to top-tier idols ahead of him, it would’ve gone even higher.

Half a year ago, she’d nearly forgotten this beautiful girl. She had once invited Xia An’ge to join Dynasty Entertainment, but Xia An’ge refused, choosing instead to sign with Starlight Entertainment, following the advice of the teacher who had mentored her in that singing competition.

Wang Yuyan thought they’d never cross paths again. But now, Xia An’ge was the very target companies were trying to recruit. Her contract with Starlight Entertainment would be up early next year, and the big companies were already circling.

Looking at her now, sitting quietly in the same row of seats, Wang Yuyan couldn’t help but grow even more curious about Gu Zhinan. Did he really only write songs for Xia An’ge? 

She chuckled softly. How nice, to have someone supporting her like that. But how had they even met? A reader and author interaction, like the rumors said? She didn’t buy it. Her mind buzzed with speculation.

Back on stage, Gu Zhinan returned to his seat, guitar on his back. All eyes turned to him, filled with envy, jealousy, and admiration. He was safely advancing to the next round. The ones panicking were those with lower scores.

And thanks to his song igniting the mood, the later contestants were judged more harshly. When the last singer finished and votes were tallied, the ranking stood as follows:

1st: Gu Zhinan
2nd: Lion, Luo Feng
3rd: Monkey, calm and steady, still unrevealed
4th: Sloth, already half-revealed, rumored actor
5th: Sister Rabbit, Xiao Qiangqiang
6th: Goat, quiet but consistent

The host invited the six onto the stage. The competition round was over. Now came the next phase, choosing their duet partners.

The host held cards with each contestant’s pre-written choices. He opened them in order of ranking. First up, of course, was Gu Zhinan.

As he stood there, he could feel several gazes locked tightly on him. Looking up, he saw six pairs of eyes from the assistant-singer section, each with a different expression. Wang Yuyan’s was amused, Xia An’ge’s was serene, hands folded on her skirt like a fairy.

But from his landlady, there was unmistakable killing intent in her gaze. It seemed to say, “If you don’t choose me, you’re done for.” Gu Zhinan instinctively wanted to touch his nose to cover the awkwardness, then remembered he was still wearing a headpiece.

The host unfolded his card and burst out laughing. “This contestant wrote three names, but they’re all the same?”

All three read Xia An’ge. How resolute could he be? He didn’t even consider Wang Yuyan? Sure, Xia An’ge was just as beautiful, but wasn’t Wang Yuyan the bigger star, with way more popularity?

“Who is it, hurry up and say it!”

“Yeah, stop stalling!”

“Don’t tell me they’re going to cut to commercial now??”

“He wouldn’t dare!”

The livestream chat exploded, spamming the screen. The host finally turned the card around to face the camera. The cameraman zoomed in.

Three variations of the same name, written in elegant, distinct handwriting, Xia An’ge.