This Star Only Wants More Money - Chapter 6
Translator: Diviner
Luohe City TV Station, the recording site of the show ‘Tomorrow’s God of Song.’
As the earlier episodes passed in a monotonous fashion, the contestants who had been muddling through gradually got eliminated. The show began to reach a fever pitch and climax.
“Wang Peng, your vocal tone is nice, but your basic skills are lacking, and you’re not familiar enough with the song. In just five lines, you got four words wrong. To be honest, your overall performance wasn’t bad, but this is the fight for the top eight… I’m sorry, but you are eliminated.”
Xu Feng sat in the waiting room, watching on the big screen in front of him as a contestant received Lin Shenghuan’s critique with a face full of regret, and then left the stage dejectedly.
Contestants like him would have some brief popularity while the show aired, with audiences clapping and cheering for them.
But in less than a month, they would be completely forgotten, and in the end, people might not even remember their names.
Such is the harsh reality of the entertainment industry.
Nothing is more terrifying than being forgotten.
“Fortunately, I’ve made it through.” Xu Feng looked at the advancement badge in his hand.
“But what’s come so far was just a warm-up. The songs were fixed by the program team, so as long as your singing skills met the standard, there was no fear of not advancing.”
In the earlier rounds, Xu Feng had performed steadily, consistently ranking among the top.
Not to mention, he also had the significant advantage of good looks.
Variety shows also needed ratings, and a handsome face could naturally attract a lot of traffic.
This was evident from the fact that Xu Feng currently had the highest discussion rate among all the singers.
“The real challenge starts with the top 8 to 5.”
From playing instruments to singing, from writing lyrics to composing music—being good at just one thing would make you exceptional, let alone doing everything well!
Even with a professional team assisting in the creative process, achieving a good score in the 8 to 5 round wouldn’t be easy.
At this moment, several judges walked into the waiting room, casually sitting down and gesturing to all the contestants to remain seated.
A male judge said seriously, “First of all, congratulations to everyone for advancing. The upcoming elimination round will be even more brutal, so please be mentally prepared.”
“In the next 8 to 5 competition, as you may already know, contestants will have to play their own accompaniment, sing their own songs, and battle it out with other contestants for real.”
“Creative ability, performance ability, singing ability—all are indispensable! Because here, we are looking for Tomorrow’s God of Song!“
“…”
“Well said, mentor!”
“Don’t worry, I won’t let you down.”
“Hehe… First, pass my level.”
After this passionate speech, many contestants were fired up again, even competing with each other—such provocations among contestants were quite normal in a music competition.
When the room quieted down a bit, Lin Shenghuan took over the conversation, continuing,
“The mentor team will decide the order in which you choose your creative team based on your performance.”
“Rest assured, every creative team is equally professional, but those who choose earlier will have a better chance of selecting a team that suits them best.”
Xu Feng glanced at Lin Shenghuan, who was wearing a bright red qipao.
To be honest, her stern demeanor had a bit of a high-cold goddess vibe.
Or rather, on television, she mostly presented herself as aloof, but off-camera, she was very cheerful and open-minded.
Noticing Xu Feng looking at her, Lin Shenghuan’s gaze shifted slightly, and her voice paused as her lively eyes twinkled, “The first contestant to choose a creative team is Xu Feng.”
“Come on up, and I’ll introduce you to our eight creative teams. Remember, choose the one that suits you best.”
This wasn’t just an introduction for the contestants on site; it was also for the audience watching at home.
“First, let me make it clear that since this is a collaborative creation, the final copyright belongs to the entire production team, including the contestant. The specific weight will be specified in the contract later.”
“Second…”
As Lin Shenghuan continued to speak, Xu Feng raised his hand, “Sister Huan, can I interrupt for a moment?”
At this stage of the top 8 to 5, Lin Shenghuan only had two contestants left. One of them had barely made it through and had almost no potential to advance further—meaning this contestant picked up from a concert was now her only card.
Lin Shenghuan’s red lips curled slightly, and she said, “Of course you can. If you have a lot to say, you can come up here and I’ll hand you the microphone.”
“No need,” Xu Feng smiled and waved his hand, “I just wanted to ask, if I can complete all the lyrics, composition, and everything myself, can I skip choosing a creative team?”
As soon as he said this, all eyes were on him in surprise.
Skip the creative team?!
Did that mean Xu Feng wanted to perform an original work in such an important competition?
Not just the other contestants, but even the judges showed expressions of astonishment.
But this astonishment was not one of approval.
Just last year, right in this very place, the contestant who advanced in the first place had been eliminated in the last place because they were overly confident, wanting to make a splash with an original piece.
Everyone who abandoned the creative team at this stage usually met a poor end—including those who had prepared original songs in advance but pretended they were composed on the spot.
The songs composed by the program’s creative teams, while not necessarily spectacular, were at least safe and not unpleasant to the ear.
Everyone acknowledged Xu Feng’s strong singing skills, but attempting an original song was a risky move that could easily backfire.
Lin Shenghuan took two deep breaths, trying hard to suppress the slight warning in her eyes while forcing a smile through gritted teeth, “I think you should reconsider carefully.”
Why on earth would you choose to go original in such an important setting, Xu Feng? Why are you so impulsive?
Wouldn’t it be better to win the competition steadily?
Only Lin Shenghuan herself knew just how important this show was to her.
In terms of personal ability, work quality, and popularity, Lin Shenghuan objectively did not lose to any of the veteran queens of the music world.
But in terms of recognition and album sales, she was always just a step short of reaching that status.
After the show ended, she planned to release a new album that she had poured her heart and soul into, in a final attempt to reach that level.
Teaming up with Xu Feng, a duo of high-level, high-appeal “mentor and student,” had attracted a lot of attention and brought in a lot of traffic.
Naturally, she hoped Xu Feng could advance through several rounds or even win—his outstanding performance would significantly increase her chances of reaching that status!
Xu Feng gave Lin Shenghuan a subtle glance, “I’ve been feeling very inspired lately. I want to give it a try.”
Lin Shenghuan opened her mouth to say something, then stopped. Considering that this was being filmed for a variety show and that Xu Feng had proven to be quite reliable, she decided not to push further. She glared at him briefly before turning her gaze away and continued,
“Alright, then the second contestant, please choose. The rules are…”
“…”
Xu Feng stood calmly in his place, ignoring the gloating expressions of the other contestants.
During the post-competition trash-talking time, a few contestants even mentioned that “Xu Feng is a great opponent, but he’s too arrogant; choosing to go with an original song is basically suicide,” and so on.
Clearly, they were all delighted to see their formidable rival opt for an original song.
…
After the program finished shooting, it was already evening.
Xu Feng got on a bus to head home, casually turned down a girl asking for his WeChat, and took out his phone to put on his headphones, planning to listen to some music to relax.
Standing on stage and singing intensely was exhausting… No wonder Lin Shenghuan could fall asleep immediately after a concert.
He had just unlocked his screen and hadn’t found the song he wanted to hear when he saw an impatient message from Lin Shenghuan.
“Xu Feng, handsome guy, what surprise are you preparing? You must have something big planned, right?”
Xu Feng casually selected a song, switched to WeChat, and replied, “It’s a little secret, trust me, it won’t sound bad.”
Lin Shenghuan didn’t press further, “Alright, I’ll wait and see. If you feel like you’re going to fail, let me know anytime. As my star contestant, I’ll make an exception and give you a chance to take it back. Don’t get me wrong—mainly, if none of my contestants make it to the top five, I’ll be quite embarrassed.”
This woman… Her on-stage and off-stage personas are quite different.
Pretending to ask about the song, but actually notifying him that he could still choose a creative team if he regretted it.
Even after having been impressed once already, Xu Feng couldn’t help but feel once more that she was “beautiful and kind.”
Interacting with someone like her naturally put him in a good mood.
“Thanks, Sister Huan.”
“You’re welcome.”
Just after they finished chatting, a new message notification popped up in the upper left corner of WeChat.
Without thinking much, Xu Feng exited the current chat.
There, he saw a message from the green tea girl, Chen Huihui, “Xu Feng, are you there? I know I was wrong that day… I didn’t mean it, and now everyone online is cursing me. Can you help clear things up? You will, right?”
Ugh…
The tea was so strong that all of Xu Feng’s accumulated good mood was instantly dissipated.
He had been so busy lately that he had forgotten to delete her.
Seeing that Xu Feng hadn’t responded, Chen Huihui sent another message, sounding a bit aggrieved, “Or maybe you could clarify things at the variety show site? You will, right? You haven’t spoken to me for days… You never used to be this cold to me.”
These past few days, as Chen Huihui watched the online criticisms and insults against her, she finally couldn’t hold her composure anymore.
She had taken someone else’s concert ticket and pretended not to know the person at the concert—no explanation would make sense unless Xu Feng personally clarified it.
She had already shown a willingness to back down, so Xu Feng should forgive her by now.
After all, it wasn’t a matter of principle…
As Chen Huihui was imagining this, Xu Feng abruptly sent over a video link without saying a word.
“What’s this?”
Chen Huihui hesitated for a moment, then clicked on the link.
And then she saw a scene she never wanted to relive for the rest of her life—the concert, where Xu Feng was radiant, delivering the utterly humiliating ‘Schnappi’ in front of thousands.
All she could hear was the word “idiot.”
Furious, Chen Huihui opened WeChat to demand, “Xu Feng! What do you mean by this?”
What she didn’t expect was a big red exclamation mark next to her message and a very friendly reminder.
‘The other party has enabled friend verification, and you are not yet their friend.’