CHAPTER 36: CHAPTER 32: CHANGING RULES? THE CHIEF DIRECTOR’S THOUGHTS

What was the director thinking? He was wondering if this program could even continue.

It wasn’t just the singers who sensed the power of Xu Qingqiu’s song; the director had noticed it too.

Strictly speaking, this was already a bug in the program’s rules. On a stage where professional singers competed, every factor could be decisive.

Using an original against a non-original was, not to mention, like an attack from a higher dimension—a crushing advantage.

Besides, in the previous two seasons, had anyone ever been so nonchalant about original compositions, using them exclusively to breeze through the entire competition?

How was this different from RMB players? The only difference might be that there were many RMB players, but original songs couldn’t be as common as scrap paper, could they? Who wouldn’t cherish a good song? Who used them like this?

When Xu Qingqiu changed her song earlier, the director hadn’t realized the seriousness of the issue. In his view, considering the current times, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the Chinese music industry was at a low point.

It had been years since many decent songs had emerged, and classics weren’t easy to find. Furthermore, Xu Qingqiu had no major company backing, no notable connections, nor a powerful Song Daddy behind her.

She didn’t look like someone who could produce classic songs; at most, she had a couple of mediocre works to grab attention and make up the numbers.

Moreover, she was changing her song at the last minute. Two not-so-outstanding songs, coupled with her unfamiliarity with them—what effect could that possibly have?

Perhaps it was just a final, desperate struggle.

So, after double-checking, he had still rejected it.

But after watching her performance throughout the show, he was stunned.

He really wanted to go up to Xu Qingqiu and ask her fiercely, "What on earth were you thinking?!!"

If he weren’t concerned about offending people, he would have been tempted to curse her for being out of her mind.

This was "The Sound of Nature"! It tested singers’ Singing Skills and stage presence, not a new product launch or a creators’ contest! What on earth was this?!

The more he thought about it, the more depressed the director became, and eventually, he couldn’t sit still anymore. After Xu Qingqiu finished singing, he anxiously waited for the host on stage to proceed with the audience voting.

Time ticked by. Finally, when the voting was over, he said without looking back, "Show me the voting results."

The person responsible for tallying quickly pulled up the data, transferred it to a tablet, and handed it to the chief director.

When he glanced at the data and saw the string of numbers behind a certain name, his face immediately darkened.

"No, we can’t do it like this." Putting down the tablet, he hurried outside without a second thought.

"Sister Qiu, you were awesome! I was mesmerized backstage!"

"You performed well. I was watching, and the audience responded wonderfully. I think the results should be pretty good."

Yiyi and Sister Hua both gave positive feedback. Xu Qingqiu, hearing this, breathed a sigh of relief; she hadn’t let down the song or her own expectations. She couldn’t say she had overperformed, but she had certainly given it her all.

Turning her head to look at Chu Tian, who was silent beside her, she suddenly felt a bit miffed.

"Hey, how did I sing?"

"Ah? Very well!"

Chu Tian looked at her in bewilderment. What does she mean? Aren’t compliments from two people enough? Does she need a grand slam of praise?

"Since I sang very well, is it that hard to compliment me?"

Perhaps it was her good mood after performing, or perhaps something else, but she found herself unusually wanting to tease this quiet guy beside her, just to hear him say something nice.

"But... haven’t they already complimented you?"

"They are them, you are you."

"Alright, fine. You sang beautifully, like a fairy."

"Hmph, too fake."

Xu Qingqiu pouted, a proud yet pleased look on her face, but the undeniable smile indicated she enjoyed it immensely.

What kind of person is she... Chu Tian was speechless and complained internally. Although he didn’t quite understand her way of thinking, his instincts told him to back down when necessary and definitely not argue.

After returning to the lounge, there wasn’t much to do. The camera crew had also left; all that remained was waiting for the director team to arrange the next steps.

At that moment, the chief director hurried to the entrance of the lounge and asked quietly, "Has Xu Qingqiu returned?"

"Yes, she just went in."

"Good." Hearing that she had returned, he quickly composed his breathing, straightened his clothes, and then pushed the door open and walked in.

"Teacher Xu, you sang really well just now."

"Ah, Director, what brings you here?"

Seeing that it was the chief director who had come personally, Xu Qingqiu quickly stood up in surprise to greet him.

"It’s nothing, it’s nothing. Please sit, let’s sit down and talk."

After exchanging a few pleasantries, the director finally revealed his true intention.

"The thing is, Qingqiu, I wanted to ask... who is the master who helped you write these songs?"

"Ah?"

Xu Qingqiu had never expected the director to ask such a question right off the bat, and for a moment, she didn’t know how to respond.

"Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to pry. It’s just that..."

"I’ll be direct. Ours is a competitive show, as you know. Sometimes, the impact of songs on singers is extremely significant. Previously, no one has ever brought such excellent original songs to compete, so..."

In just those two sentences, Xu Qingqiu had already realized what was coming. Seeing the director hesitate, she knew she couldn’t avoid the inevitable, so she said, "Director, please speak your mind."

"Alright, then I’ll be direct. I want to ask if you plan to continue using original songs."

"This..."

Xu Qingqiu pondered for a moment. If she said she wouldn’t, what if another new song appeared? If it were another classic, she would definitely want to sing it. If there were no new songs, then she certainly wouldn’t.

Because she wasn’t entirely sure, she didn’t give a definitive answer.

"I’m not too sure. There might be, there might not be."

What does "might be, might not be" mean? The director felt a headache coming on. Does that mean there might still be more originals? Did her family excavate some master composer’s study? How could there be so many?

Seeing Xu Qingqiu was still being noncommittal, he couldn’t afford to be indirect any longer and had to speak plainly.

"To be honest, this has indeed exposed a loophole in the show. Original songs, especially excellent ones, have too great an impact on the program. So, I wanted to discuss with you... for future performances, if it’s possible to avoid using original songs, please try not to."

Actually, the director could have directly amended the rules. Given his status, he didn’t really need to show Xu Qingqiu such consideration.

The two were not on equal footing in terms of resources, connections, or status.

But the chief director wasn’t foolish. He was also conflicted. Firstly, he anticipated that the two songs Xu Qingqiu sang would likely cause a sensation, which meant generating buzz.

Secondly, it was very likely that Xu Qingqiu had a heavyweight like a Song Daddy backing her. Offending her rashly would be unwise. There might be a chance for future collaboration, and it was important to leave that door open.

Thirdly, if Xu Qingqiu became famous because of these two songs, and then he changed the rules causing her to withdraw from the competition, the impact on the show would be enormous. He was wary of that.

Fourthly, if the songs became massive hits, then later, when ratings might dip, he could discuss with Xu Qingqiu about performing another original to boost popularity again. This was a strategic reserve.

After weighing these considerations, the pros and cons, the director had personally come to negotiate with such a humble attitude.