Under the watchful eyes of everyone.
The countdown to the recording of King of Masked Singers began.
There were still three days left.
There were only three days left.
...
At home.
On this morning.
Zhang Ye felt a little uncomfortable after waking up. His head was a little swollen and he was coughing a little. However, he did not think much of it. Perhaps it was because he had been under too much pressure these past few days, or perhaps he had been practicing for too long that he had caught a slight cold. He figured that he would be fine after taking some medicine.
His mother, who had finished cooking, suddenly said, "Son."
Zhang Ye said, "Ah."
His mother smiled and said, "Your dad and I discussed it yesterday and decided to go to Hainan to have some fun for a while. It's been so many years since the two of us went out for a vacation."
His father did not really feel like going out. "Are you really going?"
"Didn't we already agree on it?" His mother stared at him.
Zhang Ye said happily, "Let's go. It's quite fun to have some fun."
His mother nodded and glanced at him. "Are you going to reimburse us?"
Zhang Ye said, "Yes, of course I will!"
His mother said, "That's good then. Shall we book the tickets now?"
Zhang Ye said, "Go ahead. Have fun with Dad. I'll reimburse all the expenses."
"Will you be alright staying at home by yourself?" His father was a little worried.
His mother curled her lips and said, "Our son is already so old. Do you really need to worry about him?"
Zhang Ye smiled. "Don't worry about me, you two. If I get hungry, I'll just go out to eat. I won't starve to death."
His mother said, "We'll be back in a few days. Hurry up and look for a job."
"Alright, I got it," Zhang Ye said.
His mother was an impatient person. Whatever she said, it had to be done immediately. A part of Zhang Ye's character also took after his mother. On the same day, after booking the hotel and air tickets, his parents packed their luggage and did some simple packing. That very afternoon, they went to the Beijing International Airport to catch a flight. They left just like that!
At night.
Zhang Ye cooked a bag of instant noodles for himself and ate. Then he took some cold medicine and went to bed early.
The next day.
When he got out of bed again, Zhang Ye nearly fell to the ground. He felt a little dizzy and his legs felt a little weak. Only then did he realize that his cold had gotten worse and he even had a fever!
Damn!
Surely not, right?
You dropped the ball at such a crucial moment?
Zhang Ye didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He had a rehearsal at Beijing Television today, so he had to discuss the songs and arrangements with the band. But Zhang Ye guessed that he wouldn't be able to make it in his current state, so he took The Clown's number and called his contact, Han Qi, to apply for leave.
Han Qi was also very nervous. "Teacher, are you alright?"
"I'm fine."
"We're recording the show tomorrow, this …"
"I can make it."
"You're the starter. It's too late to change players now."
"I know."
"I'll go and see you. Where do you live?"
"No need."
"Then, then rest well. We can talk about the rehearsal tomorrow."
"Yes."
After hanging up, Zhang Ye hurriedly forced himself to get up. He rummaged through his drawers and found a pile of medicine. It was for colds and fevers. He swallowed it all in one go and continued sleeping. He was also hoping that his cold would get better soon. Otherwise, it would affect his performance in the competition tomorrow. That would be really stupid.
There were too many outstanding singers on the stage of King of Masked Singers. Although Zhang Ye did not know their names, just by looking at their auras and voices, he knew that each and every one of them was a formidable opponent. Even if Zhang Ye were to perform in his best condition, he still might not necessarily win, much less if he were to perform while suffering from a cold. He could not even guarantee that he would not be eliminated in the first round, so he was feeling quite anxious about it!
Hurry up and get better!
If he were to lose in the first round and be forced to take off his mask, how would he be able to perform in the future?
But things always turned out contrary to one's wishes. Sometimes, the more you wish for it to be better, the worse it gets!
…
Friday.
On the day of the recording.
The interval between the recording and broadcast of a TV show in this world was much shorter than in Zhang Ye's previous world. Due to the live audience at the recording venue, a lot of news and the results of the broadcast would be leaked out in advance, so it was impossible to keep it under wraps. As such, considering that if the interval was too long, it would affect the quality of the broadcast, so the King of Masked Singers program team compressed the time even further. They would record on Friday and broadcast on Saturday at 8 PM. With only a day's interval, it was more than enough time, but they did not allow any accidents to happen. Everyone was extremely careful and focused, because if there were any problems with the recording or an accident, they would not be able to make it to the broadcast the next day. That would be a big problem!
Past 5 AM.
The sky was still dark.
The staff of Beijing Television's King of Masked Singers program team had already arrived.
At the recording studio, the entire venue had been refurbished. It was a stunning sight to behold. The stage, lighting, venue, and audio equipment were all the best in the industry. The program team, who had secured a title sponsorship fee of 150 million RMB, had also put in a lot of effort. They did not care about the cost at all. They wanted to amaze the world with a single brilliant feat! The station heads of Beijing Television were also very cooperative. This was the most important show that their Beijing Television had created this year. There was no other show that could come close to it. The station's and the program team's efforts were all invested into this show!
"Brother Hu, Teacher Sunset Glow is here!"
"So early?"
"She wasn't very satisfied with the rehearsal yesterday, so she made some changes to the arrangement. She wanted to come over and perform it with the band again. She's already in the second rehearsal room!"
"Alright, we'll officially start recording at 1 PM. Everyone, hurry up and get ready!"
"Yes!"
"Understood!"
"Eh, where's Teacher Zhang?"
"He's not here yet, right?"
"He's here. I saw him get out of the car when I went downstairs just now."
"Is that so? I didn't see him. "
"I didn't see him either. Did you see wrongly?"
"It's a BMW X5. That's Teacher Zhang's car."
"Don't worry about Teacher Zhang for now. The biggest variable right now is Teacher Clown. Where's Han Qi? Little Han! Has Teacher Clown arrived yet? "
"He's already here. Little Han has gone to fetch him!"
"Has he recovered from his illness?"
"I don't know."
"Come, let's go and have a look! If Teacher Clown can't record, that would be troublesome! At this time, there's no way we can find anyone else! "
Backstage.
Outside the rehearsal room.
As The Clown was wearing a mask, no one saw how he got in. By the time Han Qi received him, The Clown had already changed his clothes and his face was completely covered by the mask!
Han Qi said in surprise, "Teacher Clown, are you alright?"
The Clown was silent for a moment before saying, "I'm … alright."
The moment he opened his mouth, his hoarse and even somewhat stuttering voice was immediately exposed!
Han Qi was stunned. "You …"
Soon after, the door to the rehearsal room opened.
Sunset Glow came out from inside. When she saw the person wearing a clown mask at the door, she was also taken aback. A smile appeared in her eyes under the mask. She had heard the Clown sing a few worker songs before and seemed very curious about his identity. She wondered what kind of strange song this "50-year-old driver" with a beautiful voice would sing this time, so she asked, "Teacher Clown, what song did you choose?" She deliberately changed her voice so as not to expose herself.
But when The Clown spoke, she was also stunned.
The Clown said dryly, "I … didn't … think … well."
Sunset Glow said, "Your throat …"
The Clown threw up his hands. "It's … heavy."
Sunset Glow immediately said, "Don't speak anymore. Speak less if you can. Did you go to the hospital? Did you get a cortisone? No, this is too serious. Even a cortisone won't help! "
Han Qi stomped her feet anxiously. "W-What should we do now!"
Suddenly, Hu Fei, Hou Ge, Xiao Lu, and the others rushed over. When they heard The Clown's current voice, their expressions changed and they fell silent.
Dafei clenched his teeth and said, "Let's switch, Brother Hu!"
Hu Fei said, "How? It's too late now! "
Xiao Lu exclaimed, "This is bad!"
"We'll start recording in the afternoon!" Hou Ge was also in a panic.
However, The Clown looked at them and smiled. He was clearly very sick, but his mentality seemed to be better than all of them. "I'm … fine. I can sing."
Han Qi said anxiously, "How are you going to sing!"
The Clown ignored her and went straight into the rehearsal room. "Let's … rehearse the song. Cough, cough, cough, cough!"
When he walked in, everyone looked at him and realized that The Clown's footsteps were unsteady and a little wobbly!
When the Miracle Wheels band saw him, their hearts skipped a beat.
Music director Bai Yuanfei immediately came forward. "Can you do it?"
The Clown smiled. "Sure."
Bai Yuanfei nodded. "Then let's give it a try first."
The Miracle Wheels drummer said, "How can we sing like this? Even if we sing, we'll definitely be eliminated! "
The guitarist sighed and said, "The Clown sings bel canto. With this voice, there's no way …"
"Pop … music, rock … I can also … sing it," The Clown said.
The guitarist said, "You really can't do it like this!"
The Clown's tone was very firm. "Even if you can't … you still have to do it!"
Lose?
Be eliminated?
Zhang Ye was not afraid. If he lost, so be it. He was not someone who could not afford to lose. What he could not accept was that he did not even have the courage to step onto the stage. Having debuted for so many years, what kind of storms had he not seen before? What kind of mountain of daggers and sea of fire had he not gone through? He could lose, but even if he did, he would lose standing on the stage!
This was Zhang Ye!
He had the nature of a wolf in his bones!
The word "retreat" did not exist in his dictionary!
Thinking of this, Zhang Ye suddenly knew what song he was going to sing today. The melody and lyrics of the song came to him uncontrollably!
He wanted to tell the audience.
Who was he!
Where did he come from!
And where was he going!
Zhang Ye picked up a pen and paper and immediately started writing down the score.
When Music Director Bai Yuanfei and the band saw this, they all looked incredulous.
Bai Yuanfei gasped and said, "Y-You're going to sing an original song?"
Zhang Ye nodded.
The bassist facepalmed. He really had to give it to Zhang Ye. "You're still going to sing an original song when you're in such a state? This is too difficult. Can't we just do something simpler? "
The guitarist also disagreed. "Besides, the audience might not necessarily buy it. If they were to listen to a song they've never heard before, how would they accept it when it's their first time? This is still a question mark. Your voice is already not doing well today, so if you take this risk, you'll definitely be eliminated! "
But Zhang Ye looked at them firmly and handed the score over. "My … first … song … must be … this song!"
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