Chapter 22: Hurry Out and Comfort Her

"Thank you!"

When the results were announced, Qin Haiyu finally let out a sigh of relief.

The host, Ni Qiqin, offered a faint, wry smile and asked, "Do you know what these numbers mean?"

"I do!" Qin Haiyu replied without hesitation. "I did a quick calculation earlier—Teacher Fan Di’s total votes for both rounds put him in fourth place, and my votes are exactly two fewer than his. That means my challenge failed!"

"Uh…"

Ni Qiqin had thought that Qin Haiyu was relieved because she believed she’d succeeded in her challenge. She had never expected that what Qin Haiyu was hoping for was precisely to fail!

She smiled again, wryly. "Why does it seem like you’re relieved to know you failed? As if you didn’t want to succeed in the challenge?"

Qin Haiyu flashed a gentle, captivating smile and explained, "Actually, I never intended to join the show. My husband went behind my back and contacted the producers; he basically sold me out! I couldn’t win against him, so here I am. Now that I’ve failed the challenge, I can finally go home and take care of our baby in peace!"

A faint whiff of envy seemed to drift through the air…

Ni Qiqin forced another smile. "But what if just one more judge had voted for you, or if the last three audience members had chosen you, and you actually won the challenge?"

"That would have been very difficult," Qin Haiyu admitted. "My score last episode was too low, so even if the others had an off night, it would’ve been hard for me to make the top four. I never expected tonight’s performance to get such a high vote! If, by some misfortune, I had succeeded, then I’d have to keep recording the show and my husband would have to take care of the baby a little longer. But I’m quite content with this outcome. Even though I failed, I got the highest number of votes this episode. I’m happy—I didn’t mess up my performance or let down my husband, who wrote this song for his readers."

Ni Qiqin felt she’d just been served another helping of envy and laughed. "I was going to comfort you, but it seems I should congratulate you for failing the challenge instead!"

"Thank you~"

Qin Haiyu smiled her thanks, and Ni Qiqin then called the other seven singers to the stage. The huge screen began to display the combined vote rankings for all eight singers over the two episodes.

First place: Chen Yuzhong, total 1,258 votes.

Second place: Ye Fei, total 1,231 votes.

Third place: Wu Xiaoqian, total 1,163 votes.

Fourth place: Fan Di, total 1,119 votes.

Fifth place: Qin Haiyu, total 1,117 votes.

Sixth place: Huang Shaoqiang, total 1,098 votes.

Seventh place: Lin Qing, total 1,096 votes.

Eighth place: Zhang Qingsong, total 1,091 votes.

Apart from the first and second places, who each averaged over six hundred votes per episode, the difference in scores among the other singers was actually quite small.

Fan Di, who was in fourth, had been fighting with his back against the wall—no one expected him to leap from second last to fourth place! Had he not performed so powerfully tonight, Qin Haiyu would really have been advancing, and Zhang Qingsong, in eighth place, would have been eliminated.

Now, with her combined votes unable to break into the top four, Ni Qiqin regretfully announced Qin Haiyu’s failure after revealing the rankings.

And that’s when something happened that nearly forced the production team to halt the recording.

Wu Xiaoqian, the veteran star, suddenly declared he wanted to withdraw from the competition and let Qin Haiyu advance instead.

He said, "This stage needs outstanding young singers. I’m old now—I can’t keep up with the young anymore. To be honest, I was disappointed with Xiao Qin’s previous performance, and I thought the challenger the producers brought in this time was rather weak. But tonight, her rendition of 'Little Happiness' completely proved me wrong! Her voice is truly heavenly. Her technique tonight was so steady and remarkable. This stage could do without me, but without her, I believe many viewers would feel the same regret as I would."

Ni Qiqin hadn’t expected such high praise from Mr. Wu for Qin Haiyu!

She kept her composure and said, "Mr. Wu, your request goes against the show’s rules. The producers will have to discuss this in private, and besides, we should first hear what Qin Haiyu thinks."

Qin Haiyu herself was stunned by the honor.

She’d grown up listening to Wu Xiaoqian’s music—when he became famous, she was just starting elementary school! She never expected that he would offer to step aside for her and shower her with such praise.

She was grateful for his generosity, but as for advancing through his withdrawal, she truly didn’t want to accept such a heavy honor.

So, with gratitude and a touch of helplessness, Qin Haiyu said, "Mr. Wu, I sincerely appreciate your kindness. I failed the challenge, and that’s that. I’m deeply grateful you’d step aside to let me advance, but it would put the production team in a difficult position. Besides, I genuinely just want to go home and look after my child. Failing the challenge isn’t something I’m upset about—I never intended to win in the first place. And, if I may, I must disagree with you on one point!

Mr. Wu, your music has inspired a whole generation. I grew up listening to your songs. This stage could do without me, but it can’t do without you, who represent the classics, who embody an era of music!"

Wu Xiaoqian frowned. "Do you really not want to keep singing on this stage?"

Qin Haiyu shook her head and smiled. "Mr. Wu, as you said, I’m still young. I’ll have plenty more chances to perform onstage in the future. In fact, back in season six, I won second place on this very stage! So there’s nothing I regret, and nothing I still yearn for. Right now, all I can think about is my husband and daughter at home—I just want to finish the show and hurry back to them."

Wu Xiaoqian sighed in disappointment. "Very well, then I won’t discuss it with the producers. I just hope you keep making the most of that heaven-sent voice of yours—don’t let it go to waste just because you’re raising kids. That would be a real pity, a real waste!"

"I will. Thank you."

Qin Haiyu walked over and gave him a gentle hug—the man who, in a couple of years, might truly be unable to sing and would announce his retirement from music. After all, Mr. Wu was nearly sixty, and many of the high notes had become difficult for him. He was a veteran who had truly dedicated his whole life to music.

In the end, Mr. Wu proposed, "I hope the production team can set up a comeback vote for the eliminated singers—the one with the highest votes can return to the stage."

After the recording wrapped, the producers held a meeting to consider Mr. Wu’s suggestion. The current season was already halfway through; would introducing a comeback round now throw the show into chaos?

At that moment, Yang Bing suddenly raised his hand and voiced his support for Mr. Wu’s idea, offering several criticisms and suggestions for improving the current voting system.

Director Zhang Qian listened and gradually realized that the young man’s points made a lot of sense.

He furrowed his brow and asked, "What’s your name?"

"Yang Bing, junior planner for the music channel," he replied a bit nervously.

Zhang Qian responded in a deep voice, "All right. I’ll give you three days. Prepare a revised program plan based on your ideas and submit it to me."

"Yes, sir!"

Yang Bing answered excitedly.

…

A short while later, Qin Haiyu returned home and, with a playfully aggrieved whimper, called out, "Honey, I failed my challenge—come out and comfort me! Boo hoo hoo~"