CSGM - Chapter 95
Chapter 95: The Audience is Astounded
Chu Xi sat before the piano, her back perfectly straight. A melodious and pleasant tune flowed from her fingertips, seeming to trace a graceful arc along the lines of her profile.
The clean, simple notes were like sprites dancing on the keys.
Her ten long, slender fingers commanded the keyboard with an unhurried pace, her entire presence one of complete ease.
Compared to Nana, whose fingers frantically searched the keyboard, scurrying about anxiously like a lost child, Chu Xi's calm and composed demeanor created an even more striking contrast!
On the same stage, two separate areas.
Though they were right next to each other, they seemed like two completely different worlds!
One was heaven, the other was earth.
One was a chaotic mess, scrambling in confusion. The other was a steady advance, hitting its stride.
The singers in Section A who could play the piano stared intently at the movement of Chu Xi's fingers on stage.
The more familiar they were with the piano, the more fixed and disbelieving their gazes became!
It was obvious that both pianos on stage had been tampered with; it wasn't a case of Nana's keys being scrambled while Chu Xi's was perfectly normal.
The singers in the front row could roughly see which keys Chu Xi was pressing.
They were definitely not the correct notes, but also the result of a scrambled arrangement.
And yet, they watched as Chu Xi's hands moved between this row of completely irregular keys. While her playing might not have been deeply professional or engrossing, she still produced the melody of Silence with effortless ease.
How did she do it? This was a piano that defied all logic!
The veteran singer and classic composer who had sat at that very piano earlier was now staring with wide eyes, holding his breath. It wasn't intentional; he had simply forgotten to breathe!
After watching Chu Xi's masterful playing for a while, he suddenly felt a tightness in his chest and took a long, deep breath.
He had sat at that piano during the previous performance, so he knew better than anyone how the keys had been messed with.
It wasn't just that they were scrambled; one had to re-identify the note each key represented, which in itself required the player to have perfect pitch.
This was a level that even most singers couldn't achieve. It required talent!
Besides being able to distinguish the notes, one also had to memorize the new layout of all eighty-eight keys and break conventional playing habits to perform the piece correctly.
The mind had to make one sharp turn after another, and on top of that, it was an impromptu performance. Even the fumbling display by the "Piano Princess" Nana was within his expectations.
But Chu Xi was completely beyond his expectations!
How on earth did she manage to play this piano as skillfully as a normal one?
The old singer suddenly remembered that before the accompaniment began, Chu Xi had pressed every single key on the piano.
At the time, her actions and the sudden sounds had drawn a lot of attention, but all she did was press them all once.
Could it be that Chu Xi had memorized the new keys at that moment?!
Testing the sound while memorizing the notes?
The old singer's heart trembled at this minuscule possibility.
Impossible!
How could that be possible?
To memorize the new keys after hearing them just once and then be able to play proficiently?
Absolutely impossible!
Look, even the world-renowned Piano Princess, Nana, couldn't do it.
So how could one explain the level at which Chu Xi was now playing?
It wasn't just these singers who couldn't figure it out; the rest of the audience watching the show was also in disbelief!
In their eyes, Nana was already a towering figure in the world of piano. But to see Chu Xi handle a piano game that Nana couldn't grasp so easily… it was truly incredible!
Chu Xi sat calmly on the bench. As the song's melody shifted, her fingers moved with nimble grace.
Rising and falling, every single note perfectly matched the original score!
What was going on? Did the scrambled keys have no effect on Chu Xi at all?
Or had she already adapted to the new keyboard?
But if so, her adaptation speed was way too fast!
No one had forgotten that this was a live show with no rehearsal!
Even the audience members who had never played an instrument could now sense the difficulty of re-learning and memorizing the notes on the spot.
Nana's deep breaths and nervous glances at the keyboard had already told them as much.
May's side was a chaotic mess, while Li Xiling sang with the serenity of a peaceful nation.
"Why does love condemn one to a life of solitude…"
"Can't break free, can't escape…"
A slight upward lilt at the end of the line, born more from genuine emotion than technique, gave the lyrics a stronger sense of spatial depth and a lingering aftertaste.
The Queen of Song was truly the Queen of Song!
But such a steady performance was built upon the solid support of her accompanist!
The same modified piano that was a mischievous little demon in Nana's hands—how did it become an obedient servant for Chu Xi?
Nana looked a bit pitiful.
But Chu Xi's performance was simply too stunning for the audience!
At this very moment, the viewers who had held no expectations for Chu Xi now had their eyes fixed on her.
This was… a primitive video recording of a human taming a piano!
In between breaths while singing, Li Xiling glanced smugly at her opponents, at the audience, and then at Chu Xi, who was performing a basic operation.
Chu Xi turned her gaze and gave her a light smile and a nod.
During this brief interaction, Chu Xi's eyes were completely off the piano.
Yet she didn't even look down at the keys, and the melody that flowed from her fingertips remained precise and flawless!
Those few seconds demonstrated that she had already committed the keys to heart!
The audience, noticing this brilliant detail, erupted in wave after wave of applause and cheers.
The melody of this song was simple and didn't require profound skill. Even if Nana's piano technique was superior to Chu Xi's, Chu Xi's strength lay in her adaptability.
Li Xiling, whose IQ had been trained by Chu Xi to break one hundred, had made an incredibly correct decision this time!
So, in these kinds of impromptu situations, summoning Chu Xi was the way to go!
Mwahahahahaha!
Seeing May, who thought she had victory in the bag after snatching Nana, get drenched by the water from above, Li Xiling let out a merciless laugh during the instrumental break.
"Hahahahahaha…"
In the latter half of the song, Nana was finally able to play the correct tune intermittently, but compared to Chu Xi, who had been smooth from start to finish, it was still not enough to compete.
The audience had already decided the winner in their hearts and began to simply enjoy the performance by Li Xiling and Chu Xi.
It was as if the scrambled arrangement on the piano had no effect on Chu Xi at all. She played every section smoothly and solidly, giving Li Xiling the greatest room to shine and the most reassuring accompaniment.
The audience didn't know how she did it. The mocking smiles on some faces had now transformed into focused appreciation of the work.
However, a trace of stunned amazement lingered on their faces, impossible to wipe away.
When Chu Xi played the first section with steady melody, it was stunning.
When she remained flawless through the middle, the audience was astonished.
By the latter half, her continued performance without a single wrong note was utterly staggering!
So this was the "awesome helper" that the Queen of Song, Li Xiling, had boasted about?
Yes, yes! Absolutely awesome!
This was the "strongest helper in the entire venue" that Li Xiling had hyped up?
Yes, yes! Who would dare say that Chu Xi, who played flawlessly from beginning to end on a scrambled piano, wasn't strong?
This was the combination that Li Xiling said wouldn't lose to May and Nana?
Wasn't the result obvious? The two of them had indeed completely defeated the other side!
It turned out the entertainment industry was also a place full of hidden talents.
This Chu Xi must have perfect pitch, right?
She must be highly proficient with musical instruments, right?
Some record company bosses, including investors, looked at Chu Xi with a burning intensity in their eyes.
Come to think of it, Chu Xi had been quite humble when she spoke.
This was her level of "knowing a little"?
Heh, young people were too polite. This person had to be at least at a professional level.
In reality, Chu Xi genuinely believed she only knew a little.
After all, singing wasn't her hobby, and she had only learned the basics of instruments on a whim.
Besides, this kind of game-like performance didn't test her fundamental skills.
She could handle simple playing with ease.
She heard the hushed discussions from below the stage; some people were actually doubting if she was really playing.
Because every note was just too precise, it didn't seem like she was playing a tampered piano. Such formidable skill would naturally attract suspicion from some.
So, during an instrumental break, she deliberately paused for two seconds. Without moving her hands, she turned her head to the microphone and said one thing.
"It's real playing."
Then she resumed the movements of her hands, and the beautiful, lilting melody once again flowed from her fingertips.
Officially certified, it's real playing!
The audience erupted in a waterfall of applause once more.
Chu Xi's performance made it seem as if the challenge wasn't difficult at all, as if the game's design lacked any real challenge.
If it weren't for the previous performance and the struggling Nana right beside her, the audience might have truly been under that illusion!
Some of the minor singers and idols who debuted through singing and dancing in Section F couldn't help but feel inadequate.
We're all artists in Section F, so how can there be someone so skilled?
How were they supposed to make it? They never expected to find such a talent among artists of the same tier.
They couldn't help but think that Chu Xi was bound to make a name for herself sooner or later. The next time she attended a gala like this, she probably wouldn't be sitting in this last-place section!
This one performance made them clearly realize that Chu Xi was in Section F not because her skill level was F-tier, but because she was new.
Now that Chu Xi had astounded so many big shots in the venue, she had surely left an impression.
No one had expected that a minor artist who had walked up from some back-row section could deliver such a huge surprise.
And so, the audience watched the performance with exhilarating delight amidst their surprise.
When the song ended, the gala venue was filled with continuous applause. A balding, middle-aged boss even gave Chu Xi a thumbs-up.
The scoring screen on stage showed that Li Xiling's singing score was SSS-rank, while the drenched May only received an A-rank.
For two Queens of Song, the gap in this performance was a bit large.
May smiled helplessly. Nana left the piano and walked to her side, her expression full of apology.
At that moment, the host came on stage. Having received instructions from the CEO, he no longer dared to ignore Chu Xi. While chatting, he also handed the microphone to her to speak.
Host: "Xixi, how did you manage to ignore the scrambled keys and play the original song so steadily?"
Xixi? How nauseating.
Chu Xi frowned imperceptibly.
Her gaze fell upon the audience below. Even among the crowd, she could instantly spot the most radiant figure, as simple as finding the moon among a sea of stars.
And Ren Zhi was looking right back at her. She silently raised her right hand, pinched her fingers near her mouth, and sent a subtle signal with her eyes.
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