Chapter 30: Stunning the Crowd

Chapter 30: Chapter 30: Stunning the Crowd``` Zhang Jingdong originally thought that with such a big stage, there wouldn't be many who dared to perform on it. Because speaking for himself, if he was still the one who couldn't do anything as before, he definitely wouldn't have signed up to perform. After all, making a fool of oneself is a small matter, but embarrassing oneself in front of Lin Shishi, that would definitely become a nightmare for a lifetime. But contrary to his expectation, there were at least forty or fifty people lined up in front of him. He waited for more than twenty minutes before he finally managed to sign up. And when he left, there were already another thirty or forty people lined up behind him. He couldn't help but silently sigh that he still had only a superficial understanding of this world. After signing up, he was guided by the staff to the waiting area beside the stage. About half an hour later, the performance segment ended, and the interactive segment officially began. And just ten minutes into it, Zhang Jingdong understood what the judges were for. He was initially puzzled, thinking why would a music festival need judges like a talent show? But now he understood the foresight of the organizing committee; these judges' main purpose wasn't to evaluate the contestants, but to interrupt some bizarre performances. Because the performances of these amateurs were just too wild! Being off-key when singing wasn't even worth mentioning; some guys weren't there to perform at all, but to confess their love to Lin Shishi or Xiao Fei! And there were two big brothers even more awesome, choosing both, they actually confessed to Lin Shishi and Xiao Fei in public at the same time. What was most awesome was that this interactive segment didn't collapse but instead was even more popular than the previous performance segment. There was no helping it; why do shows like "Men and Women Rush Forward" become popular later in time? Because the most original performances are what truly move people! Of course, besides those who came to create laughter, there were also some really skilled contestants who surprised everyone. Like a girl from the Management Faculty said as soon as she got on stage: "Next, I'll perform a segment of playing the -xiao." As soon as these words came out, all the male students in the audience almost fell off their chairs. But when she actually began to play the -xiao, everyone present was stunned by her incredibly exquisite skill! Even Zhang Jingdong couldn't help but give her a thumbs up: With such skill, it wouldn't even be expensive to pay ten thousand yuan for a tune! Another half an hour passed, when Lin Shishi spoke into the microphone: "The next contestant is Zhang Jingdong from the Department of Mathematics in the College of Science!" The moment she mentioned the Department of Mathematics, she subconsciously felt a stir, and when she read out the name Zhang Jingdong, a flash of surprise and anticipation quickly crossed her eyes. And then, when Zhang Jingdong walked onto the stage, he also gave Lin Shishi a look. At that moment, the always calm and composed Lin Shishi's face actually showed a rare flash of embarrassment. When Zhang Jingdong stood in the center of the stage, Xiao Fei, who was sitting in the middle of the judges' seats not far in front, also looked completely surprised! Ever since she was shocked by Zhang Jingdong's clay flute performance in her own instrument shop that day, she had been unable to forget about this guy. Of course, it wasn't love at first sight for her, but a pure admiration for his talent in playing the clay flute. But she would have never expected that this guy would be at the same university as her, and now they had met again on this occasion! And at this moment, the most shocked of all had to be the brothers from Dorm 541. They had gotten up early today and patiently queued for more than two hours to finally get seats in the third row. When Xiao Fei performed on stage just now, they were all feeling sorry for Zhang Jingdong, thinking they'd comfort him when they got back to the dorm. Comforting sounded good, but in reality, it was to show off to him. But unexpectedly, Zhang Jingdong pulled off an extreme comeback, making it straight onto the stage! Not only did Lin Shishi personally read his name, but he had also seen Lin Shishi from such a close distance. ``` Despite their shock, they all sweated for Zhang Jingdong. Although Zhang Jingdong had never claimed musical talent, their instincts, from seeing him every day, told them he was just as tone-deaf as they were. At this moment, Sun Mian barely dared to watch, jokingly said, "Geez, Brother Dong has such guts. But he didn't think twice; this stage isn't just for anyone to step onto." "Making a fool of oneself comes with a cost, especially in front of Lin Shishi and Xiao Fei. Tsk tsk, even if I had two more guts, I wouldn't dare do this!" Zhao Liuquan also sighed, "Brother Dong must have been desperate. After all, you can't see anything from the back, but no matter what, he shouldn't have done this... How will he ever get a girlfriend in school after this!" Lu Yuan then said, "Enough, don't talk about that. He's already gone up there, can we still pull him down?" "We're his brothers after all; one rule – no matter how Brother Dong performs, we all shout 'awesome' loudly at the end, got it?" Sun Mian responded affirmatively, "Alright, since we're his brothers." Meanwhile, Zhang Jingdong was also a little nervous; it was his first time standing on such a big stage in two lifetimes. Moreover, there were so many audiences below, and they all were from the same school. Especially standing next to Lin Shishi, with Xiao Fei who had just stunned the audience seated below, and not far in the stands sat a bunch of his dormitory mates. Zhang Jingdong quickly steadied his mind, then stepped forward and said into the microphone, "Next, I'll perform 'Always Together' for everyone on the clay flute." Saying so, he opened the box and took out the clay flute. As he touched the clay flute, his body and mind instantly relaxed. At that moment, Lin Shishi couldn't help but look surprised, because she saw a strange calmness in Zhang Jingdong's eyes. She knew it was an expression of great confidence in his own performance. Meanwhile, a girl beside Xiao Fei couldn't resist asking her, "Feifei, it's been a while since I've seen anyone who can play the clay flute. And Suzuki Jiro's 'Always Together' is also a big favorite of mine. I hope he gives a good performance." Xiao Fei stared at Zhang Jingdong with profound meaning, "Judging by his expression, he shouldn't disappoint you!" Zhang Jingdong made a brief preparation, then began to play. Originally, during the performances of these amateurs, there had been many laughs, so the audience was quite noisy. But after Zhang Jingdong played a short segment, the whole audience suddenly fell silent. Because they felt as if they were hearing a heavenly sound! And Lin Shishi, standing off to the side of the stage, now couldn't conceal her admiration for Zhang Jingdong anymore, staring intently at him. Mainly because Zhang Jingdong's sudden performance was simply stunning! Moreover, Lin Shishi loved anime a lot and had watched "Spirited Away" more than once, so naturally, she was very fond of this song. But what shocked her was that she only thought the song in the movie sounded good; she hadn't expected the live performance by Zhang Jingdong to be even better than in the movie! And more importantly, she suddenly realized that ever since that accidental encounter with Zhang Jingdong under the dormitory building, each subsequent meeting had brought her surprises. Like last time he suddenly said he was doing business, and then somehow he could earn tens of thousands of yuan a month. And this time he brought such wonderfully good, virtually classic flute playing! At this moment, she couldn't help but feel intensely curious about him for the first time. "The host has successfully gained the person of interest's curiosity, rewarded 30,000 yuan!" Xiao Fei was also deeply impressed by his performance once again! Honestly, having been raised with a family that owned a musical instrument store and coupled with her own outstanding musical talent, Xiao Fei was proficient in many instruments. So she had always been very proud of her music. But it was the first time after being profoundly shaken by Zhang Jingdong's previous performance, that she now felt a sense of inferiority! Because she suddenly realized that if it was just the clay flute, she couldn't even reach one-third of Zhang Jingdong's level. "The host has successfully gained the person of interest's admiration, rewarded 30,000 yuan!" And after hearing the positive feedback from these two school beauties, Zhang Jingdong was overjoyed, and his performance became even more absorbed!