Chapter 161: The Battle of Kingship-Pop Star(The Imperial Gate Chef's Knife)

The large screen displayed that customers at Table 7, Table 21, and Table 15 were currently waiting in line to perform.

As soon as she sat down, Sun Yanqi grew excited, whispering eagerly, "Let's get in line too! We need to aim for the champion of this time slot and get ourselves a free meal!"

Huang Guolun was amused by Sun Yanqi. He glanced around the room and asked doubtfully, "There are quite a few people here for dinner, but how come not many are lining up to sing? Only three tables are waiting."

Sun Yanqi guessed, "Chances are they're just afraid of making fools of themselves. This isn't a regular KTV where just anyone can go up and sing. Look at that stage over there—there are only two instruments, a guitar and a keyboard, and there's no backing track. Customers who sing here have to accompany themselves, or else go completely a cappella. Under conditions like this, unless you've got some real skills, nobody dares to challenge it casually. Otherwise, if the audience votes to boo you off, it's just too embarrassing."

Huang Guolun asked with curiosity, "They can actually boo you off?"

Sun Yanqi pointed to the small print on the table and explained, "Of course. Look, the rules are written right here: if a performer's singing gets scored minus thirty points or lower by the audience, the sound is cut off immediately, they are asked to step down from the stage, and they aren't allowed to perform again for the rest of this time slot."

Huang Guolun smiled and said, "Oh, the boss is quite smart. Setting the rules this way prevents troublemakers from intentionally getting up there and singing terribly just to disturb other people's dinner."

"Yeah, the singing rules of Music Supreme are getting more and more refined. It's much more fun than when I came last time. Customers couldn't vote back then, but now the boss has handed the voting power over to the diners. I think this makes much more sense."

Huang Guolun nodded in agreement. He glanced at the voting buttons on the table, which ranged from minus five to plus five across ten different levels. The audience could rate the performer's singing according to how much they enjoyed it.

By that calculation, if a performer didn't do very well, it would be very easy to accumulate minus thirty points and get booted off the stage.

No wonder there weren't very many people waiting in line to sing.

Anyone who dared to get up on the stage at Music Supreme to perform was bound to have at least some vocal capability.

Sun Yanqi told Huang Guolun, "This meal should be on me, to thank you for taking the time to lead our class choir rehearsals. I'll go up on stage first and see if I can win first place for this time slot. Heh, if I win, consider this meal my treat. If I don't, then you'll have to step up and treat me to a free meal."

As she spoke, Sun Yanqi pressed the queue button.

They were sitting at Table 20, and the queue information for Table 20 instantly appeared on the large screen.

Huang Guolun teased Sun Yanqi, "Stop going on and on about free meals; people will hear you and make fun of you. Also, I'm curious—do you know how to play the guitar or the keyboard?"

Sun Yanqi assumed a proud posture and said, "Don't underestimate me. I actually have a bit of musical talent. I'll blow your mind in a minute!"

"Fine, then I'll just wait to have my 'mind blown.' Let's order our food first; I'm starving."

"Order like there's no tomorrow! Tonight, we are definitely getting a free meal!"

Sun Yanqi was seemingly determined to secure the championship for this time slot.

However, just as they were placing their order, the performance by the newly ascended customer at Table 7 poured a bucket of cold water over Sun Yanqi's confidence.

The person who took the stage at that table was a middle-aged uncle wearing black-rimmed glasses, sporting a thick beard, and exuding an artistic vibe. With an image like that, he would look exceptionally cool busking on the street.

He held a guitar and performed a self-accompanied rendition of Zhang Weiwei's *Rice Shop*. The moment he opened his mouth, the entire restaurant fell quiet.

"The misty rain of March / the swaying southern land / you sit in your empty rice shop / holding an apple in one hand / holding destiny in the other / searching for your own fragrance..."

Everyone was struck by the uncle's gentle and moving folk voice.

Huang Guolun could tell with a single listen that this uncle possessed extraordinary vocal skills.

He was very likely a low-key, professional folk singer.

The entire restaurant was immersed in the atmosphere of *Rice Shop* that the uncle had created for them, feeling as though their souls had been cleansed:

"People outside the window / coming and going in a hurry / casting their gazes onto the damp road"

"Your dance steps / sweep across the empty room / and time turns into smoke"

"My love, can you feel that tomorrow has already arrived / our boat is docked at the pier"

"I will wash my hair clean / climb up the mast / and prop up our home, tender like the green leaves of a grapevine"

...

Huang Guolun watched the uncle's calm and composed performance on the LCD screen. Given his steady breath and unruffled stage presence, Huang Guolun became even more certain that this person's skill level was definitely beyond that of an ordinary diner.

This uncle must be someone who sang for a living year-round. Coming to Music Supreme, he was clearly gunning for the free meal as well! Could it be that he wasn't doing well in the music industry and had come to this restaurant to sing for a free meal? There certainly were no shortage of starving artists in the music circle.

Sun Yanqi was completely overwhelmed by the uncle's vocal prowess from Table 7. With rare self-awareness, she said, "This uncle sings really well. I don't think I can beat him. Why don't you go up instead?"

Huang Guolun smiled and encouraged her, "You go first. If you can't do it, I'll go up."

Sun Yanqi gave a wry smile. "I feel... I definitely can't do it. This uncle sings completely at a professional level, and I'm just at the KTV level. How can I compare to him?"

Huang Guolun teased Sun Yanqi, "Didn't you just tell me to wait to have my mind blown? How come you're getting cold feet now?"

"I'm not getting cold feet; I genuinely feel I can't outsing this uncle. He sounds too amazing. How many points should we give him?"

The uncle from Table 7 was nearing the end of his performance. Customers at other tables were successively casting their scores for him, and Sun Yanqi's hands trembled as she prepared to rate him as well.

Huang Guolun handed the voting power over to Sun Yanqi. "You give the score. Just make sure you don't give him a negative score. If a performance like this got a negative score, it would be a crime against heaven."

"How could I possibly give him a negative score?" Sun Yanqi felt that Huang Guolun was underestimating her. She pouted slightly and said, "Shall we give him one point?"

Huang Guolun smiled and replied, "Whatever you like. Whatever you think it deserves is fine."

Sun Yanqi hesitated for a moment, but ultimately unable to resist the condemnation of her conscience, she gave the uncle at Table 7 two points.

The performance by the uncle at Table 7 came to an end.

His aggregate score immediately appeared on the big screen above the stage:

137 points!

"Clap, clap, clap—!"

Diners and waitstaff alike broke into spontaneous applause for the uncle at Table 7.

His score was a full 35 points higher than the customer at Table 13 just before him!

He forcefully claimed the number one spot on the leaderboard for this time slot!

Music Supreme had a total of 41 dining tables. Aside from the table where the performer was seated, which had no right to vote, diners at all other tables could rate the performer.

In theory, the maximum possible score for a performer was 200 points.

However, Music Supreme wasn't fully packed tonight; currently, only 36 tables of customers were dining, and only 35 tables had the right to vote.

The theoretical maximum score for a performer was 175 points.

Yet, customers at some tables were reluctant to participate in voting unless a performance particularly moved them or was so unpalatable that it forced their hand. Additionally, diners at a few tables might give negative scores out of a competitive mindset.

The 137 points that the uncle at Table 7 had just earned accounted for 78.3% of the total 175 points, a remarkably high scoring rate.

Under normal circumstances, this scoring rate would easily secure first place for the time slot.

However, competition was always fierce between 7:00 PM and 8:00 PM and between 8:00 PM and 9:00 PM every night. Whether a scoring rate of 78.3% could guarantee the time slot championship remained to be seen.

To ensure fairness, competitions at Music Supreme were calculated based on the scoring percentage. This way, no matter how many tables of customers were dining while a performer was on stage, it wouldn't affect their score percentage.

The dishes ordered by Huang Guolun and Sun Yanqi's table were served shortly after.

The dishes at Music Supreme, much like their interior decor, possessed a unique style of their own, consisting entirely of innovative creations.

Dishes like the boneless crispy duck, jade bamboo shoot and hairtail roll, lemon sweet and sour ingot shrimp, truffle vegetarian beef tenderloin, and candy wontons ordered by Huang Guolun and Sun Yanqi that night were rarely found in other restaurants.

Though they were pricey—the five dishes, drinks, and service charge totaled over seven hundred yuan—the taste of the food and the dining environment were definitely worth the price tag.

The two of them chatted and ate while watching the live performance on stage.

The customer at Table 21 who took the stage immediately after the uncle from Table 7 was also an older man.

However, this uncle's singing skill was clearly not as textured as the bearded uncle from Table 7.

His skill level might not even reach the KTV level, yet he actually chose to sing Li Shengjie's *Obsession* a cappella.

He started off all right.

But by the chorus, lacking any instrumental accompaniment, his a cappella performance felt far too dry and drifted slightly out of tune.

Still, he sang with profound emotion; anyone could hear that he harbored a scar of deeply infatuated and unrequited love in his heart.

He cried out with a heart-wrenching voice:

...

"I once thought I would regret it myself / not wanting to love too deeply with obsession!"

"Shedding a single tear for you / making any change for you / still cannot call back your firmness toward me!"

"You will never understand the heartbreak of giving such devotion to you / why do I still force myself to fall in love with everything about you"

"You once again ruthlessly push back my defenses / quietly closing the door to silently count my tears"

"Knowing full well it's impossible to let you leave his world / I still foolishly wait for the day a miracle appears"

"Until that day you will realize / the one who truly loves you is guarding the sorrow all alone!"

...

The uncle's method of pouring out his true feelings could hardly be called melodious, but it was immensely sincere and quite moving.

The customers didn't give him a collective negative score just because he didn't sing well; he actually managed to finish the song despite not having the most pleasant voice.

A soul-baring singing style like this deserved positive points from everyone as encouragement.

Sun Yanqi discussed the score with Huang Guolun, saying, "How about giving this uncle three points?"

Huang Guolun smiled and asked Sun Yanqi, "Higher than the previous one by another point?"

"Hehe, just to give him some encouragement."

Sun Yanqi offered a shy, sweet smile and unilaterally gave the uncle at Table 21 three points.

When the uncle finished his performance, his final score was 55 points.

The score was a bit bleak and held no competitive edge whatsoever.

It seemed most diners were still relatively rational and didn't score as emotionally as Sun Yanqi did.

Although his score wasn't high, the uncle had a great time. After finishing his song, he cupped his hands in a gesture of thanks to all the diners.

Everyone responded with enthusiastic applause for this deeply emotional and cheerful uncle.

Sun Yanqi chatted with Huang Guolun while eating a shrimp, "Listening to that uncle sing gave me my confidence back a little."

Huang Guolun reminded Sun Yanqi, "You should eat a bit less for now. You're up next. If you get too full, you might throw up when you sing."

Sun Yanqi smiled and said, "I know, I haven't eaten much yet. You're the one who's been eating for ages. Don't eat too much, or you'll throw up when you sing later. Whether we can get a free meal today depends on you."

Huang Guolun joked, "Why do you keep thinking about a free meal? The food here is actually really good, and the atmosphere is great. To give the boss some face, paying for the meal is totally worth it."

"What do you mean?" Sun Yanqi was startled. "You aren't planning to back out of singing, are you?"

"I don't mind either way. Singing or not singing is fine with me. I'm quite hungry today, so I need to fill my stomach first. We came here to eat, after all; we shouldn't put the cart before the horse and forget our main purpose."

A beauty's competitive spirit was often very strong, and Sun Yanqi was no exception. She clenched her fists and quickly tried to pump Huang Guolun up: "Old Huang, comrade, we aren't here to just eat dinner; we're here to get a free meal! You need to get that straight! If I can't secure this free meal, you must step up and win it for me!"

Huang Guolun was amused to death by Sun Yanqi's fierce and aggressive attitude toward scoring a free meal, and he deliberately feigned indifference. "A free meal is still a meal, you know. I have to make sure I enjoy this meal first before talking about anything else. ...Tsk tsk, this vegetarian beef tenderloin is really well-made, the texture is fantastic. Do you want to try some?"

"I won't! I'll eat a couple more shrimp and then I'm ready for the battlefield!"

Sun Yanqi was already itching to try her hand, looking ready to make a heroic sacrifice.

However, the customer at Table 21 who took the stage next completely stunned Sun Yanqi once more.

Judging by her appearance, this was a young woman who could be easily outclassed by Sun Yanqi by miles, possessing rather unremarkable facial features. She sat down at the electronic keyboard looking slightly reserved, radiating a very shy demeanor.

Yet the moment she started playing the keyboard, an effortless, master-level aura immediately emanated from her.

And the second she opened her mouth, every diner in the room was instantly captivated by her voice:

...

"The memories you gave were too wonderful / like a tattoo hard to erase / I've kept a smile on my face all along / truly hoping I won't be seen by you"

"I fled into the surging crowd / searching for a corner to hide in / I didn't dare let my tears fall / I couldn't take much more"

"Forgot how to embrace / forgot how to smile / forgot how we used to be so, so good together / we were both too proud / said words far too soon"

"Whose embrace was that / who was bitter-smelling of forced smiles / looking back, who was the one secretly wiping away tears / I'm sorry, it was me / foolish to a fault / it was me / who was no good"

...

She was singing A-lin's version of *Forget the Embrace*.

Her voice bore an astonishingly high degree of similarity to A-lin's.

That highly expressive singing voice grabbed hold of many people's hearts right from the very first line.

Huang Guolun, who had been burying his head in his food, involuntarily raised his head upon hearing the young woman start singing. He divided half of his attention to listen to her performance while reserving the other half to continue eating his dishes.

Before the young woman had even finished her first verse, ripples of applause were already sounding throughout the restaurant.

Sun Yanqi had half a shrimp clamped between her teeth, having completely forgotten to chew.

"What are you spacing out for? Hurry up and eat!" Huang Guolun urged Sun Yanqi with a smile.

Sun Yanqi chewed the shrimp vigorously a few times and grumbled like a wronged child, "Are all these people professional singers just here for a free meal? She sings way too well!"