191: Chapter 191 Unregulated Propositions

The two of them sat quietly for a while.

On the TV screen in the lounge, the following contestants were taking the stage to sing one after another.

Lu Li's gaze swept across the screen. To be honest, after listening to a few lines, he lost interest.

It wasn't that he was being picky, but performing at this level after Shen Qingxue was indeed a bit disadvantageous.

Time ticked away second by second.

The atmosphere in the lounge gradually grew tense as the competition progressed.

The advancing contestants had basically been decided, and those with lower scores clearly showed anxiety.

Shen Qingxue, on the other hand, remained calm throughout, occasionally lowering her head to check her phone and occasionally exchanging a few casual remarks with Lu Li.

After some more time passed.

On the TV screen, the last contestant had also finished singing.

After the judges finished scoring, the final rankings were displayed on the big screen, and soon after, the list of advancing contestants also appeared on it in a timely manner.

Ranked first on the list was impressively Shen Qingxue's name, with a score of 9.9, pulling far ahead of the rest.

Shen Qingxue's expression didn't change much.

Because this result was expected.

"I told you, it's in the bag."

Lu Li grinned and raised an eyebrow at her.

Shen Qingxue glanced at him without refuting, because what he said was indeed correct.

Afterward, the image on the TV screen switched.

The host stood in the center of the stage, holding an envelope with a beaming smile.

"Congratulations to the four contestants above for successfully advancing! The upcoming matches will be even more intense and exciting!"

"Now, before announcing the prompt for the next match, let's first review the wonderful performances of all the contestants tonight..."

The host began reading the linking script, and various data and highlight clips scrolled across the big screen.

Lu Li didn't look closely; why watch what he already remembered.

About two minutes later, the host spoke again.

"Alright, next, we will announce the prompt for the next match."

He opened the envelope in his hand, took a glance, then raised his head and flashed a meaningful smile at the camera.

"The prompt for the next top-four elimination match is..."

As soon as these words were spoken, not only did the other three advancing contestants grow tense, but everyone who saw this scene also became tense.

How thrilling~

"No rules! No prompt!"

The waiting area fell silent for a fraction of a second.

The host on the TV screen deliberately paused for a few seconds, fully enjoying the nervous expressions of the audience off-stage and the contestants backstage, before continuing to speak.

"That's right, the prompt for the next top-four elimination match is... no rules, no prompt!"

He smiled, his gaze sweeping across the audience, his voice unhurried.

"There are no theme restrictions, no style requirements, and no prompt scope. Sing whatever you want, and sing however you want."

"The only requirement is that it must be an original song."

"Also, to reveal it in advance, the prompt for the Grand Finals... will also be no rules."

The waiting area exploded with chatter.

The expressions of several nearby contestants changed from nervous to startled, and then from startled to confused.

"No rules? Doesn't that mean we can sing anything? This scope is way too broad."

"Damn, isn't this a good thing? That way, we can finally write in a direction we're good at."

"And the Grand Finals will also have no rules? Looking at it this way, everyone will have to rely on their true strength..."

Lu Li leaned back in his chair with his hands behind his head, his expression unchanged.

He tilted his head to glance at Shen Qingxue.

Shen Qingxue also happened to turn her head to look at him, her brows furrowing slightly before quickly smoothing out again.

"No rules... What do you think?"

Lu Li thought for a moment, then grinned.

"Isn't this a free-point question?"

Shen Qingxue was slightly taken aback, then smiled helplessly.

"You're so confident."

"Of course."

Lu Li straightened his posture, looking dead serious.

"Think about it, when there are rules, we still have to follow the prompt. When writing a song, we first have to consider whether the theme is suitable and whether the style will go off-topic."

"Now it's great, we don't have to think about anything. Sing whatever you want to sing—if this isn't a free-point question, what is?"

Shen Qingxue fell silent for a few seconds, seemingly digesting his words.

Then she nodded slightly, the corners of her mouth curving up.

"Indeed, for you, no rules might be even simpler than having a prompt."

Lu Li blinked, smiling cheerfully.

"Are you praising me with that sentence?"

"If you think so, then it is."

Shen Qingxue looked away, lowering her head to pretend to casually check her phone.

On the TV screen, the host was still continuing to introduce the schedule and arrangements for the next match.

The match format for this Semifinals was slightly different from before, changing to four contestants taking the stage one by one according to a draw order.

And the rules for the Grand Finals would also have no prompt, but a judge Q&A session would be added, where contestants would need to respond to the judges on the spot.

Lu Li ran this information through his head, then turned his head to look at Shen Qingxue.

"When will the draw order be decided?"

"Tomorrow morning."

Shen Qingxue raised her head, thought for a moment, and spoke.

"The official team will publicize the draw results at 10 AM, ultimately determining the performance order for the Semifinals."

Lu Li nodded.

"Then there's nothing much left to do tonight. Let's go back and rest early, there will be plenty to be busy with tomorrow. Let's go, back to the hotel first?"

"Okay."

Shen Qingxue nodded and stood up.

Lu Li also stood up and stretched lazily.

The two walked side by side out of the waiting area, through the corridor, and toward the side door of the theater.

The night breeze blew against their faces.

Lu Li stood on the steps, turned his head and glanced at Shen Qingxue.

"Right, after we get back, should we study what to sing for the Semifinals first? Decide on a direction first?"

Shen Qingxue thought about it, then shook her head.

"No rush, anyway there's still some time before the Semifinals, we can figure it out carefully then."

She paused, then looked at Lu Li, her gaze carrying a hint of seriousness.

"Although you said this is a free-point question, the more there are no rules, the easier it is to fall into the dilemma of wanting to write everything, yet ending up writing nothing well."

Lu Li was stunned for a moment, then nodded.

"Makes sense."

He really hadn't considered this issue much, because he had too many songs stored in his head, so many that he could just pick one out at random.

But what Shen Qingxue said also made sense.

Of course, that was only aimed at ordinary people, who truly needed careful consideration.

But he was different; he was an extraordinary person. (- ι _- )

"Then let's go back and rest first, we'll think about it tomorrow."

Lu Li put his hands in his pockets and jerked his chin at her.

"Anyway, no matter what we sing, with me backing you up, you can rest a hundred percent assured."

Shen Qingxue was stunned for a moment, then broke into a smile.

"Alright, looking forward to your performance."

...

After returning to the hotel.

Lu Li didn't disturb her further, walking quietly beside her all the way to the door of her hotel room.

Shen Qingxue swiped her room card to open the door, turned around, and glanced at him.

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Lu Li watched her walk into the room and the door close gently before turning around to return to his own room.

As soon as he returned to his room, he walked into the bathroom and took a shower.

When the hot water rushed over his body, he closed his eyes, and his brain began to spin rapidly.

"No rules..."

What kind of song could make a stunning debut under such a prompt?

Lu Li ran through his song list in his head, filtering them one by one.

One that suited Shen Qingxue's vocal cords, had sufficient recognizability, and ideally was something people would remember.

And could also bring a little surprise...

Hey! Got it. After a round of screening, it simply had to be that rookie king's song!