Chapter 146: The Intermediate Trial Scene

At eight o'clock in the morning, inside the conference room of the Central Review Panel at the Grand Music and Dance Review Headquarters.

Led by Yang Caihua, twenty-one central reviewers were engaged in an intense debate centered entirely around the Blue Star musical composition, *Heartbeat*.

Observing the escalating chaos, Yang Caihua struck the table firmly. "Everybody, stop."

Once the fiercely arguing factions had quieted down, Yang Caihua straightened up and spoke in a booming voice, "The situation is simple: one side opposes, the other agrees. To summarize, the core issues boil down to three points: first, the replacement of performers; second, new artists performing new songs; and third, our friendly relations with the Water Elf Kingdom. We will now reopen the discussion."

Hearing this, a reviewing officer from the opposition faction spoke up, "I would like to offer my personal opinion regarding the performer replacement. Le Xiaotian has ceded his performance qualification to Ziwei. Although he retains the title of conductor, this is a stage with an audience of millions; Le Xiaotian must take the stage himself. Otherwise, the performance cannot be approved."

Before anyone else could chime in, a female reviewer who had been holding back for some time retorted, "Stop sidetracking the main point. As the conductor, isn't it completely normal for Le Xiaotian to pave the way for his musician's debut performance? Besides, Ziwei is the Third Princess of the Water Elf Kingdom and a six-star dancer. Even without using dance energy in the master recording, it had the power to move listeners to tears. Her performance will definitely be fine."

"You shouldn't idealize this. Live performances and recorded versions are two entirely different things. Ziwei has zero stage experience, and her very debut is on a stage before millions of viewers, while her conductor won't even be performing alongside her. What happens if she flops?"

"Since Le Xiaotian dares to let Ziwei take the stage, he must have guarantees. Even if his personal reputation leaves something to be desired, we shouldn't view this through colored glasses, should we? After all, we all witnessed the extraordinary impact of his debut performance."

"This isn't a question of whether he dares or not! This is a matter of principle. This was originally an additional performance granted to a world record breaker, yet Le Xiaotian refuses to play by the rules at all. By not appearing himself, he is showing contempt for the national prestige of our Five-Clawed Golden Dragon Kingdom."

"Aren't you stretching it a bit far? Dragging national prestige into this—if word got out that we rejected a masterpiece over something like this, wouldn't we become the laughingstock of the world?"

"Director Yang, I have a suggestion. Liu Qingxin told me during her briefing this morning that she failed to complete yesterday's workload precisely because of this song. Since we cannot reach a complete consensus right now, why don't we listen to her opinion? After all, she is an honors graduate from Blue Bridge University."

"Hah! What does a fancy degree prove? These jobs require practical experience, understand?"

"Oh, why don't you go fetch a diploma from Blue Bridge and show it to us, then?"

"Enough!"

Yang Caihua slammed his hand down hard on the table and declared loudly, "Can we please have some professionalism? Can we have some efficiency? Twenty-one central reviewers debating a single song for half an hour, and still no conclusion. If everyone operated like this, how are we ever going to review the hundreds of thousands, or even millions, of other projects waiting in the queue? Huh?"

While individuality was expected of reviewers—as it was the only way to cultivate discerning eyes—crossing the line turned the process into a personal grandstand. That was a serious problem.

Once the twenty reviewers had fallen silent once more, Yang Caihua instructed the woman seated beside him, "Have Liu Qingxin come up immediately."

***

Ten minutes later, Liu Qingxin walked upstairs and entered the conference room.

Upon seeing that a single song had mobilized as many as twenty-one central reviewers, including Director Yang of the Central Review Department himself, Liu Qingxin felt her convictions grow even stronger. Ordinarily, after all, a single song only required one reviewer.

Looking at the junior reviewer who had just arrived, Yang Caihua said, "Take a seat."

Once Liu Qingxin was seated, Yang Caihua continued, "Your performance lately has been quite good. Now, tell us your reasons for approving Le Xiaotian's project submission."

Though she was new to the workforce, as a top-tier graduate from a world-renowned university, Liu Qingxin was not one to stage-fright easily—at least not in the present company. "On a personal level, I was deeply moved by this piece of music. I cannot judge the absolute technical quality of the composition itself, but the performers' skill level is extraordinarily high. Most importantly, I believe this represents a new form of music under a brand-new sonic framework. Compared to the stagnant, rigid musical systems of the past, we desperately need a degree of innovation."

At this, a reviewer chuckled, "Aside from the initial two courtesy performance slots, in which empire's Grand Performance have you ever seen purely rookie artists debuting with entirely new songs? Innovation is wonderful, but can we avoid pursuing innovation blindly for its own sake? If the performance bombs, where will the dignity of the Five-Clawed Golden Dragon Empire go?"

"Can we drop the talk about national prestige? By the way, what is the title of this song?"

Liu Qingxin answered awkwardly, "Le Xiaotian said I shouldn't confine myself to that kind of superficial level, so... I don't know."

The conference room fell dead silent.

Just as the others prepared to rain down criticism, Director Yang spoke up. "Indeed, he was right. If you were told the title, your imagination would instantly narrow the scope of the musical imagery. By letting us listen to the music cold, he let pure strength do the talking. I must admit, his temper might be a bit eccentric, but he has earned the right to be arrogant."

Faced with this verdict, the reviewers had no choice but to nod in agreement; even those who had previously opposed could not launch a malicious counterargument. After all, everyone present had been moved to tears just moments before.

Following another brief silence, Director Yang turned to Liu Qingxin and instructed, "Contact Le Xiaotian. We are going to speak with him."

Recalling the conversation from the previous night, coupled with the notes in the file, Liu Qingxin grew hesitant. "Th-this... he has a terrible temper. Would it perhaps be better if we didn't contact him?"

Director Yang, however, offered a reassuring look. "There are some matters I must discuss with him personally. Otherwise, our workflow cannot proceed."

Since he was her superior, Liu Qingxin dared not raise any further objections.

Without delay, she dialed Le Xiaotian's number. At a gesture from Director Yang, she switched the phone to speaker mode.

After a few rings, Le Xiaotian's voice echoed through the entire conference room: "What is it again? I'm drinking, make it quick."

"It's..." Just as Liu Qingxin was about to speak, Director Yang cut in directly. "Hello, Friend of Music, I am Yang Caihua from the Central Review Department. I'd like to clarify a few questions with you, and I hope you'll cooperate."

"What's the problem this time?"

"Since you are a world champion, this performance is an additional slot. In principle, we do not permit last-minute performer substitutions. Therefore, can you take the stage yourself?"

"What are you getting at? Are you unaware of my performances in *Somadya* and *Qianqiu*? Are you seriously suggesting that for my musician's debut performance, I should go up there and steal her spotlight?"

"Put that way, yes. And I can understand your sentiment. But rules are rules."

"To hell with rules! Rules are meant to be broken, don't you understand?"

"Would you perhaps reconsider?"

"Just how do you people do your jobs? You're a reviewer; your primary focus should be simply judging whether the music is good and the dance is well-choreographed. If it's good, approve it; if it's bad, fail it. Do I really have to teach you how to do your job?"

"Pfft." Hearing this, Liu Qingxin couldn't help letting out a giggle.

At the same time, Director Yang's face flushed a deep crimson. However, having weathered his share of major storms, he quickly smoothed his expression and replied naturally, "I understand. Goodbye, Friend of Music."

"Goodbye."

Hanging up the phone, Director Yang glanced around at his subordinates and declared, "Le Xiaotian was right; we almost lost sight of our priorities. Let's take a vote now. All those in favor of approving the submission, raise your hands."

Moments later, the final result was tallied: sixteen out of the twenty-one central reviewers voted to approve *Heartbeat*.