As the music continued, the woman sat motionless under the locust tree. She clutched her father's notebook tighter, then curled into a ball, hugging her knees as her shoulders trembled slightly. The camera zoomed in, and a tear fell onto the yellowed pages.
*Plink!*
In that instant, the scene froze. The song had reached its end.
...
As the performers exited the stage, a strange silence fell over the audience. It was unlike the roaring applause before. The younger spectators stared blankly at the big screen, their lips pressed tight. The older ones fought back tears that welled in their eyes, eventually succumbing to the emotion, letting two streams of tears flow down their cheeks.
...
In a residential complex, a typical family sat on their sofa watching television. Their six-year-old daughter, nestled in her father's arms, yawned. Suddenly, she felt her father softly weeping. She lifted her head. "Daddy's crying, boo hoo," she said in her childish voice, wiping his tears. "Yuanyuan, don't tease Daddy. Daddy's only crying this once." Her father held her tightly, unable to speak through his sobs. The little girl patted his head, not fully understanding. Beside them, her mother, her eyes red, took out her phone, brought it close to her husband and daughter, and snapped a selfie, capturing the warm and beautiful moment.
...
In an apartment, a girl lay in bed, watching a program on her phone. She minimized the program and opened WeChat. She saw a message from her father a few days prior:
"Xiaoyu, are you coming back for the Mid-Autumn Festival?"
"I have a company gathering with classmates, so I won't be back."
"Oh, do you have enough money? Do you want me to send some over?"
"I have enough, I just got paid."
"Then take care of yourself out there, don't overwork yourself. Rest more, it's good for your health."
"Mhm, I know."
This was a normal conversation between them. Now, reading it, her vision blurred.
"Dad, I'm coming home for Mid-Autumn. I want to eat your crayfish."
"Alright, I'll go catch some tomorrow and keep them for you to eat when you get back."
Seeing her father's immediate reply, she could hold back no longer. Tears streamed down her face!
...
Back at the program, after an indeterminate amount of time, applause finally broke out. Then, more and more clapping joined in, until it swept through the venue like a storm, lasting for a long time. The host, with red eyes, took the stage. He opened his mouth several times, attempting to speak, but was choked back by emotion. Taking a deep breath, he finally began the program's proceedings.
"Next, we have the voting segment. Please, audience members, cast your valuable vote for the most touching story in your hearts!"
The show, "Moving People," was dedicated to telling stories that touched the heart and appreciating the emotions within songs. This program had no professional judges or panels; it solely relied on the audience from all walks of life. Their votes directly influenced the rankings. As the host finished speaking, the audience members took out their phones, scanned QR codes, and began to vote. On the big screen, the votes for the five singers flickered rapidly.
In the singer's area, Lü Jinbai clenched her fists, her gaze fixed on the screen. The other singers were not as tense. Their rankings were inconsequential. Due to the competition format, this episode was Lü Jinbai's solo survival battle. Her scores in previous episodes had been at the bottom. According to the rules, even if she came in second place this week, if a guest's score surpassed hers, she would be eliminated.
The audience area buzzed with discussion as voting commenced.
"All the singers performed very well this week, and their stories were very moving."
"Lü Jinbai used the hit song by the Music God Mo Yan, playing the nostalgia card. I didn't expect that."
"Nostalgia is moving, but unfortunately, she encountered Ting Yu, that monster!"
"What are you even thinking about? Jiang Xiao'e made 90% of the audience cry!"
"Do I need to say it? I was the first to vote for Jiang Xiao'e."
"Ting Yu is always tear-jerking when she sings sad songs."
"It feels like everything was said, yet nothing was said."
"What the heck are you guys talking about?!"
"..."
Amidst the discussions, the final rankings appeared on the big screen.
First Place: Jiang Xiao'e "The Essay Poem Written by Father"
Second Place: Lü Jinbai "Us"
Third Place...
...
Lü Jinbai's nostalgia strategy had worked well this time. But it was too late. Because her performance in the previous episodes had been too poor, her accumulated points had already placed her at the bottom. Even with second place, she couldn't overtake the other singers. After Jiang Xiao'e secured first place, Lü Jinbai was directly eliminated. Although she had a premonition of this outcome after Jiang Xiao'e's performance, when it actually happened, she still found it difficult to accept. A profound sense of powerlessness made her head buzz. Looking at Jiang Xiao'e on stage, basking in the audience's cheers, she finally sighed in defeat, "This Ting Yu, I truly admire you..." Even a hit song by the Music God Mo Yan couldn't defeat Ting Yu. She couldn't think of any other way to win.
...
After the program aired, "The Essay Poem Written by Father" was immediately released on music platforms.
[The daughter of that time must have been stunningly beautiful. Ting Yu's new song is here, strongly soliciting tears from old fathers!]
At some point, whenever Ting Yu released a new song, music platforms would proactively promote it without Starry Sky needing to invest in promotional budgets. They would even feature it on their homepages with banners before the song posters were ready. Of course, only Starry Sky's internal staff knew about this. To outsiders, getting a banner and featured placement on a platform required payment. With the platforms' aggressive promotion, "The Essay Poem Written by Father" quickly climbed into the top ten on the popular new songs chart within half an hour.
Simultaneously, Weibo's trending topics began to follow suit.
#TheEssayPoemWrittenbyFather, a major tear-jerking scene!#
#Everyone has an MV for this song in their minds!#
#A shared experience of a biscuit from that generation, Ting Yu pays tribute to all fathers again!#
#With ordinary melody, singing extraordinary emotions, Jiang Xiao'e's future is bright!#
This was a carnival for older fans. Especially those who had lived through that era could deeply relate to the lyrics describing fathers. The shared experience of a single biscuit was a common occurrence in an era when even having enough to eat was difficult. However, the most numerous comments came not from these older fans, but from the sons and daughters who had fathers from that generation.
"Not only is the song good, but the stage's story design was also brilliant! After watching the sixteen rounds of questions, I cried like a fool."
"Exactly. Before the song even started, the content on the father's notebook in the story made me tear up instantly."
"I've never seen my dad cry, but tonight while watching TV, I saw tears in his eyes."
"The lyrics of this song are inherently a prose poem! Written from a daughter's perspective, detailing her father's diary, it not only allows one to directly feel the father's affection for his daughter but also clearly see the daughter's feelings for her father."
"Over a decade of youth, only a piece of paper remains in the end. I'm crying so much!"
"After listening to this song, I was deeply moved. While parents are alive, life has direction; after parents pass, life is just a return journey."
"A word of advice from someone who's been there: if you have the chance, go home and spend more time with your parents. Don't leave too many regrets in your life!"
"Ting Yu is a good kid. At such a young age, she can write such a good song!"
A good song often resonates with countless people. Everyone shared their own stories, adding even more depth to the song.