After the performance ended, the venue erupted in thunderous applause.
In the audience, all the men rose to their feet, tears in their eyes, cheering with abandon.
"Who the hell said you can't be called a boy when you're old?"
"A man is a boy until he dies!!!"
"That's right, we're old, but we're old boys!!!"
"Listen to the Rain is trying to appeal to everyone, young and old!"
"Haha, we old men, no, we old boys are finally standing up!"
Amidst the audience's applause and cheers, the Slippers Brothers walked to the center of the stage and bowed to the audience and the band members.
Zhou Tao's eyes were red, and a smile of excitement graced his face.
Zhao De, on the other hand, was quietly sobbing, a picture of a tough man shedding tears.
"Zhao De, do you see that? We seem to have moved quite a few people to tears," Zhou Tao whispered.
"Yeah, I see it. Not only did we make them cry, but I cried myself," Zhao De said, wiping away his tears.
His performance today was excellent, even better than expected. A significant part of the reason was their thorough preparation. Although young, they had experienced a lot. As children from poor families, they had to mature early. They had previously worked odd jobs and sung at bars, experiencing the hardships of life. Later, with Su Yu's help, they sang "Father," earned a considerable amount of money, and their lives began to improve.
"We didn't let Brother Yu down!"
"That's right!"
Their voices were filled with determination. They had been told they were amateurs and not worthy of singing Listen to the Rain's songs, but now they had proven themselves! We, the Slippers Brothers, are not amateurs!
In the producer's area, only Zhou Peng and Hu Yang remained. The other producers had been eliminated. Among the producers, Zhou Peng and Hu Yang were the closest friends. At this moment, Zhou Peng was tightly gripping Hu Yang's arm, and Hu Yang gritted his teeth, wanting to curse but afraid of being caught on camera.
"Gently, you're hurting me!" Hu Yang finally couldn't take it anymore.
Zhou Peng heard him and snapped back to attention. "Ah? Sorry, Brother Hu Yang, I didn't mean to!" He quickly let go and started to get up from his seat.
"Where are you going?" Hu Yang grabbed him.
"The competition is over, I want to go back and rest early," Zhou Peng said hazily.
Hu Yang was taken aback, then looked at him in disbelief. "Are you kidding me? The voting hasn't even started, how is it over?"
Zhou Peng shook his head vigorously, as if suddenly snapping out of a trance. Startled, he sat back down. Once seated, he muttered, "Damn it, why isn't this over quickly?"
When the Cap combo finished their performance, Zhou Peng felt he still had a chance. But after the Slippers Brothers finished their performance on stage, Zhou Peng suddenly felt, why did he even participate in this competition? He finally understood the feelings of Jin Lei and the others before him. It was like thorns in his back, a lump in his throat, like sitting on pins and needles. It made Zhou Peng not want to stay there any longer.
What was there to wait for? They were all professionals, capable of discerning good from bad. Looking at the audience's reaction and the judges' expressions, the problem was clear. He, with the top-tier Cap combo, was being outdone by an amateur group, the Slippers Brothers.
"Although we'll probably lose, it shouldn't break Liu Quanlin's record of 201 votes," Hu Yang said with a smile. Hu Yang made another prediction.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Peng showed a hint of joy. "Really?" After saying that, he lowered his head somewhat sheepishly. Sometime ago, 201 votes had become the final benchmark. Losing was acceptable, but breaking the record was not. It was the same for Jin Lei after his loss; he was relieved he hadn't broken the record.
"You guys completely lack the spirit of an ace producer," Hu Yang continued to tease, perhaps due to their good relationship. After speaking, he glanced at the singer's area, at Zhu Xinyu, the King of Singers he was collaborating with. They had partnered for many years and had topped the New Song charts in Vietnamese many times. He was quite confident. After all, the fan base of a King of Singers was incomparable to the ragtag group of Listen to the Rain. Zhou Peng, however, did not reply. Instead, he sighed. The spirit of an ace producer? Was it important? Not important at all.
"Haha, thank you to Listen to the Rain and the Slippers Brothers for their moving performance. I apologize, my eyes are a bit swollen from crying earlier. This song brought back memories of my past struggles, and I couldn't help but shed a tear." The host, holding a tissue, laughed while his eyes were still teary.
Originally, there were plans for an interview segment, but this time it was with the Slippers Brothers.
"I'd like to ask you two, before the competition, many people didn't have high hopes for you. Is there anything you'd like to say to those people?" After speaking, the host handed the microphone over.
"Actually, at the beginning, I wasn't very convinced when I saw people online calling us amateurs," said Zhou Tao. On stage, Zhao De was clearly more reserved, with most of the speaking done by Zhou Tao.
He paused and continued, "Speaking of which, Zhao De and I are students at Qing University. Qing University is one of the top universities in Shuangqing City, so we're not amateurs, are we?" A burst of laughter erupted from the audience. Indeed, they were legitimate students of Qing University, majoring in vocal music. How could they be called amateurs?
"Also, I'd like to say a few words from the heart to Brother Yu." Zhou Tao turned and looked at Su Yu beside him. Su Yu was momentarily stunned, then smiled and nodded at him.
"Zhao De and I aren't as eloquent as that kid Gong Juren, but there are still some things we want to say." Zhou Tao's eyes reddened. He had many words prepared, but suddenly felt choked up. He paused and continued, "In short, thank you, Brother Yu, for your care and help. You are always our big brother, always our brother!" He and Zhao De were just Su Yu's roommates. Although they got along well, they didn't take Su Yu's kindness for granted. Zhou Tao's family was from the countryside, and Zhao De was an orphan. Neither of their family backgrounds was good. However, with Su Yu's help, they could now live without worrying about money. All of this was given by Su Yu. They were grateful people and remembered it all in their hearts. Su Yu also felt a warmth in his heart upon hearing Zhou Tao's words. The reason he wrote songs for Zhao De and Zhou Tao was partly because they were roommates and had a good relationship. More importantly, it was because they truly had their own unique qualities and he had many songs that suited them. If they didn't sing them, others wouldn't be as suitable. In fact, all the singers in Su Yu's group had their own characteristics and worked very hard. This was why Su Yu was willing to give them his songs.