FWF Chapter 167, Song "Exaggeration," Sings of a Lifetime of Madness
Chapter 167, Song "Exaggeration," Sings of a Lifetime of Madness
"If someone asks me, I'll tell them, but nobody comes..."
Lin Zhou's voice was very low, as if he were talking to himself in a basement late at night, facing the moldy walls. His fingers holding the microphone trembled slightly, and his eyes, hidden behind the mask, looked through the narrow gap at the vast sea of glow sticks, but his gaze was as empty as a dry well.
This is the verse of "Exaggeration," a kind of almost morbid repression.
He was like a clown shut out of the world of fame and fortune, yearning for applause and attention, yet only able to hide in a corner, watching those glamorous people dance gracefully in the center of the stage.
"From anticipation to helplessness, I have something to say..."
"If you can't get points, how can you stay in the stands?"
Each word was like a dull knife, slowly sawing at the listener's heart.
The 90,000 audience members, who had been whispering amongst themselves, fell silent as if frozen in place. The oppressive atmosphere, following Lin Zhou's hoarse voice, spread like a tide, making everyone feel a tightness in their chests and even a urge to gasp for breath.
Su Qingge sat on the judges' panel, her hands gripping the edge of the table so tightly that her fingernails turned white.
Looking at the hunched figure on the stage, who seemed about to shatter at any moment, her eyes unconsciously welled up with tears.
This feeling is all too familiar.
Just like when Lin Zhou wasn't famous yet, and all he could do every day was cook and do laundry for her at home, and when he went out to buy groceries, people would point and whisper that he was a "gold digger." Was he like that back then, full of talent but with nowhere to express it, only able to suppress all his resentment in his heart and pretend to be nonchalant while smiling at her?
"This song..."
The veteran songwriter next to him took off his glasses, and a look of shock flashed in his cloudy old eyes.
"He is singing about himself. He is singing about every little person who is unwilling to be ordinary but is powerless to change their circumstances."
Just when everyone thought the song would remain somber,
Lin Zhou suddenly raised his head.
The狰狞 mask flashed a cold light under the spotlight, and the originally hunched back straightened instantly, like a spear that had been bent for too long and finally rebounded.
"You think I'm just being pretentious!"
"I'm exaggerating because I'm terrified!"
"If it looks like wood or stone, will it get any attention?!"
The voice rose eight octaves without warning!
In that instant, the suppressed murmur transformed into a hysterical storm. The roar that erupted from the depths of the soul, carrying a madness that seemed to want to tear everything apart, slammed violently into everyone's eardrums.
"Actually, I'm afraid of being forgotten! Let's amplify the performance!"
"I feel so uneasy! How can I be elegant!"
"Does the world still praise silence? That's not explosive enough! I need more topics to boast about! Become a great entertainer!"
The whole place exploded!
The 90,000 spectators felt their scalps tingle and goosebumps erupt all over their bodies as if they had been electrocuted.
Lin Zhou moved wildly around the stage, waving his diamond-encrusted cane like a mad conductor directing this absurd drama that belonged to him alone.
He would point to the sky one moment, then to the ground the next, and then make all sorts of exaggerated and bizarre gestures towards the audience.
His voice was choked with sobs, self-mockery, and the despair of someone willing to turn themselves into a clown just to grab attention.
"I was eighteen that year, at my alma mater's dance, standing there like a lackey!"
"At that time, I swore through my tears that you all must see me!"
The moment that line was sung, Su Qingge could no longer hold back.
She suddenly covered her mouth, and tears rolled down her cheeks like beads from a broken string.
She remembered that Lin Zhou had been like this when he first debuted.
He wrote songs with great passion, only to have them rejected by investors; he wanted to sing at a resident concert, but the boss thought his singing style was too outdated. In the end, he could only stay in that tiny rented room, practicing guitar against the wall, and still have to smile and tell her, "It's okay, I'll take care of you from now on."
It turns out he had always remembered it.
It turns out that the man who always seemed so carefree and cheerful harbored so much resentment and bitterness.
On stage, Lin Zhou had completely lost his mind.
He ripped off the clown's bow tie and threw it hard to the ground.
"There aren't many lucky ones! If you haven't experienced it yourself, you'll know why I am!"
"Put in ten times the effort to excel!"
"A normal person! Is that enough for me to have something to talk about?!"
The final high note, like a sharp sword, soared straight into the sky.
That's High C? No, that's High E!
Moreover, it was accompanied by an angry voice with an extremely strong sense of tearing!
Lin Zhou tilted his head back, veins bulging on his neck, his whole body like a fully drawn bow. The sound pierced the dome of the Bird's Nest, penetrated the endless night sky, as if issuing a final declaration of war against this unjust world.
"ah--!!!"
A long roar shook the heavens and the earth.
Almost instinctively, all 90,000 people in the audience stood up.
No one spoke, no one cheered.
Everyone stared wide-eyed at the figure on the stage who seemed to be burning with life, their eyes reddening and their hearts pounding.
Even the Crimson Lotus Saintess, who had just won 98% of the votes backstage, was standing in front of the TV in the lounge, and the glass of water she hadn't finished drinking fell to the ground with a "thud".
She lost.
We lost completely.
At this moment, skill becomes worthless.
Because Lin Zhou wasn't singing a song, he was singing his fate.
at last.
The last note fell.
Lin Zhou looked like a puppet on strings, exhausted. The microphone in his hand fell limply, and he was panting heavily. Sweat dripped down the edge of his mask and onto the stage floor.
He stood alone in that pale spotlight, appearing so small, yet so majestic.
one second.
two seconds.
three seconds.
"Whoosh—!!!"
The applause erupted like thunder, ten times louder and a hundred times more frenzied than the one given by the Red Lotus Saintess earlier.
Countless people waved their glow sticks wildly, some screamed, some cried, and some shouted the name "Lanling King" at the top of their lungs.
On the judges' panel, Su Qingge was the first to stand up, clapping vigorously and even wiping away tears without regard for her image.
She knew she had won.
It wasn't just that they won the game; it was also that Lin Zhou, who had always lived in the shadows, won.
The host, He Ling, rushed onto the stage with red eyes and a trembling voice:
"This is...this is so amazing!"
"In all the shows I've hosted, I've never heard a song that's both heartbreaking and exhilarating!"
"Now, let's see Lanling King's final vote count!"
The numbers on the big screen began to jump wildly, at a speed that was dazzling.
The seemingly insurmountable 98542 votes created by the Crimson Lotus Saintess were easily surpassed in just a few seconds.
99,998 votes!
Only two people in the entire game did not shoot.
One was the director, who was so terrified he forgot to press the voting button.
The other one is Lin Zhou himself.
"My God! A miracle! This is a miracle!"
He Ling was so excited that her voice almost cracked, and her hand holding the microphone was trembling.
"I hereby announce! The champion of this year's 'King of Mask Singer' is—"
"Lanling King!!!"
Golden ribbons fell from the sky, fluttering everywhere.
The cheers from the entire stadium were deafening.
Lin Zhou stood in the center of the stage, looking at the crowd who were going crazy for him, a faint smile curving up at the corner of his mouth behind his mask.
It wasn't a smug smile, but a sense of relief.
He won.
He won back his dignity in the most undignified and clownish way.
"Lanling King! Lanling King!"
The audience was still shouting wildly, their voices in unison.
He Ling took a deep breath, walked to Lin Zhou's side, her eyes full of anticipation and curiosity.
"Lanling King, as the newly crowned King of Songs, according to the rules, you can now remove your mask and let everyone see your true face."
Before you reveal your identity, is there anything you'd like to say to everyone?
Lin Zhou picked up the microphone.
His gaze cut through the crowd and landed precisely on the woman in the judges' panel who was looking at him with red eyes.
"have."
His voice was no longer hoarse, but had returned to its original clarity and gentleness.
"I want to say something to someone."
"The song 'Exaggeration' that I just sang was for my past self."
"And this championship is for you as you are now."
"Honey, I kept my promise to give you the 'big reward'."