Chapter 26: Great Joy Must Be Simple

While the audience votes were being counted, the judges began to share their thoughts from the panel.

“Hello there, Zhou Shen,” said Zhou Ni, who had been utterly captivated by Zhou Ran. “The moment you began singing, that husky, weathered timbre in your voice stunned me. It’s so vastly different from the youthful tone you usually display on stage.”

“But precisely this voice perfectly complements the song you chose. It captured the spirit of the martial world, that sense of boundless freedom and the feeling that the whole world is there to roam at will.”

“There’s also an air of returning to simplicity!” Following Zhou Ni’s comments, Li E also spoke up.

“The way you interpreted this song was excellent. You didn’t use those so-called ornate singing techniques or musical tricks. Instead, you opted for a raw, sincere approach, pouring your emotions into the performance and conveying that heroic, awe-inspiring feeling. Remarkable!”

The professional judges lavished Zhou Ran with praise.

Backstage, the other contestants also wholeheartedly agreed with the panel’s assessment. As the saying goes, amateurs watch for fun, but professionals study the craft. As singers themselves, they could hear the substance in this performance.

Although “A Laugh in the Vast Sea” might seem simple at first glance, its instrumental arrangement and the vocal demands require much skill. Zhou Ran’s voice perfectly embodied the song’s spirit—an unfettered, passionate world of chivalry and brotherhood.

…

On the stage of the semifinals.

Host Mr. He stood at center stage, holding the freshly tabulated results, ready to announce them: “I now reveal the results of the ‘Who Is the King of Singers’ semifinals.”

“In fourth place: Taku Fujiwara, with 902 audience votes and 110 jury votes, totaling 1,012.”

The producers had carefully choreographed the sequence of announcements, intentionally starting from the last place to heighten anticipation.

After Mr. He announced Taku Fujiwara’s fourth place, the director even cut to a close-up of him, a move that was almost cruel in its honesty.

Taku Fujiwara had anticipated this outcome; he was well aware of the significant mistakes in his performance today and accepted the result with composure.

With Taku Fujiwara’s score announced, Mr. He moved on to the show’s traditional act.

“I will now announce third place in ‘Who Is the King of Singers’... but first, let’s watch a short commercial,” Mr. He teased, cutting off the announcement at the most suspenseful moment.

“Boo!” cried the live audience, expressing their disapproval.

Meanwhile, the live stream chat erupted in complaints, viewers joking that they wanted to send a thousand blades to Mango Television for this stunt.

Yet, despite their protests, no one left the stream. No one wanted to miss the results after all this time, so they sat through the commercials, anxious to hear the outcome as soon as possible.

This was the production team’s cleverness—they knew the audience was too invested to leave now.

Finally, after what felt like an endless ad break, the camera returned to center stage.

“I now announce that third place in this semifinal of ‘Who Is the King of Singers’ goes to Chen Yi!”

“Chen Yi received 915 audience votes and 120 jury votes, for a total of 1,035.”

This time, Mr. He made no further delays—he surely knew that if he stalled again, he might be ambushed with bricks in the dead of night.

Chen Yi felt a pang of disappointment—who wouldn’t want to advance?—but he quickly composed himself. The world always has new talents emerging. He rose to congratulate Zhou Ran and Ji Song for making it to the finals.

After announcing Chen Yi’s third place, the remaining rankings held no more suspense.

Ji Song even stood up to congratulate Zhou Ran.

And, as Ji Song had expected, Zhou Ran took first place with the highest tally, and Ji Song came in second.

Ji Song’s results were 930 audience votes and 150 jury votes, totaling 1,080.

Zhou Ran’s numbers were even more impressive: 965 audience votes and 170 jury votes, for a total of 1,135—a clear, overwhelming first place, securing his spot in the finals.

After Mr. He announced Zhou Ran’s score, Ji Song hugged him.

In that embrace, Zhou Ran understood Ji Song’s message: he wanted Zhou Ran to give his all in the finals.

In truth, Zhou Ran hadn’t wanted to compete against Ji Song. During this time, Ji Song had helped him immensely—he was like a mentor on Zhou Ran’s musical journey, introducing him to recording studios and other senior figures in the industry.

But since fate had brought them together in the finals, Zhou Ran would not hold back. Giving his all was the greatest respect he could show Ji Song, and both of them understood this well.

As soon as the live broadcast of the semifinals ended, analyses of “A Laugh in the Vast Sea” began to appear online.

The analyst was their old friend, the “Emperor of Ears.”

“This is the second time I’ve been astonished by Zhou Ran’s music. The first was the lyrics of ‘A Thousand Degrees,’ but this time it’s the composition of ‘A Laugh in the Vast Sea’ that amazes me.”

“Through this song, Zhou Ran has successfully portrayed an entire world of martial arts. I wonder if anyone noticed—the composition follows the structure of an ancient pentatonic scale.”

“The pattern goes: Gong, Shang, Jue, Zhi, Yu; but Zhou Ran reversed it to Yu, Zhi, Jue, Shang, Gong.”

“Then he performed it on the piano, rendering a sound that is melodious, flowing, and full of the charm of traditional Chinese music.”

“There’s a sense of grand simplicity to it.”

‘The greatest music is always simple, and great etiquette is always easy to follow. The greatest sound is in harmony with heaven and earth; the greatest ritual aligns with the universe.’

“Has anyone noticed that since the show began, Zhou Ran has sung nothing but original songs—he writes both the lyrics and the music himself. When I first learned this, I was truly astonished.”

“He really is a formidable force. The way his lyrics and compositions fit together is beyond perfect—I have nothing but admiration for him.”