Volume One: Debuting at the Pinnacle Chapter Fifty-Six: Where Has Brother Gone?

At exactly eight o’clock, the competition site of The Voice of China was ablaze with cheers, the audience surging with excitement as the contestants’ performances officially began. Since the pre-show announcements and contestant introductions had already been recorded and broadcast, there was no need for the contestants to be introduced one by one on stage; instead, they would take turns performing with their duet partners. For Lin Xi, this was the best possible news.

“Lin Xi, sister, Ah Jing still hasn’t returned. What should we do?” Seeing the competition begin, Lin Zitan anxiously turned to Lin Xi.

Lin Xi sighed. “Have you called him?”

“Yes, I tried earlier, but his phone’s off. I couldn’t reach him,” Lin Zitan replied, worry etched across her face.

“Do you think something happened to Ah Jing?” Ling Ruohan, standing beside them, frowned as she spoke.

Lin Xi shook her head, offering comfort. “No, don’t let your imagination run wild. This isn’t some bygone era; what could possibly happen? He must have something urgent to attend to. Maybe his phone died?” Lin Xi forced a self-deprecating smile. She knew better than anyone whether Chen Jing’s phone had battery—she’d used it herself to look something up that afternoon.

“So what do we do about the competition? It’s almost our turn.” Although Chen Jing was scheduled as the last performer, there were only three contestants before him. With three songs, including interludes, it would be no more than twenty minutes before their turn.

Ling Ruohan hesitated, resigned. “If Ah Jing still hasn’t returned when it’s time for the duet, I’ll go up and sing alone. If it comes to it, I’ll have to forfeit this segment.”

If that happened, it would have a huge impact on Chen Jing’s prospects, especially if rival contestants seized on it. With this in mind, Lin Xi looked at Xie Weiyu, who was preparing to go on stage nearby, her brow tightly knit.

Xie Weiyu, readying herself in the wings, glanced over at Lin Xi, still seeing no sign of Chen Jing. Since the afternoon rehearsal, Chen Jing hadn’t appeared at all. What on earth was Chen Jing up to? Xie Weiyu’s face darkened as she turned to Su Tingting, who stood beside her. “Sister Tingting, what do you think Chen Jing is doing? He’s nowhere to be seen.”

Su Tingting cast a cool glance toward Lin Xi, then sneered. “Isn’t it better if Chen Jing doesn’t show up? That way, there’s no one to compete with you for the championship.”

“You mean…” Xie Weiyu looked at Su Tingting in surprise.

Su Tingting cut off Xie Weiyu’s excitement. “Keep calm. Just focus on your performance. Don’t worry about anything else.”

“Alright, got it.”

All the contestants backstage had noticed Chen Jing was missing, but none came to ask—instead, they pretended not to know.

The production team sensed something was amiss and sent someone to ask Lin Xi what was going on. Lin Xi could only reassure them, explaining and promising repeatedly that it wouldn’t affect the live recording of The Voice of China, finally managing to send them away.

But the truth could not be concealed forever; if Chen Jing didn’t return soon, Lin Xi would truly be out of options.

The first performance was by Guo Feng and his duet partner, Wei Guoqiang. When Wei Guoqiang appeared on stage, the audience erupted in enthusiastic cheers.

Guo Feng and Wei Guoqiang delivered a rock duet that ignited the crowd’s passion. Guo Feng, a newcomer, surprised everyone by matching the veteran singer Wei Guoqiang note for note, earning the audience’s admiring praise. At this stage of the competition, it was clear that there were no weak contestants left.

After the rock number, the audience’s excitement still hadn’t subsided when the host announced the next performer.

The second to take the stage was Yang Xingli and his duet partner, Huang Wenhao. As soon as Huang Wenhao appeared, another wave of cheers swept the venue.

Yang Xingli and Huang Wenhao sang a romantic duet, but it was evident that Huang Wenhao dominated the performance. Yang Xingli’s emotional delivery was lacking, but thankfully there were no major errors, and the audience accepted it.

In the audience, Wang Youxuan clung to her mother’s hand, waving it gently.

“Mom, do you think something happened to my brother? I haven’t seen him all evening.” Watching Huang Wenhao’s soulful performance, Wang Youxuan felt distracted, though she normally enjoyed his love songs.

Wang Menglan gently scolded her daughter, “Don’t jinx it. What could possibly happen to Ah Jing? He’s probably just busy. He’ll be up soon. Why are you so anxious?” Truthfully, she herself felt something was off. No matter how busy, Chen Jing should have shown his face. Moreover, he hadn’t come out to greet them at the venue, despite promising to do so. Calling his phone only got a dead signal. Wang Menglan was worried, but she pretended everything was fine so her daughter wouldn’t fret.

“Alright…” Wang Youxuan replied gloomily. She just wanted to see her brother perform.

After Yang Xingli and Huang Wenhao finished, the host returned to the stage.

The star host Byron spoke loudly: “Dear audience! Thank you to contestant Yang Xingli and Teacher Huang Wenhao for a wonderful performance. The previous duet partners were both judges on The Voice of China, so you’ve probably guessed—the third contestant, Xie Weiyu’s duet partner, is our third judge, the diva Su Tingting. Let’s welcome Xie Weiyu and her duet partner, Su Tingting, performing ‘The Road to Love.’ Please give them a warm applause.”

As the host finished, the crowd erupted again. It was clear that Su Tingting had a huge fan base; her entrance brought even more excitement than Wei Guoqiang or Huang Wenhao.

As the performance began, it became apparent that Xie Weiyu couldn’t keep up with Su Tingting, whether in vocal skill or emotional expression. Su Tingting completely overshadowed her, nearly turning the duet into a solo performance.

Ironically, this made the audience cheer even louder—they simply wanted to see Su Tingting perform, caring little about Xie Weiyu’s contribution.

After the duet, amid the raucous cheers, Xie Weiyu’s face betrayed a hint of discomfort, but she forced a smile, thanked the audience with Su Tingting, and retreated backstage.

“What do we do? It’s our turn, but Ah Jing still isn’t here.” Lin Zitan, seeing Xie Weiyu’s performance end, anxiously asked Lin Xi and Ling Ruohan.

“I’ll go on stage first, give the audience a good show, and then explain things to them,” Ling Ruohan sighed. “Hopefully my influence can minimize the fallout.”

Lin Xi nodded gravely. “That’s the only way.”

On stage, the host returned to introduce the next act.

With a gentle, sweet smile, she said, “Finally, it’s time for our last contestant. Honestly, I’ve been eagerly anticipating this duet, as our final contestant is the musical prodigy Chen Jing, and his duet partner is my idol. Do you know who she is?” After a pause, she revealed the answer with a smile: “That’s right—Chen Jing’s duet partner is the queen of sweet songs, Ling Ruohan! Their duet will be another original song by Chen Jing. Please welcome contestant Chen Jing and his duet partner Ling Ruohan, performing ‘Who Understands the Heart of a Wanderer.’”

“Ah! Ling Ruohan! Ling Ruohan!”

Hearing that Ling Ruohan was the duet partner, the audience erupted in endless cheers, the atmosphere matching or even surpassing Su Tingting’s earlier entrance. It was clear Ling Ruohan’s popularity now exceeded Su Tingting’s.

“Ah, it’s finally my brother’s turn!” Wang Youxuan in the audience hugged her mother’s arm and cried out in excitement.

Wang Menglan helplessly looked at her daughter—Chen Jing hadn’t appeared yet, why so anxious? At the same time, she herself looked toward the stage in anticipation, hoping to see Chen Jing appear.

The stage lights dimmed, then flared to life as the music began. Ling Ruohan, dressed in a pale blue gown, slowly appeared under the spotlight.

As the musical accompaniment played, Ling Ruohan smiled brightly, waving and greeting the audience.

The crowd responded energetically, waving their hands in reply, though many wondered—wasn’t this supposed to be a duet with Chen Jing? Where was he?

But excitement at Ling Ruohan’s appearance made most forget the question—for now. Yet Wang Youxuan and Wang Menglan certainly didn’t overlook it.

Wang Youxuan, seeing only Ling Ruohan onstage, asked in surprise, “Why is she alone? Where’s my brother?” ‘Hanhan’ was the affectionate nickname fans used for Ling Ruohan.

Wang Menglan said nothing, her brow tightening.

Ling Ruohan calmly greeted the audience, then, keeping with the music’s rhythm, began to sing:

“If you can smile,
You won’t cry,
If you find a soulmate,
How could you ever be lonely…”

Her opening notes stunned the audience—not only with the beauty of her voice, but also the surprise that she was singing in Cantonese.

“Wow! It’s a Cantonese song!”

“I can’t understand Cantonese well…”

“No need to understand everything—just feel the melody and emotion.”

“That’s true.”

“Wait, isn’t this supposed to be a duet? Where’s Chen Jing?”

At last, someone voiced their confusion.

“Yeah, this is a duet competition. Where’s Chen Jing? He didn’t come on stage?”

“What’s going on?”

The audience began to stir restlessly, but nothing could disrupt Ling Ruohan’s singing.

“…Ask me about the hardships my footprints have endured,
How could they ever end…”

As she finished this verse, Ling Ruohan let out a quiet sigh. The next part was supposed to be sung by someone else, but with Chen Jing absent, she had no choice but to continue alone.

“If you can love,
Don’t shrink back…”

Just as Ling Ruohan was about to continue singing by herself, a magnetic voice, perfectly timed with the music, took over ahead of her. That voice—who else could it be but Chen Jing?

Ling Ruohan turned around in delight to see Chen Jing, impeccably dressed, striding onto the stage from backstage. Instantly, the entire venue erupted in joyous cheers.