MMB Chapter 251 EA's Four Setbacks
Chapter 251 EA's Four Setbacks
At seven o'clock sharp, the lights went out.
A spotlight shone down in the center of the stage.
Shen Yuege, dressed in a simple white dress, walked onto the stage with a microphone in hand.
"Welcome everyone to the Super Girl competition, where the top 36 will be narrowed down to 20." Her voice resonated throughout the venue through the speakers. "Tonight, 36 contestants will use their voices to compete for 20 spots in the next round. The decision of who stays and who leaves is in your hands."
She paused, then smiled slightly: "Are you ready?"
A deafening cheer erupted from the audience.
"Then—" Shen Yuege raised her hand, "the competition begins."
The first one to go on stage was Lin Xiaoxi.
She was wearing a simple white T-shirt and jeans, her hair casually tied in a ponytail, with no makeup, yet she looked exceptionally fresh.
The song I chose was "The First Dream".
Lu Ran leaned back in his chair and watched quietly.
From the very first sentence Lin Xiaoxi uttered, he knew this girl was a sure thing.
Her voice was more stable than during the audition, and more powerful than in the second round. The line "Holding the initial dream tightly in my hands" touched people's hearts.
As the chorus progressed, some people in the audience started humming along.
When the last line was sung, the entire audience stood up and applauded.
The middle-aged man next to Lu Ran had red eyes and was writing something quickly in his notebook.
Lin Xiaoxi bowed and stepped off the stage.
On the judges' panel, Xu Manlin was the first to speak: "Lin Xiaoxi, do you know, I've been paying attention to you."
Lin Xiaoxi paused for a moment, then stood there nervously.
Xu Manlin continued, "From the auditions to now, I've watched you grow step by step. Your progress isn't just a little bit; it's a complete transformation. Today, you sang 'The First Dream' with your own unique flavor. If I had to give it a score, I'd give it 9.5."
Another round of cheers erupted from the audience.
Liu Siqi chimed in, "My opinion is similar to Manlin's. Your technique isn't the absolute best, but there's a sincerity in your singing. For us musicians, the most important thing is to bring emotion into our singing. This kind of thing can't be faked. I give it 9.3 points."
Li Zonghan adjusted his reading glasses and said slowly, "I've lived for over fifty years and heard countless people sing this song. Listening to you sing it today suddenly reminded me of my youth. Back then, I also chased my dreams, encountered setbacks, and doubted myself. Your voice has that quality. I give it 9.4 points."
Finally, there's Shen Yuege.
She looked at Lin Xiaoxi, her eyes filled with a hint of relief: "Lin Xiaoxi, do you know what I like most about you?"
Lin Xiaoxi shook her head.
"What impressed me most was that you never became arrogant because of others' praise, nor were you discouraged by others' criticism," Shen Yuege said. "You just sang quietly and made steady progress. This mindset is more important than talent. I give you 9.6 points."
Lin Xiaoxi's eyes welled up with tears.
She bowed deeply, her voice choked with emotion: "Thank you, teachers."
Lu Ran sat in the back row, watching this scene, and suddenly felt a sense of emotion.
He had watched these contestants all the way through the preliminary rounds.
At that time, they were inexperienced, nervous, and at a loss.
Now, they stand on the stage, radiant with light.
This is the significance of "Super Girl".
It's not about selecting a champion, but about giving every ordinary person a chance to shine.
The next few days will be filled with matches, one after another.
Twenty becomes twelve, twelve becomes six, and six becomes three.
Lu Ran knew that every match from now on would involve elimination, tears, and surprises.
In the first round of the competition, Su Qian sang an original song called "Mom's Letter." The lyrics were about the letter her mother gave her when she left home to study. Halfway through the song, a touching sob could even be heard in her voice, and many audience members were even moved to tears.
During the competition, Zhou Wan performed a rock version of "The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau." When she hit the high notes, the entire audience erupted in cheers, and judge Li Zonghan even stood up and applauded.
In the final elimination round, Zhang Xinyi sang "Dream Chaser." After finishing the song, she said to the camera, "I want to say to all ordinary people like me—don't give up, dreams will come true."
These words went viral on TUTU.
After today's competition, these contestants have become increasingly popular.
How famous is he?
They've become so popular that major brands are lining up to have them as spokespeople.
It became so popular that even professional singers who initially looked down on it started paying attention to the show.
Lu Ran watched the entire game from the audience.
The more he looked at it, the more he felt that his initial decision was right.
Give the stage to ordinary people and let them shine.
This model is the first of its kind in the world.
But this will certainly not be the last time.
The "Super Boy" program is also on the agenda.
...
The popularity of "Super Girl" was like a storm sweeping across the country.
The hashtag #SuperGirl# on TUTU has garnered over 5 billion views and more than 30 million discussions.
Even on Weibo, though reluctantly, they had no choice but to put the preview of the finals at the top of the trending topics.
Meanwhile, the gaming news that was all the rage a while ago suddenly seems less exciting.
Half-Life's daily active users (DAU) are consistently around 10 million, while Seven Heroes' daily active users (DAU) are consistently around 15 million. The two games operate independently, neither bothering the other, and coexist peacefully.
But this does not mean that things are calm.
Unseen by Lu Ran, an undercurrent was brewing.
In a conference room of a high-end hotel in Shanghai, several foreigners sat around a long table, each with a different expression.
The leader was a middle-aged man with blond hair and blue eyes, dressed in a suit and wearing frameless glasses, who looked like a university professor—if you ignored the shrewdness typical of a businessman in his eyes.
"Ladies and gentlemen," he began, speaking fluent English, "we've been in China for two weeks now, meeting with thirteen companies. Tencent, NetEase, Perfect World, Giant Interactive, Shanda... we've met with everyone we could. Now, I'd like to hear your honest thoughts."
There was a few seconds of silence in the conference room.
A young man wearing glasses opened his notebook: "Mr. Morrison, judging from the current situation, the attitude of the local Chinese game companies is much tougher than we expected."
This young man is named Li Ming. He is the China expert translator that EA brought with them on this trip to China, and also Morrison's temporary assistant.
Morrison nodded: "Tell me more."
"We already know the conditions Tencent has set—they want to retain the overseas distribution rights for Half-Life, require that the joint venture company hold at least 70% of the shares, and will not accept any form of performance-based agreement." Li Ming paused, "To be honest, these conditions are much more demanding than we expected."
What about NetEase?
"NetEase's attitude is even more ambiguous." Li Ming flipped through his notes. "They said they were interested in cooperation, but on the condition that we open up our core technologies. This is clearly our bottom line."
"Perfect World?"
"Perfect World is very enthusiastic, but they are too small and their cash flow has been tight recently. Cooperating with them is too risky."
Morrison frowned after hearing this.
Before coming to China, he thought it would be an easy trip.
After all, EA is one of the top three gaming giants globally, holding a host of top-tier IPs such as FIFA, Need for Speed, and The Sims. Wouldn't those small companies in China be begging for cooperation on their knees when they see the EA brand?
Reality, however, gave him a harsh slap in the face.
Tencent will not kneel.
NetEase will not kneel.
Perfect World will not kneel.
When did these companies become so upright?
...