Song Xue was wearing her favorite shirt — sleeveless, white eyelet lace — black short skirt and white leather shoes, looking rather pretty and pure. She had fair skin and brown hair that emphasized her bright almond eyes. She didn't look like she was wearing makeup, but she still looked extremely beautiful with her clean, sharp eyebrows, full lips and petty nose.
"Wow, she's such a pretty girl."
When she was standing in the middle of the stage, the eyes of all the judges lit up.
"Hello, everyone, good morning. I'm Player No. 31, Song Xue. I'd like to present Autumn Whispers to you all."
After that, she sat in front of the piano, took a deep breath and pressed the keys. Her long, thin fingers rippled over the keyword; this was a beautiful melody.
Autumn Whispers was a classical piece of music. Almost every audience was immersed in the music, and the ten judges nodded from time to time. Apparently, the judges were very satisfied with her skills.
At the backstage
Looking at the girl on the big screen and hearing the music, Xia Xiang couldn't help but say to Song Yan, "Oh, I love this music so much. You cousin is indeed highly skilled in piano. If you were not here, she would win the piano competition for sure."
Nodding in approval, Song Yan furrowed his brow, for he could tell that she cared about the competition very much. If she lost the competition because of him, would she hate him? Though she had never treated him as a cousin, he cherished her and her parents.
"Never mind. I'll cross the bridge when I get there," he thought to himself.
The performance was received with hearty rounds of applauses. There were three types of audiences — students from academies of music, citizens who loved piano, and families of the players. They all approved Song Xue's music.
The host got on stage again and asked the judges to score her. Soon the average was displayed on the big screen, and the host declared in a loud voice, "Congratulations to Player No. 31! Her average is 97 and she got a first for the time being."
"Thank you very much!" She gave everyone a sweet smile and made a bow before she got off the stage.
Yang Yanli trotted towards her and said excitedly, "Well done! My dear Xue, you're the best!"
"Congratulations, Song Xue." Song Yan also walked up to her.
"Thank you," she answered with a smile.
This was the first time that she smiled to him, which made him feel elated.
The contest moved on, and Xia Xiang was Player No. 59. He performed music of intense emotion and came second with a score of 92.
The two men and a woman didn't expect Xia Xiang to be a skilled player, and their faces soured at the result.
At the backstage, Xia Xiang walked up to them and challenged, "You looked down upon me. I guess you are more skillful than me, huh?"
"It's just the second place." Ma Yang, the man with turtleneck, refused to admit that Xia Xiang was better than him.
"Well, the first place belongs to my buddy, Song Yan." After saying that, Xia Xiang turned around and left.
The three people turned to Song Yan and wondered, "Is he so skillful?"
Feeling their sights, Song Yan turned his head and gave them a friendly smile, but they immediately looked away.
Time passed, and it was Player No. 87's turn. Ma Yang took a deep breath and got on the stage. However, he only got an average of 89.