Chapter 351: Scoring

Chen Ling fell silent.

He stood in the quiet corridor, draped in a crimson opera robe, his face under the black veil expressionless.

With his empathy suppressed, he felt little about the scene. Moreover, he wouldn't interfere; after all, it was their own choice. If someone were to impulsively step forward to stop it out of a sense of justice, it might actually ruin the young woman's life. For Chen Ling, being a mere "spectator" was enough.

Chen Ling continued along the corridor. After reaching the first floor, the atmosphere became noticeably busier.

"The preliminary auditions have started. Are all the judges here?"

"Not yet. Supervisor Sun and Supervisor Zhou haven't arrived, and a few of the preliminary participants are also missing..."

"...Never mind them. The two supervisors will come once their work is done. Let the participants take their numbers and start performing. More people are participating in the preliminary auditions this year, so we won't finish by noon if we don't hurry."

"Alright."

Chen Ling followed the crowd to the theater's performance venue.

The venue was not large, with seating for only three or four hundred people. The stage was also quite ordinary; compared to the Shangjing City Theater where Chen Ling used to work, it seemed as rudimentary as something from the last century.

Currently, a red curtain was drawn on the stage, and seven tables were arranged in front of it. Five people were already seated, appearing to be the judges for this preliminary audition.

As the judges called out numbers, participants began to go on stage one after another to perform. Other applicants were warming up their voices by the door, some were reviewing dance moves in a corner, while others sat nervously in the audience, their palms slick with sweat.

Although the preliminary audition had no dress code or appearance requirements, many people, like Li Qingshan, had dressed meticulously. A few even wore opera costumes. Chen Ling's crimson opera robe blended in with the other applicants, making him inconspicuous.

"This is the performance venue..." Chen Ling stood at the entrance, thoughtfully surveying every corner of the place.

As a professional director, one must fully consider the stage layout for a performance. This was Chen Ling's first time at a theater venue of this type, so he needed to familiarize himself with its structure. Otherwise, even with a clear outline in mind, it would be difficult to adapt his plans to the specific environment.

After a quick look around, Chen Ling turned and walked out the door, heading towards the backstage area.

Since it was only a preliminary audition and not a formal performance, the backstage was empty, with no one around. Chen Ling wandered around inside, his gaze falling upon a cart filled with props in a corner, and his eyes lit up slightly.

He already had an idea of how this play should be performed.

After fifteen minutes of work, Chen Ling returned to the performance venue.

"Brother Lin!" Li Qingshan, who had just finished his vocal warm-ups, saw Chen Ling and quickly walked over to him. Dressed in a flowing blue gown, his heavily made-up face still showed some nervousness. "Are you done with your business?"

"Yes, I am." Chen Ling nodded slightly. "And you?"

"Good luck, I'm number 22."

Li Qingshan showed him a numbered card, then looked at the stage. "They're already at number 15. It'll be my turn in a few more performances..."

Chen Ling saw Li Qingshan nervously swallow.

On the stage, a young man, similar in age to Li Qingshan, was singing a slow-paced pop song. Although Chen Ling wasn't musically inclined, he could discern the quality of the singing. The man's voice was quite good, and his breath control was very stable, indicating he had been practicing since childhood.

Chen Ling had never heard this song before; it must have been a product of this era. Under the captivating influence of his voice, some of the auditioning participants in the audience unconsciously hummed along to the melody, seemingly entranced.

When the song ended, its lingering melody filled the air. The five judges below the stage expressionlessly bent their heads to score, while the young man on stage tightly clutched the hem of his clothes, appearing extremely nervous.

Just then, a portly figure hurried in from a distance.

"Old Zhou, why are you so late?" a judge asked.

"Hehe," Supervisor Zhou licked his lips, his expression somewhat lewd. "I was just busy."

The other judges gave him a knowing look and didn't press the matter further.

Supervisor Zhou sat down in his seat and, without even looking at the young man on stage, quietly asked, "What number are we on now?"

"Alright."

Supervisor Zhou casually filled in the scores on the score sheet one by one, quickly completing the evaluations for all fifteen previous participants. He only paused briefly on the names of one or two contestants, giving them correspondingly higher scores.

The judges exchanged a few quiet words, seemingly discussing the young man's abilities. A moment later, one of them calmly announced:

"Your overall score is 5. We're sorry, you haven't passed. Please try again next year."

This casually spoken sentence instantly blanched the young man's face. He stood rigidly for a long moment before silently nodding and walking off the stage, his eyes red-rimmed.

"What a shame," Li Qingshan sighed. "Even with that level of skill, he didn't pass... It seems the competition is fierce this year."

Chen Ling glanced at the stage and remained silent.

Next to take the stage was the confident-looking woman Chen Ling had seen earlier outside the office. She smiled, her gaze sweeping over the judges, and began to dance on stage...

However, it was less dancing and more posturing. She occasionally ran her fingertips through her hair and suggestively moved her hand from her ankle to her chest, showcasing her curves. While her presence and ability to grab attention were undeniable, her dancing lacked any artistic merit.

This display made other participants in the audience swallow nervously, but Li Qingshan and a few others frowned, seemingly uncomfortable with what they saw.

"Overall score of 7. Congratulations, you've passed." Four of the six judges gave her eight points, while only the two female judges gave five.

She cast a proud glance at the crowd below and slowly walked off the stage in her high heels.

Chen Ling naturally understood what was happening. He turned to Li Qingshan, "Do you really believe the judging criteria here are fair?"

"Appearance and physique are also very important bonus points in preliminary auditions. After all, who doesn't like good-looking people?" Li Qingshan sighed. "Someone with ordinary looks like me can only work harder than others and win by skill and effort."

Chen Ling gave him a deep look and said nothing more.

Meanwhile, out of the corner of his eye, Chen Ling noticed a young woman, head bowed, slowly walking in through the door.