"Do I even have the right to choose?" Ye Huanqiu retorted, catching the director off guard.
"...No," the director admitted.
"Then that settles it," Ye Huanqiu muttered, dismissing the matter.
He found the director's line of questioning absurd, reminiscent of those daily hypothetical dilemmas: "Would you rather have ten million yuan or get into Tsinghua and Peking University?" or "If I gave you a hundred million yuan, what would you be willing to sacrifice?"
He slapped the table in frustration. "All this talk about choices! Why don't you actually deliver on one? What's the point of choosing if there's no real reward? I'd rather choose to ignore this nonsense."
"Uh..." The director hadn't anticipated "One Leaf Knows Autumn" being so difficult to handle. Even the most arrogant contestants from the previous seven groups had eventually given an answer.
The interview ended abruptly, and Ye Huanqiu resumed his listless wait in the chair.
The eight celebrities who had already performed took their seats, while Wang Ziqiang and Meng Yan returned to the stage to continue hosting.
"After enjoying the performances of our eight talented singers, I'm sure you're all craving more. But now it's time for the main event! Inside these eight square boxes are the songwriters who have been waiting patiently. Next, we'll play a little game—today, we'll be drawing names at random from mystery boxes!"
A staff member presented a tray holding eight chibi figurines.
Meng Yan's eyes sparkled as she exclaimed, "They're so cute!"
She reached out to touch one, but Wang Ziqiang quickly pulled her back. "Teacher Bai, calm down! These are for our guests. Producers, take note: Teacher Bai likes these figurines—don't blame me later if she wants one!"
The tray was placed before the eight singers, allowing them to each choose their favorite figurine.
Meanwhile, inside the Square Box, Ye Huanqiu was called out by a staff member to meet the other fourteen contestants. He recognized only two of them from his predecessor's memories: a man and a woman.
The man, Li Yuanjie, appeared to be in his early thirties. He was the prized disciple of a Platinum-tier five-star composer. Having achieved Gold-tier certification at such a young age, his musical talent was undeniable, though his songwriting skills lagged slightly behind.
Li Yuanjie's frequent appearances on various shows had earned him a wide network of connections, including numerous industry celebrities. Some even curried favor with him—having a Platinum-tier mentor certainly came with advantages.
The woman appeared to be in her early twenties and was currently a Silver Three-Star certified composer. She had arrived with her senior apprentice, both students of the Opera Association's president.
Ye Huanqiu remembered her purely because of her striking beauty and youth. She had even performed on the national opera channel alongside her master, showcasing a remarkable singing voice. However, as traditional opera's popularity waned, she had abandoned the limelight to become a composer.
Having formally transitioned to composition less than two years prior, she had already reached this level, a testament to her innate talent. If she continued to progress, she might even surpass the record for the youngest Gold-tier Composer.
Ye Huanqiu sensed that the original owner of his memories harbored more envy than admiration for them: one protected by a powerful mentor, the other blessed with both talent and beauty, excelling in both singing and composition.
Suppressing this lingering emotion, Ye Huanqiu waited until everyone else had made their selections. He picked up the last remaining plushie—an Emperor Penguin.
Each group was entitled to one plushie, and since Ye Huanqiu was alone, he formed his own group. With their chosen plushies in hand, the others returned to their seats.
"Young Master Li, how dare they form a solo group? That's outrageously arrogant! Even you didn't participate alone."
Beside him stood Gou Bing, his personal lyricist—a shifty-eyed fellow with a rat-like demeanor, rated Silver Three-Star. While Gou Bing possessed some lyrical talent, his true skill lay in flattery, a Diamond-tier ability without exaggeration.
"Gouzi, the world is full of self-proclaimed geniuses. Every show needs a clown to spice things up, right?" Li Yuanjie said, his words dripping with sarcasm. Though he pretended indifference, anger simmered within him. He hadn't initially planned to bring Gou Bing, but his mentor had insisted, urging him not to act like a special case.
Now, he'd encountered someone even more arrogant than himself. As the apprentice of a Platinum-tier writer, Li Yuanjie maintained humility. Yet this nameless nobody dared to put on airs.
It was fortunate Ye Huanqiu had left early, or Li Yuanjie would have loved to publicly humiliate him.
"As always, Young Master Li, you're absolutely right."
The first eight singers had each chosen their favorite plush toy. Yang Chaoyue hugged her Emperor Penguin tightly, clearly smitten with her choice.
Wang Ziqiang and Meng Yan interviewed the male and female singers separately, asking them about their reasons for selecting their respective toys.
When Meng Yan approached Yang Chaoyue with the microphone, she simply stated, "I chose it to remember my roots."
She didn't elaborate, mindful that Tomato TV was the home station of the show and she couldn't directly mention the platform where she had debuted.
"Alright! This time, the plush toy selection was completely blind. In addition to the eight singers on stage, the songwriters behind the Square Boxes also made their choices. This first episode is all about thrills and suspense. Now, let's reveal the plush toys each person selected!" Wang Ziqiang announced.
Each Square Box had a square sticker on its exterior. Peeling off the top layer revealed the image of the plush toy chosen by the songwriter within.
"Now, let's invite our singers to enter their respective Square Boxes for a face-to-face exchange with the songwriters," Meng Yan said, gesturing for the singers to leave their seats and move toward the boxes.
Yang Chaoyue tugged at Chen Yihan's sleeve, whining, "Yihan, do you think the songwriter will faint when they see me?"
Her words, amplified by her microphone, sent the audience into uproarious laughter. Yang Chaoyue, the biggest wild card of the competition, had already lived up to her reputation.
Audience Member A: "I bet fifty cents that when that songwriter sees Yang Chaoyue, he'll quit on the spot and run for the hills."
Audience Member B: "The production team must be doing this on purpose. They're probably worried the competition format won't be enough to eliminate contestants, so they're using Yang Chaoyue as a scapegoat. That's just cruel."
Audience Member D: "Let's watch the drama unfold!"
The audience's reactions proved that Yang Chaoyue had truly captured their attention.
The camera followed Ye Huanqiu as he prepared to meet the singer.
Still inside his box, Ye Huanqiu had already heard everything. He clutched his Emperor Penguin plushie, a deliberate challenge to raise the stakes.
This Yang Chaoyue from Earth Star was an exact replica in every way. Teaching her to perform a complete song properly would be a monumental task.
Director Zhang and Shen Tao didn't care about the difficulties. For the first episode, they only needed to reveal Ye Huanqiu's identity as the writer "One Leaf Knows Autumn." After that, they could eliminate him in the second episode without consequence. Simply put, it was a mutually beneficial arrangement.
Ye Huanqiu needed a platform to boost his reputation, rapidly disseminate his work, and gain popularity. The production team needed the buzz surrounding him as the "author" of Blooming Life.
As long as the first episode's filming went smoothly, they didn't care whether Ye Huanqiu stayed or left.
Ye Huanqiu straightened his posture, his mind racing: Bring it on! You think I'm doomed? I'll prove you wrong by conquering the impossible!