Chapter 993 — The Singing Competition

"Oh? Brother Liang, how come you're so calm about this now?" Gao Xiaofu was slightly taken aback after hearing Zhong Yongliang's words.

"Why fight over meaningless titles like 'rich young master' or 'ringleader'? Those are things only kids do!" Zhong Yongliang waved his hand dismissively. "We've matured now. We don't play that game anymore. The truly formidable people all keep a low profile!"

"Oh, I get it!" Gao Xiaofu nodded quickly.

"We'll just stand on the sidelines and watch. If Xie Yufeng crosses paths with Wei Zhao, all the better. If not, it's none of our concern anyway," Zhong Yongliang said indifferently.

"All right, the three of you can sit at the back right of the classroom for now!" Teacher Liu pointed to the rear right corner of the room. "There's an empty desk over there. Since you three already know each other, just make do sitting together for the time being. If a suitable spot opens up, I'll rearrange things!"

Teacher Liu had originally intended to seat Xie Yufeng at the front, but seeing them now, it was obvious they weren't here to study seriously, so Teacher Liu's attitude toward them had cooled considerably.

Xie Yufeng and the other two, however, were clearly not particular about where they sat. It made no difference to them, so when Teacher Liu instructed them to sit at the back right, Xie Yufeng gave her a polite nod. "Understood, Teacher!"

Seeing that Xie Yufeng did not object and was respectful and modest, Teacher Liu's impression of him improved somewhat. She thought to herself that perhaps the two followers had been arranged by Xie Yufeng's family and had nothing to do with him personally.

Wei Zhao glanced at Xie Yufeng and found that he wasn't looking his way. He shook his head instead. Was he being overly cautious?

But just after Wei Zhao withdrew his gaze, Xie Yufeng's eyes shot toward him. It lasted only an instant before he looked away again and continued walking to his own seat.

How sharp was Wei Zhao's sixth sense? That fleeting glance from Xie Yufeng had still been caught by him!

Xie Yufeng had just looked at him! Why would he look at him? Was it because Wei Zhao had looked at him first?

After all, the perceptions of a Mystic-rank expert were extremely keen. When Wei Zhao looked at Xie Yufeng — provided Wei Zhao made no deliberate effort to hide it — Xie Yufeng would certainly sense it. So for him to look back was only natural!

"All right, now that I've introduced the new student, there's one more thing I need to announce!" Teacher Liu waited until Xie Yufeng, Li Panghu, and Wang Congming were all seated before continuing. "To relieve your study pressure, to add a little fun to the dull, dry life of senior year, and to let everyone relax a bit, the school has decided to hold a singing competition for the senior class! First there will be a competition within each class, and the winners will go on to the grade-level finals! Of course, this activity is not mandatory. Those of you with a passion for it can sign up — solo or in a group. Those who can't sing can be part of the audience! And of course, being tone-deaf doesn't matter. You could do rap instead — isn't rap all the rage these days?"

Teacher Liu's words drew a burst of laughter from the class! Senior year really was dull and dry, so even a small occasional activity could lift everyone's spirits! Singing competitions were a regular event around the arts festival in the first and second years, when no one had thought much of them. But upon entering senior year, the intense academic life had left many students gasping for air, and their only group activities seemed all the more precious.

So Teacher Liu's announcement was immediately met with enthusiasm from the majority of the class, who responded with cheers!

"When you're tired of studying at night, you can practice singing. Although this is an entertainment activity, it would be quite an honor to place in the grade-level competition!" Teacher Liu said. "I hope you'll all sign up enthusiastically. The top ten in the grade will receive stipends from the school ranging from one thousand to ten thousand yuan!"

"Whoa—" At the mention of prize money, everyone's mood rose even higher. There were indeed wealthy students at Songshan First High School, but most had gotten in through their grades, and those students' families weren't well off, so ten thousand yuan in stipend money seemed like a great deal!

If you could get a ten-thousand-yuan stipend just for singing a song, that was quite a good deal!

So some students who had been watching with the attitude of mere spectators now felt eager to try and sign up as well!

"Sister Yaoyao, are we going to join the singing competition?" Shen Yushu asked.

"Of course we're joining." Gu Mengyao nodded. "We'll go practice singing as soon as we get back."

Gu Mengyao's father was a school board member. As the school's young miss, she naturally supported and participated in every event the school organized with all her effort, so every arts festival, sports meet, and so on, Gu Mengyao always signed up!

Gu Mengyao didn't want to be criticized. Her position was very sensitive, so she had to set an example.

"It's not as good at home — our place doesn't have karaoke-quality sound. Let's go practice at a karaoke place!" Shen Yushu was rather playful and would take any excuse to go out and have fun.

"To a karaoke place..." Gu Mengyao hesitated, but Shen Yushu had a point. The karaoke system at home had been installed during the renovation, and they rarely touched it. The song catalog had never been updated, and whether it still worked was anyone's guess, so Shen Yushu was right that going to a karaoke place to practice was the simplest solution.

But Gu Mengyao had heard that karaoke places were a mixed crowd, where people from all walks of life often gathered, and for two girls like her and Xiaoshu to go alone was hardly safe. So she said, "Then let's bring Wei Zhao along too. Send him a text and ask if he's free tonight."

"Oh, okay!" Even if Gu Mengyao hadn't said it, Shen Yushu had already been planning to bring Wei Zhao along.

"Right, invite Tang Zhi as well," Gu Mengyao added, feeling that bringing Wei Zhao without Tang Zhi would be a bit rude, so she instructed Xiaoshu.

"Bring Tang Zhi too... all right!" Shen Yushu nodded somewhat reluctantly. Deep down, she had always regarded Tang Zhi as a rival in love, yet Sister Yaoyao suddenly seemed to have accepted Tang Zhi, which left Shen Yushu feeling a little out of sorts.

At that moment, Wei Zhao was also discussing the singing competition with Feng Xiaoxiao.

"Wei Zhao, are you entering the singing competition?" Feng Xiaoxiao asked.

"I can't sing," Wei Zhao said flatly.

"You can't? I'll teach you! I can sing — how about we form a duo?" Feng Xiaoxiao suggested.

"Not interested," Wei Zhao said flatly.