Chapter 160: Just a Simple and Timid Boy

"The rules for this round of the competition are as follows: two contestants will be eliminated."

"Each judge holds both an advancement card and an elimination card."

"To speed up the pace and increase the thrill of the competition, any contestant who receives two-thirds of the elimination cards will be directly eliminated. The same applies to the advancement criteria."

"The expert mentors from the national team only had that one-time invitation; they will not be participating this time."

Ji Ya nodded in satisfaction. Very good. They weren't pulling any more stunts this time. Otherwise, offending her would be equivalent to offending everyone in the industry. With a single word from her, no one would dare to participate in the show ever again!

If it became an empty shell, let's see if they would have to send their own staff on stage, or if the director himself would have to go up and make a fool of himself.

The current situation was clear: as long as the experts weren't there, Lin Yu's strength could completely crush anyone else on the same stage.

He could hum a new song before even finishing a meal. With talent like that, it was hard to find a second person in the entire industry.

Lin Yu's creative ability was confirmed by the fact that she had even dreamed about performing "Calories" on stage over the past few days.

Lin Yu had never had much of an opinion on the show's rules. Either way, whether he was eliminated or not didn't dictate his future path in the industry.

All he cared about was seeing Ji Ya's eyes light up when he performed on stage, that sense of pride that came from the bottom of her heart.

Moreover, he had to thank Ji Ya for coming to the scene herself. Her influence was great; otherwise, following previous patterns, he would have had to bother Su Xiaolin to figure out the rules.

Indeed, strength is the ultimate truth!

"Director, how many rounds are left after this one?"

"It’s almost over. After this elimination round, there are three more competitions."

Lin Yu gave a soft "hmm."

Looking at it this way, the schedule for "Talent Show" wasn't too long. A total of five live rounds, split into two episodes each for release on video platforms, would definitely bring in a lot of traffic.

...

At eight in the evening, Si Shaozhe and Wang Fei arrived at the hotel. As soon as they put down their luggage, Wang Fei immediately contacted Lin Yu.

"Good brother, I've arrived. Shall we start?"

Lin Yu thought for a moment and replied with a "good." The unspoken understanding between men meant there was no need for many words; they both knew the other's goal. Sneaking out of his hotel room, Lin Yu looked left and right to ensure the coast was clear before finding Wang Fei’s door in the hallway.

The two met up, and Wang Fei glanced at the message he had sent to Si Shaozhe.

Si Shaozhe was currently in his room with his agent. The moment he received the message, he cautiously glanced at the woman beside him.

"Sister, I'm going to sleep. Why don't you head back to your room?"

The agent looked at him with some confusion. Since when did this kid become so obedient? Wanting to sleep before ten? Nevertheless, she stood up, gave him a few words of encouragement for the show, and then left.

Si Shaozhe sent her to the door with a grin. As soon as he closed it, he couldn't wait to reply to Wang Fei.

"The storm has passed, let's go!"

Lin Yu and Wang Fei had already arrived downstairs. Looking around, Lin Yu felt strange. "Just the two of us?"

Wang Fei held his phone up to him with a smirk. Lin Yu understood and immediately hailed a passing taxi.

Confirming their disguises were secure and they wouldn't be recognized, the two got into the car with peace of mind.

The taxi driver looked at them with suspicion. In the middle of the night, wearing hats and masks and acting furtively—could they be... robbers!?

With a racing heart and trembling hands, he reached for his phone. Fortunately, at that moment, Si Shaozhe walked out. Seeing him, Lin Yu deliberately said in an excited tone:

"My good buddy is here. This kid is so afraid of his wife that he has to sneak around; it’s hilarious."

The driver rolled his eyes upon hearing this. So they were all in the same boat! All afraid of their wives, yet the pot was calling the kettle black?

Although Si Shaozhe was dressed properly when he came down, he was still nervous about sneaking out. As he slinked past the front desk, he caught the eye of the pretty receptionist.

"Hey, hey, what are you doing?"

Dressed like that in the middle of the night—could he be a thief!?

She looked around in a panic and shouted, "Security! Security!!"

...

Si Shaozhe stood straight, looking blankly at the girl who was panicking and trying to run. He couldn't help but panic himself. Fortunately, as an artist, he had strong mental fortitude and quickly adjusted, turning around to bolt!

The security guards outside were gathering to gossip about the hotel when they heard the commotion. They pulled down their caps and ran inside!

They didn't expect to run straight into Si Shaozhe at the entrance. They pinned him down immediately, seven or eight burly men cornering him with stern expressions.

"Where’s this thief from? How dare you steal in your grandfather's territory?"

Lin Yu and Wang Fei, watching from the taxi window, burst into laughter.

Poor kid...

Surrounded by so many tough guys, he's in for a "happy" night!

...

The driver looked at Si Shaozhe, who was sitting in the middle seat sulking after getting back in the car. This guy was so skinny; no wonder he could slip through the gaps in the circle of guards.

But as a guy, could his wife be happy with him being so thin? No wonder his wife kept such a tight leash on him. He probably couldn't even finish his "homework" at home, so sneaking out in the middle of the night and getting a beating was only natural!

"You two are still laughing!"

Hearing the stifled laughter on both sides, Si Shaozhe crossed his arms. Because he was so agitated, his voice turned shrill and a bit effeminate.

The two men beside him laughed even harder.

The driver dropped them off at the entrance of a lounge bar. Watching the three walk away with their arms around each other's shoulders, he couldn't help but form some strange suspicions...

No wonder these two strapping men would sneak a skinny one out past his wife in the middle of the night. Could it be...

Young people these days... I don't get it!

Lin Yu had never been to a lounge bar. Everything here was outside the realm of his past life. He had been inside once before but had no money to spend, so he was quite curious about everything inside.

Si Shaozhe stood to the side, timid and obedient.

To be honest, he had managed to run out, but his heart was still pounding. If he were caught sneaking out by his "sister" (the agent), wouldn't this lounge become his burial ground?!

"This place doesn't look like a good place!"

Hearing his grumbling, Lin Yu and Wang Fei exchanged a wicked smile. Lin Yu, being strong and fit, simply picked Si Shaozhe up in a bridal carry and headed deeper into the bar.

"It's not like you haven't played before, stop pretending."