"Ian Song, what theme did you draw?" Backstage, Evan Xia walked over with a bitter face and asked.
Ian Song took out his theme card and opened it. On it were just two words: "Wedding."
"Your theme's not bad. Unlike me—I actually drew 'Potato.' Damn, what were the organizers thinking, using potato as a theme?" Evan Xia complained angrily.
Hearing Evan Xia's gripe, Ian Song couldn't help but laugh. Potato really was a tricky theme; composing a piece around it would be tough.
"Gege, I drew 'Kite.' What did you get?" Shelly Song walked over as well.
Since they only had one hour to compose, the three didn't chat much.
But seeing Evan Xia's worried face, Ian Song tried to help him brainstorm: "Xia-ge, you don't have to stick to just potatoes. Think—potatoes can be made into fries, mashed potatoes, potato noodles, and more. Potatoes are filling, too. If you open up your mind, composing a piece won't be that hard."
After hearing Ian Song's analysis, Evan Xia's eyes lit up, as if he'd found a clue. He quickly moved aside to start writing his piece.
"Gege, you can't play favorites. Help me analyze my theme too," Shelly Song pleaded.
"Alright." Ian Song couldn't bear to refuse Shelly's request, so after thinking for a moment, he shared his insights. Over the past few days, he'd listened to a massive variety of songs—even sampled all kinds of opera.
As the saying goes, if you read three hundred poems, even if you can't write one, you'll know how to recite them.
So, he'd already built up a lot of experience in composition. Plus, with his spiritual power at 180 points, his mind was clear, ideas sharp, and his analysis and reaction speed were way up. Just a bit of thought, and he could come up with at least five directions for a 'Kite' theme.
He explained the five possible directions to Shelly Song in simple, straightforward language.
After listening, Shelly Song felt her hazy ideas suddenly crystallize. She thanked Ian Song and hurried off to compose.
Next, Ian Song looked at his own theme card, debating whether to compose something himself or use one of the system's gifted tracks—since one of the ten gifted pieces was wedding-related.
With all his accumulated experience and a clear mind, as long as he focused, writing a world-class piece wasn't difficult.
But with only one hour—and ten minutes already spent helping Evan Xia and Shelly Song—he had just fifty minutes left. He wasn't sure he could write a world-class wedding piece in that time.
So, after weighing his options, Ian Song decided to use the system's gifted track.
An hour later, ten staff members came backstage to collect the scores.
Many contestants were still busy composing. When the staff arrived, their faces turned pale and gloomy.
But time was up. Even if they weren't finished, everyone had to hand in what they'd written.
Another hour passed. During that time, the ten judges reviewed all the scores—any piece with major flaws, incomplete sections, or off-theme content was immediately eliminated.
Review complete!
All 100 contestants took the stage again.
The host had already received the judges' list.
"Now, I'll announce the results of the review!"
For a moment, most contestants grew tense and anxious. Ian Song, though, was calm—he'd submitted a world-class piece, so there was no way he'd fail.
Two special guests had come to the audience today.
One was JoyStream Video editor Evie Su; the other was a mature, sharp-eyed woman in her forties—the chief editor of JoyStream Video.
Last night, after JoyStream Video featured Ian Song's performance, it racked up millions of views in just a few hours, and the comments broke the hundred-thousand mark.
She knew that after another couple days of hype, the video would definitely go viral—maybe even break a hundred million views.
So, she made up her mind. She told Evie Su to try contacting this young piano master via his registration info, planning to have him record a few more performance videos for a special series.
Unfortunately, there was no contact info for Ian Song in the registration details. With no other choice, she had Evie Su quickly search for a way to reach him, and started using her own network to ask around.
Luckily, Evie Su found a post on the Riverstone City Forum through Qiandu search and learned that the performer was Ian Song, a senior at Saint Night High School, currently competing in the Riverstone City Piano Competition.
After reporting this to the chief editor, she immediately contacted the piano competition organizers and came to the venue.
However, they didn't approach Ian Song right away. They planned to wait until he finished the competition before reaching out.
On stage, all the contestants waited for the host's announcement.
Finally...
The male host announced, "Congratulations to Contestant No. 1, Ian Song. After unanimous recognition from all ten judges, your piece 'Dream Wedding' is complete and perfectly matches the theme. You pass!"
Ian Song stepped forward and bowed to the ten judges in thanks.
Then, the audience erupted in applause.
The female host continued, "Congratulations to Contestant No. 2, Shelly Song. After unanimous recognition from all ten judges, your piece 'Kite and Wind' is complete and perfectly matches the theme. You pass!"
Shelly Song also stepped forward to thank the judges, sneaking a grateful glance at Ian Song.
In the end, 58 contestants were eliminated in this round. Twenty-two had incomplete scores, eleven had pieces too flawed to perform, and the rest failed to match the theme at all.
The remaining forty-two contestants would perform live, with the judges scoring them. The top ten would advance to the finals.
"Now, let's welcome Contestant No. 1, Ian Song, to perform his original piano piece 'Dream Wedding,'" the host announced.
Hearing the title, Evie Su grew a little worried: "Ian Song is only seventeen—who knows if he's ever been in love? Can he really write a wedding piece as good as 'Blue and White Porcelain'?"
She loved 'Blue and White Porcelain'—the way it conjured the poignant beauty of a Jiangnan water town still made her heart flutter.
"I don't see it that way. Sure, creation should reflect reality, but most music relies on imagination. If he could write something as good as 'Blue and White Porcelain,' there's no reason he can't do even better!" the chief editor said.
"I hope so!" Evie Su nodded.
If the ten judges had heard Evie Su's concern, they would have scoffed. After reviewing Ian Song's piece, they were all amazed—a world-class, perfectly themed composition written in just an hour? Even the world's top pianist, Nina, might not pull that off!
Just then, Ian Song sat down at the piano, placing both hands on the black and white keys.