Chapter 085: Mother-in-law Meets Daughter-in-law

Two members of the audience left.
Sun Hao also slipped off the stage in embarrassment; he truly couldn’t bear to stay up there any longer. Out of a thousand public judges, he hadn’t received a single vote. What was the point of competing anymore?
“Congratulations to Lin Feng for entering the top six of the Fanquan team! We also wish Sun Hao the best of luck. The stage of ‘Original Songs’ is not the end of his musical journey, but rather a brand new beginning…”
Host Yang Fan stepped in to smooth things over. The director had already informed him through his earpiece that the footage would be edited before broadcast, so he needed to provide a proper conclusion for this PK round.
“Let’s all give another round of applause to Lin Feng, thanking him for the heartfelt music he’s brought us, and wishing him greater success on the stage of ‘Original Songs’…”
Yang Fan wrapped up, ready to move into the next PK round, but just then, a new message came through his earpiece from the director.
“Wait, don’t let Lin Feng leave the stage yet. Lin Feng’s mother, the singer Guo Shuzhen, and his sister Lin Wen are both in the second venue. Just now, Guo Shuzhen requested to come on stage. Arrange it immediately, and make sure Guo Shuzhen and Qin Ruolin have a direct conversation! Remember!”
Upon hearing the director’s instruction, Yang Fan hurriedly called to Lin Feng, who was about to step off the stage.
“Lin Feng, please wait a moment…”
“Is there something else?” Lin Feng paused, looking at Yang Fan with confusion.
“Just now, the director told me through the earpiece that your mother, Ms. Guo Shuzhen, is here at the recording. She’s very happy to see you advance. So now, let’s welcome Ms. Guo Shuzhen and Lin Feng’s sister, Lin Wen, to the stage!”
As Yang Fan finished speaking, Guo Shuzhen and Lin Wen indeed walked slowly onto the stage from backstage.
Seeing both his mother and sister come up, Lin Feng had no choice but to return to the center.
After the host’s introduction, the audience wore expressions of sudden realization.
“No wonder Lin Feng sings so well—he’s got music in his genes.”
“But I really didn’t expect Lin Feng’s mother to be Ms. Guo Shuzhen!”
“That explains all the mysteries. It seems Lin Feng joined the show mostly under Ms. Guo Shuzhen’s influence.”
...
On stage.
Lin Wen was not at all shy; she strode to the center and gave Lin Feng a big hug. “Brother, you were amazing!”
“How did you end up on stage?” Lin Feng whispered to Lin Wen.
“Blame Mom. She said she wanted to check out her future daughter-in-law!” Lin Wen blinked her lively eyes, laughing.
“Of course…”
Lin Feng was speechless. When Yang Fan mentioned earlier that his mother wanted to come up, he had a bad premonition. Sure enough, Guo Shuzhen was more interested in other matters than the music itself!

“Ms. Guo, what a surprise to learn you’re Lin Feng’s mother! This explains to the whole nation why Lin Feng sings so well,” Yang Fan said cheerily.
“You exaggerate!” Guo Shuzhen laughed and shook her head. “But it’s true—Lin Feng has loved music since he was a child.”
“Really? Then why did Lin Feng become a professional basketball player?” Yang Fan asked.
“His father was also a professional basketball player, so Lin Feng followed in his footsteps. Still, his passion for music is deep, which is why he joined your show. Previously, I saw many people say Lin Feng was just dabbling in music here. Now, I want to speak for my son: when it comes to music, he is serious!” Guo Shuzhen, a veteran singer, radiated commanding presence on stage.
After her words, the audience erupted in applause.
“Ms. Guo, now that Lin Feng has made it to the top six of the Fanquan team, what expectations do you have for his achievements?” Yang Fan asked.
Guo Shuzhen smiled. “As long as he enjoys himself, that’s what matters. Results aren’t the most important thing; of course, if he goes further, that’s wonderful.”
“We all believe Lin Feng has the talent to go far.” Yang Fan nodded and continued, “Ms. Guo, everyone knows you’re a renowned singer. Since you’re already on stage, would you like to sing a duet with Lin Feng?”
“I believe the audience would love to see that, wouldn’t you?” Yang Fan turned the mic toward the crowd.
“Yes!”
“Sing one!”
“Ms. Guo, please sing!”
...
The audience responded enthusiastically to Yang Fan’s suggestion.
“A duet would be no problem,” Guo Shuzhen replied with a smile and a nod.
“Great. So, Ms. Guo, which song would you like to sing?” Yang Fan asked.
“The Great Grasslands!”
“The Milky Way!”
“Beautiful Scenery!”
The audience shouted out Guo Shuzhen’s signature songs.
“By the way, Lin Feng, Ms. Guo’s repertoire is all folk songs. Are you up for that?” Yang Fan turned to Lin Feng.
But before Lin Feng could answer, Guo Shuzhen interjected, “Since I rarely get to appear on variety shows, I won’t sing folk songs tonight. I’ll perform a pop song for everyone.”
“That’s wonderful! I bet nobody has heard Ms. Guo sing pop before,” Yang Fan said in delight.
The audience was visibly excited.
“So, which song will it be, Ms. Guo?” Yang Fan asked.

Guo Shuzhen smiled gently and replied unhurriedly, “Let’s sing ‘The Ends of the Earth.’ It’s a personal favorite of mine.”
“What?”
“‘The Ends of the Earth’?”
“Wow…”
As soon as Guo Shuzhen named the song, the venue burst into excitement.
Yang Fan was practically electrified with enthusiasm!
He had been wondering how to orchestrate a direct conversation between Guo Shuzhen and Qin Ruolin, but unexpectedly, Guo Shuzhen had walked right into it herself.
The song she chose, “The Ends of the Earth,” was written by Qin Ruolin!
At the mentor’s table.
The male mentors all turned their gaze toward Qin Ruolin.
The “mother-in-law” was about to sing the “daughter-in-law’s” song—a spectacle was coming...
At this moment, Qin Ruolin covered her face with both hands, a mix of anxiety and embarrassment. In fact, when the host announced that Guo Shuzhen would be coming on stage, Qin Ruolin grew extremely nervous, silently praying the “fire” wouldn’t spread to her. But what was meant to happen came nonetheless...
“Mom, why don’t we pick another song? I don’t know this one!”
Seeing the situation heading straight for disaster, Lin Feng improvised a reason.
His words were met with a chorus of boos from the audience, followed by thunderous cheers.
“That’s no problem,” Guo Shuzhen replied, her face kind and smiling. She looked toward Qin Ruolin at the mentor’s table and asked, “Ruolin, ‘The Ends of the Earth’ is your song. How about we sing it together?”
“Me…?” Qin Ruolin’s cheeks flushed. If not for her connection to Lin Feng, she would have readily agreed. Yet now, for reasons she couldn’t explain, seeing Guo Shuzhen made her inexplicably nervous.
“Ohhh…”
“Duet!”
“Duet!”
“Duet!”
The audience, eager for drama, began chanting in unison.
...