This is My Worst Song

The hall was dead silent.

Under the glare of the brilliant lights, Deng Hao's body trembled slightly. He felt his face burning, hot and stinging.

He didn't know what his expression looked like right now, but it must have been extremely ugly.

Everyone in the hall turned their gaze towards Deng Hao and Bai Yanyun following Su Rui's final words, their expressions very strange. There was amusement, sighs, and some who enjoyed watching the drama even took out their phones to record.

"Rich Kid Attends Wen Feng Gala, Tries to Act Cool But Gets Slapped!"

He was sure that by tomorrow morning, this would be a trending headline in the entertainment news...

Bai Yanyun's face was pale.

She looked at Su Rui on the piano stage, then turned to glance at Li Ruobing, who was composed and calmly sipping her red wine. She felt a surge of frustration rush from her chest to her head. Her body swayed, bumping into a display table beside her. She mumbled for a long time but couldn't utter a single word in the end.

"How boring... High Mountains and Flowing Water, a true friend is hard to find," Su Rui shook his head and sighed, "I originally thought I had met an opponent who could match me, but I didn't expect... Heh, I was overthinking it."

As soon as these words were spoken, it was like a sharp bone-scraping knife, grinding Deng Hao and Bai Yanyun's faces over and over again.

Under the bright lights of the hall, their faces were so dark they looked like they could drip water.

Hu Yuhua's eyes widened in surprise. Deng Hao's performance earlier had already exceeded his expectations. He had thought that the rivalry between Bai Yanyun and Li Ruobing tonight would end with the former's victory... He didn't expect a Cheng Yaojin to appear halfway through. This Su Rui, with his perfect and invincible presence, completely crushed Deng Hao. Even someone who wasn't proficient in music could hear the vast difference between their melodies.

If Deng Hao's performance could be called exquisite glass art, then Su Rui's piano playing was a timeless and unparalleled blue and white porcelain!

Clap!

Su Rui snapped his fingers, a smile on his face. "Mr. Deng, do you think it's still necessary to ask someone to judge the outcome of our competition?"

"..." A vein throbbed on Deng Hao's forehead, his expression constantly changing.

For the two pieces just played, anyone who wasn't deaf could easily distinguish who was better. Trying to confuse the audience now was completely useless.

"You lost. Do you accept this result?" Su Rui asked again.

"Heh heh..." Unexpectedly, Deng Hao chuckled twice, lightly clapping his hands and smiling, "Mr. Su played 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' well, but a musical master doesn't become famous just by one brilliant piece! Because there are many opportunistic people in this world who, in order to become famous, practice the same piece day after day, year after year, from the day they start learning piano, just to perform it once on a certain occasion and amaze everyone! To outsiders, it naturally sounds much more beautiful than someone who learns many famous pieces, heh heh... Mr. Su, you wouldn't happen to be like that, would you?"

As soon as these words were spoken, there was an uproar in the hall, which then turned into a deathly silence. No one spoke again.

Su Rui feigned surprise, then understood Deng Hao's meaning. He slowly picked up a glass of champagne from beside the piano and took a sip, leaning against the grand piano with a drunken gaze, smiling at Deng Hao.

Deng Hao stood firm, returning the smile.

He was gambling, gambling that Su Rui was just as he said, relying on practicing one piece to extreme proficiency to amaze the world!

Otherwise, he couldn't explain how Su Rui, at an age similar to his, possessed such superb skill.

Hu Yuhua's brows furrowed.

"I've seen quite a few people who seek fame by dishonest means over the years. Having been in the music world for so long, some people will use any means to become famous. This... is not uncommon." Deng Hao smiled faintly, a complex emotion flickering in his eyes filled with wisdom. "I lost today, and I admit it! But the reason you won against me doesn't mean your skill is superb; it's because you were opportunistic!"

Su Rui was expressionless.

He stared intently at Deng Hao's face, looking at his serious demeanor, and felt like laughing a little.

But the people in the hall couldn't laugh. The air had become extremely oppressive.

Deng Hao was accusing, and Su Rui wasn't speaking.

Could this be true?

The young women's eyes, as they looked at Su Rui now, were no longer as infatuated as before. They had become a little strange, with a hint of scrutiny and doubt.

"I once studied under Master Merope, and he told me that to become a top master, one cannot be limited to the quality of a single piece. One must set their sights on famous pieces from around the world." Seeing Su Rui's appearance, Deng Hao felt even more confident. A smile played on his lips. "Mr. Su, I lost tonight. In terms of the professionalism of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream', I am indeed far behind you!"

With that, Deng Hao bowed gracefully towards Su Rui and smiled, "Congratulations, Mr. Su, your goal has been achieved. You are finally famous tonight."

Silence.

The hall became incredibly quiet because of Deng Hao's words. You could hear a pin drop.

People's minds began to stir. They looked at Su Rui and Deng Hao in the center, starting to whisper. The look in their eyes towards Su Rui was no longer one of such admiration and reverence.

The human heart is easily changed.

Sometimes, just a few words can guide its direction.

"Yan Yun, let's go!" Deng Hao said softly in the end, taking Bai Yanyun's hand and casting an indifferent glance around the crowd. "I've seen the young talents of Tongzhou City tonight. It's been an eye-opener! Heh heh."

Deng Hao and Bai Yanyun walked together towards the exit of the hall.

The crowd remained silent, just looking at Su Rui, thinking, Aren't you going to explain a few words?

Clap! Clap! Clap!

Just then, someone in the hall suddenly started clapping!

Su Rui, who had been leaning against the piano and remained silent, stood up tall. He smiled as he looked at Deng Hao and Bai Yanyun, who were about to walk out the door, and said with a drunken smile, "I've also had an eye-opener today. I really didn't expect there would be people in this world who, after getting slapped on the left cheek, would voluntarily offer their right cheek for me to slap again!"

The crowd erupted in an uproar.

Deng Hao spun around abruptly. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean is, since you don't want that face, I'll tear it off for you and stomp on it a few more times." Su Rui stepped forward, his eyes filled with amusement and disdain. He took two steps to stand in front of Li Ruobing, reached out, took the red wine glass from her hand, and drank it in one gulp. His eyes were bright and moist. "You just said there's a type of person in this world who practices only one piece their whole life to seek fame... But I'm different..."

The hall was dead silent, completely quiet. Only Su Rui's figure stood alone and proud in the center.

"'A Midsummer Night's Dream', in your opinion, is my highest level piece... But in my opinion..." Su Rui said, enunciating each word, "It is, so far, my worst piece!"

Li Ruobing's fingers tightened slightly.

"Pour me some wine," Su Rui said, turning and handing his empty glass to Li Ruobing, then walking back towards the piano.

He sat down.

All ten fingers rested on the keys.

Su Rui took a deep breath, not looking back. "Since you've lost face yourself, don't blame my slap for being too painful!"

Deng Hao's brow twitched wildly. Looking at Su Rui in this state, he had a strange feeling...

Like he had provoked someone he shouldn't have.