Chapter 27: Wang Haoran's Solo Performance
With everyone's eyes on him, Wang Haoran made his way to the podium and picked up the microphone.
The cheers and shouts from the audience died down just in time as his deep, magnetic voice, amplified by the multimedia speakers, began to resonate throughout the room:
"Dreams need to endure storms, disappointment, and confusion, but as long as we keep moving forward, we can break through the fog and let the sun's rays pierce through the clouds, shining with intense brilliance. This song, 'Dream It Possible,' is dedicated to myself, to everyone here with dreams, and, of course, to our beautiful English teacher."
"Ooooooh!"
His short opening speech immediately ignited the students' passion, elevating the room's atmosphere to its peak.
The audience was almost entirely composed of high school seniors, all around 18 years old, who were working hard for their college entrance exams. At that age, who didn't have dreams?
Even Song Zhenyu, the teacher, couldn't help but recall her own high school days, feeling a surge of excitement.
However, Song Zhenyu was also worried that Wang Haoran might mess up the song. There was a Chinese version of this song called "My Dream," but the English version was much more challenging to sing. Was Wang Haoran trying too hard to impress his English teacher?
As the cheers lingered for a moment, the prelude of the song slowly began to play, and the students gradually quieted down.
Wang Haoran started to sing:
"I will run, I will climb, I will soar."
His voice had a certain ethereal quality of youth mixed with a man's magnetic resonance—a blend that should have been contradictory but was instead seamlessly integrated, exuding an indescribable charm.
With just one line, he captured the hearts of everyone present.
This was what people referred to as "love at first listen."
Song Zhenyu's worries completely vanished as soon as the first line ended.
"I'm undefeated. Jumping out of my skin, pull the chord."
"Yeah, I believe it."
"The past is everything we were, don't make us who we are."
...
The melody was low and subdued, without any grand peaks, and even had a hint of melancholy. It reflected the loneliness and solitude, as well as the challenges, one faces on the journey to pursue their dreams.
As Wang Haoran continued to sing, the melody gradually shifted from its somber tone:
"When your dreams come alive, you're unstoppable."
"Take a shot, chase the sun, find the beautiful."
"We will glow in the dark, turning dust to gold."
...
His soaring voice seemed to penetrate everyone's hearts and souls, giving them the courage to face the obstacles on their path to realizing their dreams.
The song originally had a unique sense of encouragement through its melody and lyrics, but Wang Haoran's rendition magnified that feeling several times over.
Everyone present, including Song Zhenyu, was deeply moved by Wang Haoran's performance.
Most of the students even took out their phones to record this awe-inspiring moment.
Xu Muyan really regretted not bringing her phone to school at that moment.
She turned to urge Wen Jing beside her to record the video, but before she could say anything, she swallowed her words back. Wen Jing was already recording.
To be precise, Wen Jing was actually the first to start recording. The boy singing was her secret boyfriend and idol! She was more eager than any other girl in the room!
...
"When your dreams come alive, you're unstoppable."
"Take a shot, chase the sun, find the beautiful."
"We will glow in the dark, turning dust to gold."
"And we'll dream it possible."
As Wang Haoran sang the last line, the fifty or so students in the classroom erupted into a thunderous applause and cheers.
Of course, not everyone was entirely thrilled—like Chu Bai.
"He can sing too?!" Chu Bai felt a pang of jealousy. This guy was handsome, smart, came from a good family, and could sing well. It seemed like life was just too unfair!
"Wang Haoran, you've really been hiding your talents. I've been your homeroom teacher for over two years, and it's only now, just before graduation, that I find out there's a student in our class who can sing this well," Song Zhenyu said, feeling both surprised and delighted, with a hint of exasperation.
She complained, "We've had several campus singing contests before, but no one from our class signed up. Why didn't you join back then?"
Before Wang Haoran could respond, his number one fan, Wen Jing, eagerly exclaimed, "Campus singing contests? Please, participating in those would just bring down Wang Haoran's status!"
Song Zhenyu nodded in agreement. Back when she watched those contests, she thought the students did a decent job, but compared to Wang Haoran's singing, they were far from impressive. The difference was like that between bronze and diamond ranks. If you were a diamond, would you bother competing with a bunch of bronzes?
"Though that's true, Wang Haoran, you were still out of line. You need to be punished—by singing another song!" Song Zhenyu declared.
"One more song!"
"One more song!"
The class erupted in agreement.
Wang Haoran hadn't had enough singing yet, so he was more than happy to oblige.
"Then I'll sing 'Loving You,'" Wang Haoran said.
"Oooooh!"
"Aaaah!"
The room filled with excited exclamations again.
This was a love song—a confession of love—bound to stir imaginations.
Wang Haoran chose this song with a clear intention in mind.
Soon, the accompaniment began to play.
Wang Haoran held the microphone and stepped down from the podium, pacing around the classroom before stopping in front of Song Zhenyu.
Song Zhenyu froze for a moment.
"Ms. Song, I need to get into the mood for this song, so I'll be singing it to you," Wang Haoran explained with a smile.
Suddenly, the prelude ended.
Wang Haoran gazed intently at Song Zhenyu, not blinking, and began to sing with deep emotion:
"In the land of happiness and love"
"You are my only one"
"The only one I love is you"
"The one I truly love is you"
As these lines fell, Song Zhenyu felt so nervous that she curled her toes in her shoes.
His impeccable singing, combined with his stunningly handsome face, made him almost impossible to resist.
"Only after losing something do you learn to cherish it"
"But I cherish you"
"The more it hurts"
"The deeper the love"
...
Song Zhenyu gradually lost herself in the moment, letting go of their roles as teacher and student. She imagined herself as an ordinary girl, and in front of her was just a boy singing a love song to her.
Meanwhile, Wang Haoran received two notifications from the system:
[Ding! Female protagonist Song Zhenyu's affection for the host has increased by 10 points. The current affection level is 40. (Very close)]
[Ding! The original plot has been affected. The host has earned 200 Villain Points.]