“That’s right! Did you think playing the piano is everything? If Janet doesn’t have the skills, then Sandfort City’s Music Association wouldn’t have recommended her to perform here!”
Needless to say, Emily’s fans refused to be outdone. They were livid. “The people at the Music Association must have given her this opportunity out of their respect for her identity as Rose! Does she think that she is a pianist?!”
“Yeah! If she wasn’t Rose, do you think Sandfort City’s Music Association would have given her this opportunity?!”
“That’s right! She came here to sabotage things just because she has nothing better to do!”
“If Janet can pass the preliminary rounds, then I will kneel and call her ‘master’!”
“If Janet can advance through the preliminary rounds, then I will kneel and call her ‘your majesty’!”
Megan and Brian sat among the audience, listening to the conversations around them and breaking out in a cold sweat. They were clearly worried about the girl on the stage.
“Honey, do you think Janet really knows how to play the piano?” Megan turned to look at Brian.
Brian shook his head. “If you don’t know, then there’s no way I’ll know.”
She gripped the hem of her skirt tightly, feeling incredibly nervous inside.
“Megan, your eldest daughter sure is bold. She even dares to play the piano in front of a worldwide audience!” One of their relatives watched the young girl on the stage and couldn’t help chuckling.
Megan was stunned for a moment. Then, she turned and laughed helplessly.
On the other hand, Janet lifted her eyebrows after listening to the conversations coming from below the stage. Her beautiful eyes were extremely evil. With one minute left before the start of her performance, she glanced at Hilbert with a meaningful look.
Hilbert was clenching his fists, feeling both nervous and expectant. He was nervous because he was worried that Janet’s scores might be higher than Emily’s. At the same time, he was expectant because he hoped to witness a stunning performance from Janet. Therefore, he was feeling extremely conflicted at the moment.
Meanwhile, Janet’s expression seemed to say: ‘I will definitely pass the preliminary round!’ The corners of her lips lifted slightly before she swiftly retracted her gaze.
All of a sudden, the host said, “Contestant Janet Jackson, you may begin now.”
“Okay,” Janet replied. Then, she walked over to the piano and slowly took her seat.
On the other side, many disinterestedly withdrew their attention from the stage after Janet took her seat.
“What should I do? Can I leave early? I don’t want my ears to be contaminated.”
“Yeah. I still have Emily and Roxy’s songs in my head. I don’t want my ears to be polluted by a monstrous piece.”
“This is boring. I might as well take a nap right now.”
“Good idea. I’ll take a nap too. Wake me up when Emily comes back on stage for an encore.”
“No way! If all of you fall asleep, who is going to wake me up during Emily’s performance?!”
“Don’t tell me you want me to stay awake and listen to Janet’s song? I’ll pay you; will you listen to it?”
“Sigh. What a waste of time. Why can’t they just let the contestants who passed the preliminary round come out for an encore?”
“That’s right! How annoying!”
Henry sat in the front row and yawned in boredom. Rubbing his eyes, he said, “Young Master Mason, please wake me up once Janet finishes her performance.”
After saying that, he closed his eyes. However, he suddenly felt a pain shooting up from his waist. The man sitting next to him was ferociously pinching the flesh around his waist. Thus, he immediately hissed in pain.
Henry turned his head to look at the man sitting next to him aggrievedly. “Young Master Mason, what are you doing?!” Just forget it if you don’t want to wake me up. Why did you have to use violence?! Besides, this isn’t an outrageous request! Why is he using violence?!
“Open your eyes wide to watch and perk up your ears to listen!” The man coldly growled through gritted teeth.
