132 Making History?

As the final episode of "The Voice of America" approached, TC Entertainment once again launched a massive advertising blitz. The reputation of the show had already piqued the interest of audiences across the United States and even in other countries where ABC could be received. With the relentless promotion from TC Entertainment, anticipation for the ratings of this finale reached a fever pitch.

Given that it was the championship round, it was decided after much deliberation that the finale would be broadcast live to prevent any potential leaks from the studio audience. Li Daniu, never one for modesty, also took to his Facebook page to promote the show, choosing, as always, to march to the beat of his own drum.

"I've been learning how to write songs lately, and it feels pretty easy, so I've written a few. I wonder if the winner tonight would be willing to perform one of my songs live on stage."

Following his previous gambling incident, Li Daniu’s follower count had swelled to a staggering 52 million. While many were fans from China, if even a fraction of these followers turned on their televisions, the ratings for this episode were sure to shatter records. Not to mention the ripple effect of shares across their respective social circles.

While his post garnered plenty of shares and likes, the comment section—for reasons unknown—quickly veered off into completely unrelated territory.

"You should stick to writing books; filming a movie was one thing—and I admit that horror flick really scared me—but what’s this about you writing songs now?"

"I’m suddenly a lot less excited about this show, considering he said he just started learning to write songs and has already churned out several in such a short time."

"I bet if the winner agrees to sing his song, it’s only because he’s the boss of TC Entertainment and they’re being forced into it."

"I feel like once His Majesty finishes writing songs, he’ll run off to be an actor, then a singer, and by the time he’s done with that, he’ll have forgotten he’s even a King."

"Your Majesty, when will your airport be finished? I’d love to fly into your private airport at least once."

"I saw the renderings leaked online; it looks even more beautiful than the Jewel Changi Airport in Singapore."

"He can write books, make movies, and write songs—such a talented guy must be gay."

"Agreed. He never has any scandals, and he held a talent show where the contestants were mostly middle-aged women."

...

"Good grief," Li Daniu muttered. "I just wanted to promote my show and use the ratings to boost my new songs and my artists. How did the thread get so derailed?" And besides, who said talented people were all gay? His sexual orientation was perfectly normal, thank you very much!

With no time to waste bickering with netizens, Li Daniu arrived early at the live broadcast venue. Naturally, the finale wouldn't be held in a standard studio—the scale was simply too small. TC Entertainment had partnered with ABC to rent out Madison Square Garden.

This arena had hosted countless historic American sporting events, from basketball and boxing to ice hockey, and was a mandatory stop for world-class superstars on tour. By choosing this concert-level venue for the finale, "The Voice of America" was making history for talent shows.

Never before had anyone imagined taking a talent show to such a grand scale. Tickets for the nearly 20,000 seats sold out within three hours. While the ticket revenue was pocket change to Li Daniu, to other television producers, it was mind-boggling: who knew a TV show could generate revenue from ticket sales in addition to advertising?

Li Daniu wanted to scoff. If they knew he planned to produce a hit single for every artist he signed and then take them on a nationwide concert tour, their jaws would probably hit the floor.

When Li Daniu arrived at Madison Square Garden in New York, the venue was already set up, and the staff, mentors, and contestants were conducting their final dress rehearsals. Except for the voting segment, the entire flow was identical to the live show. Seeing Li Daniu arrive, many staff members greeted him as "Boss," which satisfied his vanity to a certain extent.

"Boss, when are you going to hand over the songs you wrote? Don't you think someone else should look them over first?" a signed host from TC Entertainment asked, approaching him with a cameraman in tow.

"It’s a surprise, so of course I can't show you ahead of time," Li Daniu replied, glancing at the camera. "Is he recording?"

The host nodded. "Yes, filming behind-the-scenes footage for the web replay. Boss, aren't you worried the songs might be terrible?"

"Don't be ridiculous. My work is always a classic," Li Daniu said, striking a smug pose for the lens.

"Alright, our boss seems a bit narcissistic," the host said to the camera. "But you can't deny that everything he's produced so far—from his two books to his movie—has achieved incredible success. The book *Harry Potter* even caused a newspaper staff to streak down the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Ha-ha..."

After chatting for a while, the host left with the cameraman once they had enough material. Li Daniu headed to the mentors' seats to watch the contestants perform.

"Boss, did you bring the songs?" one of the mentors asked. Since they were employed by Li Daniu's TC Entertainment, they addressed him as such.

"Of course."

"But these contestants have such different styles—rock singers, high-note specialists, and ballad singers. Are you sure the songs you wrote are suitable for all of them?"

"Don't worry, I've written songs covering all those styles," Li Daniu replied confidently. His ability to "plagiarize" songs was improving rapidly as his proficiency in composition and arrangement grew.

The four mentors exchanged glances, their eyes betraying their skepticism. "You're the boss, you call the shots."

At 8:00 PM, the audience had taken their seats, and the grand finale of the first season of "The Voice of America" officially began. Li Daniu was backstage with the ABC staff, watching the real-time ratings.

"13.6. To have such high ratings right at the start is excellent," an ABC technician said excitedly. "Based on the total viewership, there are about 37 million people watching right now."

Li Daniu nodded. It was a good result. He focused his attention on the monitor to watch the show. With only four contestants left, the finale needed filler, so popular contestants who had been eliminated earlier were brought back to perform. It had to be admitted that even those who had been cut possessed remarkable vocal talent.

According to the ABC staff, these eliminated contestants were no less skilled than some established pop stars. "What a pity. If TC Entertainment could just get them a few hit songs and an album, they could all be stars."

A pity? Not at all. Only Li Daniu knew that he had the ability to craft high-quality records for every single contestant on the show.

Once the eliminated contestants finished their performances, the show entered the final PK stage.

"Ratings are at 15.3. We’ve broken every record for a talent show," the backstage staff cheered. Whether they were from TC Entertainment or ABC, everyone stood to benefit from the show's success.

The final duel between contestants relied on votes from media personnel and musicians on-site, but primarily on the votes of the audience at home. During the final showdown between the top two, the ABC staff gasped.

"17.3! The ratings have hit 17.3!"

Before the others could even cheer, the staff member responsible for tabulating the votes shouted, "The vote count has reached 12 million!"

Li Daniu heard the numbers and felt satisfied, but he wasn't particularly surprised, as he didn't fully grasp the magnitude of these figures. However, to the staff in the television industry, these numbers were legendary.

"Boss, we've made history!" Quinn, the general manager of TC Entertainment, rushed over and hugged Li Daniu.

*Damn it,* Li Daniu thought, *is this guy trying to take advantage of me?*

Li Daniu pushed the overly excited Quinn away, had his makeup touched up, and prepared to take the stage. Since the champion was about to be crowned, it was time for him to go out and present his songs.