Chapter 283: The Strongest Rookie in History (Part 5) (Monthly Votes Requested)
As “Lin Tian” was announced for the third time by the host,
the audience’s reaction couldn’t simply be called “intense.”
It was a complete explosion!
“(Three awards, all three awards went to Lin Tian!)”
“(O!M!G! My God, this is insane!)”
“(I dare say, this is the strongest rookie in the history of the Sato Sakura International Piano Competition!)”
“(Wow!! 18-year-old Lin Tian!!)”
“.”
The order in the audience was now unmaintainable.
A large number of spectators from different countries stood up, cheering loudly!
Who doesn’t enjoy watching a champion rise to power?!
“(Best Rookie, Most Popular, Best Classical Music…)”
Lloyd read out these awards like a menu, with legs trembling, nearly losing his balance.
Romanov quickly steadied him.
Lloyd lifted his head and cried out:
“(I’ve participated in six competitions, SIX! And I’ve never won a single award!)”
Over the years, the three awards had only been given to the top three contestants.
And now, Lin Tian had snatched away two of them!
This was no longer unprecedented; it was highly unlikely anyone would achieve such a feat again!
Thinking this over, Williams stroked his beard and pondered deeply:
“(It’s no surprise the Best Rookie went to Teacher Lin Tian. The Popularity Award is likely due to the overwhelming buzz from his two new pieces. The judges had no choice but to award it to him. As for the Classical Music Award, there were only three performers playing classical pieces in the finals, including Lin Tian, and his Nocturne was unmatched!)”
“(Therefore, it’s only fair that Teacher Lin Tian received these three awards!)”
Everyone understood the “fairness” of it.
But the issue was this was the Sato Sakura International Piano Competition, where politics and performance greatly outweighed the competitive aspect.
Yet, they still chose to award Lin Tian!
That was the real reason the crowd felt incredibly shocked and excited.
“It’s time to go on stage.”
He Zhi Chen reminded.
“OK.”
Lin Tian replied.
Under the gaze of the attending pianists, Lin Tian and Burke strode down the corridor to the stage.
As the lights in front of him brightly illuminated, Lin Tian stepped onto the stage.
Before him was a tsunami of cheers from the audience,
the host handed the three trophies to Lin Tian in sequence.
The Best Rookie trophy was a miniature of Sato Sakura’s face.
The Popularity Award trophy was shaped like the Tokyo International Music Hall.
The Best Classical Music trophy was a transparent crystal thumb.
All three trophies were engraved with the date of the competition and Lin Tian’s name.
Lin Tian hugged the three trophies, his hands almost unable to handle them.
At this point, it was impossible for Lin Tian to not feel a little smug.
This time, the awards were quite the exhilarating boost!
From now on, who could still say his resume was blank?
“Teacher Lin Tian, look over here!”
From the front row, a bunch of cameras pointed at Lin Tian while several official photographers waved at him endlessly.
However, at that moment, a young woman suddenly leaped out, whipping out her phone, also aiming at Lin Tian,
“Lin Tian, cheese—”
Lin Tian didn’t hesitate and faced Gan Yan Yu’s camera, flashing a peace sign.
Afterward, during his acceptance speech,
this 18-year-old lad, facing countless lenses, didn’t seem shy or bashful at all.
He pulled out the speech He Zhi Chen had taught him earlier and delivered a very official mix of English and Japanese.
The audience was astonished by this 18-year-old musical genius being able to fluently handle two languages!
In the end, Lin Tian switched to Chinese.
“Here, I want to thank my partner—cellist Teacher Gan Yan Yu.”
“Actually, this is my first time soloing on such a stage. I’m thrilled to have completed this competition successfully and found the meaning of performance, understanding what music really is, all thanks to Teacher Gan Yan Yu!”
As Lin Tian’s words fell,
the director immediately cut to Gan Yan Yu in the audience.
Upon seeing there was indeed such a young and beautiful cellist behind the 18-year-old genius from Tianchao, the audience was even more astonished.
“.”
Lin Tian decided to skip the mushy details.
It was just a performance contest; some things were better saved for the final competition.
“Anyway, thank you all!”
Lin Tian bowed.
“.”
Amidst the applause,
in the rest room, whether it was Nishikawa Yuha with a pleased expression or Yao Han, who had vanished long ago, along with Williams, Lloyd, Romanov, and the other pianists,
their thoughts and reactions were no longer important.
The 2025 Sato Sakura International Piano Competition had finally drawn to a close.
On the return flight,
“Strongest Rookie in History—Tianchao’s genius pianist Lin Tian, unprecedentedly winning three trophies, facing legendary pianist Nishikawa Yuha.”
He Zhi Chen held a music magazine, reading its contents with notable interest.
“Teacher Lin Tian, now all the music media in Tokyo are dominated by you, overshadowing champion Nishikawa Yuha!”
“Where did you get this magazine?”
Lin Tian, sitting in the neighboring seat, stood up to grab the magazine from He Zhi Chen’s hands.
The cover, filled with Japanese text, featured a photo of Nishikawa Yuha, larger than his own.
“Got it just before leaving.”
He Zhi Chen replied,
“I heard that the reason you snagged three trophies this time is partly due to the buzz you generated on YouTube during the competition, and partly because some seasoned musicians on the judging panel admired you and wanted to support you, which may have caused some disagreements among the judges—leading to the rumors of disputes.”
“Regardless, this was all achieved by Teacher Lin Tian’s talent!”
“Ooh~ Teacher Lin Tian is so impressive.”
Hearing this, Wei Xiao Xiao leaned over from behind, peering at the magazine in Lin Tian’s hands.
However, she couldn’t read Japanese and only recognized Lin Tian’s photo on the cover.
“Not gonna lie, you look pretty handsome on that magazine cover, Teacher Lin Tian.”
Wei Xiao Xiao exclaimed,
“I’ve said it before, you’ve got the makings of a male model.”
Lin Tian had long since tired of the constant questions about why he didn’t pursue modeling.
Does looking good automatically mean you should make a living off your looks?
At that moment, however, He Zhi Chen had seemingly triggered a keyword and turned to Lin Tian:
“By the way, Teacher Lin Tian, Teacher Gan Yan Yu.”
“Our studio recently landed you two an endorsement deal with a major brand, and we need to sh**t an advertisement.”
“Just wanted to ask… do you have any acting experience?”
(End of this chapter)
