Chapter 68

A few days ago, Tiffany still didn't know about the "friend in America" that Jessica kept mentioning. She had assumed that Jessica's boyfriend was Li Jingming. After hearing that the person had taken a walk with Kim Taeyeon by the Han River and personally escorted her back to the dormitory, Tiffany went to tell Jessica. At the time, Tiffany did this to ease the tension between Jessica and Kim Taeyeon, her intention being: "Sica, look, your boyfriend has already talked to her, shouldn't you also go talk to Kim Taeyeon?"

As expected, the next events unfolded as Tiffany had anticipated, but it was actually Kim Taeyeon who took the initiative. Jessica's personality was such that she would never take the initiative to talk to someone, and Tiffany had been wrong from the start. However, the final result was perfect.

"How about 'Injeon'?" After thinking for a while, Kim Taeyeon decided. "Injeon" is a famous song by Lee Sun-hee and Lee Seung-chul. The one Kim Taeyeon chose is the OST of the drama "The King's Man." After the movie's success, Lee Sun-hee's song also gained immense popularity in Korea, and it is very suitable for a female voice.

Before singing, singers always warm up their voices. Singing without warming up is very tiring, as the vocal cords are hard to close, and one can only force the air through, requiring more effort to pronounce and sustain notes. In KTV, some people's voices get louder and the pitch higher, leading to a broken sound, which is due to not warming up.

After warming up, Kim Taeyeon held the microphone in a very masculine pose, gathering strength and emotion. Others might not notice, but Jessica immediately recognized that the small girl was imitating Jung Chul-woon. Jung Chul-woon's physique and Kim Taeyeon's were completely opposite, and both Sica and she were Jung Chul-woon's students, making the imitation particularly amusing.

"Make a promise, after this moment completely passes, until the day we can meet again." Kim Taeyeon's first line was very gentle, her powerful voice contrasting sharply with her petite appearance, exuding a sense of strength amidst the passion. However, Lee Sun-hee's voice emphasized extreme femininity. To sing this song well, Kim Taeyeon had to slightly suppress her voice. A woman's voice is inherently different from a man's, and as a young girl, Kim Taeyeon's soft line impressed Li Jingming, who felt a sense of "that's the flavor" in surprise. This was not a song that a young girl could easily handle, but Kim Taeyeon did a good job.

Seeing Li Jingming's enjoyment, someone in the room was not pleased. Jessica lowered her head, her chin wrinkled, her round face puffed up, and her lower lip pouted, a look of extreme disdain. That small voice was natural, Jessica thought resentfully. If it came to effort, her seven-year career as a trainee was the best proof. She was not inferior to anyone, but her voice was naturally soft and delicate, and even straining her voice did not produce much volume.

A song's duration is not long, only a few minutes, but it takes years of practice to perform those few minutes well. On stage, it is always just those few minutes. After Kim Taeyeon finished her song, Li Jingming nodded and smiled, saying, "Not bad."

"Not bad?" Kim Taeyeon was very confident in her singing. She had never come second in singing since she was young. Even when she sang for Jung Chul-woon, she always received praise. Why did it become "not bad" with Li Jingming?

"Is this your own voice?" Li Jingming found Kim Taeyeon's不服气 (unwilling to admit defeat) expression amusing. "True singers disdain imitation. Everyone loves their own voice and does not want it to be colored by someone else's." Kim Taeyeon's song was perfect in technique but lacked a bit in emotion, and it lost the color of her own voice.

"Are you some big judge, criticizing others?" Jessica, who had been feeling annoyed, now stood up for Kim Taeyeon. She was not pleased with Li Jingming's performance, and it had nothing to do with Kim Taeyeon. She gave Li Jingming a glare and said to Tiffany, who had chosen the song, "I want to sing 'Injeon' too."

Tiffany looked at Jessica in surprise, unsure whether she was competing with Li Jingming or Kim Taeyeon. Jessica appeared to have a queenly demeanor but was actually very shy. They usually went out to sing, and Jessica always went along, but she would just sit there and never take the initiative to sing, making the girls wonder if she only went to rest on the sofa. Today, this "most popular customer in the practice room" was actually taking the initiative to sing. Jessica usually only consumed without singing, which the practice room owner appreciated.

When Jessica sang, she habitually lifted her chin, like a proud swan, which, combined with her beautiful neck, was very attractive to men. A woman's neck can be more alluring to men than certain "other parts." Li Jingming felt that this posture alone was more stunning than Kim Taeyeon's first line. If others knew this thought, they might exclaim, "Men, oh men."

Jessica's voice was even more "feminine" than Lee Sun-hee's. This voice had captivated Li Jingming at their first meeting, leading him to run downstairs and meet this girl, setting off a series of events. The voice was like cool water, almost frozen, flowing from the ears to the heart. Li Jingming closed his eyes and carefully listened to every detail. Even with the best equipment in the practice room, it was far from the professional equipment in a recording studio. Although the effect was not perfect, the three of them were completely engrossed, and Jessica sang very well.

When Jessica finished her song, the three were shocked. Tiffany was the first to clap, "Wow, great." Kim Taeyeon blinked, realizing that Jessica's version was even better than hers. She was not blindly confident; Jessica's version was almost as good in technique but superior in emotional expression and voice integration. Practice and performance are two different things. Jessica sang purely based on her mood, singing half-heartedly when she was in a bad mood and performing well when she was in a good mood. Now, she was competing with Li Jingming, so she put in extra effort. "Injeon" is a song about forbidden love, the male protagonist's sorrowful sighs and longing for love. Homosexual love is not accepted, and being taken by the king adds to the tragedy.

Jessica had just confessed, though not rejected but misunderstood by Li Jingming, leaving her with a sense of grievance. Moreover, she found Li Jingming increasingly annoying, making her performance of "Injeon" even more fitting. This was also why she could express the required emotional depth so well. Kim Taeyeon did not know the reason, assuming Jessica had always been this good at emotional expression. After joining S.M. Entertainment's "Super Girl Project," Kim Taeyeon had heard the other girls talk about how Jessica often slacked off in dance and singing. She thought it was just gossip, but it turned out to be true. Jessica even slacked off in Jung Chul-woon's class, which amazed Kim Taeyeon. Jessica's usual performance in singing lessons was indeed half-hearted compared to now.

Jessica was very satisfied with her superlative performance today, proudly looking at Li Jingming and challenging him with a light hum.

"Not bad." Li Jingming still said the same thing, which not only displeased Jessica but also made Kim Taeyeon and Tiffany ready to argue.

"Can you sing it a second time, or even a third?" Li Jingming ignored the three girls' gazes. "You use your throat voice, don't you find it uncomfortable?" Singers with poor breath control might manage one song but would struggle in a concert, and their performance would not be as free and easy as those with good breath control. JYP Entertainment's CEO, Park Jin-young, once said, "Half voice, half air."

"None of your business." Jessica knew her problem, and Jung Chul-woon had pointed it out many times, but she had already formed a habit. Even when she paid special attention, she would unconsciously use her throat voice.

"Do you not know how important breath control is? Do you not want to perform in concerts and only want to be a one-hit wonder?" A one-hit wonder is someone who performs at various venues, with a full schedule but only for commercial performances, unable to hold a concert.

Jessica pouted, "Then you come and show us, Mr. Big Judge."

"Fine, I'll sing 'Injeon' too." Li Jingming stood up from the sofa. "The voice is not the most important, nor is the technique." This was specifically said to Jessica and Kim Taeyeon.

During the prelude, Li Jingming's head was raised even higher than Jessica's. He was not being proud but listening to the world's rhythm. The days Li Jingming spent on Wudang Mountain were the most instructive, where he learned more than at Harvard. Everything in the world has a rhythm, and by aligning with it, one can do anything, including singing. Li Jingming's heart had already left the small room, Seoul, and the era, entering the world of the song.

"Make a promise, after this moment completely passes, until the day we can meet again." The same line, but with even more impact than Kim Taeyeon's. Kim Taeyeon's first line of each song was the most captivating, and many people decide whether to continue listening after just the prelude. Kim Taeyeon had a significant advantage, but Li Jingming's first line was like the first ink dot on a white silk, black and white distinct, and the entire picture unfolded from that point.