CH 75

In the recording camp, one hundred trainees were seated on the ground. Behind them, nine numbered debut seats were already waiting for them. The first place was in the highest row, a separate crystal chair, high above, and was jokingly called the throne by the trainees.

There were two red armchairs on the left and right in the next row, which were the second and third seats. There were three positions in the next two rows. The nine starting positions were listed from top to bottom.

The following rows were the remaining sixty-one rows of seats.

Although this ranking would not be the final ranking, more than half of the nine-member debut group was basically a lock.

Everyone was nervous, especially the trainees who knew that their performance was poor. They felt like they were waiting for the final judgment of fate.

The four mentors and Zhao Jinjin all came on stage to express their recognition and praise for their public performance tonight, as well as to bring a new piece of good news.

“The trainee with the highest vote in each group tonight will have a personal solo stage at the next public performance.”

The whole audience was shocked and cheered.

But it was not over yet. Zhao Jinjin continued.

“During the second assessment, the three trainees who win the most votes from the solo stage will participate in the recording of the third issue of the fourth season of “Come to my House as a Guest.”

“Guest” was an indoor slow synthesis planned by Xu Zhaixing in recent years. After the great success of the whole network in the first quarter, the quality and popularity of the first quarter were also continued in the second quarter and the third quarter, maintaining a stable high viewing record. Now “Guest” has become an IP with a good reputation and great value in the domestic variety market.

“Guest” was now basically one of the must-have variety shows for Popular Idols in China. The publicity effect of singing songs, supporting newcomers, and promoting the film and TV dramas was also very good. In the first three seasons, it has successfully raised the popularity of five unknown new people.

And from the third season, “Guest” was not only in the entertainment video exclusive broadcast, but also signed with the provincial station as an idol variety.

There was a playful saying in the circle: Want to be popular? Then find a way to go on an issue of “Guest”.

Although they knew that Chenxing would give resources, no one thought it would come so soon, and as  a popular variety resource at that.

The entire recording studio was in an uproar.

Although “Junior Idol” was also popular now, the audience was limited after all. But the “Guest” was a super-national variety show suitable for all ages! Participating in the first episode of “Guest” has expanded its influence and popularity which couldn’t be replaced by how many stages they perform in “Junior Idol”.

There were ten groups in total, that was, there were ten solo stages, competing for the top three among these ten people.

Shi Ran and Zhou Mingyu shook Cen Feng’s arms, left to right.

“Brother Feng! Come on! You can win the top three!”

Without saying a word, Cen Feng peeled the two away.

After the excitement, the thought of the next thirty people would be eliminated soon wilted everyone down again.

Zhao Jinjin looked at everyone and cheered.

“No matter what the result is, every bit of effort you have made during your time at Junior Idol is recorded and will become your glory forever. The road ahead is long and wide, whether you continue to stay here, or leave Junior Idol to embark on another journey, I believe you will all shine in the future.”

The competition system was cruel, but that’s how life was.

The mentors began to announce the rankings in groups of ten, starting with the seventieth place.

The sadness of parting began to fill the recording studio.

Those who were named breathed a sigh of relief and received their ranking cards and sit back in their corresponding positions, while worrying about their buddies. The camera swept through one by one, and many of the trainees were already red-eyed.

Zhou Mingyu ranked thirty-fifth, safe for now. Shi Ran ranked thirteenth, a little short from the upper circle. After the announcement of the first sixty-one, the debut positions followed.

Shi Ran was more excited than when his name was called out for the debut position.

“Brother Feng is in the debut position! Brother Feng must be in the debut position!”

“Or maybe in the bottom seventy and eliminated.” Zhou Mingyu muttered nervously.

There were thirty-nine other players sitting on the floor in front of them. Nine debuts position and thirty pitiful trainees would go home, the difference between them was like sky and earth. Who could enter and who would be eliminated, they actually have a number in their mind.

Ying Xuze leaned over with his legs crossed and put his arm on Cen Feng’s shoulder.

“Brother Feng, guess what ranked are we?”

Cen Feng lifted his hand off, in a deadpan manner.

He Sian also sat down. He was so nervous that he was about to cry.

“Am I going to be eliminated? I’ll be eliminated, won’t I?”

Ying Xuze turned to comfort him.

“No, you performed so well in the group competition this time, you’ll most likely get into the top nine.”

He Sinian’s voice was very ethereal, and his singing was good, but his mentality was unstable, and easily became nervous. However, after this period of training, he was getting much better than the initial rating on the stage. In addition, he was quiet and good-looking, and this made garnered a large amount of mother powder and was very popular.

The mentor announced from the ninth.

“Ninth, he is a vocal. His voice is called siren by fans. It is very seductive indeed, but I call him Xiaonaitang[1] He is…”

Shi Ran Zhou Mingyu and the teammates of the group to which He Sian originally belonged had already started shouting his name.

The mentor smiled and said.

“Congratulations to He Sinian.”

The “Xiaonaitang” came onto the stage with tearful eyes. First, he thanked the mentors, thanked the fans, and finally thanked his Brother Feng. Xiang Wei, the leader of his original team shouted below.

“Why aren’t you thanking me?!”

He Sinian choked up and said.

“Thanks for the drinks the captain sends every day, even though they’re all from sponsors.”

Everyone cried and laughed.

The eighth place was Xiang Wei, He Sinian’s captain. Then the seventh and sixth were members of Chenxing’s k-night. The fifth place was the C position from another large company’s internal group.

Now there were only four people left, all of whom were expected to be the first.

Ying Xuze, Fu Xingyan, Bian Qi, Cen Feng.

Shi Ran and Zhou Mingyu in the back were gripping each other’s hands in nervousness and almost crushing them, after all, they did not expect Cen Feng would rank high.

Especially after the mentor said.

“These next four people are evenly split, and their respective votes are biting very close to each other.”

It took a while to whet everyone’s appetite before finally announcing.

“Fourth place, Bian Qi.”

A flash of loss flew across Bian Qi’s face but was quickly replaced by a smile.

Shi Ran’s hands clasped together for silent prayer.

“Anyway, it’s top one, top one, it’s top one!

After praying for a while, he heard the mentor say.

“Third place, congratulations to Cen Feng.”

The only F class trainee who was able to get the debut position and at top three at that.

More than half of the trainees at the bottom cheered for him genuinely. Meanwhile, after his name was called Cen Feng’s eyes drooped slightly as he walked onto the stage indifferently. Zhao Jin asked him.

“Was it an accident?”

He nodded, looked at the ranking card with the number of votes written on his hand, looked up at the camera for a long time, and whispered.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

He did not know how the fans had managed to save the day in the past few days and voted him from tenth place to third. But he knew that voting must not be an easy task.

He seemed to want to say something, but when the words came to his mouth, he swallowed them back, and only smiled faintly.

Next, Fu Xingyan got second, and Ying Xuze won the first assessment and sat on the crystal throne.

The first seventy were all announced and those whose names were not read were automatically eliminated. After tonight’s recording, they would sleep in the dormitory for the last night, and the program team would arrange for everyone to leave in the morning.

The night of parting was the saddest, the program team has taken enough material, and let everyone disperse. Anyone who wants to say goodbye, who wants to chat, wants to go to the canteen snatch a last free meal, were all free to do so.

Everyone decided to give a farewell party to the thirty members who left, and the venue that was chosen was the canteen. After Xu Zhaixing heard about it in the workroom, she arranged for her staff to drive outside and buy a lot of late-night snacks and fruit desserts and sent them over.

The farewell party lasted until late into the night. The remaining trainees would have to train tomorrow. They should not stay up too late.

After everyone had left, Xu Zhaixing arranged for someone to clean the canteen. After all, the canteen still needed to be used tomorrow. She saw Cen Feng on stage tonight and chatted with little sisters in the forum about it so enthusiastically that she couldn’t sleep even after all the energy she had used during the day so she decided to have a walk to ease her excited emotions.

It was already dark.

When she and Bai Feifei threw the beverage bottles into the recyclable dustbin outside the site, she saw a man sitting on the step around the corner.

Bai Feifei was startled and subconsciously exclaimed. The man turned his head and whispered.

“Sorry, did I scare you?”

Xu Zhaixing stepped out of the shadows

“Brother? Why are you here?”

Seeing her, Cen Feng was stunned but with his still indifferent expression before smiling.

“To get some fresh air, why haven’t you slept yet?”

Xu Zhaixing made a sign of leaving towards Bai Feifei and trotted to Cen Feng.

“I was cleaning the canteen with them.”

As she get closer, she saw the moonlight spilled all over the steps through the treetops and fell on his eyebrows and eyes, illuminating his cold indifferent expression. Xu Zhaixing sat down on the steps next to him and looked at the sky with her jaw in her hands.

“The moon is so beautiful tonight. Brother, are you here to enjoy the moon?”

Cen Feng also sat back.

He didn’t notice the moon at first but when she said this, he looked up and found that the moon was really beautiful. So he gave a low “um”.

Neither of them spoke again. They looked at the moon quietly, the wind blowing gently as if to slow the night.

Not knowing how long had passed, Xu Zhaixing inclined her head to look at the side of his face and asked softly.

“Brother, if I ask you if there is something you are unhappy about, will you tell me?”

His eyelashes fluttered for a moment before he said.

“I’m not unhappy about anything.”

She lowered her eyes, a little lost, but not surprised by the answer. He has always been such a person; she should not have asked too many questions.

But at the next moment, she heard him whisper.

“I just…”

Xu Zhaixing waited quietly.

Cen Feng took his eyes back from the moon and looked at the hazy color in the distance, his voice slightly raspy.

“I don’t know how to repay them.”

He paused for a long time before whispering.

“They have done a lot for me, which exceeded my expectation. I want to stop, but I think it will hurt them. But if I don’t stop and continue like this…”

He turned his head and calmly looked at Xu Zhaixing.

“How can I repay all this?”

His eyes were so beautiful, like a deep pool, like a clear spring, like ice and snow turned into a stream, with the purest kindness in the world.

That was the caution and trepidation of a person who has never been loved and was suddenly surrounded by love and does not know how to handle himself.

It was the kindness and tenderness of someone who, after endless experiences of hurt and malice, could still understand the world with the greatest capacity for empathy.

Xu Zhaixing’s heart, there was a place, trembling and curling up. It was so painful that she wanted to cry.

But she mustn’t cry.

She blinked and smiled sweetly.

“Brother, they don’t need anything in return.” She said word for word.

“Your presence is the greatest gift of all.”

The night breeze brushed through the treetops, and the wind carried the scent of some unknown flower.

After a long time, Cen Feng asked her.

“What about you?”

Xu Zhaixing froze and turned her head, “Me?”

Cen Feng looked into her eyes.

“Do you also want to see me on Weibo, on stage, in the variety show?”

Being watched so intently by her beloved idol, Xu Zhaixing’s heart banged twice and almost jumped out of her throat.

She pursed her lower lip.

“I… I’m also a fan, of course…” she said, then sat upright and looked back at his gaze seriously, as she whispered.

“But all this must be based on your willingness. Brother, the love of fans is not a constraint, and you don’t have to feel a burden because of us. Because you are yourself first before you become someone we love. If one day, you want to leave here and go to a higher, farther, and more free place. Brother, I will also bless you.”

The moonlight filled her eyes reflecting his appearance.

After a while, he laughed.

“I see. For you… You, I’ll try.”

Try to fall in love with the stage again.

***

Xiaonaitang[1]- literal translation is small milk candy