Chapter 67
Onstage, Ji Ran was just about to begin his self-introduction when his voice caught for a moment, and he barely managed to keep his expression under control.
‘Ji Ran’s entire face is screaming: Oh my god! Why is he here too?!’
‘Hahaha, I screenshotted it, I screenshotted it. [Ran baby horrified.jpg]’
‘Ran baby is still too immature. Just look at how calm our Xia baby is.’
‘Xia baby is shocked too, okay? His eyes opened 0.01 centimeters wider than before. [doghead.jpg]’
Before the music started, Lin Zhiqiao subtly waved at the two of them in greeting.
Ji Ran’s mouth twitched, but he ignored him. Cheng Xia, standing beside him, blinked once, as if responding to Lin Zhiqiao.
Although they were the very last group to go onstage, Ji Ran and Cheng Xia’s performance was not affected in the slightest. Their nearly flawless delivery and skill that was hard to fault earned them both very high final scores.
All fifty trainees had now finished their opening showcase, and the mentors quickly used everyone’s scores to carry out the first class assignment after the show began.
This time, there were ten people in Class A, fifteen in Class B, and the largest number in Class C, with a full twenty-five trainees.
Unsurprisingly, Ji Ran and Cheng Xia both became members of Class A.
Like most other survival shows, Idol Star Dream used an elimination format.
After each period of training and practice, the program would hold an elimination-stage performance, and after every elimination round, a portion of the trainees would be eliminated from the competition.
In the end, after round after round of selection and elimination, the show would choose five trainees to form a brand-new group and officially debut.
Lin Zhiqiao did the math. Ji Ran and Cheng Xia’s skill and popularity were beyond doubt, so their debut was basically guaranteed.
Ming Ye and Zhou Zili should not have any problem either.
So if you counted it that way… there was only one final spot left.
Forty-six people fighting over a single debut slot. The competition was terrifying.
Thinking of that, Lin Zhiqiao could not help sighing inwardly, [Being an idol really isn’t easy.]
*
Lin Chen was also paying very close attention to the premiere of Idol Star Dream.
Ever since the last large-scale trainee contract termination, Mingguang Entertainment’s stock price had taken a severe hit, and even now it had not recovered.
Mingguang was in urgent need of one or even multiple rounds of positive publicity.
For him, this program, Idol Star Dream, was undoubtedly a very suitable opportunity.
Not only was Su Jia—the biggest star among the mentor lineup—a trainee who had come out of Mingguang Base, but among the contestants most capable of fighting for a debut spot, there were also two from Mingguang Base.
Lin Chen remembered that those two trainees were called Ming Ye and Zhou Zili.
More importantly, those two had been personally selected by Lin Mubai.
Lin Chen had never doubted Lin Mubai’s eye for people. His younger brother had always been uncannily accurate in judging others, never making a mistake.
Lin Chen could practically already imagine the day Su Jia, Ming Ye, and Zhou Zili would push Mingguang Base back to the top.
At that moment, Lin Chen had just finished a meeting. After returning to his office, he almost impatiently clicked into the livestream room, the curve of his lips carrying both expectation and complete confidence.
A few trending topic notifications popped up on his phone screen at just the right time—
#Idol Star Dream mentor lineup#
#Su Jia and Xie Qingchi appear on the same stage again#
The appearance of the name Xie Qingchi surprised Lin Chen a little, but it did not affect his mood.
Xie Qingchi had long since terminated his contract with Mingguang. Whatever the other man did now could not possibly affect him.
There were a great many people in the livestream. Lin Chen’s screen lagged for quite a while before he successfully entered the room.
The next second, his expression froze. The smile he had just raised stiffened on his face, looking utterly ridiculous.
On the screen, the chestnut-haired young man with soft curls was sitting beside Su Jia, head lowered as he wrote furiously, lifting his eyes from time to time to look attentively at the stage.
The moment he saw the young man’s face clearly, Lin Chen’s vision went black, and his chest seemed to seize.
—Who could tell him why he was seeing Lin Zhiqiao, this jinx, on the program?!
No one could answer that question.
Based on the experience of the previous several disasters, a concept had already formed in Lin Chen’s head: wherever Lin Zhiqiao appeared, even the smoothest situation could take a one-hundred-and-eighty-degree turn and head straight toward an unknown path.
Could it be the same this time too…?
Lin Chen shook his head sharply, throwing that thought out of his mind.
Was he really worrying about Lin Zhiqiao? What a joke!
With the currently popular Su Jia anchoring the show, and Ming Ye and Zhou Zili—handpicked by his precious younger brother Lin Mubai—participating as contestants, there definitely would not be any problems this time!
*
After the first class assignment ended, the production team’s tasks for the first day were officially over.
By then it was already late. Only after walking out of the indoor area did Lin Zhiqiao realize that night had almost fully fallen.
“I’ll first take everyone to look at the dormitories. The cafeteria has already prepared dinner,” Director Xu paused, then added, “If you don’t want to eat in the cafeteria, you can also order takeout, or cook for yourselves.”
‘I suspect the last sentence was directed at the little chef. [doghead.jpg]’
‘I’m actually kind of looking forward to the cafeteria food. Watching so many handsome guys eat together is definitely a kind of enjoyment. It’s bound to be very tempting. I mean the food. [shy cat.jpg]’
On the way back to the dorms, Su Jia asked Lin Zhiqiao for the data he had recorded during the initial showcase earlier, seemingly intending to review it once more.
Lin Zhiqiao failed to find a chance to speak alone with Ji Ran and Cheng Xia, so he could only give up.
The mentors’ and mentor assistants’ dorm area was together: a large suite with six small rooms.
As usual, Lin Zhiqiao chose the room nearest the door. It was the closest to the only entrance and exit of the suite, making it the best possible place to control the entire gossip battlefield.
Exactly as he had expected, the rooms Xie Qingchi and Su Jia chose were the two farthest apart.
Neither of them spoke to the other. Anyone could tell at a glance that their relationship was covered in a thick layer of ice—so cold that just getting a little closer felt chilly.
The staff had already helped bring everyone’s luggage into the dorms. Lin Zhiqiao briefly tidied up his room, then prepared to leave for the cafeteria.
Before going out, he subconsciously glanced toward the camera in the corner of the room.
Besides the bedroom, several cameras had also been placed in the living room, almost every corner falling within their shooting range.
[This is a survival show. Aren’t the trainees supposed to be the main focus?] Lin Zhiqiao could not help muttering inwardly. [So why are there livestream cameras in the mentors’ and mentor assistants’ dorms too?]
‘That just proves you don’t get it. The most absolutely brilliant part of this whole show lies exactly here. [everything goes without saying.jpg]’
‘Because the mentors’ gossip tastes better hahaha’
‘Please have the livestream cameras follow the Gossip King. Wherever the Gossip King is, that’s where it gets exciting. [doghead.jpg]’
‘Relax, Director Xu definitely won’t miss out on traffic this good.’
Before heading to the cafeteria, Lin Zhiqiao deliberately took a detour and wandered over to the dorm building for Class A.
Most of the trainees had already gone to the cafeteria, so there were not many people in the dorms.
The door to the Class A dorm room was open. With one glance, Lin Zhiqiao saw Ji Ran and Cheng Xia sitting inside.
“Everyone else has gone to the cafeteria. Why haven’t you gone yet?” Lin Zhiqiao knocked lightly on the doorframe. “Careful, if you go too late, there may not be any food left.”
The moment they heard his voice, Ji Ran’s eyes lit up. He lifted his chin at Cheng Xia in a show-off way.
“See? I told you Xiao Qiao would definitely come!”
Cheng Xia nodded. “Mm. You were right.”
His voice was not loud, but it was not hard to hear the pleasure in his tone.
A question mark slowly appeared above Lin Zhiqiao’s head. “Were you betting on me?”
“What betting? What are you talking about?” Ji Ran tried to bluff his way through it and slung an arm around Lin Zhiqiao’s shoulders. “Come on, let’s go eat. We were waiting for you!”
Lin Zhiqiao was tugged so hard that he stumbled slightly.
He lowered his head and glanced at Ji Ran’s hand gripping him tightly. He did not know whether it was just his imagination, but he felt that… Ji Ran seemed to be gripping especially hard today.
Almost like he was venting his anger.
After thinking about it, Lin Zhiqiao asked, “What, are you unhappy to see me?”
“How could I be unhappy?” Ji Ran smiled at him. “I’m happy beyond words.”
He bit the words out through clenched teeth. “You really hid it deep, didn’t you?”
“I was just thinking I’d give you a surprise,” Lin Zhiqiao said in a small voice. “So? Wasn’t it a surprise?”
Ji Ran: “…” He let out a dry laugh. “More like a scare.”
Cheng Xia smiled faintly from the side and said, “Don’t listen to him. He’s actually really happy to see you. So am I.”
Lin Zhiqiao pressed his lips together. [Oh no, it’s another day of being hit by little angel Cheng Xia!]
Ji Ran threw them both a look, aggrieved and sulky.
In Idol Star Dream, every trainee was equipped with a personal small camera linked to their own independent livestream room.
Ji Ran and Cheng Xia had not turned off their cameras just now, so the interaction among the three of them was recorded in full.
‘Ji Ran is so mad he looks like a pufferfish hahaha’
‘Xia baby is really an angel. Who could possibly not like such a warm little sweetheart? Sob sob. [Mama loves you!.jpg]’
Night had now fully fallen.
The three of them had gone rather late. By the time they ate dinner at a leisurely pace while chatting along the way, there was not even anyone left visible in the cafeteria or on the path back to the dorms.
Worth mentioning was that the chef Director Xu had hired was very good. The cafeteria food was delicious.
Lin Zhiqiao thought to himself, [What a pity. The cafeteria uncle cooks so well. Does that mean there won’t be any chance to witness the beautiful sight of little chef cooking?]
‘It really is a pity. I was actually looking forward to that. [sigh.jpg]’
‘Be careful, Director Xu might send the cafeteria uncle away overnight hahaha’
The landscaping at the survival show base was extremely well done. Dense greenery was visible everywhere, making even the air smell fresher.
As they passed a certain grove, Lin Zhiqiao could not help glancing into it a couple of times.
[A grove like this—this is absolutely sacred land for cultivating gossip.]
Whether it was at school or at Mingguang’s training base, the grove had always produced plenty of excellent gossip.
Being one of those “selected,” Ji Ran’s mouth twitched. He expressed no desire whatsoever to recall those dark old embarrassments.
“Come on, let’s go. The mosquitoes are out.”
He grabbed Lin Zhiqiao and tried to pull him onward, clearly wanting to hurry past the little grove—but he failed to move him.
Ji Ran: “?”
So he added more force. Still no movement.
“What is it?” Ji Ran asked.
Lin Zhiqiao lifted a finger and quietly shushed him. “Keep it down. There seems to be someone over there.”
The question marks over Ji Ran’s head multiplied, but his body was brutally honest. He followed Lin Zhiqiao’s footsteps with great initiative.
Lin Zhiqiao turned sideways and slipped into the dense, dim little grove.
After only a couple of steps, he stopped.
Ji Ran and Cheng Xia also lightened their footsteps and followed after him carefully, moving with extreme caution and making almost no sound.
The three of them looked exactly like veterans at this whole gossip-eating thing.
‘LMAO, the three-person gossip squad is back, right?’
‘These movements are way too practiced. Just how much gossip have Ran baby and Xia baby already eaten with our Gossip King? [slamming table laughing.gif]’
‘It’s so dark. I can’t see clearly. Can we apply for a spotlight? [anxiously rubbing hands.jpg]’
‘Did they run into some new gossip? [gossip-melon creature poking head.jpg]’
Lin Zhiqiao led the two of them to stop behind a large tree. The branches overhead were thick and leafy, making the light very dim.
They could not clearly see the scene not far away, but by the same token, their targets had also failed to notice them hidden in the darkness.
There were three figures in the distance, two slightly taller and one a little shorter.
Lin Zhiqiao squinted and finally recognized them. The shorter one was Zhou Zili, while the other two were the pair of red-and-blue-haired twins.
At that moment, one of the twins spoke softly, “Never thought I’d run into you here, darling…”
He lowered his head, and the last few words came out pressed low in his throat, almost breathed right into Zhou Zili’s ear.
