CHAPTER 111: CHAPTER 108: TERRIFYING EXAMINATION

The final day of practice arrived quickly, and everyone was intensifying their efforts.

Those who still couldn’t keep up were nearly "losing it." They hadn’t expected that what looked so easy and fluid on stage could completely fall apart once they tried it themselves.

Lv Fangxin, too, was frazzled, hiding in a corner and crying in desperation.

Chen Yanran and the others, who had been learning dance since childhood, were doing their best to teach her. But it still wasn’t working—she simply couldn’t keep up with the music.

If you had her dance without the music, she could execute all the moves quickly and precisely, but the moment the music started, it was over.

Thankfully, she had three people supporting her, and she gritted her teeth, holding on for dear life.

She had often considered going to Yuwei for help, but before entering the "base," Yuwei had repeatedly warned her not to "reveal" their connection.

In truth, Yuwei was worried about dragging Lv Fangxin down, considering her own "infamous reputation."

Time flew by, and three days passed in the blink of an eye.

After lunch, the girls began trickling toward the training room.

The program’s announcement boomed over the loudspeakers: "Hello, everyone, please proceed to Training Room No. 1."

"Oh my God! It’s Long Zitao’s voice—he’s back!"

"It’s only been three days, but it feels like I haven’t seen him in forever."

The return of Long Zitao delighted all the girls, as on their first day at the base, he had treated them to tons of snacks.

However, the thought of the assessment made everyone’s hearts leap into their throats.

Soon, all the girls gathered in the largest Training Room No. 1.

But strangely, none of the mentors were present—only the director and the camera crew.

At that moment, all the mentors were in the control room.

Since the performances were done in groups of five, to get a clearer and more comprehensive view, they chose to watch the footage instead of being physically present.

Groups from Class A to Class B were performing simultaneously.

To say the least, the performances exceeded the program team’s wildest expectations—though not in a good way.

Yang Xiaoyue sat stone-faced, watching the girls perform one after another.

The standout performances were pitifully rare. Even Lin Jiayi, someone she had deemed one of the more skilled dancers, struggled with stiff movements and excessive force, utterly lacking in grace.

Guo Xia even botched her steps, coming to a complete stop at the final two eight-counts.

The entire room was shrouded in a suffocating atmosphere.

The mentors were utterly dumbfounded. How could they even think of shooting an MV like this? At this level, it was worse than the random dancing in nightclub pits.

Still, for the sake of the show, they forced themselves to critique which performances were "better" and point out "areas for improvement," though it felt like they were barely holding it together.

This was when Lv Fangxin stepped forward, shaking with nerves. She tried to follow the person beside her, but that person wasn’t doing well either.

By the fourth eight-count in the middle of the routine, her intended "golden rooster stance" turned into a sloppy "wild horse spreading its mane."

At this point, Lv Fangxin’s mind went completely blank. She had no idea what she was thinking—her vacant eyes fixed on the person next to her as she desperately kept dancing, trying her hardest to keep up.

"She’s giving it her all; she’s really trying," Tian Jiahua commented compassionately.

"Exactly. Girl groups are all about never giving up," Hu Binbin chimed in, supporting the sentiment.

Watching Lv Fangxin like this, Yuwei couldn’t help but sigh in her heart.

She was just like some of the girls from Hanoi—lacking natural talent but getting by on looks. However, she wasn’t short on grit and determination.

But it was ultimately futile. Musicality and physical coordination were innate qualities. If you were tone-deaf and stiff, no amount of practice could make you truly professional.

Yuwei couldn’t help but close her eyes, feeling increasingly despondent.

"Do you know her?" Meng Meixuan asked quietly beside her.

"She’s my little hometown friend," Yuwei replied without elaborating.

"Oh! She’s with Chen Yinghan now." Seeing Yuwei remain indifferent, Meng Meixuan added, "Chen Yinghan’s family is extremely powerful—one of the wealthiest elites."

Yuwei was startled. "Meixuan, did your company investigate our backgrounds?"

"Not really ’investigated.’ We might not know, but to our company, a lot of people’s backgrounds aren’t exactly secrets."

Yuwei didn’t press further, but her guard went up another notch. Nothing Meng Meixuan’s company did was ever without a reason.

Yuehua had a notoriously bad reputation in the industry.

Nearly breaking down, Lv Fangxin finally finished the theme song assessment. She walked off in tears, rejecting any comfort from those around her. Wiping at her eyes, she sat back in her seat.

"Fangxin..." Chen Yinghan looked at her dear friend with deep sorrow, unsure of how to console her.

"I’m fine, I’m fine," Lv Fangxin said, attempting a smile to appear strong. But ultimately, she lowered her head in despair, leaning against her friend for support.

She felt that only in this girl’s embrace could she find the safety she sought.

At this moment, Gao Ziyi and others joined her. To her right was Zhu Riri, who maintained a ditzy girl-next-door persona, though her overdone plastic surgery made her face look more idiotic than innocent.

Gao Ziyi smiled, but her palms were sweaty. Although she didn’t have high expectations for herself, she couldn’t help but care deeply about this theme song assessment.

Meanwhile, Zhu Riri was pale, with swollen under-eye bags as if she had been marinated in formalin. Bloodshot eyes and her unsettling appearance altogether evoked an eerie feeling.

The accompaniment began, and the group commenced dancing together.

To everyone’s surprise, including Yang Xiaoyue’s, the seemingly average and somewhat comedic Gao Ziyi performed remarkably well.

But as everyone focused on her movements, Zhu Riri suddenly stopped in the middle.

Just when everyone thought she was quitting, incomprehensible shouts erupted from her mouth.

Everyone froze, stunned by her behavior. What was wrong with her? Was she losing her mind or had she taken something questionable?

Yuwei was equally shocked, suspecting that the pressure had pushed Zhu Riri into some sort of mental breakdown.

Such things occasionally happened in Hanoi, and the best solution was usually to send the person to a hospital immediately.

On site, the director didn’t know how to react. Without instructions from Yang Xiaoyue via the earpiece, they didn’t dare to intervene and stop Zhu Riri.

Yang Xiaoyue, with a stone-cold expression, watched the screen intently, clearly satisfied with Zhu Riri’s performance.

The show needed dramatic highlights and "talking points," and Zhu Riri was practically walking clickbait.

"Director Yang, are you sure this won’t become a problem?" someone tactfully reminded her.

"She’s just trying her best to complete the theme song assessment," Yang Xiaoyue replied, blatantly twisting the truth.

Everyone immediately understood—Yang wouldn’t care whether Zhu Riri was okay or not as long as it served the show’s purpose.

That said, Yang Xiaoyue wasn’t reckless. If Zhu Riri truly collapsed on set, she would bear responsibility. So she quickly connected to Tian Jiaxuan’s earpiece.

Tian Jiaxuan spoke with a stern expression: "Zhu Riri is just trying to hog the spotlight—she’s stealing the scene."

The other dazed mentors instinctively believed her comment, quieting down without objection. After all, the entertainment industry had always been a freak show, and no behavior was ever too absurd.

There were people who would go to any lengths—stealing lines, stealing shots, stealing roles—for attention.

By now, Zhu Riri had entirely lost her inhibitions, screaming her lungs out as her trembling body released all her fear and pressure.

Her subconscious feared failing the theme song exam, and she knew this would likely mean getting demoted from Class C to Class F.

That impending blow was unbearable for her.

At 27, she was a "withered old flower," long past her prime. Fame was an obsession that had nearly consumed her. She had entered countless talent competitions but never made a splash.

In desperation to appear younger and more attractive, she had undergone plastic surgery, which had gone terribly wrong.

The opportunity to join this talent show had cost her dearly, yet failure seemed inevitable once again. The looming defeat drove her "crazy," ignoring all consequences, just to ensure people noticed her one last time before her impending ruin.

With the last note of the accompaniment, Gao Ziyi, who had maintained a smile throughout the performance, suddenly collapsed to the ground, crying uncontrollably: "It’s over! The person next to me scared me to death!"

Already on edge, she had been shaken by Zhu Riri’s erratic behavior, causing her to miss several steps. This meant her likely demotion.

Her fellow D-classmates abandoned all pretense of this being a recording and rushed to comfort her immediately.

The mixed-race beauty Ju Ling, in particular, glared daggers at the giggling Zhu Riri.

If it weren’t for the cameras, these girls might have collectively pounced on Zhu Riri and beaten her up—her antics were just too vile.

Meanwhile, Zhu Riri’s C-class teammates offered no supportive applause for her post-performance. Instead, they all looked at her with disdain.