Chapter 67: The Center of the Fish Pond (2)
The live broadcast of Produce 101 began with the initial evaluations of the 101 contestants who had advanced from the auditions. The mentors invited by the program were a star-studded lineup.
From the moment Su Mingxiu returned to the venue, the director’s voice echoed from the speakers placed all around. With each mentor he introduced, the contestants erupted in thunderous applause and cheers.
Even most of the viewers who were drawn to the program’s main live stream were initially there for their favorite idols.
[Yuchi gege has been in seclusion to work on his album! Finally get to see him again, wuwuwu! My gege is truly stunning! I wonder if being a PD(Program Director) for a girl group will be too tiring for him!]
*gege(older brother)*
[The lineup for this season of Produce 101 seems incredibly luxurious. I just saw two short live streams, and there are two incredibly beautiful girls who are even prettier than some debuted idols. Which company are they from? How could they hide such treasures until now?]
[Ahhhh so many beautiful girls! Regardless of their skills, I’m here for the eye candy! prprpr]
*prprpr: onomatopoeia “pero pero”, meaning “lick lick”*
Numerous small cameras flew around the venue, controlled by the program staff, following the contestants who were more popular with the audience, based on real-time feedback.
Besides the main live stream focusing on the stage, each of the 101 contestants also had their own small live stream.
However, apart from those contestants from large companies or those who had debuted before and had fans watching their streams, most of the other live streams were deserted.
With two exceptions—
In a corner seat, Su Mingxiu saw a miniature camera, like a small dragonfly, flying towards her. The black, round lens was practically shoved in her face.
But she didn’t panic at all. She glanced at the camera, then calmly looked away, watching the opening performance by the PD and the mentors.
[Look what I found, a hidden gem! This unfiltered close-up, and she’s still this beautiful, not even a single pore visible, wuwuwu, beauty, your tear mole is so sexy, can I take a bite?!]
[Produce 101, you have ten seconds to give me this girl’s profile!]
At the same time…
Another small camera was focused on Suhui. Because the stage lighting during the performance was dim, most of the contestants were hidden in the shadows.
But Suhui’s long silver hair was too eye-catching, drawing attention to her delicate face and ocean-blue eyes.
[! Mixed race! Is this talent show so competitive now that even foreigners are participating?!]
[Before anyone else notices, I’m claiming this mixed-race beauty!]
[Eh? She doesn’t seem to be watching the stage, who is she looking at?]
The staff member operating the camera saw the real-time comments and adjusted the angle, panning slightly to the side, including the nearby contestants in the frame. Right in the center was Su Mingxiu, sitting in the corner.
Some viewers in the live stream immediately started shipping them.
But Suhui was unaware of these developments. She was only thinking about how the person on the beach earlier had remained unfazed even with a meter-high wave crashing towards them. She wondered if they had seen her before she came ashore.
Sensing her gaze, Su Mingxiu instinctively looked towards her.
The lively stage, with its rhythmic drumbeats and hip-hop moves, ignited the contestants’ passion. Only these two seemed unaffected.
Su Mingxiu saw a glint of something by Suhui’s ear but couldn’t make out what it was, blocked by her silver hair.
They both looked away almost simultaneously, their minds filled with their own thoughts.
Su Mingxiu asked the system, “With her silver hair so noticeable, doesn’t anyone suspect she’s not human?”
The system replied seriously: “It’s dyed, not her natural hair color.”
Oh.
Su Mingxiu thought of Pao Tong and Annie she had seen earlier. One had dyed the lower half of her hair silver-blue, the other sported an extravagant gradient pink. Thankfully, both of them had very fair skin and could pull off these bold colors, which even accentuated their unique auras.
Looking around the venue, there were many contestants with diverse styles, from dreadlocks to colorful braids, even sky-high ponytails. These exaggerated looks didn’t seem out of place on the stage under the camera’s lens.
But the fact that several people Su Mingxiu had encountered had all dyed their hair made her wonder if hair dyeing gave some kind of bonus for debuting. Taking advantage of a moment when the camera and the people around her weren’t paying attention, she quickly scanned the area and found another person with a translucent box above their head—
Thankfully, this one had ordinary long, straight black hair.
Just then, the performance led by Yuchi Xiao on stage ended. Amidst the contestants’ screams, the top member of the domestic boy group adjusted his earpiece and smiled, his handsome baby face looking towards the audience.
“Hello everyone, I’m Yuchi Xiao, the PD of Produce 101. For the next few months, I’ll be accompanying you all on this journey of hard work…”
The applause from the contestants seemed endless.
After Yuchi Xiao, the dance mentor, the rap mentor, and the vocal mentor also performed.
But it was obvious that Yuchi Xiao, as a popular idol, was the most popular with the audience, evident from the six cameras surrounding him.
The mentors took their seats at the front, Yuchi Xiao holding the microphone. A thick stack of contestant profiles was placed before him. He flicked through the papers with his index finger, adorned with a stylish black ring, and said to the other mentors with a smile: “I heard that Produce 101 focuses on authenticity. In that case, how about we draw cards randomly, and whoever we pick, we’ll have them or their group come up on stage. How about it?”
The live stream chat was filled with exclamation marks.
With the proliferation of talent shows in recent years, the audience had become somewhat jaded. They felt that boy and girl groups were like leeks in a field, harvested one after another, each generation less impressive than the last. The most popular boy group was still the one Yuchi Xiao debuted in during the first season of the talent show, still at the peak of their popularity.
And these talent shows were becoming increasingly perfunctory, either with predetermined winners, opaque voting mechanisms, and so on. The audience’s enthusiasm for these shows had dwindled significantly.
But after Yuchi Xiao’s suggestion, the viewership of the live stream suddenly increased.
[As a veteran of these shows, I’ve decided to give this program another chance!]
[Is it truly random? I want to see the director’s expression.]
…
Yuchi Xiao pushed the tall stack of papers forward and asked the vocal mentor, who was sitting farthest away, to draw a card. This mentor was a legend in the music industry, a queen of the music scene. Her debut album had been a nationwide hit, and she was still praised as “the purest voice in the music industry.” After casually flipping open a profile card, the queen smiled: “This contestant is also specializing in vocals. It seems we’re fated.”
Yuchi Xiao leaned closer and said to her: “Teacher Yu, please announce the contestant’s name.”
“Suhui,” the vocal queen turned around and looked at the contestants. “From Neptune Entertainment, please come on stage.”
Among the contestants, the person whose name was called stood up calmly, causing the surrounding contestants to gasp. They had been captivated by this contestant’s beauty. Now, seeing her calm and collected demeanor, and considering that Neptune Entertainment was the most established music company in the country, they immediately realized what a formidable opponent she was.
However, faced with such beauty, some people chose to ship her with others. As she walked past, many contestants hugged each other and whispered with flushed faces: “She’s so beautiful.”
“Wuwuwu, I’m okay with being taken by her.”
Before Suhui even reached the stage, the audience and the comments section had reached an unprecedented consensus.
As she stood under the spotlight, Su Mingxiu finally saw what was glistening by her ear. It was a pair of black, lotus-shaped earrings. The glazed ceramic material shimmered with iridescent colors.
It was the kind of “colorful black” that even the most demanding clients would be satisfied with.
The mentors, seeing Suhui’s appearance clearly, were also surprised. Yuchi Xiao was the first to react. “Are you mixed race?”
Suhui shook her head seriously. She stood before the microphone, her red lips parting slightly, her voice reaching the audience through the microphone. Her pronunciation was a bit strange, but her voice was exceptionally ethereal and pleasant: “Pureblooded.”
Pfft.
Su Mingxiu, in the corner, couldn’t help but chuckle, her black eyes crinkling at the corners, even the tear mole at the corner of her eye seemed to be smiling. The makeup artist had deliberately extended her eyeliner, giving her a naturally alluring look, even without smiling. Now, with her smiling eyes, it was even harder to look away.
The camera that had flown away earlier zoomed in on her again, but she didn’t care. She was wondering what Suhui’s status was among the merfolk.
But the others didn’t have access to such spoiler-like information. After chatting with Suhui for a few words, Yuchi Xiao gestured for her to begin her performance.
Music played from the speakers.
The contestants listened intently, wanting to know what song she had chosen. But after a few seconds, they didn’t hear any melody. They even wondered if the wrong track was playing—
The sound coming from the speakers… wasn’t music, it sounded more like ocean waves.
Then, a singing voice came from afar, so distant that they couldn’t help but strain their ears to hear it. The mentors and contestants fell silent.
The ethereal singing gradually approached from the distance.
Yuchi Xiao was the first to react. He looked at the person on stage in surprise. Seeing Suhui close her eyes, her long, silver hair, like seaweed, cascading down her sides, everyone thought she hadn’t started singing yet, only he realized where the singing amidst the waves was coming from.
Then came the vocal queen, the rap mentor, and the dance mentor.
Finally, the contestants in the front rows.
As the sound approached, a thunderous clap came from the speakers. It was as if they were on a stormy sea, their ship tossed about by the waves. A voice circled their boat, humming a playful tune, letting them know they had become prey, unable to escape.
The storm intensified, and the singing became louder. Even though there were no lyrics, it still captivated their minds. Even the live stream chat was filled with exclamation points and shocked comments.
The person standing on stage smiled faintly, her closed eyelids fluttering open. As the storm abruptly ceased, so did the singing.
Thump, thump.
Many contestants, still under the spell of the song, felt a sense of unease at this sudden silence. They couldn’t help but wonder, had the siren that was about to devour them left, or… had it already chosen its target, waiting to drag it into the water?
“I just sang a song from my hometown, I hope you liked it.”
Suhui’s sweet smile on stage brought their attention back. Then, she said slowly: “I also learned a Chinese song, can I perform it?”
[I was so scared, wuwuwu, I felt like I was about to be eaten! What song is this? Did Suhui grow up by the sea? This song should be called “Siren’s Tale,” perfect for playing by the sea on a stormy day, guaranteed to scare everyone.]
[She looks like a siren too, sister, kill me, I’m willing to be eaten by you!]
[Ahhhh, her voice is so mesmerizing! Help! I thought my ears were pregnant, but they just miscarried…]
…
“How wicked.”
In the corner…
Su Mingxiu propped her chin on her hand and muttered this comment. Because the contestants didn’t have microphones when they weren’t performing, and her voice was very soft, no one heard her.
But Suhui on stage, somehow, glanced in her direction.
The intro to the Chinese song began at that moment. Her blue eyes narrowed slightly. She didn’t know if this song was chosen by her or by Neptune Entertainment, but it was perfect for her voice. Although it wasn’t as captivating as the humming from earlier, it still had a unique quality.
As soon as the song ended, the vocal queen picked up the microphone with a smile and said to Yuchi Xiao: “PD Yuchi, based on these two songs alone, my S card for vocals is hers—”
“I can’t think of anything else to teach her in terms of singing.”
[Wow, with this level of skill, she should just release an album, why bother competing in a talent show? QAQ]
[Teacher Yu has been in the industry for so long, participated in so many shows, and she hasn’t given this kind of praise to many people. Suhui is truly amazing…]
[Am I the only one still immersed in that song that almost killed me earlier?]
Before the cameras…
Yuchi Xiao hadn’t expected Teacher Yu to draw a contestant who could compete for the center position based on her skills alone. Thankfully, he was a seasoned veteran and remained calm. “Can you dance?”
Suhui nodded.
Her height gave her an unparalleled advantage in leg length. And because the merfolk lived in the deep sea all year round,
Even though she only performed a simple traditional dance, the rhythm, combined with her perfect figure and bone structure, was a visual feast.
“S!”
Yuchi Xiao didn’t hesitate. Almost as soon as the dance ended, he slapped down one of the nine S cards in his hand.
The dance mentor nodded and silently pushed their own S card forward.
The rap mentor chuckled and looked around. “It seems everyone agrees—S! The rhythm, the stage presence, PD Yuchi must be very satisfied. As for me, I just want to ask, are you interested in rap?”
Suhui looked at him with her blue eyes. “I can learn.”
The rap mentor immediately applauded. “I’m looking forward to guiding you through this door.”
The initial S rating raised the audience’s expectations. Because of Suhui’s performance, the live stream’s viewership had increased significantly, and even the mentors were filled with anticipation for Produce 101.
Now, many less talented contestants were silently praying that they wouldn’t be picked next.
Su Mingxiu, in the corner, also thought nonchalantly, I wonder who will be the unlucky one after Suhui?
The rap mentor, sitting beside Teacher Yu, casually flipped open a card at Yuchi Xiao’s gesture and said jokingly: “I wonder if I can also find someone I’m fated with, like Teacher Yu… Eh?”
His voice rose unconsciously.
He seemed confused by the Chinese characters on the card, then looked up. “This is a contestant who applied on her own, no company, and her specialty is… cooking?”
—
[Did I enter the wrong show? Is this Produce 101 or MasterChef? ]
[Wow, wow, let’s see who’s cooking in a talent show!]
“Uh…” At the same time, Su Mingxiu thought with a deadpan expression—
Well, well, well, the unlucky one is actually me.
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