The broadcast time of the third public performance was less than a week apart from the day of the third public performance itself. Fans who hadn’t been able to go to the live venue spent their days drooling over the constant stream of reposted posts appearing on the forums.
They initially thought Quentin’s blonde hair look was already the most explosive news of the third public performance, but according to the descriptions from the live audience, there was an even bigger surprise?
Some Aurora fans spoke up, saying that this year’s boy group trainees performed decently, and many people also praised that every team’s stage was quite exciting.
But for the sake of the main episode viewing experience, no one spoiled things too clearly, but occasionally a few leaked details were enough to make people itch with curiosity.
What? None of the people in Quentin’s group have ever been in a relationship?! So innocent, but that seems a bit unbelievable.
WTF? Cheng Shaozhi and Bi Xiao’s group sang and danced sweetly, and they even acted cute?? Are you kidding?
What? Quentin looks cool skateboarding? Oooh oooh looking forward to it (sparkly eyes)
Huh? Qi Yang and Zhang Fu’s eye contact on stage was especially sweet? Hehe…
What else hasn’t been said? Huh? Quentin went crazy during the game session? What do you mean by ‘went crazy’, is he really good at playing games?
…
More and more repost posts confused fans of all kinds, and many posts that weren’t afraid of stirring up trouble just to gain attention mixed in with their nonsense, causing so much chaos that in the end, no one knew who to believe. All they knew was that this episode of the program should be quite interesting.
So when the eighth main episode went online, the real-time viewer popularity once again broke this year’s variety show record. The last time it broke the record was a week ago when the seventh episode of “NS” aired.
The public performance stages of “NS” get better each time. After several rounds of screening and eliminations, the remaining trainees had already become familiar faces to the audience. Even the person at the bottom of the vote count had already broken a million followers on the forums.
Moreover, the editing of “NS” has always been quite good. Both the main episodes and the spin off programs were quite interesting to watch, so apart from a few fans, no one skipped through the progress bar. Even for the first four stages, which basically had no high-popularity trainees performing, the barrage comments were still densely packed.
And when it came to the two groups, Cheng Shaozhi’s group and Quentin’s group, there was even more to say. The colorful, high-level barrage comments were comparable to light pollution, practically blinding to the eyes.
[Overalls… overalls… so cute ~(￣▽￣)~*]
[srds, watching Bi Xiao sing such a sweet song, I keep feeling like his face is photoshopped on orz]
[Xiao Cheng’s choreography is so good!!]
[When Cheng Shaozhi stands in the center position, the whole stage becomes more high-class]
[Zhang Fu and Qi Yang really look alike, both are good-looking acting academy graduates. I hope some director sends them a script]
[Wen still has a good singing voice, but his voice is quite picky about style, it’s suitable for singing ballads.]
[!! Quentin’s entrance is so handsome!]
[This hair color really suits him, it looks better than black hair! Hehe, little blondie, hehehe…]
[Oh my gosh, that skateboarding shot!! Is Quentin this skilled?!]
[This group’s dance is so synchronized. It’s rare that the production team dares to use a long shot. If these seven people end up debuting, I have no objections.]
[Putting Quentin in the center is correct, pertinent, and hits the nail on the head.]
After the two stages ended, the host stood between the two teams, and the staff behind were setting up the props needed for the upcoming game session.
Following the procedure, the members of both teams introduced themselves in a standard sequence. The cringey team names seemed to be a necessary path for every talent show performance.
The members of Cheng Shaozhi’s team raised their hands like a cheerleading squad, spread their ten fingers, and waved them towards Lou Yu in unison, saying in chorus: “We are… Senior Lou Yu’s Support Group!”
Lou Yu very naturally raised her hand to brush aside the twin ponytails hanging in front of her, winked at the camera, and said: “I am Senior Lou Yu, hello everyone. Please take care of me in the new semester~”
Cheng Shaozhi raised one finger and gently pressed it against his cheek. With the face of “an unattainable flower”(someone that looks aloof), he acted cute with a very serious expression: “I am Senior Lou Yu’s number one fan, Cheng Shaozhi.”
Bi Xiao was much stiffer than him. He barely managed the same pose with a forced smile that wasn’t really a smile: “I am Senior Lou Yu’s loyal junior, Bi Xiao.”
The next few people followed suit. No one seemed as awkward as Bi Xiao, but they were far from being associated with the word ‘cute’ either. It made people grimace, unable to help feeling embarrassed for them.
Who on earth came up with this kind of introduction! It’s so shameful!
Except for Cheng Shaozhi, who had a bit of a cute contrast, everyone else was completely punishing the audience’s eyes, hey!
The audience in front of the screens felt their scalps tingle, and the barrage was also filled with ‘uh uh’ and ‘ahhh scrolling by.
This group’s stage performance was indeed good. They relied on their strength to hold onto a style that didn’t quite match them, but after the stage ended, their introductions started revealing their true colors.
The audience screamed internally: Please, God, no… Quentin’s group isn’t going to do this too, are they?
The camera turned. The trainees of Quentin’s team, like stars surrounding the moon, had Zhang Fu in their center. They tilted their heads slightly and uniformly made a cheek heart gesture, their expressions and postures fitting the ‘personas’ in their lyrics quite well.
However, their team’s slogan wasn’t much better than their opponents’, in fact, it was even more embarrassing.
“We are…Senior Zhang Fu’s Love Battle Team!”
Quentin let go of the hand he had pressed against his cheek making the heart shape, and saluted in a cool pose. “My task is to have a passionate love with my Senior.”
He said it with great confidence, and paired with his disheveled blonde hair, gelled into a mess, and the cartoon band-aid on the bridge of his nose, he looked very arrogant. And the way he raised his eyebrows at the camera was quite charming.
This kind of cheesy line, spoken by him, sounded both chuunibyou and arrogant, making people unable to help but laugh.
Previously, most viewers’ impression of Quentin was that he was a steady, calm and composed young man who could already shoulder the responsibility of being a team leader. But his character for this public performance completely overturned their imagination.
Netizens had all said that blonde Quentin was extremely good-looking and handsome enough to shatter the sky. But no one had mentioned that the blonde look made him seem very young and tender looking.
The key point was it wasn’t the kind that makes people instantly become mom fans, but rather makes them want to pinch his cheeks and hear him obediently call them ‘big sister’.
[Don’t date your Senior, date me, baby!!]
[Why the Senior… Are you restricting by gender in this kind of thing too? (pitiful)]
[Ahhhh, so cute I’m losing my mind, give me a kiss, mwah mwah~]
[Blonde hair and black hair are completely two different vibes, QT… What to do, I want to date both.]
The introduction lines of the other members were also quite impressive, all with great momentum and lack of any embarrassment.
“I am Yan Qiao. My task is to stop my Senior from being seduced by bad men.” Yan Qiao stared at the camera and said slowly, “As for who the bad man is, guess?”
Fang Xu pulled at his zipper with one hand, the lower half of his face hidden behind his raised school uniform collar, looking at the camera: “My task is to complete a one-sided crush with no time limit… I hope Senior can remember my name. I am Fang Xu.”
Qi Yang pushed up the glasses on the bridge of his nose, kept a straight face, looking like a dull gourd (a taciturn person), and said stiffly: “I am Qi Yang. My task is to get into the same university as my Senior and have a love that lasts from school uniform to wedding dress.”
No one knew which Mary Sue quote book these lines were extracted from. Afterwards, Xue Mingzhu, Wen Xinyan, and Cui Yan’s introductions added layer upon layer of embarrassment, as if they were playing a role-play game.
Either they scowled and threatened that anyone who dared to date the Senior would end up on the rooftop, or they smiled with a dark, cunning look saying early relationships would be criticized and reported to the homeroom teacher, or they patted their chests and announced that they were the Senior’s guardian knight, and unscrupulous guys were not allowed to approach…
It wasn’t until Zhang Fu spoke at the end that things returned to normal.
“I am the senior of these young classmates. Um, I am Zhang Fu.”
She looked left and right, with a troubled expression, spread her hands and said: “Do I want to be in a relationship or not? I don’t know either.”
[What a sweet trouble~~]
[Every time I see introductions on talent shows, I want to ask, what kind of service personality test is this?]
[Ahem, don’t condemn everyone with one stick!]
[srds… It sounds embarrassing, but they acted with a strong sense of conviction.]
[The lines don’t really matter, this segment was very friendly to my eyes. Worthy of the debut group, they are all carefully selected by us netizens, not a single one is ugly.]
[I think I understand this group’s arrangement. The name ‘Love Battle Team’ actually fits the theme quite well! Three people correspond to the three juniors in the lyrics, the other four correspond to the rejection inside the senior, and the senior is hesitating and wavering between the two, that’s why it’s called Love Battle!]
[4:3, it actually hints that in the end, the senior will refuse to date, which matches the background story of “Senior Sister, No”]
The positioning of both teams had the female senior stand in the middle. However, Quentin’s team had one more person than Cheng Shaozhi’s team, so from a symmetrical perspective, the ones actually centered in the middle in their row were Quentin and Zhang Fu.
Looking at their group’s styling and makeup, except for Quentin and Zhang Fu, everyone else wore blue and white school uniforms. Even though each person wore their uniform and accessories differently, it still didn’t affect how eye-catching the two not wearing uniforms were.
At first glance, it looked like the two in the middle were the young couple who had secretly changed out of their uniforms to skip class and go on a date, while the classmates on both sides were the wingmen covering for them…
[Umm, is there a mistake? Shouldn’t the male and female leads of your stage be the Qi-Fu couple? Qi Yang should be in the middle!]
[Too lazy to even spray… What does the center position mean? Those with hands, please search online for it yourself.]
[Objectively speaking, Qi-Fu has more CP chemistry. Since it’s a stage with the theme of love, you have to pay attention to that aspect, right?]
[It’s only been a short time, and you’ve already come up with a couple name? So fast.]
[Am I the only one who feels that Quentin always gets special treatment? Everyone else wears the school uniform, but he doesn’t.]
[? When I type a question mark, it’s not because I have a problem, but because I think YOU have a problem : )]
[Of course Quentin is the most special! If you don’t like it, then get lost and go look at how high his vote count is. Those who rely solely on their mouths to fight for the center position for their bias, if you have the time, move your fingers and vote for your bias. Don’t act like a shameless online beggar all day long (rolls eyes)]
[emm… I feel like Quentin and Zhang Fu have quite a bit of couple chemistry. Is it just my illusion? Their brother-sister vibe is really strong. Quentin seems more like a junior than Qi Yang. Qi Yang and Zhang Fu seem like peers, without that atmosphere of senior and junior.]
[I just want to say, no one can match Quentin in terms of CP chemistry. I’ve never seen a contestant in the entertainment industry who appeals to both genders like this.]
[Does no one watch the behind-the-scenes clips? The 30 second clip of Zhang Fu and Quentin when she first entered the practice room has already been cut and posted on the forums. Those 30 seconds were more heart-fluttering, much better than this stage for shipping.]
[Sunlight, green trees, curtains, wooden floors, a young man lying by the wall taking a nap… If I didn’t know better, I’d think I was watching a movie.]
[Come on, what’s there to compare about CP chemistry? My QT doesn’t lack this. Ship whatever you want, just don’t come near him.]
[Yo yo yo, don’t~ come~ near~ him~ so arrogant~]
[I’m not going to call out who is more enthusiastic about selling CP (laughs secretly)]
[So the question is, who likes to cling onto others to suck blood and leech off them?]
The barrage inexplicably started fighting, but the casual viewers were now used to it.
The more popular a variety show, the more fiercely the comments fought. Especially for a show where there is fierce competition between the guests. The fact that fans of various kinds hadn’t arranged offline fights was already quite gentle.
After listening to the introductions of both teams, the host laughed and teased them a bit, then asked: “It’s the same song, but from the two teams, one is a support group and the other a love battle team. How did you come up with these team names?”
The two teams looked at each other, and Quentin raised his hand towards Cheng Shaozhi, gesturing: “You go first.”
The latter hesitated for two seconds, organized his thoughts in his mind, and slowly said: “Because it just so happened that we all watched last year’s survival show and all greatly admired the senior sisters of Aurora. We all felt honored by the chance to collaborate on a stage with the senior sisters. It’s kind of like… the feeling of successfully fangirling?”
Upon hearing this, Lou Yu smiled with her eyes and said: “Actually, I’ve known about Xiao Cheng for a while too. I followed “Dancing With The Stars” from beginning to end.”
Bi Xiao snorted and deliberately leaned his head over: “What about us, what about us? Senior wouldn’t be biased, right?”
“How could I be? I used to study dance. Xiao Cheng is considered a colleague of mine. But now everyone has come to the show. I suddenly have so many juniors, I can’t even keep up with all the good songs.”
Lou Yu patted Bi Xiao’s shoulder with a calm expression: “Don’t worry, Junior Bi. Later, I’ll add all your songs to my playlist and appreciate them one by one.”
Bi Xiao thought of the numerous black history accumulated in his youth when he was young and ignorant, and his expression stiffened: “You, you don’t have to appreciate all of them…”
The host chuckled and took over the conversation, looking at the other team: “What about Quentin? Does your team have anything to say?”
Quentin held the microphone, glanced at Zhang Fu standing on his right, and said: “Our team name was decided through a group discussion, but it was mainly thanks to Senior Zhang Fu who explained in detail the original intention of her group when they created this song.”
“The name ‘Love Battle Team’ should be easy to understand, it’s just the literal meaning. The seven of us represent the senior sister’s inner fantasies. Me, Fang Xu, and Qi Yang are the three kinds of fantasies the senior has about love. Yan Qiao and the other four represent the senior’s determination to convince herself to focus on her studies and not be disturbed by external things.”
He concluded: “The lyrics of the song “Senior Sister, No” are actually about the senior’s inner turmoil. So of course, the seven of us are the senior’s Love Battle Team.”
[…So that’s what this song expresses?]
[Ahem, I always thought this song was about the campus love story between the female lead and her three juniors. I never realized that.]
[You couldn’t tell from their stage either, right?… Weren’t they performing a campus love story?]
[Quentin’s team feels like it’s purely a love song. On the contrary, Xiao Cheng’s team has nothing to do with love at all.]
[What does this stage have to do with studying? It’s all pink bubbles. They look so handsome, who cares about studying. If I could date Quentin and Qi Yang, my mouth would be split from smiling.]
[Fang Xu: Hello? What about me?]
[Fang Xu: Reporting this, you’re welcome.]
[Don’t cry, Xiao Fang. I want you. I love single-eyelid, pale skinned handsome guys the most. Quentin and Qi Yang are too good looking, aloof and unattainable. Xiao Fang is easier to get along with (￣▽￣)]
[… The person above, do you want to look at Fang Xu’s eyes and say ‘easy to get along with’ again? How did you come to that conclusion?!]
The barrage hadn’t been discussing for long before the host quickly asked them the question.
The teammates didn’t expect the host to ask this question. They had originally decided to use a love song as their theme because the theme of this public performance was love. If they deviated, they would end up like Cheng Shaozhi’s team.
They subconsciously looked at Quentin, the only one holding a microphone, and were a bit worried he might get stumped, yet they felt this question wouldn’t be difficult for him.
Sure enough, Quentin was momentarily stunned, as if he thought of something. Then, looking at the host, he answered seriously: “Our stage was indeed rehearsed as a love song, because what we present is the fantasy within the senior’s mind. Our goal is also to make the audience’s hearts flutter, and to be immersed in the feeling of love as if they were there themselves.”
“And a girl’s glamorous fantasy of love is a sweet trap…this is what this song truly wants to express.”
The host looked into the lake-like green eyes. Mesmerized by this focused gaze, her heartbeat even thumped an extra beat or two, and she thought to herself, ‘It really is glamorous… and very sweet, too.’
After the brief interview, the game props were ready, and the rules were explained through a short clip edited into the program.
The segment where lucky audience members were selected to go on stage was also interspersed within the short rules clip. Some people in the barrage showed envy towards the two selected viewers, some suspected the production team chose people based on their looks, and some insiders revealed that these two lucky people were both fans of Quentin.
What kind of odds were these? Of the thousand people at the venue, two were randomly selected, and both ended up liking Quentin, the only difference being that one was a CP fan and the other a solo fan.
The barrage chatted for a bit about how lucky Quentin’s fans were, but quickly shifted their attention back to the trainees of both teams.
In the trial play clip, while the host was conversing with the lucky audience members, Quentin and the others standing next to the game props spread their hands and turned their heads left and right, observing each other.
From time to time, they reached out to touch things, clearly preparing for the actual game later.
Cui Yan held Quentin’s hand and compared it to his own, unable to help but laugh: “It feels like we’re not even the same race. You’re so fair skinned, somehow even more than Xiao Fang.”
Fang Xu looked over and naturally extended his hand out too: “You just noticed? Quentin was always fairer than me.”
Quentin didn’t think so. They both had cool fair skin, but Fang Xu’s skin tone was a bit cooler. His skin was thinner, letting the blood color underneath show through, making him look very healthy and vibrant. So at first glance, it made him look like he was glowing.
But during the game, they would be blindfolded and touch things. Skin color wouldn’t matter at all.
Quentin pinched Cui Yan’s fingers, rubbing up and down several times, silently remembering the location of the calluses on his knuckles.
People who exercise regularly develop calluses on their hands, so Cui Yan’s hands were the easiest to distinguish among all his teammates.
Their two hands were clasped together. Both had long, slender, well-proportioned fingers with even skin tone, showing almost no lines or texture, perfectly suitable for hand models.
The contrast between the wheat color and the cool white was striking. The former had slightly thicker bones and larger palms, looking very strong.
The latter had slimmer, more slender fingers in comparison, like a jade carving under the lights. The areas contacting and rubbing against the other hand were slightly reddened, as if they had been pinched too much and rubbed raw.
The camera paused on their hands for a second, then quickly moved away.
This second wasn’t intentional, yet it acted like a magnet, grabbing the attention of many viewers.
[I’m directly panting. Did anyone take a screenshot? Too spicy (red heart)(red heart)]
[Hand fetish heaven… I lick lick lick prprpr]
[Instantly conjuring up 10,000 words of a village rough guy and a young master. My brother Cui’s dark skin is so exciting, the sexual tension is explosive (drooling)]
The barrage had just started squealing over Cui Yan and Quentin’s hands when they immediately saw Quentin reaching out to touch the other trainees.
The short clip introducing the rules was still playing, with the voice over and subtitles explaining the rules of the game “Blind Men Feeling the Elephant”. The audience didn’t know what Quentin’s team were discussing, they could only guess that they planned to have Quentin be the blindfolded ‘blind man’.
Six tall, handsome, young men stood obediently in place, either lowering or raising their heads, letting Quentin do whatever he wanted.
Quentin touched them very thoroughly. After all, they were all men, there was nothing to be shy about.
First, he scrutinized each person, trying to figure out where each person’s most distinctive feature was.
But then he thought, the game rules said that each member playing the ‘elephant’ could only be selected for one position. The best method was for all ‘elephants’ to be touched in the same place, to facilitate comparison and judgment.
So touching hands might be the most suitable?
He could remember the difference between the thickness, length, and palm sizes of his teammates’ fingers and his own beforehand. But there were six people. Could he really clearly differentiate whose hand was how much bigger or smaller than his?
Quentin thought about it for a while, tried closing his eyes to feel, and felt he could probably distinguish at most one or two.
There was no solution. All these people had good-looking hands. Good-looking hands were all the same…slender fingers, well-proportioned bones, and nails neatly trimmed.
How could he possibly tell them apart? He probably couldn’t even recognize all of them from photos.
So Quentin looked up again to observe his teammates’ faces.
The nose was a good choice. Everyone’s nose shape was different, and facial features are all fixed on the face. When touching noses, could he perhaps also sneak in a touch of the eyes and mouth?
Quentin restrained his strength, trying not to ruin anyone’s makeup.
But he didn’t notice that the ears of several teammates, hidden in their hair, were slowly turning red. He also didn’t feel that his teammates’ faces were gradually heating up.
[Am I seeing things? Is someone shy??]
[The person above, you’re not seeing things. It’s another day of the idols feeding us candy themselves (^_^)]
[Something’s wrong. I see Xiao Cheng’s group touching each other too. They touch in such a straight guy way, like they’re about to start a fight.]
[No, why are you blushing like an idiot?! That little brother, stop messing around. It’s fine if the CP fans ship it a bit, but don’t take it seriously!]
[You’re overthinking it. Put yourself in their shoes. With Quentin touching them like that, who wouldn’t blush?]
[A pure succubus… His methods are too skilled. Whether he’s doing it on purpose or not, he’s on a completely different level from the others. Poor Tom, being toyed with in his palm (sigh)]
[Wuuu Quentin, stop playing with them, come play with me. I’m already lying down.]
[Put on some pants, everyone!]
“Alright, the trial play segment is over. Everyone should know how to play by now, right?”
The host made a stop gesture with her hands and said helplessly: “Stop, stop touching. In such a short time, you won’t remember. The test is about understanding. Isn’t it better to guess based on your usual understanding?”
Bi Xiao complained: “Who usually goes around touching others?”
The host gestured towards where the two senior sisters were standing: “You have the senior sisters to help, don’t you? Rather than touching back and forth, isn’t it more important to think about what questions you want to ask the senior sisters?”
Bi Xiao subconsciously looked at Quentin, just in time to meet the latter’s returning gaze. He coughed uncomfortably and asked: “So um… have you figured it out?”
Quentin shook his head: “Not yet.”
Bi Xiao sighed in relief: “That’s good. It’s okay. Neither of us has figured it out. That’s very fair.”
The host smiled: “So, both teams have decided who will be the ‘blind man’? If I’m not mistaken, for Quentin’s team, it’s you yourself. For Cheng Shaozhi’s team, it’s Bi Xiao?”
The members of both teams nodded in unison. Quentin and Bi Xiao respectively took the blindfolds handed to them by the host. The other trainees, guided by the staff, shuffled their order and stood behind the curtain.
The screen was split into two sections. The left showed Quentin’s team, and the right showed Bi Xiao’s team.
The senior sisters of both teams switched positions, each going to the other team.
Quentin’s vision was completely black. The blindfold fit snugly against his face, not letting even a sliver of light through.
He heard the host give the command, and the five-minute countdown began. Then Lou Yu’s voice came from beside him, asking unhurriedly: “Quentin, this is the first ‘little elephant’. Which part do you choose to touch?”
Lou Yu intentionally controlled her speaking speed, speaking a little slower to help delay time.
Although she admired a capable junior like Quentin, she was a member of Cheng Shaozhi’s team and of course had to help her own people, just like Zhang Fu standing on the other side, who would definitely also quietly sabotage Bi Xiao.
Quentin had already figured out what to touch. He said without hesitation: “The hand.”
This answer wasn’t surprising. Mr. Jin in the trial segment had also chosen the hand, while Bi Xiao on the other side had chosen the mouth.
Lou Yu helped guide the first person’s hand through the curtain and extended it to Quentin, then while observing Quentin’s movements, she probed: “Do you have any questions for me now?”
Quentin shook his head. He held the hand of the unknown teammate with both hands, starting from the base of the palm, carefully pinching upwards along the center of the palm.
This technique was like a fortune teller’s bone-reading. The movement wasn’t ambiguous at all, but rather orderly and methodical.
But his hands were very beautiful. The way he wore his black blindfold, pursed his lips, and didn’t say a word was also captivating, making people’s hearts feel more and more itchy the more they looked.
Especially since the person he was holding hands with didn’t show their face, making it very easy to substitute oneself, satisfying dreamers and CP fans all at once.
[I swear, change the background music to a midnight session one for this segment, and it’s like grabbing at bedsheets.]
[First time shipping a person using their hands… It’s toxic. I find that this person does everything in a suggestive way. Is it because I like to look at handsome guys through colored glasses?]
[You can look at it from a different angle. Everything the person you like does seems like they’re seducing you. Get it?]
[No, no, it must have something to do with the person. I wasn’t like this when I followed stars before!]
[They’re even interlocking fingers, so it’s hard not to ship. This year’s boy group is too good at this. Where is the sweet trap of love… I’m really going to be ruined by these BL guys in 2025!!]
