Yan Qiao was very strong.
From the moment the music started, Quentin and Xue Mingzhu tacitly stopped chatting and simultaneously looked towards the stage below.
Team BKL had chosen a classic hip-hop song with dance, employing extremely complex formation changes, which created a vast gap compared to the previous groups assigned to Class F who performed sing-and-dance routines.
At times, the five members lined up in a straight line. Following the heavy beat of the music, Yan Qiao, in the center position, stepped forward to the drumbeat, while the teammates on both sides simultaneously slid back, forming a forward-facing triangle formation.
At other times, they staggered in levels. Yan Qiao in the front row bent down to perform floor moves, Zhong Qu and Lu Kui in the middle row executed popping, while Dong Zeyu and Wei Bowen in the back row jumped into freezing poses.
This created a three-dimensional picture across upper, middle, and lower layers, coordinating with the music’s complex progression from low to high, delivering a powerful visual impact.
After that, they continued with seven center position rotations and formation changes.
The hip-hop boys, wearing hoodies and checkered shirts tied around their waists, had great tacit understanding. Their eyes either intently watched the mentor seats or quickly caught the camera lenses. Their facial expression management was quite skilled, fully releasing the charm of the dancer group on stage.
During the group dance, the sound of their sneakers stomping on the floor was so heavy it almost broke through the lively accompaniment. Their movements were so synchronized that even the sway of the shirts around their waists was exactly the same. The overlapping “ta ta” sounds were physically and mentally refreshing.
Vinki leaned his body towards Yang Xu again: “Senior Brother, the gap in strength is huge.”
The “gap in strength gap is huge” didn’t only refer to the gap between Team BKL and other groups; it also referred to the gap in strength among the members within the BKL team.
The problems that a boy group’s main rapper could spot, the main dancer naturally wouldn’t miss. Yang Xu’s gaze was completely captured by one particular person within half a minute of the start.
“This center… has very complete body development.” He narrowed his eyes, thinking, “Among BKL trainees, judging by dance alone, he should be S-class, right?”
The educational resources kids have now are far more abundant than what they had back then. BKL Entertainment is also no longer the small, fledgling company it was over a decade ago.
This behemoth monopolizes 80% of the idol group market in China. It has extremely demanding and strict management regulations for both signed trainees and boy group members.
Three years ago, before Yang Xu terminated his contract, he would occasionally visit the practice rooms where the young trainees gathered. He witnessed more than once underage kids being pointed at, and publicly belittled and scolded by their teachers.
The language used wasn’t particularly vulgar, but the highly oppressive scene was even a bit much for Yang Xu passing by outside the window to watch, let alone the young trainee facing the criticism directly.
Every trainee who came out of BKL has experienced terrifying pressure training. As long as they endured that dim and bleak training period and used their effort and sweat to stand out from countless peers….what awaited them was the company’s even more brutal exploitation and unspoken rules. 🙂
Of course, these “unspoken rules” weren’t anything like being kept by a financial sponsor or other unsavory matters. It was the relentless rush to catch up with devil schedules, the exhaustion, grievances, and endurance of having to swallow one’s teeth and blood in various work settings, unconditional obedience to company arrangements, and having to use the money earned within the first two or three years after debut to repay the company’s training fees.
If the group’s popularity after debut wasn’t sufficient, this “training fee” would accumulate like a rolling snowball, and it’s unclear how long it would take to pay them back.
However, although BKL was rotten and black-hearted, its one and only bottom line was not engaging in “human trafficking”.
Some companies use contracts and resources to control artists for sexual exchanges; how is that different from human trafficking?
Getting back to the main point, Yang Xu was indeed very dissatisfied with many of BKL’s actions, but it was undeniable that the average strength of trainees signed to BKL crushed that of numerous small companies. Just looking at these five 19 or 20-year-old boys on stage now, apart from Yan Qiao, the other four were probably just 1/n of the countless masses struggling for the small possibility of debut within BKL Entertainment. But placed in “NS”, they were enough to crush the majority of contestants sitting below the stage.
As for Yan Qiao…
Yang Xu was a bit puzzled.
Judging by his standards, Yan Qiao choosing to dance this set was accommodating his teammates’ abilities.
Although the group’s movements appeared orderly, as long as one compared carefully, they could see at a glance that Yan Qiao’s frame, rhythm, posture, and attention to detail crushed his group members. The appeal of his dance was so captivating that it tightly grasped the audience’s attention. He was the undisputed center in the group.
Yang Xu could tell that Yan Qiao’s personal dance habits probably leaned towards a large frame, but while maintaining large-frame movements, he could also take into account the completeness of details. He was completely a stamina monster.
He exerted force when needed, relaxed when appropriate. All explosive movements could instantly tighten his core. His finger extensions were beautiful, and his body’s core was like a masterfully controlled spring, a true seasoned hip-hop dancer.
Even with BKL’s current internal competition reaching a horrific level, with this boy’s comprehensive qualities, he should be a solid candidate for debut. Why would he come to participate in a boy group survival show?
To be honest, no one inside or outside the circle thought the boy group finally selected by “NS” could compare to BKL’s upcoming seventh-generation boy group.
How could a two-year limited group signed under Galaxy Entertainment compare with the seventh-generation boy group whose members average over five years of training?
Perhaps the popularity during the “NS” selection period would be the peak of this limited-time group’s fame.
Peak at debut, after which they fade into obscurity or disband…this was the outcome most onlookers anticipated.
The performance ended. The camera successively focused on the faces of the five boys on stage, who were either standing or squatting in two rows, front and back.
Yan Qiao was squatting at the left side of the front row, with one hand supporting him on the ground, the other resting on his thigh with his elbow bent.
He looked directly into the camera, his eyes slightly curved and the corners of his mouth upturned. Sweat trickled down his temple.
Even though his face wasn’t red and he wasn’t out of breath, he still showed a bit of a moist, erotic quality.
His lips gleamed with a crystalline light, and the loose neckline of his hoodie sagged downward due to gravity, his collarbones and chest muscles faintly visible. The folds of his sleeves outlined his firm arm muscles, causing a momentary dazzling array.
“Quentin, it seems we are about to welcome new companions in Class A.”
Xue Mingzhu stretched lazily, his arm arcing down through the air and landing with a “pa” on Quentin’s shoulder. He narrowed his eyes and looked at the name tag on the clothes of the dazzling boy on stage: “Eh, what’s this guy’s name again, Yan something? How old is he? Did you notice his age on the official photo?”
Quentin, who was pushed forward by his slap, slowly glanced at him: “…… Yan Qiao, 19 years old.”
Xue Mingzhu: “Ah! Older than me again……Hey, Quentin, do you think we two might be the two youngest in Class A?”
Quentin looked at the boy on stage who was answering the mentors’ questions methodically: “Mmm, that’s obvious.”
He was currently the only underage trainee on “NS”. Xue Mingzhu had become an adult last October, and another 18-year-old, Yang Siyi, had his birthday in September.
Apart from those, there were no other 18-year-olds among the remaining 98 trainees. The majority were concentrated in the 19 to 22 age range.
In other words, Quentin and Xue Mingzhu were originally the two youngest in the entire “NS” training camp. If following the original book’s plot, Xue Mingzhu would probably have to call everyone “ge” (older brother). Now at least he had Quentin as a cushion.
Que-17-year-old shell, 25-year-old soul-Ting:…Sigh.
Xue Mingzhu patted Quentin’s shoulder, comforting him with a serious face: “It’s fine, being the smallest doesn’t matter. Small ones are also cute.”
Quentin always felt the look in this guy’s was strange. He shook off the hand on his shoulder expressionlessly: “Oh.”
…And the look became even stranger.
‘Was there something wrong with that sentence?’ Quentin, who hadn’t been back in the country for too long, was unable to keep up with China’s “internet speed”.
During their chatting and banter, Yang Xu evaluated the singing and dancing levels of the five BKL members one by one, then additionally had Zhong Qu, Lu Kui, and Wei Bowen each perform some additional vocal tests.
Ultimately, those advancing to Class A were the leader Yan Qiao and the vice-leader Zhong Qu…One could only the leading teacher for the BKL team had sharp vision, placing the two with the strongest comprehensive strength in the team into the leader and vice-leader positions early on.
“Wow, as expected of BKL, two entered at once…I’m so envious.”
“Originally, they could have had four enter at once, but Lu Kui and Wei Bowen didn’t perform well in the additional test.”
“If they keep screening like this, the strength of Class A will be terrifying…”
“Of course, otherwise why would it be called Class A?”
…….
Quentin noticed that Yan Qiao and Zhong Qu maintained a subtle distance while going upstairs, with the latter chatting with the former with a gentle smile.
He couldn’t hear the content of their conversation, but just looking at their expressions, Yan Qiao seemed… a bit perfunctory?
Yan Qiao walked in front, taking the lead in ascending to the top of the pyramid.
He reached and directly faced Quentin sitting on the first throne, and his gaze bumped into the light green eyes directly.
The owner of the green eyes gave him a friendly nod. A bewildering light and shadow fell between the brows and eyes, faintly visible in the brilliant gold color concealed under mascara.
Like tiny gold foil floating on shimmering lake water, flickering and enticing passing birds to stop and peck lightly.
He stood still, pausing for two seconds.
Zhong Qu, who was blocked behind him, asked hesitantly: “Yan Qiao… what’s wrong?”
Yan Qiao blinked, blinking away the astonishment and daze in his eyes, then actively stepped forward and stood in front of Quentin.
He bent down, extended his hand, tilted his head, lifted his lips in a smile and said: “Hello, I am Yan Qiao. I really liked your performance. I’d like to reserve a spot as your future teammate for collaboration, is that okay?”
“It rose! It rose! It rose….!!!!”
The system’s sudden high pitched electronic voice froze Quentin’s thoughts for a second.
Before he could even respond, Xue Mingzhu’s voice came from the side first: “Excuse me, I was the first to reserve, you’ll have to queue up.”
The boy was sprawled lazily in the second chair, displeasure written all over the left side of his face, and provocation written all over the right side of his face.
Actually, he didn’t do it intentionally, but his natural resting bitch face + sanbai eyes + rapper simply stacked up sarcasm buffs to the max, which was too “hatred attracting”.
Yan Qiao raised an eyebrow: “Is that so?”
As soon as he raised his eyebrow, the charming and frivolous flavor seeped out from his brows and eyes.
With a curl of his lips, he could easily stir up the competitive desire in peers, instantly pulling the opponent’s sense of crisis.
Yan Qiao’s standing position blocked the only path for Zhong Qu to ascend to the top platform, thus creating a triangular standoff scene of one standing and two sitting.
Zhong Qu, who was isolated outside, had a stiff smile on his face, his eyes shifting uncertainly between the three.
‘What the hell? It’s just reserving a teammate, why does it feel like a shura field? This is a survival show, not some dating show!’
Quentin, one of the parties involved, didn’t want to get involved in such squabbles, especially since the system in his mind was still jumping up and down, shouting “It rose!”, even more frenzied than stock investors suddenly seeing a surge after a market crash.
He took Yan Qiao’s extended hand, shook it slightly, and said calmly: “I am Quentin, very pleased to meet you. I also really liked your performance.”
Xue Mingzhu at the side instantly became pleased with himself.
Look, Quentin didn’t answer the question about teaming up at all!
Back in the dressing room, he got Quentin’s agreement without hesitation. At that time, the initial stage hadn’t even begun. Hmph, it must be his personal charm that attracted Quentin!
His gaze swept over Yan Qiao, thinking: “What’s the point of being a good dancer? He looks like a social butterfly, and has probably flirted with many girls behind the scenes.”
Meanwhile, Yan Qiao relaxed his expression a bit because of Quentin’s handshake.
As he passed by Xue Mingzhu, he even lazily raised his hand in greeting: “Xue Mingzhu, your rap is good. If you have the opportunity, let’s team up sometime.”
Xue Mingzhu: “.”
Zhong Qu, who finally stepped onto the top platform, silently took a deep breath and put on a gentle smile: “We meet again, Quentin. I didn’t expect we could meet again in Class A.”
System: “….Eh?! Still rising! Still rising!”
Quentin glanced at him: “Mmm, it’s quite a coincidence.”
“It shows that we two are quite destined to be together.” Zhong Qu smiled and winked head to my seat now, chat more later.”
“Okay.”
The third and fourth chairs now had their respective owners, and Quentin finally found time to communicate with the system.
“How much did each rise?” he asked.
System: “From the moment Yan Qiao actively spoke to you until he turned and left, it rose by 5%! Afterwards, during the conversation between Zhong Qu and you, the progress bar continued to rise by 3%! Host, the redemption progress bar of Main Character No. 1 has now reached 10.7%!”
“Congratulations, host! On the very first day of the show, you successfully redeemed 1/10 of Main Character No. 1! The efficiency is very high!”
Quentin rubbed his temples: “He should be a special case.”
After watching Team BKL’s stage performance, Quentin was basically certain that there was a 90% probability the Main Character No. 1 referred to Yan Qiao. Based on the appearance and comprehensive strength he displayed, he was destined to be a popular contestant with a strong fan base.
Unless Yan Qiao was later forced to withdraw from the competition by his company or the program team, or there was vote manipulation against him, this probability could be raised to 100%.
And based on these progress bar increases, Quentin could roughly guess the entanglements between Yan Qiao and Zhong Qu in the original book.
To accurately speculate on the tragedy that might have occurred in the original plot, one first had to envision an “if” line where “Quentin does not exist”.
Before coming to record “NS”, Quentin had watched the previous season’s girl group survival show at high speed. He also had the system compile materials such as the forum hot search overview during the girl group selection period, conflicts and controversies inside and outside the program, core topics of online public opinion, etc.
Even though he had never been exposed to survival shows or idol groups before, after this week of last-minute cramming, he had gained a relatively clear understanding of the various routines of survival show variety programs.
