DYUTVOBGA Chapter 83

How to compare? How could they possibly compare!

In the backstage lounge, the trainees stared at the slowly rotating stage on the screen, their hearts filled with a mix of conflicting emotions.

They thought they had already overestimated Quentin enough, yet this person could still be even more amazing…

There’s no justice in the world!

Frustration, admiration, relief, melancholy… all sorts of complex emotions churned and intertwined within them, finally converging into enthusiastic applause.

“Quentin can actually rap too, and the key is he sings it so well. He’s too low-key!”

“Actually, he mentioned he could rap during his initial stage performance, but no one expected him to be this good…”

“His rap was indeed great, but the most outstanding part of this performance was clearly their team’s stage effects. The audience was so cooperative; as soon as Quentin beckoned, they started singing along. Are they that supportive?!”

“I want to give it a try too…”

“Try and you’ll die trying…”

Almost all the trainees had enjoyed the stage performance of Quentin’s team, except for Bi Xiao’s team, who were about to go onstage from the opposite side.

The soundproofing at the venue wasn’t great. During Quentin’s group’s performance, Bi Xiao and the others could roughly hear the amplified sounds from the speakers, overlapping and somewhat muffled.

They could tell the song sounded good, but due to their position, the reception was poor, so any song would sound noisy and chaotic from behind the stage. So, the feeling for Bi Xiao’s team was… It sounds good, but not that good. We can do this!

As they thought things like “I’m the man who’s going to challenge Quentin!”, “Hmph, what does Quentin know about rap”, “No matter what, the advantage is ours” and other such thoughts, the stage gradually rotated. The seven boys took deep breaths and smiled under the bright spotlight.

The performance… begins!

On the other side, after the stage rotated, Quentin’s team, who had descended from the stairs on the side, were getting their makeup touched up with the help of the staff.

Quentin slightly bent over and closed his eyes, feeling the brush and powder puff gently patting his face.

“You guys must be hot, wearing such thick clothes. Your faces are all sweaty.”

“Ah, Xiao Xue, your face is all red from the heat, even the foundation can’t cover it.”

“Xiao Xue is still okay. Look at Tang Heng, his collar is soaked through, and he’s still wrapped in such thick cloth. Isn’t it stuffy?”

The other makeup artists chatted casually, but the girl touching up Quentin’s makeup remained silent, only her movements becoming increasingly gentle, as if she were wiping an expensive and fragile piece of porcelain.

After a minute, Quentin heard the girl’s tiny voice. “All done…”

He opened his eyes and met the gaze of the girl who was two heads shorter than him. It wasn’t the older sister who did his stage makeup earlier; she was probably a newcomer transferred from the headquarters.

Quentin straightened up: “Thank you, you’ve worked hard.”

The girl stared at his face longingly and shook her head, replying softly, “It was not hard at all.”

She thought to herself, the chance to touch up Quentin’s makeup was something she had traded for by treating the entire makeup team to coffee. How could it be hard?

But, seeing him up close, Quentin’s skin was really amazing, there were no signs of any cosmetic procedures at all, a naturally handsome guy. Those photos online didn’t capture his beauty fully. You really had to see him in person to know such divine beauty existed in the world.

And Quentin’s stage presence is so good too. Just now, while she was sitting on the side watching the performance, her colleagues all expressed their regret. How could they have traded the chance to touch up Quentin’s makeup for just a cup of coffee?! Ai, as big glutton girls, they were just too weak-willed!

The makeup artist touching up Xue Mingzhu’s makeup also happened to finish up.

She closed the compact lid, turned her head to look at Quentin standing quietly waiting to go onstage, then looked at the dazed little girl in front of Quentin.

She blinked and subtly moved a step closer. “You’re done? Do you need any help?”

The woman looked earnestly at the hooded boy not far away, smiling and extending a hand: “Quentin’s ear cuff seems a bit crooked. Let me help you adjust it.”

“No, no need!” The girl, who was daydreaming a moment ago, suddenly snapped back to reality, and hurriedly stopped her colleague. “Sister Lin, I can do it. You, you go attend to your own work first.”

“Ai, guarding him so strictly…” Sister Lin withdrew her hand regretfully, and slowly moved back to her original spot under the girl’s nervous gaze.

‘Hehe, this little girl is so fun to tease.’

However, as soon as she looked up, she met Xue Mingzhu’s strange gaze. Before she could react, she heard the boy ask in a thoughtful yet somewhat wary tone.
“Are you the weird auntie who likes little boys that people talk about online?”

The smile on the woman’s face gradually faded: “… Heh.”

‘Who are you calling auntie,you rude brat!’

*

“Alright, voting time is over. Now, let’s welcome the performance team from the previous stage…Quentin, Xue Mingzhu, Yang Siyi, Sheng Yuanxu, Qiao Xue, Zhuang Nao, Tang Heng!”

Qin Miao stood in the center of the stage, slightly turned towards the left side, and raised a hand in a signal: “Let’s give them a round of applause!”

The seven scavengers investigators wearing post-apocalyptic style performance outfits and the seven adventurers in Western knight attire stood on either side of Qin Miao.

The styles of the two teams’ outfits were two extremes: the right side was excessively gorgeous and exquisite, while the left side was dusty and worn, and with dull and dark colors.

But if one had to say which team had a stronger presence, undoubtedly, the Fire Seed investigators from the apocalypse completely crushed the luxurious and pleasure-seeking noble knights.

The keyword for Bi Xiao’s team was originally “Adventure Island,” but their stage had little to do with adventure.

Their main background story roughly told of a knight troop that successfully captured thieves, returned in great triumph, was pursued and adored by everyone in the town and the royal palace, and finally received official titles and nobility, becoming the king’s most trusted noble knight troop.

Compared to the first and second teams with the “Graduation Season” theme, Bi Xiao’s team’s stage was indeed more carefully crafted. Many of the formations and detailed designs clearly showed they had repeated communication with the program team and constantly improved, and the completeness of the song’s lyrics and composition was also commendable.

Their team also had two members skilled in original creation. Oh, forgot to mention,
Liao Fei was on their team.

Unfortunately, with the flawless jade preceding them, no matter how excellent their performance, it couldn’t withstand the power of the white moonlight.

Even setting aside stage effects and song quality, just in terms of thematic significance, “Fire Seed” could trample “Knight’s Medal” into the ground.

But these were not issues the 14 trainees on stage needed to consider for the moment.

“Before this round’s mini game PK, let’s have the members of both teams introduce themselves, starting with the Fire Seed team.”

Qiao Xue was closest to Qin Miao. He took the microphone with his right hand, raised his left hand, clenched it into a fist, and pressed it against his heart, saying seriously, “Fire Seed Team, Investigator No. 5, Qiao Xue, greetings to you.”

The next boy who took the microphone grinned and said, “Fire Seed Team, Investigator No. 4, Sheng Yuanxu, wishing you good health!”

Then, one by one from right to left.
“Fire Seed Team, Investigator No. 3, Yang Siyi, wishing for world peace!”

“Fire Seed Team, Investigator No. 1, Quentin, may you have no worries about food and clothing.”

“Fire Seed Team, Investigator No. 2, Xue Mingzhu, wishing your family happiness and joy!”

“Fire Seed Team, Investigator No. 6, Zhuang Nao, wishing you make a fortune every year!”

“Fire Seed Team, Investigator No. 7, Tang Heng, hoping you are never alone!”

When the last person finished, the audience’s feedback was exceptionally enthusiastic. Although the words were symmetrical and rhyming, making it sound like holiday greetings, everyone loves to hear nice words. The key was that this team’s performance was great, the boys’ looks ranged from top-tier handsome to moderately handsome, their presentation was excellent, and not a single one was ugly.

Qin Miao smiled as he took back the microphone, teasing, “Was this prepared in advance, or improvised on the spot?”

Qiao Xue turned to look at the team leader, then turned back with a slight smile, “We discussed it beforehand to just say whatever onstage as long as we don’t repeat ourselves.”

“I can tell from the audience’s loud applause that they are very satisfied with these blessings, right?”

The audience chimed in together in support: “Yes!”

Qin Miao smiled, her eyes curving: “Okay, now it’s the turn of our Knight Team. Starting with Liao Fei.”

The self-introductions on stage were still ongoing. Down below, a few of Quentin’s fans who had coincidentally ended up sitting together were holding their light sticks, whispering.

“Quentin is definitely going to win this round, right? I just observed the voting after both teams performed. There was a huge sea of blue light, it felt like there were barely any red voting machines lit up.”

“Aside from the other team’s fans, no one would choose the other team over Quentin, right? Not to be harsh, but the gap is too obvious.”

“Not necessarily. A lot of Qi Yang and Wen Xinyi’s fans are here too. I bet they’d rather abstain than vote for Quentin.”

“Are they that hateful?…That can’t be.”

“The vote difference hasn’t widened yet, giving them the illusion that their own rankings can surpass Quentin. I don’t get how one who can’t sing or dance and one with uncoordinated limbs can compare to an all-round ace. Tsk, so annoying.”

“Hey hey, stop chatting. That team finished introducing themselves. They’re about to start the game!”

Under Qin Miao’s guidance, staff members carried a gashapon machine onto the stage.

“Let’s see what mini game the two teams will be challenging this round. Let’s invite the team leaders from both teams to come forward for rock-paper-scissors. The winner comes to draw the game.”

“Okay…looks like Quentin won by a narrow margin. Quentin, come press the gashapon machine.”

Quentin stared at the red ball rolling out of the gashapon machine’s exit. He took out the ball, twisted it open with a click, then pulled out the folded card hidden inside and unfolded it.

“Quentin, please read the rules.”

Qin Miao raised the microphone close to his mouth.

He looked down at the card and read: “‘Relay Princess Carry.’ Game rules: Each team selects one ‘princess.’ Within five minutes, team members take turns carrying the princess to perform squats. The team with the highest number of squats wins.”

The audience: “(☆▽☆) Wow!!”

Qin Miao coughed twice: “Mmm, it’s a very interesting little game, but it really tests everyone’s physical strength. Let me repeat the rules of our game PK for everyone…The winning side can finally add 10 votes on top of their original vote count. So take the game seriously. Don’t think 10 votes aren’t much; they can decide the final victory when the vote counts between the two teams are close.”

Quentin returned to his team with the card. Looking up, he saw all six teammates staring at him in unison: “… What’s wrong?”

His teammates shook their heads together: “Nothing.”

Quentin hummed in acknowledgment:”Let’s discuss who to choose first.”

“‘Princess carry squats’…I tried it before when I was a student athlete.” Xue Mingzhu pondered for a few seconds, then said, “If it’s a relay timed contest for quantity, we need to think carefully about who is most suitable to be the one being carried. Preferably someone with a lighter weight.”

Sheng Yuanxu looked left and right: “Our weights should all be about the same, right?”

There was no particularly muscular one in their team, let alone any who were overweight. All were around 1.8 meters tall, slim and tall boys. It was indeed hard to judge who was lighter just by looking.

Qiao Xue recalled for a few seconds: “I weighed myself in the dorm building a couple of days ago, I was around 130 pounds.”

Sheng Yuanxu:”Oh, what a coincidence, me too.”

Tang Heng:”Then I seem a bit heavier, 135 pounds for me.”

Zhuang Nao:”I’m 137.”

Xue Mingzhu frowned:”I’m 125. But I definitely can’t be the one carried. I’m stronger than you guys.”

“How do you know you’re stronger?”Sheng Yuanxu looked over skeptically, “I’ve never lost an arm wrestling match since I was a kid.”

“I’m naturally strong,and I used to practice volleyball.” Xue Mingzhu looked exasperated:”Besides, why would I lie to you? I want to win too. We can’t start arm wrestling now, wouldn’t that cause internal consumption before the PK even begins?”

Sheng Yuanxu was half-convinced, half-doubtful: “Alright then… Quentin, how much do you weigh?”

Quentin replied: “About the same as Xue Mingzhu, also 125 pounds.”

“Huh?!”Xue Mingzhu looked over in surprise, quickly scanning him up and down, “Damn, you weigh the same as me? Don’t you work out? Your muscles have no weight?”

Sheng Yuanxu glanced at him, the corner of his mouth twitching: “Xiao Xue, do you know there’s a term called ‘body fat percentage’?”

Tang Heng, who had sneaked over at some point, chimed in abruptly: “Quentin has a small head, a small frame, and a slim waist, so he’s light even with muscle.”

“My waist isn’t thick either, and what does a man need a slim waist for?” Xue Mingzhu muttered while reaching out to wrap an arm around Quentin’s waist, “Let me see how slim… Hmm, okay, it is quite slim indeed.”

Quentin remained expressionless: “So, have you all decided?”

“Ahem! Fire Seed investigators, why are you already discussing before we’ve even started? Line up properly, stand in a row, don’t huddle together.”

Qin Miao came over to disperse the group. After both teams returned to their initial left and right line-up states, she went back to the center: “OK, so next, let’s first decide who the ‘princess’ of each team will be.”
She turned her head, smiling brightly at Quentin and the others: “Fire Seed Team, who is your ‘princess’?”

Quentin, who was holding the microphone handed to him, was just about to say they needed to discuss it further, when the audience down below, who had been eagerly watching, gave the answer first.
“Quentin!Quentin!!!”

“Quentin, ahhhhhhh!!!”

“Choose Quentin! Choose Quentin! Choose Quentin!”

The heart-wrenching screams stunned the trainees and guests on stage. Later on, there were even over a dozen fans holding light sticks and hand banners shouting in unison, leading Quentin fans sitting in various corners of the venue to join in.

Actually, fans of other trainees in the team were also shouting. Those girls wearing red chick hairbands were yelling Xue Mingzhu’s name, along with fans from Sheng Yuanxu’s livestreams, drama fans of Qiao Xue, etc., all were calling out names.

But the Little Butterflies(Quentin’s fans) were numerous and loud, forcefully roaring with the momentum of a thousand troops. Sigh, can’t beat that, can’t beat that.

The person, whose name was being called by so many people at once, was still a bit dazed. His green eyes were wide open, scanning over the dense crowd below in confusion, as if trying to find out which girl had let out that earth-shattering shout.

Xue Mingzhu, who was standing next to him, seized the opportunity. He tilted his head close to the microphone and raised his eyebrows, smiling in a roguish, carefree manner as he said: “We’ll listen to you. Our team’s princess is Quentin.”

“Ahhhhhhhh!”

“Good!!!”

“Tsk tsk, so loud. Quentin, do you have anything to say?”

Xue Mingzhu turned his head to look at Quentin. He was already close to the microphone, and the microphone was held in Quentin’s hand. So when he turned his head now, he almost kissed Quentin on the face.

Fortunately, he reacted quickly, leaning his neck back and averting a “tragedy” from happening in front of everyone.

Quentin didn’t see any problem with it. Whoever was chosen was fine. He hadn’t done much strength training at the gym recently, and his own strength wasn’t that great anyway. He wouldn’t act tough about something like this.

So he maintained his calm expression, and wasn’t startled by the screams from the audience anymore: “I’m fine with anything. What do you all think?”

His teammates beside him had long been unable to hold back, each one trying harder than the last to suppress their smile.

Hehehe,they were going to princess-carry Quentin~~

Ahem,hold back, I can’t show happiness too obviously. We still have dignity to maintain.

Sheng Yuanxu put on a serious face: “I think it’s okay.”

Tang Heng gave a thumbs-up with a straight face:”Agreed.”

Yang Siyi nodded with a profound expression:”Approved.”

Zhuang Nao, who saw through everything, thought inwardly: Hmph. Pretend, just keep pretending!

On the other side, Bi Xiao’s team had also chosen their “princess”: Liao Fei, the shortest and lightest in the team.

Although Liao Fei himself wasn’t very willing, under the persuasion of his teammates around him, he reluctantly agreed.

Qin Miao walked to the side of the stage, leaving the spacious central area for the two teams: “Alright, now both sides are ready. I’ll count down from 3, and the game officially begins. The timer is five minutes. Please pay attention to the time.”

She cleared her throat and dragged out the count.

“3…”

“2…”

“1…”

“The timer starts!”