Superstar Ch.48

Chapter 48: Pleasing to the Eye

As soon as Yang Yinping finished speaking, an eerie silence filled the hallway.

Already irritated and impatient, he had no interest in deciphering the subtle shifts in Xia Xize’s expression. Instead, he asked bluntly, “You don’t want to?”

With his lack of skill, no matter what arrangement they chose, he would just be carried through the performance.

What was there to refuse?

He had completely forgotten how, just two days ago, he had felt a sense of empathy for Xia Xize.

Xia Xize scoffed.

He could clearly see the contempt in Yang Yinping’s eyes, but he couldn’t be bothered to argue. Instead, he simply looked past him and called out—

“Xizhao.”

Yang Yinping’s entire body stiffened.

From the end of the hallway came a distant, slightly muffled response: “Hm?”

He turned his head and saw a slender figure, partially enveloped by the night.

The scene looked like a painting—

Or a long, slow-motion shot from a master director’s film.

For a brief moment, Yang Yinping forgot where he was.

But just seconds later, his pupils widened in shock.

Before Yang Yinping had a chance to stop him, Xia Xize had already opened his mouth.

“Xizhao—” He deliberately stretched out the syllables, then shot Yang Yinping a glance. “Yang Yinping says he wants to apologize to you.”

Not far away, Xie Xizhao, who had been walking toward them, suddenly paused.

Their eyes met, and for a split second, Yang Yinping wanted nothing more than to dig a hole in the ground and bury himself on the spot.

As Xie Xizhao approached, sweat gathered in Yang Yinping’s palms.

He wanted to say something, but then he caught the look in Xie Xizhao’s eyes.

There was no mockery, no ridicule—only a hint of weariness, as if exhaustion had seeped into his very bones.

“I heard you,” Xie Xizhao said. “It’s late at night. Are you trying to disturb the peace?”

Xia Xize let out an awkward chuckle.

At some point, without even realizing it, he had started acting differently in front of Xie Xizhao.

Yang Yinping felt an even deeper sense of unease.

Then, he heard Xie Xizhao continue, “It’s too late today. Here’s what we’ll do.”

“Let’s hold a quick meeting tomorrow,” he said. “We’ll talk then.”

—

And so, three days later, they all gathered in the same room once again.

Same practice room. Same people.

What had changed—was their mindset.

Xie Xizhao hadn’t been in the practice room for the past two days, so he had no idea what the others had been through. But Zou Yi and Yun Pan knew everything.

The latter found the whole situation incredibly childish. These people just had to learn things the hard way. Having spent much of his youth in bars and nightclubs, he had developed a sharp, instinctual sense of what he liked and disliked—and he had already lost interest in dealing with this group. Instead, he sat next to Xie Xizhao, doodling absentmindedly with a marker.

Meanwhile, Zou Yi recalled something Xie Xizhao had said before.

“If they mess up,” he had said, “they’ll come looking for me.”

Back then, Zou Yi had thought Xie Xizhao’s words were a bit too absolute. After all, for adults, pride was everything.

But now, he finally realized—perhaps an adult’s pride was still no match for Xie Xizhao’s ability to read people.

It wasn’t exactly terrifying.

Zou Yi just found it… impressive.

For Super Rookie to have a contestant this sharp and intelligent—it was an incredibly rare stroke of luck.

As they gathered again, everyone already knew what this meeting was about.

Xie Xizhao had no intention of spelling everything out. He simply said, “I talked to everyone privately about how the past two days of practice went. Someone suggested we hold another vote. First of all, does anyone have any objections?”

No one did.

Xi Kai glanced at Yang Yinping, looking thoughtful.

Yang Yinping kept his expression stiff, trying his best to appear unaffected. Meanwhile, Mu Wen—who had already heard everything from Xia Xize—twitched his lips, thinking that their group was truly something else.

Since there were no objections, they voted.

The result was unexpectedly unanimous.

6:0.

After collecting the ballots, Xie Xizhao said, “Thank you all for your trust. Over the next few days, we’ll begin practicing together.”

And with that—

The storm within Group A of the composition team finally came to an end.

Everyone threw themselves wholeheartedly into practice.

—

Even though they had already mentally prepared themselves—

Once they actually started training, they were once again hit with the full force of Xie Xizhao’s skill.

The part distribution needed no discussion.

Xie Xizhao had many lines, practically the default center position. But at the same time, he also took on the hardest sections of the song. Almost every technically challenging passage was assigned to him.

Secondly, Xie Xizhao had practically become the group’s vocal coach.

Xia Xize, of course, needed extra attention, but even Xi Kai and the other two were frequently drilled by him.

What surprised everyone the most was that even Zou Yi—who had always been regarded as exceptionally skilled—often found himself pulled aside for vocal training.

Yet, Zou Yi showed no signs of displeasure.

During a break, as he watched his teammates chatting nearby, Xie Xizhao joked, “Teacher Zou, have I been too harsh on you these past couple of days?”

He hadn’t intended to be strict.

It was just that once he took something seriously, his tone and attitude naturally became sharp.

Even if he didn’t mean to be harsh, his approach could still come across as intense.

Zou Yi shook his head. “Not at all.”

In fact, he was grateful.

Xie Xizhao had taught him more scientific vocal techniques, showed him how to hit high notes with ease, and explained how to seamlessly transition between chest and head voice.

For the others, Xie Xizhao focused on the basics. But with him, he paid attention to the smallest details.

Zou Yi was both grateful and a little unsettled.

He could tell that Xie Xizhao wasn’t naturally the type to be overly enthusiastic about teaching others. At the very least, he wouldn’t normally go out of his way to mentor someone so closely.

So… why?

The same question was soon asked aloud—by Ai Qingyuan.

Recently, Ai Qingyuan had been enjoying a rare period of relaxation.

Since he wasn’t in the same group as Xie Xizhao, he felt completely at ease.

Though he still had to practice dance, he had reclaimed his comfort zone.

And with nothing better to do, he had returned to his favorite hobby—gossiping about Xie Xizhao.

Xie Xizhao’s answer was simple. “Because he’s pleasing to the eye.”

Ai Qingyuan: …

“Then what about me?” he asked.

Ji Yan, standing nearby, immediately chimed in, “Yeah, what about me?”

Xie Xizhao: “…”

“You two are just too noisy.” He shut them down decisively with a single sentence.

Among everyone in the group, the only one Xie Xizhao rarely had any criticism for was Yun Pan.

Of course, no one was surprised.

It was only through Boundless Sea that the group finally realized how much their impression of Yun Pan had been influenced by his baby face. In reality, his voice was nothing like cotton candy, and his abilities were far from soft.

His voice had a unique huskiness, brimming with youthful energy—an innate match for a band’s style.

And the moment he focused on singing, that lingering timidity and hesitation in his demeanor completely vanished.

In its place was an exceptionally distinct charm.

Just as Xie Xizhao had pointed out: “The cute image actually limits your full potential.”

Yun Pan’s ears turned red at the compliment, and he even ran to the bathroom to calm himself down for fifteen minutes.

But when he stepped out of the bathroom, he ran straight into someone.

—

Xia Ruiyan had an unlit cigarette dangling from his lips.

Smoking wasn’t allowed in the show. But with the immense pressure, plenty of trainees still smoked in secret—so long as they avoided the cameras. Since this was a public area, Xia Ruiyan had no real intention of lighting up.

Standing in front of Yun Pan, he smiled, though the expression never reached his eyes. “You really don’t want to see me, huh?”

Yun Pan didn’t respond and simply tried to walk past him.

Xia Ruiyan placed an arm around his shoulder.

The cigarette remained clamped between his teeth, his posture lazy, but his grip was anything but gentle.

Yun Pan’s shoulder blade hit the cold tiles behind him. The impact sent a dull, icy pain through his shoulder, pressing against the old burn scar on his neck beneath his clothes.

He didn’t speak—just stared coldly at the person in front of him.

Xia Ruiyan suddenly chuckled.

“They say even a one-night couple shares a hundred days of affection,” Xia Ruiyan said. “Fake couples still count as couples, right? We played the act for two, three years—our fans practically think we’re secretly married. And this is how you treat me in private?”

He always had a habit of saying things like this.

In front of fans, he was affectionate and tender. Behind the scenes, he was nothing but mockery and disdain.

Yun Pan didn’t like the act either, but what he despised even more was Xia Ruiyan’s two-faced hypocrisy.

He took a deep breath and asked, “Did you need something?”

Xia Ruiyan stared at him, his smile fading.

In truth, he had only run into Yun Pan by chance.

It wasn’t as if he had anything important to say. He just couldn’t stand how Yun Pan had been clinging to Xie Xizhao these past few days, looking at him so eagerly.

That feeling…

Xia Ruiyan narrowed his eyes.

It was like losing a puppy that used to belong to him.

Not only did the puppy not come home, but it also wagged its tail and begged for affection from someone else.

In short, he did not like it. Not one bit.

He said, “Of course I have something.”

“I just came to see if all that eagerness earned you a few extra seconds of screentime.”

“Brother Xizhao isn’t like you,” Yun Pan replied.

Xia Ruiyan chuckled. “And what am I like?”

“Fake. Disgusting.” Yun Pan’s voice was quiet but firm. “A violent maniac.”

Xia Ruiyan’s expression darkened.

He stared at Yun Pan, a smile still lingering on his lips, but his eyes had gone ice-cold. “Say that again.”

“I said,” Yun Pan lifted his gaze, his tone steadier than ever, “Xia Ruiyan, you’re a fake, disgusting, violent—ah!”

A hand clamped around his throat.

The suffocating sensation crept over him, little by little.

Yun Pan shut his eyes.

Yet, in his heart, he had never felt calmer.

In the end, Xia Ruiyan didn’t actually strangle Yun Pan.

He was an extremely rational yet utterly insane person. Yun Pan had always known that.

For the sake of his own interests, Xia Ruiyan could gamble everything.

At the same time, he could also weigh the pros and cons and calm himself down in the shortest time possible.

He said, “Just you wait.”

“Go ahead and tell the company,” Yun Pan replied. “I still have three years left on my contract. As long as I debut, I’ll stay in the debut group for those three years. The company won’t have control over me.”

Xia Ruiyan let out a sharp laugh. “You think you can debut?”

“And why not?” Yun Pan countered.

Xia Ruiyan stared at him, his eyes frosty. “What are you going to debut with? Your pathetic ranking? You think you can compete with me?”

Wenyao wasn’t a small company, but it wasn’t powerful enough to force two debut spots.

Between him and Yun Pan, the worst outcome was that neither of them debuted. At best, only one of them would.

And now, Yun Pan was telling him—he wanted to debut too.

Xia Ruiyan didn’t say anything more. He just turned and walked away down the corridor.

Yun Pan remained where he was. The fleeting shyness from being praised earlier had completely vanished.

He crouched down, his collar brushing against the bruises on his neck. The pain made his eyes sting with tears.

Just as he squeezed his eyes shut, trying to force the tears back, a voice suddenly spoke beside him—

“Wipe your tears.”

Yun Pan jolted in shock.

He forgot about crying altogether and immediately looked up.

Sure enough, standing before him was someone he knew all too well.

And for once, the usual warmth in their eyes had faded, replaced by something else entirely.

Their face was expressionless.

—

Xie Xizhao truly hadn’t expected that the doubts he had temporarily set aside would be answered in such a moment.

At first, he had simply thought Yun Pan was taking a bit too long in the restroom.

On the other hand, he had also wanted to wash his hands.

But just as he reached the corner, he caught sight of Xia Ruiyan gripping Yun Pan’s neck and slamming him against the wall.

The scene was so shocking that for a brief instant, Xie Xizhao’s mind went completely blank. And in that mere half-second, Xia Ruiyan had already let go of Yun Pan.

Now, even the most oblivious person would realize—

The conflict between Yun Pan and Xia Ruiyan was far from ordinary.

Xie Xizhao looked at Yun Pan, unwilling to let things slide this time. He simply asked, “Back to the dorm?”

Yun Pan hesitated for a moment, then grasped Xie Xizhao’s arm to steady himself, grabbing some tissues as he followed behind.

He didn’t say a word the entire way.

Xie Xizhao didn’t speak either.

It was only when they passed the first floor that Xie Xizhao said, “Wait here for a second.”

He placed something in Yun Pan’s hand and turned into a hallway.

Yun Pan fumbled to catch what was handed to him, only to realize—

Xie Xizhao had given him two fruit-flavored soft candies.

Pressing his lips together, Yun Pan unwrapped one and placed it in his mouth. The sweetness slowly melted across his tongue.

Meanwhile, Xie Xizhao had already returned.

In his hand were two tubes of bruise ointment.

Amidst the noise and chatter around them, he said, “Let’s go.”

Yun Pan followed him back to the dorm.

As soon as Xie Xizhao shut the door, he said, “Sit down. I’ll put the medicine on for you.”

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**TN

Asking for a rating LINK (because the rating is too low, ahem)