Chapter 35: First Performance (8)
In the backstage lounge, all 101 trainees were seated according to their groups, with a live feed of the stage playing on the screen in front of them.
The first to be called onstage by the staff was the “Cheese” group. Everyone started cheering for the two teams, and quite a few offered personal encouragement to close friends.
For example, Li Xu, who was sitting in the front row, received good luck wishes from every single one of his roommates from Dorm 707 as he made his way out.
Liang Zhisheng grabbed Li Xu—who had just finished exchanging a few words with Xu An—and quickly reminded him, “Don’t forget the expression control you’ve been practicing so hard these past few days. The moment you walk through that door, you’re the most lovable kid in Dorm 707—alright, alright, don’t look at me like that. The sooner you go on stage, the sooner it’ll be over.”
“I know, I know.” Li Xu shook him off in mock impatience, though the upturned corners of his mouth betrayed his amusement—his expression looked more playful than annoyed.
Lai Yudong, having taken the whole exchange in, added with a smile, “Good luck.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Li Xu waved him off and left.
[Dorm 707 really has such great chemistry]
[Right? I ship the entire COC cast www]
[Don’t forget to include the honorary member, Zhou Rui]
—Wait, Zhou Rui was already considered an honorary member?
This was news to native resident Lai Yudong.
Still, during the week-long break between re-evaluation and the first performance announcement, Zhou Rui had been frequently popping into their dorm to chat or sit in on lessons. After a while, they got so used to his presence that their four-person dorm really started to feel like it had five people living in it.
A few minutes later, the two groups appeared at the center of the stage on-screen, standing on either side of Fu Hanyu.
Someone in the lounge commented, “Song Yanxi really has an eye for talent…”
“I wish I looked like them too.”
The Group A selected by Song Yanxi had the highest average visual appeal among all the teams—every face that flashed across the screen made people want to linger for a few extra seconds. As the center, Qu Xincheng elevated the group’s overall attractiveness to another level entirely.
In contrast, Group B—led by Yi Zhen as center—gave off strong “forced to perform” vibes. While this group’s visuals were slightly weaker, and there weren’t many conventionally good-looking members, that wasn’t the real issue. The main problem was that their overall aura just didn’t match the concept—they looked like they were wearing someone else’s costumes.
The official stage performance only amplified this mismatch. Even though Group B arguably had stronger skills, seeing a team of trainees who looked like they were dragged there against their will inevitably made viewers think, “Uhh… this doesn’t really suit them, huh?”
To make matters worse, after both teams finished performing and returned for their self-introductions, Group B turned the segment into a cringe-fest of secondhand embarrassment. Nicknames like “Steamed Little Bun Yi Zhen,” “Sweet and Sour Little Plum Li Xu,” and “Vanilla Ice Cream Wei Zhengbin” came flying out one after another.
[???]
[Master, please stop reading them out]
[Sometimes phoning it in a little is better for everyone involved]
[Crown Prince Qu, you’ve really caused chaos this time]
[At least the other nicknames were somewhat cute. What the hell is a “steamed little bun”?! You could’ve at least called him a “Wangzai Bun”!]
[But then it wouldn’t have the pun on “Zhen” in his name]
In the end, Group A won the match, and the trainee with the highest individual votes was Qu Xincheng.
Despite all the jokes and mockery, the voting results stirred debate in the bullet comments.
[Uh… the audience clearly voted based on looks. Group B was objectively better.]
[The Crown Prince lives up to his name]
[Personally, I think Yi Zhen deserved it more]
[Yi Zhen’s face is too mature and sharp—he’s not even as appealing as that red-haired younger guy. At least that one looks youthful, kind of uniquely cute.]
[Xiao Qu fits this song perfectly, and his live popularity is high too. If he didn’t win, that would’ve been the real scandal.]
From Lai Yudong’s perspective, he leaned toward agreeing with the live audience’s decision—Group A showcased the “cute” concept in a way that felt more natural. Watching them perform made your lips curve up without realizing it, like holding a piece of candy in your mouth—sweet and effortless.
That said, Li Xu really had done his best. His attempts at making cute expressions weren’t as painfully stiff as they had been in the past few days.
The next team up was the All Night group. Liang Zhisheng hadn’t even waited for Li Xu to return before being called away by staff for stage prep, leaving two empty seats in the row next to Lai Yudong.
This group had a noticeably uneven skill distribution.
During the member selection stage, leftover F-class trainee Shen Bo was added to Group A, which ended up consisting of one A-class member, five B-class, and one more F-class. Among the B-class trainees was Cheng Jinghao, who had previously lost a battle to Qu Junwei on the initial stage. And, fittingly enough, the center position went to none other than Qu Junwei, a dual-A Class trainee.
The one with selection privileges was Du Yongguan from F-class. When Su Junzhe drew his name in the lottery, Du Yongguan went completely blank on the spot. In his daze, he accidentally picked both Qu Junwei and Cheng Jinghao, which led to a déjà vu situation where the two ended up fighting over the center position again—tinged with a trace of awkwardness.
As for Group B, they were the eighth team to form. Besides Pei Lan, who was from B-class, all the others were C-class trainees. The twist? Pei Lan was a natural talent type who had only been training for three months.
Although Group B had fierce arguments on day one over part assignments, their quarrel was focused on who would be main vocalist and main rapper. When it came to the demanding center position, they were surprisingly indifferent.
In the end, Liang Zhisheng and Pei Lan were nominated as center candidates. Liang voluntarily withdrew from the race, allowing Pei Lan to take the spot without issue.
[This group’s styling and aesthetics are so Hong Kong retro!]
[Pei Lan looks too good in that outfit—model proportions for the win, prprpr]
[Ooh ooh! I love retro disco vibes]
The voting results came as no surprise—Group A won their match with a clear advantage, and the highest individual vote count went to Qu Junwei.
The third performance was by the “Dormant Fireflies” group.
As the 13th and 14th teams to be picked, both groups lacked standout skill and had trainees ranked in the lower tiers of popularity. With no drama or star power to market, the production team didn’t invest much in their stage setup—set design and effects were practically nonexistent.
In the end, Group B narrowly clinched the win by just a few votes.
“——Fairyland group, please head backstage to prepare.”
With that single sentence from a staff member, the entire break room erupted into excited noise. The reason? This sensual, sexy concept song required the performers to lift their shirts and show off abs.
Luo Feiran turned to the standing members of Group A and teased, “Wang Yiwen, did you get your abs in shape?”
“…Don’t say that out loud!”
The room burst into laughter as Wang Yiwen’s face turned bright red.
His teammate Bai Xuanhe threw an arm around his shoulders and steered him toward the door, helping him save face with a joking comment: “Don’t worry, we all wore muscle suits—equal treatment for everyone.”
[Who can relate? That little pull from Bai Xuanhe was so Aaaaah]
[How is he both suave and hilarious?]
Lai Yudong watched as Bai Xuanhe led Group A away. The other trainee had left a deep impression on everyone with his sheer ability—after all, he was the only dark horse who had jumped from C-class all the way up to A-class.
Back when they were voting for the initial center, Liang Zhisheng had speculated that maybe he just liked Bai Xuanhe’s type—after all, at first glance, both of them seemed to have that cold and aloof vibe. But it turned out, neither of them truly fit that category.
The Fairyland Group A had an extremely strong lineup. Bai Xuanhe was the center, and the other six members were all from B-class—including dance ace Jin Xiheng.
This mature and sexy concept heavily tested both dance technique and stage presence. Even something as seemingly simple as a body wave could reveal the gap between trainees—some made it look effortless and irresistibly seductive, while others ended up looking like wriggling worms or someone with a dislocated shoulder, unintentionally hilarious.
Showing off abs was another minefield. Forget how many packs someone actually had—if their performance presence was lacking, the result could end up looking like a tipsy uncle drunkenly lifting his tank top to flash his belly. A total eyesore.
That’s exactly why Lai Yudong had been dead set against choosing this song—he’d rather dance the tap-dance-level choreography of Peppermint any day.
Thank goodness they hadn’t picked it. With their group’s composition, the stage might’ve turned into a full-on chaotic mess.
After both Fairyland teams exchanged their obligatory trash talk and exited the stage, the Group A’s practice footage began playing. While that aired, the staff finished setting up the stage. When the lights came up again, the seven members of Group A stood with their backs to the camera, each frozen in place like fashion models striking a pose.
“Bai Xuanhe’s physique is insane. Those legs, that waist, those broad shoulders…” Liang Zhisheng sighed enviously as he returned to the lounge. “If I had to stand next to him, I’d probably die on the spot.”
The music started. The first camera shot was a close-up of center Bai Xuanhe. The black-haired boy wore a silky shirt and timed his turn perfectly to the beat, locking eyes with the camera. He bit his lip lightly, then lazily curled up one corner of his mouth—exuding the aura of a poised predator ready to hunt, radiating raw, aggressive charm.
The lounge exploded in excitement.
“Bai Xuanhe’s killing it!”
“He’s got the vibe now!”
“I’m calling it—this is gonna be Brother Xuanhe’s breakout moment.”
“Our Xuanhe is too handsome!”
As both the dance and rap lead, Bai Xuanhe’s bad-boy looks and lazy sensuality meshed perfectly with the concept. Every movement radiated a mature, magnetic charm.
The moment that truly brought the house down was the highly anticipated ab-reveal. All seven members lifted the hems of their shirts up to their chests and bit down on a corner of the fabric, revealing firm, sculpted abs.
“OHHHHHH!!!”
“Abs! Are those real abs?!”
“They’re really just showing everything, huh?!”
Liu Qichu and the rest of the hype crew literally leapt out of their seats, pointing at the screen and screaming in chaos at the sight of all that on display.
Su Junzhe covered his face with both hands, peeking through his fingers.
[This group is made up entirely of male deities, prprpr]
[First it was Song Yanxi picking by looks, now it’s Bai Xuanhe picking by body]
[How did Bai Xuanhe pick his teammates?! Does he have x-ray vision? Or did he observe everyone while they showered?!]
[I think it was a blind guess—Wang Yiwen’s abs look drawn on lmao]
[Surprisingly, the whole thing wasn’t even greasy]
[Am I the only one obsessed with the biting-the-shirt part? Bai Xuanhe and Jin Xiheng’s bites were so suggestive, while a few others chomped down on so much fabric they looked like hostages with gags in their mouths]
From start to finish, the stage had overwhelming energy. By the time they struck their ending pose, the audience reaction was thunderous. People were furiously pressing the voting buttons, so immersed that they completely forgot the official voting hadn’t even started yet.
Even though it was the same song, the later-performing Group B just couldn’t match up. Not only did they fail to create any kind of sensual atmosphere, but most of the members didn’t even have visible abs—so when they lifted their shirts, it turned into exactly what Lai Yudong had described earlier: uncles showing off beer bellies.
Unsurprisingly, Group A won the match, and Bai Xuanhe took first place in individual votes.
While clapping, Liang Zhisheng turned his head and muttered, “Bai Xuanhe wasn’t the highest-ranked in that group, right?”
Lai Yudong thought for a moment. “No, he wasn’t.”
Bai Xuanhe was ranked 27th. The group actually had two members within the top 20, but the second-highest vote earner in this performance wasn’t either of them—it was Jin Xiheng, ranked 36th.
Lower-ranked members had completely overshadowed the higher-ranked ones, and by a large margin too.
At this rate, the first ranking reveal next week was likely to bring massive shake-ups.
The fifth performance was Charging Up!, featuring Liu Qichu’s Group A versus Yin Zizhen’s Group B.
At first, it seemed like “cool guy” Yin Zizhen wouldn’t match the energetic, cheerful vibe of the song. But the moment he stepped onstage, he shattered that stereotype himself. Dressed in overalls and bouncing around the stage, he looked like he’d been possessed by Liu Qichu from the opposing team. Even the “mom-fans” in the audience couldn’t help but soften—there was affection in their eyes.
In the end, Yin Zizhen singlehandedly widened the gap in votes, leading Group B to victory.
At this point, only two songs were left to be performed—both deliberately scheduled by the production team as the “traffic magnets” of the show.
The finale groups: Spring Colors and the explosive Peppermint.