Chapter 7

Over the past few days, apart from the physical and mental exhaustion of having to meet with the captain every so often, Qiao Huan had found himself actually starting to enjoy being a trainee.

The daily training was just as Jiang Ji had described: dance in the morning, vocals in the afternoon, and etiquette and culture classes at night. The routine was so regular that Qiao Huan sometimes felt as though he were back at school.

Except that none of his roommates were quite normal...

For instance, he was standing in the dance practice room now.

He was already five minutes late, which was pretty outrageous by trainee standards.

Yet none of his roommates had shown up.

After watching them for a few days, he had figured out their daily routines.

Right now, Zhuo Yang was surely working out in the outdoor fitness area under the scorching sun, while Ye Yiwei was surely tidying up the dorm.

As for Bai Jike... he was probably secretly playing on his computer in the dorm again.

Qiao Huan couldn't understand how a kid who was only nineteen could be so addicted to the internet.

"Ah, as expected of Senior Shi's middle school classmate. He really does have an advantage," a male trainee drawled. "Here we are, working ourselves to death, and look at him. He's practically asleep."

This trainee was called Wei Teng. Over the past few days, he had gathered a little clique to needle Qiao Huan both openly and behind his back.

Qiao Huan looked down at himself.

He had just gone up to the rooftop to complete his daily basic training as an undercover agent, and he was currently lying down to stretch. He did look a little... excessively like a salted fish.

"Exactly. What's that saying about how when one person attains the Dao, even his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven?" another trainee chimed in. "Look how happy Qiao Huan's roommates are, too. They play when they want and do their own thing when they want. I'm so jealous."

"If I were Brother Zhou's classmate, I'd have let everyone in our intake do whatever they wanted ages ago! What's being five minutes late?"

This gossip had been spreading more and more over the past few days, but Qiao Huan hadn't expected it to affect his roommates, too.

But as for him, how should he put it? He just...

Didn't care at all.

"All right, I'm here." UPE's captain and main dancer walked in. "Have you learned all of yesterday's moves? We'll dance through them together today. It's a surprise test."

"We're ready!" the trainees immediately answered in unison.

The trainees had just lined up when Zhuo Yang, Ye Yiwei, and Bai Jike rushed into the room.

"Late again?" The UPE captain looked displeased.

"Sorry." Zhuo Yang grinned. "Are we having an in-class test today?"

"Yes. Brother Dahai has come to watch, too. He's right at the back."

Everyone turned to see Pei Dahai and Tao Zhenting standing at the back, both expressionless and looking rather stern.

Only then did Qiao Huan realize how important this "in-class assessment" was. After all, the instructors' likes and dislikes were nothing to fear. Pei Dahai and Tao Zhenting were the ones who truly called the shots.

"We'll go one row at a time. You four are last," the captain said succinctly.

Qiao Huan saw Wei Teng and several trainees in the front row exchange a hostile look.

Something's brewing...

Sure enough, the music started the next second.

Qiao Huan frowned.

This wasn't the music he had practiced to yesterday.

The trainees in the front row began to dance, and their moves were ones he had never seen before, either.

Qiao Huan turned to look at his three roommates.

They wore the same expressions as him.

A mixture of confusion and a hint of disdain.

"Brother Qiao Huan, everyone decided last night to change the dance segment. They changed both the accompaniment and the moves. Did Brother Wei and the others not tell you?" A trainee in the front row turned around to inform him. "If they really didn't, should I ask Mr. Pei to let the four of you perform a little later?"

The trainee was thin and frail, and one of the few who hadn't joined Wei Teng in picking on them.

But Qiao Huan politely declined the offer, concealing the turmoil inside him as he said casually, "No need, thank you."

The music playing now had an extremely fast beat, and the moves were much more complicated, utterly different from what Qiao Huan had practiced before.

The trainees in the first two rows were drenched in sweat by the time they finished. After the frail trainee's row also finished without a hitch, Pei Dahai stood up.

Watching them had given him something of a headache.

He had thought there might be a few promising talents among the trainees he had handpicked, but now it seemed that people born for the stage were truly hard to come by.

There was nothing wrong with their moves. He had heard the song dozens of times, after all; it was a required practice piece for Star Radiance's trainees.

But their dancing was completely devoid of spark.

Although boy groups had fewer and fewer opportunities to perform onstage these days, and dancing ability seemed increasingly unimportant, he was still very traditional at heart. He dearly hoped for a stage performance that would be remembered for a hundred... never mind, one remembered for a few years would be good enough.

But he hadn't really come to watch dance training today for these trainees.

Jiang Ji had come to him last night with an idea.

He was here to see whether that idea had any potential.

Only then did Pei Dahai look at the group of four. First he looked puzzled, then displeased.

"You... why do you look like that?"

The trainees in the front rows immediately snickered.

They were wearing new practice clothes and full makeup, clearly prepared for today's in-class test.

But as for how the four were dressed...

Qiao Huan had on the cardigan he always wore, with a very casual short-sleeved athletic shirt underneath. He had accidentally tugged at the collar while stretching earlier, exposing most of his collarbone.

Zhuo Yang and Ye Yiwei had rushed over, so their hair was already a mess, and the backs of their shirts were soaked with sweat.

Bai Jike wore his ever-present long-sleeved shirt, covering himself up from head to toe. If nobody said otherwise, one might have thought he was here for work.

Pei Dahai's confusion was written all over his face. "Can you dance?"

Before Qiao Huan could speak, Wei Teng answered for him. "Brother Dahai, those four are the best dancers."

"That's right. They can dance well without much practice. They're pure naturals."

Pei Dahai had a rough idea of what was going on. He waved a hand. "Forget it."

The frail trainee hesitated. "Brother Dahai, they really have been rather busy these past few days. How about—"

"No need." Qiao Huan cut him off.

All the trainees instantly fixed their gazes on the four of them.

"I can dance right now," Qiao Huan said confidently. Then he looked at the three beside him. "What about you?"

[Sorry, your post cannot be displayed due to national policies and other reasons.]

Shi Xingzhou stared at the glaring words on the screen and spat in disgust.

What the hell?

Early the morning after receiving the villain's refund, Shi Xingzhou had decided to take matters into his own hands, only for every post he made to be deleted.

At last, his patience ran out. He picked up his phone and switched on a voice changer. "What exactly is your department playing at? Why were my posts deleted again?"

"May I ask which posts you're referring to, ma'am?"

The Green Petal Network moderation department's customer service representative spoke in a businesslike tone. She received more than eight hundred calls like this a day and was used to them.

"Numbers 28189Q, 84759A, and 81724F!" Shi Xingzhou roared.

"Ma'am, please calm down..." The representative hadn't initially thought anything of it, but she immediately sat up straight. "What?"

Then, without waiting for Shi Xingzhou to continue, she said, "Ma'am, the posts you made concerned a very sensitive topic. That's why they were deleted."

"What the hell?" Shi Xingzhou frowned. "How is it sensitive?"

"Uh... the waters run deep. You're better off not knowing." At last, a ripple of emotion entered the representative's voice.

Oh my god, that scared me to death!

At the morning meeting, her supervisor had called her over specifically to put her in charge of moderating the keyword "Qiao Huan," and it was the chief of the criminal police corps himself who had come to speak to them about it!

She only vaguely remembered her best friend saying she had watched this person's livestream. She had assumed he was just some ordinary idol, but the moment she saw what this caller had posted about him, she was stunned.

First of all!

Qiao Huan was seriously good-looking!

Second!

Qiao Huan's backing... was way too powerful!

The posts covered all sorts of things, making him sound like some legendary second-generation underworld heir.

And yet the person who had come to speak to their moderators was none other than the chief of the criminal investigation corps!

Was this the legendary ability to walk unchallenged through both the underworld and the lawful world?

It really can't be spoken of, can't be spoken of!

When Shi Xingzhou got no response, he persisted. "I'm better off not knowing? How deep are these waters? Could they be deeper than mine..."

Before the crown prince could finish his threat, the other party hung up.

"Fuck."

After the representative hung up on him, Shi Xingzhou sneered for a long while.

It was only because he couldn't reveal his true identity and background.

Otherwise, how would a mere customer service representative dare delete his posts?

What a joke.

Fortunately, he always had a backup plan.

The surprise dance test should have started by now, right?

At the thought, a smile appeared on Shi Xingzhou's face, and he opened his phone.

Oh, Qiao Huan, Qiao Huan. The internet moderators may all be helping you, but Pei Dahai has spent so many years fighting his way through the entertainment industry. His eye is razor-sharp.

Later, he would edit footage of Qiao Huan stumbling through the dance into his debut video. He'd make a perfect contrast.

Even if that guy Qiao Huan can sing a few lousy songs, it's all thanks to the voice he was born with. He's got decent natural talent, but his dancing should be a joke...

What?!

Shi Xingzhou looked at his unread messages and suddenly felt a chill run from head to toe.

[Wei Teng: Brother Starship! They danced!]

[Wei Teng: They're about to dance!]

Author's note:

Captain: So you want to provoke Shi Xingzhou, huh? This is all I can do for you, my son!

Qiao Huan: Okay, but to be polite, I'll invite the other three from 404 to dance with me.

The three: Oh my god, Qiao Huan even brought us along for a face-slapping opportunity like this. We're so touched!!!