Dad, Please Let Me Stan Only You!

Flash Dance's scheduled classes were unhurried, with a high degree of freedom.

There were two major classes in the morning, starting at seven and ending at twelve thirty.

The afternoon was the same, starting at one thirty and ending at five thirty.

With a total of nine hours of training, contestants could freely choose their classes and could also shorten or extend their training time.

Chu Wangshu's vocal foundation was equally poor, and she had never encountered a dance style like Candy. Her training plan was therefore extremely detailed, showing the same seriousness she had when she had just entered high school and filled sheets of paper with study plans.

Chu Yuanqing watched her daughter's gradually vanishing back, feeling somewhat melancholy. Her expression was dim, and in her world-weary eyes were both confusion and relief.

Years later, flowing light surfaced.

She suddenly remembered that one lyric from a song whose name she had forgotten: love was difficult to speak of when kept in the heart.

Chu Yuanqing had once possessed the spirit of youth. She still remembered the courage to embrace thorns, and the resolve to trade her life for the lives of disaster beasts.

How dull that lyric would have seemed back then. How could a brave warrior who could endure hundreds of millions of deaths be too timid to even speak her true feelings?

But later, she learned that it really was like that.

Saving the world was nothing remarkable. She still could never hold the person she loved again. She still had to carefully calculate every expense at the market and smile apologetically while haggling with an aunt holding celery.

She still fumbled her way through changing her daughter's diapers and panicked helplessly when she was sick. She still bowed and apologized to others at work, as if she had no pride at all.

It was the same now.

She could not say it, nor could she say it.

So she could only remain silent and numb, like an irresponsible father.

So only after changing into another identity could she speak to her daughter at ease, like a thief hidden in a prosperous nation, coveting someone else's radiance.

"Xiao Shu, you have to become the moon."

Chu Yuanqing murmured softly. Her lips curved faintly as she cast aside distracting thoughts, turned, and left, leaving only the old shadow of yesterday standing there.

Recommending a good friend's book!

Synopsis: "I, Hikigaya, am a legendary agent, a big shot in the Association, a mysterious magnate, one of the Five Emperors of the Oceans, and the nemesis of the strange."

"I have five younger female cousins, one biological younger sister, one childhood sweetheart, two ex-girlfriends, one adorable junior, and one beautiful girl colleague, but nobody likes me. I am a complete loser."

The mundane and the mysterious gradually became intertwined. Though lost and uncertain, we continued onward.

Cthulhu descended upon New York, and legendary agent Artoria vanished... This era needed heroes.

"...Maintain your sanity, and follow me into madness."

Hikigaya expressionlessly lit a cigarette, put on his sunglasses, and displayed his credentials.

"Agent Hikigaya, intervening in the investigation."

Book title: I, Hikigaya, Investigator of Evil Gods

Volume One: 48. The fans Will Definitely Be Disappointed, Right?

Seven thirty.

Comprehensive Building, C-Class Practice Room.

As Zhao Dapan paced around the room, he surveyed the scant number of people present, feeling rather helpless.

This middle-aged man dressed head to toe in trendy brands was a well-known domestic singer-songwriter and the vocal instructor for Class C.

He had served as a mentor on quite a few talent shows, but a survival talent show with bizarre operations and strange rules like Flash Dance was a first for him.

There were thirty-nine C-Class contestants in total, yet only nine were currently in the classroom. That meant three-quarters of them had slipped into the advanced practice rooms of the top A-Class contestants, receiving the same level of instruction and facilities as them.

This warped ecosystem, born in the name of fairness, was instead even more unfair than before. The more one looked at it, the more ironic it seemed.

The effect of this could be seen from the low-pressure emotions of the trainees in the classroom.

People did not fear having little; they feared having less than others. Few could quickly adjust their mindset under such treatment.

As Zhao Dapan thought this, he happened to notice that girl with a calm presence and tranquil temperament. Her delicate little face was serious, while her eyes were indifferent yet resolute, making him think of a saying.

—One whose heart held thunder yet whose face remained as calm as a lake could be made a great general.

Zhao Dapan fell into thought, feeling somewhat expectant.

As everyone knew.

One of the usual attractions in talent shows was the interaction between mentors and trainees.

Whether it was angry scolding meant to apply pressure, silence like cold violence, praise that contrasted with it, or compliments meant to ease the atmosphere, all of it was an important part of giving viewers emotional engagement.

Although Flash Dance's officials had not informed him, he had his own professional standards.

When serving as a mentor on a talent show, sometimes what mattered more than teaching ability was firmly grasping what kind of persona one should maintain.

Zhao Dapan had some experience with this. Simply put, one had to play the appropriate role at the appropriate moment, trigger a chemical reaction, and create entertainment value.

There were only nine people in Class C right now. The most popular was Chu Yuanqing, the prettiest was Chu Yuanqing, and the one with the strongest presence was still Chu Yuanqing. Even her mentality seemed to be the best.

Whether he wanted to create entertainment value or draw attention, choosing her as the first example was an excellent choice.

Yes, an example.

Zhao Dapan did not intend to directly teach the trainees. Instead, he intended to first listen to what they could do, then offer guidance.

This was actually standard practice as well.

Under this format, trainees who sang well and received praise would most likely be edited into the show and receive more screen time.

Conversely, trainees who sang terribly, were continuously pressured, and ultimately broke down would either rely on their beauty to earn the label of a beautiful useless girl before making a comeback later and gaining an inspirational buff, or be abandoned by fans who admired strength. Even with screen time, they would be unable to gain fans and would also be slapped with a debuff.

As for being merely decent?

In the entertainment industry, where waves washed away the sand, such unmemorable mediocrity could only serve as someone else's stepping stone.

Zhao Dapan paced around in tactical silence, then spoke blandly.

"Among the contestants with the same rating as you, thirty are currently receiving the highest level of training."

"Intelligent real-time analysis, correction assisted by the Virtual Reality System, and even several world-class singers and dancers temporarily invited by Flash Dance to serve as instructors for unified lessons."

At this point, he raised his voice and said with a smile.

"But you don't need to feel discouraged. Candy's choreography and singing are not difficult. Even with world-class instructors and high-tech equipment added in, it won't create too large a gap in proficiency between you."

That was indeed a highly tactful and reasonable consolation.

Chu Yuanqing seemed to understand.

Because Candy was simple, contestants only needed normal training to learn it and become proficient, all achieving a decent level of completion. The difference between them was merely addition and subtraction built on that foundation.

But if it were replaced with the extremely difficult No Way Back, then with the general ability of C-Class contestants, one week of effort alone would at most let them barely finish the dance without missing the beat.

In that case, the benefits shared by A-Class contestants could completely help them quickly avoid many mistakes that were difficult to notice during solo training, rapidly improve the completeness of their movements, and ultimately produce a completely different effect in the Second Evaluation.

In other words, Candy, as the theme song, was completely the friendliest choice for low-rated contestants.

Zhao Dapan clapped his hands, revealing a comforting smile as he continued.

"Now then, class officially begins. Who wants to sing first?"

Although having Chu Yuanqing go first would create the best entertainment value, if a contestant took the initiative, he would not be stingy about giving them an opportunity.

Unfortunately, after waiting ten seconds, no one stepped forward.

Zhao Dapan walked over to the desks and chairs. He nodded as he looked around, noticing that Chu Yuanqing still looked calm and not visibly nervous, while the remaining contestants appeared doubtful and hesitant.

That was normal.

Because aside from Kiriwake Yayoi and Xie Qingxuan, all the remaining top A-Class contestants had chosen to share their access. In that atmosphere, even if they had not been selected, they would basically not be refused if they proactively approached someone and asked to join.

Thus, most of the nine C-Class contestants in the room were half-hearted people too embarrassed to lower themselves. Since they believed their practice was insufficient, they naturally would not take the initiative.

Zhao Dapan knocked out a crisp sound on the tabletop, his smile unchanged as he picked up a sheet of music and looked toward the prettiest one among them.

"Since no one is volunteering, let Chu Yuanqing go."

???

Chu Yuanqing blinked in confusion, her adorable little face nearly failing to hold its expression.

Damn it, she had thought that without the red-eyed rabbit today, there definitely wouldn't be so much nonsense. Why was the vocal class raising the intensity on her so hard the moment it began?

In that instant, all the sorrow and sentimentality she had felt while watching her daughter's back vanished beneath the "ugly" smile of the middle-aged man before her.

Chu Yuanqing took heavy steps, bathing in the scrutinizing gazes of the other eight contestants as she silently accepted the sheet music from Zhao Dapan.

The girl's slender, delicate fingers turned the page. After glancing over it a few times, she found that it indeed had no numbered notation marked on it.

Luckily, Liuli had sent over the file with numbered notation marked before going to bed yesterday. Otherwise, she seriously suspected she would sing so off-key later that everyone in the practice room would question their lives.

No, wouldn't making them question their lives be perfect?

Chu Yuanqing suddenly saw the light.

One had to know that although the C-Class practice room had no livestream, it would definitely be edited into the show later. As long as she performed terribly right now, everyone would surely start disliking her!

I'm so stupid. Why hadn't I thought of this yesterday while learning music theory?

The girl changed her train of thought, and her clear lake-like eyes sparkled. The more she thought about it, the more right it seemed. The future felt promising.

She had just bragged so boldly yesterday. If that segment got edited in alongside her awful training performance, it could create a dramatic contrast and become a perfect self-own.

Haha, the fans would definitely be super disappointed, unfollow me in droves, and maybe even become haters, sending me straight to elimination, right?

Volume One: 49. Damn, Is This Person Using Cheats?!

Chu Yuanqing planned out the perfect escape route in her heart and nearly burst into laughter.

On the surface, however,

the girl's expression was solemn, making her look extremely serious. She adjusted her breathing and, under Zhao Dapan's signal, solemnly opened her voice and sang a section.

Yet after only two lines, she drew deeply shocked looks from the contestants.

Damn, she wasn't being humble onstage. She really couldn't sing!

Zhao Dapan coughed a few times and silently interrupted her.

"The pitch is wrong. Start over."

Chu Yuanqing was secretly delighted and tried again.

Zhao Dapan lightly tapped the tabletop with his knuckles, frowning as he interrupted her.

"No. Again. The pitch is wrong."

Chu Yuanqing looked serious, unaffected by its disturbance. Feeling that her plan was working perfectly, she continued singing with an excellent mindset.

But before long, amid the pitying or mocking gazes of the other trainees, she received another rejection from the vocal instructor.

"Have you never learned to sing? Still no good. Lower it by a semitone this time!"

The atmosphere in the room grew increasingly stiff.

This was already the fourth interruption in a row.

One had to know that in a place where competitors were watching, being repeatedly rejected by a mentor was an intensely high-pressure environment for the singer standing at the center of everyone's attention, like being crushed by a raging storm.

That powerful pressure would gradually drown a person like seawater, creating recurring, tide-like feelings of frustration. It would severely damage a contestant's confidence, directly making later performances more prone to mistakes, then develop into a terrifying vicious cycle that caused the entire segment to collapse.

Even the other contestants, as competitors merely watching from the sidelines, could not help feeling apprehensive.

Although they believed they sang far better than Chu Yuanqing, they were not confident they could meet Zhao Dapan's standards. If they failed to correct their flaws in time at the beginning, repeated interruptions afterward could easily make them embarrass themselves.

If they failed to keep their mentality steady, they might end up creating scenes that became Black History.

However...

Because of what Chu Yuanqing had said yesterday, it made her seem overly noble and righteous. She had forcibly raised the moral high ground of the competition venue, dragging all the nearby C-Class contestants into the mud and making them appear dull and even somewhat snobbish by comparison.

So now,