Page 17

"Hurry up and wash up, brush your teeth, and eat. We've got things to do later!"

Urged on by the food, Tang Shi and Lu Hengzhi reluctantly got up to wash. Before they could even eat, someone knocked on the door again. When they opened it, the staff member who had brought them to the dorm yesterday had returned with two more people, saying they were their roommates. Tang Shi looked behind him and said with unconcealed disgust, "You?"

"It's you?"

Some bored foreign experts loved studying all sorts of inexplicable things. One theory claimed that no matter what environment you were in, wherever there was someone you liked, there would definitely also be someone you hated. In other words, the more annoyed you were by someone, the more often you would run into them—

Tang Shi now felt that saying was damn accurate.

He held his right arm with his left hand and leaned against the doorway. While warmly chatting with the staff member, Brother Chen, he discreetly sized up the two people outside who were supposedly about to become their roommates. One was small and skinny, with a face begging to be punched. The other was tall, with rugged features and an otherwise steady air, yet somehow equally unpleasant to look at right now. They were the two people who had clashed with Tang Shi in the waiting hall during yesterday's audition recording.

"How unlucky. Why do we run into you everywhere?" Cui Yujin, who had been holding his camera and waiting for something to happen outside, walked over. The moment he spotted the two standing behind the staff member, his curious, friendly expression immediately turned contemptuous.

The slight, delicate-looking boy snorted coldly, his face sour. "Exactly. That's what I wanted to say too. Why do we see you wherever we go?"

After saying that, he turned to the staff member leading them. "I don't want to live in the same dorm as them. Please help us change rooms."

The staff member froze, unable to understand why the two groups, who presumably had never interacted before, seemed to hold such deep resentment toward each other. But the production team's arrangements could not be changed casually. He immediately shook his head. "That won't do. Everything was arranged beforehand. Don't make things difficult for me."

Then he looked at the two sides facing off and said with a smile, "There are so many people here for the auditions. The fact that you know each other is fate. Why not try getting along? It's always better to have one more friend."

The Southern Division was planning to play up the close-brotherhood angle after the show aired. It would not be a good thing if the contestants were already acting like fighting cocks.

Tang Shi unconsciously curved his lips but said nothing. Instead, he stepped aside and smiled at the staff member. "Brother Chen, you start work so early every day. Have you eaten breakfast? We were just about to eat. Want to join us?"

Cui Yujin immediately picked up the thread. "Yeah, my grandma made the tea eggs and pan-fried buns herself. They taste amazing. You can't get them outside."

Brother Chen smiled. First, he said to Tang Shi, "This is early? It's already past eight. You guys are just too lazy." Then he waved his hand and replied to Cui Yujin, "No, no, I already ate. Thank you." Only then did he step into the room. After taking a few steps, he realized there was no movement behind him and turned around to look at the other two seed contestants, who were still standing outside with no intention of coming in.

Brother Chen frowned, secretly amused.

Sure enough, talented newcomers these days all had big tempers. They were sharp-edged, full of pride and self-respect, and could make a huge fuss over the slightest thing, as if the entire world had wronged them. It was hard to say what that accomplished besides making them look ridiculous and petty.

It seemed they would need a few more years of polishing before they learned how to adapt to this circle.

On the other hand, the ones Sister Li had her eye on...

Thinking that, Brother Chen turned and quietly glanced at Lu Hengzhi and Tang Shi, who had remained inside without making any excessive remarks. Though they were young, their temperaments were indeed quite good. They had some real potential.

That was how this circle worked. Since they were constantly exposed to cameras and the media, they had to learn to hide their true emotions no matter the situation. Even if they had to fake it, they needed to put on a proper, sensible image—

In truth, Brother Chen thought too highly of Lu Hengzhi and Tang Shi. The reason neither had reacted much was because they had already gained the upper hand in yesterday's confrontation. Toward defeated opponents, these two smug and wildly arrogant boys believed they should be tolerant.

They had to be polite and restrained, maintain a winner's sense of superiority, and display the bearing of victors.

If Tang Shi's group had been the ones at a disadvantage yesterday, they probably would not have been so courteous today. It was not impossible that they would have started fighting immediately.

Noticing Brother Chen's expression, Tang Shi turned back to the two outside. "Come in too. Why are you standing out there like idiots?"

"Who are you calling an idiot—" The smaller one was about to explode when the taller boy beside him held him back. The two entered one after the other, and the tall boy spoke to Tang Shi first. "I'm really sorry about yesterday. I hope you won't take it to heart. Zhaoran isn't a bad person. His mouth just gets him into trouble."

As he spoke, he extended a hand to Tang Shi. "My name is Song Lijia. I'm twenty-five. He's Lin Zhaoran, twenty-one. We're both locals from Apple City. Nice to meet you. If there's a chance, let us treat you to a proper tour around Apple City as an apology for yesterday."

One did not slap a smiling face. Seeing how friendly Song Lijia was, Tang Shi did not press the matter with Lin Zhaoran. He shook Song Lijia's hand and introduced them. "I'm Tang Shi. He's Cui Yujin, and that's Lu Hengzhi. The three of us are sixteen, and we're all from X City. Nice to meet you."

When Tang Shi introduced them as all being only sixteen, Lin Zhaoran, who had been acting prickly since they met, looked at the three of them in surprise. He suddenly seemed a little embarrassed. He glanced back at Song Lijia and said awkwardly, "You're only sixteen? Then you should still be in school, right? Why did you come on a show like this too... You're all pretty tall."

Lu Hengzhi smiled faintly. "Yeah. We're northerners. We have bigger frames."

Lu Hengzhi had said it plainly, without any particular emotion, but for some reason, it sounded slightly uncomfortable to Lin Zhaoran. Lin Zhaoran pressed his lips together, a little displeased, but said nothing. He carried his luggage and stood beside Brother Chen with Song Lijia.

Seeing this, Brother Chen immediately introduced them. "Zhaoran and Lijia are both seed contestants selected by our directing team for the Southern Division. Zhaoran is the champion of this year's National Street Dance Competition. Lijia is even more impressive; he achieved outstanding results in the World Street Dance Competition. Although Xiao Shi and Hengzhi are slightly weaker in terms of dance fundamentals, you can blend all kinds of styles into street dance, which is highly innovative and eye-catching. The production team arranged the four of you together in hopes that you can combine your strengths and make a name for our Southern Division."

After hearing Brother Chen's words, they exchanged glances but did not immediately respond. Brother Chen did not mind. He did not care how they got along in private. As long as they could meet the production team's requirements in front of the cameras and did not cause trouble during filming, that was enough.

After all, these so-called predetermined seed contestants were merely strong performers gathered from various places by each division during the early stages of a talent show, for the sake of the division's reputation. They would receive focused promotion. If they ultimately went far and achieved good rankings, it would benefit the division as well. Thus, divisions would give seed contestants some preferential treatment when conditions allowed. But none of that was absolute.

If more audience-friendly contestants with greater buzz appeared midway through the competition, it was perfectly normal for the directing team to replace the seed contestants. In short, the conditions had been given to you. Whether you could seize them was your own business. If someone truly could not be molded, the production team would not keep wasting effort on them for no return.

To put it simply, it was all for ratings.

Yet in Tang Shi's memories, he had no impression at all of Song Lijia or Lin Zhaoran. It seemed the two of them had probably failed to even make it through the division selection rounds back then. He did not know whether the directing team's judgment had been flawed or whether something else had gone wrong. But based on the past achievements Brother Chen had mentioned, if their records were real and they had indeed participated in Dance Miracle in his previous life, they should not have vanished without making even the slightest splash.

After all, this was not more than a decade later. There were far fewer professional street dancers in the country, and even fewer who looked good, had won awards, and had achieved results in international street dance competitions.

A trace of suspicion flickered through Tang Shi's mind, but because it had nothing to do with him, he quickly tossed it far to the back of his mind.

Over the next two days, Tang Shi and Lu Hengzhi kept a rather packed schedule. After every meal, they went to the dance studio to rehearse the piece they would perform for the upcoming fifty-to-thirty Qualifier Round. Since they had already tasted success once—and because neither of them particularly stood out in terms of dance fundamentals—Tang Shi continued to focus on blending street dance with individuality while choreographing.

After all, judging from the importance Lu Hengzhi received after signing in his previous life, as well as the purpose behind Dance Miracle, this talent show might not be looking for the best dancer. It was looking for the person with the most popularity and the greatest ability to catch people's attention. Only then could it draw more popularity to the Dance Miracle game, and only then could it bring greater box office returns to the Big Movie that would be filmed afterward.

Tang Shi and Lu Hengzhi had originally had a chance to fight for it in their previous life, but the weather had turned against them, forcing the two to withdraw midway through the competition.

But in this life, Tang Shi had the advantage of foresight. Having also witnessed how enthusiastically audiences in the future embraced performances that mixed diverse styles into dance, he had already begun forming a plan.

Thus, during the choreography process, Tang Shi focused on highlighting distinctive elements while showcasing their fundamentals. For example, they had previously incorporated freestyle basketball and Tai Chi into street dance. Next, they would incorporate a Peking Opera style. If done well, all of it would make people's eyes light up.

At least, when Tang Shi first saw that style of street dance in his previous life, the only word that came to mind was "stunning." That unique visual feast had been absolutely incredible. That was why he later learned the choreography from the original video. He even changed his childhood dislike of traditional opera and began feverishly studying all kinds of Chinese opera.

Then, on the foundation of learning the choreography, he gradually began incorporating his own ideas and style.

The older he grew, the more he could uncover the deep heritage and meaning in the things passed down by their ancestors. That restrained, serene brilliance, once refined and polished, could shine so dazzlingly that it left people utterly enchanted.

That was why Tang Shi favored this style so much in this life. He only hoped that when the two of them performed onstage, they could leave behind a vivid impression—so that whenever people thought of Dance Miracle, they would think of them. Even if they did not win the championship, leaving a deep impression in the audience's hearts would still count as victory.

But admiring flowers was easy; embroidering them was hard. Tang Shi's ideas had been beautiful, yet he ran into a small problem when putting them into practice—Lu Hengzhi's level of acceptance.

In truth, when it came to fundamentals, Lu Hengzhi was much better than Tang Shi. The reason they had constantly hovered between advancing and being placed on standby in their previous life was not only because the dancers in their group had been too strong. Tang Shi's weak foundation had also been a factor. Unlike Lu Hengzhi, he had not had as many opportunities to train or better teachers to guide him.

However, after being reborn, Tang Shi had gained ten extra years of dance experience out of nowhere. Combined with several months of hard training, he had not only quickly closed the gap between their fundamentals, but had also become the leader in choreography due to his broader vision and experience. And because he had the experience of his previous life, Tang Shi had always appeared relaxed and at ease throughout the rehearsal process—