Even If I Lose, I Lose with Honor

[Holy crap! Holy crap, holy crap!]

[Is this Si Di? No way, I remember him being this wild, rugged guy. How did he become so... delicate overnight?]

[Who can handle that little look in his eyes? Sorry, everyone, but I'll lick first as a sign of respect.]

[I declare that I have become a mom without pain. From now on, 4D is my baby boy—my biological son without any blood relation!]

[I used to insult people because I had no manners. Snuggle up, my precious Si Di wife. [Hug][Hug]]

The cameras were rolling.

The two of them sat steadily in place.

Before long, the mentors took their seats.

The trainees all stood up and bowed. "Hello, teachers!"

Qin Wei sat in the center seat of the mentors' table. Picking up his microphone, he asked, "Did you sleep well last night?"

He had always been a man of few smiles.

The sudden concern caught the trainees off guard. Then, in an unusually unified response, they all shook their heads and dragged out miserably, "No—ot—well—"

Today was the evaluation.

Most of them had stayed up late practicing last night.

Even those who had gone back early had been too stressed to sleep.

Qin Wei nodded. "Mm. I slept very well."

Silence fell over the room.

Someone called out in mock complaint, "Qin PD, you're so cold!"

Qin Wei possessed a magical ability to kill the mood. Taking advantage of the silence, he glanced at the cue cards, then looked up and said:

"To be an artist, you must have strong resilience under pressure. The outside world is chaotic and ever-changing. There is only one thing we need to do: never forget why we started."

"Next, I want to ask everyone a question. Those of you here who want to become idols, please raise your hands."

Become idols.

Debut.

Wasn't that the ultimate purpose of coming to Limited Idol?

Everyone raised their hands.

Qin Wei nodded. "All right. Then, those who are certain that they can become idols, please raise your hands."

There were one hundred people, but only seven debut spots.

Only the very best seven could succeed.

The competition had only just begun. Whether they could become one of those seven dazzling stars was still entirely unknown.

Raising a hand now required extreme confidence in oneself.

Everyone looked at each other.

Then, the hands that had been raised high slowly lowered, one after another.

Fewer and fewer remained.

In the end, only two hands were still proudly raised above their heads.

One belonged to Huo Xiao, the first A-ranked trainee in the initial stage, recognized by all the mentors as an all-rounder in singing, dancing, and rap.

The other belonged to Si Di.

For a moment, everyone's attention converged on the two of them.

Qin Wei's gaze swept calmly across the room. Holding the microphone, he asked, "Only Huo Xiao and Si Di raised their hands? What about the others? Are the remaining ninety-eight of you really that lacking in confidence?"

The venue was silent.

Those who had not raised their hands lowered their heads deeply.

Qin Wei sighed, his voice growing heavier. "Sometimes, a certain amount of ambition is not a bad thing. Ambition gives you conviction, and conviction is what allows you to succeed."

"I hope all of you can succeed."

"Even if you do not become one of the seven you dream of in the future, keep working hard and find other ways to bloom."

"I hope every one of you can become a shining star."

Qin Wei's words rang out powerfully.

For some reason, the atmosphere became incredibly inspiring.

The bowed heads slowly lifted, light blooming in their eyes. Then they raised their hands with force.

Until—

Everyone's hands were raised high!

[So inspiring!]

[Qin Wei said that so well. Even I'm getting fired up from behind the screen!]

[The trainees really have it so hard. Just like Qin PD said, I hope everyone can become a shining star. [Keep going][Keep going]]

[Everyone really is amazing.]

[Don't be fooled by how cold Brother Qin seems. He's actually very warm.]

The theme song evaluation officially began.

Following the order, it started with Class A, the group with the strongest aptitude.

Several sets of three small platforms had been placed in the middle of the side hall.

Everyone exchanged sidelong glances. Only Huo Xiao looked straight ahead. With a touch of pride, he was the first to step forward.

He wore a black baseball cap today, with several metal rings hanging from its brim.

It was very low-key.

Yet his face and those eyes carried an inexplicable arrogance.

As soon as someone took the lead, others immediately followed.

Three people stood on the small platforms.

The music began.

Following the beat, the three began their practiced dance, singing and dancing in time with the proper rhythms.

They had only had three short days, yet their singing and dancing were already extremely smooth.

Huo Xiao in particular moved seamlessly through every action, handling every detail almost perfectly.

Dance mentor Qian Er nodded approvingly and praised them without reservation. "As expected of Class A. This is exactly the standard a role model should have."

With that praise, Class A's morale soared.

As soon as the first three performers stepped down, another three took the stage.

A new round of singing and dancing began.

Before long, Class A had completed its entire evaluation.

Other than one person who had been too stressed and forgotten the dance moves, everyone else's performance was practically flawless.

Invisibly, this also placed tremendous pressure on the trainees from the other classes.

According to the program rules, for their ranks to be reassessed, trainees had to challenge someone from a higher-ranked class.

Only by defeating their chosen opponent could they replace that person and enter a higher rank.

If the challenge failed, they would return to their original rank.

Once Class A had performed, it was Class B's turn.

Si Di quietly poked Yu Ning's arm and encouraged him. "Go. You're already in Class B, so the only way up is Class A. Don't be scared. You can do it."

Yu Ning nervously licked his lips.

Class A had performed far too strongly, and he was starting to lose his nerve.

Seeing that someone had already stood up, Si Di became more anxious than Yu Ning himself. "Didn't someone just forget the dance moves? Challenge him. As long as you don't get nervous and perform at the level you practiced yesterday, there definitely won't be a problem."

There was no shame in challenging a weaker person from a higher rank.

But Yu Ning stiffened his neck and cautiously said, "What if I win the battle, and then someone else challenges me afterward?"

"At worst, you'll go back to Class B. Besides, even if you don't take the risk and stay in Class B, how do you know people from Classes C, D, and F won't challenge you later?"

After Si Di said that, Yu Ning swallowed.

Even if he fell, he would still have made it into Class A once.

Even if his challenge failed, at least he would have tried.

Yu Ning took a deep breath, clenched his fists, and sprang to his feet.

After walking onto the small platform and taking his place, Yu Ning raised his hand like a well-behaved child, just like an elementary school student.

Dance mentor Qian Er picked up his microphone and asked, "What is it? Are you going to challenge a trainee from Class A?"

The camera focused on Yu Ning.

"Mm. Qin PD just said that ambition gives you conviction, so I want to bravely give it a try. If I win, I'll enter Class A. If I lose—"

Yu Ning took a nervous deep breath, then raised his voice. "If I lose, I'll still lose with honor!"

[Well said!]

[Yu Ning looks so soft and sweet. I didn't expect him to be this brave!]

[It's perfectly normal to lose when challenging Class A. Don't be scared, little cutie. Just stay calm~~~[Heart][Heart]]

[Allow me to introduce myself. I'm nineteen this year, unmarried, and already have two sons. The wild one is named Si Di, and the sweet one is named Yu Ning. Please vote for my two sons, everyone. Much appreciated!]

[Person above, Si Di and Yu Ning thank you.]