After Dissing The Aloof Omega In A Talent Show - Chapter 18

The slender heels of Yu Wenqing’s high shoes clicked against the wooden floor, producing a crisp, sharp sound.

Ming Tang and Qi Deng followed closely behind Yu Wenqing as they entered the room.

The number of trainees in Class C was slightly larger than in Class F. All twenty-five of them bowed in unison, calling out, “Hello, Teacher.”

Ming Tang felt exactly like a transfer student in high school, awkwardly tailing behind the homeroom teacher and being forced to endure the “respect” of her peers. It brought about a wave of hard to describe awkwardness and self-consciousness.

“These two are trainees from Class F who passed the assessment and have been promoted to Class C,” Yu Wenqing explained, sensing the evaluating gazes of the trainees. “Go ahead and introduce yourselves.”

“Hello everyone, I am Ming Tang.”

Ming Tang returned the bow to the group. The lingering sense of indebtedness in her heart instantly dissipated, making her feel much more at ease.

“Hello everyone, I’m Qi Deng!”

Qi Deng copied her and bowed as well, speaking at a freakishly fast pace.

Yu Wenqing lifted her chin slightly, flipping through the papers on her clipboard.

“You two, go stand in the group.”

Ming Tang and Qi Deng quickly slipped out from behind Yu Wenqing and stood at the very back of the crowd. However, the color of their clothes still made them look a bit out of place among the others.

“First, I will announce the trainees who are leaving Class C.”

The atmosphere in Class C seemed to instantly freeze at those words. Ming Tang suspected that you could hear a pin drop right now.

It was just that she couldn’t hear the faint chirping of birds like before, back when only she and Chi Ling were left in Class A.

Listening to Yu Wenqing read out a string of names at an unhurried pace, Ming Tang was a little tongue-tied. She had completely unexpected that the roster changes would be this drastic.

Although she wasn’t particularly close to them because they weren’t in the same class and hadn’t spent much time together, Ming Tang still had some impression of those names.

Seeing trainee after trainee being called forward, Ming Tang even began to feel a sympathetic wave of sorrow.

She herself had only just relieved the heavy burden in her heart upon learning that she had indeed been promoted, and before she even had a chance to rejoice, she was caught off guard by this stifling, gloomy atmosphere.

The girl standing directly in front of her was already unable to bear it, her shoulders trembling slightly with every sob.

Once again, Ming Tang’s hand, which wanted to comfort someone, hovered mid-air.

Yu Wenqing called out the girl’s name, she was reassigned to Class F.

As if she had long anticipated it, the girl raised her hand, covering her eyes with her arm as she walked forward. Still, she couldn’t hold back her tears, and her quiet whimpers echoed clearly in the dead-silent room.

Ming Tang silently retracted her hand.

By now, a row of people was standing at the front. Ming Tang glanced over roughly, there were ten of them.

“The list of demoted trainees ends here. You may all leave.”

When Yu Wenqing said this, Ming Tang felt a trace of ruthlessness in her tone.

Qi Deng also whispered softly, “This is way too cold-hearted.”

Ming Tang didn’t reply, but simply knit her brows and motioned for Qi Deng not to speak carelessly at a critical juncture like this.

“If you have questions, you can ask me directly. No need to whisper among yourselves,” Yu Wenqing’s voice turned a few degrees colder than before.

Qi Deng fell silent instantly.

Ming Tang sneaked a glance at Yu Wenqing, unsure if she had overheard what Qi Deng had just muttered under her breath.

“Teacher Dai Shuyan is waiting for you outside. She will take you to your new classes,” Yu Wenqing turned her head back around and spoke to the ten demoted trainees.

The departing figures of the ten trainees looked rather desolate.

Perhaps due to the three mentors working simultaneously across three different classrooms, the sound of people walking back and forth soon echoed outside the practice room, accompanied by the distinct sounds of some individuals breaking down.

Ming Tang licked her lower lip.

Although her own emotions were fluctuating, she couldn’t quite comprehend why some trainees experienced such violent emotional swings.

Ming Tang imagined what it would be like if she were the one receiving the demotion results from the mentor…

“Could it be because I had no room left to fall?”

Ming Tang pursed her lips, her teeth gently biting into her bottom lip.

Well, given her initial status in Class F, if she were to be demoted any further, the only remaining possibility waiting for her would be direct elimination.

Ming Tang realized she could instantly empathize with her grieving peers now.

If she were to suffer elimination, wouldn’t that mean her system mission would be declared an immediate Game Over?

The moment she thought about the electric shocks, pain, social death, or even the most severe punishment, which was her literal, physiological death, waiting for her, Ming Tang felt incredibly relieved that her hard work had paid off.

Alright, if she were the one demoted, she would probably cry much more miserably than anyone else.

“There are four trainees who have been promoted,” Yu Wenqing looked a bit more pleasant now, her voice once again carrying a faint trace of a smile.

Yu Wenqing called out four names. The crowd couldn’t quite bring themselves to be happy, but they didn’t skimp on the applause either.

Amidst a lukewarm atmosphere, they sent off the four promoted trainees.

Compared to when the two of them had first arrived, the entire practice room now looked significantly emptier.

As the last person’s silhouette vanished past the doorframe, the group that managed to stay in Class C finally let out a collective sigh of relief.

“Ming Tang,” Qi Deng rubbed her arms, “I’m a bit scared to move.”

Ming Tang also sighed. “What is there for you to be scared of? You dared to say that kind of stuff right in front of Teacher Yu.”

“Sigh, wasn’t it just because I’m too outspoken…” Qi Deng also felt a bit of lingering fear as she lightly slapped her own mouth twice. “Next time, I’ll definitely keep a tight filter on my words…”

“Teacher Yu probably wouldn’t care about that, right?”

Ming Tang lowered her gaze.

If it were in the past, she would have told Qi Deng with absolute certainty. No, she wouldn’t care.

But now, she was a bit unsure.

Yu Wenqing had always been gentle, tolerant, and understanding. Why would she show a cold face over a single comment?

Besides…

Ming Tang recalled the scene she had accidentally witnessed in the pantry earlier.

“…Right now, you are still a trainee, but I am already sitting in the mentor’s seat.”

Yu Wenqing’s tone back then didn’t sound like she was caring about Chi Ling at all.

On the contrary, it felt more like… gloating?

It felt more like a comparison, as if she was condescendingly informing Chi Ling how successful she, Yu Wenqing, was today, and how ridiculous Chi Ling’s past misstep had been.

There was even an underlying hint of coercion.

Ming Tang shook her head, wanting to clear these messy, chaotic speculations out of her brain.

“Probably not.”

Qi Deng shrugged. “Sigh, let’s hope so.”

“Tsk, but then again, Chi Ling dislikes Yu so much.”

“Shh!” Ming Tang wished she could just stuff a piece of cloth into Qi Deng’s mouth. “Didn’t you just swear to keep a tight filter on your words?”

Qi Deng countered weakly, “I didn’t swear.”

Ming Tang: ?

Fine, just fend for yourself then.

Ming Tang found a small corner in the Class C room, just like the one she had in Class F, and began to mindlessly practice the theme song in front of the mirror again.

Even though Yu Wenqing’s “persona” felt highly contradictory in her eyes, one thing she said was indeed correct.

She had to take advantage of the time before the theme song MV shooting to continue raising her skill level.

Only by presenting a better version of herself to the future audience could she get more viewers to notice her, vote for her, keep her in Moment of Destiny, and allow her to climb up step by step.

Until she could stand right beside Chi Ling.

Ming Tang missed the light, lingering scent of white tea on Chi Ling’s body.

At the very latest, she would be able to see Chi Ling again by tomorrow.