After Dissing The Aloof Omega In A Talent Show - Chapter 4

The host’s method of manipulating the audience’s psyche was old-fashioned, but undeniably effective. Listening to that mysterious, lingering tone, Ming Tang felt her heart tighten in suspense.

“Chi Ling!”

The host grabbed Chi Ling’s hand and raised it high, his voice filled with such excitement it felt as if Chi Ling had already achieved a superstar debut on the spot. Even though she knew the result in her heart, Ming Tang still felt a wave of relief upon hearing the answer.

Ming Tang stared at Chi Ling’s face on the projection screen behind them, trying to catch even the slightest upward curve of her lips. She thought that after hearing such news, Chi Ling would surely smile.

But Chi Ling was a bit too stoic. Her tightly set mouth didn’t rise by even a single pixel.

While Qi Zhen didn’t show blatant dissatisfaction, the resentment in her eyes was crystal clear to Ming Tang.

“The performances of both trainees were wonderful,” Yu Wenqing said with a smile and a nod to the two on stage. “Therefore, the mentors have unanimously decided to give you both an ‘A’ rating. We hope you can maintain this competitive spirit and outstanding strength.”

Then, Yu Wenqing’s tone shifted. “As seniors and mentors, we encourage the new generation to fight and strive.” She stood up and turned to look at the crowded seating area. “Since you’ve come to Moment of Destiny, all the honors you’ve earned in the past are reset. You stand at the same starting point and height.”

Qiao Xiangshu muttered quietly, “I don’t believe a trainee appearing in the public eye for the first time stands at the same starting point as one with a massive existing fanbase.”

Ming Tang let out a faint sigh. “Isn’t that something you, the current starlet of Lingwen Media, shouldn’t be worrying about?”

“Oh, stop it!” Qiao Xiangshu replied with a bashful, exaggerated slap to Ming Tang’s arm.

Ming Tang couldn’t bear to watch her act and let her gaze wander, searching for Chi Ling’s figure again.

“Now, would the remaining six trainees who rated themselves between second and seventh place please begin your first round of grading assessments.”

“Eh?”

Ming Tang had been so busy staring at Chi Ling that all the announcements had passed through her left ear and out her right without leaving a trace. Snapping back to reality, she realized too late that her seat was within the debut ranks.

Wasn’t this a bit too intense to be her turn already?

Ming Tang turned her head, intending to glare at the culprit who had dragged her into this position, only to find Qiao Xiangshu wearing a triumphant smirk.

Ming Tang: …So it was a premeditated murder?

Although the trainees who had self-rated for the top seats came from different companies, Ming Tang had heard of them. Among this group, she was the weakest. The thought of her “radio calisthenics style” performance following a string of beautiful stages made her chest feel tight. It felt like her role as a “foil” had upgraded from just Qi Zhen to a whole crowd, the level of embarrassment was increasing exponentially.

Her heart felt dead.

Resigned to fate, Ming Tang followed the other trainees. The group walked briskly but without panic, some even had the energy to joke around. It seemed Ming Tang was the only one feeling both nervous and distressed.

“Hello, what’s your name?”

Ming Tang hadn’t expected the person she couldn’t find earlier to be standing at the corner of the backstage area. It looked like she was waiting specifically for her.

The lighting backstage was poor, with only a faint glow reflecting from the stage screens. The soft blue light hit Chi Ling’s profile, making Ming Tang think of the “blue hour” by the sea in early winter. Chi Ling’s long lashes cast shadows, obscuring her gaze, but she was so beautiful that Ming Tang couldn’t look away.

“M-Ming Tang.”

Whether out of a guilty conscience or the sudden face to face proximity with Chi Ling, Ming Tang stuttered.

“Ming Tang…”

Chi Ling repeated the name softly, the two syllables lingering in her mouth before she looked up and proactively extended her hand. “I am Chi Ling. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“The pleasure is… mine…” Ming Tang’s voice grew smaller, the last word trailing off into silence.

What a trash system, Ming Tang cursed in her head. Who could possibly be mean to someone as beautiful as Chi Ling?

While she raged at the system, which claimed to be a “romance” system but gave such wicked tasks, she also mourned for her soon to be dead friendship. Was this the fastest “death in the cradle” for a relationship in history?

When her palm touched Chi Ling’s, the “contact” finally felt real. Chi Ling had a small frame and very soft hands; holding them felt like holding a plush cotton doll.

“Good luck with your first stage.” Chi Ling let go quickly and gave a slight nod.

“Okay, thank you, Senior!”

Betrayal, ingratitude, all of it was tossed to the back of Ming Tang’s mind. Her brain was occupied only by the thoughts: “She reached out to hold my hand” and “She cheered for me.”

It wasn’t until Chi Ling’s figure reappeared in the trainee seats that Qiao Xiangshu wandered over to snap the dazed Ming Tang out of her trance.

“I didn’t expect this, Ming Tang. Weren’t you just telling me to behave? And here you are, already on familiar terms with Senior Chi Ling?”

“Familiar terms? Not really. We just exchanged names. I wouldn’t call that ‘familiar’.”

“She didn’t even respond to Senior Yu’s public show of favor, yet she proactively shook your hand. You don’t think that’s special?”

Ming Tang was also puzzled. After Qiao Xiangshu mentioned it, it felt even more bizarre. Was she actually someone special to Chi Ling? Ming Tang opened her mouth but didn’t know what to say for a long time.

“No wonder someone told me to hold back earlier. Turns out you were just jealous.”

“Qiao Xiangshu, I beg of you, stop looking at the world through your ‘AO’ [Alpha/Omega] colored glasses. If you say any more, my dream of a clean debut will become a fantasy.”

Qiao Xiangshu wagged a finger. “You’ll have to get in line to beg me.”

Ming Tang was beyond frustrated and could only close her eyes and take a long breath.

“Number 4, Qiao Xiangshu, please wait on the left side of the stage,” a staff member wearing an ID badge hurried over to announce.

“Qiao Xiangshu,” Ming Tang lightly patted her friend as she moved to follow the staff.

“Hmm?”

“Good luck to you, too.”

Qiao Xiangshu gave a cunning smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll definitely stay in Class A and wait for you.”

Ming Tang pulled her hand back, her expression flat. I shouldn’t have encouraged her.

According to the “ranking” order, it would be her turn after Qiao Xiangshu. Ming Tang felt it was more important to worry about herself, she would thank the heavens if her first stage didn’t land her in Class F.

Watching the staff running back and forth, Ming Tang was swept up in the nervous atmosphere. She unconsciously began to hum, her fingers and toes tracing small movements, doing one last rehearsal before going on stage.

“Number 5, Ming Tang, come get your microphone.”

Hearing this, Ming Tang’s movements stiffened. She nearly walked with the same arm and leg forward. She briefly wondered if her dancing was bad not because she was lazy, but because her genes had mutated during her secondary differentiation, making her uncoordinated. At least in her past memories, she had been quite familiar with her own limbs.

The stage was set with a “left-up, right down” flow. Ming Tang went on stage almost immediately after Qiao Xiangshu’s rating was announced. Standing in the center of the stage and looking forward at the dark mass of people, it felt far more daunting than when she was sitting down.

Facing so many peers, she clearly heard herself swallow.

The BGM started. More than being nervous, Ming Tang instinctively began nodding to the beat. She could keep up with the initial movements, but as soon as she opened the mic, things went south.

Singing while dancing was too difficult for her. Her hands and feet began to operate independently, making her lose track of one side while focusing on the other. The ribbon tied to her waist whipped against her skin with every move, making her even more flustered.

Fortunately, she didn’t forget the lyrics or go out of tune. However, Ming Tang’s debut stage lacked the composure expected of someone in a top-tier seat. In her peripheral vision, she looked up at Chi Ling sitting at the very top. In that moment, she thought she saw Chi Ling’s expression.

Was she… amused by me?

The music finally ended. Ming Tang immediately pulled back her overextended right foot and gave a stiff, deep bow to the audience. Looking at the mentors’ expressions, she knew that for these top professionals, watching her stage was an exercise in “polite suffering.”

“This trainee looks a bit… tipsy,” the vocal mentor, Xia Yindong, remarked, unable to stifle a laugh.

Ming Tang held the mic awkwardly. “I’m sorry, Teacher.”

“Ming Tang, with this performance, I cannot possibly keep you in the debut seats,” Yu Wenqing’s expression was uncharacteristically stern. “There are major issues with both your singing and dancing. I don’t know what your basis was for choosing that seat.”

Ming Tang pursed her lips and nodded, apologizing again as she waited for the final judgment.

“Based on the consensus of the four mentors, your rating is… F.”

Ming Tang bowed again. “Thank you, Teachers.”

Fate did not give her a reason to thank the heavens.

As she walked off stage, she realized her fingers were stiff from gripping the microphone. No one told her it would be this terrifying. Ultimately, the mindset has changed, she thought.

Before, she would have accepted an F-class rating with a clear conscience and comfortably coasted until she was inevitably eliminated. But she couldn’t do that now. She had seen the view from the top, and she was a little reluctant to let it go.

In her mind, Chi Ling’s “Good luck” and Qiao Xiangshu’s “Waiting for you” echoed. Ming Tang suddenly had a goal: Let’s try to climb back up.

She returned the microphone, shook her stiff hands, and was about to head back when someone called out to her.

“Ming Tang.”

She looked toward the unfamiliar voice. It was a staff member in a black T-shirt with the show’s logo.

“Yes?”

“Interview for the first stage. The assistant director arranged for you to record it now.”

The cold system voice chimed in her head again.

[Please complete today’s task: During the interview segment, question the quality of Chi Ling’s debut performance today.]