Her Majesty The Empress Has Made Her Debut In The Center Position [Ancient to Modern] - Chapter 25.1

Where are the wires? Has wire technology become this invisible? Without wires, I can’t imagine how she’s flying! How is she doing this?!

The center pair looks so much like a couple… I can already envision eight hundred stories of love and betrayal between the Puppet Master and the Puppet…

This is insane! This is the best performance of the entire show! All girls, vote for her!

As the performance neared its end, all the puppets returned to their original positions. The opera vocals, pre-recorded, played like an old record on a vintage radio, the occasional skips adding to the ethereal atmosphere that transported the audience back in time:

Snowflakes whisper in your white hair / Candlelight softens your furrowed brow…

Just then, a fiery wind roared up from the ground, its flames rising like a tempest. Amidst the blaze, the puppets writhed and struggled in time with the background music. Finally, as the flames surged upward, they turned toward the camera with sudden, enigmatic smiles before crumbling into ashes with a crisp crack.

One by one, the lights went out, and a gentle breeze swept across the stage.

The opera singer reached the final note of her song: “… If, in aging, I could stay by your side / And turn to ashes in the misty waves / That would be a perfect end.”

Silence fell.

Before long, the audience erupted in thunderous applause, each person genuinely feeling their ticket money was well spent. They cupped their hands around their mouths and cheered, “Brilliant stage concept! We loved it!”

Cheng Feiwan stepped forward. “What a remarkable performance.”

She turned toward the Group A stage, voicing the question on everyone’s mind. “I’m just really curious, Yu Cheng. Did you actually… fly? I asked the director—there were no wires or harnesses during your act. So how did you…”

The audience below answered in unison: “How did you fly?!”

Yu Cheng hummed in acknowledgment, took a few steps back, and lightly tapped her foot. Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, she soared into the air and landed on the second level of the stage. She brought her wireless mic close to her lips. “That’s how I flew.”

 Cheng Feiwan: “……”

Audience: “……”

Group B: “……”

What’s the point of saying anything if you’re just going to leave us hanging?!

The Perfect Pair: “……”

Now you know why she was chosen as the Center Position, right? She can fly!

Cheng Feiwan tilted her head, hearing the director’s frantic voice over the headset. She cleared her throat and asked, “So, Yu Cheng, what was that…?”

Yu Cheng soared into the air again, arms outstretched, and landed steadily beside Ji Zhao with a soft hum. “Just Lightness Skill,” she replied.

The audience: “……”

Lightness Skill? And you just brush it off like it’s nothing? Aren’t you being a little too… arrogant?!

Though stunned, the audience quickly dismissed it as just another gimmick by the production team. They’re definitely using hidden wires we can’t see.

Yu Cheng made it clear she wasn’t going to elaborate, so Cheng Feiwan smoothly steered the conversation back to the process. She invited Group A trainees to wait in the holding room while Group B finished their performance. Voting would follow to determine the ultimate winner.

The Perfect Pair group exited the stage in the darkness. Once they were out of sight of the audience, Song Jiangjiang burst into delighted laughter. “Holy crap, that was so satisfying! We’ve definitely got this in the bag!”

 “Finally, someone understands how we felt when we first saw Yu Cheng perform Lightness Skill,” Zheng Dongqing sighed.

“That was so nerve-wracking!” Qiao Yue wiped the sweat from her forehead and patted her racing heart. “It’s finally over. I hope I didn’t make any major mistakes.”

Shen Xin shook her head. “No, your voice was a little shaky at the beginning, but you performed perfectly after that.”

Ji Zhao noticed Yu Cheng’s silence and asked, “What are you thinking?”

Yu Cheng pursed her lips. “The loss of Lightness Skill… it disappoints me.”

Ji Zhao smiled. “Lightness Skill isn’t the only thing that’s been lost.”

She followed the staff member, saying, “But now people have cars and planes for travel. We’ve even sent spaceships to the moon. Maybe losing Lightness Skill doesn’t matter.”

“But,” she paused, turning to Yu Cheng, “I’m so glad you still know it.”

Yu Cheng paused, her cheeks flushing slightly. “I’m so happy to make Your Majesty… Zhaozhao happy.”

The six of them exited the corridor and followed the staff down the long staircase to a private waiting room. Once the staff left, Song Jiangjiang’s worries resurfaced. “What if they pull off an underdog comeback? What if the audience forgets about our stage?”

Qiao Yue whispered, “They won’t forget the Lightness Skill…”

On the TV screen across the room, Group B had already begun their performance.

The melancholy and historical atmosphere of the Republican era washed over them like an old photograph, breaking free from the shackles of time to emerge from that turbulent era. Beauties in various cheongsams, their curled hair coiled into buns, mingled with men smoking pipes and carrying briefcases, rickshaws and soy milk, attentive waiters, and hurried passersby, all pausing to listen to a Republican-era version of “The Puppet Show.”

“I never expected it,” Song Jiangjiang remarked. “He Yumeng looks so clueless, but she’s got a pretty good singing voice.”

“We’re being recorded,” Qiao Yue reminded her.

 “Don’t worry, it won’t make the cut,” Shen Xin said, her attention wandering. The previous performance had drained her completely; she just needed to clock out and recharge. She shook her head. “Shao Ke’s rap on stage was solid, but his dancing was terrible.”

Zheng Dongqing disagreed. “You just don’t understand, do you? I bet this is a rookie puppet who’s still getting used to his Puppet Master. As they work together, feelings are secretly blossoming between them, and then…”

“Uh, why are you all staring at me like that?”

Ji Zhao encouraged her. “Keep going, keep spinning the story.”

Song Jiangjiang teased. “Are you writing fanfic for them?”

Zheng Dongqing shrank back, silently enduring the stares for a moment before she couldn’t hold back. “Actually, you could write about us too! Jiangjiang and Yueyue are the perfect childhood sweethearts. Xin-jie and I are childhood friends with an innocent bond. Zhaozhao and Yu Cheng are the devoted married couple.”

Song Jiangjiang: “……”

Qiao Yue: “……”

Shen Xin: “……”

 Why is this idiom so different from the others?!

Zheng Dongqing perked up. “We all died young and were turned into puppets by the Puppet Master. We were dressed in performance costumes, and after spending so much time with us, the Puppet Master was infected by the yin energy and died. Now we’re stuck in his house.”

Song Jiangjiang: “Wait… this is starting to sound a little off, right?”

Ji Zhao: “We grew up together, learned The Puppet Show, and became our own Puppet Masters.”

Shen Xin: “Someone’s continuing the story!”

Yu Cheng: “They wander in misunderstanding, but I’m only controlled by you.”

Qiao Yue: “…It’s coming out.”

In the director’s booth, the assistant director: “……”

How is he going to edit and broadcast this?! Are there any normal people in this group?

After preparing the stage for so long, the actual performance lasted only four minutes. Adding in Cheng Feiwan’s question segment and the audience voting, it took less than ten minutes before Group B entered.

The waiting room door slowly opened, and the Perfect Pair gave a respectful gaze to all members of Group B.

 He Yumeng: “……”

Was she imagining it? Why did she see regret in the eyes of Group A, as if they were thinking, “Why did you arrive so early?” Early? It wasn’t early at all! Teacher Cheng had already asked several questions, and she was finding it too slow!

“Say something generic,” the Director’s teeth-gritted voice came from the speakers.

The waiting room fell silent for a moment.

Song Jiangjiang stepped forward. “Your stage performance was incredible.”

Shen Xin waved her hand. “You were amazing.”

Qiao Yue clapped. “It was beautiful.”

Zheng Dongqing’s eyes sparkled. “I’ve already imagined stage backdrops for you.”

Ji Zhao’s gaze brimmed with approval. “It resonates deeply with me. You deserve a reward.”

He Yumeng’s squad: “……”

Insincere flattery. Just shut up already!

After the ritual of mutual praise, the twelve members finally sat down. On the TV screen before them, each name appeared, paired off: Center Position against Center Position, vocalist against vocalist, and so on—each pair becoming opponents.

Between each pair of opponents, the one with more votes would win.

The team with the most votes at the end of the live broadcast would win, with each member receiving 20,000 votes. The member with the highest number of votes within the winning team would be named Best Performer, earning an additional 50,000 votes.

“It’s about to start,” Qiao Yue said nervously, gripping Song Jiangjiang’s hand. “Is the order in which the votes are revealed random?”

For the waiting trainees, the order was indeed random. But for the production team, who already knew the results, the sequence was carefully orchestrated to maximize drama.

For example, if the Center Position member had a high vote count, making a dramatic twist more likely, their results would be saved for last.

“Eight hundred viewers participated in the voting for the first public performance of Debut! Girls. A total of 800 votes were cast, with two abstentions.”

The Assistant Director’s voice was disguised to prevent fans from identifying and harassing him later.

“Therefore, there were 798 valid votes for The Puppet Show in this round.”

“Now, announcing the voting results.”

As soon as the words faded, the atmosphere tensed.

In the blink of an eye, numbers appeared behind Zheng Dongqing and Jian Li of Group B. The twelve trainees stared intently, then collectively gasped.

Zheng Dongqing: 18 votes

 Jian Li: 2 votes

Jian Li was struck dumb. “I know my skills aren’t great… but only two votes?”

Did she just vanish from the stage?!

Meanwhile, Group A, after a brief moment of shock, immediately burst into jubilation. Zheng Dongqing, far from being disheartened by securing only 18 votes out of 798, wore a wistful expression and declared, “Votes aren’t about quantity; it’s about having enough to get by!”

As she spoke, she glanced at Group B, making their fists itch with suppressed anger.

Only 18 votes? What’s there to brag about?!

Just as Groups A and B were locked in a silent, glowering standoff, the screen updated again—Qiao Yue and He Yumeng’s vote counts appeared simultaneously. Qiao Yue had 26 votes, while He Yumeng had 40.

The tables turned in an instant.

“Ouch!” He Yumeng slapped her thigh, mimicking Zheng Dongqing’s tone. “Votes aren’t about quantity; it’s about having enough to get by, right?”

Ji Zhao, sitting closest to her, retorted coldly, “If I were you, I wouldn’t be so smug. Even though Yueyue isn’t the Center Position or Captain in our group, she still got 26 votes. You…”

She shot He Yumeng a meaningful look, leaving the rest unsaid.

He Yumeng: “……”

Hey! You guys cheer when your teammate wins, but you won’t even let me celebrate a victory? Aren’t you being a little hypocritical?!

 He Yumeng’s teeth itched.

The vote count continued to rise. Shen Xin narrowly defeated Zhong Ruohan of Group B by 46 votes, modestly claiming it was all due to her early mornings and late nights.

Song Jiangjiang dominated Shao Ke with a 99-vote margin, while Shao Ke grumbled, “99 to 54? That’s more than half! What’s so ‘absolute’ about that?”

Song Jiangjiang, however, wasn’t satisfied. “If I just had one more vote… then I’d hit three digits!”

At that moment, she glanced at Jian Li from Group B.

Jian Li: “……”

Even with just two votes, she’s still being eyed?!

He Yumeng quickly calculated the transparent vote count in her head: 295 votes accounted for. That meant the remaining four candidates had to split 503 votes. If Ding Yan and Wan Qi could pull through, a comeback was still—

“Holy crap!” Shao Ke suddenly grabbed her arm, exclaiming, “189 votes!”

He Yumeng froze. “Who?”

On the other side, Song Jiangjiang whooped, “Zhaozhao, you’re insane! Nearly two hundred votes! This is locked in—this is rock-solid! How many people are swooning over your Puppet Show operatic vocals?!”

Ji Zhaozhao: 189 votes

Wan Qi: 61 votes

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