I Became the Top Competitor in a Talent Show Novel - Chapter 47.3

Chi Meng called out to 019 in her mind. 019 rushed over immediately. Chi Meng hadn’t let 019 come online because she knew 019 had always had very high hopes for her, so high that Chi Meng was afraid of getting carried away, so she waited until a more appropriate time.

After greeting her, 019 immediately said excitedly, “Where are we now?”

Its milky voice was full of inflection, even bursting into a tiny spark of excitement.

Chi Meng said modestly, “I think… I made it into the top nine.”

019: “AH!!!”

“The debut spots, the top nine!” Chi Meng inhaled.

At this moment, she finally dropped her usual calm facade and spoke with some excitement.

019: “AHHH!!!”

“019 knew the Host could do it! The Host is the best!!” 019 quickly pulled out a glow stick and even grew three heads and six arms using code. One head was responsible for cheering, one for blowing paper horns, and one for whistling. The six arms waved the glow sticks with the flair of a thousand-armed Guanyin.

Chi Meng felt a fluctuating light flash before her eyes. She froze for a moment, thinking she was seeing things, and whispered, “It’s still not certain. I could also be 81st.”

Startled by this realization, she didn’t even hear Song Jiaqi’s and Su Mengyao’s speeches. She felt light and airy all around, hearing only Xie Tongyue’s voice saying, “Before announcing the rankings for the debut trainees, we will first announce the trainee ranked 81st.”

“The trainee ranked 81st and the trainee ranked 82nd are only separated by 3,114 votes. These two trainees are—” Xie Tongyue looked below the stage, and in the midst of expectant eyes, calmly spoke the names of the two people, “Xiangjiao Lan Entertainment’s Meng Xiaofei, and 321 Entertainment’s Lai Jia.”

The moment she finished speaking, Meng Xiaofei’s face twisted. She muttered, “No way… They must have made a mistake?”

How could I fall to 81st place?

There were clearly many voices of support for me online! Something must be wrong!

The other trainee, Lai Jia, nearly cried, biting her lip. She was the first trainee to appear on the initial stage, and now she was the one fighting for the last spot against another person.

The faces of the two appeared on the big screen. Xie Tongyue sighed softly, and in the tense atmosphere, announced: “The trainee who received 95,261 votes is… Meng Xiaofei. Congratulations.”

Meng Xiaofei wasn’t eliminated, but she didn’t show a happy smile. Everyone thought she was too happy to react. The trainees on either side of her thanked her but didn’t come over to shake hands or hug her. It wasn’t until Meng Xiaofei stood on the stage that she seemed to come to. She picked up the microphone, looked at the pyramid where only one spot remained besides the debut positions, and suddenly remembered Chi Meng walking to the last seat after being demoted three times during the initial stage.

She felt like she was the one picked over, which made her feel even worse. She pursed her lips and said, “I wasn’t eliminated, which is good, but this rank is not what I wanted. I will use my skill to prove to everyone in the future that I deserve a higher position!”

After Meng Xiaofei finished speaking, she put down the microphone and walked toward the pyramid seats. The expressions of the trainees seated on the pyramid were subtle. Some who couldn’t control their expressions stared at Meng Xiaofei with open-mouthed surprise, only closing their mouths when prompted.

The atmosphere at the recording site was strange due to Meng Xiaofei’s resentful speech. Xie Tongyue, holding the envelope, smiled and said, “Trainee Meng Xiaofei has shown us her determination. We hope to see your efforts in the future. Now is the moment everyone has been waiting for. We are about to reveal the debut trainees from the first ranking!”

“Who will secure the top nine spots, who will claim the Class A center position, and what results did they achieve in this round of voting? Let’s unveil them one by one.”

Xie Tongyue picked up a golden envelope and opened it in front of all the trainees on the pyramid and below the stage.

The host’s slender fingers drew out the equally golden card from the envelope and unfolded it in front of her. Xie Tongyue’s delicate eyes quickly scanned the content on the card. Perhaps seeing something or deliberately building suspense, she raised her eyebrow slightly, causing the trainees who were watching her to gasp.

“The top nine, ah…”

“The debut spots.”

“How enviable…”

Everyone whispered in awe, some even ranking them in their heads.

In Class B, closest to the debut spots, Liu Yuexin sighed softly. Just that little bit!

Xie Tongyue spoke slowly: “Please, the trainees whose names are called, come up to the stage and give your speech. First, I will unveil the trainee in ninth place for the debut spots. This trainee received a total of 1,726,795 votes in this voting round.”

Hearing this vote count, Liu Yuexin was even more emotional. Calculating it, she was only 35,000 votes behind ninth place, yet it was the difference between a debut spot.

“Do we, this row, even add up to 1.7 million votes?” A trainee in the last row of the pyramid whispered to her companion. The person next to her smiled bitterly and shook her head.

Xie Tongyue continued, “This trainee is very good at dancing.”

Liu Yuexin secretly thought: I’m also good at dancing!

“This trainee was the first performance team to appear on the first public stage.”

With Xie Tongyue’s hint, An Ran from Xinghuo Economy immediately said, “Xin Jie (Sister Xin)?”

Lin Yuxin tilted her head, finding Xie Tongyue’s hint about being very good at dancing interesting.

In Shijie Culture, Ning Yuze suddenly widened her eyes and looked at Qi Yan.

Qi Yan paused, then raised her head.

The ceiling lights were like stars falling into her eyes. She heard the host’s smiling voice call out: “Congratulations to Shijie Culture trainee Qi Yan for achieving ninth place in the first round of voting!”

Qi Yan’s tight expression slowly flushed red. She raised her hand to rub her nose and quickly walked onto the stage.

The trainees applauded. Qi Yan’s face grew redder. She bowed to everyone. After taking the microphone, she lowered her eyes and cleared her throat, “Um…”

Her slightly sweet voice made people involuntarily curve their lips. Qi Yan’s face appeared on the big screen. Her cool, slightly round face looked unapproachable, but the voice coming through the mic made one feel like wanting to pinch her cheek. Qi Yan heard people laughing. Her eyelashes trembled slightly. She said with a blush: “Thank you to all the Star Makers for your love, thank you to all the mentors and the production team, and my company teammates from the initial stage, and my friend who helped me during the theme song assessment…”

Qi Yan pursed her lips. Her expression momentarily stiffened here, almost losing her cool image. “And my Team 2 members from the first public stage. Thank you.”

“I love dancing. Although I still have many shortcomings in singing, I am now determined to do it well. Thank you again to all the Star Makers who voted for me and allowed me to stand here. Thank you for liking me. Really, truly, thank you.”

Qi Yan’s eyelashes fluttered wildly. She kept her eyes lowered and her voice trembling. She put down the microphone, took a deep breath, bowed ninety degrees again, and walked off the stage, heading toward the Class A seats under the gaze of everyone.

In the last row of the pyramid, Meng Xiaofei tightly clenched her fists, watching Qi Yan ascend step by step. After a long moment, she let out a cold snort and turned her head. Miao Wan, sitting next to Meng Xiaofei, glanced at her in surprise.

Meng Xiaofei seems to… really dislike Qi Yan?

The camera followed Qi Yan until she took her seat before moving away.

On the right side of the stage, Chi Meng raised her hand to rub her ears. 019 had shouted too loudly.

019: “AHHH Host is one spot higher again! The Host is the strongest!!”

Help, I’m going deaf!

Shen Zhu turned her head, looked at Chi Meng who was constantly rubbing her ears, smiled, and whispered, “Don’t be nervous.”

Chi Meng looked at Shen Zhu’s clenched fists and smiled, “Then you shouldn’t be nervous either.”

Shen Zhu inhaled.

I can’t… I can’t do it QAQ

“The trainee in eighth place for the debut spots,” Xie Tongyue continued the announcement after Qi Yan took her seat. “She is from Xinghuo Economy.”

Xinghuo Economy still had three trainees remaining: Xue Weiran, An Ran, and Lin Yuxin. They all looked very strong. However, everyone’s attention shifted between An Ran and Lin Yuxin.

“She was also a member of the first public stage team, and she was the leader. Let us congratulate Xinghuo Economy’s Lin Yuxin, who secured eighth place in Class A with 2,029,434 votes—two million votes!”

Lin Yuxin smiled as she stood up, patted An Ran and Xue Weiran’s shoulders, and said with a smile, “Waiting for you guys.”

Xue Weiran waved lazily.

After Lin Yuxin finished her thank you speech and took the eighth seat, Qi Yan turned her head and stiffly curved the corner of her mouth.

Qi Yan: Showing goodwill to the former leader.

Lin Yuxin: “I understand your meaning!”

I’ve received your intention!

In Chi Meng’s ear, 019 started screaming again.

“Set off fireworks,” Chi Meng said weakly.

019 stopped screaming and instead made “bang bang bang” sounds, setting off virtual fireworks for Chi Meng. Mission accomplished!

Xie Tongyue: “The trainee in seventh place for the debut spots, with 2,265,623 votes, Fengguang Culture’s Jiang Yingyue!”

“BANG!!”

019 set off an amazing firework. Chi Meng started to feel dizzy.

“The trainee in sixth place for the debut spots, with 2,537,823 votes, Lehaian’s Yuan Yixin.”

Bang bang—

White light flashed before Chi Meng’s eyes. Someone seemed to be waving at her in the white light.

Shen Zhu withdrew her hand and asked worriedly, “Are you alright?”

I can survive a little longer.

Chi Meng took a deep breath.

Fifth place.

“The trainee in fifth place for the debut spots, with 2,801,377 votes, Xinghuo Economy—”

A name instantly appeared in Chi Meng’s mind.

“An Ran. Congratulations.”

Fourth place.

Chi Meng raised her hand, pressing the web of her thumb against her lip.

Song Jiaqi looked down from the high part of the pyramid, her gaze fixed on Chi Meng. She felt as if there were a phantom before her. She seemed to see the bright eyes of the nervous girl, her pupils holding a myriad of lights, still so clear across the long distance, as if she were standing right in front of her.

Is Chi Meng smiling now?

Song Jiaqi felt a little regretful that she couldn’t stand next to Chi Meng to see her expression.

“The trainee in fourth place. This trainee… has a voice that compels you to listen,” Xie Tongyue said with a light laugh. “And also a gentle heart.”

The trainees’ eyes sparkled, looking in one direction.

Shen Zhu gripped Chi Meng’s hand, finding that the hand in hers was gently trembling.

019: “AHHH!!!”

“From the initial stage to the public performance, her performance has been strong and stable. Let us congratulate, with a total of 3,570,663 votes—Shijie Culture’s Ning Yuze!”

“Hah…” Chi Meng let out a weak breath, leaning her forehead against Shen Zhu’s shoulder. Shen Zhu also looked helpless, patting Chi Meng’s head.

The trainees in the recording hall laughed and applauded. Qi Yan, also in a debut spot, stood up, the corner of her mouth turning up. Su Mengyao below her looked up, cheerfully poking her cheek with her index finger, “Yan Yan, you can smile, you know~”

Qi Yan’s smile disappeared in a second.

Anyone but you, go away!

Chi Meng didn’t want to look at Xie Tongyue right now. She raised her hand to rub her brow bone. Her crimson lips were bitten hard by herself. 019’s voice disappeared. Only Shen Zhu held Chi Meng’s hand tightly, murmuring, “Third place. It’s between the two of us…”

She didn’t finish the rest of her sentence because Xie Tongyue said: “The trainee in third place for the debut spots, wow—this is where it gets exciting. This trainee received a total of 5,194,204 votes in the first round of voting, nearly five million two hundred thousand votes!”

All trainees: !!!

Five million?

That’s a million and a half votes higher than fourth place?

The trainees who had already taken their seats felt their hands and feet go numb. They gasped, saying, “Amazing!”

“We’re just the clowns!”

“Five million?!”

Xie Tongyue asked herself, “Who is she?”

Xue Weiran puffed out her cheeks, placed her hands by her sides, looked up at the ceiling, and swung her legs.

Shen Zhu lowered her eyelashes, a trace of tension coloring her cool face. Her red lips were slightly parted, and her chest was rising and falling rapidly. Her hand, interlocked with Chi Meng’s, was held in mid-air.

Chi Meng pressed her finger against her forehead, swallowing hard. She released her battered lips and let out a long breath.

“Is she very good at singing?”

“Is she a leader?”

“Is she very gentle?”

On the stage, Xie Tongyue smiled broadly, put down the card, and tilted her head to ask the final question: “Is she incredibly hardworking, to the point of being frightening?”

In Class B, Song Jiaqi abruptly stood up, looking in the direction she had come from.

Xie Tongyue answered with a smile: “That’s right, she is! Let us congratulate, with five million one hundred ninety thousand votes, the trainee who secured third place in the first-round ranking of the debut spots, Chi Meng!”

The sound of fireworks exploded with a roar, more splendid than the rain of fireworks she and Song Jiaqi had watched in the suburbs that day. The surrounding voices were enthusiastic. Shen Zhu hugged her excitedly. 019 was delighted, like a silly child. Trainees on and off the stage were shouting congratulations and encouragement to her.

It was like the first time she won a competition trophy, the first time she was admitted to J University, the first time she got an offer from a major company, the first time she led a team to win a project, the first time she signed a multi-million-dollar contract…

It was like the joy of all her first times, doubled and replayed. Chi Meng stood at the center of the light. She was smiling, the corners of her mouth turned up. She blinked softly. When she looked up, her eyes were slightly red, and her vision was misty.

Eh?

She did it.

Chi Meng: Huh, does the ‘queen of diligence’ cry too?

Note: The number of eliminations in the first round has been changed to 45. The top two should be known to everyone. Here is the current ranking, 126 to 81:

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