I Struggle to Survive in a Girl Group [Transmigration] - Chapter 49

“Stay a bit further back, don’t get spotted.”

Shu Qingyu tugged at Jiang Ran beside her and whispered softly.

Jiang Ran nodded in understanding. “It’s fine, they haven’t noticed us over here.”

The staff gave everyone three hours to familiarize themselves with the various games, repeatedly reminding them to stay safe and contact them if anything happened before leaving alone.

Shu Qingyu and Jiang Ran exchanged a glance, then followed Yu Tingbai at a careful distance.

The two of them had wanted to branch out on their own, and Chu Ning had helped them a lot with that. Before leaving, they wanted to do something for their captain.

After much thought, they finally came up with an idea.

They decided to win Yu Tingbai over during this variety show.

The show “Girl Group Showdown” had an unwritten rule: since each girl group had a different number of members, and many games required equal numbers on both sides, it was common for larger groups to lend members to smaller ones. Occasionally, guest stars were invited to balance the numbers.

After all, audience votes were based on individual performances, and the final score was an average for the whole group. So even if they were in another group, performing well could still earn high votes for their own team. Moreover, the tension of competing against their own group members or outperforming others in a rival group made for great entertainment.

“Princess” had one more member than “Destiny,” so by convention, one person from Princess would join their side.

Shu Qingyu and Jiang Ran had discussed it behind Chu Ning’s back yesterday, they had to do their best to get Yu Tingbai to come over.

Yu Tingbai was the undisputed top talent and all-rounder in “Princess.” During the “Sweetie 101” audition show, they had been amazed by her skills and popularity. Although “Destiny” had seen a slight dip in popularity recently, they still had a massive fanbase and remained one of the top girl groups in the country. If Yu Tingbai was willing to collaborate, it would be a win-win situation.

They had also witnessed the popularity of “Rain After Blue” and “White Wind Chime,” especially An Qing, who used to frequently trend on negative hot searches for being called a useless favorite. But since she started a CP with Yu Tingbai, not only had her skills improved, but her popularity had soared it was truly inspiring. This showed how important a good CP could be!

What if Chu Ning and Yu Tingbai had good chemistry and sparked something, even if just for a short-term CP? Wouldn’t that boost both their popularity?

“Destiny” was a bit unique: the captain, Chu Ning, was 25 years old, while Shu Qingyu and Jiang Ran were only 20 and hadn’t even reached adulthood when they debuted. Chu Ning had always played the role of the big sister, worrying endlessly about the group. Fortunately, the two younger members, though a bit scatterbrained, were talented, hardworking, and grateful, which had kept “Destiny” harmonious all the way.

But there was one thing the two younger members always regretted: there wasn’t a single noteworthy CP in “Destiny,” and they had never benefited from CP marketing. With the three of them together, it always looked like an older sister taking care of two troublesome kids, no romantic tension at all, and they had no idea why.

Shu Qingyu had once asked Chu Ning in confusion, “Why don’t we have any CP chemistry?”

As expected, she was met with Chu Ning’s disdain.

“Fangirling over this one today and that one tomorrow, unable to take your eyes off handsome guys and you still want to try your hand at shipping?”

Chu Ning scoffed and lightly tapped Shu Qingyu’s head with a rolled-up lyric sheet. “Focus on practicing your singing. Stop thinking about all these flashy distractions.”

So it was because they were both too straight? That wasn’t something they could change.

Shu Qingyu froze for a moment, then had no choice but to drop the subject.

But Yu Tingbai was different. Based on past experience, Yu Tingbai was like a brick wherever she was needed, she could be placed. Whoever she was paired with would inevitably gain popularity.

From what Chu Ning implied, she planned to establish her own independent studio in the future to continue writing and releasing songs. Now that both of them had promising paths ahead, they wanted to help their captain boost her popularity before parting ways.

So, ever since free time began, Shu Qingyu and Jiang Ran had been tailing Yu Tingbai, hoping for a chance to speak with her alone.

But after more than half an hour, Yu Tingbai and An Qing remained inseparable, like a pair of lovebirds stuck together.

Anxious as they were, the two couldn’t help but marvel inwardly: the “Princess” CP was truly dedicated, not even slacking off during rehearsal.

Yu Tingbai and An Qing were standing near a basketball shooting game. An Qing was speaking seriously about something, and after listening attentively, a faint smile appeared at the corners of Yu Tingbai’s lips. She reached out and ruffled An Qing’s hair.

Such strong CP chemistry! No wonder the “Rain After Clear Skies” shippers were utterly obsessed!

Shu Qingyu and Jiang Ran exchanged a glance, their excitement growing.

Just then, Yu Tingbai suddenly turned her head slightly and cast a faint, almost imperceptible glance in their direction.

Had they been spotted?

The two immediately tensed up and hurriedly looked up at the sky.

Yu Tingbai withdrew her gaze, picked up a basketball nearby, and lightly tossed it upward, then raised a single finger.

The basketball spun gracefully on her fingertip before landing steadily back in her palm.

An Qing looked at her with admiration. “Bai Bai, you’re so amazing.”

This was who-knows-how-many times she had repeated the same phrase today. They had tried several games earlier, and Yu Tingbai had picked up each one effortlessly. An Qing had initially thought she was quite good at games and wanted to show off in front of her fiancee, only to end up being completely outshone.

Yu Tingbai smiled and suddenly said, “Qing Qing, why don’t you go play over there for a bit? I want to practice shooting on my own.”

An Qing was taken aback.

What did that mean? Was she annoyed because An Qing was too clingy?

She had clearly said she liked her had it only been a few days? Yu Tingbai, you big two-timer!

Her indignant expression was written all over her face. Seeing this, Yu Tingbai quickly put down the basketball and spoke softly to coax her.

“It’s not what you think,” she said, leaning closer, her tone unusually cautious. “Qing Qing, when you’re around, I can’t help but want to look at you. I can’t focus.”

An Qing’s breath hitched as she looked up at her.

The other girl smiled back gently. “Don’t be mad. I’ll come find you in a bit.”

An Qing had always felt that although Yu Tingbai’s smile was beautiful, it only skimmed the surface, while her inner self remained cold. But now, when Yu Tingbai smiled at her, there was a soft warmth in her eyes.

Her heart instantly fluttered like a startled deer. Feeling slightly flustered, she turned her head away and murmured softly, “Alright then.”

With that, she didn’t dare look at Yu Tingbai again, covering her face as she scurried away in quick, small steps.

Yu Tingbai watched her retreating figure for a moment, a faint smile curling her lips, before picking up the basketball again and shooting it toward the hoop.

The ball spun halfway around the rim before dropping cleanly through the net.

Yu Tingbai continued her practice without pause. After sinking several shots in a row, a tentative voice finally sounded from behind her.

“Yu Tingbai, can we talk?”

Yu Tingbai turned and saw exactly the two people she had expected.

Having followed her for so long, she was quite curious about what they wanted.

Casually tossing the basketball aside, she asked, “What’s up?”

“Wel..” Jiang Ran hesitated for a moment, glanced around to confirm no one was nearby, then took two steps forward and lowered her voice. “When the official competition starts, would you like to join our team to play together?”

Yu Tingbai was taken aback, her eyes revealing a thoughtful expression. “Why?”

She had a vague idea of their intention, but hadn’t expected them to be so blunt, without any attempt at subtlety. No wonder Destiny’s fans always said Chu Ning spent her days babysitting turns out they weren’t wrong.

Shu Qingyu chimed in: “It’d be a powerful collaboration! Our captain is really popular. If you join, it would definitely. definitely boost your popularity too. Anyway, it’s beneficial for both sides.”

Yu Tingbai sighed and cut straight to the point: “You want me to create a CP with your captain?”

The two girls exchanged hesitant glances, then nodded vigorously in unison.

“That won’t do.” Yu Tingbai shook her head, firmly rejecting the idea. “It would affect my CP.”

“Why? It wouldn’t affect anything!”

“It’s just for one variety show.”

“You can create CP buzz within your own group anytime anyway, it’s not like you’re short on opportunities.”

“You’re already managing two CPs simultaneously, what’s one more?”

Hearing this, Shu Qingyu and Jiang Ran grew anxious, taking turns trying to persuade her.

Instead of answering directly, Yu Tingbai countered: “Does Chu Ning know about what you’re doing right now?”

The two immediately shook their heads guiltily.

Yu Tingbai continued: “Then how do you know Chu Ning even wants to create a CP with me?”

Her gaze drifted to a distant point, her face thoughtful.

Shu Qingyu followed her line of sight and saw their dear captain with a little follower trailing behind her, bouncing along and occasionally stepping forward to say a few words.

Although Chu Ning maintained a stern expression, she made no move to shoo the other person away.

Jiang Ran also witnessed this peculiar scene and couldn’t help remarking: “Is that Shen Siqi really our captain’s fan?”

Yu Tingbai smiled faintly and asked: “What type of girl does your captain like?”

Jiang Ran thought for a moment before declaring confidently: “Someone like me!”

Shu Qingyu flared up angrily: “It’s clearly someone like me!!”

Yu Tingbai: “…”

Were these two delicate-looking beauties actually carrying reinforced concrete in their heads?

This aggressive energy truly worthy of being in the same group as Chu Ning.

“What’s the rush? We’re basically the same type anyway,” Jiang Ran said breezily, patting Shu Qingyu’s shoulder before sighing. “Too bad we’re both straight as steel. That’s why none of us three have any CP chemistry with each other.”

Moreover, the team leader is deeply passionate about writing songs. In her world, nothing is more important than composing, and she refuses to spare time for matters like romance, which is why she remains single to this day.

“That makes sense,” Shu Qingyu agreed with the reasoning. After a moment of thought, she added to Yu Tingbai, “It’s fine if they aren’t as likable as the two of us, but the most important thing is that they have a good temper.”

Yu Tingbai truly couldn’t fathom where their confidence came from. Suppressing the urge to retort, she patiently explained, “Well, I wouldn’t be suitable then. My temper isn’t great, and I’m afraid I might clash with your team leader.”

“I know you chose me because of my popularity, but when it comes to shipping couples, ‘compatibility’ is more important than popularity. If two people aren’t a good match and don’t get along well, it could actually harm their popularity. Don’t you agree?”

Yu Tingbai’s voice was exceptionally gentle, carrying an inexplicable persuasiveness that made the two girls unconsciously swayed. They nodded in agreement, “You’re right.”

But at this point, the two of them grew a bit anxious.

“What should we do then?”

“Someone has to come over.”

“Tingbai, who do you think would be suitable?”

“Preferably someone who can create good chemistry.”

Seeing the girls’ worried expressions and recalling the rumors Ye Ming had mentioned about “Destiny disbanding,” Yu Tingbai began to understand the situation.

She smiled reassuringly and said, “Don’t worry. Since this involves the popularity of both groups, we’ll choose the most suitable person.”

Shu Qingyu and Jiang Ran had no reason to doubt her. They were all in the same boat, if this cross-group couple pairing succeeded, both sides would benefit.

So, they nodded repeatedly and offered a few strategic suggestions.

“This person should be exceptionally intelligent.”

“Mature and steady.”

“Understanding and considerate.”

“Calm under pressure.”

“Alright,” Yu Tingbai paused, her smile enigmatic. “I’ve noted everything you said.”