I Struggle to Survive in a Girl Group [Transmigration] - Chapter 52

Chu Ning hadn’t really thought too much about it. After the little incident yesterday afternoon, she had already mentally labeled Shen Siqi as a delicate crybaby.

Although “Destiny” had a wilder style, they knew their limits in speech and action, understanding when to stop, not only did they not attract hate because of it, but they actually gained a wave of fans. With the group about to disband, she didn’t want to give anyone a reason to criticize her and risk tarnishing her reputation in her final days.

So when Shen Siqi reached out to her, she softened her approach a bit to avoid making the other girl cry again.

But her two teammates clearly didn’t see it that way. Jiang Ran couldn’t hold back her surprise and blurted out, “Wow, did I hear that right? Our captain is being so gentle?”

Shu Qingyu chimed in, adding fuel to the fire, “This isn’t our captain’s usual style.”

Chu Ning shot them a glare. “Hurry up, will you?”

Shu Qingyu and Jiang Ran exchanged a look. Though they didn’t quite understand what was going on, they couldn’t ignore their captain’s orders and had no choice but to obediently greet Shen Siqi.

Shen Siqi, completely unaware of any tension, responded warmly.

Truth be told, she had known that the three members of “Destiny” were quite unique, so she had felt a bit nervous before coming. Still, she had chosen to follow her heart. But now it seemed her teammates were actually very easy to get along with, no one was ostracizing her, the little cutie!

While she was lost in thought, Xu Die spoke up again.

“Alright, since both teams’ members have been decided, let’s move on to the exciting draw segment!” She raised her hand, signaling the staff to bring the lottery box onto the stage.

The box was filled with many colorful little balls, each containing a small slip of paper with a different game written on it.

Ji Sen said, “As per tradition, let’s have the newcomers from ‘Princess’ draw the first game!”

The indoor segment of “Girl Group Showdown” consisted of three games. Usually, the less experienced group would draw twice, while the more seasoned group would draw once.

Xu Die smiled warmly at the members of “Princess” and asked, “Who will do the drawing?”

“The one with the best luck should do it,” Wen Ling said, instinctively glancing in a certain direction. “Siqi, you ” Then she suddenly remembered that Shen Siqi had already switched to the other team and instead called on An Qing, who was standing next to Shen Siqi’s original spot. “An Qing, you do it.”

“I think that works,” Yi Zhuo added, looking up to seek Yu Tingbai’s opinion. “An Qing has pretty good luck smooth sailing all the way, right?”

Yu Tingbai chuckled. “That’s true.”

An Qing: ???

In her original world, she had flopped so hard she died once, and after transmigrating, she was still hanging by a thread. What kind of good luck was that, qaq.

But in everyone else’s eyes, her short life so far had indeed been free of major setbacks. Besides, being reborn was lucky in itself.

An Qing desperately tried to comfort herself, attempting to boost her luck through positive thinking.

She said, “Fine, I’ll do it.”

“What’s wrong, realizing the group can’t function without me?” Shen Siqi, watching from the opposite side, was thoroughly enjoying the show and offered a very objective comment. “An Qing isn’t as lucky as me. The chicken drumsticks in her boxed lunches are usually smaller than mine.”

An Qing:

That’s only because I let you have the bigger one since you’re younger! You’re such an idiot!

And which side is Shen Siqi even on? Switching allegiances so quickly? You can’t forget your roots, you know?

She glared fiercely at Shen Siqi, and as expected, received a playful grimace in return.

An Qing stepped up to the box, reached her hand through the round hole on top, fumbled for a few seconds, retrieved a small ball, and handed it to Xu Die.

Xu Die skillfully opened the ball and read the words on the slip of paper.

“It’s the ‘Terrifying Box’!” She smiled brightly at An Qing and said, “You’ve drawn the most popular game right off the bat, and it’s one you’re good at! An Qing really has great luck!”

When An Qing heard the words “Terrifying Box,” she froze.

How did it become something she was good at? In Survival in the Ghost Town, she was just forced to participate, and to a large extent, it was only because Yu Tingbai was always by her side that she wasn’t as scared.

But aside from her and Shen Siqi, everyone else in the group was quite skilled in this area. Ugh…

An Qing glanced over and, sure enough, the other three looked perfectly calm, even exuding an air of confidence.

Shen Siqi was equally distraught. She stared at An Qing in disbelief, tears welling up in her eyes as she accused, “An Qing, you did this on purpose! Just because you’re not scared, you’re targeting me!”

An Qing:

If I said I’m scared too, would you believe me?

While they were talking, Xu Die and Ji Sen had already arranged for the staff to bring the game props onto the stage and set them up one by one.

The “Terrifying Box” was a common game in variety shows, and the rules were roughly as follows: Each team would be given four boxes, each containing an unknown item. The front of the boxes was made of transparent glass, allowing the audience and others on stage to see what was inside.

The participants, however, had to stand behind the boxes, unable to see the contents but given a vague description of the item inside.

In addition to the unknown item, each box was filled with glass marbles. Based on the description, the members would choose which box they wanted to challenge. They would then reach into the box through an opening on top and, within a specified time, retrieve as many marbles as possible. The team with the most marbles retrieved would win.

The opposing team, who could see the contents of the boxes the entire time, could intimidate the playing team, engage in psychological warfare, and slow down their marble retrieval speed.

“‘Princess’ will play first. We will reveal the hints for each box one by one. Please make your choice of which box to challenge within the allotted time,” Xu Die announced, standing before a row of boxes covered with black cloth. “As for ‘Destiny,’ please seize the opportunity to interfere and confuse your opponents’ choices.”

Chu Ning pondered for a moment before leaning over to ask Shen Siqi beside her, “Who in your group is the most timid?”

Interference was a skill in itself. The best scenario would be to mislead the opponents into having the most timid person choose the scariest item. That way, due to fear, the number of marbles they retrieved would significantly decrease, increasing their own team’s chances of winning.

Shen Siqi cheerfully replied, “Me, of course.”

Chu Ning:

She rubbed her temples in frustration. “Besides you.”

“Then there’s no one else,” Shen Siqi waved her hand dismissively. “They’re all pros.”

Chu Ning couldn’t tell if she was genuinely clueless or just pretending, so she decided to observe for herself.

Wen Ling and Yi Zhuo both looked completely relaxed, clearly unfazed by whatever they might draw. Yu Tingbai was looking down at An Qing with a cheerful smile in her eyes, showing no sign of fear either. An Qing wasn’t smiling; she glanced at the boxes and instinctively moved closer to Yu Tingbai.

Chu Ning’s eyes darkened slightly as she said to her teammates, “How about An Qing?”

Shu Qingyu and Jiang Ran were already used to following Chu Ning’s lead and immediately nodded in agreement.

“No way!” Shen Siqi protested anxiously, tugging at Chu Ning’s arm. “An Qing is really brave. During the talent show, there was a prank with a ghost, and she almost scared the ghost away.”

Shu Qingyu looked puzzled. “Really? But when I watched Survival in the Ghost Town, why did An Qing always shrink behind Yu Tingbai whenever something happened?”

“You don’t get it,” Shen Siqi whispered mysteriously. “That’s just for CP hype.”

Chu Ning: ?

Are you sure?

She glanced at An Qing’s fingers, curled tightly at her sides, and ultimately decided not to take Shen Siqi’s advice.

“Let’s scare An Qing.”

As she said this, Chu Ning deliberately raised her voice so everyone on stage could hear her, and she was satisfied to see An Qing’s eyes widen in panic.

Shen Siqi shot An Qing a disdainful look and called out, “You’re just acting!”

An Qing was so annoyed she could’ve exploded, retorting, “Don’t you come back!”

“Alright, now that the two teams have had a friendly exchange, let’s officially begin the game!” Ji Sen stood in front of the first box, his fingers gripping the edge of the black cloth.

An Qing and her teammates stood on the opposite side of the box, and she suddenly felt a wave of nervousness.

With a swift motion, Ji Sen lifted the black cloth, instantly revealing the contents to everyone on stage. The large screen behind An Qing and the others also clearly displayed the items inside for the audience.

The audience’s expressions shifted subtly, but following the show’s rules, they refrained from showing strong reactions, making it impossible to guess whether the items in the box were good or bad.

On the other side, Shu Qingyu and Jiang Ran both feigned terror, their expressions growing increasingly convincing.

Shen Siqi covered her eyes and leaped back several steps.

Although Chu Ning didn’t move, she furrowed her brow as she looked at the contents.

Judging solely by their reactions, the items in the box seemed far from pleasant.

Earlier, Chu Ning and her teammates had agreed that if they encountered something particularly frightening, they would act scared. The “princess” team might assume they were exaggerating to mislead them, so they would likely choose the most timid person to proceed.

Conversely, if the items were ordinary, they would pretend to be frightened but keep their bodies relaxed, occasionally exchanging knowing smiles to confuse the opposing team.

And now, inside the box were two frogs with bulging eyes alive.

Scattered around the frogs were several glass marbles, which were the mission items they needed to collect.

This could definitely be considered horror-story level.

So, aside from Chu Ning, the other three’s reactions were partly genuine.

Xu Die read the cue card with a smile. “The hint for the first item is humanity’s good friend.”

Shu Qingyu immediately played along, exclaiming dramatically, “No way, no way! How is this a good friend?”

Jiang Ran declared firmly, “I don’t have such a good friend!”

Shen Siqi hid behind Chu Ning without saying a word. Compared to her teammates on the other side, she was actually more worried about her own safety later.

She had finally been arranged to get close to her idol, but in the very first game, she ended up dragging the team down. What kind of situation was this? Wuwu.

“An Qing, I heard you’re very brave.”

Chu Ning raised her chin slightly and called out provocatively to the other side.

She took a few steps forward and pointed at something in the box. “Then I think this thing suits you quite well. Do you dare?”