The Vicious Female Supporting Character Goes Viral After Her Masks Drop During the Talent Show - Chapter 17

The call was connected quickly.

Li Xing was not surprised to receive Zhong Yan’s call. She knew this was Zhong Yan’s way of notifying her that they could proceed with the next phase of their plan. After exchanging brief holiday greetings, Zhong Yan asked, “Sister Xing, how have you been lately? Is work going smoothly?”

Under the watchful eye of the cameras, Zhong Yan couldn’t speak too bluntly. However, the two were perfectly in sync; Li Xing understood exactly what she was asking.

Li Xing smiled. “Smoothly—everything is going smoothly. And you? Are you doing alright in the program?”

Zhong Yan smiled as well. “I’m doing great. Don’t worry about me; just focus on your own business.”

“Good, then I’m relieved,” Li Xing replied.

To an outsider, this brief conversation seemed like nothing more than a common exchange between friends. But for Zhong Yan and Li Xing, the necessary information had been successfully transmitted.

As Zhong Yan stepped out of the phone booth, she saw An Tao exiting another booth just a short distance down the hallway. Zhong Yan originally intended to call out to her so they could return to the dorms together, but An Tao didn’t seem to notice her. She looked drained, her eyes red as if she had just been crying.

This was the first time Zhong Yan had seen An Tao look so dispirited since they met. Usually, An Tao’s face was bright with a gentle, energetic smile; being around her always felt warm and relaxing.

Instead of heading toward the dorms, An Tao walked toward the practice rooms. The theme song evaluation had long since ended, and the selection for the first public performance wasn’t scheduled until tomorrow. There was no reason to be in the practice room now.

Feeling worried, Zhong Yan quietly followed her.

Inside the empty practice room, the lights were off and the cameras were shut down. An Tao stood alone before a massive mirror. In the reflection, the girl’s face was pale and her nose was red. Her eyes, which usually held a bright spark, finally shed their disguise, revealing a mix of grievance, fear, helplessness, and deep confusion.

After standing frozen for a long time, An Tao gracefully raised her arms into a ballet pose. Without music, the girl in the mirror began to dance. It wasn’t the theme song choreography, but a simple ballet piece she had learned as a child—the very first dance she had ever performed on stage.

Standing by the small window of the back door, Zhong Yan watched as An Tao performed that simple dance over and over again with total abandon. Gradually, Zhong Yan understood the reason for her despair.

The broadcast of the first episode was a happy occasion for many trainees, but for An Tao, it must have been heartbreaking. Although Dingming’s initial stage was aired, An Tao had almost no screen time. Even her solo dance segment had been completely cut. Furthermore, in the theme song music video released last week, despite being in Class A, An Tao only appeared for a fleeting second.

The “horror story” of survival shows isn’t a lack of talent—it’s having talent but being invisible to the audience. An Tao was that story.

In the original script, An Tao was merely a “cannon fodder” NPC. She had no storyline, minimal screen time, and was always pushed to the edges of the stage. Consequently, she failed to attract a fan base. Even with her pre-show popularity, she only survived the first two rounds, eventually being eliminated just shy of the finals.

Before meeting An Tao, Zhong Yan had seen her as nothing more than a name on a page—a “study partner” character who would never succeed. But after getting to know her, the parts of An Tao that weren’t in the script made her a warm, real human being.

Just like now—the script was too stingy to describe the moment an ignored NPC dances alone in a silent practice room during a heavy twilight, facing a mirror, facing herself, and facing a blurred future.

Who would know of her hard work and passion? Who would care? She wanted so desperately to be seen, yet she was destined to remain hidden.

Zhong Yan’s nose felt unexpectedly stingy. She knew An Tao’s tragic fate didn’t end here. After failing to debut in Best Girls, An Tao would reappear two years later in the latter half of the original script. That appearance would mark her final downfall, where a single mistake would cost her the stage forever.

Watching the girl spinning endlessly in the mirror, Zhong Yan made a silent decision and quietly turned to leave. She would ensure that An Tao’s tragic fate stopped spinning today.

Tomorrow would be a brand-new day. The gears of destiny were about to reset.

The Selection Begins

The next day at noon, the 100 trainees gathered once again in the recording hall. The first public performance task—the Group Battle—was officially beginning.

There were eight songs in total, each divided into Group A and Group B, totaling sixteen performance teams. On the public stage, the A and B groups of the same song would compete against each other.

The rules were as follows: Trainees would select songs in order of their ranks (A, B, C, D, F). Within each rank, the specific order would be determined by a lucky draw. When it was their turn, a trainee would choose a song, then invite one other trainee they most wanted to work with to join their group. If the invited person agreed, they joined the team and could then invite the next person, and so on. If the invited person refused, the inviter lost the right to invite anyone else for that round.

After the rules were announced, the room erupted in chatter.

“I want to choose Teacher Zhong!” “Don’t dream. Class A picks first; we won’t get a chance.” “Who do you think in Class A will snatch Teacher Zhong first?” “Whoever is lucky enough to draw Number 1!”

During the draw, Zhong Yan pulled a white ball with the number “3” on it. Tian Jingyu drew Number 1, and Xia Meng drew Number 2. Zhong Yan looked around and saw An Tao standing on the edge of the crowd, holding Number 9.

Tian Jingyu walked to the song selection wall. People whispered, “Tian Jingyu is so lucky. If she chooses Zhong Yan, they’ll be an unstoppable powerhouse.”

Tian Jingyu gripped her ball tightly. After a sleepless night of panic over Zhong Yan’s sudden explosion in popularity, she felt this was her last chance. She chose the dance-heavy track Playing. It was the most difficult song—powerful, cool, and “girl crush” in style.

Crucially, she was certain Zhong Yan wouldn’t choose it. Zhong Yan was a vocalist. By choosing this, Tian Jingyu ensured she wouldn’t have to compete directly with Zhong Yan on the same stage.

When it came time to pick a partner, everyone expected Tian Jingyu to choose An Tao, her former teammate. Instead, Tian Jingyu ignored An Tao’s gaze and chose a trainee from Class B.

An Tao lowered her head, her hands tightening.

Next was Xia Meng. She chose the refreshing, idol-style song Summer Soda. Everyone assumed she would pick An Tao, who had spent countless nights helping her practice. But Xia Meng chose another dancer from Class A instead.

An Tao’s smile became strained. It wasn’t that she wanted to perform Summer Soda, but the feeling of being passed over by everyone she knew was devastating. It made her feel useless—unworthy of being seen.

Then, it was Zhong Yan’s turn.

The hall went silent as Zhong Yan walked past the ballad and “pretty” dance tracks everyone expected her to pick. She walked straight to Playing and stood in the Group B slot, directly opposite Tian Jingyu.

The room gasped. “She’s going to battle Tian Jingyu head-on? In a style that isn’t even hers?”

Zhong Yan didn’t explain. She picked up the microphone and looked directly at the dejected An Tao. “The trainee I most want to work with is—An Tao.”

An Tao froze. She looked up and met Zhong Yan’s smiling eyes.

“Are you willing to be my teammate?” Zhong Yan asked, reaching out her hand.

An Tao’s face lit up. She nodded vigorously and ran forward to grasp Zhong Yan’s hand. In that moment, she felt like a drowning person who had finally found a literal lifesaver. Zhong Yan gripped her hand firmly, refusing to let go even when An Tao tried to pull back out of shyness.

Zhong Yan then filled out her team with strategic precision, choosing Jin Li—a talented rapper with a “cool” image—and two other capable trainees from Classes B and C. Her goal wasn’t just to pick the most popular people, but to build a balanced team where everyone could shine.

The Training Grind

In the practice room, the roles were set: Zhong Yan as Main Vocal, An Tao as Main Dancer, and Jin Li as Main Rapper. When it came to electing a leader, Zhong Yan noticed An Tao hesitating.

Zhong Yan gave her a push. “I recommend An Tao. She has experience as a leader, she’s responsible, and she’s always helping others.”

With the team’s unanimous support, An Tao was moved to tears. She finally donned the “Leader” sticker, her eyes red but glowing with new purpose.

Over the next week, the training was intense. An Tao worked harder than anyone. She stayed until 3:00 AM every night to refine the choreography and prepare for the next day.

On the day of the rehearsal, the mentor Ye Shi watched their performance. “It’s good,” Ye Shi said, “but An Tao, you look tired. The stage doesn’t lie. Everyone else improved, but you actually look worse than last time. Your energy is dropping.”

Flustered and ashamed, An Tao begged for one more try. “I just didn’t warm up enough. Please, let us try one more time!”

The music started again. They reached the dance break—the highlight of the song where An Tao was the center. She stepped forward to perform a side aerial, but her body wavered. Her strength failed her, and with a sudden stumble, she collapsed onto the floor.