Transmigrated into the Villainous Scummy Alpha in a Talent Show Novel - Chapter 18

In the morning, after a night’s rest, the nine team members stood in a lively row in the practice room, eagerly awaiting instruction from their dance teacher.

The teacher first turned on the projector and played the choreography prepared by the production team. Then, glancing at the nine members who looked troubled, she spoke up at the right moment, “Do you all feel like this choreography is just too simple?”

No one spoke up, but Lin Qi raised her hand. “Teacher, aside from the group dance section in the middle, most of our movements involve just standing. I don’t think that makes much sense.”

Tan Yi looked at Lin Qi’s serious expression and nodded in agreement. “Exactly. And even the group dance part is just spinning in circles. I feel like there’s no real stage presence.”

The teacher played the dance demo again, gradually furrowing her brows. She couldn’t understand though the song was slow and melancholic, that didn’t mean everyone had to stand around like wooden statues.

Had one of the contestants offended the production team?

Shaking her head, the teacher forced a smile. “Alright, let’s try running through the choreography as it is first. We’ll see how it looks, and then decide whether to make changes, okay?”

No wonder she’d suddenly been asked to attend a sponsored fashion show last night. By the time she returned in the morning, the dance demo had been swapped out.

The classroom fell into silence. Lin Qi, as the leader, nodded and took the initiative. “Let’s give it a try first. If it doesn’t work, we’ll revise the choreography. I’ve studied choreography before, so don’t worry.”

The entire day was dedicated to dance practice, so there was no rush for time.

The nine members were assigned their positions based on the teacher’s understanding of their skills. Lin Qi was unquestionably given the center position, while Tan Yi was made the sub-center. The others were placed more or less evenly. At first, they all stood stiffly like wooden dolls until Lin Qi took each of their hands, guiding them into the dance.

The choreography was so simple that within two hours, all eight members, except for Jiang Ming, had mastered it. It was obvious that no one was satisfied with the routine.

Jiang Ming’s only struggle was with the spinning section in the middle. The female lead seemed to have terrible balance, after a few turns, she was completely disoriented, repeatedly stumbling into Lin Qi’s arms, leaving both of them blushing.

By ten o’clock, the nine of them could barely perform the dance from start to finish. After showcasing it to the teacher, Lin Qi glanced at her teammates, who hadn’t even broken a sweat, and shrugged helplessly. “Teacher, you see it too this choreography has zero impact.”

Then, perhaps to lighten the mood, Lin Qi joked, “And as the center, I really look like a playgirl, holding hands with everyone one by one.”

The others laughed obligingly. Tan Yi playfully stretched out her hand. “Guess the leader likes me best she held my hand the longest.”

“That’s because you’re the sub-center, okay?”

A teammate who was close with Tan Yi swatted her hand away, laughing in protest.

The teacher looked at the contestants, their faces bright with lively smiles, and couldn’t bear to see them subjected to such unfair treatment. Pressing her lips together, she said, “Let’s revise the choreography. Lin Qi, you mentioned you’ve studied choreography before?”

Lin Qi nodded. In her past life, she had handled most of the group’s choreography, she had full confidence in this.

“Then tell me your ideas.”

Lin Qi’s throat bobbed as she smiled to mask her ulterior motives. “First, let’s cut the spinning move it doesn’t suit such a melancholic song at all.”

Absolutely not because the female lead had terrible balance.

Tan Yi, however, was supportive. “Yeah, no more spinning. And let’s change the standing-still part too.”

Lin Qi pondered the lyrics, then placed four chairs at equal distances. She picked four contestants who looked more delicate and had them sit down, while three others stood beside them. Finally, she positioned herself next to Jiang Ming.

“Tan Yi, you stand in the center. Start by walking out slowly while singing.”

Dragging over another chair, Lin Qi sat sideways to the group, adopting a melancholic expression as she waved her hand through the air like a drifting dragon.

“The standing members will do the same. Let me demonstrate with Jiang Ming first.”

Approaching a bewildered Jiang Ming, Lin Qi extended one hand, nodding for the other to raise hers. Soon, their fingertips brushed.

Lin Qi pulled back slightly. “Remember, don’t actually touch. The lyrics describe the protagonist whispering to the window on a rainy night, longing for someone out of reach. So we’ll keep a small distance, symbolizing their yearning but inability to meet.”

With the opening sequence settled, Lin Qi stood again. “Then, you can sit properly on the chairs, and those standing will move behind them.”

She positioned herself behind Jiang Ming, who was already seated, and covered her eyes with her hands. “‘Always wanting to hide, afraid to meet others’ gaze’ like this. For the rest of the lyrics, think of your own movements.”

The group fell silent, deep in thought. Lin Qi withdrew her hand, her palm slightly warm. Jiang Ming had seemed nervous, her long, curled lashes fluttering faintly, ticklish against her skin.

Tan Yi suddenly had an idea. She waved Lin Qi aside and took her place behind Jiang Ming’s chair, then slowly stepped in front of her. With hands clasped as if gripping a sword, she mimed stabbing her own abdomen before lifting her head, staring despairingly at Jiang Ming’s calm expression.

“During ‘This world wants to crush me, with cruel, painful words to drag me into the dirt,’ we can do this. Then, Jiang Ming, you reach out and pull me up that’ll lead into the chorus.”

It was a great idea.

But watching Tan Yi and Jiang Ming lock eyes made Lin Qi’s teeth ache.

She nodded, pulling Tan Yi back to her rightful center position with a benevolent smile. “Now, let’s focus on choreographing your part as the center.”

Glancing at Jiang Ming, Tan Yi bit her lower lip and tentatively suggested, “How about this, Captain a threesome with you two?”

“Are you out of your mind?”

“Hey, just joking!”

Rolling her eyes, Lin Qi wasn’t stupid, Tan Yi clearly had other intentions toward the female lead.

“Fine. You’ll start by standing and singing. Then, at the line ‘Will anyone notice if I disappear?’ do this.”

Lin Qi crossed one arm over her chest, the other overlapping at the wrist like a turning clock, slowly sinking into a crouch before spinning around.

Tan Yi’s eyes lit up. “Nice! You’re amazing, Captain.”

With the choreography mostly set and refined further with the teacher’s help, Lin Qi gathered the team to begin rehearsals.

While jumping and thinking at the same time, they finally finished choreographing the new routine by 4:30 in the afternoon. After recording the entire dance with the camera, Lin Qi glanced at Jiang Ming’s pale face and frowned with concern. “Maybe we should stop here for now and continue in the evening.”

The teacher nodded in agreement. After the choreography was revised, a dance break had been added to the chorus section. While it looked more visually appealing, it also increased the intensity of the training, draining everyone’s energy. At this point, not only were the trainees exhausted from dancing nonstop, even the teacher was starving.

After everyone went their separate ways, the classroom quickly emptied, leaving only Lin Qi and Jiang Ming behind. The former’s neck was flushed red from exertion, her white hoodie completely drenched in sweat, while the latter leaned weakly against the corner of the wall, her face pale and lips chapped, looking utterly drained.

“Jiang Ming, what’s wrong with you?”

“I don’t know… I feel awful”

Her fragmented words came out in a faint, kitten-like whimper, so feeble it tugged at the heartstrings.

Lin Qi reached out to feel her forehead it wasn’t feverish. Puzzled, she wondered, If it’s not a fever, then what could it be?

Unable to figure it out, she finally crouched down in front of Jiang Ming. “Hop on, I’ll carry you back to the dorm. Then I’ll go get us some food.”

But before she could get a response, the girl behind her collapsed. The heavy thud of Jiang Ming hitting the floor sent a jolt of panic through Lin Qi as she spun around.

The pale-faced girl lay on her side, her dark hair disheveled and sticking to her face, her white shirt smudged with dust, looking utterly disheveled.

Lin Qi’s heart ached as she frowned. She reached out to scoop Jiang Ming up by the legs but was startled to see faint traces of blood on the floor.

Her eyes darted to Jiang Ming’s pants black, so nothing was visible, but when she touched them, her fingers came away damp, stained with bright red.

Jiang Ming got her period.

And yet she had been pushing herself through such grueling training?

A wave of guilt crashed over Lin Qi. I’ve been partnering with her this whole time how did I not notice?

Not only that, but she had even insisted on adding that physically demanding dance break.

From breakfast until now, Jiang Ming hadn’t had a single sip of water or bite of food, on top of such intense exercise.

Damn it, I could slap myself twice over for this.

She had been so focused on the choreography that she had completely overlooked the most important thing Jiang Ming herself.

After wiping the blood off the floor, Lin Qi carried Jiang Ming back to the dorm. Despite her frantic worry, her mind remained startlingly clear of any inappropriate thoughts.

With single-minded focus, she removed Jiang Ming’s pants, cleaned the blood off her, and even dug out a pair of overnight pads from her own drawer to help her put on. Only then did it dawn on Lin Qi, Wait, did I just cross some kind of boundary here??

Those pale, slender thighs…

Oh god, help me!

Lin Qi squeezed her eyes shut as she pulled loose sleep pants onto Jiang Ming, then checked her forehead again. Relieved to find it cool to the touch, she finally relaxed.

On her way to buy food, Lin Qi’s throat felt oddly dry. She had always prided herself on being upright and unaffected by temptation, but the moment her fingers had brushed against Jiang Ming’s soft, delicate legs…

With a sinking heart, Lin Qi realized—I might not be as upright or as straight as I thought.

Shaking her head to dispel the distracting thoughts, she headed to the cafeteria to pick up some warm, light meals, then stopped by the convenience store for chocolate, brown sugar, and two more packs of overnight pads. Only then did she return to the dorm, finally at ease.

Jiang Ming hadn’t woken up yet, and Lin Qi was in no hurry either. She made some brown sugar water at the boiling water dispenser on the first floor and leisurely walked back.

The moment she placed the cup on the table, Lin Qi turned around and saw Jiang Ming sitting dazedly on the bed, the blanket piled around her waist.

Not sensing anything unusual, Lin Qi stepped forward worriedly and pulled the blanket up for her. The moment their eyes met, the hollow-eyed girl asked, “Did you take off my pants?”

The air froze. Lin Qi swallowed twice, lips trembling, suddenly at a loss for words.

A slap struck her face, the sharp pain leaving Lin Qi stunned. She looked up in shock, but before she could speak, she heard Jiang Ming’s trembling, tearful voice.

“Get out!”