With The Backing Of A Powerful Figure: He's Gone Wild In The Modeling World - Chapter 10

Wei Ming could not interfere with their choices and maintained a neutral expression. He followed the contestants’ arrangements, providing movement guidance only during the actual shooting.

Zhou Xing was scheduled in the middle and Zhan Zhiqing at the end. This gave them ample time to observe the other models’ performances.

Wei Ming’s guidance was as sharp as his tongue. He could identify a contestant’s flaw at a glance and offer a more fashionable alternative. Throughout the process, he frowned while watching most of the female contestants strike suggestive poses by the pool in bikini tops and jeans and the male contestants show off their muscles while carrying small bags or wearing sunglasses.

Even Cao Yan was no exception.

Le Xin’s idea was more clever. She unbuttoned the top and bottom of her white shirt and tied the hem at her waist to reveal her midriff. The upper half was left open to show her bikini top and she wore low rise jeans while looking hot and passionate. Wei Ming finally relaxed his brow when he saw her. Her posing was excellent. By the poolside, she completely commanded the space.

Zhan Zhiqing wore the clothes he had bought himself while borrowing only the orange sunglasses. He wore a white shirt, blue jeans, and long boots. His physique was naturally superb. With the white shirt tucked into his jeans, his slender waist and long legs were even more prominent. He chose a long white corridor by the pool as his backdrop.

Almost the moment he leaned against the wall, the photographer began snapping the shutter frantically. He took the sunglasses hanging from his collar and put them on while pulling them down slightly so the lenses did not fully obscure his eyes. He looked directly into the lens from above the frame. Usually quiet, he now radiated a unique and captivating charm. Wei Ming watched as the photographer continued to fire away.

The combination of white, blue, orange, and brown gave Zhan Zhiqing’s photo a distinct character. Just by standing there, Wei Ming felt his heart skip a beat.

After the shoot, Zhan Zhiqing approached Wei Ming with a slight frown and looked hesitant. Wei Ming mentally scolded himself to stay professional and asked, “What is it, child? You look unhappy.”

Zhan Zhiqing was honest. “I did not hear any guidance from you during the shoot, so I was a bit confused.”

“That is because your pose was already fashionable enough to reflect your personality. If you keep up this momentum, I believe you will stay in this program for a long time.”

Wei Ming hoped he would stay until the very end so he could keep looking at a handsome face while working.

Zhan Zhiqing was surprised by the answer. He was not so arrogant as to think he was already on par with a supermodel. Perhaps he was just performing well for a newcomer. “Thank you for the compliment. I will keep it up.”

Zhou Xing focused on creativity. In contrast to the other girls, she wore a full bikini but threw a sharp blazer over it. She sat on a lounge chair by the pool with one foot tentatively testing the water while holding a phone to her ear with a serious expression. She looked like a powerful career woman whose poolside party had been interrupted by work. Wei Ming gave her a big thumbs up for her brilliant concept.

Once the shoot concluded, the bus sent everyone back to the house. Tomorrow, they would face the judgment of the panel and the audience.

That evening, Ying Yuan received all of Zhan Zhiqing’s photos from He Yu.

Zhan Zhiqing’s shirt was thin. Under the sunlight, it took on a nearly transparent quality in the camera. With the top two buttons undone and sunglasses hooked on top, he gazed at the camera with lowered lids. A few stray strands of hair caught the wind while making him look both fashionable and full of character.

He truly deserved first place in the challenge. It was well worth changing the challenge reward from a pile of swimwear to a trip to New Zealand.

Meanwhile, back at the Top Model House, the atmosphere was not as friendly as the day before. The brutal format and the pressure of the shoot made every contestant realize they had no true friends here because everyone was a rival. Those who had clung to Le Xin and Cao Yan were in no mood for games. Their challenge scores were low and Wei Ming had been quite harsh during their shoots.

Cao Yan and Le Xin grew closer and seemed unbothered as they whispered by the pool with drinks in hand. Zhan Zhiqing finished dinner, read for a while, and worked out in the gym before retiring to his room.

The next day, everyone was taken to the judging site of China’s Next Top Model for the first round of eliminations.

The studio was luxuriously decorated. A small runway extended from where the models stood toward the judges. He Yu would call the models up one by one for critique. There were four judges. Three would score the photos on the spot and the fourth acted as a social media representative to announce the audience scores. The final score was the sum of the judge’s score, the challenge score, and the audience score. The bottom two would be eliminated.

He Yu introduced the panel with her usual wit. The first judge was Chen Bing, a famous fashion PR expert known for her sharp eye and equally sharp tongue. The second was He Yu herself. The third was Meng Ping, a prominent male supermodel with tanned skin and a towering physique.

Zhan Zhiqing stood to the side with the other models. Le Xin was among the first few called. When her photo appeared, it immediately caught the judges’ attention. In the photo, Le Xin stood by the pool with long curly hair with one hand down and the other brushing her hair back. Her eyes were narrowed, her head tilted, and her lips slightly parted in a sexy and fashionable way.

Chen Bing commented, “I must say, your photo is the most satisfying among those we have seen so far. You are beautiful and your fashion sense is convincing. This outfit could be straight out of a magazine. I give you an 8.”

Le Xin covered her mouth in disbelief with her eyes wide in a look of pleasant surprise. “Thank you, Teacher Chen.”

Then it was He Yu’s turn. She did not seem to like it as much. She studied Le Xin for a long time before flashing a wide smile. “Le Xin, your taste surprises me. To combine a bikini with your own outfit so perfectly in such a short time and to have your pose blend so well with the styling, you are a textbook example for young girls!”

He Yu’s praise was unbelievably high. Le Xin tossed her hair with a determined smile while several female models who had been hurt by earlier critiques could not help but frown.

However, He Yu’s expression suddenly dropped. “But.”

At those words, Le Xin put on a pained look while biting her lower lip innocently.

“My dear, we are looking for high end models who can interpret fashion perfectly, not models who only care about showing off their bodies. I was satisfied with your photo at first, but then I saw your runway shot. You seem very eager to show off your figure. Let me be clear. In the fashion world, that absolutely will not work. So, I give you a 7.”