-2-
Huo Ren watched from the beginning to the end.
The students in the A-class adapted well, dancing smoothly and coherently in front of him, with a few managing their expressions excellently.
He checked Fu Mingnian’s movements, complimenting him in front of the others.
“More fluent than before, it seems you’ve consistently kept up with your basic training.”
Fu Mingnian’s eyes lit up for a moment at the praise, then quickly glanced at Pei Ruye.
“Teacher,” the little snow leopard swayed his tail, “How am I doing?”
“Your finish is unstable, but you manage to balance singing and dancing well,” Pei Ruye nodded, “You still need to work on controlling your strength, especially in your left knee.”
“Okay, thank you for the guidance, teacher.”
Zhu Xizhi dyed his hair a silvery-red smoke color, which somehow gave him a nonchalant vibe every time he tousled his hair.
Huo Ren noticed his earrings had changed and commented, “Try not to wear jewelry during practice, be careful not to get hurt.”
“But this swallowtail pendant suits you.”
The young man smirked, “Makes my face look slimmer, right?”
Then they moved on to the B-class group.
Thirty students bowed in unison, full of reverence, “Hello, Teacher Huo! Hello, Grandmaster!”
Huo Ren blinked, turned to look at Pei Ruye, and said with amusement, “Grandmaster…”
A group of students maintained their ninety-degree bow, thinking how such a normal title sounded so weird when it came from Mr. Huo’s mouth.
Calling him “teacher” felt ticklish, and “grandmaster” even sounded coquettish??
No, it must be the way I’m bowing that’s wrong.
The man tapped his forehead lightly, signaling the other students to continue practicing.
Huo Ren leaned against the door, rubbing his forehead with his palm, turning his attention back to the dances of the others.
—All were in sync, with no one falling behind or forgetting their moves, showing their solid foundation.
“One two three four, two two three four—”
The assistant teacher, who had never seen Huo Ren in person, was even speeding up the cadence a bit.
“Three two three four, four…”
“Pay attention to a few small details here.” Pei Ruye signaled them to stop their movements, calmly explaining the key points, “The next line has more words, so you must take a breath in advance to prepare for the high notes.”
“Just as you’re about to turn your back to the audience…”
“Achoo!”
The students all looked at Huo Ren.
Huo Ren moved away from directly under the strong air conditioning, finding a corner to continue listening.
“You will turn your back to the audience.”
Pei Ruye stood in front of the students, demonstrating the sequence himself, to the astonishment of the two assistant teachers.
“Then there’s a jump here, you need to focus on the push-off point which is at…”
“Achoo!”
The students tried not to turn their heads to look at Mr. Huo.
The sneezer rubbed his nose, “Got a bit of a cold.”
“I told you, you’re wearing too little.” As Pei Ruye approached him, he took off his wide coat and draped it over Huo Ren’s shoulders, “Wrap up.”
He even pulled the lapels closer together.
Huo Ren let him drape the coat over him, warming up as he continued to listen to the class.
The students tried to act as if they saw nothing, thought nothing inappropriate.
But your interaction is just too natural!!
Mr. Huo, why are you mingling with us and attending the class!!!
And you only smile when you talk to Boss Pei, did you know that!!!
I must not think wrongly—I definitely did not think wrongly!
Someone first shifted their gaze back to Pei Ruye, dressed in a tight black T-shirt, and then found their ability to manage their expression challenged.
Narrow clavicles, beautiful shoulder lines, and just the right amount of chest muscle, the outline of the waist and abdomen was simply perfect…
Sigh, what kind of divine physique is this…
Some of the trainees who had never seen such a sight covered their faces and eyes.
“I knew it,” Huo Ren leaned against the locker lazily, “As soon as you take off your clothes, it disrupts the class.”
The man glanced at the coat on his shoulder.
“It’s not on purpose.”
“When filming the show later, you should wear your coat properly, zip it up to your throat.” Huo Ren teased him publicly, nonchalantly wagging his wolf tail, “After all, there are underage viewers and contestants, it’s not a good influence.”
Several trainees with thinner skins quietly nodded in agreement.
Joking aside, both of them were very attentive and considerate to the students in each class when teaching.
Pei Ruye mainly explained from the perspective of stage performance, while Huo Ren taught them how to showcase their personal charm within a few minutes.
Their long-accumulated valuable experiences were broken down from simple to complex, enlightening many young minds.
Since the A and B classes were already quite capable, they spent more time with the C and D classes.
Many students here were ranked at the bottom due to mistakes in the public exams, but their effort and dedication were second to none.
The crew filming the show was somewhat surprised.
They had thought these two mentors would just make an appearance and leave, but they actually stayed on this floor for more than two hours.
The first half of the second episode aired as scheduled.
The competition format had been announced early on. Before showing the edits of the fifty face-to-face assessment segments, it was customary to include some daily interactions and practice clips of the trainees.
Zhu Xizhi, with his outgoing and natural personality, though still carrying a bit of an adolescent charm, unexpectedly became very popular among the other male contestants.
Fu Mingnian practically spent from dawn till dusk in the training area, also conscientiously doing aerobic and anaerobic training, quietly looking after others without speaking much.
Fang Chengran learned quickly and practiced hard, stabilizing his condition and then routinely clocking in and out on time every day, never leaving early or arriving late, embodying the spirit of a dedicated worker.
Unexpectedly, Gu Shaochu seemed a bit distant.
He made a few friends here, but their interactions were superficial, and he didn’t participate in gatherings actively.
Solitary, with a shallow smile.
Although many contestants tried to initiate conversations and show friendliness, they couldn’t seem to close the distance, and the attempts fizzled out.
—So, at lunch and dinner, the only one who would sit with him was Chen Yuanqing from the B class.
Chen Yuanqing, although often indifferent in attitude and expression, would show up on time.
Sometimes when Gu Shaochu didn’t want to drink yogurt or eat cauliflower, he’d push it onto Chen’s plate, and the latter would quietly finish it all.
…And then, surveillance cameras captured all these moments.
The bullet comments and discussion forums were divided, now seeing these interactions with mixed feelings.
[I and my best friend are just like this, showing disdain for each other, this is just normal classmate vibes, feels like there’s no spark at all… disappointed.]
[Calm down, fans of the childhood friend trope. The more you’re together day and night, the more it dilutes the sexual attraction, getting too familiar leaves no room for feelings #Shrug]
[This is clearly the daily feeding routine of a tsundere couple, okay!! I don’t care, I’m shipping it!!!]
Regrettably, the chief director decided to cut the segment where Boss Pei took off his coat after seeing it, holding his nose to indicate the need for censorship.
It wasn’t that the tight black T-shirt was indecent, but the banter between the two mentors was too easily misunderstood…
The director from Honglu Channel, being an old friend of SPF, was cautious about not wanting to exploit these matters as gimmicks, considering the extreme praise and criticism Huo Ren received online.
The kid had not had an easy journey.
So, when the program aired again, it showcased the two dedicated and serious top-notch mentors teaching.
However, the Night Fire girls were still ecstatically spinning and screaming in joy!
[My Ren Ren just stood quietly beside the students listening to Teacher Pei’s lecture!! Ah, his A personality somehow becomes so adorable next to God Pei!!! I also want to pet the little white wolf!!!]
[That “Grandmaster” call is criminally sweet… How does Brother Ren do it?! I can’t resist his tone of voice tone, why does God Pei not react at all!!!!!!]
[Night Fire like a Blade SZD!!! Walking side by side and visiting classrooms is practically a public date rounded up!!!]
The production team saw Weibo comments: …???
While the behind-the-scenes clips were interspersed with the broadcast, the elimination round from 120 to 80 was also shown simultaneously.
Securing one of the fifty public assessment spots meant gaining more screen time and facing greater pressure.
Many trainees who were confident in their scores gave up on the two assessments, while a few others couldn’t stand being left behind, fearing they’d miss their chance.
Dance, singing, and comprehensive performance, totaling three hundred points, were evaluated separately by three mentors.
Huo Ren was responsible for providing comprehensive guidance and lightening the mood when appropriate.
As the scores of a dozen trainees were gradually revealed, the overall situation began to emerge.
With a full score of three hundred, Zhu Xizhi was currently the highest scorer (*282 points), delivering a compelling performance with stable singing, truly reflecting the solid foundation built over four years of practice.
Followed by Fu Mingnian (*277 points) and Gu Shaochu (*270 points), both of whom had been practicing for nearly three years, and Chen Yuanqing, who performed much better this time, securing 261 points.
“Next.”
Another young man quickly took the stage, smiling and greeting them.
“Hello, teachers, my name is Shi Jianian.”
Huo Ren felt a stir in his heart upon hearing the name, instinctively glancing outside.
Some trainees were already chuckling and nudging Fu Mingnian’s shoulder.
Having similar names in such a program was a delicate matter.
The advantage was they could get mentioned more often due to each other, potentially increasing screen time and maybe translating into higher popularity.
But it also invited comparisons, and even if they debuted, they could be pitted against each other.
He looked at the trainee again, suddenly realizing this young man looked different from the others.
Although he had seen him once in the C class, there were too many people there, and he hadn’t had the chance to look closely.
“Are you… mixed-race?”
Shi Jianian smiled lightly, nodding, his gray-blue eyes like clear gems.
His skin naturally retained the creamy whiteness of Europeans, and his hair was a deep brown with a slight curl.
Because of his light skin tone, the young man’s lips had a natural light rose red hue, with high cheekbones and deep-set eyes, making him stand out.
“So, we have another ‘nian’,” Mei Heng joked, “One is ‘Mingnian’ (next year), and one is ‘Jianian’ (good year); put together, does that mean ‘may every year be prosperous’?”
“That joke is too cold,” Huo Ren said, holding his forehead, “Please begin, we’re looking forward to your performance.”
As the music started the next second, the young man immediately transformed his gaze, moving fluidly and agilely as he began dancing to “Dance of Blessing.”
His natural pair of gray-blue eyes could captivate, and his waist and legs were incredibly flexible, yet when he danced, he was as sharp as a nobleman setting off to war, conveying an indescribable sense of decisiveness.
This dance, relying on different expressions for various styles, could be both soft and strong, not completely confined to one.
Huo Ren exchanged a glance with Pei Ruye.
They both recognized the strong sense of control.
This is a rare yet precious trait among dancers.
With a voice as clear as water cutting through the sea, eyes that constantly guide and engage the audience, and body movements rich in narrative—
This young man was unconsciously commanding the stage.
Dance and singing were originally means of worshiping deities in primitive societies, which later evolved into forms of entertainment.
The full expression of emotions and intentions is summarized into many techniques, but it’s also an opportunity for the talented to be discovered.
As the final note ended, Mei Heng maintained his focused and detached state, not being captivated or controlled.
“Very compelling,” he said lightly, “But your breath control during singing is lacking, and your long notes’ key raises aren’t accurate.”
“I give ninety.”
Shi Jianian showed a tender smile and bowed in thanks.
Dance, ninety-three points.
Comprehensive performance, ninety-four points.
Huo Ren signed the final score sheet, his gaze lingering on the total score for a few seconds.
Both ‘nian’s were tied for second place.
The author has a message:
The last mixed-race brother makes his entrance √
Don’t dwell on the “if” line; the story has become too lengthy, and the author is running out of steam, sidelining the extras for now… Wanting to finish sooner to enjoy the New Year’s peace is just wishful thinking (life is hard, sighs)
Next chapter continues with Night Fire! The coquettish and charming Ren Ren is praised high!