Chapter Fifty-One: Dance Competition

Fan Na was already irritated and wanted to slam the door and leave. When she saw that it was Meng Fanxi who came in, her face turned even worse. "What are you doing in here? Didn't you hear that someone was inside?"

Ignoring the hostility in his eyes, Meng Fanxi continued walking inside, saying, "I'll practice."

Fan Na frowned: "Practicing so late?" Before Meng Fanxi could answer, he said knowingly: "Is it because I questioned you to your face during the recording, so you're here to cause trouble now?"

Meng Fanxi stopped, a faint smile playing on his lips: "Scared?"

“Afraid? How could I be…” Fan Na immediately retorted instinctively, but when she met Meng Fanxi’s gaze, she suddenly couldn’t speak.

His gaze was as calm as a deep pool, his posture relaxed, showing no sign of anger whatsoever. Looking at him was like an adult looking at a naughty child, which made him seem quite unreasonable.

"What exactly do you want?" Fan Na was annoyed by his continued indifference.

Today's recording lasted all day, and I'm suffering both mentally and physically. How could a normal trainee possibly come here to practice? He just found a practice room without cameras and called Zhong Chu over to talk to him. Meng Fanxi came to practice? He didn't believe it at all.

Zhong Chu grabbed Fan Na and said, "Have you taken the wrong medicine today? Go back and calm down."

Meng Fanxi relaxed, put her bag on the low cabinet, and said while taking out her hairband, "Someone said today that he's definitely better than me, so I rushed over to practice how to handle the challenge."

What he said was half true and half false; the practice was true, but what he said for Fan Na was false.

“So that’s how it is,” Fanna said with a hint of pride. “My dancing is definitely better than yours; even intensive practice won’t help.”

Zhong Chu silently rolled his eyes, wondering where this person got his confidence from. He was completely absorbed in watching the Eternal Six Stars stage. Meng Fanxi's dance and song were perfectly integrated, and it was obvious that he had sacrificed a lot for the team's performance.

The Fancy group did bring some energetic dance moves, but even after Fan Na's part was over, they still tried to steal the spotlight from the corner, showing no awareness of cooperating with their teammates. They were well aware of this problem, but there was nothing they could do about it.

Meng Fanxi shone brightly on stage during her own part, but after that, she completely focused on cooperating with the team.

After noticing this, he paid special attention to Meng Fanxi on the stage.

Hearing Fan Na's words, Meng Fanxi chuckled and searched for practice music in front of the machine. "But it seems I don't need to work too hard. Anyway, you're going to quit, so I'm no threat anymore."

Now, Zhong Chu understood completely: Meng Fanxi was trying to provoke Fan Na into giving up the idea of ​​withdrawing.

Why? Zhong Chu's puzzled gaze swung back and forth between Meng Fanxi and Fan Na.

Fan Na was about to blurt out, "I won't back down," but the ignoring looks and cold violence from the Bridge Boys members flashed before her eyes, and she stopped herself from speaking.

He racked his brains and came up with a plan: "Let's have a dance competition, and extinguish your illusions before I back out."

Meng Fanxi looked up, "How do we compete?"

“The same song, cover dance comparisons. He chooses the songs, then judges them.” Fan Na pointed to Zhong Chu, who was moving towards the door, realizing something was wrong.

Zhong Chu was hoping Meng Fanxi would refuse, but instead heard him say decisively, "Okay."

He sat in front of the machine with a worried look on his face, deeply regretting his decision to agree to meet Fan Na.

He flipped to a song and his eyes lit up. "This one, 'Happy Dance'."

A humorous, lively, and lighthearted dance track, which didn't quite match the stage style of Fan Na and Meng Fanxi, was chosen by him as much as possible without being biased.

Fan Na stared at the song's title, her eyes filled with disdain. The trainees must have practiced it, but apart from the cheerful and smooth dancing, it wasn't difficult at all.

Meng Fanxi had no objection to this choice of music. "Shall I go first?" He might have an advantage if he danced later, but it didn't matter to him.

Zhong Chu said, "Let's flip a coin."

Fan Na said, "Of course I'll go first." He wanted to put pressure on Meng Fanxi immediately through his performance.

In the end, they opted to flip a coin, and Fan Na went first.

Meng Fanxi sat to the side, comfortably leaning back on the sofa.

Zhong Chu sat in the middle of the dance mirror, expressionless, already in the posture of a judge, and pressed the play button on the remote control.

As the lively and cheerful rhythm begins, Fan Na demonstrates her flexibility by doing two somersaults in the intro, landing steadily before continuing into the verse.

The dance steps were fixed, so Fan Na focused on showcasing his dance style. His movements were very powerful, like a bull charging across the grassland. Zhong Chu gave him a score in his mind and glanced distractedly in Meng Fanxi's direction.

He actually had his eyes closed.

Distracted, Fan Na returned to the dance before her, still dancing with all her might, her expression somewhere between exertion and joy, somewhat eerie.

After the dance ended, Zhong Chu and Fan Na both breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

The former is relaxed, the latter is tired.

When it came to Meng Fanxi, a black headband with white lines adorned his black hair, gathering up the stray hairs and adding a touch of neatness and sharpness. Just standing in front of Zhong Chu, he exuded a trendy and refreshing aura.

As soon as the music started, Meng Fanxi transformed into a different person—sunny and cheerful, with her eyes curving into crescents, instantly improving everyone's mood.

In the intro, he chose to set a scene based on the lyrics that follow, starting with a combination of small steps and tap dance, carrying a sense of curiosity about discovering a beautiful new world, and then easily and freely leading into the verse.

During the verse, he jumped with exceptional lightness, his movements varying in speed and intensity in sync with the lyrics, like a deer flitting through the forest. His emotions remained consistent throughout, and Zhong Chu couldn't help but smile as he watched.

When the chorus came, he was no longer confined to the small area under his feet. He moved around nimbly, and even though it was the same movement, the dance seemed more interesting when he performed it.

Fan Na was initially stunned, but after Meng Fanxi neatly finished her dance and gave a gentlemanly bow, he abruptly pulled away, then frowned deeply. He had lost.

But he didn't understand.

Why? Why is he so different here, even though he's basically just a supporting character in the team performances, except when he's only standing out in his own part?

"Dance is an art that moves people's hearts." His teacher's words suddenly flashed through his mind.

Zhong Chu looked at Fan Na's expression and knew that Fan Na had understood the outcome but still fulfilled his obligation, saying, "I vote for Meng Fanxi."

"It must be a coincidence, let's have another competition!" Fan Na refused to accept it and rushed in front of Meng Fanxi.

Meng Fanxi didn't want to play with him anymore. "The second round is an individual competition. Although I don't know the rules, if you can last until the second round, then we can compete again."

"Okay." Fan Na agreed immediately, afraid that he would change his mind. "It's a deal." He turned around and left, slamming the door of the practice room shut behind him.

Only Meng Fanxi and Zhong Chu remained in the room. Zhong Chu felt a little awkward. When he met Meng Fanxi's gaze, he scratched his head and said, "Don't take what Fan Na said to heart. He's just a bit dim-witted. He made a fool of himself in the studio today but didn't seem to care at all. I didn't expect him to be unhappy after forming a team. I don't understand what he's thinking."

"Mm." Meng Fanxi nodded.

"It's getting late, I'm heading back too." Zhong Chu checked the time, then looked up and asked, "Aren't you leaving?"

Meng Fanxi shrugged: "Keep practicing."

So it really was for practice. Only then did Zhong Chu believe what Meng Fanxi had said at the beginning. He walked to the door and couldn't help but ask the question that was on his mind: "Why did you 'persuade' Fan Na to stay?"

He didn't leave when the group was broken up, which caused a lot of jokes. He wanted to leave after the teams were divided, and he would definitely be criticized after the broadcast. Staying means he still has a chance to clear his name.

He didn't understand why Meng Fanxi wanted Fan Na to stay. If he were Meng Fanxi, he would definitely want him to quit as soon as possible.

Meng Fanxi smiled and said, "Maybe it's because your group name is Fancy."

Zhong Chu left still puzzled.

Meng Fanxi was the only one left in the practice room. He sat down in front of the equipment again, concentrating on selecting practice songs. His eyes seemed to be filled only with song titles, devoid of any warmth.

Actually, he was glancing at a corner of the practice room out of the corner of his eye.

The leaves of the plants hanging high up swayed as if blown by the wind.

There were six hidden cameras in this practice room. The new trainees didn't notice them, but with his experience with cameras and prank shows from his previous life, he noticed the trick as soon as he entered the room. It was a very obvious scheme to hide the cameras.

Meng Fanxi lowered his eyes slightly; Fan Na certainly couldn't leave.

He said in front of so many cameras that he was not as good as him. Once it aired, some viewers would believe him, which would deepen their negative impression of him. After that, everyone would scrutinize everything he did.

Although haters are an inevitable part of an idol's journey, this is a competition where every action affects the number of votes, and he doesn't want to start off so difficult.

The one who tied the knot must untie it. Today's recording is a safety net; it's uncertain whether it will be broadcast. At least it keeps Fan Na in the game, and he can still defeat him head-on later.

Meng Fanxi selected a song, walked to the center of the practice room, played the song once, felt the emotions conveyed by the surroundings, and sketched out the movements in his mind.

On the second take, I immersed myself completely, practicing with abandon, and ignoring the cameras around me.

Jiang Xunzhen sat in the backstage monitoring room. If she knew what Meng Fanxi was thinking, she would congratulate him for guessing half of it correctly.

These cameras were deliberately set up by the production team. Unlike the public cameras in other practice rooms, this practice room is located in a corner, which may attract some individual trainees or trainees with little secrets. In addition, since there are no cameras around, some unintentional glimpses can be captured.

To generate buzz and attract attention, these are not ordinary cameras, but live streaming equipment.

Everything that happened in the practice room just now has been broadcast live.

Jiang Xunzhen sat in front of the monitor, marveling at her career luck. When she received a notification that there was activity in the hidden practice room, she quickened her pace and rushed over. After all, live streaming is risky, and the staff must stay by her side, ready to cut it off at any time to ensure that no particularly controversial content is broadcast.

But at Jiang Xunzhen's instruction, the scene from just now was broadcast without missing a single word.

The comments on the screen kept refreshing, already generating considerable buzz. The production team was also monitoring various forums and noticed that some forums had copied the live stream link there, without taking any action.

The number of viewers in the live stream gradually increased after Meng Fanxi entered, and the popularity continued to rise as they danced.