Chapter Fourteen: On the Eve of the Monthly Exam
"Zhang Yang, someone's looking for you outside." The boy who was sleeping on the table was nudged and slowly raised his head after a few seconds.
Her delicate face was expressionless. Like a cat that had just been woken up, she lazily smoothed her slightly messy black hair, got up, and walked out of the classroom.
Meng Fanxi stood nervously in the corridor, holding a CD wrapped in a book in her hand, with Xu You following behind her, clamoring to come along, watching the boy with an aura of his own approach.
Xu You appeared calm, but his hands clenched unconsciously. Only Meng Fanxi could hear the person behind him whispering, "They're here!"
Meng Fanxi certainly knew Zhang Yang; he was notoriously unruly, but definitely not the type to throw tantrums.
Zhang Yang was the contestant who consistently ranked first in the "Teen Idol" competition in his previous life.
At the time, there were many talent shows, and Zhang Yang was definitely the main factor that enabled "Teen Idol" to stand out from the crowd.
Back then, Meng Fanxi would stay up late to watch the talent show in addition to his busy debut training in Group W1.
Zhang Yang didn't have much screen time in the early stages, but he had a magical ability to make people subconsciously search for his figure on screen. Coupled with his outstanding talent, he went viral, further expanding the show's audience and attracting many new fans who had never watched a talent show before.
This is a natural-born entertainer.
While Meng Fanxi was lost in thought, Zhang Yang had already walked up to them, his indifferent eyes subtly scrutinizing the two of them, seemingly with some doubt.
He knew Xu You. Before leaving Will, Xu You knew the news before the other trainees and came to ask him for an autograph. Although he felt a little embarrassed, he still wrote down his name carefully.
As for the boy in front of Xu You, he was handsome and had a maturity beyond his years, which Xu You had never seen before.
Meng Fanxi did not state his purpose directly. He introduced himself to Zhang Yang and led him to a secluded corner.
Zhang Yang surprisingly cooperated and moved with them.
After cautiously looking around to make sure no one was suspicious, Meng Fanxi took the CD out of the book and handed it to Zhang Yang, explaining how he found it while watching Zhang Yang's expression.
After receiving the CD, Zhang Yang stared at the scratches on it with a heavy gaze and pursed lips, looking rather unhappy. However, when Meng Fanxi described Jin Ziran's appearance, his expression suddenly changed.
After that, both sides remained silent.
Meng Fanxi naturally sensed the other party's sudden increase in distance and wariness, but he was somewhat puzzled.
"This is my CD, thank you for giving it to me." Zhang Yang's voice was clear and languid, like a mountain spring, refreshing and soothing.
"I will investigate the person who damaged the CD myself." This implies that he has doubts about Meng Fanxi's description.
He then took out his phone, asked for their phone numbers, and dialed them: "These are my contact details. As a thank you, feel free to call me if you ever need anything from me." He put his phone away, "Goodbye then."
After saying that, he turned and left without waiting for Meng Fanxi to refuse.
The two were left looking at each other in bewilderment.
They naturally sensed Zhang Yang's sudden coldness, but were completely baffled and could only walk back somewhat disappointed.
The campus paths and greenery are arranged in a well-organized manner, forming a beautiful landscape. Meng Fanxi and Xu You strolled and chatted among the students during their break.
The area was full of high school seniors, and the two of them were quite good-looking, so they attracted a lot of attention.
On the way, Meng Fanxi asked Xu You to tell him about Zhang Yang's experiences as a trainee in Weir. He felt that Zhang Yang was angry because he recognized Jin Ziran through his description, but did not believe that Jin Ziran had done it.
If that's the case, what is the relationship between Jin Ziran and Zhang Yang?
In his previous life, he had worked with Jin Ziran in the same company for over ten years as colleagues, and he also knew them to some extent because he often attended Month's events.
For more than ten years, Jin Ziran got along well with everyone, but I never heard of him having any close friends or enemies. Apart from the little-known fact that he kicked himself out of the debut group back then, he did an excellent job both on and off stage, and there was nothing to criticize about him.
Why did Jin Ziran secretly bury Zhang Yang's CDs during high school?
Did they already know each other before "Teen Idol"? Why did they act like strangers on the show?
Zhang Yang's withdrawal from the competition, Jin Ziran's victory, joining Baihe Company, and seizing a debut spot—was this all orchestrated or accidental?
Meng Fanxi was troubled by all sorts of doubts. He was actually very afraid that encountering Jin Ziran might lead to some unexpected changes.
In his past life, he had also darkly hoped that Jin Ziran would pay the price for easily ruining other people's lives, but Jin Ziran was fine until his rebirth, still shining on the stage and having a smooth career in film, television and music.
Xu You's understanding of Zhang Yang naturally surpassed that of others. When he talked about Zhang Yang's experiences, his earlier disappointment vanished, and his focused eyes flashed with admiration.
“When I joined the company, Zhang Yang was already an S-level trainee. Moreover, he went straight from C-level to S-level, which is legendary! I have a copy of his monthly exam video, and I can show it to you another day.”
Even Meng Fanxi, who had long witnessed Zhang Yang's strength, couldn't help but sigh when he heard that Zhang Yang had been promoted to S-level. Perhaps it was the confidence built on his strength that allowed him to live his life more freely later on.
"Not long after, he was listed as a candidate for debut in 4ward, and unsurprisingly he would be the youngest member. But who knew..." Xu You's eyes revealed great regret, as if he himself had failed to debut.
He deliberately lowered his voice and moved closer to Meng Fanxi to ensure that only the two of them could hear what he was saying: "According to what I know, he told the higher-ups that he wanted to bring in his trainee partner, but after being rejected, he and that partner chose to leave the company together."
partner?
Do you remember his partner's name?
"I think their name is Jin or something. They have a channel on E-site, right? It seems to be named after themselves, and..."
Jin Ziran!
His intuition told him that this partner must be Jin Ziran.
Zhang Yang left Weir with him, and they even ran a channel together. Why...?
As Meng Fanxi listened to Xu You's words, his mind became increasingly chaotic, like a tangled ball of yarn. He needed to find time to patiently sort out the relationships within, and it was clear that the eve of the monthly exam was not the right time.
Upon learning that Jin Ziran had also been a trainee at Will, but had now left and that they would not have any contact except when they were in school, Meng Fanxi felt somewhat relieved.
I learned from Xu You that Jin Ziran is a sophomore in high school. As long as he is careful and doesn't run around, the chances of running into him are slim. At least he should get through the upcoming monthly exam first.
Meng Fanxi and Xu You, one suppressing his doubts and focusing on preparing for the monthly exam, and the other with a turbulent mind planning to find the mastermind behind the destruction of Zhang Yang's belongings, both managed their expressions and returned to the classroom calmly.
As dusk fell, the group wearily packed their bags and headed towards the parking lot. Meng Fanxi was stopped by Xu You.
Qi Xiaohan and Xu Weiguang, who were traveling with him, hurriedly said goodbye. They could tell that Meng Fanxi and Xu You were on good terms at the moment. While they were happy for him, they also knew that they didn't get along with Xu You, so they naturally quickened their pace and walked away.
Instead of going to the West Gate as usual, Ren Yuchen led the two towards the main gate. Most students used the main gate, and the area around them was already crowded with people. However, within a two-meter radius of them, no one approached.
Perhaps the badge on his body was too conspicuous, Meng Fanxi thought.
It turned out that Ren Yuchen was specially asked by Wei Ye to pick up Gu Huailang, who would be going to and from school with them. Wei Ye only knew the main gate of the school and did not know the pick-up point, so he asked Ren Yuchen to show Gu Huailang the route.
Ren Yuchen naturally agreed, and Xu You, who had been traveling with him for several months, automatically followed. Feeling that his friendship with his younger brother had deepened after the Zhang Yang incident, he naturally wanted to bring Meng Fanxi along.
And so, Ren Yuchen stood before Gu Huailang, dragging two people with him.
When Gu Huailang saw that the originally planned one person had become three, he assumed that they had come specifically to pick him up, and he was deeply moved.
His junior high school uniform made him easily recognizable in the crowd. When he saw the three equally eye-catching people, he subconsciously straightened up and a faint smile appeared on his lips.
The four returned to campus. Gu Huailang showed his pass and entered smoothly. The group walked towards the west gate together, gradually quickening their pace to avoid keeping others waiting.
Gu Huailang sat down next to Meng Fanxi. The news of his experience with school bullying had been a hot topic among the trainees recently. As soon as he got on the bus, no one was surprised. Instead, they looked at him with sympathy.
He didn't like being pitied, but since it was a kind look, he remained silent and focused on himself.
The two days before the monthly exam flew by. Gu Huailang trained hard, but he also kept Wei Ye's advice in mind and still looked like he was still recovering from his injury.
Xu You and Ren Yuchen trained as usual, standing out from the other trainees.
Meng Fanxi was different. He was too concerned about this monthly exam, and his overly tense state was noticed by the other three. After discussing it, they took Meng Fanxi to the S-level practice room for a surprise attack.
On the last night before the monthly exam, Ren Yuchen repeated the movements over and over again, constantly adjusting the pitch. Once he got serious, he was like a devil coach. Under his high standards and strict requirements, Meng Fanxi made rapid progress. However, the intensity was so great that he didn't have the energy to be nervous anymore.
Looking at the exhausted Meng Fanxi, Gu Huailang was torn between what Wei Ye had said and his promise to keep it a secret. However, he couldn't bear to stop Meng Fanxi from training hard.
It seems he's the one who'll have the hardest sleep tonight.
The night was deep and quiet, the moon was bright and the stars were few, and all was silent except for the warm yellow glow of the lights on both sides of the stone path. The chatter of the four people made the surroundings lively.
Looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar streetlights and listening to the conversations around him, Meng Fanxi felt a sense of peace fill his heart; this time, he was no longer alone.
I woke up to find the monthly exam had arrived as scheduled.
The scale of the monthly exam at Weir Company was even larger than Meng Fanxi had imagined.
Despite it being the weekend, the dormitory building was filled with hurried figures, as everyone had received instructions for the monthly exam the night before.
Xu You and the others were used to it and completely ignored the notice. Meng Fanxi, on the other hand, found it quite novel. He read it word by word. The content was full of clichés emphasizing exam time and maintaining quiet and discipline, but it was unusually ceremonial.
Before dawn, the dormitory building was like a monkey's territory, filled with the singing voices of all the trainees, without exception.
The exam was held in a medium-sized auditorium inside the Weir Company that was not open to the public. The classic and unique decorations created a solemn atmosphere, making people lower their voices as soon as they entered.
Before entering the venue, the trainees all had their name tags affixed to their left abdomen for easy identification.
Inside the venue, staff members were adjusting equipment, installing cameras, and setting up the space on stage. Their serious and dedicated attitude, along with the oppressive feeling brought by the huge stage, weighed heavily on Meng Fanxi like a boulder.
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