69 Eighth
This time Stary still sent Pei Zijin to draw lots. Before he set off, the four remaining brothers patted his legs, waist, and butt to cheer him up: "Come on, brother."
Jin Zeyu made a sincere wish: "I'm counting on you to get the first place, dear captain, you must keep your luck stable, or I'll be too hot if I keep wearing this cloak."
Pei Zijin left and came back a minute later. In front of four eager eyes, he finally lived up to everyone's expectations. "Number 2, not bad."
"It's okay, it's okay, it's okay." The five people breathed a sigh of relief at the same time. If it wasn't the seventh or eighth person to go on stage, they would have suffocated themselves.
The one who got first place in this episode was Ershishiling. The eight of them stood up and prepared to go on stage. The idols in the waiting room applauded them warmly to cheer them on. After competing together for two months, the idols gradually became familiar with each other. Rather than being rivals, they now appreciate each other more.
Several younger groups are constantly learning stage and songwriting experience from their predecessors. The first generation are also gradually regaining the mentality and tacit understanding of their youth, and everyone's progress is obvious.
Ershierling bowed deeply towards the waiting room, then walked towards the entrance to the stage.
They all still wore modified Chinese traditional costumes for stage, which were sweet and handsome, but the differences were almost the same every time. Even the barrage in the live broadcast room could not cover up the constant objections.
"Why don't you change it? It's the same ancient style songs in every episode. I've said it many times. Listen to what the fans have to say."
“Change the style of music, change the makeup, change the style of music, change the makeup, change the style of music, change the makeup.”
"Other groups have made breakthroughs, but the Twenty-Four Order has remained in its comfort zone..."
When the participating groups go on stage to prepare, the live broadcast will usually insert a short video to introduce the relationship between the music and the theme. Sometimes it is a clip of rehearsal and recording during this period, and sometimes it is a concept short film of the song selection, all of which are produced by the program team.
This time, the short film of Twenty-Four Orders was very simple and straightforward. The live broadcast switched to the short film perspective, and the opening screen showed the camera facing the eight people of Twenty-Four Orders. They had something to say.
Captain Mo Shuanglan, on behalf of all members of the 24th Order, waved to the camera and said, "Hello everyone, we are the 24th Order."
"Since the fifth episode, we have received suggestions from fans, music lovers, and audience friends. We are a little confused about what kind of songs to prepare for the competition, but after discussion, we decided to stick to singing the ancient style songs we have always wanted and loved."
“This may seem a bit clumsy and unrealistic, but our original intention is to make ancient and traditional Chinese music. We want ancient music to go from a niche to the mainstream, and we want more people to hear what we love. So, we will always insist on doing what we want to do. If we can do one thing well, we already think we are great.”
"I am very grateful for everyone's advice, trust and support, and especially thank Yuanxin Entertainment and the "Heart Dance Stage" production team for giving us the opportunity, no matter where we go next."
"We have received all the suggestions that everyone has given us during this period. Next, we will visit various parts of the motherland and take more walks and have a look. We will also take a look at the magnificent mountains and rivers that have remained unchanged for thousands of years, and also take a look at the precious wealth and traditional culture that the ancients left us. We will touch them with our own hands and experience them in person. Then we will make our next ancient style album and strive to do better and make more different ancient styles that everyone expects. Ershisi Ling will always make ancient style works."
"Please enjoy the latest single of Twenty-Four Orders: "Jinghong Yin" below."
Stary was listening to the short video broadcast silently in the background, feeling a little complicated.
They have not encountered such entanglements and difficulties, but they dare not say that they will never encounter them in the future. When what they want to do conflicts with the market, they have to make some trade-offs. Choices are always difficult. They chose to break through, and Ershishiling chose to persist. There is no right or wrong in this.
They are very lucky to have met a leader like Yuan Xiao who has led them on the right and smooth path from the beginning, but they cannot always rely on Sister Xiaoxiao for everything.
Ershishiling's performance on stage was still stable. Although it still cannot be said that they have stepped out of their comfort zone, they have also achieved perfection in the field they want to do. The new song is very nice, and perhaps it will be another song as popular as "Yun Yu Yao". The five members of Stary sincerely applauded them in front of the screen, and then, it was their turn.
The cloaks that had been wrapped tightly around them since the beginning of the show were finally taken off. The five people simply adjusted their stage costumes and makeup at the side curtains. For the first time, they went on stage wearing headsets instead of hand microphones.
The barrage of comments on the live streaming platform suddenly increased to the point of freezing and then disappeared, and then the screen was filled with "ahhhhhhh". The spotlights shining from behind the stage blurred into a hazy halo under the mist of dry ice, shining on everyone on the stage, outlining their figures just right.
What was kept secret under the cloak until the last moment before going on stage was a new and unprecedented makeup style.
The buttons of the satin silk shirt on the upper body were half-undone, and the ribbons on the cuffs hung softly. The soft fabric cast a dark color under the spotlight, reflecting on the boys' slightly seductive makeup.
The bottom of their loose clothes were tucked into tight black trousers, and then gathered into shiny knee-length boots, making the five of them look even more like supermodels.
Jin Zeyu stood in the middle, raised his eyes lazily, and looked at the person in front of the screen with a smile.
It was like firing a gun at the camera.
He lowered his voice to the point of being almost hoarse, and uttered the English words: "Kiss Me, Kill Me"*
The drum beats of the original song were weakened in the prelude. Gu Yuchen geniusly changed the melody of the original song into a violin sonata. The hissing of the strings pulled out a slower and more gradual rhythm. Teacher Gu changed the song originally sung by the girl to be as if...
A scoundrel.
This word couldn't help but emerge in the minds of all the audience in front of the screen. This time, Stary not only subverted her previous image on "Heart Dancing Stage", but also made a shocking reversal, becoming so lazy and enchanting that it is unbelievable.
After a year of acting lessons, the five people finally showed all the traces of their hard work on the stage. The camera swept across each person's expression in turn, with an impact so great that it was terrifying.
Before the song even started, the fans already felt like breathing oxygen and pinching their Ren Zhong points.
“Crazy cold and damned I won't be satisfied”*
Pei Zijin appeared from behind Jin Zeyu, his bony fingers casually tugging at the ribbon on the collar of his clothes. He deliberately prolonged each word as if it had rolled on the tip of his tongue before being uttered slowly, but he pulled hard on the last sentence, suddenly shortening the distance between the two people to infinitely close, and they could almost feel each other's breathing.
“I like you terrified”*
As soon as the members of Twenty-Four Order returned to the waiting room, they saw this scene on the big screen and started screaming excitedly. They didn't have to worry about protecting their throats after they got off the stage. The expressions of the other groups were also wonderful in their own ways.
“So tell me what you're waiting for”*
Yan Fan held Su Chen's wrist, guiding his fingertips upwards and dangerously holding it at his throat. He lowered his head and pretended to kiss Su Chen's hand, but stopped at the edge of touching it. He stared past Su Chen with an ambiguous look at the camera behind him, and raised his eyebrows slightly.
“Me creeping up inside”*
“Oh why do I love a little bit of kiss me kill me cry
Oh I oh I love a little bit of kiss me kill me die (Why does falling in love with a kiss make me cry, why does falling in love with a kiss make me die)"
“Why do I——”
The camera zoomed out and moved to the center. Every time Yu Le uttered a word, there was an extra hand restraining him. However, the handsome boy did not hide or evade. He was in it, calm and enjoying it, until he was completely pulled into the darkness.
“Kiss me kill me.”
In an instant, the lights came on, and the five people changed into a formation of three in front and two in the back, dancing together on the naked stage, their waists swaying softly, and every move was bold and dangerous. They twisted their waists and hips to the repeated drum beats, their steps were light, and their extraordinary body proportions were clearly revealed, like the shadow of a cat that was close yet far away at midnight, and their fingertips brushed across the corners of their lips and shoulders, like kisses from lovers.
“Kiss me kill me.”
The seemingly unintentional movements actually contain terrifying power. The good control built by basic skills is reflected in every detail. The belts float while turning the body. Every moment of lowering and raising the eyes is a sniper. Everything about these young men is incredibly unbridled, but it happens to stay on this side of the critical line.
Just an invitation.
After the choreography was arranged, Yuan Xiao went to watch it again. He was not very satisfied with their rehearsal at that time. The strength of the movements was in place, but the emotions were not natural enough, and they could not grasp the right degree of expression. Yuan Xiao pulled the five of them very close to the mirror in the practice room, asked them to stare at their own reflections in the mirror, and then dance while staring at their own shadows, and told them: "Pleasure yourself first."
It’s not about shame, it’s not about endurance, the most natural way to tease is to let yourself see yourself falling in love with yourself.
The five of them are right between the stages of adolescence and adulthood. Their temperament and dance moves fit in well with each other. The youthfulness and curiosity of teenagers can neutralize the overly ambiguous atmosphere. It doesn't matter if they are a little bold and revealing. They have to devote themselves fully to the stage. Idols are also singers and actors. It is their job to find the most suitable way of performing for a stage.
At this moment, the barrage of comments has gone crazy. Almost all of Stary's fans, from old fans to stage fans who were attracted to the show recently, can't miss this live broadcast. Even fans from other groups are clicking in to watch. The speed at which the barrage of comments refreshes the screen is as scary as the data flow. Almost all of them are meaningless interjections, occasionally mixed with some exclamations that are not suitable for broadcasting.
The hot search list originally had Stary and the song title, as well as several entries that the "Heart Dance Stage" production team had pre-purchased. However, ten minutes after the performance ended, an entry was captured by the backend algorithm and immediately jumped from the bottom of the list to the top:
#Stary Husband# Explosion
Today, the structure of Stary's fan club has undergone a radical reversal. Girlfriend fans have officially overwhelmed mom fans and have gained an absolute numerical advantage in the fan circle. Many little Starys have belatedly realized that, in fact, most of the five of them are already adults, and the younger brother is growing up very fast, with his features becoming tougher day by day. In fact, there were already signs of their change in style this time.
Clicking on the trending search, you will see sincere comments from passers-by and friends, "If I had known earlier that my idol was like this, I would have chased him a long time ago."
"Life is hard enough. People should watch what they like online."
【Author’s words】
* "Kiss Me, Kill Me" was written and sung by ARI HICKS (Arianna Singh-Hicks)
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