9. What are the criteria for forming a group?
These young people had never experienced such professional and high-intensity physical training before. By lunch time, the trainees were so exhausted that they couldn't even get up. They were hanging in various shapes on the equipment and the floor of the gym and activity room.
Su Chen's entire body was hanging on the deadlift rack like a strip. Even the little curly hair on his head looked lifeless, as if all his energy had been drained out and he became limp.
"Su, hurry up, get up and eat!"
The handsome mixed-race boy Avery next to him was still full of health, and was dragging him upstairs to the cafeteria with an excited look on his face. He didn't look like a human at all.
It can be said that they were destined to meet. Yesterday, Su Chen came to Yuanxin to sign the advance salary form. When he came downstairs, he ran into Avery who had remembered the wrong date and was wandering around in the lobby. The front desk lady told him that Avery had just got off the plane and came with his luggage. So she called the election officer who had just taken him to sign the salary form and arranged for him to stay in the dormitory in advance.
As of today, they were the only ones who had met each other in advance, so it was natural for them to hang out together. Although Avery looks like a mixed race, he speaks Chinese well. Apart from the Shanghai accent, there is no foreign accent.
"Get up, get up." Avery pulled Su Chen up from the rack. The man looked thinner than Su Chen, but he was very strong. Su Chen, a music student majoring in vocal music, couldn't hold on at all and was lifted up.
"Hey, hey, hey!" Su Chen couldn't resist this energetic calf and had to move his sore thighs and be dragged into the elevator by him. Fortunately, this guy still had some conscience and didn't let him stumble up the stairs. Damn it, after practicing for more than three hours, he felt like his legs were not his own.
At this moment, many trainees had started to go upstairs one after another. Before Su Chen and Avery reached the cafeteria entrance, they heard a series of wows coming from the distance, as if they had collectively transformed into little frogs. Su Chen had a quick mind and he knew right away that this was definitely not the sound of disappointment.
Now his waist and legs no longer hurt. Su Chen had also heard at school that some of his seniors who entered the entertainment industry went on a desperate diet after their debut. He thought he would starve to death during these three months. He had not had any expectations for the cafeteria in the first place, so it was a pleasant surprise.
He and Avery hurried over and looked inside the cafeteria. The windows were clean and tidy, and the aroma of hot food hit them in the face. A quick look at the food window showed that meat, fish, eggs and milk were all available. Although there was no heavy sauce or greasy sauce, it was still very rich.
Avery: "Ooooooh!"
He is of Chinese, Italian and French descent. He used to live half of his time in Shanghai with his family and half of his time in Europe with his maternal grandparents. He has never experienced collective life like he does now since he was a child, and everything he sees is new and new to him.
Seeing Su Chen holding a tray and standing in the queue for food, he followed suit.
"Su, can I have whatever I want to eat?"
"I see that everyone in front of me has ordered one portion of each dish." Su Chen stretched his head out to look, "They will definitely not let anyone waste it, right? I just don't know if we can get more after we finish eating."
The boy in front of them heard the conversation and turned around to say to them, "The cafeteria has a time limit but no quantity limit. You can eat as much as you want. Didn't you see the notice on the door when you came in?"
Su Chen and Avery looked at each other and were indeed busy looking at the food. What a good relationship! They didn't have to go on a diet, which was great.
But think about the intensity of the training in the morning. Even if I don’t control it at all, it would be difficult to gain weight.
They each ordered a dish, took it to an empty table nearby and sat down facing each other.
This cafeteria is not very big, it can only accommodate about a hundred people, it should be used exclusively by trainees. Soon the trainees came down from upstairs one after another, and the cafeteria was almost full.
Two more boys sat next to Su Chen and Avery. They had just met each other and were not familiar with each other. Each one was more polite and reserved than the other. They just nodded when they sat down and ate the whole meal in silence.
It was not until they handed in their plates and left the cafeteria for lunch that Avery whispered to Su Chen, "Do you have a rule that we can't talk while we eat?"
Su Chen was puzzled: "Where is there such a rule? Did you see it? Or did you hear it from someone?"
"Then why is everyone silent?" Avery spread his hands. The entire cafeteria was very quiet just now. He endured it for a whole meal and dared to speak up after coming out. "That's weird. I wanted to ask where they were from, but the person next to me didn't even look at me."
"Maybe it's because... everyone is a potential competitor?" Su Chen thought for a moment and analyzed, "I heard it this morning. There are more than 80 people, and I don't know if there will be five who will debut in the end. If this is the case, everyone will fight for a spot. Maybe - they are not here to make friends."
Avery opened his mouth wide. This exaggerated expression on his deep and handsome face looked a little funny. Su Chen was amused by him. "Why are you so surprised?"
Judging from their age, these people can no longer be considered naive children. The young generation nowadays knows how to think a lot, and he is definitely not the only one who thinks this way.
Avery shook his head honestly and said, "Su, I didn't expect it to be like this."
"I thought we were all partners. Even if these people didn't debut, many of them would definitely still embark on the road of performing arts in the future. So what if they didn't get a spot in the end? It's not just about forming a group. I came here to learn, but also to make friends. I thought everyone thought the same as me."
"Well, you're right. Maybe I'm overthinking it." Su Chen answered him. He realized that Avery was different from him. This handsome mixed-race boy from Shanghai didn't have the same reason to stay as him. Even if he was eliminated, he could change companies or go home.
But Su Chen - he didn't know where else except here could provide a minor like him with a stable, well-paid job with a promising future.
Ever since Yuan Xiao handed him his business card in the corridor that day, he couldn't stop thinking, if... if he could really make his debut in the end, then, could he completely solve the problems at home?
There was no need to tell Avery this though, as his new best friend was looking a little depressed.
Su Chen reflected on whether he was a little too pessimistic. At least he and Avery got along very well, so he raised his hand and patted the shoulder of his best friend beside him - he originally wanted to pat his head, because Avery really looked like a puppy with drooping ears at the moment, but considering that they had only known each other for the second day, Su Chen retracted his eager hand.
What if the person doesn't want to be touched by others?
This thought flashed through his mind in the blink of an eye and was not noticed by Avery at all. The mixed-race boy was still cheerful. His mood came and went quickly. When he heard his friend's approval, he was instantly happy again. He hugged Su Chen and wanted to take him to see his dormitory.
After they left, Yuan Xiao came out from the other side of the corridor.
In the morning, she invited a champion-level team member from a top street dance competition, and finally got him to agree to teach these kids. She just returned to the company and wanted to secretly take a look at the trainees' first morning class, but she didn't expect to hear such words.
It really wasn't her intention to eavesdrop.
Yuan Xiao recognized that this was the pretty kid she had picked up from the Central Conservatory of Music, whose family seemed to have some financial problems. There was no one else with this voice. It was really fate. She could hear this guy every time he talked to others. However, what Su Chen said made her think about something.
Yuan Xiao overlooked this point. She didn't want to be in a group as competitive as a talent show. Even if they finally debuted as a group, they could only maintain superficial peace, but in reality they were a group full of intrigue. You know, in the domestic entertainment industry, if a group wants to operate stably for a long time and not break up instantly after becoming popular, and even consider the issue of contract renewal after five to ten years, the relationship between members is too important.
However, the selection and elimination mechanism is bound to create competition among these trainees. She is not worried that the boys of this age will become too aloof. They will be able to play together in a few days. However, forming small groups like in a talent show is not what Yuan Xiao wants to see.
"Alas." She sighed and said to the system in her mind, "I will inevitably have to play the villain again."
[You want to portray yourself as a villain so that these trainees can unite? ]
"I'm not a villain. My ultimate goal is to make them the strongest boy band and for me to be the best manager. I don't want all the artists under me to turn against each other and become enemies with the company."
Yuan Xiao was actually a little confused. She was not an unreasonable person, nor could she play the role of a female devil, but what the system said was right. If the trainees wanted to unite, it would be best to give them an enemy to fight against as a whole, or a unified goal, so that they could internalize it into healthy competition that would promote each other.
"But I did think that when I first met them, it would be best to appear stern." She sighed again. "It's hard."
【Can't you just ask them to unite? 】
Yuan Xiao was amused by the system. It was so naive. Only at this moment could he see that this guy was very different from humans. "You can't ask for it. Besides, kids nowadays are hard to fool. If you paint a rosy picture for them, they will see through it at a glance. It's better to be strict from the beginning."
"But you did remind me."
Yuan Xiao blinked, "I have to remind the selection team to find a way to choose a temporary captain from these people in the next few days. It's not easy to be the captain of a boy group. It's best to rehearse before the debut... But more than 80 people are still a bit too many... So, system, help me remember it, and when the next stage starts, I will choose a temporary captain. As for the selection criteria for the final group, you can refer to their personal relationships."
【OK. 】
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