Chapter 139 Chapter 139
The rehearsal scene. The cameras were positioned, each focused on the stage and the judges' seats. They wanted to capture the preparations before the actual recording, which would be edited and presented together with the final performance.
His gaze passed over the rehearsing trainees from Group B on the stage and landed on Kwon Ji-yong, who was sitting in the judging booth. Beside him, Dong Young-bae and the members of Group A were watching quietly. Today's competition was between the two teams, based on their seniors' solo repertoires.
The final winner will be decided by Yang Hyun-seok, 2NE1 members and producer Lia Kim.
He gradually got used to the competition format of competing with old friends, and also got used to seeing various seniors who he rarely encountered in the company. But Quan Zhilong was still a special existence to him.
Any trainee knows how terrifying it is to have no shortcomings in appearance, creative expression, or talent. And to receive guidance from such a senior is a rare opportunity. Of course, this isn't to say Yongpei is a bad person.
The members of Bigbang are all highly selected artists with rich experience in performing. But if we compare the appeal of others to winning a music show,
Then Kwon Ji-yong is on the same level as someone who swept the MAMA Awards—not even in the same league. Not only him, but his teammates also frequently cast their gazes towards the judges. The senior's charm clearly transcends gender. Sitting next to him, Kim Jin-woo,
A flicker of obsession, barely perceptible to others, even crossed his face. Soon, Group B's first round of rehearsals concluded. At this stage of program preparation, the trainees' performances, judging solely from a technical perspective, were impeccable.
But live performances aren't just about physical prowess. Eye contact, presence, camera interaction, and even the ability to create a compelling atmosphere—these subtle details often determine success or failure.
Kang Seung-yoon vaguely sensed that Group B's performance was lacking, but he couldn't pinpoint the specific problem. The other members of Group B clearly shared his confusion, standing on the stage anxiously awaiting guidance from their seniors. Kwon Ji-yong raised the microphone.
He addressed each member's shortcomings with a few precise words. His wording was concise, ensuring the audience's quick and thorough understanding. Sure enough, Group B's second rehearsal yielded immediate and significant improvements.
Jiang Shengrun couldn't help but be secretly shocked. This was the first time he faced such a huge gap.
Before today, he had considered himself quite good. His skills and creative abilities were considered quite good among trainees, even comparable to some newly debuted artists.
It's not like he hadn't seen other outstanding seniors before, nor was he unaware of Quan Zhilong's prowess. But this was the first time he truly realized: even if he practiced for another ten or twenty years, the gap would still be insurmountable.
Admiration and envy mingled into a profound sense of powerlessness, a sudden assault on his once-thought-to-be-invincible mind. Soon, Group B's second rehearsal concluded. Kwon Ji-yong lowered his microphone, adjusted his sunglasses, and stepped down from the judging panel.
As if noticing something, he asked with concern, "Seung-yoon, are you feeling nervous?" Jiang Seung-yoon was taken aback. He had not expected to receive such attention from Quan Zhilong. He felt ashamed and answered honestly, "Yes, senior, I am a little nervous."
Yongbae smiled and patted his shoulder: "Don't worry, I think Group A will win." Kwon Ji-yong raised his lip and joked: "Really? Seung-yoon, you are still nervous, Yongbae is just comforting you." Jiang Seung-yoon scratched his head embarrassedly, which caused a burst of laughter.
Dong Yongbae didn't say anything else, just stood up, clapped his hands, and called to the trainees: "Let's go, I'll take you to say hello to the judges." Quan Zhilong slightly curled his lips, without expressing his opinion, but obviously did not object.
The trainees immediately burst into a small cheer, with Song Yunhyung being the most excited. Many of them had watched Project A back then. Song Yunhyung, who was still in middle school at the time, was even more excited.
Kim's number one fan - not only was he reluctant to spend his breakfast money, he saved it to vote for her, and even made up his mind to join YG, one of the reasons being that he might be able to see her in the company.
Seeing everyone's enthusiastic reaction, Yongpei pretended to be hurt and said sadly: "When you saw Zhilong and me just now, you didn't seem so excited."
"No, senior, Yunhyung is a big fan of Lia senior!" Another trainee from Team B exposed it vigorously.
The trainees had no idea about Kwon Ji-yong and Lia's relationship, or if they had heard of it, they'd simply assumed it was a false rumor, so they were all quite tactless in their actions. "Really?" Yong-bae confirmed with a grin.
"Well... I've liked Lia since junior high." Song Yunheng blushed and hesitantly admitted, looking a little embarrassed. Quan Zhilong suddenly turned around and glanced at him.
The glance was so quick, and because it was through sunglasses, almost no one noticed—except for the gloating Dong Yongpei. The group of people, noisy and noisy, headed backstage. * When I pushed the door open, the judges were gathered together chatting.
After all, the members of 2NE1 spent a long period of trainee years with Lia. Even though they later took different paths and their contact was not as close as before, they still felt close.
Bao En was her closest friend, so naturally, he was the first to gossip about her relationship. The source of the gossip was the loudmouth Kush.
After his rough and fine processing, the breakup and near-reconciliation story between Kwon Ji-yong and Lia was almost as melodramatic as "Autumn in My Heart." After finally catching the person involved, Bo Eun grabbed a chair and blocked her in front of the sofa.
Cailin and Minzhi stretched their necks, afraid that they would miss any important news; only Shandala sat at the outermost edge, fiddling with her cell phone casually, without looking curious.
"So, what did Kush actually say?" Although she'd already heard of Kush's level of rumor-mongering, Lia couldn't help but be curious. Bao En then recounted the story with a beaming smile. Well, it was eye-opening.
Lia had no choice but to smile politely. "So, what's the truth?" Bo-eun persisted. Chae-rin and Min-ji nodded, their eyes filled with anticipation.
"Well..." Lia paused awkwardly. It wasn't that she was hiding something, but the current relationship was truly difficult to describe. Before she could formulate her words, a group of people suddenly rushed in.
The other person involved in the gossip walked up front. Bao En immediately fell silent, feeling guilty. The camera PD, carrying a camera as big as his head, ducked around the doorway and set up the camera in a position that could capture the entire room.
Needless to say, the trainees stood on either side of the door, hands clasped, looking at the seniors in the room with a reserved and curious look. Quan Zhilong immediately spotted Lia sitting in the corner of the sofa.
Today she wore a tailored off-the-shoulder dress that fitted her figure without being too flattering, accentuating her shoulders and neck. Her hair was tied in a high ponytail, and a pair of exaggerated pink earrings cleverly balanced the overall look.
This ultra-feminine look contrasted with her usual quiet demeanor. Beneath her cold exterior, a touch of radiance and flamboyance suddenly emerged, a unique beauty revealed in this contradiction. Not only Quan Zhilong, but everyone else's gaze also fell on her.
Yongpei smiled and exclaimed: "Are you all beauties of this level?" Although his tone was vague, everyone felt that he was describing Lia.
2NE1 certainly has members with stunning beauty like Park Sandara, but compared to artists who appear in the public eye all year round, the effect is naturally magnified exponentially when a character who rarely appears in public suddenly displays this beauty.
"Of course, you underestimate us." Bao En crossed his arms and joked. Lia was naturally aware of the surrounding gazes. While listening to other people's chatter, she looked at the trainees with interest.
This was almost the first time she had seen Lee Sung-hoon, whom she had met on TV's "Star." Those youthful yet yearning eyes reminded her of herself back then.
As her eyes passed the second boy to her left, he gave her a shy yet excited little wave. Lia noticed and nodded politely with a smile. Song Yunhyung gasped. She hadn't expected her dream to come true so suddenly.
The goddess was ten times more beautiful in person than on TV, and her aura was even more astonishing. He was completely dizzy, immersed in the dizziness of their gaze, and completely unaware of the fiery gaze falling on him from behind.
Quan Zhilong's expression visibly turned cold. He had dressed up like this, but no one even glanced at him. Haha, what good is there in being younger? "Kids, introduce yourselves," he turned to Team A with a sullen face.
Even after the words fell, her eyes behind the sunglasses still drifted uncontrollably toward the sofa. Lia, for some reason, lowered her head and fiddled with her phone, as if sending a message, then quickly put it down. Jiang Shengyun, standing at the head of the group, was startled.
His attention has always been on Kwon Ji-yong, so naturally he did not miss the subtle scene just now - whether it was Song Yunheng's silly interaction, or the senior's expression as dark as the bottom of a pot because of this.
Of course, Kwon Ji-yong wore this same expressionless face when he wasn't making any expression. But this time, he could see something different. Jiang Shengyun hurriedly came to his senses and winked at his teammates. "One, two, three, hello seniors, we are Team A!"
"I'm Kang Seung-yoon from Team A, in charge of variety." "I'm Kim Jin-woo, the eldest brother from Team A, in charge of cuteness." ...
One by one, the members gave their carefully crafted yet embarrassing self-introductions. When it was Song Yunhyung's turn, he mustered up the courage to ask Lia for a photo. "Did you vote for me? Really?" Lia's eyes widened in surprise.
Song Yunheng nodded repeatedly, eager to dig out his old forum account as evidence. Lia naturally wouldn't refuse. Jiang Shengyun stole another glance at Quan Zhilong—and as expected, his face darkened even more.
He couldn't help but break into a cold sweat for Song Yunheng, but the guy didn't notice at all. He happily came forward and said, "Cheese! Cheese!", grinning from ear to ear. Jiang Shengyun: Amen. ...
After Song Yunheng interrupted, the originally somewhat restrained atmosphere relaxed.
Everyone knew that even if it was just a greeting, their every word and action could be edited into the main film. Consequently, the other trainees also became more active, actively showing off their skills, and the scene gradually became lively.
At some point, Quan Zhilong had already sat on the sofa. As the camera turned away, he lowered his head to take out his phone, flicked it casually a few times, and then put it back in his pocket. [NeonL: Oppa is very handsome today]
Although his expression was normal, Jiang Shengyun was keenly aware that Quan Zhilong was in a much better mood than a few minutes ago. Listening to Jin Zhenyu's poor personal skills, he even followed the atmosphere and curled his lips slightly.
His gaze flicked between Kwon Ji-ryong and Lia, who were seated at opposite ends of the sofa, and Kang Seung-yoon came to a conclusion: the rumors about his seniors were actually true. Big news.
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