Chapter 35
Gu Ningyan was dazzled by the radiant smile in front of him.
Ever since his family faced troubles, he rarely smiled. At most, he would squeeze out a smile reluctantly in front of the camera for promotional purposes. Given his five-year career, there hadn’t been more than twenty real camera instances.
Initially, he debuted as an actor with his chiseled good looks, features that should have easily led to stardom, but unfortunately, his company was too small and had limited resources. Most of his roles were minor, insignificant ones. He was also unwilling to comply with the underhanded rules in the industry and this led to his obscurity in the past five years.
Children who have tasted enough bitterness often want to pursue something that can alleviate their pain; for instance, a smile, or the person in front of his eyes.
Overlooking the potential ulterior motives of his partner, Gu Ningyan looked down with his deep black eyes and softly said, "Okay."
This smile was too sweet, making him let his guard down.
Ling Rong, can I trust you?
Seeing Ling Rong approaching Gu Ningyan, the carefree Zhang Tianqi didn't overthink. Even though he and Ling Rong were from the same company, they had never interacted before and he had barely heard of her. Now that Gu Ningyan was sharing a dormitory with him, this closeness seemed normal.
After having agreed, Gu Ningyan was naturally committed to delivering on his promise. "Which move are you having trouble with? I can demonstrate it for you."
Although he started his career as an actor, Gu Ningyan was primarily known as a stand-in for various celebrities, which honed his expertise in physical coordination. Hence, dance steps were no challenge for him.
Moreover, his voice was a very sexy baritone which made his singing fairly good except for high notes. The only area he had no prior experience was in rap.
After some thought, Ling Rong decided not to take up too much of Gu Ningyan's time, so she specifically chose to ask for help with the hardest moves.
The most challenging sequence was definitely the dance moves in the chorus. The steps needed to be executed quickly to the fast rhythm, all had to be remembered without any mistakes, and precise body coordination was required to prevent looking clumsy.
Once Gu Ningyan had demonstrated the moves slowly for Ling Rong to see, he turned to him saying, "Now, you do it."
For Ling Rong, who had never danced before, it was indeed a difficult feat to accomplish all at once. On the fifth beat, her feet didn't react in time. Her left foot tripped over the right, and she suddenly lost balance, tilting to one side.
Just when Ling Rong thought she was going to hit the floor, a pair of hands appeared at her waist, steadying her body. With the assistance from these hands, she quickly regained balance.
"Thank you." Ling Rong winked and flashed her neat white teeth at the man behind her.
It was the beginning of April, and everyone in the training room wore a single thin class uniform. The warmth of her body quickly spread through the fabric to his palms. Sensing the unfamiliar heat, Gu Ningyan was startled and immediately let go of his hold on her waist.
"It's okay." Gu Ningyan awkwardly averted his gaze, unable to look directly at him. "Continue, but be careful this time."
Dancing along with someone guiding the moves indeed was easier than randomly practicing alone. Ling Rong followed Gu Ningyan's instructions, gradually getting the hang of the whole routine. Although her pace was slow, she was making progress eventually.
Around ten minutes passed and Ling Rong, not wanting to impose on another class, quickly thanked Gu Ningyan and hurried back to class F. After his departure, Qiao Lin from the same class came over to Gu Ningyan's side, patting his shoulder and asked, "How lucky are you? How does it feel to live in the same dormitory with the beautiful Ling Rong?"
Qiao Lin was one of the trainees dispatched by Huachang Entertainment, and known for his powerful performances.
Since others had seen Ling Rong, the title of the big entertainment company's flower rapidly shifted from Hu Yue to him without hiss knowledge. His beautiful, non-aggressive appearance easily captivated many people.
"It's fine." Gu Ningyan replied indifferently, still pondering Qiao Lin's previous words.
Was it his fortune to live with Ling Rong?
While everyone was still practicing their opening dance, the first episode of "Cheer Up, Idol" was officially released on Maowei Video. Due to time constraints, the editors had prioritized content for the episode. The first part featured the evaluation processes of different trainees. At the end, the show tactically focused on the moment Ling Rong entered dormitory 605, lifted his head, and introduced himself. His androgynous appearance flashed before the camera before the first episode came to an abrupt end.
The producers knew exactly how to draw in their audience. After over an hour of broadcasting, #LingRongSuchaFairyFace rapidly became a hot topic, taking the number one spot on social media trends. Fans managed to capture screenshots of Ling Rong's brief appearance, creating a collage on Weibo, setting the beauty aficionados ablaze with excitement.
"OMG! What unbelievable face value this season! I thought Hu Yue's face already reached the pinnacle, but it turned out Ling Rong was the grand finale!"
"Ah! I'm in love with his face! I want to pick him for the center when he debuts! Such a fairy face!"
As her beauty aroused excitement, some questioned: "Weren't there supposed to be 99 trainees? The list was already published, so where did Ling Rong come from? She isn't among those 99."
Although Maowei's official response was swift and seemingly "reasonable," persistent skeptics still believed: "It's clearly a backdoor admission. Plus, looking at his uniform, he is in Class F, meaning he hasn't demonstrated any special skills."
Unfortunately, these skeptics underestimated the power of beauty aficionados. Before the official explanation of Ling Rong being assigned to F class due to missing evaluations was given, numerous netizens had already replied back to those skeptics, defending him unequivocally.
"Even with just that face, all beauty lovers would pick him for a high-ranking debut. So why are you being salty? Are you Ling Rong? Do you know if he joined with cash in hand?"
On such reality shows, popularity was king, and viewers' choices were paramount. Of course, a strong skill set would net extra points.
Someone else retorted, "What's wrong with you? Do you think you're so superior? Can you dance or sing well? What right do you have to look down on Class F? If you don't work hard, should you prevent others from striving to rise?"
In short, just one shot got Ling Rong to the top of the trending list, and even led to boiling discussion about the show. This ability to draw attention had program directors grinning ear to ear. Their initial dissatisfaction with his sudden inclusion was now completely dissipated. They even ordered the cameramen to give him more screen time in the future.
With his connections and appearance, Ling Rong's rise to fame seemed inevitable.
The Weibo account Ling Rong hastily set up for the show rapidly gained over 1 million followers. His first post trended number one all day, driving his fan count to increase crazily.
________________________
But Ling Rong, whose phone had been confiscated, remained oblivious to all this. She was still in the practice room painstakingly rehearsing the dance routine she'd learned during the day. Yes, she joined the show for Gu Ningyan, but to botch it was not her style. If she decided to debut with Gu Ningyan, she would make sure her expertise was up to date.
"Ling Rong, let's go grab dinner." It was past six in the evening, dinnertime for the trainees. The rest of Class F had begun to prepare for dinner. Ling Rong had bonded well with everyone due to her agreeable appearance and friendly demeanor. Naturally, they wanted her to join them.
Wiping sweat off her forehead with her sleeve, Ling Rong shouted back, "You guys go ahead, don't wait for me. I'm going to practice a bit longer."
Believing he'd join them soon, they left without him. However, when the always-last-to-dinner Gu Ningyan arrived at the cafeteria, he heard from their company-mate Mu Xiuyuan that Ling Rong still hadn't arrived for dinner.
Thinking about the slender waist he had touched in the morning, which seemed as if it could be grasped with one hand, Gu Ningyan showed a disapproving expression. He was so thin yet unwilling to eat properly.
That tiny waist was even thinner than any female celebrity he had ever met.
"Xiuyuan, help me find a takeaway box from the canteen, and bring one to me when you find it," Gu Ningyan ordered while eating elegantly.
"Brother Yan, you're eating, what do you need a takeaway box for?" Mu Xiuyuan was naturally curious.
Gu Ningyan's features were sharp, and his peach blossom eyes exuded an imposing aura when looking at someone. With just a glance, he immediately made Mu Xiuyuan feel the pressure, and he obediently followed the instructions.
After all, Ningyan was their leader, and they should listen to him.
Mu Xiuyuan finally found a takeaway box from the kitchen after much effort and immediately brought it to Gu Ningyan.
"Bro, here you go."
After picking some common dishes and another portion of rice in the cafeteria, Gu Ningyan packed everything and carried it in his hand.
"Go back to the dormitory on your own. I have to go now." Gu Ningyan quickly finished his meal and headed towards the teaching building with the packed food.
As it was impossible to resume training immediately after eating, they would usually return to their dormitory to rest for a while before practicing.
Realizing the direction Gu Ningyan was heading, Mu Xiuyuan understood that he was going to deliver food to Ling Rong. But since when were they this close?
While climbing the stairs, Gu Ningyan wondered if suddenly bringing food to him might be abrupt. After all, they didn't seem to be close yet, so would this action appear strange?
Gu Ningyan couldn't understand why he had impulsively decided to bring food to Ling Rong. But just by thinking about his excessively thin figure, his body had already subconsciously moved ahead.
Oh well, they shared the same dormitory; of course, he should take care of him. Gu Ningyan convinced himself this way.
However, when he just reached Class F's door, he encountered another familiar person.
A face that could always look enchantingly beautiful, the titleholder of "The Most Beautiful Flower" in their academy—Hu Yue.
In his hand, he was also carrying a packed food bag, and the content inside was quite self-explanatory.
Upon seeing Gu Ningyan, a flash of surprise flickered in Hu Yue's narrow, fox-like eyes. However, he quickly returned to normal and smiled playfully, "Oh, it's Ningyan. Are you also here to bring food to our little prince?"
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