Chapter 61: Underhanded Manipulation

Their conversation came to an abrupt halt. In the dressing room, CC, with her elegant fingers, glanced at Shen Yijue, then at Guan Min, and hesitantly asked, “Did I come at a bad time?”

“Not at all, absolutely not. In fact, your timing is perfect.” Guan Min solemnly patted CC on the shoulder and said, “After we wrap up today, drinks are on me.”

“Brother Guan, you’re not luring me into a trap, are you?” CC feigned horror, clutching her throat.

Guan Min’s mouth twitched. “CC, have you ever considered that besides being a makeup artist, you could also try your hand at acting?”

“I still prefer being a makeup artist.” CC shrugged, shot him a playful glare, and took out a compact from the case her assistant was holding, who was struggling to contain her laughter, then began carefully touching up Shen Yijue’s makeup.

“Brother Guan, I’d like to learn acting. Can you introduce me to someone?” the young assistant joked.

“You’d better just focus on being a good assistant for now,” Guan Min waved her off, and, ignoring Shen Yijue’s side of things, busied himself with his own affairs.

Ever since Mo Qi appeared, he felt as if he’d been the subject of constant disdain—what a situation to be in.

On the other side, after hanging up the phone, Mo Qi finally felt a bit more at ease. There were only two days left before the competition officially began, and with the program still lacking direction, it would be a lie to say she wasn’t anxious. Now that the story’s outline was set, Mo Qi could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

For the next two days, Mo Qi stayed in her dorm room to rehearse her performance, no longer going to the rehearsal room. Her intention was to quietly let Sister Ming know that some things could be tolerated once, but not again.

Sister Ming noticed Mo Qi’s absence from the rehearsal room and understood she was being guarded against. Even if she could understand and forgive, it didn’t mean Mo Qi could trust her anymore.

Sister Ming understood this, but she couldn’t help feeling a little disappointed. She truly admired Mo Qi’s dedication and had hoped to become real friends with her. Unfortunately, reality was seldom so kind. They couldn’t always have things as they wished.

Mo Qi didn’t show up in the rehearsal room, but Sister Ming still kept watch there and never mentioned it to the producers.

Time flew by, and the second episode of “Let Dreams Soar” finally commenced.

This round would reduce the fifteen contestants down to ten. As long as they made it into the top ten, talent agencies would start to take notice, and some might even sign with one. Once signed, things like packaging and publicity would be handled by professionals. Even if Mo Qi faced another PR crisis, the agency would step in at the right time to handle it. It was a major shield, a form of protection.

Before the competition started filming, the production team gathered all fifteen contestants into a small room. To determine the order of appearance, they had everyone draw lots.

Mo Qi was already aware of the tricks behind the lottery, so she wasn’t as nervous or expectant as some of the others.

Standing beside Mo Qi, Lin Zheng whispered, “I heard that for this round, they’ve opened up public SMS voting. The last two contestants in the PK round will be decided by the number of text votes.”

“That’s normal,” Mo Qi replied with a faint smile. “It’s just another way for the program to make money. For contestants like us, winning the audience’s favor is far more important than impressing the judges.”

“Exactly,” Lin Zheng snorted. “If we want to release albums in the future, we’ll need their approval for any chance at success.”

“That’s why if you release something, it had better be good. The public sees everything. They know who’s good and who isn’t.” Mo Qi stopped talking as she saw a staff member bring in a large glass jar.

Lin Zheng noticed too and nudged Mo Qi, “Let’s hope we draw an early number. The earlier you perform, the better your chances.”

Mo Qi only smiled. With Lin Zheng and Xie An’s appearance and talent, she was sure they would make it through this round with ease.

After all, with the exposure from the preliminary videos and the first live show, they already had a small fanbase. It wasn’t much, but among the contestants, it counted for something.

The staff member placed the jar filled with round balls and colorful foam on the room’s only table and announced with a smile, “In a moment, each of you will draw a ball. Open it up, and the number inside determines your order of appearance. Is everyone ready?”

“Ready!” The contestants, both nervous and excited, stared at the jar. Everyone hoped for an early number.

“Alright.” The staff member raised his hand to signal the cameraman to prepare.

The cameraman adjusted his equipment and flashed an OK sign.

“Begin!” The staff quickly stepped out of the camera’s field of vision.

None of the fifteen contestants moved at first—they glanced at each other, nerves keeping them rooted to the spot.

Wang Min, chin held high and teetering on ten-centimeter heels, was the first to step forward. Her slender, fair hand reached into the jar, stirred the balls, and drew one out.

All eyes were on her. Wang Min, meeting their expectations, unscrewed the ball in front of the camera. Inside was a bold, red number 1.

“Ah! Number one!”

“Congratulations, Min!”

“You’re opening the show, Min! Give it your all!”

Wang Min glanced sidelong at Mo Qi and smiled at the camera. “I’ll do my best—I won’t let anyone down.”

The other contestants dutifully applauded.

While clapping, Lin Zheng gritted her teeth and muttered through stiff lips, “Did she step in something lucky on her way here? How did she manage to pull number one?”

Mo Qi only smiled, saying nothing. Each ball was a different color; as long as you knew which color hid the number one, getting it was hardly difficult.

She’d long known that in this industry, unspoken rules, manipulation, and behind-the-scenes dealings were so common that people had grown numb to them. In the past, she would laugh it off. Now, though, her laughter was tinged with cold, bitter irony.

Unless you climbed high enough to command the room, you could never escape these rules. No matter how much you despised or ridiculed them, they still had to be obeyed.

After Wang Min, Zhou Tingzi stepped up. Her luck seemed a bit worse than Wang Min’s, but not bad—she drew number six.

The rest of the contestants took their turns. Those who drew early numbers were quietly relieved. Those who picked numbers after ten, on the other hand, couldn’t help but feel a tinge of disappointment.

Lin Zheng had good luck—she drew number four.

“Not bad!” Lin Zheng grinned at Mo Qi and Xie An, waving her number. “What are you two waiting for? Go pick!”

Mo Qi smiled. Now, only two numbers were left—number two and number fifteen, two extremes.

She turned to Xie An with a gentle smile. “Let’s go. We’re the only ones left.”