Ch21 - A-rank, Congrats

“Welcome to the second evaluation site of ‘Birth of an Idol’, I am your emcee Liang Da…”

Liang Da stood in front of the camera in a suit, an obvious contrast to the trainees wearing casual clothing behind him.

The four mentors were already seated, and they only needed to wait for the trainees to perform.

Chai Siyuan had drawn the first performance and almost started crying when his name was called.

“Brothers, I’ll be going first.” He waved bitterly at his classmates in A-rank, preparing himself for his upcoming evaluation.

It was probably because he was nervous about being the first to perform. Along with the fact that his dance skills were quite weak, Chai Siyuan made a mistake the moment he started—his movements didn’t follow the music at the beginning, resulting in him chasing after the rhythm during the first half of the song. Disregarding the off-beat dancing, the overall performance seemed to have a few problems as well.

“Ha…” Chai Siyuan let out a long sigh after finishing his performance, his mood somewhat depressed. Having danced like this, he knew he was going to be demoted without the mentors saying anything.

As the dance instructor, Qing Kewei glanced at the grading form on the table and asked, “Chai Siyuan, your first rating was A-rank, right?”

“Right.” Chai Siyuan pursed his lips, evidently a little agitated.

Qin Kewei asked again, “Do you think your performance today makes you qualified to remain in A-rank?”

“No, my performance today wasn’t good.” Chai Siyuan raised his hand and touched his ear, attempting to explain. “I’m not very coordinated but I practiced pretty well these days. I can dance better, just that I didn’t catch the music at the beginning…”

“You might dance better if we gave you a second chance, but this is a competition. There are no second chances.” As Gu Wenan spoke, he didn’t forget to look at the other trainees. This was clearly a message for everyone present.

A competition was a competition. People only saw the results on stage. No one would take notice of what you did in private.

Chai Siyuan understood this philosophy and simply waited for his ranking to be announced.

The four mentors below discussed with one another, finally Ji Xiunian announced the result. “Siyuan, your second evaluation ranking is C. Please work harder in the future.”

The moment the ranking was announced, the trainees all became nervous—

“Oh my god, A-rank to C-rank. This is too cruel.”

“To be honest I think Chai Siyuan danced pretty well. If he’s in C-rank, then I’ll just go sit in F-rank.”

“The mentors are so strict today, I don’t know who will get A-rank.”

“Chu Zhengqing should get A-rank, he’s been dancing for so many years.”

…

Chai Siyuan took off his A-rank tag and went over to the C-rank seats to wait for and to watch the next performances. Although he was the first person to be demoted from A-rank, he wasn’t very flustered. Dancing was not his forte; he could just flip the tables later on in the competition.

The second person to go on stage was a trainee in F-rank.

So when he couldn’t even keep up with the beat, no one was surprised.

Shen Chengyu picked up the mic and shrugged as he announced, “F-rank.”

Chu Zhengqing from Clear Sky Entertainment, who was third in line, was rumoured to have over a decade of dancing experience.

“Your initial assessment was B-rank, right?” Gu Wenan smiled as he asked Chu Zhengqing. “The files say you have a strong foundation in dance. Do you want to predict your new ranking?”

Chu Zhengqing seemed to go through an internal dilemma, but still confidently said, “This really isn’t easy to predict. But I believe I should be able to achieve A-rank this time.”

Gu Wenan raised his eyebrows. “Okay, start your performance.”

Compared to the two amateur dancers before him, Chu Zhengqing’s dancing was decent, much smoother and more powerful. It was obvious that he had trained for a long time, and his level of accomplishment was pretty good.

“Wah, what group is this ge from, I didn’t notice him before.”

“Is he going to receive A-rank?”

“Wuuuuuuh, I’m even more nervous now, what to do?”

Chu Zhengqing stood in front of the camera. He couldn’t help but give Lu Xu a glance after hearing the comments of the trainees behind him. He raised his lips involuntarily. His performance this time was not bad. With the praise of the other trainees, achieving A-rank probably wouldn’t be much of a problem.

Shen Chengyu received the mic and said to Chu Zhengqing, “Your dance is pretty good, so we’ll give you a B-ranking.”

What?!

Only B?

The smile on Chu Zhengqing’s face immediately froze. He felt like he shouldn’t be in B-rank. “Mentors, could I ask what the criteria for the rankings are?”

“Huh, how does he have the face to question the mentors’ decisions?” Long before the recording started, the F4 had been sitting behind the four mentors and commentating.

He Xinghua remembered how Chu Zhengqing had given Lu Xu a ridiculing glance earlier, and couldn’t help muttering in a small voice.

His companions echoed his words—

“Exactly, his dance isn’t even that great. B-rank is too much for him.”

“Right, people who don’t have good personalities also have mediocre dance skills.”

The muscles in Ji Xiunian’s face twitched slightly as he did his best to ignore the voices of the four strange things behind him. Seeing that Chu Zhengqing’s eyes were not convinced, Ji Xiunian’s tone remained calm, but left no room for doubt. “We collated a comprehensive review of  your offstage contacts to be  used as an evaluation standard. Your dance movements are good but there isn’t enough emotion. We think a good dancer needs both foundational skills and emotions. Do you have any other questions?”

“Thank you, Instructor Ji. I don’t have any more questions.” Chu Zhengqing’s heart was full of dissatisfaction, but he couldn’t let it show too obviously after the mentors said this.

Seeing that Lu Xu was going on stage after him, Chu Zhengqing snorted coldly. He wanted to see how well this main character who had appeared halfway could dance.

“Wow, the visual is on stage!”

“Another A-rank has come out, but will he be able to keep his rank?”

“That’s hard to tell. Even though he sings well, he might not be good at dancing?”

“Xu ge is so handsome, go Xu ge!”

…

Compared to others, Lu Xu’s temperament was clearly above them all.

Even the mentors couldn’t help but feel some expectation when they saw this beautiful face.

Shen Chengyu was much more direct and said to Lu Xu, “Lu Xu, are you confident you’ll get A-rank?”

This question was asked rather abruptly, but Lu Xu didn’t really mind. He just smiled refreshingly at the mentors. “This isn’t something I need to consider. As long as I dance, the mentors can decide everything else.”

Ji Xiunian couldn’t help but give Lu Xu an extra glance. This boy was always like this, facing everything calmly.

To be able to do something like this as an 18-year-old was quite difficult.

The recording period was short, and the competition mission was serious. Lu Xu chatted with them briefly before waiting for the music to start.

“Let’s do it together!” He Xinghua had been watching the fun but once he saw Lu Xu go on stage he immediately jumped up in excitement, wanting to dance together.

Even though other people couldn’t see it, dancing with Master Lu Xu was worth it.

Ji Xiunian stared at the four strange things as they floated to Lu Xu’s side. He didn’t know they were an idol team.

“Youth is my faith, I’m looking forward to my own glory…”

The studio didn’t use any spotlights during the day, but it was as if Lu Xu had his own light as he stood in front of the camera. When the prelude started, Lu Xu gently turned his body with the music, his ease of movement making others feel comfortable as they watched him.

When he got to the chorus, Lu Xu seemed to have become a different person. His body appeared slim but was full of power, like a natural-born dancer. He was immersed in his own world of music. Lu Xu’s every movement was on point without a single hint of hesitation. He was natural and free, had unrestrained laughter on his handsome face, like the king of the stage.

Lu Xu stood out incredibly well, his entire body infused with the aura of youthful boldness and an inexplicable aggressiveness. Even his casual wink at the end made people think he was both manly and sweet, immediately eliciting loud calls.

“Aaaaaaaaa, is this an immortal dancing? Didn’t they say he hasn’t been a trainee for very long? How can he dance this well?”

“He doesn’t seem like a newbie at all. He was born with a talent for dancing.”

“Those legs, that waist, and that face, I love it!!!”

…

There wasn’t a need for too many words in regards to how Lu Xu had danced. Everyone’s similar reactions were already a clear indication of his result.

Qin Kewei and Shen Chengyu even made a joke in light of the scene. “Shi ge, thank god that the two of us debuted early.”

“Right right, or else if we were competing against Lu Xu we’d become his fans before we debuted hahaha.”

No matter how others praised him, Lu Xu remained as calm as ever, smiling as he stood there waiting for his evaluation.

Upon seeing Lu Xu’s actions, Ji Xiunian couldn’t help adding a few points of acknowledgement in his heart. It was just that while Lu Xu had danced very well, the four weird young ghosts around him had also danced decently.

As Lu Xu danced, they danced alongside him. During the song, they had even followed Lu Xu’s movements and changed positions through several formations. Other than the printed shirt paddling water, the other three seemed like outstanding trainees.

For some reason, Ji Xiunian subconsciously thought of the image of the four ghosts dancing alongside the trainees.

They had practised longer than the trainees and were quite accomplished. Their stage presence and expressions were well-managed. If others had been able to see them, they would have seen how exciting Lu Xu’s performance had really been.

He Xinghua stood beside Lu Xu, waiting for the mentors to announce the result. He accidentally met Ji Xiunian’s gaze.

Even though Ji Xiunian quickly looked away, He Xinghua felt that he had really seen him for at least that one moment.

Could this Master Film Emperor see the four of them or not?

He Xinghua felt doubtful, and began making plans.

At this time, the mentors had finished discussing Lu Xu’s rank.

“A-rank, A-rank, A-rank!!!”

Lu Xu’s performance had been so outstanding that even the trainees underneath couldn’t resist clapping their hands in rhythm.

“Lu Xu, your ranking is—” Ji Xiunian cleared his throat, purposely dragging out the suspense. Lu Xu was not in a hurry and merely stood there watching Ji Xiunian smile, his eyes carrying a hint of craftiness.

The two of them looked at each other. Ji Xiunian suddenly quirked his lips and said in a clear, loud voice, “A-rank, congrats.”

happy halloween from the alien F4 and ba mei~