Chapter 49 I Choose Her

INee's" name, all the audience members started screaming loudly. The artist seats also stood up as a whole. EXO's members directly walked out of their positions and rushed to the front to hug the stan...Hello.

"Anihaseyo..."

After leaving the backstage area, Park Jin-young walked onto the broadcasting stage. Standing in the center of the stage, he greeted the two groups of trainees present. The fifteen girls immediately bowed in greeting.

This studio's stage is designed with a unique layout. Two side stages each feature rows of long, solid-wood benches, with members from the Ajor and Or groups standing on them respectively. Behind them are display boards showcasing large group emblems that extend diagonally across to the central performance stage. Facing the main stage directly is the guest area and the judges' table where Park Jin-young sits.

The entire stage of the broadcasting studio isn't very large, and the effects and backdrop are relatively simple and understated. However, it looks sufficient.

Several cameras set up nearby flashed their indicator lights, showing they were working. Two VJs also held equipment and shot close-ups from different angles. Out of sight of the camera, the program’s PD and twenty or thirty staff members watched intently, paying serious attention to the situation on stage.

The third episode of "sixteen" has officially begun filming.

How was your week

"That's it."

After a simple greeting, Park Jin-young walked to the center of the stage with the microphone and directly got to the point: “This is the first time we are conducting a task review through 1v1 solo matchups... It's not me reviewing alone, I specially invited two judges to help with the review.”

"Come out."

As Park Jin-young's words fell, all the female trainees turned their gazes towards the entrance of the studio.

The sound of delicate footsteps hitting the floor came first, followed by a few seconds later, the elegantly dressed Bae Suzy walked into the studio, and Park Kyung-won smiled and followed closely behind.

"Annyeonghaseyo..."

"Hello there..."

As they walked onto the stage, the two contestants kept nodding and greeting the trainees on either side. At this moment, all the girls from both groups were surprised and quickly clapped to welcome the judges' arrival.

It's possible PD had specifically instructed them, as the trainees had already met and introduced themselves backstage previously. However, at this moment, each girl trainee's expression was incredibly lively and realistic. Their expressions of surprise were so genuine that it seemed like they were meeting for the first time.

Pool Scene Source saw it in his eyes, and he couldn't help but chuckle inwardly. He was truly a potential idol trainee, although his acting was still a bit green, he already had some skill to him.

At least everyone is trying their best.

Without lingering on stage, under Park Jin-young's lead, the three of them walked straight to the judges' seats directly facing the stage. Park Jin-young sat in the middle, while Ji Kyeong-won and Bae Suzy sat on his left and right respectively, looking down at the stage and the fifteen trainees below from a commanding height. After their smiles subsided, a serious feeling arose among them, giving off an imposing aura.

"From now on, 1V1 solo duels: ‘Come out!’ mission officially begins."

"To challenge major's close friend, it's Nayeon, come to the front."

Under Park Ji-hyun's hosting, the first one to appear was none other than that rabbit-toothed, Lim Na-yeon.

Chi Jingyuan watched as this distinctive-looking female trainee in high heels stood up from the 'bottom group' seats and walked to the middle of the stage.

He'd heard the name "Lin Na Yeon" many times before. She used to be a member of the 6MIX pre-debut group, but for some reason, the debut project was terminated afterward, and she went quiet for a while. Later, she participated in this , though Zhou Tzuyu had mentioned that during the trainee evaluations, she always ranked first and was arguably the most talented among them all. It's very possible she was one of the trainees PD Park Jin-young had his eye on for debut.

I just don't know how such an idol seedling ended up in the 'poor student group'.

"Nayeon, name the members of the group you're challenging."

Im Nayoung, under Park Jin Young's direction, held the microphone and smiled at the camera while looking towards Major group's seats. Her expression clearly showed great confidence.

Seeing this, Chi Jingyuan was a little doubtful in his heart. He didn't know the level of the others, but based on what he knew, Zhou Tzuyu should be the weakest among Major group members. During the first episode, she sang a Chinese song that was so strange it almost got her eliminated. Last week, she relied on her talent for photography to get into the Major group. Now that it's come to the real solo competition, she immediately became a pushover.

He glanced in Zhou Tzuyu's direction, and sure enough, the girl lightly pursed her lips. A pair of big eyes stared at Im Nayeon's direction. Her face wasn't looking good. Her hands were clenched tightly on her legs, clearly a little nervous and uneasy, as if she was somewhat worried about being called out.

Chi Jingyuan still felt that his arrival might have added to the tension.

"I want to take Tzuyu's spot." Im Nayeon didn't hesitate and directly called out Zhou Tzuyu's name. She clearly had it all planned out, she looked at the other person and said the challenge phrase stipulated by the program team: "You come out!"

Ji Jingyuan heard the challenging words that made the atmosphere tense, coming out of Lin Na-yeon's mouth. He let out a wry smile and turned to look at Park Jin-young: "Oh, this intense"

As expected, this show is still a survival audition program after all. It's all about competing for a debut spot, so choosing the weakest opponent is the most secure strategy.

From Chi Jingyuan's perspective, however, he felt that Lim Na-yeon's intentions were a bit too straightforward.

But he's pretty smart.

"Ah, it's really a bit chilling," Park Jin-young nodded and agreed.

When her name was called, Zhou Tzuyu paused for a moment, stood up, and walked to the center of the stage with her head slightly bowed. The sound of her high heels was crisp as she walked, and her expression showed that she was clearly nervous. After standing beside Im Na-yeon, she unconsciously looked towards the judges' table and met the gaze of Park Kyungwon who was also looking at her.

Qi Jingyuan smiled slightly, pursed his lips. He looked over without any special expression, just taking in the scene with a glance.

Today's stage outfit for Tzuyu looks more mature. The white silk blazer paired with a sequin mini skirt, I wonder if it was her own styling or the stylist's work, but it doesn't seem to match her age.

With pink high heels, a pair of long legs came into view. Though she was tall...to be honest, her legs weren't that slender.

After Park Jin-young briefly said a couple of words, the two went backstage to prepare. They drank some water to ease their nerves, then put on their earpieces. Tzuyu watched on the display screen downstairs as she was performing second, while Nayeon quickly returned to the stage and sat down on the prop stool that had just been brought onto the stage, facing away from them.

"Santa Claus, tell me, are you really real"

The accompaniment started soon, and Lim Na-yeon suddenly turned around and began her stage. Ji Seong-won heard the first line and immediately recognized it as Ailee's "Santa Tell Me," a very famous Christmas song.

Although Ji Kyeong-won might exhibit some obvious biases when his friends participate, since Park Jin-young enthusiastically invited him to be a judge, despite mainly considering popularity and heat, he didn't intend to slack off or goof around. Instead, he seriously watched Lim Na-yeon's performance, simultaneously evaluating the stage level from his perspective and viewpoint, taking notes in his notebook as he watched.

After watching for a while, I had a general idea of this girl's abilities.

This ranking's JYP's first-place female trainee wasn't as strong as he imagined. Her performance had quite a few flaws, her high notes didn't reach, and the "k" sounds and hand gestures were too many, appearing forced and unnatural. It could also be a song selection issue, as her stage presence wasn't sufficiently highlighted, making it rather ordinary.

... and English pronunciation, when heard by Chi Jingyuan's ear which was more native to English, felt a little awkward. The accent was a bit heavy, but honestly, among people from the peninsula, it was already quite good.

However, these are all minor issues, some may still be caused by being nervous during the performance. Overall, Lim Na-yeon is already quite skilled among the trainees. Her singing is OK, her voice is pleasant, and other aspects have also reached the standard for debuting, especially with a confident aura. Even though she hasn't debuted yet, she already has the star quality.

"Slap, slap..."

When Lin Na Yeon finished her performance and bowed to the audience, the three judges politely clapped. Stagehands took the prop chair offstage and placed a standing microphone. After everything was ready, Zhou Tzuyu quickly walked onto the stage in high heels. She stood still and took a deep breath to conceal her nervousness and extreme tension.

She actually knew her own abilities very well. She was always in the middle or lower tier among all trainees, and she was far behind Lin Na-yeon. Besides, her Korean wasn't very fluent. When she was chosen just now, she had no confidence at all. In fact, she knew then that she would definitely end up in the "poor student group".

Not to mention, Chi Jingyuan was sitting on the judging panel, waiting to watch her performance. Thinking about this, the unease in her heart grew even more like rampant weeds, mixed with many other complex emotions.

She couldn't help but look in the direction of Chi Jingyuan.

Before this, there was nothing particularly notable about Ji Jingyuan's expression. At this moment, his right hand somehow ended up resting on his face. After catching Zhou Tzuyu's gaze, he very naturally clenched his fist towards her and smiled softly with pursed lips.

Although others may not have noticed, Zhou Tzuyu immediately felt the other person's encouragement and support. Although she was still very nervous, her heart felt a little more at ease.

As Zhou Tzu-yu turned her back and struck a pose, the music began to play, marking the start of the performance.

At the beginning, Chi Jingyuan was stunned after hearing two sentences. He racked his brains for a long time but couldn't remember this song. He looked down at the documents in his hand and realized that she was performing "Sway" by the American girl group Pussycat Dolls.

Seeing the song title, he was speechless. He hadn't really listened to this one before.

No, you're picking such a wild song...

To tell you the truth, this was the first time he'd ever seen her perform on stage after knowing Zhou Tzuyu for so long. He was used to her casually dropping hints like "My skills have improved, the teacher praised me" all the time, but seeing her actually perform was something else entirely.

So he was very serious, even a little bit excited.

After only a short while, even knowing that this girl's previous boastfulness was more than reality and her true strength wasn't very good, she almost got eliminated in the first episode of "sixteen," he still sighed inwardly.

The singing voice is really average. The breathing and transitions are clearly major issues, with a lack of breath support. High notes can't be reached, and the use of falsetto is unnatural. It still sounds strained and raw.

A few sentences are also off-key.

If you were to ask Ji Jingyuan for a more objective evaluation... he hasn't sung as well as Wu Shixun yet.

Overall, the stage presence lacked power. The song's style and lyrics lean towards wildness and unconventionality, yet Tzuyu's performance seemed stiff, giving the impression that she couldn't quite handle this kind of song.

Even though he remembered that this girl used to be a dancer and was good at dancing, although he hadn't seen her dance before, given Tzuyu's tall and slender figure, she should have danced very well. He just didn't know why she chose such a jazz-style song for the PK.

But Tzuyu's stage advantages are also there, like... her waist-to-hip ratio is good, her typhoon is okay, her expressions though not matching the song style are still natural, and... she's pretty.

The drawbacks and shortcomings are obvious at a glance. When it comes to privately evaluating the advantages, Ji Jingyuan actually has some narrow-minded thoughts and appears quite relaxed.

However, just as he was feeling a bit disappointed about the child's skills and singing level, sighing inwardly and ready to nitpick, he suddenly noticed that during her hand change holding the microphone, Zhou Tzuyu’s right hand trembled uncontrollably for two seconds, seemingly like an electric shock. Coupled with her always somewhat stiff body and uneasy eyes, every detail revealed her unspeakable anxiety and bubbling nervousness.

The pressure is really on, and I'm feeling incredibly stressed. I don't even feel confident about anything right now.

He keenly noticed this subtle yet conspicuous little movement. The pool of light in his eyes, Jingyuan, suddenly stilled for a short moment. A second later, he gently let out a breath, his facial expression didn't change much, but for some reason, the playful thoughts churning in his heart suddenly dissipated like the tide, leaving only a mess behind. Afterwards, a strange emotion inexplicably arose within him.

Indignation Or perhaps a hint of pity

After the slightly off-key "endgprat" at the very end, Tzuyu concluded her stage performance and let out a breath of relief as if a weight had been lifted. She glanced at Jihyo briefly before quickly averting her gaze. Meanwhile, Nayeon, who was waiting, also stepped onto the stage, and the two stood side by side, awaiting the judges' evaluation.

"...Nayeon's stage presence is really great, her expressions and singing flow very well together, and she sings really well, plus..."

Under Park Bo Gum's suggestion, Bae Suzy took the lead in commenting: " … Tzuyu's singing ability seems to be lacking a bit, and her dancing also…"

She probably doesn't have much of a good feeling towards these female trainees. Her evaluation is just based on her own perspective, saying whatever she sees.

Honestly, although Suzy is also a judge, her professional capabilities are clearly far less than those of Ji-seong and Park Jin-young. Her presence here is more about generating buzz and discussion for the program.

‘Saying someone else's singing isn't good, aren't you just a big crooner yourself’ Hearing her comment, Ji Jingyuan couldn't help but glance at her.

"Then, Tzuyu, who would you choose to enter Ajor" Because they were the first group of contestants, everyone was getting used to things and trying things out at the beginning, so they talked a lot. After Tzuyu spoke her mind, Park Jin-young took the initiative to ask.

There are three judges, and if two of them choose a trainee, that trainee can directly win and enter the A-major group.

" ...I choose Nayeon." Pyo Se-ji sold a cliffhanger, her gaze sweeping back and forth between the two people below for a few seconds before smiling and nodding.

It was a natural choice because the difference was quite obvious, even Bae Suzy could tell.

Upon hearing the evaluation and results regarding Suzy Bae, Nayeon reacted with a smile, nodding in thanks and showing humility. On the other hand, Tzuyu's expression was noticeably downcast as she bit her lip.

"Jingyuan, what do you think" Park Ji-young turned to Ji Won again. Compared to Bae Suzy's popularity, although Ji Won was more popular and trending, in fact, he also highly valued the other person's vision and professional level.

Although he had already made up his mind, Park Jin-young was still willing to consider it if it was a serious opinion from him.

"What Nayeon said..." Ji-seong looked at Lim Na-yeon. Seeing the expectant look in her eyes, he didn't hesitate and said directly: "The performance on stage seemed unnatural. For example, you first held the microphone with your left hand, then made this gesture..." As he spoke, Ji-seong gestured simply, though his movements weren't perfect, they were very illustrative.

Then, he specifically changed hands to take the microphone and put his hand on top of his head to make another gesture. Ji Seong made a demonstration like Na Yeon did, which made Park Jin-young and Suzy laugh. They felt that his imitation was very lively.

"There's a sense that you have to complete a certain action, making me feel like you've already planned out all the ks and movements before stepping onto the stage. It feels very deliberate and unnatural."

Hearing Ji-yeong's very straightforward critique, Lin Na-yeon's smile, which had just been boosted by Park Soo-ji's praise and choice, faded. She pursed her lips and gently nodded, acknowledging and indicating that she understood.

However, besides that, Nayeon's overall stage presence was really good. Her singing, tone of voice, and pitch were all excellent, especially her stage presence, which already has the aura of a debuted artist. She is also very confident, which is a very important quality for an idol. You already have it.

Then, Ji-sung's tone shifted as he began complimenting Lim Nayoung. He finally sighed dramatically and said: "Overall her strength is really impressive. She feels even stronger than I was before my debut."

"Hahaha." His words immediately made Park Jin-young next to him chuckle, shaking his head and looking at Ji Kyung-won with a mix of reproach and helplessness: "Ji Kyung-won, just be honest. You don't have to praise them like that. It's really too much. Everyone knows your abilities."

“Ani oh, it's not too exaggerated, is it” Ji Jingyuan laughed and waved his hand, recalling slightly: “When I first joined the company, my overall strength could only be said to be average, especially dancing. It was after a period of intensive training that I caught up with the progress of other members. The practice during that time left me with quite a few psychological shadows, making me dislike dancing for a while.”

"Oh, how unpleasant" Park Jin-young looked over with a curious expression, and Bae Suzy and the trainees sitting in their positions also turned to look here.

He actually just hopes that Chi Jingyuan can talk more, whether it's evaluations or casual chat, as long as the topic is relatively interesting. With Chi Jingyuan's popularity, even a little bit of conversation could bring a lot of attention. It doesn't matter if he talks more or just rambles, because the unnecessary parts can be edited out later anyway.

"Hmm..." After a brief pause of two seconds, Chi Jingyuan shrugged at him and said: "Maybe, just like how you dislike Teacher Li Xiuman."

"Hahaha..." This time Park Jin-young really couldn't hold it in, laughing out loud and repeatedly clapping Ji-seong on the shoulder with force. He didn't feel annoyed at being teased at all, instead finding it quite amusing.

Park Jin-young once went to an ** audition with his own songs. As a result, he was directly rejected by Lee Soo Man because of his appearance. What's more, Lee Soo Man asked him, 'We don't want you, but will you sell your songs' This humiliating incident is well-known throughout the peninsula and has become a classic story.

"So, besides being too unnatural and deliberate, everything else Nayeon-xi did was really good." After laughing, Ji Kyung-won summarized his thoughts about Lin Nayeon, and the other party smiled happily and gratefully, quickly bowing slightly.

"What about Tzuyu" Park Jinyoung proactively steered the conversation towards Zhou Tzuyu.

What about Tzuyu's words…

Ji Jingyuan's voice became slightly heavier as he looked at Zhou Tzuyu.

This girl didn't really smile much just now. Even when Park Jin-young laughed heartily at a joke, she only managed to squeeze out a slight smile in response. She seemed quite sullen throughout the entire process.

Just as Tzuyu was already feeling down after being criticized for her singing by Bae Suzy, now it was the turn of Ji-seong, who she cared about most. Unable to help herself, Tzuyu raised her head and peered over at him with strained eyes.

"Vocal skills still need to improve... Come on!"

After going on and on about Lim Na-yeon's shortcomings and then showering her with praise, Ji-yeong now faced her with just a nod, leaving behind a short, meaningless sentence, not even a hint of criticism.

It seems like there's nothing to say, or maybe he's too embarrassed to speak.

Even though she knew her abilities were average and had expected this beforehand, the moment she heard Chi Jingyuan's bland and almost perfunctory evaluation, Zhou Tzuyu felt a strong sense of disappointment and unbearable grievance wash over her. She forcefully controlled her expression, bit her lip and nodded lightly, politely accepting his words. A pair of eyes that had lost their luster stared blankly at the judges' table ahead, her unfocused gaze making it impossible to tell who she was looking at.

It's also possible that no one has seen it.

And at the same time, there seemed to be an unspoken sadness welling up inside her:

What are you doing like this...

"Oh…" Park Jin-young nodded, he could naturally see that Tzuyu's performance just now was at a whole other level. While Nayeon had her weaknesses, the difference in their skills was clear to anyone who watched. There really wasn't much need to say more.

He timely asked Ji Jingyuan, "So you chose…".

Park Bo-young believes Ji Kyung-won certainly sees the difference in ability very clearly. Although using a questioning sentence structure, her tone is quite definite. As she asks, her eyes simultaneously turn towards Lim Na-yeon's direction, and the latter also looks over expectantly, blinking her eyes and looking at Ji Kyung-won.

However, to their, and everyone's, surprise, faced with the final person's choice, Chi Jingyuan just casually swept his eyes over the top before looking at the girl below who was clearly beginning to fall into a state of sadness. He naturally tried to comfort her:

"I choose Tzuyu."

(The End)

First published on the Traditional Chinese Novel Networksay that Lee Soo-man and ** were really amazing to make such a decision at that time. We've seen EXO's journey through thick and thin, and I can only say that without Xiumin, EXO definitely wouldn't b...