How can you ascend to heaven when you are a star?

Chapter 461 A complete defeat

Chen Peng stared intently at the number of people displayed in the upper right corner of the monitor. In the time it took for the number to drop from 68 to 67, his heart skipped a beat.

Judging from the situation, the number of people seems to be declining.

In an instant, his mood sank to the bottom.

Why are the audience so demanding tonight?

These people on stage are just trainees; isn't it normal for them to make mistakes? Doesn't this just prove that the finals are live, not pre-recorded?

Why can't these viewers be more tolerant?
In his opinion, even if there were mistakes in the opening dance, it shouldn't have caused the audience to leave so quickly. In previous pre-recorded programs, there were also instances of forgetting lyrics or making mistakes in movements, but the comments were usually encouraging with phrases like "keep it up" and "try harder."

"Stay calm, this is just the beginning. There are many more exciting parts to come, and we're sure to win the audience back!"

Chen Peng comforted himself and cheered himself up.

If even the show's director lacks confidence in the finals, then the others must have even less confidence.

"Director, give more close-ups of the popular trainees, and when you need to cut to the audience, shoot more scenes of the atmosphere," Chen Peng instructed, gripping the walkie-talkie.

"Yes, director." The director responded immediately, switching the camera to popular trainee Jiang Lanqing, afraid that if he answered too slowly, he would be blamed for the drop in viewership.

At this moment, Jiang Lanqing had changed into a black sequined mini-dress and was standing on the side of the stage waiting to go on. Although she tried her best to remain calm, her slightly trembling shoulders still betrayed her inner tension.

Previously, the broadcasts were pre-recorded, but today it's live, and she can't guarantee that she'll make zero mistakes.

"Next, please welcome Jiang Lanqing and Cao Qing to the stage for a wonderful duel." The host's enthusiastic voice echoed in the venue, and the stage lights suddenly turned on, with two spotlights shining on Jiang Lanqing and Cao Qing respectively.

Jiang Lanqing and Cao Qing walked onto the stage from both sides. As the music began, the two sang a song and danced together. Finally, the audience voted to decide who would win and who would be eliminated.

Jiang Lanqing, as a trainee who has been strongly promoted by the program, has not been amazing in singing and dancing, but she is still much better than other trainees.

However, perhaps due to the live broadcast, Jiang Lanqing seemed somewhat reserved today, and her dance moves were noticeably less unrestrained, resulting in a significant reduction in aesthetic appeal.

Normally, they could simply pause and reshoot, using the best take in the final cut. However, this wasn't possible during a live broadcast. Even though the director kept switching cameras to showcase Jiang Lanqing's best qualities, the four-minute performance inevitably made viewers sense that Jiang Lanqing was acting strangely that night.

Another trainee, Cao Qing, already knew from Feng Xinghai that she would be eliminated and unable to join the Super Girl group.

But she wasn't convinced!
Cao Qing believes she is better than Jiang Lanqing at singing, and even in her weaker area of ​​dancing, she is not much worse than Jiang Lanqing. So why can Jiang Lanqing be a member of the Super Girl group, while she cannot? Is it just because Jiang Lanqing has a powerful sugar daddy?

Especially when thinking about Zhao Tong and others who participated in the same program, were eliminated but successfully debuted and even won the Best Group Award, the anger and resentment in her heart became even stronger.

They're all from the same company, and they've both been trainees for two years. Why are those people able to become famous, while she can only be a stepping stone for others?

With this sense of unwillingness, she stepped onto the stage. However, when she saw that Jiang Lanqing was clearly not in good condition that night, she felt that her chance had come. Since it was a live broadcast, the director could not stop the show, nor could he give Jiang Lanqing any special treatment.

With this in mind, she put all her effort into performing on stage, hoping to win over the audience and defy fate.

She believed that with her abilities, she would never lose to anyone.

The premise is fairness and impartiality.

As a result, in the official live stream, the voices that usually support Jiang Lanqing were significantly fewer, while the voices supporting Cao Lan doubled, and some viewers who supported other trainees were completely confused.

"What's wrong with Jiang Lanqing tonight? Her movements look so stiff, she can't even straighten her arms!"

"The rehearsal video is so different from the one released by the official team! Is he too nervous?"

"In terms of singing and dancing, Cao Qing's performance tonight was actually better!"

"Wasn't Jiang Lanqing supposed to be the best performing trainee? How come she underperforms during live broadcasts?"

"Did Cao Qing have a cheat code today? Her singing is much more stable than Jiang Lanqing's."

"..."

As the first match progressed, more and more people in the live broadcast room began to question Jiang Lanqing.

Standing in front of the monitor, Chen Peng looked at the comments in the live stream, his face growing increasingly grim.

He had originally hoped that Jiang Lanqing, who had the most fans, could keep the audience engaged, but unexpectedly she became the source of criticism for the show.

Moreover, Jiang Lanqing was already a pre-selected trainee, but now she has been outshone by Cao Qing, who is on the same stage. How can this help Jiang Lanqing advance?
Even if they advance, they'll still be torn apart by netizens.

'You can't make a living off this!' Chen Peng cursed inwardly.

Oh well, let them criticize. Ever since Future Girls debuted, how many people have criticized them? They'll forget about it after a while anyway.

Finally, the performance ended.

Jiang Lanqing and Cao Qing stood in the middle of the stage. The former was pale and her hair was a little messy, while the latter was slightly out of breath but had a firm look in her eyes.

The host quickly walked onto the stage and said with a smile, "It's clear that both trainees are a little nervous, but being able to stand on the stage of the finals is enough to prove that you are the best. Next, please welcome the five mentors to give their comments. Please hurry up and vote, as the voting channel will close in five minutes!"

The spotlight shifted to the mentors' seats. Although the five mentors appeared calm on the surface, they were already cursing inwardly.

They all knew that Jiang Lanqing was a pre-selected trainee for the show, and the director repeatedly reminded them through the earpiece that when giving feedback, they should focus on Jiang Lanqing's strengths and point out the weaknesses of her opponents.

But given today's situation, how can they praise Jiang Lanqing? Tonight's broadcast is live, with hundreds of thousands of viewers watching.

As the representative of the national producers, Liu Yifei remained silent for a full five seconds before slowly speaking: "Although Lan Qing was a little nervous today, her overall performance was still quite good, especially her emotional expression while singing, which was very delicate. Cao Qing's performance today was also good, but her movements were too exaggerated, giving people the feeling of trying too hard."

After speaking, he leaned back in his chair with an "I don't care" expression, completely losing his usual elegance and composure.

At this moment, the camera focused on Tsai Ya-Hsuan.

Cai Yaxuan gritted her teeth and finally said, "Lan Qing's grasp of rhythm is still very steady, and she also does a good job in the continuity of her movements. Cao Qing's dance movements are too large, and she looks rushed, lacking the beauty that dance should have. However, Cao Qing's performance in singing today is good, better than before."

When she was giving her comments, she felt her face getting a little hot from embarrassment, and in the end she could only try to make amends.

When it was Li Yuqi's turn, she unconsciously swallowed and echoed, "Yes, Cao Qing performed very well, especially in her singing, but some of her pronunciation was a little unclear, which affected the overall effect..."

She paused for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Lan Qing, are you sick?"

Jiang Lanqing was slightly taken aback. She was not sick and was in good health. She had even drunk a cup of milk tea before the broadcast. But she quickly understood what her mentor meant and quickly bit her lip to answer, "Yes, I caught a cold while practicing singing last night, and my throat was a little sore when I woke up this morning."

"I could hear it. Her voice was a little tight, and some of her pronunciations were a bit hoarse, but that actually made the song's emotional expression even better." Li Yuqi finished speaking, leaning back away from the microphone, and ended her comment.

She simply couldn't keep up the lie. If the director hadn't kept asking her through the earpiece whether Jiang Lanqing was sick, she would have stopped talking long ago.

Wang Shengjie and Peng Jie were in a very awkward situation. The first three people had already said everything they could say, and there was nothing left to say. They couldn't just repeat what they had said before, could they?

After much deliberation, Wang Shengjie could only say, "Lan Qing's outfit and stage style match very well today, and she has a great sense of camera presence. Cao Qing still has the same old problem: don't always immerse yourself in your own world. You need to learn to express your inner feelings, understand?"

Peng Jie's final response was even more perfunctory, saying that Jiang Lanqing had great potential and that Cao Qing should keep up the good work before quickly concluding the matter.

The host noticed that the mentors were in a bad mood, so after their comments were finished, he immediately went on stage to announce the voting results.

"After real-time voting by netizens, Jiang Lanqing received 183,512 votes."

On the large screen on the side of the stage, Jiang Lanqing's voting data appeared. "Cao Qing received 182,122 votes. Let's congratulate the winner, Jiang Lanqing!"

As soon as the host announced the results of the first match, the live broadcast room erupted in excitement.

"No way? Cao Qing performed so well today, how could she lose to Jiang Lanqing? Did the show rig the votes?"

"Yes, although Jiang Lanqing performed well in the past, Cao Qing is clearly better today. Are the voters blind?"

"Being popular makes all the difference; you can win even if you don't perform well!"

"Did Jiang Lanqing rig the votes?"

As soon as someone mentioned vote rigging, the screen was filled with comments about Jiang Lanqing rigging votes.

What made the production team even more embarrassed was that the audience booed loudly, and some even stood up and shouted, "It's not fair, Cao Qing is clearly better!"

"Support Cao Qing!"

Seeing the commotion at the scene, Jiang Lanqing, standing on the stage, blushed and lowered her head guiltily.

Cao Qing was also in a bad mood. No matter how hard he tried, he still lost in the end. This is probably the power of capital.

Chen Peng, standing backstage, was terrified. He quickly grabbed the walkie-talkie and yelled at the host, "Don't just stand there like an idiot! Tell us there's a revival round!"

The host was startled and picked up the microphone to smooth things over: "Everyone, please don't get excited. Cao Qing's performance today was indeed quite good. So, we hope she can perform well in the upcoming revival round and advance through it. Please continue to vote for her!"

These words calmed the boos from the audience somewhat, but the doubts in the live stream did not diminish.

"Why was Cao Qing chosen to participate in the revival round? Why wasn't Jiang Lanqing chosen to participate in the revival round?"

"When the girl from the future was eliminated, I knew there was definitely something fishy about this show."

"I've figured it out now. This show is all about eliminating whoever is the best. The group shouldn't be called Super Girls anymore, let's call them Super Weaklings."

Chen Peng wiped the sweat from his forehead and immediately told the director to insert a commercial break.

He stared at the number of people in the upper right corner of the monitor and was stunned.

what's the situation?
He remembered that it was 66 just now, so when did it rise to 68?
Is this the power of black and red?
After the commercial break, the finals continued, but the controversy snowballed and grew bigger and bigger.

The next pair to perform are Xu Meiting and Li Meng.

The two performed similarly; while they made no mistakes, there was nothing particularly impressive about them either. In short, they were mediocre.

In the third group, another incident occurred.

Bai Yuyan, whose voice cracked multiple times, won by a margin of 10,000 votes.

The fourth group was even more outrageous, with Liu Yidi, who was half a beat slower than the other dancers throughout, winning.

The audience booed continuously.

The insults in the live stream never stopped.

"Damn, the vote-rigging is so obvious! Do they think the audience is stupid?"

"The production team is insulting the audience's intelligence!"

"There were rumors of pre-selection when the show started, and now it seems that it was indeed true."

"I've never seen such a shameless production team!"

Chen Peng's face darkened the entire time. Who would have thought that those pre-selected trainees would be so disappointing, still making mistakes after months of training?

Actually, it's not a big deal to make mistakes, the key is that they are all low-level errors. Even laymen can see them, let alone experts. Isn't this a slap in the face for him?

He frequently hires professional teachers to tutor these pre-selected trainees; has he learned all that nonsense?
However, what frustrated him the most was the number of viewers in the live stream, which had dropped from 68 to 58, a loss of 10 viewers.

Obviously, controversy can only maintain popularity for a short time, but if there is continuous controversy, no one will continue to watch.

As for the remaining 58 viewers, it's estimated that half of them stayed to criticize the show.

It's no wonder people criticize you for serving up a pot of filth.

The insults continued from beginning to end, even during the segment where mentors and trainees collaborated, the insults in the live stream persisted.

"Jiang Lanqing is dragging us down again. If it were Zhao Tong from Future Girls instead, she could definitely harmonize perfectly with Liu Yifei."

"Bai Yuyan's voice is so off, it's like she's from the grandma's house. If you can't sing, then don't sing. She can't even sing high notes to begin with, and now she's singing with Li Yuqi. It's a complete disaster. Anyone from Future Girls is better than her. I really doubt if they are even trainees from the same show."

"Listening to Future Girls' new album while watching this show is like having one ear massaged and the other ear tortured."

"..."

Chen Peng's mood sank even further when he saw that all the comments mentioned the future girl.

He finally understood that the reason why the audience became so critical was not because of the trainees' mistakes, but because they had better examples to compare them to.

There's a saying, isn't there? Without comparison, there's no harm done.

Future Girls' new album topped the charts, their autograph sessions were a huge success, and even their music videos were like blockbuster movies, instantly overshadowing the trainees on stage.

After a long wait of an hour and a half, the moment of announcing the final group lineup finally arrived.

Holding up a card, the host deliberately drew out his words: "Next, we will announce the final winners of the 'Super Trainee' annual finals. They will form the 'Super Girls' group and officially debut. The members are Jiang Lanqing, Bai Yuyan, and Lin Xi..."

It was supposed to be a moment everyone was looking forward to, but every time the host called out a name, the audience would boo, and the boos grew louder and louder.

Especially when the last name was announced and the host shouted "Let's congratulate the Super Girls group," the entire audience stood up and cheered.

The host was extremely embarrassed and could only manage a forced smile, looking like someone who had undergone excessive plastic surgery.

Compared to the chaos at the scene, the live broadcast room appeared orderly, with the word "behind-the-scenes manipulation" displayed throughout the screen. Some people even referred to the Super Girls group as the "behind-the-scenes manipulation girls group."

Looking at the comments from netizens, Chen Peng plopped down in a chair, as if he had exhausted all his energy.

The staff around them also looked exhausted.

It wasn't that I did a lot of heavy work, but I was mentally exhausted.

The finals were broadcast live for over ninety minutes, and they were criticized by netizens for over ninety minutes. Even the most mentally strong person would feel a little depressed at that moment.

"Phew, it's finally over!"

……

(End of this chapter)