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

Chapter 467 Screening

After a brief moment of surprise, the training department staff calmly accepted Zhang Wen's sudden promotion to deputy director.

The reason is simple: Teacher Zhang is just too outstanding.

In terms of ability, he is good at teaching and songwriting, and he has three of the top ten hits of the year. You can't find another one like him in the entire music industry.

In terms of achievements, he has made Tang Yi and the Future Girls group famous, and won the Golden Melody Award for Best Newcomer and Best Group right from the start. The training department has never seen such a great teacher since it was established.

I can’t accept it!
If anyone disagrees, then let's first present a super rookie and a super group to everyone to see. Otherwise, they have no right to question the company's decision, let alone Teacher Zhang.

Everyone thought this was a reward from the company for Teacher Zhang, to prevent him from being poached by other companies, unaware that it was related to internal power struggles within the company.

Then it was Saturday.

Zhang Wen arrived at Xingxiang Art Examination Training Center early to prepare for today's student selection.

Before we knew it, it was the art exam season again.

The unified entrance exams are basically over, and even the entrance exams for many art colleges have ended. However, Zhang Wen is not in a hurry because the entrance exams for top art colleges such as Beijing Film Academy, Huazhong Opera, Huayin Conservatory of Music, and Beijing Dance Academy usually do not start until late January and February. There is still plenty of time to select candidates now.

Our intensive training program is designed exclusively for top art schools!

Students and parents received the news well in advance, so the training center was several times busier than usual today, with every classroom packed with people.

More than 800 art students from the entire school came.

Everyone hoped to be selected by the principal and then enter the legendary special training class that supposedly guaranteed a 100% pass rate for top art college entrance exams.

"Principal, all art students are waiting in their designated classrooms according to their majors. They can begin at any time," Xu Zining said respectfully.

She has now gone from being a receptionist to an administrative supervisor. Although she is still doing receptionist work, her salary has increased, and she is more motivated to work.

Zhang Wen nodded, got up and left the office.

He first entered the performance major class 1, where forty art students had been waiting for a long time. When they saw the principal, they immediately straightened their backs, put on their best performance, and showed their best side. Their eyes showed both nervousness and anticipation, as did the dozens of parents standing at the back of the classroom.

"Principal, all the students in this class have reached their enrollment deadline. How are you going to select them? Is there anything I can do?" He Yang, the acting teacher, asked in a low voice, while also being very curious about the boss's selection method and planning to learn from him.

"You don't need to do anything, just watch from the sidelines," Zhang Wen said to He Yang, then looked at the trainees' skill panels.

Li Jinyu, Skills: Ethnic Dance 32 points, Piano 30 points, Performance 17 points...

Hu Xinran, Skills: Ballet 37 points, Performance 23 points...

Zhang Shujia, Skills: Acting 22 points, Dialogue 20 points, Vocal Performance 20 points...

Zhang Wen quickly scanned the classroom, his brows furrowing. Perhaps having seen too many trainees, he now felt that the skill values ​​on these art students' skill panels were far too low.

Only five students had a performance skill score of over 20, and none had a score of over 30. This result left him somewhat disappointed. He didn't know if it was because the students in this class were bad or if his requirements for the special training class were too high.

"Students whose names I call, go to the meeting room and wait for the next round of selection..." Zhang Wen directly called out the names of the five students whose performance skill points exceeded 20, and then walked out of Class 1 to the next class.

The classroom was completely silent. Everyone, including the parents standing at the back, looked bewildered, whether their names were called or not.

Finished?

Is this over?

What just happened?
The parents looked at each other, their eyes filled with deep confusion.

The children had prepared their performances for a long time in preparation for today's selection, and they were just waiting to perform in front of the principal.

And what happened? The principal left without even glancing at the program. What kind of selection process is that?
Could it be that getting into the special training class was all about using connections? And did those five students who were specifically named give the principal a large bribe in private?
After a brief moment of stunned silence, He Yang was filled with shock.

As the acting teacher, he knows each student's situation very well, and the five students the principal just called out are the five with the best acting skills in this class.

The problem is, Principal Zhang hasn't taught any of these students, so how does he know about each student's situation? Where did he get that information from?
He originally wanted to learn from the principal about the selection methods, but after he had already taken his pants off, this was what he was shown?

"Teacher He, has Principal Zhang finished the screening?" a parent asked, puzzled.

It was so fast, so fast that they only blinked a few times before the selection was over.

"I guess... I think so." He Yang wasn't sure either.

"But the children haven't even started performing yet, so how come the selection process is over?" the parent who had just asked asked.

"Yes, Teacher He, what are the selection criteria? It's too arbitrary!" one parent said discontentedly, as his child was not selected.

“Teacher He, could you please ask Principal Zhang to announce the admission criteria? He didn’t even watch the children’s performances before picking five people. We are not satisfied.”

"Yes, I disagree!"

"Is there some shady dealing involved? Do we need to find someone, or do we need to spend money? What do you say?"

"..."

The parents all pointed the finger at Zhang Wen, who had just left, and several female students even had red eyes and tears streaming down their faces.

Only the parents of the five students who were named stood there dumbfounded. They didn't know why their children had been selected, and it felt like a pie had fallen from the sky and hit them on the head.

Looking at the noisy classroom, He Yang's forehead instantly broke out in a sweat. While raising his hand to calm the parents down, he said urgently, "Everyone, please calm down. Principal Zhang must have his reasons for doing this. I assure you, there is absolutely no shady dealing involved."

But these words couldn't quell the situation. A father in a suit stepped forward and said loudly, "Does he have a point? What kind of logic is it to decide the winner without even watching the child's performance? My child prepared for today's event every day, and now he's not even given a chance to perform. Is that what you call having a point?"

A mother standing nearby also expressed her dissatisfaction, saying, "Teacher He, we are from out of town and we were hoping that our child could get into the special training class. But the principal eliminated him with just one sentence. This is too unfair."

The discussions in the classroom grew louder and louder. The students who were not selected either remained silent with red eyes or complained quietly, feeling that they had been deceived.

He Yang's face flushed red with anxiety as he frantically recalled the details of Principal Zhang's selection process: entering the classroom, looking around, then calling roll, without watching the performance or asking about basic skills—it seemed like he had no attention to detail at all, and his approach was shockingly rude.

Unless the principal possesses superpowers that allow him to see through each student's true level at a glance, but how could that be possible?
"Listen up, everyone!" He Yang suddenly raised his voice, finally quieting the classroom down a bit. "Think about it carefully. Even if you can get into the special training class through underhanded means, can you pass the entrance exams for Beijing Film Academy and Huaxi Academy of Drama through the same means? If someone fails the entrance exam, wouldn't Principal Zhang be ruining his own reputation? Besides, the five students who were just called out are the most outstanding performers in our class. You can ask your own children if you don't believe me."

Upon hearing this, many students looked at the five students who had just been called out, and it seemed, indeed, that what the teacher said was true. However, some parents were still unconvinced.

"Even if they are usually very good, we still need to let the children compete. What if my child performs exceptionally well today?"

"That's right, we're protesting, we need an explanation."

"Yes, give us an explanation, or we won't leave."

He Yang's head was buzzing from the noise. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and, having no other choice, said, "Quiet down, everyone. I'm going to find the principal." He then quickly walked out of the classroom.

As soon as he stepped outside, he saw the principal coming out of the performing arts class 2 next door. He quickly went over and said with a troubled expression, "Principal Zhang, the parents in the class are not satisfied with your selection results. They insist that you provide a selection criterion. What do you think..."

He Yang didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear: you need to explain to your parents.

Zhang Wen looked at He Yang strangely, "The special training class isn't one that just anyone can get into, so what's the explanation for that?"

“But…” He Yang looked troubled, like someone constipated.

"Alright, I got it." Zhang Wen patted the other person on the shoulder and turned to walk towards Class 1 of the Performing Arts major.

He Yang watched the principal's retreating figure, breathed a heavy sigh of relief, and then quickly followed after him.

Zhang Wen walked into the classroom, facing the questioning and dissatisfied gazes of the parents, and went straight to the podium. He said calmly, "Dear parents, when you consulted me, I said that the special training class is not one that you can just get into. So what are my criteria for selecting people? It's very simple: talent."

Zhang Wen looked around and continued, "What is talent? With the same amount of time and effort, if you get 90 points and he gets 100 points, then he is more talented than you. The special training class is designed to train students who can get into top universities, so we need to select the most talented people for targeted training to fully activate their talents and enable them to perform exceptionally well in the art exams."

At this point, he suddenly changed the subject, "As for the students who were not selected, it's not that you are not good enough, but that your current situation is still some distance from my requirements. If I had six months, I would definitely recruit you all into the special training class to train you slowly, but now there is only one week, which is far from enough for you."

At that moment, a parent standing at the back of the classroom suddenly raised their hand, as if they had something to say.

Zhang Wen smiled and looked at the other person, "Parent, do you have a question?"

"Principal Zhang, why don't you offer a six-month intensive training program?" the parent asked.

“Because I don’t have time,” Zhang Wen replied.

"We can pay more," the parent said, still unwilling to give up.

“Yes, we’re willing to pay any price as long as we can pass the entrance exam for Beijing Film Academy and Peking University,” other parents chimed in.

"Are you sure you're willing to pay any amount?" Zhang Wen asked rhetorically, then said, "I believe you all know that besides being a trainee instructor at Tianxi Media, I also write songs in my spare time. To be honest, the market price for one of my songs is 800 million plus a share. If it were you, would you choose to spend a lot of time training art students, or would you choose to write songs?"

"..."

The classroom fell silent instantly. The parents who had been clamoring for more money just moments before now pursed their lips tightly and didn't utter a single word.

He admitted that he had boasted a bit too much just now.

The principal can sell a song for over eight million yuan, but he wouldn't be willing to spend over eight million yuan to enroll in an art exam preparation class.

Seeing that no one spoke, Zhang Wen smiled and said, "Actually, running a school is just my personal hobby. I hope to help more children realize their artistic dreams. Otherwise, I wouldn't have advertised a full refund if they don't pass the exam. In the art exam training industry, only Xingxiang dares to make such a promise. Do any of you parents have any questions?"

"No, no more."

"Thank you for the explanation, Principal."

The parents all said that they had obviously accepted the explanation and stopped protesting loudly.

"It's nothing, it was my oversight. I should have explained it to you before the selection. If anyone still has questions, feel free to ask me anytime." After saying this, Zhang Wen turned and left the classroom, returning to Class 2 of the Performing Arts major.

Just like Class 1 before, the parents in Class 2 were also dissatisfied with the selection results, so Zhang Wen repeated what he had just said.

Next, he would repeat those words in every class he went to. Although it took more time, it caused less trouble and gained the understanding of the parents.

Before I knew it, it was noon.

The meeting room was now filled with participants who had passed the first round of screening.

The three majors—Performance, Music, and Dance—have 32, 35, and 26 students respectively.

These ninety-odd people sat quietly. Although they had passed the first round of screening, there was no joy on their faces. In fact, they were even more nervous than before.

In their view, failing in the first round might be a bit of a pity, but failing in the second round would be a real shame.

It's like playing football. You dribble past 11 people, but when you finally have an open goal, you shoot wide. It would have been better if you had been tackled from the start. That kind of regret keeps you up at night.

"Crack!"

The conference room door suddenly opened, and Zhang Wen stepped inside.

More than ninety pairs of eyes turned to look at them, but this time there were only students, no parents.

As for why he didn't, it's simple: he didn't want to explain.

"Dear trainees," Zhang Wen said, "the reasons for the selection were already explained in the first round. The second round is about striving for excellence, so those who were eliminated shouldn't be discouraged, you are all excellent too."

The trainees all had serious expressions; for them, not getting into the special training class was a failure.

Zhang Wen first looked at the 32 students majoring in performing arts and selected 15 of them. He selected fewer students from the music major, with only 13, and the fewest from the dance major, with 11.

Ultimately, 40 trainees successfully entered the special training program, several times more than last year.

Of course, the main reason is that music and dance majors were added this year, and Xingxiang Art Examination Training Center will have an increasingly greater influence in the art examination circle in the future.

By that time, in the hearts of art students, their ancestors would be the only true gods.

……

(End of this chapter)