Peninsula: You've been chosen here for producing girl groups.

Chapter 108: First Monthly Test, StarsRookies Five Revealed

"I should be able to get 60 points, please, please Mary, please God or Buddha, please let me get 60 points, or I'm doomed."

He clasped his hands together and prayed fervently to the wall.

"What is she saying?"

Kim Yoon-ji and Moon Hyun-ah happened to be passing by and curiously asked Shin Yoon-joo what was going on.

"Sixty points?"

Kim Yoon-ji couldn't help but laugh.

Sixty points is just a passing grade.

Naza's highest target was only 60 points, which shows how poor her Korean level was.

Kim Yoon-ji slapped him: "You should prepare yourself mentally for someone to spank you."

That person felt utterly hopeless.

She just hoped that pretending to be studious would soften Han Shuo's heart.

"Nazar is too lazy."

Wen Xuanya shook her head and walked away.

She couldn't quite understand the little girl's thought process.

The longer she stayed at Starry Entertainment, the clearer a certain feeling in her heart became:

Starry Sky Entertainment gave her a one-time chance to control her own destiny; whether she can make a name for herself in this life depends on whether she can seize this opportunity.

Never before had she felt such a burning desire to seize every opportunity to shine.

She only hoped that Han Shuo would think more highly of her.

Now look at Naza.

With exquisite and striking features, a sibling bond with Han Shuo, and the advantage of being younger, she's like a salted fish, oblivious to her good fortune.

After the written test, there will be a singing and dancing talent test.

All trainees gathered in the large practice room.

Today marks the first monthly test held since the establishment of Starry Sky Entertainment, which is of great significance.

There were three cameras set up on site.

In addition to DSP Entertainment's singing, dancing, and acting instructors, CEO Lee Jong-seok, the judges also included Lee Yeon-hee, currently the most senior member of the company.

And Lee Ho-yeon, the president of DSP Entertainment?!

What's going on?

Why did Li Haoyan come over?

Is there still a ceremony to observe during the monthly testing?

"director?"

As the word "Director" rang out from the doorway, those who were seated stood up, those who were standing turned around, and the entire room paid their respects.

This monthly test features the most complete lineup of artists and trainees under Fanxing Entertainment.

Even Moon Ga-young, who started as a child actress, was called over to observe the performances of her seniors.

Li Xue is the only one who hasn't reported for duty yet.

A large group of 21 beautiful women, both young and old, gathered together, brightening up the scene.

"After a month and a half of practice, it's time for a military review!"

Han Shuo's gaze swept over everyone one by one, and lingered on that mournful little face: "Why are you unhappy?"

Did you fail the written exam?

"Pah, pah, pah! Don't curse me, I didn't, don't talk nonsense!"

"You'd better," Han Shuo pointed at Nazha, then turned to those around him and instructed, "Remember, treat her according to the strictest grading standards."

Woo woo woo.

Naza exclaimed that it was all over.

comfortable.

Han Shuo sat in the center of the judges' panel.

"President Li, what's wrong?"

"I came especially to congratulate you. Your album and music sales are booming; you're now being hailed as a walking SME."

After some media outlets predicted that Han Shuo's single comeback could generate 50 billion yuan in sales, fans and some media outlets dubbed him "the walking small and medium-sized enterprise".

It refers to the fact that Han Shuo alone can generate the sales revenue of a small or medium-sized enterprise.

Han Shuo waved his hand modestly and said, "That's all just media hype to grab attention. Why would a big editor like you join in?"

"I don't think so."

The 50 billion figure is certainly a bit of a gimmick, but given Han Shuo's current immense popularity, it's not impossible that it might actually happen.

Li Haoyan didn't argue: "Then consider it my way of celebrating the huge success of your album, which has brought a good profit to our company."

DSP Entertainment was responsible for the production of the physical album and, as per the contract, will receive 15% of the revenue from it.

That is, if the sales volume reaches one billion, you can receive 1.5 million.

But it's only 15 million, not 1.5 billion. If it were 15 billion, why would the president of the company need to come here personally?

He came mainly because he was happy.

The bigger the commotion surrounding Han Shuo's return, the more it proves how astute his judgment was back then.

He once boasted that Han Shuo could replace Ji Zhonghua and turn the tide, helping the new girl group Kara under his management to be reborn, but many veteran employees were skeptical.

Some even suggested hiring someone to redesign the choreography for Kara's next comeback title track, "Step".

Now no one dares to mention this topic anymore.

What a joke! Even if Han Seok's choreography is a mess, the mere fact that he's the choreographer will bring Kara a huge amount of attention.

They lost a domineering and arrogant Ji Zhonghua, but gained a solid and reliable strategic partner in return.

They made a killing.

In fact, Han Shuo could guess Li Haoyan's purpose in coming.

Before arriving at the practice room, he met several staff members from DSP Entertainment's new media team at the entrance of the waiting room.

The New Media Group is a new department established by DSP Entertainment, modeled after Star Entertainment.

As the name suggests, it involves connecting with new media businesses.

To be more specific, it means managing the Bilibili accounts of the artists under its management.

Considering that he had mentioned to Lee Ho-yeon yesterday that he was about to start StarsRookies, Lee Ho-yeon's purpose in coming here is obvious.

It's nothing more than learning by stealing someone else's skills.

"You should thank me."

Seeing that the preparations were complete, Han Shuo announced the start of the monthly test.

Nineteen female trainees stepped forward one by one to showcase their talents.

After a month and a half of practice, their overall strength has visibly improved significantly, and even newcomers like Park Min-ha with weak foundations have performed exceptionally well.

"come over."

Han Shuo pretended to be serious and waved to Park Min-ha.

"director----"

Park Min-ha didn't know what she had done wrong, and she felt conflicted and scared.

She wasn't afraid of being punished, but rather afraid of disappointing Han Shuo again.

As one of only three backup dancers specifically recruited, she had never received any singing or dancing training and her foundation was always weak, often unable to keep up with her teammates' pace.

She finally got a special approval for a new backup dancer spot, but then made a small mistake during her first stage performance.

The monthly test doesn't seem to have satisfied Han Shuo again.

She's so useless.

"Hand out."

Park Min-ha hunched over, head down, one hand fidgeting with the hem of her clothes, the other outstretched in front of Han Seok.

"Why raise it so high?"

"Um?"

The expected corporal punishment did not occur; instead, a red envelope came into view.

"This is?"

"Your performance on your debut stage was fantastic, far exceeding my expectations. I don't have much to reward you with, so I'm just giving you this as a bonus."

The standard for monthly testing is not horizontal comparison, but vertical comparison.

Overall, Park Min-ha has made the most progress, and that's enough.

Han Shuo encouraged him, "Your mindset isn't very good. You're prone to making mistakes when under a lot of pressure. Next time you're under a lot of pressure, just think about today—"

It's not punishment, it's a reward?!

Park Min-ha relaxed completely, and her lips trembled.

A mix of emotions—grievance, excitement, and joy—flashed across her innocent face, tears welling in her eyes.

She thought she wouldn't get the red envelope.

"Director, you...you...you're lying—"

The innocent high school girl cried her eyes out, the kind of crying that you can't comfort.

Han Shuo waved to the photographer: "Why are you crying? You look so ugly. Someone, get a close-up of her and capture this ugly moment for me."

The touching atmosphere instantly dissipated.

Park Min-ha quickly wiped her face clean, her breath coming in short gasps, her lips wrinkled, and she earnestly apologized, "Thank you, Director~"

Keep up the good work.

In addition to the usual singing and dancing and individual skills, this monthly test also included a demonstration of the musical instrument skills of several members of the band.

After nearly a month of learning, the students' performance has become quite impressive.

Although it's far from being a performance, it at least shows that the current lineup is fine and there's no need to change any members.

Han Shuo glanced at Li Juli.

"Starting next month, the company will give you a piece of music as a practice piece, which will also be your debut song. Practice hard."

The debut song he chose for them was "Beginning".

It's the OST for the drama "Itaewon Class".

Just like the story of a poor boy's heroic comeback, this song has an exciting rhythm and a sense of running towards hope, and getting up no matter how many times you fall. It is known as the "Heroic Battle Song".

No song is more suitable for dealing with the financial crisis in the second half of the year than this one.

Considering that one lead vocalist might be insufficient, he suggested Yu Shengyan: "Starting next month, you will also be part of this limited-time band as the lead vocalist."

A pleasant surprise fell from the sky, leaving Yu Shengyan completely dazed: "Understood!"

It was worth the trip to Fanxing Entertainment!

"In addition, the company will open a Bilibili account for the group depending on your practice level."

The debut of the limited-time band within the company is becoming more and more real, and the seven selected members can feel the envy in the eyes of their girlfriends.

Park Hyo-min raised her hand: "Director, what's our group's name?"

"Stand together, let me see."

The seven members stood in a row.

Lead vocalists: Shin Yoon-joo and Yoo Seung-yeon.

Drummer: Jeon Boram.

Guitarists: Li Juli and Cao Baoer.

Bassist: Park Hyo-min.

Keyboardist: Kim Ji-won.

After much deliberation, Han Shuo offered a suggested name: "Since your band is planning to hold public events this summer, let's call it the 'Summer Invasion Project.'"

"Invading the summer project, it seems your board members have high expectations of you."

Whether it's launching a band or an all-female band, Lee Ho-yeon has always felt that Han Seok's concept for this limited-time project is very bold.

However, as Han Shuo becomes more and more popular, people have more and more confidence in him.

Han Shuo might actually be able to make it in an all-female band; who knows?

"We will practice hard and not let the board members down."

Under the leadership of Lee Qri, who is showing signs of becoming the team leader, all the members expressed their determination.

"Next up is the second item on the agenda: the initial five members of StarsRookies have been confirmed!"

Han Shuo finished speaking.

All the trainees present became restless.

The company's Bilibili channel is becoming increasingly popular, with the number of users growing daily, and the exposure effect is expected to increase significantly. If given a choice, no one would want to miss the opportunity to be among the first to join.

Li Haoyan narrowed his eyes slightly.

This was another purpose of his visit: to personally observe and learn from Han Shuo's operational methods.

Han Shuo once mentioned that a certain trainee's video material on Bilibili is equivalent to a group variety show with unlimited extensions, which can give the trainee enough attention and fans during their trainee period.

Now he's going to observe from the beginning and witness the gameplay firsthand.

opposite.

Kang Hanna appears restless on the surface, but she is actually very confident inside.

Han Seok had promised her that she would be the fourth member of StarsRookies, so her selection was absolutely no surprise.

Apart from Shin Chung-joo, Park So-yeon, and Kim Yoon-ji, the remaining fifteen trainees eagerly hoped to be the next lucky one.

Even Naza hopes to be selected, and then casually sing one or two hit songs, so that she can have a pension for life.

Jiang Enhui prayed silently in her heart.

She can be excluded from Stars Rookies, she just hopes that her arch-rival Moon Hyun-ah will also be eliminated.

My roommate and nemesis is incredibly hardworking. He's always either practicing or on his way to practice. He even paid for a Japanese language class out of his own pocket to learn it.

Han Shuo has always admired this kind of fighting spirit, and he might just let Wen Xuanya get lucky.

If Moon Hyeon-ah were to be selected for StarsRookies, it would be worse than killing her.

Wen Xuanya was extremely nervous.

Mentally count the potential competitors.

Will Lee Juri be involved?

As the female lead in the music video for the title track "Fiction," she has garnered a large following of fans who ship her with her partner and admire her looks thanks to her pure and beautiful image.

Will Park Hyo-min be in it?

As a newly emerging choreographer and model like Kang Hanna, she must hold a special place in Han Seok's heart.

Will there be a full sapphire blue version?

Currently, three of the trainees have celebrated their birthdays after joining the company.

Among them, Han Shuo gave Kwon Nara 50,000 won by playing a blueberry eating game, and casually gave Kang Eun-hye two grams of gold beans, both of which were impromptu gestures.

However, when giving Jeon Boram a birthday gift, he actually prepared a special gift box and gave her a brand new instant camera.

Perhaps the other person simply prefers this Lolita style.

Will Yu Shengyan be in it?

As a senior trainee at SM Entertainment, she excels in both singing and dancing, and is also acquainted with Han Seok, having known each other for three or four years and having a close relationship.

Or perhaps band members like Cao Bao'er and Kim Ji-won —

"The fourth person selected for StarsRookies is—Kang Hanna!"

Kang Hanna waved her hand enthusiastically in celebration.

Although she got in through Han Shuo's connections, her singing and dancing skills, as well as her public relationship with Han Shuo, make her selection beyond question.

There's only one left.

Wen Xuanya's heart was in her throat.

He clenched his hands tightly together and prayed silently.

If she gets selected for StarsRookies this time, she's determined to be nice to everyone and take the initiative to reconcile with Kang Eun-hye.

The fifth person selected is ————

This time, Han Shuo didn't keep her in suspense and stared directly at Ni Ni.

boom.

When their eyes met, a huge wave of surprise enveloped Ni Ni.

Could it be—

"It's Ni Ni!"

"Is it me?"

Ni Ni was overjoyed and wept, jumping up and down on the spot with excitement.

As expected, Han Shuo kept his word, saying that the domestic music business would mainly focus on ringtones, and that his compatriots would have a great opportunity to use their talents in the future. Who would have thought that the surprise would come so unexpectedly.

Curly braces.

I'm already incredibly hungry and thirsty.

aside.

Wen Xuanya felt bitter inside, as if she had lost all her strength.

Ni Shi has practiced various dance styles since childhood, so her dance foundation is excellent.

However, the main reason for their selection is most likely their proficiency in Chinese.

She had previously met with Han Seok to learn about the reasons for Kim Yoon-ji's selection, and Han Seok mentioned that being proficient in a language is very helpful for selection.

This is also why she studied Japanese so diligently.

However, it was precisely because she might lose to Ni Shi's native language proficiency that she felt very resentful.

It's one thing to lose to the other party in singing and dancing, but what's the big deal about losing to the other party in their native language?

Perhaps if she had a little more time, her singing, dancing, and Japanese skills could catch up.

She is not convinced.

Park Min-ha and Moon Hyun-ah >

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