Studio Superstar: Chapter 36

This little episode didn’t leave any traces on Xue Xiao’s heart.

He went back to his dormitory and slept well. He woke up refreshed the next day. Naturally, there were no worries at all.

It was the last day before the second round. The atmosphere throughout the camp was tense and serious.

Everyone was in a hurry, and there was no laughter in their words.

Xue Xiao and the assistant teacher went to the empty classroom of Building 3 early in the morning and rehearsed twice. Dou Mingjian stopped and said, “It feels almost the same. I will be numb if I keep rehearsing until tomorrow. Let’s stop here? What do you think?”

Everyone nodded. However, there was still half a day left, and it was too leisurely to go back to rest. The four of them decided to go to the small theater to watch the other groups rehearse.

Today was Feng Wei and Shen Tingyan’s turn. Their teams were busy in the small theater.

The group of four bumped into Zhang Jiaqing as soon as they arrived.

Zhang Jiaqing’s expression became awkward, and Xue Xiao was also embarrassed.

Everyone couldn’t help thinking of one thing…

Recently, Xue Xiao’s reactions had become completely popular!

Without the interference of the evil editing, netizens carefully watched the first episode and naturally found that Xue Xiao, who was sitting in the participant seats, reacted far more than they imagined!

This was especially the case when the first participant was performing. He quietly looked at the mentor seats and looked confused when he found Shen Tingyan’s interested expression.

After being confused, he immediately turned around and watched the performance carefully. The whole process was so cute that the netizens collectively laughed like crazy.

“Xue Xiao: Teacher Shen, do you see things differently from me?”

This was even made into an emoticon by netizens and went viral on the Internet.

Zhang Jiaqing was the first participant to perform on stage at that time…

Xue Xiao was a bit troubled.

He really didn’t mean it. He always had a hard time controlling his expression outside of acting. Now the person he was reacting to saw his reaction. It was really embarrassing…

Zhang Jiaqing said, “Cough. Xue Xiao, are you free now? How about watching our group’s performance?”

Xue Xiao was confused. “…Huh?”

Zhang Jiaqing’s reaction was different from what he expected. Xue Xiao was stunned for a moment.

Zhang Jiaqing scratched his cheek.

In the first round of the competition, Feng Wei called him ‘clever.’ He reflected on it later and felt that his attitude at the time was indeed a bit wrong.

He pretended to be very humble on the surface to participate in the show, but in his heart, he always felt that he was different from the amateurs around him. He came from a professional background and played a lot of supporting roles. He had rich acting experience. This type of beginning stage test could be easily won…

It was due to this state of mind that he overturned.

After the first episode of the show went online, the ridicule from netizens made him extremely ashamed. Seeing the rehearsal footage of the other groups, the serious and hard-working attitude of these participants… Zhang Jiaqing came to his senses.

What could he achieve if kept facing it with the attitude of not getting better or worse?

Why did he come to this show? Was it just for temporary exposure?

What type of artist did he want to be?

Zhang Jiaqing couldn’t sleep at night. He thought over and over. Then he finally found that the answer was actually very simple.

He wanted to become an ‘actor’ who could go on this road for a long time.

Okay, what needed to be done was clear.

Be serious, work hard, regard everyone as his teacher, and be honest about the reactions of others when they watched him act.

Thinking about it like this, his state of mind was much better when he saw Xue Xiao.

…He even felt that Xue Xiao’s function was quite useful!

Xue Xiao couldn’t react, and his stupid look made Zhang Jiaqing smile. He said, “I’m going to drink some water. Our group is the last one later. Come and take a look. Cough, don’t hold back your reaction. Just release yourself!”

Xue Xiao: “……”

Why did it become like this?

Dou Mingjian and the others burst out laughing and said teasingly, “Go ahead, go ahead. In any case, we are here to see how other groups are rehearsing.”

“Yes, come, come.” Zhang Jiaqing agreed. He picked up a bottle of water in the corner, raised his head, and finished it. Then he walked backstage with Dou Mingjian and the others while putting an arm around Xue Xiao’s shoulder.

Xue Xiao was shocked.

Huang Xiaolin’s roommate had mentioned it before, but he thought it was a joke!

He quickly said, “…My reaction might not be accurate!”

Zhang Jiaqing told him, “Stop being so modest. I watched my performance later, and my reaction was exactly the same as yours!”

Xue Xiao: “?!”

Huang Xiaolin said, “I’m embarrassed to say it. In fact, I didn’t understand the evaluation that the four teachers told me in the first round of the competition. Later, I watched the reaction of Xue Xiao during the performance, and I understood instantly!”

Zhang Jiaqing agreed. “Yes, yes. I could even pinpoint accurately where the performance started to go wrong.”

Huang Xiaolin continued, “Where it starts to go a bit wrong, where it starts to be super wrong, and where it starts to be outrageous—I can know by looking at Xiao’s reaction!”

Zhang Jiaqing said, “That’s right. There is direct guidance from the teacher in this round, but the rehearsal time is so tight. What the teacher can pay attention to is limited. Xue Xiao, please help us check it. I will treat you to hot pot later!”

Xue Xiao had a messy expression on his face as he was brought to the rehearsal site of Zhang Jiaqing’s group.

On the way, they passed Shen Tingyan and his group.

Shen Tingyan was drinking water when he saw Xue Xiao floating in front of him. The strange scene made him choke.

Behind him, the participants who were taking a break had somehow started discussing the topic of boyfriend fans and girlfriend fans.

A boy said, “How many boy fans can there be in the whole fan circle? Why do I feel that even female stars have more girlfriend fans?”

A girl said, “You don’t understand this. Now many men on the Internet like to select a female gender and make cute girl’s profile pictures. You can say ‘hello, hello, hello’ to others while they pick at their feet behind the computer and say, ‘Sisters, sisters!’ Many male celebrities have boyfriend fans, okay?”

The boy was shocked. “Really?”

The girl said, “Look at Teacher Shen? On Weibo, they call out things like, ‘Husband!’ Then after clicking on the homepage, you can see that it is obviously a man!”

Shen Tingyan: “……”

The girl said this very loudly. After she finished speaking, the group of people fell silent.

Shen Tingyan turned sideways and glanced at them silently. The group of participants shivered from the cold and scattered.

Shen Tingyan sneered slightly. Then after straightening his body, he felt quite absent-minded.

A lot of boyfriend fans? Him?

How come he didn’t know about this/

Oh, he usually didn’t go on Weibo.

Recalling Xue Xiao’s actions last night…

His expression became unfathomable.

The participants discovered that the enigmatic Teacher Shen was posing coolly on the set for a while. Then he suddenly asked a passing participant in a careless manner, “What are they doing next door that is so noisy?”

The participant laughed and said, “Oh. Zhang Jiaqing called Xue Xiao over for his reaction!”

Shen Tingyan tilted his head.

The participant immediately explained, “Xue Xiao’s reaction in the first episode was too funny, and there were many memes. In addition, those reactions were very accurate. Now everyone is using his reactions as a reference to adjust their acting!”

Shen Tingyan asked casually, “So powerful?”

“Yes yes! Our group wants to invite him over later!”

The participants behind Shen Tingyan immediately joined in. “F*k, then we have to invite him too!”

“We made an appointment first. First come, first served!”

“We are very close, right next to them. Isn’t it just a matter of Teacher Xue passing by to take a look?”

“Fu…”

20 minutes later, Xue Xiao was invited by Shen Tingyan.

At this time, Xue Xiao’s soft hair had been rubbed into a mess, and his face was full of shame.

Facing the man’s smiling eyes, Xue Xiao’s entire body was about to explode in shame.

He said in a depressed manner, “Teacher Shen, why are you involved as well…?”

Shen Tingyan crossed his arms over his chest, leaned against the wall, and joked, “Teacher Xue, you can’t favor one after the other.”

The words ‘Teacher Xue’ made redness spread to Xue Xiao’s ears.

Obviously, he had been teased by many people like this just now. However, the moment these words came out of Shen Tingyan’s mouth, Xue Xiao felt that his blood vessels were about to burst.

He didn’t know how to react, so he glared at Shen Tingyan shamefully.

There was a bit of resentment in this look. The water in his eyes was shaking, and the corners of his eyes were dyed a peach blossom-like color. It was extremely bright under the light.

Shen Tingyan shook his head.

Xue Xiao didn’t notice it and muttered in a low voice, “You know how to bully me.”

He rarely complained like this. His tone was soft when he spoke.

After speaking, he cleared his throat. It was as if his throat was a bit dry. Maybe he had just made a fuss with the group of people next to him.

Shen Tingyan’s mind returned.

He watched Xue Xiao start to look around, probably looking for water to drink.

His cheeks were still red, but his demeanor was normal. He wasn’t uncomfortable at all in front of Shen Tingyan… It was as if he didn’t remember what happened last night.

What happened last night…

It was also possible that Shen Tingyan was thinking too much.

Shen Tingyan thought absentmindedly.

He leaned down and picked up an unopened bottle of mineral water from behind him.

After all, this little lightbulb didn’t say a word from beginning to end last night. It was those few momentary reactions that made him feel abnormal.

However, it was just a few silent reactions. How could he think of so many things?

Shen Tingyan thought to himself.

Had he been too idle lately?

He thought so and became lazy again. He handed the water bottle to Xue Xiao and shook it. “The water is here.”

Xue Xiao quickly took it. “Thank you, Teach…”

Their fingers brushed against each other.

It was accidental.

The moment Shen Tingyan pulled his hand away, the touch that slid from the side of his fingers tickled Xue Xiao’s heart.

Xue Xiao’s words were suddenly stuck. He paused subtly before finishing the second part of the sentence in a low voice. “…Teacher Shen.”

Shen Tingyan paused.

Xue Xiao lowered his head and switched the water bottle to his left hand. His right hand hung by his side, and his thumb rubbed against his index finger.

“……” Shen Tingyan subconsciously felt that the place where his fingers touched just now was a bit itchy.

Xue Xiao remembered that he wanted to drink water. He quickly opened the bottle cap, raised his head, and drank it in a hurry.

His Adam’s apple moved. His slender and flexible neck was red, and the beautiful redness spread all the way to his neckline.

Shen Tingyan straightened up and felt that his throat had become dry for no reason.

He stared at Xue Xiao and started to think deeply again.

[Pre-Interview]

It was late at night.

The man entered the room, closed the door, walked straight to the chair, and sat down. The light focused on him.

The makeup artist came forward and started to touch up his makeup. He sat casually and elegantly, his eyes lowered quietly. It was as if he was thinking about something else.

A few minutes later, the simple makeup touch-up was over.

“Ahem… then Teacher Shen, let’s get started. It is a bit late today, so I will just ask you a few questions.”

The man looked up. “Yes.”

“Teacher Shen, the four groups you are in charge of this time all revolve around the theme of ‘love.’ However, you have never made a love movie in your career. Do you find it difficult to guide the participants?”

The man said calmly, “I haven’t eaten pork, but it is enough to see them running.” (TL: Idiom meaning ‘I haven’t personally experienced it, but it is enough to see and hear about it)

“…Cough. Then why didn’t you film romance movies in the past? Is there no suitable script, or is there no interest in filming?”

“I’ve received some fairly good scripts, but I’m not interested in them for the time being.”

“No interest… you mean, no interest in love?”

The man raised his eyebrow as if he realized the interviewer’s caution. “No?”

“Well… have you ever had an emotional experience in your life? As you know, you have never made a romance movie in your life, so your fans have always been curious about this question.”

The man said with a faint smile, “I really didn’t know. Is this some type of gossip interview show?”

Facing the dry laughter in the room, there was no unhappiness on the man’s face. A moment later, he said in a casual tone, “No.”

Perhaps he expected the interviewer’s next question, but he glanced over and said, “It isn’t that I don’t have interest. It is that I haven’t met anyone interesting yet.”

“You haven’t encountered one so far? Not one? Teacher Shen, can you tell me what type you like? I am asking for the fans, really!”

There was a sentence written on the man’s face, ‘I will be a ghost if I like it.’

“Can’t you just say it briefly? Do you like mature ones? Gentle ones?”

“Capable ones? Jumpy ones?”

The man smiled playfully as if he wanted to see what words they could come up with.

“Humorous? Calm?

“Enthusiastic? Or cute?”

The man’s relaxed expression suddenly changed for a moment.

“Ah, Teacher Shen. Is there a word that made you care?”

The man: “……”

“You must’ve been thinking of someone just now, right? Right?”

He adjusted his sitting posture and asked coolly, “What’s your name?”

“Uh.”

“Old Gao, come here.”

A guilty voice came from behind the crowd. “D*mn, this is none of my business. That is what they wanted to ask!”

“I see that you guys are quite idle tonight. You called me over just to ask me these questions? Why don’t you just stop sleeping tonight? Why don’t you go to the rehearsal?”

“Everyone, disband! Hurry up and disband!”

June 22nd, the day of the second round of ‘Studio Superstar.’

The recording location was still the small theater, so the number of audience members that could be accommodated was still only around 1,000 people.

50 participants entered early with makeup on.

Xue Xiao sat down in his seat. He didn’t know if it was his imagination, but the cameraman seemed to pan over the moment he sat…

Xue Xiao instinctively looked back.

…The camera pointed at him was very oppressive!

Behind him, Chang Yun started to shake his legs and muttered, “I’m so nervous.”

Unlike the first round of the competition, their 15 plays this time would be recorded in one day. It was from 7 or 8 in the morning to 8 in the evening.

The order of the competition was determined by drawing lots last night. Xue Xiao, as the representative of the ‘Spring Garden’ group, was lucky enough to be selected to be the 7th group to act. It was probably at the end of the morning half.

Once all 15 performances were over and the list of participants who advanced to the next round was determined, those participants would have to continue recording the play selection session. Maybe they would only be able to go to bed at 1 or 2 o’clock at night.

In order to fight today’s battle well, everyone laid down early last night and had a good rest to ensure they were energetic today.

Dou Mingjian asked Xue Xiao, “There is no diet today, right? Have you had a good breakfast?”

Xue Xiao quickly nodded and said obediently, “Eat, eat. Brother Dou, don’t worry.”

Just after he answered, there was a scream from the audience.

Xue Xiao turned his head. He guessed that the four mentors must be sitting at the table. However, when he saw Shen Tingyan today, he was still stunned, and his eyes widened.

Today’s Shen Tingyan didn’t wear a white shirt any longer. It was a pure black shirt made of silk!

Super… pretty!

Silk was soft. Clothes made of this texture would easily reveal any flaw in a man’s body if worn by another man, but Shen Tingyan was… so suitable!

The tall figure fully supported the shirt. The pure black made his cold white skin seem to be glowing. The brilliant flowing of the fabric was as lazy as his temperament.

The moment he sat on the chair and leaned back, this man obviously didn’t do anything, but his whole body was exuding hormones, and he was extremely sexy.

Forget the audience seats. Even the participant’s seats were filled with screaming.

“F*k, this is Teacher Shen’s first time wearing black! He’s killing me, he’s killing me!” Jiang Lianlian said breathlessly.

Xue Xiao’s face was hot.

Yes, he was so good-looking.

……

Shen Tingyan had been a bit absent-minded for the past two days. The screams of the audience didn’t bring him back to his senses, and he subconsciously spun his pen when he sat down.

This was until Feng Wei joked from next to him, “Teacher Shen is so handsome today. Even the participants are excited.”

The word ‘participants’ made Shen Tingyan’s mind returned.

The pen stopped spinning, and he shifted his gaze to the participant’s seats. He instantly came across a pair of small light bulbs.

The small light bulb directly burst today.

Shen Tingyan instinctively straightened up and looked down at his clothes.

Did the other person prefer this route?

He still had a few shirts of this color at home, but he had never worn them…

Shen Tingyan suddenly stopped his thoughts.

He put down his pen and calmly thought, ‘I have to wake up my brain.’

White Lily

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