Everyone Spends Money to Make Me Debut as Center (GL) - Chapter 12
“Wow, Sister Chi Ling! I want to live with you!” Su Wanwan suddenly rushed over and hugged Chi Ling’s arm, looking like she wouldn’t let go even if she was killed. “We’re from the same company! We should be sisters in life and roommates in death!”
Chi Ling: That’s not necessary…
While everyone was still surprised by Su Wanwan’s swift reaction, the usually quiet Yu Shu silently placed her bag on the bed by the window. “The rule is first-come, first-served, right? I choose this one.”
“What? Is it really first-come, first-served?” someone just realized.
In fact, when they first came in, Xi Yaozhi had announced it with a megaphone, but everyone’s attention was on Bai Chang, so they didn’t hear the PD’s voice at all.
Realizing they could choose their beds freely, a few girls from the same company quickly turned and ran off.
The crowd dispersed, leaving behind the most conspicuous tall figure. Bai Chang stood outside the door, with no intention of entering the room. She watched Chi Ling, who was surrounded by others, from a distance. She felt like she didn’t know this Chi Ling at all. It was an indescribable feeling that made her feel restless.
Before this, Bai Chang had dismissed Chi Ling’s words as an impulsive act of a spoiled child. After seeing her in person today, her opinion had changed.
Chi Ling, whom she had thought would have a hard time fitting in, seemed to be quite popular with her peers. Even with the terrible dorm conditions, she didn’t back down or complain. Instead, she took the initiative to clean up and help others.
Most importantly, for all the time she had been here, Chi Ling hadn’t given her a single extra look, whereas in the past, she would have clung to her. Does this mean that Chi Ling was serious about having no more attachment to her?
Bai Chang suppressed a strange feeling that arose in her heart and told herself that this was a good thing.
Chi Ling, who was being held onto by Su Wanwan as if she were a lifeline, had a look of momentary shock. It was clear that she was not used to such intimate gestures. But Chi Ling didn’t push her away roughly. She just stood there a bit stiffly, her eyes scanning the room until they landed on Bai Chang, giving her a look of “help me.”
Ms. Bai, one day as wife, one hundred days of kindness! The time has come to repay me!
Chi Ling was truly unaccustomed to this kind of situation. She wasn’t a very warm person; she rarely even held hands or hugged her best friends, let alone someone she had only met a few times like Su Wanwan. But she was also afraid that if she pushed her away now, it would be misinterpreted as anger.
For some reason, Bai Chang found Chi Ling’s awkwardness a bit cute.
Cute?
Bai Chang realized that her thoughts had gone in a strange direction. She quickly cleared her head of the distracting thoughts and said seriously, “I’m going to check the other dorms. Take your time getting settled. The production team has arranged a group lunch at 11 o’clock, so try to be ready by then.”
“Got it, boss!” Su Wanwan gave her a playful salute.
Chi Ling: I’m saved.
In just one morning, Chi Ling had been completely impressed by Su Wanwan’s social skills.
Su Wanwan went out and came back with a whole bunch of snacks. She led at least a dozen “tour groups” to their dorm to check it out. She had been a trainee for a long time and already had some connections in the industry, having befriended almost all the future girl group members from the major companies.
Thanks to this social butterfly of a roommate, Chi Ling had managed to remember the names of a few common faces.
Presumably, out of respect for Su Wanwan, the girls had put aside some of their prejudice and wariness toward Chi Ling. At least, in front of the cameras, they could pretend to be “plastic sisters.”
••••
The first episode was to be filmed a week later. Everyone left in the morning and boarded the production team’s bus to the filming location.
Since it was so early, many of the girls hadn’t had time to put on makeup and were now using mirrors to finish up on the bus.
In the front row, Su Wanwan was frantically borrowing a tube of mascara from everyone. In contrast to her panic, Yu Shu next to her was completely calm, sitting there with perfect makeup and not a single change in her expression from the moment she got on the bus. She was as quiet as a mannequin.
Chi Ling had practiced late the night before and was a bit lethargic. After waking up and putting on makeup with Yu Shu, she had returned to her zombie-like state—also known as “power-saving mode.”
Speaking of which, Ling Yu was the ultimate “power-saver” among the 99 girls. For example, even if Chi Ling didn’t want to talk, she would force out a few words to liven up the atmosphere when the VJ gave her a cue. But Ling Yu was like an invisible person from beginning to end, only speaking when absolutely necessary.
Many people joked about their dorm, saying they had “three mutes and one crazy person.” The “crazy person” was Su Wanwan, because she was always in a state of high excitement from morning to night and never seemed to get tired. Even the PDs would jokingly say in private that Su Wanwan spoke more in a day than the other three of them combined in a week.
Chi Ling dozed off on the bus for a while. When they arrived at the location, she walked like a ghost, following the crowd.
Before entering the performance hall, there was a waiting area with five stacks of stickers labeled A to F. Each person chose a sticker to represent their self-evaluation and put it on. Of course, the final initial ranking would be decided by the five judges.
“Do you think we should all put on an A? We might not get another chance to touch one,” a girl in a pink dress said.
“No, no, I’ll be more honest…”
The girl in the pink dress had a point, but if you didn’t have the skills and still gave yourself an A, you could easily be ridiculed by the malicious editing later on. The production team would love it if someone gave themselves an A, only to sing off-key and get a penalty, which would add a lot of drama to the show. The others knew this as well.
It was clear that most people agreed with the second person. The girls stood in front of the table, hesitating. Most of them chose C and D, with a few choosing B.
“Hahahaha, I don’t think you need to worry so much. Life is all about having fun,” Su Wanwan said with a smile. She walked up, grabbed an A, and put it on her hip. She turned to Chi Ling and the others to show it off. “Doesn’t it match me perfectly?”
Chi Ling nodded seriously, playing along. “Yeah, it looks great.”
Afterward, the others in their dorm also went up and put A’s on themselves. It was one thing for Ling Yu and Yu Shu to take A’s, as their faces already looked quite cool. But when it was Chi Ling’s turn, everyone was a bit surprised to see her calmly put an A on herself.
They might not have known the background of the other trainees, but Chi Ling’s title of “pretty face with no talent” was very famous. Sometimes, even her fans would joke about it.
Does Chi Ling dare to put an A on herself because she’s intentionally giving the production team material to edit?
Soon, a staff member came to call the next group to enter, which was HM.
“Here!” Su Wanwan shouted, then grabbed Chi Ling’s hand and walked inside.
Inside the studio, the 99 seats were arranged in a six-story pyramid. The nine seats at the top were noticeably different from the others, with beautiful patterns on the armrests. These were the final debut spots. The top seat, marked with the number “1,” was particularly luxurious, with a crown emblem on the top of the chair, signifying its special status as the center position.
When Chi Ling and Su Wanwan walked in, there weren’t many people yet. A few girls were scattered in the middle area. Su Wanwan started egging Chi Ling on again. “Hey, should we go sit at the top?”
Chi Ling didn’t refuse. She parted her lips slightly and said, “Okay.”
You could say that this suggestion was exactly what she wanted.
“How about seats 2 and 3?” Su Wanwan suggested. “When Yu Shu and the others come, they can sit at 4 and 6. Our dorm will be the left and right protectors.”
“You can sit there.” Chi Ling, who was already on the fifth level, didn’t stop. She looked straight ahead, took a big step up the last stair, planted her feet, turned slightly, and sat down.
Chi Ling’s back was very straight. Her dazzling red hair was like a victory shawl, and her arrogant demeanor made her feel at home in the sacred seat. The other girls who were already seated stretched their necks to turn and look at her.
“Wow… someone’s already sitting in the number one spot?”
“I wanted to, too, but isn’t the number one spot cursed…?” This was referring to the previous seasons, where everyone who sat in the number one seat in the first episode didn’t end up debuting.
“But it’s Chi Ling sitting there,” a girl said with a laugh. “Who else would sit there?”
Her words sounded like a compliment, but they were full of sarcasm. The final contestants were determined by popularity first and skill second. But who would have the guts to sit in that position in the first episode without any real skill? If you sat in the center position and only got a B, you’d be ridiculed endlessly.
And what’s more, the person sitting there now was the legendary “pretty face with no talent” and the queen of negative fame, Chi Ling?