CHAPTER 174: CHAPTER 169: THE LAST TWO GROUPS

"Excellent, do the two captains have anything to say to the audience?" Long Zitao stepped onto the stage.

Lu Bingbing was the first to pick up the microphone. Although she had a lot she wanted to say, the program team only gave each group one minute to speak.

"Thanks to my teammates, thanks to everyone who came here. Without my teammates, there wouldn’t be such a wonderful stage today. Please remember each and every one of them." After Lu Bingbing finished speaking, she gave a deep bow.

Her voice sounded invigorating, but her eyes held an unspeakable sorrow.

She knew that no one here wanted to see them looking defeated; even if a loved one passed away a moment ago, you must show a joyful face on stage.

Because the audience spends money to buy "happiness," and that’s what you earn from.

So Lu Bingbing didn’t shed tears but used her emotions to move the audience.

Jiang Xijie kept watching Lu Bingbing while she spoke, a flicker of sympathy in her beautiful eyes.

She knew Lu Bingbing’s feelings must be tremendously sad right now, yet the competition is so cruel; losing means you lose part of your youth.

"Thanks to everyone on site and to my sisters beside me, I hope you will still see each one of us during the second round. Thank you all." Jiang Xijie also bowed.

"Countdown 60 seconds starts." Long Zitao shouted out loud.

Lu Bingbing instinctively closed her eyes. Amid the cheers, she heard the sound of fireworks blooming.

But they weren’t behind her, they were on the opposite stage.

She let out a helpless smile, her eyes full of plaintive sadness.

All her teammates beside her shed tears of pain.

The countless sweat and effort of this period ultimately bore no fruit.

Over there, Jiang Xijie and the others shed tears of happiness, everyone cheered heartily, jumping and celebrating their victory.

Lv Fangxin felt like it was all a dream, being an idol was indeed wonderful.

In the waiting room, Ye Yuwei saw her current condition and couldn’t help but feel deeply saddened.

She was not gloating over Lu Bingbing’s loss; after all, they had lived together for so long, sweating together, enduring hardships together, and dreaming of becoming famous overnight on that small theater stage.

She felt sorry for Lu Bingbing, as she, too, was pitiful in her way. Unconsciously, her eyes gradually moistened.

"Four mentors, I must emphasize once more, this is the last group now." Long Zitao suddenly said loudly, speaking so quickly it seemed he might lack oxygen.

"Please take this seriously, as it concerns the honor of the teachers." Indeed, as Long Zitao said this, his face turned pale, standing there dazedly.

Instantly, everyone laughed kindly, Yang Xiaoyue merely chuckled, not upset at the former for wasting time.

Long Zitao wasn’t a professional host, he was guest starring this time, and his performance was quite good; giving him some freedom to improvise was still acceptable.

"Please, mentors, cheer and vote for your groups about to take the stage." Long Zitao handed the stage over to the four mentors.

"Alright, next, we are sending out this group, Duan Yuxin, who has a heavenly voice and extraordinary talent," Luo Junxiang said.

"The song they will perform is ’I Like You,’" Zhang Wei continued.

Both had confidence in Duan Yuxin’s group. The group was well-configured, many could sing, and the song suited them perfectly.

The rhythm of ’I Like You’ is light and upbeat, with few pitch changes, making it ideal for girl group singing and dancing performances.

Already at the entrance and exit of the stage, Duan Yuxin and her group of seven formed a circle and stretched out their hands: "Let’s go, let’s go!"

Each of them was very nervous; the previous performances were spectacular, and being the last to perform was crucial.

On stage, Tian Jiaxuan said very seriously, "This is our last battle group."

Her voice was a little hoarse; she had exhausted all her energy, cheering for the girls on her side.

"The song they are about to perform for you all is ’Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon’," Tian Jiaxuan continued.

On the other side, Luo Junxiang continued, "This song’s dance and chorus were choreographed by my team and me; I believe my team will perform it perfectly."

When Duan Yuxin and the others heard Luo Junxiang say this, they were thrilled.

The youngest, Liu Nian, started to dance around excitedly, "Yeah! It’s a piece we composed together."

"We wrote it so well; the audience will surely love it," Zhang Xiaohan also said with a joyful smile.

Zhang Xiaohan had lost a lot of weight since entering the base, and with the refined makeup by the program team, she looked even prettier.

She had learned to dance from a young age, naturally having a good temperament, and has a pair of beautiful, expressive eyes. Staying in this place full of diverse young ladies for a long time, she had changed a lot herself.

At this moment, she was very nervous, afraid of getting eliminated just like that.

She didn’t want to go back home to become a teacher or get married. She loved the stage and wanted to sing and dance until she couldn’t anymore.

In fact, this was the tragedy of many of these girls; they held a deep desire and were never willing to give in.

Especially those who had been on big stages and had some fame found it impossible to give up.

Standing in the performance channel, "Chubby Cat" Gao Ziyi was instantly unhappy when she heard this; her chubby face looked like a bloated eggplant: "Did we even change formations ourselves!"

Gao Ziyi’s demeanor at that moment was like a middle-aged woman arguing in the market, not at all what a girl should look like.

Beside her, Luo Qijia felt extremely embarrassed, uncertain if she should back Gao Ziyi up.

There really was no need to argue at this point.

There were photographers filming; it was most important to maintain a good image.

Over there, Duan Yuxin and the others were speechless about Gao Ziyi.

None of them liked this chubby girl very much; her heart was too narrow, and she was too petty.

On stage, teacher Hu Binbin was still speaking: "At this moment, our youth is about to burn on this stage, our small universes are about to explode here."

Listening to Hu Binbin’s words, both groups got very excited, while the cameramen focused on Duan Yuxin’s group.

"Turn the tide against the wind, surpass oneself," the very cute Gao Yingxi squeezed her little fists to cheer herself up.

She had completely immersed herself in this show by now; originally, she came just to show her face, but now she truly wanted to win, to continue down this path.

"Let’s go!" Duan Yuxin also raised her arms to encourage everyone.

She loved their team a lot; it was just too good; everyone was so kind and lovely.

Over there, Luo Qijia’s group was also unwilling to be outdone, forming a circle and shouting to cheer themselves on.

At this moment, the two groups squared off; their battle spirit surged, each aiming to bring glory to their team and add weighty chips for their future.

Only the winning team could garner more attention and, with greater probability, make it to the end.