CHAPTER 179: CHAPTER 174: COMFORTING THEM

The one-minute countdown ended, and the sound of fireworks filled the air.

"Ah! It’s us! It’s us!"

Lai Ruoxuan screamed like a madwoman.

Duan Yuxin stood frozen in disbelief, tears streaming uncontrollably down her cheeks.

The others were overjoyed, feeling as though they had never experienced such happiness in their entire lives.

On the other side, Luo Qijia and her team members were ashen-faced, unable to utter a single word. It felt as if a heavy boulder had been placed on their chests, their throats filled with bitterness and suppressed sobs.

Long Zitao invited the two victorious groups to come up to the stage, along with the four mentors.

"Tonight, we will also announce the most popular member from each team!" Long Zitao announced loudly.

At that moment, all the girls were extraordinarily excited. Being the most popular meant a spot in the debut lineup.

"First, let me announce the ’Junwei Team’s’ most liked member. And she is...?" Long Zitao left everyone in suspense.

All eyes turned to Meng Meixuan, as she was undeniably popular based on the audience’s reactions, and the team had also seen her high rankings online.

"The most liked member of this team is Meng Meixuan!" Long Zitao shouted.

Amid applause and a mix of emotions from the crowd, Meng Meixuan stepped forward and bowed to the audience.

As a member of the losing team, Wu Zixuan, waiting backstage, also applauded for her teammate. However, her face showed no trace of a smile; instead, it was filled with complicated emotions.

"Thank you, everyone. I truly didn’t expect to receive this honor. There are so many amazing girls on our team," Meng Meixuan said modestly, winning immense goodwill from the audience.

"And to my sisters who couldn’t be on stage with us tonight—you are amazing too. Thank you!" Tears welled in her eyes as she bowed again to the crowd.

Long Zitao, smiling, picked up the cue card and continued, "So, who is the most liked member of the other team?"

This time, there were many guesses, as no one on Ye Yuwei’s team had an overwhelming advantage in popularity. However, the names called out most often were hers and Li Shihan’s.

"The most liked member from this group is Qiang Yueting!" Long Zitao raised both arms as he announced.

Hearing her name, Qiang Yueting was so shocked that she could hardly believe it; her popularity had surpassed both Ye Yuwei and Yang Ni.

Though, in truth, it wasn’t all that surprising.

Ye Yuwei’s competition with Ju Lin had been much tougher overall, so many neutral votes had gone to the other side, and Ye Yuwei’s win was by a narrow margin.

Li Shihan’s team had faced Wu Zixuan, and it was widely believed that the show manipulated the vote count to let them win. Naturally, the "most liked" spot wouldn’t go to her.

None of the others had as much buzz as Qiang Yueting, so the title went to her.

"Thank you. Thank you so much. I will continue to work even harder. I really want to debut; I want to keep singing and dancing for all of you," Qiang Yueting kept bowing repeatedly.

Sitting in the audience, Xiao Du felt furious that her "idol" wasn’t the one named as the most liked. Instead, it went to this "ugly woman" with a slightly chubby face. Inside, she was boiling with anger.

Her cold, piercing eyes were locked onto the big screen. "Qiang Yueting, you’re not even worthy," she sneered silently.

At this moment, Yang Xiaoyue invited Hu Binbin to represent all the mentors in delivering a speech.

"Whether it’s here on the stage of 101 or in the future in the industry, there’s no such thing as a perpetual winner. No one can guarantee they will always win." At this point, Hu Binbin’s gaze landed on Qiang Yueting.

"Take you, for instance—you were always in Class B before, yet today you became the most liked. This proves that everyone must keep striving. Keep it up!"

Tian Jiaxuan followed up with, "Here’s a quote for everyone to remember: ’There’s no such thing as miracles, only accumulation.’"

Everyone was deeply moved by Tian Jiaxuan’s words, and applause broke out collectively.

Luo Junxiang then added, "I’m not someone who likes to give compliments. Today’s performance by all of you is just the baseline. I believe you can do even better. I hope you’ll become even more remarkable in the future."

Long Zitao glanced at the two and said, "Today, the mentor whose team holds the higher total votes will be declared the winner."

Qiang Yueting’s heart began racing uncontrollably. She knew her popularity might not surpass Meng Meixuan’s, but she still held onto a sliver of hope.

Meng Meixuan, meanwhile, was extremely tense. Having been placed so high by others, the thought of falling from that place terrified her.

"And now, let me announce..."

Everyone fell silent simultaneously. Other than the sound of machinery, the entire venue was eerily quiet.

"The winner is—Meng Meixuan!" Long Zitao bellowed.

"Ah! Ah!"

All the girls from Junwei’s team burst into cheers and screams, their tears streaming down. This was a day they would remember for the rest of their lives.

When they returned backstage, they were still animatedly discussing everything that had just happened.

More than six hours had passed—it was already past midnight—but not a single person felt the least bit tired.

Yang Xiaoyue asked Hu Binbin to console their team.

Back in the waiting room, the eight-team members of Hu Binbin’s defeated group sat in silence, with Long Zitao present as well.

From time to time, his gaze drifted to Ye Yuwei. Even at this moment, the girl maintained her upright posture, sitting neatly in her chair.

"Do you all enjoy this kind of stage?" Long Zitao asked aloud.

"Yes, we do!" all the girls responded in unison.

"Then you will have to keep working hard. Losing today isn’t that big of a deal; we still have the next stage." Long Zitao spoke with sternness.

Every girl stayed quietly seated, listening intently.

"You all should consider yourselves very fortunate. Back when I was a trainee, losing once meant there wouldn’t be a second chance."

"But you all still have one. What you need to do now is let go of everything just now and start considering what to do tomorrow."

Long Zitao’s gaze swept across every girl’s face.

Their spirits were reignited by his words. Yes! They still had the audience voting outside the show to rely on. They might not truly have lost yet.

"To be honest, I’m not great at consoling people. I don’t even enjoy being consoled myself. To me, there’s nothing comforting about losing—losing is just losing," Hu Binbin said sharply and candidly.

"But since the production team wants me to say something, I’ll tell you this: If we perform well enough, even if we lose, the audience will still cry out in our defense."

Hu Binbin, in fact, was dissatisfied with the results. He believed his team deserved to win the final showdown.

The trainees sitting there nodded in agreement. They, too, were unconvinced by their defeat.

"Moreover, the true treasure you’ve gained here is the friends who share your same artistic vision," Hu Binbin added with a meaningful smile.

"You’re absolutely right, mentor! We haven’t really lost." The group of girls cheered up again.

"Well then, seeing you all so happy, I’m off to congratulate the winning team." Long Zitao laughed as he stood to leave.

But instantly, the girls became upset, feeling a bit sour inside, as though something precious was being taken away from them by someone else.

"Mentor, you can’t leave!"

"Yes, mentor, please stay!"

Over fifty pairs of tearful, longing, and heartbroken eyes stared at him pleadingly.

Long Zitao was momentarily dumbstruck. This was the first time he’d ever felt this kind of adoration.

"But the girls over there won. I have to at least go check in with them."

"That’s not fair!" Immediately, all the girls slumped, their excitement replaced by dejection.

As Long Zitao turned around, however, his face revealed a mischievous grin.