"——Hurry, hurry!"

"Everyone's ready, just you guys are missing!"

"The director just said, late trainees will have to face a penalty!"

Jiang Ye heard the word "penalty" and immediately quickened her pace, "Coming, coming!"

Lin Zui waved to her and pointed to the two seats she had specially left empty next to her.

Jiang Ye quickly went around with Cheng Zhen behind her, arriving just in time to sit down.

Facing the gazes of all the trainees in the venue, she glanced at her watch, breathed a sigh of relief, then raised an eyebrow, showing off, "I'm not late, I have thirty-seven seconds left."

The entire venue was filled with boos.

A trainee laughed and tried to smooth things over, "Okay, okay, let's get started!"

Two trainees stood on the stage.

Seeing that everyone was present, they immediately stood up straight and said in a very official tone, "I announce that the Chasing Light Girls New Year's Eve Gala is now beginning!"

The trainees in the audience cheered and waved their light sticks wildly.

Some trainees were blowing their trumpets so hard that their faces were turning red.

Today was the first day of the Lunar New Year.

Except for those who were eliminated in the first round and those who withdrew, the remaining trainees had to celebrate the New Year on the show.

So, the program team not only prepared New Year's Eve dinner and let them call their families, but also, fearing that they would be bored during the New Year, they specially prepared a New Year's Eve gala organized by the trainees themselves.

This was a rare opportunity to relax amidst the intense pressure of the talent show competition, so the trainees were all very happy.

Lin Zui tilted her head, "What were you busy with, you were so slow?"

"I was just pulled away to film a voiceover commercial, it took a little time."

Jiang Ye pointed to Cheng Zhen next to her, "And she was looking for snacks."

Cheng Zhen nodded in agreement, immediately rummaged through her backpack and pulled out a bunch of snacks, opened a bag, and waved it in front of them, "Do you guys want some?"

Lin Zui glanced at the high-calorie junk food in her hand, "... No need."

She turned to Jiang Ye and saw her outfit, raising an eyebrow, "Are you going to perform on stage?"

Jiang Ye nodded very naturally, then asked, "You are not going to perform?"

"Yeah."

Lin Zui said nonchalantly, "I don't have any special performance talents, so I'm not going to perform."

When the program was announced, the director team said that they should try to avoid regular singing or dancing.

After all, everyone here is an idol, what's the difference between performing singing and dancing at this kind of gala and a regular performance?

But Lin Zui thought that she didn't have any special talents besides her idol skills, so she simply gave up.

But Jiang Ye didn't think so.

Although it was a gala for the trainees, there were cameras set up, it didn't need to be said, this part would definitely be broadcast.

Since it would be broadcast, she would definitely grab the camera, so Jiang Ye wouldn't miss any opportunity to grab the camera.

Just look at the trainees present.

Almost everyone had put on beautiful makeup, whether they had a program or not.

Moreover, although it was a trainee gala, the mentors were also present.

But today, they didn't have any mentor airs, they were all wearing casual clothes, they really blended in with the trainees and enjoyed the performance together.

Jiang Ye originally thought that since they were all trainees, no matter how they designed the program, it would just be a variation of singing and dancing.

She didn't expect that some trainees would perform fast-talking, some would perform cross-talk, and some would even perform acrobatics on the spot.

Even Shen Zhiyi, who usually seemed quiet, did two consecutive cartwheels.

Jiang Ye: "?"

They all looked like ordinary people, but it turned out they were all hidden talents.

Jiang Ye thought wickedly, "What if our show goes bankrupt, can we all go out and perform to save the program team?"

Lin Zui: "... Then it's better not to."

"Hey, we're all out here in the entertainment industry, who doesn't have some hidden talents."

Cheng Zhen finally finished a bag of snacks, wiped her hands, and stood up, "It's almost my turn!"

"What are you performing?"

Tan Meng tilted her head and looked at her, "The Big Eater Challenge, eating ten hamburgers in one breath?"

Cheng Zhen: "..."

Cheng Zhen actually seriously considered this suggestion, "It's not impossible, but I'll have to do it next time."

She was performing a piece on glass cups, playing the show's theme song.

Cheng Zhen was naturally gifted with music, the glass cups of different sizes, high and low, filled with water, became magical instruments in her hands.

Although it was only ten seconds, it stunned a group of trainees.

She happily bowed to everyone, put away her glass cups, and waited for the next trainee to go on stage.

But the host didn't go on stage to cue the next part.

"What's wrong?"

"Luo Xuan's magic props had a problem, they're adjusting it."

"Should we move the next program forward, or find someone to fill in at the last minute?"

A trainee frowned in distress, her gaze accidentally swept over the mentor's seats, and she suddenly got an idea, "Ah, our trainees have been performing for so long, why don't the mentors perform?"

"Yes!!"

All the trainees in the venue suddenly became excited, "Mentors, perform one!"

They started to cheer and call out the names of each mentor.

The loudest cheers were for Mu Xingchi.

After all, he was a popular idol right now, many trainees had been looking forward to seeing him perform on stage.

Plus, the atmosphere of the gala had already been heated up, the trainees were bolder, they didn't have the fear they usually had when facing the mentors.

"Mentor Mu, you can't not perform!"

"Support! Mentor Mu, quickly show us something!"

Yang Jingjing glanced at him and smiled, "It seems that many trainees are looking forward to you."

"Is that so?"

Mu Xingchi turned around and glanced at the trainee seats in the back, "Is anyone looking forward to it?"

The trainees below cheered wildly, "Yes, yes! We are super excited!!"

"Mentor Mu, are you going to dance?"

"I'd rather hear Mentor Mu sing!"

"Ah, that's so good, aren't we front row at a concert? That's so lucky, Mentor Mu must perform!"

Mu Xingchi pretended to think for a moment, but his gaze subtly glanced at a corner.

He suddenly smiled and said, "Okay, then I'll sing a song for you."

He took the microphone and stood on the stage.

He chose a song.

It was a rare love song from his album.

He actually didn't like this style of song very much, so he didn't perform it often.

But today, it was rare that he sang it.

Mu Xingchi can actually sing love songs!

The trainees in the venue were completely unprepared for this.

But his vocal skills were also very good, and this song was tailored for him by the company, it fit his voice very well.

After the song ended, all the trainees applauded and cheered for him.

Mu Xingchi raised an eyebrow, he was quite satisfied with his performance.

Then he glanced at the corner again.

Jiang Ye was gone.

Mu Xingchi: "..."

No way, was his singing that bad?

•••

It wasn't that Jiang Ye deliberately didn't listen, she wasn't so disrespectful to the mentor either.

It's just that she had only heard the beginning, and she was informed that Luo Xuan's performance was followed by hers, she had to prepare in advance.

Compared to the mentor's performance and her own performance, the latter was definitely more important.

After Luo Xuan's magic trick ended, the lights in the venue suddenly dimmed for a moment.

The trainees were suddenly confused.

"What happened?"

"Is the power going out?"

"It can't be, quickly see who's performing next."

The New Year's Eve gala was held in an indoor recording studio, the stage quality and lighting couldn't compare to the performance.

But Jiang Ye went to find the lighting technician for tonight, hoping that he could help adjust the lighting when she went on stage, to create a sense of atmosphere.

After another ten seconds, with the sound of tapping leather shoes, the spotlight in the center of the stage suddenly lit up.

Jiang Ye stood in the center of the solitary light source, her eyes lowered.

Although it was a simple performance stage for a gala, the aura surrounding her was exactly the same as on the stage of a formal performance.

Jiang Ye's outfit today was completely different from her usual style.

She was wearing a black suit jacket, unbuttoned, with a colorful crop top underneath, revealing her slender waist and toned abs.

Her long hair was tied up and tucked into a black hat, she was wearing black leather shoes, giving her a cold and cool vibe.

The dance music started.

The trainees were all stunned.

It was a popular boy group song.

As they were still stunned, they saw Jiang Ye finally raise her eyes.

The ends of her eyes were slightly raised, her makeup was particularly masculine, giving off a blurry gender-bending vibe.

She curved her lips slightly, with a hint of playful arrogance.

There were already seven or eight out of ten Jiang Ye fans among the trainees.

Now, seeing Jiang Ye in her androgynous outfit, they were even more excited.

"Ahhhhh, I'm dead, I'm really dead!"

"No way! Jiang Ye is so handsome today!!!"

The main song beat started, and Jiang Ye quickly followed.

Compared to ordinary girl group dances, boy group dances are more about power, and the movements involve a greater range of limb extension.

And this style is not easy for female idols to master.

But after the music started, Jiang Ye's usual girl group dance style disappeared completely.

Her movements were full of explosive power, every beat was perfectly timed, paired with the tapping of her leather shoes, it had a powerful impact that hit people straight in the heart.

All the trainees on stage were stunned.

She was so bright and beautiful when she danced girl group dances, but she was so cool when she danced boy group dances.

And the most important thing was, it didn't look awkward at all.

When she reached the pre-chorus, Jiang Ye straightened her back and squinted slightly.

Then the chorus started, she quickly switched dance styles, using a robotic dance to make her suit jacket shake to the beat of the music.

Although it was a very difficult move, Jiang Ye's facial expression was relaxed and carefree, she smiled slightly after finishing the robotic dance, and hooked her finger at the audience, subtly seducing everyone present.

She did not look like an eighteen-year-old girl idol at all, but she didn't have any awkwardness of pretending to be mature.

She was so at ease.

It was as if she had been standing on stage for many, many years, so every part of her, from her fingertips to her abdominal muscles, exuded her complete and utter confidence.

Paired with her androgynous outfit today, her aura was explosive, she was so handsome it made people weak in the knees.

Then, the last note.

Jiang Ye stepped to the beat, slid forward, and knelt on one knee in front of a trainee in the front row.

She gave a gentlemanly bow, took off her hat, took out a rose from inside, then smiled and handed the flower to the trainee in front of her.

The music ended.

The venue erupted in screams.

Jiang Ye raised an eyebrow, gesturing for her to take it.

The trainee: "!!!"

Help, help, help.

She knew that the person in front of her was Jiang Ye, the one she saw every day.

But why was her heart beating so fast?