Speaking of which—
QY cleared his throat lightly, picked up the microphone, and looked toward the camera. “The ID ‘QY’ comes from the initials of someone I like. I use this name because I want her to give me motivation during the competition, so she can accompany me as I fight for victory and share the glory with me.”
!?
RG’s operations manager nearly jumped out of his skin backstage. He grabbed the coach and demanded, “How could you not tell me about something like this in advance?! Don’t you know how many girlfriend fans his face could attract? Don’t you know how many sponsors we could land through those girlfriend fans?! Aaaaaah, I’m going to kill him!”
The coach’s collar was pulled so tight he could barely breathe. “Cough, cough—calm down! There’s nothing I can do! He was parachuted in by the big boss. Didn’t you notice? One, he doesn’t live in the dorms. Two, he doesn’t train in the practice room. Three, he only competes on weekends!”
The operations manager nervously opened the livestream’s chat. Sure enough, it was already flooded with messages like “Aaaaaah,” “I’m heartbroken,” “Bro, it’s over,” and “The end of girlfriend fans.”
Sensing some juicy gossip, the host immediately switched into gossip mode. “Someone you like? QY, you’re so handsome—there’s actually a girl you can’t win over?”
QY shrugged. “What I look like and whether I can win her over are two different things. Anyway, I’m still working on it.”
The interview was about over. After exchanging a few polite closing remarks, the host handed the broadcast back to the commentators.
Before long, Pei Cizhou, having finished his match, called her.
Qiuyun answered. “Congratulations on the win.”
He connected his Bluetooth earphones. “Thanks.”
No one spoke again. Only the faint static of the connection filled the silence. Unable to hold back, Pei Cizhou asked, “Miss Qiuyun, didn’t you hear my post-match interview?”
He was still young after all. He couldn’t hide his feelings.
Qiuyun leaned back in her chair and said calmly, “I heard it.”
“And you… don’t have anything else to say?” Pei Cizhou had thought she would at least tease him a little. Instead, she hadn’t reacted at all.
“QY could stand for Qiao Yan, Qin Ying, Qian Yi, or Qi Yu.” She gave a soft laugh.
“It stands for Qiuyun! You.” Pei Cizhou was annoyed. “Haven’t I already confessed my feelings to you?”
Qiuyun drawled, “Oh, did you? You remember that, but why don’t you remember what I told you?”
Pei Cizhou fell silent.
She had said something before—she had told him he wasn’t allowed to make his feelings for her public.
His tone softened. “I’m sorry. But when I was filling out my information and had to choose an ID, I couldn’t think of anything except your name.”
After all, this was his first time competing in esports, and it would also be his last.
If he had the chance to have his name engraved on a trophy while golden confetti rained down around him—
then he wanted to do it with her.
Hearing him plead for forgiveness, Qiuyun’s mood improved considerably. “But once something’s been said, it’s like water poured out—it can’t be taken back. What are you going to do now?”
“…” Pei Cizhou gritted his teeth. “Then I’ll say it was Qiao Yan, Qin Ying, Qian Yi, or Qi Yu. Let them guess which one!”
Qiuyun burst out laughing. “All right. President Pei, you really are clever.”
Eager to move past the subject, Pei Cizhou checked the time. “Are you at the studio already?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“What time will you finish tonight? I’ll come pick you up.”
In the past, Qiuyun would have refused. But now… she accepted with complete ease. “Probably sometime after ten. Should I send you the address?”
“Okay.”
The call ended, and the live broadcast in front of her was about to begin.
Qiuyun stared absently at her phone. A moment later, she changed Pei Cizhou’s contact name from “President Pei” to “Little Boss Pei.”
Leverage.
The first lesson Madam had taught her in her previous life was this: seize every source of strength around you that can help you climb higher.
At seven o’clock, the grand finale began.
Since she was already at the venue, watching the livestream from backstage would be boring. Qiuyun slipped out to the front to watch the show in person.
The opening performance was Dawn’s theme song, “Breaking Out of the Cocoon.”
After that came two collaboration stages, followed by the trainees’ solo performances.
To be fair, Qiu Ze really had earned his way up from the bottom. His energy and stamina were astonishing.
During the group performance, he was the only one who still sang at full volume while dancing. It was practically like hearing celestial music—suddenly, one’s ears were blessed. No wonder his offline voting numbers were always so high.
By eight-thirty, the performances had ended, and both the online and offline voting channels were officially closed.
The lights went dark. The host’s deep, magnetic voice pierced through the darkness:
“One hundred days ago, they arrived with dreams in their hearts. They lived eight to a room, danced the same choreography, and sang the same songs. Some trained with fluid in their knees, held together by bandages. Others practiced a single high note until their throats were raw.
“Tonight, all their sweat will crystallize into glory.
“After three grueling rounds of performances and votes from hundreds of millions of viewers, the fourteen young men standing here are the brightest new stars of this summer. But who will claim a place in the seven-member debut group, NOVE?
“Let us reveal—the final rankings!”
The screams from the audience nearly lifted the roof off the arena.
The earlier performances had all taken place on the island, where space was limited.
But the show had become so popular that the grand finale was held in the form of a concert. Tens of thousands of fans had come, their light sticks scattered across the venue like the stars and planets of an entire galaxy.
One short video played after another, and one name after another was announced.
The two most nerve-racking moments came when the center position and the final debut spot were revealed.
Even someone with as strong a mentality as Qiuyun couldn’t help holding her breath when she saw Qiu Ze step onto the platform for the final head-to-head selection.
The entire venue went dark. Only two beams of light fell on the center of the stage.
Amid the pounding rhythm of nervous heartbeats, Qiu Ze’s lift slowly rose.
“Let us congratulate NOVE’s center and leader—Qiu Ze!”
Cheers erupted. Streamers filled the air, and the fans shouted again and again, “You deserve it! You deserve it! You deserve it!”
The camera pushed in. Tears shimmered in Qiu Ze’s eyes. Then he turned toward the camera and the fans below and bowed deeply.
Looking at the young man standing in the spotlight, adored by everyone—
Qiuyun had never imagined that the boy who had once flashed her a mouthful of white teeth and tried to sell her perfume would truly make it this far through his own hard work and sweat.
Qiu Ze gathered himself and thanked many people. “...Finally, I want to thank my older sister. She found this job for me. Without her, I might still be wandering somewhere in the city. Without her, I never would have discovered that I had a career I could work this hard for.”
The moment Qiu Ze said this, his career-focused fans were moved to tears.
They knew better than anyone how difficult it was to find a male idol in the Chinese entertainment industry who actually cared about his career!
The competition ended on a perfect note.
The trainees returned backstage. Some said their goodbyes, while others offered their congratulations. Qiuyun waited in a corner of the lounge. Only after most of the crowd had dispersed did Qiu Ze finish removing his makeup and changing his clothes. Then he came over and sat beside his sister.
“Are you going home?” she asked.
Qiu Ze shook his head. “The schedule was arranged first thing in the morning. I have to leave for the next tour city early tomorrow.”
