Rebirth from the Ashes

Su Muyan looked daggers at Yun Xiao.

Who did he think he was to criticize Wanwan!

Yun Xiao must feel threatened by Wanwan’s brilliance and talent. It made sense. He was livid and deliberately shot Wanwan down because none of the six trainees from Cosmos Entertainment managed to bag the lead role.

The other mentors did not share the same view as Su Muyan. Instead, they reflected on Yun Xiao’s comment. Having observed Yun Xiao at work, Gu Yang and Xia Mi knew the former would not make up bullsh*t just for the heck of it.

The realization hit Group A’s mentor, Fang Yao. She could not put her finger on the funny feeling she had about Su Ruowan at first, but now that Yun Xiao brought it up, she worked out that Su Ruowan had not shown much improvement.

Su Ruowan gave the same level of performance then and now. There was no progress in between. However, this could also mean that Su Ruowan was a great performer to begin with.

The trainees in the audience had different ideas about Mr. Yun Xiao. Many felt sick to their stomach and condemned Mr. Yun Xiao for his statement.

No mentor would say such a thing to a student. Some trainees concluded that Mr. Yun Xiao was probably taking it out on Su Ruowan because Cosmos Entertainment’s trainees had failed to take center stage. They held Mr. Yun Xiao in contempt for his lack of manners.

“I’m sorry to let you down, Mr. Yun Xiao. I’ll improve for everyone to see.” Thinking on her feet, Su Ruowan gave a decent answer with eyes welling up in grievance. Behind those eyes, hatred and fury were brewing.

She was reminded of Shu Baiyu. The old hag once told her that she was not cut out for dancing!

Here they were again, with this godd*mn Yun Xiao saying she had no more room for improvement. Who did he think he was to look down on her?

It was eerily quiet on the set as tension rose. Everyone turned to Mr. Yun Xiao, waiting to hear his next comment.

“You are outstanding enough…” Shen Xi paused unusually long before adding, “Just leave the room for improvement and chance to the other students.”

All in all, it could be made out that Mr. Yun Xiao was saying Su Ruowan was exceptional, but what was with the long pause?

The crowd was dumbstruck. “…”

Mr. Yun Xiao sure took a long time to catch his breath. He went a little too far and scared Su Ruowan.

The production heaved relief. Mr. Yun Xiao could have finished the whole sentence in a breath.

Su Ruowan was the strongest among all the trainees, and no one could deny this fact.

She was taken aback for a while before joy overtook her. “Thank you, Mr. Yun Xiao.”

Godd*mnit!

He played her!

Su Ruowan was certain that Yun Xiao was trying to make a fool out of her!

Way to put everyone on the edge. With nobody objecting to it and Mr. Yun Xiao giving his stamp of approval, Su Ruowan was naturally going to perform at the premiere of the theme song taking the center stage. She became the envy of everyone with this glory.

The trainees and production team, who did not understand the meaning behind Shen Xi’s words, thought the remark was nothing but a joke. It was a bad joke though.

Those who caught the hint would not take it as banter. The mentors were able to read between the lines and had their own opinions about it.

However, even if they had their opinions, Su Ruowan’s skills put her on top of all the trainees thus far. They did not want to comment too soon until someone caught up to her.

Everyone was envious of Su Ruowan to get the lead role to the theme song, but it came as no surprise to them as she earned it.

Ye Weiyang was the most talked-about for turning the tide. The stunt of going from Group F to Group A was a highlight of the show.

She would definitely be the central focus of the show if the preview showed clips of her. Something to talk about made good TV. Ye Weiyang was not behind Su Ruowan in terms of stealing the spotlight.

Later, the trainees were performing the theme song on tape.

After the recording, Gu Yang the girl-group producer announced the new rules to the show. There would be 16 captaincies and these 16 trainees were to team up with other contestants to battle it out with other teams.

Group F no longer existed since all its members had advanced forth. Moving up was what the trainees had been looking forward to, and yet now that it happened, they were saddened by Group F’s removal.

Where was Mr. Yun Xiao going to be teaching now that Group F was no more? Would he be teaching every group just like the other mentors?

The info that they were itching to find out was not disclosed. They also had not seen Mr. Yun Xiao in the cafeteria during meals.

The boldest of the group, Han Yan went to ask Gu Yang and was told that Mr. Yun Xiao was gone. He would only be returning a day before the group match.

Even though Group F had forged ahead to other groups, they still hung out with their former groupmates rather than their current ones. They lost their appetite for dinner when they heard the news from Han Yan.

Mr. Yun Xiao might not be much of a talker, but he was dedicated to teaching them, so much so they were able to reverse their circumstances. They were sad to see him go.

Some people were happy while others were feeling the blues, albeit only Group F was plagued with the woes. The other groups were glad to see Mr. Yun Xiao scram and hoped he would never come back. Many with evil minds cussed him out under their breaths.

The happiest of them all was Su Ruowan. She belonged to the evil category and prayed for Yun Xiao to be hit by a car on his way out and be a mentor in hell for all she cared about.

After the evening practice, she received a text message from Su Muyan to come to his dormitory. While no one was watching, she quietly slipped away.

Although the mentors and trainees were aware that she and Su Muyan were siblings, they kept a distance as a mentor and student would in front of people to steer clear of unnecessary rumors.

“Muyan.” Su Ruowan was perked up to see him. The smile on her face bore clear signs of fatigue and forcefulness.

Su Muyan ushered her in and showed her a table full of her favorite snacks. He gently cried, “Hurry in.”

Sitting on a sofa, Su Ruowan held a bag of nuts in her hands. She did not open the wrapper, nor indulge in it as she appeared to have something on her mind.

Su Muyan knew Yun Xiao’s words must have taken hold of her. Heartbroken, he gazed at her. “Don’t take to heart whatever that Yun Xiao said today. What does he know?”