Chapter 30: Offering Both Hands with Composure and Sincerity

"To die before the mission is accomplished!"

Jin Li rarely felt the urge to speak, but she was startled to find that she couldn't find a microphone.

Lian Baozhi, sitting next to her, had one, but she held it tightly in her hands, not even sparing a glance in Jin Li's direction.

Jin Li looked at her several times, wanting to say something but hesitating. Finally, she shook her head, giving up on communicating with her, and instead looked toward the "Three Months of Spring" boy group to her left.

Gu Cheng was still sitting in the outermost seat, separated from Jin Li by only a small aisle. He was pressing one hand against his in-ear monitor, his arm resting on the table as he propped up his head. The visible lines of his muscles were firm and powerful as he listened intently to Ji Qinglian's critique.

As if sensing something, Gu Cheng turned slightly, his eyes meeting Jin Li's. He gave a slight nod toward her, as if asking: *Is something wrong?*

Jin Li made a gesture of speaking into a microphone.

Understanding immediately, Gu Cheng turned to his teammate; their captain was just picking up the microphone to speak.

Suddenly, a slender hand reached out. Yan Xingdong froze, watching helplessly as the microphone was snatched from his hand. As he followed the movement, his eyelid twitched.

Gu Cheng had handed the microphone over with incredible naturalness, ease, composure, and sincerity, using both hands.

*Good grief, he even used both hands???*

*When he snatches it from his own teammate, he just uses one hand, right?!*

Jin Li took the microphone and spoke directly: "It is evident that your team has had very little time to integrate. Many of you haven't fully mastered the choreography. However, I understand you; you were indeed in a rush.

But I still hope you can work harder and strive to learn the assigned dances.

Because once you debut, you will find that an artist's schedule is even busier than yours. They actually have even less time than you do to learn a single dance.

For example, if you have to run two variety shows tomorrow, with only 8 hours until the first schedule and 11 hours until the second, once you subtract the travel time, you might only have 5 hours to learn two dances. What will you do then?"

Ji Qinglian and the members of the boy group all nodded. It was true; the time given to artists to learn choreography was extremely short, and there was no room for dawdling.

If one lacked this capability, one shouldn't be an artist.

Jin Li continued: "Trainees with a weaker foundation must master the dance even more thoroughly. If others learn it in one hour, you take two; if that's not enough, take three, or even five... Subtracting time for eating and sleeping, devote all your energy to this.

Doing this is not just an accountability to the stage, but also to yourself and your teammates. No one wants to be the one holding others back, right?"

Jin Li lowered her head and looked at the notes she had written earlier.

"Also, I want to emphasize one point: trainees must act according to their own abilities. Do not choose a dance that is beyond your capacity just because 'I like it' or 'I feel like it.'

Doing so is not just torturing your teammates, but torturing yourself as well.

A stage is judged by its completeness. Everyone knows high-difficulty stages are explosive, but do you have the ability to execute it?

It is better to choose a stage you can complete, using a higher level of execution to give the audience a better performance. It is very hard to perform a stage well, but it is very easy to ruin one."

Jin Li put down her cue cards and looked up at the group, finally resting her gaze on a female trainee.

"Finally, I want to praise one person."

She paused and smiled. "No need to look around; Gong Jiajia, it's you.

Your performance had the highest level of completion among all your teammates. Both your dancing and your vocals were outstanding. I suggest you strive for the Center position next time."

As soon as these words were spoken, there was an uproar among the trainees both on and off the stage.

During long performances, mentors' critiques were usually formulaic, as if using the same template.

But Jin Li's critique was different; the trainees could feel her sincerity.

More importantly, the content was explosive!

She had directly called someone out, encouraging Gong Jiajia to fight for the Center!

*Fight! Fight! Fight!!!*

After finishing, Jin Li quickly handed the microphone to Gu Cheng. Gu Cheng took it with both hands and then handed it to his captain with one hand.

Yan Xingdong raised an eyebrow slightly, looking at Gu Cheng with a half-smile. He gave a little wave of his hand, signaling—*I won't critique, do as you please.*

Gu Cheng took the microphone back and said a few simple words on behalf of the group: "I think Senior Jin Li is right; one must act according to their ability.

I believe everyone has heard the saying: 'A person of worth possesses self-awareness.' If you push yourself too hard, it is better to take a step back and choose a stage that better suits your abilities. Also..."

He paused and looked at Gong Jiajia, a hint of a smile in his eyes.

"I saw that your initial stage rating was a C, but in so many performances today, you have completely reached the level of an A in my mind. Since you have the ability, why not strive for more?"

"Wow!" The female trainees below the stage grew excited once again.

*Love it, love it! This is getting interesting!*

...

Time passed quietly, and it was now ten o'clock at night. Unsurprisingly, Jin Li felt a bit dizzy.

She was wearing makeup, including blush.

But her face was so pale that even the blush couldn't hide it.

Gu Cheng noticed and looked at Jin Li frequently, feeling somewhat worried.

Even Lian Baozhi noticed Jin Li's physical condition, muttering under her breath, "If your health is bad, just leave. Why stay here to fight for someone's livelihood?"

Suddenly, her eyes lit up as she thought of a good idea.

Jin Li wasn't paying attention to Lian Baozhi. After feeling her condition worsen, although she looked unwell on the outside, she was very calm on the inside.

She lowered her head and took out the cue cards she had prepared in advance. These were cards she had brought in from the outside, and the staff had not checked them.

She flipped through them and found a card with a math problem written on it.

Jin Li then pulled out a blank cue card, twirled her black pen, and forced herself to stay focused to solve the problem!

In a noisy environment, it is not easy to concentrate.

However, once Jin Li activated her [Half the Effort, Twice the Result] state, her mental strength would spontaneously concentrate, allowing her to immerse herself entirely in solving the problem.

The clamorous sounds grew further and further away. Jin Li felt as if the world had fallen silent. Many numbers and symbols flashed before her eyes, waiting for her to pluck them and find the correct answer.

Suddenly, a noisy voice and a strong shaking motion pulled Jin Li out of her own world.

Looking up, she saw Lian Baozhi holding a microphone, looking at her with a face full of worry.

"Teacher Jin Li, you look quite pale. You've been keeping your head down; why don't you go back and rest first?"

Her voice echoed across the entire stage.

Only then did Lian Baozhi realize with a "shock" that the microphone was still on. She hurriedly tried to find the off button, but after several attempts, she couldn't find it.

In the next second, Jin Li's voice drifted through, sounding dazed and distracted.

"Huh? I'm fine. I was just thinking about what six cubed is. There's a problem that needs to be solved by working backward using the quadratic formula."

Gu Cheng had a microphone in his hand, and hearing this, he instinctively replied, "Six cubed? That's 216. It's easy to do mentally."

Jin Li turned to look at him and replied calmly, "Oh, so it's 216. Then its—"

Suddenly, a booming echo rang out.

The on-site director could no longer listen. Unable to bear it any longer, he cut the lines to all the microphones.

In a perfectly good talent show, what on earth were they discussing?

And the worst part was, they were actually able to keep the discussion going?

Where was the dignity of this grand survival show!

Goodnight~

(End of Chapter)