Chapter 24

Li Haili, standing beside her, felt somewhat helpless. Although she was glad that the relationship between Minjing and her oppa had improved, she was at a loss for words seeing Minjing's troubled expression these days.

In fact, although Jiang Minjing didn't know what her oppa was planning, she really wanted to do something for Li Haili. Perhaps it was due to the days they spent together; she, like Li Haili, had seen things she hadn't seen before, which made her so concerned.

"o(︶︿︶)o Sigh!"

Jiang Minjing sighed and fell onto the side of the sofa, looking utterly drained.

Seeing her state, Li Haili carefully thought for a moment, and suddenly an idea struck her. A figure that perfectly matched all of Minjing's criteria except for age appeared in her mind.

"I've got it, I've got it, I know someone!" Li Haili suddenly pulled Jiang Minjing up, looking genuinely excited as if she had found the right person.

Jiang Minjing sat up and asked excitedly, "Who?"

...

CCM (CoreCentensMedia), a subsidiary of the large Asian entertainment company MnetMedia (M-net), with its largest shareholder being the Korean CJ Group, mainly handles entertainment management and artist training.

This year, like many other companies, CCM also had a girl group debut plan, though the members had not yet been announced online.

At 3 PM, after a week of intense evaluations, the final selection for the new girl group was decided based on comprehensive performance in various aspects.

In the largest practice room on the second floor of CCM, over twenty young and beautiful girls gathered together, looking somewhat nervous as they waited for the president, Mr. Jin Guangzhu, who was sitting not far away, to announce the final list.

As the saying goes, "Ten years of hard work behind the scenes for one minute on stage," but some people can't even get that one minute. The trainees have been practicing hard for so many years, all for the chance to debut.

Although the opportunity has come, whether they can seize it is not entirely up to them.

The bald president, holding a list and sitting by the wall, began to read out the names under the tense gaze of everyone.

"The selection for the new girl group is over. After multiple evaluations and the comprehensive performance during the training period, as well as the evaluations from the teachers, the final five selected are..."

At this point, the bald president paused, as if to build suspense. The girls indeed became more nervous, their bodies stiffening and their breathing quickening.

Although the company had been talking about a new group for a long time, the plan only truly began this year. The final week of evaluations was intense, and now the results were finally about to be announced.

Seeing the nervousness of the trainees, the bald president looked quite satisfied. He then straightened his face and announced, "Park Ji-yeon, Han Eun-jung, Park Hyo-min, Lee Ji-ah, Yang Ji-won!"

"Wow~~!"

"Ah, I'm selected??"

"Wow!"

"Ugh!"

In an instant, the practice room was in chaos. The five selected girls were either shouting in excitement or in disbelief.

As for those not selected, some were completely stunned, some had pale faces, some were silently crying, and some older girls were completely broken, sobbing uncontrollably.

This is the reality of entertainment companies. Although it's not as brutal as "one general's success is built on the bones of ten thousand," failure means almost losing the future.

A very real issue is that no company launches new talent every year, and even if they do, it's not always a girl group.

To paraphrase a line from "Infernal Affairs," where the undercover cop Chen Yongren says to Inspector Wong, "Three years, then another three years, then another three years, it's been almost ten years, boss!!"

In the entertainment industry, this "three years, then another three years" can also apply. One failure means waiting another three years, sometimes even longer. How much time do these girls have to wait?

"Alright, the selection is over. The five I just mentioned will stay, and the rest can take a two-day break. You've all worked hard during this period!" The bald president's expression didn't change much; he had seen such scenes many times.

Under the comfort of the teachers, the other trainees slowly left the practice room.

Among them was a cute girl with a bob cut, wearing a blue hoodie and black sweatpants, standing at just over 1.5 meters tall. She followed the group of trainees toward the stairwell, feeling somewhat dejected and lost.

"Think.you.own.whatever.land.you.land.on

Earth.is.just.a.dead.thing.you.can.claim……"

The ringtone of "Colors of the Wind" from the Disney animated film "Pocahontas," which won the 68th Academy Award for Best Original Song, rang from the pocket of this cute girl. Standing in the stairwell, she moved to the side to let the others pass and answered the call.

Hearing the plea from her friend of the same age, the cute girl, though very reluctant, finally replied weakly, "Alright, contact me the day after tomorrow!"

"By the way, how did the selection go today? Did you get selected?" The voice on the phone asked with some anticipation.

The cute girl sighed and replied dejectedly, "No, maybe I won't have the chance anymore."

...

February 11th, three days before Valentine's Day. Many couples were already looking forward to this day, especially men, who always have some special hopes for special occasions.

"At this time, one should carry 'happiness' to protect personal safety!"

Li Huanle, who had just finished washing up, was sitting at the table eating bread and milk, daydreaming.

But upon reflection, last year's Valentine's Day, he was also like any other couple, going on dates, exchanging chocolates, gifts, having dinner, watching movies... and so on.

Unfortunately, this year he didn't have the time or the opportunity to celebrate the holiday. Looking at the clock on the wall, it was already 9 AM, and Li Huanle quickened his pace.

The reason Li Huanle was still at home today was not because he was lazy, but because his plan was about to be put into action.

He had originally planned to wait a bit longer, but now, full of motivation, he wasn't afraid of small setbacks. Even if this plan failed, it wouldn't cause much impact. He had many backup plans, and realistically, the initial plan had no risk of failure.

In the grand plan Li Huanle had constructed in his mind, the first step was to become famous, no matter how famous, but to get in front of people and be recognized.

Li Huanle's first goal was to become a web celebrity.

A "web celebrity" generally refers to someone who becomes popular due to a certain event or behavior in real life or online.

Their popularity is often due to a certain trait being amplified by the internet, aligning with the public's aesthetic, entertainment, stimulation, voyeurism, imagination, and spectator psychology, leading to their rise as a "web celebrity."

In reality, this was the simplest and most efficient method for Li Huanle. If not for his terrible singing, he might have already implemented his plan.

So his plan started now, and he needed help. In his plan, Li Huanle would plagiarize three songs from his memory and upload them as self-shot videos online. Of course, he also needed to do some online promotion, which he had already asked a friend to help with.

The three plagiarized songs included two that were particularly special, not officially released but very popular, and one that was officially released. This three-pronged approach was Li Huanle's plan.

Page AD starts

Page AD ends