Chapter 21: The Original Idols—HOT

The sky was about to rain, the mother was about to marry, and someone was about to leave, which could not be stopped. The C-class trainee withdrawal incident quickly subsided. Life had to go on, and training continued. Those who did not want to be the next to withdraw could only work hard to train and strive to enter B-class as soon as possible.

The start of school was approaching, but Li Yunzai's training load had not decreased. Every day, he had to do stretching exercises, shaking exercises, and train in vocals and instruments (piano, guitar). His schedule was packed, and he could only sleep for five hours a day. Five hours of sleep was really too little for Li Yunzai. Generally, a 10-year-old child needs to sleep for eight hours, but Li Yunzai was three hours less than the average.

Despite the lack of sleep, he was always energetic and never slacked off during training. In dance and vocal training, consistency and perseverance were key, and Li Yunzai did very well in this regard, always completing his tasks with quality and quantity. In instrument training, Li Yunzai had a solid foundation, far better than the other C-class trainees. After all, the years of piano and guitar practice were not in vain.

Days passed one by one, and before they knew it, it was the end of August.

The entire summer, Li Yunzai felt as if he were in a dream. He came to the audition with Park Soo-yeon, and she was selected, while he became a trainee. Then came a month and a half of intense training. Everything seemed so unreal, yet it was all true.

On August 30th, Li Yunzai was still sweating profusely during training. The next day was the start of school, and there would be less time for training. If he only relied on the evenings, Li Yunzai didn't know when he would be able to enter A-class, or even B-class.

While Li Yunzai was deeply engrossed in training, Teacher Han walked up to him, his eyes filled with admiration. After all, no teacher dislikes a diligent and hardworking student.

"Li Yunzai, stop for a moment. Director Yu called you to go upstairs!" Teacher Han said.

Li Yunzai was taken aback and asked, "Why did Teacher Yu call me?!" It was no wonder Li Yunzai was surprised. Since he joined S.M. Entertainment, he had only met Yu Yong-jin on the first day, and hadn't seen him for the past month and a half. Yu Yong-jin hadn't called him up either, as if he had forgotten about him. Li Yunzai had been so busy with training that he had no time to think about other things.

"How should I know! If he called you, just go! Hurry up!" Teacher Han urged. Li Yunzai wiped the sweat from his forehead, said "Oh," and ran out of the practice room.

This was Li Yunzai's second time going to the third floor. Normally, only A-class trainees were allowed to go upstairs. B-class and C-class trainees were not allowed without permission, or they would be warned. The second floor was for artist trainees, the third floor for recording studios, and the fourth floor for offices. Each floor was a "key area" of the company and could not be disturbed. Too many people would cause disruptions, especially for the artists.

When Li Yunzai reached the second floor, he heard music playing, probably from an artist or a soon-to-debut trainee in training. He couldn't help but think that BoA was also in one of the practice rooms.

After hesitating for a few seconds, he thought about going to take a look, but Li Yunzai decided against it and went straight to the third floor. The third floor was much quieter than the second. Li Yunzai went to the third recording studio, which was Yu Yong-jin's dedicated room. He knocked on the door and entered, seeing Yu Yong-jin busy at the recording console, and the six members of HOT were not in the studio.

"Teacher, what did you call me for?" Li Yunzai asked as he approached Yu Yong-jin.

"Oh... you're here. Here, this is your transfer file. School starts tomorrow, and the company has already arranged the transfer for you and BoA!" Yu Yong-jin handed Li Yunzai a file bag from the side of the recording console, "Take this file bag to the principal's office the day after tomorrow!"

Li Yunzai took the file bag and said, "Oh," then asked, "Teacher, are BoA and I in the same school?"

"Of course... being in the same school will help you support each other. This school is the closest to Apgujeong and the most suitable for both of you! However, BoA won't go often; she will just be registered there. She will mainly take classes from the teachers the company hires for her, and only go to school for exams at the end of the term," Yu Yong-jin smiled and said.

Li Yunzai felt a bit disappointed, thinking he wouldn't see BoA every day. He then asked, "Teacher, what's the name of the school, and how do we get there? By bus?"

Yu Yong-jin patted his head and said, "Look at me, I almost forgot about this. The school is called Cheongdam Elementary School, located in Cheongdam-dong next to Apgujeong. The environment is quite nice. You can take any bus to Cheongdam-dong from the bus stop 100 meters in front of the company every morning, and they all pass by Cheongdam Elementary School!"

Li Yunzai nodded, the school was close to Apgujeong, and the transportation was convenient.

After finishing the main topic, Yu Yong-jin began to inquire about Li Yunzai's training, "How has the past month and a half been? Can you handle the training load arranged by the C-class teachers?"

"It's okay, except that the dance training is very physically demanding. The vocal and instrument training are manageable," Li Yunzai answered honestly.

"Hmm... dance training is indeed very physically demanding, especially for someone your age. In a few years, you'll get used to it. Starting the day after tomorrow, your training will be scheduled in the evenings because you'll have classes during the day. Dance training will be reduced to four hours, one hour for vocals, and one hour for instruments.

Teacher Han praised your performance, saying you work very hard. Keep up this spirit, and with persistence and effort, you will debut one day!"

Li Yunzai nodded and said "Oh," but he wasn't very enthusiastic. Among the groups about to debut, Moon Hee-joon was already 20 years old. Thinking about his own age, only 10, the age difference was almost double. To debut, it would take at least six or seven years, so Li Yunzai wasn't very interested in debuting.

"Did you have a conflict with Yoo Seung-ho in the cafeteria last time?"

Li Yunzai was stunned, looking at Yu Yong-jin, wondering how he found out.

Seeing Li Yunzai's surprised and puzzled expression, Yu Yong-jin chuckled, "How could we not know about such things? Fortunately, it was just a minor incident, and Moon Hee-joon, Yoo Seung-ho, and the others stopped it. In the future, you need to learn to be more tactful in the company. Don't confront seniors head-on; you'll only end up hurting yourself and gaining nothing.

I know you're not happy, but the company strictly prohibits fighting. If you receive three warnings, you'll be expelled. If you want to beat him, do it on stage with superior dance, singing, and instrumental skills!"

Listening to Yu Yong-jin's advice, Li Yunzai nodded heavily. Moon Hee-joon had also told him the same thing.

Yu Yong-jin patted Li Yunzai's shoulder and smiled, "Work hard. When you enter A-class, I'll personally teach you how to write lyrics and compose music. You still have a lot to learn! Also, you have a day off tomorrow. Go home tonight; I know you haven't been back for over a month!"

Li Yunzai's face lit up with surprise. Writing lyrics and composing music were profound skills, not just about hard work but also about talent. Yu Yong-jin usually didn't teach others, so this promise made Li Yunzai feel very excited. At the same time, when Yu Yong-jin mentioned home, Li Yunzai couldn't help but miss it. He had originally thought he could go home every week, but he had only made a phone call.

Yu Yong-jin had his own reasons. Given Li Yunzai's young age, he had enough time to learn these skills. Moreover, Li Yunzai showed both diligence and talent. Yu Yong-jin wanted to cultivate a versatile singer who could write lyrics, compose music, sing, and dance, someone who could support S.M. Entertainment in the future. The thought of nurturing such a talented singer made him eager.

After a short stay in Yu Yong-jin's recording studio, Li Yunzai left. Coincidentally, as he walked to the second-floor staircase, he met Lee Min-woo coming up from the first floor.

"Hey, Yunzai, what are you doing upstairs?!" Lee Min-woo asked curiously.

"Getting my transfer file from the teacher!" Li Yunzai waved the file bag and explained.

"Oh... just in time, come with me! I'll introduce you to some seniors!" Lee Min-woo, without waiting for a response, led Li Yunzai to the second-floor practice room.

The first practice room was empty, and in the second, Li Yunzai saw a familiar figure. BoA was training, and she seemed to be working even harder than him.

"This is BoA's practice room. The next one is ours, and the fourth one is Yoo Jin's, Seung-hee's, and Soo-young's. I almost forgot, you only know Yoo Jin, not Seung-hee and Soo-young. I'll introduce them to you later. The fifth one is the practice room of our seniors, HOT," Lee Min-woo introduced.

Li Yunzai nodded. Although Lee Min-woo was about the same age as the members of HOT, he always referred to them as seniors, showing his respect.

"Today, all five members of HOT are in the practice room. Since you're here, I'll introduce you. I think Hyun-joon will like you; you two look so much alike, with your chubby cheeks and long bangs!" Lee Min-woo said excitedly.

A few seconds later, Lee Min-woo led Li Yunzai into HOT's practice room. Li Yunzai was impressed. No wonder they were the company's top artists; the spacious and bright practice room was much better than the basement.

Looking at the people sitting on the floor, there were many of them. Besides Lee Min-woo, there were Moon Hee-joon, Yoo Seung-ho, Yoo Jin, and two girls he didn't recognize, as well as the five members of HOT.

"Seniors, I'm Li Yunzai, please take care of me!" Li Yunzai bowed deeply, especially to HOT, whom he had only seen on posters before. He had never met them in person during his one and a half months at the company.

"Yunzai, what are you doing here?!" Yoo Jin waved him over.

"I came to get my transfer file, and I met Min-woo on the way, so he brought me here," Li Yunzai sat down next to Yoo Jin and explained.

"Yunzai, let me introduce you. These five are your seniors, HOT. You should know them, right!" Yoo Jin smiled.

Li Yunzai was about to stand up and bow again, but Ahn Ji-hwan waved his hand, "Don't be so formal. We're all from the same company, just be relaxed!"

Yoo Jin continued, "These two are in my group, Choi Seung-hee and Yoo Soo-young!" Li Yunzai greeted them.

"Can't believe our company would take in such a young trainee. The training is so intense; it must be tough for you!" Jang Woo-hyuk looked at Li Yunzai, seeing his wet T-shirt, and gave him an admiring look. Although Li Yunzai was young, the wet T-shirt showed he didn't take training lightly.

"Hehe... it's my duty!" Li Yunzai scratched his head and laughed. Getting Jang Woo-hyuk's praise made him feel both happy and excited.

"Hyun-joon, don't you think Yunzai looks like you? Look at those chubby cheeks and the bangs; he's like a younger version of you!" Choi Seung-hee pinched Li Yunzai's cheeks, excitedly.

"Hey, you're right!" Jang Woo-hyuk, Ahn Ji-hwan, Lee Jae-won, and An Seung-ho all looked back and forth between Li Yunzai and Moon Hee-joon, trying to find similarities.

Moon Hee-joon chuckled, "Looking like me isn't bad! You'll grow up to be just as handsome!"

"Ha...!" The others wanted to give him the middle finger. Among them, Moon Hee-joon wasn't the most handsome, yet he was always so confident.

Chatting with HOT up close, Li Yunzai felt a bit nervous. On TV, they were so charismatic, having become Korea's top male group in less than two years. Although a strong group like Sechs Kies tried to surpass them, they were always held back by HOT. The gap between the two groups was like an insurmountable chasm.

Li Yunzai realized that even big stars could be so approachable and friendly.

"Yunzai, relax. Don't treat us like big stars; just call us 'bro.' We're actually quite easy to get along with!" Ahn Ji-hwan saw Li Yunzai's nervousness and chuckled.

"Bro Ji, Bro Hyun-joon, Bro Woo-hyuk, Bro Jae-won, Bro Seung-ho!" Li Yunzai called them one by one, showing his respect.

"Ah, that sounds much better. Always calling us 'seniors' makes us feel old!" Moon Hee-joon ran his hand through his hair and smiled.

In this relaxed atmosphere, Li Yunzai quickly融入了他们的小组。作为公司目前唯一的出道组合，以及两个即将出道的组合，能够与他们建立良好的关系，Li Yunzai觉得将来可以从他们那里学到很多东西。

2000年之前，是娱乐业的黄金时期，唱片动辄卖到百万张，热门的甚至能卖到数百万张。同样在这个时间段出道的歌手，往往都是多才多艺的，经过公司精心挑选和培养，无论是唱功、舞蹈，样样精通，还会作词作曲，每一个都是实力派，被21世纪出道的艺人称为——偶像元祖。

最终，Li Yunzai没有忘记Park Soo-yeon的嘱托，向HOT的每个成员索要了签名，最后Moon Hee-joon还送了他一张签名专辑。Li Yunzai带着五张海报和签名专辑高兴地下楼去了。要问海报是哪里来的，在艺人的练习室里，虽然不是什么都有，但海报是必备的。

下楼后，Li Yunzai先用公司的公用电话打了个电话回家，得知Li Yunzai要回来的消息，朴尚海、崔智雅一家自然是非常高兴。崔智雅还一个劲地催促朴尚海去市场买菜。

挂了电话，Li Yunzai又回到了练习室，一直待到下午5点半才离开，这是他这一个半月来最早离开的一次。到宿舍洗漱了一下，背上背包，把签名专辑放进了背包里，拿着海报登上了回家的火车。

当天晚上，最高兴的莫过于Park Soo-yeon了。签名海报、签名专辑，这是每个歌迷梦寐以求的东西，这回，Park Soo-yeon又有了在同学们面前炫耀的资本。

晚上，Park Soo-yean赖在Li Yunzai的阁楼里，一个劲地要他讲在S.M公司遇到的一些新鲜事儿。Li Yunzai无奈，只好挑了一些无关紧要的事情讲了一些，还将Moon Hee-joon、Yoo Jin等两个新团即将出道的消息也一并告诉了她。

第二天，Li Yunzai哪儿都没去，一直在家里和Park Soo-yeon、魔球玩了一天，直到下午六点，吃过晚餐之后，在朴尚海三人的护送下，Li Yunzai再次踏上了返回首尔的火车。相比于在安阳的悠闲，Li Yunzai现在逐渐喜欢上了在练习室里流汗的感觉。

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