Chapter 41: How Did You Dare?

"Speak plainly of the pros and cons, and may you rise steadily day by day."

These mere twelve characters expressed the expectations his master, Tong Qinglin, held for his disciple.

The entertainment industry is a giant dyeing vat; if one can preserve a bit of their original intent, that is naturally for the best.

Luo Mo, who was usually boisterous on the show, acting like a boss among the trainees and a military drill instructor in front of the trainees, bowed respectfully to the old man at this moment:

"Disciple will strictly follow your teachings."

The staff members recording this segment suddenly felt that, in truth, our Huaxia's ancient etiquette is truly pleasing to behold.

The things contained within it are difficult to express in words.

After chatting a few more sentences with his master and parents, the short ten-minute video call time was up.

After hanging up, Luo Mo left the small room and walked toward the main hall.

According to today's schedule, after the 100 trainees finished their calls with their families, the team formation for the second public performance would begin.

In the main hall, Jiang Ningxi and Shen Yinuo had arrived early, while the other three celebrity mentors had not yet reached the scene.

Shen Yinuo waved at Luo Mo, signaling for him to come over and chat for a bit.

The surrounding trainees, seeing the celebrity mentors being so enthusiastic toward Luo Mo, could not help but feel a bit envious.

Luo Mo walked to the side of the two women. Jiang Ningxi looked at him and said, "Luo Mo, you've finished your video call? Are your uncle and auntie doing well these years?"

And so the small talk began.

Jiang Ningxi had indeed met Luo Mo's parents, at school activities and parent-teacher meetings and the like.

Sometimes on rainy days, Luo Ba and Luo Ma would come to pick up Luo Mo, and they had even once given an umbrella to Jiang Ningxi, who was his desk mate.

"They're doing quite well. I just had a video call with my master, too," Luo Mo said.

"Ah? Master Tong appeared on the show?" Jiang Ningxi was somewhat surprised.

Luo Mo nodded and did not say much more.

Shen Yinuo listened from the side, observing the two with a scrutinizing gaze; she always felt that while the content of their conversation seemed very familiar, there appeared to be an invisible barrier between them.

"A bit strange," Shen Yinuo thought to herself.

As the trainees finished their video calls in batches, more and more people gathered in the hall.

By the time it was nearly nine o'clock, Wei Ran and Li Ge, those two celebrity mentors whose attire needed no waste of ink to describe, arrived at the scene.

Then, it was the turn of the imposing Xu Chujing to enter.

Only this time, the diva was holding a very fat Ragdoll cat in her arms.

It was obvious that this entrance was specially arranged by the show's production team and the film crew, counting as another advertisement for her new movie, "Cat Demon," on the show.

With ten minutes left before the official recording began, this incredibly fat Ragdoll cat quickly attracted the attention of the other four mentors and Luo Mo.

"Wow, it's so fat!" Shen Yinuo said with a giggle.

Because Xu Chujing herself had a mild allergy to cat fur, she did not hold the fat cat for long; seeing that Shen Yinuo liked it, she handed it to her.

That settled it; the two girl group idols could no longer concern themselves with other matters and began to focus on petting the cat.

Watching this Ragdoll, Luo Mo could not help but think of his own Baibaibai again.

It could not be said that they relied on each other for survival on Earth, but in the days spent holed up at home, this very clingy little female cat had accompanied him through countless lonely nights.

Looking at this Ragdoll cat, he ultimately could not resist reaching out to pet it twice.

As mentioned before, he had a very unique technique for petting cats; every time he started, Baibaibai would twist and turn comfortably on the sofa.

At such times, Luo Mo would deliberately stop, and only when Baibaibai stuck out her tongue to lick him, touched him lightly with her teeth, or pawed at him with her little fleshy paws would he continue.

"Still want more? If you want more, just say so; if you don't say it, how would I know you want it?" Luo Mo would say this every time.

Facts proved that he was indeed a top-tier master of cat-petting.

When Jiang Ningxi and Shen Yinuo touched the fat cat, it was somewhat indifferent.

Heh, foolish humans.

But as soon as Luo Mo started, it seemed to melt; its entire body went limp, collapsing into a ball of "cat pancake" in front of Shen Yinuo's chest.

It was as if it were comparing its softness to a certain part of Shen Yinuo.

Xu Chujing glanced in this direction and, watching Luo Mo's slender fingers glide over the fat cat, she suddenly trembled all over, her entire body tensing up as if an electric current had pierced through her in an instant!

In the blink of an eye, her legs went a bit numb.

The nightmare returned; she recalled once again those memories branded into her mind! She recalled those large hands that stroked the cat's body and petted it so earnestly.

This cat-petting technique made her want it.

At the same time, a nameless fire was Burning fiercely in her heart.

—How dare you pet it in front of me?

She felt that something inside her body was about to awaken.

Xu Chujing frowned and said to Shen Yinuo, "Xiao Shen, the recording is about to start; let me hold it."

Shen Yinuo responded and reluctantly returned the chubby fat cat to the diva Xu.

When this Ragdoll cat returned to Xu Chujing's arms, it even struggled for a moment.

Luo Mo's petting just now had been too comfortable, and it hadn't enjoyed enough yet.

And just as it struggled, Xu Chujing looked down at it with a sharp gaze.

—Hunting time!

"Meow meow meow?"

With pet telepathy, it immediately curled into a ball and obediently acted as a mascot.

Xu Chujing held the fat cat like this and glanced from afar at Luo Mo, who was standing beside Jiang Ningxi.

Luo Mo noticed the gaze, and the two's eyes met for only a moment before separating.

"Hm? Why do I feel like the look she gave me just now wasn't quite right?" Luo Mo thought.

"Why am I still feeling a bit of lingering fear?"

As expected of the Heavenly Queen known for having the number one aura in the entertainment industry, Luo Mo thought.

……..

……..

The recording of the program soon began as normal.

With the experience from the first public performance, this time it seemed more methodical.

However, the rules had undergone subtle changes again.

Wei Ran held the microphone and said: "According to the rules for this public performance, the captains of the three teams that won first place in their respective categories in the last public performance have the power to select members."

"However, the trainees they choose can refuse the team-up invitation from the captain."

"If refused, they cannot select other trainees to fill the vacancy."

Listening to this rule, Luo Mo said in his heart: "This is a bit interesting."

As the winning captain of the 【Original Stage】, he could exercise this power.

After announcing the rules, Xu Chujing held the fat Cat and said: "The requirements for this stage are stricter than the last one; every team must combine Singing and Dancing."

"At the same time, I personally hope that everyone can do more original work."

"This time, the original work is a themed creation, and the theme is only one word—【Righteousness】."

"If there are sufficiently excellent works, I will recommend them to the 【Cat Demon】 production crew in my personal capacity to serve as promotional songs or insert songs for the movie."

As soon as these words were spoken, the scene immediately erupted!

【Cat Demon】 is a top-tier major production!

If one could be chosen, that would definitely be a great thing.

This is beneficial for future development.

Compared to this, money is actually a minor matter.

Many trainees present are not short of money at home at all.

The current entertainment industry is filled with real and fake rich second generations.

Only Luo Mo, upon hearing this, was thinking in his heart: "Hmm? Then you should clearly state how much money you are offering as a reward."

Regarding this theme, he quickly decided on a track in his heart.

The movie 【Cat Demon】 is clearly centered around themes like acting chivalrously and upholding Righteousness, which is probably why this theme was set.

"Then, the three winning captains from before can step forward and start selecting people," the energetic Shen Yinuo said loudly.

Luo Mo, Shen Mingliu, and a trainee named Fang Zhihua stepped forward together.

Shen Mingliu directly chose Ji Kangdong and Meng Yangguang.

The three seed contestants from Xingshi Entertainment were banding together this time.

Luo Mo glanced at the crowd, smiled, and then slightly raised his volume: "Everyone, step forward!"

In an instant, including Tong Shu, the five trainees from the previous 【Anonymous】 team took a step forward in unison, as if by reflex.

(End of this chapter)