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Once Sheng Jiaoyang had entered the training room, she discreetly searched for Mei Niu with her eyes. After failing to find her, Sheng Jiaoyang felt a little disappointed.
Although, she wasn’t the only disappointed person. Most of the other girls had also been eager to see Lina, their idol, and had rushed straight to the training room. But, after arriving, the person who entered the room was the trainer arranged by the event organisers.
“Where’s Lina? Isn’t Lina coming here too?” someone asked anxiously.
“Lina will be here in the afternoon,” the trainer said. “I’m your personal trainer. This lesson is mainly going to focus on adjusting your posture. Now, everyone, please stand by the handrail and face the mirror.”
The contestants were somewhat disappointed, but with cameras all around them, they didn’t dare show too much dissatisfaction.
“Straighten your body, stick out your chest, suck in your stomach…”
“Make sure your shoulders are back and down. The neck, the back, and the heels must form one straight line…”
“Stretch your neck upwards to make it resemble the graceful arc of a swan’s neck. Look straight ahead…”
Without any of the contestants noticing, the morning slowly passed by.
After practising how to walk on a runway, and nearly an hour of exercise, everyone was ravenous. When the personal trainer finally announced that the class was finished, they all breathed out a sigh of relief.
Once their lunch break was over, the contestants finally got to see Lina again.
Lina had already changed her clothes. She was now wearing a black playsuit with only one sleeve that was off the shoulder, and her hair was styled in a low ponytail. Her appearance was simple, but her aura was extremely imposing; all in the vicinity were able to feel it even though she was merely standing still. She was like a piece of beautiful scenery that attracted everyone’s attention.
Some of the girls had already started squealing in excitement.
After a brief period of excitement, Sheng Jiaoyang calmed down, and she looked at Lina as she stood across the room, her eyes filled with joy.
“I’m not here to talk about nonsense. Firstly, I’ll explain the main aspects that you should remember when walking. Now, I’ll need you all stand in a ‘v’ formation.”
Lina started directing the contestants, and when they were poised per her requirements, she began to pass on her knowledge about a model’s gait in an unhurried tone. At the same time, she would demonstrate the actions she talked about by walking back and forth a few times inside of the contestants’ ‘v’ formation.
“Well done. I’ve now taught you everything I know, but as for how much of it you understand, that depends on you. Next, I want each of you to demonstrate what I’ve taught you so that I can gauge how well you were able to comprehend it.” Lina’s eyes roved over the contestants before stopping on someone. “Jiaojiao, I want you to try walking, applying what I’ve just taught you. Walk to me from your current position.”
Everyone immediately glared at Sheng Jiaoyang, their eyes filled with envy. Lina hadn’t asked for anyone’s name. How could she not only remember this person, but also call out to her with such an intimate tone?!
Those who were overthinking things were naturally unaware that Lina was only calling Sheng Jiaoyang so intimately because she didn’t know the girl’s surname. The only thing she remembered was that the girl’s name was the same as Little Sun’s, and that her walk resembled her younger self.
“Take off your glasses. During training, you have to get used to not wearing them. If you can’t see clearly, then you’ll need to get contact lenses,” Lina warned with a raised chin.
Sheng Jiaoyang lowered her eyes. Since everyone was watching her, she had no alternative but to remove her glasses, causing the people around her to become blurry.
Judging Mei Niu’s location by memory, she walked over with confident steps; like she was walking on a stage.
“Wow, her way of walking is very similar to Lina’s!” someone whispered.
Once Sheng Jiaoyang neared Mei Niu, and she was able to make out her expression clearly, she stopped walking. Although she was still a little bit shorter than Mei Niu, she was at least closer than she was before her accident. This was a superbly refreshing feeling as previously, whenever they were standing, she’d always had to crane her neck to look up at Mei Niu.
Sheng Jiaoyang looked at the cool and elegant Lina, and slightly hunching her shoulders, she whispered, “Mei Niu, I missed you.”
Lina was stunned for a moment, then her eyes suddenly hardened. She then fiercely glared at the girl before her, and a sentence spoken in fluent Italian poured out of her mouth.
Everyone thought it was strange. Why would Lina, without any warning, abruptly start speaking in a language that they couldn’t understand.
But, while others might not understand, it was different for Sheng Jiaoyang. She didn’t have a talent for comprehending other languages, but after living for so long in Europe, she could understand a few of the languages regularly used.
As Sheng Jiaoyang listened to Lina’s outburst of swear words, she felt happy.
When translated, Mei Niu was saying, “Who are you, you bitch?!”
No one would think that this is what her words would mean when translated. In the eyes of the general public, Lina was a beautiful and graceful goddess high above such crude behaviour. However, Sheng Jiaoyang knew that it was just a facade. The real Mei Niu was a tomboy who was capable of beating any male at swearing ever since she was little.
It seemed as if what Sheng Jiaoyang had said had irritated Mei Niu.
Yet, it was only logical after encountering such a thing. Who would ever guess that the stranger standing in front of them could be their close friend? It’s natural that a person’s first reaction would be to think that she had a problem.
“I’m…”
Knock knock!
A quick rap on the door interrupted what she was about to say before a blonde woman pushed the door open and walked in.
It was Lina’s assistant, Sudan.
Sudan rushed to Lina and whispered something in her ear. After hearing the first sentence, Lina’s expression immediately changed, and before Sudan could finish speaking, Lina had already turned around and quickly left the training room.
“What’s going on?” Many people wondered, feeling utterly baffled.
Sheng Jiaoyang’s expression had also changed once she’d heard what Sudan had said. Unfortunately, Mei Niu’s mother had been involved in an accident, and she was now being sent to the hospital for emergency treatment.
What had happened?
For Sheng Jiaoyang, Mei Niu’s mother was no stranger. After she’d returned to China, Aunty Lin had sent her a handmade perfume sachet and a special pigment powder that was custom matched to her. Her impression of Aunty Lin was that she was a particularly beautiful and soft-spoken woman, filled with understanding and intelligence. Her body projected an aura that was graceful and delicate; every expression she made was like a work of art that made people want to treasure them.
Although Lin Na was a person with a fierce temper, Aunt Lin’s personality was extremely amiable. Sheng Jiaoyang had never found anyone who was gentler than Aunt Lin.
“I suppose we won’t receive any more guidance from Lina now,” said Luo Yi, the captain of short dress team.
“Why?”
“What did Lina’s assistant say?”
“Did you understand what she said?”
Everyone suddenly surrounded Luo Yi and bombarded her with questions.
Luo Yi waved her hands. “I heard enough to get a rough idea, but I understood the first part of what was said. She said that Lina’s mother was in an accident.”
“Eeh? No wonder Lina’s expression was so dark.”
“You’re so awesome, Captain! I didn’t know what she was talking about at all, yet you were actually able to understand.”
“Then, did you understand what Lina said earlier?” someone asked as they recalled the indecipherable words that had previously burst out of Lina’s mouth.
“She wasn’t speaking in English, so I don’t know what she said,” Luo Yi responded with a shrug.
“Jiaojiao, I saw you smiling when Lina was speaking to you. Did you understand what she said?” When Xiao Yang pointed this out, everyone focused their attention on Sheng Jiaoyang.
“Who are you?”
“Hey, how can you be like that when Yangbao asked you nicely?? If you don’t want to answer, then fine. But, what’s with your uncalled for rudeness?” Before Xiao Yang could respond, Xiao Yang’s partner had jumped out to defend her friend from suffering an injustice.
“That’s right!”
“She only mentioned Lina’s name. What’s so great about it!?”
All of a sudden, Sheng Jiaoyang became the target of everyone’s condemnation.
Sheng Jiaoyang sneered, “Didn’t all of you want to know what Lina was saying? After translating what Lina said, that’s what she asked me.”
Uh…
The training room instantly fell silent.
Everyone looked at each other in dismay. Obviously, nobody had expected the truth to be like this.
“You didn’t translate what she said wrongly, right?” someone questioned.
Sheng Jiaoyang swept her gaze over the person who’d spoken, then turned and walked to the handrail attached to the wall, ignoring everyone in the room.
People who were aloof and had status were naturally those with a moral character, while those who were aloof but without status were usually unsociable. It was clear to the other contestants that Sheng Jiaoyang belonged to the latter category.
Because of this, everyone consciously avoided her. In other words; Sheng Jiaoyang was isolated.
Not long after, the event organiser entered the room.
“Today’s training will end here. A situation has occurred within Lina’s family, so she has already rushed to the airport. In a moment, all of you will need to collect your belongings and follow the crew to the bus. From there, you will be transported to the place where you’ll be living for the duration of the competition.”
“Will Lina return?” Sheng Jiaoyang couldn't help but ask.
“That isn’t something you need to worry about. If she returns, then you will, of course, be informed at that time.”
Sheng Jiaoyang lowered her gaze, closed her mouth, and didn’t say anything more.
After getting on the bus, Sheng Jiaoyang found an unoccupied seat by a window and closed her eyes as soon as she sat down.
“Hi!” a person with a chirpy voice said as they sat beside Sheng Jiaoyang.
Sheng Jiaoyang opened her eyes and glanced at the person next to her, only to see that it was the captain of the other team, Luo Yi. She was looking at her with a smile on her face.
“I believe what you said before.” Luo Yi winked at Sheng Jiaoyang.
“And?” Sheng Jiaoyang raised an eyebrow in speculation.
Luo Yi looked around cautiously before lowering her voice and asking, “Can you tell me what you said to Lina that made her react that way?”
Sheng Jiaoyang also lowered her voice as she answered, but there was a hint of ridicule in her tone, “What do you think I said?”
“Uhh…” Luo Yi choked on her words. Then, pouting like a spoiled child, she said, “Don’t be like that! I want us to be friends!”
Sheng Jiaoyang lightly laughed and said, “I told her that I know her secret.”
“What secret?” Luo Yi’s eyes widened.
“It’s a secret,” Sheng Jiaoyang answered mysteriously as she winked at Luo Yi, refusing to say anything else.
Luo Yi was extremely curious, but no matter how much she begged, the other girl wouldn’t budge at all.
In order to discover this secret, even after stepping off the bus, Luo Yi followed closely behind Sheng Jiaoyang.
“When did their relationship become so good?”
“Luo Yi is the captain of our team. How can she get so close to a member of the opposing team?”
“You’re right!”
The other contestants discreetly discussed between themselves.
Pa Pa!
The sound of hands clapping for attention came from the front of the group.
The contestants looked over in succession and saw that the entrance of the villa had opened, revealing a person inside.
The figure wasn’t all that tall, and he was wearing casual clothes suited to a young person. As he leisurely stood by the door frame, he firmly grasped everyone’s gaze.
“Oh, my! It’s Zhou Yiyan!”
“So handsome! He really suits my taste!”
“My Prince!”
All the contestants wore expressions of starry-eyed infatuation.
Standing amongst a group of women who were all exclaiming in admiration and praise, Sheng Jiaoyang felt slightly ashamed to be near such love-struck fools.
But, it had apparently been forgotten that it was impossible for her to be so infatuated.
This was due to the belief that even if you hadn’t reached the point of obsession, in this whole world, who wouldn’t at least be smitten? Yet for Sheng Jiaoyang, she didn’t feel her heart skip a beat or find it difficult to keep her gaze steady at all when she was around Zhuo Yiyan. This was because he just wasn’t someone she felt attracted to.
Zhuo Yiyan looked at the excited contestants, then spread both of his arms in front of his body as he smiled.
“Welcome ladies! This is where you’ll be living for the next two weeks. You can call it - The Supermodel House!”