Chapter 73 Part 2
Everything that happened inside was projected outside, and many who weren’t participating in the assessment were nearly brought to tears, seeing how detailed and picky Bai Ruogu was.
“Damn it, if I had known this, I would’ve gone in first,” some thought, their minds racing with anxiety.
The process moved quickly, and the scores were released as soon as the performance ended. Although Bai Ruogu’s explanations weren’t as detailed for those who came after the first participant, he didn’t skip anyone, offering each person a patient explanation.
In fact, the first participant’s performance should have been considered above average. For many of the others, Bai Ruogu often gave scores in the sixties, with seventies being rare.
Some people were initially unconvinced, intending to see how Bai Ruogu would explain their mistakes. But once he pointed out each error they had genuinely made, they wished they could dig a hole and hide.
It was embarrassing. Clearly, President Bai had been lenient.
In the eyes of the students, Bai Ruogu’s scores were always accurate—low, but once explained, they still felt grateful he had gone easy on them.
Outside, a man, nearly 1.9 meters tall, looked up at the screen.
His pupils were filled with countless jumping numbers, as if he were calculating something.
Due to some unexpected circumstances, the lineup had been disrupted, and everyone had to requeue.
Just as Su Mou moved to the back of the line, someone suddenly cut in at the front.
This caused the previously orderly space to erupt into chaos.
“What are you doing?!” someone shouted at the person who cut the line.
That person was none other than Zhang Qin, who had just contacted his father to pull some strings for him.
Hearing the commotion, Zhang Qin frowned and glanced back, his eyes filled with impatience.
“I have something urgent to attend to, so I need to finish the assessment early and leave.”
Some people believed him, while others, from similarly well-off backgrounds, retorted directly.
“If you have something to say, say it properly! Cutting in line?! Who would believe you have an urgent matter with that arrogant attitude?!”
Some lowered their heads, not daring to speak up, but Zhang Qin, clearly in the wrong, was more brazen than anyone.
“You’re sticking your nose in quite a lot, aren’t you? Can you even pass this assessment yourself with that attitude?”
As he spoke, he glanced at the person from head to toe with disdain, then turned back to look at the projection inside. As for his position in line, he wasn’t budging an inch, making everyone around him seethe with anger.
“Seriously?! In this day and age, you still run into people like this? Unbelievable!”
“Who knows, probably has some family connections.”
“Hmph, I don’t believe he can get past President Bai!”
Zhang Qin looked at his hands, indifferent. He glanced at his smart brain and noticed that his father’s message still hadn’t come through, which he found a bit strange.
Looking closer, he realized his signal was down to just one bar, and because it was so weak, the indicator turned red.
“What kind of crappy signal is this?!” he cursed angrily.
Who would have thought, just after he finished cursing, the last bar of signal disappeared, and the connection was lost completely.
Zhang Qin: …
He regretted it. Please, let the signal come back.
No matter how much the people around him muttered about his shamelessness, Zhang Qin shamelessly pretended not to hear and stood still.
Because there was only a wall separating the outer and inner areas, most people felt indignant and resentful, but no one dared to make a move.
When the indicator light on the outer area lit up, Zhang Qin casually straightened his collar and walked inside.
“Ugh, I hope he fails,” someone cursed.
At the end of the line, Su Mou was still staring at the projection, but his pupils flickered slightly.
At the same time, a message was sent to Zhang Qin’s smart device.
[The people over at Bai Luxi didn’t agree. You should tone it down later. Bai Ruogu is more difficult to deal with than we imagined. You can’t behave the way you used to.]
The sender was none other than Zhang Qin’s father.
The only difference was that the message had been sent nine minutes earlier, with the smart brain indicating a delay due to poor signal.
Su Mou, who had been gazing upward, blinked, his eyes clear, giving an innocent appearance.
Perhaps because of his family background, Zhang Qin carried himself with a sense of confidence. From the moment he entered, he was noticeably different from the other students.
However, from the way he walked, it was clear that Zhang Qin did not walk timidly like the others. His posture was straight, his back tall. Confidence was a good thing, but Zhang Qin’s confidence was excessive, easily mistaken for arrogance.
At first, the judges’ eyes lit up, but soon after, their brows furrowed tightly.
They scrutinized Zhang Qin from head to toe. Although the students’ uniforms were all custom-made, these judges, who had long dealt with important people, were not blind.
Although Zhang Qin’s uniform had the same design, its material was clearly superior, more fitted and refined.
Most of the judges’ impressions of him worsened slightly.
They did not appreciate students who tried to outsmart the system.
When Zhang Qin introduced himself, his attitude was upright, but he made the mistake of also mentioning his family background.
The judges’ pens paused, and their expressions varied.
Who in the room wasn’t perceptive enough to understand what this meant?
Some began to entertain thoughts of currying favor, but none dared to show it openly.
From the moment Bai Ruogu heard Zhang Qin’s name, he tossed his pen aside, leaned back in his chair, and watched him with a faint smile.
Zhang Qin’s previously steady heart wavered under that smile.
He flexed his wrist, his head feeling slightly dizzy. Though he steadied himself, his heart was pounding.
Did his father manage to handle this matter?
He exhaled deeply, forcing a smile as he walked toward the stage.
Even though he was nervous, years of indulged behavior had made him walk with an exaggerated swagger.
When he finally took his stance, the music started.
Zhang Qin’s skills were beyond bad—completely disastrous. He couldn’t even perform the most basic moves correctly, and anything more complicated nearly caused him to fall.
There was no beauty in his performance. In fact, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that even a child with only a few days of practice could have danced better than him.
Several straightforward judges drew multiple crosses on their papers, shaking their heads in frustration, anger flashing in their eyes.
The translation of the sentence is:
Which stage of the screening process went wrong? How can just anyone be let in?!
They were aware that many of the students had no prior experience, but after the training, most could at least perform passably.
Zhang Qin didn’t seem to have any mental issues, so it could only be his attitude that was the problem.
As the music ended, the judges began to score him.
Since the minimum score was 15, most judges gave him between 30 and 40. A few who were either kind-hearted or eager to curry favor gave him scores in the sixties, making his final total less embarrassing.
With the exception of Bai Ruogu, the average score came out to exactly 50.
There was a commotion outside, some even bursting into laughter, most of them enjoying his misfortune.
“He deserved that, totally deserved it!”
At this moment, someone noticed something unusual. Pointing to the projection, they spoke loudly.
“Why hasn’t President Bai given his score yet?”
Hearing this, the people nearby also noticed the oddity.
“Yeah, and I just realized—didn’t President Bai stop taking notes from the start? He’s just been sitting there, smiling the whole time.”
“Wait a minute!” someone panicked, “Isn’t he just going to let him pass directly?”
“Shut up! Don’t say things like that!”
“But now that you mention it, I’m starting to worry too. President Bai holds 50% of the decision-making power. If he gives Zhang Qin a score of over 70, doesn’t that mean he’ll pass?!”
“Damn! Could it be? That would be too disgusting!”
“Well, what can be done? Xingsu was truly under President Bai’s total control. If President Bai wanted to support someone, it was just a matter of a single word. Just get over it. Xingsu was already transparent and fair enough to other companies…”
“Hey, I just felt uncomfortable. Even if President Bai wanted to support someone, I wouldn’t mind if it was someone high-level and high-quality.”
“Come on, if it was really supporting a high-level and high-quality one, wouldn’t that be expected?”
“Hey!”
When Zhang Qin learned about his score, he said it was impossible not to be anxious. But just as people outside were saying, there was still hope until Bai Ruogu announced the results.
He took a deep breath, turned his gaze to Bai Ruogu, and unconsciously clenched his palm, holding onto the last glimmer of hope.
What if his dad had managed to pull some strings for him?
In his view, Bai Ruogu’s smile became increasingly inscrutable. He entered the final score on the display screen and chose to release it amidst everyone’s expectations.
【0】!!
A huge number appeared on the screen, and in Zhang Qin’s shock, the average score plummeted until it finally stabilized at “25.”
【25】!! The lowest score ever recorded.
Everyone remained still, clearly shocked. Zhang Qin was taken aback at first, and then a surge of anger welled up inside him.
He quickly stepped forward, snatched the microphone from a nearby staff member, and loudly questioned Bai Ruogu, glaring at him.
“I want to ask President Bai why I received a zero score?!”
Facing the aggressive young man, Bai Ruogu remained very calm. He didn’t even lift his eyelids, leaned back in his chair, and spoke in a somewhat hoarse, tired voice.
“Don’t you know why?” His voice wasn’t loud, and his rhythm was slow, but his words made Zhang Qin’s heart sink.
“Sir… What are you talking about?”
Bai Ruogu smiled faintly, picked up a glass of water from the table, and took a sip.
“Let’s talk about your overall strength. From the first move, there were obvious mistakes. In the second second, your legs…”
Although there were no records, Bai Ruogu could clearly recall every single move Zhang Qin had made.
Bai Ruogu took his time analyzing each step, criticizing Zhang Qin until he was utterly embarrassed.
Zhang Qin went from anger to shame, wishing he could leave right then and there.
Bai Ruogu pressed his temple, his eyelashes drooping. “Tell me, what about you deserved a score from me in this area?”
Zhang Qin was speechless. Bai Ruogu continued, “Regarding your attire, I felt you showed a lack of respect for everyone… hence the zero score…”
When he finally got to the part about personal impressions, Bai Ruogu finally raised his head, looking directly at Zhang Qin.
“I had mentioned directly before that under special circumstances, I would generally give a score of 15. But your attempt to bribe me and pull connections made me look down on your level.”
At the mention of the word “bribe,” everyone was shocked, and many were rendered speechless by Zhang Qin’s actions.
Bai Ruogu chuckled softly, and when he lowered his gaze, he had a unique beauty.
“You can bribe me, that’s not a problem, but your conditions simply didn’t impress me. A business deal worth one billion… Sorry, that’s not enough.”
At that moment, the secretary also sent over the organized documents. Bai Ruogu opened them and smiled even deeper.
“Not only did you attempt to bribe me, but your usual training was also lacking. You often stayed out late and didn’t return at night. It’s no wonder your performance was like this…”
He swiped the screen and turned to the next page, his gaze momentarily flickering at the information displayed.
“Wait a minute, there’s someone else who stayed out late like you… B2? Let’s wait until he comes in and deal with him together.”