novelraw Chapter 23 The First Meeting of the Two Little Ones
Chapter 23 The First Meeting of the Two Little Ones
She paused, her gaze shifting from the mixing console to Jiang Yan's face. "I've been with SM for almost fifteen years, and I've worked with Lee Soo-man on hundreds of projects, big and small. He's the kind of person who never listens to what others say; he only listens to the finished product."
"Your name is already on Tiffany's solo album, and the entire production department is watching. This time, I'm entrusting you with the final review of the mastering of Red Velvet's subsequent batches and the music video MR. It's not to test you, but to let you accumulate the project experience that others would take three to five years to accumulate as quickly as possible."
"Once Tiffany's promotional period ends and the feedback data for this mini-album comes out, you'll have two impressive works in hand. At that point, you can choose whichever path you want to take in this industry."
As soon as she finished speaking, Tiffany, who was standing next to her, gently stirred the ice cubes in her glass with a straw, making a soft sloshing sound. Once the stirring stopped, she stopped.
She looked up and picked up where Kenzie left off: "What you mean is, if you do a great job with the Red Velvet project, Lee Soo-man will notice you."
"His way of looking at people is different from others. He doesn't care how many days you've been with the company or how senior you are. He only cares whether what you bring can impress him."
She looked at Jiang Yan, a meaningful smile curving her lips, and said, word by word, "Moreover, once Lee Soo-man takes a liking to a producer, he'll just shower him with projects one after another. At that point, you won't just be busy with Ryder Baby anymore."
The statement wasn't explicitly stated, but all three people present understood what she meant.
Meanwhile, in the B1 training area.
The training area was quieter than upstairs. The doors to the practice rooms on both sides of the corridor had narrow glass windows, through which you could see the trainees training inside.
Lee Ji-na led Kim Min-jung through the corridor, explaining as they went: "The changing room is at the end of the corridor on the left. The restaurant is on the east side of B1. You can eat for free by swiping your access card. You are going to practice room number 3 now. The vocal trainees usually do basic vocal training here."
"A vocal practice room?" Kim Minjung was a little surprised and muttered to himself, "I thought it would be a dance practice room."
"Teacher Zhang Zhenying said you got the highest score in vocal performance. She suggested you familiarize yourself with the vocal training environment first. There are no teachers scheduling classes at this time, but there should be a few trainees practicing on their own. Just go in and get to know them."
Kim Minjung nodded and bowed, then gently pushed open the door.
The practice room wasn't large, but the walls covered with sound-absorbing cotton made the whole room exceptionally quiet.
An upright piano sat in the corner, and three girls sat by the window, talking quietly in Japanese.
Beside the piano, a girl with a low ponytail was looking down at sheet music. She looked up when she heard the door open.
Kim Minjung stood at the door, and when he finally saw the other person's face clearly, he was momentarily dazed.
All I could think about was how beautiful this senior was. When I came to my senses, I realized that staring at her was really impolite.
She quickly lowered her head, bowed deeply towards the direction of the room, and whispered "Hello, seniors." She didn't care whether they heard her or not, and she didn't dare to look at the three girls talking in Japanese. She quickly walked to the innermost corner.
She took off her coat, carefully folded it, and placed it on the ground. Then she sat down against the wall and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
She fumbled in her pocket for a while, pulled out her phone, quickly unlocked the screen, opened the chat window with Jiang Yan, and typed with slightly trembling fingers.
Oppa, I've arrived at practice room number 3.
There were a few senior colleagues there, and also a girl about my age who was incredibly beautiful. I didn't dare to speak.
As soon as she sent the message, she heard the soft sound of a book closing coming from the piano.
Liu Zhimin closed the sheet music, her fingertips unconsciously tracing the creases on the cover.
She has only been with SM for a short time.
She passed the weekend audition last week and just received her official temporary access pass yesterday. Today is her first time coming to the company for independent practice.
Yesterday, she spent the whole afternoon at the new trainee registration area, but there wasn't a single person she could talk to. She couldn't understand a word the three Japanese trainees were saying. She could only sit by the piano and turn the sheet music by herself. She sat there for almost an hour, and her hands and feet were getting a little stiff.
So when the door was pushed open and that small figure appeared in the doorway, she almost immediately raised her head.
She was a girl a little shorter than her, with soft hair that clung to her cheeks.
She paused for a moment when she entered, then hurriedly bowed, her voice barely audible, her face turning red instantly. Like a frightened little rabbit, she scurried to a corner to hide.
Liu Zhimin couldn't help but smile.
This is so cute!
She glanced at the small figure huddled in the corner, head down, frantically tapping on her phone, her shoulders tense as if afraid someone would notice her.
Liu Zhimin took a deep breath, picked up the two bottles of mineral water that were placed at her feet, and stood up.
Since they're all newcomers, no one is more experienced than the other.
Kim Minjung was staring at her phone, waiting for Kang Yeon's reply, when suddenly a pair of white canvas shoes appeared in her line of sight.
Her heart skipped a beat, and she cautiously raised her head.
The pretty girl from before was now standing in front of her, holding an unopened bottle of mineral water, with a slightly shy smile on her face.
Liu Zhimin spoke first, "Um... hello, my name is Liu Zhimin, I was born in April 2000, I just joined last week, I'm a newbie too."
Kim Minjung was surprised that the other person would take the initiative to talk to her, and she was even more surprised that the other person was also a newcomer.
She stood up hastily, "Yes! Yes! Hello!"
She quickly bowed, her voice twice as loud as before, "My name is Kim Min-jung, born on January 1st, 2001! I'm from Busan! I'm a weekend trainee!"
She finished speaking in one breath, and only then did she realize that she had spoken too fast, and her face flushed red again.
Liu Zhimin was amused by her appearance and handed her the bottled water in her hand: "Here you go, I bought an extra bottle. Don't be so nervous. This is my first time in the practice room too. I even got lost in the corridor yesterday."
Kim Minjung took the bottle of mineral water with both hands, his fingertips touching the cool bottle and the other person's equally cool fingertips.
She quickly lowered her head and whispered "thank you".
"Are you from the vocal department?" Liu Zhimin sat down next to her, maintaining a perfect distance—not too close to be intimidating, nor too far to seem distant. "I'm also from the vocal department. Teacher Zhang Zhenying told me to come here today to familiarize myself with the environment."
"Mmm!" Kim Minjung nodded vigorously, finally daring to look up at her. "Teacher Zhang also told me the same thing, saying that my vocal score would be higher and that I should practice my vocalization first."
"That's great!" Liu Zhimin's eyes lit up, and she clapped her hands and laughed. "We can practice together from now on. I'm all alone here, and I don't even have anyone to talk to. Those three seniors were speaking Japanese, and I couldn't understand a word."