Chapter 55: The Counterattack of the Reborn Supporting Woman, Part 6

Having spent a lifetime in ancient times, she was a master of the zither and chess, though perhaps not quite as skilled as she was in painting and calligraphy. Composing and arranging music came naturally to her. Yet the melodies she had mastered were authentically ancient in style, not exactly the kind that would appeal to the masses.

Fortunately, this was a talent showcase. She demonstrated her abilities in singing, playing instruments, and composing, and passed the evaluation smoothly with an A. The other three from her company also made it through. This time, the show had no gender restrictions, so both men and women participated; their company’s group included two women and one man.

The girl’s name was Qin Chang, sharing the same surname as the chairman of Hengtian Entertainment. She was only seventeen. The other boy was just twenty, a promising singer-dancer trainee named Huang Yu.

“Senior Sister,” Qin Chang called sweetly as she sat down beside Mu Yin, having also passed the preliminary selection with a B.

“Yes.” Mu Yin nodded, continuing to watch the others’ evaluations, mainly to get a sense of her future teammates and competitors.

As this was the first episode, even the trainees didn’t know what to expect next; they only knew they’d likely be grouped to perform musical theater on stage.

When everyone’s evaluations were over, the next phase was announced. For some, it was a bit of a pitfall—they had to begin with singing and dancing practice for the theme song.

Unlike pure singing and dancing variety shows that only divided participants by grade, this one also separated them by specialty. The issue was, regardless of specialty, everyone had to take part in the theme song’s singing and dancing—an ordeal for some.

Mu Yin herself had chosen the performance track, confident in her singing but less so in acting, having only attended some training classes. She felt it wasn’t enough.

Such programs offered the opportunity to be guided by professional singers and actors as mentors. This time, most of the invited guests were accomplished artists, which Mu Yin looked forward to.

Practicing the shining steps of the theme song’s dance, she moved with ease, mastering the routine with her own flair after just a few repetitions. Dance tracks are generally lively and rhythmic, and “Shine” was no exception.

The lyrics of “Shine” told the story of someone becoming a radiant presence by embracing their own strengths.

Mu Yin was among the first to learn the routine, and she could perform the entire song without losing her breath, displaying effortless poise. However, the mentor pointed out her flaw: her performance lacked emotion, and her expression was too cold.

Mu Yin couldn’t fully understand this critique, and the mentor could offer no concrete guidance, only advising her to practice more. The acting mentor added that while singing was different from acting, songs, too, were a form of interpretation—just like delivering lines, they required genuine feeling.

Returning to her seat, she listened to the others sing and realized that, while they couldn’t perform the whole song flawlessly as she could, their renditions evoked something different.

It was like when she performed her own compositions—because she created them herself, they carried her emotions, something she could grasp well. Clearly, with “Shine,” she hadn’t captured the emotion it required.

Emotion might not always be apparent, but in singing or playing music, it becomes obvious—that, perhaps, is the magic of music.

Afterward, Mu Yin went to practice in the recording studio. During filming, all participants stayed in dorms arranged by the program—a common practice in today’s variety shows. The facilities were complete: dance studios, stages, recording booths. Mu Yin rehearsed her song over and over, gradually recalling something important.

She remembered the feeling when she first discovered her awakened supernatural ability. Initially, she believed her power was useless, until by chance she realized its potential. In that moment, she was truly elated—there are no useless abilities, only the wrong ways of using them.

The next time Mu Yin was called on by the mentor, her singing was filled with emotion—an air of confidence and a yearning to soar, perfectly matching the song’s spirit.

Qin Chang advanced smoothly to Class A. Though she had entered the original singer group by adapting songs from her previous world, her skills were impressive; she shone in the theme song practice and advanced successfully.

She was aiming for the center position in the theme song, but soon realized that the former idol Zhang Muran, a comatose figure in the original story, seemed like her nemesis—first stealing her agent, and now possibly outshining her on the variety show.

Thus, Qin Chang shifted her wariness from the original female lead to Mu Yin, though she appeared to be a sweet, obedient junior, sidling up to Mu Yin for advice.

Mu Yin knew she would need to keep Qin Chang underfoot, but felt that paying her too much heed would be counterproductive. She only needed to do her best. Therefore, she didn’t reject Qin Chang’s approach, even answering her questions when asked.

At the same time, she was searching for the original heroine’s whereabouts. When it came to disrupting the plot, every story required a different method. Though there was romance, the main thread here was career advancement, and not necessarily the kind belonging to the transmigrator. In fact, the book’s title was what concerned her most.

“The Counterattack of the Transmigrated Supporting Actress” had three main points. Two related to identity—the supporting actress from another world—and the third was the counterattack itself. Whom did she need to surpass? Naturally, the original female lead. In this story, the transmigrator was technically the real protagonist, but since the plot required her to counterattack the original lead, there had to be one.

As long as the original heroine was stronger than the supporting one, the latter couldn’t counterattack, and if she couldn’t, she wouldn’t complete her mission. Mu Yin’s goal would be achieved without necessarily winning the top singer or actress titles. Yes, this was the shortcut Mu Yin thought of.

Beyond that, she realized that neither the top singer, actress, nor TV star titles were unique. Even if she won them, the transmigrator could too—would that count as completing the plot? If so, even winning wouldn’t matter for her. So she devised another strategy, which led her to this plan.