After dropping out of school, I chose to join a girls' band.

"Stop...stop talking."

Li hope's voice was barely audible, and her face was already so red it looked like it was about to bleed. She looked away uncomfortably, as if she couldn't bear to listen any longer.

——————Performance in progress——————

"How are we doing now?" Yue asked after the performance.

After checking his phone, Su Shi said, "Not bad, around 26th place. If we keep this up, making it to the preliminary rounds shouldn't be a problem."

"Huh? Were we that high?" Yue was quite surprised when she heard the news, not expecting that they could achieve such a high ranking.

"It's probably because our performance at the beach was uploaded online and quite a few people saw it," Ai Yin said, showing the video on her phone.

Yue leaned closer and glanced at the video on Ai Yin's phone, but her expression froze instantly the next second, her lips twitching slightly: "Uh..."

The video title boldly proclaims: "A paranormal event occurred during the band's performance, and the keyboardist collapsed on the spot."

Yue sighed and rubbed her forehead, saying with a wry smile, "I feel like we're heading further and further down the path of becoming a comedy band..."

Just then, Xiaodeng, who had been sitting quietly, suddenly took out her notebook and said softly, "The lyrics... are finished." She opened the notebook and showed it to everyone.

Lixi, who had been lazily listening to everyone's chatter, immediately perked up upon hearing this. Her eyes instantly became focused, and she seemed to come back to life as she leaned over, quickly taking the notebook from Xiaodeng's hand and beginning to carefully browse its contents.

Yue leaned closer curiously, her gaze sweeping over the beginning of the lyrics, before slowly reading the title: "Duan...Cheng...Shan?"

----------

After Ave Mujica's performance, the backstage area was filled with a quiet yet busy atmosphere.

As usual, Mikasa handed over a bottle of water, smiling at Toyokawa Shoko: "Shoko~ The performance went very well."

Xiangzi took the water, nodded slightly, and simply replied, "Thank you."

After hearing Xiangzi's thanks, a brief look of helplessness flashed across Chu Hua's face.

Yawata Kairin walked over from the side, breaking the silence: "16 people. We're riding high right now. Shall we add a few more shows?"

"Eh? Hai Zi! Don't talk about such scary things!" Yutenji Nyanmu, who had been playing the drums all along, let out a scream, her face full of protest, and she pounded her wrist, which was sore from the performance. "I almost broke my hand on stage, please spare me!"

Peach put down her guitar, lightly swung her arms, and walked over to interject, "Aren't we leaving some time for the joint performance?"

Shoko, who originally wanted to add some more performances, hesitated for a moment after hearing Momoko's words, then sighed slightly and turned to Ms. Sakura, who was standing aside watching the show. Her tone returned to its usual calm and decisiveness: "Ms. Sakura, could you please arrange for us to have some time to participate in the joint performance next week?"

Sakura Sakura wore a meaningful smile, as if she had anticipated Shoko's decision. She nodded slightly and waved her hand casually: "Leave it to me, Shoko."

With Sakura's approval, Yutenji Nyanmu finally breathed a sigh of relief and let out a long sigh: "Thank goodness, we don't have to add any more scenes!"

Climax Stage: Chapter 74 The Noisy Joint Live Meeting

In Circle's enormous conference room, representatives from various bands sat around a long table, creating a somewhat tense atmosphere.

Kasumi Toyama and Arisa Ichigaya of Popipa, Ran Mitake and Mocha Aoba of Afterglow, Kokoro Tsurumaki and Misaki Okuzawa of Hello Happy World, Aya Maruyama and Chisato of Pastel*Palettes, Sayo Hikawa and Yukina of Roselia, CHU2 and pareo of RAISE A SUILEN, Rui Yashio and Mashiro Kurata of Morfonica, Tsuki Hinasaki and Akari Takamatsu of Mygo, and Shoko Toyokawa and Momoko Kurosawa of Ave Mujica, as representatives of each band, are preparing for the upcoming joint live meeting at the conference table.

Meanwhile, the other members of each band were chatting together offstage, which could be considered a social gathering.

Initially, everyone wanted all the band members to attend the meeting, but after searching the entire circle, they couldn't find enough tables to hold the meeting. So, they had to choose the most reliable members from each band to attend.

Ms. Marina, sitting in the corner, seemed somewhat uneasy.

Her gaze kept sweeping towards Sakura Sakura beside her, and an indescribable worry welled up in her heart.

"Are you sure... there's no problem?" Marina asked in a low voice, her brows furrowing slightly.

Sakura Sakura didn't pay much attention at first, and smiled slightly, thinking that Marina was worried about the performance permits for several commercial bands.

She responded casually, "What's wrong? Is it because of the performance permit? Don't worry, I've already talked to the company behind them, and the permit has been issued."

However, Marina shook her head, shifting her gaze from the flickering screen to the wall of the conference room. She reached out and gently touched it, her voice tinged with obvious worry: "No... what I'm worried about is... can Circle withstand this? Do we really not need to prepare a renovation plan in advance? Should we also expand the staff lounge a bit?"

Sakura Sakura was taken aback, clearly not expecting Marina to say something like that. Her brow furrowed slightly, and she looked at her with some confusion: "...What?"

Marina sighed upon seeing this, tapped the wall lightly with her fingers, and said with concern, "I'm worried about whether Circle can withstand the combined live performance of nine bands this time."

"You mean... these girls' performances might dismantle Circle?" Sakura Sakura asked half-jokingly, her tone tinged with a hint of teasing.

Marina didn't laugh; instead, she nodded even more seriously, without the slightest hint of joking.

"No...it couldn't have really been demolished, could it?" Sakura Sakura looked at the other person's serious expression and couldn't help but feel a little guilty. She hadn't heard about these things before.

Marina muttered to herself, "Should we contact the Tsurumaki Group's construction team beforehand? Hopefully, we won't have to rush to the site for emergency repairs..."

--------------

Compared to the discussions among the adults, the girls' band's conversation was much more lively and relaxed.

At one end of the conference table, Kasumi Toyama, the pioneer of girl bands Poppin'Party, stood up, beaming with a smile, and said enthusiastically to everyone, "Thank you all for coming today!"

Her voice was clear and powerful, full of undeniable youthful energy, and it seemed that every word she spoke could infect the atmosphere of the entire conference room.

However, before she could finish speaking, Ichigaya Arisa immediately stood up and added, "The main purpose of today's meeting is to hold Circle's third joint live, and this consultation meeting is being held for this purpose."

"I hope this collaborative live performance will be another dazzling and exciting show!" Kasumi continued to smile, gesturing with her hands, her eyes revealing her burning anticipation.

Arisa Ichigaya immediately covered her face, revealing a habitual expression, and began to explain to everyone as Kasumi's translator, "Anyway... Kasumi's idea is that this performance should make everyone happy and able to smile."

After Kasumi finished speaking, Kokoro immediately chimed in, her face beaming with a bright smile, and said enthusiastically, "Yeah! As expected, the purpose of a live show is to make everyone smile!" Her radiant smile seemed to light up the entire room, filled with joy and energy.

"It's wonderful that you brought smiles to everyone's faces." Aya Maruyama of Pastel*Palettes nodded slightly and smiled in agreement when she heard Kokoro's words.

Hikawa Saya frowned slightly and said calmly, "However, this topic is too broad. We need a more specific goal, at least to give the band some clear direction."

"It doesn't matter, Roselia's songs are the best," Yuki said, crossing her arms.

Ran Mitake remained silent in a corner of the meeting room, but after hearing Saya's words, she calmly replied, "I don't care, as long as we can play our Afterglow songs."

"Oh~" Aoba Mocha chimed in, echoing her own green plum.

CHU2, as always, was full of confidence, arms crossed, a smug smile on his lips, "Hmph! Ras will of course play songs that can change the world, a live performance is meant to shock the whole world!"

"As expected of CHU2!" Fangirl par fin cold ba wu zg four sulfur up eo, her eyes shining, faithfully echoing her lead singer's performance.

"Um... that..." Mashiro was clearly not very good at this kind of situation.

In contrast, Rui Yashio appeared quite calm, gently picking up her teacup and taking a leisurely sip. "Isn't this a complete mess?"

"Everyone's conversation has gone astray..." Xiaodeng said softly, looking at the topic that was gradually veering off course.

Toyokawa Shoko sat quietly at the table, her gaze sweeping over the group of seniors, her heart filled with doubt and confusion.

She couldn't help but ask herself, "Are these seniors usually like this? Is it really necessary for them to participate in this joint performance?"

“It’s been a while… a long time.” On the other side, Yue calmly picked up her teacup, took a small sip, and seemed unaffected by the noise. Instead, she showed a nostalgic expression.

“Yes…it feels like it’s been a long time since we’ve had such a lively atmosphere.” Sitting next to her, the doctor, Momoko Kurosawa, quietly picked up her teacup, her tone tinged with emotion.

The two couldn't help but recall the joint performance meetings they had held at Shengxiang, where the discussions were no better than they were now.

Climax Stage: Chapter Seventy-Five - Outside the Meeting

Circle's first joint discussion is still ongoing.

But it seems like it won't end anytime soon.

However, compared to these "serious" topics, the other band members sitting below seemed to be having a much more lively and casual discussion.

"Ugh... Why can't I sit up here with Aya? That way I could be next to my sister!!" Hikawa Hina's voice stood out amidst the lively discussion. She rested her chin on her hands, her tone full of complaints and resentment.

"Hina... if I remember correctly, you and Ms. Saya are renting a place together right now, right?" Maya said after hearing Hina's words.

"Yeah~ I sleep with my sister every night~ My sister's body is so soft!" Ms. Hikawa Hina had no awareness of being an idol, with her signature innocent smile on her face and her tone full of "admiration" for Saya.

Standing behind Hina, Eve Wakamiya looked serious, holding a small notebook in one hand and writing down Hina's words furiously: "This...is this the Japanese Bushido?"

Meanwhile, upon hearing Hina's words, Aya Udagawa immediately turned excitedly to look at her older sister, Tomoe Udagawa, her voice full of anticipation and enthusiasm: "Sister! I want to sleep with you too!"

Upon hearing his sister's request, Tomoe Udagawa didn't hesitate at all. He immediately gave her a thumbs up and said cheerfully, "Ah! Ako, come sleep with me tonight!"

"Hina-chan... are these words really okay?" Maya looked at Hina helplessly, clearly worried about her "idol consciousness" in making these remarks.

"Hmm? No problem~" Hina replied nonchalantly, as if she had no idea what explosive topic she had brought up, still with that innocent expression.

At the conference table, Hikawa Sayo suddenly felt a strange chill down her spine, as if someone was talking about her.

She frowned slightly, turned her head and glanced behind her, where she saw Hina, Maya and a few others huddled together, discussing something in hushed tones.

However, Yutenji Nyanmu, who was sitting not far away, was clearly not so calm.

As a popular live streamer, Yutenji Meow's keen sense allowed her to immediately capture the explosive conversation between Hina and Ako.

She was instantly excited: "If I could expose these conversations, the viewership would explode!" Images of her livestream going viral began to flash through her mind, along with various trending hashtags—"Idol Sisters' Private Interactions Exposed!", "Mysterious Idol's Scandalous Gossip!"

However, seeing Misumi Hatsuka and Hachiman Kairin beside her, she had no chance of taking out her phone to take a picture, so she could only silently shed tears in her heart.

Miao Meng sighed helplessly, silently weeping in her heart: "This was such a perfect opportunity for gossip, and I couldn't even take a picture of it... This is practically the same as killing me."

The moment she imagined becoming a sensation slipped away quietly once again.

"What... happened to her?" Shiina Ritsuki poked Hailin and asked.

"Nothing... I guess I just feel like the opportunity has slipped away again," Hailing replied.

Then, she looked at Shiina Tatsuki with great interest, "Tatsuki-kun, how are you doing now?"

"What?" Shiina Tatsuki didn't hear Hailin's words at first. "Ah...you mean the band? They're currently writing a new song."

“No…” Hai Ling shook her head, the interest in her eyes not diminishing in the slightest, “I mean your relationship with that Miss Yue.”

"Huh?" Li hope's face froze instantly, a hint of panic flashing in his eyes.

She clearly hadn't expected Hailing to notice her relationship with Yue, especially since she and Yue had barely interacted in the conference room today.

"Hmm?" Miss Misaki Hatsuka noticed something was wrong and gradually turned her attention to this side as well.

Lixi's face gradually flushed, and she asked in a low voice, "How...how did you figure that out?"

Hai Ling crossed her arms, a knowing glint in her eyes, and raised an eyebrow slightly. "Your eyesight is what it is, isn't it? You've seen the situation on the conference table several times just now."

"Well... I might have been looking at the little lamp too!" Li hope hurriedly retorted in a low voice, her voice revealing a hint of panic.

Hai Ling gently shook her head, the same calm smile still on her lips, and said lightly, "No, Li Xi. The way you usually look at Gao Songdeng is completely different from how you looked at them just now."

“You’re being too obvious,” Hai Ling added softly, with a hint of teasing.

"When did this happen?" Hai Ling's tone remained relaxed, yet carried an undeniable hint of curiosity and concern.