Over the next two days, aside from sleeping in a nearby hotel and eating out, Hui Yin spent almost all of her waking moments practicing how to dance with Liu Jun.
It was a good thing that her salary from the PV had finally arrived, because the little money Hui Yin had saved was starting to run out. The living expenses on Shanghai was much more expensive than that of Beijing, since it was the largest city in China.
"Come on! Roll your hips—no, not like that...what the heck is that? Why do you look like a beheaded chicken?"
"Stomp your feet...not like a soldier, more like...a light tap of your toes. Ahhh, Mao Ye, you're killing me."
"Kneel to the floor, then abruptly stand up. Flip your hair like a sexy goddess...you call that sexy? You ate a strand of your hair! Spit it out!"
Hui Yin collapsed and rolled to the floor, groaning in exhaustion.
"Liu Jun, tell me the truth. You actually hate me, don't you?" she grumbled.
Liu Jun crouched next to her and lightly bumped her head with a water bottle.
"I'm the one who's supposed to ask you that question. You're killing me, Mao Ye. Do you really not know how to dance? Or are you just pretending? No one can be that bad."
Hui Yin raised her head and looked at the expansive mirror lining the walls of the dance studio.
It showed a girl wearing a crop top hoodie and high-waist leggings lying on the floor, with a man above her offering a water bottle. Liu Jun had practiced the same dance moves with her, but unlike Hui Yin, he didn't even look the least bit tired.
He was wiping what little sweat he had with a tiny towel, looking for all the world like what he had just done were some simple warm-up exercises.
"I am that bad," Hui Yin replied with a gloomy expression. "Do I really dance like a beheaded chicken?"
Liu Jun laughed.
"Even a chicken can become a phoenix if you put in the right amount of effort. Come on, let's practice again. I'm sure you'll do it right this time."
Hui Yin knew that he was only encouraging her, but she nevertheless picked herself up from the ground. Since Gao Mei was the trainee that stayed the longest in her agency, it would only mean that she was better than the other girls at dancing.
If Hui Yin couldn't master this, then she might as well give up the role.
She sighed.
"Okay, let's do it all over again."
...
"Spread your legs apart, put your hands on your knees...Mao Ye, are the Huns invading China again? Are you holding up the last line of defense? Why is your expression so scary?"
"Twirl! Twirl like a ballerina! One, two, three...I knew you were going to trip, but I didn't expect it to be so soon."
As Hui Yin dragged herself out of Liu Jun's penthouse that day, she really couldn't help but think that this popular male singer had sadomasochistic tendencies.
Immersing herself to become Gao Mei was turning out to be much harder than she thought. Since Liu Jun was leaving tomorrow, she could only depend on herself to improve.