Volume One, Chapter Forty: The Filming of the Second Episode

Brilliant Star Entertainment Company.

“Dad, what do you think?” Li Jiang stood next to Li Gang, smiling broadly.

This time, things had gone rather well.

Chairman Li Gang looked at the reactions online, grinning from ear to ear. “Increase the activity of the hired commenters. Also, have Xu Kun continue to provoke things subtly.”

“Understood, I’ll handle it right away.” Li Jiang immediately left the office.

Li Gang’s gaze darkened as he looked at Jiang Yu singing on the screen. “You’ve offended me, let’s see how you survive in this industry.”

That’s just how the entertainment world is—offend the wrong backer and they’ll come after you with everything they’ve got.

No matter how famous a star you are, to them, you’re just a toy to break, a pawn to be discarded at will.

In a distant parallel world on the Blue Star, there was once a beloved actor who, after crossing a powerful figure, was falsely accused of soliciting prostitutes. Not only was he imprisoned for half a year, but his entire career was ruined overnight.

At Tangu Palace.

Jiang Yu stared at the comments section, the corners of his mouth twitching.

Goodness, this has gotten out of hand.

He’d been prepared for a wave of online attacks after singing “Appreciating Both the Elegant and the Popular,” but he hadn’t expected it to be even more frenzied than in his previous life.

“This is terrifying,” he couldn’t help but shudder.

“This isn’t even the worst of it,” Su Ling said, glancing at him. “You have a Weibo account, right? Go take a look.”

Jiang Yu opened Weibo.

Buzz, buzz, buzz—the notification sound was relentless.

“What’s going on!” Jiang Yu frowned. He’d never imagined he’d experience the so-called joy of 99+ notifications so soon.

“Ladies, we’ve found this kid’s Weibo—assemble!”

“Who do you think you are? You haven’t even debuted and you dare insult our idol? Get out of the entertainment industry.”

“I see it now, this kid is just riding on our idol’s popularity!”

“Exactly, people will do anything for fame these days.”

“You people are really something. Are you saying Jiang Yu’s singing isn’t any good? Now that’s real music. Compare it to your idols’ screeching—does that even count as singing?”

“How dare you insult our idol? She wrote songs with a 48-degree fever and practiced dancing with a comminuted fracture. Who are you to judge her?”

“Forty-eight degrees? Good grief, your idol was basically cooking his brain. No wonder he has fans like you.”

“Get off Senior Jiang Yu’s Weibo! If you want to worship your idol, do it somewhere else—stop embarrassing yourselves here!”

“Wow, I didn’t expect Jiang Yu to have the money to buy fake fans and whitewash himself. Ladies, we’ve spotted one of his fans, charge!”

In just one day, Jiang Yu’s followers had jumped from fifty thousand to two hundred thousand.

Of course, he knew these weren’t real fans—they just wanted easier access to insult him.

“This is insane,” Jiang Yu scratched his head.

“Now you know how scary it is. When you stood up to Xu Kun, I thought you were pretty bold,” Su Ling looked at him with a hint of amusement.

Jiang Yu’s lips curved into a slight smile. “Let them be. It’s not like it’s hurting me. Honestly, I enjoy seeing them get angry when there’s nothing they can do about me.”

“You really do have a calm attitude.” Su Ling gave him a searching look and, seeing that he truly didn’t care, her expression turned serious.

“I’ve already looked into things—this was all orchestrated by Brilliant Star Entertainment.”

“So it was them,” Jiang Yu sneered, saying no more.

“That’s it?” Su Ling was taken aback. “Don’t you have anything else to say?”

“Didn’t we already expect Brilliant Star to make a move?” Jiang Yu chuckled. “You and Xiaoyu didn’t seem worried when you arrived today, so I figured this wasn’t a big deal. Besides, I have my own plan.”

Su Muyu’s lips curled into a subtle smile at that.

“What plan?” Su Ling’s curiosity was piqued.

Jiang Yu shook his head, smiling mysteriously. “What else could it be? Singing, of course.”

“Singing? What song? Where are you going to sing?” Su Ling looked confused.

Jiang Yu just smiled. “On the ‘Idol: Two and a Half Years’ stage, naturally.”

“What song are you going to sing?” Su Ling pressed.

But Jiang Yu only smiled, revealing nothing.

Su Muyu stepped forward and took Su Ling’s hand. “Aunt, we should get going.”

...

“Argh! I hate it when people only tell half the story!”

On the drive back, Su Ling sat in the front passenger seat, utterly exasperated.

“Xiaoyu, aren’t you even a little curious about what song he’s going to sing?”

“Not really. We’ll find out when the show airs, won’t we?” Su Muyu replied, a faint smile on her lips as she drove.

Su Ling’s expression was serious. “That guy is full of surprises. Aren’t you worried he’ll stir up trouble?”

“Not at all. I’m here, aren’t I?”

“…Ugh, you two are really cut from the same cloth. Fine, don’t come to me if anything happens!”

Su Ling turned her head away, pouting, vowing to give her niece the silent treatment for the rest of the night.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yu updated two chapters on his novel’s website.

At the end, he left a note.

[Something came up tomorrow, taking two days off!]

Ignoring the indignant outcry from his dear readers, he fell straight into bed.

Because the second recording of “Idol: Two and a Half Years” was about to begin.

The next day, Jiang Yu once again checked in at the hotel arranged by the production team.

On the eve of the competition, there was an interview session, mainly to ask contestants about their creative experiences and the pressure of the competition during this period.

The first round of the show, split into two episodes, had eliminated sixteen contestants, leaving only twenty.

After the first show, those remaining had probably gained a better understanding of themselves, and the pressure was palpable.

“Brother Yu!”

In the interview room, Jiang Yu was resting in a corner when he suddenly heard someone call out to him.

He opened his eyes to see Guo Qiang and Liu Bin approaching.

Liu Bin looked excited. “Bro, you’ve been killing it these past two days!”

“Jiang Yu, you’re incredible!” Guo Qiang gave him a thumbs-up. “Everyone in the company is talking about you!”

Jiang Yu just smiled modestly. “It’s nothing, really.”

Show-off, Guo Qiang thought with a roll of his eyes.

Liu Bin didn’t mind. “Bro, the interview’s about to start. Aren’t you going to get your makeup done?”

“Like he needs it!” Guo Qiang said jealously. “Why do you look so good all the time? Look at these dark circles under my eyes—why don’t you have any?”

“Why should I?” Jiang Yu replied.

“Aren’t you writing songs, too? Aren’t you stressed? Look around you!”

Jiang Yu glanced around. He hadn’t noticed before, but now he saw that, besides himself, all the other contestants—even with their makeup—couldn’t hide their exhaustion.

Clearly, the past week of songwriting had been tough on everyone.

Jiang Yu was silent for a moment. “My mind works well; songwriting isn’t hard for me.”

...