Marry a female star at a bargain price

Chapter 281, Section 282: Moral blackmail – if you're going to blackmail someone, blackmail them big!
"Through countless mountains and rivers, through countless dark nights, I await the bright moon."

On the edge of dreams, the wind cannot extinguish them, and they never tire…

Lin Xiao arrived as soon as he was told.

In front of millions of viewers in the live stream, he picked up his guitar and started singing, switching between emotions quickly and smoothly.

Netizens were stunned.

Those who enjoy listening to music are quickly captivated by the melodious and powerful vocals. Those with a modicum of rationality, however, are left bewildered and confused by Lin Xiao's antics.

I can't understand it at all:

Just a moment ago it was quite touching, full of love for the motherland and hometown, how come it suddenly started singing?

Is this an Indian movie?!

However, no matter how puzzled or unbelievable netizens may be.

On the screen, Lin Xiao is holding a guitar, the camera is focused on him, and he sings earnestly and passionately.

Netizens gradually became engrossed in the story.

"The East is truly worthy; who is number one? Let us strive for perfection."
I faced north with unwavering resolve, and then, out of nowhere, a thunderclap...
Be prepared for this, and never back down once the race starts.
……

Dreams mingled with tears and salty sweat
We share the same world, and love transcends it—

The music and singing abruptly stopped.

In the middle of the screen, Lin Xiao suddenly stood up and bowed, leaving netizens completely stunned.

The comments section quickly sprang to life.

"No, it really is only half a song!"

"It sounds great!!"

"You can tell if someone is good or bad just by the first move they make!"

"I thought this song would be another love song like 'Love Like a Tide,' but I didn't expect it to be so grand. I love it!"

"Just kidding, I was just starting to get aroused, and you came?!"

"Finish singing!! I'm not kidding!!"

"I've finally heard Ma Yao sing! This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience!!"

"???"

The comments section was filled with madness.

However, Lin Xiao remained calm throughout the entire process on screen.

He stood up, remained silent, and then said, "Thank you everyone, goodbye!"

He only wrote six words, then held his wife Han Xixi's hand, and the couple bowed together to thousands of netizens.

Then, he quickly and efficiently shut down the live stream.

The live stream has ended!

Millions of netizens stared at the words on the screen, feeling as if the whole country was experiencing an electric shock, and were all completely stunned!
However, the live stream has indeed been shut down.

The screen was completely black, and it didn't look like the internet or power was off.

Everyone had complaints but nowhere to vent, and they all felt disgusted, like they had been constipated for half a month, feeling incredibly uncomfortable.

A large number of people were still immersed in the melody Lin Xiao had just played.

Although it only features simple guitar accompaniment.

But Lin Xiao's voice was steady and his pronunciation was clear. Combined with his righteous speech about loving his country and hometown, it inexplicably matched the mood of the song "Thousands of Mountains and Rivers".

The sense of immersion and the overall experience are fantastic!

However, this immersion and experience came to an abrupt end just as it was reaching its peak.

This has really made everyone incredibly anxious.

So, at noon, tens of millions of netizens had no appetite at all.

People instantly spread from Douyin to other major internet platforms, complaining, discussing, and even cursing. They were typing away on their phone screens until they were almost smoking. The frenzied emotions spread like a virus, with keywords such as "Lin Xiao's press conference," "Lin Xiao's new song," and "Lin Xiao resigns and bids farewell to his music creation career" appearing and dominating the entire internet.

All public resources have been squeezed out, and all social attention has been monopolized.

All of this happened just ten minutes after the press conference ended.

The popularity of Lin Xiao and Han Xixi has reached an unprecedented peak, even surpassing the peak when the trending topics first broke out a week ago.

This is precisely the purpose of Lin Xiao's press conference—to counter the attempts by netizens to morally blackmail him.

Lin Xiao: Kidnapping? Either don't kidnap at all, or kidnap a big one!
He has essentially kidnapped all netizens.

And it's not just netizens!

At this very moment, in that mysterious conference room.

The group of middle-aged leaders looked at the words "Live broadcast has ended" on the screen with surprise, and they couldn't even maintain the basic principle of "not showing their emotions".

A long silence followed in the meeting room.

After a long pause, Minister Liu finally smiled and exclaimed, "Good heavens! I knew this kid wouldn't let it go so easily. Sure enough, he's outmaneuvered us!"

As soon as these words were spoken, some people in the conference room immediately nodded in understanding.

But most people frowned, their faces full of confusion.

The square-faced leader asked in confusion, "Minister Liu, what do you mean by that? Throughout the entire press conference, Lin Xiao maintained a proper attitude, expressing gratitude for the organization's trust and the leaders' guidance. Moreover, he didn't act sarcasticly or tell any lies. It was clear that his words came from the bottom of his heart."

"Yes, I was moved!"

A young cadre in his early thirties said, "Moreover, Lin Xiao didn't express any resentment towards the organization regarding the punishment of his father-in-law and mother-in-law at all. At this press conference, he completely fulfilled his promise to us beforehand, without making any negative remarks, and even wrote a song for the cultural and tourism industry of Nanzhou Province at the end. How dedicated he was! Minister Liu, you said he put us in a difficult position, what makes you say that?"

The group looked at Minister Liu, who was sitting at the head of the table, with great confusion.

Minister Liu remained silent, his eyes revealing a mixture of admiration and excitement. He was clearly caught off guard by Lin Xiao's move, yet inexplicably found it fascinating.

It has a novel feeling of "a max-level king popping out of the newbie village".

He smiled calmly and said, "It's precisely because he didn't say a bad word about me and was grateful the whole time that this matter is so difficult to handle!"

These words left the group even more bewildered.

Minister Liu shook his head and suddenly asked, "What did you think of that half of 'Thousands of Mountains and Rivers'? Did you like it?"

Several men frowned.

"good."

I think it's just so-so!

"I don't know much about pop music, but judging from the lyrics, it doesn't seem to have anything to do with the mountains and rivers of Nanzhou Province that Lin Xiao mentioned!"

"Xiao Zhang, you're young, why don't you say something?"

The topic was then posed to the only young cadre present.

Xiao Zhang's mind was already racing.

In such situations, one's own opinions are not important; what matters is understanding the leader's intentions.

But with so many leaders in the room, knowing how to speak properly really tests one's abilities and responsiveness.

Fortunately, Xiao Zhang had already mastered the skills and immediately said, "From the perspective of pop music, the lyrics and music of this song are both very good. Lin Xiao, as the most talked-about mysterious genius musician in the past two years, certainly has the ability."

"But what Director Wang just said is also right. The lyrics of this song do have the suspicion of misrepresenting the subject matter and have nothing to do with the mountains and rivers of Nanzhou Province that Lin Xiao mentioned. However, it's difficult to be faithful, elegant and expressive in pop music, especially in this era that excessively pursues popularity and traffic."

"Just like Lin Xiao's previous song 'Love Like a Tide,' it actually had nothing to do with the Chaoshui River, Chaobai Town, or Anyang County, but because of effective marketing and the good quality of the song, it became incredibly popular."

"And this song 'Thousands of Mountains and Rivers' now has all the elements to become a hit - it was written by Ma Yao, is of above-average quality, and most importantly, it was sung live in a live broadcast room with millions of viewers. In terms of traffic, popularity, and topicality, it is already at the very top of the top."

"In this situation, the quality of the song is no longer important. As long as this song is released, it will definitely become a hit, and then drive a boom in the tourism industry of our entire Nanzhou Province... This is just my humble opinion, and it is still immature. Please correct me if I'm wrong!"

After he finished speaking, the older leaders all had an expression of sudden enlightenment.

Apart from Xiao Zhang, everyone in the meeting room was over fifty years old on average, with families, careers, and grown children.

For more than 20 years, they have been at odds with their own children. When their children were young, they did not understand why children would like those exaggerated, childish, or even crazy celebrities and movies.

Just as they can't understand now, why a song can boost the tourism industry of the whole province and achieve what tens of thousands of people in the province's cultural and tourism sector have worked hard for more than ten years without success.
They really don't understand.

But with the facts of "Love Like a Tide" and the fire in Chaobai Town right in front of him, Xiao Zhang's analysis was logically sound and his arguments were flawless.

They have no choice but to believe it!
Then I understood what Minister Liu had just said.

Minister Liu gave Xiao Zhang an approving look, then let out a long sigh.

"To be honest, I can't really comment on whether this song 'Thousands of Mountains and Rivers' is good or not!"

Minister Liu said somewhat gravely, "But as Xiao Zhang just said, whether the song is good or not is no longer important. What's important is that it will definitely be a hit and will definitely drive the development of the cultural and tourism industry in the whole province."

"Even though the lyrics have nothing to do with Nanzhou Province, after the press conference just now, Lin Xiao has forcibly tied this song to Nanzhou Province!"
"What's even more terrifying is that millions of netizens have already accepted it without realizing it. After all, this young comrade's words of love for his homeland and gratitude for his hometown were so moving and touching!"

As Minister Liu spoke, his admiration for Lin Xiao deepened, impossible to conceal.

The square-faced leader hurriedly said, "Since that's the case, what are we waiting for? Let Lin Xiao write this song as soon as possible, and then use it as the official promotional song for our Nanzhou Province's cultural and tourism industry. I think the lyrics are quite positive, so it's no problem to use it as the official promotional song!"

Everyone at the table laughed when he said that.

Director Wang had already figured out Lin Xiao's underhanded trick and laughed, "You want Lin Xiao to write a song? Didn't you hear? Comrade Lin Xiao publicly announced his resignation in front of the entire internet, and that he would no longer engage in music creation. I'm afraid his resignation letter is already on the desk of the Minister of the Organization Department of Anyang County. What right do we have to make him finish writing this song?"

"funny!"

The square-faced leader was furious. "He also said he was a cadre cultivated by the organization. As a public official, doesn't he follow the rules and discipline? As long as his resignation hasn't been approved, he's still a state cadre..."

"Even if he is a government official, music composition is not within his job scope. Can you force him to finish writing this song?"

"..."

The square-faced cadre was speechless.

The room full of leaders looked at each other, speechless.

After a long pause, Minister Liu laughed and said, "This Lin Xiao is indeed brave and resourceful, a real talent. No wonder he was able to build up the rural tourism industry in Chaobai Town from scratch in just one year, even making the entire Yizhou cultural tourism industry popular throughout the country!"

Minister Liu shook his head, his admiration for Lin Xiao impossible to suppress.

"Take this incident as an example. The investigation team's findings were just released the day before yesterday, and yesterday, this entertainment company issued a press conference announcement. And today, our Comrade Lin Xiao has prepared his words, prepared half a song, and prepared an unsolvable dead end, holding us all hostage. He really caught us off guard!"

Minister Liu's tone was both harsh and excited: "The current situation is that the entire internet is waiting for the full version of 'Thousands of Mountains and Rivers.' Our Nanzhou Culture and Tourism has ushered in a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to become an instant hit, but Lin Xiao has publicly stated that he will resign, so there will definitely be no follow-up to this song... What a clever trick to lure the enemy into a trap!"

The square-faced leader had realized that the young man on the live stream who kept saying "thank you" was actually acting the whole time.

At this press conference, Lin Xiao appeared to be responding to online concerns, but in reality, he never took the netizens' insults and discussions seriously.

His goal... has always been only one!
The square-faced leader grew increasingly angry, feeling like he had been tricked.

"It's ridiculous! This lowly deputy section chief is trying to outsmart us! He's gone too far!"

"Uh..." Xiao Zhang said awkwardly, "Director Sun, judging from Lin Xiao's performance in the live broadcast just now, no one should think he was scheming. Moreover, in my experience, his reputation online will definitely improve rapidly after this press conference ends—his reputation was already very good before, but it was only after his true identity was exposed and he was promoted with the help of his father-in-law and mother-in-law that a lot of doubts arose."

"After today's events, these doubts have vanished. After all, he resigned and left the industry, which shows his attitude and his speech was very heartfelt."

"This result meets, and even exceeds, the expectations of netizens. I think the public will soon urge him to return to the music scene."

"If he refuses to return, then the pressure will shift to us, forcing the organization to treat such a dedicated and capable cadre fairly... This situation is indeed very difficult to handle!"

These words silenced all the leaders once again.

The square-faced leader was so angry that his face turned bright red, but he couldn't utter a single word.

After a long pause, Director Wang frowned and said, "I understand the situation now! Lin Xiao did all this for himself, after all, the organization has never punished him for his exceptional promotion."

"So after all that fuss, it turns out it's just because the organization punished Han Haijun and Liu Liyun, and he was dissatisfied with it, feeling that his father-in-law and mother-in-law were implicated because of him!"
"To be honest, I admire his attitude, but I completely disagree with compromising with him. A cadre who is so cunning and calculating is a major problem if he stays in the system. His resignation is not a bad thing at all; on the contrary, it cleanses the entire ranks!"
"Furthermore, although the disciplinary decision against Liu Liyun of the South Korean Navy has not yet been issued, the news of the disciplinary action has already been made public online along with the investigation team's report, so it cannot be revoked even if it were to be.

"If we were to arbitrarily change our disciplinary decision just because he held a press conference and netizens left some comments on our official Weibo account, that would be too frivolous. Where would the government's credibility be then?"

What he said made perfect sense, and the others fell silent.

After a moment, Minister Liu smiled and said, "Whether Lin Xiao is cunning or clever, whether he is too scheming or righteous, we can't draw a conclusion for now, and it's not up to us to draw a conclusion."

"Getting back to the main point—if we want to change the investigation team's findings and the disciplinary decisions against Comrades Haijun and Liyun, it's not impossible. After all, Comrade Lin Xiao has prepared a way out for us; we can just accept it!"

"What steps?" the square-faced leader asked.

"Everyone, think back, what did Lin Xiao say before he started singing?"

When Minister Liu mentioned it, the group of people really started to think back.

Finally, Xiao Zhang said, "I remember he said that he signed up for the 'Young Seedling Project' to go to the countryside, and his parents-in-law didn't support it at first, but they agreed later!"

Minister Liu nodded approvingly: "What this means is that if Han Haijun wanted to use his connections to help his son-in-law get ahead, there was absolutely no need to send Lin Xiao to the countryside. Ninghai has plenty of connections and opportunities."

"And the fact that Lin Xiao ultimately went to the countryside is enough to prove that the Navy couple had no reason to engage in favoritism in Lin Xiao's promotion; both of Lin Xiao's promotions were entirely reasonable..."

"Ha, how dare he!" the square-faced leader said angrily.

"What's there to be embarrassed about? Lin Xiao's achievements speak for themselves, and all netizens have seen them with their own eyes!"

"..."

The square-faced leader was speechless.

Minister Liu continued, "In other words, we can follow Lin Xiao's lead and issue another investigation announcement to determine that his promotion process was fair, just, and transparent. Although some procedural details were not entirely standardized, they can only be considered mistakes, not favoritism. As a result, exempting Han Haijun and Liu Liyun from punishment would be acceptable to the public and would not affect the government's credibility!"

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent for a moment.

Although everyone agreed with Minister Liu's statement, after listening to the whole thing, they were shocked to find that everything had been planned by Lin Xiao, and they had no room to resist except to walk into his trap.

This greatly displeased several high-ranking leaders!

They hadn't been treated like this for many years.

In particular, the person who caused them so much trouble was a low-level cadre who was not even thirty years old.

If it were up to their temper, they'd really like to slam their fists on the table and storm out. Lin Xiao, you can quit your job if you want, you can write songs if you want, so what?

But they knew it was impossible.

The popularity generated by "Thousands of Mountains and Rivers" will soon reach the ears of higher-level leaders.

Faced with this unsolicited opportunity for a booming cultural and tourism industry, no leader could resist its allure, especially in the last two years, when the industry has defied the trend and its supporting role in the local economy has become increasingly evident.

Cultural and tourism sectors across the country are making a big push to attract attention, so how can Nanzhou Province, with its abundant natural resources, sit idly by?

We have to pursue development even if it's tough, so why would we turn down a path that's offered to us? Besides, this route has already been clearly proven in Chaobai Town to be entirely beneficial!
Therefore, it is foreseeable that Lin Xiao will definitely not be approved to resign, and the song "Thousands of Mountains and Rivers" will definitely be reused.

This was foreseen.

The fact that everyone in the room has been discussing this for so long is that whether or not they want to be led by the nose by Lin Xiao is not something they can decide for themselves.

Even if this guy really had laid a trap, with the words "Please enter the trap" written at the gate, they could only shave their heads and crawl in.

There is no other way!
……

Two days later was Lin Xiaoxi's 100-day celebration.

In the past two days, the entire internet has been abuzz with discussions about Lin Xiao and Han Xixi's press conference, with the buzz reaching almost the point of nationwide participation.

The sheer volume of traffic was unprecedented and terrifying.

Faced with this staggering amount of attention, Lin Xiao, the protagonist at the center of the storm, remained quietly at home for two days, never leaving his house, keeping his phone off, and keeping silent. He spent his time eating, sleeping, and coaxing his daughter.

His composure was completely different from that of the big star who spoke eloquently and appropriately at the press conference the day before yesterday, expressing gratitude and singing.

Lin Xiao was so "split" that even his wife, Han Xixi, dared not speak to him.

These two days.

The couple lived under the same roof during the day and slept in the same bed at night.

But Xixi didn't dare to mention the press conference at all. Her husband acted as if nothing had happened, and she could only act as if nothing had happened. The two of them only talked about the children and the food, talking about superficial and boring topics that didn't really touch on anything.

Xixi felt something was off, but she couldn't quite put her finger on why.

After pondering for a while, I suddenly realized: Could this be the legendary "sleeping in the same bed but dreaming different dreams"?
Xi Xi thought about it and then felt it was unlikely.

After all, although my husband doesn't talk much during the day, he still holds me quite tightly when we sleep at night.

XiXi: Hehe, brother loves me~

We'll just ignore his unusual behavior!

May 28th, Lin Xiaoxi's 5-day celebration.

Originally, they didn't plan to hold a big celebration for Xixi's 100-day celebration, since Xixi is a big star and they never intended to expose their child to the public.

So the initial plan was to book a private room at the hotel, and both sets of parents could attend.

However, the plan could not keep up with the changes.

In just a few days, Lin Xiao was exposed, photos of him being kept by a sugar daddy were leaked, many other things were exposed, and Lin Xiao held a press conference that was full of firepower and made the whole internet feel great.

Now, their family can be said to be famous all over the country.

The entire internet is discussing Lin Xiao, Han Haijun, Liu Liyun, and even Lin Xiao's daughter. After all, the main reason he publicly stated that he wanted to resign and leave the entertainment industry was because he had a daughter and wanted to accompany her as she grew up.

Now Han Xixi has become the least popular person in the family, which is simply outrageous!
Given this booming situation.

Whenever this family goes out, they are absolutely swift and decisive.

So they simply stayed home and avoided going out. The 100-day celebration was changed from a hotel to their home, and all the related purchases were handled by the nanny and Lin Xiao's parents.

After two days of preparation.

The 100-day celebration was successfully held, but before the banquet began, a stranger appeared outside the door.

It's not exactly unfamiliar, but it's not unfamiliar at all.

This man is Han Xixi's father, Ms. Lin Xiaoxi's maternal grandfather, Han Haijun.

Since Han Haijun and Liu Liyun divorced, Xixi has not seen her father again.

After all, back in the hospital, in front of his daughter who had just given birth, Comrade Han said he wanted to adopt his nephew into his own name.

This action cannot even be described as excessive; it can only be described as vile, rampant, and insane!
Han Haijun's book: "One sentence that offends three generations of your family at the same time!"
After that incident, Liu Liyun and Han Haijun quickly went through with their divorce.

Xi Xi also harbored resentment towards her father, so she hadn't seen him for the past three months. Lin Xiao Xi hadn't seen her maternal grandfather since she had only briefly met him on the fourth day after she was born.

Of course, Lin Xiaoxi probably has no objection to this, since Ms. Lin is currently obsessed with sucking her fingers and is indifferent to everyone else.

Lin Xiao later learned that there was a hidden reason why Han Haijun's personality suddenly changed in the hospital.

But Lao Han wouldn't let me say anything, and he really was enjoying his single life, so Lin Xiao didn't say anything more.

This is my daughter's 100-day celebration.

Lin Xiao didn't invite his father-in-law, let alone the rest of the family, so Han Haijun's sudden appearance surprised everyone and caused them great embarrassment.

In the living room, the celebrity chef we hired prepared a large table full of sumptuous dishes.

However, no one in the family spoke.

This put Lin Xiao's parents in a difficult position. As outsiders and country folk, they had always felt inferior in front of their in-laws. Every time they met, they could only nod and smile while watching the two leaders chat and laugh. They had resigned themselves to their fate.

Lin Jianping and Zhou Xiuping never imagined that one day, their in-laws would get divorced and end up like this, with the three of them sitting at the same table but unable to see each other.

Zhou Xiuping's feelings were very complicated!

After feeling wronged for her daughter-in-law, indignant for her mother-in-law, and resentful for her father-in-law, she finally came to a simple sigh:

It's best to live a simple and ordinary life. No matter how high your official position or how much wealth you accumulate, it's all for naught!
With this mindset.

Zhou Xiuping suddenly felt that she had been very successful in her life. Although she had been a farmer all her life, she had two sons. Her eldest son was so successful, and although her younger son's grades were average, he was honest and obedient and at least he wouldn't cause trouble outside every day.

Now I have no worries about food and clothing, my son is filial, I'm still not divorced, and my health is quite good...

Zhou Xiuping no longer envies anyone.

She's just not into trends. If she were, she would describe her current state like this: she's completely demystified of being an official and getting rich, and being an ordinary citizen is the best!
Based on this realization.

This simple and kind-hearted rural woman did not feel smug because of her in-laws' downfall; instead, she felt closer to her daughter-in-law's family.

In addition, she noticed that her son, Lin Xiao, had been preoccupied and quiet ever since the press conference the day before yesterday.

Ms. Zhou Xiuping felt an overwhelming sense of responsibility, so she stepped forward and took on the mission of enlivening the atmosphere at her granddaughter's 100-day celebration.

The dinner table was clearly filled with high-ranking officials, celebrities, and great musicians—all prominent figures.

But throughout the meal, it was Zhou Xiuping, this rural woman, who was the most cheerful and talkative, engaging in conversation with everyone and smoothly taking care of everyone's feelings.

Through her efforts.

The awkward atmosphere at the dinner table was reduced to a minimum, and overall it could be described as harmonious. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, especially Han Xixi.

She was genuinely afraid that her parents would start arguing, and also afraid that she would lose her temper and argue with her father, ruining her daughter's 100-day celebration.

Fortunately, everything is progressing smoothly.

After the dinner ended, Han Haijun walked up to Lin Xiao and said he had something to say to him.

Lin Xiao had been waiting for this. He knew his father-in-law wasn't the type to fuss over nothing. He had given him a peace lock last time and said he wouldn't attend Xiao Chu's 100-day celebration, so he definitely wouldn't come.

Your unexpected visit today must mean something's up.

Lin Xiao also had something to discuss with his parents-in-law, so after Comrade Lao Han extended the invitation...

He nodded, then said, "Let's invite Mom and Xixi too, and have a proper talk, okay?"

Han Haijun glanced at the living room, where several women were surrounding a chubby little girl, making her laugh happily.

He hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

"All right!"

(End of this chapter)