Have you ever been a celebrity? Why are you writing about entertainment?

"I still can't do it..."

Zhou Mumu knew something was wrong as soon as she heard the first line. The image of a crescent moon has been used countless times in Chinese songs.

In Yu Wei's song, the moon suddenly gains weight amidst the harmonics of the piano and the accompaniment of strings.

It is no longer just a decoration on the horizon, but a hook that catches up all the "past" that one does not want to remember but cannot forget.

Zhou Mumu found herself holding her breath, as if even the slightest heavy breath would shatter the fragile image woven from the lyrics.

She finally understood why everyone fell silent when they heard the words "Chrysanthemum Terrace"... they weren't on the same level.

The movie trailer showed behind-the-scenes footage of the filming, where the actors, dressed in oversized black and white school uniforms, squatted on concrete steps reciting their lines.

The production crew is hanging faded green curtains on the windows of the "classroom." Although it's work, they seem to be having a great time, and viewers can feel the atmosphere on set even through the screen.

To Zhou Mumu, this scene was particularly jarring, because she wasn't among the group of people laughing, joking, and shouting in the picture...

At the time, both the company and the fans strictly forbade her from getting involved in the movie; all her other friends were there, but she was the only exception.

"The night was too long, and frost formed."
Who is that cold despair in the attic?

As if in response to the awkwardness in her heart, the lyrics also became sorrowful and desolate, and she was the one who could only watch everyone from the attic.

The scenes transition naturally with the music, from the moon over the wilderness to the window of the attic, the camera zooms in and finally focuses on a silent face.

This is no longer just a collection of flowery words, but a narrative with cinematic visual language. The lyrics and minimalist soundtrack work together to create a profound sense of loneliness and oppression.

When the image of "rain" appears as "lightly tapping," the emotions have accumulated to a critical point.

Then, the drums came in, each beat striking a precise moment, and the strings suddenly intensified, like a whirlwind sweeping across the clouds.

His emotions were pushed to the edge of a narrow cliff by the drums and flutes, and then he sang the line that was destined to be etched into the memories of countless people.

Chrysanthemums withered and broken, scattered all over the ground

Your smile has faded.

The flowers fall, and the heart breaks.

My thoughts lie quietly.

The moment the words "Chrysanthemums are withered" were sung, Zhou Mumu was terrified, and all the emotions she had built up burst forth.

The strings break free from restraint, yet still retain an Eastern restraint. It is not the self-indulgent catharsis of Western Romanticism, but rather the vast blank spaces in a landscape painting. The deeper the sorrow, the more restrained the expression.

His singing voice was fully unleashed; he bit off and stretched out the word "残" (cán), as if watching a chrysanthemum petal disintegrate in the wind.

Listeners already immersed in the song would find it difficult to interpret this lyric. They could almost see the once-brilliant chrysanthemums withering, decaying, and merging into the soil, petal by petal...

The north wind blows wildly, and the night is not yet over.

Your shadow cannot be cut off

I am left all alone on the lake.

The chorus was still lingering, and Zhou Mumu was just about to relax when what happened next left her stunned in front of the screen.

A passage from the erhu, without warning, tears away all the buildup and pierces straight into the eardrums!

That was not the erhu of ordinary folk tunes. It was placed against a grand string background, and its timbre was modified, losing some of its "rustic" quality, but amplifying the sorrow and sobbing to the extreme.

How can a mournful song be complete without the erhu?

This line is the finishing touch of the entire song and a pinnacle of its literary quality.

The contradiction between "loneliness" and "pairing up" reaches a desperate unity at this moment. The "pairing up" reflected on the lake is the cruelest mockery and reflection of the reality of "loneliness".

The arrangement also completed its final echo, with the clamorous pipa, the mournful erhu, and the surging strings all receding like the tide.

Both the arrangement and the lyrics of this song are highly artistic. Immersed in the song, Zhou Mumu couldn't quite understand what kind of being she was fighting...

Even five of them wouldn't be enough to fill this song.

After the chorus begins, a montage of clips appears in the promotional video, showing Fei Hong, who plays "Da Chun," failing to perform a flip on the horizontal bar and falling into the foam mat. His first words after getting up are, "One more take!"

Chi Leying's "Qiuya" back shot was filmed seventeen times, just because the director wanted "a strand of hair to be blown by the wind at an angle of exactly 45 degrees".

The art group carved the character "早" (early) on their desks, and the prop master muttered, "This desk is older than me."

The scene of everyone on set making mistakes while simultaneously improving was a double blow to Zhou Mumu.

Originally, she should have been a part of it, growing and progressing together with everyone.

But due to various obstacles, she always remained on the periphery of the team, and even after going through the preparations for the Spring Festival Gala together, she still couldn't integrate.

That's why she hasn't made any progress. Most of the people who became close with Yu Wei in the beginning have made some progress, but she's still stuck in the same place.

If this continues, she will only drift further and further away from her friends...

When the song entered its second verse, Zhou Mumu had completely abandoned her position of "listening to the song" and become a prisoner of this musical narrative.

The impact of "Chrysanthemum Terrace" on her was not just the melody or lyrics, but that it proved the literary and philosophical depth that popular music could achieve.

It's no exaggeration to say that this song redefines traditional Chinese style; it's not just a collection of symbols, but a transmission of spirit; it's not a nostalgic gimmick, but a possibility of engaging in dialogue with the ancients using modern language.

For ten seconds after the music stopped, Zhou Mumu remained motionless.

The world outside the window flooded her senses again: snowflakes fell in the wind, a truck drove by in the distance, and a faint commotion came from the street corner. But everything was different. The room was still the same room, but she felt as if she had just returned from another time and space, her clothes still damp with the dew of that world.

She knew what to do...

The tide comes in front of Chrysanthemum Terrace, and only today do I realize who I truly am!
As expected, Zhou Mumu lost the match. Her rendition of "Chrysanthemum Terrace" was amazing, with many netizens saying they never get tired of it and it gets more and more addictive with each listen.

Using poetry to describe pop music sounds like a staged accident, but that's exactly how this song felt to them.

It doesn't follow the classic formula of pop music: verse-chorus-bridge. Instead, it unfolds slowly, with pauses and subtle details.

Especially the ending. Given the industry practice of pop music seeking memorable moments, Yu Wei dared to end the song in such a subtle way. How much artistic confidence does that require?

Just days after delivering a perfect performance at the Spring Festival Gala, he dropped another bombshell, something no one expected.

For netizens, this is a great stroke of luck, but for their peers in the music industry, it is a tremendous misfortune.

They outlived Chen Ping, only to be replaced by someone even more cunning than Chen Ping...

In the novel, when the fake competition first started, everyone voted just for fun, and the final result was more like a network effect, with little reference value.

But as they watched, netizens were surprised to find that their appreciation of art improved as they listened.

Now they only vote for good-sounding works. All that gimmicks and memes are just minor tricks. Once people have enough of that, they'll gradually become more professional.

In this situation, Zhou Mumu has no chance of winning, even though she capitalized on the popularity of the Spring Festival Gala, "Chrysanthemum Terrace" is also linked to the discussion surrounding the film.

The result was as Yu Wei expected, but what surprised him was Zhou Mumu's acceptance speech after being eliminated.

Yu Wei was stunned when she saw the message the other party sent. The entire message contained only four words: "I'm very happy to be together."

In her elimination speech, Zhou Mumu emphasized her gratitude to her duet partner Fei Hong, and then publicly confessed her feelings for him.

This isn't a will, this is an official announcement...

"Are you serious?"

Even though Zhou Mumu and Fei Hong have been acting very sweetly, it's still a bit short of a real official announcement.

Any singing or interaction can be explained as "business," and even if her fans are furious, they can hypnotize themselves into turning a blind eye.

Years of nurturing and passion have given them a sunk cost that allows them to be far more tolerant than other fans. As long as there is no official announcement, they can pretend that the fandom doesn't exist.

An official announcement is the bottom line. Any ambiguous cooperation can be explained away, but once a relationship announcement is made, there is no turning back.

The die is cast, and this will be the final straw that breaks the camel's back for the fans. This will be a devastating blow to Zhou Mumu, who has been running a fan community for many years.

"I figured it out."

Zhou Mumu lost the game, but she wanted to win in life. She needed to make a clean break; continuing like this would only make her sink deeper.

Chrysanthemums wither and fall, leaving only scars on the ground; nothing can be built without destruction, and we can always start over.

What did your agency say?

Although Yu Wei enjoys having fun, there's a limit to how much trouble he can cause. Getting involved in business disputes is too troublesome, and he doesn't want to get entangled in the consequences.

"I plan to act first and inform you later."

Seemingly having guessed Yu Wei's thoughts, Zhou Mumu added, "Don't worry, I'll post my elimination speech in advance, and you can just quote and copy it."

Only when it's released by oneself can it be considered an official announcement. Zhou Mumu certainly wouldn't cause trouble for Yu Wei; she would face everything on her own. Yu Wei's reference is just part of the novel's plot.

She had hesitated many times, but this time she had to make a firm choice. Life has a much higher margin for error than she imagined, and there was nothing she couldn't bear.

Yu Wei was quite pleased with Zhou Mumu's growth; it was a choice she should have made long ago, and thankfully it wasn't too late.

"come on."

While both Zhou Mumu and Qi Yuan are leaving the fandom, Zhou Mumu's crazed fans won't part amicably like Qi Yuan's fans; their backlash and subsequent backlash will be unimaginable.

With the furious management company added to the mix, this decision is set to be followed by a storm.

After the voting for the competition ended, Yu Wei saw the official announcement posted by Zhou Mumu. As if in response to her, Fei Hong also posted his own announcement.

Within minutes, Zhou Mumu's post was flooded with comments, the comment section was full of questions and unreasonable accusations, leaving Yu Wei speechless.

It's understandable if female fans of male celebrities would be vehemently opposed to their idols dating, but for Zhou Mumu, a female celebrity, to have such strong resistance from her female fans to dating is truly astounding.

They used to look down on Fei Hong, but after the Spring Festival Gala, Fei Hong has become a hot commodity, and they still want to fight tooth and nail for her.

Ultimately, it's the desire for control that's at play; he treats Zhou Mumu like a delicate porcelain doll.

They might even be misogynistic to begin with, using female celebrities as a source of spiritual sustenance for their own "unique beauty"...

It's better to get rid of fans like that. Zhou Mumu is right. It's better to have a short pain than a long one. Otherwise, she'll still be acting like a spoiled girl when she's seventy or eighty years old.

Yu Wei would not get involved in the online feud. There is no right or wrong in this kind of thing. From the perspective of a fan, Zhou Mumu really does not have the self-awareness of an idol.

Having benefited from the fan culture, it's inevitable that she'll suffer a backlash. People shouldn't apply double standards; she has to bear the consequences of her choices.

However, Yu Wei did not intend to simply watch the show.

The fans' backlash has nothing to do with him, but these fans seem to have a grudge against him...

Everyone should calculate their own. (End of Chapter)