I'm in Wuha, and the whole internet is shipping me and Song Yuqi as a couple.

Jiang Che lowered his eyelashes and pressed his right thumb onto the string.

A deep, resonant guitar intro cuts out from the speakers, followed by a cello tone on the keyboard.

The only sounds in the square were the night breeze and the sound of a piano.

Jiang Che leaned closer to the microphone.

"You are the long road, the light in the thick fog of the mountains."

The moment the sound came out, several girls in the front row who were holding up their phones jerked their wrists and almost smashed their phones on someone's head.

No one shouted from the audience.

Even the people on the outermost circle holding up support signs slowly lowered their signs.

The tone was clean, steady, and carried a deep, resonant quality.

Each word fell right off the speaker, so loudly that no one dared to make a sound.

Song Yuqi stood to his right rear, her hands in the pockets of her work jacket, her gaze fixed on his back.

This man is usually lazy and stubborn.

But the moment he picks up a guitar, his entire aura changes.

Who can stand this.

Song Yuqi pursed her lips, suppressing the "So handsome!" that she almost blurted out.

"I am a child, walking in your sight..."

Jiang Che played a chord and tilted his head to the side of the stage.

Upon receiving the signal, Deng Chao immediately suppressed his usual boisterousness and added a mid-to-low frequency harmonies.

Chen He and Wang Mian then joined in, their pitch much more stable than during the rehearsal.

Lu Han obeyed, putting away all the fancy vocals and using only her purest true voice to lift the pitch.

The accompaniment reached its climax.

Jiang Che raised his head, letting his voice ring out, soaring into the night sky above Jiefangbei.

"And I will love the world you love, and may your wishes last forever—"

On the big screen, the lyrics were displayed simultaneously: "The mountains and rivers are safe and sound, and fireworks are as common as ever."

Upon hearing this, some people in the audience lowered their heads.

Standing on the outer edge was an elderly man with white hair wearing a worn-out jacket, and a faded commemorative badge pinned to his chest.

He was just passing by to join in the fun.

Upon hearing this, the hand holding the thermos trembled slightly, and the lid tapped against the rim of the cup with a very soft sound.

The young man next to him handed him a pack of tissues.

The old man didn't take it; he just wiped his face and raised the flashlight a little higher.

In the live stream room.

For a full ten seconds, the live chat was empty.

Sixty million people were online, and the screen was unusually clean.

Ten seconds later, the screen was instantly filled with comments.

I got goosebumps all over!

When I heard the words "Our mountains and rivers are safe and sound," I couldn't hold back my tears.

[If anyone says Jiang Che can only write love songs, I'll be the first to disagree!]

on the stage.

Jiang Che plucked the last arpeggio.

The cello's final note lingered long, slowly dissipating into the Chongqing night breeze.

The song ended.

The Liberation Monument Square was silent for three seconds.

The next moment, applause and shouts erupted simultaneously.

Someone called Jiang Che's name.

Someone shouted "Five Ha!"

Some people didn't shout anything, they just held their phones up even higher.

The sound waves piled up one after another, shaking the stage roof.

Backstage, Wu Zheng stared at the monitor showing that the number of online users had surpassed 65 million, and then let go of the screen.

The walkie-talkie fell onto the folding table with a "thud".

He wiped his face, unable to suppress the urge to smile.

"It's safe."

"Tell all departments to prepare for a wrap-up celebration."

Jiang Che stood up, took the guitar down and handed it to his assistant, then turned to look at Deng Chao and the others.

Deng Chao's eyes were still a little red. He walked over, put his arm around his shoulder, and patted him hard twice.

"Brother, I won't say any more."

"ox."

Jiang Che smiled and led all five members of the Wuha group to the front of the stage.

The six people stood in a row, facing the sea of ​​stars and the boiling cheers below, and bowed deeply.

In my mind, a blue notification box popped up.

[A phenomenal stage performance was detected.]

[Current peak concurrent users: 6800 million.]

[Reputation value increased by +800 million.]

[Total reputation points have now exceeded 2000 million, meeting the requirements for unlocking the new talent.]

Jiang Che ignored the subsequent prompts.

He straightened up and was about to walk off the stage when a hand reached out from the side and handed him a bottle of mineral water with the cap unscrewed.

Song Yuqi looked at him, her eyes shining brightly.

"Teacher Jiang, please soothe your throat."

Her voice couldn't contain her excitement.

"You were a little too handsome on stage just now."

Jiang Che took the water bottle, took a sip, and glanced at her.

"Teacher Song's vocabulary for praising people is a little lacking."

"Who cares about scarcity?"

Song Yuqi moved forward a little.

"As long as it works."

Jiang Che tightened the bottle cap.

Amidst thunderous cheers, the two walked off the stage side by side.

The recording of the Chongqing station concluded amidst the loudest cheers.

……

Two o'clock in the morning, in a high-end office building in Shanghai.

The conference room of Xingchen Public Relations Company was brightly lit, and the ashtray was overflowing with cigarette butts.

Several keyboard warriors stared at the trending topics list, their fingers flying across the keyboard.

The boss slammed a stack of documents on the table.

"Where did Jiang Che come from?"

"Eight trending topics in one day, completely overshadowing all the artists we represent!"

The online troll leader looked up: "Boss, what's the next step?"

The boss, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, looked grim.

"As per the old rules."

"If the song is well-written, then attack his stance. Say that he's a pop singer trying to elevate himself, using the Liberation Monument to stir up emotions and muddy the waters."

The head of the online trolls nodded and immediately began editing the copy.

At the same time, at Nanshan Hot Spring Hotel.

Lu Han, wearing a face mask, lay sprawled on the bed scrolling through Weibo.

Deng Chao was snoring loudly next to me, making the bedside table rattle.

Lu Han saw a few newly posted negative comments, frowned, and was about to switch to an alternate account to start cursing.

Page refreshed.

His hand trembled, and the phone smashed directly into his face.

"Ouch!"

Lu Han ripped off her face mask, not even properly putting on her slippers, and rushed over to shove Deng Chao.

"Brother Chao! Wake up!"

"Something's happened!"

Deng Chao sat up groggily and scratched his hair.

"What's going on...? The hotel collapsed?"

"It's even more outrageous than a collapse!"

Lu Han shoved her phone screen right in front of Deng Chao's face, her voice cracking.

"Look, it's trending at number one on Weibo!"

Deng Chao rubbed his eyes and leaned closer to look.

The top trending topic was marked with a deep red "Explosive" sign.

The entry is not about Jiang Che.

It's not Wuha either.

It is a top-level official influencer with certification – a state-run media outlet.

This account, which usually only posts about national events, updated its status at 2 a.m.

The content is very simple.

Forwarding a high-definition direct-shot video of Jiang Che performing "As You Wish" at the Jiefangbei venue.

The caption contained only four words.

[May our wish for a prosperous era be fulfilled!]

Deng Chao's drowsiness vanished instantly.

He stared at those four words, his mouth agape for a long time before he finally managed to utter a single sentence.

"My goodness..."

Lu Han sat on the edge of the bed and refreshed the page again.

The smear articles that were just starting to emerge are now disappearing in large numbers.

Meanwhile, in the conference room of Starry Sky Public Relations Company.

The head of the online trolls stared at the newly updated trending topics, his hands pausing on the keyboard, sweat beading on his forehead.

He turned to look at the boss.

"Boss..."

"Will you still release that press release accusing him of forcibly emotionalizing him?"

The cigarette in the boss's mouth fell onto the table.

He lunged forward and yanked the computer's network cable out.

"What a load of crap!"

"withdraw!"

"Withdraw everything!"

He pointed at the screen, his fingers trembling violently.

"Even the official channels have shared it, do you still dare to rush in?"

"You want the whole company to be on the legal news?"