Chapter Eleven: Guest Performer

Under Jiang Yun’s latest Weibo post, the comment section was filled with curses and insults. Defenders and attackers clashed, arguing relentlessly.

“Jiang Yun, you hit women! You deserve to die!”
“Jiang Yun, you third-rate singer, just leave the music scene already!”
“That’s right, the music industry doesn’t need people like you!”

Wherever there was gossip, there were spectators eager to join in. Jiang Yun’s supporters, on the other hand, were furious.

“Bring it on! I’ll shut these trolls up with my words!”
“The mighty river surges from the heavens—our Jiang Yun has wit!”
“You trolls are just jealous of Jiang Yun’s talent!”

The two sides kept exchanging blows, pushing Jiang Yun’s post to the top of the trending list. As the storm brewed, Jiang Yun once again climbed onto Weibo’s hot search.

Shock! The gifted singer has abusive tendencies!
Shock! The ex-girlfriend exposes infidelity and violence!

Reading the trending headlines and the flood of comments, Jiang Yun felt utterly helpless. He decided to ignore them. But the trolls continued to bombard him with private messages, nearly crashing his Weibo with the constant notifications.

“Beep beep beep!”

Private messages flooded in, so many that the page wouldn’t refresh, causing his phone to freeze. Frustrated, Jiang Yun logged in from his computer and posted a new update.

“No matter what anyone says, I, Jiang Yun, have a clear conscience. The allegations are pure fabrication. No matter how you slander me, facts remain facts. If I ever had violent tendencies, let thunder strike me down!”

“Boom!”

A deafening crash sounded outside; thunder rolled, and rain poured from the sky.

“Damn!” Jiang Yun’s lips twitched, his eyelids jumping.

“Haha, Jiang Yun, even heaven won’t help you now!”
“I’m from the metropolis, and the moment Jiang Yun posted, thunder struck and rain fell.”
“That’s right, I can confirm it! More miraculous than the Rain God!”

Jiang Yun chose to ignore the trolls, focusing on his writing instead. The incident only grew more intense, and his new post instantly drew over 999 comments. This kept the Weibo staff frantically busy; thousands of accounts were banned in quick succession. Yet for every account banned, another popped up—trolls kept creating new ones.

Weibo officials considered shutting down Jiang Yun’s account altogether. However, his engagement stats were genuine. Unable to ban him, they could only target the trolls one by one.

“Beep!”

A notification popped up on Jiang Yun’s computer. Someone had tagged him. Curious, he clicked to view.

“It’s actually Zhou Lun’s post,” Jiang Yun said in surprise.

Zhou LunV: “I know Jiang Yun personally, and I trust his character. He would never cheat, much less resort to violence. Please don’t spread rumors or believe in lies. @JiangYun.”

Zhou Lun’s fans quickly responded.

“Caught Zhou, the king, live!”
“Who’s Jiang Yun? Never heard of him.”
“Well, you must be out of touch! Jiang Yun’s been making headlines lately, apparently a singer.”

Jiang Yun’s supporters had been losing ground, but suddenly, Zhou Lun’s fans flooded into Jiang Yun’s comment section. With their arrival, the trolls were swiftly overwhelmed.

“Everyone, check it out—Li Mengya has posted, too!”

Li MengyaV: “Jiang Yun is my friend, and I trust his character. @JiangYun.”

Li Mengya’s brief post had a tremendous effect. Her 30 million followers saw the update and moved to Jiang Yun’s page. The trolls’ fake accounts were instantly routed.

Finally, things quieted down.

“Beep! Beep beep!”

Jiang Yun opened his notifications and discovered that his uploaded book had been rewarded with a million points—a Silver Alliance Leader, along with a message urging him to update.

“I almost forgot, the book’s already signed,” Jiang Yun chuckled, tapping his forehead.

A million points was just ten thousand yuan, a result Jiang Yun had anticipated and promptly put out of mind.

He sat at his computer and typed furiously, his S-class speed churning out thirty thousand words in less than an hour. Opening the writers’ portal, he uploaded ten chapters at once.

“Finished the new chapters, but there’s not enough! What do I do?” a reader named Xiao Yan commented.

Jiang Yun replied with a smile: “That’s all for today! Already updated sixty thousand words.”

“Alright then!”

That evening, Jiang Yun cooked two simple dishes. Strangely, Li Lulu didn’t come over for dinner. He ate alone, bored.

After dinner, he sat back at his computer and wrote another thirty thousand words of “Horse Fighting the Heavens.” He scheduled the release, called Zhou Lun and Li Mengya to thank them, then washed up and went straight to bed.

He slept soundly until morning. Checking his phone, he saw it was already ten o’clock.

“There’s something important to do today,” Jiang Yun reminded himself.

He noticed there were no missed calls from Li Lulu and sent her a message.

“Where are you?”

“Boss, I’m back home! My father suddenly fell ill. I forgot to ask for leave!”

“What illness? Is it serious?”

“Heart disease! Myocardial infarction!” Li Lulu replied.

“Don’t worry,” Jiang Yun reassured her.

“Boss, I’d like to request a few days off.”

“Of course. Stay with your father and don’t rush back. There’s nothing urgent here.”

“Thank you, boss. ヽ(๑Θ｡Θ๑)ﾉ”

Jiang Yun got up, washed, ate a simple breakfast, and tidied up the apartment. He sent the audio file of “Fragrant Rice” to He Yong; since Zhou Lun had already released the song, Jiang Yun deliberately timed it to avoid any awkward overlap.

“Ring ring!”

Jiang Yun answered his phone.

“I’m downstairs!” came Li Mengya’s voice.

“Alright, I’ll come down now.”

He grabbed his jacket and headed downstairs. Li Mengya was sitting in her Beetle, listening to music. Jiang Yun knocked on the window, and she opened the passenger door.

He climbed in.

“You’re early. Where to now?” Jiang Yun asked.

“Lunch!”

“Lunch?” Jiang Yun’s mouth twitched—he’d just eaten.

“What, you’ve already eaten?” Li Mengya started the car.

“No problem, I’ll keep you company regardless!” Jiang Yun answered boldly.

Li Mengya smiled.

They arrived at Red Romance Western Restaurant. Li Mengya donned her mask and sunglasses before getting out. The two walked in together, booking a private room.

Nothing unpleasant happened this time.

After their meal, they left the restaurant and drove the Beetle toward the Metropolitan Sports Arena.

By the time they arrived, the entrance was packed. Li Mengya led Jiang Yun through a special side entrance.

“My guest performer today is just you!” Li Mengya teased.