Chapter 103: Mother-Daughter Conversation

Boredly scrolling through Doyin, Su Bai suddenly came across a video about himself.

#The influence a single song can bring, as seen with popular singer Su Bai.#

To be honest, looking at the title, Su Bai was still a bit confused, not knowing what kind of influence it was referring to.

He tapped to open it and found it was a report from Spring City Entertainment.

According to relevant statistics: a full week had passed since Su Bai and Yang Mengke's dream collaboration, filming the promotional short film for Daming Lake.

In that single week, the revenue generated by the entire Daming Lake scenic area had already surpassed the total earnings of the entire previous year!

It had massively boosted Daming Lake's GDP while greatly increasing its influence, making it one of Doyin's "Top Ten Places Netizens Most Want to Visit" for the year.

A viral catchphrase—"Do you still remember the fairy maiden by Daming Lake?"—had become a check-in spot for countless internet influencers.

The Daming Lake scenic area had currently announced that, due to the overwhelming influx of visitors, they had resorted to limiting ticket sales.

Tickets for Daming Lake, once not exactly a hot seller, were now nearly impossible to get.

Countless netizens had stayed in Spring City for days on end, all for just one ticket to Daming Lake.

On behalf of Daming Lake, on behalf of Spring City's tourism industry, I would like to thank Mr. Su Bai and Ms. Yang Mengke for creating countless opportunities for wealth in this city.

In the comment section beneath this news, the scene was uniformly about the impossibility of getting tickets.

"Don't even talk about it. The more I say, the more tears I shed. I arrived in Spring City three days ago, stood in line for three straight days, and just barely managed to snag a Daming Lake ticket!"

"Who would've thought that a scenic spot that was unpopular in past years would become such a sensation this year!"

"Enough, at least you got yours. I still haven't managed to buy one!"

"Su Shen's influence is simply unmatched!"

"Speaking of which, why hasn't Su Shen released a new song these past few days? This doesn't match his usual update pace!"

"Hey, have a little conscience, you up there. Su Bai's song output is already fast enough, isn't it? Compared to other singers in the industry, even the production donkey wouldn't dare push for updates like this!"

Seeing Daming Lake in a situation where tickets were nearly impossible to obtain was something Su Bai had never expected.

Still, he felt a sense of relief deep down.

At the very least, the five million yuan spent on Daming Lake hadn't gone to waste!

If he'd spent five million and hadn't even earned back the publicity costs, there would probably be a flood of people trashing him online.

Meanwhile, far away in Magic City, Song Liang was looking at the stack of cooperation requests he'd received, his face beaming with joy.

Scenic spots from all over the country had, as if by unanimous agreement, sent their invitations to Tiancheng Entertainment.

And the price quotes? Each one higher than the last.

The highest offer had already reached twenty million!

But Song Liang also knew he couldn't accept them all.

He needed to wait for Su Bai to return and discuss it. If all the advertisements came out at the same time, where would the fans run to? And with too many promotional videos stacked together, fans would start experiencing fatigue.

Meanwhile, in Magic City as well, Liu Ruotong and Ji Jingxian were staring each other down, neither willing to back down.

"Why won't you let me study music? I love music!"

"Good music lets me free my soul, makes my entire mind and body feel at ease. Why can't I study it?"

Ji Jingxian was trembling with rage because of Liu Ruotong.

"Your father and I worked so hard to raise you all these years—is it so you can go out there and sing in the public eye?"

"Do you have any idea how messy this circle you admire actually is?"

"Do you have any idea what kind of unseemly trials those glamorous celebrities go through behind the scenes?"

"Do you think the entertainment industry is that easy to survive in?"

"Do you think all those front-page stories about so-and-so doing this or that are just baseless rumors, made up out of thin air?"

"I never should have helped that Su Bai in the first place. Now look where it's gotten me!"

"I've truly lost both the battle and the war!"

The more Ji Jingxian spoke, the angrier she became. Her whole body trembled without pause, and her face flushed red.

Liu Ruotong had been looking down, but when she heard her mother mention Su Bai, she suddenly shot to her feet.

"What does this have to do with Brother Su Bai?"

"I don't know what kind of people those other celebrities are."

"All I know is that the Brother Su Bai I admire is not as despicable as you're making him out to be!"

"An undercover police officer from the XX Group was about to be exposed. Brother Su Bai's song 'Lonely Warrior' steadied that officer's heart, helping the police take down the entire XX Group in one fell swoop. He became the greatest contributor, and even Magic City Police's official account spoke up to praise Brother Su Bai's actions. Isn't he exactly the kind of idol I should look up to?"

"When the Palace Museum's cultural promotional theme song was being solicited nationwide, and not a single song fit the tone of the Palace Museum's cultural publicity, Brother Su Bai's 'Dragon Scales of Heaven and Earth' broke through all sorts of constraints, rose to the very top, became the finalized song for the Palace Museum's cultural promotion, and became its spokesperson. Isn't he exactly the kind of idol I should look up to?"

"For years, Daming Lake in Spring City had been a scenic spot no one visited. Brother Su Bai and Sister Yang Mengke's song 'Fairy Maiden' sparked a wave of influencers checking in, pushing visitor numbers to the max and driving the local economy. Isn't that exactly the kind of idol I should look up to?"

"When Brother Su Bai's reputation hit rock bottom, countless fans petitioned on his behalf, wanting to speak up for him and teach that slanderer Xu Mingkun a lesson. When Brother Su Bai learned of it, he didn't exploit the situation—instead, he immediately stepped in to stop it. With such a correct set of values, isn't Brother Su Bai exactly the kind of idol I should look up to?"

"Brother Su Bai has had a hard journey all the way. You know that. And you know how he's handled every step. So what right do you have to slander him like this?"

Ji Jingxian pointed a trembling finger at Liu Ruotong, her entire body shaking.

"What right? Let me tell you exactly what right I have!"

"Yes, I know. When you were little, your father and I were both busy with our own careers. We didn't have time to look after you, couldn't properly keep you company!"

"It was your brother who accompanied you through your entire childhood."

"So when your brother passed away, your life plunged into darkness all at once!"

"But do you know how much your father and I regretted it when we saw you unable to eat or drink, without a thought for yourself? Our hearts ached too!"

"So I made up my mind to devote myself to you entirely. I gave up every career I'd been involved in before!"

"When you slowly emerged from that shadow, you have no idea how happy your father and I were!"

"We knew you were gradually stepping out from under your brother's shadow."

"But when you said Su Bai was like your brother, our hearts clenched again!"

"We were afraid. Afraid that after you climbed out of the pit of your brother, you'd fall into the pond of Su Bai."

"I admit, Su Bai and Yang Mengke are both fine, outstanding kids. But just because they're good kids doesn't mean we'll just throw away our own daughter's happiness."

Liu Ruotong felt a stir of emotion at these words and wanted to explain, but Ji Jingxian cut her off.

"Don't speak. Let me finish!"

"I know you'll say it's nothing more than admiration for an idol."

"But ask yourself honestly: if, in the future, you were to look for a boyfriend, would you compare them to Su Bai? If they didn't match your inner definition of a boyfriend, would you reject them? And little by little, wouldn't that inner definition keep drifting closer and closer to Su Bai?"

"But have you thought about this? If you really fall in love with Su Bai, if you really come to like him—setting aside what kind of person Su Bai is—are the two of you even compatible?"

"Would he even like you?"

"The entertainment industry is full of temptations, all flashy and colorful. Can you guarantee that Su Bai won't be dazzled by it all?"

"And when that happens, what will become of you, sinking deep into the quagmire of love?"

"Nothing but a painful, unrequited longing?"

"So what we're thinking is this: before anything happens, we cut off every possibility right now."

Hearing Ji Jingxian's words, Liu Ruotong fell silent.

And at the same time, her heart was in turmoil.

Would she really come to like Brother Su Bai?