Chapter 47: A Fiery Finale

With his rendition of "A Hundred Miles of Spring Breeze," Zhang Qiyang set the entire Zebra platform ablaze and stirred the hearts of all the cannon fodder! The song's debut detonated countless casual viewers, turning them into cannon fodder. Even some critics, blown away by the song, abandoned their defenses, switching from skeptics to fans, thus joining the ranks of the new cannon fodder.

After warming up with a little wine, Zhang Qiyang grew increasingly uninhibited during the live broadcast. Li Diao, usually outgoing, was instead flustered by his teasing and the viewers' encouragement, becoming unusually shy and reserved. While chatting with Zhang Qiyang, she kept her fair, beautiful legs tightly crossed beneath the crystal bar, afraid that another round of his flirting would undo her composure.

Often, girls who seem cheerful and open end up being quite conservative when it matters most, while those who appear quiet and reserved can surprise everyone with their boldness. Li Diao, for all her apparent bravado, was at heart quite modest. She often joked about being a virgin, which no one believed, but she truly had never slept with a man.

That night, as Zhang Qiyang serenaded her with love songs before millions of viewers, Li Diao was so dazzled she nearly fainted. She dreaded leaving the impression of being captivated by the "cannon king," so during the subsequent interviews, her lips seemed sealed, carefully avoiding any risqué jokes with Zhang Qiyang.

Meanwhile, Dong Huan, who had no stake in the matter, chatted freely with Zhang Qiyang. All the daring questions from the viewers were posed by Dong Huan, leaving Li Diao to play the role of sidekick.

"Cannon king, a lot of viewers want to know: what kind of girl do you like?"

"Pretty, distinctive, with a good figure—but most importantly, she has to spark with me," Zhang Qiyang answered boldly, with no hesitation.

"What do you think about Diao?" Dong Huan always asked these questions, seizing every chance to matchmake Zhang Qiyang and Li Diao.

"Li Diao is great. But compared to girls in short qipaos, I prefer those in long qipaos—elegant and full of charm."

"Diao, hurry up and change!"

Dong Huan’s clamorous urging left Li Diao caught between desire and restraint, utterly helpless. She couldn’t fathom Dong Huan’s true intentions—was she genuinely trying to pair her with the cannon king, or was she hoping to taint her by association?

Watching the revived critics in the chat, following the rhythm of the "anti-Zhang Qiyang carrier fleet," Li Diao was genuinely terrified as the screen flooded with insults. While she’d been targeted by many in the streaming industry or by those with ulterior motives, compared to half of society targeting Zhang Qiyang, her own experience was just a drop in the ocean!

The scale of the backlash against Zhang Qiyang was something Li Diao could never bear.

Moreover, with him being the son of the richest man, Li Diao had no confidence she could hold onto his heart. She decided it was better to be cautious and not let herself fall into an abyss she could never escape. Her career was just beginning; she couldn’t afford such turmoil.

The gentle spring breeze brushed her face, sealing that moment of beauty in her heart, which she would savor privately. She dared not play such an exhilarating game again—not only did she lack the courage, but she simply couldn’t afford it.

Zhang Qiyang could sense that after flirting with Li Diao, she kept her distance like a touch-me-not. So he refrained from teasing further, not wishing to trouble her. He knew himself well: any woman daring enough to be linked romantically with him must possess a heart of steel, willing to risk everything. Otherwise, once labeled as the cannon king’s ex-girlfriend, she would never shake it off, and life in the industry would be a constant hassle.

Since she wasn’t interested in crossing that infernal threshold, he wouldn’t force her into it.

Once Zhang Qiyang stopped teasing Li Diao, the atmosphere in the live broadcast didn’t cool at all. He welcomed every sharp question from the viewers. Many asked about Wang Dazhong’s infamous cuckold incident, but Zhang Qiyang spared Wang some dignity, not completely exposing his secrets.

Regarding the ultimate cuckold story, Zhang Qiyang planned to wield it like a Damocles’ sword—never revealing it outright, but always keeping Wang Dazhong wary.

However, he did share the joke about Wang Dazhong, the "National Husband," being cheated on daily by thousands of mistresses, which delighted the viewers. This joke pushed Wang Dazhong’s high-profile image into the abyss.

Listening in, Wang Dazhong was so furious he wanted to smash his bottle. Deeply traumatized by such incidents, seeing girls in green clothes or carrying green bags made him angry. Now, after Zhang Qiyang’s remarks, the phrase "National Husband" made him sick—he felt no pride at all. He needed a new nickname; being called "husband" was simply humiliating!

This wasn’t the only thing that enraged Wang Dazhong. That night, Zhang Qiyang drove the entire Zebra livestream’s traffic, crushing Hyena Live. The peak of eight million viewers in Zebra’s special broadcast far exceeded Hyena’s six million across its platform!

Wang Dazhong couldn’t understand how Zhang Qiyang, with his reckless disregard for shame, could wield such enormous influence. Was it the reputation of being the richest man’s son, or the boost from "My Song"?

Wang Dazhong absolutely couldn’t let Zhang Qiyang continue to prosper. He was determined to have his people launch a smear campaign, dragging Zhang Qiyang back into a storm of public opinion, using overwhelming criticism to break him.

Yet what Zhang Qiyang feared least was precisely this barrage of public scrutiny.

That night, after an exuberant ninety minutes of chatting with viewers, Zhang Qiyang closed the broadcast with a song full of attitude. It was Hua Chenyu’s "I Don’t Care."

Hua Chenyu was one of Zhang Qiyang’s favorite singers. Hua’s voice was wild, bewitching, uninhibited. After arriving in this world, Zhang Qiyang’s gifted voice was even wilder, more seductive, more unrestrained than Hua’s.

He especially enjoyed singing Hua’s songs. In the future, he was sure to perform "Misfit" on "My Song." But tonight, he first gave his million fans another classic—"I Don’t Care."

He had previously recorded this song in the Eastern Network’s studio. Instead of singing live, he played the flawless audio version for his viewers, doubling as an advertisement for his Eastern Network single.

The song’s aura was overwhelming, like a manifesto for survival in the entertainment world, perfectly expressing Zhang Qiyang’s current attitude. His loyal cannon fodder fans were ecstatic. The explosive chorus shattered listeners, and after hearing it, even more were swept up by Zhang Qiyang’s sonic wave.

"...Who cares what you think! I express myself! Who cares what you say! I make my world extravagant! Oh oh oh oh, I don’t care how complicated you make it sound, oh oh oh oh, I won’t be reformed by anyone!..."

"...Who cares what you say! Whether I’m foolish or a joke! Who cares what you try! Don’t dream of me falling! Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh..."

As Zhang Qiyang’s wild, electrifying vocals echoed, the explosive livestream that had spawned countless topics finally drew to a close, leaving everyone wanting more.