Chapter Ninety-Eight: The Concern for Hao Mingxing Disappeared, Replaced By... (Second Update, Please Subscribe)

Brilliant Star Culture.

After releasing his song on December 1st, Ye Yuanhang’s wish finally came true. The new track soared to the top of the new song charts in a remarkably short time, outpacing the runner-up by two to three times the numbers.

“Completely unchallenged!”

That was Ye Yuanhang’s exact remark, his eyes sparkling with a satisfied smile.

At last.

At last… this time he was going to firmly hold the number one spot.

Though there were other artists releasing songs in December—one top-tier singer and several second-tier ones—Ye Yuanhang and Brilliant Star Culture crushed all competition with overwhelming force, proudly reigning supreme on the new song charts.

This!

This was the true power of his quasi-superstar status.

So, on the evening of the 2nd, Ye Yuanhang even found the leisure to turn on the television and watch "Singer Style."

At first, he was thoroughly engaged.

“This music variety show is quite interesting, and the singers’ talents are impressive too.”

“Impressive—this round really showcased Luo Ning’s strength.”

“Oh, Zhou Jingyi is pretty good too. This girl will inevitably rise to the top tier someday.”

“Hao Mingxing is taking the stage…”

Ye Yuanhang munched on some Sunlight Grapes as he appraised each singer’s performance, thoroughly relaxed.

Watching Hao Mingxing on screen, he shook his head with a sigh.

“Hao Mingxing’s voice is certainly distinctive—among the entire entertainment circle, that smoky tone is one of a kind. But what’s a blessing is also a curse; there are very few songs that suit him. Most songs, even if rearranged, are not really a fit.”

Muttering to himself, Ye Yuanhang recalled the recent trending topic about “Feeling sorry for the sacrificial pawn, Hao Mingxing.”

This topic had lingered on Weibo’s trending list for several days.

Perhaps many other stars envied the traffic such a topic brought.

But Ye Yuanhang scoffed. His view was the same as Hao Mingxing’s: only the weak need pity. The strong never appear on such trending lists in this manner. This isn’t fame—it’s humiliation!

Pity?

Where does that leave a man’s pride?

Ye Yuanhang murmured, “If one day I were to appear on such a trending topic, I’d probably want to die. I really don’t know how Hao Mingxing feels. Sadly, no matter what he thinks, elimination is already set… set…”

Suddenly, his expression stiffened.

He heard Hao Mingxing mention singing a new song.

What was going on?

A new song?

Where did you get a new song from?

Ye Yuanhang held the Sunlight Grapes, staring blankly at Hao Mingxing on the screen as the singer began to shine.

One minute.

Two minutes.

Until Hao Mingxing finished his song “Empty City,” and uttered a few words: “This song was written by Wuyan.”

“Bang!”

The Sunlight Grapes in Ye Yuanhang’s hand were crushed, juice splattering everywhere.

Just then, his manager walked in from outside. He glanced at Ye Yuanhang, then at the crushed grapes, feeling a sudden pang in his chest.

After a moment’s thought, he handed Ye Yuanhang a tissue.

“Your grapes… they’re smashed.”

“Heh.”

Ye Yuanhang didn’t take it. “I’m watching TV. Hao Mingxing’s on stage.”

The manager laughed, “Is Hao Mingxing out? I told you, his voice is unique, but that advantage can sometimes be his biggest weakness, delivering a fatal blow at a crucial moment. No one can save him—unless Wuyan steps in again with a tailor-made song… huh??? You???”

Suddenly, the manager noticed Ye Yuanhang’s expression turn strange.

He shuddered. “You, you?”

Ye Yuanhang chuckled wildly, then suddenly turned ferocious, lunging forward. “You jinx! Perfect, just as I thought! You didn’t say anything when you should have! Say it! Tell Wuyan to write a song for him!”

“Ah?”

The manager quickly dodged, watching the suddenly unhinged Ye Yuanhang. Then his gaze returned to the TV.

At this moment, the judges were commenting on Hao Mingxing’s new song.

He was stunned.

No way. Wuyan really wrote a new song for Hao Mingxing?

A song that allowed him to make a desperate comeback, crushing the competition?

Holy hell. That’s possible?

He muttered, “Am I really that prophetic?”

“You idiot, that’s not the point!”

Ye Yuanhang was so frustrated he almost strangled his manager.

The manager finally snapped to attention, face turning pale.

“A new song!”

His expression grew anxious.

Hao Mingxing was dazzling on “Singer Style,” and the new track would probably be released tonight. What would happen next was obvious.

Sure enough, half an hour later, “Empty City” appeared on all major music platforms, and the data began to soar at an astonishing rate.

“It’s here.”

“Again…”

Ye Yuanhang and his manager exchanged a glance, both exhausted, muttering faintly.

Especially Ye Yuanhang, who recalled the previous two times he had been ambushed like this.

“So… painful.”

He covered his face, lowering his head, his face full of sorrow.

Why was this happening?

All he wanted was to claim number one on the new song chart. Was that really too much to ask?

Perhaps for ordinary singers it was a tall order.

But he was a quasi-superstar!

Not securing the top spot on the new song chart was a joke.

Yet the reality was, in the past few months, he had released three songs, each time attempting to hit number one, and failed every time.

Who could understand this pain?

His manager was equally speechless. When did their luck turn so sour?

They had collided with Wuyan three times in a row. November was spent regrouping for a month, but Wuyan remained silent.

If it weren’t impossible, he might have suspected Wuyan was deliberately targeting Ye Yuanhang.

“So, what do we do now?”

He asked cautiously.

Ye Yuanhang looked up. “You ask me? Who do I ask?”

The manager suggested, “How about I notify the major music platforms to temporarily withdraw your new song? As long as we pull it, Wuyan will never defeat us.”

Ye Yuanhang stared intently at his manager. “Brother, that’s a brilliant idea.”

The manager’s eyes lit up. “You think so too?”

“Get lost!”

The two fell silent for a moment.

Then the manager tried to comfort him again.

“We’re not necessarily defeated yet. ‘Empty City’ is only popular because of the buzz from ‘Singer Style.’ After some time, who will come out on top is still uncertain. After all, your fame and fan base far exceed Hao Mingxing’s.”

Ye Yuanhang frowned. “That sounds familiar.”

The manager honestly replied, “Because I said the same thing in September and October.”

Ye Yuanhang said, “Well, thanks for that.”

“No problem.”

After a pause, the manager continued, “I’m serious—don’t give up before the last moment. ‘Empty City’ exploded because of trending on social media. I’m planning to contact the company to hype you up as well, get you more exposure on the trending lists. Since a clash with Wuyan is inevitable, we have to fight to the very end.”

At that moment, the manager’s phone rang.

He answered, his expression turning strange. “Yuanhang, you… really made the trending list.”

“Huh?”

Ye Yuanhang suddenly perked up. “Could it be the company anticipated this and started promoting me early?”

He nearly lunged onto the sofa, grabbing his phone to open Weibo.

He looked at the trending chart.

Number eight.

The original topic “Feeling sorry for the sacrificial pawn Hao Mingxing” had disappeared.

Now, it was “Feeling sorry for Ye Yuanhang.”

The same pity.

The same topic.

Only the protagonist had switched from Hao Mingxing to Ye Yuanhang.

Countless netizens flooded in, commenting.

“Ye Yuanhang is so tragic.”

“Who would have thought he’d collide with Wuyan again?”

“This is the third time, right?”

“Three new songs in six months, all three times clashing with Wuyan. I can only say one word: tragic.”

“Sending hugs to Ye Yuanhang, don’t cry, hang in there.”

“Feeling sorry.”

“So sorry.”

“…”

One had to admit, this wave of sympathy struck a chord with netizens. Each one who learned that Ye Yuanhang, a quasi-superstar, had faced Wuyan’s songs three times in a row looked utterly astonished.

So far, Wang Mo had written only four songs for three singers, and Ye Yuanhang had clashed with all of them?

What luck!

What odds!

Truly fatal!

Even the major marketing accounts compiled Ye Yuanhang’s “misfortune” into various news stories, spreading them widely.

In a short time, the topic “Feeling sorry for Ye Yuanhang” skyrocketed, soaring to the top of the trending charts!

So dazzling.

So explosive.

Gazing at the trending topic and the netizens’ comments, Ye Yuanhang sat on the sofa in a strange posture, motionless for a long time.

His manager wanted to say something but gave up, feeling that everything that could be said had already been said—and yet it only made things worse.

He glanced around and finally spotted the Sunlight Grapes on the table.

Suddenly, the manager found a target for his frustration. Fuming, he crushed each grape and threw them violently into the trash, muttering, “You call yourself sunlight! You call yourself roses!”

Ye Yuanhang watched his manager’s outburst blankly. After all the grapes were tossed away, he suddenly stood, grabbed a backpack, and headed out.

The manager was stunned. “Where are you going?”

Without looking back, Ye Yuanhang said, “Goodbye. Tonight, I’m setting sail…”

(End of chapter)