Perfect Superstar.

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On August 14th, the 'Singing China' tour team wrapped up their competition in Tianfu.

Out of the 10 singers on the tour team, three were eliminated through PK challenges, including Lin Lang.

Lu Chen, unsurprisingly, defeated his challenger once again and continued his nationwide tour.

The rules of 'Singing China', established exclusively by Capital City TV, were notoriously strict. By the end of the Hangzhou stop, only three contestants from the Capital City top 10 remained: Lu Chen, Mu Xiaochu, and Zhang Junhua.

These rules were particularly disadvantageous for contestants from earlier districts like Capital City.

To advance to the national top 10 and participate in the grand finals, they had to continuously defeat challengers from the other six districts. Losing even one PK match would disqualify them, with no chance for revival.

However, from another perspective, contestants from Capital City theoretically had the most opportunities to perform. Though the intense PK schedule tested their willpower and endurance, those who persisted built a powerful fanbase over time.

Additionally, there were cash prizes for PK matches—50,000 Yuan per win. By the end of the competitions in Shengjing, Huhai, Hangzhou, Tianfu, Lu Chen, Mu Xiaochu, and Zhang Junhua had each earned 200,000 Yuan.

Including the Capital City top 10 champion prize, Lu Chen had already secured 300,000 Yuan in after-tax rewards.

Contestants from later districts might conserve energy by competing less, but they also missed out on prize money and exposure. Which strategy was better depended on personal priorities?

It was clear that when the second season of 'Singing China' began next year, selecting the right district would be a hot topic.

Among all the contestants, Lu Chen undoubtedly stood out as the most remarkable. Every song he performed was an original composition— not a single cover!

While an all-original repertoire was already impressive, what was truly astonishing was the consistently high quality of Lu Chen's work.

Apart from his wildly popular 'In Spring', his self-performed songs like 'My Old Classmate', 'Flying Higher', 'Dust in the Wind', and 'These Flowers' were also considered excellent, if not classic, creations.

These outstanding original works earned him the love of countless audiences, and his fanbase grew rapidly.

On blogs, forums, and online communities, many fans hailed Lu Chen as a leader among the new generation of singers.

Even in the pop music scene and entertainment industry, discussions about his work became increasingly common.

Some even declared that the revival of domestic original music was underway, with Lu Chen's rise as the best evidence!

Thanks to him, 'Singing China''s ratings continued to climb.

In contrast, Xiangnan TV's The Strongest Singer paled by comparison. Despite entering the national finals earlier than 'Singing China', its recent episodes struggled to maintain a 3% viewership rating.

Some joked that the real "Strongest Singer" was on 'Singing China', while The Strongest Singer merely featured a few decent performers. It seemed the two shows had swapped scripts.

On the Langchao Blog, Lu Chen's fan count surpassed 5 million after the Tianfu competition!

For a previously unknown newcomer, Lu Chen's meteoric rise garnered cheers from millions of fans and viewers. However, it also attracted jealousy and resentment from some quarters.

Thus, the black tide began to stir quietly.

On August 18th, the day after the PK match in the Deep Sea district of 'Singing China', something unexpected occurred.

Around 7 p.m., a blog post suddenly went viral, spreading rapidly across Langchao Blog.

The post was titled "My Story with 'In Spring'", authored by a user with the ID Vagabond Singer Old Hai.

This newly registered blogger claimed to be a vagabond singer who had drifted in Capital City for over 20 years. He left home at 19 to pursue his musical dreams but was met with harsh realities.

Over the years, Old Hai performed in bars, subway tunnels, and public squares. To make ends meet, he often took up manual labor, struggling daily to afford meals.

Despite his hardships, he never gave up on his dream and continued to tread the difficult path of music.

Old Hai claimed to have written numerous songs, though his works never garnered attention— perhaps due to a lack of talent. Among them, one song held a special place in his heart.

This song, called 'Spring', was a labor of love that he refined over several years. However, he had never finalized it, and even its lyrics remained incomplete. As such, he never registered its copyright.

He did, however, share the draft with several friends, who praised its potential.

Buoyed by hope, Old Hai never expected what happened next.

Recently, he heard a familiar melody in a bar. It turned out to be the wildly popular 'In Spring', which many people were covering.

To his shock, the melody and tune of 'In Spring' were strikingly similar to his song Spring, despite differing lyrics.

Old Hai felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He was completely stunned.

"How could this happen?"

He couldn't believe it.

With no outlet for his frustration, he confided in his friends.

But they were powerless to help. 'In Spring' was already copyrighted, and without concrete evidence, how could Old Hai prove the song was his?

So let it go. There's no need to shout about it everywhere; people will just say you're jealous and trying to smear someone.

Old Hai understood that his friends had his best interests in mind. After all, what could a penniless, powerless, and unknown vagabond singer from Capital City do against someone else? Giving up seemed like the wisest choice.

But he couldn't accept it. He didn't want to give up.

So, he created an account on Langchao Blog and shared his story with the world.

Old Hai didn't care whether people believed him— he only wanted justice.

The blog post was lengthy, written in an emotional tone that vividly painted the life of a downtrodden, middle-aged vagabond singer struggling at the very bottom.

The story struck a chord with readers, stirring up righteous anger in many.

At the end of the post, Old Hai attached photos of crumpled and worn-out sheets of handwritten music. Despite numerous corrections and scribbles, the dense notes on the pages were still legible.

As a completely unknown blogger with no followers, Old Hai's post initially went unnoticed. But it was soon shared and tagged to numerous prominent figures in the entertainment industry.

What followed was extraordinary. Within just a few hours, the post had been shared tens of thousands of times, gaining exponential traction in views, comments, and likes.

By 10 p.m., the blog post had reached the homepage of Langchao Blog's trending list.

It garnered over 110,000 shares, 350,000 comments, and 500,000 likes!

In the comments, many expressed sympathy for Old Hai, supporting his call for justice and urging him to take legal action.

However, some questioned the authenticity of the story, suspecting it was a publicity stunt.

Although Old Hai's post didn't mention any names explicitly, its implications were crystal clear. As soon as it went viral, Lu Chen's own blog was inundated with backlash.

Uninformed readers flooded Lu Chen's page, accusing him of plagiarizing Old Hai's work and calling him shameless.

Some demanded that Lu Chen apologize to Old Hai and return the copyright for 'In Spring'.

Others called for Lu Chen to leave the entertainment industry entirely!

Before participating in 'Singing China', Lu Chen was an obscure newcomer. Now, he was a rising star, basking in widespread praise and glory.

By contrast, Old Hai appeared pitiful and downtrodden, naturally garnering sympathy.

The critics of Lu Chen cared little for the truth. Moved by Old Hai's story, they directed their anger and hatred toward Lu Chen, launching a spontaneous campaign of verbal attacks against him to vent their emotions.

Some even bombarded the blogs of Capital City TV, the 'Singing China' production team, and even prominent figures like Tan Hong and Chen Fei'er, demanding that Lu Chen be banned!

Certain well-known bloggers added fuel to the fire.

One industry professional with a verified account harshly criticized:

"The domestic pop music scene is being ruined by this kind of behavior—plagiarism becoming the norm, and shameless hype knowing no bounds. True talents are being overshadowed."

They urged Capital City TV to ban Lu Chen, arguing that a plagiarist had no right to stand on stage.

It was as if Lu Chen's guilt had already been decided!

Many other industry bloggers, both prominent and lesser-known, echoed similar sentiments. As the anti-Lu Chen wave swept across Langchao Blog, it quickly spread to online forums, discussion boards, and even WeChat groups.

Lu Chen suddenly became a target of mass condemnation, with his alleged plagiarism deemed undeniable.

However, while there were many uninformed critics, sharp-eyed observers were not in short supply.

A newly registered blog, a post with nothing more than some photos and an emotional story, causing such a massive uproar in such a short time—if there wasn't a deliberate effort behind this, it would be an insult to everyone's intelligence!

The marketing accounts driving the frenzy were well-known opportunists—always siding with whoever paid them.

Still, seeing through the ploy didn't mean anyone would stand up for Lu Chen.

Lu Chen had been gaining significant momentum recently and had even offended Xiangnan TV, embarrassing several key figures in the entertainment world.

Some people were happy to watch him fall, while others saw an opportunity to add to his troubles. Few showed any inclination to defend him, and some even subtly pushed the narrative further, eager to see Lu Chen take a massive tumble.

This was the nature of the entertainment industry. With no powerful backers and only a budding reputation, Lu Chen made the perfect target to trample on.

Now, everyone was watching closely. The black tide was so overwhelming—how would Lu Chen respond?

(Chapter ends)