"The Ning Yang show is scheduled for the day after tomorrow. Will you be attending?" Miss K asked Xiang Qingwei via WeChat.
Ning Yang's popularity had exceeded the expectations of the production team, bringing a significant amount of additional attention to the show, so naturally, Miss K had to inform Xiang Qingwei.
"I will," Xiang Qingwei responded without hesitation. She hung up and checked her schedule, discovering that Ling Jiayi had an event scheduled in B City on the same day. Normally, she would have accompanied him, so she hesitated briefly before canceling her trip.
Ling Jiayi's excessive reliance on her wasn't necessarily a good thing. Xiao Dong was now capable of handling most emergencies on his own, so she didn't need to worry.
Ning Yang was at a critical juncture right now, and it had been a while since she'd last seen him. She was curious about his current state.
Once Xiang Qingwei made her decision, she notified Xiao Dong.
However, Xiao Dong didn't dare to inform Ling Jiayi immediately upon receiving the notification.
The day before the first live recording, the second episode of Super Idol aired.
Ning Yang's performance, which earned him the first A rating, garnered countless new fans.
—Oh my god, this voice! It's like an angel kissed him!
—I don't think "kissed by an angel" is quite right. It's more like pristine spring water in the depths of a mountain, the most natural, clean, and clear sound that exists.
—This song is so good too! And he wrote it himself?!
—Wait, am I watching an idol drama?
—Ahhhhhhhhhh, I'm obsessed!
The dance performance that followed soon after sent the chat into a frenzy.
Just what kind of deity is Ning Yang?! He has no dance foundation whatsoever, yet he can perform at this level after just one month of training!
He's a natural-born idol! A natural-born idol!
Ning Yang is truly outstanding! His looks are unrivaled, his aura is pristine, he can play guitar and write songs, his singing voice is phenomenal, and his dancing is breathtaking! I'm crying—I'm going to vote for him right now!
A perfect score on the first try! Ning Yang deserves it!
Go for it, Ning Yang!
The program's views quickly broke past 100 million within half a day of its release.
The topic #Ning Yang's First A# rapidly climbed the hot search rankings; in only two hours, it rocketed from number thirteen to the top spot.
Ning Yang's Weibo followers swelled once again.
Moreover, his fans' enthusiasm for creating content exploded as well.
All sorts of beautifully edited photos, animated graphics, and promotional videos swiftly assembled into a massive army within a remarkably short span of time.
Yao Yuan also made it onto the hot search rankings, though he was in sixth place. Upon closer inspection, his discussions and overall heat were far below Ning Yang's.
Xiang Qingwei couldn't help but suspect that the trending topic #Yao Yuan's Triumphant Return# was a热搜 bought by either Yao Yuan or Createx Entertainment.
Despite his objective stance, Xiang Qingwei had to admit that Yao Yuan's overall strength was greater than Ning Yang's. His fanbase, while a strength, was also a weakness.
The audience knew him too well; all of his classic performances and past dance routines were readily available online. The audience's perception of him was that he was a high-quality performer, so while it was expected for him to maintain this level of excellence, any minor slip-up would disappoint the audience.
Ning Yang was different. He was a complete newcomer, and no information about him could be found online.
The netizens had diligently dug through every piece of information they could find from the moment his promotional photos were released, but all their efforts yielded little more than an enigma.
It was as if he had appeared out of nowhere, and his time as a trainee had only been one month; he had no dance experience whatsoever. Yet, he still managed to put on such a captivating stage performance, and his poised demeanor and relaxed attitude made him instantly likable.
With his personal charm and professional competence, Ning Yang also garnered a multitude of positive reviews on Weibo.
His white shirt, black pants, black eyes, and dark hair, along with his immaculate demeanor, made him appear cool and collected on stage, modest yet refined. It would be difficult for anyone to harbor bad feelings toward him.
—The Ning Yang in Super Idol is simply outstanding. It's been ages since a fresh face like him has appeared in the entertainment industry.
—There's a contestant named Ning Yang in the newly released talent scouting program that truly blew me away—a real breath of fresh air.
—It's only a matter of time before Ning Yang explodes onto the scene; I really hope to see him act someday.
—Ling Jiayi's manager sure has an eye for talent. Ling Jiayi is beautiful beyond words, Ning Yang's presence is captivating, and Tao Yuner's looks are among the best in all of the female celebrities.
—How can some contestants on Super Idol be so pretentious and greasy at their tender ages? Yet Ning Yang, who's slightly older, emanates a clean and refreshing aura. So rare.
Super Idol's unprecedented popularity exceeded the expectations of everyone involved, including the producers.
Even Xiang Qingwei was surprised. Although she had high hopes for the show when she first read the proposal, and it was guaranteed to not flop with Miss K overseeing it, she never expected it to become this big of a hit.
During the first week, the program's team had to shell out their own money to buy trending topics.
By the second week, they no longer needed to do so.
Three of the top ten spots on the Weibo search were related to Super Idol.
Ning Yang's Weibo fan count broke two million, swiftly approaching three.
This was only after two episodes.
Xiang Qingwei had planned to spend money buying followers for him before the show aired, but now she no longer needed to.
Was it the show's popularity that created Ning Yang, or did Ning Yang create the show's popularity?
Xiang Qingwei believed it was a symbiotic relationship.
Regardless, Miss K was riding high on her success recently, with a seemingly endless parade of dinner parties and social gatherings on her calendar. She had tried calling Xiang Qingwei a few times, but the manager had been unable to find time amidst her busy schedule, so they never managed to meet up.
The massive surge in popularity caused by Super Idol was not limited to the general audience; even celebrities found themselves sucked into its orbit.
Lion Mountain Film City.
City C had been experiencing heavy rainfall for the past half a month, which cooled down the production site. Due to the weather, filming has been taking place indoors over the last few days.
Xie Ruixin sat on a chair, holding her phone in one hand as she watched an episode of Super Idol and sipped on a bubble tea with the other, giggling at the witty comments on screen.
"Okay! That's a wrap for this scene! Let's take a short break," the assistant director called through a megaphone.
The tense filming site instantly relaxed; Xiao Mei rushed over with a bottle of mineral water, handed it to Ling Jiayi, then received a prop sword from him. Ling Jiayi was dressed in a light blue costume, giving him an ethereal air. He drank water as he made his way toward the break area.
"Ah, so handsome!" Xie Ruixin sat on a chair, holding her phone in one hand and covering her mouth with the other, but her excited shrieks still managed to leak out between her fingers. "Ah!"
"What are you screeching about?" Ling Jiayi lay on another chair, shot her a disapproving glance, then glanced casually at her phone screen, only to see a man dancing on the screen.
"Xinxin, you're also watching Super Idol?" Xiao Mei's eyes glistened as she scooted closer.
"Yep! You are too?" Xie Ruixin responded with delight as if she'd found a long-lost friend.
"Boring." Ling Jiayi leaned back and closed his eyes, ready to take a nap.
"Yep, this show's been getting pretty popular lately! I haven't even had the chance to watch the second episode yet!" Xiao Mei squatted beside Xie Ruixin's chair to watch with her. "Did an A-level contestant appear this time?"
"Yep!" Xie Ruixin's tone was filled with excitement. "Do you know that contestant named Ning Yang?"
"Yep, yep! The first person to choose A, right?"
"Yep, yep, yep! That's him!" Xie Ruixin said excitedly.
"I'm currently obsessed with him. He's so good-looking, and his aura is just amazing!" Xiao Mei said.
With his eyes closed, Ling Jiayi lifted the corner of his lips in disdain, wondering if there was something wrong with Xiao Mei's taste.
Who could be better-looking than him? Whose aura could possibly surpass his?
But this name...he seemed to have heard it somewhere before.
Xie Ruixin paused the video, excitedly sitting up straight, her eyes glistening. "I also love him! Ning Yang is really handsome, and his demeanor is great! He got an A on the second episode! He sang a song! It was self-composed, and it sounded amazing! Wait, let me rewind it for you! It's super good! His voice is so clean!"
As she spoke, she immediately pulled the video progress bar back a bit, stopping at the scene where Ning Yang sat down and adjusted the microphone. "It's right here, right here! He's about to start singing! Hurry, put your headphones in."
"I can just wear one," Xiao Mei said. "Let's each wear one."
"I've already listened to it multiple times! Hear that? You need to wear two headphones to fully appreciate it! Quickly, quickly, he's about to start!" Xie Ruixin urged.
Xiao Mei could only put both headphones on.
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The entire book has been translated, with a total of 414K words and more than 1,200 pages.
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