Dad, Please Let Me Be a Solo Fan!

Chu Wangshu's smile froze instantly. Her gaze wandered as she said guiltily:

"Ahaha... why would you ask that?"

Chu Yuanqing dealt a merciless finishing blow:

"Don't tell me you snuck over here?"

"Of course not!"

Watching her daughter blink rapidly and flail in panic, Chu Yuanqing found it both amusing and a little heartbreaking.

In truth, she did not object to her daughter joining a Talent Show.

But for an underage girl, choosing to step onto a stage watched by countless people and endure immense exposure and scrutiny was undoubtedly an important decision that required careful thought.

Yet from beginning to end, Xiao Shu had never intended to discuss it with her. Not only had she revealed nothing, but she had even tried her best to avoid the topic of the Talent Show at school.

Chu Yuanqing was not angry about the deception.

Because it was precisely her own avoidance and numbness that had planted the seeds of this bitter result.

But at this moment,

she still could not help feeling an intense sense of failure. Perhaps... she truly was a failed father.

Chu Yuanqing was filled with complicated emotions. When she came back to herself and saw the lively smile on her daughter's face, an idea began to take root in her heart.

If she did not approach her as a father, but as a friend her own age, could she cross the heavy barrier between them and become... someone who understood her better?

With that thought, she changed the subject.

"Then how did you get to know me? Can you tell me?"

Chu Wangshu blinked, her eyes immediately sparkling as she replied:

"Because during the auditions, you were right in front of me! And everyone around us was talking about you, saying you were super cute and could even skip the talent segment."

As she watched the girl lean close while speaking, Chu Yuanqing felt that within a single minute, she had met a daughter completely different from the one in her memories.

Enthusiastic, candid, and straightforward.

The way this child interacted with people her own age was practically the complete opposite of how she acted around her.

For a moment, Chu Yuanqing did not know whether to feel happy or sad. The conflicting sensation of her two identities becoming Intertwined was, for the first time, receiving subtle feedback through her daughter's reactions.

But very soon,

"Oh, right! The clothes you wore that day—I have the exact same set! That's such a coincidence, right?"

Chu Yuanqing looked bewildered and asked blankly:

"Huh? Clothes? The same set?"

Chu Wangshu explained seriously:

"Yeah, yeah! That light purple printed T-shirt, the dark gray pleated skirt, even the shoes and long socks—I happen to have all of them too. Isn't that super coincidental?"

The faint sadness Chu Yuanqing had felt moments ago was completely washed away by a tsunami of embarrassment. She forced out a stiff smile, trying to hide the urge to curl her toes into the floor.

Haha, would it be funny if she told her that she had taken them from her closet?

Fuck, I want to die, I want to die, I want to die, I want to die!

If Heaven wanted to punish her, it should keep using the curse of the Sea of Truth, not make her wear her daughter's clothes and then get caught by her daughter on the spot!

Idol Career on the Line.

At the same time.

While a certain retired Savior was dying of embarrassment, this variety show had already stirred up a massive uproar online.

As media outlets in Zhelong Town wrapped up one after another, huge amounts of news and leaks were released in rapid succession.

Marketing accounts of every sort followed close behind, either copying and pasting or making things up out of thin air.

On-site photos of multiple seeded contestants, the gimmick of the Global Project and its brand new format, the mysterious identities of the show's mentors, declarations of staking their Idol Careers, and even the teaser PV for the underground filming base—all of it was used in every possible way to give netizens the greatest possible stimulation.

Even passersby who had no interest whatsoever in idols, Talent Shows, or celebrities found it hard not to become curious about Shining Stage under such an intense barrage of fresh information, not to mention viewers who were already part of its target audience.

As a result, the show quickly flooded the Hot Search rankings and truly became popular before it had even aired.

It could be said that every contestant with even a little popularity now possessed considerable discussion value.

And as though deliberately seizing the peak of the audience's anticipation,

at noon, Shining Stage's official website, major domestic video sites, all live-streaming platforms, and countless social media apps added links to the Live Broadcast Room in their recommendation sections, causing Public Opinion to ferment once more.

If idols were commodities that sold youth and dreams, then the essence of Talent Shows was to package those commodities. Every episode edited by the Program Group was a promotional film that "kept the best and discarded the dregs."

In other words, opening the livestream to the public from the very beginning not only meant abandoning the advantages of editing and BGM, but also meant presenting every commodity in its initial state, like a Raw Gemstone, directly to the public. It infinitely raised what had originally been an almost zero-tolerance error rate.

The viewers did not understand this decision.

And when people did not understand something, they became curious, they discussed it, and they went in to watch. As a result, not long after the Live Broadcast Room went live, its viewer count Reached one million.

Bullet Comments poured down through the Live Broadcast Room like an avalanche:

"Any time? Any place? Female college students? Watching seriously???"

"Fuck, it really is live? A Worldwide project really is different—it's all about authenticity."

"Honestly, if every Talent Show could be livestreamed from start to finish, the scandal rate would definitely plummet."

"Holy shit, this stream lets you freely switch between over a hundred personal channels? What kind of black-tech cameras are these? This is practically a solo fan's dream."

"I can't take it anymore. Why is that Younger Sister spinning flying pancakes while dancing in the corner? Hahahaha, she definitely doesn't know she's being livestreamed!"

"I'm dying. Even someone going for a funny-girl persona wouldn't let herself go like this. This really proves how authentic this show is."

At this moment, the trainees being livestreamed in the Waiting Room remained completely unaware, since all their communication devices had been collected.

Chu Yuanqing was no exception. Following her original plan, she sat in a seat in a secluded area, carefully minimizing her presence. She looked exactly like one of those gloomy background characters from anime.

But Heaven did not grant her wish. There was no shortage of viewers with unusual personalities.

These people were not very interested in the bright, outgoing trainees. Instead, they were more than happy to dig out the girl hiding in the corner, rebellion being the whole point.

Thus, her overly exquisite appearance quickly caught the attention of countless face enthusiasts.

On the screen,

Chu Yuanqing's slender waist was straight, her legs naturally pressed together. She looked prim and proper, sitting with elegant and serious posture, carrying an old-fashioned air that did not match her age.

The girl's face was flawless, clear and cold. She should have resembled Tianshan Snow, yet she possessed a childish youthfulness that created an adorable natural contrast. One glance was enough to leave a deep impression, and she was strikingly beautiful.

Someone like her hiding in a corner naturally aroused curiosity.

The Bullet Comments quickly descended into madness:

"So cute, so cute, so cute! Send me one like this immediately, I'm not joking???"

"I have to date someone like this in my life, I have to date someone like this in my life, I have to date someone like this in my life..."

"First sight, solo fan, marriage, cremation, burial together."

"Fuck, is she the only one in the entire place wearing the contestant uniform? Every other girl carefully styled her makeup and outfit. Is she an idiot?"

"Isn't that even more insane? She can pull off this effect in those clothes—can she really be an amateur? Don't tell me she's some secret weapon an Entertainment Company has been hiding?"

"As a face enthusiast, I've been sunk! The girl beside her is pretty too, and she's even bigger!"

—A-Qiu.

Chu Yuanqing sneezed. She wrinkled her delicate nose in confusion, Always feeling that something bad was about to happen.

But after thinking about it, she decided it probably was not a big deal.

After all, this show had already given her such a huge "surprise" right from the start. Whatever happened afterward could not possibly be worth caring about, right?

Yes, that had to be it!

Seeing this, Chu Wangshu blinked. Like a puppy, she leaned her head closer, and under the gaze of the Live Broadcast Room viewers, she decisively pressed her forehead against the other girl's to check her temperature before asking with concern:

"Are you feeling unwell? Did you get caught in the rain and catch a cold?"

At that moment, the warmth of their touching foreheads stirred up old memories.

Long ago, when she had checked her daughter's temperature during a fever, she had used exactly the same method.

How nostalgic. Back then, Xiao Shu loved Acting cute and was honest and open. She had been the most well-behaved and adorable child in the whole world.

She was still adorable now, but she was ultimately a little adult. Father and daughter could no longer be as close as they had once been.

Chu Yuanqing silently pushed her daughter away and said softly:

"I'm fine. I held my umbrella properly when it was raining outside."

After explaining herself, Chu Yuanqing lifted her serious little face and looked up. She continued in a lecturing tone:

"Also, we are not friends yet. Don't casually do something so intimate."

Upon hearing that, Chu Wangshu seemed to realize something. She shyly retreated a little, immediately stopped the forehead-touching, and nodded repeatedly with a faint blush on her face.

"Mhm, I understand."

After that, the two fell silent, and the atmosphere became exceptionally awkward.

Chu Yuanqing was worrying that her daughter was so foolishly adorable that she might get kidnapped someday when going out alone.

Meanwhile, Chu Wangshu was replaying her own actions in her mind, her toes digging into the floor as she felt unbearably embarrassed.

She suspected that someone had put a curse on her today. When she saw the other girl, she had inexplicably felt that this person was so familiar, without any distance between strangers, and she had pressed herself close without even thinking.

But looking back on it, that behavior was practically like a hatchling seeking its Mom's embrace. No matter how she looked at it, it was strange.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the Live Broadcast Room was completely different from that of the people involved.

One second earlier, the Bullet Comments had been shipping them wildly and cheering for a new CP.

The next second, the brand new CP had reached a BE ending, and everyone began discussing who was right and who was wrong. It was a complete Demonic Dance.

"Isn't that a little heartless?"

"Who talks like that? Is she deliberately trying to create a persona for herself?"

"Either she really has low emotional intelligence, or she's doing it on purpose. Either way, it's unlikeable. The little bit of goodwill her looks gave me is gone now."

"Still, saying something so serious with such a cute face is also really adorable!"

"Fuck, doesn't that make them even more shippable? Straightforward puppy girl X serious old-fashioned girl!"

"Exactly! And that girl seemed like she was genuinely lecturing her. Hah, she's cute even when she's a little silly."

And just then, while the argument online continued without resolution,

the walls of the Waiting Room shifted like flowing water. Ten entrances appeared in this science-fiction-like manner before all the trainees, while the Program Group's announcement echoed through the room:

"Beyond these doors lies the true Competition Venue."

"But before you enter the Competition Venue, we must inform every contestant and viewer that the risks of participating in this show are far greater than you imagine."

"To put it simply, once you enter the Competition Venue, you will truly stake your respective Idol Careers!"

Entertainment Revolution.

The moment those words were spoken,

the chaotic Bullet Comments in the Live Broadcast Room immediately formed a united front and began discussing the implications behind them:

"Fuck, what does staking your Idol Career even mean?"

"What Talent Show doesn't require you to stake your Idol Career?"

"That's true. If you get eliminated, you can't debut, and you waste another year. For some older contestants, that year is practically a death sentence—an announcement that they'll never share a stage again."

"Not necessarily. Don't forget that Shining Stage's promotional PV kept emphasizing a brand new Elimination Mechanism and, most importantly, an Entertainment Revolution. The Program Group definitely has some new trick up its sleeve."

Most trainees in the Waiting Room had the same reaction in their hearts.

Dreams, sweat, Idol Careers, starlight, and the future.

It could be said that almost every Talent Show tied itself to these Keywords.

After all, doing so not only heightened the tension, but also made it easier for viewers to empathize with the contestants, creating better entertainment value. Why not?

So in their eyes, this was probably the same old routine. There was nothing worth paying attention to.

This scene would most likely be edited into the show later. Rather than analyzing those words, it was better to focus on managing their expressions.