By evening.
Ke An brought two staff members to deliver professional livestreaming equipment to Ye Chen.
The singing room was on the first floor, so it wouldn't disturb Su Ningwei or the three babies while they rested.
Professional equipment really was something else.
Cameras, camera accessories, lighting equipment, sound-control equipment... It had everything.
After they had set up the livestreaming equipment,
Ye Chen gave it a try. Sure enough, it was different.
He felt like he looked even more handsome, and the image quality was much better too.
"This looks good." Ke An nodded with satisfaction, then handed Ye Chen a script. "Ye Chen, this is what you'll say tonight. Take a look and see if there's anything you want to change."
Ye Chen glanced over it and didn't see any problems. It was concise and covered everything he needed to say. The professionals really knew what they were doing.
"It's pretty good. I don't have anything I want to change," Ye Chen replied.
Ke An said, "All right, then we'll follow this script tonight. The comments will probably fly by too fast to reply to. We'll be in the livestream room helping moderate, and we'll pick out a few questions you should answer. The suggested replies are all in here too, so don't be nervous."
"Got it. Thanks for all your hard work," Ye Chen said with a nod.
"It's no trouble. You'll be singing 'Lonely Warrior' live, right? That song really suits the occasion. I love the line, 'Who says only those standing in the light count as heroes?'"
"No problem," Ye Chen replied with a nod.
"Xiaoxia, I'll leave Ye Chen's skincare and styling to you. Make sure he looks his very best when he appears on camera." Ke An called to a pretty, short-haired woman who had just walked into the room.
"Got it, Sister An," the short-haired woman replied with a smile.
The voice sounded familiar to Ye Chen, so he turned to look. It was Guan Xiaoxia, the makeup artist he'd met at the jewelry banquet before.
Guan Xiaoxia smiled and greeted Ye Chen. "Hey, handsome. Fancy seeing you again! Congratulations on your debut."
"Thanks," Ye Chen replied politely.
Ke An asked, "You two know each other?"
"I did Ye Chen's makeup once. Even then, I could tell he had an extraordinary face. I knew he'd become a huge star," Guan Xiaoxia replied with a smile.
Ke An was happy to hear someone praise Ye Chen. "Then you've got a good eye. From now on, you'll be in charge of Ye Chen's makeup and styling."
"Got it, Sister An. Leave it to me. I guarantee I'll have his fans swooning," Guan Xiaoxia replied with a smile.
Guan Xiaoxia deftly opened her makeup case. As she cleansed Ye Chen's face and applied a mask, she chatted with him like they were old friends. "You've got great features, so you'd look good no matter what. I'll put on a face mask first. Your skin will look even more hydrated on camera."
Ye Chen nodded and closed his eyes, letting Guan Xiaoxia work on his face.
Eight fifty that evening.
The three babies had already fallen asleep.
Su Ningwei had gone to bed early, looking forward to Ye Chen's first livestream.
Ye Chen was already dressed and seated at the piano in the singing room.
Guan Xiaoxia really knew her stuff. Her skills had improved a lot. No wonder she'd made it into Star Shine Media and been picked by Ke An to style Ye Chen.
Ye Chen's hairstyle was handsome and fashionable, and his makeup was natural and fresh. It brought out his best features and made him look even more handsome.
That afternoon, they had already posted a video promoting that night's livestream.
With the company's arrangements, the stars under Star Shine Media were naturally there to cheer him on too.
A huge number of netizens who had already been following the story were waiting for Ye Chen's livestream to start.
Nine o'clock sharp.
Ye Chen's livestream began.
"Hello, everyone. I'm Ye Chen, Singing Orange. Welcome to my livestream. Thank you for liking and supporting me. As for the video that spread false rumors about me earlier..."
Ye Chen spoke confidently and naturally to the viewers.
His livestream started with 50,000 viewers, and the number kept climbing.
Seeing the viewership, Ke An realized the company could save the money it had planned to spend on buying traffic. They wouldn't need it at all.
Gifts flooded the screen, accompanied by a steady stream of dazzling effects.
The comments section exploded in an instant.
"Eye candy! He's so handsome—he looks even better than he did in the video!"
"┭┮﹏┭┮... Please stop sending gifts! You're blocking Ye Chen's gorgeous face!"
"Where can I find a handsome guy who's talented and has a sense of justice too? I'm in love!"
"I know why people are trying to smear Ye Chen. They're jealous because he's so handsome."
"When's the album coming out? Where can I listen? I'll sign up for a membership just to hear his songs."
"..."
The number of viewers in Ye Chen's livestream kept soaring.
Ten minutes after it began, the number of people watching online shot past 300,000.
That was incredible for a newcomer.
Even the first ten minutes of top singer Fu Yi's debut livestream had only drawn 400,000 viewers.
The viewers in the livestream could barely even tell what color Ye Chen's clothes were.
The effects covered the whole screen. They couldn't see a thing.
Ye Chen was surprised too.
His fans were incredibly enthusiastic and generous.
In just a little while, he'd received over a hundred thousand yuan in gifts.
He was making money so fast—it was astonishing!
No wonder everyone wanted to become an internet celebrity and make money livestreaming.
But Ye Chen hadn't gone live just to collect gifts. After all, money was little more than a number to him now.
The gift effects were covering Ye Chen's face and affecting the quality of the livestream, so he turned off the paid gifting feature.
"Everyone, please stop sending gifts. I really appreciate them. I'm only here today to clear things up and sing a song. Thank you for trusting and supporting me. A free follow is all I need." Ye Chen spoke with complete sincerity.
But the comments went wild, flying by so fast they were impossible to read.
"Why'd you turn off paid gifts? I just topped up and hadn't had a chance to send any. Oh well, I'll get a fan badge first and join the club."
"Same here! I just topped up, and now I can't send anything. What, are you looking down on us? Turn it back on! Don't make me get down on my knees and beg."
"Turn paid gifts back on! I want to sincerely apologize for even doubting you for a second. If anyone tries to smear you again, I'll flame them until they shut themselves away."
"Same here. I'm here to apologize too. I shouldn't have doubted you. I was wrong..."
"..."
The comments were just too fast.
Ye Chen couldn't make out a thing. He simply finished reading the statement he'd prepared to clear things up.
Watching Ye Chen on the screen and listening to him explain, Su Ningwei finally realized how much he'd silently endured. He'd suffered such a terrible injustice and still acted as if nothing had happened, taking care of her and the children.
Ye Chen was truly wonderful and kind.
Su Ningwei felt deeply guilty. She hadn't been much of a wife at all—she hadn't even realized how badly he'd been wronged. She resolved to treat Ye Chen even better from then on.
On the screen, Ye Chen smiled warmly. "Next, I'll sing 'Lonely Warrior' while accompanying myself on the piano. I hope you enjoy it."
Ye Chen's long, strong fingers danced across the black and white keys, moving with effortless grace as clear notes flowed from his fingertips.