Trending was as easy as breathing

Saving money, putting it into a fixed-term deposit-going to the bank in person made it feel more ceremonial.

Some people were already queuing when he arrived, but he was in no hurry. He took a number, found a seat, and settled in to wait.

He genuinely wasn't in a hurry, not even a little. He was practically floating, savoring every moment, and he would gladly have waited even longer for something this wonderful.

Unfortunately, his turn came all too soon. When they learned how much he was depositing, a relationship manager came over to attend to him personally. Yu Xiuyuan felt his back straighten a little more.

Once everything was done, he walked briskly out of the bank, hailed a taxi to the mall, and picked out a few sets of affordable clothes to wear for the next recording.

On his way home, he got a call from Sister Man and learned that he was trending again.

He tapped in to look. It was from when he had been at the bank earlier. He'd needed to remove his mask to verify his identity, and someone had photographed him without his noticing.

In the photo, he was positively glowing, happiness practically spilling off him. The person who posted it revealed that he had gone to make a large deposit, and his haters lost it.

He actually had the nerve to go deposit money at the bank?

The money they had given him? Without even trying to hide it?

His haters were beside themselves with rage. They launched into furious tirades and cursed him onto the trending list within minutes.

Yu Xiuyuan looked at his smiling face in the photo and couldn't help smiling again.

He logged into Weibo, took a selfie, composed a post, and hit send.

Soon, his haters' special-follow notifications alerted them to a new Weibo post: heart-hand selfie.jpg. My little haters, you got me trending again. Love you~ Mwah~

They refreshed three seconds later, and there were already a thousand comments cursing him out.

Thoroughly satisfied, Yu Xiuyuan immediately asked the driver to head to a nearby hot pot restaurant instead. How could he not celebrate such a perfect day?

Besides, this frail little body of his needed nourishment. Plenty of it.

Before starting on the hot pot, he even remembered to take a photo and post it in the comments.

Cue another round of meltdowns.

Like episodes of a serial drama, this little chain of moves generated so much buzz that plenty of casual onlookers stumbled across it. They didn't know the backstory, but they were thoroughly enjoying the spectacle.

The next morning, Yu Xiuyuan was woken by his ringing phone. Still groggy, he fumbled around for a while before finding it.

He pried his eyes open a crack and saw that it was Sister Man. "Sister Man, what's up?"

His groggy voice made it obvious that he hadn't woken up yet. Li Man sighed helplessly like a fussing mother. "It's already nine, and you're still not awake? You haven't had breakfast either?"

"Mm, I'll eat in a bit. What is it, Sister Man?"

"Have you thought about recording the songs? The company wants you to record and release the full versions as soon as possible while you're still getting attention. It could help improve your image a little, too."

"Sure. I'm free this afternoon."

"Great! I was worried you'd be rebellious and fight the company like you used to." Hearing him agree to record, Li Man breathed a sigh of relief, then started fussing again. "Several platforms have had their eyes on those two songs of yours. If you record this afternoon, we can rush things a little and release one tomorrow. You're recording the Dating Reality Show again the day after, so it should help with both the buzz and your reputation."

Yu Xiuyuan didn't understand. "With all these scandals about me flying around, there are still platforms interested in my songs?"

Li Man chuckled. "Silly boy, buzz means attention. Besides, those two songs are genuinely good. It's just that with so much bad press about you right now, we probably won't get a very good revenue share. I'm planning to release only one first and negotiate for the other after you clear your name. That way, we maximize the returns."

Yu Xiuyuan had always been on his own in his previous life. Suddenly having someone put so much thought into planning for him left an ache in his heart, and even his voice softened. "Mm. I'll listen to you, Sister Man."

His obedient response pleased Li Man even more. "Then get some rest first. I'll pick you up at one this afternoon to record."

Yu Xiuyuan hung up, got out of bed, and cooked himself a bowl of clear broth noodles, adding a fried egg and a sprinkling of chopped scallions. Simple, but delicious.

After eating his fill and lounging around a little longer, he started his daily Butterfly Wing Flap. He had no intention of staying a weakling forever.

A dozen minutes later, he flopped onto the floor with a smack and began considering what to eat for lunch. He felt that eating more was the more reliable option after all.

The afternoon recording went smoothly. There was no other work scheduled afterward, and he left the signing, release, and revenue-sharing contracts entirely to Sister Man.

Yu Xiuyuan happily enjoyed his free time, eating and drinking to his heart's content. He wished they would cancel the Dating Reality Show recording the day after tomorrow too, so he could retire on the spot. Sadly, that wasn't an option.

Meanwhile, the investors were pressuring Director Liu to kick him out on the grounds that Yu Xiuyuan was a disgraced celebrity.

Director Liu was torn. Yu Xiuyuan was infuriating, but he really had a knack for variety shows. Several peaks in the show's buzz had been connected to him in one way or another.

Although he had single-handedly derailed the Dating Reality Show, buzz was king. Besides, Director Liu kept feeling that Yu Xiuyuan was holding back something big, and he didn't want to lose this walking buzz generator.

Director Liu stalled for a day. Finally, unable to withstand the investors' pressure any longer, he was just about to agree when the Assistant Director called.

"Check the trending list! Yu Xiuyuan released a song. It's already number one, and the response is great."

Director Liu opened the trending list. Sure enough, #Yu Dog's new song# sat right at the top.

The comments were polarized. Half were cursing Yu Dog's character, while the other half praised how good the song was.

It was practically giving the internet a split personality.

Director Liu closed the trending list and sent the investors Yu Xiuyuan's trending data from the past two days, firmly refusing their demand.

Time flew by, and filming began for the second episode.

At eight in the morning, Yu Xiuyuan arrived traveling light, humming a song with just a backpack on his shoulders.

The live comments were all asking what he was humming. The melody sounded lovely, but he was such a jerk-he only hummed, refusing to sing a single actual lyric.

Wen Lin looked startled when he appeared and turned to Fang Yi. Hadn't he said he'd spoken to the investors about kicking him out? Why was he here again?

Fang Yi frowned and explained quietly, "He released a song yesterday. It's getting too much attention, and his reputation has improved a little too. The production team doesn't want to give up that buzz."

Wen Lin clenched his fists and turned away in a huff, refusing to look at Fang Yi again.

Fang Yi knew Wen Lin was angry, but he had already done his best. He only knew the investors; he wasn't one of them himself. He couldn't ask them to turn down money, could he?

Seeing Yu Xiuyuan sitting silently in a corner again, Li Rou took the initiative to chat with him.

"You've certainly kept busy these past few days. You haven't left the trending list."

"Can't help it. Trending is as easy as breathing."

"Keep showing off. Where's your luggage? Why have you only got that little bag?"

"This is all my luggage. It's only three days. This is plenty."

"But that's nowhere near enough. A tiny bag like that won't even fit face wash, body wash, lotion, sunscreen, and makeup, will it?"

"One bar of soap takes care of everything. I don't wear makeup, and I don't need to pander to fans. Whatever's easiest. I'm getting used to retirement in advance."

"One bar of soap? Is that any way to treat that handsome face with its delicate, flawless skin?"

"Oh, shut up. Your skin's delicate." Yu Xiuyuan rolled his eyes, then spotted Yun Chuan arriving.

Yun Chuan merely glanced at him before sitting on the other side, never looking his way again.

Yu Xiuyuan froze for a moment. What was wrong with him?

Last week, he'd kept sitting beside me. Now he won't even look at me. Did something happen over the past few days?