One had earned 140,000 yesterday from selling rights and making a video; the other had bought cover rights and added a star singer from an amateur music site as a friend.
When they got up that morning, both Shen Jin and Yun Xiaoran looked refreshed.
Yun Xiaoran had gotten up early to cook. Back when he was with Li Qingxi, she often had to rise early for rehearsals and came home very late, so he had grown accustomed to that schedule too.
As for Shen Jin, she usually ordered takeout from the upscale hotels nearby. It was quick and delicious.
But when she woke up to the enticing aroma of Yun Xiaoran's cooking, she let him do as he pleased.
He married me as a stalker fan. Surely he can at least cook a few meals? I'll consider it compensation.
The figure-hugging skirt that had made her look both sexy and beautiful yesterday was gone. In its place, she wore a white, long-sleeved crew-neck T-shirt beneath a brown hoodie, paired with white wide-leg trousers and white sneakers.
Now Shen Jin's cheeks were puffed out as she ate, watching him resentfully while her pearly teeth worked hard at chewing the meat.
Just like last night, Yun Xiaoran kept his eyes fixed intently on his phone, ignoring her.
"You're so good at cooking because you've dated before, right?"
Shen Jin abruptly asked him this while eating. Although the question had slipped out without much thought, she was still quite curious.
In Shen Jin's experience, men who cooked were rare. Judging by Yun Xiaoran, he had probably been in at least one relationship before.
He might even have been married.
"Huh? Why are you asking?"
Yun Xiaoran looked at Shen Jin in surprise and confusion.
"Nothing. I'm just reminding you that we're not allowed to interfere in each other's private lives."
Shen Jin felt she understood Yun Xiaoran better now.
If this really were his first marriage, he should have rushed to deny ever being married or dating anyone in front of his idol, rather than looking so bewildered.
At that thought, Shen Jin's gaze turned rather hostile.
She hated the stalker fan before her, but she also had an obsessive need for emotional purity.
"Although it was mentioned in yesterday's agreement, I still want to emphasize it separately. Don't take any photos of me."
If even one candid photo of Shen Muge, the reigning diva of Chinese entertainment, were leaked, the damage to her would be unimaginable.
Yun Xiaoran was a stalker fan, and after so many years in the entertainment industry, Shen Jin knew just how relentlessly such fans could cling to someone.
Surely Yun Xiaoran would soon react somehow, if not outright plead with her.
"Oh, of course. I don't like interfering in other people's private lives either. It feels like being restricted at every turn. Having some freedom is better."
"Huh?"
To her surprise, Yun Xiaoran calmly picked up some food while reading the replies on his phone.
He never even looked up.
Shen Jin stared at him with wide almond-shaped eyes, wondering if she had misheard.
She was a natural beauty, exquisite in every way. Whether she was biting her chopsticks or lowering her head to sip her porridge, every moment of her eating could have been a beautiful portrait.
Yet the man before her acted as though he saw nothing!
That instantly infuriated Shen Jin.
"Oh, I'm done. Remember to wash the dishes."
Shen Jin rose coldly, set her bowl on the table, and walked away.
A fighting spirit flared within her:
He's just a stalker fan. There's no need to get angry over him!
Sometimes people were just that strange. Fawn over her, and she took it for granted while despising you. Refuse to fawn over her, and she sulked instead.
Yun Xiaoran looked up in confusion as the beautiful figure picked up her keys and left.
A little later, Shen Jin opened the door again, seemingly remembering something. Her beautiful eyes fixed on Yun Xiaoran as she asked in bewildered anger:
"Don't you have to go out to work?"
"Oh, I'm still looking for a job, so I'm staying home for now."
Yun Xiaoran slowly sipped his porridge while Fu Bao rubbed against his leg beneath the table.
"Well..."
Shen Jin opened her mouth but could find no words. She had never imagined Yun Xiaoran would take living off her so completely for granted.
This stalker fan.
Does he really think he's my kept man?
And you, cat! Have you forgotten who your owner is?
Clinging to some outsider-can he give you anything to eat?
Shen Jin stared coldly at Yun Xiaoran, her opinion of him sinking further. Still, she took a deep breath and instructed him:
"Then stay home and behave. Remember to feed the cat while you're at it. If the cat goes missing, you'll have me to answer to!"
Although she knew the cat would never go missing-it could not even get outside-Shen Jin inexplicably felt compelled to scold Yun Xiaoran.
Wait.
What does how much he earns have to do with me?
Our marriage only has twenty-odd days left.
At that thought, some of Shen Jin's anger faded.
"Oh, right."
Yun Xiaoran called after Shen Jin.
"What now?"
Dressed elegantly and beautifully, Shen Jin stood impatiently at the doorway, ready to leave. She still needed to go to the company's studio to try out the song she had bought last night, and she had not even memorized the lyrics yet.
The round that would narrow ten contestants down to five began that afternoon.
"Take it easy on the road. Stay safe. What do you want for dinner?"
Yun Xiaoran looked into Shen Jin's fiery eyes. His voice was quiet, yet it seemed especially loud in their home.
Shen Jin's gaze flickered. She fell silent, hesitating as if she wanted to say something, before stubbornly retorting and slamming the door hard:
"None of your business."
But less than ten seconds after closing it, Shen Jin slowly opened the door again and looked at Yun Xiaoran, threatening him coldly:
"I want noodles. If you don't make noodles, you're done for!"
"Okay."
"What? A newcomer actually overtook me with just one song?"
"Ear Emperor," Wu Poyun, froze as he read the news on VA Site in his rented apartment.
He moved his mouse, scrolling through three trending topics about Lone Cloud on VA Site.
VA Site had an unwritten rule.
Any newcomer who wrote their own lyrics and music had to seek advice or promotion from one of VA Site's big names or a creator with hundreds of thousands of followers.
But this newcomer had no sense of how things worked. He had paid no tribute to Ear Emperor and the other established musicians, naturally provoking Wu Poyun's jealousy.
VA Site was a music platform teeming with top creators, and its video bonuses were generous. Competition among uploaders was fierce as they fought for fame and rewards.
Smears and rumors were commonplace.
Registering a few new accounts to attack competitive uploaders or those working in the same niche was hardly out of the question.
Ear Emperor switched to an alternate account, and a glaring comment appeared in the comment section:
"This is obviously a disposable pop song, and it plagiarized an improvisation by a singer in the last season of I Am a Singer."
He was not alone. People had a herd mentality.
Once someone launched the first accusation, hundreds or thousands of comments and likes soon followed:
"I was wondering why this song sounded so familiar. Turns out Lone Cloud just copied an improvisation by a singer on I Am a Singer."
"Exactly. It's understandable if you can't produce good work. Not everyone can make a living in music, after all. But plagiarism is a very serious matter."
"Have you even listened to this song? How dare you call it disposable pop?"
A creator with over a hundred thousand followers came across the comment and angrily tore into it.
In an upscale residential complex, a beautifully dressed woman with a graceful figure sat at her computer, furiously responding to the comment.
Audrey Cat's real name was Zhao Ruoxi.
She was a famous dance creator on VA Site known for suggestive content. Nine out of ten videos pushed the boundaries, and her particular niche had even earned her a place in the Sainthood Ceremony. She had little skill in singing.
As Ear Emperor, Wu Poyun, watched the flame war beneath his comment, he also noticed Audrey Cat, a creator with a hundred thousand followers, angrily laying into him.
Bad publicity was still publicity.
Attention was exactly what Wu Poyun wanted now. He had been worried no one would insult him, and a creator with a hundred thousand followers had actually started a public fight in his comment section. That piqued his interest.
"You're a creator with a hundred thousand followers, yet you're defending a plagiarist on VA Site."
"Because he didn't plagiarize. I'm going to message him and ask right now!"
"Come on, Audrey Cat. This is music-section business. Stay out of it and give the boys more of that fan service instead."
Zhao Ruoxi angrily closed the comment section, followed Lone Cloud, then opened his private messages and composed a message to the star creator.
Zhao Ruoxi was usually carefree in front of her fans, but behind every cheerful person lay a sorrowful side.
She had been about to put this wonderful song on repeat for the entire week, only for someone to slander it.
Naturally, she could not stand for that.
After eating and washing the dishes, Yun Xiaoran had nothing to do, so he opened VA Site. Checking his comments, he discovered there were still over a hundred messages. He had no idea he had already become one of the site's hottest topics.
The righteous, the unrighteous, and those chasing trends were all coming at him. An innocent man's only crime was possessing something others coveted.
As he scrolled through the comments and read Ear Emperor's accusation, Yun Xiaoran felt little disturbance. If you wanted to make a living online, you had to be prepared for a hundred people to curse you.
Only after a hundred people cursed you might a thousand people be willing to put food on your table.
Just as Yun Xiaoran was about to close VA Site, he deftly opened his private messages again and sent his composition and lyrics to China Star Entertainment.
He also discovered a new private message from a creator with a hundred thousand followers.
"Lone Cloud, your song is so beautifully written! Could I use it as the backing track for a dance?"
"Lone Cloud, did you actually plagiarize this song? Lots of people in the comments are insulting you. Shouldn't you explain? You're already trending on VA Site."
Elsewhere, Three Thousand Silken Locks casually glanced over at Zhao Ruoxi beside her. Zhao Ruoxi's almond-shaped eyes were wide as she stared at the screen, anxiously refreshing her private messages again and again:
"Was this song really plagiarized? Why else isn't he replying to me?"
Before you continue