106 "Fairy Wang" Brutally Ravaged on the Lantern Festival

To be perfectly honest, Boss Li was not lying to "Boss Mei" when it came to the arts; he really did have a masterpiece in his repertoire.

A while back, he had drawn "Earth Flying Song," but the arrangement required time. Moreover, Mei Xingyu's operatic vocal style didn't quite suit that track, though it was a perfect fit for "The Imperial Concubine Gets Drunk."

However, if it meant soundly defeating "Fairy Wang," Boss Li didn't mind letting Mei Xingyu debut "Earth Flying Song," provided he could later find a "national-level" singer to record a definitive version.

"Earth Flying Song" was truly suited for grand occasions. The larger the stage, the more it radiated the spirit of a golden age. Boss Li wasn't wrong when he told Mei Xingyu it was his "coffin reserve." If Boss Li didn't kick the bucket before sixty-five, this song alone would be enough to keep him alive—at the very least, it would cover the cost of a catheter.

Usually, warming up a new song takes three to five months, followed by a month of frantic promotional appearances. Even for "national-level" artists, they need a nudge from state media and a month of build-up to get things moving. The rest is just luck and repetitive airplay.

Take "Mother is the Best in the World"—it became popular, but it was hollow. Without a film or television foundation, it only held social and artistic significance, making a few bucks around Mother’s Day and earning some royalties; that was about it.

If Mei Xingyu were to adapt "Mother is the Best in the World" into an operatic version, or perhaps rename it to "Erlang’s Three Lives and Three Visits to His Mother," it might even qualify for "Intangible Cultural Heritage" status.

This was also why Boss Li’s personal Weibo focused on "Greatness of Heaven." Was "Greatness of Heaven" objectively better? Of course not. It was because "Greatness of Heaven" made money. For copyright collaborations, please contact that "atypical orphan"... Teacher Li Jie.

Contact info: Classified for now!
Address: A new location every time I fire a shot!

Thus, Boss Li’s way of promoting "Boss Mei’s" new single was simple. Several "Creative Ability" accounts posted the same message: Teacher Mei Xingyu’s new single "Good Luck Arrives" sends blessings and good fortune for the Lantern Festival!

That was it.

However, the music video for "Good Luck Arrives" was released on the morning of the Lantern Festival. By noon, "Sanjiang Media" had pushed it to every major supermarket across Sanjiang Province. By the afternoon, when "Cao's Rideshare" drivers turned on their radios, they heard the same thing: "Good luck is coming, wishing you good luck..."

In the morning, "Fairy Fans" were ranting on Weibo: "Li the Dog, you are truly despicable!"

By noon, those same fans were red-faced and breaking down, because on every music streaming platform, the hottest song of the day was "Good Luck Arrives." By afternoon, copyright agreements were flooding into the "Creative Ability" copyright office. The company's legal team had never found business so easy or money so effortless to make.

Damn it, if only they’d known! They should’ve studied music instead of law. It’s truly profitable—art pays, but legal studies are useless. Why is it that studying law makes you a lawyer and not a wizard?!

Li Jie’s Weibo account was a battlefield all day long, with waves of attacks and counter-attacks. The "Ten-Year Haters" had plenty of time to kill, because if they died, they wouldn't have time to kill anything at all. It took only one afternoon for Wang Shiyin’s Weibo to transform from a "gorgeous paradise" into a "cesspool."

In the words of the "Ten-Year Haters": "Buddy, I’ve already raided 'Fairy Wang'."

But the "Ten-Year Haters" included not just the guys, but the gals too. They remarked: "Xiao Chunan’s imagination while using a catheter is quite vivid. Before you even started, I’d already had my fun."

From disrespect to incontinence, it took only a split second. At this moment, were they really just raiding "Fairy Wang's" Weibo? The raid itself had become art.

Boss Li didn't look at his Weibo at all. He figured either he had gone mad or Weibo had. If he were the administrator, he would have strangled these "Ten-Year Haters" immediately to stop them from finding amusement in their frenzy.

But this wasn't even real fun; the true amusement was something Boss Li couldn't see or hear.

By evening, before the "Fairy Fans" went grocery shopping, they were humming "Welcoming the Spring." By the time they reached the checkout, what came out of their mouths was, "Good luck is coming, wishing you good luck..." It only took the time it takes to buy a bag of potato chips to get "brainwashed."

Yet, for "Good Luck Arrives" to crush "Welcoming the Spring," it didn't need a week or a month—it only needed "Sanjiang Satellite TV’s" Lantern Festival Gala. All it took was "Boss Mei" stepping onto the stage to sing it once.

One performance brought national peace and prosperity; one performance ensured good luck would always follow.

That night, Boss Li shared a "Weibo Video" and tagged the Luzhou Police, Yang Ying, Chairman of Daye Film & TV Yang Ying, and Kaihuang Group: "Wishing old and new friends a fresh start in the New Year, and good luck every day!"

"Crab Brother is still as much of a beast as ever, I’m relieved."
"Crab Brother is still such a CS."
"Is 'CS' the pinyin abbreviation for 'beast'?"
"Or could it be 'charity'?"
"@Luzhou Police, hey, mousey, there's something good here."
"I will always love Teacher Mei Xingyu!"
"Uneducated question: why can 'Boss Mei' sing so much like a female singer?"
"I don't know either, but I have to answer: because 'Boss Mei' is singing in the *Qingyi* style."
"Qingyi fish isn't as tasty as threadfin bream; it’s forty a jin at my market."
"Want to eat eel? You can eat mine."

The comment section remained chaotic, but the monthly new song chart was orderly. A single track, "Good Luck Arrives," had appeared out of nowhere, immediately obliterating any other song focused on New Year celebrations.

Whatever style you're using, it’s useless.

If Wang Shiyin wanted to save "Welcoming the Spring" from its downward spiral, she would have to perform on stage without clothes—that would certainly make it a hit.

Meanwhile, inside "Perfect Music’s" "Duan Gen Studio," Duan Gen donned a "mask of pain." He had originally intended to play dead for a few months before going to Mei Xingyu to "beg for forgiveness with a rod on his back." They were friends, after all; a few drinks as self-punishment would have sufficed.

Things had always been more or less like that. Sometimes Mei Xingyu wouldn't sing his songs, standing him up for someone else’s; it was normal. Everyone has unexpected changes of heart. But this time was different—he had run into the god-awful "fan circle" culture.

If it had just been the "Fairy Fans," it would have been fine. But there were "Crab Fans," "Dog Fans," "Self-High Fans," "Lulz Fans," "Nervous Breakdown Fans"... and they had driven Duan Gen into a corner from which he couldn't escape. While he was hiding and suffering from internal mental conflict, "Boss Mei" had actually found a "second spring."

Mei Xingyu had spent years promoting traditional arts, genuinely wanting to pass the craft on. For this, he had even scrapped the ancestral "apprenticeship system." The entire Zhili Province called him a heretic, but "Boss Mei" didn't care; his online tutorials were incredibly rich.

In truth, he couldn't teach at all. It was all the self-expression of a genius. Why sing it this way? He thought, *Isn't it obvious once you sing it?*

He didn't know a damn thing.

Consequently, young people were even less willing to learn, and for years, the art remained in a semi-comatose state. It wasn't until Mei Xingyu took a few trips to Mount Song that he discovered the folks in Sili were much more vibrant. The localization of traditional arts was done well there; in the countryside, wherever there were people, someone would hum "Bao Longtu Breaks into the Underworld."

This was the origin of Mei Xingyu’s development of operatic pop and folk styles. But how was he to know that success would depend on the "ACGN" (anime, comic, game, and novel) crowd!

"Master Li, you are the 'Wenqu Star' descended from the heavens!"

Mei Xingyu, who never drank, had a bowl of osmanthus rice wine for the Lantern Festival—low alcohol, wouldn't hurt his voice.

"I could also be the 'Wuqu Star'?"

Boss Li felt that while he was a man of culture, what he flashed at opponents like the Young Master Yang was always the "Death Star"!

Look! Look up, Yang the Second!

The "Death Star" above your head is shining brightly!!!

In the end, all the staff, along with "Boss Mei’s" entire troupe, declared that President Li was the "Binqu Star" (a play on the star of literary brilliance).

Bureau Chief Xiao, who had come along for the meal, filmed a clip of the "Good Luck Arrives" celebration and posted it in the "Ten-Year Haters" group.

"Why is everyone saying Crab Brother is a 'bitch star'?"
"Stop farting, it’s 'Binqu Star,' not 'bitch star'."
"@Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng, wait, cyber-police mousey, how did you end up at Crab Brother's dinner party?"
"My home is in Jianye~~"
"Mousey is so cute~~"
"Cute your mother’s nipples, cute, cute, are you all blind? There are two beauties sitting next to Crab Brother!"
"@Jiangyou Buyi, didn't you save up your bride price for the New Year?"
"Get lost! To hell with the bride price. I bought my father a new 200,000-yuan car. 150-degree battery, the range is insanely awesome!"
"Wait? You aren't getting married anymore?"
"Get married my ass. I went to Yuzhang to donate sperm. Anyway, my old man just wants a grandson. I thought about it, and donating sperm is cheaper—only costs five thousand."
"With your physical condition, you're donating sperm? Won't you be bedridden for half a year?"
"..."

The "hater" who had saved up for a bride price for a year had a breakdown and left the group, but he still secretly clicked on the video Bureau Chief Xiao had posted. He paused it, saw Crab Brother with a beauty on each arm, and burst into tears.

Then he logged back in: "@Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng, don't you dare post any more videos of Crab Brother!!"
"I'll post it, I'll post it, I'll post it, neener neener~~"

Bureau Chief Xiao sat at the dinner table with a look of stoic resolve. A "Crusher of Evil" must maintain the proper aura, so he could never let anyone discover that, at middle age, he had accumulated a pile of silly meme stickers in a trashy group. Especially since a few people, knowing he lived in Jianye, had privately messaged him to meet up for "team building"—mostly to compare their medical conditions.

After all, those with esophageal cancer really did want to know what was going on with rectal cancer.

Bureau Chief Xiao was quite conflicted...

However, compared to Wang Shiyin, who had been artistically ravaged on the "Lantern Festival," that was nothing.

The emergency internal meeting at "Gaolianghe Entertainment" was mainly to comfort "Fairy Wang," telling her that this situation wouldn't last long and that the company would increase efforts to promote "Welcoming the Spring," further explore copyright collaborations, and polish the album to perfection.

Wang Shiyin acted quite normal at the company—after all, she was a "fairy," she couldn't just throw tantrums. But once she returned to the "Ji Family Mansion" and entered her room, she picked up her fists and pounded the pillow fiercely, then bit into a plush doll and thrashed it wildly!

Grrrrr!

"Fairy Wang" let out a roar.