In Wen Yan’s dormitory, all of his belongings were packed up and taken away by the staff.
Meanwhile, the program’s official account issued a statement, confirming Wen Yan’s involvement in buying fake votes and maliciously editing recordings to defame his teammates and manipulate public opinion. He was disqualified to maintain integrity and style, and all contestants were strongly warned against harboring inappropriate thoughts as a deterrent.
An atmosphere of unease lingered.
Everyone understood implicitly. After a night of maneuvering, Wen Yan was finally abandoned by the program team.
In the practice room, a young man sat in front of the drum set, his head lowered as he carefully studied the sheet music, occasionally making annotations with a pen.
He seemed entirely oblivious to the attention and whispering directed at him, maintaining his silence and stillness throughout.
A few days ago, when he was surrounded by overwhelming criticism and attacks, he remained composed and unflustered, as if he were an outsider.
Even now, having cleared his name, he was the same.
Watching him, those inexplicable feelings of jealousy and bitterness within everyone gradually dissipated.
They seemed to realize, at last, the true gap between themselves and Rong Xianning.
Some people are destined for success—it’s something you can neither envy nor begrudge.
This ability to remain calm amid both praise and adversity was something none of them could match, no matter how hard they tried.
The young man made some adaptations to the song, practiced on the drum set for a while, and then immersed himself completely in his task with utmost focus.
At 7:30, he set down the drumsticks, tucked the sheet music into his backpack, picked up his water cup, and left the practice room to head to the cafeteria.
"Aning, did you hear? Wen Yan got kicked off the show," Feng Cheng waited eagerly for Rong Xianning to finish his practice, rushing up to him the moment he was done and waving his arms excitedly.
Rong Xianning merely responded with a faint "hm." In the cafeteria, the auntie behind the counter lit up when she saw him, her smile broadening as she handed him four large meat buns in one go.
"Xiao Rong, I knew you were innocent. Eat more, so you can grow taller."
The young man’s lips curved slightly. "Thank you, Auntie. Two are enough. It’s wasteful to take too many."
He returned the extra two buns.
The auntie watched his thin figure retreating and couldn’t help murmuring to herself, "This child is so polite. I wonder how his parents raised him. If they wrote a book on parenting, it’d surely sell like hotcakes."
Speaking for herself, she’d definitely buy a copy and study it attentively.
Rong Xianning sipped his porridge, ate his bun, and paired it with small bites of pickled vegetables.
Across from him, Feng Cheng chattered incessantly. "The auntie really judges based on appearances. Why does she give you extra buns? I’m hungry every single day, but she doesn’t give me any extra, wah!"
"Spare a thought for a poor kid who’s still growing. Six meals a day aren’t even enough for me."
Rong Xianning seemed to think of something and took out his phone.
His name stood at the top of the trending charts; the wave of popularity only surged stronger with time.
Yesterday, they dragged him into hell; today, they exalted him to heaven.
A faint trace of mockery flickered in the depths of the young man’s clear, dark eyes.
He scrolled past the flashy headlines without lingering. Then, his gaze sharpened slightly.
#SendNingningToDebutRushRushRush
He remembered—it was this fan who had helped reverse public opinion in his favor.
As one of the standout fans, Chong Chong undoubtedly made it onto the trending charts.
She had become an object of envy and admiration for fans across different groups, with some even attempting to poach her allegiance.
After this battle, she had completely broken into mainstream recognition, gaining fifty thousand followers in a day and becoming a prominent influencer.
Many suspected she was a mysterious and skilled hacker. A considerable number of people grew curious about her, sending private messages to ask technical questions, though she had disabled her messaging feature.
A true badass, staying true to her persona.
The Lemons were overjoyed at the thought—such an impressive person was a fan of their Xianxian! They all wore smiles of pride and satisfaction.
Chong Chong had become the clear leader among the Lemons, their undisputed guiding force.
To use an imperfect analogy: Rong Xianning was akin to an emperor, while Chong Chong held the power of a Grand General, commanding the Lemons as her troops, carrying out orders wherever they were directed.
Shi Qingqing was the happiest of all; she had picked the right person to align herself with, becoming Chong Chong’s deputy. The smaller Lemons couldn’t praise her enough; Shi Qingqing was practically walking on air, her pride nearly lifting her off the ground.
Rong Xianning clicked into Chong Chong’s personal Weibo account. Her profile photo was from Rong Xianning’s debut stage, enhanced with filters that accentuated his gentle, melancholic aura.
Her bio contained only one sentence: Ningning, keep it up!!!
Rong Xianning’s super-topic fan hub ranked her as an eighth-level contributor.
Given the newness of his super-topic, reaching level eight was a clear sign of deep and unwavering loyalty.
Rong Xianning scrolled down and saw that she had only posted three Weibo updates in total.
Every single update had created massive ripples.
Then, she quietly retreated, her mission accomplished.
Rong Xianning tapped into his private message feature, thought for a moment, and typed a few words.
The message alert confirmed its successful delivery. Follow current novels on N()velFire.net
Rong Xianning raised his eyebrows slightly.
On the trending forums, fans were complaining about Chong Chong’s disabled messaging feature.
Yet his message had been delivered successfully.
Among the countless fans, like stars scattered across the night sky, she alone was like the moon, casting her silver light over him.
This was the second time he felt the unique warmth of moonlight’s devotion.
Today happened to be the day of the physics competition.
At the entrance of a high school in Qingzhou, Shen You’an suddenly heard a soft notification sound from her phone.
She paused mid-step and took out her phone to glance at the screen.
Ahead of her, Liu Runxi approached with a smile and greeted her, "What a coincidence."
Not coincidence—I’ve been waiting for you for a long time.