There's Something Wrong With My Little White Flower - Chapter 66

Chapter 66: Obscure Idol X Top Girl Group Member

Half an hour later, Ruan Jiyun, fully disguised, sat in the car, silently driving away from the apartment.

The streets in the early morning were slightly deserted, with only a few scattered cars driving by. Jiang Peifeng drove herself, taking Ruan Jiyun on a quick drive toward the city outskirts.

The streetlights on both sides cast an orange glow, fleetingly passing over their faces, lending a fantastical color to this sudden journey. Jiang Peifeng held the steering wheel with one hand and chuckled, “The way you’re looking at me makes me feel like I’m truly beautiful.”

This comment successfully made Ruan Jiyun blush, but she stubbornly refused to look away, continuing to gaze clearly at the person beside her: “Sister, how can a person become brave?”

Jiang Peifeng thought for a moment and replied: “Focus on yourself.”

“Popularity and awards are all secondary. Don’t forget why you came here initially, and what goal you want to achieve. Focus on moving in that direction, ignore the noise on the road, and keep your original intention.”

Ruan Jiyun whispered, “…But I’m a little scared now.”

She had just stepped onto this brilliant, star-studded path, but she hadn’t realized that the ground beneath it was a bottomless abyss. She walked on it like treading on thin ice, anxiously awaiting the clarification of the negative news, while feeling guilty and unable to predict whether people would still be looking forward to her tomorrow.

Jiang Peifeng said gently: “It’s okay. Haven’t I come for you?”

Her words reminded Ruan Jiyun. Her mind had been so scrambled earlier that she had just followed Jiang Peifeng out, even forgetting to ask their destination. She suddenly realized: “Right… Where are you taking me? Given my current situation, you shouldn’t be associating with me…”

In the past few days, she had keenly felt the excessively blunt warmth and coldness of the entertainment industry. Those who had once flocked around her, praising her limitless future, fled faster than anyone else after the negative news broke.

As she pondered, the car turned onto a park road and drove directly into an underground parking lot. Jiang Peifeng parked the car and gestured for Ruan Jiyun to follow her.

High heels echoed clearly on the empty concrete floor.

Ruan Jiyun followed behind Jiang Peifeng, a little lost, walking through the parking lot and taking another elevator. The steel cables made a slight sliding sound, carrying them toward an unknown location.

After a long time, the elevator stopped, revealing a pitch-black space outside the door.

Jiang Peifeng stepped out first. After taking two steps, she stopped as if remembering something and reached out her hand to Ruan Jiyun.

“I forgot this is probably your first time here. Hold my hand.”

Her slightly cool palm touched Ruan Jiyun’s hand. The darkness, like a form of protection, quietly covered the wildly pounding heart. Ruan Jiyun was led forward. In the dark, she couldn’t see her surroundings, only knowing they walked through a corridor-like passage and arrived in front of a door.

“I once heard a saying,” Jiang Peifeng said softly while holding her hand, “that stars only shine when the sky is darkest. So, as an idol, you shouldn’t be afraid of the dark, because that is your moment.”

She pushed open the door in front of them.

A vast stage unfolded before their eyes. Giant steel trusses crossed overhead, countless stage lights were scattered everywhere, and smoke machines, bubble machines, and pyrotechnics were neatly arranged, like soldiers awaiting battle. The seating below was empty, extending upward from the pit, stretching out of sight.

“In ten days, I will be holding a concert here. Miss Ruan, please allow me to invite you—to be my mystery guest.”

“Jiang Peifeng’s ‘Silver Planet’ Concert Sells Out in Five Minutes.“

“Stage Queen Returns! Jiang Peifeng’s Concert Tickets Sold Out Instantly! Are you all octopuses? How did you manage to get tickets?“

“Jiang Jiang’s ‘mystery guest’ hasn’t been announced yet. Will we have another collaboration stage that was as explosive as last time?“

“I declare this to be the thing I’m most looking forward to this year! Sisters, get those fan signs ready!“

News about Jiang Peifeng’s concert swept across the internet, dominating major headlines. As a popular idol, her solo concert was already highly anticipated. Frequent leaks about the concert’s costume design and stage design further raised the audience’s expectation to maximum.

On the day of the concert, a red carpet was laid out outside the stadium, flanked by grand rose walls for fan support. Countless fans held up light-up signs, eagerly awaiting a glimpse of the idol. The signs, spotlights, and stage lights surrounded the entire red carpet like a magnificent, glittering galaxy, with stars twinkling everywhere.

The entire show was extremely spectacular and luxurious. Jiang Peifeng’s styling was also dazzling. Her high-fashion gown was wide and voluminous, embroidered with a sparkling phoenix feather pattern made of pearls and crystals. A luxurious carat diamond necklace glittered around her neck, making her appear like a queen in the center of the stage.

The cheering never stopped from beginning to end. As the show drew to a close, the band struck up a new melody. The person on stage suddenly smiled, walked to a small hydraulic platform, and stood still.

For every previous concert, Jiang Peifeng invited a different guest. In her three previous shows, she had invited a teammate from her group, a diva who had collaborated with her to win a Golden Melody Award, and her former vocal coach.

This made everyone even more curious about who the mystery guest would be this time.

All the lights were dimmed, and a deep blue slowly emerged. At the same time, clusters of spotlights shone, converging in mid-air to form a flowing river of stars. As the music began, the platform Jiang Peifeng was on started to rise. To her right, another platform slowly revealed itself.

“Fly me to the moon, And let me play among the stars…”

A soft female voice sang gently along with the rhythm of the music. Amidst this clear and beautiful singing, Ruan Jiyun, dressed in a white gown, slowly appeared on the rising platform.

The spotlight shone on her, making the tulle-stacked dress look exceptionally ethereal, as if her entire being was immersed in moonlight. The girl’s profile was as fresh as flower dew. She looked up slightly, gazing at the figure high above her.

Jiang Peifeng lowered her eyes to look at her special guest and smiled, raising the microphone.

“Fill my heart with song, And let me sing forevermore…”

The two stages stopped halfway up in the air, the two graceful figures facing each other from a distance, like two planets that had accidentally converged in the universe.

Lights fell like rain, passing through the air, weaving a shimmering silver river. The stars in the galaxy sang, every word gently drifting into the night wind.

“You are all I long for, All I worship and adore…”

The harmony was beautiful, scattering and soaring with the sound of the melodious harp. Countless projected planets transformed the entire stage into a magnificent universe. The platform gradually descended. Jiang Peifeng turned and glanced at Ruan Jiyun next to her, extending her hand.

The two walked side by side to the front of the stage. The two splendid outfits, one white and one blue, shone brilliantly. Suddenly, they exchanged a smile and simultaneously lifted the skirts of their gowns.

The originally opulent long gowns instantly transformed into short, sparkling dance dresses. The figures on stage discarded the torn velvet skirts, spinning and turning, starting to dance accompanied by a sudden drumbeat.

Planets collided, sparks flying. Amidst the intense music, space fireworks shot up, blooming into a huge golden rain of flowers.

This performance was truly spectacular. If Jiang Peifeng was the Queen of the Stage, every move mesmerizing, Ruan Jiyun standing beside her was no less captivating. In their advances and retreats, an intense attraction burst between them, neither yielding an inch.

The fans below were stunned, then impressed, then completely speechless, almost collapsing into this performance with its extremely strong contrast.

However, even more excited than Jiang Peifeng’s fans were the members of Ruan Jiyun’s fan club. After the preview photos came out that night, countless fans spontaneously gathered in their groups, beside themselves with excitement.

“I will forever support Jiang Peifeng! The first celebrity to openly support our daughter!”

“Their live stage was explosive! A dream return to Mermaid!”

“Let’s get the topic trending! Let the haters see. If our daughter is just a marketing tool, how much backing must she have to get Jiang Peifeng to stand up for her?”

Fans were galvanized, rushing to the fan forums of Jiang Peifeng and Ruan Jiyun to help push the topics, using every superlative to praise the collaboration stage. They passionately promoted their idol, asserting that she was genuinely talented and super beautiful, not some hype-monger who relied on marketing to rise.

Self-interest is often the biggest driver of choice. On the day after Jiang Peifeng’s concert, Tianxing Media, which had remained silent on the Ruan Jiyun incident, released a behind-the-scenes video on the official Road to Stardom Weibo account.

The video contained backstage footage recorded by the cameras during the filming of Road to Stardom. There were many practice clips not shown in the main program, scenes of contestants encouraging each other, and silently working hard. Among these, there was also a total practice time ranking.

Throughout the three-month filming period, Ruan Jiyun’s name topped the practice time leaderboard. Several times, she even spent the night in the practice room. The camera dutifully spliced these images together.

This video was reposted over a hundred thousand times by fans.

“Haters, look at this. If she’s a marketing tool, why would she work so hard every day? Based on time logs, our daughter was practically dancing from the moment she woke up, and even when injured, she only rested for a few days!”

Still, some disdainfully commented: “Practicing hard doesn’t prove she didn’t hype things up! How do you explain Mu Qing’s video? They definitely planned to exploit a CP for attention, right?”

Soon after this comment was posted, someone replied: “Mu Qing’s live stream seems to have been deleted…”

The onlookers exploded into an uproar. Some immediately rushed to the “Xi Lang” platform to check and found that the previously pinned live stream video was indeed taken down!

“Why is the live stream gone? Was it handled by PR? Or did she feel guilty?”

While netizens were debating in confusion, Mu Qing was facing a collapse.

She initially thought that openly breaking ties with Huansheng wouldn’t have much impact. After all, the plan to create hype had existed from the start, and Huansheng wouldn’t dare confront her. She only needed to continuously smear Ruan Jiyun to drag her down from the pedestal first.

But Mu Qing’s scheme failed within days. Jiang Peifeng’s concert dealt her a heavy blow. No matter how hard the trolls she hired posted, they couldn’t win back the fans who were drawn away by Jiang Peifeng’s influence. The abusive comments toward Ruan Jiyun also significantly decreased.

Just as she planned to step up her efforts and release more information, a call from Xi Lang’s PR department reached her manager’s phone. They informed her that the live stream would be taken down, and they reserved the right to pursue her for releasing false information.

“Are they crazy? Pursue me?” Mu Qing’s eyes widened in fury. She angrily smashed a cup. “Just because Jiang Peifeng supported her, they’ve decided she’s innocent?”

The manager didn’t dare to provoke her. She had only been hired to Mu Qing’s studio recently and only knew she was a rich second generation whose family had some spare money to support her daughter’s entertainment career. However, after working with her, Mu Qing’s unpredictable temper put a lot of pressure on her.

She’s not even famous yet, and she’s already this overbearing. She’s likely to offend many people in the future.

The manager thought silently and then received another call.

This time, after listening for a few moments, her expression became serious.

“Miss, it’s Jiang Peifeng’s manager calling…” she carefully weighed her words, asking cautiously, “They said they have a surveillance video that you might be interested in…”

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