If I Can’t Be a Fanboy, I Can Only Debut

Giving up is not an easy thing to do, especially when you're on the rise.

Huang Ze's popularity has always been high. With his handsome appearance, gentle demeanor, and the added bonus of being a violinist, he seems like the prince charming character straight out of a teenage novel.

Since the beginning of the competition, his popularity has remained consistently high. Though he was not able to advance due to lack of a compelling story, if he had continued on this path, he would have had a good chance of making it to the finals. With a good strategy, he could have even become a second or third-tier celebrity after the competition, and it won't be just a dream for him to pursue a career in the entertainment industry.

However, at this moment, he withdrew from the competition.

Many people expressed their regret and disappointment, but some would even say that he was crazy. The thought of the backlash that would come from this decision is daunting, so why did he make such a daring move?

["Did he not know that the competition would conflict with the start of school when he decided to participate?"]

["If he easily gives up, why did he choose to participate in the first place? This is so unfair to the disqualified contestants!"]

-----

A few years ago, there was a high-profile contestant in a talent show who made the same choice. Unfortunately, he had to withdraw from the competition due to family issues, and he was criticized to the point of being forced out of the entertainment industry. Since then, no one has dared to mention withdrawing from the competition.

So, Huang Ze's decision to withdraw is really incomprehensible.

What's worse is that the news of Huang Ze's withdrawal came right after the announcement of the elimination round.

Think about it: on one hand, there are contestants who may have to leave because their popularity isn't enough.

On the other hand, there is Huang Ze, who has enough popularity but has other plans and chooses to withdraw from the competition.

The comparison between the two creates a sense of class struggle.

Luo Xin looked at Huang Ze, not knowing what to say or how to feel, because at this moment, he had already imagined how the production team would respond.

You should know that a contestant withdrawing from the competition is negative news for the production team. No matter how powerful the support behind Huang Ze is, withdrawing from the competition is basically equal to offending the production team.

Since producing a program is aimed at gaining viewership, any production team with some intelligence would know what to do: maliciously edit Huang Ze.

Then, in the public opinion, Huang Ze would be portrayed as the typical rich kid who didn't appreciate what he had and all the blame will be placed on him, creating a victim image.

Every time there's an elimination, there are contestants who cry on the spot. Among them are those who worked hard to get here but unfortunately had to leave because they were always a bit unlucky.

These people are used as a contrast to Huang Ze. The more people sympathize with the former, the more they deeply hate the latter. This leads to discussions about the show, and the production team can seize the opportunity to promote it and secure the viewership they no longer need to worry about.

So Huang Ze understands what he is going to face, right?

Perhaps he will bear the burden of infamy for a long time to come, and perhaps he will always be ridiculed no matter when he appears. And these are things that ordinary people couldn't bear.

Of course, Huang Ze doesn't know any of this. He just came to participate in the competition innocently. He has no knowledge or understanding of the entertainment industry.

But even if he knew about these consequences, he probably wouldn't change his mind. It's just a bad reputation, and he is not afraid. Because after making the decision to withdraw, he can finally breathe a sigh of relief.

In life, people always have some things they persist in.

He doesn't care about fame and fortune, just hoping to have a clear conscience.

With a smile towards the contestants, Huang Ze deeply bowed, without saying a word, and left the stage.

Leaving here, he will go to teach and explore remote villages according to the original plan, and finally return to the embrace of his beloved pure music.

But he thinks he will never participate in a competition again.

Before leaving, he glanced at the bright stage backstage.

"Goodbye."

-----

After seeing off Huang Ze, who left unexpectedly, the main course was served, and it was time to announce the list of those who advanced.

Meanwhile, the top students who were not worried about being eliminated quietly awaited their results, so they could adjust their performance based on whether the outcome was good or bad. They needed to decide whether to take a radical approach for a last stand or to be more conservative and gradually progress.

Unlike the previous ease, Luo Xin was very nervous this time.

Of course, it wasn't because he was worried about whether he could advance, but because he was nervous about whether Shao Xiangchen could continue his winning streak.

You know, several popular players are eyeing each other closely. Sometimes, when Luo Xin is doing traffic work by himself, he feels a lot of pressure. There have been several instances where he almost couldn't beat them, and the situation is very critical.

Especially Wen Tongbai, as Shao Xiangchen's most competitive opponent, Luo Xin can't stand him. Because his performance is also very strong, there have been a few times when he managed to take first place from Shao Xiangchen when Luo Xin was too occupied to check his phone. This has caused Luo Xin to have a fierce look whenever he sees Wen Tongbai recently.

He was feeling anxious, but the top contestants like Shao Xiangchen will only be announced at the end, so he can only wait patiently.

This round still eliminates half of the people. But compared to the previous contestants, the ones eliminated this time are already quite remarkable. They will leave behind some classic moments, and there are quite a few who are called "gems" or "hard to reconcile." They have performed well, not inferior to those who remain.

Overtaking on a curve is not a rare thing.

Actually, unless there is a particularly outstanding or reckless contestant in a specific episode, the rankings are unlikely to change much.

So, the initial few contestants who went up are basically not much different from last week.

Luo Xin listens attentively to the rankings, getting lost in thought for a moment before bringing his focus back. He estimates that it will soon be his turn, so he straightens up a bit, jots down some notes, and thinks about what to say when he goes on stage later.

However, after waiting for a while and going through dozens of drafts of his notes, Luo Xin suddenly realized that it still wasn't his turn.

While Luo Xin was lost in thought, the rankings had already been announced for more than ten contestants.

But his name still hadn't been called.

Luo Xin started to panic.

Having watched various shows, he knew that some people would suddenly rise in popularity. However, in most cases, it was because the contestants had made a big impact before, and their management companies had put in a lot of effort in promoting them to create such an effect.

But Luo Xin thought about himself and realized that for this ranking, it was from the previous performance of "Qi Tian Da Sheng." Apart from embarrassment, he had nothing. Even if he racked his brains, he could only come up with one cute and contrasting aspect.

However, this niche cute point couldn't possibly drive his popularity.

So, there was only one possibility.

He was going to be eliminated.

Oh no, he should have known earlier. The studio is unreliable, and how can vote counts bought with money compare to those earned through genuine support?

Darn it, if only I had known before that I shouldn't have been so straightforward in giving them money!

Just as Luo Xin was getting angry at the unreliable studio that used money to manipulate votes, he suddenly heard his name drifting out of the loudspeaker, "In nineteenth place... he is the individual trainee, Luo Xin."

The camera focused on Luo Xin as he wore a bewildered expression.

Huh?

When it was time for him to speak his thoughts on stage, Luo Xin had already forgotten the prepared notes he had written. After all, his mind was filled with bloody words like "Dogcoin Studio, give back my hard-earned money."

So when the microphone was handed to him out of the blue, his instinct was to say something vulgar.

Fortunately, since he had been acting for a long time, some aspects of his image were deeply ingrained, and he didn't give away any inappropriate expressions. He had an impeccable poker face, the master of expression control in the idol industry.

"Firstly, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to all the fans who voted for me." Normally, there should have been a bow at this point. But considering that most of his fans were from the studio, he didn't need to be so polite. He continued, "Although the training is tough, I will continue to work hard."

After speaking, he suddenly remembered something and pretended to speak deeply, slowing down his words, "A good goal can motivate a person to move forward. I'm grateful that my goal has always been excellent."

Looking towards a certain spot in the audience, he earnestly said, "Please continue to excel, I will catch up."

Luo Xin even moved himself to tears.

With the competition already halfway through, if he was able to climb up, it was probably thanks to the fact that all the agencies were starting to hide their votes for the final debut spots. After all, Luo Xin himself had organized the fans of Shao Xiangchen to hide votes and wait for the final match.

But Luo Xin felt that since he managed to reach nineteenth place, he should have gained some recognition among the media. So he started planning to be a bit bolder - to start promoting his CP.

Although Shao Xiangchen's popularity was already high enough, he would never refuse to be even more popular.

Of course, even though he had forgotten about this due to being immersed in the competition in the early stages, resulting in the two of them having almost no interaction except for being roommates, it didn't matter. Wasn't there still half of the competition left?

As long as they stayed long enough, there would eventually come a day when they would form teams.

The day of forming teams would be the day of Luo Xin and Shao Xiangchen's great success as a CP! Laughing inwardly, Luo Xin thought to himself. 

Meanwhile, on stage, the top candidates, Wen Tongbai and Shao Xiangchen embraced each other with deep understanding.

Luo Xin wasn't moved at all by this brotherly sentiment. He just found Wen Tongbai very irritating. In his heart, he thought fiercely, soon you won't be able to laugh anymore. He would bring Shao Xiangchen's fan club and all the ordinary fans to leave Wen Tongbai far behind!

In the crowd, Luo Xin felt ambitious, and he felt like the background images had all changed to "Only those who work hard will win."

Of course, in the end, Shao Xiangchen had a slight advantage and won the championship once again.

Luo Xin thought that he could add another line to his rainbow farts: "The only player in the history of talent shows to win three championships in a row." That would be impressive. He had to make sure to control this narrative to hit Wen Tongbai's fan club in the face!

He could do it again!

-----

Luo Xin's good mood lasted until he got home at night and checked his personal messages. He discovered that his messages had blown up, and his good mood came to a sudden stop.

Frowning, he opened the messages. What the hell?

Who kissed who?

What does it mean that Shao Xiangchen and Wen Tongbai locked?

What does "Heguang Tongchen" mean? (Note: Roughly translated, it means "morning light")

Why is Shao Xiangchen the bottom?

A series of questions exploded in his mind like the bombardment of private messages, causing him to lose his ability to think.

In the end, only one phrase remained in Luo Xin's mind:

Knife in hand, kill Wen Dog!!!!!

On this day, Shao Xiangchen's fans were all in a frenzy, spreading their influence everywhere, attempting to separate Shao Xiangchen from Wen Tongbai. Wen Tongbai's fans were also doing the same thing.

At this moment, two groups of fans who had been looking at each other with disdain were unexpectedly fighting for the same goal.

However, in this world, there are still many onlookers who love to watch a good show.

The more they tried to clarify, the more the fake became real.

In the end, on the CP list in the entertainment industry, Heguang Tongchen CP successfully surpassed Xin Youlinxi and many other popular CPs, claiming the championship.

In one word, it's sweet!

The fans who were busy with their battles didn't even notice that their precious "Yixin Xiangchen" data station hadn't been updated on any platform all night.

There's no other explanation, just pure frustration.

-----

When Luo Xin woke up the next day to prepare for the new competition, his eyes couldn't hide the dark circles. Even ten layers of concealer couldn't cover his exhaustion.

Of course, this scene later became a sweet and heartbreaking moment for the "ordinary netizens" who are good at imagining scenarios.

Huang Ze left.

Luo Xin, who was usually calm to the extreme, had actually lost control to such an extent. If this isn't love, then what is it?

They've fallen for each other!

This triggered a fan war between Xin Youlinxi and Xin Yixinzen CP, arguing over whom this sweet moment belonged to. The argument lasted for days and nights, but in the end, everyone had their own opinions.

However, the CP fans involved in the argument couldn't fathom that Luo Xin's exhaustion wasn't because of a man, but because of his child.

He may be gentle as a male fan, but he becomes tough as a mother.

Thinking that there was still half of the competition to go, after putting on makeup, Luo Xin transformed into a brand new self, full of fighting spirit, and quickly started planning a new strategy.

However, now there was an extremely difficult question before Luo Xin: Should he help to hype up the popularity of the He Guangtongchen CP?

Yes, despite the heartache of seeing his beloved cabbage coveted by the pig on the other side, Luo Xin's simple and good thoughts for his child once again prevailed, and he began to coldly think according to the perspective of an adult.

Creating a CP relationship is a win-win situation. Both parties can gain new fans, and to some extent, even achieve the excellent effect of breaking through boundaries.

You see, one major characteristic of CP is its ability to attract creators such as editors, writers, and artists who contribute their work voluntarily.

Usually, if you want to ask these people to help create works, it would cost a fortune and there's a high probability that it won't work out. The resulting works are also inconsistent, basically a one-time deal.

If a CP is formed and the "moe points" are on target, these creators will invest themselves with 100% enthusiasm and produce a large quantity of high-quality content for a long period of time.

No matter what is produced, it will bring forth beautiful photos, artwork, performances, and what better way to promote than this?

Luo Xin is a fan with a long-term vision. He knows very well that even if he controls all the negative comments, it may not have as much positive impact for Shao Xiangchen as a high-quality content output.

After all, while controlling the comments can push away some malicious messages and create appealing data, it will only attract disgust from passersby.

On the other hand, high-quality content can attract many passersby to develop a liking for Shao Xiangchen.

A celebrity's popularity depends on their die-hard fans.

Their lasting popularity depends on the public's interest.

It seems Luo Xin has accepted this reality as he no longer hesitates when recording shows.

He had already said that he would do anything to make Shao Xiangchen popular.

He can tolerate forming a CP relationship.

However, as soon as he walked into the studio, he saw Wen Tongbai maliciously resting his hand on Shao Xiangchen's shoulder while the two were discussing something, causing Wen Tongbai to laugh uncontrollably.

Luo Xin's face suddenly became ferocious.