~ "In the dark, I reached for the light. I thought it was a dream, but it was you." ~
Douyin Hot List: "Why is Chu Zhi considered the last breath of purity in the entertainment industry? It's all thanks to his upbringing."
Kuaishou Trending Topic: "This year's most explosive breaking news."
Zhihu Top Question: "What do you think about the fact that Chu Zhi has so many fans, yet not one of them knew about his tragic past?"
Today's Toutiao Headline: "Chu Zhi: Redemption from the Abyss of Despair."
Across major platforms like Quark, UC Browser, Baidu, QQ Browser, and Firefox, homepage headlines were all occupied by variations of the same story.
On Xiaohongshu, the trending search leaderboard was no different.
Top search: "Chu Zhi's tragic backstory revealed. The unbearable weight of life."
Second place: "A person scarred by suffering, yet always facing the sun."
Third place: "If life looks at us with disdain, then we become Chu Zhi."
Just below that were other unrelated trending searches:
"Remarrying Young Love After Divorce,"
"My Passenger Seat Carried the One I Most Wanted to Carry,"
"Text Messages Only People in Yunnan Province Can Receive."
That last one was completely unrelated. Clicking into it revealed a warning message:
"Avoid picking or consuming Amanita mushrooms such as the red gilled waxy cap and the 'hat-on-head, skirt-around-waist, shoes-on-feet' species (commonly known as white umbrella, yellow umbrella, etc.). They are highly toxic. If you're unsure, don't touch them. Issued by Yunnan Health Commission."
To be honest, the government had tried everything to stop people in Yunnan from randomly eating wild mushrooms. The people there had a strange attitude. If they got mushroom poisoning and someone asked what happened, most would just shrug and say, "Oh, I just didn't cook it properly."
Anyone familiar with Xiaohongshu knows its trending search system works differently than other platforms. Getting the top spot is easy, but sweeping the top three like this? Almost unheard of. It proved once again how massive Chu Zhi's popularity had become, and how much impact the second episode of Back to the Countryside had made.
A side note: Teacher Xu from Tomorrow Flower Studio had produced a video cutting deep into people's hearts. It went viral across the internet and gained him over 400,000 followers in one night.
#Official Endorsement Confirms His Background
#Chu Zhi's Greatest Regret
#What Does the Centennial Award Really Mean?
#A Wish That Can Never Be Fulfilled
#You Choose, So Shall We
#The Warmest Hug
Of the top fifteen trending topics on Weibo, six were about this incident. One of them was an official endorsement post made by the Xinxia Society's verified account.
But that wasn't the only official voice.
Remember that previous national media conference? Hosted by the Central Propaganda Department, with participation from the four major official media outlets and eight major Party media arms. A total of nine official agencies were present.
"The chaos of 'fan economy' ends here. Philanthropic, tax-abiding, a promoter of positive values and a devoted student of Chinese classical culture—Chu Zhi presents four solutions to industry chaos." — Economic Daily
Last January, the Economic Daily had released an article titled "When Will the Chaos of the Fan Economy End? Some Commit Theft, Fraud, Even Murder for Gifts." The connection was deliberate.
"How should fan culture uphold its boundaries? We must pursue traffic, but with integrity." — Guangming Daily
"Ensuring steady and long-term development in the entertainment industry." — People's Daily
"From the case of Chu Zhi and his fans: Be cautious in conduct, strict in artistry. In a world of cultural diversity, we need devoted, skilled artists. Only when the next generation of celebrities understands the roots of their profession can they guide their fans properly." — Procuratorate Daily
All nine state media outlets published their own pieces across various aspects: economic, personal, and industry-wide. Though technically unrelated to Back to the Countryside Season 4 Episode 2, they all pointed to one thing.
Chu Zhi had become the new standard for young celebrities in the eyes of the state.
Even Shen Yun, who came from a well-connected family and was once hailed as the carefree genius in "Wu Head, Chu Tail, Clouds Soaring," got a call from his old man.
"Make sure you spend more time with Chu Zhi."
"At least I'm good at making friends," Shen Yun muttered to himself. Back before Chu Zhi had truly taken off, Shen Yun had given him a small opportunity. Their relationship had always been decent.
"Other than some virtuous and highly respected seniors... No, even they rarely get this kind of coverage." Shen Yun thought aloud. "Wasn't the last person covered by all official media outlets Teacher Li Wu?"
Teacher Li Wu was not only a national representative but also once served as the head of the Central Military Commission's song and dance troupe. He was the first Chinese folk musician to win global acclaim at the Grammys.
"Chu Zhi hasn't reached Teacher Li Wu's level yet, but the potential is obvious. This kind of official recognition is incredibly rare." Shen Yun had asked his father before, and his father replied that Chu Zhi's origin was red but not privileged. He had no background to rely on.
He had made it here entirely on his own. Shen Yun truly admired Chu Zhi for that.
The only thing more powerful than this kind of backing would be a feature on the National News Broadcast. So far, no celebrity had ever made it that far in this world.
"At the very least, from now on, no one in the country would dare to mess with him openly. As long as Chu Zhi doesn't mess up, becoming a national representative in a few years isn't out of the question," Shen Yun concluded.
Within the entertainment circle, many were as stunned as Shen Yun by this level of official support.
But late into the night, things weren't calming down. Around 11 PM, about an hour and a half after Back to the Countryside Season 4 Episode 2 aired—
In a city hospital in the Magic Capital, the night-shift doctor found the influx of patients strange.
"What day is it? Why are so many people breaking up?"
Between 11 PM and midnight, several young girls were brought in. The diagnosis was shocking.
They hadn't fainted from physical illness or dehydration. They had cried so hard they passed out.
This wasn't an exaggeration. It was a medically confirmed state.
Everyone knows intense crying can strain the vocal cords and throat, cause swollen eyes, inflammation, headaches, and chest pain. When the first episode of Back to the Countryside aired, even "normal saline" trended as a topic.
But if the crying was more extreme, it could cause temporary oxygen deprivation in the brain, leading to unconsciousness.
That was exactly what had happened to the three girls who were brought in. A little oxygen therapy and rest, and they'd be fine.
About twenty minutes later, one short-haired girl woke up. The doctor offered her some comforting words, trying to calm her emotions.
That step was necessary. If the girl started crying again, her condition could worsen. Usually, this would be the job of a family member.
With three girls brought in one after another, the night-shift doctor was understandably curious.
He chatted with one of the patients' best friends—the one who'd brought her in—and eventually got the whole story.
"She fainted from crying over a celebrity?" The doctor couldn't believe it.
If someone had fainted from a heartbreak, sure. Young people love deeply. But this was over a celebrity?
He held back his judgmental thoughts. It wasn't his place. The other two girls woke up soon after.
And when he asked, he was even more baffled. They had also fainted over the same celebrity.
By the time the third girl regained consciousness, the doctor couldn't hold it in anymore.
"You still have to live your own life," the doctor said, looking at the girl who was barely older than his daughter. "Celebrities live on screens. We live in the real world."
In other words, don't let idol worship interfere with real life.
The girl's name was Minmin. She had been brought in by her older brother. Her eyes were still red like little flames flickering in an open field.
She didn't say a word.
Seeing his advice wasn't helping, the doctor stood up to leave. Minmin's brother followed him out of the room.
"Doctor, our whole family actually supports Minmin following this star," he said.
The doctor raised an eyebrow. What was he supposed to say to that?
"You probably think my sister is being foolish," the brother added.
"I was just making conversation," the doctor replied.
"I normally wouldn't share family matters, but I don't want you to think my sister is just some crazy fangirl. So please bear with me for a moment."
The brother took a breath and said, "Our family went through a crisis. Our father's business failed, and he jumped off a building. My sister saw it when she was coming home from school.
After that, Minmin developed severe PTSD. From age eleven to sixteen, she didn't speak to anyone outside the family.
Even though the teachers tried to help, she still got bullied at school. Psychological counseling didn't work. In the end, we had no choice but to send her to a special education institution.
Last year, Minmin started liking a celebrity named Chu Zhi. I looked into him. He has an outstanding reputation.
This celebrity once said, 'I hope the world will treat my fans gently,' 'Little Fruits must always be happy,' and 'We are all children of a beautiful world.' It's fair to say Minmin relied on this celebrity to walk out of her shadow and finally start connecting with people again.
For Minmin, Chu Zhi was the door that led her back to the outside world. Tonight's episode revealed that this celebrity lost both parents in the line of duty when he was a child. His grandfather, the only family he had left, passed away two years ago.
Minmin knows what it feels like to grow up without a father. That's why her heart ached for him."
When Minmin's older brother finished, the on-duty doctor fell silent for a moment. His mood was heavier now.
He still didn't fully understand how a celebrity could become someone's emotional support, but for patients suffering from psychological trauma, having something to hold onto—a reason to live—was the most crucial thing. This wasn't just idol worship, it was a kind of salvation.
"It's good that she has something to chase after," the doctor said, gathering himself. He wasn't a psychiatrist, but he knew a few things.
Of course, if the celebrity were to one day fall from grace or be exposed for wrongdoing, the impact could be devastating.
So he added, "Still, try helping her find other interests too. Putting all her hopes in one thing is risky."
"Thank you, Doctor. We understand," Minmin's brother said sincerely.
Without truly understanding someone, it's better not to judge what they believe in. Even if that belief seems ridiculous to you, as long as it doesn't hurt others, that 'silly thing' might be the very lifeline keeping someone alive. It might be what gives them the strength to keep going.
That city hospital was just one example. In other hospitals, more patients had fainted from crying. Some, like Minmin, had placed deep emotional trust in Chu Zhi. Others were simply emotional types. And of course, there were those swept away by the fever of idol worship.
Across more than a hundred hospitals in the Magic Capital alone, over a hundred fans had reportedly fainted. Nationwide, the number was far higher.
The one who made all this known to the wider internet was a self-media content creator named [He_Zao'an].
[He_Zao'an] was a Little Fruit himself and worked in independent media. He wasn't very successful. Most people called him He An for short.
At the time, he was eating grilled fish, drinking beer, and happily watching Back to the Countryside, but the second episode shocked him so much he got a fishbone stuck in his throat. No matter what he tried—vinegar, rice, nothing worked—so he had to go to the hospital.
And there, he saw Ban Ke.
His professional instincts kicked in. He instinctively reached for his phone to take a picture but stopped midway.
Forget it. Ban Ke had suffered enough. No need to dig up more pain.
He An wasn't a ruthless paparazzo, which might explain why he was never successful. After all, everyone knows, "If you lose money, you can earn it back. But if you lose your conscience... you can make even more."
He was about to walk away and pretend he hadn't seen anything, but when he saw Ban Ke staggering, he couldn't help himself.
"Teacher Ban, do you need help?"
Despite the pain in his throat, He An stepped forward. As it turned out, doing a good deed had its reward—he got firsthand information. Ban Ke had watched Back to the Countryside, then saw a certain fan-edited video and was hit so hard emotionally that she nearly fainted and had to be brought to the hospital.
With Ban Ke's permission, He An posted a photo online.
[He_Zao'an]: @EatingABigOrange_Jiu-yé please, we're begging you to stay well. Even @BanKe_ ended up in the hospital! We're all here, and we're all rooting for you.][Photo] [Photo] [Photo]
For those who couldn't see the images on their phones, the post explained that all three pictures were of Ban Ke in the hospital.
The internet exploded.
[Tianjie Pilgrim]:"Not gonna lie, my hospital had the same situation. A fan cried so hard they passed out.
[Baobei Junyao]:"My cousin too. We were hugging each other, crying with snot and tears running down our faces. Then she just... collapsed.
[Mountain Dweller]:"Ban Ke is a Little Fruit? I'm a Little Fruit too. Our hospital received two other Little Fruits like that today."
It was happening all across the country.
According to incomplete statistics, over a thousand Little Fruits fainted nationwide—and those were just the ones who ended up in the hospital.
Sounds like a lot? Actually, it wasn't. With Chu Zhi's fandom numbering in the tens of millions, this was just one in ten thousand.
Back in the day, when Michael Jackson held concerts, fans often fainted from excitement. Every show saw twenty or more people carried out.
This was just another form of fans collapsing.
"I'm willing to give up ten years of my life if it means brother Jiu can smile every day."
"I'd trade my brother's whole dating future—he can stay single forever—as long as our Xiao Jiu is happy."
"@Reformed Gentleman @ChuZhiStudio @Careless Yet Majestic Niu Niu Please be kind to Ah Jiu. Please, we're begging you."
"Are the Little Fruits holding up? I hate myself for learning about Jiu-yé's past only now."
"I understand those who fainted. Just thinking about how Jiu-yé was slandered during his hardest times makes my chest hurt. I can barely breathe."
That "Reformed Gentleman" was actually Lao Qian's Weibo username. He and Niu Jiangxue of "Careless Yet Majestic Niu Niu" were the only two managers in Chu Zhi's agency who had public profiles.
Both had over a million followers, a testament to Chu Zhi's staggering influence.
The "mom fans" couldn't sit still anymore. Many had already known Chu Zhi's family was gone, but seeing him smile on the show while carrying that weight... it broke them.
It's true that crying children get candy. But children who stay quiet and carry their own burdens? They're even more heartbreaking.
To these mom fans, Chu Zhi was that child—so quietly sensible it made their hearts ache.
"Jiu is fine. He's in Singapore right now. I came with him. He has a schedule here, and at this hour he's probably sticking to his reading plan."
"I think we should respect Jiu's own wishes. We shouldn't interfere."
"No matter what you all decide to do—"
Wang Yuan was speaking on the phone. She was the mom fan closest to Chu Zhi. Most of the other mom fans with connections would call her first before making a move.
"Whew—" Wang Yuan exhaled and immediately called Niu Jiangxue. At the very least, the studio needed to issue a public statement.
Wang Yuan couldn't calm the mom fans down. Many were already discussing a plan to acquire Taiyang Chuanhe and delist the company. That way, Chu Zhi would be free from the influence of capital and any external pressure.
Taiyang Chuanhe had a market value of over five billion yuan. That kind of money isn't something you casually throw around. Anyone with a basic understanding of finance would know this isn't a game.
But... there were too many rich mom fans.
What had once been a small tea club of twenty or so now had 370 members. If they decided to unite toward a single goal, their collective power would be formidable.
"I should never have let him participate in Back to the Countryside," Niu Jiangxue muttered. Watching Little Fruits explode across the internet, she took a deep breath. Things had gotten complicated. She had a lot to handle now.
About twenty minutes later, Chu Zhi finally responded.
Chu Zhi Studio: [All of brother Jiu's schedules are based on his own preferences. Little Fruits, please don't worry. The studio will closely monitor his condition. Also, every member of the studio is a Little Fruit, so rest assured.]
It wasn't phrased like an official announcement, and Niu Jiangxue had considered that. What mattered now wasn't a formal statement but soothing Little Fruits, calming their worries. So what use was a rigid official notice?
No use at all. That's why she opted for a casual tone.
And it turned out, Niu Jiangxue's instincts were right. Once the studio posted this message, Little Fruits finally started to breathe a little easier.
Then came the flood of responses:
Careless Yet Majestic Niu Niu: [We'll take good care of Chu Zhi.]
Reformed Gentleman: [Jiu-yé has a dim past, but I hope with us fans beside him, he'll shine bright in the future.]
Old fans left countless comments under these posts.
"For the rest of my life, I will always support Jiu-yé."
"Jiu-yé's future will surely be free of sorrow and full of brilliance."
"I think the idiom upstairs used is incorrect, but I still want to say, I'll always support Jiu-yé."
"We'll become the stars that light up your night sky, Jiu-yé, so your nights will never be dark again."
They said "forever," and though forever might be a fragile promise, one thing was true: when Little Fruits left those messages, they truly meant every word in that moment. They really did want to stay with him forever.
It wasn't just Niu Jiangxue who had a busy night. Luo Xunyuan, the producer of Back to the Countryside, was also woken up in the middle of the night—at one in the morning—by a phone call.
Groggy and irritable, Luo Xunyuan was ready to snap, but then he saw who was calling: the deputy director of Mango TV.
"Ah, the world is such a beautiful place, and yet I am so angry. This won't do. This won't do.
We were raised under the national flag. We mustn't take our tempers out on others. We must remain calm. We must be composed."
"Hello, Deputy—"
He didn't even get the full title out before the voice on the other end cut in.
"As the director of Back to the Countryside how could you even sleep at a time like this?"
"Uh?" Luo Xunyuan was stunned. What on earth was going on?
"Get online and take a look. Then post a proper announcement from the official account," the deputy director barked, then hung up.
Flustered, Luo Xunyuan jumped online. The reaction to the second episode had exceeded his expectations.
"Thousands cried themselves unconscious. Even Ban Ke…" Luo Xunyuan suddenly felt that his team may have gone too far.
After some thought, he muttered, "Maybe… maybe we shouldn't release the footage of Teacher Chu's nightmare…"
Still, he called his team right away. Whether or not to release that footage, they had to post something. The official Back to the Countryside account was being flooded with messages from Little Fruits and Mango TV viewers, all pleading with the show to take care of their beloved idol.
Fans watching variety shows can really get immersed. Take a common example from Earth—Zhang Zifeng, another guest on Back to the Countryside, once had a dating rumor with a guy who had a terrible reputation. Fans actually flooded Huang Lei's social media, begging him to step in.
In the show, Huang Lei treats Zhang Zifeng like his daughter, after all. That's how seriously fans get emotionally invested.
Meanwhile, at the heart of all this—
Chu Zhi had just landed in Lion City.
From the arrivals gate at Changi Airport, you can already see Jewel Changi—a massive integrated complex combining aviation, shopping, dining, hotels, and entertainment. It links Terminals 1 through 3 and spans eleven stories in total. Chu Zhi emerged from Terminal 1.
His flight landed around ten at night. Normally, most shops and restaurants inside Jewel Changi would be closed at that hour. But tonight was different. Every store was brightly lit.
How over-the-top was Chu Zhi's welcome ceremony in Lion City?
Every shop and restaurant had posters that read:
[Welcome Asia's Chu Zhi]
[Lion City Welcomes You]
[The Eternal Light of Little Fruits]
Meticulously planned, the massive event didn't clog the terminal, but it was still such a spectacle that The Straits Times, Singapore's largest English-language newspaper, showed up to cover it.
It took over an hour just to exit the airport.
By midnight, Chu Zhi and Wang Yuan had checked into Marina Bay Sands—the same iconic hotel featured in the Detective Conan: The Fist of Blue Sapphire movie, the one that gets blown up.
After washing up, Chu Zhi followed his routine: reading. Six hours on a plane made him sleepy after just a bit of reading.
He scolded himself, "You've already rested a whole minute. What, now you want to slack off?"
Then, just past 1 a.m., he got a call from Sister Niu, summarizing the storm that had swept the internet that night.
No sooner had he hung up than Sister Wang called from the hotel's internal line to relay the same thing.
Chu Zhi got the picture.
Fans really pour their hearts into stanning, especially seeing reports of people crying themselves unconscious.
@EatingABigOrange: With you all ahead of me, I won't feel bitterness—because Little Fruits are sweet. #LittleFruitsAreSweet
Chu Zhi immediately posted a new status. After briefly thinking it over, he used the hashtag #LittleFruitsAreSweet.
It exploded instantly.
Being loved and expected by so many people didn't bring him pressure about playing the Emperor Beast. On the contrary, it made him reflect on something else.
"I know the theme for my third album now," Chu Zhi murmured. "I want to release an album written entirely for Little Fruits. Every single track will be for them."
He had thought about this before, but only idly. Now he was ready to make it real.
A whole album dedicated to fans—forget parallel worlds, not even Earth had seen something like this. The Emperor Beast was once again redefining the entertainment industry.
Tentative album title: Little Fruits Are Sweet.
Right now, only three songs fit the theme: "Glory", "The Brightest Star in the Night Sky", and "The Most Beautiful Sun".
He still needed at least nine more. He had already searched the system earlier, even spent a personalization coin. Other suitable songs included: "To Everyone Who Knows My Name", "Our Song", "Angel", and "Till the End."
"my.all" (My Everything) was a maybe.
When it comes to songs for fans, South Korea does it best. Almost every idol group has one dedicated fan song. These are called "fan chants" in South Korea. Chu Zhi wondered whether he should include Korean and Japanese songs too.
Whether he did or not, he needed Song Exchange Vouchers to find more tracks. Right now, he was short on resources.
The next second, Chu Zhi opened a certain website and anonymously donated 10 million yuan to the China Charity Federation…
He picked over 40 different charity projects, all anonymously. There's a cap on how much you can donate anonymously, so the process alone took half an hour.
Adding the small amount he'd donated after returning from helping at the Green City flood zone yesterday, he reached the title of Charity King: [Low-Profile Donor 10 Million * 8] He earned eight personalization coins.
Current balance: 18 coins (10 of which were frozen due to customizing the album).
"OK. Time to spin the wheel again. My one and only target: Song Exchange Voucher!"
===
I've just finished translating The Villainess Refuses to Repent up to the latest serialized chapter!
(๑•̀ㅂ•́)و✧
Right now, I have one free slot open. I'm thinking about picking another short novel this time — something with either short chapters or a smaller overall word count. It could be another xianxia or maybe a modern story.
I'll share my final choice later in a little blurb about the novel I pick. Stay tuned! (・ω<)
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"光荣" – guāng róng – "Glory"
"夜空中最亮的星" – yè kōng zhōng zuì liàng de xīng – "The Brightest Star in the Night Sky"
"最美的太阳" – zuì měi de tài yáng – "The Most Beautiful Sun"
"给所有知道我名字的人" – gěi suǒ yǒu zhī dào wǒ míng zì de rén – "To Everyone Who Knows My Name"
"我们的歌" – wǒ men de gē – "Our Song"
"天使" – tiān shǐ – "Angel"
"奉陪到底" – fèng péi dào dǐ – "Till the End"