"I'm also going to make it public that I'll reach the King of Singers throne within six months—draw all the fire onto myself for Xiaoxi."
Zhang Yichen made the declaration confidently, his tone unwavering.
"Ah Chen, you—" Chen Xiaoxi began.
"No need to say more." Zhang Yichen raised a hand to stop her. "I'll be releasing plenty of mainstream, catchy songs anyway. Sooner or later, I'd become a target regardless."
Chen Xiaoxi's lips trembled slightly. Her voice seemed to be squeezed out from deep in her throat, tinged with a sob.
"Ah Chen… I'm not worth you doing this."
Others might not understand how much trouble such words could cause—but she knew all too well.
The fastest person in music history to reach the title of King of Singers was Heavenly King Zhang.
It had taken him only one year.
But before that, he was already a Best Actor.
His rapid rise had been backed by an absolutely terrifying fanbase.
If every one of his fans spat once, Zhang Yichen would drown on the spot.
And now, a complete newcomer was boldly declaring that he would become King of Singers in six months.
Wasn't that equivalent to saying he was even more impressive than Heavenly King Zhang?
That was a direct challenge to Zhang's authority.
Would the fans accept it?Would the artists in the entertainment industry accept it?
Absolutely not.
So what would Zhang Yichen face next?
The answer was obvious.
He could very well become a public enemy.
Worse still—his entire music career could be cut short.
Right now, he was still a blank slate.
Chen Xiaoxi didn't want him to sacrifice so much for her.
Yet Zhang Yichen showed no sign of pressure at all.
He reached out and gently held her hand.
"Xiaoxi, I'm not giving anything up for you. I'm doing this for our future."
His voice was low and firm, every word striking her heart like a steady beat.
She looked up at him, her eyes shimmering with complicated emotions—gratitude, guilt, and deep reliance.
Li Yue, standing to the side, cleared her throat.
"Have you really thought this through? If you do this, all the attention will shift to you. Xiaoxi's pressure will ease, but you'll become the target of every arrow."
Zhang Yichen turned to her calmly, a faint smile still on his lips.
"Sister Yue, I know what you're worried about—but do you really think I care?"
"Storms can't always be avoided. Instead of waiting to be beaten, it's better to strike first."
"My thirty songs every month won't be released for nothing. I'll make the entire music industry struggle just to breathe."
"Anyone who wants revenge can come at me. We have our own platform—I'm not afraid of being blacklisted."
Li Yue had to admit—his words made sense.
And more importantly, he had the strength to back them up.
The only way to truly suppress Zhang Yichen would be to prevent him from releasing songs altogether.
But he owned his own company.
That threat meant nothing.
His company now carried multiple official titles and partnerships—he wasn't afraid of power-based suppression either.
As for stealing schedules or blocking appearances?
He couldn't care less.
Why accept schedules in the first place?
For fame?
He didn't lack that.
Nearly twenty million viewers had joined his livestream—the school servers had nearly crashed.
For money?
He lacked that even less.
He owned a company with limitless potential. Just today alone, Li Yue had received numerous calls for advertising deals.
His songs themselves generated profit.
The downloads for just four of his tracks had already surpassed five million.
Those songs had entered the annual charts and were climbing at an astonishing speed.
"…Alright." Li Yue finally nodded. "We'll do it your way."
In truth, Zhang Yichen had anticipated all of this the moment Chen Xiaoxi decided to return.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have prepared medical records in advance.
He wouldn't have planned the hype ahead of time.
Everything he did was simply contingency planning.
If it was useful, great.
If not, even better.
Reality proved his foresight correct.
The opponent's attack stemmed directly from yesterday's livestream.
After fermenting overnight, the livestream content had completely exploded today.
Countless fans clipped highlights and reposted them on their own accounts.
The five topics Zhang Yichen had predicted all surged onto the trending list—without exception.
#Chen Xiaoxi and Zhang Yichen receive 40 million in livestream donations, all to be donated to the Red Cross##Chen Xiaoxi's comeback album surpasses ten million sales in just two hours#
Both topics entered the Top 10 trending list.
Ten million albums—what did that mean?
It was enough to make Chen Xiaoxi the youngest Queen of Songs in history.
No wonder the opposition panicked.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have rushed out half-prepared to stir trouble.
The so-called scandals they released were already widely known and held little real power.
But Chen Xiaoxi still had to respond.
Stepping forward to clarify was about attitude and positioning.
More importantly—if she didn't respond now, she'd be giving her former company time to prepare.
After working there for years, it would be incredibly easy for them to fabricate damaging material.
For example—her former assistant or manager.
If they poured dirty water on her, countless onlookers would blindly follow the narrative.
This was completely different from Zhang Yichen's fabricated rumors.
Romantic scandals were manageable—deny them, admit them, or ignore them.
Which celebrity didn't have rumors?
Some even deliberately created scandals.
The public was long desensitized.
But the next attack would be lethal.
They could accuse Chen Xiaoxi of being arrogant, domineering—or claim her private life was chaotic.
Rumors take seconds to spread, but a lifetime to clarify.
As long as the former company guided the narrative slightly, Chen Xiaoxi wouldn't be able to defend herself even with a hundred mouths.
How could Zhang Yichen allow that to happen?
The best defense was offense.
That was why today's press conference wasn't just about drawing fire—it was about striking back.
If this counterattack succeeded, the opponent wouldn't dare target Chen Xiaoxi again.
As for targeting him?
Did he care?
With five thousand years of an entire planet's cultural legacy in his hands—couldn't he crush a single entertainment company?
He refused to believe otherwise.
"Ring—ring—ring—"
Just as Zhang Yichen was about to head to the kitchen, Li Yue's phone rang again.
As the company's CEO, she couldn't ignore calls the way Zhang Yichen did.
She answered, "Hello."
The other side spoke, but neither Zhang Yichen nor Chen Xiaoxi could hear the words clearly.
The next second, Li Yue switched on speaker mode.
"They're right here. Ask them yourself."
"Mr. Zhang, Miss Chen—hello. I'm Xiao Wang from Starlight Daily."
Hearing the voice, Zhang Yichen almost laughed.
This reporter was certainly persistent.
After failing to reach Zhang Yichen earlier, he had tracked down Li Yue instead.
Truly—he wouldn't give up until he reached the River.
.....