Zhang Yichen's popularity continued to soar.
He was now being hailed everywhere as a "genius songwriter."
But surprisingly, Chen Xiaoxi's popularity had surpassed even his.
As time passed, someone from College leaked a bombshell—
the so-called genius songwriter was none other than this year's national college exam top scorer, Zhang Yichen.
At that moment, his name was still hanging high on the trending list.
Although the ranking had dipped slightly, it remained extremely prominent.
Then, not long after, the tag "Top Exam Scorer" exploded again across all major platforms.
Among the rapidly rising posts, one in particular shot straight up the rankings:
#Shocking! Top Exam Scorer Abandons His Future—Suspected of Being Kept by a Famous Actress#
This was the very trending topic Zhang Yichen himself had titled earlier.
And now, it surged once more, forcing its way back into the Top 10 searches.
At the same time, the tag "Genius Songwriter" was being searched and discussed like crazy.
Soon after, another topic broke into the trending list:
#Confirmed! The Top Exam Scorer Is the Genius Songwriter—Is He Wasting His Talent or Hiding Something?#
This post completely exposed Zhang Yichen's identity.
Meanwhile, thanks to the explosive popularity of the two songs, the tag"Chen Xiaoxi's Comeback" also surged onto the trending list.
It climbed so fast that it entered the Top 10 before finally slowing down.
However, as the hype continued to rise, discordant voices began to emerge.
"Chen Xiaoxi disappeared for an entire year. Now she comes back so aggressively—she must have ulterior motives."
"These two songs blew up out of nowhere. Don't tell me they bought bots?"
"Exactly. Vanished without a word, returned without a word. She doesn't care about her fans at all."
"She broke her contract last year and disappeared. Now she's back… don't tell me she didn't die—just spent all her money?"
"And that Zhang Yichen—he's the nation's top scorer. How could he willingly become some actress's plaything? Unless…"
"Finish your sentence! Look at the trending list—are you saying the actress 'keeping' him is Chen Xiaoxi?"
"I heard Zhang Yichen's an orphan and just graduated this year. Never even heard he knew anything about music."
Influencer accounts soon joined in, posting so-called "exposés," claiming Chen Xiaoxi's disappearance a year ago involved some dark scandal.
Some even implied that Zhang Yichen had climbed up by relying on her, questioning his talent entirely.
The comments spread like stones thrown into a lake—ripples expanding outward, drawing in countless clueless netizens.
Negative rumors spread like a cancer.
Chen Xiaoxi stared at the vicious comments, her mood instantly sinking.
"Why are these people like this?" she said angrily. "Making baseless accusations… it's infuriating!"
"Don't look at them. "Zhang Yichen pulled her into his arms, gently comforting her.
"But these comments will affect the reputation of the new songs…"Her worry was genuine.
Zhang Yichen, however, remained calm. He squeezed her hand lightly.
"Anyone with a brain can tell someone doesn't want you to make a comeback."
Li Yue paced anxiously nearby. "Then what do we do? We don't even have a PR team! These rumors are spreading way too fast—we can't stop them!"
"There is a way. "Zhang Yichen smiled faintly, completely composed.
"Let Xiaoxi start a livestream."
"A livestream?" Li Yue froze. "You think going live now will clear up the rumors?"
"Clear them up? "Zhang Yichen looked at her as if she were foolish. "Who said anything about clearing them up?"
"Just ignore the haters. Chat with the real fans first, then start singing."
"Begin with 'Hello Tomorrow.' After that, casually mention you took a break for health reasons."
"For the second song, sing 'Woman Flower,' then lightly answer a few fan questions."
"And end with 'Invisible Wings.' After that, announce you'll be releasing a new album soon."
"I've already uploaded the instrumental tracks to your music library. Just search the titles."
"Alright—I'm taking the baby to cook. You two have two hours for the livestream."
"Remember—don't say everything at once. Read the comments first, then respond. That builds closeness."
"And those three songs must be sung in that order. If there's time left, you can sing the new songs."
After setting up the livestream and posting announcements across all three platforms, Zhang Yichen finally carried the baby into the kitchen.
"He's basically a nagging housewife," Chen Xiaoxi laughed softly, her smile filled with happiness. "He planned everything for me—I didn't have to worry at all."
"Enough with the lovey-dovey stuff," Li Yue cut in. "People are coming in!"
As soon as she spoke, the viewer count began to rise—
one person… two people… one hundred…
The numbers skyrocketed.
Before long, the viewer count broke one million, only then slowing down.
The explosive growth clearly showed how many people had just downloaded and registered on the app.
Xiaoxi didn't speak immediately. She sat quietly, watching the scrolling comments.
Only when they became too fast to read did she straighten up and smile.
"Long time no see, my Snowflake babies!"
The moment she spoke, the screen erupted.
"Ahhh!! It's my goddess!"
"It's really Xiaoxi!"
"What happened this past year? Why are you so thin?"
"She's already old and washed up—why come back?"
"You're old and washed up! Your whole family is!"
"Exactly! Our Xiaoxi is in her prime—forever eighteen in our hearts!"
"Chen Xiaoxi, you've fallen. The actress keeping the top scorer—is that you?"
"What 'keeping'? Stop talking nonsense! They're clearly true love!"
"Right! Our Xiaoxi is the most beautiful woman alive—of course he'd fall for her!"
"That Zhang Yichen kid's young but talented. I'll reluctantly accept him as my brother-in-law."
The barrage rolled endlessly, a mix of haters and devoted fans.
Following Zhang Yichen's advice, Xiaoxi ignored the negativity entirely.
She skimmed the comments, smiling gently, her voice soft but steady.
"I see so many familiar names. Thank you all for staying with me."
"Xiaoxi, we've been waiting for you!" "We'll protect you forever!" "I knew you'd come back!"
Her eyes reddened, tears gathering but refusing to fall.
"I'll sing a song for you all," she said softly." It's called 'Hello Tomorrow.' I hope you like it."
With that, she tapped the screen and started the instrumental track.