Becoming a great entertainer started with being cyberbullied.

Fang Ruoxi first searched for the name 'Geng Bin' on her phone.

A superstar who was extremely popular 11 years ago.

His songs were once popular everywhere. Whether you were rich or poor, young or old, man or woman, you could hum a few lines of Geng Bin's songs.

But even such a person's career was ruined overnight, to the point that almost everyone hated him.

Fang Ruoxi casually browsed through the pages on the Baihu search engine, which contained over a hundred pages, all of which were articles criticizing Geng Bin, a truly astonishing sight.

Fang Ruoxi randomly clicked on a few items.

The most popular article was the one from The Sound of Music that judged Geng Bin.

Ye Huiwan was able to gain access to European royalty through her music, while Geng Bin's music only garnered recognition from construction workers.

Fang Ruoxi frowned slightly.

Is this the kind of viewpoint and this level of discourse that makes a music magazine, which is supposed to be a "trendsetter in the Chinese entertainment industry," so special?

Is this all there is to it?

Fang Ruoxi continued reading.

The second item is a video of a reporter interviewing Wu Kai, a "Midas touch" in the world of composers.

Wu Kai is a pillar of Tianyin's composition circle. In recent years, he has been composing music specifically for Ye Huiwan. His composition style is high-end and he specializes in Austria's Golden Hall.

The reporter asked about the nominations for the New Talent Award.

Wearing brown-tinted glasses, Wu Kai's lips drooped as he bluntly stated, "Geng Bin doesn't deserve this nomination."

"Because his music is not art, it's vulgar."

"Our organizing committee unanimously believes that we should not allow bad money to drive out good money."

Wu Kai leaned forward, pointed his finger at the camera, and said, "Even if Geng Bin's fans scold me, I still have to say it: the New Music Talent Award is given to refined musicians."

"It's not just any Tom, Dick, or Harry who can come here singing some cheesy, off-key songs!"

"Yes, his records sell well; even some of the top artists at Tianyin Records can't outsell him."

"But so what? Can Wu Kai's music go international?"

"Can he hold a concert at the Golden Hall?"

"Hmph! If he really can, then I can only say that the music industry in this country is doomed."

"Anyway, as long as I live, Geng Bin will never win this award! Not just the Newcomer Award, he doesn't deserve any music-related awards!"

Fang Ruoxi immediately turned off the video.

She then searched for Geng Bin's songs from back then.

Not a single song by him can be found online; Geng Bin has been completely blacklisted.

There were also some other scandals, saying that Geng Bin cheated on newcomers, stole their songs, and also had a PC and cheated on his wife...

However, if PC has broken the law, there would certainly be news reports of Geng Bin's arrest.

Fang Ruoxi searched for "Geng Bin arrested" but found no relevant results.

The only news was about his wife divorcing him, taking their child with her.

The media seems to want to use this news to prove that Geng Bin committed PC fraud.

Fang Ruoxi put down her phone and looked at the indignant Shen Qiu, "Do you know Geng Bin?"

Shen Qiu's lips tightened into a straight line, his eyes glaring at Zou Rong. "Yes, so what?"

Fang Ruoxi asked again, "You're saying that all the dirt on him is fake?"

Shen Qiu glared at him angrily, "You've been smeared by *** Tianyin so many times, don't you know if this stuff is real or fake? Or are all those negative things about you online true?"

This time, Li Ming couldn't listen anymore.

He rarely changed his expression, and said with a stern face, "Hey, watch your tone. Ruoxi didn't offend you with her words."

Zou Rong gleaned some insights from Shen Qiu's words.

"So you came here specifically targeting Ruoxi, didn't you? Was this your plan from the beginning? To have Ruoxi clear Geng Bin's name?"

Shen Qiu remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.

Fang Ruoxi asked, "Did you do this at Geng Bin's behest?"

Shen Qiu immediately retorted, "No! Brother Bin has no idea! If he knew, he would never have sent me!"

Fang Ruoxi nodded.

She reached out her hand to Shen Qiu and said, "Do you still have any of Geng Bin's songs? Let me listen to them."

Zou Rong: "???"

Li Ming frowned as well, "Ruoxi..."

Fang Ruoxi interrupted Li Ming and said, "His voice, his handling of the emotions in the song, is exactly what I'm looking for."

Shen Qiu's eyes lit up, just like when he saw Fang Ruoxi's song earlier.

That's right. As a top-notch arranger, he knew at a glance that the song was tailor-made for Geng Bin.

Fang Ruoxi was considered "famous despite controversy" when she debuted.

She was able to revive her career and clear her name with just one song, so why can't Geng Bin?

Therefore, Shen Qiu tried various methods to get close to Zou Rong, the rich second-generation boss of Lighthouse Entertainment.

He was well-prepared, with his phone full of Geng Bin's songs.

But they're all from recent years.

Geng Bin sang at a small bar.

He sings for half an hour every night from 11:30 to 12:00.

After listening to two songs, Fang Ruoxi immediately made a decision, "Take me to see Geng Bin."

That voice, that singing style, it's practically tailor-made for "Longing".

Fang Ruoxi was deeply moved.

The negative comments circulating online seem somewhat inexplicable.

People call Geng Bin a scumbag, but he didn't actually cross any legal lines.

To say his music is vulgar?

Okay, having experienced the backlash against "The Lone Warrior," Fang Ruoxi has some reservations about what Mr. Wu Kai said.

In particular, this person comes from the Heavenly Sound School.

Fang Ruoxi would be even more suspicious of his words.

Let's talk about Geng Bin's affair and divorce.

Shen Qiu's phone has several love songs.

The love songs sung by Geng Bin have a sense of brokenness and desolation.

As a fellow musician, Fang Ruoxi believes that someone who can sing with this kind of feeling is at least not a scumbag.

But nothing is absolute.

She needs to meet Geng Bin in person before making a decision.

"Okay! Let's go there tonight!" Shen Qiu's anger immediately dissipated, and his eyes sparkled like a large, honest dog.

This made Zou Rong so angry that he rolled his eyes.

……

That evening, the group followed Shen Qiu to a small tavern in the southern part of City B.

The southern part of City B is not highly developed and is more desolate and backward compared to other urban areas.

There was a neon sign in a deserted alley.

It stands out conspicuously in the dark alley where the streetlights flicker on and off.

"Turn around?" Fang Ruoxi read out the sign on the neon light.

Shen Qiu sighed, "Brother Bin is still waiting for his ex-wife to come back."

Upon seeing the tavern, Chen Hong hesitated for a moment, then sighed, "Alas, the truth of what happened back then may not be so simple."

"Back then, the internet wasn't as developed as it is now."

"Everyone relies on entertainment reporters to get the latest gossip."

"I get all this gossip from the newspapers."

"Reporters make wild guesses, and it's hard to tell what's true and what's false."

Zou Rong was furious and wanted to say something to Fang Ruoxi, but Chen Hong tugged at his sleeve.

Chen Hong said, "Back then, I was learning to sing from a teacher."

“When my teacher saw the news about Geng Bin, he said to me, ‘Those who follow the will of Heaven will prosper, and those who defy the will of Heaven will perish.’”

Li Ming was still in Hong Kong at that time, so he didn't know much about this matter.

But he had heard of Geng Bin's name before.

He said, "Yes, back then, many big shots in Hong Kong liked his songs."

Fang Ruoxi glanced at her watch; it was 11:20. In ten minutes, it would be Geng Bin's turn to sing on stage.

"Let's go in and have a look."