Entertainment News: I'm Not a Scumbag After Rebirth!

The plane landed at Changsha Huanghua Airport in the evening.

Li Jun dragged a small suitcase out of the terminal. The air in Changsha in May already had the sticky feeling of midsummer.

He took a taxi straight to a hotel near the Hunan Broadcasting Center, where Zhang Liangying and the Chengdu competition team were staying.

The radio in the car was playing entertainment news, and the female anchor's voice had a melodious intonation:

The Super Girl national finals will officially kick off tomorrow night at 8 PM, with champions from all six regions already gathered in Changsha. According to the production team, this year's finals will have an even more brutal competition format, with contestants leaving the stage in the very first round...

Li Jun rolled down the car window to let the evening breeze in.

The streets of Changsha are even more bustling than those of Chengdu, with neon lights stretching as far as the eye can see, and Super Girl promotional posters can be seen everywhere, from bus stops to the exterior walls of shopping malls.

The photos of ten girls stand side by side, with Zhang Liangying in the lower right corner, smiling gently, next to the words "Chengdu Division Champion".

Li Jun stared at the poster for a few seconds.

In his previous life, he had only ever seen this nationwide carnival on television.

Being there now feels completely different.

The driver, a talkative middle-aged man, glanced at Li Jun in the rearview mirror:

"Young man, are you here to watch the game? Tickets for tomorrow night are hard to come by; scalpers are selling them for over a thousand each."

"I'm here to visit a friend."

Li Jun gave a vague reply.

"Oh, you have a player friend? Which region are you from?"

The driver became interested.

"From Chengdu."

"Zhang Liangying from Chengdu, right? She sings really well, especially the dolphin voice. But my daughter prefers Li Yuchun, saying he's handsome."

The driver said with a smile.

Li Jun nodded in agreement; this is basically how fans are distributed now.

"This competition is the talk of the town right now. My wife sends Zhou Bichang text messages every day to vote for him, and her phone bill is already running high."

Li Jun smiled but didn't reply.

The car stopped in front of the hotel. As soon as Li Jun got out of the car, he saw Fang Zhi waving and greeting him.

"Li Jun, over here!"

She ran over and snatched Li Jun's suitcase:

"Zhang Liangying is rehearsing upstairs. The production team added an opening dance at the last minute, and she's about to have a breakdown."

Li Jun followed her into the lobby.

Staff wearing name tags and contestants could be seen everywhere in the hotel.

Several girls were practicing singing quietly in the sofa area, while another girl was stretching her legs in a corner.

The air was thick with a tense yet excited atmosphere.

"How has Yingzi been these past few days?"

Li Jun asked casually.

Fang Zhi pressed the elevator button and pouted:

"I'm okay during the day, but I can't sleep at night. I messed up my blocking during rehearsal the day before yesterday and the director said a couple of things to me. I'm secretly upset. Don't tell her, but I'll tell you."

"Know."

The elevator stopped on the twelfth floor.

The corridor was quiet and covered with a thick carpet.

Fang Zhi walked to the door of room 1218, took out her door card and swiped it.

In the suite's living room, Zhang Liangying was practicing her dance steps in front of a full-length mirror.

She was wearing a loose T-shirt and sweatpants, her hair was tied in a ponytail, and her forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat.

Hearing the door open, she turned around.

The moment she saw Li Jun, her eyes lit up, but then she pouted and turned off the speakers.

"So you still know to come, huh?"

She picked up a towel to wipe her sweat, her tone tinged with complaint, but her eyes were full of smiles.

Li Jun walked over, naturally took the towel from her hand, and helped her wipe the sweat from the back of her swan-like neck:

"How's the practice going?"

"It's fine as it is."

Zhang Liangying sat down on the sofa and took a sip of water.

"I'm not good at dancing to begin with, and they insisted on adding this part."

"As long as you sing well, that's enough."

Fang Zhi interrupted.

"A competition can't be judged solely on singing."

Zhang Liangying sighed and looked at Li Jun:

"I've practiced 'Under the Sea' thoroughly, and I've reported it to the production team. I can use it for the second round of solo performances tomorrow night."

Zhang Liangying suddenly remembered something:

"You said before that this song was also for a movie, which movie?"

The air fell silent for a moment.

Fang Zhi keenly sensed something, stood up and said:

"I'm going downstairs to buy some fruit."

He dashed out of the room.

After the door closed, Li Jun sat down next to Zhang Liangying:

"It's a movie I'm making called 'Love is Not Blind.' It's a low-budget production, and it uses students from our college."

Zhang Liangying blinked:

"When did you make a movie? I've never heard you mention it before?"

"I've been busy with this for the past few months. I was in Chengdu looking for a venue and assembling a team, so I haven't been in touch with you much."

Li Jun's words were half true and half false, but Zhang Liangying still stared at him with some suspicion.

"It was originally intended for you, but the movie just happened to need a catchy promotional song."

Li Jun is very good at downplaying the issue; if he were to say that he wrote the song for the movie, Zhang Liangying would tear him apart.

She processed this information, her brow furrowing slightly.

"So this song can be considered a collaborative work between us?"

Li Jun looked at her:

"If your song becomes a hit, the movie will also benefit. It's a win-win situation."

"Didn't we say before that the song 'Take Me Away' would also be used in the movie?"

Li Jun's expression turned cold.

He paused for a few seconds before speaking:

"The copyright to that song was acquired by Huayi Brothers. They want to use it in their new movie."

Zhang Liangying was stunned:

"But didn't you say..."

"The contract stipulated that the rights were granted to 'Love is Not Blind,' but they exploited a loophole."

Li Jun briefly explained what had happened in a calm tone, but Zhang Liangying could hear the suppressed anger beneath his words.

"So right now, 'Under the Sea' is the only song related to the movie's theme. I will officially announce this after you sing it tomorrow night."

"Are you trying to go against Huayi?"

Zhang Liangying was somewhat worried.

Li Jun held her hand and comforted her:

"Don't worry, just focus on singing. I'll handle the rest."

......

The next evening at 7:30, Hunan Broadcasting Center studio.

The venue, which can accommodate 800 spectators, was packed to capacity, with glow sticks and light boards swaying in the dim light, creating a vast expanse of light.

Li Jun sat in the middle of the third row; these were tickets reserved for friends and family members by Zhang Liangying's team.

The stage was set up in a futuristic style, with a huge circular screen playing promotional videos of several contestants, and the logos of the six competition zones flashing in turn.

The rhythmic drumbeats emanating from the speakers grew faster and faster, gradually building up the audience's emotions.

Li Jun looked around.

On the left sat a middle-aged couple holding up a light sign that read "Bibi, fly bravely," presumably fans of Zhou Bichang.

On the right are several young girls with headbands that say "Chun Chun is the most handsome" tied around their heads, excitedly taking selfies.

Why aren't there any of his own fans? Li Jun was a little flustered.

At 7:55, the director began warming up the crowd, leading the audience in cheers.

The lights went out and then came back on, repeating this several times, each time eliciting even louder screams.

It's exactly eight o'clock.

The deafening opening music blared, dry ice mist sprayed from the stage, and ten spotlights shone simultaneously on the rising platform.