After being dumped by the diva, I was picked up by her arch-enemy.

Gu Ruanxing stood frozen in the boss's chair.

"Guaranteed admission to the final review?" She jumped to her feet, hands on the table. "Are you sure you didn't mishear? It's the CCTV Spring Festival Gala?"

Secretary Li nodded emphatically and said, "Absolutely true. It was an official letter directly from the Spring Festival Gala directing team. They said it was personally approved by Chief Director Zhao Jianguo."

"Great! That's fantastic!" Gu Ruanxing couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Doesn't Bai Yanqiu like to play dirty tricks? Didn't he hire online trolls to call Jiang Yichen a sissy? Let's see how he gets out of this mess!"

She pressed the intercom on her desk. "Notify the public relations department, everyone work overtime."

"As soon as CCTV makes the official announcement, we'll follow suit immediately. I'm going to slap that Xu Zhe guy, and Brilliant Entertainment, in the face!"

.........

Qilin Opera Troupe.

Jiang Yichen leaned back on the sofa, holding his phone, reading an email from the Spring Festival Gala production team.

Xu Zhiyou walked in carrying a plate of cut fruit, picked up a piece of apple with a toothpick, and held it to his mouth.

"What are you looking at so intently?"

Jiang Yichen opened his mouth and took a bite of the apple. "The reply from the Spring Festival Gala."

"So fast?" Xu Zhiyou's eyes lit up. "How did it go? Did you pass the initial review?"

Jiang Yichen turned his phone screen away. "Didn't pass the initial review."

Xu Zhiyou's smile froze. She paused for a moment, then quickly put down the fruit plate and patted Jiang Yichen's shoulder to comfort him.

"It's okay, it's okay. The Spring Festival Gala has such high standards, it's normal to be eliminated. You'll always be the best in my heart!"

Jiang Yichen couldn't help but laugh at her eagerness to comfort him. "I haven't finished speaking. I didn't pass the initial audition, but the production team directly sponsored me for the final audition."

Xu Zhiyou's hand froze in mid-air.

"Should...send it to the final trial?"

Her eyes widened, and she snatched the phone. Seeing the words "Directly proceed to the final rehearsal on New Year's Eve" on the email, Xu Zhiyou let out a scream.

"Ahhhhh!"

She pounced on Jiang Yichen, hugging his neck and shaking him wildly.

"Jiang Yichen, you're amazing! You got a spot in the final round of judging! That's the Spring Festival Gala!"

Jiang Yichen was dizzy from being shaken so much. "Stop, stop, stop, Boss Xu, mind your image."

Xu Zhiyou didn't care at all, cupped his face and kissed him hard. "I don't care! We have to celebrate tonight!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Yichen's phone popped up a notification that he had been specially followed on Weibo.

It's an update from the official Weibo account of CCTV's Spring Festival Gala.

.......

Two o'clock in the afternoon.

On Weibo's trending topics list, the topics of "Jiang Yichen is effeminate" and "Xu Zhe is tough guy" are still in the top ten.

The online trolls hired by Brilliant Entertainment are currently engaged in a frenzied team-building activity.

Xu Zhe's fans have been spreading rumors and criticizing him everywhere, making him the sole representative of tough guys in the Chinese entertainment industry.

Just then, an official account with 50 million followers posted a message without warning.

CCTV Spring Festival Gala V: [A song, "Serving the Country with Utmost Loyalty," sings of the indomitable spirit of the Chinese nation. We look forward to Jiang Yichen bringing this powerful and moving song to the nation on the final rehearsal stage on New Year's Eve. @JiangYichen]

The image below is the official final review invitation letter issued by the Spring Festival Gala production team.

This Weibo post sparked a strong reaction from netizens in the comments section.

Holy crap!!!

"Guaranteed admission to the final review? What kind of god-like treatment is that? I remember the last person to be guaranteed admission to the final review was a veteran artist from the national team!"

"Loyalty to the Country? Just hearing that song title sends chills down my spine!"

"Wait a minute, who just called Jiang Shen a sissy? Come out and show yourself!"

"This is hilarious! Xu Zhe from Brilliant Entertainment is still showing off his few dead muscles. Let his work speak for itself, okay?!"

"Official rebuttal is the most devastating!"

"Xu Zhe, the toughest guy in the Chinese entertainment industry? Even Jiang Shen doesn't care about you, he went straight to the Spring Festival Gala."

The wind direction reversed instantly.

The online trolls, who were initially making a huge fuss, crumbled instantly in the face of CCTV's official endorsement.

Xu Zhe's Weibo post showing off his muscles was flooded with comments from netizens.

"Go work on a construction site and move bricks, stop embarrassing yourself in the entertainment industry."

"Real tough guys appear on the Spring Festival Gala, fake tough guys buy their way onto the trending topics."

"Trying to grab attention by taking off her clothes, does she even dare to try and piggyback on Jiang Shen's scheme?"

Brilliant Entertainment, General Manager's Office.

Bai Yanqiu stared intently at the CCTV Weibo account on his tablet, his face terribly grim.

Wang Jianye stood aside, not daring to utter a sound.

boom!

Bai Yanqiu grabbed the pure gold lighter from the table and smashed it against the French windows. The tempered glass cracked with spiderweb-like patterns.

"The CCTV Spring Festival Gala?" Bai Yanqiu gritted his teeth. "How could someone who works in pop music get a guaranteed admission spot?"

Wang Jianye wiped away his cold sweat. "Young Master Bai, this... this Jiang Yichen is indeed a bit strange. His new song is called 'Serving the Country with Utmost Loyalty,' which probably just happens to hit the chord with the mainstream ideology. And that old man Zhao Jianguo is a military man, so he's most susceptible to this kind of thing."

Bai Yanqiu took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the anger in his chest.

He walked to the liquor cabinet, poured himself a glass of whiskey, and drank it all in one gulp.

"Since he's going to participate in the Spring Festival Gala rehearsal, let's find some fun for him during the rehearsal."

Bai Yanqiu walked to his desk, picked up his phone, and dialed a number.

"Hey, Director Zhang. I heard your troupe is in charge of the stage design and backup dancers for this year's Spring Festival Gala?"

A fawning voice came from the other end of the phone. "Yes, Young Master Bai, what are your orders?"

A cruel smile curled at the corner of Bai Yanqiu's lips.

"There's a guy named Jiang Yichen who's going to sing a new song at the final rehearsal. I hope something unexpected happens on his stage."

"This..." The person on the other end of the phone hesitated. "Young Master Bai, that's the Spring Festival Gala rehearsal. Zhao Jianguo is watching it closely. It's too risky to pull any tricks."

"Five million." Bai Yanqiu quoted without hesitation. "After this is done, I'll give you the director positions for two S-level web series at Brilliant Entertainment."