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

The online battle for the title of "Queen of Pop" continues to escalate.

Brilliant Entertainment has poured massive resources into promoting Shen Ruoqiu's new album.

On the Starry Sky Entertainment side, Gu Ruanxing was not to be outdone.

Lin Qinghe's "Queen" posters are plastered all over the homepages of major music platforms.

Fans of both sides are arguing fiercely on various forums.

Passersby quickly set up their small stools, eager to watch the epic battle on the 15th.

Just when the entertainment industry was in turmoil.

Jinxiufang, East Fourth Ring Road, Beijing.

A huge plaque made of Phoebe zhennan wood was carefully carried up by several workers.

Red background with gold lettering.

Qilin Opera Troupe.

The four large characters gleamed in the sunlight.

Tan Yunxiao stood directly below the plaque, hands on his hips, head tilted back.

His dark red face was brimming with undisguised smugness.

"Third brother, once this plaque is up, our branch office will be officially established!"

Tan Yunxiao turned to look at Jiang Yichen beside him, rubbing his hands together excitedly.

Jiang Yichen was wearing a simple gray trench coat, with his hands in his pockets.

He looked at the brand-new plaque with a calm expression.

"The official opening is in a few days. Has the ticketing been arranged yet?"

"It's all arranged!" Tan Yunxiao slapped his thigh.

"As soon as the online pre-sale channel opened, all 1,000 tickets were sold out in less than five minutes!"

"The speed at which these young people work is absolutely amazing."

Jiang Yichen nodded.

"Let the fellow apprentices get some rest and conserve their energy. When the branch's first performance comes around, we must make a strong showing."

Tan Yunxiao readily agreed and turned to instruct the workers to do the final finishing touches.

at the same time.

Inside the Second Ring Road of Beijing, there is an ancient house covering a vast area.

This is the headquarters of the Jinghua Liyuan Society.

As the largest and most culturally significant opera troupe in Beijing, the Jinghua Liyuan Opera Troupe holds an extremely high position in the opera world.

Inside the main room, an elderly man in his seventies sat in a rosewood armchair.

The old man was dressed in an elegant dark purple Tang suit and was holding a purple clay teapot in his hand.

Her full head of silver hair was combed perfectly.

This is Xing Tieshan, the troupe leader of the Jinghua Liyuan Society and a highly respected senior figure in the opera world.

On both sides of the main room stood a dozen or so middle-aged men dressed in long gowns.

They were all Xing Tieshan's prized students.

The atmosphere inside the room was somewhat oppressive.

"Master, you have to do something about this."

A middle-aged man with a round face broke the silence.

He was Xing Tieshan's second apprentice.

"That Qilin Opera Troupe has been making too much noise online lately."

"Not only have they siphoned off a lot of customers from the southern part of the city, but now they've even opened a branch office on the East Fourth Ring Road!"

"We originally planned to acquire that land in Jinxiufang, but they beat us to it!"

The second apprentice became increasingly angry as he spoke.

"What about all that cross-dressing and short drama stuff they do online every day? Where do they put the rules of our ancestors?"

Several of his apprentices chimed in.

"That's right, Master. What do these young lads know about opera?"

"They dare to open a theater troupe and fleece people just because they have a few pretty faces and online popularity? That's outrageous!"

Xing Tieshan held the purple clay teapot and slowly took a sip of tea.

He squinted, his expression unreadable.

"Alright, that's enough, everyone."

Xing Tieshan put down the purple clay teapot and tapped his fingers lightly on the table.

"That Jiang Yichen, the one standing behind him is Old Man Li."

Old Man Li was naturally Li Guochun. The apprentices in the room all fell silent for a moment.

Li Guochun's temper and status are well-known in the industry.

No one dared to easily provoke that bad luck.

Xing Tieshan glanced at everyone.

"Let's give Old Man Li some face. The Qilin Opera Troupe only has two locations at most."

"How much of a stir can that run-down courtyard in the south of the city, plus the newly opened branch office on the East Fourth Ring Road, cause?"

"If young people want to try new things, let them try."

"Our Jinghua Pear Garden Society has a century-old reputation; are we afraid they'll steal our livelihood?"

Xing Tieshan's words revealed the arrogance and contempt of the older generation.

In his view, the Qilin Opera Troupe was nothing but a flash in the pan and was not worthy of being their opponent.

The apprentices looked at each other, feeling resentful but not daring to contradict their master.

Just then, Pei Linchuan, Xing Tieshan's eldest disciple who had been standing beside him, spoke up.

Pei Linchuan was in his forties and had a thin build.

He is the current de facto head of the Jinghua Liyuan Society; he is quick-witted and ruthless.

"Master, I cannot agree with what you have said."

Pei Linchuan stepped forward and bowed slightly.

Xing Tieshan raised his eyelids and looked at him.

"Linchuan, do you have any ideas?"

Pei Linchuan pushed up his glasses, a cold glint in his eyes.

"Master, you think they only have two stores and are not a cause for concern."

"But look at how fast they've grown; it only took them two months from reopening to opening a branch."

Pei Linchuan emphasized his words.

"If they can open a branch on the East Fourth Ring Road today, they can open a branch right across from our Jinghua Liyuan Troupe tomorrow!"

"This kid's ambitions definitely don't stop there."

Pei Linchuan walked to the center of the main room and looked around at his fellow disciples.

"Moreover, the path they are taking now is not the orthodox way of traditional opera at all."

"If we let them continue like this, what will the young people outside think?"

"They'll think that's how traditional opera should be!"

Pei Linchuan turned around and looked directly at Xing Tieshan.

"Master, wait until they expand their business and completely dominate the youth market."

"Where will we put our century-old reputation as the Beijing Peking Opera Troupe?"

These words were piercing to the heart.

This directly hit Xing Tieshan's weak spot, and his expression slowly darkened.

He tightened his grip on the purple clay teapot, and the veins on the back of his hand bulged.

The main room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

After a long while, Xing Tieshan slammed the purple clay teapot heavily onto the table.

boom.

The tea splashed out.

"Linchuan is right."

Xing Tieshan's voice was stern and cold.

"Rules are rules. They are the things passed down from our ancestors and cannot be altered or rewritten like this."

"Old Li's protectiveness is his business."

"But I, Xing Tieshan, cannot stand by and watch the opera profession be led astray by a few young upstarts."

A look of delight flashed in Pei Linchuan's eyes, and he immediately pressed for more information.

"Master, what should we do?"

Xing Tieshan snorted coldly.

"Since they like to cause trouble online, let's set some rules for them online."

"Go, contact the old guys in the circle."

"Just say that I, Xing Tieshan, have spoken."

"The Qilin Opera Troupe has broken the rules of the Peking Opera world!"

.........

That night.

Just before the Qilin Opera Troupe branch was about to open.

A cyber storm targeting the Qilin Opera Troupe erupted without warning.

The official account of the Jinghua Liyuan Society was the first to launch an attack.

They published a lengthy 3,000-word denunciation.

The article's title is extremely eye-catching.

Traditional opera should not be desecrated; online celebrity opera troupes should stop trying to attract attention!

The article is a scathing critique of the Qilin Opera Troupe.

They were accused of not having any real performers, relying instead on a few young people striking poses on stage, and of distorting the essence of traditional Chinese culture beyond recognition.

They even directly named Jiang Yichen, saying that it was a huge joke for a pop singer to cross over into the opera circle to fleece people.

This lengthy article immediately caused a huge uproar upon its release.

Following this, many people in the Peking Opera circle forwarded the message in support.

"Master Xing is right! Opera is a demanding art; you can't just throw on a costume and fool people!"

"Young people these days are too impetuous; this kind of atmosphere at the Qilin Opera Troupe absolutely cannot be allowed to continue!"

"We strongly oppose the Qilin Opera Troupe! Let's give the opera world some peace and quiet!"

In just a few hours.

The topic of criticizing the Qilin Opera Troupe immediately surged into the top ten trending searches.

Netizens who were still enjoying the excitement of winning tickets were instantly bewildered by this sudden turn of events.

Some people started criticizing Qilin Opera Troupe, while fans fought back fiercely in the comments section.

"What do you mean by 'attention-seeking'? Haven't you heard Jiang Shen's rendition of 'Dingjun Mountain'?"

"Traditional theater troupes can't retain their own audiences, so they're just jealous now that others are popular, right?"

"These old fogies just can't stand to see others doing well!"