Huayu: You were supposed to be a top star, but you've become capital?

The car headed east, passing through the capital city in the night, and arrived at the cultural industry park where the recording studio was located more than forty minutes later.

The park was quiet, with only a few buildings still lit. Lin Shen's car stopped in front of a three-story building, where people were already waiting.

The people Lao Jia arranged are very reliable; the recording engineer and sound engineer are still there.

Lin Shen went in, greeted everyone, and went straight into the shed without much small talk.

As night deepened, the online buzz showed no signs of abating.

Starting in the evening, the hashtag #WhyIsLinShenNotResponding# skyrocketed, and by 9 p.m., it had firmly secured the fifth spot on the trending topics list.

Clicking in, the replies were all over the place.

One rational analysis stated: "Not responding is the normal practice; responding is what generates buzz."

One person said sarcastically, "He's feeling guilty, what else could it be?"

One fan commented, "Focus on the work, reject hype, please look forward to 'The Lost Tomb'!"

One bystander commented, "So is it really him? Feng Xiaogang's post didn't name names, what if it's someone else?"

There were also those who loved to stir up trouble: "Lin Shen, say something! If you don't speak, it'll seem like Director Feng is performing a one-man show, which is rather pathetic."

The number of comments under Feng Xiaogang's original post has exceeded 50,000.

The top-rated comment: "Director, are you talking about Lin Shen?"

The second most popular comment: "Isn't it awkward when people ignore you?"

The third most popular comment: "Director Feng, don't stoop to the level of a junior. Let's wait for the movie."

The fourth most popular comment: "Hilarious, this is the first time I've seen Feng Xiaogang being left hanging."

……

At this moment, Feng Xiaogang's living room was brightly lit, and music was playing from a stereo in the corner.

The film "Mr. Six" is about to start filming, and these past few days Guan Hu has simply stayed near Feng Xiaogang's house so that he can come over anytime to discuss the script.

The two were lounging on the sofa, with several bottles of wine and some homemade snacks on the coffee table.

Guan Hu was scrolling through his phone when he suddenly chuckled.

"Hey, this kid's got guts."

Feng Xiaogang took the cigarette out of his mouth: "What's wrong?"

"It's been a whole day, and he hasn't replied to anything." Guan Hu handed over his phone. "Look at this trending topic, #WhyIsLinShenNotResponding#, it's been up all day."

Feng Xiaogang took the phone, glanced at it a few times, a smirk playing on his lips, and then handed it back.

"He's quite composed; he's more courageous than I expected."

"I can stay calm," Guan Hu said, popping a peanut into his mouth. "But I heard that Lucky Film has started to waver on a few projects today."

Feng Xiaogang raised an eyebrow: "How so?"

"The projects that Lucky Films was discussing with the newcomers were all somewhat related to our area. They were going well, but nothing came of it today."

Guan Hu chewed on a peanut. "Jia Shikai is probably having a headache right now."

Feng Xiaogang nodded without saying anything.

Guan Hu looked at him: "Sixth Master, what do you think he's trying to do? What good will it do him to offend us?"

Feng Xiaogang leaned back on the sofa and slowly exhaled a puff of smoke.

"I don't know, but one thing is certain—"

"His online traffic is really high right now. Our movie didn't get much attention before, but now it's trending on social media without much fanfare. So the quieter he is, the higher our popularity will be." Feng Xiaogang pointed to his phone.

"Think about it, what are people guessing now? Why isn't he replying? Is he feeling guilty? Is he in the wrong? Do we really have something on us?"

Guan Hu thought for a moment, then smiled: "That makes sense."

"So," Feng Xiaogang flicked his cigarette ash, "what he does is his business, and getting some attention is our business. No matter how you look at it, we're not losing out."

He picked up his drink, took a sip, and leaned back. "Alright, stop thinking about it. Let's put on a movie."

Guan Hu nodded and began operating the device. When the screen lit up, he took one last look at his phone.

The trending topic is still up.

-----------------

As the car drove out of the cultural industry park, the streets quieted down in the night, with only rows of streetlights receding into the distance.

Yang Chaoyue was still immersed in the shock of the recording studio, chattering on and on:

"Brother Shen, you're amazing! That chorus gave me goosebumps! Seriously, it's more moving than many other singers! If this song is released, it'll be a huge hit!"

"Hmm." Lin Shen leaned back in his seat, tapping his phone screen with his finger, and casually responded.

"And that phrase, 'Loving you alone in a dark alley,' is so evocative! How did you come up with it?"

"Um."

Yang Chaoyue finally realized something was wrong. He turned around and saw Lin Shen typing intently with his head down. The light from the phone screen reflected on his face, and there was a faint smile on his lips.

She immediately shut up, but her eyes kept glancing at the screen.

Unfortunately, the angle was wrong, so I couldn't see anything.

Lin Shen didn't notice her gaze; he was staring at the new message that popped up on the screen.

Chen Duling: "I thought you didn't remember me."

Lin Shen paused for a moment, then typed: "?".

The reply came quickly: "It's been so long since we last contacted each other, and I was afraid you'd be confused by my sudden appearance."

As Lin Shen looked at the message, he suddenly recalled some fragments from before.

When he first transmigrated, thankfully the college entrance examination had just ended, so he wouldn't have to face it right away.

They were truly blessed by good fortune.

Then came Chen Duling's constant declarations of war; their chat history was filled with game screenshots and requests to play another round.

From initially taking her flying, to...

Lin Shen: "You can forget being solo killed seven times?"

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end, then the dialog box showed that the other person was typing.

The message popped up quickly.

Chen Duling: "…………"

Chen Duling: "I'm so sorry!!"

Chen Duling: "I didn't mean to!!!"

Seeing her reaction, Lin Shen's smile widened slightly.

"What's there to apologize for? My keyboard was broken that time, and the internet speed at the internet cafe was also bad. I'll come again next time."

After sending the message, he placed his phone on his lap and waited for a reply.

Yang Chaoyue stood beside him, craning his neck so long that his eyes were almost touching his.

Lin Shen turned his head to look at her.

Yang Chaoyue immediately sat up straight, looked straight ahead, and started humming a song.

Lin Shen didn't say anything. He picked up his phone, slowly logged out of QQ, deleted all his login information in front of her, logged into his own phone, and then returned the phone to her.

Yang Chaoyue: "..."

She stared longingly at the phone in her hand, as if it were a door to another world, and now that door was closed.

The light from the streetlamp shone in through the window, and the expression on her face was incredibly complex—curiosity, regret, and feigned ignorance that I hadn't seen anything.

Lin Shen ignored her and felt a jolt.

He didn't rush to look; he waited a while before leisurely taking out his phone.

"OK."

The message contained two words followed by an emoji—a little rabbit nodding.

Lin Shen looked at the rabbit and almost laughed.

He remembered that Chen Duling used to like using these cute emojis back then, and after all these years, she still hasn't changed.

"Are you alright with all that stuff going on online lately?"

A new message popped up.