Chapter 155: Striking Hard at the Paparazzi

Perhaps it was a characteristic of this era of universal internet surfing: whenever a trending topic erupted online, there would always be a batch of self-righteous warriors charging at the absolute forefront of the crusade.

They required no evidence whatsoever. Relying purely on hearsay and unverified gossip, they would arbitrarily define the nature of an incident, slap all sorts of malicious labels on people, and start denouncing them.

Yet, whenever a plot twist occurred and they were proven wrong, these people would all vanish without a trace. Apologize? What apology? We acted with good intentions!

Though completely devoid of any morality themselves, this never stopped them from using moral superiority to coerce others.

When it came to such people, Zhou Miao never pulled his punches.

As expected, once the video of Zhou Miao's interview at the school gate was uploaded online, it instantly sparked widespread and heated discussion.

"Rumors stop at the wise, but they never stop at fools! That statement is so spot on. Sometimes I refuse to blindly follow the hate mob and get cursed at for lacking humanity. Looking at it now, these people are the true cancer of the internet!"

"Though it sounds harsh, not a single word is wrong."

"Truly Zhou Miao's style: you smear me, I curse you out. You think it sounds harsh? Too bad, there's worse coming later!"

While many agreed, others flew into a rage. Those who had cursed him the most viciously before were struck right where it hurt by Zhou Miao's words, driving them to become even more frantic and exasperated.

...

Late at night, Zhou Miao stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows of his office, gazing out at the scenery, feeling an inexplicable wave of mental exhaustion.

"In a bad mood? Care for a drink?"

Zhou Miao turned around and found Zuo Qiu standing behind him, holding two glasses.

Zhou Miao took the glass, took a sip, and the two of them stood side by side in front of the window in silence.

Pointing at the night view outside, Zuo Qiu said softly, "This is the entertainment industry. The one standing at the very peak enjoys the warmest gazes and cheers, but they must also endure the bitterest winds and storms."

"As a top-tier idol, your every move is infinitely magnified. You cannot smoke, you cannot binge drink, you cannot cheat on your partners; the moment you make the slightest misstep, a horde of people will crawl out to curse you. After all, who told you to be the most popular one?"

"If one day you commit a truly grave mistake and yet very few people bother to point fingers and condemn you, that will mean the era belonging to you has already ended."

Hearing this, Zhou Miao laughed. "I'm actually quite looking forward to the arrival of that day."

Seeing Zhou Miao regain his smile, Zuo Qiu felt much more at ease. "Now, can you tell me what you were daydreaming about just a moment ago?"

Zhou Miao drained his glass in one gulp. "I was thinking about how on earth I can deal with those dogs that hound me day and night."

"Did you figure it out?"

"Guess?"

...

On the fifth day after the "hypocrisy incident," Zhou Miao, who had remained silent for quite some time, finally made a move.

A new song titled "Ambush on All Sides" quietly dropped online without any prior teaser or promotion, catching countless fans completely off guard.

The last time he released a song so abruptly dated back to when Zhou Miao blasted the Golden Melody Awards. Back then, he had done the exact same thing—after remaining silent for a few days, he suddenly dropped the track "Screw It."

Moreover, the title "Ambush on All Sides" clearly alluded to the recent events. Was Zhou Miao finally about to open fire?

Inside a cramped rented apartment, a lean, haggard middle-aged man lay flat on his back, staring intently at the ceiling.

After a moment, he sat up from the bed, reached up, and tore a photograph off the ceiling. The photograph showed a man wearing a face mask and a duckbill cap standing in front of a McLaren.

Though he had received a lawyer's letter and would most likely have to pay a hefty sum in damages, the goal of building his fame had already been achieved.

The man tossed the photograph into the trash can and continued staring back up at the ceiling. Whose turn was it next?

The dust-covered ceiling was plastered densely with photographs of celebrities!

After pondering for a long time, the man plucked down another photograph. You'll do.

He sat down in front of his computer and began inquiring about his target's schedule in various paparazzi chat groups. Just then, a QQ Music push notification suddenly popped up in the bottom right corner of his screen.

"Your followed singer Zhou Miao has released a new song! Exclusive release of 'Ambush on All Sides,' come listen now!"

A smile crept up the corner of his lips. He clicked on the pop-up window and played the track.

A rhythmic melody rang out, with various instruments and tones layering progressively to create a tense and mysterious atmosphere, making listeners instantly feel as though danger was closing in step by step.

"My life is like shooting a movie"
"With tons of directors and screenwriters speaking just a single line"
"While they match eight hundred tones to manipulate my emotions"
"That wasn't my tone at all, wanting the audience to watch a good show"
"Wasn't the ultimate goal just to boost television ratings?"
"I don't know if I have the courage to tear off their masks"
"I only know that a man who works hard seems to be the most beautiful"
"Will I just keep acting until they are satisfied..."

The man closed his eyes with a smile, nodding his head up and down to the rhythm of the music. He loved this song—the rhythm was great, the melody was fantastic, and the lyrics were even better!

He was a fan of Zhou Miao, a hardcore fan at that. He could sing every single song of Zhou Miao's. Never had he imagined that in this lifetime, Zhou Miao would actually write a song specifically for him. He felt utterly blessed!

...

"On my way home, I saw road signs pointing toward showbiz"
"If I choose to move forward, I have to be strong"
"Walking and walking, inexplicably"
"Several dogs rushed out"
"I thought to myself, since when did I adopt so many dogs?"
"They were biting apples and holding telephoto lenses in their hands"
"Seeming like they wanted to whisper some conspiracy to me"
"The talking dog said it was working for the Doggy Weekly"
"To see if snapping pictures of me could earn it a few more bones..."

He listened to the lyrics with rapt interest, loving them more and more with every word. He then logged into Weibo and shared the song using his account, "Number One Paparazzi in the World."

Along with the track, he added the caption: "Written too well."

The moment this Weibo post went live, the comment section exploded with activity instantly.

"It's over, he literally drove someone insane of pure rage."

"These lyrics are so savage. It looks like Zhou Miao genuinely hates paparazzi to the bone."

This wasn't Zhou Miao's first time writing a diss track. Back when he was dissatisfied with the shady operations of the Golden Melody Awards, he wrote "Screw It." When he found Lin Zekai unpleasant to look at, he wrote "Actors." But when it came to the sharpness and cruelty of the lyrics, this song "Ambush on All Sides" completely blew the previous two tracks out of the water!

Furthermore, while fiercely dissing, the song maintained a remarkably high level of listenability. Both the lyrics, melody, and arrangement were well above standard. Even passersby who knew nothing about the whole incident would agree that the song was well-written.

At home, Zhou Miao lay with his head resting on Hu San's lap, scrolling through the comments on the song. The top-voted comment instantly made him laugh out loud.

"Zhou Miao is no different from those adolescent girls. Adolescent girls write every single little thought they have in their WeChat Moments, while Zhou Miao writes every single thought he has into his songs."

Hu San, who was in the midst of peeling an apple for him, saw him laugh so hard his back teeth were showing, and asked with curiosity, "What did you see that's made you this happy?"

"Nothing much. A fan just said I'm handsome."