Volume Two: Shadows of the Past Chapter One: The Turning Point of Chen the Good

Jingrun Entertainment Co., Ltd. was one of the four leading entertainment companies in Huaxia. Compared to the other three well-established giants, Jingrun was the newest among them. In recent years, the company’s various projects had all yielded impressive profits—especially in the music industry. Ever since Lin Xi joined, she had single-handedly launched the national sensation group, the Ancient Style Maidens; then, under her management, Jingrun had co-produced the wildly popular talent show "Voice of Huaxia" together with Huafu Entertainment. The show quickly became the most beloved talent competition in the country.

Not only that, but their artist, Chen Jing, took the championship in the finals of "Voice of Huaxia." His popularity soared, and upon releasing his first solo album, he took all of Huaxia by storm.

One success after another in company decision-making gave Jingrun Entertainment a faint air of becoming Huaxia's future number one entertainment company.

Inside Jingrun’s headquarters, in Lin Xi’s office—

“Sister Lin Xi, when will Jing be back?” Lin Zitan lounged idly on the sofa, asking in a languid tone.

At her desk, Lin Xi was reviewing documents. Upon hearing Zitan’s question, she paused to think and replied, “If all goes well, he should be back tomorrow or the day after.”

“That soon?” Zitan perked up. “Has the international street dance competition wrapped up already?”

“Yes, mainly because Jing made it into the semifinals. Otherwise, he would have been back tonight.”

“Hehe! Of course! They really don’t know who my Jing is. I wouldn’t be surprised if he took the championship!” Zitan declared with confidence. These days, she held an unshakable faith in Chen Jing.

Lin Xi, on the other hand, was actually amazed that Chen Jing had made it as far as the semifinals in the international street dance contest. She knew full well how recently Chen Jing had started learning street dance—barely two months—and then, all of a sudden, he joined the most prestigious competition in the world and reached the semifinals. How could anyone not be shocked? Still, considering it was Chen Jing, perhaps the usual logic did not apply.

Without commenting further, Lin Xi glanced at the report in her hands, her brows lightly furrowed. Then she asked, “How did the task I asked you to handle go?”

The mention of business made Zitan sit up straight. “It’s done. We found the pregnant woman and got in touch with her family. They’ve agreed to come forward and testify for us.”

Lin Xi nodded. “Alright, let’s contact the police this afternoon and have them issue a statement for us.”

“Great! Hehe, are we finally fighting back? I was about to explode, seeing all those nasty comments aimed at Jing these past two days.”

“They’re just hired trolls. No need to pay them much mind.”

“That’s exactly what infuriates me—a bunch of people who simply can’t stand to see others succeed,” Zitan muttered, indignant. “But this time they’re going to get what’s coming to them. Of all things to smear him with, they chose this. Just wait, they’ll be so frustrated they’ll want to cough up blood.”

Lin Xi smiled faintly. “Let’s resolve this before Jing gets back, so he won’t have to be bothered by it when he returns.”

“He wouldn’t care anyway. If he were here, he’d probably just ignore it all.”

Lin Xi couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s true.”

After Chen Jing’s album became a hit across Huaxia, a surge of paid trolls suddenly appeared online. They claimed that, during the finals of "Voice of Huaxia," Chen Jing had skipped rehearsals, never showed up at the venue, and only arrived at the last moment to perform on stage.

The rumor quickly spread and was even corroborated by so-called insiders. Soon, the internet was filled with people criticizing Chen Jing, saying he was acting like a diva before he was even famous, skipping the final rehearsal and nearly affecting the competition.

"Already acting like a diva before making it big—what will he be like once he’s truly famous?"

"Who cares how well he writes songs? If his character’s no good, nothing else matters."

"Pulling a diva act before debuting. What nerve!"

"Exactly! So he has a bit of musical talent—big deal."

"I’ll admit Chen Jing is talented, but his character is just awful."

"Talent means nothing if you have no morals. In the end, he’ll only bring trouble."

"…"

A storm of abuse followed—comments as harsh as they were endless, as if Chen Jing had committed some unforgivable crime. Even some clueless bystanders were swept up by the tide and joined in the condemnation.

Of course, there were those who believed in Chen Jing, especially his fans. They voiced their support online, hoping he would come forward to explain or clarify matters.

But at that moment, Chen Jing was far away in another country, busy competing in the international street dance tournament. Though he was aware that someone was deliberately trying to smear him, he paid no attention to the uproar back home, focusing solely on the competition and not bothering to clarify the situation.

In truth, Chen Jing ignored the clowns at home for two reasons: one, he was abroad and had no time; two, he had his manager, Lin Xi. He trusted her abilities—this minor storm in the domestic scene was nothing she couldn’t handle with ease.

And, as Chen Jing expected, Lin Xi saw through the tactics of these hired trolls and already had a countermeasure in mind.

The rumors about Chen Jing skipping rehearsal and arriving just in time for the performance were indeed true. But Lin Xi knew there had been a reason that night—something others were unaware of. Even if they had known, it wouldn’t have mattered; it was just an excuse for the smear campaign. As long as the story painted Chen Jing as acting out of selfish motives, the online narrative would be hard to change.

But what if there was another reason? Lin Xi was certain the masterminds behind the smear campaign didn’t know that Chen Jing had nearly been late because he was saving a life. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have chosen this as their angle of attack.

So, upon seeing the rumors, Lin Xi immediately formulated her response.

She first had Lin Zitan contact the pregnant woman whom Chen Jing had taken to the hospital, and explained the situation to her family. They were more than willing to help clarify the truth—after all, Chen Jing had saved two lives from their household. Helping him with this small favor was the least they could do, and they felt guilty that he was being misunderstood on their account, so they cooperated enthusiastically.

Once everything was ready, Lin Xi took action. She first issued a statement via Chen Jing’s social media account:

“Recently, I have been subjected to severe online harassment. Some individuals have been spreading rumors and distorting the truth, deliberately slandering me and causing great harm to my reputation, as well as significant psychological distress. Therefore, I have decided to take legal action to defend my rights and will pursue all those who have intentionally defamed me to the fullest extent of the law.”

The moment this post appeared, the online crowd was abuzz—Chen Jing was fighting back.

Naturally, this post wasn’t made by Chen Jing himself, who was still abroad and unaware of the unfolding situation. He disliked managing his social media, but as a public figure, he needed a platform to interact with fans. Since he didn’t want to handle it, Lin Xi had him hand over control to Lin Zitan. This post was sent by Lin Xi on his behalf.

The next steps were straightforward. With the pregnant woman’s family on board, Lin Xi, in the company’s name, reported the major rumor-spreading accounts to the police, suing them for fabricating facts and defamation, which caused Chen Jing severe reputational and psychological harm. She then used her connections to have the police issue a public statement: the reason Chen Jing was late that day was because he had taken a pregnant woman to the hospital—not, as the internet claimed, because he was acting like a diva.

Following this, a video was released of the woman’s family expressing their gratitude, along with a banner they had specially made for Chen Jing, reading, “May good people be safe all their lives.”

These pieces of evidence caused a sensation online. The tide of public opinion turned in an instant; all the voices smearing Chen Jing fell silent, and the once-arrogant influencers became cowed and quiet. Those who had blindly followed the crowd—if they had any sense or integrity—quickly posted public apologies and continued to ride on Chen Jing’s rising popularity.

“Haha! I knew there would be a reversal!”

“Exactly. With songs that good, how could Jing’s character be anything but stellar?”

“Fame always brings trouble. Some people just can’t stand to see Jing’s songs become so popular.”

“Finally, the truth is out. I’ve been waiting for this moment. I always believed Chen Jing did nothing wrong.”

“I told you, there’s no way Chen Jing would act like a diva!”

“Hmph, there are always troublemakers out to get our Jing, but now the truth is clear.”

“And what about those who were shouting the loudest before? Why so quiet now?”

“Feels so good—all that talk about Chen Jing’s character, but the police have certified his integrity.”

“With the police publicly backing him, will those clowns dare show their faces again?”

“Jing is incredible!”

“…”

Chen Jing’s fans could finally hold their heads high. With the police vouching for him, no one dared to slander Chen Jing any longer. His fans even tagged those who had previously smeared him, but received no response; some even deleted their earlier posts.

As the news spread, Chen Jing’s popularity soared higher than ever. After this incident, besides being known as a musical prodigy, netizens gave him a new nickname: "Chen the Good Man."

Author’s note: There have been some family matters lately, so updates may be delayed, but I promise there will be no hiatus. I hope everyone understands.

P.S.: It’s a new month—please support, recommend, and vote! The author thanks you all!