Chapter 24: The Top Contributor

"To be fair, I really don't think 'Youth' is that good. 'Moonlight Shadow,' on the other hand, really caught my eye."
PS: Not a fan of anyone, just stating facts.

"Analyzing this without any bias, personally, I think 'Moonlight Shadow' is superior to 'Youth' in terms of melody and lyrical depth."

"No hype, no hate. I'm a graduate student at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. If I were to evaluate this from a professional standpoint, 'Moonlight Shadow' is clearly better than 'Youth'."

"The reviews for 'Moonlight Shadow' are exploding, aren't they? I only listened to it because others said it was good, and after hearing it, I truly fell in love with Xue Ting's voice!"

Under this Weibo post, Xue Ting's fans and paid bots were one-sidedly praising "Moonlight Shadow" while making sure to take a jab at Yu Manli's "Youth."

"How is 'Moonlight Shadow' better than 'Youth'?"

"I sampled 'Moonlight Shadow' too, and it's nowhere near as good as 'Youth', okay?"

"I'm sick of this. I understand you want to support Xue Ting, but is it really necessary to bash Yu Manli while doing so?"

"Yu Manli is at least a senior in the industry compared to Xue Ting. Is this how Xue Ting guides her fans?"

Amidst the heated debate between both sides, the topic #WhichSongIsBetter# quickly climbed to the number one spot on the trending list.

"We didn't say Yu Manli isn't good; it's just that the lyrics and composition of 'Youth' are a bit subpar."

"I looked it up, Jiang Jin is a new songwriter, right? His skills still need some improvement!"

"I'm not a fan of Xue Ting, just stating facts. If 'Youth' were better than 'Moonlight Shadow,' why are its sales so much lower?"

"To be honest, sales figures say it all. The public has sharp eyes."

Xue Ting's fans finally pulled out their trump card, using sales figures as the ultimate argument.

"Do you guys not have a clue how 'Moonlight Shadow's' sales came to be? The top 10 buyers alone purchased 10 million copies. The manipulation is so obvious!"

"The top 10 buyers for 'Youth' also bought plenty of copies, okay!"

"That just goes to show that Ting Ting has a stronger fan base. If you're not convinced, go buy some yourself!"

Most of Yu Manli's fans are older; they are either settled down with families or working hard to build their lives.

Buying one copy to show support is fine, but buying hundreds or even thousands? They aren't insane.

By 7:55 PM, sales for "Moonlight Shadow" had already exceeded 43 million, while "Youth" had barely reached 32 million.

To everyone, the title of the 24-hour sales champion on the Qiuqiu Music platform seemed like a done deal.

"Finally, it's my turn."

In front of his phone screen, Jiang Jin was already fuming.

It was one thing for Xue Ting's fans to bash Yu Manli, but why drag him into it?

***

And that music critic, Qin Sheng—what makes him think I lack professional standards?

Sales figures say it all, right?

Fine. Then I'll show you something that’ll really open your eyes!

Before the clock struck 8:00, Jiang Jin spent 20 million to purchase digital albums of "Youth" in one go.

"Youth's" sales instantly reached 52 million, surpassing "Moonlight Shadow's" 43 million!

At 8:00 PM sharp, Xue Ting's studio posted a celebratory Weibo: "Congratulations to Ms. Xue Ting for achieving 43 million in Dragon Kingdom currency, becoming the number one singer in the Dragon Kingdom for 24-hour sales!

PS: The previous total sales record for a music album in the Dragon Kingdom was 42 million. Ting Ting's 24-hour sales have already surpassed this figure, making her the number one singer in the Dragon Kingdom in terms of total sales!

Thanks to all the fans for your support. In the days to come, let's walk hand in hand and reach new heights!"

At the same time, marketing accounts began posting similar copy: "Xue Ting's new song sold 43 million in 24 hours, while Diva Xu Man's new song only sold 32 million. Isn't that insane!"

"My mom just asked why I was kneeling while scrolling through Weibo. I told her Xue Ting broke a record, and she said that's normal for Xue Ting. This is Xue Ting's popularity!"

"Xue Ting achieved an unprecedented result under the pressure of Diva Xu Man. The old era is over, and the era of Xue Ting has arrived!"

"It's safe to imagine that no one will break this record set by Xue Ting for a long time. In a sense, Xue Ting is already the top person in the Dragon Kingdom's music scene!"

Music critic Qin Sheng: "43 million in 24-hour sales—a truly shocking achievement. But I must say—the quality of 'Moonlight Shadow' deserves this result!"

Xue Ting's fans were celebrating like it was New Year's, hopping around in excitement!

The entire internet was hyping up Xue Ting!

In a high-end apartment in the Imperial Capital, Sun Jia threw her phone onto the sofa with a livid expression and shouted angrily:

"Sister Yu, these marketing big-shots are going too far. Praising Xue Ting is one thing, but why drag you into it?"

Yu Manli smiled faintly, a look of helplessness and detachment in her eyes, as if mocking the common tropes of the entertainment industry: "If they didn't say that, how could they highlight how amazing Xue Ting is?"

Even a clay Buddha has a temper. Although Yu Manli was long accustomed to the schemes of the entertainment industry, she was still quite angry at this situation.

She didn't care if others' sales exceeded hers, but she despised how these marketing accounts would step on her while praising others.

However, since her new song's sales were indeed lower than Xue Ting's, she had no choice but to swallow her frustration.

Just then, her phone rang urgently.

Sun Jia said, "Sister Yu, it's the president of your global fan club."

Yu Manli nodded slightly. "Go ahead and answer it."

Sun Jia picked up the phone and hit the speaker button.

"Hello, Linlin..."

***

Linlin seemed quite excited on the other end: "Sister Jia, have you checked the sales leaderboard?"

Sun Jia responded with a smile: "I saw it. It doesn't matter if we didn't get first place. Tell everyone not to take it to heart; as long as you all like Sister Yu's new song, that's enough."

Linlin's tone, however, was full of surprise: "Sister is number one now! An ID called 'Parking in the Maple Woods Late' spent 20 million in one breath at 7:59. Wasn't that you guys?"

The phone slid from Sun Jia's hand and hit the floor!

Yu Manli's body shuddered. She quickly pulled out her phone and checked the 24-hour sales leaderboard on the Qiuqiu Music platform. Sure enough, she saw her song "Youth" sitting at number one.

52 million in sales... My god, did someone really spend 20 million?!

20 million in Dragon Kingdom currency—that's not a small sum, even for her.

And looking at the user's ID, he wasn't part of any fan club. This meant it was entirely his own personal funds!

What kind of wealthy person would spend 20 million just to help her reach the top spot?

Come to think of it... "Parking in the Maple Woods Late"—isn't that nickname missing two characters?

Soon, the news that "Youth" had overtaken "Moonlight Shadow" at the very last second to top the 24-hour sales leaderboard exploded across the internet.

The entire internet was shocked!

Yu Manli's fans finally felt vindicated and swarmed the Weibo pages of Xue Ting's studio, the marketing accounts that had been stirring up trouble, and Qin Sheng to leave comments.

"Just wanted to secretly tell you something: 'Youth' overtook the 24-hour sales record at the very last second."

"My mom just asked why I was kneeling while scrolling through Weibo. I told her Yu Manli broke a record, and she said that's normal for Yu Manli. How does that make you feel?"

Congratulations to Ms. Yu Manli for achieving 52 million in Dragon Kingdom currency, becoming the number one singer in the Dragon Kingdom for 24-hour sales!

Xue Ting's Studio: "???"

Marketing Big-Shots: "???"

Music Critic Qin Sheng: "???"

Spent 20 million in the last minute to overtake?

Who the hell is this? That is just too vicious!

Now the problem is, they had already hyped Xue Ting to the moon. Should they try to glue her back together?

They went back and forth for a long time, eventually making a decision that betrayed their ancestors—they deleted their Weibo posts!