Night fell.

Wang Haoran listened intently to the sounds coming from Qiu Qianwei’s end. The weeping voices in his earphones persisted for over half an hour, showing no signs of stopping. It wasn’t until Lin Chen suddenly arrived to find her that Qiu Qianwei forced herself to stop crying.

Noticing his seventh sister’s unusual behavior, Lin Chen quickly asked about it. However, Qiu Qianwei lied, claiming she was worried about not being able to win the Supreme Gold Award at the Glory Arts Festival, which made her so sad that she couldn’t help but cry.

Hearing this, Lin Chen didn’t press further. He then took out a piano piece he had composed during his retreat and wanted Qiu Qianwei to perform it at the Glory Arts Festival.

Upon hearing this, Wang Haoran couldn’t help but shake his head secretly. He had entertained a similar idea but dismissed it almost immediately. Despite having supreme-level music composition skills, creating a piece that surpassed Qiu Qianwei’s work—which she had perfected over several months—in just a few days was highly unlikely. Moreover, even if he managed to compose it by a stroke of luck, would Qiu Qianwei even use it?

Despite their limited interactions, Wang Haoran could see that Qiu Qianwei was very dedicated to music. She wanted to win the award of her dreams based on her own abilities. As expected, Qiu Qianwei directly refused Lin Chen’s proposal, remaining steadfast no matter how earnestly Lin Chen tried to persuade her.

…

The following day.

The Global Glory Arts Festival officially began. Wang Haoran and others could only follow the festival through live reports, as it was not open to the public. Only those with significant achievements and reputations in the arts were qualified to attend.

“Big brother, did you manage to deal with my seventh sister’s opponent?” Lin Chen asked Wang Haoran expectantly.

“There was a bit of a problem.”

“So, you didn’t succeed.”

Wang Haoran nodded.

Lin Chen was quite disappointed and said somewhat sarcastically, “Sigh, it seems you and my seventh sister are not meant to be.”

“Heh,” Wang Haoran chuckled without responding.

The festival started at nine in the morning and concluded around four in the afternoon. According to the television reports, the winners of various art projects were all announced. Qiu Qianwei successfully won the Supreme Gold Award in the music category at the Global Glory Arts Festival with her piano piece “Mourning.”

Under the spotlight of various media, Qiu Qianwei went on stage to receive the award from the ambassador and his wife, followed by her acceptance speech. Her speech was short yet impactful, consisting of only eight words: “Thanks to the scumbag who hurt me.”

“What’s going on? Who hurt my seventh sister?!” Lin Chen exclaimed in disbelief.

“Me,” Wang Haoran replied.

“Stop joking. My seventh sister hasn’t known you for long,” Lin Chen retorted.

“Well, you can ask her when she comes back,” Wang Haoran teased, enjoying the chance to mess with Lin Chen’s mind.

“I don’t believe it,” Lin Chen huffed.

At five in the afternoon, the Global Glory Arts Festival concluded. Wang Haoran and others waited at the hotel to welcome Qiu Qianwei back, but only a female assistant returned. The assistant explained that Qiu Qianwei and another assistant had boarded a private jet to return home.

Wang Haoran sighed inwardly. It seemed Qiu Qianwei was deeply hurt, to the point where she didn’t even want to see him…

With only one private jet available, and Qiu Qianwei having left, Wang Haoran and the others had to purchase plane tickets to return. However, tickets were scarce in the coming days, so it wasn’t until two days later that Wang Haoran, Lin Chen, Cui Xiao, and the female assistant boarded a plane to head back.

During these two days, all major media outlets in Yan Country were dominated by the news of Qiu Qianwei winning the Supreme Gold Award in the music category at the Global Glory Arts Festival. The Supreme Gold Award in the music category at the Global Glory Arts Festival is the highest honor in the global music industry today. Before Qiu Qianwei, no one from Yan Country had ever won this award.

Because of this achievement, Qiu Qianwei instantly became one of the greatest pianists in the world, destined to be remembered in history. At the age of 20, she had reached the pinnacle of her life. To achieve fame and recognition at such a young age is unparalleled.

Countless media outlets wanted to interview Qiu Qianwei, but they couldn’t reach her. As a result, the public and many media outlets began speculating about the reasons. Qiu Qianwei’s acceptance speech in foreign media was also unearthed: “Thanks to the scumbag who hurt me.”

This statement immediately stirred up a storm online. Fans began investigating all the men who had interacted with Qiu Qianwei. Eventually, all eyes focused on one person: the “Piano God.”

This “Piano God” was the one who had interacted with Qiu Qianwei the most publicly and was the most likely to have caught her eye. After all, his performance at that concert was truly captivating. Moreover, in recorded footage from the concert, netizens noticed Qiu Qianwei glancing at the Piano God multiple times. Her gaze was quite telling. It was evidently a “deeply affectionate” look.

With this evidence, it seemed almost certain that the scumbag was the Piano God. In no time, Qiu Qianwei’s fans flocked to the Piano God’s Douyin account, bombarding it with private messages, comments, and other criticisms. Many of the Piano God’s fans turned against him and joined in the criticism. The remaining loyal fans chose to believe in the Piano God and retaliated against the critics.

However, with Qiu Qianwei’s achievement dominating the headlines of major media outlets for two days, she gained an overwhelming number of fans. The loyal fans of the Piano God couldn’t withstand the onslaught, and their words of defense were drowned in the tide of public opinion. Furthermore, Qiu Qianwei’s massive fan base pressured the Douyin platform to permanently ban the Piano God’s account.

Initially, the Douyin platform ignored the demands, but Qiu Qianwei’s fan base was too powerful. Unable to withstand the pressure, the platform eventually permanently banned the Piano God’s account.

However, the matter didn’t end there. Some of Qiu Qianwei’s more extreme fans crowdfunded five million to offer a bounty online, targeting the Piano God’s third leg.