Chapter 139: Arrival at Qian’s Villa for a Drug Raid

It was all so utterly unexpected that this was the genuine reaction of netizens.

At first, Weibo was flooded with discussion of the Heavenly Queens Li Feifei and Lin Ruowan’s joint peak concert.

Anticipation, expectation, attention, speculation.

Everyone agreed that the concert would surely send shock waves through the Chinese music scene, and that RollPoem Entertainment’s popularity would rise to an entirely new level. The lineup was simply too powerful.

Lin Ruowan had made a triumphant return after fifteen years, bringing with her a heavyweight album so formidable that no one had anything left to say.

Li Feifei was a true superstar, a hugely popular female singer and a titan of the music world. More people knew her than did not, so there was no need to elaborate.

Ren Qian was a legendary newcomer. In barely half a year, he had gone from an obscure singer to an idol with explosive popularity. The transformation was nothing short of miraculous.

Murong Xue was the female singer who had shot to fame on I Am a Singer. With a voice worthy of a superstar, she had rapidly amassed a huge following. Rumor had it that she would release an album at the same time as the Heavenly Queen.

With a lineup like this and a concert of such scale, it was bound to dominate the headlines for the entire following week.

But the winds of fortune changed far too quickly.

Some sharp-eyed observers noticed that, around the time the concert was drawing to a close, an anti-Ren Qian movement had begun to emerge online. All sorts of accusations appeared, claiming that Ren Qian had seized opportunities meant for newcomers in order to rise to fame. Others alleged that the entire RollPoem Entertainment company was a nest of intrigue, completely betraying the true purpose of music.

Worse still, a large number of entertainment-industry power brokers appeared, condemning Ren Qian from the supposed moral high ground of defending the orthodox tradition of classical Chinese music and preserving the essence of music itself.

For a time, Ren Qian became the target of everyone’s attacks.

Scandalous material always attracted the media more than exonerating facts. Once these remarks gradually gathered momentum, the media poured oil onto the flames.

It was nothing less than a deliberate attempt to manipulate public opinion.

The next morning, when the employees of RollPoem Entertainment got up and looked at the news, they found that, aside from the entertainment outlets they themselves had contacted, every other media report was about:

“RollPoem Entertainment Rotten to the Core—Ren Qian’s Seizure of Newcomers’ Opportunities and Suppression of New Singers Has Become the Norm.”

“Shocking! This Is the Real Reason Ren Qian Became Famous!”

“If Ren Qian Had Not Stolen Opportunities from Newcomers, How Prosperous Would the Music Scene Be?”

And so on.

The God of Music was vilified for an entire day.

Then Ren Qian released a new single, “The Great Wall,” striking back at the powerful figures who had attacked him. The song was forceful and resonant, leaving many listeners deeply moved.

Ren Qian’s fans immediately launched a counterattack.

The anti-Ren faction and the pro-Ren faction began battling it out on message boards, on Weibo, and in news-comment sections. The war continued until the first-generation God of Songs stepped forward to support Ren Qian, declaring that he had great hopes for him.

That left the powerful figures who had attacked Ren Qian publicly humiliated. They had always styled themselves as relics of the God of Songs’ era and devoted defenders of classical Chinese music. They claimed to understand the true essence of the art and considered themselves the most refined people in the industry.

Yet the founder of that musical tradition and its most elegant leader had, in a dramatic twist, chosen to stand behind Ren Qian.

The situation had reversed.

Then an even more explosive piece of news surfaced.

Several singers from Sound Emperor Entertainment and Mars Entertainment were suspected of using drugs.

The news caused an uproar among netizens. Even the habitual trolls found it unbelievable. Without giving it much thought, they rushed to condemn the suspected singers.

“Drug use! You public figures actually use drugs! You took our money and spent it on drugs! How can you possibly face us after that? Do you know how many poor children in remote mountain villages cannot afford school or even food? You have money for drugs, so why not donate every penny to help impoverished rural areas?”

“You can tell at a glance that they’re no good. Just look at those disgusting expressions in the private photographs. Do any of them look like idols? They make me sick.”

“Disappointed! King Wan, I grew up listening to your songs. I always thought you were a respected veteran who was passionate about cleaning up the entertainment industry. I never imagined that you would fall this far yourself, and then have the nerve to accuse Ren Qian! Do you have no shame?”

“King Wan was my youth, but now I find out that my youth was using drugs.”

“Nothing more to say. Unfollowed. I’ll never listen to your songs again.”

On Weibo, the singers struck by the flood of comments were utterly at a loss. Their follower counts plummeted, and abuse poured in without end.

More importantly, who had been so capable as to expose their drug use?

They hurried to destroy the tools they had used, hoping to keep the police from discovering them.

But it was already too late.

While Wan Feng was still dealing with the situation, the police broke down his door and arrested him on the spot. At the time, he was holding a syringe.

Reporters followed the police, taking photographs and conducting interviews.

By then, however, the former king of the music world was already dressed in prison clothes.

Next came Peng Yu and Zhao Qi of Mars Entertainment. They were arrested with both the evidence and the offenders in hand.

Sound Emperor Entertainment was not spared either.

Several first-tier singers and a number of second-tier singers were arrested. Reporters scrambled to photograph and interview them. The story had grown enormous. The weeping singers would certainly face a torrent of abuse from netizens, and that alone was enough.

The media, meanwhile, stood to gain massive numbers of clicks and views.

The news was broadcast online almost in real time.

“Outrageous! King Wan’s Reputation Destroyed in His Final Years—The Entertainment Industry’s Moral Crusader Revealed as an Addict! At Six This Morning, Police Raided King Wan’s Villa. Syringes and Burned Evidence Were Found at the Scene. Drug Use Has Been Confirmed Beyond Doubt!”

“Mars Singer Zhao Qi Follows in King Wan’s Footsteps—A Massive Quantity of Drugs Found Hidden in His Home. Why Would a Singer at the Peak of His Career Turn to Drugs? Spiritual Emptiness, or Excessive Pressure?”

“Mars Singer Peng Yu Arrested at Nine This Morning. He Was Unconscious at the Time of His Arrest, Apparently Suffering the Aftereffects of Drug Use.”

“Sound Emperor First-Tier Singer Li Ziqiang Arrested!”

One report after another left netizens stunned at first, then incredulous, and finally numb.

The most ridiculous part of this latest scandal in the music industry was that, in exchange for even a slight reduction in his sentence, King Wan had exposed forty-six celebrities.

Among them were film and television stars, performers, directors, and even female celebrities.

The numb audience was thrown into another uproar.

Many netizens cried out that their entire worldview had collapsed. So the glamorous celebrities they admired were secretly involved in such sordid activities!

More pessimistic users posted mourning messages on Weibo:

“The empire’s entertainment industry is completely ruined! As someone who follows the industry closely, I have many directors, stars, and singers I love. But this drug scandal has left me utterly despairing.

“Our entertainment industry is beyond saving.

“Everyone is on drugs.

“The entertainment industry is dead!”

Another user wrote:

“A little investigation has already brought down so many celebrities. It is not difficult to imagine that there must be many more who have escaped detection. And if drugs are everywhere, what about prostitution? What about gambling? Is no one going to regulate this chaotic industry?

“Or is the entire entertainment world this filthy and corrupt?”

Someone else declared:

“I have completely lost interest in the entertainment industry. I hope this entire circle is thoroughly investigated. They make so much money, yet do nothing, give nothing back to society, and contribute nothing to charity. They are completely immersed in pleasure. Why should we keep making them rich for no reason? No! From this moment on, let us boycott celebrities, singers, actors, and directors! Let them starve! Let us stop giving them the money to eat, drink, chase sex, and gamble. Shame on them!”

Another comment read:

“I recommend a full investigation of the entertainment industry. Anyone who uses drugs should be arrested and executed!”

And so on.

There had simply been too much news lately. Each development led to another, with twists appearing one after the next and the situation suddenly turning on its head. Netizens’ emotions were whipped into a frenzy.

By the time drug use had been exposed among more than a hundred celebrities and directors, public anger had reached a boiling point.

The masterminds behind it all, Sound Emperor Entertainment and Mars Entertainment, were stunned as well. They had assumed that stealing the spotlight from RollPoem’s grand concert would allow them to reclaim their share of the profits.

They had never expected matters to spiral this far.

They had lifted a stone only to drop it on their own feet.

At that moment, more than twenty people from the two companies, all equally wretched and bound together by their misfortune, had gathered in one room. Every brow was furrowed, and not one person said a word.

Smack!

At last, one of them slammed his hand on the table and rose to his feet.

“I said we should stop while we were ahead! It was you who insisted we could push things further! And now look where we are. We’re the ones caught in a crisis! If you hadn’t forced RollPoem into a corner, would they have done something like this?”

“Shut up. How do you know RollPoem did it? This is obviously a frame-up. We just happened to have a few singers beneath us who were using drugs. It was nothing more than a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse.”

“Then why aren’t we the blind cat?”

The group fell silent once more.

“We’re finished. We’ve ruined everything this time. Not only did we fail to win back market share, we dragged ourselves into the pit as well!”

Some were pessimistic. Others sighed in despair. Several shareholders, however, were secretly sending messages on their phones.

They were selling off their shares.

If they could reduce their losses even slightly, they would. Once the companies collapsed, it would be too late for regret.

What none of them noticed was that their shares were being bought up at astonishing speed, as though someone had been watching them all along.

“Wait! We can frame RollPoem Entertainment too. At worst, we can all go down together! I refuse to believe that not one person in their company uses drugs!”

Another man who looked like a manager stood up, wearing the expression of someone prepared to die. Since matters had reached this point, everyone might as well perish together.

“If a company as huge as RollPoem has no drug users, I’ll go on livestream and eat filth!”

The proposal immediately brightened everyone’s eyes. It was the only way out left to them. If they could not drag RollPoem into the mire as well, then Mars Entertainment and Sound Emperor Entertainment would be finished for good.

They would plunge into the abyss.

Still, many members of the boards of directors had already lost faith in their own companies and were secretly selling their shares.

“Go. Hire as many paid posters as possible. Say that RollPoem’s singers use drugs too. Frame Ren Qian, Murong Xue, Lin Ruowan, and Li Feifei. Smear them as viciously as you can. Do not show them an ounce of mercy!”

And so, a rumor suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

At the same time, the official RollPoem Entertainment Weibo account published a post.

“To cleanse the entertainment industry of its corrupt practices, RollPoem Entertainment is opening the entire company to inspection. Anti-narcotics officers are welcome to investigate every single RollPoem employee. Whether they are superstar singers, Ren Qian and Murong Xue, first-tier performers, or newcomers, all will submit to the investigation. We will offer no resistance.

“If anyone is found to be using drugs, RollPoem will publicly apologize to the entire nation and donate ten million yuan to impoverished mountain regions for every drug-using singer discovered, as an expression of our remorse.

“For the clear skies of the music world, and to restore music to its simplicity and nobility, we are willing to contribute our part. The entire investigation will be livestreamed online, with the participation of every RollPoem employee.”

That single post completely overshadowed the joint smear campaign launched by Mars Entertainment and Sound Emperor Entertainment.

This time, netizens clearly placed greater faith in an actual investigation. Besides, there would be a livestream. They might even get a glimpse into the private residences of major stars.

There might be surprises.

In an instant, tens of millions of people rushed to watch the livestream.

The first investigation focused on the villas of Lin Ruowan and Li Feifei. Ten police investigators were sent.

Lin Ruowan and Li Feifei owned only two villas. The first was the one where their nurse’s younger sister lived, the one with the little princess’s attic.

The police entered and began searching. They rummaged through cabinets, while sniffer dogs searched every corner. They checked beneath the toilets, under the flower beds in the garden, and in the attic upstairs. The investigators searched every place where drugs might have been hidden.

Nothing was found.

They moved on to the second villa.

Still nothing.

They tested the blood of Lin Ruowan, Li Feifei, and Wen Run. All three were clean.

The police announced the results of the investigation on camera, then headed for Ren Qian’s home.

The camera followed the police vehicles all the way there.

The netizens were beside themselves with excitement.

“I’ve always wanted to see what the God of Music’s bedroom looks like. I wonder if it’s filled with instruments?”

“People who make music are usually a little messy, aren’t they? Fangirls, don’t get your hopes up too high, or the results might scare you to death.”

“How could that be? Just look at our God of Music. He must be an extremely orderly person. Don’t slander my handsome Ren!”

“Please, brainless fans. This is an anti-drug investigation, not a variety show. Could you stop treating it like a game?”

“You idiot, can’t you focus on what matters? This is serious. It doesn’t matter who he is. If he uses drugs, he must be punished severely!”

“You’re the idiot! My God of Music would never use drugs! No one at RollPoem Entertainment would touch that stuff! What a bunch of filthy-minded people, judging a gentleman by the standards of a villain!”

“Wow, the God of Music is really rich. He lives in Grand River Estate, in a villa worth tens of millions!”

The door opened.

Ren Qian welcomed the anti-drug officers inside. Several wooden posts stood in the small courtyard.

“What are those posts for?”

“Martial arts training. Chinese kung fu.”

“Take the sniffer dogs over there. Mr. Ren, I’m sorry, but if necessary, we will saw the posts open for inspection.”

Ren Qian froze for a moment, then nodded. They had been brought over by that fellow Liu Zhuangshi anyway. He could simply ask him to make new ones next time.

The netizens, meanwhile, had once again wandered off topic.

“Wow, our God of Music even practices martial arts. Do you think he has a broad chest and eight-pack abs? Oh my God... I really want to see them.”

“If I were Wen Run, I would sleep on the God of Music’s abs every night!”

“That comment is indecent! If it were me, I would sleep with the God of Music every day and never let him out of bed. He would not even need to get dressed. Whenever I wanted sex, we would have sex!”

“That is way too filthy! I’m calling the police!”

“Finally, someone who thinks the same way I do! If I were the God of Music’s girlfriend, I would never let him stop...”

While the netizens discussed the matter with feverish enthusiasm, the investigators conducted a meticulous search, checking every inch of the premises. They entered the house, searched the toilets and bathrooms, and filmed anything that might be considered important.

Then they climbed the spiral staircase and entered the music hall.

The netizens were stunned.

Everywhere they looked, there were musical instruments: cellos, violins, a piano, a guzheng, flutes hanging from the ceiling, and xiao pipes.

“How much would a music hall like this cost?”

“What a tycoon! It looks so magnificent and luxurious. I finally understand the difference between Ren Qian and me. It is a music hall worth tens of millions!”

The netizens were full of praise for Ren Qian’s music hall.

While the anti-drug officers continued searching, Ren Qian sat down at the piano.

“Come on. I’ll sing a song for everyone.”