Chapter 463: The God of PPT Conquers the World (10k)

"My opinion? Come on, man, I've always thought so."

Regarding the recent controversy, 50 Cent, who knew that more than one party was secretly slandering Zhou Yi, directly pointed out during a television interview who he believed was the true winner of the Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video—

"Eminem's 'Without Me' should have been the rightful winner.

"I don't know what exactly that guy Spike did to get this award. God, the fun factor of his 'Yeah' MV is a hundred thousand miles away from Eminem's song."

On the late-night talk show known for its boldness and outspokenness, 50 Cent spoke confidently to the camera: "Selling records well and winning awards are actually two different things; otherwise, the Grammys wouldn't have so many singers fall short every year, would they?"

"Curtis, many American music fans now regard you as the spokesperson for the American Dream and for inspiration. What are your thoughts on that?"

"Oh, I have to say, I'm honored. Yes, I'm honored."

Pretending to be surprised, the black giant adjusted the zipper on his leather jacket, shifted his butt on the sofa, and shrugged.

"Then what do you think about Spike's upcoming press conference to directly address the Grammy scandal? Do you think he can produce evidence of his innocence?"

"Actually, I think his doing so is just to cover up his guilt."

The smile that climbed to 50 Cent's eyebrows was hard to hide: "We all know the importance of the Grammys, and he certainly knows it too. Actually, I think the Grammy jury made a wrong decision this time.

"But perhaps it was unavoidable, because Spike started creating an atmosphere of racial discrimination beforehand, and perhaps the jury was influenced. You know, some of Spike's fans can be very crazy..."

For the Grammys, which are criticized every now and then, 50 Cent's accusation this time was more like an exoneration—directly placing the main responsibility on Zhou Yi, while the Grammys became the white lotus that had no choice but to comply.

And on the American internet, there was also much discussion regarding Zhou Yi's press conference behavior after a week of silence.

Countless people were curious about what kind of answer he would give.

Even many Zhou Yi fans smelled the danger of a storm brewing and hurriedly shifted the blame—

Such whitewashing rhetoric as "It's all Warner Records' fault," "It's all the agent's doing," "Our brother knows nothing about it," "Spike is actually a victim," and "He is innocent" emerged endlessly.

Meanwhile, Chow Yun-fat, who was promoting "The Forbidden Kingdom," finished work early this afternoon, rarely opened a bottle of champagne, and thoroughly enjoyed the decadent culture of American society.

"That Wang Ba has finally met his match; even the Grammys have gotten involved in scandals."

Lying in the bathtub, Chow Yun-fat looked slightly tipsy, his mouth stretched almost to the back of his head: "Serves him right. Does he really think this is China where he can do whatever he wants? Seizing American discourse power comes with a price."

As an old hand in the entertainment industry, he had battered his head bloody trying to break into Hollywood, and he understood better than anyone that Zhou Yi had broken a taboo by using unorthodox means to win the Grammy.

Even strong as Jackie Chan, coming to Hollywood meant he had to follow the rules here. After "Rush Hour," he was already big enough, but the box office and reviews for the several Hollywood films he subsequently acted in all flopped. It is said that Jackie Chan plans to make one last push this year; if he doesn't succeed, he will return to Hong Kong next year.

The reason is that even after making the "Rush Hour" series, he still did not hold discourse power in Hollywood, unable to express his style in other films; he had popularity but could not act as the film's leader.

As for Jet Li, there is no need to mention him. Hong Kong media praised him as the "King of B-movies," but the plain truth is he can only sell DVDs, not box office tickets. So the roles he gets are worse and worse. Even changing to American citizenship is useless; people still treat you like a dog, not as one of their own.

If you say these two didn't harbor a grudge in their hearts, that would be impossible.

But what can be done?

Since the US dollar is so sweet, everyone wants to earn it, so one can only operate within the Americans' rules.

Jackie Chan not changing his nationality and fighting his way to this point as a Chinese Hong Kong citizen is already awesome.

"It's hard to say. After all, he is Warner's cash cow. The market influence brought by such a creative singer is far stronger than films requiring joint creation by multiple departments; he can truly be called a one-man army."

The voice of the man who serves as Chow Yun-fat's business contact in America came from the phone: "If Warner insists on protecting him, and he dodges the main issues again at the press conference, this crisis will be easy to get through. At most, he will just lose some reputation in the early stages."

"Losing a bit of reputation is enough. I just can't stand him showing off like that. Damn that loser."

Chow Yun-fat took a sip of champagne, cursing under his breath.

If one were to choose the celebrity in the industry who hates Zhou Yi the most, he would definitely rank first, leading the second place by a landslide.

Because of a press conference in 2001, he was directly boycotted by the mainland entertainment industry, which seized the opportunity, and he shamefully became the one sacrificed. Not only could he no longer get mainland film roles, but mainland advertisements were either terminated or not renewed upon expiration. He will hold this grudge for a lifetime.

Now that Zhou Yi has crashed, if he doesn't buy ten or eight press releases to viciously describe him, he won't be surnamed Zhou!

Due to the time difference, when Warner temporarily sent out the invitation, it was the morning of the 17th in Asia and the evening of the 16th in the United States.

By the time reporters from various countries, carrying various moods, hurriedly flew to the scene and began setting up broadcast equipment, it was exactly the afternoon of the 17th in US time.

Due to Zhou Yi's current influence, television stations such as ABC and CBS chose to suspend their afternoon programs to broadcast the live situation of Zhou Yi's press conference.

Chow Yun-fat, who had specifically taken a shower and was lying in the hotel suite preparing to enjoy Zhou Yi's "shameful" appearance, was stunned when he saw the setup of the press conference on the TV screen, and he had little interest in the seduction of the blonde woman beside him.

Because he saw something that was a nightmare for him—

A computer.

To be precise, a laptop computer.

Right in the center of the seats on the press conference stage, at the position where the protagonist of the night, Zhou Yi, should have sat, sat a heavy laptop computer.

Besides that, there were no so-called apology materials whatsoever; even the background wall of the stage showed obvious traces of being covered by a curtain, and a projector was set up not far away.

This configuration, which could be described as strange for an apology press conference, was exactly the same as the one in 2001 that ruined his reputation.

Could it be...

Chow Yun-fat, who had been lying diagonally on the soft large bed, instinctively straightened his body. His right hand instinctively gripped the bedsheet, veins standing out on the back of his hand, and a memory that could be described as heart-wrenching immediately surged to his mind—

"Holy crap! Holy crap, holy crap, holy crap! Why does this scene look so familiar?!"

In China, inside the online broadcast room jointly set up by Hong Kong Phoenix TV and Asia Music MTV Channel, all the Chinese music fans who saw this scene couldn't help but recall the great earthquake in the Chinese entertainment industry in 2001—

All the chat rooms were flooding the screen like a pot that had exploded.

"Oh my god, is Zhou Yi planning to go head-to-head with the entire Western public opinion world?"

"Don't. It's satisfying to do this, but does he want his career in Europe and America anymore? Bowing his head and dodging the main issues would have gotten him through; that would be the perfect move. His songs and albums are so strong; he won't lack opportunities in the future."

"Who does he plan to scold this time? That black hip-hop singer who was pushed out to fight him? If he only scolds him, then there shouldn't be too much of a problem."

"To be honest, if Zhou Yi chooses to go head-to-head to the end this time, I really admire him as a man."

"Fierce domestically and even fiercer internationally; skilled in internal wars and even stronger in external wars. Is Zhou Yi really going to fight himself into being a non-existent person in America?"

"..."

Sun Yanzi, squatting in front of the computer with a small account, skillfully switched between three small accounts. While constantly participating in the discussion as a girl enjoying the drama, her expression made Cheng Hao, who was watching with her, look as if she had seen a ghost.

"Zhou Yi taught me, including how to protect my information when surfing the internet and such."

Sun Yanzi, barefoot on the room carpet, said this while handing her a slice of cantaloupe: "Don't say, it's quite fun."

"Is this live broadcast from MTV and Phoenix TV reliable?" Compared to Sun Yanzi's confidence, Cheng Hao was somewhat worried about the man thousands of miles away.

"Rest assured, I live-streamed a concert lasting over two hours in their studio last year and even answered netizens' questions; there's absolutely no problem—their live-streaming technology is already very mature." The snack-eating girl, speaking from experience, patted her chest to guarantee it, and when she grinned, her shining front teeth were on full display.

At the same time, at the homes of Jackie Chan and Jet Li.

These two big shots, also in the United States, had temporarily pushed aside their current work to focus their eyes and attention on the matter this younger brother encountered—for the American media's enthusiasm for smearing and xenophobia, the two of them felt it deeply.

Fang Zuming, who was always being nagged by his dad to learn from Zhou Yi, subconsciously followed his mom to the television, preparing to see what was up with this peer whom his dad and mom praised so highly—

Then, he saw Zhou Yi's arrogant, swaying, three-steps-one-rock walk onto the stage, while the Warner executive behind him was set off to look like a groveling grandson...

"... Dad, are you sure this attitude is an apology?"

Fang Zuming, who had never seen such a scene, had his eyebrows furrowed almost into the shape of the character 'chuan'.

Hong Kong, Emperor Entertainment.

Xie Tingfeng, who was planning his comeback, along with his girlfriend Zhang Bozhi, good brothers Chen Guanxi and Chen Yixun, brother's girlfriend A Jiao, Cai Zuoyan, Joey Yung, and other artists under Mani Fok's faction within Emperor Entertainment, were all collectively watching this live stream; seeing this scene, they couldn't help but lean their heads in, bringing their faces closer to the screen.

To be fair, he had already been convinced by Zhou Yi's achievements in music.

He is a very simple person; as long as someone can defeat him, that's enough.

Before, he thought the 'Twin Pride' was reaching too high; now he thinks the 'Twin Pride' is indeed reaching too high.

"Hello? Hello, hello? Can you hear clearly?"

On the TV screen, Zhou Yi, as if coming to perform a skit, sat down in the exact center of the stage, then smiled and patted the microphone placed before him, causing it to emit a "pop-pop" sound of hitting the mic: "Whoa, the quality sounds pretty good, right?"

Zhou Jianhui and Qian Jiang, representing the Chinese side of Warner, sat in the seats to Zhou Yi's left, while two senior executives and managing directors from Warner Headquarters sat to Zhou Yi's right.

Although they had been mentally prepared, upon seeing his carefree and unbridled attitude, the expressions on the four of them almost broke...

The reporters downstairs all had hesitant expressions on their faces—what is this guy doing? Performing a skit to liven up the atmosphere?

"OK, as you can all see, I have arrived."

Having made a teasing remark, Zhou Yi leaned his upper body back tactically, crossed his legs in a somewhat impolite posture, turned slightly to the side, rested his right hand on the back of the chair, and said: "I know what you want to ask. I will answer only once here: it is all slander."

"Alright, the formal content of this press conference ends here."

"...???"

???

"???"

"Next is the informal content of this press conference; those interested can continue listening, and those uninterested can leave."

Zhou Yi made a 'please' gesture toward the direction outside the press conference venue, his demeanor completely unlike a pretense.

The media reporters on site were all completely baffled—wait, buddy, you call this a press conference?

Reporters who had flown in from Japan and Korea hadn't even finished adjusting to the time difference yet, wearing slightly obvious dark circles under their eyes, and now they were even more dumbfounded.

They hadn't even put pen to paper to start writing, and you're telling me the formal content is already over?

Meanwhile, the Chinese reporters, who had experience, were enthusiastically starting to take notes...

"Since no one is leaving, I hope you will listen to the rest; don't get angry and slam the table to leave, especially you accomplices of the murderer." While saying this, Zhou Yi turned his head without any hesitation, directing his gaze toward the area of the Western reporters.

The meaning of contempt overflowed his words!

Here it comes!

Here it comes!

Here it comes!!!

At this moment, all Chinese fans and stars who had the conditions to watch this live stream recalled this man's fierce battle record of lawsuits all the way since his debut.

American media, you don't submit to me? Coincidentally, I don't submit to you either!

In Japan and Korea, when a large number of Japanese and Koreans saw an Asian like Zhou Yi actually sitting in the main seat, mocking the Western media to the extreme, acting so arrogant as to be supreme, the host's voice instantly rose by an octave!

Especially from Japan's Fuji Television—

"The Emperor's contempt! This is the Asian Music Emperor's contempt!"

A tone that was extremely chuunibyou yet unexpectedly fit the style of Japanese news, combined with this scene and this look, instantly caused Japanese fans in front of every TV and computer screen to have an internal climax!

In Korea, a country that often fantasizes about stepping on the United States, Zhou Yi's attitude made many people perfectly project themselves—they also wanted to treat Americans this way! They also wanted to treat the American media this way!

"What do you mean by that, Spike?" An dissatisfied American reporter raised his hand, and only after being named did he stand up and question: "This is a personal attack on us!"

"Which newspaper are you from?"

"The Los Angeles Times, John Mayer."

"Oh, then I'm cursing you."

"???"

"You keep slandering me and oppressing me on behalf of a murderer; aren't you accomplices?" Zhou Yi asked back with interest.

Before this middle-aged male reporter named John Mayer could speak, the curtain behind Zhou Yi had already slowly descended. Relevant staff fiddled with computers, fiddled with projectors, and soon, the past deeds of 50 Cent were clearly reflected in the eyes of everyone on site and in front of their televisions.

This was a PPT.

Everyone saw it at a glance.

Ever since Microsoft officially launched the PPT last year, this software had quickly spread across the globe, becoming one of the highest-quality office software packages.

"Damn! That's incredible!"

"F***, Zhou Yi is really good at making a scene; he actually made a PPT about that 50 Cent's deeds?!"

"Don't say it, this PPT is just beautiful, much better than what Zhou Yi did in Hong Kong in '01..."

"..."

In the hotel, Chow Yun-fat's eyeballs almost popped out of their sockets; Jackie Chan, Jet Li, and even Li Wen were all dumbfounded at this moment.

Western, Japanese, and Korean media, who had never experienced such a scene before today, were collectively dumbfounded—buddy, isn't this your apology press conference? Are you giving a PPT report here?

"The American Dream, inspirational, hatred of dark undercurrents. This is the 50 Cent you spoke of; perhaps I should call him Curtis."

Sitting in the chair without turning his head, Zhou Yi's lips curled upward; his powerful ability to speak off-script made his words extremely fluent: "I am very puzzled as to why many American media outlets would rather believe the words of a murderer than believe my words."

"Born in 1975, started dealing drugs in 1987, became a drug lord controlling an entire street's drug sales network in 1990, directly causing a large number of American people to sell themselves or die from consuming the drugs he sold..."

Accompanying Zhou Yi's words, the PPT displayed more direct images of drug trafficking, photos of 50 Cent entering and leaving prison in the past, and photos of families destroyed by drugs—all posted together. Among them were many photos of people who had died after purchasing and consuming drugs from 50 Cent.

"Just because he is American, you stand by him unconditionally?"

Zhou Yi spread his hands mockingly: "But it seems our Mr. 50 Cent is precisely the true culprit who caused the deaths of countless Americans?"

"I, a legal foreign singer, have never violated any laws or regulations in my life, yet I have suffered unprecedented oppression and discrimination on this land."

"The Grammys perfectly implemented the global convention on racial equality, yet you want to destroy this principle of equality together with that murderer, just to bring me down?"

"Why? Just because I am not American?"

Photo after photo, one bloody reality after another, directly struck the hearts of everyone present and watching on television!

"You hype his survival after being shot nine times as inspirational, but why haven't you considered why he was shot those nine times? Oh no, you know, but you don't care. Because your goal is to bring me down, to not want to see me."

Zhou Yi raised his hand and tapped the table; the crisp sound was exceptionally clear in the silence so profound that a pin dropping could be heard: "Precisely because of this, sometimes when I walk on the streets of America and see those signs by the roadside, I wonder if they are all interrogating me: 【Who are you? Where do you come from? We do not welcome visitors here】."

"Because of my identity, my race, my nationality, they accuse me of illegal entry. At least, that is how I understood it after reading the newspaper."

"At that time, I thought, banning me from illegal entry? Fuck that, it's sheer nonsense."

"So, my suggestion is, if you still hold this mindset, then just wait and watch closely; you cannot stop me."

"You will only kneel beneath my crotch begging me to grant you a pitiful exclusive interview, because you still need to earn money to buy bones to eat."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

The scene was deathly silent; one could even hear the breathing of many people gradually becoming coarse and heavy.

And just as a media outlet wanted to struggle once more, Zhou Yi gave them no chance, leaning close to the microphone: "Next, I have invited 100 families here on site whose lives were destroyed by 50 Cent's past drug trafficking activities. Regarding this person and the company behind him, I believe their personal experiences should be even more direct."

"I also believe that after seeing them, you will have the most direct judgment on who to trust."

???

!!!!

Under the gaze of all, genuine victims of 50 Cent's past drug trafficking and boxing bullying stood up as eyewitnesses, recounting that bloody past, indescribable in words, before the cameras.

And online, an explosive public opinion erupted immediately!

"Fuck! It's too bloody! So Curtis is actually such scum?!"

"I take back my words following Curtis to scold Spike; compared to Curtis, Spike is the true representative of an inspirational life, he completely refuses to submit to the so-called media hegemony!"

"Earning $5,000 a day from drug trafficking in 1990?! God, how many American families did he destroy in a single day to earn so much money?!"

"Why didn't the perpetrator kill him?! Satan should have taken him straight to hell! That poor woman even lost an arm, just because 50 Cent once forced her into prostitution to pay off debts?!"

"To be honest, I admire Spike's courage; he is the first singer daring to expose the truth. Others, even Eminem, would not say these things."

"Respect, respect, respect!"

"..."

Explosive!

Explosive!

50 Cent, who was just hours ago the representative of the American inspirational dream, was directly stripped of that bloody skin; the coat constructed from the blood of countless families turned all his eloquent talk on the TV show into a joke.

The impact of the photos Zhou Yi displayed in the PPT was simply too great, completely wiping out 50 Cent's so-called public relations image of having washed his hands of crime and turned over a new leaf; the 100 victims nailed him into the coffin completely.

Even in the hip-hop scene, where scum abounds, the existence of someone like 50 Cent, who was once a living Yama, was extremely explosive.

Before the television, 50 Cent, who was certain of victory this morning, now had his brows tightly furrowed, veins bulging on his clenched fists, his eyes full of gloom.

When he debuted, he only signed non-disclosure agreements with the few people he remembered. As for the people Zhou Yi brought, he simply could not recall them.

He felt he could not be blamed for this.

Who would remember how many slices of bread they ate on a certain morning more than ten years ago?

"Damn! Doesn't this guy fear lawsuits?!"

Eminem, who had never seen such a madman, was also numb.

As a veteran of hype, he was known in the industry for his daring to fight and hype; this time, the Grammy scandal involving 50 Cent was orchestrated by him alone, uniting with those media outlets wanting to teach Zhou Yi a lesson.

He thought victory was already assured, but unexpectedly, Zhou Yi simply flipped the game table and refused to play, pulling out a gun and exposing everyone's dirty laundry.

"Spike! May I ask, don't you fear lawsuits yourself for saying this?"

A reporter present, well aware of the laws on this side of America, eagerly raised his hand to ask amidst the excitement: "You must know you are an artist; isn't being entangled in lawsuits a very troublesome thing for you?"

"I don't care."

Facing a crowd of reporters as if in his own home, Zhou Yi appeared exceptionally relaxed; he even picked at the invisible dust under his fingernails, blew on it, and smiled: "You can go to China and inquire how many lawsuits I still have pending in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and even the mainland; some of these have even been dragging on for nearly three years."

"Or..."

Zhou Yi tilted his head, his gaze turning toward the Chinese reporter section, and joked: "You can ask them."

"Don't you fear that 50 Cent's side will expose things you did in the past?" A blonde female reporter with a "New York Daily" badge on her chest pushed up her glasses and raised her hand to ask.

Zhou Yi glanced over, his smile on his face growing even wider: "I am a law-abiding good child, dear."

"Don't forget, my major in university was law; I can say with a clear conscience that I have absolutely never committed any illegal acts."

"At the same time, precisely because of my major, I am curious how many sanctions 50 Cent escaped through lawyers back then. My suggestion is that the Bar Association and the police had better investigate; there might be unexpected surprises."

"..."

Before the television, 50 Cent directly smashed the glass cup in his hand!

"Fuck! What is this guy doing?! He wants to destroy me? He wants to destroy me?!"

On his dark cheeks, a flush of anger was even visible; 50 Cent had never thought that before he could enjoy the proper glory and wealth after his debut, he would be thrown into hell. He was now utterly furious: "I will kill him! I will kill him!"

Slap!

Eminem, his white mentor, backhandedly slapped him across the face, instantly waking the violent 50 Cent: "How many times have I told you, stop mentioning these things! You are no longer the Curtis of the past; you are 50 Cent!"

"Do you still want to return to those days when the police chased you everywhere, forcing you to hide in the shadows?!"

"..."

"Spike is flipping the table as a warning. He spends at most three to four months a year in the US. As long as the laundering is done properly, once he returns to China, your reputation will recover."

"Then he could have just fought back! What is he trying to achieve by doing this?! He's breaking the unwritten rule of mutual dissing among singers!"

You can insult each other and expose secrets, but absolutely never mention the other party's possible or actual criminal facts, because that would truly ruin their career and send them to prison to eat.

"That is because he doesn't need to follow our unwritten rules!"

Eminem directly threw two albums over—lyrics, composition, arrangement, vocals, producer, mixing, and even instruments, every single credit bore only Zhou Yi's name.

This is the greatest confidence a singer can have to overturn unwritten rules: one person becomes an army.

A belly full of 50 Cent's retorts was forced back, stifling him until he could barely breathe.

Eminem's expression also fluctuated between gloom and agitation.

To be honest, he had considered trading insults; after all, no matter how much they cursed, it would at most reach the level of his previous exchanges with Zhou Yi. But he never expected Zhou Yi to flip the table without any hesitation.

He didn't understand the history of the Asian music scene, but in the European and American music industry, Zhou Yi was the first person in history to do this, catching him completely off guard.

Others, even those musicians in history known for their arrogance, at least knew the principle of leaving a line of retreat for others so you can meet again later, because no one can predict when their creative talent might run dry.

Zhou Yi just raised the scythe and wiped them out completely; how could there be any partners after this?

Even The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Elvis Presley, and Michael Jackson wouldn't dare do this!

"Isn't he afraid of having no friends in the US?"

At the Cheng Long family's residence, Fang Zuming, who was staring with his mouth open, couldn't hold back and asked.

Cheng Long, with his arm around his wife's shoulder, had a complex expression: "Because in the US, he himself is the friend that everyone else needs to befriend."

The music industry is often more direct than the film industry.

A blockbuster movie requires assistance from many aspects, but for a blockbuster album, the core is always the creator.

And the current Zhou Yi is that number one standing atop Zhufeng, waiting for others to come and exchange business cards with him. Before his sales and creative myths are shattered, he is the eternal boss of the record companies!

You say ban him?

That's even funnier; if Warner dared to do this, Sony, Universal, and a host of other record companies would laugh their asses off.

"One person leveraged a music market worth over a billion dollars; this is Zhou Yi's value. Even if he had sex with a woman in public at the press conference, Warner would send him a few more instead of blaming him, and might even humbly ask if he was satisfied."

At the Li Lianjie family's residence, Li Lianjie, who had also watched the entire thing, held his wife's plump figure, and a few rare traces of envy appeared in his eyes.

For people like them who have ventured into the American entertainment industry, the status they pursue is exactly Zhou Yi's.

At the press conference site, the PPT was still playing, and reporters were still asking questions.

"What would you like to say to the fans who have always supported you?"

Looking at the Chinese reporter's question, Zhou Yi, sitting in his chair, slightly raised his head, his gaze seeming to look through the press conference site to the outside—

Outside this press conference, many fans holding banners to support him had gathered.

Through the outdoor broadcast, a cheer of support suddenly erupted outside.

Obviously, they hadn't left yet; they still wanted to accompany their idol through the entire press conference.

Zhou Yi pondered for a moment, then stood up under the gaze of everyone, casually pulled the microphone off its stand and held it in his hand: "Sorry, excuse me for a moment."

Without waiting for anyone's response, Zhou Yi's sudden move made even Zhou Jianhui and Qian Jiang look solemn.

Giving the two a look, Zhou Yi held the microphone and walked out of the press conference venue.

Outside the barriers, dense crowds of figures once again raised banners and names unique to Zhou Yi; the frantic screaming and cheering were enough to illustrate Zhou Yi's status in their hearts at this moment.

Zhou Yi pressed his lips together, smiled, and thanked the three directions, then stepped up onto a small platform placed right in the center. Pointing his left hand at the screaming fans to greet them, he then began to speak—

"So many accusations of an Asian invasion, Here they come a point 'n fingers at me"

"Prey on a mass emotion, Stirrin up a big commotion"

"Trying to assign responsibilities."

"But I won't give in; this fight for equality."

"Even if they accuse me and try to frame me."

What the cameras that followed recorded was exactly what Zhou Yi said to the fans.

In a gathering of hundreds of people, at this very moment, they shouted the only sentence in unison:

"This fight for equality!"

"This fight for equality!"

"This fight for equality!"

Fight for equality!

The roar that resounded through the clouds shocked the hearts of all the reporters who had come out to watch.

On the high platform set up specifically to facilitate dialogue with fans, Zhou Yi in his suit and leather shoes seemed to sense the gaze of the huge crowd behind him—

When he turned around, he stood on both legs as if showing off or provoking, with his arms spread out to the left and right, full of spirit!

The setting sun reflected behind him, the spring breeze blew up his tie and messed up the tips of his hair...

"Holy crap! Zhou Yi is awesome!!!"

"This is a hard confrontation in the US!"

"Fighting for equality is too cool; racial discrimination, huh?"

"It's like a concert; I almost wanted to howl along!"

"Awesome, awesome! I won't trash you today; I can't trash you anymore. Damn, being this awesome even in the US, you deserve to make money; I'm not jealous anymore."

"Those are genuine American fans."

"Zhou Yi's speech is too inciting; no wonder he studied law. Did he plan to become a lawyer after graduation?"

"Seems like it; no wonder he's preparing to be a lawyer; his eloquence is undeniable."

"..."

Domestically, night owls were refreshing live streams, flooding chat rooms, QQ groups, and forums with Zhou Yi's name. Some were so heated they wanted to run downstairs for two laps to cool off, because they now felt terrifyingly powerful themselves.

"I declare, from today on, Zhou Yi is the legendary God of PPT! The content and format of this PPT are too showy; it's like being ahead of world aesthetics by ten or twenty years, completely different from the popular PPTs of now!"

"If I were Microsoft, I'd be holding a meeting right now to discuss hiring Zhou Yi as the PPT spokesperson. Isn't this a natural advertising spot? This PPT move clearly comes from his own hand; no one else dares to be this flashy."

"Microsoft doesn't seem to hire spokespeople for PPT."

"My PPT (Image. jpg), Zhou Yi's PPT (Image. jpg), I'm so trash, wuwuwu..."

"Damn, will Zhou Yi's PPT get selected for the classic PPT case study textbook?"

"Zhou Yi: I just wrote a PPT to scold people, and it can get into a textbook?"

"Otherwise, why call him the God of PPT?"

Those who could endure the time difference to watch the live stream at this hour were basically old fans leaning towards Zhou Yi. In the dead of night, they were suddenly wide awake, each one crazily laughing and joking.

Sun Yanzi's home, study.

Quick-eyed and quick-handed, Sun Yanzi even screenshot and saved the domineering image of Zhou Yi turning around with his hands spread open. She felt delighted in her heart, planning to curl up alone later to admire it slowly, to the extent that she forgot Cheng Hao was still beside her.

The Japanese side also captured this image, and the host even excitedly uttered an even more chuunibyou phrase—

"Ruling the world!"

Zhou Yi's hand-spread image ignited the hearts of all fans watching this live stream at almost the same moment!

Including America!

"The Most Excellent PPT in History: From Spike"

"Fighting for Equality! The Rock Spirit in Spike's Bones!"

"Who still dares to say Spike's rock is fake rock?!"

"Murderers Cannot Become Spokespeople for the American Dream!"

"The Lion King's Roar!"

Early the next morning, editors and reporters from major newspapers and magazines, working overtime, directly published everything that happened yesterday. Those who had once criticized Zhou Yi's second album as fake rock fell silent at this moment.

What is the most important thing about rock?

Not technique, not instruments, and certainly not arguing about what the hell music category actually counts as rock!

It is spirit!

It is that golden, precious spirit of progress!

Whether it was the Beatles or the Rolling Stones, the reason they could be revered by later generations as an insurmountable Gao Feng was because they used their music to express attitudes unique to that era, leading people of that era forward.

And now, Zhou Yi also stood at this crossroads leading to legend—right now, he represented fighting for equality!

And the American underclass, who had always been duped by equality, at this moment directly defeated the exposed 50 Cent, and one by one voted with their feet for Zhou Yi.

On the 18th, also the day Billboard announced its charts, the rankings of all songs on Zhou Yi's second album saw a massive rise—while in contrast, 50 Cent's single, which last week was just one step away from first place, regressed to third place this week.

50 Cent, who kept defending himself, apologizing, and even playing the victim, was already running himself ragged trying to whitewash himself, while the ten songs on Zhou Yi's second album saw their data collectively begin to climb on radio stations across the US!

Since all ten songs possessed an extremely terrifying level of singability, many people torn over which single to choose directly opted to buy the album, causing album sales, which should have already entered a decline, to see a very significant rebound in this new week!

On the 19th, at Los Angeles' largest radio station, all ten of Zhou Yi's songs entered the top twenty!

On the 21st, on the overall charts of radio stations in New York and Orlando, Zhou Yi's ten songs squeezed into the top fifteen!

On the 23rd, radio stations in San Francisco, Philadelphia, Washington, and Houston dominated the top ten!

On the 24th, in Seattle, Las Vegas, Atlanta, San Diego, and Miami, five cities, ten songs occupied the top fifteen!

On the 25th, the day Billboard updated again—

And this time, Zhou Yi ascended to the top with an undisputed posture, even creating a Billboard record by virtue of this strongest social heat since the new century!

One album, five singles, directly sweeping the top five of the Billboard singles chart!

First: "Viva La Vida"

Second: "Counting Stars"

Third: "Natural"

Fourth: "We Are Young"

Fifth: "Something Just Like This"

Album sales even rose against the trend, directly achieving the best result of 1.53 million in a single week in North America!

The editor of Japan's largest gossip newspaper, Bunshun, who was even more excited than Chinese reporters, publicly published a title full of chuunibyou vibes—"The Emperor of Chinese Music, Ruling the World!"

(End of Chapter)