Chapter 176: The More You Say, the More Mistakes You Make

When Su Chen asked his question once again, Cai Xukun still failed to answer.

With a flushed face, he stammered and stuttered, looking just like an elementary school student caught daydreaming in class and called upon by the teacher to answer a question, utterly nervous and uneasy.

At that moment, Cai Xukun's fists were clenched so tightly they turned white. Ever since his debut, he had never encountered such a humiliating ordeal!

Even when Cai Xukun had just debuted and was still a newcomer, those senior figures in the industry always greeted him with smiles, out of consideration for the powerful company and capital backing him.

Later on, thanks to the persona crafted for him by his agency, public perception of him remained quite favorable, even earning him a massive following of loyal fans.

Even after his viral "Chicken You Are So Beautiful" meme videos exploded on Bilibili, most of the anti-fans were just trolling and didn't really launch malicious personal attacks against Cai Xukun himself.

This led to a rather ironic and absurd phenomenon: whenever a damaging scandal about Cai Xukun broke out, some of his fans would inevitably renounce their fandom.

Instead, it was Cai Xukun's group of anti-fans who would step up to the front lines, desperately trying to salvage his reputation.

After all, if Cai Xukun were truly branded as a tainted artist, how would these haters be able to play their memes anymore?

They might not even be able to use the character "Kun" freely anymore, which would be a terrifying prospect for them!

Yet right now, apart from a few die-hard fans in the livestream chat desperately defending him, everyone else was overwhelmingly standing on Su Chen's side.

For no other reason than this: Su Chen's three songs and his powerful words made people realize that there is a certain drive etched deep into the bones of the Chinese people, one that must never be lost!

Therefore, after Su Chen posed his question, every single gaze in the venue converged upon Cai Xukun.

The previously noisy studio fell completely silent in that instant. The immense pressure generated by the profound quiet and stillness pressed down unconditionally upon Cai Xukun.

This caused Cai Xukun to tremble all over—not out of social anxiety, but out of sheer panic!

With so many people staring at me while I am utterly speechless, just how humiliating is this?!

At that moment, Cai Xukun genuinely wished he could find a crack in the ground, stuff his entire body into it, and bury himself so he would never have to come out again!

However, as a high-end broadcasting studio in the Hunan Satellite TV building, the floors were paved entirely with solid marble, and even the stage and mentor seats were seamlessly fitted with explosion-proof glass.

There wasn't a single crack anywhere for Cai Xukun to crawl into!

Thus, Cai Xukun had no choice but to endure it. Until Su Chen or someone else spoke up, he had to sit there just like this, subjected to a public execution!

Right now, Cai Xukun suddenly understood what it felt like to have every second drag on like a year!

Fortunately, however, someone finally came to the rescue.

Su Chen was also waiting for someone to break the deadlock. In his estimation, Young Master Liu would undoubtedly be the first one unable to hold back.

After all, "Tomorrow's Star" was currently broadcasting live, and the production team could not possibly allow the scene to remain deadlocked like this. Every single second here was burning money!

Yet, much to Su Chen's surprise, the first person to step forward and resolve the impasse was not Young Master Liu, but Cai Xukun's manager!

Cai Xukun's manager was a middle-aged woman with a rather sharp and harsh appearance, whose overall vibe was practically identical to Xu Fangyuan's.

This could not help but leave Su Chen feeling somewhat perplexed.

Could it be that all managers, after staying in this industry long enough, eventually morph into the exact same person?

That was simply absurd!

Charging ahead like a vanguard, Cai Xukun's manager rushed onto the mentor stage, grabbed Cai Xukun's microphone, and blurted out anxiously to everyone present, "Apologies, let me interrupt the live broadcast of the show for a moment."

"Because our Cai Xukun has always suffered from social anxiety disorder, he experiences rapid breathing and even breathlessness whenever he gets nervous."

"With so many people watching him right now, he is on the verge of a complete psychological breakdown!"

"For the sake of Cai Xukun's health and safety, I must take him backstage to rest for a moment. I am truly sorry."

Having said that, without waiting for the production team's consent, Cai Xukun's manager directly hoisted the trembling Cai Xukun up by his arm and strode toward the backstage area.

Before Cai Xukun was brought backstage, Young Master Liu did not step up to stop them, which suggested that this manager had already coordinated everything with the production team beforehand.

One had to admit that, although Cai Xukun himself wasn't much to speak of, his manager certainly possessed some real capability.

Once the manager dragged Cai Xukun back to the backstage lounge, the formidable woman shoved him unceremoniously into a chair and immediately burst into a furious tirade!

"Cai Xukun! What did I tell you before you went on the show?!"

Pointing straight at Cai Xukun's nose, she was shaking with rage!

"Didn't I tell you to speak as little as possible?! Do you not know that the more you say, the more mistakes you make?!"

"The company already prepared the script for you, and you couldn't even just read off the teleprompter?! I swear, if I had raised a dog for this long, it would be more obedient than you!"

With a grievance-stricken expression, Cai Xukun looked like an overgrown child in front of his manager.

"But... but if I don't speak, how am I supposed to give critiques?"

"I asked you to critique, not to instigate fan wars! Use that brain of yours for once and think about the nonsense you just spewed out!!!"

The more she spoke, the angrier the manager became. If it weren't for the fact that Cai Xukun still had to return to the show later, meaning she couldn't leave marks on his face and had to preserve his makeup, those slaps would have already landed on him!

"Can't you just pick the polite things to say?! What on earth did you learn when you were a trainee?!"

Cai Xukun mumbled weakly, "But the current music market genuinely favors Europe, America, Japan, and South Korea. That's the strategic positioning of the company as well."

"Since the company already endorses this view, I thought it would be fine for me to voice it. How could I have possibly anticipated that these penniless losers would react so intensely..."

Hearing Cai Xukun's retort, the manager almost completely lost her composure.

She took deep breaths in and out repeatedly. After a full minute, she managed to barely steady her mindset.

Gritting her teeth, the manager squeezed the words out through her teeth: "I don't have that much time to reason with you, and you don't have the luxury of hiding out here like a good-for-nothing!"

"From now on, you will simply listen to me, do exactly as I say, and do not mix in even a tiny shred of your own personal thoughts!"

"If another incident like that happens again, when the company holds someone accountable, I won't have a good end, and you needn't expect to escape unscathed either!"

With that, the manager thrust her hardened face close to Cai Xukun's eyes and warned, "Cai Xukun, you must understand that everything you have right now was given to you by the company. Without the company, you are absolute zero!"

"Since the company can give you everything you have today, it can naturally strip everything away from you just as easily. Do you understand?"

Facing the manager's vicious glare, Cai Xukun no longer dared to argue. He hurriedly nodded repeatedly at her and said, "Sister... Sister, I understand everything!"

"I promise I won't make any mistakes again later. Please trust me!"