Gao Fei was deeply immersed in the opera on the stage.
Perhaps it was the lingering effects of being a Peking Opera master for too long.
Every time he entered the opera house, stepped onto the stage, and began to sing, he entered a mysterious and wonderful state.
It was as if he was personally experiencing the journey of a Peking Opera master to fame, and fragmented memories would occasionally surface as he sang.
On stage, the opera's melodious sounds filled the air, while the audience below erupted in applause.
"Wonderful lyrics, a magnificent voice! Bravo!"
Old Master Feng applauded enthusiastically, genuinely admiring Gao Fei.
"Grandpa Feng, is he singing well?"
Ye Yingying asked softly beside him.
Old Master Feng nodded slightly and explained in simple terms, "If it were over twenty years ago, he would absolutely be a famous star in the opera world, and one who would receive the most rewards!"
"Yingying, your Grandpa Feng used to receive thousands in rewards every time he performed. There was no one else in the opera world like him. If this young man were in your Grandpa Feng's era, with his skill, he could have rivaled your Grandpa Feng."
As he spoke,
Ye Sucheng, with half-white hair and carrying a gift box, walked in from outside.
"Sixth Brother!"
"You're here, and you even brought gifts. Are you being formal with your sixth brother?"
"This is tea, wine, and pastries that Yingying's parents prepared for you, Sixth Brother. It's not from me."
Ye Sucheng handed the gift box to his granddaughter. "Yingying, go make tea for your Grandpa Feng! And take out the pastries inside for your Grandpa Feng to try!"
"Okay, Grandpa!"
A moment later, the courtyard was filled with the aroma of tea, and colorful pastries from a famous Kyoto establishment were laid out on a small wooden table.
"Sixth Brother, although the opera house is in decline, the tradition still remains. Aren't you considering taking this young man as your disciple?"
"I cannot!"
Ye Sucheng, who was sipping tea, was taken aback. "There's a young man you cannot take? Does he have a significant background?"
Old Master Feng sighed and began to explain the reason.
It turned out that many of the opera tunes Gao Fei sang were types and melodies he had never heard before.
Compared to his own opera style, Gao Fei's was more diverse and more pleasing to the ear.
Based on Old Master Feng's guess, these unfamiliar tunes and styles were likely artistic forms that had been lost to the public.
Because of their scarce transmission, they were not known in the opera world.
"Aren't you promoting Dragon Country's traditional culture? I think the opera styles sung by this young man are more worthy of promotion. Compared to our school, his styles are more easy to understand!"
Old Master Feng was not lying.
The lyrics of their school's opera were notoriously difficult and obscure.
Whereas Gao Fei's opera styles had simple melodies and very smooth lyrics, making them easier to learn and pass on.
Upon hearing this assessment, Ye Sucheng silently nodded in agreement with his Sixth Brother.
He carefully observed the young man on stage, his brow furrowed slightly.
This young man... why do I feel like I've seen him somewhere before?
...
An hour passed.
The opera on stage finally concluded.
Gao Fei also emerged from his immersion, and the discomfort from the after-effects gradually subsided with the end.
"In about three more days, the after-effects should be completely resolved!"
He murmured to himself on stage, simultaneously hearing scattered applause.
Gao Fei looked out at the audience. In the courtyard, besides Grandpa Feng, an old man and a young woman had appeared at some point.
After he finished his makeup and changed clothes, Gao Fei walked out of the opera house. Old Master Feng pulled them over and introduced them, "Let me introduce you, Xiao Gao, Gao Fei!"
Upon hearing the name and seeing his face clearly, Ye Sucheng's pupils contracted.
No wonder he felt familiar; it turned out to be the highly regarded Comrade Xiao Gao, who was currently in vogue and highly valued by the military!
"Xiao Gao, you can call him Grandpa Su!"
Old Master Feng made the introductions between the two.
Gao Fei nodded humbly. "Hello, Grandpa Su!"
"Hello, Comrade Xiao Gao!"
When it was Ye Yingying's turn, before Old Master Feng could introduce her, she eagerly stepped forward.
"Gao Fei, hello, my name is Ye Yingying. I'm a fan of yours!"
"Fan?"
Old Master Feng looked puzzled.
"Grandpa Feng, Gao Fei is the creator of the new army songs and a reserve soldier who has earned three military merits. He's a big celebrity in Dragon Country!"
Old Master Feng's face was filled with surprise. He never expected that Xiao Gao, whose opera skills were so extraordinary, had such another identity.
Due to a prior engagement, Gao Fei made a hasty departure after meeting Ye Sucheng and Ye Yingying.
Ye Yingying, looking at the photos and videos on her phone, was about to post on the community forum related to Gao Fei.
However, upon clicking the webpage, she discovered that the community forum for Gao Fei had become a blank page.
And when she searched for keywords, she only found unrelated content.
"What's going on? Is the website glitching?"
No matter how much Ye Yingying refreshed, all content related to Gao Fei had vanished from the three major social media platforms.
She commented under some accounts, and any mention of Gao Fei was immediately censored.
It wasn't just Ye Yingying; other netizens, fans, and even anti-fans also discovered that Gao Fei had disappeared from the internet.
Had Gao Fei been silently blacklisted?
As the incident escalated, the news of Gao Fei's blacklisting became a hot topic of discussion in many chat groups and private messages.
However, Gao Fei's fans refused to believe he would be blacklisted.
All the fans immediately contacted the customer service of the three platforms, demanding an explanation.
Upon receiving user feedback, the platforms urgently tasked their technical personnel to investigate the issue.
Through data monitoring and investigation, the technical personnel discovered that the platform systems had been tampered with, causing Gao Fei's disappearance from the internet.
But when they attempted to fix it, they found that the tampered systems could not be repaired in a timely manner and would take approximately half a month.
Furthermore, the technical personnel of the three platforms traced the hacker who made Gao Fei disappear from the internet through the compromised firewall.
The hacker's IP address was located abroad, making it impossible to determine their identity.
In the end, the three platforms could only issue a statement:
"Due to certain reasons, the platform system has encountered a glitch, causing a certain individual to disappear from the internet. The platform will repair the system as soon as possible. Please do not believe or spread rumors!"
The platforms' official statements still could not stop the spread of the news that Gao Fei had been blacklisted.
On the day the incident broke, many friends, classmates, and teachers contacted Gao Fei.
However, he was on set filming and did not receive any calls to provide an explanation.
The news of his blacklisting was thus gradually solidifying.
Fortunately, because the three platforms could not display any words related to Gao Fei, the news of his blacklisting did not become a trending topic.
The trending list remained dominated by various entertainment companies vying for attention.
....
The next day, when Gao Fei reappeared at the opera house, Ye Yingying was already waiting.
Upon learning that his disappearance from the internet was indeed related to hackers, Ye Yingying finally felt relieved.
She simultaneously posted a selfie with Gao Fei in the group chat, clarifying for Comrade Xiao Gao that he hadn't been blacklisted; it was foreign hackers who were responsible, and the rumors were all false.
Once their photo was shared in various fan groups, the fans finally felt reassured.
As for the culprit behind the entire incident, Gao Fei ignored the external noise and continued to patiently endure the after-effects.
After nearly a week of practice, the after-effects had largely disappeared.
Through system testing, he could now simulate the role of a film emperor without any after-effects or complications.
The following day.
Gao Fei sang his last song on stage, and scattered applause also echoed from the audience.
Old Master Feng was still there, along with Ye Sucheng and Ye Yingying, who had visited the opera house for three consecutive days.
When Gao Fei finished his makeup and came into the courtyard, Ye Sucheng glanced at Old Master Feng, who seemed less cheerful than usual, and asked, "Xiao Gao, Sixth Brother mentioned that today is your last day at the opera house?"
"Yes, Grandpa Su!"
Gao Fei's peripheral vision swept over Grandpa Feng, who lacked his usual smile. He understood the old man's feelings.
However, the crew was currently under pressure to finish filming, and he couldn't falter.
He could only truthfully tell Grandpa Feng that he was busy filming a movie and that he would return to sing at the opera house after it was completed.
Ye Yingying then chimed in to explain, telling Grandpa Feng that Gao Fei was the protagonist of the movie, and the crew could not proceed with normal filming without him.
"Good, good, good! Xiao Gao, you must promise to come back and sing after you finish filming. I won't charge you rent!"
"Alright, Grandpa Feng, I promise I'll be back to sing!"
With the assurance, Old Master Feng finally laughed heartily and then asked, "Xiao Gao, will having a few drinks with me today interfere with your filming?"
"Today happens to be a day without my scenes. Grandpa Feng, I'll go buy some wine and snacks right away!"
Because Gao Fei was temporarily unable to portray the acting required for an undercover role in the movie.
Therefore, the crew was currently filming scenes unrelated to the protagonist, otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to spend a week at the opera house.
The people at the company knew the truth, but Ye Sucheng assumed that Gao Fei had agreed to drink with him to avoid disappointing Grandpa Feng.
At this moment, Director Ye's admiration for Comrade Xiao Gao increased further.
When Gao Fei and Ye Yingying returned with wine and snacks, the two elders and two youngsters sat in the courtyard, drinking and chatting, although Miss Ye was drinking juice.
After several rounds of drinks.
Ye Sucheng, looking at Gao Fei, who was chatting animatedly and a bit tipsy from the baijiu, suddenly asked, "Xiao Gao, why don't you tell us about the movie you're filming?"
"Grandpa Su, there's not much to say about this movie. It's adapted from the novel 'The Double Man'," Gao Fei replied with a slurred tongue.
In the past, he could drink beer and red wine like water.
However, baijiu seemed to be very unfriendly to him; after half a catty, his mind was already hazy.
Upon hearing the novel's title, Ye Sucheng's eyes narrowed. He had also read the novel when it was popular, and he found it well-written and realistic.
"However, Xiao Fei, I heard from outsiders that the author of 'The Double Man' has not sold the film and television rights. How did you find them and get their authorization?"
Ye Sucheng asked curiously.
Except for Old Master Feng, who hadn't read the novel, Ye Yingying also perked up her ears, wanting to hear how Comrade Xiao Gao had obtained the rights.
"Film and television rights?"
Gao Fei's eyes were glazed, and he let out a hiccup, pointing at himself.
"Hiccup—Grandpa Su, I am the author of the novel. My rights, of course, are decided by me!"
"What?"
The Ye grandfather and granddaughter exclaimed in disbelief, looking at Gao Fei.
Ye Sucheng said half-skeptically, "Xiao Gao, you're the author of the novel? Don't joke with Grandpa Su!"
"Oh, Grandpa Su, how could I dare to lie to you..."
When Gao Fei logged into the author backend of the novel website on his phone, proving he was the author of the novel,
The Ye grandfather and granddaughter finally believed him.
Ye Sucheng, looking at Gao Fei, who was affected by the alcohol, smiled. "Xiao Gao, if this secret were to get out, you'd be the center of attention on the internet again."
"Don't worry, Grandpa Su. I've tampered with the system code of the three major social platforms. Even if you try to post it, it will be censored!"
"What?"
In the courtyard, exclamations sounded again.