Chapter 56

Chapter 56

Hearing this explosive news, the surrounding students all widened their eyes.

Could it be that the most loving couple in school had actually become such a mess behind closed doors?!

And Qi Ruolin, who had been calm, finally couldn't help but change her expression.

However, she replaced it with an even more mocking smile.

Because Qi Ruolin simply didn't believe what Yi Tiantian had just said!

Everyone knew that Qi Ruolin and her boyfriend were notorious bullies in the school, and no one dared to interfere!

So Yi Tiantian must be spreading rumors using her personal grievances!

Using such despicable means was truly despicable!

"Is this how Teacher Yi conducts classes? The bell has rung for at least a minute now, and you're still standing there. Is this what a teacher should do?"

Qi Ruolin sneered and asked calmly.

With these words, the audience in the live chat also followed suit.

[Never seen a teacher like Yi Tiantian who doesn't start class on time! This is really irresponsible!]

[Uh... But I think one minute isn't a big deal.]

[What you think doesn't matter; the students might not agree! Students at Brand University of the Arts are very studious, unlike some people!]

Facing Qi Ruolin's questioning, Yi Tiantian smiled slightly and replied confidently, "Greeting you did waste some time. Next time, I'll ignore you."

The live chat also countered.

[Exactly, it was because of greeting that time was wasted!]

[Such hypocrisy! It was clearly because of greeting Qi Ruolin that time was wasted! Blame your Lin sister!]

[Qi Ruolin, this washed-up star, still thinks she's someone important!]

Qi Ruolin sneered again, not expecting Yi Tiantian to counter her while shifting all the blame onto her!

But it didn't matter. Qi Ruolin quickly recovered her unpleasant expression; she had many ways to deal with Yi Tiantian!

The students watching Yi Tiantian and Qi Ruolin face off found it thrilling!

The current idol Yi Tiantian versus the former popular idol Qi Ruolin—this confrontation was quite exciting!

However, what puzzled the students was that after class started, Qi Ruolin actually quieted down. She chose not to cause trouble but instead listened attentively to Yi Tiantian's lecture, even taking notes diligently!

It was as if the sun had risen from the west!

Yi Tiantian focused on his lecture without observing what Qi Ruolin was doing.

When he discussed how idols should correctly view their "popularity," Qi Ruolin finally raised her hand.

Her captivating eyes flashed with cunning as she said, "Teacher Yi, I have a suggestion."

"What kind of suggestion?"

Yi Tiantian looked at Qi Ruolin, who had spoken without his permission.

"Regarding popularity, since I've been on hiatus, I'm not sure about my current level of popularity. So I suggest conducting a real-time online poll during this class to measure it."

Qi Ruolin asked in a seemingly serious tone.

"After getting the results, I hope the teacher can give me constructive guidance."

"Sounds nice, but isn't it just to put me in my place?"

"Qi Ruolin believes her overwhelming popularity will shock me, so she wants to see my surprised reaction!"

Seeing Qi Ruolin's "eager" expression, Yi Tiantian immediately understood her true intentions.

The students in the class gasped.

Qi Ruolin, the queen of the school, could indeed come up with such humiliating tactics!

Qi Ruolin raised an eyebrow, unconcerned that everyone knew her true purpose.

She wanted to show Yi Tiantian who was in charge and establish herself as the top!

"I think this idea is still lacking," a girl with purple hair sitting next to Qi Ruolin added, raising her hand, "Why not also conduct a real-time poll about Teacher Yi, using him as an example to explain the issue of popularity in detail!"

Qi Ruolin's lips curved upward, pleased with the purple-haired girl's suggestion.

The students shivered.

If both Qi Ruolin and Yi Tiantian conducted polls simultaneously, wouldn't it mean they were competing against each other?!

This was too thrilling!

The audience in the live chat also became excited.

[I smell gunpowder! Are they really going to conduct a real-time poll?]

[This is blatant provocation! Qi Ruolin's personality is still so strong, but I still love her! My queen!]

[Qi Ruolin is on hiatus, so her popularity shouldn't be high!]

[Those before really have short-sighted views. Can your Yi Tiantian compare to our Ruolin's popularity?!]

[If a teacher can't even surpass their student, that would be quite embarrassing! It seems Yi Tiantian is about to lose face!]

Most of the comments were not in favor of Yi Tiantian, and some even started to predict her downfall outright.

Seeing that Yi Tiantian had yet to speak up, Qi Ruolin provoked again, "Teacher Yi, if you find it inconvenient, forget it. We can just tally my votes."

Just when everyone thought Yi Tiantian wouldn't accept the challenge, she spoke up.

"Fine, I can set up a vote."

Yi Tiantian replied, "Then let's trouble our show's production team to set up a voting system on the official website."

Qi Ruolin waved her hand casually, "Sure, fans can vote for whoever they like, with one vote per person. How about it?"

Yi Tiantian nodded and gestured to the show's coordinator nearby.

The coordinator seized this opportunity for publicity and quickly implemented it.

These two votes will conclude before class ends, meaning the students will know the results before then!

Qi Ruolin smiled confidently, already looking forward to the show.

As the center position of the phenomenal girl group FM, Qi Ruolin's peak popularity exceeded 100 million!

Although she was currently on hiatus, a dead camel is still bigger than a horse. She believed she could definitely outshine this newcomer idol!

It's just a few hit variety shows!

Qi Ruolin didn't take them seriously at all!

Until the end of class, the students were extremely anxious and nervous, more eager to know the results than the two parties involved.

The minute hand of the clock circled round and round until it was almost time for class to end.

Under the expectant gazes of the students, the show's staff finally printed out the voting results as an image.

"Haha, Yi Tiantian is going to be humiliated. How dare she think she could beat our Sister Ruolin? What a delusion!"

"Yi Tiantian is going to embarrass herself on the show! Our Sister Ruolin is the best!"

Qi Ruolin's lackeys flattered her, giggling behind their hands.

Hearing the mocking voices from the back row, Yi Tiantian remained unfazed.

"Does Qi Ruolin still think she's the top idol she used to be?"

"In the years she's been on hiatus for college, several new and more famous girl groups have emerged. Her original fans have long since moved on!"

"Yet Qi Ruolin still clings to her narrow-minded view, thinking she's still the idol legend!"

Hearing Yi Tiantian's words, Qi Ruolin's delicate features twisted in anger.

She had indeed neglected the entertainment industry's developments over the past few years, as she had been focused on dating her boyfriend!

But she refused to believe what Yi Tiantian said was true!

Her fans would remember her!

She was the eternal idol in their hearts!

Qi Ruolin stubbornly held her head high, staring intently at the results in the staff member's hands.

Her lackeys hurriedly comforted her, "Sister Ruolin, you're the best! You're the best in our eyes!"

Qi Ruolin glared fiercely at her lackeys, who immediately fell silent.

Everyone focused their attention on the voting results the staff member was about to reveal, even the viewers in the comments paused their scrolling.

As the staff member unfolded and turned the white paper, everyone saw the two voting results.

Yi Tiantian: 86,325 votes

Qi Ruolin: 888,759 votes

The students present were stunned!

They stretched out their hands, counting the numbers on the paper.

"Tens, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands!"

Qi Ruolin had over 800,000 more votes than Yi Tiantian!

This was insane!!

Seeing the results, Qi Ruolin finally broke into a genuine smile.

She raised her eyebrows triumphantly, feeling elated.

Though this result was far from her previous popularity, surpassing Yi Tiantian by over 800,000 votes was a pleasant surprise!

The lackeys sitting next to Qi Ruolin felt like they had won themselves.

They whistled and applauded, as if they were the victors!

The viewers in the comments were equally shocked by the result.

[I'm speechless!! Your Lin is still your Lin! Over 800,000 more votes, Yi Tiantian, what do you have to say?]

[Just now, someone was insinuating that our Ruolin’s temporary break is why she doesn’t have much popularity. Come on out now! Look at the voting results—your face must be red now!]

[It’s unbelievable how different the results between these two are! Could there really be an error in the voting results?]

[Haha, when they can't win, they start saying the voting results are wrong. Truly worthy of being Yi Tiantian’s fans! Just as trashy as their idol!]

The chat screen had become dominated by Qi Ruolin’s fans, who were jumping around like annoying fleas, eager to announce to the world that their Sister Ruolin had received over 800,000 votes!

Qi Ruolin leaned back slightly and raised her hand again, saying directly, "Teacher Yi, it seems my popularity isn’t bad. But yours... How do you feel about only having 80,000 votes?"

Before Yi Tiantian could answer, another staff member ran in from the door.

"Sorry, there was an error when we recorded the votes!"

A reversal!

The students all looked excitedly at the voting results held by the new staff member.

Qi Ruolin, who had just been mocking Yi Tiantian, froze in place.

Could Yi Tiantian be about to surpass her?!

Sweat beads formed on Qi Ruolin’s forehead.

The group of Qi Ruolin’s minions also became tense, staring intently at the voting results.

The new staff member flipped the voting results over, revealing:

Yi Tiantian: 886,325 votes

Qi Ruolin: 888,759 votes

The students below all wore expressions of sudden realization.

They felt something was off with the voting results!

Even if there was a gap between Yi Tiantian and Qi Ruolin, it couldn’t possibly be over 800,000!

Now the difference was only a few thousand, making everything seem much more reasonable!

Although Qi Ruolin was somewhat dissatisfied with the voting results, she breathed a sigh of relief inside.

No matter what, her vote count was still higher than Yi Tiantian’s!

So this time, she had still won!

But in the next second, the staff member slapped his head and said, "Oops, I forgot a zero."

He then added a zero to Yi Tiantian’s 886,325, making the final result:

Yi Tiantian: 8,863,250 votes

Qi Ruolin: 888,759 votes

The situation kept twisting and turning!

The classmates were shocked again and again, and some of them even began to suspect if there was something wrong with the voting.

The staff member could see everyone's doubts and quickly added, "On our program's official website, you can check the detailed voting records. Each account only has one voting opportunity. If anyone has any questions, feel free to verify it yourself. We apologize for the inconvenience caused by the printing issue."

Hearing this from the program staff, all the students instantly opened their phones.

Qi Ruolin, in disbelief, clicked open the program's official website and indeed saw the detailed voting records.

"Ruolin..."

The little followers around her were too stunned to speak.

Qi Ruolin's face was darker than the bottom of a pot. She gripped her phone tightly, her knuckles turning slightly white.

How could this be possible! Yi Tiantian had over eight million more votes than her!

This...

"Absolutely impossible!"

Qi Ruolin finally couldn't contain her anger and slammed the table as she stood up, shouting loudly.

"Sorry, Miss Qi, but our program's tally is final. If you have any doubts, you can count the records one by one."

The staff member bowed slightly and then left the classroom.

[I said it! Our entire group went to vote for Tiantian! Her vote count couldn't possibly be so low!]

[Can the program please do a proper count next time? This sudden change scared me to death!! Also, Tiantian is amazing!]

[Tiantian deserves all this love!]

[Qi Ruolin is so embarrassed, look at her expression, hahaha!]

Qi Ruolin's fans fell silent, while the previously suppressed Yi Tiantian fans finally had their chance to speak up!

"So, as you can see, even the most popular idols can experience a decline in popularity due to changing times, making the idol industry very cruel."

Yi Tiantian ignored the raging Qi Ruolin and continued discussing the issue of popularity with her classmates based on the results of this experiment.

Qi Ruolin, ignored and unable to bear it any longer, turned and left the classroom.

Seeing their leader leave, the little followers also stood up and followed her out.

After that rowdy group left, the classroom instantly returned to its usual peaceful and pleasant atmosphere, allowing Yi Tiantian to finish her lesson smoothly.

After class, the three guests went to the cafeteria together for a meal.

Cheng Zhi had heard from the staff about the voting incident in Yi Tiantian's class during the previous session, so she brought it up during their meal.

"Tiantian, I heard you and Qi Ruolin held a vote?"

"Mm, it wasn't a big deal, just for the lecture."

Yi Tiantian stirred her fragrant spicy hot pot and replied sweetly.

"Although I didn't expect to get eight million votes!"

"Our Tiantian family is just too powerful!"

Taking a bite of the hot and spicy fish tofu, Yi Tiantian genuinely felt happy.

Hearing this, Gang Fengxing was also delighted.

If he had a tail, he would have wagged it right then and there!

His Tiantian Ge is just that amazing!

"Tiantian Ge, you're so impressive!"

Gang Fengxing couldn't help but praise her.

Yi Tiantian chuckled, "I didn't expect the class to be quite interesting. How about your side?"

Gang Fengxing recalled the two classes he taught today and indeed remembered something peculiar.

So he shared it with Yi Tiantian.

"My teaching went smoothly, but I noticed that the students in my class always huddled together in groups." Gang Fengxing reflected, "Isn't that a bit strange?"

Cheng Zhi also tilted her head in thought. "I noticed the same thing; the students in my class also often form small cliques."

Yi Tiantian thought carefully before responding, "Back when I was in school, close friends often hung out together. That seems normal, but the cliques here do seem a bit odd."

"It might just be kids playing around."

Cheng Zhi gave up thinking about it and started eating her hot dry noodles.

Yi Tiantian finished her meal first. After wiping her mouth, she began observing the hurried students around her.

Just as Gang Fengxing mentioned earlier, the cliques in this school seemed overly prevalent.

Moreover, these cliques had very strong barriers between them, showing clear hostility towards each other.

"This school is truly rotten to the core."

Yi Tiantian shook her head, coming to this conclusion.

Gang Fengxing and Cheng Zhi, who were still eating, suddenly looked up, expecting some juicy gossip.

But they were surprised to find that Yi Tiantian only made this remark and nothing more.

After that day, life at Brand University of the Arts remained calm for two more days, and Qi Ruolin, who had left in disgrace last time, did not cause any more trouble for Yi Tiantian.

The filming of *Idol University Season 3* was nearing its end, and the students faced an impromptu test before the final episodes.

For this test, each student needed to perform their best talent.

During this test, the guests would assess the students' progress and evaluate their performances.

The students took this test very seriously because it was not just a simple evaluation of their studies but also a rare opportunity.

They knew that *Idol University Season 3* had a high reach, and a standout performance could bring unexpected opportunities!

The guests had been working overtime to provide the students with their final training sessions.

Yi Tiantian had brought low-fat snacks to the idol class for several consecutive days, allowing the students to replenish their energy while training.

Finally, on the day of the test, the three guests sat in the front row of the large auditorium at Brand University of the Arts, ready to evaluate the students' progress.

Cheng Zhi specially brought Yi Tiantian a bottle of throat lozenges and handed it to her considerately. "Tiantian Ge, if you get tired from commenting, you can suck on one of these."

"Thank you, Cheng Zhi!"

Yi Tiantian accepted the throat lozenges and sat down.

On the other side, Gang Fengxing brought Yi Tiantian a bottle of hot water, even using a yellow duck thermos.

"Tiantian Ge, this is hot water. Remember to drink it if you get thirsty."

Yi Tiantian accepted the yellow duck thermos from Gang Fengxing and thanked him sweetly.

This time, the three teachers were responsible for evaluating the results of three classes together. Each teacher would give a score, and the final grade would be the average of the three.

After the test began, the students took turns walking onto the stage to showcase their talents.

Looking at the youthful faces, Yi Tiantian gave them all good scores.

The audience watching through the live stream also noted several outstanding performers and followed them on Weibo.

Just as the test was about to end, a commotion came from the entrance of the auditorium.

Then, a tall and beautiful girl wearing a school skirt walked in from the door.

The one who arrived was the school's top girl—Qi Ruolin.

Behind her still followed a large group of hangers-on, each with an expression of wild abandon on their faces.

"Teacher Yi, I wonder if I can participate in this test?"

Qi Ruolin had already adjusted her mood a few days ago, and she confidently walked to the center of the stage.

The male student who was originally preparing to showcase his talent was so scared that he fled the stage in a panic.

Standing at the center of the stage, Qi Ruolin seemed like the ruler of the school. With her arms crossed, she exuded an overwhelming presence.

Gang Fengxing was about to ask Qi Ruolin not to disrupt the test when he heard Yi Tiantian speak up first.

"If you want to perform, we welcome you anytime."

"Alright, you said it, Teacher Yi."

Qi Ruolin's lips curled upward slightly. She hadn't expected Yi Tiantian to agree so easily.

Last time, she lost face because she couldn't match Yi Tiantian's popularity. Although the incident didn't cause much of a stir online, Qi Ruolin couldn't swallow the humiliation.

So today, her purpose in participating in the test was to demonstrate her skills in front of the cameras and prove to everyone that reclaiming her peak status would be a matter of minutes!

"Qi Ruolin is here for the test because it was her boyfriend's idea! He wants to keep her away while he hosts a silver party at home!"

"Right now, he's happily playing kissing games with four other men and women at their place!"

Yi Tiantian watched the confident Qi Ruolin and once again indulged in some gossip.

Qi Ruolin still scoffed at this, as her relationship with her boyfriend was well-known to be solid!

She wouldn't fall for Yi Tiantian's psychological tactics to undermine her confidence!

However, Qi Ruolin didn't notice one of the troublemakers among her followers touching his nose, seemingly hiding something.

"Since Teacher Yi says it's okay, please begin your performance."

Cheng Zhi said to Qi Ruolin on the stage.

"Sure, Teacher. Today, I'll perform a song and dance routine. The song is called 'In My Heart.'"

Qi Ruolin said confidently.

As soon as the name of the song was mentioned, the chat exploded with comments.

[**'In My Heart'!! A blast from the past! This was FM Girl Group's biggest hit back in the day!! They reached the top of the charts with this song!**]

[**Trivia: 'In My Heart' is hard to beat in terms of popularity! And Qi Ruolin was the center during that performance!!**]

[**Qi Ruolin will definitely be the top performer today! After all, talent and popularity don't always align! I believe Qi Ruolin's skills are still on point!**]

The accompanist found the necessary backing track for Qi Ruolin. As the energetic dance music began, Qi Ruolin naturally started showcasing her dance moves.

While dancing, Qi Ruolin pushed herself to make every move perfect.

The students who had already completed their tests watched Qi Ruolin's dance and marveled at her professionalism as a former member of a girl group.

After the flawless opening dance, it was time for the singing part.

Confident, Qi Ruolin was very satisfied with her dance. Accompanied by the music, she began to sing.

"My dream goddess..."

Before she could sing a few words, Qi Ruolin suddenly felt she couldn't find the right feel for the song.

Most of the words she sang were off-key!

Qi Ruolin tried to salvage the situation, but somehow, she couldn't even remember the dance moves.

After performing for just a minute, Qi Ruolin stood there like a wooden statue.

The guests below looked grave, and the students cast doubtful glances at Qi Ruolin.

They whispered among themselves, hesitant to voice their disappointment openly.

But the viewers in the live stream could express their disappointment freely, and they were clearly disappointed by Qi Ruolin's strange performance.

[**What? Is this it? The top center of the girl group is at this level?**]

[**She messed up after just one minute. Qi Ruolin has really regressed during her hiatus!**]

[**As an old fan, I'm really disappointed. Ruolin, you took a break to improve, but why are you getting worse?**]

Although no one knew why Qi Ruolin performed so poorly, Yi Tiantian had the answer from the system.

"During her hiatus, Qi Ruolin neglected her career, spending her days smoking, drinking, hanging out with a clique, and dating. Her voice and body have deteriorated significantly!"

"Her physical age is now ten years older than a middle-aged person's, and her memory has severely declined!"

"She can't reach her previous peak, let alone her lowest standard!"

Yi Tiantian's thoughts answered everyone's doubts, and the students sighed in realization.

Gang Fengxing exchanged a glance with Cheng Zhi and then asked Qi Ruolin, who was frozen on stage, "Student, do you want to continue your performance?"

Hearing Yi Tiantian's thoughts, Qi Ruolin completely broke down!

Because she realized everything Yi Tiantian said was true!

Her irregular schedule during her break from school, coupled with some unhealthy habits, had turned her body into a black hole!

Her face was so stiff that she couldn't make any expressions, and Qi Ruolin silently shed two streams of tears before turning to leave the stage.

Gang Fengxing and Cheng Zhi, who were in the audience, both breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that Qi Ruolin hadn't chosen to continue causing a scene.

After leaving the stage, Qi Ruolin's followers tried to comfort her, but one rebellious boy seemed very distracted.

"I want to go home now."

Qi Ruolin had been thoroughly devastated and no longer had the heart to stay at school.

Upon hearing this, the rebellious boy quickly interjected, "Sister Ruolin, let's just wander around the school for a bit, we'll help you relax!"

"I don't need it; I just want to go home and see Ranan."

Qi Ruolin's expression remained blank, and her tone was cold.

She ignored the boy's objections and started to walk away.

However, the rebellious boy grabbed Qi Ruolin's arm and pleaded, "Sister Ruolin, please listen to me; you really can't go back now!"

Only then did Qi Ruolin sense something was amiss.

Why was this rebellious boy always trying to stop her from going home?

Could it be...

Recalling what Yi Tiantian had said about her boyfriend cheating, Qi Ruolin suddenly understood.

"You tell me, why are you stopping me from going home?! Is Liu Ran doing something shameful at home?!"

Qi Ruolin exploded in anger, loudly questioning the rebellious boy.

The other followers were terrified by Qi Ruolin's outburst, and the rebellious boy stammered, "Sister Ruolin, I, I only found out by accident..."

Qi Ruolin had thought that even if she lost her fans and her ability to sing and dance, she still had a devoted boyfriend as her emotional support.

But she never expected that her most cherished boyfriend would be doing something disgusting behind her back at home!

Without hesitation, Qi Ruolin rushed home.

She and Liu Ran had been dating since their freshman year, which was three years ago.

During these three years, they had bought a luxury villa near the school as their little home.

When Qi Ruolin arrived home, she indeed saw the floor littered with chaos.

There were various colors and styles of underwear, along with some unspeakable adult toys...

Overwhelmed, she fell to her knees, sobbing uncontrollably.

.

The next day, almost everyone in the school knew the news—Qi Ruolin had caught Liu Ran hosting a swinger party and caught him in the act!

"Hey, have you heard? Even though Qi Ruolin caught Liu Ran cheating, she doesn't want to break up! She loves him too much!"

"Yeah! I admire her resilience. I heard that when Liu Ran wanted to move out of the villa, Qi Ruolin actually knelt down and begged him not to leave!"

"Liu Ran posted a long message on WeChat last night, calling Qi Ruolin disgusting. Then Qi Ruolin commented saying she was wrong for coming back early and ruining his plans!"

"Holy crap, I don't have his WeChat, show me the screenshots!"

Yi Tiantian listened to her classmates' chatter and sighed inwardly.

"Even though Qi Ruolin is wealthy, she's ultimately not on the same level as Liu Ran."

"This is the perfect opportunity for Liu Ran to dump Qi Ruolin, whom he's grown tired of!"

Combining Yi Tiantian's thoughts, her classmates also understood the situation.

Suddenly, a girl's crying and shouting echoed through the hallway, and the students all rushed to the classroom door to look out.

"Holy crap! It's Qi Ruolin!"

"She's following Liu Ran, grabbing his clothes!"

Curious, Yi Tiantian glanced outside and saw the tall and handsome Liu Ran kicking Qi Ruolin away in disgust.

"We've broken up, get lost!"

Qi Ruolin, kicked in the stomach, fell to the ground, clutching her stomach and crying.

"Ranan, Ranan, don't leave me!"

But Liu Ran ignored her cries and continued walking forward.

Witnessing this, the students gasped.

They looked at Qi Ruolin, kneeling on the ground and crying, realizing she had lost her usual pride. Now, she resembled a stray dog, abandoned and left behind.

Qi Ruolin, with disheveled hair, struggled to stand up, holding her stomach as she ran after Liu Ran.

The students spread the story throughout Brand University of the Arts, and now everyone knew that Qi Ruolin had lost her biggest support!

The followers who used to trail behind Qi Ruolin had disappeared, becoming more discreet around the school.

With Qi Ruolin's downfall, Brand University of the Arts temporarily returned to its usual calm.

But only Yi Tiantian knew that the real crisis had yet to surface.

"Liu Ran, the son of the vice president, is the one who sets the rules among the students in this university."

"And the rule he sets is that the rich are supreme!"

"Students are grouped according to their family status, and the children of working-class families are recognized as servants in this school! All those above them can abuse them at will!"

"That is why the atmosphere at Brand University of the Arts is so peculiar, precisely because of the rule set by Liu Ran!"