Chapter 148: An Overnight Sensation

At this moment, not only was the mentor aware that Su Tong was about to tell a story and quite interested, but the audience also grew deeply intrigued.

“That year, my older brother was only seventeen, and my younger sisters were nine and not even three years old,” Su Tong said with a complex smile—part sweetness, part guilt. “Nian Nu Jiao is quite well-known now on the show circuit, but few know that it was those two little sisters who supported Nian Nu Jiao and the streamer in the beginning... One was nine, the other not even three, yet they sat in front of the computer for hours every day…”

As he spoke, Su Tong’s eyes reddened slightly, but a proud, satisfied smile remained on his face.

The show's post-production music amplified the emotion of this story infinitely.

Longtime fans of Nian Nu Jiao couldn’t help but shed tears.

That year, indeed, was very hard for Da Qiao and Xiao Qiao.

Many felt ashamed that when Su Tong announced Xiao Qiao’s withdrawal from the show and Da Qiao’s indefinite hiatus, some were still dissatisfied. Some even subtly or openly accused Su Tong of selfishness, claiming that as soon as he gained some fame, he pushed the two sisters aside.

In truth, it wasn’t that Su Tong was afraid they would steal his spotlight or that he wanted fame at their expense. He genuinely cared for his two little sisters.

“Now, with my two sisters stepping away to enjoy their happy childhood, Nian Nu Jiao is left with only one person. That person is me,” Su Tong’s eyes glistened with tears. “They are the kindest, most obedient, and best sisters in the world. I want to say to the whole world: thank you, I’m sorry, and I love you.”

With that, Su Tong took a deep bow.

Meanwhile, at Su Tong’s home, Xiaoxiao had fallen asleep on the sofa in front of the TV, but Xiaoyu was still watching.

Upon hearing Su Tong’s words, tears immediately streamed down Xiaoyu’s face, releasing all the grievances she had endured over the years in that single moment.

“Brother, you are the best brother in the world,” Xiaoyu silently whispered, unable to stop the tears flowing.

This story had no thrilling twists or tear-jerking drama—it was simply a brother’s guilt and affection for his sisters, told through the lens of live streaming.

Everything was left for the audience to imagine.

Many viewers quickly searched for Nian Nu Jiao, uncovering a wealth of useful information.

This story was not fabricated.

Su Tong practically exploded into fame overnight. Previously, a few of his songs had spread far and wide; now, he himself was known.

His songs, once famous only for “I Believe,” were now accompanied by others like “The Sailor,” “Brothers Sleeping on My Upper Bunk,” and “Childhood,” all unearthed and cherished.

“Wow, what a hidden talent! So many songs, each a classic or folk tune. I’m just discovering them now.”

“If it weren’t for Su Tong appearing on the Voice program, I wouldn’t even know he existed, let alone that he had so many songs.”

“So beautiful. Many are campus folk songs and children’s tunes.”

“I heard Su Tong originally wrote songs for his two little sisters. Such deep sibling love.”

“Good people deserve good fortune. Such a wonderful brother should definitely be famous.”

“I absolutely love this song ‘Childhood.’”

“‘Brothers Sleeping on My Upper Bunk’ hit me right in the feels.”

“‘The Sailor’ is so inspiring. I can’t believe I’m only discovering it now.”

“Turns out Su Tong is Nian Nu Jiao, and Nian Nu Jiao is Su Tong. It’s a pity he wasn’t on TV before, and his musical talent went unnoticed.”

“No need to feel sorry for that. Su Tong—no, everyone calls him ‘Brother’ or ‘Gege’—so handsome, I’m going to call him Gege from now on. Long live Gege; he finally made it.”

“Gege is mighty. From now on, I’m your die-hard fan.”

“Brother is so handsome, my new idol. You reign supreme.”

“Wow, Brother is amazing. Compared to him, the Bumbling Star is nothing.”

“Brother is the champion, champion, champion...”

“...”

If Su Tong was once only famous in his village and nearby areas, now he had stepped onto the city stage and was a household name throughout the city.

Those who knew of Su Tong’s existence were mainly fans of the game League of Legends and viewers or fans of the Voice.

Su Tong’s overnight fame was essentially that of a third-tier celebrity.

The League of Legends fans came from the show circuit and the online literature world.

The show circuit and online literature scene were both relatively small.

The Voice’s audience was much larger, propelling Su Tong from an almost unknown grassroots figure to a third-tier celebrity.

He had truly stepped into the entertainment industry.

Stars were generally divided into four tiers. Someone like Yang Feifei was a first-tier star.

Fourth-tier stars were like Su Tong’s previous status—earning more than background actors or trained supporting actors but not yet considered part of the entertainment industry proper.

Or contestants on the Voice who barely managed to get the mentor’s attention could be considered marginally fourth-tier.

Those eliminated early didn’t even make it to fourth-tier; they quickly vanished into obscurity, indistinguishable from ordinary people.

Though Su Tong had some prior experience, compared to stars who had accumulated years or even decades in the industry, he was still insignificant.

A few days later, Lin Yin returned to the Voice production team in Modu for training, while Su Tong found time for a single evening to guest perform a song at last year’s Best Female Singer Xiang Xiang’s concert.

Afterward, he spent half a day auditioning at a film company in Yandu.

The audition nearly caused a stir among the directors because they had asked Su Tong to portray a spoiled rich kid. When he unleashed his skills, treating the directors as mere lackeys and dragging them into the performance, they were so furious they nearly blew a fuse.

In the end, however, they had to admit defeat, believing Su Tong was naturally a rogue—bad to the bone.

Though the directors were very satisfied with his audition, Su Tong had other thoughts.

Earlier, he had refused to star in “Love Apartment,” but now that filming had begun, he no longer had time to join that urban smuggling blockbuster’s crew to shoot elsewhere.

Yet both Sister Yaya and Yang Feifei hoped Su Tong wouldn’t limit himself. “Love Apartment” was still in production and hadn’t aired yet; no one could predict how the market would react. They urged him not to pin all his hopes on one drama.

“I’ll cooperate with any scenes I have, but I can’t be a regular on the crew. ‘Love Apartment’ is my first choice,” Su Tong said firmly.

“You finally got a small supporting role, and you act like a big star, throwing a tantrum,” Yang Feifei scolded him for his lack of ambition.

But Sister Yaya supported Su Tong: “If you’re so determined, adjustments can be made. I’ll have someone coordinate with the director. Your scenes aren’t many anyway, and being a regular would just waste time.”

Sister Yaya was so kind. Su Tong thought she must have never been so close with a guy before, or she wouldn’t be so doting.

“Give the crew a few days off. No shooting. Tomorrow I’ll go to the Voice production team to compete. Feifei, you can organize everyone to build the sets during these days. When we return, we’ll skip the earlier scenes and shoot the later ones that need sets. We can piece them together in post-production,” Su Tong assigned tasks to Yang Feifei.

Yang Feifei was very familiar with the script and had some understanding of Su Tong’s directing style. He had explained a lot to her about how to handle things in the coming days.

“Come on, come on, you’re so gruff. Everyone can’t wait to replace you as director,” Sister Yaya said, inexplicably supporting Su Tong, leaving Yang Feifei puzzled. She didn’t know how Sister Yaya had taught Su Tong the divine essence that night; ever since then, Sister Yaya had been even kinder to him.

(To be continued...)