Chapter 40: "Brother Can, you really understand the mechanics of traffic."

"Oh, come on. Music is just for fun, isn't it? Don't take it so seriously."
"You have to play around with it to make progress; you've got to know how to have fun."

Inside the studio, Li Can was joking around with the rest of the group. He had no idea that a middle-aged man somewhere was currently fuming, blood pressure skyrocketing, frantically typing away as he struggled to condemn this behavior of "lacking professional ethics" and "turning art into entertainment."

Honestly... even if he did know, he would probably just take it as a bit of entertainment, maybe even find it amusing.

"That's true. Ever since I started playing music, I've felt much more relaxed, and my mental state has returned to normal."
"Exactly, playing music is good for the brain. I feel like my IQ has been climbing lately."

The group began to tease each other with laughter. They were very much looking forward to seeing how the internet would react. Lin Feng, in particular, was impatient, eager to face the "judgment" as soon as possible. Better to get it over with and enjoy the aftermath.

As expected, within just three days of the variety show airing, it hit the trending topics:
#Nonsense Literature—Have You Mastered the Art of Saying Nothing?#

Led by Lin Feng and Han Jiayin, the audience watching the show were the first to test the waters in the live comments. Soon, people began using the memes in other comment sections with a novel sense of irony. Uninformed netizens would ask what it meant, only to be enlightened by others and directed to clips of Lin Feng and Han Jiayin. After laughing their heads off, they would then join in on the "nonsense" carnival.

Lin Feng and Han Jiayin were soon crowned with the prestigious title of "Internet Progenitors of Nonsense Literature." As the scope of this literary style expanded, the true founding father was inevitably brought to light—Mr. Lu Xun.

[One tree is a jujube tree, and the other is also a jujube tree... Everyone, get up and start doing your reading comprehension assignments!!]
[Confucius said, if three people are walking together, there must be three people.]

At first, quite a few netizens didn't care for this kind of "nonsense." However, there are brilliant philosophical minds to be found everywhere. The first to join the fray was the "Retard Bar" on the forums. Despite the name, the members were either poets or philosophers; they delighted in using deep humor and complex thought to play word games, obsessed with logical traps and often discussing topics that seemed idiotic but held genuine philosophical depth.

This grand carnival of nonsense literature truly sparked inspiration among the folks at the "Retard Bar."

[Before a crab dies, it was alive.]
[The reason the dean's dog died is that someone wanted the dean's dog's life.]
[Xiao Ming, who is good at finding joy in suffering, is finding joy in suffering; he, who was about to die of laughter, died of laughter while working overtime.]

With the entire nation creating content, similar jokes became increasingly brilliant. Soon, a large number of netizens began using "nonsense literature" to satirize people who loved to spout empty talk, resonating with countless others. For instance... during leadership speeches, work reports, and various other scenarios. In the past, people mostly just complained, but now, they preferred using nonsense literature to mock the phenomenon of empty talk.

Naturally, it surged to the top of the trending lists, continuously influencing internet trends. As the ones who kicked off this "cultural movement" in the digital age, Lin Feng and Han Jiayin naturally became subjects of discussion, their popularity climbing steadily.

"Brother Can, you really understand traffic better than anyone."
Browsing through the trending topics, Lin Feng realized he might have truly hit it big. He couldn't help but admire Li Can's way of thinking. No wonder everyone said Li Can was destined to be a top-tier artist—just looking at his mental state and thought process, it was clear he was extraordinary.

"It's a given." Li Can wasn't surprised. After all, it was still the early days of the internet traffic era, and everyone was still far too serious.

"Just remember," Li Can added, "while we're having fun, we have to be careful to filter the content and consider the impact when we're staging a show." It was like those trainees—if handled correctly, the "Brother Kun" archetype could still exist, and basketball could still be linked to singing, dancing, and rap, but it didn't have to follow the original's path of becoming a disaster.

"Alright, the hype will continue to rise. Coordinate with the 'Xianxia' project to keep releasing material. Lin Feng and Jiayin, you're all set." Li Can stood up and clapped his hands. "Come on, how has the practice been going? The joint music gala with the University of Science and Technology is starting soon; we need to enter the final stage of coordination."

"Don't worry, it's all handled!" Chen Gang said with a grin. He was on keyboards, one of the people with the least pressure. The other low-pressure member, Zhao Ze on bass, pushed up his glasses and told a "bassist's hell joke" just to briefly assert his presence.

"To be rigorous, I just need to coordinate a bit. After all, I'm the bassist—I can't be absent, but I can be invisible."

"I'm fine too, I'm on rhythm guitar," Han Jiayin said with a radiant smile, waving her hand.

Li Can turned to look at Winnie, a subtle flicker deep in his eyes. Ever since he started feeling like this Russian girl might be trying to hit on him, he felt like their "bro" dynamic might not last. He decided to collect some data and have Xiao Ai analyze it later.

"What about you, Winnie?"
"It's hard, but it feels great. I've barely practiced classical guitar lately; I've been practicing this the whole time."

Winnie chuckled, a beautiful, heart-stirring smile. Li Can, suspicious that their friendship was morphing into something else, felt his gaze flicker; he suddenly found it difficult to look her in the eye. He turned back to Lin Feng.

"What about you, Brother Feng?"
"...No big deal, just need a bit more coordination."
"Good."

Since everyone was mostly ready, Li Can nodded. "Then, let's enter the coordination phase!"

A rock band needs a certain amount of time to settle into a new track. However, if the members are very familiar with each other and share a strong rapport, this time can be significantly shortened. Sometimes, when the brainwaves align, they can even come up with better arrangements on the fly. It was 70% design and 30% chemistry. You needed the responsiveness to actively coordinate with others, but also the control to shine during a solo.

Although the "D-Power" band had just been registered, it had actually been formed quite a while ago. Multiple past collaborations meant their teamwork was seamless. Often, a single subtle signal was enough to understand what the other person meant. Under these circumstances, rehearsals progressed very quickly.

Of course, aside from the serious practice, Li Can also began to pay closer attention to every word and action of Winnie. It was strange—when he wasn't paying attention, he didn't feel anything, but once he started observing carefully, things really did feel off.

That night, lying in bed, Li Can asked internally:
"Xiao Ai, analyze Winnie for me. Is she trying to hit on me?"

[Understood, Mr. Li Can. The big data system is analyzing for you...]
[According to the data recorded during this period, excluding information exchanges related to show content, Winnie's gaze toward Mr. Li Can accounted for 75% of her focus, though she frequently avoided Mr. Li Can's gaze when noticed.]
[Analyzing micro-expressions: when Winnie speaks with you, her eyelid muscles contract naturally, and her pupils dilate slightly—identified as joy... In summary, the degree of secret affection is as high as 91%. If Mr. Li Can takes the initiative, the probability of her acceptance is 97%.]

Li Can blurted out, "Holy crap."
"Is there even a difference between that and 100%?"