Qi Ting laughed upon hearing this, unable to help herself as she pinched Shen Jinyueâs cheek.
âJinyue, all geniuses have their edges. Itâs just that some people prefer to keep them hidden, while Teacher Xu never hides them, and only occasionally likes to take an unconventional approach,â she said.
âYou talk so cutely, Jinyue. How can there be people at your school who donât like you?â
âI donât know, maybe I often hurt peopleâs feelings with what I say.â Shen Jinyueâs expression dimmed in an instant, âI donât want to go back to school.â
Qi Ting wanted to comfort her but then suddenly saw Lin Wanzhou turning around and walking towards the door, followed by Pei Muchan. She stopped talking and approached Lin Wanzhou.
âSister Zhou Zhou, whatâs wrong?â
âNothing, go home and sleep,â she said in an even tone.
âOh, okay,â Qi Ting replied. She glanced at Xu Qingyan, who was still playing games, and casually asked, âWhat about Teacher Xu? Isnât he going back?â
âHe will go back after he finishes that round,â Pei Muchan took over and then said to Shen Jinyue, âCome on, Jinyue, Iâll take you back.â
âOkay, thank you, Sister Pei.â Shen Jinyue nodded obediently, waved to Qi Ting, âBye-bye, Ting Ting, bye-bye, Sister Zhou Zhou.â
Responses came in succession, and the office became quiet again, leaving only the clacking sounds of mouse and keyboard.
This set of desktop computers was configured by Xu Qingyan himself, one set in the office and another in his apartment. He also took the opportunity to upgrade his laptop, truly out with the old and in with the new.
Xu Qingyan half-heartedly played the game while his thoughts drifted off.
Time was simply too tight. Although âI Am The King of Songsâ was already in its fifth season, which was nearing the dusk of popular music variety shows, he had already accumulated quite a few works.
But having a falling out with the showâs production at this time was too hasty, like forcing a duck onto a perch.
Maybe he should have waited a little longer, to give the market a bit of time. Wait for âQing Tianâ to hit big, for âThe One I Missâ to be uncovered, wait for his eight songs to gain greater influence.
Or maybe write some more good songs, to stoke the flames higher.
But there are no ifs in life, opportunities come just once. Before joining this music variety show, he had a premonition that this production team was almost like a stepping stone served on a platter.
He just didnât expect that the production team of âI Am The King of Songsâ could go so overboard, nearly reaching the point of unrestrained, and they hit Pei Muchanâs pride hard.
Pride is something that almost determines a personâs spirit and even the trajectory of their lifeâs latter half.
If he continued to gather strength, or kept his frustrations silent, it would only shatter Pei Muchanâs heart. Whatâs the use of delayed justice, even if achieved later?
âA gentlemanâs revenge is not too late even after ten years, but a capable gentleman generally doesnât hold grudges overnight,â he muttered to himself, absent-minded, the screen turning grey.
He got up and walked to the window. His phone suddenly vibrated. Zhou Xiao had sent a message.
âBrother Xu, the dark side of this show is really causing a mess. I see the posts and searches climbing the hotlist. Itâs understandable the production team is backing Jiang Jingsheng to fulfill the sponsorâs wishes.â
âBut this is going too far, isnât it? They are too aggressive, blatantly manipulating behind the scenes, dirtier than dirt!â
He glanced at it and typed back.
âBecause Wang Yu beat Jiang Jingsheng, the production team had to control the votes to eliminate her last minute. Theyâve always been brazen and donât care how rough their methods are.â
He had calculated against the production team from the start, planning to use them as a stepping stone. After all, the production team wasnât some pure saint and had plenty of dark history themselves.
Being a bit dirtier didnât seem to matter much.
At first, he was worried about Pei Muchan advancing to the final four and even planned the songs for both Pei Helin and Lin to sing in the final four, forcing the production team to make a move.
Pei Muchan and Lin Wanzhou were so capable, coupled with the song he had given them. Not to mention totally outclassing the idol singer Jiang Jingsheng, defeating Hou Xueheng wouldnât be a problem either.
If that came to pass, the production team would face the most vexing situation.
They would either need to eliminate both Pei and Lin in the cut from four to two to protect Jiang Jingsheng, the prettily decorated shelf. Or eliminate one of them and then use rules to oust Hou Xueheng.
Suddenly, several messages from Zhou Mian buzzed in.
âThatâs true, without eliminating Sister Pei, Jiang Jingsheng wouldnât stand a chance to advance. Even if they arenât eliminated in the cut from seven to four, they would be out in the semifinals cut from four to two.â
âHmm, I know,â Xu Qingyan replied.
He had taken a moment to glance at the trending searches, visibly seeing the heat rolling up. Rising steadily, they had climbed to the twenty-third spot on the trending list.
He suddenly felt more confident, rushing ahead even if time was tight, releasing the MV at this juncture. He was already gambling, provoking discussions and attacking the showâs production team.
No makeup room, being ignored when asking for directions, no car service. One small detail after another piled up, turning what were initially not fatal oversights into flaws.
One unexpected event after another stacked together, all were opportunities.
However, this was also a blessing in disguise, at least he didnât need to waste songs on âI Am the King of Songsâ, the impact and exposure from the four songs on stage were already enough.
Whether it was Pei Muchan or Lin Wanzhou, even though they had been in the circle longer than him, when it came to cunning and scheming, none were his match.
He was used to fighting his way through life; he had seen many people and there was almost nothing he wouldnât dare do. As for the production team, in his eyes, it was just expendable material.
Stepping stones for opening a mountain, the green bricks one steps on to move forward.
Elsewhere, Zhou Mian stood on the balcony and skillfully lit a cigarette, looking at the chat history and letting out a sigh.
Xu Qingyanâs way of doing things was too fierce, he had the guts to directly challenge the production team after accumulating enough anger. The concern was that the sharper the edge he showed, the fiercer the production teamâs retaliation would be.
There were advantages too, more peopleâs attention would come their way, and they would see Xu Qingyanâs unhidden sharpness and talent.
A lyric and composition prodigy who had written seven or eight hit songs in a month, a budding director who shot movie-quality MVs with his bare hands â all the spotlight was draped over him.
But the taller the tree, the stronger the wind; Zhou Mian looked worried.
Xu Qingyan was almost the biggest potential stock he had in his hands⦠If possible, he really wanted to take this disaster on for him instead, considering he was just a minor character.@@novelbin@@
âArenât you done talking yet? Whatâs there to talk about?â his wifeâs dissatisfied voice came from next door, tinged with complaint, âAll day, itâs work. You might as well just live with your phone!â
Zhou Mian felt a choke in his heart, knowing full well he had mentioned earlier that he had something to do. Annoyance flashed through his mind, but thinking of the mortgage, he suppressed it, took a puff of his cigarette, and replied.
âBrother Xu, I donât know what to say, just call me if you need anything,â he said.
âOkay.â
The game was over, Xu Qingyan shut down the computer.
As he stood up and walked out, his mind was a jumble of thoughts. He seemed to have a premonition, a chaos, that was almost always present in the darkest nights before a great success.
They had told him more than once that they wanted him to be seen, to be understood by more people, to shine brightly. Xu Qingyan also hoped that they could shine brightly, eager to see them become divas.
The road ahead was long, they were all underdogs, only capable of lifting each other up. Elevating one another and then being pulled up in turn, step by step. Find exclusive stories on empire
Just like Xu Qingyan at that moment, his shot had already been fired; let the bullet fly a little longer.