Chapter Four: Half a Million for a Song!

"Are you Teacher Jiang Yun?" asked a woman who looked like an assistant.

Jiang Yun nodded. "Yes, I am."

He glanced at the two visitors. One of them wore a mask and sunglasses, a baseball cap pulled low over her head, and a thick down jacket—a complete disguise.

"That must be King of Pop, Zhou Lun," Jiang Yun thought to himself.

The two sat across from him. Zhou Lun remained silent throughout; it was the assistant who did all the talking.

"Hello, my surname is Zhu. You can call me Zhu Yinling," the assistant introduced herself, extending her right hand.

Jiang Yun shook her hand politely, offering only a brief, courteous grip.

"May I ask, how much do you charge for a song?" Zhu Yinling inquired.

Jiang Yun was momentarily speechless. To invite someone to write a song, without even considering the quality, and to begin with the price—was this really how it was done? These two must be in some kind of predicament, Jiang Yun concluded after a moment’s reflection.

He held up five fingers.

"Five hundred thousand?" Zhu Yinling exclaimed in surprise.

"Deal," Zhou Lun agreed at once from beneath his cap, not even pausing to consider.

Jiang Yun was taken aback—he had meant fifty thousand, not five hundred thousand. But seeing Zhou Lun’s lavish demeanor, he decided to let it be; fifty thousand or five hundred thousand, it made little difference—he needed the money.

"However, I’ll need to see the quality of the song first," Zhu Yinling added.

"No problem!" Jiang Yun replied readily. "What style are you looking for?"

"You can tailor-make it?" Zhu Yinling’s eyes lit up.

Jiang Yun had only just crossed over to this world, and was still unfamiliar with the public personas of its celebrities. That was why he asked.

"Listen to one of my previous songs," Zhou Lun finally spoke.

"Quick, use the nunchaku—hm-hm ha-ha!" he sang a line.

Jiang Yun listened to the melody and understood the style.

"How about this one?" he suggested, and sang:

Do you remember you said home is the only fortress,
Keep running along the fragrant fields and flowing rivers,
With a gentle smile, I know the dreams of childhood.
Don’t cry—let fireflies carry you away,
The folk songs of the countryside will always be your refuge,
Come home, return to the beauty at the very beginning.

He hummed a segment of the chorus.

Zhou Lun’s eyes shone behind his sunglasses and mask; his excitement was palpable.

"This is the one," Zhou Lun declared. "We’ll use this song."

They discussed a few more details.

"This song’s rights are mine alone. You can’t sell it to anyone else," Zhou Lun stipulated.

"Of course," Jiang Yun agreed without hesitation.

The assistant left for a print shop to draft the contract, leaving Jiang Yun and Zhou Lun to chat idly.

"You’re so talented—have you considered making a comeback?" Zhou Lun asked.

Jiang Yun considered this and nodded. It was a necessary step. After debuting, an artist with little fame often chose to participate in variety talent shows to relaunch their career and prove themselves, gaining public attention.

The body’s original owner had been a third-rate singer with little recognition—this fit his situation perfectly.

"I have a spot for you," Zhou Lun offered. Through their conversation, the two had begun to forge the early bonds of friendship.

"What kind of spot?" Jiang Yun asked.

"A spot on the ‘You’ve Got Talent’ show. You can bypass the open auditions and go straight to the final challenger round."

Jiang Yun nodded in acceptance, without pretension.

Zhou Lun picked up his phone and called the show’s production team.

"There’s a challenger round tomorrow. You’ll take the stage then," Zhou Lun informed him after hanging up.

Jiang Yun agreed. They chatted a while longer until Zhu Yinling returned.

She handed Jiang Yun the contract. He reviewed it, found nothing amiss, and signed his name.

"Beep beep!"

Jiang Yun pulled out his phone—the bank had sent a notification of funds received. Generously, he announced, "Drinks are on me today!"

Underneath his mask, Zhou Lun’s expression was a little exasperated—much like Li Mengya’s. Money out with the left hand, back in with the right; wasn’t it all his money in the end?

"System, exchange for ‘Fragrant Fields’!"

"Ding! Congratulations, host. Exchange successful. Thirty thousand popularity points deducted!"

"System, why has the price gone up again?"

"Because the host exchanged for a premium hit, and is reselling the rights. The system has calculated that thirty thousand popularity points is entirely reasonable."

"A friendly reminder, host: as your popularity grows, the cost of exchanging songs will continue to rise."

Jiang Yun thought it over and understood. It was just like leveling up in an online game—the higher you go, the more experience you need for each level.

The three left Red Romance together. There was no farewell; they continued side by side, as Zhou Lun had heard Jiang Yun wanted to use a recording studio and insisted on taking him to the best one in the city.

Jiang Yun asked, "Brother Zhou, why did you ask the price first when inviting me to write a song?"

"It’s nothing. My fame is fading by the day. Fans say my creativity has dried up. I’m almost a has-been. I desperately need a good work to change their minds."

Jiang Yun still didn’t see how this related to the price.

"You get what you pay for," Zhou Lun replied.

Jiang Yun found this logic a bit baffling.

They got into a Porsche and drove off into the distance.

The phone rang.

Jiang Yun answered, "Hello? Who is this?"

"Hello! Is this Teacher Jiang Yun?"

"Yes, it is. May I ask who’s calling?"

"I’m a producer from NetEase Music. Would you be interested in uploading your work to our platform?"

"I’d be interested."

"Very well, let’s meet to discuss the details."

"Tomorrow at three in the afternoon, at Red Romance Café," Jiang Yun suggested.

The three arrived at the city’s premier recording studio.

Jiang Yun entered and began recording "Lip Service, Heart’s Truth."

"Ding! Personal information panel."

Host: Jiang Yun

Vocal skill: A (passable)

Acting: D (even a child is more gifted than you)

Directing: D (can make a no-budget indie film)

Owned songs: "Lip Service, Heart’s Truth," "Across the Sea to See You," "Fragrant Fields"

Popularity points: 70,086

With A-level vocal skill, he nailed the song in a single take. Thinking it over, he also recorded "Across the Sea to See You" and "Fragrant Fields," intending to release his versions after Li Mengya and Zhou Lun, taking advantage of the resulting buzz.

After parting ways with Zhou Lun, Jiang Yun headed to the city’s largest Walmart, stocking up on household goods and groceries.

"The feeling of having money is wonderful!" Jiang Yun returned to his rental flat, this time without the annoying landlady waiting at the door.

He cooked quietly, preparing braised beef with potatoes, stir-fried chili tofu skin, poached fish in chili oil, and glazed prawns, along with a bowl of hot and sour tripe soup.

Soon, the entire room was filled with tantalizing aromas. The dishes were served—colorful, fragrant, and delicious, a feast for the senses.

With his special-forces physique, Jiang Yun found the only drawback was his increased calorie consumption.

Knock, knock, knock!

"Who could it be?" Jiang Yun wondered, hoping it wasn’t the landlady again.

He walked to the door and opened it.

Standing on the threshold was a beautiful young woman.