Chapter 96 Are you sure you are the one who reads "Please Listen to His Argument..."?

Tan Zhi didn't know how to answer the question for a moment.

When he received the song "Please Listen to His Explanation" that year, he really thought it was very good and quickly sent it to the production team. It was the first time in his singing career that he had hired a ghostwriter. Looking back now, Tan Zhi still remembers how guilty he was at that time. Therefore, he did many things in a very hasty manner, as if he was afraid that if he was a step too slow, he would be discovered by others.

At the time, he did think the song title was a bit strange, but to his surprise, the production team really liked the song and quickly finalized the deal with Tan Zhi, even inviting Tan Zhi to arrange the music himself.

Tan Zhi was initially hesitant and afraid that things would be exposed, but he quickly thought of his dismal career over the past few years and decided to grit his teeth and give it his all. So he quickly completed the arrangement work according to his understanding of the character Qin Zhe.

Later, Tan Zhi didn't expect that the song he hired a ghostwriter for the first time would become a hit. He was secretly relieved but also a little worried, fearing that the ghostwriter he hired would become jealous because the song became popular and expose everything.

To his surprise, the gunman behind the scenes remained calm and never showed up, seemingly unconcerned about the song's success or failure. He hasn't appeared since, completely confirming Tan Zhi's identity as the original creator.

From then on, Tan Zhi tasted success. In recent years, he has almost lost his ability to create his own songs, constantly collecting songs in secret and piecing them together to complete album after album. This has led many people to wonder why his style has become more and more diverse as he gets older.

Good songs are hard to come by, and in recent years Tan Zhi hasn't encountered a creator with the same talent as his first ghostwriter. So, although he's released quite a few albums, none of them have become hits. He even considered finding that first person to be his full-time ghostwriter again, but he couldn't get in touch with them, so he gave up on the idea.

So many years have passed, and Tan Zhi never expected that someone would ask him about this song title on stage. He stammered for a long time but couldn't give a coherent answer. Tan Zhi didn't understand why he cared so much about such a trivial song title.

Seeing that he was indeed speechless, Fang Xingu put on a sarcastic smile: "Has it been too long, and Teacher Tan has forgotten why he chose this song title?"

Tan Zhi swallowed hard, trying to come up with a response, when Fang Xingu turned his head away, seemingly unconcerned about Tan Zhi's answer.

Finally, Fang Xingu shared his understanding: "My understanding is this: although the lyrics of 'Please Listen to His Explanation' are narrated in the first person and the song title contains the third person, if you carefully examine the song title 'Please Listen to His Explanation,' the sentence is actually more like a request made in the second person."

Therefore, considering the entire song title and lyrics, which simultaneously incorporate first, second, and third-person perspectives, I believe it's more like a request from an observer to a judge, asking them to witness Qin Zhe's tragic and lamentable life before making a judgment. Since Qin Zhe had already become someone who disregarded the law before his death, this judge is not a legal entity, but rather something more abstract and metaphysical.

Therefore, the singing style I chose is a response to the request of the song title. 'I' not only listened to Qin Zhe's explanation, but also repeated Qin Zhe's explanation in 'my' voice, and responded to Qin Zhe's life with the emotions in the song... I wonder what Teacher Tan thinks?"

Tan Zhi was so nervous that he didn't quite understand the logic behind Fang Xingu's words until Fang Xingu asked him a question. He then came to his senses and awkwardly chuckled, "You've given this song a completely new interpretation."

Tan Zhigang realized he had said the wrong thing as soon as he spoke. Sure enough, Fang Xingu's expression turned playful as he repeated a word from Tan Zhigang's words: "'Brand new'? How did Teacher Tan originally understand it?"

Tan Zhi tensed up immediately, regretting that he had insisted on bringing up the topic when it was already over.

But being a seasoned veteran, Tan Zhi thought for a while, and considering that Fang Xingu had already explained it once, he subconsciously made some simple modifications to Fang Xingu's explanation: "To me, the line 'Please listen to his explanation' is a request to the audience, and the lyrics are Qin Zhe's feelings. I am also singing Qin Zhe's feelings, that's all."

Fang Xingu raised his eyebrows slightly. This time, he finally didn't say anything more. He just nodded politely without revealing any flaws. Even until the recording of "New Voice" ended, no one noticed his emotional fluctuations. His face remained as calm as ever.

After finishing work, Fang Xin bid farewell to the production team and left with his staff.

The recording location was already surrounded by fans waiting for him to get off work, but when Fang Xingu appeared, the crowd didn't react much.

Fang Xingu initially thought that his fans hadn't recognized him because he was wearing a mask, but when he glanced at the faces of the fans around him, he saw that their eyes were indeed on his face, so it didn't seem like they hadn't recognized him.

Could they be fans of the other guests?

"This shouldn't be," Fang Xingu thought, puzzled. None of the guests today were more popular than him, and even if the audience wasn't entirely his fans, it shouldn't be this quiet.

Fang Xin took a few steps outside in a strange manner. He saw that the fans outside the fence were still staring at him intently, but they didn't say anything. However, their faces were full of suppressed laughter, and their mischievous intentions were written all over their faces.

Fang Xingu stopped in his tracks, feeling helpless, and couldn't help but laugh: "Are you kidding me?"

"Haha, we've wanted to do this for a long time!"

"Xin Gu sang so beautifully just now!"

"I couldn't get a ticket, it's such a pity I can't hear you live, sob sob!"

Fang Xingu also took a rare break to chat with his fans: "Thank you everyone, I had a lot of fun singing today, and I hope you all like this song. It's okay if you didn't hear it live, the show will air the day after tomorrow, and you can listen to it on TV then."

Fans weren't satisfied: "We still want to hear you live, so does Xin Gu have any plans to go on tour? We can't wait!"

The scene was chaotic, with fans talking all at once. Fang Xingu couldn't hear them very well, only vaguely making out the words "tour." He exchanged a glance with Qi Qiu, and after receiving her approval, he told the fans, "Everyone can look forward to the second half of the year."

"The second half of the year? What about the second half of the year? Kid, explain yourself clearly!!"

"Tour, tour, is it a tour or not!"

"Is the tour for the new album? Will there be any other new songs?"

"Waaaaah, when will my physical copy be shipped?"

"Physical orders will begin shipping next week, and as for the others..." Fang Xin paused mysteriously before continuing, "Everyone should be able to get what they're looking for."

"Ahhh!"

"Okay, we'll wait for your surprise in the second half of the year!"

A burst of excited screams erupted from the crowd, which lasted for quite some time until Fang Xingu pressed his hand down, and everyone finally regained their composure.

Fang Xingu concluded, "Alright, it's late. Everyone should go home and rest early. Goodbye."

"Don't go, Xin Gu, let's chat a little longer!"

"Goodbye, old and new, sob sob sob."

Fang Xin waved to all directions before stepping into the business car that had been waiting outside the crowd.

This was the car Jing Yitong had driven to pick him up from the airport when he flew from Beijing to Shanghai that day. So when Fang Xingu saw this familiar car, he immediately thought of Jing Yitong. As he stepped into the car, he naturally thought of what happened that night and subconsciously glanced at the back seat.

Originally, it was just a casual action, and Fang Xin Gu didn't expect to see anything. But when he glanced over, he actually saw a dark figure in the dimly lit back seat of the car.

Upon realizing he had been discovered, the shadowy figure shamelessly winked rapidly at Fang Xin Gu a few times—it was Jing Yi Tong.

Fang Xingu remained stiffly straddling the car for a moment. Jing Yitong leaned out to talk to him, but Fang Xingu quickly reached out and placed his palm on Jing Yitong's forehead, shoving him back into the back seat before hurriedly getting back into the car with a smile.

Even though Fang Xingu's reaction only lasted a few seconds, it was very unusual in the eyes of the fans who were watching him closely outside. What was Fang Xingu doing just now?

As the van slowly drove away, and the fans watched Fang Xingu disappear into the distance, someone noticed something amiss in the video they had just taken of Fang Xingu getting into the car: "Holy crap, is someone waiting for Xingu in the car?"

"What is that? Let me see!"

"Wow, it's true! I got a picture of it too!"

"It seems like this person was trying to peek out, but Xin Gu pressed them back down... Hmm, so who is it?"

Who is it?

The room fell silent. Everyone chuckled inwardly. Who else could it be?

As soon as the van drove away from the fan gathering area, Fang Xingu got up and moved to the back seat, sitting next to Jing Yitong: "Why are you here again? Aren't you afraid of being recognized by my fans?"

Jing Yitong crossed his arms: "So what if we've been found out? With a brother-in-law as good as me who doesn't cause trouble and hands over all his earnings, your fans should be secretly happy."

Fang Xingu patted him on the shoulder and said with a laugh, "You're quite confident."

“Of course,” Jing Yitong said, wrapping his arm around Fang Xingu’s waist. Since everyone in the car knew about their relationship, Jing Yitong didn’t bother to hold back. He asked, “You sang so well today. It’s no wonder it was written for me.”

Fang Xingu was a little surprised: "Huh? How did you hear that?"

Jing Yi nodded to Zhou Xiaoyou, who was driving, and said, "I have a frontline intelligence agent."

"...Are you planning to turn my people against me?"

While driving, Zhou Xiaoyou didn't forget to express his loyalty: "Xin Gu, I am absolutely loyal! I only passed on information to Brother Jing for the sake of your harmonious life as a couple."

Qi Qiu, who was listening from the side, couldn't stand it anymore: "Zhou Xiaoyou, you better drive properly!"

Zhou Xiaoyou shrank back and became obedient, while Fang Xingu and Jing Yitong burst into laughter behind him.

After finally managing to calm down and laugh, Jing Yitong said, "But this version of 'Please Listen to His Explanation' is really good. It fits the character of Qin Zhe better than Tan Zhi's version. I've wanted to say this before: Tan Zhi's understanding of Qin Zhe is definitely flawed, which is why he wrote such a fierce song. This is not the Qin Zhe I understand at all."

Fang Xin leaned on his shoulder: "You're not flattering me, are you?"

“Of course it’s true,” Jing Yitong said, showing Fang Xingu his phone. “It’s been three or four hours since you finished singing, and all the reports online are praising you.”

Because recording with mobile phones is prohibited at the recording site of "The Voice of China", and fans are also quite conscientious, even if some secretly bring their phones into the venue to record videos, they know not to release their recordings before the show airs. Therefore, currently only text reports are available online, and the relevant performance videos are not available.

Even with just written reports, one can see the audience's surprise and delight at Fang Xin's performance.

"I can't think of any other words to describe it except that it sounds great! It's completely different from Tan Zhi's version, it's like two different songs, but it's definitely more delicate than Tan Zhi's version."

"Not only is it delicate, but I absolutely love the character of Qin Zhe. I think Fang Xingu's version is the one that truly captures Qin Zhe's personality and life experiences [tears]"

"Could Fang Xingu really be a genius! He must have seriously studied the character of Qin Zhe, otherwise he couldn't have adapted such a fitting version."

"Of course, he lives with the actor who plays Qin Zhe every day. If there's anything he doesn't understand, he can just ask and he'll get it [shh]"

“Singing with love really makes a difference.”

"I was so anxious because I didn't hear her sing live!"

"In short, it sounds great. My sister and I, who were in the audience, were both stunned after listening to it."

"It sounds really, really good. It's no exaggeration to say that it has a soul-purifying effect. I'm worried that the sound recording equipment at the venue might not be able to capture it perfectly. Anyway, the recording I made on my phone is not quite the same as the live recording."

At first, many people thought that Fang Xingu's fans were exaggerating on purpose. Although many people who posted reports online claimed that they were not Fang Xingu's fans, most people still felt that no matter how good it was, it couldn't be better. Tan Zhi's version was already a classic, and there was no way that the adapted cover could surpass the original.

That's impossible.

It wasn't until two days later, when this episode of "New Voice" was officially broadcast, that Fang Xingu's unique version of "Please Listen to His Defendant" was finally revealed to the audience.

It was only then that netizens realized that the previous online praise for Fang Xingu was not unfounded.

It sounds so good!

Fang Xingu's voice is not the pure kind, but rather a low, husky gentleness, yet very clear and pure. Especially in the first few lines of the verses of "Please Listen to His Defendant", because the accompaniment is weak and simple, Fang Xingu's singing is particularly clear, almost like whispering in the ear of every listener, making people unconsciously immerse themselves in it.

Some listeners who have always liked "Please Listen to His Explanation" were initially skeptical, thinking that Fang Xingu was being overhyped online and that most covers were no match for the original.

As a result, they went to listen out of curiosity and were shocked by Fang Xingu's version of the performance, and countless people instantly switched sides.

"Teacher Tan, you sang very well, but you should know this is Fang Xin Gu... Absolutely amazing, how can it be so good? [drooling]"

"This version of Fang Xin Gu really made me cry. At first listen, it has a kind of divine ruthlessness, but upon closer listening, it has a tender feeling [tears]. From singing skills to expression to emotion, it is all impeccable."

"I understand. I almost cried at the scene. I felt that Fang Xingu's version of the song expressed her pity for Qin Zhe [tears]"

"For so many years, I've always felt that Tan Zhi's version was too rough. Xiao Zhe is very reserved; he's not an extroverted person at all."

"Haha, Tan Zhi's version often excites me, but I don't know what's so exciting about it [laughing and crying emoji]"

"I got goosebumps the moment Fang Xingu sang that. Amazing, his singing skills are incredible!"

"Am I the only one who still prefers Tan Zhi's version? I think it gets more and more exciting the more you listen to it [fingers emoji]"

"Aesthetic appreciation is subjective, you can like whichever version you like, but singing ability is objective. Fang Xingu's singing ability really beats Tan Zhi's, hahaha. Tan Zhi's singing of He Quanjin's song in this episode was awful. How could he have the nerve to criticize He Quanjin last time?"

"He's getting old, and he's been involved in so many scandals lately. It feels like he's been obsessed with these things for the past few years, and his health has been completely ruined by alcohol, women, and money."

"That's as if Tan Zhi had Fang Xingu's singing skills when he was young [smirking]"

"That's different. Fang Xingu is a numerical monster. His abilities and skills are terrifying. In particular, his creative ability is also top-notch. I'm definitely going to listen to this version of 'Please Listen to His Explanation' on repeat!"

"Ah, everyone, please don't drag me down with this, or I'll just get criticized again, lol."

"I'm not a fan of anyone. Fang Xingu is indeed a better singer than Tan Zhi. His version of 'Please Listen to His Explanation' is also better than Tan Zhi's version. These are all the facts, okay? Can you shut me up and stop me from saying them?"

"Isn't the funniest part when Fang Xin asked Tan Zhi why he named the song that way, and Tan Zhi was stunned for a long time and couldn't think of how to answer? It's so funny, this is the memory of a real old man, hahaha."

"But Tan Zhi's final answer was so perfunctory, it was just a pieced-together answer based on Fang Xingu's answer with some additions and subtractions. In comparison, Fang Xingu's answer was particularly good. It was obvious that he had done his homework on the song and the character Qin Zhe, and his understanding was very profound. I even realized that the perspective of the song title and the lyrics were not the same."

As soon as this episode of "The Voice of China" aired, Tan Zhi sensed something was wrong. He searched online for netizens' feedback and found that a large number of people were praising Fang Xingu and putting him down, saying that Fang Xingu's singing skills were better than his, his arrangement was better than his, and even his understanding of the characters was far superior to his.

Although a few people spoke up for him, they were ultimately insignificant and their voices carried little weight. Shortly after he finished speaking, his words were pushed down by other messages.

Seeing that he was practically being trampled into the dirt, Tan Zhi was so angry he almost had a stroke. He hurriedly contacted several online marketing companies he had previously arranged to influence public opinion, but to his surprise, all of them canceled their appointments.

This is all thanks to Jing Yitong. After learning about Fang Xingu's plan, he immediately bribed several well-known online marketing companies in the industry to keep them out of the mess.

The online marketing companies are all smart people. Having received benefits from Jing Yitong, they naturally rejected Tan Zhi's request.

When Tan Zhi saw that his partner, who had promised to help him, had turned against him at the last minute, he knew that Fang Xin was definitely behind it. He was so anxious that he was sweating profusely. He could only contact a few unknown small studios and ask them to help him back down.

However, small companies naturally cannot do things as well as large companies; their practices are much cruder, and their language is very straightforward.

"666, even a cover song is trying to put down the original singer and composer. This song was written by Tan Zhi, who else knows this song better than him?"

"It was Fang Xingu who added his own drama. He could interpret all sorts of miscellaneous things from just a song title. He was just forcing himself to do reading comprehension."

"Without Teacher Tan's lyrics and music, could Fang Xingu have sung this song on stage? [eye roll] This person even said on the show that he wanted to write the most suitable arrangement for 'Please Listen to His Defendant'. He's so shameless. The most suitable arrangement has already been created by Teacher Tan, okay?"

"Exactly, Teacher Tan's 'Please Listen to His Explanation' is a classic among classics, not something just anyone can fabricate."

"Before you start criticizing, please look at how many plays the original version has on music apps. It's still in the top 20 of the overall charts. Why isn't Fang Xin Gu on the charts?"

"Are fans of popular celebrities now even bullying veteran artists? [sweat]"

"Fang Xingu's fans are hilarious. 'Please Listen to His Explanation' swept a bunch of original music awards back then. Have you, Fang Xingu, ever won any of those awards?"

This displeased Fang Xingu's fans. As long as it's not a multi-party battle, Fang Xingu's fans are so powerful that they could sweep through the Chinese entertainment industry, easily dealing with a few small online troll studios.

Not to mention that Tan Zhi's reputation has declined in the past two days due to numerous scandals, and many bystanders have also stepped in to criticize him.

"What's wrong with you? Fang Xingu's solo songs are all on the Lingfeng app, not on the same music platform as 'Please Listen to His Defendant.' What's the point of comparing their overall chart rankings? By the way, Nebula has two songs that are ranked higher on the overall charts than 'Please Listen to His Defendant,' and those two songs were written by Fang Xingu~"

"Nobody said the lyrics and music of 'Please Listen to His Defendant' were bad; everyone was saying Fang Xingu's arrangement skills were better than Tan Zhiqiang's. And please note, 'Please Listen to His Defendant' has indeed never won any awards for arrangement [winking emoji]"

"Hey, don't be so mean, hahaha."

"What's wrong? Fang Xin's interpretation of the song title is indeed more profound than Tan Zhi's. I even suspect that Tan Zhi was possessed when he wrote this song. Why does his mind seem blank now?"

“Other veteran artists are virtuous and talented, but Tan Zhi is lacking in both. Not only is his professional ability getting worse and worse, but he changes female companions faster than he changes clothes. He is over fifty years old and still has no shame.”

"Who's going to talk about fans with you? I'm not a fan of Fang Xingu. You can criticize him all you want, but Fang Xingu's version is just better than Tan Zhi's [tongue sticking out]"

Looking at the online comments, Tan Zhi felt a surge of anger rising from his heart to every part of his body, and soon even his brain was clouded by resentment.

Reason told Tan Zhi that he should take a backseat at this point. After all, his online presence couldn't compare to Fang Xingu's, and he didn't have any online trolls to back him up. He simply couldn't win an online argument against Fang Xingu's fans.

Tan Zhi immediately wanted to find his agent to help him handle the matter, but by this time his agent had already developed a grudge against him because of what happened a few days ago and hadn't been paying much attention to him lately.

But how could Tan Zhi swallow this insult? At this moment, he hated not only Fang Xingu and netizens, but also the person who exposed his romantic affairs a few days ago. If it weren't for those scandalous rumors, there would definitely be more people on his side. But now, only a few people are speaking up for him, and they have all been overwhelmed by the massive wave of criticism.

Fang Xin Gu, it's Fang Xin Gu again! Every time he releases a new album, he has to be criticized; every time he rewrites a song, he has to be criticized. Why is this guy so persistent?

Tan Zhiyue became increasingly angry. Fang Xingu had only adapted "Please Listen to His Explanation," and he thought he could crush him with just this one song?

You should know that he is the official creator of this song, and he has every right to criticize Fang Xingu's creation!

Tan Zhi sneered. He felt that Fang Xingu was still so arrogant because his criticism of Fang Xingu's song adaptation during the recording of "The Voice of China" was too mild, which allowed Fang Xingu to be so smug.

But now Tan Zhi is furious and wants to drag Fang Xingu down with him, to let him taste the bitterness of being criticized. So he posted a Weibo message that he thought was very calm:

"@Tan Zhi: In my opinion, song adaptations should be made while respecting the original song. However, Mr. Fang Xin's adaptation of 'Please Listen to His Defendant' on the 'New Voice' program has completely deviated from the original arrangement and the original meaning of the song. As the lyricist and composer, I cannot accept this kind of sensationalist adaptation. But since it has already happened, it cannot be changed. I only hope that this farce targeting me online can end as soon as possible."

As soon as Tan Zhi posted this Weibo post, its popularity skyrocketed. With the help of someone with ulterior motives, Tan Zhi and Fang Xin Gu's names quickly became trending topics together.

After learning that Tan Zhi had started to confront Fang Xingu head-on, netizens turned into melon-eating worms, eagerly wondering why Tan Zhi was attacking Fang Xingu, how Fang Xingu would respond, and whether these two had any past conflicts.

At this point, some people captured Fang Xingu's sarcastic and contemptuous micro-expressions towards Tan Zhi on the "New Voice" stage and made a big deal out of it, emphasizing that Fang Xingu absolutely loathed Tan Zhi.

Some people have dug up the two episodes of "The World Is So Big" where Tan Zhi was a guest. After analyzing them frame by frame, they found that Fang Xingu and Tan Zhi barely exchanged a few words throughout the entire episode, leading people to suspect that they had a grudge before that.

But what exactly caused such a deep-seated grudge between the two?

Meanwhile, Tan Zhi was still smugly looking at the Weibo post he had made. The comments below it were all in support of him, which at least gave him some self-deceptive comfort, making him feel that there were still people who were reasonable and had not been misled by Fang Xin Gu.

But then, his agent, whom he hadn't seen for days, suddenly called him. Tan Zhi sneered and hung up without thinking, wanting to give his agent a hard time. But soon, his agent called again, and after several calls, Tan Zhi finally answered the phone lazily.

Looking at the online comments, the agent felt like his lungs were about to explode: "What are you doing all day long? Delete that Weibo post right now!"

Tan Zhi treated it as the biggest joke ever: "Delete? I won't delete it! I'm going to teach Fang Xingu a lesson!"

The agent raised his voice: "I told you to keep a low profile lately. You've been exposed for so many scandals, don't you know someone's after you? What good does it do you to go crazy all day long!"

Tan Zhi clearly wasn't in a good mood either, and the two started arguing: "Damn, why isn't it working? Look at how many people have turned around and supported me after I posted this Weibo!"

The agent took a few deep breaths, and finally, overwhelming disappointment welled up inside him: "...Fine, whatever, I can't be bothered with you anymore. Don't ever come looking for me again. I'll ask the company's higher-ups to change your agent."

"Then get out of here!"

Tan Zhi didn't care. He hung up the phone with his agent in a fit of anger and without any hesitation.

Tan Zhiqie returned to Weibo and saw more and more voices supporting him, which made him feel at ease. He felt more and more that he had done the right thing.

But a short while later, when he refreshed his homepage, he suddenly discovered that Fang Xingu had actually retweeted his Weibo post.

Fang Xin's repost contained only one line of text, but it sent chills down Tan Zhi's spine.

"@Fang Xin Gu: Are you sure you are the lyricist and composer of 'Please Listen to His Defendant'?"

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Author's Note: I'm late again. This is a long chapter, enough for two days' worth of work! [fingers emoji]