Chapter 35 Love Letter Now it's her turn to save him.
His voice didn't come through the headphones for a long time.
After a long silence, Zhou Yu finally heard Chen Jingchi speak: "Thank you, Zhou Yu."
This time, Zhou Yu was the first to offer his blessings: "Chen Jingchi, Happy New Year."
"Happy New Year."
Zhou Yu asked considerately, "How is Brother Du Heng?"
Thinking of how Du Heng was so angry last night that he couldn't sleep and sent Chen Jingchi several photos of Director Yu he found online, launching a personal attack, Chen Jingchi chuckled and said, "Much better."
After hanging up the phone, messages kept coming in the group chat.
An Kejia: [Zhou Zhou, why don't you use a secondary account to watch the live stream? Hahaha]
Zhou Yu: [I don't have an alternate account]
Fan Xin: [You're so good at creating buzz for Chen Jingchi, you two should really form a duo!]
In a group of six.
Tan Bei: [I'm here to comfort you. They didn't even exchange more than a few words. Are you feeling better now, @Zhuo Wencheng?]
Zhuo Wencheng: [Much better, Beibei]
Zhan Li: [You called her Beibei too?]
Zhuo Wencheng: [Beibei is much better]
Zhuo Wencheng: [Please, please let me go!]
Seeing that Chen Jingchi didn't respond in the group chat, Zhou Yu simply kept quiet, not wanting to be the first to speak up.
This year's Spring Festival Gala dominated the trending topics list, while the topic of Chen Jingchi's live broadcast only stayed popular for a short time before no one discussed it anymore.
On the contrary, the lip-syncing controversy from last night has continued to have an impact for a long time. Several days have passed, and Liu Xianya was scrolling through short videos before going to bed when she was pushed a clip by big data criticizing Chen Jingchi's live broadcast that night. She wondered, "Why is everyone on the internet criticizing him?"
Zhou Yu didn't know how to explain the fan culture to her, so he could only say, "Someone is jealous of him."
“That’s true, fame brings trouble.” Liu Xianya said to her phone, “Don’t send me any more吐槽 videos (tu cao, meaning videos criticizing others). I don’t like watching them. If you send me another one, I’ll uninstall it.”
Zhou was both amused and exasperated, and asked, "Will threatening it work?"
Liu Xianya swiped up, and sure enough, the next video was promoting Chen Jingchi. She said smugly, "See, it's still useful."
Zhou Yu found it amazing and decided to try logging into Weibo next time.
*
On the sixth day of the first lunar month, the Spring Festival holiday ended and work resumed.
Chen Jingchi returned to Jiangbei and went to the Shengyu Company building to meet with CEO Lin Xiao.
When He Sheng Yu signed Chen Jingchi, it was Lin Xiao who personally negotiated the signing fee with him. After seeing his performance in "Hear Your Voice" and learning about the background of the song "By Myself," he risked public criticism to sign him.
When asked why, Lin Xiao only said one thing: he liked his impulsive and outspoken temperament.
Du Heng followed beside him and, seeing that he hesitated when he pushed the door open, said, "I'll speak up for you. Be brave, it'll be alright."
Chen Jingchi didn't come to see Lin Xiao today because he wanted to regain face after being humiliated by Director Yu. He had been thinking a lot these past few days about the negative comments on Weibo, his career plans, and his future creative direction, among other things.
He could no longer wander aimlessly like a headless fly, nor could he remain complacent and expect opportunities to fall into his lap.
Upon entering the boss's office, Lin Xiao was not surprised to see him and invited the two of them to sit down.
“I heard about what happened before the New Year,” Lin Xiao said while making tea. “The company’s public relations department is on holiday from New Year’s Eve, so I can’t call the employees back to work overtime.”
“I know,” Chen Jingchi said understandingly. “I’d like to talk to you about our plans for the first half of this year.”
"A second major?" Lin Xiao asked. "Any leads?"
“I’m thinking about it, and we can start work soon.” Chen Jingchi paused, then continued, “I would like to ask you to give me three months to prepare for my second major.”
“He’s a freshman now, and he has a lot of classes. He was so busy for the past few months that he didn’t have a moment to spare,” Du Heng chimed in. “A person’s energy is limited, and an album takes even more effort.”
Lin Xiao smiled and said, "You're quite protective of him. I didn't say I disagreed."
“I know the company has provided me with a lot of resources before, and I am very grateful, but I still feel that frequently appearing in public to gain recognition from passersby is not as valuable as a good song.”
After the release of his first album, the response was good. In order to maintain the popularity, the company arranged a lot of commercial activities, such as appearing on variety shows, shooting magazines, and singing at music festivals. However, Chen Jingchi always felt empty inside when he had free time.
He stopped and looked back; he had made money, but he couldn't see his own growth trajectory.
After his last live stream went wrong, he locked himself at home and thought about it for a long time. A live stream that could prove his live singing ability doesn't mean anything; what he lacks is the solid foundation that comes from his own work.
"I want to give myself some time to see if I can achieve something."
Zhou Yu's words gave him great strength.
Making such a do-or-die decision was not easy, but Chen Jingchi had no way out. He wanted to become famous, to stand at the top and not be manipulated by others, so he had to push himself.
Lin Xiao looked at him thoughtfully, gesturing for him to continue.
Seeing his clear attitude, Chen Jingchi said, "There's a music festival during the Lantern Festival, and I'll start writing songs after that. If all goes well, I should be able to finish it around May or June. If not by then—"
He paused for two seconds, then said resolutely, "I will leave everything to the company's arrangements."
Lin Xiao recognized his commercial value and signed him to his company. However, in the six months since his debut, he has been taken care of by the company in every way. Du Heng, a famous agent, only serves him. The copyright fee for "Falling Star" was paid on a whim, and he also cooperated with the creative process as much as possible. Chen Jingchi knows that he is already lucky enough.
Making this decision, suspending commercial activities to make way for his second major, meant that he wouldn't be able to generate any commercial benefits for the company for the next three months. He didn't know if Lin Xiao, as the boss, would be so generous.
However, it turned out that his worries were unnecessary.
Lin Xiao didn't ask anything, he just raised his chin and said, "Go ahead and do it."
While Chen Jingchi was still in a daze, he heard Lin Xiao say to Du Heng again, "Cancel all his work afterwards."
Du Heng smiled and agreed, patting Chen Jingchi, who was still in a daze, "Quickly thank the boss!"
Chen Jingchi stood up and bowed solemnly to Lin Xiao: "Thank you, boss."
He knew that this was just the beginning, and he would have to walk the road ahead alone.
After leaving the company, Chen Jingchi immediately sent a message to Zhou Yu, explaining his initial thoughts on pursuing a second major.
Of the six songs, three were written with lyrics before music, and three were written with music before lyrics, which saves the most creation time.
For Zhou Yu, the biggest limitation is the lack of restrictions. She must find inspiration from life to determine the theme and tone of the three songs she is responsible for.
*
The night before the Lantern Festival, Zhou Yu was still racking her brains for an introduction when WeChat showed that she had been added to a small group of five people.
Tan Bei: [We'll arrive at Xianhai by noon tomorrow!]
Zhuo Wencheng: [What's his appearance order tomorrow night? @Xu Yue]
Xu Yue: [Fourthly, I've never been to a music festival before, so I don't know what time it will start.]
Zhou Yu clicked in and took a look. The group chat name was: "Watching a performance at Xianhai tomorrow."
Chen Jingchi was the only member missing from the group.
She immediately understood what was going on.
Zhan Li: [Beibei, have you booked your hotel yet?]
Tan Bei: [Ordered, ordered, didn't use Intimate Payment, hehe]
Zhuo Wencheng: [Are you two coming together tomorrow? @Zhou Yu @Xu Yue]
Zhou Yu didn't even know where Xu Yue lived, and replied: 【I'll go myself】
Xu Yue: [Where shall we meet up if we split up?]
Tan Bei: [I see a Snow King on the map near the entrance. Let's meet there.]
Xu Yue: [Did you bring your things?]
Tan Bei: [I brought them. We'll order the flowers later.]
Seeing them chatting so earnestly, Zhou Yu remembered something and asked, "Have you bought tickets?"
Xu Yue: [Du Heng directly entered it into our internal system.]
Chen Jingchi had a music festival performance in Xianhai on the Lantern Festival. Du Heng secretly approached Xu Yue and said that it might be Chen Jingchi's last public performance in the first half of the year, asking if they wanted to go and support him.
Xu Yue immediately agreed.
Seeing his complete explanation, Zhou Yu's focus was on the "last show." He guessed that Chen Jingchi might be focusing on creating his second album, which showed how much he valued it.
This put even more pressure on her.
The following afternoon at four o'clock, the five met in front of the milk tea shop. Zhou Yu only realized what Zhuo Wencheng had asked in the group chat when he saw them.
A long light sign with Chen Jingchi's name on it.
Seeing Tan Bei and Zhan Li holding up a display that was three or four meters long, Zhou Yu felt that what she said was a bit of a mood killer, but she still reminded them, "But music festivals are for standing up to watch, so if we hold this up, it will block other people's view, right?"
"Huh?" Tan Bei was completely unaware. "Standing and watching?"
The group exchanged bewildered glances; it was their first time attending a music festival, and none of them knew there were no seats available. Zhou Yu hadn't been either, but she had seen videos of Chen Jingchi's performances at music festivals and knew that the audience stood.
"Then it's useless." Zhuo Wencheng thought for a moment, put the light board away, and said, "Never mind, let's keep it for next time."
The five entered the venue around six o'clock. As soon as they stepped onto the square, looking at the huge crowd in front of them, Zhuo Wencheng wondered if he had remembered the time wrong: "How come there are so many people before it even starts?"
Xu Yue went up to a boy and asked him what had happened. He then came back and explained to them, "It's a competition for seats. If you want to stand in front and watch, you have to come and line up early."
The boy turned around and added to them, "There weren't many people yesterday, but it's different today with Chen Jingchi. They started lining up at one o'clock."
"..."
Zhuo Wencheng was both amused and exasperated: "Alright, we can only look at the big screen now, we can't even see the stage."
"I should have searched online and come to queue up earlier." Zhan Li looked at the large screen in the distance. "I wanted to give him a surprise, but now it's a question of whether he can even see us."
"No need to think, they definitely can't see it." Xu Yue shattered the last glimmer of hope. "It's so far away and so dark, you can't even tell if someone is a person."
With no other option, the five of them could only stand at the very back of the group to watch the performance. When the first singer came on stage, Zhou Yu glanced at the large screens on both sides, having given up all hope.
"It's too far away, the big screen looks like a small screen now," Zhuo Wencheng said with a sigh. "I'll have to complain to Brother Chi about it when this is over."
After finally waiting for the third guest to leave the stage, Tan Bei picked up her phone: "Order flowers now, and the delivery time should be just right!"
She moved closer to Zhou Yu and asked, "Baby, which one do you think looks better?"
Zhou Yu looked at the list and said, "Share it with me, and I'll buy it."
"Okay."
Zhou ordered a large bouquet of sunflowers, which Chen Jingchi was singing his fifth song when the delivery rider brought it over. The image on the big screen wasn't very clear, but thankfully the sound system was pretty good, so it was like attending a live performance.
The price was a bit high; the cold winter wind chilled him to the bone, and Zhou felt better after putting on the hood of his down jacket.
On stage, Chen Jingchi was only wearing a light blue polo shirt, yet his voice didn't tremble from the cold. Zhou Yu truly admired his professionalism.
Chen Jingchi sang six songs and then left the stage. Xu Yue received a message from Du Heng asking them to come backstage. He led the group through the crowd, where many staff members were gathered backstage. Du Heng was standing at the entrance to greet them.
He glanced at Zhou Yu, gestured for her to walk ahead, and said, "Keep walking straight ahead."
Zhou Yu nodded and walked along the corridor to the room at the end. Just as he reached the door, he saw Chen Jingchi in the lounge wearing another black down jacket.
When he looked up, he saw Zhou Yu holding a bouquet of flowers at the door. He paused for a second, then smiled and said, "Why are you here?"
His tone held a hint of surprise, clearly indicating that Du Heng hadn't told him they were coming.
"Congratulations on the successful completion of your performance." Zhou Yu stepped forward and handed over the flowers in his hand.
Just as Chen Jingchi took it, Zhuo Wencheng, who was following behind, couldn't help but squeeze in, rubbing his face with both hands and saying, "My brother, can we hold a larger venue for singing in the future? We've been standing in the cold wind outside for most of the day, and our faces are all red from the cold."
Chen Jingchi then noticed that everyone else had arrived. His gaze swept over them, and he was deeply moved.
Today is the Lantern Festival, but none of them are at home with their families. In fact, the three of them came all the way from Jiangbei just to see one of his performances.
As a result, they all stood outside in the wind for so long.
Chen Jingchi's feelings were complicated at this moment. He felt bad about it, but he nodded and agreed: "Please sit in the first row at the next concert."
"When is the next time?" Zhuo Wencheng asked Du Heng. "Brother, can you make some arrangements?"
Du Heng just smiled and didn't say anything.
Zhan Li nudged Zhuo Wencheng without making a sound, and he immediately fell silent, realizing that he had spoken without thinking.
"I'll treat you to dinner." Chen Jingchi looked at the three of them and asked, "Is this your first time here?"
“Yes, I’ve never been here before,” Zhan Li asked. “Any recommendations for good food?”
Chen Jingchi took them to a local private restaurant. After ordering, Xu Yue asked Du Heng, "Aren't you going to sing at music festivals anymore?"
Du Heng didn't reply, but looked at Chen Jingchi, asking him to respond.
Chen Jingchi took off his down jacket and said, "I won't be singing in the first half of the year, but I might continue singing in the second half."
If you don't make a name for yourself, you'll still have to keep trying to make quick money.
When they entered the private room and took their seats, everyone tacitly made room for Zhou Yu next to Chen Jingchi. Seeing that Chen Jingchi had taken off his coat and had nowhere to put it, she took it from him and placed it on the sofa next to him.
“He was really too busy last semester, he deserves a rest,” Zhan Li said. “People aren’t machines.”
"It's not a complete break," Du Heng explained. "I'm preparing for my second album."
"Shouldn't you make a music video for your second album?" Zhuo Wencheng asked.
"We plan to film it, but we'll see if we have enough time," Chen Jingchi said. "We're still in the initial planning stages."
Three months was the maximum time he could manage; he needed to produce six songs, so time was still very tight.
"Don't rush, take your time, slow and steady wins the race," Xu Yue said. "And don't put too much pressure on yourself."
Chen Jingchi nodded: "I know."
Listening to their conversation, Zhou Yu didn't know how many times she had hated herself for being so stupid and unable to say nice things. Even though she was sitting right next to Chen Jingchi, she couldn't get a word in edgewise.
She started thinking outside the box and realized she needed to buy some books on communication skills, since she didn't have many friends like before and now she had many opportunities to use her skills.
The waiter came in to serve the dishes. Among them was a special Lantern Festival dish of sesame glutinous rice balls that Du Heng had ordered. He got up and served a small bowl to everyone.
Zhou Yu had developed a mouth ulcer from burning herself while eating glutinous rice balls when she was six or seven years old, and she has always disliked eating glutinous rice balls with any filling. She thanked Du Heng and put the small bowl aside without touching it.
It wasn't until Chen Jingchi asked her in a low voice if she didn't like the food that Zhou Yu secretly glanced at Du Heng and nodded very slightly.
Chen Jingchi said, "Give it to me."
He intended for Zhou Yu to give him the bowl as well, but Zhou Yu didn't want to offend Du Heng's kindness, so she used a spoon to scoop up the glutinous rice balls and tried to put them in Chen Jingchi's bowl. Little did she know that this action would be misunderstood by him.
Chen Jingchi reached out and grabbed her hand, then ate the glutinous rice ball following her movements and handed the spoon back to her.
Zhou Yu stared at the white porcelain spoon, her ears starting to burn. She dared not feed him anymore, and instead used the spoon that Chen Jingchi had used to eat from to put the remaining glutinous rice balls into her own mouth.
Seeing this, Chen Jingchi laughed at her, "Don't you not like to eat it?"
Zhou Yu's voice was soft and muffled: "It's alright."
She swallowed it whole and didn't taste anything; all she did was blush.
At the dinner table, Zhuo Wencheng was vividly recounting how his cousin had teased a dog during the Chinese New Year and been chased and bitten by it. No one noticed their little actions except for Zhan Li.
Zhan Li deliberately said to Tan Bei, "Bei Bei, feed me a glutinous rice ball."
Tan Bei was listening intently and told him to stop making noise: "I don't have time to show off my love with you."
Hearing this, Zhou Yu on the left couldn't lift his head any further.
Even though there was nothing between them, there were always one or two moments that made Zhou Yu feel at a loss and flustered. She didn't know if it was because Chen Jingchi was carefree and didn't care about details, or if she was too sensitive and cared too much.
Today is the last day of winter vacation. Jiangchuan starts school tomorrow. The three of them just came from Jiangbei and have to go back. They didn't plan to stay out late. After dinner, they prepared to go back to rest.
Tan Bei and Zhuo Wencheng had booked a hotel less than 500 meters away. The three of them planned to walk back after dinner to digest their food.
"I'll come visit you again next time I have a longer holiday!" Tan Bei said to Zhou Yu with a smile as she said goodbye.
“Okay.” Zhou Yu waved to her.
Du Heng asked the driver to bring the car over. After getting in the car, he asked for the address and then took Xu Yue, who lived the closest, home first.
The next person he dropped off was Chen Jingchi. After dropping him off at home, Du Heng drove the car out of the residential area and parked it at the entrance.
Zhou looked at him in the rearview mirror and saw Du Heng turn his head and ask her, "Have you started writing the lyrics yet?"
She shook her head: "I'm still thinking about it."
Du Heng looked at her and said, "The lyrics aren't urgent. Two months should be enough for you."
"Enough." Zhou Yu replied, then realized something and asked, "What's wrong?"
"I'd like to talk to you about Xiao Chen," Du Heng said with a soft sigh. "He's been under a lot of pressure lately. I've noticed he often stays up late at night; he must be suffering from insomnia."
"The reason why today is his last performance in the first half of the year is because he has stopped all other work and is focusing on producing his second album," Du Heng said. "He made a promise to his boss that he would achieve great results, so he takes this album very seriously. However, the greater the psychological pressure on creators, the easier it is for them to lose themselves in their work and become impatient for quick success. I'm afraid he will fall into such a trap."
Zhou Yu felt as if someone had squeezed his heart hard, causing a dull pain.
She thought of the New Year's wish she had made to him on New Year's Eve, wondering if those words had provoked him.
She and Chen Jingchi barely kept in touch when they weren't together, and aside from song lyrics, they had nothing in common. Knowing he was busy, Zhou Yu didn't dare bother him, and could only follow his whereabouts through his Weibo posts. Chen Jingchi was never one to share his personal feelings online.
During their meetings, he hadn't shown any unusual behavior, remaining the same composed and unhurried man she knew so well. If Du Heng hadn't spoken to her privately tonight, Zhou Yu wouldn't have known he was under so much pressure.
“Other friends don’t understand his songwriting process either; only you can get along with him,” Du Heng said sincerely. “So I want you to pay more attention to his situation. If there are any problems, feel free to tell me. Xiao Chen is usually not very talkative and doesn’t easily show his vulnerable side to others, but I think if it were you, maybe he would be willing to open up a little.”
Zhou Yu didn't delve into the meaning behind his words, why her, or why Chen Jingchi would be willing to confide in her.
She simply nodded solemnly and agreed, "I know, I will try my best."
Du Heng smiled at her, his shoulders relaxing: "It's a good thing you're here, otherwise I wouldn't know what to do."
Zhou Yu shook his head and denied it, saying, "It's my good luck that I met him."
His vibrant singing voice once helped her out of the shadows and through the most painful days. Now he is at the most critical juncture in his life, struggling in confusion and distress. Now it is her turn to save him.
-----------------------
Author's note: Thank you for the nutrient solution, everyone!!
Reader "keyee" added 1 unit of nutrient solution to the water.
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