Chapter 37 Love Letter: I hope you will always be yourself.
It was already past six o'clock when she arrived at the school. Tan Bei sent Zhou Yu a private message, telling her to come directly to the rehearsal room, as they had already bought dinner for her.
Zhou Yu found the rehearsal room by memory. After pushing open the door, he saw the boys gathered together discussing the arrangement. Tan Bei handed him a packed lunchbox: "You probably haven't eaten at the cafeteria here before, right? This curry potato and chicken rice is really delicious. Chen Jingchi specially asked me to bring it!"
"I've never eaten here before, it's too far from here." Zhou Yu took the disposable chopsticks and unpacked them.
Seeing that she had taken a bite, Tan Bei asked, "How is it?"
"Delicious." For the first time, Zhou Yu's face showed a look of joy at having eaten something delicious.
“I told you so,” Tan Bei smiled. “If you want to eat something in the future, just tell me, and we’ll go to the cafeteria together.”
"Okay." Zhou Yu smiled at her.
As they were talking, they heard Zhan Li strike a few drumbeats.
The two sat far apart. Tan Bei put a straw in the milk tea they had bought together, handed it to her, and explained, "They are practicing Chen Jingchi's song, saying that if they want to perform live in the future, they can bring their own band."
In the past, Chen Jingchi's performances always featured the original instrumental tracks, whether it was a live broadcast or a music festival, without a live band. If the male performers could join him on stage, it would be a good thing for both Chen Jingchi and the band.
Last semester, Chen Jingchi was often busy with gigs, so the band had little time to practice together. However, Zhou Yu believes that these friends have a good relationship and should have more team cohesion than the previous Tidal Echoes.
While she was having dinner, Tan Bei chatted with her and asked, "How's your second major coming along?"
“I have one poem left, and he has two,” Zhou Yu said. “I should be able to finish writing them this month.”
"Keep it up!" Tan Bei clenched her fist to cheer her on. "I'll be supporting you from behind!"
Zhou Yu smiled at her and said, "Thank you."
For her, writing lyrics was relatively easy, while Chen Jingchi had many more things to consider. Zhou Yu stared at his retreating figure, lost in thought for a moment.
Noticing her gaze, Tan Bei whispered, "Chen Jingchi asked me to come."
Zhou Yu turned to look at her, and Tan Bei winked at her, revealing, "He said you might not be in a good mood today. Did you feel any better after seeing me?"
Zhou Yu was touched and felt a warmth rise in her heart. She nodded vigorously: "Much better."
She recalled what Du Heng had said to her before and quoted it verbatim: "It's good to have you."
Tan Bei was pleased to hear this and took her arm, leaning closer: "My mom used to say that I was too boisterous and that she preferred quiet, studious girls like you. Although I disappointed her, I found that our tastes are actually quite similar, and I like you very much too."
This was the first time Zhou Yu had heard a girl tell him she liked him. Even though he knew she meant it as a friendship, he was still a little embarrassed. He lowered his head to avoid her gaze, but couldn't help but smile with joy.
“You have a great personality, really,” Zhou Yu said. “I’ve always admired you.”
"I'm relieved to hear that. I was worried you'd think I talked too much." Tan Bei saw her reaction, hugged her, and laughed, "Your blushing face is so cute."
Zhou Yu raised his hand and touched it: "Is it that obvious?"
"Your skin is fair, it's quite noticeable," Tan Bei laughed, then gently reminded him, "Be careful he doesn't see it!"
It is self-evident who "he" refers to.
A dozen minutes later, seeing that Zhou Yu had finished her dinner, Chen Jingchi called her to his side.
Chen Jingchi had already roughly arranged the music for "Whispers," and the boys played a short section—a poetic folk song. Zhou Yu thought that if his white noise section were added, she could already imagine how beautiful the song would sound.
Zhou Yu pulled up a stool and sat down at the keyboard, asking, "Do you also need to do the arrangement yourself?"
"Listen to the sound first, then take it to the teacher for revisions," Chen Jingchi said. "I haven't learned much about music arrangement, so I'm not that proficient yet."
From the meaning behind his words, Zhou Yu knew that this was also something he planned to learn. Chen Jingchi saw himself as more than just a singer; he wanted to be a singer-songwriter, capable of singing as well as exploring other areas.
"I've almost finished writing the second one too. Let me play it for you first," Chen Jingchi said, and then began to play a melody.
The second piece, about "nature," was a theme conceived collaboratively by the other three members. Chen Jingchi no longer confined himself to nature, extending his gaze from mountains and rivers to the vast universe. In comparison, humanity appears incredibly small, merely an insignificant speck of dust.
Zhan Li played a drum solo, and the melody was grand and majestic, which was breathtaking for Zhou Yu, who was hearing it for the first time.
Xu Yue recorded this scene on his phone and posted it in the group chat.
Zhou Yu was looking for his phone, intending to save the video, when suddenly everything went black.
All the light sources suddenly went out, and the surroundings were plunged into complete darkness.
Zhou Yu panicked and hurriedly reached out to grab something, but what she touched was warm. She suddenly realized that the person sitting next to her was Chen Jingchi, and she had grabbed his hand hanging at his side.
Unable to see the other person's face in the darkness, the distinct sensation of their palms touching made Zhou Yu panic and frantically pull his hands back.
Chen Jingchi was a step too slow when he tried to tighten his grip, and could only grasp two fingers. Fortunately, after her first failed attempt, she didn't move again or make a sound, obediently letting him hold her.
"What's going on?" Zhuo Wencheng was the first to speak. "The power's out?"
Xu Yue turned on his flashlight, illuminating a small area, and asked in surprise, "Can the school really lose power?"
"Didn't you ever have a power outage in high school?" Zhuo Wencheng chimed in. "We used to have power outages sometimes during evening self-study sessions in the summer, and it was unbearably hot."
Tan Bei sat down next to Zhan Li, groping around: "Where did I put my phone?"
"It's in your bag, don't move, I'll get it for you." Zhan Li got up in the dark.
Zhan Li walked to the window and, by the dim moonlight, could see that all the streetlights outside were off. He turned to the others and said, "It's really a power outage; there's not a single light outside."
Her phone rang several times in her pocket, but Zhou Yu didn't have time to take it out and look at it. All her attention was focused on the fingers of her right hand that he was holding. She noticed that Chen Jingchi was unusually quiet, the figure beside her was motionless, and even the hand holding hers was sweaty.
A thought popped into her mind.
He's afraid of the dark.
A normal person would be afraid if suddenly plunged into darkness and not knowing where they were, but as the phone's flashlight came on and they heard the voices of the people around them, Zhou Yu gradually got used to the environment. Chen Jingchi, however, did not react at all.
Zhou hesitated for a few seconds, then mustered her courage, firmly opened her fingers, and took his hand tightly.
Their palms pressed together without any gap, Chen Jingchi clenched his fingers tightly, increasing the force so that she had no chance to pull away.
"A notice was sent out in our class group chat," Zhuo Wencheng read aloud. "Due to a temporary power outage caused by construction work, the power will be restored in an hour or two."
"It's been so long." Xu Yue stood up. "Then let's not stay here. Let's go back to sleep."
Zhan Li took Tan Bei's bag and said, "Be careful, there's a staircase here, hold my hand."
"It's okay, I can see." Tan Bei turned on the flashlight and said to Zhou Yu, "Baby, let's go together!"
"Okay." After Zhou Yu finished speaking, she turned her head to look at the two people's hands clasped together at their sides, and softly called his name, "Chen Jingchi?"
"Forget he's afraid of the dark." Xu Yue quickly walked over.
Before the light shone on her, Chen Jingchi released her hand and remained silent.
Xu Yue walked to his side, illuminating the path beneath his feet. Seeing him stand up, Zhou Yucai finally shifted his gaze from him and walked towards Tan Bei.
Even after leaving the rehearsal room, I could still feel the dampness he left behind in my palm.
After parting ways with the others and walking down the dormitory corridor, Zhou Yu sent Chen Jingchi a message: "Are you okay?"
A few seconds later.
Chen: [It's alright now]
She really wanted to know why Chen Jingchi was afraid of the dark, but now was not the best time to ask, so Zhou Yu could only suppress her doubts for the time being.
Zhou Yu pushed open the dormitory door, and Fan Xin lit up the few light sticks she had brought from the concert and hung them on the bed frame and stairs. The dormitory was filled with a faint green light, which was very eerie.
Seeing her return, Fan Xin finally breathed a sigh of relief: "Zhou Zhou, you're finally back. I was so scared being here all alone."
“Don’t be afraid, Jiajia should be back soon.” Zhou Yu pointed to her light stick. “But I think your green light is scarier.”
"Well, there's nothing I can do about it. I was playing games before the power went out, and my phone wasn't even charged. It was about to shut down," Fan Xin said softly.
Zhou Yu turned on the flashlight: "I'll shine it on you, so you can turn off the green light."
"Sister is so awesome, sister, I'm protected." Fan Xin chuckled and quickly turned off the light stick.
The power outage lasted for almost two hours. The three of them took a shower in the dark and went to bed as soon as possible.
It wasn't even nine o'clock yet, and even Zhou Yu, who loves to sleep, couldn't force herself to fall asleep. She opened her phone and, taking advantage of the brief moment of quiet, began to write her third poem.
She typed four words in the title: Sleeping City.
"If one day the world stops turning, where should I go?"
I disappeared from the world.
No trace was left.
How can I prove that I was here?
Who will give meaning to my existence?
Before turning into dust,
Let time write the legend.
Time has witnessed miracles.
My story has been told and sung by many.
It is called an immortal chapter.
*
Two days later, Zhou Yu sent "Sleeping City" to Chen Jingchi, who in turn sent her a new song.
They all tacitly avoided mentioning the night of the power outage.
Chen Jingchi's new song was probably inspired by that night. He has written about mountains and rivers, about the universe, and this time he has returned to the individual self and his true self. The melody continues the consistent style of his first album. Zhou Yu heard the loneliness of the journey, the belief in direction, the longing for home, and the ease and freedom of sudden enlightenment after passing through the darkness.
She named the song "Migratory Birds".
On the last day of March, Zhou Yu handed over the lyrics for the remaining two songs to Chen Jingchi. By then, the lyrics and music for all six songs were complete, and the arrangements for the previous songs were also finished, so recording could begin.
With Zhou Yu relieved of his burden, the rest is up to Chen Jingchi.
The second album is divided into two parts. Part A, themed around "humanity," consists of three songs: "Midnight Call," "To My Dearest," and "Sleeping City," with lyrics written by Zhou Yuxian. Part B, themed around "nature," consists of "Whispers," "Journey," and "Migratory Birds," with music composed by Chen Jingchi.
Ultimately, Chen Jingchi chose "Migratory Birds" as the title track of the album.
One evening in April, Fan Xin casually remarked, "Chen Jingchi hasn't updated his Weibo for two months. Anyone who didn't know better would think he'd quit the internet."
An Kejia thought for a moment and said, "Yes, it's been a long time since I've heard anything about him."
Only Zhou Yu knew that he had devoted all his energy to the production of his second album, and without work, he had no opportunity to update his Weibo.
She occasionally clicks on Chen Jingchi's fan page and sees new fans asking if he's been sidelined or banned, and why there's been no activity for two months. Higher-level fans reply below, saying he's fully focused on preparing for his new album.
Zhou Yu went to the recording studio with Xu Yue a few times on weekends to keep an eye on Chen Jingchi's condition.
In late April, a song suddenly went viral on a short video platform. The melody was so catchy that even Zhou Yu, who never watches short videos, memorized it after hearing his classmates play it a few times.
That evening, An Kejia was watching a video edited by the student union's publicity department. The more she listened to the background music, the more familiar it sounded. She turned to her and asked, "Don't you guys think this song, 'Hot Love Planet,' sounds familiar?"
“Right, I think so too.” Fan Xin hummed a part of the chorus, then said strangely, “It feels like I’ve heard it somewhere before.”
Zhou Yu happened to have nothing to do, so she searched for this song on a music platform. She was curious to see what kind of song could be so popular in just one week after its release.
However, when she clicked into the lyrics page and saw the first few lines of lyrics, she was stunned.
"Sunset on the Street"
Neon light intersection
Your gentle smile
I fall for your tenderness
The florist bought roses.
Don't on your collar
The last glass of wine
"Drink until you drop"
She was afraid she was overthinking things, so she specifically found the file for "The Fall of the Evening Star" and compared it.
After sunset
Neon-lit streets
The wind passing by the corner
Stopping unintentionally
You turned around with a smile
Lost in the tenderness of this moment
Flower shop entrance
The Last Rose
fully ripe
Wine with escaping bubbles
Not drunk
endlessly"
Zhou Yu was certain that it wasn't his imagination; it was simply a copy, with only a few words changed.
She played the chorus of "Evening Stars Falling" and asked them, "Do you think it sounds like this?"
An Kejia quickly said, "Yes, yes, the middle two lines sound just like each other!"
"Isn't this 'Evening Star Falling'? I was wondering where I'd heard it before." Fan Xin asked curiously, "Is it plagiarized?"
“Only these two lines sound similar; the rest don’t.” Zhou Yu pointed to the singer’s introduction. The male singer’s name is Gu Chen, and there is currently only one song on his homepage. Moreover, this song, “Hot Love Planet,” was written and composed by him.
Zhou Yu wasn't a professional at understanding the melody, so she sent the song link to Chen Jingchi, wanting to ask for his opinion.
Zhou Yu: [Do you think this piece of music constitutes plagiarism?]
That evening, Chen Jingchi was having a meeting with the company's dance director to discuss the music video for the title track. The song "Migratory Birds" has a fast tempo and is very suitable for choreographing a jazz dance. However, for someone like him who has little dance background, if the dance moves are too difficult, it might prolong his training time.
The director called a few backup dancers and demonstrated the moves to him, leaving Chen Jingchi to decide whether to cut or keep them.
Du Heng watched from the side, a hint of worry creeping in, fearing that he was being too hard on himself in his pursuit of perfection. The album was scheduled for release in May, and time was running out for him.
It was quite late when Chen Jingchi came out of the dance studio. He glanced at his phone and noticed a message from Zhou Yu.
He clicked on the link and frowned as soon as he saw the lyrics page.
Halfway through the song, he could already tell that the melody of the chorus not only replicated "Evening Star Falling" but also incorporated the chorus parts of several other popular songs.
The lyrics were copied quite boldly, but the melody was cleverly copied, with only one or two lines copied from each song and mixed together. It's hard for laymen with unreliable ears to tell if it's plagiarism.
On the bus, he told Du Heng about it.
Du Heng searched for the song's data online and his eyes widened when he saw the number of plays and downloads: "My God, this song is so popular now? We've definitely made millions."
Chen Jingchi felt a headache coming on. His fans were still arguing about the differences between the chorus and solo versions of "Evening Star Falling." It was absurd that this singer, who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, had become rich overnight by plagiarism.
"Can we sue him for plagiarism?" he asked.
“It is possible.” Du Heng said after comparing the lyrics of the two songs, “but these kinds of cases usually take a long time to be decided, and this bastard has already made a fortune.”
Chen Jingchi gazed at the brightly lit night scene without making a sound.
Du Heng understood his feelings. It was hard for anyone to accept that a song he wrote with his heart was less popular than a random copy from the street. The songs for the second album had just been recorded, and he didn't want to put too much pressure on Chen Jingchi, so he said, "I'll talk to the company's legal department tomorrow. Don't think about this for now. There will definitely be a result."
Chen Jingchi nodded, saying not to think about it, but he couldn't help but care in his heart.
If they don't take a stand now, once this kind of thing starts, others will definitely follow suit. Chen Jingchi knows that this person won't give up easily once he's tasted success, and all he can do right now is wait.
He replied to Zhou Yu: "It's plagiarism, the company will handle it."
Two days later, Chen Jingchi finally posted a message on Weibo after more than two months of silence. He forwarded a lawyer's letter posted by the official account of Shengyu.
Since the two lines copied in the chorus are too short and one or two notes were changed, it is difficult to define it as plagiarism. Therefore, we can only start with the lyrics.
Zhou Yu also reposted Sheng Yu's Weibo post, and soon after it was posted, many people expressed their support in the comments section.
Zhou Yu was flattered to see so many netizens speaking up for her for the first time, even though she knew that most of them were fans trying to protect Chen Jingchi's reputation.
She had seen several similar cases of song plagiarism online. Although they were successfully adjudicated, the price the plagiarists had to pay was too light compared to the losses suffered by the plagiarized parties. Moreover, the waiting time was also a cost; she didn't know when she would see the results.
But now, besides waiting, they are powerless to do anything but hope that this matter will become a big issue online, so that more people will pay attention to the difficulty of creating original works and the shamefulness of plagiarism.
Just then, a message popped up on WeChat.
Du Heng: [If you're free next Friday, you can come watch Xiao Chen practice dancing.]
Zhou Yu quickly replied: 【Where are you?】
Du Heng sent me an address; it was the headquarters building of Shengyu.
The May Day holiday is only a few days long, and unfortunately it falls in the middle of the weekend, so Zhou Yu didn't plan to go home.
On the afternoon of the 1st, she greeted Du Heng and came to Shengyu to see how Chen Jingchi's dance practice was going.
Du Heng came downstairs to meet her. Zhou Yu saw his distressed expression and asked, "What's wrong?"
“Xiao Chen is throwing a tantrum upstairs.” Du Heng led her through the gate and said, “I told the teacher that simplifying some of the movements would make it easier, but he wanted a better stage effect and insisted on challenging himself. He twisted his ankle while practicing dance this morning, so the music video can’t be filmed now. He’ll need to rest for at least three or four days.”
Zhou Yu's heart sank. She knew that with the album release imminent, every second was precious. If something went wrong at this crucial moment, Chen Jingchi would only become more anxious.
"Plus the plagiarism incident a few days ago, he doesn't say it, but he's been bothered by it." Du Heng didn't know what to do either. "He didn't eat lunch, and he just chased the doctor away, saying he could continue practicing this afternoon. No one's opinion matters."
Hearing this, Zhou Yu frowned, feeling a tightness in his chest.
"You should talk to him later and tell him not to rush. It's only the first day, there's still time." Du Heng said helplessly and with heartache. "He always confines himself to that three-month deadline, thinking that if he doesn't do well, he'll be completely finished. But it's not that scary. Everyone climbs up step by step."
Zhou Yu felt a pang of heartache upon hearing this, and she nodded: "Okay, I will talk to him."
Upon arriving at the dance studio, Du Heng didn't go in. He simply patted her on the shoulder and sighed softly.
Zhou Yu pushed open the door and saw that the room was empty except for Chen Jingchi sitting on the sofa, looking down at his phone.
Hearing the voice, he looked up, and the anxiety between his brows eased somewhat after he saw who it was.
He didn't say anything, clearly still sulking with himself.
Zhou Yu walked very slowly, glancing at his attitude with each step. Only after seeing that he did not show any obvious rejection did he finally sit down next to him.
His injured right foot was propped up, with an ice pack underneath for cooling. Zhou Yu glanced at him, then looked at his face and asked softly, "Chen Jingchi, what are you afraid of?"
He didn't speak, and Zhou Yu didn't intend to give him time to answer. He continued, "I'm afraid of letting down the company's expectations, our expectations, and the fans' expectations. I'm afraid that after working so hard for so long, I'll end up with nothing. I'm afraid that in the end I'll have to admit that I'm not the genius that others talk about, but just an ordinary person."
Over the past few months, she had witnessed his relentless efforts, but even though she unconditionally supported him in doing what he wanted, she still couldn't help but feel regretful after seeing Chen Jingchi like this.
Do you know what I'm afraid of?
Zhou Yu looked at him with an unprecedented sincerity in her eyes.
"I'm afraid that the pride you've finally managed to rebuild will be worn away little by little, that the once spirited you will become insecure and anxious, that I'll no longer see the light in your eyes, and only see your desire for fame and status, and that you'll lose your original aspirations."
She spoke each word softly and slowly.
"You've already experienced the pain of trying too hard to prove yourself, and I don't want to see you again, all prickly and hurting yourself as well as others."
Zhou Yu stood up to face him and reached out to hug him.
"Chen Jingchi, I want to take back my New Year's wish."
With tears in her eyes, she said, "I would rather you always be yourself and not force yourself to live up to anyone's expectations."
I hope he will be like the free and unrestrained wind, the wildly burning fire, and the wildly growing grass.
She hoped his soul would always be free.
-----------------------
Author's note: Thank you for the nutrient solution, everyone!!
Reader "oookkkkkk" irrigated with 8 nutrient solutions.
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Reader "Empty Twilight" added 1 nutrient solution to the water.
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