Respawn Entertainment: Days of Glory

Chapter 1007 Yanshan People's Sea Pond, Pond Language, Old Words and Wine Songs, Grain by Grain

Bian Lang slept very well, but when he woke up and heard Dong Youbian's demo, his face darkened: "What kind of crap is this? Is that German producer out of his mind, or has he never heard my previous productions, or is he just out of his mind?"

It was rare to see Bian Lang so exasperated, so Guo Sichu, in a playful mood, deliberately teased him, "So concerned about Dong Youbian? Teacher Bian, I've noticed you're a bit dishonest..."

Bian Lang became even more agitated upon hearing this: "I'm taking responsibility for my work! Her breath control is terrible right now; she's turning a powerful female lead song into a lamenting woman's lament... I... sigh..."

"Hahaha... You still say you don't care... I'm just teasing you. What are you planning to do?"

"Let her do whatever she wants, but if she sings like this, I won't let her post it..." After calming down, Bian Lang thought about the timing and continued, "She's just trying to provoke you, isn't she? Teacher Guo, how do you plan to deal with this?"

Guo Sichu originally thought Bian Lang wouldn't bring this up on his own initiative. She felt that most men wouldn't take the initiative in such situations, for fear of causing trouble. But now that Bian Lang had brought it up, she directly expressed her thoughts: "I want you to go back and record 'Thank You for Hearing Me' for me."

Bian Lang smiled and nodded after listening, saying, "It's not impossible, but I'd prefer you to record 'Flammable and Explosive'!"

After hearing Bian Lang's suggestion, Guo Sichu did not give an answer immediately. She tilted her head and thought for a while before shaking her head and saying, "I won't sing it. I don't like this song. I don't want to create this kind of persona."

"What kind of character setting?" Bian Lang asked with interest.

"You wrote this song yourself and you're asking me questions? I'd like to ask you what you were thinking when you wrote this song?"

"How would I know? You'll have to ask Shang Mengdi about this..." Bian Lang thought to himself, but asked Guo Sichu aloud, "What do you think of this song?"

This was no problem for Guo Sichu. Ever since she heard that Dong Youbian was going to record this song, she took the time to read through all the songs that Bian Lang had left for Dong Youbian. She had a pretty deep impression of this song, "Flammable and Explosive".

But at the time, she just watched and didn't think much of it. However, after listening to Dong You's demo last night, she suddenly felt like she understood the song:

"This song actually suits Dong Youbian quite well. If it's polished properly, I think it could be a great song that breaks out of its niche. Besides, she's an artist with the company, so what's wrong with her making money for the company? It's just that I can't tolerate the timing of her posting it and the fact that it's targeted at you. If she were only targeting me, I probably wouldn't bother with her about it..."

Guo Sichu first corrected her attitude before she began to analyze the lyrics:
"These lyrics are truly brilliant... They elevate 'me' to a pedestal, drag 'me' down to hell, 'my' persona is not determined by 'me,' nor is its destruction. The mastermind, who can turn the world upside down with a flick of the wrist, is actually just a capricious and eccentric person."

Throughout the entire song, the narrator remains silent, only repeatedly stating two extremely contradictory attitudes, thus encapsulating the word "scumbag." This demonstrates that describing contradictions is far more powerful than simply condemning a scumbag. However, I feel that the song's tone isn't one of resolute awakening, but rather one of being deeply mired in the situation, finding it difficult to let go and find peace.

The twenty sets of contradictory "preferences" are actually all observations of "me" about "me". While "me" is "aware" of it, I still have to continue to play the role. Even so, I cannot keep the other party. Even after the breakup, I still find it hard to forget and repeatedly recall it, like repeatedly gnawing on a scar, becoming addicted to the pain.

Then it became so addictive that I started to doubt myself. I think the subtext of this song is, "Why couldn't I keep you even after all this..."

After listening attentively to Guo Sichu's analysis, Bian Lang clapped his hands and exclaimed, "Brilliant! When it comes to this song, even professional music critics like Bai Dao are no match for you!"

Guo Sichu readily accepted her boyfriend's praise: "By the way, look at what Bai Dao said. He probably loves this kind of excitement the most, especially since his internet is blocked in China, while Dong Youbian posted it on foreign websites!"

As she spoke, she clicked on Bai Dao's homepage to take a look, and sure enough, after receiving 100 dollars from a netizen, Bai Dao had specifically commented on the song "Flammable and Explosive":
"If she had written the lyrics herself, I could say something, but this song was written by Bian Lang, so I don't know how to comment... As for her singing skills, I can only say that she has regressed quite a bit, and the talent she used to have is gone. The music is undoubtedly excellent; Bian Lang's work is never mediocre. However, given the current situation, Bian Lang probably won't be handling the arrangement himself. We can look forward to seeing what kind of answer this producer from DGM will deliver!"

"Well done, Teacher Bian, you really hit the nail on the head. Bai Dao is at a loss for words to describe this!"

That wasn't what Bian Lang was concerned about right now. He was thinking about what song to send to Guo Sichu so she could respond. As for Dong Youbian, Bian Lang felt he hadn't done anything wrong, had given her more than enough, and even though her departure was so inexplicable in the end, Bian Lang hadn't done anything unnecessary.

Bian Lang's truest thought wasn't "may we each be well," but rather that it would be best if they never met again... However, the reality was that things at the company couldn't be sorted out in a short time, so Bian Lang treated her as a singer who had been sidelined.

But this whole mess has completely shattered Bian Lang's opinion of her. Even if Guo Sichu wanted to tolerate it, Bian Lang definitely wouldn't do nothing. Since Guo Sichu wanted to respond with a song, he would wholeheartedly support her!

"What are you daydreaming about, Teacher Bian?"

When Guo Sichu called out to him, Bian Lang finally came to his senses: "I was thinking of a song for you. It would be such a waste to use 'Thank You for Hearing Me' in your online battle."

Upon hearing this, Guo Sichu astutely asked, "What is the source of your evaluation system for your own work?"

Bian Lang was equally sensitive to this issue: "It's just that I think it's good, what need is there for a rating system! 'Thank You for Hearing Me' is a song that can dominate the charts in Europe and America..."

Before Bian Lang could finish speaking, Guo Sichu exposed his weakness: "You actually know the phrase 'wasteful'? When you used 'No Place to Hide' to humiliate Xia Yuxi, how come you didn't know this phrase?"

"Can it be the same? I had no fame at all back then. Why don't you ask your best friend what her opinion would be if I sang a different song back then?"

Guo Sichu doesn't deny this, but it can only be said that the later version of "No Place to Hide" was too high, so high that even Liu Yao felt that his cover was a bit inappropriate.

"Okay, let's not talk about that anymore. Have you figured it out yet? Even if it's not an absolute crushing victory, it has to be a close match..." Speaking of close matches, Bian Lang immediately had an idea. In the original Earth folk music scene, there was indeed a female folk singer who was on par with Chen Li. It wasn't Xie Chunhua, Hua Zhou, or Xiao Hei; this female musician's name was Yan Chi!

Many fans prefer to call her "Yan Lang," a title brimming with heroic spirit. This nickname is truly brilliant, far more sophisticated than the now-clichéd "husband."

"The sea of ​​people in Yanshan is filled with the sounds of conversation, and the songs of old friends are sung with every grain of rice." This is a line of poetry that was originally coined by fans of these two individuals, though it's unclear who they are.

Many people compare Yan Chi and Chen Li, but I think they each have their own merits. Strictly speaking, Chen Li's music is no longer just folk music, but she doesn't want to be categorized as pop music, which is quite interesting.

As for Yan Chi, she is an extraordinary woman. Bian Lang's statement that she is the pinnacle of beauty in the folk music scene is not an exaggeration at all.

I met her at a music festival years ago. She had a bright, spring-like face and was dressed in a simple, ancient style. She was quietly playing the guqin on stage. After watching the performance, Bian Lang had only one thought: "This girl is only suitable for performing at music festivals. She should be singing properly in a concert hall!"

The arts management staff at the time also thought so: "She and Chen Hongyu are both not good for their music, especially outdoor stages like music festivals. If the arrangement is weak, it's like today, light and airy with no feeling. If the arrangement is strong, it feels too pop and not folk at all!"

However, what Bian Lang thinks is the most amazing thing about this girl is that Yan Chi, a frequent commenter on NetEase Cloud Music with 999+ comments, doesn't even have a Baidu Baike page!

But after reading her Weibo bio, it seems clear: "Writing and composing music, carving wood and stone, silent yet rich. Also, no encyclopedia entry."

Back then, Bian Lang felt that the phrase "gentle and refined like a chrysanthemum" in this circle was probably not a deliberately created persona, but rather belonged to this woman! In a daze, you would feel that this girl did not seem to be born in modern times, but rather a woman who walked out of an ancient book.

In reality, Yan Chi and Chen Li's fans often argue, but they actually have a pretty good relationship. Yan Chi has participated in the arrangement of Chen Li's songs such as "Five Words" and "Flammable and Explosive," while Chen Li provided backing vocals on Yan Chi's "The Sea of ​​People," and even left a proud comment on her music page.

However, Yan Chi's music is dominated by ancient Chinese style. Many of her works are poems that have been passed down through the ages. The arrangement incorporates many ancient instruments, which are grand and majestic, and well-organized. Paired with her clear and delicate voice, it makes people think of those great lyricists of ancient times. If these lyrics were actually sung, would they sound like Yan Chi singing them?
Yan Chi always manages to perfectly blend the emotions expressed in poetry into his music and arrangements. Each piece feels like a journey back to ancient times, a moment of unspoken understanding with the poet after sharing a drink and a song.

During one performance of "Bring in the Wine," Yan Chi appeared slightly nervous before singing, saying that she felt a bit weak that day and was worried that she wouldn't sing well. However, as soon as she opened her mouth, a quiet and melancholic feeling emanated from her, completely devoid of her previous shyness.

Since Yan Chi was mentioned, the song for Guo Sichu was naturally settled: "Of course, I'll write it for you on the plane later!"

Hearing this, Guo Sichu also began to look forward to it.

……

On Dong Youbian's side, she had recorded this demo a few days ago, and she wasn't very satisfied with it. Originally, she had kept it as a reference, but after seeing Guo Sichu's performance at the Rolling Stone Music Festival, she got a surge of anger and couldn't control herself.

After reading it, Chen Manman didn't try to persuade her to delete it. She just silently thought to herself, "With your impatient nature, you still want to compete with Guo Sichu? You have no chance of winning! Once the baby is born, if you still want to, you might have the upper hand!"

But even though Chen Manman didn't say anything, netizens weren't blind or deaf. Bai Dao's insightful comment was screenshotted and posted below Dong Youbian's post.

She was telling the truth, she admitted it herself, but all she could do was stage a display of impotent rage. She knew that sending it out so hastily was a poor move, but she just couldn't help it…

Since she posted it, she has been constantly refreshing the social media accounts of Rolling Stone, Bian Lang, and Guo Sichu, from Weibo to Xiaohongshu. Almost 24 hours have passed, and there has been no response at all, which makes her feel even more unbalanced!

"Am I just going to be ignored like this? Don't they even have the slightest desire to pay attention to me?" But then she thought of the baby in her belly, and finally forced herself to fall asleep...

Looking at Dong Youbian, who was lying on the bed and not sleeping soundly, Chen Manman felt both hatred and heartache.

In the end, she decided to call Chen Shuting to tell her about the situation, but her phone was always off: "She's probably on the plane back to Chuncheng! Knowing Bian Lang's personality, the fact that there's been no movement at all makes me think something big is about to happen!"

Nothing major happened, but Bian Lang did manage to write a good song. This was the slowest Bian Lang had ever written lyrics, and he made many revisions along the way, taking more than an hour to complete. During that time, Guo Sichu could be vaguely heard humming softly as he revised the lyrics.

She couldn't hear what he was singing, and she didn't dare to disturb Bian Lang's creative process.

Bian Lang writes slowly, of course, because he can't remember the lyrics! Fortunately, he used to listen to this song a lot when he was upset, so he hummed it over and over again, and then tried to recall and revise it little by little.

Guo Sichu took it and only read the first four sentences before only three words came to mind: "This is it!"

Then she improvised a tune based on her feelings and started singing:

There aren't many people who want to see someone but are still waiting.

When put together, it's heartbreaking, like a river of broken pieces.
Walking alone through life's vicissitudes, I say, "I must live well."
But no amount of busyness can quench the thirst for love…

(End of this chapter)