Taking Liu Yifei back to Northeast China for the Chinese New Year has sent the entire internet into

"stop."

Fang Yu raised his finger and tapped it twice on the table.

Don't even think about it.

"Do you think PepsiCo's Asia Pacific legal department is a pushover?"

He held up one finger and pointed it in the air.

"You've already taken the song off the table, and the next day a breach of contract notice will be flying onto Huace's desk."

"I just said I wanted to use the production costs of this song to invest in your future studio."

"You're planning to use my principal to pay the penalty for breach of contract?"

Fang Yu clicked his tongue.

"Fairy Sister, your spending speed is so fast, even three horses combined couldn't keep up!"

Liu Yifei pursed her lips, and her previously tense shoulders slowly slumped.

"But……"

"First."

Fang Yu didn't give her a chance to continue speaking.

"Right Now" is not just a bad song.

"This is your first real calling card since you transitioned from acting to singing."

"Haven't you seen how good the online reputation is right now?"

"The audience had just accepted 'singer Liu Yifei,' and you turned around and removed the song because your boyfriend wanted to dominate the charts."

Fang Yu looked at her, his tone becoming more serious.

"What are you expecting the fans to think?"

"What will the industry think of you?"

"To fall in love, you'd abandon your career and come here as a pure love warrior?"

Liu Yifei lowered her eyes.

Unconsciously, my fingertips pinched a corner of the tissue, folded it, and then slowly flattened it.

Of course she understood these principles.

Having been in the entertainment industry for so many years, how could she not know the enormous commercial losses and reputational backlash that would result from the sudden removal of a hit song?

She would scoff at any other person who made such a suggestion.

But just now, when she saw Fang Yu so close to that unprecedented record, the first thought that popped into her mind was indeed—

Make way for him.

There was no trade-off.

No calculation was performed.

They didn't even have time to consider the reactions of Pepsi and Huace.

It's like an instinct.

It was an instinct that even she found somewhat unbelievable after she came to her senses.

Liu Yifei silently cursed herself in her heart.

When did it become like this?

She has always been the one who stands in the spotlight, accustomed to bearing everything alone, and never allowing herself to become anyone's appendage.

But the man in front of me—

He seems to have some special skill.

It gradually loosened all her strong, calm, and rational qualities.

Fang Yu looked at her without saying a word, and the seriousness on his face suddenly disappeared.

He reached across the table, bent his index finger, and flicked her forehead.

"hiss--"

Liu Yifei covered her forehead and immediately glared at him.

"Are you feeling more awake now?"

Fang Yu grinned, reverting to his usual carefree demeanor.

"Those who earned their second place through their own abilities can stay comfortably up there."

Liu Yifei rubbed her forehead.

He tried to keep a straight face, but the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up slightly.

Fang Yu leaned back in his chair and spread his hands.

"Even if we take a step back and assume that occupying all ten spots in the top ten is a good thing?"

"The tallest tree in the forest will surely be felled by the wind."

"I'm currently occupying nine slots. I reckon my competitors are practically making an assembly line of people stabbing me in the back at home."

He gestured with his hand.

"Leave an opening."

"Give your peers at least a glimmer of hope that they can survive."

Liu Yifei looked at him for a while.

"Then don't you feel regretful?"

She paused, her voice softening slightly.

"You were just one step away from making history."

Fang Yu's smile gradually faded.

"What's there to regret?"

He spoke very slowly.

"I have a fairy sister."

What regrets could I possibly have in this life?

The air suddenly became quiet.

The clock on the wall is still ticking.

Click.

Click.

The tissue in Liu Yifei's hand had been twisted into a pretzel at some point.

Her lips moved slightly.

It seemed like they wanted to say something.

But those words swirled on the tip of my tongue before I swallowed them back down.

Her eyelashes trembled slightly, and then she suddenly stood up.

"You sit here, I'll go wash the dishes."

She reached out to collect the bowls and chopsticks from the table.

The movement was too hasty, and the two plates collided, producing a slightly chaotic, crisp sound.

Fang Yu didn't stop her.

He sat in the chair and watched as Liu Yifei picked up her bowl and chopsticks and practically fled into the kitchen.

Until the tap was turned on, the sound of porcelain bowls clattering came intermittently from the kitchen.

Fang Yu leaned back in his chair.

The smile in his eyes was impossible to suppress.

He took out his phone and glanced at the time displayed on the lock screen.

8:23 PM.

It's still early.

Fang Yu put his phone back in his pocket, picked up the unopened bottle of red wine from the table, and looked down at the label.

Burgundy, France.

It's a good year.

……

Days passed by one after another.

The smoke from the red-blue battle has finally dissipated from the trending topics list.

Those singers and management companies who had been holding back for more than half a month and dared not show their faces could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

New songs are being released one after another, and more new faces are appearing on the hot song charts.

but.

The positions are first to third.

It's still dominated by songs like "Don't Listen to Slow Songs When You're Sad," "Right Now," and "Northeast Folk Songs."

It's like three nails wedged into the bones of the list, and no one can pull them out.

Their colleagues resigned themselves to their fate.

As long as you don't get all the soup, you can have a little bit left over.

That morning.

Starry Entertainment, CEO's Office.

Mr. Zhang, holding a thermos, was discussing artist plans for the second half of the year with Mr. Li from the music production department.

A densely packed Excel spreadsheet lay on the table, with seven or eight circles marked on it.

"Bang Bang—"

There was a knock on the door, and before Mr. Zhang could speak, the door was pushed open.

Fang Yu strolled in, hands in his pockets.

"Mr. Zhang, are you busy?"

Mr. Zhang looked up, quickly put down his thermos, and pointed to the leather sofa opposite him.

"What brings you to the office today? Please have a seat."

Fang Yu did not sit down.

He walked to his desk, reached into his pocket, pulled out a black USB drive, and tossed it onto the table.

pat.

Mr. Zhang and Mr. Li both stared wide-eyed.

Mr. Zhang pointed at the USB drive: "This...this is..."

"The one for Cai Kun." Fang Yu pulled out a chair and plopped down, expertly pouring himself a glass of water. "Let him come up, and we can listen to it."

Old Li gasped.

It's only been a few days since General Manager Zhang assigned the talent show to Fang Yu.

It will only take about ten days at most.

Is the lyrics, composition, arrangement, and demo all done?

Old Li glanced at Fang Yu's face subconsciously.

The kid's expression was as calm as if he had just bought a bottle of water from the convenience store downstairs; he didn't even seem to be breathing.

With lightning speed, Mr. Zhang pressed the internal phone on his desk, raising his voice by half an octave:

"Get Cai Kun to my office right now! Attack!"