Always Been Quiet

Chapter 8: Always Been Quiet

Eight in the morning.

Kong Xi sent a location and a message.

"Senior Brother, I've already arrived, no need to rush, but if you could get here sooner, that'd be even better!"

A cute emoji followed behind.

Song Dao thought to himself, she really is impatient!

He got dressed and went downstairs, stopped at a breakfast shop for a bowl of sweet soy milk, savory tofu pudding, and ate two fried dough sticks.

Only then did he hail a taxi, heading to the address Kong Xi had sent.

Beijing's traffic was heavy, the taxi stopping and starting.

If the distance weren't so far, he'd have considered grabbing a shared bike.

Song Dao sat in the back, looking out the window.

Towering buildings, bustling traffic.

A city of steel and concrete, prosperous yet cold.

Not much different from Earth.

Soon he lost interest, quietly mulling over the song Kong Xi had arranged for.

He knew that xianxia drama; it was in the original owner's memory.

The male and female leads were both top-tier A-list stars.

The guy, though a fresh-faced idol, had decent acting among the new generation, with a massive fanbase.

The girl debuted as a child star, hadn't grown up badly, and stayed popular to this day—a rising flower.

The drama's investment was over two hundred million, a big production in this era of capped actor salaries.

The production company had asked Kong Xi to sing an insert song, and in his view, it was more about her traffic.

As a rising singer, Kong Xi had over fifty million followers across all platforms, with over seventeen million on Audio-Visual alone.

A proper big influencer!

Plus, most of Kong Xi's fans were young people. Even if the contract didn't require her to promote it, they'd given her a million just to create and sing one insert song—shouldn't she show some tact?

Even if Kong Xi didn't get it, her company would push for it.

A few casual mentions in her livestream would outperform many shoddy film recommendation bloggers.

Figuring that out, Song Dao felt grounded.

The place Kong Xi had chosen was similar to Beijing's 798 on Earth.

The name was amusing: [Life is Messy Studio].

Song Dao guessed the boss might be like his past self—a scruffy middle-aged man.

After all, it's only in middle age that one gains many insights.

But when he arrived, pushed the door open, he found Kong Xi chatting warmly with a beautiful big sister around twenty-seven or twenty-eight.

As he entered, they seemed to be in the middle of something interesting, both cheerful and animated.

Seeing him, their laughter cut off.

There was even a hint of awkwardness.

Song Dao thought, could they be gossiping about me?

The big sister reacted quickly, a warm smile reappearing on her delicately made-up face.

"You're Song Dao, right? Even better looking in person than in the video. Welcome, welcome!"

"Senior Brother, why didn't you tell me you were here? I'd have come out to meet you!" The Somersault Cat Girl wasn't slow either, quickly standing up.

"Junior Sister, hello. And... this sister, hello." Song Dao smiled back, greeting them both.

"Junior Brother, hello. I'm Yan Yu."

The big sister also stood, introducing herself.

"You graduated from the Central Conservatory of Music too?" Hearing her call him junior brother, Song Dao asked.

"That's right, a few years ahead of you. Call me Senior Sister or Sister Yu, either works!" Yan Yu looked Song Dao up and down.

He seemed even more handsome than in the video.

"Sister Yu opened this recording studio after graduating. She works with my company a lot. I arranged to meet you here, first for the quiet, and second to throw some business her way," Kong Xi explained beside him.

It was clear they were close, with a warm relationship.

"I listened to that song of yours. It's pretty good, the emotion's spot on, but the recording equipment was lacking. I won't claim mine's the best, but it's definitely better than yours."

Yan Yu had a very outgoing personality, and since Song Dao was a junior brother, she spoke warmly and directly.

"Once you're done with business today, you can re-record that song here. Swap out the audio file—I saw it's already broken into several charts. Don't let those audiophiles find something to nitpick later."

Kong Xi said, "That shouldn't happen. Most people listening to Senior Brother's songs are just looking for emotional resonance through the music..."

Yan Yu shot her a glare, and Kong Xi immediately shut up.

Song Dao smiled politely. "Then I'll trouble you, Senior Sister!"

That day, after getting the song, he went to an off-campus recording studio. It was fairly professional, but the equipment was just average.

The fee was cheap, though—only three or four hundred yuan in total.

Given the current buzz, it really was necessary to re-record it. He had to be responsible to the people spending money on his songs.

Yan Yu smiled. "No trouble at all. Senior Sister makes her living off this, but I can give Junior Brother a discount!"

Song Dao's eyes lit up. "Then thanks in advance!"

Yan Yu brewed a pot of tea, left the space to Song Dao and Kong Xi, and went upstairs to adjust the equipment.

Kong Xi held her teacup with both hands, looking adorably cute.

She glanced at Song Dao a bit sheepishly. "Senior Brother won't blame me for taking the liberty of inviting you here, will he?"

Song Dao shook his head. "No, this is great. I should thank you for introducing me to a high-end recording spot. Plus, since it's Senior Sister's place and she's giving a discount, it's perfect!"

"That's good!" Kong Xi let out a sigh of relief.

But then she wasn't sure where to start.

Like many people who chatter away in front of a camera but are socially anxious in real life, she really didn't have much to say to strangers in private.

If she hadn't been forced into it, she never would have taken the initiative to find Song Dao.

Song Dao spoke up first. "Tell me your requirements. See if my song fits?"

"Oh, right, right. It's like this..."

Once they got down to business, Kong Xi perked up and rattled off the producer's requirements in detail.

Then she looked at Song Dao with eager eyes.

Her gaze held only two words—begging for a song.

Song Dao didn't hesitate. Adopting the mindset of a true musician, he opened his mouth and sang.

Using the Primary Variable Voice, he went with the Mao Buyi version.

Warm and mellow.

"Empty streets, wanting to find someone to put feelings into."

"Making this decision, loneliness is my neighbor."

"Our love, like the scenery you pass by."

The original singer of this song was A-Sang, a talented female vocalist who tragically died young.

Her voice carried a unique sense of world-weariness, strong magnetism, sincere emotion, and delicate nuance.

Now, as Song Dao performed it, with the mindset of a middle-aged man, the original owner's understanding of music, and the control of the Primary Variable Voice, he brought out a completely different flavor.

"The love I gave you has always been quiet, in exchange for the occasional care you give."

"Clearly it's a movie for three, yet I never get a name."

If the original singer expressed a deep, restrained, helpless yet persistent emotion in this song, then Song Dao's rendition now conveyed more of a resigned acceptance—like someone who had weathered the sea and found it hard to settle for a stream.

Gentle and calm.

Senior Brother singing on the spot didn't surprise Kong Xi.

True musicians all have that streak of obsession—if you're not crazy, you're not alive.

Without the courage to sing anywhere at any time, how could you face a stage of thousands without flinching?

She was the same way. She immediately listened intently.

A hint of delight sparkled in her eyes.

What a beautiful song!

Especially the lyrics—they were really amazing!

The reason Song Dao had griped about the system's definition of songs was that not only was the singer a professional, but the lyricist was a legendary giant in the world of words!

Teacher Vincent Fang!

How incredible this man was needed no explanation.

He and the King of Mandopop Jay Chou had elevated each other.

By the time Song Dao reached the third line, Yan Yu had already appeared at the top of the stairs on the second floor.

She stood there quietly, hand on the railing, lightly tapping her fingers to the beat in response.

Watching the young man downstairs, slowly humming the song with a slightly weathered, mellow voice.

A good song strikes straight into the soul!

It doesn't need fancy accompaniment—even sung a cappella, it can instantly resonate with people.

Looks like this failed relationship really had a big impact on Junior Brother.

It awakened his creative talent!

Yan Yu pondered.

At his age, what kind of unforgettable love would he have to experience to write a song like this?

When she first heard that Kong Xi had asked Song Dao for a song, she was a bit dismissive inside.

It wasn't that "See Through Love" was bad, but as someone trained in music, that song... lacked a sense of sophistication!

Of course, she knew this thought was a bit pretentious, and she understood that what the public liked should be what artists pursued.

But understanding that didn't change the fact that, as a professional, she carried a little pride in her bones.

A lot of musicians are like that.

Only when they're really broke do they write a catchy tune.

Fans often love it to death, while they themselves can't stand it.

Another thing was that "See Through Love, See Through You," if not for that trending video last night, would have just been a niche song!

Its style didn't match what Kong Xi wanted at all.

So she wasn't too optimistic about Kong Xi's desperate move to grab any help she could.

But now, hearing Song Dao sing this a cappella, just a few lines in, she could immediately tell—

It had that vibe!

The lyrics of this song weren't long, the melody wasn't complicated, and it was filled with a faint sense of sadness and loneliness.

Yet Yan Yu was completely absorbed.

Only when the song ended did she gently clap and walk gracefully down the stairs.

"This song is great!"

She looked at Song Dao frankly: "Much better than that straightforward, accusatory song of yours!"

Song Dao smiled a bit awkwardly and admitted honestly: "That song was written out of anger. Sorry for making Senior Sister laugh."

"It shows you're a genuine person. Plenty of people write songs to curse someone out—it's no big deal. That song of yours just has a smaller audience, but this one will reach much further!"

As Yan Yu spoke, she sat down at the tea table.

She poured out their cold tea, boiled fresh water, then looked at Kong Xi, who was still spacing out: "Hey, stunned into silence?"

"Huh?" Kong Xi snapped back to reality, her eyes a little red. She pursed her lips and said softly: "Last night's song didn't really move me, but this one... I feel like crying when I hear it. It's so sad..."

She sniffled and looked at Song Dao: "Senior Brother, this song is amazing. Even if the film company doesn't want it, I'll buy it! I can pay you the highest standard!"

Yan Yu shot a helpless glance at this silly girl. She hadn't even done anything yet, and she was already showing all her cards.

The highest standard?

That standard meant even Heavenly Kings and Queens willingly acted as tools for the godfather-level big shots. Would you do that too?

"Don't talk about money all the time. How tacky can you get?"

Song Dao said seriously: "Not tacky at all. We're all struggling in this mortal world. Without money, how can anyone afford to be aloof?"

As soon as he said it, he regretted it. Not because the words were pretentious, but because it was hard to imagine a young man just out of college, barely over twenty, saying something like that.

Yan Yu wasn't surprised, though. Someone who could write a song like this naturally had talent.

The simple lyrics only grew more poignant the more you thought about them.

In truth, it wasn't just Kong Xi who wanted to cry earlier—her own heart had felt a little sore too.

She could already imagine how it would sound with the music added, and it would definitely be even more moving.

"Junior Brother, does this song have a name?" She looked up, her bright, beautiful eyes fixed on Song Dao.

"Always Been Quiet."