Unanimous Praise

Lin Chudong smiled faintly. "How have I wronged you? Did I fail to fulfill anything in the contract?"

Shen Jianbin said, "The contract is a legal obligation. Don't we have any personal friendship between us? You wrote songs and kept them from me? Is that what a friend would do?"

Lin Chudong was taken aback for a moment, then smiled. "My personal friendship with you?"

"When you slapped that contract down in front of me, you went through legal channels. And now you're talking to me about friendship?"

"Shen Jianbin, why not try making a living as a comedian? You're always cracking me up."

With that, Lin Chudong and the others turned and left.

Their faces were all beaming with the joy of victory.

Shen Jianbin's expression darkened. He said coldly,

"Let's go too!"

Back at the piano shop, Liang Yin hurriedly opened the artist dashboard.

"Da Fei, both our songs made the Hot Song Chart! They just broke into the top hundred, and 'Chengdu' has reached number three!"

It was just one concert, with ten or twenty thousand people. While it had made quite an impact, on a national scale, it was barely a blip.

Getting two new songs onto the Hot Song Chart was already an impressive feat.

Jia Lu suddenly said, "Wait, someone's helping us! Brother Fei, look at Douyin. A major influencer livestreamed the whole music festival, and both your explosive set and your encore were recorded. A few of the videos have over a hundred million views!"

Wang Zhi opened the first Douyin video, which showed Da Fei's return to the Music Scene. "Damn, it's already got over ten million likes?"

"Oh? That happened?" Lin Chudong watched for a while and was pleasantly surprised.

He hadn't used a Lucky Card this time, yet someone had still stepped in to help.

Sometimes, the goddess of luck really did favor those who worked hard.

Liang Yin was beaming with excitement. "If that's the case, the buzz will keep growing over the next few days. We might even break into the top ten of the Hot Song Chart tomorrow!"

"Our band could have three songs in the top ten? That'd be amazing!"

"We have Brother Fei to thank for that. Let's celebrate with a feast tonight!"

"Absolutely," Liang Yin said. "It's my treat. I won't make Da Fei do the cooking this time. We need to reward our hero properly!"

They booked a private room and ate half a roasted whole lamb. Everyone drank and celebrated, even Liang Yin having a few extra drinks.

Chen Jianguo put an arm around Lin Chudong's shoulder. "Xiao Lin, how about it? Feel like you can finally breathe a little easier?"

Lin Chudong shook his head. "What's there to celebrate? I'm barely an internet celebrity. Even with a hit song this popular, the Golden Melody Awards won't invite me, TV galas won't invite me, and we don't have the money to put on a concert. I just didn't want to dampen everyone's spirits. It's not that big a deal."

Chen Jianguo was taken aback. "It's rare to see someone as levelheaded as you at your age. Things will only get better from here."

Lin Chudong sighed. "Shen Jianbin won't just sit back and do nothing. He'll definitely pull some dirty tricks, so we need to prepare ourselves."

He knew Shen Jianbin too well. He'd stop at nothing and had plenty of underhanded tricks.

When they'd been on the same team, it hadn't seemed like a big deal. But now that they were rivals, Lin Chudong suddenly found the situation a little troublesome.

Liang Yin walked over to Lin Chudong with her glass and said,

"Da Fei, here's to you. I never thought I'd become the owner of a band and put on such a successful show. Even if I got into a car accident tomorrow, I'd have no regrets!"

Lin Chudong was speechless. "Boss Lady, it's a happy occasion. Say something more auspicious."

"Hehe, all right. I wish you an early son!"

"..."

"Let's just drink."

The liquor slid down his throat. Lin Chudong sat by the window, gazing out at the tranquil Huangpu River.

The Entertainment industry wasn't easy to navigate. A few songs alone weren't enough to keep him afloat.

He needed to think about a backup plan. Everyone present, Old Chen included, had never experienced the scheming between managers. They were still rather naive.

As the core of the band, he had to think further ahead than the others.

On Weibo, Da Fei was trending again.

"Liang Yin Band bursts onto the scene as Da Fei makes his King's Return!"

Liang Yin was overjoyed when she saw the trending topic.

"We're trending! This time it's not just Da Fei—it's our whole band!"

Getting the band's name out there was what mattered most. They'd truly made a splash this time.

That evening, plenty of Big V accounts reposted "No Hesitation" and "The You of the Past," along with their reviews.

"'No Hesitation' is the best rock song I've heard in years. The arrangement and lyrics both convey a precious spirit."

"'Who decides if I stay or go, or defines the universe in my heart?' Maybe Da Fei wrote these lyrics when he left the band. Even if someone could decide whether he stayed or left, they still couldn't define the universe in his heart."

"Da Fei's spirit gives people like us at the bottom hope. It shows us defiance and perseverance. 'Though wounded, I will not retreat.' On behalf of the Music Scene, I want to thank Da Fei and Liang Yin Band for writing lyrics and songs like these!"

"'The You of the Past' leans more toward folk and better matches Da Fei's old style. His deep voice is utterly captivating. Especially that minute-long intro. Even now, I still don't want to skip it."

"A minute of waiting, all for his line, 'I once dreamed of carrying my sword across the world.' I'd call this the strongest song of the year!"

"I watched the videos from Da Fei's music festival. That one shout of 'I'm back!' was enough to shake the entire Music Scene!"

"Da Fei is Da Fei. Wherever he goes, he's the best independent musician."

"I hope Da Fei brings us more great work. Keep moving forward, and never hesitate!"

"..."

The internet was awash in unanimous praise. Whether the songs were good or not was up to everyone to decide, but anyone who dared say they weren't would be cursed out in an instant.

Da Fei had been fired, which already cast him as the underdog. And because the song stood for resistance, it resonated even more with ordinary people at the bottom.

Lin Chudong, thanks to "The You of the Past," was even nicknamed the "President of the Resignation Association" by netizens. After hearing the song, people felt a real urge to quit their jobs and go see the beautiful world.

Liang Yin Band's official Weibo account gained over five hundred thousand followers overnight. The growth was practically rocket-fast.

That evening, after eating and drinking their fill, Lin Chudong returned to the piano shop. Liang Yin came back with him.

She stepped into his room and closed the door.

Lin Chudong froze. "Boss Lady, what are you doing?"

A man and a woman alone together—it wasn't a good idea to close the door.

Though the boss lady was a stunning beauty, Lin Chudong couldn't let his Dao Heart waver. Falling in love now would only slow down his draw.

Liang Yin said, "We made a hundred thousand this time. I'll rent you a place outside. You're the soul of the whole band, and I don't feel right having you stay here. The band will cover it as a business expense."

Lin Chudong smiled. "So that's what this is about. No need. I'm not picky about where I stay. The piano shop is great. It's full of instruments, and I can grab one whenever I want. It helps me write music."

"But... All right!" Da Fei had a point.

"Then tomorrow I'll get someone to fix up your room and buy you a softer double bed."

"Hm? A double bed?"

"That's settled. I'll be off. Get some rest."

The boss lady left in a daze and went home with Jing Feifei.

Lin Chudong shook his head, unable to make sense of Liang Yin's way of thinking.

Lying in bed, he silently watched the Treasure Chest's countdown.

The items in the chest were all over the place, but they were basically life skills from various fields.

If the Treasure Chest's cooldown was short, it would be a huge help to Lin Chudong.

So in theory, as long as he had money, his cheat would become incredibly powerful!