Dafei Band, Without Da Fei

Wang Zhi hurriedly ordered several dishes. The two of them made some arrangements and set up a small dining table. The meal was a little modest for entertaining a great god, but there was still plenty of food.

Liang Yin was somewhat excited. "Will Shen Jianbin come? Will Su Yulin come? Have you ever seen Su Yulin play the drums? She's absolutely awesome!"

Wang Zhi frowned and handed over his phone.

"Boss Lady, you should look at this first."

The official account of Dafei Studio announced today that because Da Fei, whose real name was Lin Chudong, had failed to follow the company's arrangements, his employment contract had been terminated. The new lead singer, Wu Bo, would replace Da Fei as the band's vocalist, and the band would begin a nationwide tour next month. Everyone was asked to show their support.

The single Weibo post instantly caused an uproar.

"Da Fei got fired? What exactly happened?"

"Holy crap, Da Fei is gone. My youth is over! Can the band still be worth listening to without Da Fei?"

"Here's a joke: Da Fei Band, without Da Fei."

"Who gave you the nerve to fire Da Fei? Did you ask the fans? Even if he didn't follow the company's arrangements, that shouldn't be enough to get him fired, right?"

"I'm an insider, so let me say something fair. Shen Jianbin, you [censored]..."

"I heard before that Da Fei's constant refusal to appear on variety shows had angered the company. Looks like it was true after all."

"But wasn't Da Fei the owner of Dafei Studio? Who could fire him?"

"He wasn't. Shen Jianbin is."

"You mean the keyboardist who wears sunglasses every day?"

"..."

The fans of Dafei Band were basically the same as Da Fei's fans. When they heard that the lead singer had been replaced, they were extremely dissatisfied.

The news was pushed straight onto Trending Search, and the reposts quickly surpassed one hundred thousand.

At the same time, the public relations company also took action.

In less than half an hour, the public opinion surrounding the entertainment industry had shifted to the other side.

"I heard Da Fei is arrogant because of his talent and acts like a big shot. He has the final say in the band, and every musician has been berated by him."

"I heard that too. Once, during a live broadcast of a gala, Da Fei left early, leaving a twenty-minute gap. The host had to awkwardly sing several songs before avoiding a Broadcast Accident."

"Talent is talent, but he still has to follow the rules and respect the staff."

"You're only talking about the surface reasons. The real reason is that Da Fei, Su Yulin, and Shen Jianbin were caught in a Love Triangle, so their relationship fell apart."

"Holy crap, are you serious?"

"Things in the Entertainment industry don't happen without a reason. Most of those rumors are true."

Looking at the netizens' comments, Liang Yin and Wang Zhi fell silent.

Da Fei had been fired?

Was that why he had come to the Piano Shop to apply for a job as a guitar teacher?

That was ridiculous, wasn't it? He was a professional singer who had once been hugely popular. Even if he had been fired, he shouldn't have ended up in such a sorry state, right?

Wang Zhi said, "My analysis is that not everything online is false. The rumor about the Love Triangle between Da Fei, Su Yulin, and Shen Jianbin is probably the most reliable. He came to our Piano Shop to hide. He doesn't want Su Yulin to find him..."

Just as Wang Zhi was speaking at length, the lesson over there also ended.

Ms. Zhang came over with satisfaction written all over her face.

"I want to renew my lessons and buy another twenty sessions, but I have one requirement. They must be taught by this Teacher Lin. Otherwise, I'll still ask for a refund!"

As she spoke, she shot Wang Zhi a disdainful look.

Wang Zhi felt deeply aggrieved, but he could only swallow his anger and apologize repeatedly.

After seeing Ms. Zhang off, Liang Yin immediately pulled down the roller shutter.

"We're closed for the day."

"Welcome, Da Fei!"

Lin Chudong froze for a moment, then smiled. "Thank you, Boss Lady."

Liang Yin was somewhat awkward. "You're really going to come work as a teacher here? You're a top-tier singer!"

Lin Chudong shook his head. "Top-tier? Look at my Weibo. I only have a few tens of thousands of followers. My songs are popular, but I'm not."

Liang Yin paused slightly. That was indeed the case. Otherwise, she wouldn't have needed half a day to recognize him as Da Fei.

"But... you're not short of money either, are you?"

How could a singer of Da Fei's caliber possibly work for six thousand yuan a month?

Lin Chudong gave a wry smile. "How about we eat first?"

He had already been staring at the food in front of him for quite some time.

"Oh, right, right. Hurry and eat. Thanks for teaching the child just now!" said Liang Yin.

After Lin Chudong ate a few bites, Wang Zhi said, "Brother Fei, have you seen Weibo?"

Liang Yin frowned and stepped on his foot beneath the table.

Why bring up the sore spot?

Lin Chudong smiled faintly. "Dafei Studio made an official announcement, right? What did they say?"

Wang Zhi said, "They said you refused to follow the company's arrangements, so they terminated your contract."

The atmosphere immediately turned strange. Liang Yin and Wang Zhi exchanged a glance, both becoming cautious.

Lin Chudong, however, didn't care in the slightest. "Not bad. At least they didn't smear me."

Wang Zhi frowned. "You're too calm, aren't you? Are you really willing to leave the band just like that? Was this caused by your relationship with Su Yulin?"

Liang Yin was so angry that her chest visibly heaved more, and she stepped on him again under the table.

He was at least half a musician. Why was he asking invasive questions like those brain-dead reporters?

Lin Chudong said helplessly, "How about we finish eating before we talk? Boss Lady, you've stepped on me twice."

"Ah, sorry, sorry!" Liang Yin's face turned bright red.

The Boss Lady was actually quite pretty. It was just that her figure was so prominent that it made people overlook her face.

The three of them ate quietly for a few bites and discovered that Da Fei was no different from an ordinary person. He ate meat, vegetables, and rice...

Unable to hold back, Liang Yin asked, "Will you make a comeback?"

Lin Chudong shrugged. "I never retired. I just don't have a company anymore. I won't have any performances for the time being."

"What are you planning to do next?"

Lin Chudong said, "I'll work as a teacher at the Piano Shop to make a living for now. Then I'll find an ambitious investor, form a new band, and become the owner myself."

Liang Yin's eyes immediately lit up. She slapped her chest and said,

"Me! My Piano Shop has plenty of instruments. I'll support you in forming a band!"

"See? Doesn't my chest show that I have great ambitions?"

Lin Chudong glanced at her while eating. "It does."

Wang Zhi said, "It really does."

Liang Yin: ...

After eating until he was about eighty percent full, Lin Chudong walked around the Piano Shop a few times.

There were two floors. The lower floor mainly held guitars—Acoustic Guitars, Electric Guitars, and bass guitars.

Half of the upper floor was occupied by pianos and violins, while the other half held Drum kits. It had basically every mainstream instrument, making it a standard Piano Shop.

Liang Yin stood with her hands on her hips, looking smug.

"How is it? Don't let the size of my shop fool you. We have performance-grade instruments. If you want to form a new band, I'll support you!"

Wang Zhi immediately snatched up a guitar. His fingers flew across the strings as he played an extremely flashy solo, using tapping, slapping, palm muting, hammer-ons, pull-offs, and every other difficult technique.

"Brother Fei, what do you think of my level? How about I join your band as a guitarist?"

Lin Chudong glanced at him but didn't answer. A few seconds later, he turned around and continued looking at the instruments.

The silence at that moment was deafening.