Lucky Card x3

Liang Yin chatted with Lin Chudong for ages. At first, it was all business.

But later, she started asking all sorts of gossipy questions.

Was so-and-so really cheating? Had so-and-so been framed for soliciting a prostitute?

The questions gave Lin Chudong a splitting headache. He was about to open his Treasure Chest—couldn't she go to bed already?

If it weren't for her impressive bust, he would've kicked her out long ago!

Liang Yin chatted until her eyes were heavy with sleep, then finally left, reluctant to go.

The landlady's room was right next to his dorm room and was much like his, though Liang Yin didn't stay there often. She had her own place.

As soon as Liang Yin left, Lin Chudong eagerly opened the Treasure Chest.

It was a Green Treasure Chest, which should be of higher quality than the previous one. He wasn't sure whether the quality of these chests was random or followed some kind of pattern.

If they kept getting better, that'd be incredible.

[ Ding ]

The Treasure Chest opened.

[Purple Treasure Chest x1][Lucky Card x3]

Just as he'd expected, the quality of the Treasure Chests kept getting higher!

Going by the usual color ranking for game equipment, a Purple Treasure Chest was definitely higher quality than a Green Treasure Chest.

And this time, he'd gotten quite a lot: three Lucky Cards.

As the name suggested, these things increased his luck. He just didn't know what increased luck was good for.

But based on what he knew about the system, using a Lucky Card to buy lottery tickets was definitely out. Even if he did, he wouldn't win anything big—maybe thirty or fifty yuan at most.

So he'd save them for now and use them when the time was right.

Opening the Purple Treasure Chest!

[29:59:59]

This time, opening the chest would take a full thirty hours. It seemed the higher the chest's quality, the longer it took to open.

Lin Chudong was even more eager to see what the next Treasure Chest would bring.

As usual, Lin Chudong taught Ms. Zhang's son that day. There weren't many people around for lessons, and the Piano Shop was nearly empty.

Fortunately, Liangyin Music Shop didn't rely on lessons alone. Selling pianos was its main source of profit.

Liang Yin didn't have time to sell any pianos just then. She rushed back to the shop in a flurry.

"Da Fei, the company registration's all taken care of. The business license should be ready in a few days. Should we go record the song first?"

"Once we have all the paperwork, we can release it."

Lin Chudong nodded. "Sure. Let me finish this lesson first."

Liangyin Music Shop closed for the day again. Lin Chudong, Liang Yin, and Wang Zhi loaded several bags and all kinds of instruments into the car, then headed straight for the Recording Studio.

"This Recording Studio costs three thousand yuan an hour. It's insanely expensive! Da Fei, you'd better hurry!"

Wang Zhi gaped. "Holy crap, is this place plated in gold? Three thousand an hour? Even a pretty model doesn't cost that much!"

Lin Chudong said, "As long as the recording equipment is good, it's fine. If we're quick, we can finish in four hours."

"Let's get started!"

A middle-aged man came out and said, "Brother Fei, I'm Tian Yang. Just call me Xiao Tian. Are all the musicians here?"

Liang Yin had called ahead. The Recording Studio had opened its doors because they knew Da Fei was coming.

Professional Recording Studios like this usually worked with performing arts troupes or major entertainment companies. They were rarely open to the public.

The three thousand yuan an hour was already a special rate, thanks to Da Fei.

Lin Chudong said, "It's just me. I can record one track at a time. Teacher Tian, you can get started."

Tian Yang was taken aback. Plenty of singers were versatile, and all professional singers knew how to play several instruments.

But performing onstage was one thing; recording was another.

A performance had to look good, but a recording showed your true ability.

Even many highly skilled singers wouldn't record their own instruments. They hired musicians to do it for them. He hadn't expected Da Fei to be so confident.

Of course, he'd seen the posts on Weibo, too. Maybe Da Fei was broke and couldn't afford to hire musicians.

"Brother Fei, we can start. Which track should we record first?"

"Drums."

"Sure. I have the metronome here."

"Keep it. I don't need it."

Tian Yang froze, then looked a little exasperated.

Recording without a metronome? Was he kidding?

This was an audio recording. They needed to get the perfect take, since most people would end up hearing this version.

And they were recording separate tracks. How could they put them together without a metronome?

They'd probably have to record it again in a minute.

Tian Yang didn't say anything more. Da Fei was the singer, so he could do things his way. Besides, the studio charged three thousand yuan an hour. Even if they spent the whole day recording, it'd still be good money.

Lin Chudong picked up the drumsticks and tapped out a few beats with his left foot.

Then he swung both arms, and the drums went boom-tss, boom-tss.

Tian Yang nodded slightly. The sound was quite good. Da Fei really did live up to his reputation.

But rhythm couldn't rely on feel alone. He quietly turned on the metronome, matched it against Lin Chudong's drumming, then set it aside to see when Lin Chudong would lose the beat.

Standing outside the Recording Studio, Liang Yin whispered, "Da Fei looks so cool! Look how well he's working the bass drum. His hand-foot coordination is incredible. Was Da Fei a drummer before?"

Wang Zhi didn't know much about drums, but the landlady did. If she said he was good, he must be.

"No, Brother Fei used to play guitar, but he's good at drums, too."

A few minutes later, Lin Chudong stopped playing.

"Are we done?"

A hint of astonishment appeared on Tian Yang's face. Lin Chudong had kept perfect time with the metronome right to the end!

"Done, Brother Fei. One take..."

It was simply unbelievable. Was his brain some kind of machine? How could his rhythm be so steady?

And he'd nailed it in one take, without a single flaw. Every sound was perfect and precisely placed.

Tian Yang put aside his earlier disdain and adopted a humble attitude.

"Brother Fei, what should we record next?"

"Rhythm guitar. Play the drums back once so I can listen."

"Sure!"

Just like that, they finished recording all the tracks in about two hours.

Wang Zhi stood to the side, lost in deep thought. Lin Chudong's skill was making him doubt himself.

He'd gone through formal training, too, and practiced for more than a decade, but he couldn't reach Lin Chudong's level.

Even with a song he knew best, he'd struggle to record a video on his phone without making a mistake.

Never mind playing every note as perfectly as Lin Chudong did.

He could spend more than a decade studying guitar alone. How would he ever have time to learn any other instruments?

Guitar, drums, bass, keyboard, flute, backing vocals—eight tracks in all, and every one was done in a single take.

They'd recorded three guitar tracks alone, each with a different score, and he hadn't made a single mistake. It was insane!

And the most important thing was, he was the lead singer!

Singing was his strongest suit. Did he not need to spend time practicing?

If professional musicians were all this good, then Wang Zhi really couldn't make it as a guitarist. Should he seriously switch to bass?

When they mixed the tracks and the accompaniment played, the beautiful sound gave Liang Yin goosebumps.

This song was going to be a hit!

Lin Chudong said, "Teacher Tian, we can get ready to record the vocals."

Tian Yang was taken aback. "Brother Fei, are we recording everything today? Don't you need a break?"

Lin Chudong said, "At three thousand yuan an hour, I can't afford to rest. Come on, let's hurry."