Zhou Jing had come to the address Su Li had given her.
She had never expected Su Li to live in a villa in the city center. This was the most expensive villa district in City A.
As she reached Su Li's villa, a tall, thin man approached her. "Zhou Jing? I'm Zheng Xing. The boss sent me to wait for you. Come inside with me."
So this was Zheng Xing, whom Su Li had picked up from who knew where? He looked so aloof.
Following Zheng Xing into the courtyard, she couldn't help wondering where Su Li had gotten his money. It really lived up to its reputation as the most expensive villa district. This courtyard was enormous.
When Zhou Jing entered the villa's living room, she finally saw what Su Li looked like now:
He wore a simple white shirt and black trousers, but on him, they looked like designer clothes, giving him an air of exceptional refinement. His collar was unbuttoned and slightly open, exposing his fair neck.
His foxlike eyes were slightly narrowed as he lounged lazily against the sofa, occasionally taking a sip of the milk tea in his hand.
Seeing her enter, he raised his eyes slightly. "You're here? Have a seat."
"Okay." Zhou Jing felt a little restrained. She felt that Su Li was completely different from before, in both his bearing and his words and actions.
Su Li looked languid now, yet he had an inexplicable presence that made people afraid to treat him irreverently.
Perhaps becoming famous had given him more confidence.
She took out a stack of papers. "Su Li, take a look. These are the advertising endorsements I selected, and these are invitations from directors who want you to audition."
"See which ones you'd like to take."
He picked up the papers and looked through them, pulling one out. "This perfume endorsement looks good." The perfume brand was called Heard Illusion.
Zhou Jing said cautiously, "This perfume is very niche, and the brand was only established recently. I included them because they seemed sincere and were indeed legitimate.
"What does it smell like?"
"I brought samples. I brought samples of all the products for these endorsements."
She took a perfume sample out of her bag. "This scent is called Demon Smoke."
"Interesting name." Su Li sprayed it on his wrist and sniffed it. It smelled nice, with a hint of rose and musk at first, followed by woody notes mingling in.
He didn't understand top, middle, and base notes in perfumes. As long as it smelled nice and suited his tastes, that was enough.
"Not bad. Let's go with this one."
Zhou Jing nodded and put the paper away, planning to return and sign a contract with the brand.
Zhou Jing showed him a few more endorsements she thought were good, and Su Li chose two: a fruit juice drink and a niche original clothing brand whose design philosophy was excellent.
"There are even more invitations for variety shows, but I thought those were too ordinary. Besides, you've just finished filming one variety show, so we should choose the next one carefully."
"Take a look at these audition invitations too."
"I've looked through all of them, and I strongly recommend Scheming for the Realm. It's the third male lead. Although he's a villain, the character is very compelling and has plenty of screen time. You should know the director, Tian Zhang. He's achieved plenty of ratings miracles."
Su Li skimmed the plot outline. It was a historical drama, and the character he would audition for was a villain: a prince who seemed carefree and without desires but was actually stirring up trouble behind the scenes, plotting to seize power and usurp the throne.
"Interesting. Let's go with this one."
"Okay, I'll let them know. Oh, right, now that you've opened your own studio, you'll need your own team too, such as a personal assistant, makeup artist, stylist, and so on. Would you like to look over these people yourself?"
While Su Li was thinking, Zhou Jing saw a little girl of about six in a pink princess dress run downstairs. "My lord, I've picked one! I even put all my dolls inside!"
Zhou Jing wondered where this child had come from. She didn't remember Su Li having a younger sister, but the girl really was adorable.
Then she saw Su Li speak gently to the little girl. "I have a task for you. I'm hiring staff, and I need you to help me check what these people are thinking."
"Okay!" She nodded like a chick pecking at grain. At last, she could do something for her lord!
"For now, Zheng Xing alone is enough as my assistant. Just take her along when you recruit people." He pointed at Tang Wanwan.
"But... she's a child?" Zhou Jing was utterly confused. Why was Su Li asking this six-year-old to come along?
"Just come pick her up when it's time." His tone allowed no argument.
Zhou Jing didn't dare object and could only agree.
Cheng Sirong suddenly posted a teaser for her new songs on Feibo:
Cheng Sirong v: My new songs will be released tomorrow at noon sharp. All three were written and composed personally by my little brother @Su Li Not Eating Pears. I hope you'll support them!
Since tomorrow was the first day of the new season's chart, she had decided to release all three songs.
Su Li, An Hui, Chen Zhuo, and celebrities close to Cheng Sirong all reposted it to promote the release, and her team got to work too.
[Sister Cheng finally has new songs!]
[Am I seeing things? Who wrote and composed them? Su Li?]
[Seriously? Even if Queen of Song Cheng is close to him, she doesn't have to promote him like this. Isn't she ruining her own reputation?]
[Cheng Sirong hasn't had any good work in years. I think I'll pass this time too.]
[Exactly. I heard lots of gold-medal composers and kings and queens of song are releasing new songs for next season's chart. Doesn't that mean Sister Cheng has no chance?]
[Li Bao can write songs too?]
[Sister Cheng knows her own mind. Su Li's songs must be good. She wouldn't sing bad songs.]
[Exactly. Sister Cheng would rather not release anything than sing bad songs.]
[I still don't believe Su Li can write songs!]
[Believe whatever you want. Didn't you see Best Actor An and Chen Zhuo both say the three songs sounded great when they reposted? They must have heard them already.]
The buzz continued into the next day.
At noon, people flocked to the music platform.
With the new season beginning, plenty of new songs had appeared.
Some people had come specifically to listen to Cheng Sirong's songs. They thought there was no way Su Li could write songs and that they would definitely sound awful. They planned to listen and then go trash them on Feibo.
The listeners saw Cheng Sirong's first song: "Later."
They pressed play, and as the intro began, the lyrics page appeared too:
Lyrics: Su Li. Composition: Su Li.
"Later
I finally learned how to love
But sadly, you were already far away
Lost in the sea of people
Later
Through my tears, I finally understood
Once you miss your chance with some people, they're gone"
The listeners' eyes lit up. The intro actually sounded wonderful, and the lyrics struck straight at the heart from the start...
As they kept listening, Cheng Sirong's voice seemed tinged with longing:
"Why could love back then
Be so simple?
If we hadn't been so stubborn then
We wouldn't have so many regrets now
How do you remember me?
With a smile, or in silence?
Has there been anyone over the years
Who could keep you from being lonely?"
At this point, many people couldn't help thinking of their first love, or someone they had loved deeply, someone they had missed their chance with, someone they had loved in secret.
They remembered their own regrets in love.
Some had broken up after arguments, while others had been forced apart by practical circumstances, yet that person still lingered in their hearts.
Even those who had never been in a relationship imagined a sad love story.
By the time Cheng Sirong once again sang that nostalgic word, "Later," many could no longer hold back their tears.
Before you continue