Daily life and songwriting

In a private room at a barbecue restaurant, Su Li, An Hui, Cheng Sirong, and Chen Zhuo sat around a table grilling meat.

An Hui raised his Coke. "Let's celebrate Li wrapping up filming, and Queen of Songs Cheng topping the music charts again!"

Cheng Sirong raised her drink. "It's all thanks to Li. Otherwise, what would any of this have to do with me?"

Chen Zhuo cheered, "Brother Su is the GOAT!"

Su Li smiled and clinked glasses with them.

They started chatting.

Chen Zhuo asked first, "Brother Su, when does your drama air? I'll definitely watch it every day!"

"Probably next month." Su Li thought for a moment.

Cheng Sirong said readily, "I'll have my team promote it."

An Hui said, "I'm really looking forward to seeing Little Li in this role! I'll help promote it too."

They chatted and laughed. Su Li took a bite of grilled meat and changed the subject. "Zhuo, I saw online a few days ago that your group members were shutting you out. What happened?"

The other two looked at Chen Zhuo as well.

Chen Zhuo put down his chopsticks. "Ugh, they're just a bunch of jealous people. They saw me on a variety show and getting along with you guys, and got bitter."

"But I don't bother with them. If anyone picks on me, I fire right back!"

Cheng Sirong asked him, "What about your manager? Doesn't he do anything?"

The disdain in Chen Zhuo's eyes deepened. "He's just an opportunist. All he wants is money. You can't count on him."

Su Li suddenly asked him, "Zhuo, do you want to sing songs I've written?"

Chen Zhuo lit up and said excitedly, "Really? I'd love to sing your songs, Brother Su!"

Su Li nodded and took two sheets of paper from his bag. "Here."

He had listened to Chen Zhuo's boy group's songs and felt that Chen Zhuo's voice was versatile and highly adaptable.

He saw that the two sheets were titled "Fairy Tale" and "Back-to-Back Embrace."

Cheng Sirong couldn't help marveling, "This music is absolutely incredible."

Chen Zhuo looked completely serious. "Brother Su, I don't want a cent of the revenue share. I just want to prove to them that I, Chen Zhuo, am not coasting along in the group. I've got talent too!"

An Hui said, "Chen Zhuo, would Li give you such good songs if you didn't have talent?"

Su Li smiled and shook his head. "We'll split the revenue as we should. You just need to help promote me."

Chen Zhuo thought for a moment. "Then let's do the same as Sister Cheng, twenty-eighty!"

Cheng Sirong said seriously, "Chen Zhuo, these two songs will definitely be hits all across the country. They could even be sung for years to come, just like 'Later.' You need to do them justice!"

Chen Zhuo nodded firmly. "I will. Brother Su has given me such great songs. I've got to do a good job!"

A few days later, Su Li headed to Chen Zhuo's company to guide him through recording the songs in the studio. The next month was only a few days away, and Chen Zhuo was going to release the songs then.

When he reached the entrance to Chen Zhuo's company, Chen Zhuo, his assistant, and his manager were already waiting there.

Chen Zhuo immediately came forward. "Brother Su, you're finally here!"

The manager beside him walked over. "Hello, I'm Chen Zhuo's manager. My surname is Du."

He had been excited when he learned that Su Li had written two songs for Chen Zhuo. Who was Su Li? An acknowledged genius composer.

So far, he had only written songs for Cheng Sirong, and all five had topped the charts and were widely sung. Other people couldn't even find a way to request a song from him.

Yet he had actually written songs for Chen Zhuo. If even one topped the charts, they would hit the jackpot! The whole group would benefit!

He had initially been unhappy when Chen Zhuo proposed a twenty-eighty split, but Chen Zhuo had said he wouldn't sing if they refused. With no other choice, the company could only agree to the split.

Su Li seemed to know what the manager was thinking and nodded coolly. "Mm."

Then he smiled at Chen Zhuo. "Let's go in and record."

The manager didn't mind. He felt that a star who rivaled A-listers at such a young age was bound to be arrogant.

Their arrival at the company caused a stir. The others had no idea why Su Li had come to their company.

But when they saw Chen Zhuo beside him, they realized: Could he have written songs for Chen Zhuo and come to record them?

Su Li's current popularity rivaled that of A-listers, so many paparazzi and media outlets were keeping an eye on him.

Photos had already appeared on Feibo of Su Li outside Chen Zhuo's company and entering with Chen Zhuo and his manager.

Netizens were all speculating too:

[Holy shit, did Su Li really write songs for Chen Zhuo?]

[Definitely. Why else would Chen Zhuo's manager come out too?]

[Why would he only write for Chen Zhuo instead of the whole group? Chen Zhuo is so selfish.]

[The person above is dying of jealousy. He's friends with Chen Zhuo and wants to write just for him. What's wrong with that?]

[I suspect Li Bao saw the trending topic a while ago and went to stand up for Chen Zhuo.]

Su Li followed Chen Zhuo up to the tenth floor. On their way to the recording studio, the other members of the DX Boy Group also saw Chen Zhuo taking Su Li there.

One couldn't resist asking the person beside him, "Isn't that Su Li? Is he here to record songs for Chen Zhuo?"

Another replied, "Looks like it. Can't you see they're heading to the recording studio?"

Jealousy showed in the eyes of a member named He You. "Isn't it just because he latched onto Su Li? You all saw how he sucked up to him on that variety show, didn't you? How could Su Li not write songs for him?"

The others' eyes were full of envy too.

After Su Li and Chen Zhuo entered the recording studio, the manager walked over and asked them, "What are you all doing here?"

He You asked, "Brother Du, did that Su Li write songs for Chen Zhuo?"

"Yes, two of them! If these two are up to his previous standard, your whole group will benefit!"

The manager looked very excited.

The others grew even more jealous.

Another member, named Yuan Jiajie, said resentfully, "They're his songs. He'll benefit. What's that got to do with us?"

The manager shook his head. "That's not right. When people mention Chen Zhuo, they'll think of him as a member of the DX Boy Group first. If he gets famous, you'll get a share of the benefits too. Besides, what if Su Li extends his fondness for Chen Zhuo to you and writes songs for you in the future?"

The others grew excited. He You said, "Right! What if we can get Chen Zhuo to introduce us to Su Li later?"

One of them said, "Brother Du, could you talk to Chen Zhuo and Su Li about it when you get back?"

The manager thought for a moment, then agreed.

"Fairy Tale" and "Back-to-Back Embrace" required the singer to get the emotions just right, so it took Chen Zhuo a week to finish recording them.

During that time, Chen Zhuo really worked hard, staying up late pondering the emotions needed for every line. Sometimes he even blamed himself, feeling that he had let Su Li down.

Su Li could only comfort him.

Once both songs were fully recorded, they walked out of the recording studio, and Chen Zhuo's manager looked at Su Li ingratiatingly.

"Well... Mr. Su, I hope we can work together often in the future. You see, Chen Zhuo has plenty of groupmates who are very talented and have great potential. I'm sure they'd be a good fit for the songs you write too."

Chen Zhuo had been happy that the two songs were finally recorded, but the moment he heard his manager's words, his mood soured.

Was he saying that I wasn't as talented as the others?

He You and that bunch must have put him up to this again.

He felt a little wronged. Brother Su had come to write songs for him, and those people were getting jealous again?

Su Li glanced at the manager and said flatly, "I write songs for Chen Zhuo because he's my friend."

His position was very clear. The manager's smile instantly froze on his face.

Chen Zhuo gazed at Su Li, deeply touched, thinking that Brother Su was so good to him.

Su Li and Chen Zhuo walked out of the company.

Chen Zhuo rubbed his eyes and said to Su Li, "Thank you, Brother Su. Thank you for believing in me."

Su Li patted his shoulder. "You have the talent."

"Fairy Tale" - lyrics: Michael Wong, composition: Michael Wong, original singer: Michael Wong

"Back-to-Back Embrace" - lyrics: Lin Yifeng, composition: JJ Lin, arrangement: Wu Qinglong, original singer: JJ Lin