Chapter 0127: A Trap

Zhao Fusheng was naturally furious. A perfectly good song had been mangled into this state. It would be a lie to say he wasn't angry. But regardless, since they had paid, even if he was dissatisfied with the arrangement, there was nothing he could do.

Yet the issue Zhao Fusheng raised was real, and the reason was that he wanted to rally allies.

Since the singer was also present, Zhao Fusheng didn't believe he couldn't see the problem himself.

Of course, more importantly, Zhao Fusheng recognized who Li Jian was.

"You think so too, don't you?"

Sure enough, as soon as Zhao Fusheng finished speaking, Li Jian immediately walked over and looked at him seriously: "You also think the arrangement is off, don't you? I knew it, I knew it..."

Zhou Yuandong's face turned ashen. The reason was simple: when he first heard the demo, Li Jian had already pointed out that his arrangement had problems, but Zhou Yuandong, relying on his status as the song's producer, had brushed Li Jian off.

Now, Zhao Fusheng, the original author, had stepped forward.

"Li Jian!"

The agent Dafei coughed. Li Jian was a pure musician, which was why he had remained lukewarm for so many years. After all, in this circle, those who always stuck to their ideals faced greater difficulties than those who were more adaptable.

Li Jian was startled. Turning to see Zhou Yuandong's livid face, he realized that his actions had just been like slapping the producer in the face, and he immediately felt awkward.

"Young man, think carefully before you speak. You think my music is bad, but is yours any good?" Zhou Yuandong stared coldly at Zhao Fusheng. "And if I remember correctly, President Mu said that your song was originally sung with a guitar accompaniment."

Zhao Fusheng wasn't surprised that he knew this. Mu Qingqing would surely tell Mu Qingwan, and Mu Qingwan wouldn't withhold any information from Zhou Yuandong—that was only natural.

"I used guitar because there were no other instruments at the time. Actually..." Zhao Fusheng looked at Zhou Yuandong and shook his head. "Teacher Zhou, I don't think you've grasped the true essence of this song."

"Huh?"

Zhou Yuandong was taken aback. He could see that Zhao Fusheng was speaking from the heart.

This guy actually dared to look down on me!

As this thought flashed through Zhou Yuandong's mind, Zhao Fusheng turned to He Yunzhi and Mu Qingwan and said calmly, "Ladies, I'd like to talk to you about returning the song to me."

"Well..."

He Yunzhi hadn't expected things to turn out this way. She had only intended to suppress Mu Qingwan, but now the original author of the song was dissatisfied with the arrangement and wanted to buy back the copyright.

"Mr. Zhao, are you joking?" He Yunzhi sneered, her gaze sharp as she looked at Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng ignored her completely and looked at Mu Qingqing instead: "If I remember correctly, when I sold the song, I said that if you couldn't do it justice, I could buy it back, right?"

He had just said it offhandedly at the time, and neither Mu Qingqing nor Mu Qingwan had taken it seriously. But now, it made the situation somewhat awkward.

Especially Zhou Yuandong, whose face was flushed red, unable to speak.

Before he could say anything, Mu Qingwan shook her head: "Sorry, I can't agree to this. On what grounds do you say Teacher Zhou's arrangement is inferior to yours? If you're capable, arrange the song yourself. If we all think it's good, then we'll do as you say. Otherwise, you need to apologize to all of us, because this song now is the result of everyone's hard work."

After all, Zhou Yuandong was the only decent composer her company had. Mu Qingwan couldn't possibly not side with him at this moment. Even knowing that He Yunzhi had deliberately caused this situation, she had to grit her teeth and bear it.

Zhao Fusheng shrugged: "Bad is bad."

He didn't feel the least bit embarrassed. Wrong was wrong, bad was bad—there was no excuse.

If effort alone deserved respect, then there would be too many people in this world worthy of respect.

The truth is, effort might earn respect, but it doesn't mean that just because you tried, you were right.

"You..." Zhou Yuandong was furious, pointing at Zhao Fusheng, unable to speak for a long time.

He Yunzhi had a smile on her lips, clearly pleased to see this scene. As for Mu Qingwan, her expression was calm, revealing nothing of what she was thinking at that moment.

Mu Qingqing had remained silent all along, but at this moment, her expression was exactly like Mu Qingwan's—completely cold.

Shaking his head, Zhao Fusheng smiled and said to Li Jian, "Brother Li, I've heard your songs."

"Oh?"

Li Jian was startled, then realized that Zhao Fusheng was referring to the band he had formed while still in college. Back then, Shuimu Nianhua was quite a famous group.

Although he had left the band, even now, it still held considerable appeal among young people in the country.

"Are you interested in rearranging this song with me?" Zhao Fusheng asked Li Jian.

Regardless, in his previous life, this song had become popular under his guidance. If there was a chance to give it back to the other person, Zhao Fusheng didn't mind.

"Then I'll give it a try," Li Jian nodded. He himself had the ability to write lyrics and compose music; otherwise, he wouldn't later be known as the "Music Poet."

The two of them discussed the arrangement as if no one else was there. Mu Qingwan and the others were dumbfounded, but no one spoke. The only one who wanted to say something, Zhou Yuandong, was stopped by He Yunzhi with a glance.

"President Mu, President He, I'd like to borrow your recording studio. Is that okay?" Zhao Fusheng asked Mu Qingwan and the others after finishing his discussion with Li Jian.

The two exchanged a glance, and Mu Qingwan finally nodded: "Alright, just tell us what you need."

With that, she gave Mu Qingqing a meaningful look, and the group withdrew, leaving only Zhao Fusheng and Li Jian in the recording studio.

After leaving the recording studio and making sure no one else was inside, Mu Qingqing looked at Mu Qingwan and He Yunzhi with curiosity: "Aunt, and you, Little Aunt, what are you two up to?"

Mu Qingwan and He Yunzhi exchanged a glance and chuckled: "What, don't you understand?"

Mu Qingqing nodded. He Yunzhi was her little aunt and had been college classmates with Mu Qingwan; the two were as close as sisters. But today, they had put on such a show, which truly baffled her. If not for the many people around, she would have asked directly.

He Yunzhi smiled mysteriously: "Don't rush, you'll understand soon."

With that, she took Mu Qingqing's hand: "Come on, let's go to my office. I have a lot to ask you."

……

……

In the recording studio, Zhao Fusheng and Li Jian were discussing the arrangement.

"I haven't studied professionally, but when I wrote the lyrics, I thought that if we could add some orchestral music, the song's emotion might be richer," Zhao Fusheng said seriously to Li Jian.

"Hmm, I see..." Li Jian tilted his head in thought: "If that's the case, we can add piano, as well as flute, trumpet, and saxophone. I think they can all be included."

Zhao Fusheng smiled: "You're the professional; you take charge. I'm just offering a suggestion."

Li Jian shook his head: "No, no, you're the creator of the song. At most, I'm just giving you my opinion from my perspective."

To be honest, Zhao Fusheng really liked dealing with people like this. At the very least, the other person respected him.

According to their idea, the piano part would create a good environment for a quiet narrative—something Zhou Yuandong's strumming guitar could never achieve. Of course, when to use the piano, when to use guitar strumming, and how to prioritize them were all very particular and required Li Jian's expertise.

The string layer that entered at the right time also closely followed Li Jian's male voice. In Zhao Fusheng's mind, the changes in the strings didn't need to be too complicated; they just needed to support the harmony. But precisely because of the extra layer of strings, the song easily touched a tear-jerking point. The emotional power of the strings could not be ignored.

After who knows how long, when they finished their discussion, Li Jian looked down at his watch and suddenly laughed.

"What is it?" Zhao Fusheng asked, puzzled.

"It's already past three in the afternoon. Come on, I'll treat you to a meal," Li Jian said, pulling Zhao Fusheng along.

But then he saw Zhao Fusheng's expression change drastically, as if he had thought of something terrifying.