CH 47

Chapter 47: It’s just a side job, which affects learning

With a “snap” sound, Shi Rou’s phone dropped.

Meng Yuan’s voice came out of the receiver after a while, somewhat absent-mindedly, “Really, every day is full of surprises…”

Shi Rou opened her mouth cautiously, afraid that she had just hallucinated, “Nian Nian, are you really Si Ning?”

Yu Nian nodded, “Yes, if you’re talking about Si Ning, who wrote songs for Yu Qing and recently composed the theme song for ‘Ancient Road,’ then it’s indeed me.”

Meng Yuan fell silent for a few seconds and suddenly said, “Now! Immediately! Come back to the company right away!”

An hour later, in the office, Meng Yuan held a cup of steaming caramel latte and stared intently at Yu Nian, examining him carefully.

Yu Nian shifted uncomfortably and changed his sitting posture. “Brother Meng, what are you looking at?”

“I’m looking to see if you have three heads and six arms!” Meng Yuan sighed and exclaimed, “After I hung up the phone, I laughed out loud three times in the office. I felt so relieved!”

He raised an eyebrow. “Now let’s talk about business. Quickly explain to me why you went off to write songs.”

“It’s more of a hobby. In high school, I used to casually write songs myself,” Yu Nian explained carefully. “Three years ago, my grandmother passed away, and I was left alone. At that time, there were many expenses, and the savings were running out. I thought to myself, I can’t just sit back and do nothing, I need to earn money.”

“But at that time, I was still studying and hadn’t figured out how to make money. Then one day, my sister came to visit me at my house and happened to see the manuscript of the song I had written. She hummed a few parts and thought it sounded good, so she asked me to create a complete version for her. That night, I finished it and gave it to her. She took it back and showed it to her agent, who then contacted me and said it was approved.”

Meng Yuan couldn’t help but interject, “And then you started writing songs for Yu Qing?”

“Yes, at that time, I had accumulated quite a number of finished or semi-finished songs. I organized them and gave them all to my sister, letting her choose. Soon after, my sister released a new album, which was titled ‘Nothing to Lose.'”

“I know, ‘Nothing to Lose’ was a best-selling album back then, and many people were curious about the songwriter named ‘Si Ning’,” Meng Yuan recalled clearly. “Yu Qing didn’t make much of a splash with her first two albums, but she gained popularity as a singer after ‘Nothing to Lose.'”

After taking a sip of hot coffee, Meng Yuan asked, “How old were you back then? Eighteen?”

“Yes, eighteen.” Seeing Meng Yuan scrutinizing him, Yu Nian confessed, “I was young at the time, and my sister said that songwriting also depends on experience. Being young made me appear unreliable, and I could be taken advantage of or even have my rights to my work undermined.”

“That’s true. So you kept it a secret and didn’t use your real name?” Meng Yuan asked.

“Yes, and since I was still studying at the time and didn’t want my side job to affect my studies, I only wrote songs for my sister and didn’t take on any other songwriting projects. My sister protected me well, and no one else knew who ‘Si Ning’ really was,” Yu Nian explained.

Meng Yuan couldn’t hold back, “I can’t believe I fell for your story! What kind of ridiculous reason is that? Do you know what people in the industry were saying? Si Ning’s output was low because all the songs that came out were high-quality. High-quality songs don’t come easily. Either you had a lot of discarded drafts or you wrote very slowly!”

He slammed the table, causing the coffee cup to shake along with it. He couldn’t believe it. “And the result? It turns out it was because you were studying and didn’t want your side job to affect your studies? Are you kidding me?”

“It’s true,” Yu Nian explained. “I was studying history in college. There was a professor who highly regarded me and was planning to take me as his disciple to pass on his teachings. So he assigned me a heavy workload of coursework and brought me to various seminars and academic conferences. After I graduated, I decided to enter the entertainment industry as a singer, and my professor was angry with me for a long time.”

“Oh,” Meng Yuan didn’t know what expression to make anymore. So, writing songs was really just a side job.

Suddenly, he remembered that when Yu Qing’s albums became popular and dominated the charts for several months, both famous and aspiring singers wanted to collaborate with Si Ning, but they couldn’t find him or get him to write songs for them.

During that time, Yu Nian was probably… attending classes and taking exams? Or maybe he was traveling with his mentor, participating in academic conferences?

The thought made Meng Yuan’s expression even more desolate.

Oh, it really was just a side job.

Curious, Shi Rou asked, “Nian Nian, why did you choose the name Si Ning?”

Yu Nian smiled and said, “Because my grandfather’s name had the character ‘Ning’ in it.”

Seeing that Yu Nian’s smile had faded a little, Shi Rou was afraid of touching upon a sensitive topic, so she nodded and didn’t ask further.

“But wait,” Meng Yuan suddenly realized, “you’ve written so many songs, and each one is a hit. So why are you still so poor? Poor to the point where you can’t even afford takeout, and you buy clothes wholesale by the dozen! Where did all those copyright fees go? With nearly twenty popular songs, there should be quite a sum of money, no matter how you calculate it, right?”

Yu Nian honestly replied, “The Music Copyright Association pays me copyright fees every six months, but I’ve spent it all.”

Meng Yuan felt his cheeks ache a bit. He hesitated for a moment but then advised, “I have to say, Nian Nian, your investment judgment is really exceptionally poor!”

Yu Nian just smiled and didn’t argue. He naturally changed the topic and said, “Also,  Brother Meng, I didn’t tell you that I’m Si Ning, because I wanted to leave myself an escape route.”

Meng Yuan nodded. “Afraid that I would be unhappy? No, I’ve thought about it before, and I can probably understand your thinking. Singers might be subjected to all sorts of nonsense, such as being blacklisted, forced to take a break, or even being forced to leave the entertainment industry. But even in that situation, as long as you protect your pseudonym and prevent others from knowing that Si Ning is actually Yu Nian, your identity as a songwriter wouldn’t be affected, and you could continue writing and selling songs, right?”

“Yes,” Yu Nian breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. “Brother Meng, you understand me.”

Meng Yuan chuckled. “Of course, I understand your little tricks!” He shifted his position again, leisurely sipped his latte, and sighed, “Ah, what should we do now? Father Meng had such good vision; with a single oversight, he actually pulled out a diamond like you! And he comes with a disguise! Sign one, get one free!”

Shi Rou, seeing Meng Yuan starting to get inflated again, covered her mouth and quietly laughed.

After Meng Yuan finished speaking, Yu Nian asked, “So, Brother Meng, what do we do now?”

Meng Yuan put on a serious expression. “The main decision lies with you. If you don’t want to expose Si Ning’s identity, then we’ll go the route of suing the spreaders of rumors, just like Xue Yalin.”

Yu Nian pondered for a moment. “But even if we take legal action, many people will still believe that I’m a ghostwriter, right?”

“Yes, it’s hard to clear your name. For creative singers, being labeled a ghostwriter or plagiarist is something that will follow them for a lifetime. Even ten years later, someone will dig it up and say the same thing. That’s the scary aspect of online public opinion. Countless people firmly believe what they choose to believe without caring about the actual facts,” Meng Yuan sighed. “And if you’re willing to expose Si Ning’s pseudonym, then it becomes easier. Who would hire someone to ghostwrite for themselves? That guy Yao Yang’s face would be swollen!”

Without much hesitation, Yu Nian firmly stated, “I don’t want others to label me as a ghostwriter.”

“Good! I like your personality! When you’ve been wronged and slandered, bottling it up will only suffocate you. You have to counterattack decisively!” Meng Yuan laughed again. “Ah, that Yao Yang tasted the sweetness of exposing Li Yin as a ghostwriter and also threw dirt on Xue Yalin, but unfortunately, the buzz wasn’t that big, and it didn’t achieve his goals. So now he’s trying to drag you into it. But the attitude in the Tomato Forum post he shared was ambiguous, and that won’t do. People should take responsibility for their actions, shouldn’t they?”

He twirled the coffee cup in his hand, wearing a pleasant smile. “This time, let him gain some experience and understand what it means to kick against an iron plate!”

Shi Rou, who had been listening attentively, was still a bit confused. “Brother Meng, what should we do then?”

Meng Yuan asked Shi Rou, “Let me ask you, what’s today’s date?”

“It’s January 1st, New Year’s Day. Today, Nian Nian is participating in the Florence brand’s New Year event.”

Meng Yuan: “Nian Nian, haven’t you posted on Weibo yet?”

Yu Nian understood Meng Yuan’s plan and couldn’t help but smile. “No, I haven’t recorded a video wishing everyone a Happy New Year.”

Shi Rou thought of something but couldn’t quite put her thoughts together. Seeing Yu Nian and Meng Yuan exchange a glance, she felt that both of them seemed mischievous.

At three o’clock in the afternoon, Yu Nian updated his Weibo with a video.

In the video, he looked fresh and clean, wearing a loose white sweater with a deep V-neck and sitting on a sofa with a smile in his eyes. “Today is the first day of the new year. I wish everyone peace and harmony!”

After a few casual chats, Yu Nian took a small poster and smiled as he introduced, “This is the promotional poster for my new album. Take a look, it’s quite nice, isn’t it?”

“This EP contains a total of five songs, one of which was co-written by Teacher Jiang Bo and Teacher Jiang Cheng. The other four songs, including lyrics, composition, and arrangement, were all done by me. The whole EP will probably be completed in March, and I’m really looking forward to it…”

After the video was posted, within a minute, the comments exceeded five figures.

[Nian Nian, Happy New Year! Trying to secure a spot in the top comments! Ahhh, I’m so looking forward to the EP! I’ll definitely buy it like crazy!]

[It’s so difficult to be in the top five thousand! Are you all living on Weibo? Ahhh, Nian Nian, Happy New Year! The poster is so beautiful! The key point is that you’ve done the lyrics, composition, and arrangement all by yourself, Nian Nian. Is this all-in-one approach really good? Clearly, you can rely on your looks, so why do you have to depend on your talent!]

[Damn, I’m disgusted. Taking someone else’s hard work and putting your name on it, then shamelessly saying that you’re looking forward to it. Is there no moral compass when it comes to fame and fortune? @SongwriterYaoYang, Teacher Yao, come take a look at this ugly face!]

[Show the evidence if you claim that Yu Nian has a ghostwriter! Just a few analysis charts are enough to prove the accusations? Are you all clairvoyant?]

Soon, the hashtags #YuNianGhostwriting and #SiNing started trending, followed by #YuNianNewAlbum. Among the top six trending topics, three were related to Yu Nian. And at seventh place was #YaoYangRepost.

Shi Rou kept staring at the data, but Meng Yuan remained calm. He chatted with Yu Nian, “How is the MV shooting going?”

“It’s going smoothly. Zuo Ming said it would take about six days. We have some transitions and scene changes for a few lines of lyrics, so even if we work overtime, it’ll take about a week.”

“Okay, shoot it well. Oh, I received an invitation. There’s a year-end fashion celebration where you’ll walk the red carpet on January 11th. During that time, the EP will be in the post-production stage. Just occasionally keep an eye on the progress. Zuo Ming is reliable.”

Yu Nian had no objections. “Alright.”

Meng Yuan smiled again, feeling proud. “You don’t know, Zuo Ming is the kind of person who even the heavenly king would bow down to. But he respects talents like Si Ning the most. If you have any ideas or changes during post-production, discuss them directly with him. Where it needs polishing, you won’t need to wait another week.”

Yu Nian nodded and smiled. “Yes, with strength, opinions and ideas will be respected.”

“That’s right.” Meng Yuan patted Yu Nian’s shoulder. “Work hard, focus on shooting the MV, and let me know if there’s any progress.”

When Yu Nian arrived at the shooting location, the crew was still setting up the scenes, and everyone was busy, so there was nothing for him to do at the moment.

He called Yu Qing first, then sent messages to Xie You and Xia Mingxi, explaining the situation and Meng Yuan’s plan. Xie You replied quickly, “Okay, it’s raining, remember to wear warm clothes.” Xia Mingxi might have been busy, as he didn’t respond immediately.

Just as he was about to put down his phone, he received a call from Xue Yalin.

“Do you have a moment to talk?”

“Yes, we haven’t started shooting the MV yet, so I have some time.” Yu Nian guessed what Xue Yalin wanted to discuss and asked directly, “Is it about Yao Yang?”

Xue Yalin didn’t beat around the bush. “Yao Yang is a person who plays a lot of tricks and schemes. Be careful with him. I’ve been targeted by him before, and it was almost unbearable. He likes to manipulate public opinion with fake accounts and dirty tricks. He enjoys throwing vague accusations, making it difficult to hold him accountable. Those who believe in him will not only believe but also firmly trust him, thinking he is a righteous crusader exposing the dark side of the entertainment industry. Bullshit!”

Yu Nian listened to her angrily and knew she was reminding him out of goodwill. He thanked her, “Thank you, I will be careful.”

“Well, since you’re also being targeted, let me say a few more words. Don’t find it annoying?” Xue Yalin said.

“Why would I? I’m grateful.” Yu Nian replied.

“Alright, discuss it with your team. Based on the situation, Yao Yang has made up his mind to discredit us and boost his own image as a songwriter. I won’t forget this grudge,” Xue Yalin said in her usual indifferent tone. “I have to go now.”

“Okay, goodbye.”

As expected, within two hours of Yu Nian’s video being posted, the number of comments began to rise sharply, and the discussions related to ghostwriting gained more traction.

The comments overwhelmingly criticized Yu Nian for ghostwriting, and there were even conspiracy theories suggesting that Si Ning, who hadn’t appeared yet, might be controlled by Yu Nian and Yu Qing. Some discussions even revolved around whether to report them to the authorities.

Meng Yuan watched with a smile fading from his face. “Buying fake accounts and manipulating comments, I, Father Meng, have long disdained using such tactics!”

Yu Nian opened his thermos and took a drink of water to quench his thirst. “Brother Meng, didn’t you say you wanted to sit back and watch their show?”

“Although I said that, it still annoys me!” Meng Yuan threw his phone aside, annoyed. “Out of sight, out of mind!”

Shi Rou approached with a printed piece of paper. “Brother Meng, we found out that several accounts posting evidence of ghostwriting on the Tomato Forum have the same IP address as Yao Yang’s. It’s likely the same person.”

Meng Yuan clapped his hands and laughed. “Good, that’s a step forward.”

Around five o’clock in the afternoon, an entertainment account was the first to release the evidence. “Netizens have discovered that the evidence of Yu Nian’s ghostwriting on the Tomato Forum all comes from the same person. @SongwriterYaoYang, it’s an impressive hidden move!”

[Yao Yang is doing this to protect himself, right? Understandable. After all, Yu Nian has the support of a powerful agency behind him. Yao Yang is just a small figure. Even if he wants to expose the dark side and give an explanation to countless unfortunate people, he must have concerns and can’t afford to reveal his true identity.]

[Accusing Yu Nian of ghostwriting, starting with multiple fake accounts throwing dirty accusations and then having the main account amplify the rhythm. How sneaky, Yao Yang! What a well-thought-out strategy!]

[Why is Yao Yang hiding behind the scenes? He should confront it head-on! People like him should be mercilessly attacked! We support you!]

Soon, major marketing accounts and entertainment accounts reposted Yao Yang’s lengthy Weibo post, and the hashtag #YaoYangSpeakOut quickly trended. Yao Yang mentioned that he had contacted Si Ning personally and that there would be an explanation. He hoped that Yu Nian and his team would apologize in a timely manner, or they would regret it. The hashtag continued to escalate the situation against Yu Nian and Meng Yuan.

Meng Yuan finished reading and chuckled. “Oh, impressive. Nian Nian, did he contact you?”

Yu Nian smiled and shook his head. “No.”

Meng Yuan laughed, “Impressive, impressive. Father Meng hasn’t seen so many actors in a long time!”

Soon, various major marketing and entertainment accounts reposted Yao Yang’s Weibo post. The hashtag #YaoYangSpeakOut skyrocketed. Since Yao Yang mentioned that he had contacted Si Ning personally and there would be a resolution, more and more people flocked to Yu Nian’s Weibo, expressing their firm determination to boycott his new EP.

As the online storm raged, their work remained unaffected. After finishing the MV shoot, Yu Nian removed his makeup and said to Meng Yuan, “Brother Meng, Can I go home now?”

Meng Yuan was busy reading the comments on Yao Yang’s Weibo, feeling amused. “Sure, rest well, and remember to tune in tomorrow at 11 a.m. to watch the show!”

Knowing that Meng Yuan was holding back his anger, Yu Nian nodded earnestly. “Okay, I’ll be there on time.”

When he arrived home, Yu Nian took a shower and wrapped himself in a bathrobe. He was about to send a message to Xie You to say goodnight when he unexpectedly received a message from him first.

There was only one simple word, “Goodnight.”

Yu Nian stared at the screen for a while, then realized something. He opened the camera app, formed a heart shape with his index finger and thumb, and took a photo, which he sent to Xie You.

After a dozen minutes, Xie You’s reply came, along with a photo. It was taken in a study or office, with Xie You’s fingers overlapping, mimicking the heart gesture.

Yu Nian quickly typed a response, “Goodnight. Your fingers are beautiful.”

Sitting in his office, waiting for a reply, Xie You saw the message and focused on the second half of the sentence. His ears suddenly felt hot—

Nian Nian praised my fingers for being beautiful!

The next morning at 11 a.m., while Yu Nian was shooting the MV, the official Weibo account of the Today Morning News Entertainment section published a news article.

“…Our reporter arrived at the Music Copyright Association this morning and discovered astonishing news based on the registered information.

Si Ning, a songwriter, real name Yu Nian, a native of Ningcheng, holds the copyrights for songs such as ‘Nothing to Lose’ (lyrics and composition), ‘Distant Star’ (lyrics and composition), ‘Wild’ (lyrics and composition)…”

At the same time, the official account of the Today Morning News Entertainment section posted an article along with official information from the Copyright Association. It included a partially redacted personal information form for Si Ning, with the real name clearly written and Yu Nian’s ID photo attached in the top right corner.

Compared to Yu Nian’s current photos, he looked even younger in the ID photo, with a different hairstyle.

Once the news was released, it quickly went viral.

[What the hell! Yu Nian is Si Ning? Are they the same person?]

[Aaaahhhh, he is Si Ning? Oh my god, this is such a mind-blowing revelation! I need to process this!]

[As a fan, I need a moment of silence… I want to scream!]

With lightning speed, the hashtag #YuNianSiNing soared to the top of the trending list.

[#YuNianSiNing# I’ve read this news five times! I can’t believe it! @SongwriterYaoYang, didn’t you say you contacted Si Ning? Didn’t you say there would be a quick resolution? Aiya, is your face swelling!]

[#YuNianSiNing# New year, new gossip! This gossip is mind-blowing! I’m just an ordinary bystander. Three years ago, Yu Nian was just 18 years old, but he could already write songs like ‘Distant Star’ and ‘Nothing to Lose.’ It’s safe to say he is a gifted prodigy! The best part is that he still looks great! He can dance, and he’s funny! Brother, look at my kneeling pose; is it standard or not?]

[Crying! Nian Nian has been wronged! I feel so sorry for him. He has been attacked and slandered with dirty accusations. @SongwriterYaoYang, come out and apologize!]

[Aaahhhh, my idol is so amazing! What can’t he do? When Nian Nian exploded onto the music scene at the age of 18, I was still preparing for the college entrance exam! How can the gap between people be so huge?]

[This is Yao Yang’s strategy, can’t everyone see through it? He gained attention by tearing down Li Yin, and Li Yin’s use of ghostwriters is indeed not deserving of sympathy. But Yao Yang, seeing the hype die down, quickly shifted the focus and targeted Xue Yalin. When that didn’t work, he set his sights on Yu Nian. Unfortunately, he thought what he saw was the whole world and believed that if one used ghostwriters, everyone else did too. But he doesn’t know that some people are truly gifted prodigies who can surpass countless others with their own talent alone!]

[Our Nian Nian is wronged. He wanted to keep a low profile, but he was forced to reveal his identity. So sad!]

At noon, Yu Qing, who had been quiet all along, posted on Weibo.

“Yu Qing: I’m on a closed set shooting a drama, and as soon as I went online, I saw trouble brewing again! Nian Nian loves writing songs, but I was afraid it would affect his studies, so I tried to discourage him from writing too much. Yao Yang, do you think you can become a musical genius just by writing ‘Love’ at the age of 35? Not to boast, but I can easily pick any song from Nian Nian’s discarded drafts and beat you! Give me an apology!!!”

The comments were filled with laughter.

[Hahaha, she appeared to protect her brother. Yu Qing is angry!]

[Hahaha, Yu Qing used three exclamation marks at the end, she’s really mad. Yao Yang, @SongwriterYaoYang, better apologize soon, or Yu Qing will kick you into the hospital!]

Meng Yuan immediately reposted Today Morning News’ Weibo post with just one word, “Sigh.”

[This is what you call a powerful mockery! He mockingly imitated Yao Yang’s post! I, Meng Ge, have taken the center stage!]

[Hahaha, I’m laughing so hard I’m fainting! Sigh, how did my artist become so amazing? Sigh, I’m getting big-headed!]

[Sigh, my idol is too incredible! Compared to others (talent, vocals, singing, dancing skills, etc.), the least valuable thing is looks!]

By the time Yu Nian finished shooting the MV, the hashtag #SighTheLeastValuableThingIsLooks had already taken over the trending list. Taking advantage of this trend, animated GIFs, short dance videos, and edited clips of his songs were all recommended.

Yao Yang’s Weibo remained silent, and countless people felt they had been fooled. They gathered in the comments, demanding that he speak up. Xue Yalin’s team took this opportunity to reiterate that there was no ghostwriting and that it was all Yao Yang’s attempt to gain attention by throwing dirty accusations.

Meng Yuan was very satisfied with the outcome. Using public chopsticks, he picked up a piece of sweet and sour pork ribs for Yu Nian and smiled, “It’s only been half a day, and I’ve already received seven or eight calls asking if they can book you for a song. I—”

“I can do it.”

Seeing Meng Yuan’s surprise, Yu Nian smiled and said, “I’ve written quite a few songs. I was busy with ‘Sound of Nature’ before, and then I focused on filming. Now that I have free time, I’ve sorted them out and can sell them for money. As for the collaboration partners, Brother Meng, can you help me with that?”

“Of course I can, it’s part of my job.” Meng Yuan remembered Yu Nian’s spending speed and didn’t want to hurt the young man’s pride, so he said tactfully, “It’s great to earn money by writing songs. At least you can buy a couple of down jackets for winter!”

Yu Nian’s eyes curved. “Okay, then I’ll trouble Brother Meng!”

At that moment, Shi Rou, who had been following the trending topics, exclaimed, “What’s this? President Xie actually bought a trending topic!”

Meng Yuan furrowed his brows, pondering the situation. “Is he attacking Nian Nian again? Why is he so persistent?”

“No, no, he’s not attacking Nian Nian. This time it’s different. The position he bought is right below the three trending topics related to Yu Nian. It ranks fourth.” Shi Rou also wondered, “The hashtag consists of only two words: ‘compare heart.'”

Yu Nian clicked on Xie You’s Weibo and found a photo. In the center of the picture was a specimen made of rose petals, and in the corner, Xie You’s distinct fingers formed a heart shape.

Yu Nian smiled and tapped the screen, saving the picture to his phone.