Thinking of this, Yue Qingzhu finally noticed that the music she had heard in her dream was still echoing in the living room. Perhaps she had gotten used to hearing it in her dream, so she hadn't noticed it just now.
"Whenever I can't find the meaning of existence, whenever I get lost in the dark night. Oh, the brightest star in the night sky, please light my way forward..." The slightly hoarse yet powerful voice continued to sing, creating an atmosphere of tranquility and solitude.
Yue Qingzhu tilted her head slightly, her brows furrowed.
Didn't they say he was a pretty boy who relied on his looks? But his pitch, rhythm, breath control, resonance, and emotional expression were all excellent.
Yue Qingzhu glanced at the monitor.
There's a camera here. Standing there blankly listening to the song, as if she really liked it. No.
She looked around, got up, walked to the mirror, pretended to adjust her hair, and pricked up her ears to listen.
"I pray for a transparent heart and eyes that can shed tears, give me the courage to believe again, to cross lies and embrace you."
Yue Qingzhu gathered her long black hair.
This doesn't sound like a love song. The "you" and "the brightest star in the night sky" seem to refer to his true self. It's like he's saying he's lost in the dark night, encountered much pain and unexpected events, but still wants to find the courage to break through lies and embrace his original dreams, to find his true self.
Chen Fangdang couldn't have predicted her arrival today, so this song couldn't have been prepared for her. It should have been written for his own career slump.
Could he really have been framed?
Yue Qingzhu glanced at the speaker on the wall.
This song indeed touched her heart, even making her empathize. She was also in a difficult situation now; the lyricists and composers she collaborated with had left last year, and the deadline given by her family was fast approaching. She also didn't know if she could continue on the path of music. Difficulties abounded.
For her, helping him was simple. But she wasn't a philanthropist and wouldn't do anything without benefit, nor did she want to invite trouble. She decided to understand the situation first.
Yue Qingzhu stood up, just about to speak, when she suddenly felt as if something was missing.
Hey, where's the dog? Where's my dog?
...
In the piano room, Chen Fang looked at the screen and suddenly found that she had woken up and was scurrying around the living room, seemingly looking for something.
Chen Fang immediately went out, "Hello, Senior."
The Golden Retriever also followed him out of the piano room.
"Hello, Chen Fangdang." Yue Qingzhu cleared her throat, straightened her back, and said with a straight face, "Is this your song?"
Chen Fang instantly suspected he had misheard, "My name is Chen Fang."
Yue Qingzhu's expression remained unchanged, appearing like a master, "My apologies, online rumors are indeed unreliable."
Chen Fang answered her question, "It's mine, but it hasn't been released yet."
"It's very well sung. Who is the composer and lyricist?"
"Me."
Yue Qingzhu was slightly stunned, looked up at him, and fell into a brief silence, seemingly pondering something. After five or six seconds, she walked to the sofa and sat down, nodding her chin, signaling him to sit as well, "You can write songs? This is very different from the style of songs you sang before, isn't it?"
Chen Fang felt Yue Qingzhu's attitude seemed to have softened a bit. He walked over and sat on the sofa two meters away from her.
"Before, I sang the company's songs. Recently, I've been writing my own, just to express my feelings." Chen Fang glanced at Yue Qingzhu, seeing her lost in thought, "Senior, I really like music..."
But she interrupted him with a raised hand as soon as he started speaking, "I'm not blackout drunk, no need to repeat. Tell me your guess."
After ten minutes, Chen Fang explained the general situation and his conjectures. In simple terms, it was—
Vicious opponent, honest me;
Accomplice company, dream-chasing me;
Ignorant fans, broken me;
Kind senior, hardworking me.
If you don't help me, who will?
But Chen Fang didn't really expect her to agree to help just like that. If she agreed so easily, he wouldn't need to worship gods during holidays; he could just worship her.
Yue Qingzhu was silent for a while, then said, "Okay."
Chen Fang was about to try to negotiate further, but the words caught in his throat, and he suddenly realized—
What? She said okay?!
Huh? No, you agreed so readily, no bargaining?
Chen Fang instantly remembered those strange requests on his phone. As the saying goes, the free things are the most expensive. What does she want to do?
Yue Qingzhu continued, "But you'll have to pay for the lawyers and detectives. And you'll owe me a favor."
Chen Fang's emotions were complex, but his expression remained sincere, "Mm, reasonable, rational, and legal requests are fine."
Yue Qingzhu tilted her head slightly, "For such a small matter, what kind of illegal requests could I possibly make of you?"
Small matter?
Is this a small matter?
Is her network too strong, or does she not understand the situation?
But on second thought, this was an opportunity from the system, and his situation couldn't get any worse. Even if she had bad intentions, how much worse could his situation get?
Although Chen Fang was not completely relieved, he felt a little more at ease, "Thank you, Senior."
Yue Qingzhu snorted softly, "I'm not helping you; it's just for the rent."
"Senior is the landlord?" So she was a human with a connection!
"Mm-hmm, I told you this is my home, I have the property deed." Yue Qingzhu seemed to remember something and added, chin raised, "Finding new tenants takes time, and my assistant would need to re-investigate. Moving things around could damage the decor, and it might even invite trouble. I only agreed to help you for the sake of the house! It's definitely not because I'm grateful to you, or because I see potential in your talent... Hmm, in short, it's all for my house!"
Chen Fang nodded.
So she saw potential in his talent after all? That's good. Those bottom-line-breaking requests on his phone had given him a bit of PTSD.
But could one song really move her enough to help him? Chen Fang still didn't quite understand.
After asking two more questions about the situation, Yue Qingzhu yawned.
"Then I'll take my leave first." She stood up and grabbed her head covering, about to put it on, then paused, looking at the pink pufferfish with a complex expression.
Chen Fang quickly walked into the cloakroom and took out the least conspicuous baseball cap, "Senior, how about you wear my hat back?"
Yue Qingzhu took the hat, examining the logo on the side, her expression hesitant, "This..."
Chen Fang immediately understood that she was worried about being photographed wearing his matching hat. He then pulled out an unused garbage bag from under the coffee table, "Senior, wear it over the hat."
Yue Qingzhu pursed her lips, hesitated for a moment, then took the plastic bag and put it over the hat, covering the logo, and pulled it down on her head, "Thank you, I'll return it another day."
"Senior, safe travels!"
After seeing her off, Chen Fang returned to his study to continue learning about Corpse Driver and the program group's situation.
Meanwhile, under the night sky, on the stone path of the residential area.
Yue Qingzhu walked home, leading the Golden Retriever, Canlan. She owned two houses in this community: one rented to Chen Fang, and one for herself.
The stone path glowed softly under the streetlights. Trees on both sides swayed in the breeze, their leaves rustling.
Yue Qingzhu looked up; the night sky was deep and vast, dotted with stars.
She hoped he was truly innocent. If the negative publicity turned out to be true... Never mind, too lazy to waste energy thinking about probabilistic events. If he really was a bad person, she'd deal with it then.
She walked slowly forward, humming softly, "the brightest star in the night sky, please light my way forward."
Who would light her own path forward?
Perhaps, agreeing to help Chen Fang also had another reason—in psychological terms, it's called projective identification. She might be leaving the music scene, and if she truly couldn't continue, she hoped this junior who rented her house could go further. Like inheriting her mantle.
After finishing the song, Yue Qingzhu looked back at the brightly lit villa.
The variety show he mentioned, she wondered which music variety show it was. For him, this might be the best chance to turn things around. She looked forward to him singing this song on the music variety show.
...
Three days later, in the early morning.
"Corpse Driver?!"
Yue Qingzhu blinked her big eyes, staring at the screen in disbelief.
The variety show Chen Fang mentioned was about Corpse Driver?!
Yue Qingzhu put down her phone and looked in the direction of Chen Fang's house in surprise.
You're a singer, not singing but going to be a Corpse Driver?!
Can he really turn things around with this?
Never mind. If he fails, she'll drag him over for an assessment. If he passes, she'll tie him to a chair and force him to write lyrics and compose music.
200 meters away in the direction she was looking.
As soon as Chen Fang opened his eyes, he felt her concern—
【Yue Qingzhu Negative Emotion Value +21】
Hmm? What's wrong?
Chen Fang rubbed his eyes and got up to wash.
Squeezing out toothpaste, Chen Fang remembered that the program group had announced the cultural themes for the three groups last night. Yue Qingzhu must have seen that he was going to be a Corpse Driver, right?
But this shouldn't affect their cooperation. The day before yesterday, Yue Qingzhu had already had the uncle whose hair was as bald as a dandelion contact him to understand the situation and start an investigation. The investigation had already begun, so he needed to think about how to repay her.
He didn't have many extra resources at hand right now, so he should first prepare for the adventures.
After a quick wash, Chen Fang sat down in his study, munching on bread.
People don't offend the unprepared.
With 7 days left, he needed to prepare to harvest negative emotion values.
In terms of skills, he now had high animal affinity, as well as excellent physical fitness and combat ability.
Whether these could create negative emotions depended on opportunity. People couldn't wait for opportunities to break through the door; they had to create their own chances.
Chen Fang opened his computer and searched for "ghost stories, urban legends."
Hehe, just wait, when my teammates are sacrificed, my magic power will be boundless!