Going to work? Even a dog wouldn't go!

Chapter 38, "Decent," is now available.
Yujing Garden.

Chu Yourong leaned back on her sofa.

Her former manager at Rongshu Entertainment, Chen Huan, sat opposite her with a serious expression: "How about we postpone the release of the new song? The company has spent a lot of money on this marketing campaign."

"Sister Huan, you know me."

"Once a decision is made, it won't be changed."

Chu Yourong naturally saw the online opinions, but she was a stubborn person, always facing difficulties head-on.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have been sidelined by the company for refusing to comply with unspoken rules!
"I knew it was no use trying to persuade you."

Chen Huan sighed: "Alright, let's not talk about this. Tell me about your future plans. Are you going to start your own studio or join another company?"

"Let's set up our own studio."

In Chu Yourong's view, joining another company would be nothing more than jumping from one fire pit into another, because no one can guarantee that there are no lecherous individuals among the shareholders or senior executives of the other company.

If another Banyan Tree Entertainment 2.0 comes along, all that effort will have been for nothing.

Chu Yourong simply decided to do it herself, as it offered a high degree of freedom and she could make the decisions herself.

However, the downside is that without the backing of a large company, it becomes difficult to access many high-quality resources.

"Sister Huan, are you planning to switch to another company after your contract expires?"

Chen Huan's contract with Rongshu Entertainment expires next month, and the two parties have not yet reached a renewal agreement. As a well-known agent in the industry, Chen Huan naturally has many entertainment companies that want to work with her, and several have already been in contact with her.

"I haven't decided where to go yet, but I definitely won't stay in the banyan tree."

Chen Huan has grown up alongside Rongshu Entertainment, but last year Rongshu Entertainment underwent a large-scale financing round, resulting in changes in shareholders and senior management, which left the company in a mess.

"Sister Huan, have you considered the new company?"

Seeing that Chen Huan hadn't decided where to go yet, Chu Yourong's beautiful eyes suddenly lit up. When she had dinner with Zhang Xian during the day, he was still troubled about recruiting people for the company.

Chu Yourong originally wanted to join Zhang Xian's Xianyu Music, but Zhang Xian refused on the grounds that "the temple is too small to accommodate such a big Buddha as her".

Of course, it's also possible that Zhang Xian felt she was making too many demands.

But she is Chu Yourong!
It's unreasonable to make too many demands when joining a newly established company!
Thinking about this made Chu Yourong a little angry.

Despite her anger, she still subconsciously thought about Zhang Xian's situation. If Chen Huan, a senior agent in the industry, could join Xianyu Music, Zhang Xian wouldn't have to worry about not having anyone to work with.

"That depends on whether the new company has potential."

Chen Huan is not opposed to joining a new company or a small company, because interpersonal relationships in such companies are relatively simple, without a tangled network of interests, and she can have more say.

But as Chen Huan said, it depends on whether the company has potential. If it's the kind of company that just coasts along in the industry, then forget it, because it goes against her ideals.

"There should be potential. The company has a pretty talented musician."

"His song is the one I'm going to release, 'Decent'."

Chu Yourong hadn't taken Zhang Xian's so-called creative ability seriously until she finished singing "Decent".

Chu Yourong felt that Zhang Xian was talented, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to write such a song.

"Wasn't your new song written by your fake boyfriend?"

"Yes, yes, it was him who wrote it." Chu Yourong nodded repeatedly: "The company I'm talking about is their family's company, their own business, so he won't run away!"

"With him around, the quality of the content is likely to be guaranteed."

"Yourong, you didn't actually take this role for real, did you?"

Chen Huan frowned. She had known Chu Yourong for several years and had never seen her go out of her way to speak up for a man.

"No way!"

Chu Yourong decisively denied it: "I just think his songs are good. His song 'Apple Fragrance' was a hit before!"

"The fact that a song becomes popular doesn't prove anything."

"Many musicians may only have one hit song in their entire career!"

"Let's see how your song gets received after it's released before we talk about anything else."

Chen Huan didn't think highly of Chu Yourong's fake boyfriend, feeling that he was unreliable.

three days later.

Saturday.

Today is the official release date of Chu Yourong's new song "Decent".

Of course, it was also the day that Xu Yao and Sun Jiaren's new songs were released.

Thanks to the excellent marketing efforts, netizens have been eagerly anticipating this wave of traffic, especially music and entertainment bloggers.

There are two main music platforms in China: Sprite Music and Coolcat Music.

Chu Yourong and the other two singers released their new songs simultaneously on two platforms.

Although they were launched at the same time, the treatment they received was vastly different.

Rongshu Entertainment has partnerships with both of these major music platforms, so Xu Yao and Sun Jiaren's new songs appeared on the most prominent banners on both platforms after their release.

Chu Yourong's new song did not receive this treatment; it simply followed the standard new song release process, where users could see her song in the new song list or search for it directly.

Du Yue's marketing team started working early, and at 10 a.m., the three songs were released simultaneously, and Rongshu Entertainment's online marketing team also came out in full force.

"That Year, That Day" is so good, Yao-jie is amazing!"

"I cried while listening to this, Sister Yao's new song is so touching!"

"When it comes to singing skills, Sister Yao is the best. The young woman next door is miles behind!"

"Half a Candy is so sweet, it's Jiaren's best song!"

"Sweet girls have to be our beautiful ladies, married old women can get lost!"

"It's true that there's no harm without comparison. Three songs were released at the same time, and someone else's song couldn't even be seen on the new song chart!"

"Who gave this young woman the courage to challenge Sister Yao and Jiaren?"

"."

The first wave of online trolls arrived on the battlefield and, without saying a word, proceeded to attack Chu Yourong.

at the same time.

Du Yue's office.

At this moment, a man and a woman were sitting opposite her desk. The man was named Zhou Lei and the woman was named Wang Hui. Both of them were contracted creators of Rongshu Entertainment and were well-known composers and lyricists.

The new song released by Xu Yao and Sun Jiaren was written by the two of them.

"Teachers, please listen to Chu Yourong's new song and point out any flaws so I can have my staff write the copy and send it to those music bloggers."

There are many ways to smear someone, the simplest and most brutal being mindless slander, throwing all sorts of nonsense at them. But this kind of mindless slander is generally ineffective and can only sway casual observers with low levels of understanding.

Then there's the high-level criticism, which involves finding fault from a professional perspective, emphasizing that it's based on reason and evidence. This kind of criticism is more likely to be accepted and is more effective.

Du Yue adopted a two-pronged approach: the online trolls who blindly criticize have already set out, and then music and entertainment bloggers will join in. However, they cannot blindly spew insults like the online trolls; after all, as "professionals," they need to produce some convincing and genuine evidence.

Du Yue herself doesn't know much about music, so she can only ask professional musicians like Zhou Lei and Wang Hui to find fault with Chu Yourong's new song.

"Director Du, you've come to the right person. I just established a sharp-tongued persona on 'Tonight's New Song'."

Zhou Lei chuckled as he twirled his prayer beads and replied.

Wang Hui didn't say anything. She gently pushed up her black-rimmed glasses on the bridge of her nose and made a gesture of listening attentively.

Du Yue found Chu Yourong's new song on her computer and then clicked play.

The intro, tinged with a touch of melancholy, wafted from the speakers. Then, Chu Yourong's voice began to play.

Don't let nostalgia make the plot melodramatic.
Why ruin a classic after loving it for so many years?
They are all adults and have no outstanding debts.
Wasting time is my choice
Hearing the song coming from the speakers, Zhou Lei subconsciously paused in his hand-stringing motion, and Wang Hui's eyes behind her glasses also showed surprise.

Both are professional musicians. Putting aside their personal character, their basic musical literacy is on point. As the saying goes, "A master's skill is evident from their first move."

Moreover, Chu Yourong was previously with Rongshu Entertainment, and both of them had worked with her before, so they knew what level Chu Yourong was at.

However, the state that Chu Yourong is showing in the song "Decent" is completely different from the Chu Yourong they remembered before. She seems to have matured all of a sudden, and her voice seems to be much more stable than before.

After a brief moment of surprise, the two subconsciously looked at each other and found the same answer in each other's eyes.

Du Yue was also a little confused. Although she didn't know much about music, she could still tell whether a song was good or bad, even though Chu Yourong hadn't finished singing this song yet.

It sounds so "comfortable", smooth and easy to listen to, and it conveys a lot of emotion!

this.
Du Yue raised an eyebrow, and couldn't help but wonder: How come Chu Yourong's singing skills have improved after leaving the company?

Besides, the quality of this song seems to be quite good!

The expressions of the three men grew increasingly solemn.

And the song has now reached its chorus:
Breakups should be dignified; neither party should apologize.
What is there to owe? I dare to give, and I dare to be heartbroken.
In front of the camera is the old us.

Amidst cheers, tears streamed down their faces as they screamed themselves hoarse.

Leaving gracefully is the only way to make the most of these years.
A scene of passionate love and earnest dedication.
Don't let obsession ruin yesterday.
I loved you, cleanly and decisively.

The long chorus ends.

The bracelet Zhou Lei was holding fell to the ground with a "thud".

Wang Hui took off her glasses and pinched the bridge of her nose.

Clearly, the quality of the song and Chu Yourong's performance of it far exceeded their expectations.

"What do you two teachers say?"

Although she already had a bad feeling, Du Yue still asked after the song ended.

"Director Du, to be honest, this song is really hard to fault. It's not that it's perfect, but the emotions it conveys are just too strong!"

Zhou Lei said with a frown.

"mood?"

Du Yue didn't quite understand.

Wang Hui began by explaining, "Music is essentially something that provides emotional value—whether it's joyful, melancholic, peaceful, or restless."

"And no matter which emotion is brought to its extreme, then the song will definitely be a success."

"Chu Yourong's song perfectly captures the sadness of a breakup, and the lyrics are so fitting that it really brings out the full force of that emotion!"

"So, in a specific context, this song is a killer for the listener!"

After saying that, Wang Hui sighed softly again: "My song 'That Year, That Day' was actually meant to convey a similar emotion, but compared to that, it's far inferior. Xu Yao will lose badly this time."

"This"

Du Yue was stunned: "Is it that serious? Xu Yao's singing skills are universally acknowledged to be excellent, far surpassing Chu Yourong's."

"Director Du, you don't understand."

Zhou Lei then chimed in: "So-called singing skills are nothing more than the manifestation of technique. Of course, if you use technique well, you can indeed sing very well, but that's just good-sounding and may not necessarily touch the hearts of the audience."

"Therefore, we in the industry often say that the highest level of performance is emotion. Only by infusing emotion into a song can you touch people's hearts!"

"Chu Yourong's singing skills are indeed not as good as Xu Yao's, but the song she sang was all about emotion, not technique!"

"After listening to her song, I felt like she had just ended a relationship!"

Du Yue was completely dumbfounded: "According to you, doesn't Chu Yourong's song have the potential to become a hit?"

"It will most likely become a hit."

Zhou Lei nodded.

It's going to be a hit!

Wang Hui gave a more definitive answer.

Because of the comparison with "That Year, That Day", she can more intuitively feel how strong "Decent" is in this niche genre.

After hearing their evaluations, Du Yue was stunned. She had asked them to find fault with the book, but instead of finding any, they praised "Decent" in every way.

"Teachers, there can't be a perfect song. We still need to point out some flaws."

"Otherwise, I won't be able to write the copy!"

Du Yue said with a mournful face.

"I can't think of anything right now."

Wang Hui shook her head.

"Teacher Zhou, what about you?"

"You have such a sharp tongue!"

Du Yue then looked at Zhou Lei.

"Well, that's it."

Zhou Lei scratched his head and said, "Chu Yourong sang 'Decent' so well, did she really break up with her boyfriend?"

Du Yue was completely speechless.

No, I asked you to find fault with the song!

at the same time.

Dance rehearsal room.

Sun Jiaren had just finished dance practice. While drinking water, she asked her assistant, "Xiao Ke, my new song has been released, right? How are the fans reacting?"

"Very good, everyone is praising you!"

"Moreover, it climbed to ninth place on the new song chart in less than an hour after it was released."

The assistant replied with a smile.

"What about Chu Yourong's songs? Where are they ranked?"

Because of their similar styles, Sun Jiaren had been subtly competing with Chu Yourong even before Chu Yourong left. Now that the two were facing off, she naturally cared a lot about the outcome of this competition.

"37th place, far from enough."

"Sister Jiaren, you're definitely going to win this time. I bet many of her fans will switch sides!"

"From now on, you'll be number one in this track!"

Assistant Xiao Ke provides Sun Jiaren with ample emotional support and knows what she likes to hear.

Sun Jiaren nodded smugly and said, "Play her song. I want to hear what kind of corny song the person who wrote 'Apple Fragrance' has written."

"Anyway, the comments are all unpleasant!"

While Sun Jiaren was practicing dance, Xiao Ke browsed the comments section of "Decent" and found it full of criticisms and complaints.

"As expected, what good songs can the person who wrote 'Apple Scent' write!"

Sun Jiaren curled her lip in disdain.

Meanwhile, Xiao Ke had already found "Decent" and clicked play. Soon, Chu Yourong's singing voice came from her phone.
(End of this chapter)