Are you trying to force me to become a star?

Chapter 2 The Gift

After finishing lunch, Xu Jinyan wandered around the campus alone.

As one of the four major art colleges in China, the Oriental Drama Academy doesn't have a particularly serious atmosphere. The main road isn't wide, and tall trees line both sides. At this time of year, the trees are lush and green, making it perfect for an after-dinner stroll.

Sometimes you'll come across open-air art exhibitions and photography exhibitions by the roadside. A few students carrying easels, guitars, and cameras will stop in front of the exhibitions to appreciate them. In this atmosphere, it seems that creation happens everywhere and everyone is a work of art.

A gentle breeze blew by, ruffling his hair, which made Xu Jinyan feel incredibly happy.

The puppy is barking, the leaves are laughing, and the wind is whispering.

Those who frequently travel through time know that without a cheat code, time travel is essentially pointless, while having a cheat code makes one appear relaxed and at ease.

Just then, the system suddenly received two more negative emotions:

[Negative emotions from Wang Yiming: +99]

[Negative emotions from Wang Yizhen: +499];

Huh? Who is this Wang Yizhen? What's his relationship with Wang Yiming? They seem like brothers, so why are they having so much negativity?

I subconsciously took out my phone and searched, and surprisingly, I actually found something:

"Wang Yizhen, male, is the head of the talent scouting team in the artist development department of Fengtai Group. He has discovered and signed second-tier singers such as Jia Nian and Yan Jing..."

……

……

Meanwhile, in a private room of a restaurant near Dong-seok.

Wang Yiming and his cousin Wang Yizhen were chatting. Only cold dishes were served on the table, indicating that not everyone had arrived yet.

While pouring himself some tea, Wang Yiming casually asked, "Brother, was this really necessary? You even went so far as to snatch that song away beforehand? Xu Jinyan was questioning me about it yesterday!"

"What did you say?"

I asked him, "Do you have any evidence?"

Wang Yizhen laughed and said, "Today's college students always seem to have a kind of innocent stupidity."

Actually, he didn't want to do it this way. He had been the head of the talent scouting team in the artist development department of Fengtai Group for several years and had achieved remarkable results. He only needed to sign two more A-level newcomers to be promoted to deputy director and become a true middle-level manager.

Not long ago, he discovered Hua Chenyu. He felt that this young man was quite capable and wanted to sign him with an A-level contract. Hua Chenyu was equally interested. This was Fengtai Group, one of the top four media groups. How easy is it to get into a company of this level?

However, he also knew that if he could win the championship in the upcoming campus singing competition, he would definitely be able to get better contract terms, and Wang Yizhen understood this idea.

After discussions with the company's A&R director, the company representatives conducted an evaluation, and the two parties ultimately signed a preliminary agreement: if Hua Chenyu could enter the semi-finals, she would sign an A-level contract; if she could win the championship, she would sign an S-level contract directly.

The moment the contract was signed, Wang Yizhen was genuinely excited. This was an S-level newcomer, one that such a large group only produced every few years. If he could sign him and pull some strings, he might just be able to rise directly to the position of deputy director.

He really wants to improve.

Everything was going smoothly until Xu Jinyan suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

Why do you, a composition major, need to hone your singing skills so well? It's one thing to have good singing skills, but then this year the competition format changed, requiring original compositions for the semi-finals. That's fine too, since Hua Chenyu's songwriting ability is an important consideration for the company signing him. What's even more infuriating is that he's also so handsome, which is a huge plus and will draw a lot of attention away from this competition.

In the end, he had no choice but to resort to this drastic measure.

Wang Yiming then asked, "When he arrives later, should we mention it to him so he remembers this favor?"

Wang Yizhen waved her hand and said, "This kind of talented writer is proud and arrogant. If you say something, he will feel that you are insulting him."

"Alright."

Before long, Hua Chenyu arrived at the private room, and Wang Yizhen immediately smiled and said to him, "The song you prepared was really good. After listening to it, I shared it with Mr. Sun Dakang from the company, and he said you had a lot of ideas."

Hua Chenyu was also very pleased. Sun Dakang was a senior music producer in the industry and also a judge for this year's competition. He smiled and said, "Mr. Sun, you flatter me. But I still have to thank Brother Wang for the introduction."

Wang Yizhen smiled slightly, quite pleased with his tact. Wang Yiming chimed in, "Generally speaking, the champion is decided between the two finalists from the host school. I think you have a very good chance of winning this time."

This is indeed standard practice. Of the five finalists, two spots are reserved for the school located in the host city, and one spot is awarded to each of the other three major art academies. This year, Xu Jinyan and Hua Chenyu from the Shanghai Theatre Academy made the cut. Unless there is a significant difference in skill level, home advantage can still be beneficial.

Hua Chenyu revealed a smug smile: "Not necessarily. Xu Jinyan from the composition department has a very strong singing ability, but I don't know how his songwriting ability is."

He was clearly very confident.

Wang Yiming laughed and replied, "Xu Jinyan? I know him. I heard his song not long ago. It's... alright."

Wang Yizhen immediately glared at him and called the waiter to serve the dishes.

The meal was a pleasant one for both the host and guests.

……

……

Xu Jinyan's thoughts were pretty much the same: Fengtai Group had their eye on a newcomer and wanted him to capitalize on the biggest buzz of the competition, so they wanted to get rid of this unstable factor beforehand.

As for who I'm optimistic about, it's very likely to be Hua Chenyu. Anyway, we'll just have to see who signs with Fengtai.

The most urgent task is to prepare the songs for Sunday. And it's worth noting that although the world is in a different state of affairs, he has already recalled several songs with similar melodies. It just goes to show that classics are classics; they still hold their own in a different world.

He was choosing a song when his phone suddenly received a video call. The caller ID showed "Empress Dowager".

He answered the call instinctively, and a woman who looked to be under forty years old with a pretty face appeared on the screen. She was Xu Jinyan's mother, Yan Zhi.

"Young Master, have you eaten?"

Xu Jinyan smiled habitually and said, "Mom, I just ate. Is there anything you need?"

As Yan Zhi twirled the keychain on her finger, she said expectantly, "Let's go see your grandma tonight. She's so lonely all alone. How long has it been since you last visited her?"

Well, after hearing what she said, Xu Jinyan understood what was going on. She was disgusted with her father's cooking and wanted to have a good meal at the old lady's. The key was that she never cooked herself and didn't want to keep going there to freeload, so she wanted to trick him into going too.

Xu Jinyan said helplessly, "Mom, I see Grandma dancing in the square with such enthusiasm. Besides, I've been so busy lately, preparing for that singer's semi-final, I really don't have time!"

Upon hearing this, Yan Zhi stopped turning the keychain in her hand and stared at him intently. Seeing that he had no intention of changing his mind, she uttered two words: "You unfilial son." Then she hung up the phone.

[Negative emotions from Yan Zhi: +25]

[Negative emotions from Xu Wenqing: +26];

Seeing these two messages, Xu Jinyan's lips twitched. So his father was also lurking around nearby.

Putting his phone back in his pocket, Xu Jinyan only then realized how smoothly the conversation had gone. This was his mother, after all. He had never experienced such a warm and natural feeling before, but he didn't feel any aversion to it; in fact, he thoroughly enjoyed it.

In this life, he has parents and a grandmother, but his grandfather passed away a few years ago.

But in his previous life, he only had his grandfather. Heaven not only gave him a system, but also made up for the missing part of his family.

He looked up at the sky, already knowing which song to choose as a gift for the world, and also for himself.