Chapter Ninety-Nine: If You Don’t Want to Live, Then No One Should

No.
They should talk up Su Murou in front of Director Xidong.
Get her out of here quickly.
If he casts Su Murou and sends her off to a hotel in Hengdian, this villa will be back under Chen Fang’s control.

Chen Fang ignored Su Murou and went straight into a cappella singing.

To be honest, Beneath the Sea was actually quite suitable for an a cappella arrangement.
Only, his voice was not really made for that style; it lacked the ethereal quality.
Deep down, Chen Fang had even thought of handing the song off to another female artist at Future Stardom, because his own voice is deep and raspy by nature, too rough for this airy mood.
For a song, the match matters most.

On the program his version sounded good, largely thanks to the atmosphere of the scene.
The a cappella segment began.
Chen Fang shifted into another mood.
In the program he had sung it in a restrained, low, almost heavy tone.
But now, he changed into the mood of Phoenix Legend’s cover version.
Both pitch and phrasing were adjusted, and the song sounded far more hopeful.

The piece ended.
He still had a hint of lingering emotion when suddenly an idea flashed through him.
He could easily bring in a female artist as partner and sing it again in a soaring, intense style, like a Phoenix Legend on this earth.
In a single instant, he had his choice:
Wang Situ.

Wang Situ had a rare smoky, female-voiced timbre. Her voice, like Chen Fang’s, was not ideal for ethereal songs, but when it came to forceful, emotionally charged songs, it was perfect. That grainy tone carried real power.

“Did you enjoy that?”
Chen Fang asked with a smile.

Su Murou came to herself and gave that half-pleased, half-stubborn face of hers and said, “It was fine—good enough.”

Hah.
A woman!
No one can tell me your mouth isn’t hard.
Chen Fang stopped paying attention to Su Murou and took Jimei in his arms, heading for the bedroom.

Before he went in, he reminded her, “You have your audition tomorrow, don’t you? If you stay up and mess up your state, I won’t give you a second chance.”

At that, Su Murou startled awake.
Right—tomorrow was audition day.

Barefoot and hurrying, Su Murou rushed over and grabbed Jimei from Chen Fang’s arms.
“Bonnie, you sleep with me tonight. For my audition tomorrow, you and Chen Fang just hold it in tonight. If you make too much noise, I won’t be able to sleep.”
Chen Fang: ?
Damn...
Jimei suddenly seemed to realize: “That makes sense.”
Chen Fang: ...
Damn it. This mouth of mine is unbelievably shameless.
He wanted to slap himself, but all he could do was put on a grin uglier than tears.

“Get some proper rest.”
“Tomorrow I’ll cook a grand meal!”
Jimei followed Su Murou into the second room.
Chen Fang extended his right hand and swiped at the air a few times; he had not come here to guard an empty room.

Bang.
The guest-room door shut.
Everything went quiet again.
His gaze flickered.

Su Murou.
That woman cannot be left here.

Chen Fang let out a breath and entered the main bedroom alone. As he was about to lie down, Xi Yanyuan called. They talked about the three songs from the production team, and of course mostly about rights.
The night was deep.
He had no idea whether Su Murou and Jimei next door had fallen asleep.
In any case, Chen Fang could not.

The next morning.
Chen Fang woke up in a haze.
Jimei had already prepared breakfast and was waiting for him to get up.
With no regular work now, she had thrown all her energy into odd things, especially cooking, trying out new recipes every day.

“Eat.”
Jimei shook a wok spatula.
The apron that had looked loose before now seemed tight across her broad chest.

Chen Fang was about to lean in and take some tofu when he saw Su Murou at the table in a very formal outfit, staring at him curiously.
In an instant, his good mood for the day vanished.

He sat down at the table.
It was obvious.
Su Murou treated today’s casting audition very seriously; not only was she painstakingly dressed, she was visibly nervous too.

“Nervous?”
Chen Fang asked as he drank his porridge.
Su Murou nodded. “A little.”

Chen Fang glanced down at her legs.
“They’re shaking like they’re about to get Parkinson’s, and you tell me it’s only a little?” he said, shaking his head.

She lowered her hands and pressed her knees, smiling awkwardly.
“I was always acting in the Shanghai scene before, so I don’t really understand the rules of the Beijing scene. And anyway, Director Xidong is a nationally known director. Isn’t it normal to be nervous in front of him?”
Chen Fang shrugged.
It was understandable.
After all, Su Murou was still just a girl in her twenties.
Besides, so many people want to act in Xidong’s productions and never get the chance.
And with Chen Fang’s recommendation, Su Murou had skipped the preliminary rounds and gone straight into final selection. If she missed this, there would surely be no next chance.

“Xidong is a decent person.”
“Just be natural.”
Chen Fang offered the advice kindly.

After breakfast, Su Murou rushed out.
Chen Fang did not hurry. He lingered a little, being intimate with Jimei, then hurried to the office.
There was a lot to do today.
Wang Situ continued practicing The Lady of Fragrance, while Chen Fang had to record the finalized versions of The Brightest Star in the Night Sky and Parting Intimacy. As for Beneath the Sea, he would decide after Xi Yanyuan brought over a list of the company’s female artists.
To avoid disturbing each other, Chen Fang moved to another studio and did not stay with Wang Situ.

Soon it was noon.
Chen Fang invited Wang Situ to lunch, and Xi Yanyuan came over too.

“Boss Qian has started hitting back,” Xi Yanyuan said quietly.
Chen Fang was taken aback.
Oh?
Qian Youlai was fast when he moved.
Chen Fang had been busy with his own work and hadn’t paid attention to online chatter.

“How is he fighting back?”
“He…” she said, “he bites anyone who comes near.”
Xi Yanyuan’s expression turned odd. It was not exactly right to describe her boss that way, but it was the first word that came to her mind.
Chen Fang looked puzzled.
She explained, “Kang Zikai posted Future Stardom’s dirt and scandals online, even saying the company was involved in tax evasion. That completely infuriated Boss Qian. Since Kang obviously doesn’t want Future Stardom to do well, Boss Qian’s message was basically: let no one have it easy.

“Qian Youlai somehow got hold of a lot of other companies’ dirt and dumped it all at once.
The editor-in-chief of Entertainment Weekly taking improper advantage of a subordinate.
The female director at Huaguo Culture and Entertainment playing private group-sex games.
The head of Communications Entertainment Media having pedophilic tendencies.
An artist from Chuangxiang Entertainment who had organized a gangbang…
He unleashed everything in one go.
Those companies and the social-media outlets all spoke up in favor of Kang.”

Only then could one say: when Qian Youlai goes berserk, that is truly frightening.