The agent listened to Huo Rou’s voice, as sweet as the sounds of nature, deliver the truth he least wanted to hear.
“Ask her again, what year she wrote it!” the agent refused to let go of even a sliver of hope.
Qin Qiejian, as instructed, asked.
“A few years ago, maybe?” Huo Rou recalled, she had been in a bad mood when she wrote it, while visiting the countryside with An An.
Several words flashed through the agent’s mind—
It’s over.
This song was lyrics written by Zhao Xianjun specifically for a television drama, with R composing the music.
This happened two months ago!
He had to prepare for public relations immediately, and also find Zhao Xianjun to ask about it.
The agent hung up in a hurry, and Qin Qiejian also felt that things weren’t looking good.
He cautiously glanced at Huo Rou again.
“Sister-in-law…”
Did you know R?
He wanted to ask, but didn’t have the nerve to. It was already obvious; R had plagiarized.
Huo Rou waited for him to continue, clueless. Under her clear gaze, Qin Qiejian changed the subject.
“It’s fine, this ringtone sounds nice.”
An An chimed in for credit, “I changed it for Mommy!”
The internet was already in an uproar, and Gu Yue was the first to respond.
“I have always been proud to perform R’s works, but this incident happened too suddenly. I’m sorry, everyone. Out of trust in R, I did not do sufficient background checks before performing. I sincerely apologize for causing this argument. In the future, I will be more cautious with all my works.”
Gu Yue’s apology halted the shouting match under her Weibo post.
“Does this mean R really plagiarized?”
“I always knew Sister Gu Yue wouldn’t do anything to leak secrets! This time, she’s truly suffering an unjust disaster.”
“Cheer up, sis, we support you.”
This Weibo post conveyed one message to everyone: R might have indeed plagiarized.
R’s fans also began to doubt themselves.
For so many years, R had never spoken up. The occasional times she was online were always when Zhao Xianjun helped with promotions and logged in.
With this incident, they couldn’t even find the main artist.
“Big shot Jun, where is R? Have him come out and explain!”
“What’s with the silence?”
“R has fallen. Where will I listen to good traditional Chinese music from now on?”
Zhao Xianjun called Gu Yue. “What do you mean by that post?”
Gu Yue plucked at the guzheng beside her. “It doesn’t mean anything, I just saw how intense the arguments were and didn’t want them to keep cursing at each other.”
“But what you said implies you’ve confirmed R isn’t original?” Zhao Xianjun grew angrier the more he thought about it, and his words lost their usual elegance.
Gu Yue was difficult to communicate with normally; she always had her own ideas, liked to innovate, and was troublesome during recording. If it weren’t for her admission to the classical music research institute and a specific recommendation, they wouldn’t have used her.
Gu Yue said nonchalantly, “Does it matter if R plagiarized or not? His music has always been popular; even if he plagiarized one song, it won’t have any impact.”
“Besides, I said before that some parts of the song needed to be changed. You didn’t listen to me. If the composition had been modified according to my suggestions, it wouldn’t have been exactly the same as someone else’s.”
She spoke with a hint of schadenfreude, but restrained her emotions out of consideration for Zhao Xianjun.
Zhao Xianjun really couldn’t get through to this woman. “If you keep slandering R like this, we won’t be able to cooperate next time.”
“Brother Jun, don’t.” Gu Yue knew where her own value lay. She quickly tried to stop him.
“It’s also possible that the person named Huo Rou plagiarized R’s song. I didn’t state anything definitively,” she coaxed softly.
“It’s just that the fans are too agitated now. Later, we can just push all the blame onto Huo Rou.”
She heard from a fan that Huo Rou had been with a child downstairs that day, saying her playing wasn’t good.
What does a little brat know? She’s someone who got into the classical music research institute!
Hearing Zhao Xianjun fall silent, Gu Yue felt she had hit the mark and pressed on. “In a couple of days, you can post some of R’s manuscripts from R’s account, and I’ll retweet and explain.”
“Then we can push the problem onto Huo Rou. I checked; she’s a computer science major. Where would she get such artistic talent? Everyone will believe our story.”
Zhao Xianjun regained his voice. “Then what happens if they attack Huo Rou? Wasn’t the cyberbullying from a few days ago enough?”
“Gu Yue, how could you be like this?” Zhao Xianjun was utterly bewildered. Although Gu Yue was difficult to get along with, her character had always been decent, and she practiced diligently.
Gu Yue didn’t see a problem. “To protect R’s reputation, something must be sacrificed. Brother Jun, you don’t want R to have a black mark on their name, do you?”
She smiled. “Then it’s settled. You get R’s manuscripts, and I’ll await your good news.”
After hanging up, Gu Yue continued to play her zheng. Her fingertips touched the strings, the melody urgent, a piece titled “Ambush on All Sides” coming to life under her touch.
A middle-aged woman entered with a stern face, her ruler hitting the back of Gu Yue’s hand without hesitation.
“Mom!” Gu Yue retracted her hand and cried out in dissatisfaction.
Guo Xiu pushed Gu Yue’s head with a dark expression. Gu Yue, losing her balance, stumbled to the side. As the guzheng was about to fall, Guo Xiu steadied it, letting Gu Yue fall to the ground.
Gu Yue turned back to say something, but seeing Guo Xiu’s grim face, she immediately fell silent.
Guo Xiu looked at her with disappointment. “Listen to what you’re playing.”
Gu Yue said softly, “Isn’t it quite good…”
Guo Xiu kicked her calf. “The rhythm is wrong, the fingerwork is wrong, not to mention the emotion. How many times have I told you, huh? Did you go eat shit?”
Gu Yue lowered her head submissively. “I…”
Guo Xiu grabbed Gu Yue’s arm and pulled her to the guzheng. “Sit down, I’ll supervise you practicing!”
“I got you into the classical music research institute, not for you to embarrass me. You must achieve perfection!” Guo Xiu glared at her, speaking word by word. “R’s music is so good, and I pulled strings for you to play it. You must seize this opportunity! Basic skills, practice a few more times!”
Gu Yue met Guo Xiu’s gaze, filled with hatred.
With hatred, she began to play.
*Slap—*
“Incorrect! Play it again!” Guo Xiu was uncharacteristically harsh, the force of the ruler hitting Gu Yue’s hand never lessening, even as her hand swelled.
The piece “Ambush on All Sides” was played until Guo Xiu was somewhat satisfied. Then she had Gu Yue practice R’s song consecutively.
Her hand was so swollen there was no space left to hit, so Guo Xiu moved the ruler to her arm. “Not enough force, the arpeggios aren’t clear enough. Again! With more power!”
Power, power, power!
*Bang—*
A string snapped, and as it sprang back, it cut Gu Yue’s hand.
Blood flowed freely.
Guo Xiu finally looked satisfied. “That’s the right force. Change the string and keep practicing!”
Gu Yue clutched her hand, glaring fiercely at Guo Xiu’s retreating back.
If it weren’t for R’s song that she couldn’t play, why would she be treated like this?
R, go to hell.