Volume One, Chapter Ten: Deprived of Song Copyrights—What to Sing at the Concert?

Time quickly slipped into the next day.

It was afternoon.

Su Le had already arrived at the stadium.

Tonight, the Dongfang Group's concert would be held there.

"Brother Su, over here."

"President Chen went to a meeting. Before the concert begins, Sister Hongyan and I have a few things we'd like to ask you." Song Hongyan pushed Ren Yingying out as she smiled and waved at Su Le.

"Are you satisfied with those two songs?" Su Le asked with a smile after walking over, touching his nose.

"Very satisfied, more than satisfied. Brother Su, you’re amazing!"

"One song captures first love, the other embodies a breakup; they’re both absolute masterpieces!" Ren Yingying’s words dripped with sweetness, as if she’d dipped her tongue in honey.

Their approval of Su Le’s two new songs filled him with genuine gratification.

"Mr. Su, let’s head inside. President Chen will come arrange the concert’s schedule after his meeting."

"By the way, have you prepared your own piece this time? After all, you’ll be making an appearance—if you don’t sing, it wouldn’t feel right." Song Hongyan asked as she led the way, smiling.

"I’ve prepared a song for myself as well," Su Le replied.

Meanwhile…

In the conference room of Dongfang Entertainment Group.

Chen Tianxiong was being berated so harshly it was as if he’d been doused with cold water.

He could only bow his head in silence.

"Chen Tianxiong, what were you thinking? For three whole years, Dongfang Group has been operating at a loss!"

"Finally, you get a song that brings a glimmer of hope, and you want to sign it over to some D-list singer?"

"That girl is disabled—her future prospects are practically nonexistent."

"I'm telling you to make profitable investments, not to help people chase their dreams. Do you think the Kyushu Headquarters is a charity?"

The speaker was a middle-aged man in a suit, exuding an intimidating aura.

He was the Entertainment Director at Kyushu Headquarters, overseeing both Dongfang Group and Phoenix Media.

"But, Boss, it was Yingying who made the song popular, and the original songwriter specifically requested her to sing it!"

"Besides, when the fans first heard 'Big Fish,' it was Yingying singing. Now you want to hand the song over to Lu Yaoyao—isn’t that crossing the line?"

"Never mind the fans being disappointed; we can’t break the original songwriter’s principles. And if we don’t let our group sing 'Big Fish' at tonight’s concert, who’s going to answer for the fans’ disappointment?"

Chen Tianxiong, mustering his courage, finally looked up to ask.

"Songwriters’ principles are bought with money."

"Fans care about the song; whoever sings it best, they’ll recognize that."

"And I’ve already decided—'Big Fish' goes to Lu Yaoyao. She’s about to take part in the Grand Finals, and she’s even invited Master Sun to write her a song. If tonight’s concert goes well, even if she loses in the finals, with this performance she’ll still make it big."

"As for your concert, so long as it doesn’t lose money, I’ll be content!"

"'Big Fish' was just luck, not because the song is that extraordinary. Can it possibly be as good as Master Sun’s work? An unknown singer gets lucky with a hit, but after a while, it cools off—there’s no traffic to sustain it. Remember, our decisions are based on market and vision."

"Spare me the sentimentality!" Director Lü scolded one last time before turning and leaving.

At that moment,

Yang Wei walked over, a smug smirk on his face.

"President Chen, didn’t I tell you yesterday…"

"Ha ha, sorry, but from now on, only my Yaoyao can sing 'Big Fish.' You’re not qualified anymore."

With that, Yang Wei laughed loudly and strode away.

Chen Tianxiong knew full well this was all their doing, but he was utterly powerless to stop them.

After all, his performance lagged behind Phoenix Media’s.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t be so humiliated in front of Director Lü at headquarters.

Fury burned within him, but faced with headquarters’ decision, he had no choice but to swallow his frustration.

The concert was about to begin, and the director had just pulled the rug out from under him.

All those fans had come for 'Big Fish'—now that the performance rights had been stripped, wouldn’t the fans riot?

Entertainment apps and even social media would surely be flooded with heated topics and debates.

Just thinking about it gave Chen Tianxiong a headache.

Most crucially, the song was written by Su Le, and now even he had lost the right to perform it.

How was he supposed to explain this to Su Le?

Chen Tianxiong sighed heavily.

…

On the other side, in the stadium’s recording studio.

Su Le listened to Song Hongyan and Ren Yingying practice their two songs and was quite pleased.

He gave occasional suggestions, pointing out any shortcomings.

His guidance deepened their understanding of the pieces, bringing them closer to perfection.

Finally, they reached their best state.

"The concert starts in thirty minutes—why isn’t President Chen back yet?"

"Do meetings really take this long?" Song Hongyan went to the front desk and saw that fans had already filled the venue.

The stadium, capable of holding tens of thousands, was now packed to the rafters.

It was her first time experiencing such a grand scene.

After all, this was her first concert.

Her heart brimmed with indescribable excitement.

She knew, too, that most of these fans were here for 'Big Fish.'

"Brother Su, should we run through 'Big Fish' one more time?"

"I can’t afford to mess up the harmony at the end again—last time you covered for me, or I would’ve been done for." Ren Yingying glanced at the time; there was still room for one last practice.

She made the suggestion.

Su Le had just nodded when President Chen returned, looking utterly dejected, like a rooster who’d just lost a fight.

Everyone could see his sour mood; it was written all over his face.

"President Chen…" Song Hongyan called softly.

Su Le and Ren Yingying both looked at him, silent.

Chen Tianxiong walked right up to Su Le and bowed deeply.

In an instant,

The two women were stunned.

Su Le, too, was filled with confusion.

"President Chen, what are you doing?" Su Le quickly helped him up, asking with concern.

"I’m sorry, Su Le. It’s my incompetence—I’ve failed to keep my word."

"We can’t perform 'Big Fish' tonight."

Those words from Chen Tianxiong landed like a bomb, exploding in everyone’s ears.

Ren Yingying’s eyes went wide with disbelief.

"Why?!" Ren Yingying cried out.

"Yes, President Chen, 'Big Fish' was supposed to be the highlight of the night!"

"How could this happen…" Song Hongyan was equally baffled.

With so many fans in the audience, most were here for 'Big Fish.'

After all, she and Ren Yingying didn’t have that kind of pull.

Yet in just one night, over thirty thousand tickets had sold out!

If they didn’t perform 'Big Fish,' wouldn’t the fans be up in arms?

"President Chen, tell us—why can’t we sing it?" Su Le asked as well.

"To be honest, headquarters has taken the song and plans to give it to another artist."

"To shape the right image, Yingying can’t perform this song anymore. Mr. Su, you’re still allowed to sing it, since the contract includes the right for the original singer—but you can’t profit from it."

After saying this, Chen Tianxiong slumped into a chair, utterly dispirited.

He had hoped 'Big Fish' would be the springboard for Dongfang Group’s resurgence.

He wanted to use this wave of popularity to restore the group’s former glory.

Who could have foreseen that headquarters would snatch away their only chance at revival, all to promote one person and abandon the entire Dongfang Group?