107: Chapter 107 I don't know if you can handle it.

Jiang Fan wrapped one arm around her from behind, rested his chin in the crook of her shoulder, and took the opportunity to slide his hand into the neckline of her pajamas.

The concealer stick in Shen Nian's hand almost fell into the sink.

"You're so indecent first thing in the morning."

"What do you want for breakfast?" Jiang Fan's voice was right against her ear.

Shen Nian stared at the position of that hand in the mirror, the corner of her mouth twitched, and she slapped the concealer stick onto the countertop.

"I want to eat your flesh."

Jiang Fan's hand stopped moving.

Shen Nian saw his expression change in the mirror.

"...Get out."

— —

The two of them had a quick, simple meal.

At nine-thirty, they arrived at the Studio.

Zhou Yutong was sitting on the swivel chair at the front desk, spinning around while holding a cup of milk tea.

As soon as the door was pushed open, she jumped up from the chair.

"Sister Nian! How was the concert last night? Was the stage explosive?"

Shen Nian walked a few steps inside.

Zhou Yutong's gaze dropped.

"Sister Nian... why are you walking like that?"

Shen Nian's gait was indeed a bit off.

Her left leg stepped out, but when her right leg followed, it was clearly a beat slower.

"I sat for too long last night, my leg went numb."

Zhou Yutong tilted her head to look at her, then looked at Jiang Fan, who had entered behind her.

"Sat too long and your leg went numb? Wouldn't it be fine if you just stood up and walked a few steps?"

Shen Nian ignored her and went straight to the Recording Studio.

Zhou Yutong turned to look at Jiang Fan, opened her mouth, but swallowed the words that were on the tip of her tongue.

Jiang Fan remained expressionless, entered the office, turned on the computer, and logged into Weibo.

In the top twenty of the trending list, six entries were related to last night's concert.

The topic #WhoIsTheComposerOfAsYouWish# had risen from eighth place last night to third.

Clicking into it, the comment section was in chaos.

[I bet a pack of spicy strips that Jiang Fan wrote it.]

[No need to bet, the person above; all of Diva Xu's recent songs were written by Jiang Fan.]

[But the official side hasn't announced it, what if it's not him?]

[If it's not Jiang Fan, then who could it be? Find me a second person who can write at this level.]

[The person above makes it sound like he's the only person in the world who can write songs.]

Jiang Fan finished scanning the comments and closed the page.

— —

Shen Nian stayed in the Recording Studio all morning.

Zhou Yutong went to deliver water twice; the first time she was kicked out by Shen Nian, and the second time she wasn't even allowed through the door.

Shen Nian came out at lunchtime, holding two sheets of A4 paper, her walking improved a bit compared to the morning.

She walked straight to Jiang Fan's side and placed the papers on the desk.

"Help me take a look at this song."

Jiang Fan took them and unfolded them.

Handwritten lyrics and simplified musical notation, the handwriting was neat and elegant, with a few traces of corrections.

Song title: "courage".

Jiang Fan looked at the first verse of lyrics.

"Finally made this decision, I ignore what others say —"

His gaze paused for a moment.

He continued downward.

"As long as you are just as certain, I am willing to follow you to the ends of the earth —"

Chorus —

"Love really needs courage, to face the gossip —"

Jiang Fan read the whole song from beginning to end.

"Did you write this recently?"

Shen Nian nodded. "It took about two weeks. I revised the chorus several times. What do you think?"

Jiang Fan read it over again.

The "courage" from his past life, that song was popular for twenty years, the memory of several generations' youth.

The version Shen Nian wrote had an almost identical melody, with only slight differences in the lyrics.

Coincidence?

This was already the second time.

The last time was "deep sea".

Shen Nian had also written it herself, and it highly overlapped with the one from his past life.

Jiang Fan glanced at Shen Nian.

She was tilting her head, waiting for his evaluation, her eyes filled with a hint of nervousness.

Jiang Fan did not continue to think about it.

"Very good. The hook in the chorus is very strong, and the melody is catchy."

Shen Nian's eyes brightened.

"How do you think it would be if I sang this song on this episode of The Sound of Nature?"

"It's fine." He returned the paper to her, tapped a line in the middle of the second verse with his finger, "Smooth out the transition here, and the overall piece will be fine."

Shen Nian took the paper back, looked down at the spot he marked, hummed a few notes under her breath, and nodded.

"Alright, I'll revise it this afternoon."

— —

At four in the afternoon, Jiang Fan's phone vibrated.

Diva Xu.

[Come to my place tonight, I have good news to tell you.]

Jiang Fan replied with one word: Okay.

Diva Xu sent a kissy face emoji.

Jiang Fan put his phone back in his pocket.

He finished work at five-thirty and asked Zhou Yutong to take Shen Nian home.

"You're not going back?" Shen Nian asked.

"I have something to do tonight."

Shen Nian looked at him for two seconds, then didn't press for details.

"Don't work too hard."

— —

At six-thirty in the evening, Jiang Fan arrived at Diva Xu's villa.

Pushing the door open and entering, the smell of cooking fumes wafted through the living room.

Diva Xu leaned half her body out of the kitchen, an apron tied around her waist, and a spatula in her hand.

"You're here? Sit down first, it'll be ready soon."

Jiang Fan changed his shoes and went in, sitting down by the dining table.

Diva Xu brought out the last dish, turtle soup, and untied the apron from behind her waist.

She went to the wine cabinet to get a bottle of medicinal liquor and poured him a glass.

Jiang Fan looked at the color in the glass —

"Is it still the one Sister Lan sent?"

"Mm, drink it, I'm happy today."

Jiang Fan picked it up and took a sip.

"What good news?"

Diva Xu sat opposite him and placed a chopstick-full of food into his bowl.

"What's the rush? Let's talk after we eat."

Jiang Fan didn't urge her either.

The two of them ate a quiet meal.

Diva Xu was more talkative than usual today, chatting about a few behind-the-scenes tidbits from last night's concert.

"Did you know, a fan fainted from crying and had to be carried out by security."

"And there was another guy, a big man, one meter eighty-five, who was bawling while hugging his girlfriend, and it ended up being filmed and posted online, hanging on the trending list all night."

After the meal, Diva Xu cleared the dishes and brewed a pot of tea, carrying it to the living room.

The two of them sat down on the sofa.

Diva Xu pushed a teacup in front of Jiang Fan, picked up her own cup, and took a sip.

"This morning, someone from the China Civilization Office contacted Sister Lan."

Jiang Fan put down his teacup.

China Civilization Office.

The weight of this name in the entertainment industry needs no explanation.

It is responsible for screening and recommending literary and artistic works with positive value orientation.

Songs that are included will enter the official recommended playlist, and even enter international cultural exchange projects.

"They want to include 'as you wish'."

Jiang Fan gave a "Mm".

The core of the lyrics of 'as you wish' — patriotic sentiment, intergenerational inheritance, and expectations for a better life — naturally fit the official aesthetic.

Coupled with the scale of dissemination from last night's concert, it was impossible for the people from the Civilization Office not to see it.

"There's one more thing." Diva Xu put down her teacup.

"They invited me to sing 'as you wish' at this year's National Day Gala."

National Day Gala.

CCTV broadcast, over a billion viewers nationwide.

The singer list for the National Day Gala, every spot is the result of games between various parties.

The person who can stand there represents not just themselves, but the recognition of the entire industry.

"Congratulations, Diva Xu."

Diva Xu picked up the teacup and took another sip.

"Jiang Fan, you said last time you would give me a song to surpass Tang Yingxue."

"Mm."

"You did it."

Jiang Fan didn't speak.

Diva Xu placed the teacup on the coffee table, stood up, and walked in front of him.

She bent down, resting both hands on the back of the sofa, encircling Jiang Fan in the middle.

Her face was very close, their nose tips almost touching.

"So — what reward do you want?"

Jiang Fan raised an eyebrow.

"There really is one thing."

Diva Xu's expression paused, and she stepped back a little.

"...Don't tell me you're going to make me do something again."

"The 'fleet of time' movie is about to enter its promotional period, and Director Lu Chuan wants to organize a round of roadshows."

Diva Xu let go of the hands resting on the sofa.

"You want me to go to the roadshow?"

"Just one stop for the roadshow, get on stage and sing 'fleet of time'. Director Lu Chuan mentioned this idea last time, and he's been urging about it twice these past few days."

Diva Xu crossed her arms over her chest and looked down at him.

"You call this a reward?"

Jiang Fan spread his hands.

Diva Xu hummed.

"Jiang Fan, do you have some misunderstanding about the word 'reward'?"

"Then tell me what counts as a reward."

Diva Xu sat down on his lap, hooked her arms around his neck.

"I'll agree to the roadshow thing." She bit his earlobe, "But a reward is a reward, and business is business. You should collect your reward first."

Jiang Fan's hand rested on her waist.

"I drank quite a lot of the medicinal liquor today, I don't know if you can handle it."

Diva Xu leaned back a little, her fingers hooking his collar, undoing the buttons one by one.

"Is that so? Then let me see how effective it is."