Mysterious Assistant of the Washed-Up Queen-Chapter 458 - 305: Submitting the Track, Confident Chu Tian_2

Chapter 458: Chapter 305: Submitting the Track, Confident Chu Tian_2

Who knew Chu Tian would shake his head without even thinking.

"I’m afraid today won’t work," Chu Tian said. "Wasn’t it said that tomorrow noon was the latest? Sister Hua, could you please make the effort to talk to them? We’ll definitely deliver by tomorrow noon at the latest."

Upon hearing him ask for an extension, Li Chunhua’s heart instantly sank.

"Don’t tell me you still haven’t written it yet?"

Is he kidding me? Li Chunhua looked at his confident demeanor. She had thought the new song was ready long ago, but after all his talk, it seemed not even a single word had been written. This joke had gone too far.

She really wanted to ask him: if you don’t even have a song, where do you get the confidence to so brazenly claim it’s no problem?

She had never thought Chu Tian was this unreliable.

Luckily, her confusion didn’t last long before she received a somewhat satisfying answer.

"How could that be? The song is ready; I prepared it a long time ago. But to make it more acceptable to them, I need to prepare a few more things."

"Are you sure you’re *preparing things*?"

"Of course! Oh, Sister Hua, how could I possibly lie to you?"

"Alright, but hurry up. I may not be able to delay them for long. And don’t push it to exactly twelve o’clock. You absolutely must give it to me earlier, or the spot we’ve secured might be gone!"

"Understood, understood. Thank you for your hard work, Sister Hua."

"Don’t be so overly polite with me. It’s not like you’re doing this for someone else. I’ll be eternally grateful if you two just get busy! The snacks can stay; you can eat them later."

Sister Hua glanced at the table laden with snacks, rolled her eyes, then turned and left.

"I’ll go communicate with them first. You two, hurry up! Yiyi, let’s go!"

"Okay, sure!" Yiyi replied.

Yiyi, who had been enjoying the show from the sidelines, hurriedly agreed. As she left, she didn’t forget to grab a handful of snacks. This angered Sister Hua so much that she aimed a couple of kicks at Yiyi’s backside, and still not satisfied, chased after her, determined to land another one.

"OW! OW! OW! Sister Hua, your kicks are too painful!"

"Help me!"

Listening to their fading voices, a hint of a smile briefly touched Chu Tian’s face, but it quickly vanished.

"Let’s go. No more resting for us either. You’ll need to work hard again too," Chu Tian said to Xu Qingqiu.

Xu Qingqiu didn’t really mind; she was already mentally prepared. She was just still a little worried.

"Qingqiu, I’ll write out the new song first. You need to familiarize yourself with it quickly, then try singing it once. If there’s anything you don’t understand, I’ll be right beside you to personally guide you. We’ll try to record the first version tonight."

"Mhm, no problem. Then let’s go to the recording studio first. But what about the musical accompaniment?"

"The accompaniment is no issue. You know I’ve already prepared a version in advance. We can make minor adjustments based on the situation. Any further significant changes will have to wait until after the first rehearsal anyway."

"That’ll work. But now that the new song is set, which of my backup songs do you think would be suitable?"

"Speaking of backup songs, many of your songs are appropriate. But since it’s for the Spring Festival Gala, I think motivational songs are a safer bet."

That was true. Although the Spring Festival Gala didn’t specify required song types, and love songs had been performed in the past, at the end of the day, love songs just didn’t compete as well as motivational songs. After all, with the whole family gathered for the New Year, everyone wants a sign of good fortune.

Besides, knowing the thinking of the folks behind the Spring Festival Gala, it’s all about that ’blood-pumping pep-talks and pie-in-the-sky’ routine.

Playing to their preferences, motivational songs are definitely more popular.

And then there’s the fact that love songs are surely an indispensable part of the Gala, as love is also a part of life. Sweet love songs can bring happiness and reflect the lives of countless people. But the love song market is vast, with even more works emerging ceaselessly. Consequently, the number of singers performing love songs is naturally high. This inevitably leads to greater competitive pressure. If it’s just an ordinary love song, she really might not be able to compete against those others.

Even if it’s just a backup song, what if someone has a change of heart and decides to promote the ’spare tire’ to the main act? What then? Compete with them again in second and third rounds? Others have fame, status, connections, and backing. Could they really compete with that? Instead of that, it’s better to avoid this major pitfall and focus on the less mainstream, yet still impactful, motivational songs.

"How about singing ’Blooming All The Way’? I feel like this song is very fitting."

"’Blooming All The Way’? Alright."

Actually, Xu Qingqiu also thought this song was quite appropriate. Firstly, the lyrics weren’t trite. Secondly, its scope was broader, not limited to simple romance or personal dreams.

If one were to step outside a personal perspective, this song could be about an individual, a journey, a goal, or even the faith of a nation and its people, among other things.

The specific impact it could achieve depended entirely on the narrative woven around it and the stage upon which it was performed.

If performed at the Spring Festival Gala, it wouldn’t seem out of place at all. In fact, it would likely be graced with honor, imbuing the performance with a sense of historical weight and responsibility. That would be quite good.

"Alright, let’s tentatively settle on this song for now. You should familiarize yourself with it too. But first, let’s take a look at the new song."

Arriving at the recording studio, Chu Tian picked up a piece of paper and slowly began to write down a line of text.

"Where Has the Time Gone"

"’Where Has the Time Gone’? Is it a song about time?"

"Hmm... sort of. Or you could say, it’s a song about family."

As Chu Tian wrote the lyrics, he explained, "This song is about someone who goes from babbling as a baby to growing up. Then, when they suddenly look back, they find that their parents, who were once young, now unknowingly bear the traces of time etched on their faces. Their hair has turned white, their faces have wrinkled, and time has stealthily slipped away.

"And through this song, the performer seems to be lamenting the swift passage of time. But actually, they’re wishing for time to slow down, to have more time to spend with their family.

"Remember one core thing: New Year’s is a time for family reunions. This song is about cherishing time and loved ones, which perfectly aligns with the theme of family togetherness."

Watching Chu Tian’s pen move across the paper, leaving behind line after line of lyrics, Xu Qingqiu couldn’t help but exclaim in amazement.

"No wonder! No wonder you’re so confident. These lyrics are truly wonderfully written."

Hearing her voice gradually turn strange, even somewhat choked with emotion, Chu Tian quickly stopped writing and looked up, just in time to see Xu Qingqiu covering her mouth, tears quietly streaming down her face.

"What’s wrong? It’s just a song, isn’t it? Why are you crying?"

"SOB... SOB... I’m sorry," she choked out. "It’s just that these lyrics... Seeing them made me suddenly think of my parents, especially this line."

She pointed to the very first line of the lyrics and said, "’This line, "Little feet in memory, chubby little mouth," suddenly reminded me of my little sister. When she was small, she was just like that, all chubby. I used to think, how could there be such a cute kid? Then, in the blink of an eye, I never expected she’d grow into a young woman.

"’And this line, "In the blink of an eye, all that’s left is a face full of wrinkles"—I haven’t seen my parents for so long. I don’t even know if they’ve aged more.

"’My mom’s hair was so beautiful. She loved to look her best when she was young. But then, my third sibling told me that he once saw Mom staring at a single white hair in the mirror for a long, long time, lost in thought...’"

At this point, Xu Qingqiu couldn’t continue speaking, her voice choked with emotion.

Yes, aren’t everyone’s parents the same? They too were once young, in their prime, and full of youthful vigor. They too had their times of impassioned youth filled with romance.

But as time went by, romance returned to the heavens, and bodies to reality. Life, in the end, molds everyone into a similar appearance.

All that unrestrained, soaring youth became hidden in memories, eventually leaving only an aged face and snow-white hair, sculpted by the passage of time.

"Don’t cry," Chu Tian said, quickly standing up to embrace and comfort Xu Qingqiu. "How about we go visit our parents together after New Year’s?"

However, this was also good. Only with genuine emotion could one truly sing the soul of a song.

The greatest fear for a singer is failing to resonate with the audience. Only by empathizing with the lyrics and fully immersing oneself in them could one ensure that, even if their singing skills were slightly lacking, the true essence of the performance wouldn’t be compromised too much.

Fortunately, Xu Qingqiu wasn’t one to be overly dramatic, and she quickly composed herself.

"Hurry up and write," she urged, her eyes determined. "I absolutely must sing this song well!"

"Mhm, of course, you can," Chu Tian said. "I’ll write it out first. You familiarize yourself with the lyrics, and I’ll go get the musical arrangement."

The system had ready-made lyrics and a composition, but he couldn’t just produce them in front of her. So, he would normally write them out by hand first and then print them.

This was mainly because Xu Qingqiu always complained that he never had any handwritten manuscripts for her to keep as mementos.

Chu Tian could only invent a story, saying he had already stored the manuscripts away, and then he would secretly ’do his homework’ by transcribing them at home at night.

He had learned his lesson eventually. Now, he would write it out by hand first, then print it. Sometimes, trying to cut corners only ended up creating more work for himself, a lesson he had learned through bitter experience.