The Genius Cannon Fodder's Counterattack 11

Cheng Yuan's talent and ability were obvious to all, yet his mentor had never been particularly enthusiastic about this student.

Because he had a serious flaw: stage fright.

When Cheng Yuan played music with his classmates in private, he got so hyped he practically took off, and his skill was first-rate. His mentor had given him performance opportunities too, but he had an innate air of cowardice about him. Whenever he took the stage, his voice often trembled and went off-key. Even at the solo graduation recital every graduate was required to hold, he had performed only passably.

No wonder his mentor did not look after Cheng Yuan.

For a teacher, rather than watch helplessly as an uncut jade was doomed to gather dust, unable to shine, it was better to close one's eyes and not look.

Fortunately, Cheng Yuan himself did not much enjoy being in the spotlight. Besides, given his family background, had there been no Yang Baihua affair, he would have been perfectly content to happily make music behind the scenes for the rest of his life.

If it had been the real Cheng Yuan, hearing that he had an audition would have kept him too nervous to sleep for half the night.

Chi Xiaochi, on the other hand, calmly made himself a vegetable salad and called Cheng Jian to let him know he had received notice of the audition.

061 asked him, "Not nervous?"

"I have a thick skin," Chi Xiaochi said. "Besides, I used to be a model. You know that, right?"

061: "Mm."

"This line of work requires the ability to react on the spot," Chi Xiaochi said. "When I was seventeen, I did a runway show. The theme was fur, and I was third in the lineup. Somehow, people from an animal-rights organization got in to stage a protest. They jumped onto the runway, held up banners, blocked the models, shouted and screamed; some even recited poetry and gave speeches. It was quite lively. And of all times, it happened just as I was going onstage. I had only taken a few steps down the runway when they all rushed up."

061 asked, "And then?"

"I could have turned around and run straight backstage, but if I had, it would have thrown off everything that followed. The whole show would have fallen apart." Chi Xiaochi speared a cherry tomato with his fork. "Those people had their own beliefs and ideas. Fine. But the organizers had paid me, so I had to help them finish the show. That's professional ethics."

Then he assessed tomorrow's audition. "Small potatoes. No sweat."

061 thought, That sounded rather exciting.

After reading to Chi Xiaochi that evening, he could go to 023 and see whether there was footage of it.

That night, 061 read Chi Xiaochi Chinese geography.

Before 061 had even finished listing the names of China's places and rivers, Chi Xiaochi had fallen asleep.

061 smiled.

On Chi Xiaochi's report card, he ranked second to last in politics and dead last in geography.

The facts proved that ranking was quite scientific, because rattling off place names put Chi Xiaochi to sleep ten minutes faster than reading "matter determines consciousness."

Chi Xiaochi still slept lightly, but it was enough for him.

When he woke, he felt boundlessly energetic, enough that he could even help Cheng Yuan put on a concert.

At seven thirty, Chi Xiaochi got himself cleaned up and went downstairs.

Cheng Jian was waiting by the car to take him to the audition. When he saw him in a faded denim jacket that bared his clean, slender wrists, his brow twitched.

Before he could start in on him, Chi Xiaochi rubbed his palms together and slipped into the back seat. "Cold, cold."

Cheng Jian clicked his tongue and got into the driver's seat. "You really know how to pick your moments, don't you, boss?"

Chi Xiaochi nudged the back of the seat. "Driver Cheng, get moving."

Cheng Jian took off his jacket, flung it into the back seat, and covered Chi Xiaochi's face with it. "Hold this for me."

Chi Xiaochi rolled the jacket into a ball and used it to warm his hands.

Cheng Jian glanced at the rearview mirror. "That jacket costs more than you do."

Without moving, Chi Xiaochi kept warming his hands and shamelessly replied, "Just treat me like a clothes hanger."

Cheng Jian: "Pfft... cough."

He rarely saw his younger brother this lively.

It should have been a good thing, but the moment he remembered that Yang Baihua had caused this change, Cheng Jian felt as disgusted as though he had swallowed a fly.

He did not mind his brother's sexual orientation. What he minded was Yang Baihua himself.

Yes, Yang Baihua was hardworking, ambitious, and gentle with his brother, but in Yang Baihua's heart, every last one of his relatives came before Cheng Yuan.

Cheng Jian admitted that the Yang family had had it hard, scrabbling for food in the middle of nowhere to put Yang Baihua through school.

But that was precisely why the Yang family were Yang Baihua's "own people." No matter how sincerely Cheng Yuan treated him, he was still an "outsider."

As long as there was no conflict, that was one thing; once there was one, it would be truly extraordinary if Yang Baihua protected Cheng Yuan.

But an onlooker could not lend his eyes to the person involved. Cheng Jian had plenty of sound reasoning, yet nobody listened when he said it, so he could not help getting worked up.

Cheng Jian could only seize this brief chance to probe. "How are things between you and Yang Baihua? Has he told his parents about you?"

Chi Xiaochi shook his head, unable to hide the desolation in his expression.

Cheng Jian let out a breath and barely managed to swallow the word fuck.

He said, "He doesn't want his parents to know you exist. Don't tell me you don't know what that means."

Chi Xiaochi sniffled but said nothing.

Cheng Jian found it hard to understand. "What is so good about him?" There were plenty of students from poor backgrounds like Yang Baihua in Cheng Jian's company. They all bore, to a greater or lesser degree, the marks of their families of origin, but at least they were men who dared to take responsibility for what they did.

Chi Xiaochi dearly wanted to say, I don't really understand what's so good about him either. Given what he did to Cheng Yuan, the only thing that amazes me is that a pile of trash could grow to be six feet tall.

But Cheng Yuan had loved too deeply before, and Chi Xiaochi could not break character.

So he put on an expression of profound devotion and said, "One man earns ten thousand a month but is only willing to spend one thousand on you. Another earns one thousand a month but is willing to spend nine hundred and ninety-nine on you. Brother, which would you choose?"

Chi Xiaochi felt the halo of saintliness above his head shining brilliantly. He could absolutely play someone powered by love.

Quietly listening in, 061 shuddered at that stale, rotten chicken soup.

Cheng Jian kept a straight face. "Right. He has a thousand dollars, spends nine hundred and ninety-nine on you, and you two use your two mouths to drink the northwest wind for a month on the remaining dollar."

Chi Xiaochi thought, Comrade Contrarian, I agree with your theory, but if I were Cheng Yuan, you would have killed the conversation just now.

Only after the words left his mouth did Cheng Jian realize that his brother was not in a good mood. He softened his tone. "...Have you eaten breakfast?"

If he had not been worried that talking too much would affect Cheng Yuan's state for today's audition, Cheng Jian probably would not have passed up this chance to lecture some sense into his younger brother.

Chi Xiaochi drooped all the way to the entrance of Nebula Entertainment. From a distance, he saw two people standing in the cold wind to greet them. Judging by their ages and clothes, they were definitely not assistants; at the very least, they were associate-director level.

Chi Xiaochi said to the system, "This isn't how they treat an ordinary auditioning singer."

061 said, "This is how they treat the Cheng family's second young master."

Cheng Jian spoke at just the right moment too. "Keep your chin up. Don't be nervous."

Before Chi Xiaochi could thank Cheng Jian for his rare consideration, he heard him continue, "I've already put in a word with them. Just sing whatever."

Cheng Jian knew perfectly well how timid his younger brother was in formal settings, so he had made arrangements in advance.

That reassurance was both generous and high-quality—and a little hard to swallow.

One could imagine how the real Cheng Yuan would have felt standing here.

Chi Xiaochi sighed. "Teacher Six, when can you offer my brother a course in the art of speaking?"

061: "...???" Who was Teacher Six?

Chi Xiaochi said mournfully, "The way he talks will get him beaten up."

Once he entered the audition room, however, Chi Xiaochi settled down completely.

Like Yundu Entertainment, where Tang Huan worked, Nebula Entertainment had woven a vast entertainment network. It had countless subsidiaries involved in every aspect of music, film, television, and more. Fox Music was one of its flagship labels, and the people in charge of Chi Xiaochi's interview were two associate directors of Flying Fox Music and one music producer. It was an impressive lineup indeed.

They first asked several routine professional questions about music.

Even a second-year music student could answer those questions; they were ludicrously easy.

Chi Xiaochi remarked to the system, "This is my first time seeing backroom favoritism up close."

061 smiled.

The situation looked simple, but ultimately, Chi Xiaochi had made it happen.

Every host 061 had guided feared damaging the worldline and followed the plot obediently. None of them had even had the chance to experience the unspoken rules.

Soon, it was time for the singing portion of the audition.

Waiting outside, separated from Chi Xiaochi by only a glass wall, Cheng Jian signaled to the two associate directors with his eyes.

They nodded in understanding, but the producer was clearly not interested. He had been wearing a cold expression since earlier, watching Chi Xiaochi with folded arms.

Had he not heard the demo tape and taken an interest in Chi Xiaochi's voice, Su Xiulun, Flying Fox Music's star producer, would not have come here specifically.

But the two associate directors' instructions and the farcical questions just now had gradually extinguished his interest in Chi Xiaochi.

Live performance was a singer's lifeblood.

There were already too many studio singers. There was no need for another Cheng Yuan.

Chi Xiaochi sat at the piano, lifted the lid, and placed all ten fingers on the black-and-white keys, his heart as still as water.

He thought, Cheng Yuan, I've done everything I could for you. Now it's your turn.

In a flash of inspiration, countless emotions flooded Chi Xiaochi's mind.

Before he was fully overtaken by them, Chi Xiaochi said, "061, use the 'Single Skill Enhancement' card."

061 was a little surprised. "There's no need..."

Chi Xiaochi rested both hands on the piano. "Su Xiulun is here."

"Who?"

"Flying Fox Music's top producer. Cheng Yuan needs someone like him. So Cheng Yuan has to do his best."

His words were utterly rational and cold, but 061 noticed that Chi Xiaochi had said "Cheng Yuan," not "I."

...It was Cheng Yuan who needed this, not Chi Xiaochi.

He drew a clear distinction. This talent, this glory, did not belong to Chi Xiaochi.

Chi Xiaochi said, "I want Cheng Yuan to see how good his life could be if he made proper use of the hand he holds."

061's heart stirred faintly. "Understood."

He opened the inventory, selected the skill card Chi Xiaochi wanted to use, and tapped Use.

Name: Single Skill Enhancement (Trial Version)

Duration: 10 minutes

Quantity: 1

Quality: Excellent

Type: Single-use item

Required redemption points: 0 (distributed free of charge)

Description: Doubles the level at which the original host's existing strengths can be brought out; like fish head cooked with tender tofu, it must simmer and simmer to bring out the flavor.

Chi Xiaochi: "..." The copy made him suddenly crave fish head.

Collecting himself, Chi Xiaochi played the first chord.

He sang "Words from the Heart." It was Cheng Yuan's favorite song, and one whose very title had been plagiarized onto Tang Huan's CD cover.

"I would be a book by your pillow, to be read closely by you..."

The instant Cheng Yuan opened his mouth, Su Xiulun sat up straight.

The expressions of the two associate directors gradually changed as well.

After listening for a while, one of them looked at Cheng Jian beyond the glass wall in surprise, only to find that he was just as dumbfounded.

Cheng Yuan had extraordinary control over his voice. His vocal cords seemed blessed by a miracle. With such superb natural gifts, he did not need to spend time controlling his pitch or tone and could devote himself more fully to expressing the emotions he wanted to convey.

Not to mention that his voice itself was a fine instrument of exceptional quality.

Chi Xiaochi confidently left the playing to Cheng Yuan; he himself handled every outward emotion.

And the latter was Chi Xiaochi's specialty.

Without any rehearsal, Cheng Yuan improvised a medley of three songs, making on-the-spot adjustments to many of the melodies. "Words from the Heart" was melodious, "Love You" lively, and "Autumn Thoughts" mournful. Cheng Yuan gradually built the three styles into one, telling the tragic story of a youth consumed by love and desire.

When the song ended, Chi Xiaochi closed the piano lid, looked through the glass wall at Cheng Jian, and gave him a faint smile through tears.

Cheng Jian did not understand music, but that bitter smile from his younger brother inexplicably made his heart ache.

Chi Xiaochi came out of character quickly. After only a few blinks, he had reined in his emotions and rose from the piano. "Thank you, teachers."

When Chi Xiaochi left the music room, Cheng Jian silently pulled him into an embrace and hugged him hard.

He did not know why he had done it. He only felt that he seemed to owe him such a hug, as though... if he did not do it soon, he might never get to hug him again for the rest of his life.

That intimate gesture was perfectly normal between brothers, but 061 noticed that the instant Chi Xiaochi was embraced, his muscles stiffened, his body temperature suddenly rose, and his breathing became somewhat labored. He seemed extremely resistant to this kind of contact.

Fortunately, Cheng Jian had only hugged him briefly. Once he was released, Chi Xiaochi quickly returned to normal.

Su Xiulun was too excited to sit still. He pulled Chi Xiaochi over to discuss music with him, while the two directors, knowing they had found a treasure, nearly beamed like flowers as they said to Cheng Jian, "Mr. Cheng, you are far too modest."

Cheng Jian tried hard to turn down the corners of his mouth.

...He was very happy, but he still had to pretend not to care.

He stated, "Cheng Yuan did all right this time."

As he spoke, the phone Cheng Yuan had left in Cheng Jian's pocket before going inside began to buzz.

He took it out, and the two large characters "Old Yang" leapt out from the screen.

Cheng Jian looked up at his younger brother, who was deep in animated conversation with Su Xiulun.

With a snap, Cheng Jian hung up the call.

By both sentiment and reason, it was not a good time for Cheng Yuan to answer Yang Baihua's call.

Meanwhile, Yang Baihua held the phone as the busy tone droned on, his expression extremely ugly.

After seeing off his parents, third sister, and nephew, he had called specifically to ask Cheng Yuan when he would move back.

...And he dared to hang up on him?