Chapter 117: The Code to Happiness (Requesting Monthly Votes)

"Southern Girl..."

Xiang Li suddenly shuddered, feeling a sense of trance, as if the moment weren't real.

Is Teacher Jabei singing to me?

Could this song, "Southern Girl," have been written for her, or perhaps, is it actually about her?

Southern Girl.

Xiang Li lowered her head, not daring to look at Jabei as he sang with such deep emotion. Her cheeks flushed, and she nibbled gently on her lower lip.

If Li He knew what was running through Xiang Li's mind, he would likely only say, "Young lady, you certainly have a vivid imagination."

He wasn't thinking that deeply; he was simply moving around, carried away by the music.

"Southern Girl, do you enjoy the straightforwardness of Northerners? Days pass by just like those sleepless nights. She chews gum, talking idly of her ideals against the wall—ah..."

No one interrupted; everything around them was hushed. Li He was singing about a Southern girl, but everyone listening was thinking of the girl in their own heart.

"Southern Girl, we are all enduring the long, drawn-out..."

Li He's voice suddenly rose, a cathartic release of emotion, an expression of feeling.

Though still shy, Xiang Li lifted her head to look at the young man who stood as the sole source of radiance in the courtyard. Within the small yard, everyone's gaze was fixed on Li He and his guitar. Even the production staff outside, leaning against the stone walls of the Mushroom House, listened to the melodic song echoing through the space.

"Those filming inside are so lucky. Not only do they get to hear Teacher Jabei’s new song, but they get a front-row, private performance."

"Damn it, I'm applying for a transfer to the interior crew next episode."

"What are you dreaming about? You think the people inside are going to just trade places with you?"

Those outside envied those inside for the live performance; those inside envied those outside for not being tormented by the mouth-watering aroma of food.

Li He, cradling his guitar, drifted back to his starting position, subtly putting some distance between himself and Xie Shun.

"Southern Girl, have the high-rises obscured your hope? Ah-hai."

Li He finished singing.

But the music hadn't ended. The guitar strings continued their solo. In reality, the song had much more, a second half, but Li He pulled the brakes just in time. He had practiced cutting it off right here at home countless times, specifically to ensure he didn't get carried away and forget to stop.

Li He's goal wasn't to show off that he had written another incredible song; it was to harvest negative emotion points from the passionate audience and netizens. That was the goal—negative emotion points.

Folk music requires a quiet atmosphere to listen to, to contemplate, and to witness. Folk music is about melody and lyrics, but also about the hidden secrets and stories buried in one's heart.

I have the music, you have the story, and he has the wine.

What Li He did was insert an advertisement right at the most captivating moment of the story. Li He knew from his past life exactly how it felt to be interrupted by an ad just as a video reached its climax. If you didn't pay for a subscription, you could only vent your negative emotions.

A truncated song was different from a video ad; if you hit an ad in a video, you could pay for a membership or find a pirated version. With a half-finished song, there was nowhere to pay to skip ahead. It was an unsolvable, lethal blow. Even if people like Xie Shun, Yang Shu, and Zhang Yang forced Li He to hand over the complete version of "The Ordinary Road," they had already contributed the necessary negative emotion points before that.

That was the reason—the only reason, besides the extra paycheck—why he had agreed to be the chief planner for the show. The promotion and airing of the first episode had already earned him a massive haul of negative emotion points; he was loaded.

The audience and netizens were very enthusiastic.

For the fans who supported him, Li He was always generous. Before the recording of the second episode, he had promised on Dou-Shou short videos that he would give everyone a gift. The new song, "Southern Girl," was that gift for all his fans.

Even if it was a bit incomplete.

As the old saying goes, there is an eternal beauty in imperfection. In the first episode, the fans selflessly contributed their negative emotions. This episode, it was his turn to contribute to them. It was a repayment, a return for their support.

The guitar notes gradually faded. Li He glanced around the courtyard, seeing the faces of people who looked as if their worldviews had just been shattered.

The song was over. The guitar music was over.

The silence on set was terrifying. Everyone's eyes were locked on the figure holding the guitar in the yard, though the emotions in their eyes were different from what they showed on the surface.

"It's gone."

"It's actually gone."

"Teacher Jabei, what about the second half? Is there... is there more?" Jiang You, who was closest, couldn't help himself, discarding his idol persona.

Structurally, it was obvious the song had only been the first half. It was incomplete. A classic case of what they called "the beheading." Some staff members couldn't help but take a half-step forward, as if being closer would make them hear Jabei's answer sooner. They were expectant, yearning.

Li He shook his head, looking apologetic. "I overestimated myself. I wanted to sing it all in one go, but... I failed."

The heavy sigh echoed in the minds of everyone present.

Failed!

Failed!

Failed!

Li He was, of course, lying. He had done it on purpose. He was already a master of the "beheading" technique. Furthermore, his choice of song for the second episode was calculated. He chose "Southern Girl" instead of "When You Are Old" because the guest, Xiang Li, was from Fujian Province—a true Southern girl—and she could naturally lead the conversation to the topic. Otherwise, starting the song out of nowhere would look suspicious, and he needed to maintain his persona while harvesting negative emotions.

The main reason, however, was the lyrics. The lyrics of the first and second halves of "Southern Girl" did not overlap; you couldn't deduce the second half from the first. From "The Sorrow" to "Southern Girl," Li He was careful to avoid songs with repetitive structures when choosing ones to truncate. "When You Are Old," by contrast, was a classic example of repetitive lyrics. That would violate the principle of the "beheading." To be truly effective, the audience had to be left wanting more, scratching their heads in frustration.

At the entrance of the courtyard, the director's temporary base—yes, Wu Guang had moved the director's team into the courtyard just to hear the live performance—the deputy director turned to Wu Guang, looking worried. "Old Wu, if we air it like this, we're going to get roasted to death!"

The head stage manager walked over, too. Wu Guang had his hands on his hips; he had been worried before Li He started that the same thing from the last episode would happen. And naturally, the thing he feared most had come to pass.

He thought for a moment and said, "Jabei’s original song is high quality, but he performed it spontaneously, so he wasn't fully prepared." He suggested in a negotiating tone, "How about we give him some time, and we can record the rest later to make a complete version?"

Re-recording was common in variety shows. Wu Guang figured that since he couldn't finish it in one go, they would give him time to finish writing it and then patch it in. A truncated song really wouldn't do. The first episode's "The Ordinary Road" had already been enough for the audience to handle; if they did it again, the viewers would explode.

Absolutely explode!

Wu Guang didn't even want to imagine the consequences.

"Old Wu, are you sure Teacher Jabei can finish the song before it airs?" the deputy director ruthlessly pointed out the facts. Today was Monday, and the second episode was set to air on Saturday night. They were planning to use the new song as a hook for promotion. That meant they had to finish it by Thursday.

Could he write it in three days? Even though they weren't songwriters themselves, they had heard that high-quality songs could sometimes take months or even a year to compose.

Did they have to wait a year to air it? That was clearly impossible.

"Let's try," Wu Guang said, his voice drained of energy.

Everyone in the courtyard was dumbfounded. Another truncated version, another half-finished song. Another... maneuver of this kind.

"Am I dreaming? Someone pinch me and tell me if it hurts."

"It sounds good, but... it's so frustrating!"

"It really is."

"Do you think Teacher Jabei actually didn't write the second half, or is he doing this on purpose?"

"That's a stupid question. Obviously he didn't write it; Teacher Jabei said so himself."

"Exactly. Who wouldn't want to finish a song? Who wouldn't want to leave a perfect stage performance? Besides, knowing Teacher Jabei's character, he's not the type to play these kinds of games."

"Don't slander Teacher Jabei. I'm his fan."

The person who had asked the question fell silent. That's right, how could Teacher Jabei be the type of person to intentionally disgust people like that? How could they doubt him? The man felt a wave of remorse.

The production staff whispered to each other, but the moment Xie Shun walked by with a spatula in hand, they instantly fell silent. Xie Shun gripped the spatula, looking like he was ready to fight if the situation called for it. "Is it really gone or not? Don't try to pull a fast one on us, kid."

He had felt something was off from the start; that ominous feeling had been strong. He had known something bad was going to happen. And sure enough, here it was.

Li He spread his hands helplessly. "Teacher Xie Shun, I really thought I could do it."

His innocent expression left Xie Shun with nothing to say, even though he wanted to pick a fight. It was so infuriating.

He Luo wanted to say something but didn't know how to start. This situation reminded him of when Li was releasing "The Sorrow" on Dou-Shou, and he had suggested releasing only half of it. It was so similar.

*Could Old Li be doing this on purpose?*

The thought shocked He Luo. But the more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. This was so like Li He. From the truncated version of "The Sorrow" to later advising Jiang Qi to only release the climax of "Bubble," it was all too clear. Old Li had his fans wrapped around his finger.

If it was on purpose, that meant Old Li had already written the full version. No—maybe Old Li had written the whole song from the start.

*Hiss!*

He Luo gasped. The thought was terrifying. He suddenly felt that being the best friend of such a person was a very "fortunate" experience. He Luo's eyes changed; he was no longer annoyed or resentful about not hearing the full version, but rather delighted.

"After the show ends and we go home, I'll ask Old Li for the full version."

He Luo felt he had unlocked the secret code to happiness.