Chapter 2: "Dispel Sorrow"

“I'm exhausted. You couldn't pay me to run another step.”
A voice sounded in Li He’s ear, and then a handsome face blocked the view of the affectionate couples around them.
“He Luo,” Li He called the name directly.
This tall, good-looking young man had been Li He’s friend since they were both toddlers, all the way through to university.
A true best friend—
And now, this buddy had collapsed breathlessly onto the grass.
He Luo propped his head on his arms and looked at Li He, helpless. “I dragged you out here for a night run to cheer you up. Maybe let you bump into the campus beauty or something. But all you do is stare at other people dating.”
Even though it was their first time meeting, the sense of camaraderie was overwhelming.
“Seeing you this worn out, I’m feeling pretty good,” Li He replied with a straight face.
‘Negative emotion +0.1’
Goodness.
Kid, I really misjudged you.
He Luo struggled to sit up, annoyed. “Trying to play it cool with me? Today’s the day An Chuxia released her debut single—you must be feeling down.”
Li He froze for a moment.
Who was An Chuxia? She didn’t show up in the scattered memories of his predecessor.
Soon, though, it came back to him. An Chuxia had been the original Li He's girlfriend in their freshman year. In sophomore year, she was noticed by Brilliant Entertainment and signed as an artist. Not long after, she broke up with him, and they lost contact.
Today was the official release of An Chuxia’s debut single.
That was also why He Luo insisted on dragging Li He out for a run tonight, worried he’d dwell on the past and get hurt all over again.
Li He’s tone was calm: “We lost contact ages ago. We’re not from the same world. What’s there to be sad about? I got over it long ago.”
If He Luo hadn’t brought her up, Li He wouldn’t have remembered An Chuxia at all. That was proof enough she was no longer important to his former self.
Li He asked, “He Luo, how’s your voice these days?”
The original Li He had suffered a throat injury in the second semester of freshman year and switched to the composition department. Since then, He Luo hadn’t sung in front of him.
It had been two years—Li He had no idea how He Luo’s voice or technique had changed.
If anyone were to sing “Dissolving Sorrow,” He Luo was the first person Li He thought of.
He was from the vocal department, and besides, they’d shared a bed as kids—why let outsiders have the benefit?
“Why are you asking about that all of a sudden?” He Luo seemed evasive. He’d been avoiding music topics precisely because he didn’t want to poke at his friend’s old wounds. The two of them used to practice duets all the time.
Li He said, “I’m fine. I just haven’t heard you sing in ages. Sing your best piece for me.”
He Luo panicked, “Li, are you okay? She’s not worth it. There are plenty of amazing girls out there. For instance, He Xier from our faculty—beautiful, sweet-voiced, long-legged, pure, charming, whatever you want.”
He thought Li He was still hung up on An Chuxia, and kept on trying to console him.

Li He shook his head and laughed—He Luo didn’t realize he no longer cared about An Chuxia at all.
Glancing up by chance, Li He saw someone standing behind He Luo without either of them noticing.
She was tall and wore a loose yellow sweatshirt. The hem fell to her thighs, accentuating her long, slender legs.
The night breeze lifted a lock of her glossy black hair. Her oval face was fair and pretty, with a normally fresh, gentle smile—except now, the smile had frozen.
Sensing something was off, Li He quickly shot his friend a look to warn him there was someone behind him. But He Luo, lost in his pep talk, didn’t catch on. After a few failed hints, Li He had to cough softly, “Ahem, behind you!”
He Luo blinked in confusion and turned around. “Whoa!”
He startled so badly he fell back onto Li He.
Seeing this, Li He thought, Did He Luo mess with this girl’s feelings or what?
For the sake of friendship, he discreetly slid half a meter away, silently declaring that they weren’t close—this was their first meeting.
He Luo didn’t expect Li He to help; when faced with a woman’s wrath, any brother would betray you.
He Luo stammered, “He Xier, it’s a misunderstanding, a huge misunderstanding.”
His lips trembled. He hadn’t expected her to show up just as he was talking about her.
The ancients never lied—speak of the devil and he shall appear.
So she was He Xier. Under the faint stadium lights, Li He observed her quietly. Her face was partially hidden by wavy hair. It was too dark to tell if her legs were fair, but they were definitely long, straight, and slender.
He Xier glared at them a few times but said nothing, turning to leave. She was out running with her roommate and, upon hearing her own name repeatedly, had stopped to listen when she realized it was a classmate. She hadn’t expected to overhear something like that.
Pure, sweet, seductive—were all guys this awful nowadays?
He Luo shivered. “When did He Xier get here?”
With the crisis over, Li He slid back. “Not sure, but she probably heard everything you said.”
“It’s over. My reputation is ruined. How am I supposed to face everyone in class?” Despairing, He Luo wanted to crawl into a hole. “Li, I did it all for you, and you abandoned me—deserting your teammate at the last second!”
“Get lost,” Li He laughed, steering the conversation back. “I wrote a song. See if you can sing it.”
If He Luo’s voice suited it, Li He could finally implement his plan to harvest negative emotions.
“You wrote a song?”
He Luo was stunned. “When did you write it? Let me see.”
Li He said, “Sing a few lines of your best piece, and I’ll see if it fits you.”
“Alright.”
He Luo agreed, looking a bit odd—so this was about singing his friend’s first composition, not An Chuxia.
Coming from the vocal department, he wasn’t shy. After a few lines, Li He stopped him.
He Luo had excellent vocal qualities—a tone that carried an autumnal melancholy. Plus, his delicate features and the hint of sadness in his aura gave him a unique temperament.
In terms of technique, there was nothing to fault—a third-year vocal student with solid roots.
“Let’s go to the classroom.”
Li He got up and headed for the composition department’s classroom, which was fully equipped with instruments of all kinds.
He Luo scrambled off the grass, caught up, and threw an arm around Li He’s shoulder. “What kind of song is it? Why so mysterious?”
“Come on, don’t you trust me? This is my very first work.” With the plan to collect negative emotions about to begin, Li He was in a great mood.

“I know, you’re giving me your first time.”
“Get lost.”
They teased each other as they walked into the composition building.
Many classrooms still had their lights on—freshmen had night classes, which were canceled only from sophomore year onwards.
Li He first went to the office to borrow the key from a teacher. The instrument room was always locked when not in use, to prevent non-department students from damaging the equipment.
Borrowing the key meant that if anything happened to the instruments during that time slot, he would be fully responsible.
Entering the classroom, He Luo exclaimed, “Your department’s equipment is amazing.”
The vocal department had instruments, but nothing compared to the composition department’s range.
“Find a guitar, tune it, you’ll be playing and singing in a bit.”
After speaking, Li He ignored He Luo and quickly wrote out the lyrics and music for “Dissolving Sorrow” on a sheet of paper.
He handed it to He Luo, who was tuning the guitar.
“So fast?” He Luo took the paper and, after reading a few lines, his expression changed.
“I can’t sing this song.”
He handed the paper back, looking serious.
“Why not? Don’t you like it? It suits you,” Li He was surprised. He could tell He Luo really liked “Dissolving Sorrow.”
“It’s not that I don’t like it—I like it too much,” He Luo put down the guitar. “Li, this song is too good. I can’t be the one to sing it.”
“Why?” Li He didn’t understand; if you like it, why not sing it?
He Luo looked at his friend, helpless. “If you release ‘Dissolving Sorrow,’ even top singers would fight for it. You could sell it for a fortune, and you need money for your throat treatment.
“As much as I love it, it would be wasted on me.”
He’d assumed Li He’s songwriting was just student level—who would’ve thought it was this good?
If it were an ordinary song, he’d have sung it with no hesitation. But this was different. He wasn’t ignorant; this song could sell for a lot.
Their friendship was close, but he still refused.
If Li He didn’t need the money, he’d have seized the song in a heartbeat.
Realizing the reason, Li He shoved the paper back into his hands. “I wrote ‘Dissolving Sorrow’ for you. Only if you make it a hit will others know about me—then I’ll be able to sell more songs in the future.”
Li He frowned. “Enough with the fuss. I’m giving it to you, so sing it. But you have to follow my instructions on how to release it.”
He was counting on this song to harvest a wave of negative emotions!
(New chapters coming soon. Please support this new book!)