Chapter 23: Single Track Loop (Support for the New Book Requested)

Hunan Province.

Sand City.

After work, Teacher He held half a chilled watermelon, sat cross-legged on the sofa, turned on the television, and watched the variety show he hosted.

His greatest pleasure was to bathe, eat chilled watermelon, watch his own show, and scroll through WeChat Moments, giving likes to friends in the industry.

Interacting through Likes in Moments helped strengthen relationships. Celebrities’ trivial daily matters weren’t suitable for posting on Weibo, but Moments was perfectly fine.

Teacher He scooped a spoonful of cold, crisp watermelon and swallowed it in one gulp—the refreshing coolness was instant.

His fingers moved swiftly across his phone screen: liking a singer’s post, leaving a comment for an actor. Teacher He was thoroughly enjoying himself.

He continued scrolling.

“Hm?”

His gaze paused on a picture shared by a mentor from a music talent show. The post spoke of a student from the show who had won the championship, officially debuted, and would soon release their debut single.

Teacher He didn’t linger—he just liked the post and kept scrolling.

There were so many talent shows every year, and the difference between the winner and the top of the New Talent Chart was negligible. All were newcomers debuting with a first-place finish.

In the entertainment industry, many champions were forgotten by the public each year. Once the show ended, their popularity faded, and they were gradually replaced or forgotten.

Most of these winners were just pretty faces—good looks and figure, but nothing else worth showcasing.

Teacher He didn’t care much; he always looked down on such people. He only liked the post because that mentor was a competent singer—not a veteran, but respectable.

Soon after, Teacher He’s scrolling hand froze again.

He focused on a link shared by Jiang Qi, accompanied by a line: “The second half of ‘Dispel Sorrows’ is amazing, absolutely brilliant.”

Teacher He instinctively thought Jiang Qi was bluffing, since he’d done the same before, and Jiang Qi was among those he’d tricked.

There were long strings of comments below. Teacher He’s eyes moved lower.

[Singer Sister Ying]: “This Jia Bei is really impressive—the second half is the essence of the song.”

[Actress Chen Xueling]: “He Luoluo’s voice is perfect for this melody.”

[Singer Zhang Xingxing]: “After listening, I realized the version on DouHand was a bootleg.”

[Actor Wang Po]: “It nearly made me cry.”

[Actor Sun Leilei]: “Is this song guaranteed to be good?”

Seeing everyone seriously discussing, Teacher He nearly believed them…He wore the look of someone who’d already seen through their tricks.

The last time Jiang Qi’s Moments caused a disaster, Teacher He remembered vividly.

Everyone left comments hyping it up, luring crowds over, only to discover it was an incomplete version. No telling how many suffered restless nights—many had work the next day.

Teacher He was one of those, recording a show the next day with dark circles under his eyes.

On the show, a male guest even said: “Teacher He, your eye makeup looks great.” Teacher He was floored—“You sure know a lot.”

Trying to trick me again? No way.

Teacher He confidently typed a comment: “Still trying to fool people? ‘Dispel Sorrows’ has been out for days; everyone’s already heard it. No one’s going to fall for it.”

Soon, he received replies.

[Host Taotao]: “Teacher He, you’re so sharp—you saw through us instantly.”

[Host Brother Wang]: “Teacher He’s mind is as quick as ever.”

Not only that, someone messaged him directly: “Don’t listen, or you’ll lose money.”

Teacher He was thoroughly confused.

He felt neither side was telling the truth…He opened UltraCool Music and searched for “Dispel Sorrows.”

Swipe—

There it was.

“They really released a single.” Teacher He was surprised.

Having suffered through the truncated version, Teacher He decisively paid to download it. Just one yuan, not expensive.

This was the official price, unified across all platforms—one yuan per song.

Actually, you could listen without downloading, but only the first thirty seconds.

The DouHand bootleg was longer than thirty seconds, so Teacher He wouldn’t settle for that.

Though he hadn’t heard the full version, the bootleg alone convinced him the song was worth buying.

After purchase, he clicked play.

“Singer: He Luoluo
Lyricist: Jia Bei
Composer: Jia Bei
Arranger: Jia Bei
‘When you walk into this place of joy…’”

Goodness, Jia Bei really covered everything.

On DouHand, “Dispel Sorrows” was sung and played by He Luo himself, but the instrumentation was lacking.

This full version, with post-production music, was flawless—every aspect raised the song to a new level.

Teacher He finally understood what Zhang Xingxing meant by “I listened to a bootleg on DouHand.”

Not just a bootleg—incomplete plus bootleg equals something truly irritating.

“One toast to freedom,
One toast to death,
Forgive my ordinariness,
Dispel my confusion,
All right—after dawn, we part carelessly,
The sober are the most absurd,
The sober are the most absurd.”

Teacher He listened four times in a row, finally stopping, reluctant.

“One toast to freedom, one toast to death—what brilliant lyrics,” Teacher He nodded in admiration, his eyes reddening.

Sitting cross-legged on the sofa, he suddenly felt the watermelon in his arms wasn’t cool anymore, and the show wasn’t funny.

First, he liked Jiang Qi’s post in Moments, then decisively posted on Weibo.

[Host Teacher He]: “The full version of ‘Dispel Sorrows’ that kept me awake is finally here.”

He didn’t mention which music platform—since they hadn’t paid for advertising.

After posting, Teacher He clicked play again, starting an endless loop.

Comments under Teacher He’s Weibo quickly surged past a thousand, soon heading for ten thousand.

He could freely post about “Dispel Sorrows,” but many celebrity artists couldn’t.

Because Teacher He was a host for Hunan TV, not affiliated with any entertainment company.

But those artists were different. Though they liked “Dispel Sorrows” and wanted to share it with fans, they couldn’t.

Some singers’ companies had new talents competing for the New Talent Chart—doesn’t matter if they’re cannon fodder, as long as they’re in the running.

If you don’t promote your own newcomer but go to the rival camp and strengthen the competition, you’d be seen as too bold.

Teacher He had no such concerns—the TV station didn’t sign singers.

Jiang Qi, similarly unconcerned, belonged to Shengshi Entertainment, which had no new debuts in April, so Jiang Qi could post congratulations as soon as “Dispel Sorrows” went online.

With Teacher He’s Weibo promotion, more people able to post joined in, and “Dispel Sorrows” saw its popularity rise again.

Five days after its release, “Dispel Sorrows” officially topped the New Talent Chart.

An Chuxia’s “Longing for Love” slipped to second place.