Chapter 59

Lin Min also thought of a problem. “Singing is not something you do for a day or two; it should be treated as a career. Nana, you haven’t graduated yet, so it’s still manageable. But what about after graduation? Are you not going to find a job? Isn’t a national-level unit tempting enough?”

“Without a unit, what does that count for? Doesn’t that mean being unemployed? Who would hire me to sing then?” Tian Nana doubted.

“As long as you have good works, being a music freelancer is also possible. You can even find talented people and form a band, hold concerts, release albums. This way, you’ll have more freedom, it’s easier to achieve results, and you can make more money. You might as well take advantage of your youth and go crazy…” Song Haowen explained.

Tian Nana, Tian Yuxi, and Lin Min were all silent for a while. Clearly, they were stunned by Song Haowen’s bold suggestion.

Tian Pengfei stared at Song Haowen as if he didn’t recognize him. In this era where the system was supreme, thinking of letting a top-notch university talent and a popular singer become an independent musician at the lowest level of society was truly unimaginable.

In this era, money might not be everything, but having a stable job was invincible. Once a person lost the protection of an organization and became an unemployed individual, even a small collective worker might look down on them.

“Xiaosong, how can you have such strange ideas at such a young age? Do you really think it’s a correct choice for you to open an individual appliance repair shop?” Tian Pengfei questioned.

Song Haowen knew that people here didn’t have his past life experience, and it was impossible for them to accept his point of view in a short time. “Uncle, I’m just making a suggestion. Besides, Nana hasn’t graduated yet, so there’s no need to consider future job issues for now. Let’s focus on finding an assistant, which is the most urgent matter.”

Tian Nana blinked her big eyes, looking at Song Haowen. “If I had half of your talent in music creation, being an independent musician or even establishing a music studio wouldn’t be a bad idea. Currently, the status of freelancers is indeed not high, but if there are good works constantly coming out, fans might overlook the identity of the singer. Now, the songs you gave me are extremely popular, and I’m getting a lot of performance invitations. However, flowers don’t bloom all year round, and people don’t stay good forever. If I can’t come up with new works and rely on the old ones, I might be abandoned by the fans sooner or later.”

“In fact, many singers only have one or two good songs in their lifetime. You have so many songs; it could keep you going for several years.”

“But I still want to collaborate with you…”

“For now, it’s impossible for me to come out and sing.”

“Then, write a few more good songs for Nana.” Tian Yuxi pleaded. “I really like your songs.”

Lin Min stared at her daughter. “Do you think writing a popular song is that easy? In the whole country, there are tens of thousands of people engaged in songwriter profession. How many good works can come out in a year among so many people? Besides talent, it also depends on life and inspiration.”

Tian Pengfei sighed and said, “I like singing, but unfortunately, I can’t write songs. Otherwise, I would definitely help Nana.”

Tian Yuxi laughed. “Dad, don’t even talk about writing songs. You can’t even sing in tune. Haowen really has talent in this aspect. All the songs he wrote are very popular.”

Tian Nana added, “Our teachers in the college privately call him a musical prodigy.”

“So, your teachers treat me as a child?”

“Aren’t you a child? You’re still underage…”

Song Haowen was left speechless by Tian Nana’s words, and his face turned as dark as the bottom of a pot.

Seeing Song Haowen at a loss for words, the whole family burst into laughter.

…

When everyone sat down to eat, Song Haowen deliberately said, “Originally, I wanted to write a love song, but with Nana’s reminder, I feel it’s really not suitable to write…”

“Still writing a love song? Brother, have you ever been in love?” Tian Yuxi asked with a red face.

“Humph, I haven’t eaten chicken before, haven’t I seen a pig running? ” Song Haowen didn’t finish his sentence, and everyone at the table burst into laughter.

“Then write a love song for me, let everyone see if it’s the real deal.” Tian Nana pleaded.

Song Haowen instantly thought of two songs that would become popular next year. One was Cai Qin’s “Your Eyes,” and the other was Qi Qin’s “Seeing Her Again,” which was later covered by Fei Xiang, with the title changed to “Her Again.”

He slyly smiled and said, “I haven’t experienced love, but I’ve written two love songs. However, I can’t give them to you now. I have to wait until your assistant is settled.”

“Why? What does singing have to do with having an assistant?”

“How does it not matter? Once these love songs become popular, more people will chase after you. By then, if you have an assistant, she can help fend off some of them for you.”

Tian Yuxi didn’t agree. “It’s just a song, why make such a big deal out of it?”

Tian Pengfei and Lin Min also expressed disbelief.

Tian Nana’s heart inexplicably stirred, her face blushing like a agate. “I promise you. When I get home, I’ll talk to my parents about it. Can you sing one of the songs for us first?”

“In this situation, singing a love song might not be appropriate,” Song Haowen deliberately teased, building suspense.

“What’s the big deal? You can’t possibly write that kind of song, can you?” Lin Min doubted.

“Auntie, it’s not what you think. If it were, how could Nana sing it?” Song Haowen blushed slightly.

Lin Min breathed a sigh of relief and encouraged with a smile, “Then listen to Nana, sing a song for us, let me, an experienced person, see if it’s the real thing.”

Song Haowen pretended to be reluctantly coerced.

“I’ll sing only once today, and I’ll give you the lyrics and music next time.”

Tian Nana tapped the table with chopsticks, saying, “Little Songzi, hurry up! I’m so itchy and looking forward to it.”

Song Haowen stood up, cleared his throat, took a deep breath, and with a touch of tenderness, began to sing:

“Like a fine rain falling into my heart,

That feeling is so mysterious.

I couldn’t help but look up at you,

And you show no traces.

Though silent, unforgettable,

That is the brightness and beauty in your eyes.

Ah, in this world of love,

My heart is filled with joy.

…”

After the song ended, everyone at the table was stunned. For a moment, no one spoke, and tears unexpectedly welled up in the eyes of the sisters, Tian Yuxi and Tian Nana.

Song Haowen, unaware of what had happened, felt a bit awkward. “What’s wrong? Doesn’t this song count as a love song? Or is it not good?”

“So touching! Little Songzi, look, you made my sister cry,” Tian Nana finally realized.

Tian Yuxi was indignant. “Nana, don’t just blame me! Didn’t you shed tears too?”

Tian Pengfei seemed somewhat incredulous. “Little Song, did you really write this song?” Seeing him nod, Pengfei exclaimed, “Genius, absolutely a musical genius. It’s a real pity you’re not pursuing music.”

Lin Min looked at Song Haowen with a face full of affection, growing fonder as she looked. “You’re so young, how can you have so much talent? Top in science, become a singer-songwriter, succeed in business, and become a tycoon…”

Song Haowen blushed with all the compliments, repeatedly saying, “I wrote this imitating the tone of adults. It’s inexperienced, immature, immature…”

Tian Nana interrupted him, eager to say, “I’m going home now to talk to my parents about the assistant position. You must leave this song for me.”

Tian Yuxi sneered, “Rest assured, no one is competing with you.”

Tian Nana quickly finished the food in her bowl, threw the chopsticks on the table, and said, “Aunt, uncle, sis, I’m leaving.”

“Hey, child, where are you rushing off to? Have you eaten enough?”

“I’m full!” Tian Nana picked up her bag and quickly left.

Lin Min sighed, “Who is this girl? Haowen, don’t learn from Nana. After a good meal, accompany Yuxi for a stroll outside. She has been studying foreign languages too hard lately. Come back for dinner in the evening.”

In the afternoon, the two walked around the streets. Seeing that it was getting late, Song Haowen bid farewell to Tian Yuxi and went home alone.

When he arrived at the store, several people were there. Zhu Hongyu complained, “Look at how comfortably you’re acting as the boss. You completely ignore the affairs of the store.”

Song Haowen hurriedly apologized. “I went to see Nana. Since the scandal broke out, we haven’t seen each other. I need to explain things to her to avoid any misunderstandings.”

Ren Hua’s eyes turned red, and she seemed on the verge of tears. “It’s all my fault. If I had listened to Sister Hongyu’s advice, how could there be so many troubles later?”

Song Haowen comforted her, saying, “It’s been a long time since all of this happened. Why keep it in your heart? Before we met, I was worried that Nana might still have some thoughts about it. However, she had already put this matter behind her.”

Zhu Hongyu also advised, “Don’t think too much about it. Your sadness affects everyone.”

“But this matter is not over yet.” Ren Hua wiped her tears with the back of her hand. “Because of me, Haowen’s punishment hasn’t been lifted, and he still can’t go out to sing.”

Song Haowen dismissed it, saying, “Who said I can’t sing? I didn’t commit any serious mistakes. I was just working part-time to support my studies. Some universities even encourage and promote it. I just didn’t want to go out and sing, didn’t want to become too famous, that’s all.”

Wang Li walked over and said, “Someone brought a piece of porcelain in the afternoon, claiming it’s from the Ming Dynasty Cheng kiln. I couldn’t understand it, so I’ve arranged for him to come tomorrow morning.”

Song Haowen didn’t pay much attention to it. After all, genuine items were scarce in the market. Fortunately, in this era, there weren’t many wealthy people, and even fewer were collectors. Some things were acquired during house raids, so they weren’t taken seriously, providing ample opportunities for discoveries.

At this moment, Qian Youlai returned with a smile, carrying a large bag of smoked food. When Song Haowen opened it, he found various items, including smoked chicken, roasted duck, vegetarian chicken, peanuts, and pig’s head meat. Ren Hua asked if he had found money and was being generous. Qian Youlai explained that today was his nineteenth birthday and he wanted to celebrate it simply.

Wang Li scolded him, “Since it’s your birthday, you seem a bit shabby. Why not go to a restaurant?”

Zhu Hongyu retorted, “As long as everyone is happy, who cares where we eat.”

Ren Hua said, “Since it’s your birthday, we should at least celebrate a bit.”

“No need, no need,” Qian Youlai hurriedly declined. “I’ve always wanted to treat everyone to a meal. Taking advantage of the pretext of my birthday, let’s make it lively. This way, it won’t cost much, and it’ll be quite interesting.”