House Dad's Literary Life

Chapter 415 – A Stroke Of Luck

The mini-movie “Fairy Tale” spread the fastest at Jiangcheng Media University, as it was produced by their own students and many scenes were shot on the actual campus. When the film first appeared online, Facebook—the platform most used by students—was abuzz with discussions about it.

By the next day, even professors in the Film Academy were recommending the video in class. One professor from the directing department strongly encouraged students to follow the model of “Fairy Tale” and create short videos or mini-movies to participate in this mini-movie competition.

Using competitions as a form of practice could be said to be very meaningful for training.

Of course, while there were plenty of voices expressing admiration, praise, and awe, there were also those filled with jealousy and disdain.

“I could’ve done that too!” Such sour remarks were not uncommon.

But no one knew that someone, after watching this wildly popular mini-movie, was filled with regret.

Tang Kaitai, although he tended to forget things easily and couldn’t quite recall the original script, could tell that the plot seemed different from before. But now, seeing that it was still the same group of people who had somehow made such a hit film—and that the chubby guy he once looked down on had actually stood out and even gained a following of adoring fans—Tang Kaitai couldn’t help but feel a deep sense of regret for turning down the role.

“If I had known Director Du was this capable, I should have stayed in the production crew! I should be the one who’s the most popular right now!”

But in the end, Tang Kaitai preferred to blame others: “It’s all because of that fat guy and that Mu Li’ang, who wrote songs for him but not for me! Damn it, this should’ve been my glory!”

Because of this, he harbored deep resentment toward Guo Ziyi, Mu Li’ang, and even Du Yuanlei.

……

The release of “Fairy Tale” influenced many people, including Lin Mu’an. However, his mindset wasn’t as twisted as Tang Kaitai’s.

That evening, Lin Mu’an and his girlfriend, Ran Jin, watched “Fairy Tale” together on their computer in the teacher’s apartment where they lived. The mini-movie had a bit of a Korean drama’s formula, and its impact on women was beyond doubt—Ran Jin was moved to tears.

Lin Mu’an took a tissue and handed it to Ran Jin. He sighed softly and said, “Do you know who Mu Li’ang is, the one who created the song ‘Fairy Tale’?”

“Of course, isn’t he the one who wrote songs for Mo Fei and Chen Yijie?” Ran Jin replied.

“Yes, and Mu Li’ang is actually my boss, Big Brother Yang!” Lin Mu’an said with a bitter smile. “I only found out today. I never imagined that my boss was such an incredible songwriter. And you probably wouldn’t guess either—his wife is Mo Fei!”

“Mo Fei?” Ran Jin was surprised. She had seen Mo Fei from a distance before, but she hadn’t looked closely.

A few days earlier, Lin Mu’an had participated in the preliminary auditions in Tingshan District and missed the crew’s gathering. Before that, Yang Yi hadn’t deliberately flaunted his identity, and Guo Ziyi and others had tacitly kept quiet about it.

It wasn’t until today, when Lin Mu’an returned and curiously asked, “Hey, how do you guys know Mu Li’ang?” That’s when Yang Huan and Ding Xiang explained with smiles, otherwise he would still be in the dark.

“Actually, now that I think about it, the song “Boundless Sky and Ocean” he sang that day—I later searched for it and couldn’t find it anywhere. It must have been written by Big Brother Yang too,” Lin Mu’an said. He wasn’t concerned about Mo Fei; instead, he envied Guo Ziyi, who passionately performed in the video.

“Do you also want your boss to write a song for you?” Ran Jin knew her boyfriend too well. He was a bit introverted and shy, didn’t know how to ask for help, and would keep things to himself when something was on his mind.

“Yes… I want to, but I don’t know how to bring it up.” Lin Mu’an’s lips moved slightly, but he still sighed.

With Ran Jin, he expressed his true feelings.

Wanting this was perfectly normal; not wanting it would be strange! After all, the name “Mu Li’ang” carried immense weight—it was like a golden touch. Whoever he wrote for seemed to skyrocket to fame! In the entire entertainment industry, there were few singers who didn’t hope Mu Li’ang would write a song for them! Lin Mu’an didn’t know any other songwriters, so if he wanted his own song, this was his only channel to consider.

But he could only think about it.

“Besides, I don’t have any capital! Even if I ask, I don’t have money or any qualifications to ask Big Brother Yang to write a song for me. I heard that many companies offer a million per song, but Big Brother Yang still won’t sell!” Lin Mu’an said to Ran Jin with a melancholic tone.

“Actually, since your boss is Mu Li’ang…” Ran Jin carefully recalled Lin Mu’an’s usual work situation, hesitated for a moment, and said, “I think it might be better if you don’t explicitly ask your boss to write a song for you.”

Lin Mu’an was surprised, but he trusted his girlfriend’s judgment, so he looked at her and asked puzzledly, “Why do you say that?”

“I occasionally read gossip news. There have been many rumors about Mu Li’ang this year, but so far, he’s only written songs for Chen Yijie, Mo Fei, and this guy named A’Guang!” Ran Jin explained.

“A’Guang is played by Guo Ziyi. We call him Little Guo,” Lin Mu’an clarified.

“Right, anyway, I think Boss Yang isn’t the kind of person who only cares about money. He’s written a lot of great songs, but he doesn’t just give them to anyone who asks!” Ran Jin said confidently. “He is quite selective about the singers’ vocal skills, like Chen Yijie and Mo Fei—they both have excellent singing skills.”

Lin Mu’an’s eyes dimmed slightly. He had some confidence in his own singing skills—after all, he was best at singing in falsetto. But compared to those two, he still felt somewhat inadequate.

“But your boss doesn’t only write songs for singers with great vocal skills. Look at A’Guang, or Little Guo—he can sing “Fairy Tale”. This shows he still takes care of his friends around him!”

Lin Mu’an asked with some confusion, “But why hasn’t Big Brother Yang ever expressed any intention of writing a song for me?”

“Maybe he thinks you’re not quite ready yet? Or maybe he wants to observe your character more? Maybe he just doesn’t know you well enough yet…” Ran Jin pondered, shaking her head and saying, “Regardless, if you actively ask for a song, it might backfire and leave a bad impression on him!”

It must be said that Ran Jin’s intuition was quite accurate.

“What should I do?” Lin Mu’an asked.

“You don’t need to think about anything. Just keep working hard as a pianist at the coffee shop like before, and do whatever your boss asks you to do,” Ran Jin advised.

To be honest, Ran Jin really liked Lin Mu’an’s current job—it paid well and the work was straightforward. She didn’t know how much of her advice was influenced by her own preferences, though she was genuinely trying to help Lin Mu’an. As a student counselor, understanding and gauging people’s thoughts was one of her specialties.

“But Big Brother Yang supports me participating in the “Sing for Youth” Competition!” Lin Mu’an frowned and said.

“Then talk more about the competition with them, like information about your opponents. Let your friends at the coffee shop give you ideas on how to beat them! Don’t isolate yourself because of the competition; you need to integrate into your boss’s circle. That way, if he has a good song, he’ll think of you!” Ran Jin said to Lin Mu’an.

Although Lin Mu’an still had some doubts, he took his girlfriend’s advice and reined in his sense of complacency caused by participating in the competition.

He didn’t know it, but it was fortunate that Ran Jin had grabbed that thread and pulled him back like a kite, preventing him from drifting further and further off course on his slightly misguided path to pursuing his dreams.

……

After two days of hesitation, Mo Fei finally made up her mind. She was going to talk to Niu Meiling.

Yang Yi was right!

She couldn’t keep dragging this out without saying anything, because that would make things worse. Sister Ling would feel that she had been deceiving her feelings all along and would resent her for it!

“…You can talk directly to your Sister Ling, but don’t rush it. These things can’t be rushed.” This was Yang Yi’s original words. Mo Fei remembered the latter part but overlooked the earlier part where Yang Yi said he would think of a solution for her.

Mo Fei naively thought Yang Yi meant she shouldn’t let the concert be affected and should wait until after the Beijing concert to talk to Niu Meiling. Now that the Beijing concert was over, and the Shanghai concert was still some time away, Mo Fei felt it was time to have that conversation.