On the second day after the system's activation, Lu Zhixian was huddled in his rented apartment, studying the system panel.

The doorbell rang.

Once, twice, three times.

It was as urgent as a debt collector's knock.

Lu Zhixian frowned and walked over to open the door.

A man in his early twenties was standing outside.

He wore a faded denim jacket, his hair was a mess, he was unshaven, and his eyes were bloodshot.

"You are..."

"Teacher Lu, I'm Jiang Cheng." The man's voice was a bit hoarse. "We met at Xinghai Entertainment. I'm... I used to be a singer."

Lu Zhixian froze for a moment as memories of his original body surfaced in his mind.

Jiang Cheng.

A talented singer who had a brief taste of fame five years ago; he had excellent vocal conditions and solid singing skills.

But because he refused to accept the subpar songs arranged by the company and insisted on making quality music, he was eventually blacklisted.

This blacklisting lasted for three years.

By the time his contract expired, his career was completely dead.

"Come in."

Lu Zhixian stepped aside to let him in.

Jiang Cheng walked into the room, looked around, and gave a bitter smile. "Teacher Lu, your place is a bit better than where I live."

"Don't call me teacher, just call me Lu Zhixian." Lu Zhixian poured him a glass of water. "What brings you here?"

Jiang Cheng took the glass but didn't drink, just holding it in his hands.

"I want to..."

"I don't have any money."

Lu Zhixian spread his hands directly.

Jiang Cheng was stunned, then smiled even more bitterly.

"I know, I don't have any money either. But Teacher Lu... I heard you were dropped by Xinghai. I thought, since we're both in the same boat, maybe we could collaborate."

"Aren't you afraid the songs I produce will also be trash?"

"They won't be." Jiang Cheng shook his head, a nearly stubborn determination in his eyes.

"I trust my own judgment."

Lu Zhixian raised an eyebrow.

The original host did have some talent, but in this market where traffic is king, talent was worthless.

"To be honest, I can't even afford to rent a recording studio right now." Jiang Cheng took a deep breath.

"But I want to try one more time, one last time. If it doesn't work out this time, I'll give up completely and go back to my hometown to find a regular job."

He looked up at Lu Zhixian.

"So, can you help me?"

Lu Zhixian didn't say anything.

He walked to the window and lit a cigarette.

Amidst the curling smoke, he thought of the song "dispelling sorrow" that the system had given him last night.

One cup to tomorrow, one cup to the past.

This song would actually be quite suitable for Jiang Cheng to sing.

"I have a song."

Lu Zhixian turned around.

Jiang Cheng stood up abruptly, nearly dropping his glass.

"Really?!"

"But there's a condition." Lu Zhixian flicked his cigarette ash. "I'll sell you this song for one yuan, plus an 80% share of all future earnings."

Jiang Cheng was stunned.

One yuan?

He thought he had misheard.

"How... how much did you say?"

"One yuan," Lu Zhixian repeated. "A symbolic fee to prove it's a formal transaction. As for the split, you take 20%, and I take 80%."

Jiang Cheng opened his mouth, but couldn't find the words for a long time.

Buying a song for one yuan was practically giving it away in this industry.

But an 80% share...

"Are you that sure this song will be a hit?" Jiang Cheng asked.

"I'm not sure," Lu Zhixian smiled.

Jiang Cheng stared at him for a few seconds, then suddenly laughed.

"Fine, I'll sign."

He pulled a crumpled one-yuan bill from his pocket and slapped it on the table.

"Teacher Lu, I'm taking the bet."

The next afternoon.

Lu Zhixian took Jiang Cheng to a small recording studio on the outskirts of the city.

The owner was a friend of the original host who owed him a favor and agreed to provide the venue for free.

"This is it?"

Jiang Cheng looked at the old equipment in the studio, feeling a bit apprehensive.

"Make do with it." Lu Zhixian sat at the mixing console and turned on the computer. "A good song doesn't care about the equipment. Take a look at the lyrics first."

He handed over the printed lyrics.

Jiang Cheng took them and looked down.

At the first glance, he was stunned.

"When you walk into this place of joy, carrying all your dreams and desires on your back..."

"One cup to the morning sun, one cup to the moonlight..."

"One cup to my hometown, one cup to the distance..."

His hands began to tremble slightly.

These lyrics...

Every line seemed to be talking about him.

Carrying dreams while drifting in the capital, beaten black and blue by reality, wanting to return home but unwilling to give up, yearning for the distance but unable to reach it.

"The soberest people are the most absurd..."

By the time Jiang Cheng read the last line, his voice was already choking up.

"This song..."

"Don't be so quick to be moved." Lu Zhixian tapped the table. "Listen to the melody first."

He plugged in a USB drive and pressed play.

The intro began.

Simple guitar arpeggios—clean and restrained, yet they inexplicably made one's heart tighten.

Then came the verse.

Lu Zhixian hummed the tune; his voice wasn't perfect, but the emotion was spot on.

Jiang Cheng closed his eyes, completely immersing himself.

When the chorus hit, he snapped his eyes open, his eyes already red.

"This song..."

His voice was trembling.

"This song will definitely be a hit."

Lu Zhixian leaned back in his chair and smiled.

"So, an 80% share isn't a bad deal, right?"

Jiang Cheng nodded vigorously.

"It's not, not at all."

He took a deep breath and stepped into the recording booth.

"Let's go, I'm ready."

The recording process went surprisingly smoothly.

Jiang Cheng's vocal conditions were already excellent, and since the song's emotion highly resonated with his own experiences, he could sing with that sense of world-weariness without needing much adjustment.

Lu Zhixian sat at the mixing console, listening while making detailed adjustments.

The effect of the [Intermediate Music Guidance Talent] trial card was fully displayed at this moment.

His fingers tapped rapidly on the keyboard, processing every track with precision—adding reverb where needed and adjusting dynamics where necessary.

When Jiang Cheng reached the chorus, his emotions completely erupted.

“One cup to tomorrow, one cup to the past!”

“Sustaining my body, weighting my shoulders.”

His voice carried a sob, a sense of unwillingness, and a questioning of fate.

Listening to it, Lu Zhixian suddenly felt a sting in his nose.

This was what music was supposed to be like.

Not those pretentious catchy tunes, nor the trash built on traffic.

It was true emotion, a resonance of the soul.

After recording the final take, Jiang Cheng walked out of the booth, looking completely exhausted.

"How was it?"

He asked Lu Zhixian.

Lu Zhixian didn't say anything, just pressed the play button.

The full version of "dispelling sorrow" flowed out from the speakers.

Jiang Cheng stood there, motionless.

Hearing the end, he turned around and wiped his face with the back of his hand.

"Thank you."

His voice was very soft.

"Thank you, Teacher Lu."

Lu Zhixian smiled and saved the file.

"Don't be so quick to thank me. The song is done, but the next part is the key."

"What?"

"Releasing the song." Lu Zhixian turned his chair to face him.

"How do you plan to release it?"

Jiang Cheng was stunned.

That's right, how?

He had no company, no resources, and not even a single promotional channel.