Chapter 74

10:30 PM.

Panhai International Garden.

Guan Yaling's home.

After taking a relaxing aromatherapy bath, the fatigue in her body was greatly alleviated, but her mind was still in a mess, unable to sort out her thoughts.

At the Caidie executive meeting that evening, they discussed the matter of Lin Zaishan. To Guan Yaling's surprise, Caidie's leader Wu Yifan did not immediately reject Lin Zaishan!

After learning that Li Zongheng had strongly supported Lin Zaishan on the show, Wu Yifan actually thought this might be an opportunity for Caidie!

At the meeting, Guan Yaling objectively evaluated Lin Zaishan's musical abilities. Regardless of other factors, Lin Zaishan's musical talent was indeed outstanding, and his performances in singing and composing were truly impressive!

Wu Yifan had great faith in Guan Yaling's "ears." If someone could make Guan Yaling change her mind instantly, that person must be extraordinary.

Even Li Zongheng held Lin Zaishan in high regard. How strong had Lin Zaishan become now?

As an old-school producer who had also experienced the golden era, Wu Yifan was very curious.

He Mei explained the pros and cons presented by Diao Yuehan at the meeting.

Wu Yifan and the other executives analyzed the situation—accepting Lin Zaishan, such a "big bomb," into the Caidie team would certainly bring considerable controversy and pressure, but most of the criticism would likely be directed at Lin Zaishan or Dragon TV. Caidie might face some repercussions, but they would not be too severe.

After all, Lin Zaishan was not a signed artist of Caidie; he was only collaborating with Caidie on the show. Caidie did not plan to release any albums for him, and the show did not have a hard rule requiring the team to release albums for their artists.

If this situation could be handled properly, as Diao Yuehan suggested, it could indeed become an opportunity to increase Caidie's exposure.

Diao Yuehan also pointed out that the reason the show invited Lin Zaishan was because of his extraordinary musical talent, which made him a perfect fit for the show.

The show's chief producer, Park Dae-cheng, even predicted that Lin Zaishan had a high chance of becoming the biggest highlight of the show. In the evaluations of all the participating artists, Lin Zaishan scored the highest.

With such a person on their team, Caidie's visibility and attention would significantly increase.

After careful consideration, Wu Yifan felt this was indeed a risky opportunity, but whether it was worth taking still needed further deliberation.

Caidie Records had been under pressure from Guo Entertainment Records for the past two years, which left the executives of Caidie very frustrated.

Most of the group's promotional resources were allocated to Guo Entertainment Records, leaving Caidie's music and artists somewhat neglected.

Wu Yifan was well aware that this was a deliberate move by the group to gradually weaken Caidie, aiming to merge it as soon as possible.

Caidie was currently in a difficult struggle, and they could not easily miss this opportunity to gain significant exposure on a major show.

What Wu Yifan was most concerned about was Lin Zaishan's character.

After all, Wu Yifan had witnessed Lin Zaishan's notorious behavior throughout the golden era. He was afraid that such a "big bomb" might explode within Caidie Records, further complicating their already difficult situation. If that happened, Caidie Records might be directly dissolved and merged by the group, leaving no room for struggle.

For them, this was a high-stakes situation.

If they succeeded, Caidie might get a chance to breathe in this struggle.

But if they failed, they might fall into an abyss!

Therefore, Wu Yifan needed to carefully consider this matter and not rush to a decision.

He planned to personally visit Dragon TV to watch Lin Zaishan's recording videos and then meet with his old friend Li Zongheng to hear his opinion before making a decision.

As a leading female singer of Caidie Records, Guan Yaling was well aware of the current困境 of Caidie Records. The group had been trying to persuade her for a long time, even three years ago, to move to Guo Entertainment Records to serve as a leading producer and top artist.

Guan Yaling, however, had a clear understanding of herself. She knew her creative style did not fit the dance-oriented trend of Guo Entertainment Records. If she joined Guo Entertainment Records as a singer, she would likely be packaged as a sexy female artist.

The problem was that while she had a sexy figure, she never had a sexy soul. She was an emotional person, but not a sexy one.

At 28, she felt she had no room for development in the high-pressure, fast-paced world of Guo Entertainment Records, where new artists were constantly replacing old ones. She preferred to stay at Caidie and freely pursue the music she loved, so she was the least willing to see Caidie Records merge.

Even if the group promised to establish a separate pop music department for them after the merger, as Wu Yifan said, such promises were meaningless. Once merged, Caidie's commitment to authentic Chinese music would be completely lost.

After listening to the executives' discussions at the meeting, Guan Yaling realized they were facing a very challenging situation.

But there was another matter that troubled her even more: Lin Zaishan, the notorious troublemaker, was about to make a comeback, regardless of which team he joined!

Would his return affect her cousin, Li Xiaoni?

Tossing and turning in bed, Guan Yaling couldn't fall asleep.

She picked up the phone several times, wanting to call Li Xiaoni and tell her about this, but she hesitated, not wanting to disturb Li Xiaoni's rare vacation.

Li Xiaoni was currently on vacation in London. It had been two or three years since she had taken such a long break. She had finally found time to relax in Europe, and Guan Yaling didn't want to tell her this terrifying news while she was on vacation.

If she remembered correctly, Li Xiaoni should return to the country by the end of the month. Her next schedule was to perform with Guo Entertainment's new group 7ove at the Minzhou University Student Art Festival and possibly serve as a judge in the final of the orchestra competition.

Sigh...

Thinking about this schedule, Guan Yaling couldn't help but sigh for Li Xiaoni.

Once upon a time, Li Xiaoni was the top star in the music industry, a true queen! How could she participate in such a small-scale event?

Unfortunately, time does not stand still.

After more than a decade in the music industry, Li Xiaoni was now approaching 30, the age at which female singers in the singing and dancing genre typically start to decline.

She was no longer a young singer in her early 20s. The former "National Fairy" had become the "National Sister," a change that made people sigh at the passage of time.

The new generation of artists from Guo Entertainment Records, especially the sexy girl groups, were one wave after another, pushing Li Xiaoni to the brink of retirement.

Many people were eyeing her position as the top female artist at Guo Entertainment Records.

Although she was trying to delay her retirement and stay on the throne for a few more years, Li Xiaoni was very clear that she had fewer and fewer redeeming qualities.

Compared to the young and vibrant female artists like Liu Yayan, she felt old.

Her beautiful face and electrifying eyes, which had captivated audiences for over a decade, were starting to lose their appeal.

Guo Entertainment Records had already begun planning Li Xiaoni's transformation over the next three to five years.

Guan Yaling knew that her cousin was currently going through a painful period of transformation, which was why Li Xiaoni had gone on vacation to Europe.

But just as she was going through this, Lin Zaishan, the notorious troublemaker, reappeared. In Guan Yaling's view, this would only add to Li Xiaoni's difficulties!

Guan Yaling and Li Xiaoni were very close, and although she had not personally witnessed Li Xiaoni's past conflicts with Lin Zaishan, she knew about them because Li Xiaoni had told her.

Guan Yaling also knew the true background of Li Xiaoni, as Li Xiaoni had lived with her family when she was young!

Unlike the image presented to the public, Li Xiaoni was not a Chinese-American who grew up in the United States, as Guo Entertainment Records had packaged her.

To put it bluntly, Li Xiaoni was a troubled teenager who had experienced family upheaval when she was young.

At that time, her name was not Li Xiaoni but Li Qilin.

Her mother and Guan Yaling's father were siblings, and the two families were very close. The two girls, only two years apart, grew up together.

Li Qilin, like Guan Yaling, was a well-behaved and well-mannered little girl.

But a mysterious family upheaval completely changed Li Qilin's life.

In the fall of her sixth grade year, when she was 12, her parents suddenly disappeared!

No one knew if they had fled, met with an accident, or had some other secret identity. All they knew was that after leaving Li Qilin with the Guan family, they never appeared again.

Despite extensive searches, no one could find them.

Thus, Li Qilin was left without parents.

At first, she didn't know her parents were missing; she thought they were on a business trip.

Her parents often went on business trips and left her with the Guan family.

It wasn't until she was 13 and in her first year of junior high school that she learned her parents were missing!

This news had a profound impact on the young Li Qilin, destroying her and turning her into a troubled teenager.

From the age of 14, Li Qilin no longer wanted to go home. Soon after, she dropped out of school and joined a band, following the example of the then-popular Lin Zaishan.

It seemed that only in the explosive rock music could she find a sense of release.

For about a year, she fell into this lifestyle.

At 15, Li Qilin met 22-year-old Lin Zaishan, who was already on a downward spiral.

It was a chaotic scene in a bar.

Li Qilin's band got into a fight with another band. Being all girls, they couldn't stand up to the group of boys.

Just as Li Qilin and her bandmates were being beaten, Lin Zaishan and his group of friends entered the bar. Seeing the girls being attacked, Lin Zaishan and Lu Chen didn't ask any questions and immediately beat up the long-haired rock boys.

Li Qilin, who already admired Lin Zaishan for his rebellious attitude, saw him as an idol.

When Lin Zaishan saved them like a hero, Li Qilin fell deeply in love with him, to the point of obsession.

Lin Zaishan, however, looked down on the skinny, beaten-up girls.

But Li Qilin was determined. That night, she followed Lin Zaishan home after he got drunk.

That night was a microcosm of her life—beaten and bruised by fate, enduring the most painful moment, and then transforming from a girl into a woman.

For the next few months, Li Qilin clung to Lin Zaishan, enduring his abuse and even watching him with other women. She was determined to stay with him forever!

When Lin Zaishan beat her the worst, Li Qilin even sought refuge with Lin's grandfather.

Lin's grandfather, seeing how pitifully Li Qilin was being treated, took care of her.

Lin's grandfather was also frustrated with Lin Zaishan's behavior, as he was constantly partying and mistreating women.

Seeing Li Qilin's unwavering loyalty, even when she was beaten to a pulp, Lin's grandfather was deeply moved.

He even declared in front of Lin Zaishan that Li Qilin was his granddaughter-in-law and that he would fight Lin Zaishan if he ever laid a hand on her again.

Lin Zaishan, however, was half-crazy from drugs and pressure and didn't listen to his grandfather. He even beat up Lu Chen.

In the end, Li Qilin couldn't bear Lin Zaishan's abuse—especially when he asked other men to have their way with her.

She could accept many things, but not this!

After several strong refusals, Li Qilin's love for Lin Zaishan finally broke, and she could no longer stay with him.

With a heart full of pain and hatred, Li Qilin left Lin Zaishan.

At that time, Lin's grandfather was not in good health, and Li Qilin didn't want to leave him, so she stayed to take care of him for half a year until he recovered.

Before leaving, Lin's grandfather, feeling guilty for the harm his grandson had caused, gave Li Qilin 250,000 yuan, half of the 500,000 yuan he had saved for Lin Zaishan.

Li Qilin, with no clear future, used the money to travel to the United States, hoping to clear her mind.

It was during this trip that she was discovered by a talent scout from Guo Entertainment Records.

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