“This matter is causing a lot of controversy online. The netizens couldn’t find your social media page, so they’ve been attacking Lan Ting, X Voice Factory, and Eastern Brilliance, the company that wanted to buy the rights to your music for a hundred million. The netizens say that you’re as good as a fraud.” The caller then asked, “What do you intend to do?”
He was astounded by the amount of money they were offering her. Prior to Gu Mang, the most anyone had ever received for music rights in their country was ninety million, and that song had belonged to the heavenly singer Sheng Ting. She had broken the record with her hundred-million copyright fee. Even though it was to be expected, it didn’t diminish his shock. No matter what Gu Mang did, she did it to the extreme, even if it was a hobby like music composition.
An icy, irritated aura surrounded her as she tapped her fingers against the sofa’s armrest. After a while, she lifted her eyelids and squinted at the phone on the coffee table. Slowly, she asked, “CISAC should have a video of me. You didn’t delete it, did you?”
Lu Chengzhou looked at her in surprise. CISAC… The caller must be from the International Composer’s Association.
“We wouldn’t ever delete it,” answered the caller with a laugh.
“Cool.” A hint of a smile appeared on her face. “Do a good job with it.”
The other party read the Weibo threads on his computer.
[Both Master Bi and the Piano Association have asserted that the music belongs to Gu Yin, so it must be true!]
[This has totally blown up online. Gu Mang claimed that it was a song that she composed randomly, but why isn’t anyone stepping forward to prove her claim?]
[They would’ve come forward long ago if they existed. Haha…]
The man’s blood pressure was running a little high. As he inhaled slowly, he swore for the time ever. “D*mn it! Do they think that you don’t have anyone to back you up? The Composer’s Association will teach them a good lesson!” He ended the call thereafter.
Academics usually spoke in a refined manner, so Gu Mang was somewhat surprised to hear the man swear, as evidenced by her rising eyebrows.
Looking at his fiancée, Lu Chengzhou asked softly, “What’s your relationship with the Composer’s Association?”
She returned his look and said flatly, “My dad used to be their president and they want me to inherit his position. I refused them, though.” She then stood up and went to the entrance hall.
It was the first time he had ever heard her mention her parents. His gaze remained on her as she took out her laptop from her backpack that was placed on the cabinet. She made her way back to him. She placed the laptop on the coffee table and opened it before sitting down on the floor. As her fingers flew across the keyboard, her face was devoid of emotions other than cold arrogance.
…
At the headquarters of the Composer’s Association.
The old man who had called Gu Mang earlier was Wen Zexing, the association’s current president. As he put his phone down, he looked up and instructed his assistant, “Upload a video on our official Weibo page. Type out exactly what I say.”
“Okay,” responded the assistant, who immediately did as he said.
The Composer’s Association did not have many followers on Weibo, for many of its members were staff who worked behind the scenes. However, as soon as they uploaded the video, it started trending online. Surprised, the assistant turned to look at Wen Zexing and said in incredulity, “Our post is trending, sir.”
Without even needing to guess, the president knew whose doing it was. It was an old friend of his who had never been a very patient person and liked settling things in the simplest and fastest way. She likely hacked into Weibo this time.
…
Things were getting increasingly intense on Weibo as netizens clamored for Gu Mang to make a public apology. Hundreds of thousands of comments had been left under the video of the medical school’s performance and they only got nastier as time passed. Just then, the trending post was suddenly replaced by a post by the International Composer’s Association.
[Master Bi claimed in his interview that he had first heard this piece two years ago, but it was in actuality composed by Gu Mang at the International Composer’s Association when she was thirteen. Below is a video that will prove that she is the rightful owner of the piece.]