Chapter One Hundred: A Song Capable of Dominating Every Major Chart

After confirming the singer's identity, Chen Qi carefully searched for more information about her. To his surprise, he discovered that she had released a new single more than half a year ago, but the song made no waves in the market. Not only did it fail to attract attention, it also received a fair amount of criticism.

Chen Qi quickly found the song and listened to it. From a listener's perspective, while the track didn't amaze him, compared to the songs currently topping the new releases chart, it was like a heavenly melody! At the very least, it didn't make him cringe or feel nauseous.

He then searched for her recent activities. She was still active in the entertainment industry, with rumors circulating that she intended to break into film, though for various reasons she hadn't found a suitable role.

Sorting through this scattered information, Chen Qi's mind began to turn rapidly. After thinking for a moment, he decided to call Xu Buniang to ask for her contact details. Yet, just as he dialed the number, he changed his mind.

Xu Buniang was busy with movie matters; best not to disturb him.

Instead, he called Zhao Qingqing from Simple Video.

"Director Zhao, could you help me find Xu Man's contact information?"

"Xu Man? The singer?"

"Yes, that's her."

"Sure, I happen to have her number. I'll send it over shortly."

"Thank you."

"Not a problem." Zhao Qingqing ended the call with a smile, politely refraining from asking why he needed Xu Man's number.

Soon after, Chen Qi received the information she sent. He dialed the number directly.

"Hello?" The call was quickly answered by a voice tinged with confusion.

"Hello, is this Miss Xu Man? I'm Chen Qi, the director of 'Never Expected.'"

'Never Expected' had become his living business card.

"Um... hello." The other side paused for two seconds, then asked, "Is there something you need?"

Clearly, she hadn't watched 'Never Expected.'

Chen Qi felt awkward for a moment and hurried to explain, "I have a song that I think suits you very well. Would you be interested in learning more?"

"Oh?" She seemed surprised, "What sort of song is it?"

Chen Qi froze.

What sort of song? How would he know! He hadn't even decided which song to offer!

"Uh... that's hard to explain over the phone. Would you be available to meet? I'm in the capital right now," he asked.

Unfortunately, she appeared uninterested in meeting, replying, "How about this: send a demo to my email so I can listen first."

"No," Chen Qi refused flatly.

There was silence on the other end, as if she was stunned by his uncompromising tone.

She never expected such an answer!

No? He actually said no?

Though the music scene had been bleak in recent years, plenty of people still tried to sell her songs, always offering a demo first. Yet he refused?

So unorthodox!

"What did you say you directed again?" After more than ten seconds, Xu Man spoke again.

"'Never Expected.'"

"Alright, I'll think about it and get back to you within half an hour."

---

"Alright," Chen Qi replied and hung up.

If he guessed correctly, this half-step diva was probably searching for his personal information right now.

Taking advantage of this window, Chen Qi quickly recalled the most impressive and memorable songs in his mind. With the image of Xu Man in mind, his search became much more focused.

A few minutes later, his eyes lit up. He opened the system and typed a name into the search box.

Results appeared quickly, and Chen Qi opened one.

Rhythmic music filled the room.

After listening to the song, Chen Qi smiled.

This was the one!

He promptly jotted down the lyrics and melody. Once they were recorded, he prepared to register the copyright under his studio in this world. Just then, his phone rang.

It was Xu Man.

"Alright, let's meet," she agreed.

"When?" Chen Qi asked, knowing that a celebrity like her wasn't always free.

"Tomorrow evening, I'll send you the address later."

"That works!"

After hanging up, Chen Qi went back to his work.

He didn't know that, at the other end of the call, Xu Man was backstage at an event, waiting to appear, watching her phone with interest.

The screen played 'Never Expected.'

As she watched some hilarious scenes, her red lips curved into a faint smile.

"Man, I've checked; there’s no personal information about him online," her bespectacled female assistant said as she came in.

"Let’s leave it for now," Xu Man replied coolly, her gaze remaining fixed on the screen.

---

In his rented apartment, Chen Qi finally learned the approximate price of a song after asking around.

It was cheap—ranging from tens of thousands to several hundred thousand.

Frankly, the price surprised Chen Qi. If he wanted to scrape together five or six million, wouldn't he have to sell a dozen songs?

That wouldn't do!

The system had plenty of classic songs from Earth, both domestic and international, but selling them at such prices felt outrageous!

He didn't care if others sold their songs cheaply, but he wouldn't sell his at a bargain.

Yet, how could he sell this song at a high price?

Chen Qi fell into deep thought.

---

The next day.

Toward evening, Chen Qi arrived at a downtown café.

Xu Man had chosen the meeting place.

Following the address and room number in the text message, he found Xu Man.

Hmm... not as beautiful as the photos he'd seen online, but definitely a striking woman.

"Hello, I'm Chen Qi," he introduced himself first.

---

"Xu Man." She extended her slender, fair hand and shook his, then studied him with interest, waiting for him to speak.

After watching both seasons of 'Never Expected,' she had become very intrigued by him. Though she didn't know why he sought her out, she looked forward to the outcome of their meeting.

"Miss Xu, I have a song of pretty good quality. Would you be interested?" Chen Qi skipped the pleasantries and went straight to the point.

"Did you write it?" Xu Man countered.

"No," Chen Qi shook his head, "A friend wrote it."

He didn't claim the honor for himself this time, wanting to avoid drawing too much attention.

"A friend?" Xu Man was clearly surprised.

She had assumed he'd written the song himself.

"Yes, a friend," Chen Qi nodded, "She entrusted me with full authority."

"What kind of song is it? Do you have a demo?"

Chen Qi shook his head, "No demo, but it's a song that can top all the major music charts."

Hearing this, Xu Man's eyes widened in disbelief, almost thinking she’d misheard.

Top all the major music charts?

Wasn’t he being a bit arrogant? Did he know who dominated those charts nowadays?

Not only her, but even the assistant sipping coffee nearby was taken aback, casting a peculiar look at him—like he was a rookie just starting out.

"Are you serious?" Xu Man asked with a hint of amusement.

"I'm serious," Chen Qi replied earnestly, "I can't vouch for everything, but I guarantee it'll top the platform's new releases chart and the popular listening chart."

Seeing his solemn expression, Xu Man involuntarily grew serious herself. She said gravely, "You know, even the most famous lyricists and composers in the country wouldn't make such a bold claim before their work is published."

She strongly suspected Chen Qi had no real understanding of the music market.

Whether a song succeeds isn't up to anyone’s prediction. The same song, written by different people, sung by different artists, released on different platforms at different times, can all receive wildly different responses.

In this era of marketing and publicity, quality alone doesn't guarantee success.

Even after ten years in the industry, she never dared predict a song's outcome before its release.

Over the years, she had witnessed countless disasters: songs that insiders were sure would be hits, yet flopped on the market; songs dismissed before release, only to become surprise blockbusters; songs promoted heavily but ignored, then inexplicably rising to fame years later; and even famous singers whose tracks went unnoticed but were later popularized by unknown artists.

All this proved one thing: only the market can judge success. Everything else is just empty talk.

"I know," Chen Qi smiled, "They wouldn’t dare, but I do!"

He truly dared, because he knew the work he presented had already been tested by the market.

Xu Man studied him with a grave expression, pondering his motives.

At that moment, she understood why he hadn’t prepared a demo.

If you had a song you believed could top the charts, you wouldn’t offer it lightly either.

"Can I hear the song first?" she probed.

Chen Qi looked at her, "To be honest, I don’t have a demo, but I do have a simple score."

He handed her the sheet music he had prepared.

Pressed for time, he hadn’t recorded a demo. Since the copyright was already registered, he wasn't worried about leaks.

Xu Man took the score, glanced over it, and began to hum the melody softly.