Chapter 48: Tang Dynasty Poetry: Who's the Defeated Dog? Yifei: The brat is no longer cute!

"You're choosing Yifei?" Yang Mi blurted out in surprise.

The three of them had stood right here and actively vied for the spot, yet Zhang Li passed on all of them. Instead, he wanted to choose Liu Yifei, someone who had nothing to do with *Chinese Paladin 3*.

"That's right, I choose my adoptive sister." Giving Liu Shishi a subtle, veiled glance, Zhang Li spoke in a leisurely tone, "I feel that what all three older sisters said has some merit."

"Choosing any one of you to sing this song seems perfectly fine, but that's precisely what puts me in a bind."

"Come to think of it, in terms of how long we've known each other, Sister Yifei and I go back further."

Yang Mi: "..."

That was indeed impossible to compete with.

"In terms of our relationship, Sister Yifei is the adoptive sister who watched me grow up and brought me into the industry."

Liu Shishi: "..."

To some extent, she was practically an adoptive sister to her as well, making it truly hard to contest.

"Sister Yifei was also the female lead of *Chinese Paladin 1*, the daughter of Lin Qing'er, which makes her the granddaughter of Lin Yeping and Zixuan. Singing a song centered around the theme of karmic reincarnation is exceptionally fitting."

Tang Yan: "..."

There was no way she could possibly compete with her own "granddaughter."

Having made those three targeted points, Zhang Li paused, swept his gaze across the faces of the three women, and continued, "Sister Yifei's popularity speaks for itself, and she's the female lead of the first installment. If she sings the theme song for *Chinese Paladin 3*, the buzz and話題 [buzz/attention] will instantly skyrocket, which is immensely beneficial for the overall promotional campaign of our show."

"All things considered, having Sister Yifei sing this song is the best choice. The three of you won't need to bicker and risk harming your relationships either. What do you say?"

Actually, when Zhang Li first mentioned having Liu Yifei sing the theme song, he had been half-joking, just teasing the three women.

The song *Love for Generations* encompassed all three female leads of the show within its lyrics, making it well-suited for a trio collaboration.

Furthermore, the vocal ranges and timbres of the three actresses didn't really lend themselves to a solo performance of this track.

However, upon closer reflection, he realized that getting Liu Yifei to sing it was indeed a stellar idea.

Aside from the reasons he had just given Yang Mi and the others, Liu Yifei possessed a gorgeous vocal timbre and slightly better singing skills than the trio.

Moreover, in the future he had foreseen, the *Luo Lan Ci* that Liu Yifei sang for NetEase's *A Chinese Ghost Story* in 2011 turned out wonderfully, proving her aptitude for singing.

"Since you've put it this way, what objections could I possibly have?" Yang Mi was the first to respond. "How could I ever compete with Sister-in-law Yang?"

It was a cliché reference to their *The Return of the Condor Heroes* connection, but its greatest virtue was that it worked.

"If you're going to put it that way, I'm Sister-in-law Yang too." Liu Shishi covered her mouth and let out a hearty laugh.

Yang Mi's lips twitched; she desperately wanted to retort, "You're just mini-Liu Yifei."

But realizing that such a vicious, cutting remark might cause a complete falling out with Liu Shishi, she swallowed her words and changed tack instead, "If we're calculating it that way, as Guo Jing's daughter, I should technically call you aunt."

Liu Shishi's laughter cut off abruptly, the corners of her mouth twitching. "If you really want to address me as such, I wouldn't mind taking you in as my niece."

Yang Mi glanced at Liu Shishi, the two women locking eyes in a fierce staring contest.

Seeing this, Tang Yan pressed her lips together and chimed in, "A-Li, doesn't Liu Yifei have some bad blood with Tangren Media? Will she and President K actually agree to this?"

Given the relationship between Zhang Li and Liu Yifei, he might be able to persuade her to sing the theme song for *Chinese Paladin 3*.

However, Karen Tsoi was rather petty and might not necessarily be willing to give Liu Yifei the opportunity.

Not to mention, Huayi Brothers had already explicitly declared a ban on Liu Yifei.

Liu Shishi: "..."

Tang Yan's words caused her expression to turn somewhat unnatural.

Yang Mi: "..."

Such an absolute airhead; didn't this just remind Liu Shishi of unpleasant memories?

"Since I've brought up this idea, I naturally have the confidence to pull it off." Zhang Li gave a faint smile.

"Well then, I'll scratch this song off my mind." Tang Yan flashed a sweet smile at Zhang Li.

[You participated in a petty rivalry for Zhang Li once. Observation +1 / Loser Vibe +1] (Tripled for Zhang Li's equivalent)

This notification rang out in Tang Yan's mind, and simultaneously in the minds of Liu Shishi and Yang Mi.

Tang Yan: "..."

How on earth did she become a loser?

Who did she lose to? Liu Yifei?

Zhang Li: !

Right, how did they suddenly get labeled as losers?

Tang Yan stared straight at Zhang Li and said, "A-Li, you have to tailor-make a song for me when you have time in the future, then."

The eyes of Liu Shishi and Yang Mi lit up instantly. In their hearts, they silently praised Tang Yan as an airhead whose foolish exterior masked a profound cleverness.

Why fixate solely on *Love for Generations*? As long as Zhang Li was around, getting a song written was a walk in the park.

"Me too," Yang Mi chimed in to echo the sentiment. "Tailor-make one for me too. Money is no object, and I don't even need all the copyright shares."

"Same here." Liu Shishi shot Zhang Li a meaningful, hidden glance.

"Alright, it's a deal." Zhang Li didn't refuse, shouldering the responsibility with a wave of his hand. "Whenever the time is right, I'll write them for you!"

Yang Mi's situation was easy to resolve; he would write *Nourishing Love* for her. In his future memories, Yang Mi won accolades like "CCTV-MTV Music Festival Mainland's Most Popular Female Singer," "Mobile Wireless Music Festival's Best-Selling Film and Television Golden Melody Award," and others precisely because of this song.

Liu Shishi's case was equally manageable. Since the two of them shared an intimate, zero-distance relationship, he had already glimpsed future information regarding Liu Shishi prior to 2013, knowing that she would catapult to A-list stardom through *Scarlet Heart*. When the time came, he could simply write the *Scarlet Heart* theme songs like *Waiting for Your Season* or *A Touch of Paradise* for her to sing.

As for Tang Yan, he would undoubtedly be able to find a suitable song for her down the line.

"Not bad, not bad. You really are a good younger brother to us." Yang Mi satisfyingly draped an arm around Zhang Li's neck.

Seeing this, a flicker of displeasure crossed Liu Shishi's eyes, though it vanished back into calm as soon as she noticed Zhang Li seamlessly slipping out of the embrace.

Tang Yan stood off to the side, eagerly wondering what kind of song Zhang Li would write for her that would best match her vocal timbre.

After chatting for a little longer, the three women were summoned by the floor manager and headed back to film their scenes.

Zhang Li took out his phone and dialed Liu Yifei's number.

"Stinky little brother, did you miss me?" The call connected almost instantly, carrying Liu Yifei's brisk, cheerful voice.

"Yes, yes, yes. I miss you every single day." After offering a perfunctory reply, Zhang Li cut straight to the chase. "I sent a song to your email. Go have a listen."

"What kind of attitude is that?" Liu Yifei set down the magazine in her hand and crossed her legs. "I haven't even settled accounts with you for leaving the other day without a word. If you don't say a hundred flattering things right now, I am absolutely not going to listen to it."

"Forget it then." Zhang Li adopted a nonchalant tone. "Yang Mi, Liu Shishi, and Tang Yan all wanted to sing this song, but I turned them down and said I was saving it for you. Since that's how it is, I'll just go give it to them to sing as a trio."

"Don't you dare!" Liu Yifei instantly tossed the magazine aside and sprinted barefoot into the computer room.

Though she was notoriously digitally illiterate, she knew how to turn on the computer, log into her QQ account, and open her email.

Seeing the email sent by Zhang Li, she immediately opened it, downloaded the audio attachment, and began listening with rapt attention.

As a close friend of Jane Zhang, she had been told more than once just how formidable Zhang Li's musical composition talent truly was.

Over the years, she had repeatedly begged Zhang Li to write a song for her, but the latter had always claimed her vocal skills weren't up to par.

Lately, while cooped up at home with nothing to do, she had been systematically studying vocal techniques and considered her skills quite proficient by now.

"What a great song! I love it!"

After carefully listening through *Love for Generations*, Liu Yifei's eyes lit up brilliantly.

Currently cooped up at home and stifled by Huayi Brothers' ban, releasing a stellar song might just be her way out.

As expected, it had to be this stinky little brother of hers; he still kept her in his heart. All that pampering as he grew up hadn't gone to waste.

Right at that moment, Zhang Li's voice came through: "Didn't you say that unless I said a hundred flattering things, you wouldn't listen?"

"How come you decided to listen anyway?!"

Liu Yifei: !!!

This younger brother of hers was entirely unlovable right now.