Chapter 47: The Postman’s Inspiration Runs Dry?

If you ask which songs are considered legends at KTV, they must be the ones written by Jin. On Earth, Jin Gao was known as the god who controlled KTV’s liquor sales. Many of his songs constantly ranked in the top ten of the KTV request charts. In this world, KTVs still take the borderline approach—few people actually go there to sing; most are seeking female companionship. As a result, liquor sales at KTVs are lackluster, while the sales of stockings remain sky-high. Yet paid companionship always carries risks. Shen Xian decided to take control of the KTV song selection system, so that men who came in would only sing and drink, without seeking out girls. Amidst his busy schedule, he called Wang Tianqi back to record a few songs. Each of these songs was a bombshell.

A handful of Jin Gao’s songs were said to account for half of KTV liquor sales nationwide. On the first day of the new month, Wang Tianqi’s short video account released its first update: “New song uploaded, please support.” The song’s title: “My Good Brother.” Lyrics: The Postman. Composer: The Postman. Arranger: The Postman. Mix: The Postman.

On Earth, Jin Gao and Xiao Shenyang’s “My Good Brother” was the iconic male duet, endlessly sung and deeply moving. The lyrics vividly captured brothers supporting each other through life’s journey, and the sincere friendship between men made it a must-have for KTV gatherings among friends. Seeing the name “The Postman,” countless netizens had grown numb. Rumor online had it that The Postman was once a struggling musician whose songs went unclaimed, until Shen Xian discovered him and bought up many of his works. Later, connected with diva Zhou Wan, he finally rose to fame.

Without carefully tracing the timeline, netizens believed The Postman’s story went like this: he tried to sell songs, nobody bought them, Shen Xian picked them up, then he connected with the diva, and finally gained popularity.

After the song was uploaded to short video platforms, it was simultaneously authorized to major music streaming sites. When Liu Ruyun saw Wang Tianqi’s new release, her initial reaction was shock, but after listening closely, she was stunned. The quality of this song seemed not as high as before. Not only Liu Ruyun thought so; many netizens agreed.

The previous songs had seemed elegant and full of artistic depth. But this one felt relatable, even a bit unsophisticated. “Is this really written by The Postman? It doesn’t have the same flavor as before.” “Yeah, his past love songs were so poignant, they struck right at the heart.” “What’s going on with this song? Has The Postman run out of inspiration?” Many producers in the entertainment industry began to discuss.

Chen Feng said, “Maybe The Postman has already released all his masterpieces, so what’s left are weaker songs. This one’s really just average—take the chance and release your own new song.” Liu Ruyun responded and started promoting her new work.

Industry insiders considered “My Good Brother” inferior, but listeners disagreed. Many were moved by the catchy melody and the heartfelt camaraderie in the lyrics, even on their first listen. “Wow, this song… I’m so touched. It reminds me of my good brother—we’ve known each other for twenty years!” “Listening to this, I remembered my buddy whom I haven’t seen in five years. I must go find him tonight!” “When the melody plays, why do I picture several men, arms around each other’s shoulders, singing with passion?” “I strongly urge Shen Xian to authorize this song for KTV systems; I want to sing it with friends there!”

On its first day online, the song caused little stir, and most music professionals in the entertainment industry paid it no mind. The style was so different from The Postman’s previous works that many assumed it would flop. Seeing this, Liu Ruyun began releasing her own new song. With a top-tier singer and a legendary composer and lyricist, her new track “Wild Love” immediately soared to the top of the new releases chart. It was also the lead single from her album. Last month’s rankings hadn’t come out yet, but she had no illusions—her sights were set on this month’s chart!

From the current momentum, “Wild Love” was crushing “My Good Brother” across all metrics. Wang Tianqi then released several more songs in quick succession: Jin Gao’s “Man’s Song,” Li Xiaojie’s “Friends’ Wine,” Pang Long’s “Brothers Hug,” Liu Gang’s “Remembering Youth.”

Seeing the data, Liu Ruyun nearly burst out laughing: “Hahaha, The Postman really has run out of steam—what are these songs even supposed to be?” With her musical taste, or from a woman’s perspective, these tracks simply couldn’t resonate. So, women thought they were bad, and judged them to be low quality.

But from a man’s perspective…

Damn, these songs were legendary! Each one sang of the deep, genuine bonds between men. The first time Chen Dabao heard them, his heart skipped a beat: “Uh-oh, this is aimed right at me!” He owned more than ten KTVs in the city and was a rival to Shen Xian’s good friend Xiao Yang. Because he played the edges, bringing in girls to drink with men, he’d nearly devoured Xiao Yang’s business. Although these songs hadn’t caught fire yet, their popularity still simmering, his instincts told him they could dominate the KTV request charts.

Digging deeper, he discovered all the copyrights belonged to Shen Xian’s studio, and instantly understood everything. Shen Xian was targeting him!

On the sixth day after Wang Tianqi released his new song, Liu Ruyun’s song continued to dominate, holding first place on five major charts. Meanwhile, Wang Tianqi’s five songs barely made a ripple, not even cracking the top five hundred on the hot songs chart. Many people began to write off The Postman, claiming he’d lost his talent and could only churn out formulaic tunes, with no hope of competing for chart positions. Even Zhou Wan believed The Postman’s creativity was exhausted, and he’d only be able to write songs that were lukewarm at best.

Such cases in the industry were as common as fish in a river. Many musicians spend their whole lives writing only one or two smash hits. By comparison, The Postman was already prolific, having launched Wang Tianqi’s career.

Shen Xian saw these comments, but remained calm. The issue wasn’t that these songs lacked an audience, but that their target listeners had not yet been reached—they hadn’t spread to their phones. Most fans were born in the seventies, eighties, or nineties; those born after 2000 hardly cared for them. The older generations received information differently than the younger ones. Besides, Shen Xian never intended these songs to compete for chart rankings.

According to Shen Xian’s calculations, it would take about a week before these songs truly fermented and exploded in popularity. But during these days, was he content to let Liu Ruyun’s song rule the charts unchallenged?

No. He was about to officially launch his offensive against Liu Ruyun!