Chapter 11: The Contract

“It’s her—”

Xu Wei’s words echoed through the now silent recording studio, leaving Xia Jin Nian staring in disbelief.

She chose me?
No way—seriously?!

Even Lin Xiyue was stunned.
Her mother hadn’t even lifted her head during the entire audition—she had no idea that the girl singing was her daughter’s best friend.

Which meant this choice wasn’t influenced by any personal connections.
Xia Jin Nian had passed purely on her own merit—the only one who had.

To be honest, Lin Xiyue had assumed her friend’s amateur level would make this just a fun experience.
She’d wanted Jin Nian to see what an audition was like, not pass one.
Who could’ve guessed she’d actually be chosen?!

“What’s your name?”

Xu Wei lowered her head, flipping through the audition list on the table.

“Um… Director Xu, my name is Xia Jin Nian—”

“Hm? Jin Nian?”

Xu Wei froze.
Then she looked up sharply—
and realized the girl who had just sung wasn’t one of her company’s artists at all—
but her own daughter’s best friend?!

Her eyes darted toward Lin Xiyue, who stood off to the side wearing a proud little smirk.
Ah, so this was her doing.
No wonder the girl’s voice matched the song so well—it turned out she really was a genuine student!

And that explained everything.
Compared to Lin Entertainment’s current roster of female artists—no matter their age—they all lacked the pure, youthful sincerity of a student.
Too much polish, too much wear from the industry.

Xia Jin Nian’s singing was a bit unrefined and technically imperfect, yes, but her tone suited the song’s feeling perfectly.
With some training and Xu Wei’s guidance, the result could be remarkable.

And on a personal level, this particular song carried deep meaning for Xu Wei.
She didn’t want to hand it off entirely to an outsider.
Her daughter’s best friend… was actually the ideal in-between.

“Jin Nian,” Xu Wei asked with a smile, “would you be interested in signing with Lin Entertainment?”

For a moment, Xia Jin Nian just stood there, completely stunned.

Wait—
Wasn’t Xi Xi just dragging her here for fun?
How had things escalated to signing a contract and being given the chance to debut with a B-tier song?!

“Um… Mom, let me talk with Jin Nian first, okay?”

Lin Xiyue quickly grabbed her dazed friend and pulled her out of the studio into the hallway.

Only now did she realize things might’ve gotten a bit out of hand.
They’d fast-forwarded straight to contract negotiations?!

Especially since Aunt Xia had always opposed Jin Nian pursuing a career in entertainment.

“What do I do, Xi Xi?”

As expected, Jin Nian was completely flustered.

On one hand, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—
a chance to debut as a signed artist, and with a B-tier original song at that.
Almost no rookie ever got this kind of treatment.
If she missed it, she might regret it for life.

But on the other hand, her mother would definitely disapprove.
If she signed behind her back and her mother found out, there would be hell to pay.

“Forget everything else, Jin Nian—just answer me one thing.”

Lin Xiyue took her friend’s hands, looking straight into her eyes.

“Do you want to be an artist? Do you want to chase your dream?”

“I… I do.”

After only a brief moment of hesitation, Xia Jin Nian nodded firmly.

Of course she did.
Otherwise, why would she have spent all these years juggling school and music, enduring her mother’s constant pressure, yet never giving up?
Was she some kind of masochist?

“Good. Then wait here—I’ll take care of it.”

Letting go of Jin Nian’s hands, Lin Xiyue winked, then darted back into the recording room.

Inside, Xu Wei was replaying the audition recording, carefully analyzing the nuances of Jin Nian’s singing.
When her daughter ran back in, she immediately asked:

“Well?”

“Um… Mom, can we discuss something? Heh…”

Lin Xiyue scratched her head sheepishly. She knew this wouldn’t be easy.

“It’s just… Jin Nian’s mom probably won’t approve. She might think it’ll ruin Jin Nian’s future.
So could we maybe… sign her under a non-exclusive flexible contract instead?”

Sure enough, at the words non-exclusive contract, Xu Wei’s expression changed.
It was a look Lin Xiyue had rarely seen on her mother’s face.

“Do you even know what that means, Yueyue?”

“I do.
It means Jin Nian can come and go freely—she can end her contract with Lin Entertainment anytime, sign elsewhere, or even leave the industry.”

“Have you forgotten about your sister?”

“I haven’t. But I don’t think Jin Nian is anything like Lin Ziyu.”

“Yueyue, you’re still too young.
You don’t understand how complicated the world can be.
You’ve only known Jin Nian for three years, and she’s never been truly tested.
You can’t judge a person’s heart just by appearances.”

“No, Mom—you’re wrong.
I’ve known Jin Nian for longer than three years, actually.
And believe me—she can be trusted.”

“And how can you prove that?”

“I can’t prove it yet. But I will, one day.”

“Yueyue, you’re letting your emotions cloud your judgment.
Promises aren’t made so easily—especially when you have nothing to back them up.”

“But Mom, didn’t Dad also start with nothing?
And yet you believed in him.
You trusted him enough to bet your whole life on him.
So isn’t a little youthful passion sometimes a good thing?”

“……”

Xu Wei fell silent.
She sat quietly, the recording still looping in her headphones.
Jin Nian’s voice filled the room—soft, trembling, yet full of life.

No one knew how much time passed before she finally took off the headphones and sighed.

“Fine.
Everything you said is nonsense, and your example is terrible—
but that last sentence has a bit of truth.”

“A bit of youthful passion isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
Your father and I built everything from scratch with that same fire.
So today, I’ll believe in you two just this once.
Let Jin Nian take the test.”

“Yay! Mom, you’re the best!”

Lin Xiyue squealed, hugging her mother tightly before darting off to call Jin Nian back in.

As for the test—it was part of the formal contract process.
A single demo wasn’t enough to evaluate an artist’s full capabilities.

After an hour of comprehensive testing, Xu Wei carefully filled out Jin Nian’s evaluation form.
When she reached the “Vocal Ability” section, she wrote down 49, her hand trembling slightly.

Ordinary untrained people usually scored between 0 and 20.
Those with natural talent might reach the 20s,
a little training could push someone into the 30s,
and professionals typically started at 40+.
Anyone above 50 was ready for debut as a full-fledged artist.

“Um… Jin Nian, have you ever had any vocal training before?”

“No, Director Xu.
I just followed a few tutorials online and practiced whenever I had free time.”

“I see…”

Xu Wei swallowed hard.
Because she remembered very clearly—

Before receiving any formal training, Lin Ziyu had scored 45 points.