Yu Hai woke up in a haze, feeling soreness throughout his body and a weakness in his limbs that left him unable to move.
He struggled to open his eyes, and a stark white ceiling came into view. He managed to lift his head and look around; it appeared to be a hospital room. Beside the bed sat a young man, a stranger, dozing off.
*What was I doing before this?*
Yu Hai frowned and closed his eyes again, trying to recall. Then, a flood of memories surged into his mind.
After a long while, Yu Hai finally grasped his current situation: he had transmigrated. The original body also belonged to someone named Yu Hai, a nineteen-year-old sophomore in the composition department at Haohan University.
As for why he was hospitalized, it started ten days ago.
Ten days ago, on July 5, 2021, in this parallel world, Yu Hai was on his way home with his father after a summer job when their vehicle was struck by a sports car. His father died on the spot while trying to protect him. Yu Hai was left with a comminuted fracture in his right leg, and the driver fled the scene.
Because the incident occurred in a remote area with no witnesses, the surveillance cameras captured the sequence of events and even showed the perpetrator stepping out to check on them. Unfortunately, the footage was too distant to make out the license plate. Furthermore, whether by intent or accident, the culprit had been wearing a hat and mask.
With so few clues, the police had failed to identify a target for several days.
It wasn't until the fourth day of Yu Hai's recovery that he heard a familiar melody. It was the piece he had prepared for a songwriting competition. The notebook containing that music had been snatched by the culprit at the scene of the accident.
Though it seemed incredible that the culprit would be so arrogant—stealing his work and publishing it publicly instead of laying low after a hit-and-run—Yu Hai immediately asked his caregiver about the song.
The caregiver was a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old girl with round cheeks. Hearing his question, she smiled, her dimples appearing. "That’s a song from Su Yucheng’s latest album, titled 'Give You Everything.' He wrote the lyrics and music himself. Isn't it beautiful?"
Su Yucheng was a top-tier "fresh meat" idol who had debuted through a talent show. Since his debut, the few singles he had released had been mocked by bystanders as things not even a dog would listen to.
Yu Hai found it hard to believe. In a world where intellectual property laws were rigorous and plagiarism was intolerable, Su Yucheng dared to openly misappropriate his work.
Yu Hai immediately contacted the officer in charge of his case and clearly explained his discovery. He was filled with righteous indignation, believing he had finally found the culprit and could bring him to justice. He swore to himself that he would never forgive the man; he would make this shameless executioner spend the rest of his life behind bars!
Unfortunately, the officer poured cold water on him.
It was simply because he had no evidence. He couldn't prove he wrote the song; he had never registered the copyright, nor had he shown it to anyone else. Due to his family background, Yu Hai had been an introvert since childhood with almost no friends. He wrote music in private, and to avoid being teased, he hadn't even told his father.
Furthermore, he had no evidence that Su Yucheng was the one driving the car. Even if they found the vehicle and it was registered to Su Yucheng, the star could easily claim he had lent it to a friend, given it to staff for maintenance, or that it had been stolen.
The officer comforted Yu Hai, promising to find evidence as soon as possible and urging him to focus on recovery.
But Yu Hai waited for one day, two days... and still, no news came. He lay in his hospital bed, searching for news about Su Yucheng on his phone.
The album was a huge success, the song "Give You Everything" became a hit, and netizens were declaring that their opinion of Su Yucheng had changed because of this song. Music critics, for once, refrained from their usual insults, with many suggesting that Su Yucheng had a bright future ahead. His fans were jubilant, and puff pieces praising him were everywhere.
Yet, there was not a shred of the information Yu Hai wanted to see.
Then, he saw a statement released by Su Yucheng’s studio. It broadly stated that "Give You Everything" was written by Su Yucheng himself and was protected by copyright. It warned Su Yucheng's "haters" that false accusations were illegal and that they should provide evidence if they had any.
Beneath the post, fans and many passersby offered one-sided support:
"Who is spreading lies and slandering people without evidence?"
"Some people just can't stand to see others do well."
"Does everyone not know that rumor-mongering is illegal?"
"May the haters' entire families..."
Yu Hai, seething with anger, logged into his own social media account and posted a few messages on Su Yucheng’s Weibo:
*Heaven watches what men do.*
*The net of heaven is wide, but nothing escapes it.*
*You executioner.*
...
Inevitably, he was besieged by Su Yucheng’s fans. Some of the vitriol he encountered was the most vicious he had ever seen.
"May you and your family die for spreading rumors."
"Do your parents know you have such a face?"
"Were you never taught manners?"
"Just admit you're jealous."
...
In his less than twenty years of life, the original Yu Hai had never known that human words could be so sharp, as cold as blades. His father, who had once protected him, was gone, and there was no one left to defend him, console him, or give him strength.
Yu Hai began to have nightmares and sank into a deep depression. His father’s death, the helplessness of being alone, the anxiety and unease following the accident—all of it erupted at once.
He began to ask himself repeatedly:
*Can the truth really come to light?*
*Who will get justice for me?*
*The other side is a top celebrity with tens of millions of fans, while I am a nobody. No one will believe me, perhaps not even the police...*
*What should I do?*
*Why should I cling to a world like this?*
*I might as well... go keep my father company!*
His mood dimmed day by day, and the light in his eyes faded. He stopped looking at his phone, spending the entire day in his hospital bed in a daze, barely eating the meals provided by the nurse.
No one cared about him. Having relied only on his father since childhood, Yu Hai had no family left after his father's death. Although he was hospitalized, there were no relatives to tend to him; only the police officers in charge of his case would drop by occasionally.
Because of this, it was easy for him to get his hands on a fruit knife.
On the night of July 15, the tenth day after the accident, he hid in the bathroom and slit his wrists.
***
As the memory faded, Yu Hai opened his eyes again and instinctively looked at his left wrist, which was now wrapped in white gauze.
He let out a soft sigh, and a mechanical voice rang out in his mind:
*Ding. Transmigration complete.*
*Ding. System bound successfully.*
*Ding. Beginner’s gift package delivered.*
Then, silence. Yu Hai was a bit stunned. Is that how sloppy transmigration systems are these days? Could it be that there are so many transmigrators that the system headquarters is overwhelmed?
He instinctively summoned the system in his mind and saw a tree appear. It was a very ordinary tree with a brown trunk and green leaves, with no golden glow whatsoever.
After studying it for a moment, he understood the function of his "golden finger." Simply put, as long as others generated emotional value for him—whether it was liking or hating him—it could be collected by the tree. Once the emotional value reached a certain level, the tree would bear fruit. He would have to wait until it bore fruit to know what the specific effects would be.
Yu Hai opened a small package next to the tree in his consciousness, and a piece of information automatically flashed through his mind:
*Ding. Host has obtained the song: "Rice Fragrance." Author: Jay Chou.*
That was it?
Yu Hai curled his lip. The system's beginner package was a bit stingy. However, learning "Rice Fragrance" also automatically granted him basic music theory and the ability to use the instruments required for arranging. It wasn't so bad after all.
As the melody of "Rice Fragrance" echoed in his mind, a voice sounded by his ear: "You’re awake?"
Yu Hai opened his eyes to see the young man who had been dozing by his bed. Information about him automatically surfaced in his mind: he wasn't a relative or friend, but one of the police officers in charge of the case.
With no family, the hospital had only been able to contact the police who brought him in after his suicide attempt.
The officer saw him wake up and seemed to want to say something, but opened and closed his mouth repeatedly. He was worried about triggering someone who had just tried to take their own life. With no results in the case and the victim having attempted suicide, the young officer clearly felt troubled.
Yu Hai felt a sense of sympathy for him. He tried to speak, but his throat was dry, and he couldn't help but cough twice.
The young officer hurriedly poured him a glass of water.
Yu Hai finished it quietly, then cleared his throat and gave a weak, faint smile. "I'm sorry for causing you all so much trouble."
The officer waved his hands quickly. "No, no..." He seemed about to offer some comfort, but stopped himself and quickly pulled out his phone. "I'm going to call my captain..."
Yu Hai watched the officer's back as he stepped out of the room, his mind already turning to how to resolve his current predicament.
Letting this slide was impossible. The culprit must not go unpunished. But the evidence was indeed a difficult hurdle. Su Yucheng dared to openly use the original owner's song precisely because he was sure the police couldn't find evidence. Without concrete proof, he couldn't nail the man to the pillar of shame.
Yu Hai’s mind raced with a thousand thoughts.