At 10:30 AM on June 5th, Chu Zhi's team was driving to Jiangbei Airport, heading to Beijing's Haidian District for the recording of I Am the Composer.
Suddenly, the sharp, piercing sound of an air raid alarm blared across the entire city. Old Qian instinctively rolled up the car window, but even inside the vehicle, the deafening noise was overwhelming.
"Pull over, please," Chu Zhi suddenly spoke up.
"What's Ninth Brother doing?" Niu Jiangxue was puzzled.
"Something important," Chu Zhi said. Qiu-ge quickly found a spot to park on the side of the road.
After getting out of the car, Chu Zhi didn't do anything else—he just stood there, eyes closed, like a wooden stake planted in the ground.
"What's Ninth Master doing?" Old Qian was momentarily confused.
"This air raid alarm is to commemorate the victims of the Chongqing Bombings. Ah Jiu is from Chongqing, so it's normal for him to observe a moment of silence when he hears it," Wang Yuan, who was more familiar with Chu Zhi's background, quickly realized the reason.
Slap! Old Qian lightly smacked his own face. "How could I forget? From 1938 to 1943, Japan bombed Chongqing over 200 times, dropping tens of thousands of bombs, causing more than 30,000 casualties."
Old Qian also got out of the car and stood silently in mourning. The others followed suit, especially after hearing Old Qian's explanation.
Truthfully, Chu Zhi's habit of observing silence stemmed from his grandfather's teachings. The old man had instilled in him the importance of remembering this history, so even if he wasn't in Chongqing on June 5th and couldn't hear the alarm, he would still silently mourn the victims of the war.
After ten minutes of silence, the group continued to Terminal 2 of the airport. There was still plenty of time for boarding.
Upon arriving at Beijing Capital Airport, a pre-rented van took them to iQIYI Innovation Building on Haidian North First Street, right next to Zhongguancun Plaza Shopping Center.
Since this was an original song competition, to enhance the atmosphere, the show's producer, Wheel, had designed a segment where contestants would listen to each other's demo recordings instead of doing pointless rehearsals.
As the guest challenger, Chu Zhi was the last to arrive in the waiting room, maintaining an air of mystery. The other seven contestants had already started recording.
I Am the Composer divided the contestants into upper, middle, and lower tiers based on their performance in each round.
The two in the lower tier—those who lost—could freely choose opponents from the middle or upper tiers for a 1v1 battle.
The upper tier could only be challenged. If they lost, they would swap tiers with their challenger. Lower-tier contestants who lost twice would be eliminated. After several rounds, it would be the guest challenger's turn.
Currently, the upper-tier contestants were:
Zhao Quan (main vocalist of Princess Group, no introduction needed).
Zhu Xinyue, who debuted from iQIYI's The Trendy National Style, incorporated traditional opera elements into her singing. With her striking looks and solid fanbase, she wasn't a top-tier star but had stable popularity. At 28, she was the only one who had ever defeated Zhao Quan on the show.
Liang Zhengwen, a 34-year-old rapper who stood out for his clean lyrics—unlike most rappers, he avoided vulgarity and kept his messages positive.
"Come on, come on, the pressure keeps building. The show's scheduling is practically sadistic," Zhu Xinyue said in her clear voice. "Every time I step on stage, I'm terrified. And today, they won't even tell us who the challenger is."
"They'll be here soon, no need to worry," Li Zhun reassured. "Last time, Producer Wheel said the challenger is a relatively low-key singer."
The implication was clear—in the entertainment industry, "low-key" often meant "not famous."
Among the contestants, 25-year-old Li Zhun was one of the younger ones, fluctuating between the lower and middle tiers, never reaching the upper tier.
"The challenger should be here soon, right?" Zhu Xinyue muttered under her breath.
Zhao Quan knew it was Chu Zhi but stayed silent—his public persona was the aloof "Main Vocalist-sama."
The other lower-tier contestant, a guy with bangs covering his eyes, prompted Zhao Quan: "Teacher Zhao, are you confident?"
"I've prepared a pretty good song for today," Zhao Quan replied when called upon.
Two minutes later, the door opened, and Chu Zhi peeked in. His face alone was arresting, but his expression—like the meme [Your cutie suddenly appears.jpg]—instantly captivated Zhu Xinyue, the only female contestant in the room.
Then he stepped inside and greeted everyone: "Hello, teachers."
"It's Chu Zhi, the top of the Big Six?!"
Li Zhun was speechless. He wanted to scream at Producer Wheel—since when was Chu Zhi considered "low-key"?!
"Ninth Brother, I love your new album—you have to give me an autograph!"
"I've been wanting to meet Teacher Chu for so long!"
"I grew up listening to Ninth Brother's songs—a ten-year fan, uninvited but here!"
"I didn't expect the challenger to be Teacher Chu… now I'm nervous."
This was what fame looked like. Even though Chu Zhi was younger, every contestant—whether they knew him or not—greeted him enthusiastically.
Chu Zhi responded with smiles. Since the contestants' profiles were easily searchable online, he had prepared beforehand, making the introductions smooth.
"Lao Jiu, it's been way too long!" Yu Lan from the middle tier warmly hugged him.
"Third Brother, long time no see!" Chu Zhi's face lit up with the joy of reuniting with an old friend.
(Mentally, he noted: Seems like I've called someone else "Third Brother" before…)
"Lan Lan, you and Teacher Chu are close?" Liang Zhengwen asked curiously.
"Oh, of course! We both debuted on Future Idol—Lao Jiu won the championship, and I got third place," Yu Lan explained cheerfully.
Chu Zhi's strongest memory of Yu Lan was from Bai-ge's gossip: After the show aired, Su Shangbai had secretly contacted a top producer for him, but his debut album flopped.
"Oh, I didn't even remember Teacher Chu was from Future Idol," Liang Zhengwen said.
"Future Idol is my 'alma mater,'" Chu Zhi joked.
"We should get all ten of us brothers together sometime," Yu Lan suggested.
Before the show, the staff had given Chu Zhi a real-time Korean translator—compared to MBC, iQIYI had much deeper pockets.
"I look forward to competing with Teacher Chu," Zhao Quan said, much more restrained.
On camera, he couldn't afford to be too hostile. Mostly, Zhao Quan was nervous—what if Chu Zhi's Korean fans turned into his anti-fans because of his attitude on the show?
This was the advantage of having fans in Korea. Even if Zhao Quan wanted to shove Chu Zhi's head into a urinal like he'd done to his bandmates, he had to restrain himself.
He didn't care about his reputation in China—it wasn't his country anyway. Fan wars, online bashing, even real-life fights didn't matter. But a massive Korean fanbase? That was something he couldn't ignore.
"Likewise," Chu Zhi responded. Since Zhao Quan had thrown the first punch, he saw no need to hold back.
After the greetings, the show's mascot, Xiao Qi (a plush toy), announced the contestants' order for the demo listening session—a cappella previews before the actual performance.
"Guests first—Lao Jiu, do you want to go ahead?" Yu Lan offered.
Interesting move. Chu Zhi smiled. "Sure, I'll start and 'cast a brick to attract jade.'"
He entered the soundproof booth next to the waiting room, visible through the glass wall.
"Chrysanthemums withered, scars on the ground.
Your smile has faded like yellowed paper.
Flowers fall, hearts break—
My thoughts lie silent…"