He was in college, but his songs were at the Grammys.

Wednesday evening at 7 pm, in a Western restaurant on the Bund in Shanghai with a view of the river.

Qiu Xuan and Lin Peikun, two old friends, are having a meal.

Just then, Qiu Xuan's phone screen lit up on the table.

He glanced at it casually.

But that one glance made him stop in his tracks.

The first line of the push notification is clearly displayed on the lock screen:

[Brilliant Galaxy Entertainment]: "A special you deserves a special song, Saturday, May 9th at 12:00 PM..."

Qiu Xuan frowned slightly.

Saturday noon?

This timing is all too familiar.

He unlocked his phone, opened the notification, and the full content popped up.

A few seconds later, Qiu Xuan's hand holding the phone froze in mid-air.

His expression shifted from initial casualness to confusion, then to disbelief, and finally settled on an almost absurd astonishment.

"What's wrong, Lao Qiu?" Lin Peikun sensed something was amiss, put down his wine glass, and asked, "Is something wrong at the company?"

Qiu Xuan didn't speak, but simply turned his phone screen towards Lin Peikun.

Lin Peikun leaned over to take a look.

His gaze lingered on the screen for about ten seconds, and then a playful expression slowly appeared on his face, which always wore a polite smile.

"Heh." Lin Peikun chuckled, leaned back in his chair, and shook his head. "These young people nowadays, really..."

He paused, seemingly searching for the right word.

"Adorably silly?" Qiu Xuan replied, his voice carrying a hint of dryness that he himself didn't realize.

"What I mean is, commendable courage," Lin Peikun laughed. "To do something knowing it's impossible, that spirit reminds me of myself in my early twenties."

Qiu Xuan put his phone away and looked at the screen again.

The comments under that promotional post were growing rapidly. He casually scrolled through them and found that the top comments were almost entirely negative.

"Counter-sniping? A newcomer who's a top-tier counter-sniping creator?"

"Has Chen Ming gone mad?!"

"Just waiting to be taught a lesson on Saturday..."

As Qiu Xuan read these comments, his initial surprise gradually subsided, replaced by a more complex emotion.

It's not anger.

At least not entirely.

It was more of a feeling of being offended, mixed with a touch of disbelief and amusement.

"Does he think," Qiu Xuan began, his voice low, almost to himself, "that just because he won against 'Summer Night Breeze' at the beginning of the month, he can be on equal footing with me?"

Lin Peikun picked up his wine glass and gently swirled it: "How much thought did you put into the song 'Summer Night Breeze'?"

"Two days," Qiu Xuan said frankly. "It's for someone with connections like Sun Hong, so it'll be enough."

"So," Lin Peikun gave him a meaningful look, "this young man may really think that's all the strength he has."

Qiu Xuan remained silent for a few seconds.

Then, he suddenly laughed.

It wasn't a happy laugh, nor a mocking laugh, but a laugh tinged with helplessness and a touch of absurdity.

"I wrote 'The One Who Loves You,' and he wrote 'The Special One.'" Qiu Xuan shook his head, his tone devoid of emotion. "Do they have to go against each other in song titles? I'm a top-notch songwriter, and what is he? A freshman in college who's only released one song."

He paused for a moment, then looked at Lin Peikun.

"Old Lin, don't you think he's..." Qiu Xuan carefully chose his words, "...is showing a complete lack of respect for his industry seniors?"

Lin Peikun didn't answer directly, but instead asked, "What do you think of the quality of his song 'A Special Person'?"

Qiu Xuan thought for a moment and said objectively, "The completion of 'Big City, Small Love' is very high. As for the song 'Listen to the Sea' that he wrote for Lin Wei, I heard from friends in the industry that Lin Wei approved it on the spot just by the score. This shows that his creative ability is indeed not bad."

"But?" Lin Peikun sensed the unspoken meaning.

"But," Qiu Xuan put down his phone, picked up the water glass on the table and took a sip, "R&B is not folk music, nor is it ordinary pop love songs. It demands a higher level of melody fluency, harmony complexity, and vocal technique. More importantly..."

He looked out the window at the river view, and his voice calmed down.

"More importantly, R&B requires time and experience. You need to have a deep understanding of the music, a good grasp of the emotions, and meticulous attention to detail. This is not something that can be achieved overnight with just talent."

"Do you think he hasn't matured enough?" Lin Peikun asked.

"He's only nineteen," Qiu Xuan said. "Even if he's been listening to R&B since he was in his mother's womb, how many years can he listen? Even if he's talented, how deep can he really understand it?"

That's actually a very objective statement.

In Qiu Xuan's view, Chen Ming may be a genius, but even geniuses need time to grow.

R&B, on the other hand, is one of the music genres that most needs time to mature.

Lin Peikun nodded in agreement, but then laughed: "But he still released it. Not only did he release it, but he also deliberately chose the same time, and even the song title was going against yours."

"Yes." Qiu Xuan smiled, but this time his smile had a sharper edge. "That's why I said that young people these days are quite interesting."

He picked up his phone, unlocked it, and opened Weibo.

My finger hovered over the screen for a few seconds.

Then, he typed a line of text and clicked send.

[Qiu Xuan]: "These young people nowadays are quite interesting. [Smile]"

No one was tagged, and no names were mentioned.

But at this critical juncture, at this critical juncture where almost everyone who follows the Chinese music scene knows about the "Saturday Battle of the Two Lins," it goes without saying who this statement is referring to.

A notification sound indicating successful posting on Weibo plays.

Qiu Xuan put down his phone, picked up his knife and fork again, cut a small piece of steak, and put it in his mouth.

Chew and swallow.

His movements were composed.

Meanwhile, Lin Peikun on the other side had already opened Qiu Xuan's Weibo homepage, and looking at the comments section under the latest post, a knowing smile appeared on his face.

Almost instantly after the post was published, comments began to flood in.

Qiu Xuan has a large fan base, including many veteran music fans and industry observers.

"Is Brother Xuan talking about Chen Ming? He must be talking about Chen Ming!"

"Hahaha, Brother Xuan's tone sounds like he's watching a child fooling around?"

"Young people these days are something else; they get arrogant and overconfident as soon as they achieve a little success."

"The composure of a top-tier creator! I would have cursed them out by now!"

"I'm eagerly awaiting Brother Xuan's lesson on Saturday. 'The One Who Loves You' will definitely crush 'The Special One'! And it's not just Brother Xuan who's facing this challenge! There's also top-tier singer Lin Peikun!"

"Does he really think he can challenge industry veterans just by writing a song called 'Big City, Small Love'? Old Qiu is a gold medalist, what is he anyway?!"

"Young people need to learn from setbacks, Brother Xuan is doing a good deed [doge emoji]"

The sentiment in the comments section was almost unanimously in favor of the other side.

Some made fun of it, some ridiculed it, some talked about their seniority and reasoned with it, and some simply enjoyed the spectacle.

Occasionally, a few comments would speak up for Chen Ming or express neutrality, but these were quickly drowned out by the more numerous voices of "education" and "pessimism".

Lin Peikun read a few messages and then put his phone down.

"Your fans are quite protective of you," he said with a smile.

Qiu Xuan shook his head: "They're not protecting me, they're protecting the title of 'Gold Medal Creator.' They feel that this title is not to be challenged, at least not by a newcomer."

"What do you think?" Lin Peikun asked.

Qiu Xuan remained silent for a while.

"I didn't actually consider him a rival."

Lin Peikun raised an eyebrow.

"It's not that I look down on him," Qiu Xuan explained, "but I feel that he's not at that level yet. A nineteen-year-old newcomer, no matter how talented, needs time to grow. For him to jump out and challenge me now is more like..."

He thought about it.

"It's more like a child throwing a tantrum, or trying to use my fame for publicity."

This is a very direct statement, even a bit harsh.

But Qiu Xuan spoke calmly, as if stating an objective fact.

It should be noted that he actually didn't have much of a problem with Chen Ming.

It's just annoying that Lin Wei chose a newcomer's song instead of his own; the target is Lin Wei, and Chen Ming is just a side effect.

Lin Peikun nodded, neither refuting nor agreeing.

He simply picked up his wine glass and clinked it against Qiu Xuan's.

"Let's find out on Saturday," Lin Peikun said. "Let me hear what kind of R&B this 'interesting' young man can write."

Qiu Xuan also raised his glass, a composed smile on his lips befitting a senior.

"OK."