I Became an All-round Artist

Last month, Lin Yuan's total income was around 700,000 yuan.
It could have been even more, considering that besides commissions, Lin Yuan is now earning royalties from two songs simultaneously.
In its second month on the platform, although "Life Like Summer Flowers" no longer benefits from the Newcomer's Chart boost, it's still bringing in a decent income.
The song's downloads have already reached 700,000, and hitting a million within a few months is almost guaranteed.
Not to mention, "Big Fish," which was released mid-month, is also contributing.

However, the more you earn, the more taxes you pay. The tax on a few thousand yuan is nothing compared to what you owe on an income of several hundred thousand.
Fortunately, 700,000 yuan is more than enough to resolve Lin Yuan's current financial challenges.

At 9:30 PM, Lin Yuan called his sister.
His sister, Lin Xuan, recently graduated and is still an intern at her company, so she usually gets off work late.
"Hello, Xiaoyuan," Lin Xuan answered the phone, her voice tinged with exhaustion and hoarseness. "I just got home from work."

Lin Yuan replied, "Then you should eat first."
Lin Xuan chuckled, "I'm boiling water right now. I'll just have some instant noodles. Mom told me the other day that you have a surprise for me?"

It seemed their mother hadn’t spilled the beans yet.
Lin Yuan organized his thoughts and said, "Sis, do you know who Xianyu is?"

"Xianyu?" Lin Xuan paused for a moment. "Yeah, I listen to his songs a lot. They’re pretty good. Why? Do you know him?"

Lin Yuan said, "I am Xianyu."

Lin Xuan instinctively raised her voice, "You’re what fish?"

"Xianyu."

"Envy what?"

"Xianyu."

"Hold on... Hold on... Give me a moment..."
Lin Xuan, being younger, was naturally more receptive than their mother, but the news still caught her off guard.

After a long pause, Lin Xuan finally responded, "Xian...yu?"

"Yeah," Lin Yuan confirmed.

"Xianyu!"

"Yes, yes."

"XIANYU!?"

Her tone grew more intense with each repetition, almost making Lin Yuan, usually so composed, feel a bit anxious. "Yes, I’m Xianyu. But that’s not the point. The point is, I’m planning to buy you a new phone."

"You heartless thing!"
Lin Xuan immediately snapped, "Just a phone? Do you remember how I used to take care of you? Let’s not even talk about the past, but the clothes and shoes you wore to school—I spent my entire first internship paycheck on those!"

Lin Yuan couldn’t help but laugh, "How much do you want?"

He had a close relationship with his sisters, so they were never formal with each other. In fact, he enjoyed this kind of interaction.
"Now we’re talking," Lin Xuan snorted. "Don’t think I don’t know the business. Composing is very lucrative, and your songs are so popular. A phone isn’t enough—you should throw in an extra 5,000 yuan. I have rent to pay. Actually, let’s make it an even 10,000 yuan!"

Lin Yuan said, "I’ve transferred it to you."

Lin Xuan laughed, "Okay, let me check..."

Suddenly, there was silence on the other end of the phone.
After a long pause, Lin Xuan spoke again, her voice tinged with anxiety: “Did you accidentally add an extra zero?”
Lin Yuan laughed, “No mistake, it’s 100,000 yuan, all for you.”

Lin Xuan’s tone became serious: “Lin Yuan! I know you care about your sister, but you need to be responsible. If you’re making good money, you should give it to Mom. She borrowed a lot of money from relatives and friends to pay for your treatment, and those debts need to be repaid. I’ll keep a few thousand, but I’m going to send the rest to her. She’ll decide how to use it. Do you have any objections? Not that it matters; I’m the one calling the shots here.”

“Well, it’s like this…”
Lin Yuan had no choice but to explain the situation to his sister.
Lin Xuan went from being surprised to overjoyed, then started jumping around excitedly: “You transferred it last month? And you earned even more this month? Oh my God, dear brother, I don’t want to work anymore! I don’t want to keep trying!”

Lin Yuan: “…”

It seemed his sister was handling the news even worse than their mom did.
After babbling incoherently for a while, Lin Xuan finally calmed down: “Alright then, let’s do it your way. We’ll pay off the family’s debt first. As for the money, don’t even think about getting it back. The 100,000 yuan is mine!”

“Yes, yes, it’s yours.”
Lin Yuan added, “If you really don’t want to work, then don’t. Go back to university. You missed out on graduate school because of me, but you can still catch up.”

“No way.”
Lin Xuan refused: “Are you really my brother? Don’t you know me at all? Do you think I actually enjoy studying? I’ve hated school my whole life! It was Mom who kept insisting that a good education would help me get a good job, and I thought that getting a good job would allow me to earn money for your treatment. That’s the only reason I kept pushing myself to study, study, study… until my brain almost exploded! But now that you’re earning so much, what’s the point of studying? I’m happy just working. Besides, I actually like my job. And if you ever run out of songs to write, at least I can keep us afloat, so you won’t end up on the streets.”

“Alright then.”
Lin Yuan said, “It’s your choice.”

Lin Xuan chuckled, “I’ve loved reading novels since I was a kid. Now, I’m working as an intern editor at a publishing house, and I’ve met a lot of famous authors. I’ve been working for a few months, and while my performance is average, I’ve collected tons of signed books from the novelists.”

“Are you really an editor?”
“Of course! I told you before, but I guess you didn’t remember… Anyway, I’m working at Lingchuan Publishing, and I’m just getting started in my career. I’ll probably be officially hired soon!”

“Great, just make sure you have decent dinners from now on.”
Lin Yuan thought he might write a novel and get it published at his sister’s company someday.
However, since the Supernova contest is hosted by Silver Blue Library, where his sister doesn’t work, that’s not possible for now.

“Definitely!”
Lin Xuan said proudly, “With 100,000 yuan, I’m going to upgrade my meals! Starting tomorrow, I’ll switch to cup noodles with double the sausages!”

Lin Yuan: “…”

That’s my sister, no doubt about it.
After chatting a bit longer, they hung up the phone.
Lin Yuan checked his bank account—about 600,000 yuan remained. Without hesitation, he sent 550,000 yuan to his mother, along with a simple message:
“You can pay off the debts now.”

The family owed just over 500,000 yuan in total, so this would clear it all at once.
His mom called back immediately, her voice filled with shock: “Did you really earn this much in just one month?”

“Just got lucky and picked up a job.”
Lin Yuan briefly explained the situation.

His mom quickly ended the call, then sent a text message:
“The signal isn’t great. I’ll pay off the debts tomorrow.”
Lin Yuan replied with a smiley face emoji.

He knew why his mom ended the call so abruptly—she probably wanted to have a good cry in private, without her son hearing it. But he didn’t call her out on it.

With that matter settled, he lay down on the school’s sports field, gazing at the stars, feeling a warmth and peace he’d never experienced before.
He recalled the day he first arrived in this world, lying on this very field, staring up at the same sky.
But back then, he was weighed down by the threat to his life and the pressure from his family, with none of the comfort or satisfaction he felt now—

Being alive is truly wonderful.