Chapter 143: A Fateful Night

Late at night, Cassell, Mobley, and the others were living it up at a nightclub, each with a woman in their arms. Ironically, they suspected that He Xinghui, whom they thought was out enjoying himself, was actually busy with serious business.

"Choose this arrangement. Yes, this one is good. Sing it one last time."

He Xinghui said. This was his eleventh attempt, and he had finally found the accompaniment he was familiar with. With this, the song "Welcome to New York" was essentially complete. Taylor matched her vocals to the melody and sang it through once more. When she finished, she was extremely satisfied.

"It’s as if this song was tailor-made for me," Taylor said excitedly.

*Well, it was,* He Xinghui thought to himself. The song was originally written by Taylor, so the melody was naturally a perfect fit for her.

"It’s yours."

Giving Taylor something that belonged to her future self made He Xinghui feel a bit embarrassed—he felt like a total brute. What was even worse was that if Taylor wanted more songs in the future, he would have to keep acting like a "brute," gifting Taylor her own future hits.

"Really?" Taylor asked, thrilled. The song was of exceptional quality, and because it carried a story from its creation, its value was far higher than an average track. Giving it away so easily showed incredible generosity.

"Of course. Anyway, I never intended to be a singer," He Xinghui said.

"Why are you so good to me?" Taylor asked, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Because you're beautiful," He Xinghui replied. It was such an unconventional answer that had Taylor not already been head-over-heels, she might not have been satisfied.

"Will you be this good to other beautiful women in the future?" Taylor asked. If He Xinghui had just said "no," followed by a declaration of love or a vow to the heavens, Taylor would have surrendered herself that very night.

"If I ever dare to be this good to another woman, just write me into a song and let every woman in the world know I'm a scumbag. I’ve even thought of a few lyrics for you..."

He Xinghui hummed a couple of lines, making Taylor burst into laughter, doubling over.

"That’s the funniest answer I’ve ever heard," she laughed. For some reason, everything He Xinghui did and every word he said made her feel like he was her soulmate. It was also the feeling of falling in love. In the short time she had spent with him, she had been incredibly happy. Plus, He Xinghui matched her aesthetic, was powerful, and was famous. He was perfect; you couldn't find anyone better, not just on Earth, but in the entire galaxy.

...

The room was empty, yet rhythmic sounds could be heard.
On the balcony, two figures were in the throes of passion.
The stars were too shy to look, hiding behind passing clouds.
The moon had nowhere to run, its eyes tainted by the sight.

The next day, the sun was already high, but He Xinghui remained immersed in the lap of luxury. This was Taylor Swift, a goddess in the hearts of so many men in the future. Heaven knows how many losers would trade years of their lives for a chance to be with her. Yet he was currently able to have whatever he wanted from her. If his teammates hadn't been calling his phone incessantly, he would have wanted to take a season-long vacation.

Persuaded by Taylor, He Xinghui didn't return to Los Angeles until the 7th, spending half a day adjusting his state with his teammates. The rest of the Clippers weren't in much better shape than him. On the 8th, facing the visiting Spurs, the entire Clippers team played as if sleepwalking, losing by 23 points. He Xinghui scored only 14 points, which was still the second-highest on the team. Under normal circumstances, He Xinghui would have faced a barrage of criticism from the media. Fortunately, his performance against the Knicks had been so dazzling that the media's praise was still fresh; any newspaper you picked up was still filled with adulation for him. Thus, not many people criticized them for this loss.

Meanwhile, Taylor Swift's debut album, "Taylor Swift," was released early. Compared to the original timeline, this version included one extra song: "Welcome to New York." The promotional campaign used He Xinghui’s songwriting and arrangement as the primary hook. This proved to be extremely effective. Only two or three days had passed, and fans hadn't forgotten the girl who had kissed He Xinghui at Madison Square Garden, nor had they forgotten that song. Just as fans were lamenting that He Xinghui wasn't officially releasing the track, they were shocked to find he had gifted it to Taylor Swift.

This led fans to gossip again about whether something had happened between He Xinghui and Taylor that night. While gossiping, they didn't forget to buy the album. "He-fans" became the first wave of people to purchase and download the album, and once they listened, they immediately fell in love with Taylor's work and the singer herself. Compared to He Xinghui's a cappella version, "Welcome to New York" sounded much better with the professional arrangement, and Taylor's voice was better suited to the song than his. Aside from that track, the other songs on the album were of high quality—the fruit of Taylor's hard work over the past year—so they were naturally excellent. The fans discovered that this girl was actually a powerhouse of talent.

As a result, word-of-mouth among fans, coupled with news reports, caused Taylor's album to explode in popularity. In the original timeline, the album had been a hit even without such promotion; now, with the "He Xinghui" factor, the speed of its success had doubled. By the next day, the album reached the daily charts, and pre-orders for physical copies exceeded ten thousand. At this rate, climbing to the top of the general charts was only a matter of time.

A new star in the music world was rising. No one doubted Taylor's talent, but no one denied He Xinghui's role in the event. The term "The He Effect" soon emerged.

Following this, He Xinghui became even busier. Even Avril Lavigne and Britney Spears called him, hoping he could help write a song for them. They didn't really lack songs; they just wanted to use He Xinghui as a gimmick for publicity. They wanted to expand their fan base into the sports world and compete with Taylor Swift for those "He-fans."

When you're popular, trouble follows. Just as he was mired in gossip with various beauties, the number one "He-hater," Johnson, wrote an article claiming that He Xinghui would soon become addicted to these external temptations and would quickly go downhill. Such clickbait articles, surprisingly, were believed by a portion of the fans. Johnson dared to write this primarily because he had seen the Clippers' dismal performance against the Spurs. He didn't believe the Clippers could adjust that quickly. Furthermore, their next opponent, the Nets, was another strong team, and there was a high probability the Clippers would suffer a losing streak. Naturally, Johnson wouldn't miss such a great opportunity to smear He Xinghui.

On the 10th, Johnson, who had been absent for a while, reappeared at the Staples Center. Some reporters couldn't help but smirk when they saw him, curious to see if he would sneak away again if the Clippers won today.