noveldepot Chapter 24 Plagiarism Scandal
Chapter 24 Plagiarism Scandal
The bank teller said apologetically, "Sir, please don't be agitated. The issuer has issued a stop payment notice for this check, so we are temporarily unable to process it. This usually happens when the two parties need to further confirm the details of the transaction or agreement."
"Shit, how is this possible!" Colin exploded, his voice rising in agitation. "The deal was done a long time ago! This check was Amanda's advance payment to Zeke, it was written days ago, how could it suddenly be stopped? There must be something wrong with your bank!"
"Sir, we are very sorry, we were just following instructions. You need to contact the party who issued the check to discuss the specific reasons. If the other party confirms that there is nothing wrong, a new check can be issued or authorized for payment, and we will cooperate in handling the matter."
Colin still wouldn't give up. He rolled up his sleeves and was about to confront the bank manager, muttering, "You're deliberately making things difficult for me."
Zike stopped him, shook his head and advised, "Don't make things difficult for her. She's just following the rules. There must be a problem on Amanda's side. Let's make a call and ask what's going on. Making a scene won't solve anything."
Colin glared at the teller before following Zeke to the public phone in the bank lobby.
The phone rang a few times before being answered.
"Amanda, what happened? Why was the check stopped?" Zeke asked bluntly.
Amanda's voice was filled with anger and disdain: "Plagiarist, liar, thief."
"What? Amanda, who are you talking about?" Zeke was completely confused and didn't understand what Amanda meant at all.
"Who else but you?" Amanda's voice suddenly rose, her anger almost bursting through the receiver. "You sold us a plagiarized song at a high price, tricking us into working hard rehearsing and performing. I'm going to sue you! I'm going to ruin your reputation!"
"Calm down, Amanda, don't be impulsive!"
Zeke heard Keith, Anton, Holly, and others on the other end of the phone trying to persuade him.
"We can't jump to conclusions based on just one phone call. Zeke isn't that kind of person; he couldn't possibly plagiarize. There must be some misunderstanding here."
"Thanks, Holly." Zeke breathed a sigh of relief; thankfully, he had gotten along well with the Sirens these past few days.
"Amanda, calm down and tell me what happened. Who told you I plagiarized? What evidence do you have?"
"A publisher named Brian called and said your song 'YMCA' plagiarized a song by a band called Village People," Amanda said coldly.
"Brian? That damn publisher from Tin Plate Alley?" Zeke immediately remembered him—the guy who tried to snatch his song at a low price and held a grudge after being rejected!
"He's talking nonsense! Amanda, don't believe him. He's just trying to get back at me. Seeing that this song is becoming popular, he's deliberately calling to sow discord and cause trouble!"
Zik spoke with great confidence, saying that the song came from a divine cheat code in his mind and was a future classic, so how could it be a copy of a current work?
Brian must have been unwilling to accept defeat and deliberately found an excuse to ruin his opportunity and the future of the Sirens.
"Nonsense?" Amanda scoffed. "He said the song is called 'San Francisco (You've Got Me),' from the Village People's self-titled album, released earlier this year. I've already had my lawyer buy that album; you'll be getting a lawyer's letter soon!"
"Zike, you know this is a crucial moment for both of us and for you." Keith grabbed the phone, his voice urgent. "Tino is negotiating our record contracts with several record companies. If we get caught plagiarizing now, not only will our contracts fall through, but your reputation will also be affected, making it difficult for you to establish yourself in the music industry again."
Zik fell silent; he too was aware of the seriousness of the matter.
After hanging up the phone, he turned around and found that old Rossi, Tino, Colin, and Herbert were all looking at him with questioning eyes.
"That bitch is talking nonsense! How could my son plagiarize? This is slander! Herbert, you sue her for defamation, sue that publisher named Brian!"
Old Rossi spoke first, firmly establishing his stance of siding with his own people regardless of right or wrong.
Colin turned to Tino: "Tino, what's wrong with you? You didn't even check the copyright for this song? How could you be so careless about something so important?"
Tino's face darkened, and his tone became increasingly impolite: "How could I not have done it? I entrusted an acquaintance to register the copyright for this song, and they said there were no problems, so I was relieved! Besides, as a lawyer, you didn't remind me to do a second comparison; you also bear responsibility for this!"
"Now the checks are frozen, what am I going to do with the money I deposited? Damn it!"
"I've invested all my savings! And I borrowed a huge sum! So Colin, don't give me that nonsense!"
The two argued back and forth, shifting blame to each other, and the scene became quite chaotic.
Herbert frowned, stepped forward, pulled Zik aside, looked him seriously into the eyes, and asked, word by word, "Zik, tell me the truth, you really didn't plagiarize?"
"Of course not!" Zeke blurted out.
But as soon as he said it, a strange sense of panic rose in his heart. Although he was sure that the song came from Apocalypse, what if... what if Apocalypse made a mistake, or what if that so-called "San Francisco (You've Got Me)" really had something in common with his song?
Herbert shook his head slightly, his tone tinged with helplessness: "Don't lie to your lawyer, Zeke. If there really is a problem, it's much better to find a solution sooner rather than later, than to hide it and delay."
"Um, I don't think so." Zik avoided his gaze, his tone somewhat unsure. "I have absolutely no recollection of that song. We'll have to listen to it to know if it's really that similar. Let's go to Amanda's place and check out the album her lawyer bought. After listening to it, the truth will be revealed."
He mentally screamed: How could the Apocalypse cheat system be so detrimental? If something really goes wrong because of this, his tuition fees, his musical dreams, and his plan to escape the gang will all be ruined.
Herbert nodded and patted him on the shoulder: "Indeed, copyright comparison is a very professional job. How can you convict someone based on someone's casual remark? Maybe it's just a similar style, or maybe Brian is exaggerating on purpose."
The group stopped arguing and drove to the attic.
Two unfamiliar men stood next to Amanda's lawyer. One introduced himself as Erf Bigger, from Casablanca Records' New York office, the record company Amanda had previously favored. The other was a legal representative from that company.
Erf Bigger got straight to the point: "We've listened to both songs and done a detailed copyright comparison, and I have some bad news for you."