Chapter 68: Just Sing, and Great Scholars Will Interpret It
In the Chinese music scene of the Millennium, strength was king.
But with the sudden emergence of Super Girl, this ‘iron rule’ began to loosen. Wang Peng then realized that being a singer didn’t require much skill.
As long as you have fans.
These fans were like leeks, harvested one after another.
And now, Li Yuchun was the scythe Wang Peng had his eye on for harvesting leeks, and it was already quite sharp, ready to harvest at any time.
As for Ji Minjia and He Jie, they were just so-so~
Wang Peng wasn’t very optimistic about them.
If other companies wanted them, they could take them as a package, saving the company money on training them.
Zhou Bichang had some skill, and her fan base was decent. She could be kept in the company for training and should be able to earn some money.
In my past life~
The experiences of the four of them also proved this point.
He Jie was transferred to Qiyi Quark for 800,000 in 2009…
Ji Minjia, to get out of her contract with Tianyu, enrolled in the KJzzb Cultural Troupe, forcing Tianyu to release her with a badge of honor from within the system, setting a record for Super Girl contract terminations with zero compensation.
Li Yuchun was held tightly by Tianyu for 10 years, and only after they squeezed out the last drop did they agree to terminate the contract.
…
At this moment.
Meeting Room.
Wang Peng took out four supplementary agreements. Three were thin, and one was thick. He gave the thick one to Li Yuchun.
“Sign the agreements first, and then I’ll talk to you.”
“Mr. Wang, didn’t we already sign one a few days ago?”
“He Jie! I’m not discussing this with you right now. If you don’t sign, you can leave immediately, and you’ll be responsible for the consequences.”
Wang Peng angrily slammed the table and roared.
Xia Qing was startled and said with some displeasure, “Mr. Wang, calm down, they are still children.”
Wang Peng said nothing more.
But his face turned red, clearly showing he was very angry.
Li Yuchun was completely crushed by Zhang Liangying in tonight’s competition, which made him very unhappy. Now He Jie was running into the muzzle of a gun, so how could he give her a good look?
He Jie also had grievances she couldn’t express.
Ever since they signed the first contract, their fates had been controlled by Tianyu. If they didn’t obey, they would face the risk of being shelved.
For a singer, even being shelved for a year could lead to them becoming outdated, let alone the 8-10 year contracts He Jie and the others had signed.
They didn’t dare to gamble!
They dared not refuse to sign even more.
The four girls signed their names with solemn expressions. Wang Peng collected the contracts and immediately smiled.
“That’s more like it. Follow the company’s pace, and the company won’t treat you unfairly. After the competition ends at the end of the month, I’ll release an album for each of you…”
“When that time comes, with album sales breaking a million and surpassing many veteran singers, you becoming big stars will be just around the corner.”
“Do you think I’m bragging? Haha, I’ll invite the best music producers in the country to tailor albums for you.”
“And all you have to do is follow my arrangements…”
“Absolutely do not be like Zhang Liangying, thinking you’re so capable and looking down on everyone. I’m putting it out there, Zhang Liangying will never be popular without Tianyu. If she becomes famous, I’ll admit defeat…”
“Damn it, someone who doesn’t know their own worth, singing a few original songs and becoming so arrogant.”
“You four work hard and try to eliminate her in the next round.”
Huh?
You mean, the four of us eliminate Zhang Liangying?
Li Yuchun’s mouth twitched, and her head felt a little itchy, as if it were about to grow a brain. “Mr. Wang means, you want to use my singing and dancing to eliminate her?”
…
The meeting lasted for half an hour before it adjourned. Wang Peng kept Li Yuchun behind alone and painted another big, round picture for her.
“Yuchun, the other three are gone. I’ll tell you secretly, this year’s champion will definitely be yours, don’t worry!”
“Our Tianyu will focus on cultivating you. In the future, you will be Tianyu’s Top Sister.”
“Remember! You must be obedient. I, Wang Peng, like obedient artists the most. Whoever is obedient, I will focus on cultivating them.”
“When the competition ends in August, I’ll contact the famous music producer Xiao Ke for you and have him produce an album for you that far surpasses Zhang Liangying’s!”
“…”
After a round of sweet talk, Li Yuchun’s face turned red and her breathing quickened. “Thank you, Mr. Wang, thank you. I will definitely listen to you and stand with the company forever.”
Wang Peng nodded. “Go, work hard, and try to eliminate Zhang Liangying in the next round.”
Li Yuchun stumbled after hearing this, almost unable to stand steady.
…
While Wang Peng was painting pictures for the contestants, Tieba and other places were unusually lively.
The loudest voices, of course, belonged to the Liangfen.
Because in the past two competitions, Zhang Liangying had advanced with an overwhelming advantage, her brilliance blinding the other contestants.
Of course, Li Yuchun’s fans were also tenacious, always fighting on the front lines of Tieba, engaging in passionate debates with the Liangfen.
So what if she has no original works or singing skills? Our Yuchun is handsome and cool, can Zhang Liangying compare? We just like singers like Li Yuchun!!!
The Corn fans started to be unreasonable when they couldn’t argue!
In the end, the Liangfen were too lazy to bother with them and refocused their attention on several ‘in-depth analysis posts’—【Some superficial interpretations of 《Fairy Tale Town》, Shen Qing doesn’t intend to make us happy! 】
【I studied 《Fairy Tale Town》 for two and a half hours and discovered a shocking secret. Let me tell you all about it…】
【Therefore, the song written by Shen Qing is not themed around joy, but is in the same vein as 《Farewell》, 《Father’s Prose Poem》, and 《When You Are Old》. It has intellectual depth… He wants to use the deconstruction of fairy tales to metaphorically represent the shackles of reality, and to remind people to pursue truth, goodness, and beauty, and stay away from evil and corruption…】
【Shen Qing is truly a genius】
【He could actually come up with such lyrics, and the composition is also amazing. The melody is very pleasant, with both a fairy tale feel and a hint of melancholy】
There were over three hundred replies below the post.
Some left a 【Awesome】 and left, some said 【One more post】, and some also analyzed it seriously, making it very lively.
Additionally.
There was also considerable popularity for posts about 《When You Are Old》.
…
As time fermented to the next day, the 【Fairy Tale Town in-depth analysis post】 had reached over 3000 replies, and many passersby came to watch from other Tieba forums.
They praised 《Fairy Tale Town》 to the skies, interpreting over a dozen meanings, and each meaning seemed to have some validity.
Ridiculous~
Shen Qing: As expected, after entering the pass, there will be great scholars to debate the scriptures for me.
…
Reporters from portal websites like Sina, Sohu, and NetEase directly copied and pasted the comments and published them on their websites.
Some netizens who didn’t understand were amazed.
“Holy crap, this song means this? Shen Qing is too awesome!”
“This is a fairy tale for us adults.”
“Zhang Liangying sings awesomely, and Shen Qing wrote it even more awesomely. I want to watch the competition next week and hope Shen Qing releases more awesome songs.”
Additionally.
Mango TV, to demonstrate its loyalty to Central Media, once again mobilized its media matrix to launch a fierce publicity campaign for 《When You Are Old》.
Two consecutive songs praising parents directly earned the favor of the higher-ups responsible for cultural promotion.
The leaders who were initially prejudiced against 《Super Girl》 no longer said anything.
Because 《Father’s Prose Poem》 and 《When You Are Old》 were so incredibly positive, people of their age felt the emotions much more deeply than the younger generation.
Lao Mouzi, who was preparing 《Curse of the Golden Flower》, sighed deeply several times upon hearing 《Father’s Prose Poem》 during his lunch break.
Zhang Jizhong, who was filming 《The Return of the Condor Heroes》, was also attracted by Zhang Liangying’s vocal talent, and the idea of having Zhang Liangying sing the theme song gradually took root.
…
Time flew by, and a few days passed in a flash.
Shen Qing and Zhang Liangying spent these days intensely writing songs, arranging music, practicing, and recording. They even hired bel canto and opera teachers from Sichuan Conservatory of Music for one-on-one instruction, barely resting.
The closer it got to the end, the more excited they became.
As for Wang Peng’s meeting with Li Yuchun and the other three, Shen Qing and Liangying already knew about it from Ji Minjia.
Ji Minjia was very smart. She knew she wouldn’t get the championship or runner-up, or even place in the top three, and had no competition with Zhang Liangying.
So she always wanted to get closer to Zhang Liangying.
The next day, she secretly told Zhang Liangying about the matter.
Liangying then told Shen Qing immediately.
Shen Qing: “For the 5-to-3 and the finals, Wang Peng will definitely have the judges eliminate you. Even if the judges let you advance, on the day of the finals, Wang Peng will manipulate the text message vote count to make Li Yuchun win the championship.”
Zhang Liangying: “Hehe, it’s okay, I’m not sad, and I don’t want the championship. I’m happy as long as I can sing your songs my whole life.”
Shen Qing: “Now it’s no longer just about the championship or runner-up, but about face. If we lose this time, how will Li Yuchun’s fans mock us? Wang Peng will also buy media articles to blacken us.”
Zhang Liangying’s heart clenched.
Then what should we do…
She held Shen Qing’s hand, wanting to comfort him, but not knowing how. Shen Qing, however, held her hand back.
“Liangying, there’s only one way now: to crush Li Yuchun with absolute strength, defeat capital with talent, and make everyone recognize that you, Zhang Liangying, are the true champion!”
“The songs I wrote will definitely work!!”
