November 7th.
Taking advantage of the school's break weekend, Zhao Jue drove to the Qin Continent Art Academy to pick up Lin Yuan. They were to go to Starlight Entertainment to handle his transfer to the music composition department.
Lin Yuan carried his textbooks from his major classes.
This time he was seated in the front passenger seat.
Along the way, Lin Yuan was listening to music. The song playing in the car was "Life Like A Summer Flower," played on repeat -
This had been the case for the past week.
Every day Zhao Jue was in the car, she would listen to this song without growing tired of it. Occasionally, she even hummed a few lines if she was in a good mood.
This song probably held a special meaning for Zhao Jue in her lifetime.
"By the way,"
Zhao Jue suddenly spoke to Lin Yuan as they were about to reach the company, "Although 'Life Like A Summer Flower' is in second place, over the past week, its download increase rate has surpassed the first place song. So, after this morning's meeting, the company officially decided to challenge Sand Sea for the top spot on the Newcomer's List!"
"Second place?"
Upon hearing this, Lin Yuan was somewhat pleased.
Zhao Jue, on the other hand, was so shocked she was lost for words.
She desperately wanted to grab Lin Yuan's ear and emphasize: "Can you please pay a little more attention to how your own song is doing?"
In the end, Zhao Jue held back.
She just gave Lin Yuan a heads up, saying, "However, the situation regarding this top spot is rather unusual, so I'm not certain that we can necessarily pull it off."
Lin Yuan nodded.
He didn't know that Starlight Entertainment initially had no plans to fight for the top spot with 'Life Like A Summer Flower'. After all, aiming for first place was a substantial investment, given the heavy presence of the current first place holder.
But...
'Life Like A Summer Flower' was performing exceptionally well, its download increase rate was consistently higher than that of the first ranked song.
On top of that, Zhao Jue approached one of the company's higher-ups who could make the final decision on this matter, adeptly used language and playfully made a comment:
"We could give Sand Sea a run for their money!"
This was where Zhao Jue's shrewdness shone through.
Had she directly said that she wanted to put more resources into promoting 'Life Like A Summer Flower' to vie for the top spot on the Newcomer's List, the executives might not have been willing.
After all, this song was new and pouring too much money into its promotion may not have been deemed financially worthwhile.
But if this endeavor could ruffle the feathers of Sand Sea?
After only slight hesitation, the executive nodded his agreement.
Only if it cost a little more, it would be fantastic to irk their rival.
The three prominent entertainment companies of Qin Continent were quite discordant; Starlight and Sand Sea were particularly at odds with each other, weren't they?
The specific reason was no longer traceable.
But all companies in the world were mortal enemies.
Most importantly, after this decision was made, extensive online promotion for 'Life Like A Summer Flower' commenced, building momentum for the song!
...
Upon arriving at the company entrance and tossing the car keys to the approaching security guard, Zhao Jue led Lin Yuan straight to the composition department.
"Hello, Ms. Zhao."
"Hello, Ms. Zhao."
Walking through the company, there were even more staff members greeting Zhao Jue than Lin Yuan remembered from his first visit and everyone seemed more enthusiastic as well.
Some staff members also looked toward Lin Yuan.
However, Lin Yuan's young appearance made it hard for anyone who hadn't seen him up close to associate this college-student-looking boy with the increasingly discussed topic around the company: "Xian Yu."
They took the elevator to the 10th floor.
Soon, they arrived at the composition department.
Standing at the entrance, Lin Yuan took in the interior of the composition department.
The department was broader than he had imagined. The spacious and exquisite interior had a cultured ambiance.
Between the office desks, there were long distances and bookshelves, ensuring personal privacy. The bookshelves held many music-related books -
This work environment reminded Lin Yuan of his school's library; it was quite comfortable.
"Ms. Zhao."
Ol' Zhou, the person in charge of the composition department, had been eagerly waiting at the entrance with a beaming smile for Zhao Jue. But when he saw Zhao Jue and Lin Yuan, his smile faltered, asking:
"Where's Xian Yu?"
Members of the composition department also paused their work to curiously peek toward the entrance.
The department held a meeting in the morning during which everyone was notified that the composer of 'Life Like A Summer Flower,' Xian Yu, would be reporting to the composition department today. Everyone was eager to see what Xian Yu looked like.
"Isn't he right here?"
Zhao Jue gracefully introduced Lin Yuan.
Ol' Zhou was dumbstruck. He had noticed Lin Yuan trailing behind Zhao Jue, but his appearance led Ol' Zhou to believe he was just another artist Zhao Jue was working with. He hadn't expected that the college-student-like young man was, in fact, the legendary Xian Yu.
Zhao Jue laughed heartily.
She understood Ol' Zhou's surprise.
When she had signed Lin Yuan, she was confident because Lin Yuan had not only the talent of an enchanting singing voice but also a face that was pleasing to the eye. With such qualities, he was bound to make it big.
This was precisely why-
Even Zhao Jue hadn't expected Lin Yuan to possess such extraordinary songwriting talent to create a song like 'Life Like A Summer Flower.' If not for his ruined voice, what a blessed child he would have been.
At this moment.
Not just Ol' Zhou, but the members of the composition department peeking out were collectively taken aback—looking at each other in disbelief—
This boy with the appearance of an idol artist, he's Xian Yu?
"Ha ha!"
Ol' Zhou's smile suddenly panned out again and he walked towards Lin Yuan enthusiastically, reaching out his hand and said, "Welcome, welcome!"
Xian Yu is young?
To Ol' Zhou, this was not a bad thing at all, on the contrary, it was a great thing because the younger he was, the more it demonstrated that this Xian Yu was extraordinarily talented!
He just had to give Lin Yuan room to grow!
Perhaps in the future, when Lin Yuan's experience matures, he will be able to write songs that are even better than "Life Like A Summer Flower". Therefore, after being surprised by Lin Yuan's youth, Ol' Zhou's mood became even better!
"Thank you."
Lin Yuan shook hands with him.
Zhao Jue reminded him from the side, "Ol' Zhou, this boy's real name is Lin Yuan. He's currently a sophomore student in the composition department of Qin Continent Art Academy. So he won't be able to come to the company during class hours. I need to mention this to you first. Furthermore, regarding pay, I hope Lin Yuan's treatment is the same as the other people in the composition department."
"No problem."
Ol' Zhou agreed immediately, "Our composition department has precedents of signing current students. Besides, everyone in the company knows that the composition department is the most laidback one. How many big shots in the department come to the company less than five times a year? What the hell can I do about them? I basically have to coax them every day."
Zhao Jue frowned, "Don't swear in front of the kid."
Ol' Zhou chortled and nodded immediately, but he was slightly surprised inside.
It was the first time he had seen Zhao Jue protecting someone so much within the company. It seemed that Lin Yuan must be a precious talent in her eyes.
However...
If he joins the composition department and can still write songs at the level of "Life Like A Summer Flower", then he can naturally be my cherished talent too.
Never underestimate Ol' Zhou.
As the boss of the Starlight composition department, Ol' Zhou has a lot of prestige. After all, several of the company's top composers work in this department.
It's just that these high-ranking composers rarely come to the company to work.
Don't ask, they're out seeking inspiration.
Anyway, as long as these composers can write good songs that generate sufficient income for the company each year, even the company's boss wouldn't have any objection to them not coming to work.
"Alright then."
Zhao Jue patted Lin Yuan's shoulder and instructed, "From now on you are a part of the composition department. If you encounter any problems, you can find me. If you need a ride to the company, call me. If I have time, I'll pick you up, and if I don't, I'll send someone... "
"Are you entrusting him to my care?"
Ol' Zhou chuckled, "Fine, Little Zhao, with him in my care, feel free to go about your business!"
Zhao Jue: "..."
Calling yourself "Brother Zhou" is fine, given your age.
But the talent just arrived, and I've turned back from 'Ms. Zhao' to 'Little Zhao'?"
Too realistic.
She turned her head, waved, and walked towards the elevator.
Lin Yuan also waved at Zhao Jue, though she didn't see it as she had turned her back.
Next, Ol' Zhou had Lin Yuan sign a few contracts.
The contracts had many clauses, Lin Yuan only quickly skimmed the important ones.
For instance, the base salary in the composition department was ten thousand yuan a month, with royalties from the works calculated separately. Also, although the composers owned the copyright of their works, the company had the right of first use, etc...
The contracts were all pretty standard within the industry. In this regard, Starlight's industry reputation was quite good.
After half an hour signing contracts and reviewing terms, Lin Yuan officially became a member of Starlight Entertainment's composition department.
"This is your seat."
Ol' Zhou chose a seat by the window for Lin Yuan.
It was one of the best seats in the company, with a view of the outside scenery just by turning your head.
Watching Lin Yuan take the seat immediately made the rest of the team members in the composition department jealous.
"That's Father Yang's seat."
"It doesn't matter. After all, those wayward maestros in the department never come to work. It's always empty. It's just that even if it's empty for a few years, it won't be our turn to sit there."
"..."
Following that, Lin Yuan opened the backpack he brought to the company and took out a few books to read.
After all, he was about to have exams.
The group of postgraduates in the composition department, who had graduated many years ago, were all sneaking glances at Lin Yuan. When they saw the books that Lin Yuan took out, they thought they had seen wrong. Some even rubbed their eyes in disbelief.
Because Lin Yuan took out three books: "Consolidation of Composition Basics", "Theory and Practical Knowledge of Composition", "Simple Chord Explanation".
"That is..."
"It looks like..."
"The course books of second year students..."
Lin Yuan, who didn't know that the people behind him were staring at him, was seriously reviewing the contents that might be examined. He recited softly,
"In a chord, the note at the highest voice part determines the harmonic position."
"There are three harmonic positions in major and minor chords: root position, first inversion, and second inversion."
"In practice, major or minor chords—whether close or open--are not allowed to have voice crossing, and voice crossing means that the secondary voice part is higher than the middle voice part, the bass is higher than the secondary voice part, or the soprano is lower than the middle voice part."
"..."
Is this the Xian Yu who wrote "Life Like A Summer Flower"?
Faced with this somewhat strange scene, the atmosphere in the composition department suddenly turned weird.
Then, everyone suddenly felt both "inferior" and "proud", two completely different conflicting feelings, simultaneously.