Lin Chu, who is studying at the University of Science and Technology, occasionally thinks of that summer, the 57 Degrees Band of Shanhai No. 1 Middle School, a student band that was neither professional nor entertaining but was put together on the spur of the moment by a young and energetic new music teacher.
The performance was simple, and the motivation was pure. There was no inspiring, grand and soul-stirring counterattack by a student band as in American movies. They just randomly gathered four people together just to put on a simple student performance in that simple auditorium, with a backdrop made of red silk and colored paper, and everyone's face painted with bright red makeup.
Perhaps the memories sound brilliant and splendid, but the reality is that it was just a common and simple scene in that era. If you are not in it, it is difficult to understand the warm atmosphere.
The lengthy preparations for the art festival performances during those two years were nothing short of unorthodox. For a music teacher who had just graduated from a music college and was intent on cultivating music talent in high school, it seemed like he was looking for fish in a tree no matter how you looked at it.
But this teacher was still very persistent and insisted on recruiting a group of students with no talent. In fact, it was proved that the teacher did not have much talent for musical education, so after many rehearsals, their band just barely passed the performance, and only won applause because of Cheng Ran's protruding part and the unconventional style of the song he sang.
The overall coordination can only be described as enough effort, but the talent is still limited. It is probably too "plain" in the eyes of the female teacher Qin Xizhen at that time.
Just like an outstanding painter looking at a lifeless and mediocre work, she cannot be said to be angry to death, but can only say that this group of students must be a gift from God to her, making her understand that God has treated her well and given her enough talent.
The beautiful teacher Xiao Qin at that time, now the queen Qin Xizhen, must have really put herself in a difficult position in order to force these ducks to get on the shelf, or to give birth to their musical cells.
But for Lin Chu, it was one of the most bizarre experiences in his life.
After that, he, Fu Xiao, and Zhang Qi would often get together after Qin Xizhen and Cheng Ran left one after another, even though they went to different cities to attend college. Every year when they returned to Shanhai for vacation, no matter how busy they were, they would always make time for the three of them to get together, even if it was just to chat in a small shop, or listen to music at someone's house, or talk about Qin Xizhen's latest single. They never talked about the past, but only focused on their current life.
But even in the school where the three of them were studying, not even their closest classmates and roommates had ever heard them talk about this past.
The former "little fat boy" Fu Xiao has now become a tall and handsome young man. He used to be the drummer of the band 57 Degrees. He occasionally hears his college classmates discussing how Qin Xizhen, a singer, was not influenced by capital and defeated capital to create her own music platform. Hearing those discussions talk about Qin Xizhen's world top ten outstanding young people, world outstanding Chinese awards, and how awesome she was when she won the World Music Award for the highest sales in Asia...
I also heard some gossip about Qin Xizhen. The cultural export of Qin Xizhen has been given more attention by the country. Some people say that she is a phenomenal singer in China, and she serves as a bridge between Asia and Europe and the United States. She has also been given many official titles, such as ambassador, vice-chairman of the Popular Music Society of the China Music Association, member of the Arts Federation... and even in the most recent national visit, she sang as a cultural ambassador as a member of the delegation.
Zhang Qi, who used to be the bassist of the band 57 Degrees, has heard so many stories about Qin Xizhen from his roommates that they are already familiar with her. In addition, people in the circle who like her are ranked by seniority. Many people judge their honor by how early they heard her songs. The earlier they heard her songs, the more senior they are. They are so proud of it. Some even show off their unique taste by knowing that her works are not popular, but are rarely spread folk music.
Some of them became close friends or argued over different or similar opinions, and even quarreled over which song represented the pinnacle of a certain style. And every time someone interrupted her and asked, "Zhang Qi, do you know that Qin Xizhen's golden range was not much better than that of Whitney, the queen of bel canto, at her peak?"
Or you can educate her that "the reason why she is called the versatile little queen of the Chinese is that a singer can basically no longer adapt to other vocal ranges after focusing on a certain vocal range and direction in his or her singing career, but can switch freely and without hindrance. This is no longer called a textbook because others can't learn it at all!"
She would nod quietly, "That's amazing."
However, it is often because the other party's strong desire to show off and talk is met with such a bland response that makes her lose interest in him, and she can only look for other like-minded people to talk about.
The three of them felt satisfied and proud as they watched the people around them talking about the person they once knew.
But the three of them couldn't help feeling a little regretful. In the end, none of them followed the path that Qin Xizhen had expected.
Fu Xiao studied languages, Zhang Qi studied management, and Lin Chu studied architecture. They never picked up the instruments they used to play again.
Lin Chu smiled and shook his head, thinking that he might have failed Qin Xizhen. But just like the news from Cheng Ran from HKUST, they might not have been able to embark on the path of music, but they still learned something from Qin Xizhen.
Even if the outside world is a swamp and quagmire, you must stand firm.
…
People always have a lot to talk about Qin Xizhen. After all, it is not uncommon for a best-selling singer to be known for one or two popular songs. But for Qin Xizhen, there are too many "special things".
For example, she has been fighting against song thieves since the first moment she appeared in the world, and her rise is also a history of conquering the charts that seems exciting to others. She comes from a musical family, but she is not like the stereotype. It seems that her master father has never interfered too much in her practice of music, nor has he paved the way for her or pre-set her life. Her growth depends entirely on her own search and love for the path of music.
For example, her friendship and mutual appreciation with the star teacher Mr. and Mrs. Riggs became a legend, and she was invited to sing and compose the theme song for the game "Final Fantasy 10", which became a hit.
She started as a singer-songwriter and transitioned to a producer and even the president of Tianxing Music. She signed many potential singers, planted the seeds of the record industry, and continued to produce stunning works. At the same time, she is also building the aircraft carrier of Chinese electronic music. Her many legendary qualities have endowed her with cross-dimensional energy.
In fact, Qin Xizhen also talked to Cheng Ran on the phone because he was concerned about the USTC Guoxin incident. He learned that Cheng Ran was actually waiting for their chips to be taped out to accumulate definite evidence. Therefore, the current media ban on this incident is actually reducing the attention and popularity of this incident, which is quite unfavorable to Cheng Ran.
After confirming this, Qin Xizhen decided on her approach.
If this is selfish, then allow yourself to be selfish for once in your life after you get that news.
…
"So, future recordings have to be postponed?... It's not a question of whether the TV station is afraid of offending others... Of course it can be adjusted." Chen Muyi looked up as he was making a corresponding reference to Qin Xizhen's full schedule.
"So you negotiated with TT Telecom in advance? Do you want to disrupt the price alliance with Japan? It's a bit risky, but it's not impossible to give it a try. Or you can do nothing and take a break. After all, you have been very busy recently, and taking care of your health is the first priority. Where do you want to go on vacation? Eat wagyu beef and soak in hot springs in Japan, or go to Cinque Terre. You said last time that you wanted to take some photos of yourself in skirts there. The weather in Italy is good recently..."
Seeing Qin Xizhen shaking his head, Chen Muyi said, "That means we have to go to the United States to record in advance. Well, after working for a while, it's time to settle down. After all, there are master tuners waiting. Then I'll ask Arthur to make some time. He said last time that his new villa in Beverly has a first-class recording studio. The first two people who recorded there were Beyonce and Jay. He said he didn't know if you would be the third one. I've been thinking about the whiskey cellar in his house for a long time..."
"No..." Qin Xizhen still shook his head and said to Chen Muyi, "Please help me book a flight to Nanzhou."
Chen Muyi put down the work board in his hand. His face was a little confused at first, and then his eyes gradually opened as he suddenly realized something, with surprise and shock in their expressions.
…
Unlike what everyone imagines, Cheng Ran's life on the campus of HKUST is not the busiest but even busier. Apart from the fact that HKUST Vice-President Huang Pei came to see Cheng Ran and the Dean of the School of Computer Science and Technology also had a talk with him, HKUST did not take any drastic actions.
Both sides of the incident were at HKUST, but the battlefield was not there, but on those invisible positions, where there were clashes of public opinion, influence, and high-level officials. Even HKUST understands that the one who leads or even judges this war is not HKUST, so the school's inaction is actually a very wise strategy.
Cheng Ran's life at USTC was as normal as usual. He did not miss a single class. He listened to algorithms in Deng Xihua's class and studied brain-burning computational physics in Professor Tu's class. It felt like the lectures were about the history of aviation, but the homework was to build a fighter jet to fight in World War II.
However, the Tianxing Laboratory is still operating as usual, as if it has not been affected by this struggle. The laboratory staff are still carrying out their work in an orderly manner according to the plan. The schedule is progressing step by step, and it seems that the normal operation has not been disturbed by this wave.
In addition to the sudden increase in security, the strict daily registration and screening of external personnel entering the school shows that invisible potential energy is accumulating and brewing inside and outside the campus of HKUST.
Walking across the square at dusk after class that day, Li Wei shook his head and said, "If anyone wants to say that they are doing well in HKUST, they should compare it to what happened to Cheng Ran today. If anyone can make Mr. Zhang from the probability and mathematical statistics class say 'you don't have to hand it in in a hurry' when assigning homework, then he will be considered a successful person."
Although some professors at HKUST are unable to express their opinions directly at the moment, they still use this "special" way to express their opinions.
Shi Jiaxun watched Cheng Ran and his group walking across the square from afar. The two sides were facing each other. Well, Shi Jiaxun also wanted to find him today, but it was not about Guoxin, and it was not something that a deputy director of the Management Committee like him could interfere with. As for the true situation of the incident, although everyone in USTC is cautious in their actions and words and will not draw a conclusion before the truth comes out, whether Cheng Ran was slandered with ulterior motives as some people said, most people who know this young man would have their own judgment, just like some professors showed special care for him and expressed their support for him in their own way.
Everyone knows that the outside world is now suppressed by a huge force. Shi Jiaxun's office heard a sensational statement. What kind of person and what kind of power could make so many media outlets silent? Thinking about it carefully makes one's back cold and shudder.
Today, Shi Jiaxun could not provide any substantial help to Cheng Ran, nor could he comfort him. Only he knew that such behavior was redundant in front of the young man at this time, so he came to discuss with him just as a daily activity in the class, just talking about ordinary things, not involving the country. Shi Jiaxun could see his state from these ordinary things, or give him a different kind of comfort, as if life was still going on as usual, and there was no need to stop singing because of the disturbances and waves in the outside world.
A car drove up the main road ahead and stopped beside Cheng Ran. It was in the afterglow of the setting sun. The car door opened and a woman got out.
After seeing the newcomer, several people around Cheng Ran were petrified.
In the square over there, many people stopped and looked at the focus that might most likely stir up external anger.
Shi Jiaxun stopped there. He didn't have any thoughts at the moment. He just thought about the time when he had his wife bribe the wife of the head of the academy successfully for a concert ticket, which caused Shi Jiaxun to receive many favors.
Judging from the commotion in the square at this moment, it was probably not that he was seeing things.
Although we should respond to adversity in life with songs.
But this song is a little too intense.