1978: Female educated youth, don’t want an illiterate husband

Liu Qinlong shook Cheng Xuemin's hand with the same warmth he would show an old comrade-in-arms.

He then turned and greeted Gong Xue, Zhu Lin, and Li Lianjie one by one before finally leading everyone into the car and heading back to the factory.

"I've long heard that Comrade Xuemin is not only a good writer, but also a very talented songwriter. I really didn't expect that you could not only write screenplays, but also direct movies, and even direct them in Bolin. Amazing!"

"Director Liu, you flatter me. Actually... it's all the same, just something I wrote and filmed as best I could!" Cheng Xuemin nodded repeatedly, originally intending to address the other party as General Manager Liu!

But in this day and age, you can't just call someone "General Manager" or "General Manager" like that! Not just any guy can be called "General Manager" or "General Manager"!

So it's perfectly fine to call him Factory Director Liu, just like the other people in his factory.

"Comrade Xuemin, you're too modest! If you were just making do, would you have made it to Bolin?" Liu Qinlong waved his hands repeatedly, saying with a hint of flattery, "Anyway, the fact that the country selected Comrade Xuemin to go to Bolin means that the film you made is the best in our country!"

They gave Cheng Xuemin a thumbs up!

"No, no, Director Liu, it's fine for us to talk about this in private. If this gets out, what will our old colleagues at Yanying Film Studio and other big film studios think?"

Cheng Xuemin waved his hands repeatedly and then said, "I really have to thank the country for its attention and support for enabling me to go to Bolin this time!"

After chatting for a while, the car drove straight into their Pacific Audio-Visual Manufacturing Plant!

Liu Qinlong originally intended to arrange for Cheng Xuemin to rest at the guesthouse first, but Cheng Xuemin and his group were in a hurry. After a quick tidy-up, they had Liu Qinlong give them a brief tour of the factory.

"Comrade Xuemin, our entire factory has been looking forward to having you here for many days!"

"The recording studio is ready, and the accompaniment is all from veteran musicians from the provincial song and dance troupe, so it won't delay anything!"

Cheng Xuemin smiled and nodded, his gaze sweeping across the factory area.

The red brick buildings didn't look new, but the "Pacific Sound and Image Manufacturing Plant" sign hanging at the entrance was polished to a shine.

There were several boxes of newly packaged cassette tapes piled up in the courtyard, with the words "Collection of Red Songs" printed on them, indicating that this was a place where serious work was being done.

Upon entering the recording studio, Liu Qinlong handed over a song list.

Cheng Xuemin took it and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. Seven or eight songs were listed densely on it:

"The Bloodstained Glory", "Night at the Military Port", "Sending Off Comrades", "Dream Camel Bells", "Loess Plateau"...

This is an attempt to wipe them all out; they're all his previous works.

"Director Liu, you guys are really well-informed!" Cheng Xuemin smiled, pointing at the song list, and then said, "But we still need to add a few more songs."

Since the goal was to capture them all in one fell swoop, Cheng Xuemin didn't hold back and simply let them all go.

He immediately added, "The ending theme song of 'Tai Chi,' 'Who is the Hero,' as well as two English songs, 'My Heart Will Go On' and 'Yesterday Once More,' should also be recorded!"

"That's great!" Liu Qinlong was overjoyed upon hearing this. Originally, a cassette album should have at least ten new songs, right?
But when they tried to collect Cheng Xuemin's new songs, they couldn't gather enough!
I was just thinking of waiting for Cheng Xuemin to come over so I could hear his suggestions on whether we could add two classic old songs.

However, with Cheng Xuemin's personal addition, the relationship couldn't be better.

Cheng Xuemin smiled, then continued adding the new songs to his notebook, explaining as he did so:
"Who Will Be the Hero?" is the ending theme song of Tai Chi. Tai Chi performed quite well at the Bolin Film Festival this time, and the public should like to listen to it!

"Really? Then could we promote the ending theme song of Tai Chi, which would also be a good way to generate buzz for Tai Chi's release in China?!"

As expected of the first person in China to work in the field of pop music, Liu Qinlong's mind worked quickly after hearing what Cheng Xuemin said, and he immediately came up with a sales gimmick.

"Then I must thank Director Liu!" Cheng Xuemin said casually with a smile.

"No, no, Comrade Xuemin, you're too kind. This is what we should do! It's mutually beneficial, right?" Liu Qinlong's tone was different from that of Wang Yang, the former director of Yan Film Studio, and Xu Sangchu, the former director of Shanghai Film Studio.

Perhaps due to environmental factors, such as its proximity to Hong Kong and the fact that it took over the first pop music cassette tape manufacturing plant in China.

Therefore, his words carried a somewhat mercenary tone.

But thinking about it, it's not a big deal. If he didn't have a bit of a shrewd business sense, Pacific Film Company wouldn't have taken off so quickly in just a few years under Liu Qinlong's leadership.

Cheng Xuemin smiled and added, "This foreign language song, 'My Heart Will Go On,' has already been released and charted in North America, and it's doing quite well!"

"In addition, this song 'Yesterday Once More' has not yet been released in North America, so I hope that Director Liu will not sell it in Hong Kong for the time being!"

"By the way, what were the days and dates again?"

Cheng Xuemin asked another question casually.

"I remember now, it was reported in the newspaper before, right? Look, we even missed it!"

"It's probably because we couldn't get the original lyrics and song, and we don't understand that foreign language, so we missed it!"

"But Comrade Xuemin, you said Yesterday Once More hasn't been released in North America yet? Should we hold off on adding it for now? We already have enough new songs anyway!"

"After the next North American release, shall we release another new version of the tape?"

Liu Qinlong said this not because he was afraid of releasing the song in Hong Kong ahead of schedule and ruining its North American release.

In fact, the cassette tapes they produced had virtually no market in Hong Kong.

They don't even bother with piracy; there's no need for them to release in Hong Kong. They're just afraid that if a small number of pirated copies were to go to Hong Kong, it would ruin their North American premiere.

"Alright!" Cheng Xuemin thought for a moment and then nodded.

The recording studio immediately sprang into action. The musicians whispered among themselves while holding the new sheet music. Gong Xue sat on a chair nearby, clutching the lyric book in her hand, her fingertips turning white with nervousness.

Cheng Xuemin saw this, walked over, patted her on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "Don't be nervous. Just relax, just like when you sing in the cultural troupe."

Gong Xue nodded, took a deep breath, and waited for the musicians to finish tuning their instruments before walking into the recording studio.

The first song she recorded was "Night at the Military Port." Her voice was naturally sweet and gentle, and with the melodious accordion accompaniment, it immediately transported the listener to the tranquil night scene of the military port.

Even Liu Qinlong, standing outside the recording studio, couldn't help but nod in approval and praise.

Cheng Xuemin was also busy. When it was time for "The Bloodstained Glory", he went into the recording studio to sing a duet with Gong Xue.

His voice wasn't particularly outstanding, but it was steady and powerful, which contrasted with Gong Xue's gentleness.

When the song reached the line "Maybe I will fall and never rise again, do you understand, do you comprehend," even the musicians next to him had tears in their eyes.

Zhu Lin, who was watching from outside, was itching to try. When Cheng Xuemin came out, she grabbed his arm and whispered, "Xuemin, I also want to try. Can I sing a duet with Gong Xue?"

Cheng Xuemin glanced at Liu Qinlong, who quickly nodded and said, "Of course!"

"Comrade Zhu has a bright voice. It will definitely sound great when she sings with Comrade Gong!" So two more duet songs were added, "Meeting at the Aobao" and "Azalea". Although Zhu Lin has not received professional training, she has the advantage of full emotion.

Their duet with Gong Xue had a unique flavor.

The atmosphere in the recording studio grew increasingly lively, with even the usually serious musicians clapping along.

Only Li Lianjie was anxiously scratching her head.

He couldn't sing or play any instruments, so he could only sit on a small stool in the corner, watching Cheng Xuemin and the others shine in the recording studio, occasionally peeking out to ask Liu Qinlong:

"Factory manager, can I go in and shout a few words? No need to record it, just try it out!"

Liu Qinlong was amused by him and said:

"After we finish recording, I'll give you a few minutes so you can sing 'Who is the Hero' with Comrade Xuemin, but it can't be included in the official tape!"

Li Lianjie then sat back down happily, holding the lyric book in her hand, and hummed along to the melody inside.

The bald man moved rhythmically, just like a primary school student attentively listening to a lesson.

The recording studio lights never went out, from the afternoon until the early hours of the next day.

The musicians changed twice, and Cheng Xuemin and Gong Xue drank several cups of herbal tea, but no one complained of being tired.

After all, it's a new song being recorded, and it's a song written by an author like Cheng Xuemin who "brings his own popularity," so everyone wants to do a good job.

When it came time to record "The Loess Plateau", Cheng Xuemin looked miserable!

This song is way too upbeat, it doesn't suit his personality at all. If he were to sing it, he would probably embarrass himself in front of the whole nation.

And the original singer seems to be a woman named Li Na!
Therefore, let Zhu Lin perform; let Zhu Lin record this song, "Loess Plateau".

This took a lot of effort, because Zhu Lin hadn't sung this song, "Loess Plateau," much at first, and had to learn it on the spot.

Moreover, it was a solo performance, and without Gong Xue or Cheng Xuemin leading the way, Zhu Lin seemed very nervous, which made it take her quite a while.

The last song recorded was "My Heart Will Go On," which Gong Xue also had to learn on the spot, so it was quite difficult.

However, since they were all doing it simultaneously, the timing was manageable and didn't take up too much time.

"It's a hit! This cassette tape is definitely going to be a sensation!"

He eagerly put the newly recorded demo tape into the player:

The drumbeats of "Who Will Be the Hero" started first, followed by Gong Xue's clear singing voice, and then Cheng Xuemin's deep chorus. One song after another, ten songs in total, and it was almost dawn.

"There are twelve songs in total: five choral songs, four solo songs sung by Comrade Gong, two solo songs sung by Comrade Xuemin, and one solo song sung by Comrade Zhu."

Holding the playlist, Liu Qinlong became more and more excited as he spoke, "I'll arrange for the cover design right now. The cover will feature the gimmick of the ending theme song of 'Tai Chi' and print 'A work returning from the Bolin Film Festival.' I guarantee it will be a bestseller!"

Cheng Xuemin rubbed his sore throat, looked at Gong Xue and Zhu Lin who still had the energy to joke with each other, and then glanced at Li Lianjie who was squatting on the ground fiddling with the cassette tape. He was really tired!
Seeing that everyone had finished their work, Li Lianjie quickly came over, tugged at Cheng Xuemin's sleeve, and said:
"Brother Cheng, Director Liu just said he wanted me to sing 'Who is the Hero' with you, you can't go back on your word!"

"Damn it, why didn't you say so earlier! I'd let you sing solo!" Cheng Xuemin was truly speechless. Recording songs was such a tiring job, he was only going to do it this once, and never again.

"Huh? So, Brother Cheng, can you still sing now?"

Seeing that Li Lianjie really wanted to have some fun, Cheng Xuemin could only look at Liu Qinlong beside him with questioning eyes and said, "Director Liu, how about we let this young comrade have some fun and record a solo recording for him!"

"That way we can take them back and use them to promote Tai Chi!"

Let this kid sing a solo. When he goes on tour to promote his songs, just play his original version of "Who is the Hero?". That should be quite effective.

"Yes, yes!"

Why would Liu Qinlong refuse? These guys were practically cash cows for their cassette tape factory!

With the unreleased Tai Chi film as a gimmick, it would be hard for it not to become a huge hit.

So they will definitely cooperate fully and arrange things immediately whenever they are asked.

As dawn broke, the group walked out of the recording studio.

Liu Qinlong handed the sample tape to Cheng Xuemin and said, "Take this box first. The official version will be printed in three days. If you are in a hurry, Comrade Xuemin, I will have someone send it to you in Yanjing."

"By the way, don't worry about the royalties. Although there's no copyright sharing now, we'll calculate it for you at the highest rate: fifty yuan per song, so ten songs would be five hundred yuan. We'll also send you, Comrade Gong, and Comrade Zhu each one hundred cassette tapes as a token of our gratitude!"

Five hundred dollars is no small sum these days; it's more than half a year's salary for an average worker. Adding a hundred cassette tapes to that, it's quite a generous amount.

He had originally prepared himself to be taken advantage of for free.

Cheng Xuemin took the sample tape, smiled and nodded, saying, "Then thank you, Director Liu. We'll accept it without further ado!"

"If I have any new songs to record in the future, I'll come to your factory again."

After Cheng Xuemin and his group rested in Guangzhou for a day, Hu Jian and Huang Jianzhong, who had arrived in Yanjing last night, also went to their respective units early in the morning to report for duty!
"Old Hu, you're back! You must have had a tough trip to Bolin!"

Ding Daming from China Film Group had just received a phone call that morning and was about to go find Hu Jian when he saw Hu Jian already in his office. He quickly greeted him and asked:
"By the way, Lao Hu, what's the specifics of the Bolin Film Festival this time? The ministry just called, saying they heard you guys got back last night, so we'll have to go over there together to give you a report later!"

"Old Hu, tell me the important things first, so that I can have a good answer when the old leaders ask later!"

Ding Daming proactively poured Hu Jian a cup of hot tea and handed it over, adding that...

"President Ding, since you're not asking about it, I was just about to report to you on my work!" Hu Jian's expression was already quite solemn, after all, the trip to Bolin had been fruitless, which made China Film's cultural export work within the ministry look rather unsatisfactory.

He then carefully took the teacup, placed it gently on the table, and took out a document from his bag, saying, "Mr. Ding, this is it. I worked through the night to compile this material!"

"Please take a look and check it first. If you have any questions, please point them out so I can explain it in more detail!"

As expected of a veteran comrade, he has already prepared the summary materials.

"Okay! Lao Hu, please sit down first. Don't feel too pressured. After all, this is our first time. Just think of it as going out to broaden our horizons!"

Ding Daming had already foreseen that the trip to Bolin would not go very well, but the veteran comrade still needed to be reassured.

After saying a few words with a smile, he took the materials and began to look through them.

He looked very carefully, because when he went to the department later, his old boss would ask about the specific details. As the general manager in charge of this area, it would be embarrassing if he was asked questions that left him completely clueless!
……

Haha! It's Qixi Festival (Chinese Valentine's Day) tonight, and Little Fatty Mom is still updating! Surprised? Aren't you going to give her some monthly votes to cheer her up? (End of Chapter)