Huayu 1995

Chapter 137 I'm really broke! (Seeking monthly votes)

Is there another one?
Liu Dehua immediately perked up.

He really likes the song "Chinese People," and it's no exaggeration to say that it was tailor-made for him.

100,000 is definitely worth it!
The lyricists and composers he often collaborates with charge tens of thousands of yuan per project.

If you're looking for a master-level artist, the starting price is HK$100,000, and a single song can cost around HK$100,000 to HK$200,000.

What's more, Su Chao even sent over the arrangement, instrument setup, and demo recording.

However, the pressure brought by this song, and the various possible consequences, directly overshadowed the surprise brought by the quality of the song itself.

Now that he's heard about another song, his hope has been rekindled.

Su Chao reached into his bag and pulled out another cassette tape.

These blank cassette tapes were very cheap on the market, and many people used them to record songs from other people's tapes; they were probably considered early forms of copying.

Su Chao put the tape in and pressed the play button.

This time, the music was finally not as "politically correct" as before.

The intro is very long...

The prelude lasts a full forty or fifty seconds.

If the intro hadn't been so good, Andy Lau would have interrupted.

Whose foreplay is this long?!

"Lin Xin A Hong ging/Qin Qiu Dua Hai A Hong Ying/Wu Xi Bing, Wu Xi Bie/Qin Ai Bing You Diu Xiu Xin..."

what is this?
The three people inside the room were all dumbfounded.

"It seems to be Hokkien..."

Andy Lau and Chan Kin-tim, who frequently visit Taiwan, quickly recognized the accent.

However, hearing something doesn't mean you can understand it.

This damn Hokkien language, I don't understand it, my shoes are useless, I've washed the garlic!

"I didn't expect you to know Hokkien..."

Liu Dehua didn't know how to complain, so he could only express his dissatisfaction in a roundabout way.

Brother, I can't even speak Hokkien. From what angle did you tailor this specifically for me?

It's like having a child with your wife, only to have it turn out to be a boy.

Who taught you Hokkien?

Yan Siyuan was also very curious.

However, he was curious that Su Chao could create works in the Minnan dialect.

This goes beyond just being able to sing.

One needs to reach a certain level of proficiency in language before one can create works.

Previously, Su Chao sang Hokkien with an older Taiwanese man, and Su Chao thought his pronunciation was comparable to that of the older man. He didn't expect his actual level to be so high.

"I used to like a girl, and her dialect was Hokkien..."

Su Chao sighed.

"Crack~"

Yan Siyuan couldn't help but slap him on the back.

Give me a break.

You said we were childhood sweethearts before, do you really think I believed that?

I'm just willing to lend you money.

Now you're spouting nonsense about a girl you like.

You're only eighteen!
Where did this "before" come from?
This is the same principle as four- or five-year-old children constantly talking about their childhood.

However, what Su Chao said was true.

But that was in a past life.

The image of that girl gradually blurred in his memory, but the Hokkien he learned at that time, when he sang Hokkien songs, often amazed the audience.

When the KTV girl is with other people, she forces a smile, but when she's with him, she always pulls his hand and puts it on his stockings.

"The song is indeed a good song, but it could actually be rewritten in Mandarin or Cantonese."

Chen Jiantian made the suggestion.

"No need for trouble. Just find someone who speaks fluent Hokkien and have them make you a Romanized version. Practice with it for a few days."

It's really not troublesome.

Su Chao is the one who's not in trouble; the others are the ones who are.

"Ahem...it's not entirely impossible."

Liu Dehua could barely manage a smile.

You jerk, are you looking down on me?

I don't really believe in those "favorite singers" claims.

“Singing a song like this has at least two advantages for you…” Su Chao held up one finger and said seriously, “First, it’s true that you sang ‘Chinese People,’ but you also released a Hokkien song on the same album, which united the people who should be united and can reduce the resistance against you.”

With a wave of his hand, the principal declared, "The advantage is in my hands!"
The other three could only sit upright and listen attentively to the lesson.

Yeah, how come I didn't think of that?

Liu Dehua's eyes lit up. He had already prepared himself for suppression from that side, so this was a glimmer of hope.

"Is there a second point?"

Yan Siyuan inwardly praised Su Chao, realizing he shouldn't have slapped him just now.

So rude.

"Brother Hua, you're almost thirty-five, aren't you?"

Su Chao didn't say it directly, but instead asked Liu Dehua's age.

"I was born in 1961, and I'll be thirty-five next year."

Liu Dehua nodded.

"You're over thirty and people still call you Andy Lau... Look, Stephen Chow is called Master Chow, and Leung Chiu-wai is called Brother Viagra... Cough cough, doesn't that make you uncomfortable?"

Su Chao knew better than anyone else.

Let alone 35, even if he were 65, Andy Lau still wouldn't have become a "Master Hua".

He is still everyone's Andy Lau. People in their eighties and nineties call him that, people in their thirties and forties call him that, and teenagers still love their Andy Lau.

However, it's just a way to fool people.

This song, composed by Wu Bai, absolutely has to be sold today.

The system didn't offer much of a discount, but buying it for 70,000 yuan and selling it for 100,000 yuan would still be a highly profitable business.

Oh, sorry, I don't have a copy.

It's just money being transferred from one hand to the other, all of which is Liu Dehua's money.

It doesn't matter who writes this song.

Wu Bai's songs can only sell for 500, while mine can sell for 100,000. That's the difference!

I earned 40,000 yuan from "Chinese People" before, 30,000 yuan from this song, and today I made 70,000 yuan just by meeting Andy Lau.

He said his favorite singer is Andy Lau, is there something wrong with that?

"I'm fine, I don't feel uncomfortable."

Andy Lau thought about it very seriously and liked the nickname "Wah Jai" (meaning "Little Wah").

"You're almost thirty-five, don't you need to change your image? Haven't you even thought about it? Now there's an opportunity right in front of you. Don't doubt it, this song was tailor-made for you, Brother Hua, for your transformation..."

Su Chao pressed forward relentlessly.

He's like Ouyang Feng from "Ashes of Time".

Buddy, you look like you're in your early forties. These past forty years...

"This is the money for buying the song!"

Andy Lau even gave the bag to Su Chao.

That's so damn right!

Transformation!

This book, "World's Number One," is of excellent quality and is indeed very suitable for his career transition.

Although there are risks involved in changing careers, artists will inevitably want to break through once they reach a certain level of fame.

The same goes for Andy Lau.

Several years ago, he and his team had been thinking about how to break through.

This time, they were forced into a corner.

He absolutely had to sing "The Chinese," because it was both a matter of principle and emotion, and he was willing to lose a portion of the market for it.

However, if one can avoid losing something, who would want to lose it?

"Here are the lyrics and music; you can take a look at the lyrics."

Su Chao didn't stand on ceremony and put all the money on the table.

Ten thousand, twenty thousand...

On the other side, Andy Lau was looking at the lyrics of the song to see what they were saying.

"Life's scenery / is like the surging winds of the sea / sometimes fierce, sometimes calm... Life's circumstances / even beggars will rise to prominence / don't blame heaven, don't blame fate / whether you accept your fate or not, it's all part of life..."

Although I can't speak Hokkien, I can still understand the lyrics.

This is clearly a very inspiring song.

The lyrics were written with great sincerity, even touching Andy Lau himself.

He is currently at the lowest point in his life.

They owe forty million, holy crap!

However, as the lyrics say, even when you are at your lowest point in life, don't give up easily, because even begging can lead to a better future.

He hasn't fallen so low as to beg for food yet.

Actually, "World's Number One" is one of the three great songs about striving in Hokkien, and it is truly inspiring.

There are five laws in Hokkien songs: women sing about a miserable life, men sing about striving for success, duets are destined to be apart, two men always sing about men's ambitions, and two women always sing about forgetting their unfaithful lovers.

The two songs that Andy Lau received today are both very classic songs.

From Su Chao's perspective as a reborn individual, these two songs are definitely worth more than 10, even 100 million.

They have generated over ten million in wealth for Andy Lau.

However, from Andy Lau's perspective, it's understandable that he was worried about spending 200,000 yuan to buy two songs, both of which carried certain risks.

I felt a little dazed.

I brought it in for 200,000 yuan, and now I don't even have an Adidas bag anymore.

He's now penniless.

Is there anyone worse off than him?
"Brother Hua, have you been filming a movie lately?"

Su Chao carefully put away the 200,000 yuan.

Of the 130,000 yuan in this amount, it all belongs to the system, and Su Chao can only use it for charity.

Including the previous donations, there are hundreds of thousands of yuan in such "charities." He has already asked Yan Siyuan to help contact people from Project Hope, intending to donate the money to build a school.

"Take pictures, you took quite a lot..."

Andy Lau smiled wryly. He owed so much money; how was he going to pay it off if he didn't make movies?

Once you're desperate, you'll have to take any role, and the quality of the film will inevitably suffer, likely disappointing fans.

If it weren't for the creditors pressuring us, we wouldn't be in such a hurry.

He might even have to go and make erotic films.

Quite a few bosses heard that he owed a lot of money and invited him to make erotic films.

"Did you invest it yourself?"

Su Chao was exceptionally skilled at knowing exactly what it meant to bring up something that shouldn't be discussed, or to rub salt into someone's wounds.

"No... I haven't been investing lately."

Andy Lau was about to stop laughing.

“I have a really good script. Are you interested in investing in it? I guarantee you’ll make money. It’s worth investing. You can take a look now.”

Su Chao reached his hand into the bag again.

Liu Dehua couldn't help but shudder.

Brother, I really have no money left!

(End of this chapter)