Huayu 1995

Chapter 312 Meeting the Enemy (Seeking Monthly Tickets at the End of the Month)

From the moment Su Chao approached the red carpet to the moment he showed his pass and entered, most of the media didn't have time to take pictures.

But there are also lucky ones.

Ling Xian is a third-rate tabloid reporter. With the various reforms of state-owned enterprises, local newspapers like theirs are facing the predicament of not being able to pay salaries.

Their editor-in-chief did have some guts; he created a small section in the daily newspaper to publish some entertainment news and updates, hoping to increase newspaper sales.

In the beginning, it was just reposted from other places.

After tasting the benefits, they became unwilling to publish such secondhand news. Fortunately, a few newly hired college graduates were full of enthusiasm, so they were sent out to collect news materials.

Ling Xian is one of them.

Carrying heavy equipment, taking slow trains, sleeping in cheap hotels, and working from dawn till dusk, they would stake out every corner where news might break.

Unfortunately, news isn't so easy to get.

For example, on today's red carpet, only legitimate media outlets are allowed to enter; they need to have entertainment news-related editing and reporting licenses.

Ling Xian and his group didn't have a permit, so they could only wait on the outskirts.

Ling Xian didn't manage to take any decent photos all day, so he gave up and just randomly snapped some pictures with his camera.

He inadvertently noticed a skateboarding teenager rapidly approaching, so he adjusted the focus and snapped two photos.

Because he had bought all of Su Chao's albums and even used the posters as wallpaper on the walls of his dormitory, seeing him every day, he immediately recognized the person approaching as Su Chao.

Before his brain could even issue a command, his hands started clicking uncontrollably.

From approaching, to stopping, and then going inside.

Capture the entire process!

Damn, that's enough for a TV news segment.

Unused photos can be sold to paparazzi in Hong Kong, who offer higher prices.

Hong Kong paparazzi don't usually accept material from ordinary people, but material about Su Chao commands extremely high prices there, even more valuable than material about Mao Amin or Chen Hong.

Su Chao didn't bother with makeup or anything. He carried his skateboard in one hand and walked in with the other, asking in the waiting area what number it was.

They discovered that he was next.

The red carpet queue numbers can't be accurate to the second because some people get nervous and leave before they've had enough time on the red carpet.

We can't leave it empty; we have to make arrangements for it.

These days, there aren't that many shameless people who refuse to leave the red carpet.

Traffic was particularly bad today. Two people ahead of us were stuck in traffic and couldn't get here, so we had to postpone our plans.

As for whether they will be allowed to leave later, that's hard to say.

"Okay, I'll go up then!"

Su Chao nodded to the other artists who had arrived behind him and swaggered upstairs.

"Hey~ your hairstyle!"

The person in charge of the perimeter was an older woman who would occasionally check people's appearance and attire.

"My girlfriend caught him!"

Su Chao waved his hand, and after confirming that the red carpet had been cleared, he walked and greeted his fans.

He has quite a few fans.

There were many fans on both sides of the railing, in groups, including Sun Yue's and Liu Huan's, but none of them were as large as Su Chao's.

Moreover, because there wasn't enough room to stand and they couldn't get the best view, they split into several groups.

This demonstrates Su Chao's current strength in Gotham.

Singers are already very easy to become famous; a single song with high popularity can create a second- or third-tier, or even a first-tier, singer.

These days, endorsements aren't that common; commercial performances are the most common way to monetize.

The singer performs and earns money everywhere.

Secondly, there are TV drama actors; once they become famous, they can take on advertising roles.

Being a movie actor is the hardest job. The current film market isn't doing so well. Even though Xia Yu acted in "In the Heat of the Sun," not many people know his name.

Although today's event is a music awards ceremony, we still invited some actors who have sung songs to attend.

Shanghai is one of the four municipalities directly under the central government, and it's incredibly wealthy. Shanghai's Oriental TV station is favored by many advertisers, and many celebrities give it their face when events are held here.

On the red carpet, Su Chao was constantly asked by fans and media to stop and take photos.

His appearance... is a bit hard to describe.

With one hand in his pocket and the other holding a skateboard, his hair was a little messy, and he was wearing a tracksuit, looking like a high school student who had just finished school.

It seemed out of place with today's grand red carpet event in Shanghai.

But... it felt so damn good.

Just like today, whether it's Mao Amin or Liu Huan who came, no matter how elaborately they dressed up, they were all just supporting actors for Su Chao.

Yes, there's a sense of disdain and arrogance about it, as if it's not bound by rules.

Yet he smiled so warmly and harmlessly, like a husky that had just wrecked the house.

"Su Chao, can I get an autograph?"

Outside the railing, some fans cried out in excitement.

They unfurled a huge banner that read, “Su Chao, ‘The One I Love’, you are our ‘Faith’.”

"The One I Love" is a Wahaha advertising song, which Su Chao included in his new album.

The advertisement is extremely popular.

Along with the Mentos ad, it became one of the two most catchy ads during the Spring Festival of 1996.

Su Chao stopped, took the pen, and quickly began signing.

Thanks to the massive workload of signing tens of thousands of albums recently, he can now sign autographs as fast as if he's being electrocuted.

"Su Chao, your outfit is so unique today, and your skateboard looks great too."

Through the lens of fans' biases, even if Su Chao rode a bicycle, he would still be seen as a prince on a white horse.

"Thank you~"

Su Chao originally wanted to give the skateboard to a fan, but there were too many fans and there was only one skateboard, so he suppressed his intention to avoid causing any disputes.

After spending some time signing autographs for fans, Su Chao quickened his pace and soon arrived at the autograph wall, where quite a few autographs had already been signed.

Celebrity autographs are as effective as prescriptions written by experienced doctors.

That's utter nonsense.

Su Chao's signings were equally impressive; no one could tell whether he signed "Su Chao," "Su Debiao," "Sangbiao," or "Big Dog"...

They treated him like royalty and gave him plenty of time, so Su Chao was bound to be interviewed by major media outlets from all over the country.

Professional entertainment media outlets also operate in this field, some even originating from Hong Kong and Taiwan.

"Su Chao, are you confident about winning the award today?" This was a rather pointed question right off the bat. If you said you weren't confident, people would accuse you of being dishonest; if you said you were confident, people would accuse you of rigging the game.

"Whether I win an award or not, I'm happy today."

Su Chao misrepresented the concept, replacing confidence with happiness.

"why?"

"It was my first time attending such an awards ceremony, and it was a wonderful experience, especially with so many fans and media friends who love me here."

Su Chao arbitrarily assumed that the media also liked him.

Why did you come on a skateboard today?

There is reason to suspect that Su Chao deliberately acted so flamboyantly; these days, some people will do anything for publicity.

It's all because of the bad influence from Hong Kong and Taiwan.

"Skateboards... aren't they a form of transportation too?"

Su Chao casually remarked.

"Chao Zai, you went to Hong Kong a while ago and attended Lam Kin-yue's party. Didn't you two have any disagreements because of Joey Wong?"

You don't even need to listen carefully to the tone of voice to know that this must be Hong Kong media.

As the popularity of Su Chao and the princess fades, Hong Kong media are now starting to link him with Joey Wong.

Wang Zuxian alone isn't exciting enough.

Thus, Lin Jianyue was added, forming a stable love triangle.

At first, it was said that Su Chao interfered in Lin Jianyue and Wang Zuxian's relationship, stealing their love.

Later, Su Chao attended Lin Jianyue's party, and the two had a very pleasant conversation.

That should clear my name, right?
That would be a gross underestimation of the Hong Kong media.

They no longer say that Su Chao interfered in Lin Jianyue and Wang Zuxian's relationship.

Yes, Su Chao joined them.

That was incredibly vulgar!
"Mr. Lin is a very good friend. We had a very pleasant chat when we first met."

Su Chao gave a standard, conventional answer.

He did not clarify that he was not familiar with Wang Zuxian, nor with Lin Jianyue.

These damn Hong Kong media outlets don't care what he says at all.

Say whatever you want, I'll write whatever I want.

"What did you talk about?"

Hong Kong media have no sense of propriety; they pushed aside other media outlets and grabbed the best interview positions.

"We talked about charity work, investing in a movie, and then about things related to Hong Kong and the mainland. It was just casual conversation. Mr. Lin is a very easy-going person."

Su Chao's statement was half true and half false.

Talking about things between Hong Kong and the mainland—is that something he should be talking about?

But that's what he said.

Actually, no one thought anything was wrong.

Now there are no signs saying "Don't talk about state affairs" hanging in teahouses, so you can say whatever you want in private.

"Su Chao, your album is number one in sales. What do you think the level of other singers from the same period is?"

Finally, someone asked something serious.

"I'm just a new singer who's lucky enough to win everyone's favor. I can't say I'm qualified to comment on the level of other senior singers."

Su Chao wasn't fooled at all.

"You've sold so many great songs, why don't you keep them all and sing them yourself?"

Other singer-songwriters also sell songs, but most of them don't sell good songs. Selling songs only brings in a few dollars. But if you release your own album and it becomes a hit, you can earn millions.

"Some songs aren't really suitable for me to sing. When I sell songs, I only consider whether they suit me or not..."

Su Chao can't possibly release ten albums in a year.

That would be absolutely outrageous.

He didn't leave others a way out, fearing they might shoot him from behind.

These days... those who know, know.

"Will your next album include songs similar to 'Too Softhearted'?"

What makes Su Chao so formidable is not that the title track of his album is particularly good, but that all the songs on the album are excellent.

If he could mass-produce "Too Softhearted," then no one else in the music scene would have a chance.

"That depends on inspiration..."

Su Chao was speechless. A song of "Too Softhearted" might not be produced even once every few decades.

If you count on your fingers, you probably can't even come up with ten.

In any case, Su Chao couldn't think of any songs that could compare to "Too Softhearted" in the short term.

The following questions are also not in much suspense.

Although the media may raise some pointed questions, there really wasn't anything that could embarrass Su Chao.

After all, Hong Kong and Taiwanese media have to consider whether they will be defeated when playing away from home.

Because of Su Chao's numerous donations, and because they were being pressured to report on him freely, mainland media outlets showed him some leniency, and none dared to write about Su Chao in a negative light for the sake of the news.

Su Chao quickly entered the scene.

Then, he met a large number of mainland singers.

There aren't many music award ceremonies these days, and the Oriental Billboard Music Awards, which is now in its third year, is one of the first.

Everyone who can come will come.

Su Chao ran into Zheng Jun as soon as he entered.

It's quite embarrassing.

Zheng Jun was previously a contracted singer with Red Star Production Company, but he has now left Red Star Production Company through a lawsuit and officially signed with PolyGram.

Su Chao is now one of the owners of the Red Star Production Company.

This matter was not made public.

However, Zheng Jun had many acquaintances who were still at the Red Star Production Cooperative, so it wasn't difficult for them to know this.

Therefore, the two have a very direct conflict of interest.

Enemies meeting... their eyes are filled with intense hatred.

(End of this chapter)