Huayu: Were you ever a top star before writing nonsense?

Chapter 175 Is he also a variety show genius?

Shen Can didn't pay much attention to online opinions and song reviews, and devoted himself wholeheartedly to the production of "The Ordinary Road".

The song "A Century in the Human World" was an unexpected surprise for him.

If it weren't for the provocations of anti-China intellectuals, he wouldn't have released this song ahead of schedule.

But he also knew that the struggle would be protracted.

The broader social environment cannot be easily changed by one person alone.

A long way to go.

He is now essentially sitting at the same table as anti-China public intellectuals, colonialists, and the foreign forces behind them, and this game could last for 10, 15 years, or even longer.

But it doesn't matter, Shen Can has personally witnessed the fate of those anti-China public intellectuals and colonizers.

For example, Wang Yi and He Shanshuo embarked on a path of no return in pursuit of their ideal Western paradise, unknowingly being processed by the Western social system into "traffic products" that could be used and discarded at will.

In the end, they really went to "heaven," tearing apart the Western "Garden of Eden" that public intellectuals had been "painstakingly weaving" for many years with their own lives.

"Death is inevitable for all men," but their deaths are "lighter than a feather."

They are of no use other than bringing amusement and warnings to the Chinese people.

As night falls, the lights are on.

Shen Can was busy until 6 p.m., which is the normal time for most office workers in Shanghai to get off work.

The evening rush hour has begun in Shanghai.

To avoid traffic jams on the way back, Shen Canwan declined Xu Xinran's suggestion to stay overnight at her house.

I don't even need to think to know what my senior sister is planning to do.

However, Shen Can likes to take the subway. On the one hand, it saves energy, and on the other hand, it allows him to observe all kinds of people and accumulate material for his novel.

It's not that he's incapable, you guys believe me!

He also invited Zhao Ji and Li Jinming to have hot pot together.

It is worth mentioning that after several days of hard work, the songs for "Underwater" and "The Ordinary Road" have been completed, and only the music videos remain.

The filming of the music video has also been scheduled and is expected to be completed over two days, on the 16th and 17th.

"Underwater" is a story-driven music video, so it's a bit more complicated.

However, the filming locations were mostly on campus and around Shanghai, and the costumes were modern, making it much simpler than the music video for "Lanting Xu".

As for the music video for "The Ordinary Road," it's even simpler, since it's not plot-driven.

"The subway is crowded too." Inside the subway station, Shen Can watched people scrambling to squeeze into the carriages—to be honest, he was a little scared.

He simply waited for the next train.

"Once I get my driver's license, I'll buy a car. Having a car will be much more convenient," Shen Can thought to himself.

Just then, the phone rang; the ringtone was the climax of the song "Rice Fragrance".

Shen Can picked up his phone and glanced at it; it was a call from Boss Wan.

The call was connected.

"Hello, what are you doing?" Wan Qian's voice came through.

"Waiting for the subway."

"Me too."

"Difficult husband and difficult wife."

"Hmm—did you miss me?"

"Truth or lie?"

"Of course it's the truth."

"I'm not thinking about you when you're not thinking about me."

"So, when I think of you, you're thinking of me?"

"A master!"

"You're so cheesy."

Shen Can:

See? That's women for you. If you agree with her, she'll say you're "cheesy." If you don't, she might say you're "heartless."

This is tricky.

Shen Can and Wan Qian chatted on the phone for a while, and Wan Qian then shifted the topic to work.

"The company attaches great importance to 'Sheng Sheng Man' and has invested heavily in both the song and the music video. However, the boss wants to put together nine more songs to make an album for release."

"Does he want to take another gamble?"

"Yes, he said he wants to use 'Sheng Sheng Man' as the title track, and with your popularity and reputation, let's give it another shot. If we win, we'll make a fortune; if we lose, we'll go bankrupt."

"He's got guts; no wonder he spent millions to create your debut album."

Shen Can thought about it and realized that using "Sheng Sheng Man" as the title song was actually quite a gamble with a high success rate.

Many singers' albums actually only have one or two songs of high quality, while the rest are basically just filler.

It's actually very rare in the music industry for albums like Jay Chou's "I'm Busy" and "Fantasy" to have every song be so powerful.

It's usually considered very lucky if an album has even one hit song.

Sometimes, you think you've got the market trend figured out, but when your work is released, you find that reality is completely different from what you imagined.

Shen Can, as an online novelist, is well-qualified to speak on this point.

I thought this was a sure-fire hit, and I imagined the plot would give me a mental climax, but when the book was released—good grief, 0 favorites, 0 monthly votes, 0 recommendation votes, 0 readers following the story!

Where else besides Chengdu have I seen so many zeros?!

—Chen Duling.

"However, I'm about to start writing the plot of 'Sheng Sheng Man' in my novel. Your company needs to speed things up if you want to produce an album," Shen Can said.

"So fast? Haven't 'Underwater' and 'The Ordinary Road' been released yet?" Wan Qian's tone revealed surprise.

"It's ready."

"I'll talk to the company about it. By the way, guess what nickname our musicians gave you?"

"The most affectionate love in Jiangnan."

"Huh??! No, they say you're a 'bomb maniac,' that every time you release a song it's like you're bombing the music scene with bombs—"

"Music is all about explosions, and explosions are art." Shen Can suddenly thought of a character from a certain anime.

He then asked curiously, "Didn't your company ask you to have me write more songs?"

Wan Qian said, "You're right. The higher-ups in the company all have this idea, but I rejected them on the grounds that 'you and I are just ordinary friends.'"

"Oh—just friends." Shen Can drawled out the last syllable.

"Don't be naughty." Wan Qian laughed a few times and said, "This is what I'm thinking: if I use a few more of your songs, and I become famous, the company might not let me terminate my contract easily—I want to go back to Shanghai and live with you, I don't want to be a struggling artist in Beijing anymore."

"My wife is so smart."

"You're only just finding out?"

Boss Wan no longer objects to calling her "wife".

Shen Can thought to himself, it seems that he has been very successful in desensitizing himself to Boss Wan.

Do you have enough money to live on?

Shen Can changed the subject. He remembered reading in his previous life that Wan Qian had told him about her time as a struggling artist in Beijing. Her album had flopped, and she had to make ends meet with meager income from games and stage acting. Her family didn't support her, and she had a very difficult time.

Many parents believe that once their children graduate and enter the workforce, they will be able to earn money on their own. However, in reality, many graduates find it difficult to find a decent job.

During the period of university expansion, even finding a job became extremely difficult. Ordinary graduates in fields like management and finance often ended up in jobs such as telemarketing, e-commerce customer service, sales, or insurance.

Wan Qian's voice lowered slightly: "I'm a little short on cash, and I have to pay rent again."

Send me your bank card number, and I'll transfer some money to you.

"Um.

""

Hang up on Wan Qian.

Shen Can squeezed onto the subway, thinking about what Wan Qian had said.

"Should I return to Shanghai to develop my career?"

Here comes another multiple-choice question.

A. Give Boss Wan a few songs so she can stay in Beijing.

B. Help her return to Shanghai.

"B."

Shen Can did not hesitate.

Wan Qian's return to Shanghai to develop her career has both advantages and disadvantages.

After returning to Shanghai, she found herself more likely to have relationships with other women.

However, he could also take the opportunity to sign Wan Qian into his studio.

In this way, the studio gained a powerful new member.

I can also take some songs that are suitable for female listeners from the system and have Wan Qian sing them.

"I want to see her shine like a star," Shen Can thought to himself.

It's 9:30 p.m.

After finishing his hotpot, Shen Can sat down in front of his computer.

The novel hadn't been updated yet, so Shen Can unleashed his typing speed.

Unlike some struggling authors who sit in front of their computers for ages only to find out they've only written a few hundred words, he's not like some mediocre writers who spend ages writing nothing.

Are you actually writing or just slacking off? You deserve a good slap on the crotch!

Closer to home.

The plot for today wasn't too difficult, and Shen Can's thoughts were clear. Ten minutes later, he had already written five hundred words.

Jiang Wanning's allure is irresistible, but the harsh reality is also starkly presented to Lin Yu and Jiang Wanning.

Jiang Wanning's previous songs, for which she no longer holds the copyright, cannot be sung; she needs new representative works. Lin Yu, too, needs—

Earn more money.

Although he has released several hit songs, the total copyright income he has accumulated is only about eight million due to the short release period.

He gave most of the money to Jiang Wanning to pay off her debts.

Despite being known as a "Queen of Pop," Jiang Wanning's company actually takes a whopping 80% cut of her earnings. In just two and a half years since becoming famous, she has earned a little over 30 million yuan.

This time, she lost all the money she had earned by paying the compensation for breach of contract for the endorsement deal and the exorbitant penalty for leaving the company. Even with Lin Yu's money included, she still owes about ten million.

This is also a huge debt. For an ordinary person, it would ruin their entire life. Unless they receive some extraordinary good fortune, they would never be able to turn their life around.

Of course, most people don't owe that much.

Fortunately, Lin Yu's works are of high quality, Jiang Wanning has singing skills, fan support, and more importantly, she has top singer-songwriter Lin Yu behind her. It's only a matter of time before she rises again.

That day, a well-known music variety show director called Jiang Wanning.

—Xue Ning.

Lin Yu remembered her—this woman was snow-white.

She and Jiang Wanning are friends. Jiang Wanning became famous after appearing on Xue Ning's music variety show, "The Voice of China".

Xue Ning called to invite Jiang Wanning to appear on the show.

A music challenge reality show called "The Masked Singer".

Xue Ning briefly explained the rules of the program.

"All singers are required to wear masks on stage. While the singers are performing, the judging panel and the audience guess the singers' identities from below the stage, and the scoring is based solely on the singers' singing voices."

After each singer's performance, the results are determined by real-time voting from the live audience. The winner advances to the next episode, the current episode's champion directly advances to the semi-finals, while those who accumulate three first-round losses are eliminated and must leave the show unmasked.

"Sister Xue, your show is very bold and innovative!" Jiang Wanning's eyes lit up.

"Bold" refers to singers wearing masks and competing solely with their voices. If a top-tier singer loses to a third-tier singer and has to reveal their identity, wouldn't that be hilarious?

It goes without saying that it's novel; it's a program that has never appeared on Earth before.

Lin Yu listened to the phone playing the speakerphone and became interested.

Singing while masked?

How novel!

"Isn't it amazing? My husband came up with an incredible idea, and I've been preparing for this show for a full six months!"

"I'll go!"

"But let's get this straight, you know your current situation. Your appearance on the show is risky for the production team, so your appearance fee won't be very high, at most—five million. Is that acceptable to you?"

"Thank you, sister."

"Also, I'd like to get Lin Yu on the show too. Is he next to you? Ask him for me; his appearance fee is four million."

Lin Yu smiled and said, "I'm willing to go too."

After all, he and Jiang Wanning were facing an economic crisis, and having nine million together would be considered good.

More importantly, he has a stage with the potential to become a top music variety show where he can sing.

If he can replicate his success on the "I Am a Singer" stage again, he can not only pay off his debts, but he can even retire on the spot.

Lin Yu really liked one of the sayings.

"The greatest success in life is to live it the way you like."

Next, Jiang Wanning and Xue Ning continued their conversation, mainly about the specific content of the program.

After hanging up the phone, Lin Yu had already come up with a code name for Jiang Wanning in her mind.

Since they can't use their real names when performing on stage while wearing masks, singers need to choose a pseudonym.

The code name Lin Yu gave Jiang Wanning was—【Ruthless Emperor】.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Wanning's face immediately showed astonishment: "Isn't the Ruthless Great Emperor a bit too arrogant?"

In her opinion, this title was utterly arrogant.

Great Emperor, how many emperors in ancient times could be called "Great Emperor"?

Wu Zetian wouldn't even qualify, would she?

Using this code name to step onto the stage, those who didn't know the situation might have thought she was going to unify the music scene.

Although she actually quite liked it.

Confident and domineering!

The moment the code name was revealed, the queen's aura was instantly on full display!

Lin Yu smiled and said, "Don't be afraid, just call yourself Ruthless Emperor. As long as you deserve the title of 'Empress' in the music industry when you finally reveal your true identity, that's enough. You're a diva now, and if you don't get crowned Empress with my help, wouldn't I lose face?" Lin Yu's eyes were full of confidence.

Jiang Wanning nodded.

She already liked the nickname "Ruthless Emperor," and seeing Lin Yu's confidence made her like it even more.

"And what about yourself?" Jiang Wanning asked.

"I want to be the man behind the Ruthless Emperor," Lin Yu said.

Jiang Wanning: ".

What a fast car!

"Let's just call it Earth," Lin Yu said, waving his hand dismissively.

His works originate from Earth; one could say he is the embodiment of Earth's entertainment culture.

He didn't know who created those works, but he knew it must have been a world with a brilliant civilization.

"Let Earth's civilization amaze the entire planet!"

After Shen Can's novel was updated, a flood of reviews poured in: "After reading this chapter, I only remember two words: snow-white! I just want to know, just how white is it?"

"Hahaha, among all the online novel authors I've ever met, Brother Can has the thickest skin. He first had the protagonist say that the female director was 'snow-white,' and then had the female director say that the idea came from her husband and that the idea was amazing—in reality, the idea came from Brother Can himself. How impressive."

"No doubt about it, the female director is definitely older, and absolutely stunning."

"Holy crap! I think the idea for 'The Masked Singer' is amazing! Just imagining it makes me really excited. Has any director taken a liking to it?"

"That's amazing! I checked, and there's no similar program anywhere in the world. Holy crap, it actually appeared in a novel!! How did Shen Can come up with that? I'm in awe!"

"Is Brother Volcano also a variety show genius?!"

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