You're about to retire from the entertainment industry, yet your concerts are still so popular?

Three minutes later, Director Zhou from the performance approval office strode over.

He was in his early forties, and was usually very calm and capable, never showing his emotions.

But when he took the stack of materials, his eyes swept over the lyrics of "Grandma" (a patriotic adaptation), and then saw the eulogy on the last page.

The letter contained only one sentence, written in bold, vigorous strokes that seemed to penetrate the paper:

This is true masculinity, not merely physical strength… but the unwavering devotion of “pure love, solely for China,” and the commitment to “preferring to shed blood rather than lose an inch of our land!”

They became the boundary markers of Kunlun, forever guarding the safety of our land. Today, we commemorate these ten songs and one drama in memory of the heroic martyrs who defended our country and guarded our borders!

[May we, the youth of this generation, inherit this Kunlun spirit, uphold our original aspirations in the ordinary, hear thunder in silence, love our jobs, be dedicated and hardworking, and defend this prosperous China with our youth!]

"A pure love, dedicated solely to China... transformed into the Kunlun boundary marker..."

Director Zhou muttered to himself, his Adam's apple bobbing violently.

"Director, he..." Lin Xiaotang's voice trembled slightly.

She is 26 years old this year and was just promoted to secretary last year. But just five years ago, a senior from her school who was two years ahead of her was among those who died in the Galwan Valley.

She immediately thought of the boy who always loved to read by the window in the library.

Zhou Weikang sighed, picked up the landline, and dialed an internal short number:

"Minister Li, there's something I need you to take a look at in person. I'll be waiting for you at the front desk."

Less than five minutes later, Li Shaojun, a vice-ministerial level leader, pushed open the door and came in.

He was in his early fifties, with gray hair, and usually had a cheerful smile, but at this moment his gaze was drawn to the stack of sheet music that Zhou Weikang was pointing to.

Li Shaojun didn't sit down immediately; he first bent down and carefully examined the song titles on the staff.

Then he picked up the letter with Ye Chen's words attached and stood there reading it silently, word by word.

The office was extremely quiet.

After a long silence, Li Shaojun gently put down the paper, his voice a little hoarse: "Last week, I accompanied the delegation to Kangxiwa."

The Kangxiwa Martyrs' Cemetery is the most solemn place deep in the Karakoram Mountains.

"There was a soldier named Chen Xiangrong who was only nineteen years old when he sacrificed his life. His grave was filled with oranges, one of which had the words 'Pure love, only for China' written on it. When the reporter took a picture of those few words, none of the members of our delegation could hold back their tears."

At this point, Li Shaojun's eyes reddened slightly:

"Look at this lyric: 'They became the boundary markers of Kunlun, forever guarding the mountains and rivers unharmed.' The child who wrote this song must have read those stories as well."

Zhou Weikang took off his glasses and casually touched the corner of his eye:

"Yes, Minister, these songs have very positive themes and resonate strongly with the emotions of our times, especially around the May Fourth Youth Day."

He paused, then continued, "We were initially worried that someone might use the patriotic theme to create a gimmick on stage, so we had to be careful. But Ye Chen's song..."

Li Shaojun nodded: "You're in the approval department, so it's natural that you have to oversee things."

"But this time we have to protect good works. I think these ten songs can be approved and given priority. I'll take responsibility for it."

After he finished speaking, he glanced at Zhou Weikang, then suddenly changed the subject:

"However, Xiao Zhou, there's something I'll have to trouble you with."

Zhou Weikang and Lin Xiaotang suddenly had a bad feeling.

Sure enough, Li Shaojun continued, "You will represent our department to be at the concert four days from now, overseeing the entire event as a kind of on-site investigation. Report to me immediately if there are any unusual occurrences."

Zhou Weikang nodded in confirmation and saw the leader to the door.

really!

Just as Lin Xiaotang was about to breathe a sigh of relief, Director Zhou returned:

"Xiao Lin."

"Here!" Lin Xiaotang's hand trembled in fright.

"Ye Chen, you know her, right? A top-tier singer, she's having a concert on May Fourth." Director Zhou slammed the song list on her desk. "The department has decided to send you to represent our cultural market department and supervise the entire event."

Lin Xiaotang looked down at the playlist, then looked up at her department head, her mouth slowly opening into an "O" shape.

"So you mean... I have to work overtime this May Fourth?!" She was on the verge of tears.

Zhou Weikang raised an eyebrow, mimicking her tone: "What, you won't add it, but I will? Ye Chen's concert tickets are being resold for thousands of yuan each, but the ministry has given you special permission to enter, with the best view throughout the entire show. You're still not happy?"

Lin Xiaotang instantly wilted.

Of course she wasn't happy about it!

On the surface: Free concert, a huge profit.

In reality: After listening, you cannot shout, record, post on social media, or engage in any fan behavior!

Overtime itself is nothing, but Ye Chen is a ruthless person who submitted ten original revolutionary songs on short notice!

She'll have to write a performance report when she gets back, at least three thousand words, and she'll have to think about the title for ages.

Lin Xiaotang looked utterly dejected, her eyes unfocused, and she muttered to herself, "Psychology committee member, I'm not feeling well..."

Zhou Weikang was amused by her and said gently, "The more 'red' something is, the more 'correct' it must be! Minister Li wants to ensure that the subject matter is 'red,' and that it doesn't use 'red' themes for illustrative purposes or to promote personal agendas! There can be no deviation whatsoever!"

"Moreover, the opportunity to leave Beijing is rare, and other comrades have long envied you for going."

"Director, I'll go, I'll go, okay..." Lin Xiaotang replied with a bitter face.

Seeing this, Zhou Weikang turned to leave, but as he reached the door, he suddenly turned back and added meaningfully:

"By the way, Vice Minister Li will also be following this concert. Well written, I'll nominate you for this year's outstanding young cadre recommendation in our department."

Lin Xiaotang: "..."

She watched the director's departing figure, slowly slid into her chair, took out her phone, opened her best friend's chat window, and typed with trembling fingers:

"Help!!! I need to go to Ye Chen's concert!!!"

My best friend replied instantly: "Holy crap! You got his ticket?! What seat?!"

Lin Xiaotang: "...Special supervisory team dispatched by the Ministry of Culture, best viewpoint, private event treatment."

Best friend: "??? You passed the civil service exam just for this?!"

Lin Xiaotang looked up at the sky, tears welling up in her eyes:

"It's for writing a 5,000-word supervisory report."

Outside the window, the sun is shining brightly.

At this moment, Ye Chen was sitting in the Shengtang Entertainment Concert Hall, directing the recording of the accompaniment for the song.

Despite having Ye Chen's sheet music, and the band having a tacit understanding with him for ten years.

Faced with these ten new songs with arrangements never heard of before and styles that were completely different, the veteran band members worked overtime for four days to barely master the performance of these ten songs and one opera.

He also has to coordinate with a children's choir to complete the recording, making him a highly efficient record-keeper in the industry.

Even so, Ye Chen didn't have time to record these songs and could only record the studio version after the concert.

During this time, Jiang Mengting was particularly upset when she learned that Ye Chen insisted on changing to a new song.

Because she doesn't understand music, and the company's music director is supervising a new artist's concert.

With the song registration process completed quickly, she didn't bother asking Ye Chen any further questions.

In her opinion, since Ye Chen was going to retire anyway, she might as well let him enjoy his last days at the company.

Four days passed in the blink of an eye.

The day of Ye Chen's concert finally arrived.