The Book of All Things: Born for Joy

165. A good song can only last three and a half lines.

The popularity of live streaming of Hokkien songs and the record-breaking sales of Du Zihua's new album directly broke the record on the Da Zhou Music Chart.

The authorities have been making every effort to promote and develop local culture, and the success of Hokkien music has given them hope. Now, everyone on Da Zhou's shows knows that with Li Zichun, there are guaranteed ratings, as well as widespread appeal and high quality.

In addition, his previous proposals for Zhang Xiaochuan, Dai Rong and others were very successful after the program was produced and broadcast, becoming a phenomenon and sparking widespread discussion.

If such talented individuals are consistently excluded from the mainstream, then the mainstream will lose its authority.

When Yi Ziqiang appeared at the villa with his officials, Li Zichun finally realized his own importance.

Official invitations are usually sent via email or phone; it's rare for someone to come in person like this. It seems I've truly succeeded. The moment the official invitation was formally announced and the recording and broadcast took place, the whole country erupted in celebration.

Because very few artists under the age of thirty can appear on official S+ programs, these programs, which target Chinese audiences worldwide, primarily invite top talents in their respective fields such as professors, public intellectuals, and scientists. They also use simple jargon that ordinary people can understand, thus limiting the audience. It's unclear what the considerations were behind inviting Li Zichun this time; if things go wrong, he could embarrass himself and potentially ruin his entire career.

The invitation to Li Zichun was also due to recommendations from netizens. After passing the official assessment, he was quickly included in the invitation list.

But what kind of cultural programs can a talented musician create?

Thus, after Yi Ziqiang and Li Zichun discussed and examined each other, a program centered on traditional culture officially began, and Li Zichun returned to the capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty for the third time.

The moment Li Zichun stepped off the plane, a large number of fans had been waiting outside the airport for a long time.

The traditional cultural programs are presented in nine sections, including literature, calligraphy and painting, tea ceremony, drama, and food, to draw more attention to the cultural outlook of contemporary young people.

This statement is somewhat exaggerated and seems more like a form of flattery intended to harm the speaker.

If you can seize the opportunity, you will become a role model for the new era; if you cannot, your career will be bleak and your good fortune will come to an end.

These challenges might be a bit stressful for others, but for Li Zichun, who has received a good global education and possesses a strong Chinese cultural heritage, they are not easy to handle.

To prevent Li Zichun from falling for someone else, Zhao Qianfan and Du Zihua had long agreed that one of them must stay by his side, both to accompany and protect him. They were inseparable, and Li Zichun never left their sight.

With top celebrities like Zhao Qianfan and Du Zihua voluntarily taking pay cuts to join the show, the production team was naturally happy to accept.

With the addition of two female celebrities, Xue Qingrou and Li Jiawei, as well as Gu Qianyi, a new generation host strongly promoted by CCTV, and to prevent these celebrities from spreading incorrect information, the program team invited a well-known local university professor to lead the team. The seven-person team was officially formed, and a music and culture journey officially began.

The official name "Youth Culture and Tourism" has been officially adopted, and the addition of three top celebrities has quickly sparked widespread discussion among the public.

Li Zichun secretly sized up Gu Qianyi. He looked a bit like a combination of Li Yong and Sa Beining, with a masculine and resolute appearance. Indeed, some aesthetics can touch people's hearts in any era.

Before the show starts, there will be a pre-show interview with each participant, which usually consists of a few questions.

Because the entire program was established and operated around Li Zichun, Gu Qianyi's questions were all very proper and he didn't dare to ask about any private gossip or scandals that the public wanted to know.

Because this was Li Zichun's first interview, and given his top-tier popularity and media attention, the live stream of this interview video broke the official viewership record.

After a routine introduction and interview, we were finally able to ask a few questions that everyone wanted to know.

"Everyone knows your amazing creativity and musical talent, and every song you sing sparks widespread discussion and acclaim. I wonder how you manage to make every song so good? Do you have any creative secrets?"

Facing the inquiring gazes of the others around him, Li Zichun smiled and said, "This question is actually very simple. Just eliminate the songs that aren't good enough."

Perhaps fearing that people might not understand, he continued calmly, "Every creator writes many songs every year, and of course there will be some that aren't so good. Judging from my high standards, many of the songs I've released before were just filler and don't have the potential to become timeless. There are many such songs. If you want to hear them, I'll hold a music excerpt concert for you. Most of them will be unwritten selections, as a way of giving back to you for your unwavering support and dedication during this time."

"If you want to hear it, remember to type '1' under this video and in the chat. If we get more than five million comments, we can hear the song tonight!"

This statement caused an uproar both at the venue and online, fueled by the "1" and "want to hear" comments. Everyone wanted to see what the "half-finished product" looked like in the eyes of this talented person.

Gu Qianyi hadn't expected that a simple interview would turn into a concert. She glanced at the bewildered director and planner not far away, unsure whether to continue the conversation or try to smooth things over.

Although this interview is live, it is still very feasible.

But Gu Qianyi saw that Li Zichun was smiling and not nervous at all, so he figured she must have already planned it. Therefore, he didn't try to stop her and said to the camera, "Since you've already spoken, then if everyone wants to listen, quickly mobilize your friends and family. In order not to affect the subsequent recording, if we can reach the requirement of 'five million comments' before 5 pm today, then the music concert live broadcast will proceed as scheduled. Do you think that's okay?"

Li Zichun smiled and looked at him: "Sure. If the requirements are met, the singers here will be the ones performing. Everyone, do your best if you want to hear it!"

With that, the interview came to an end.

Gu Qianyi sighed softly and asked worriedly, "Are you sure? Will it affect you?"

Li Zichun stood up, smiled, patted his shoulder, and said, "It's okay, I still have that much confidence. I just have so many fragmented and incomplete sentences in my head that I don't know where to put them, so I might as well sing them all at once, that way I can make room for new songs."

Amidst the excitement online and at the venue, the message-writing campaign for the music excerpt concert officially kicked off.

Thanks to the influence of these three top celebrities, the "five million comments" milestone was easily achieved online in less than an hour.

The variety show recording hasn't even started yet, but a concert has already been arranged. The scene was chaotic; it looks like a mini-concert is about to begin.

Li Zichun was already very familiar with this kind of thing. Since it was a musical segment that needed to be sung, there were no special arrangements. He just asked the production team to prepare a few high stools and then went to the recording studio to record the background music.

In less than two hours, everything was arranged. When everyone received the lyrics from Li Zichun, they began to rehearse intensively, waiting for the concert that evening.

To thank fans for their support, the concert of excerpts was named "Good Music Can't Be More Than Three and a Half Sentences," and following Li Zichun's suggestion, it was broadcast live in a small theater with a capacity of 1,000 people by lottery.

The candidates were randomly selected from a thousand fans who had supported them through various means since their debut, including writing letters, sending private messages, and reposting information. Many people defended themselves on online platforms, while others said they silently supported them but simply didn't have time to send messages. A barrage of complaints and excuses arose.

Of course, there was mostly envy. Many people posted their randomly selected e-tickets online, and immediately someone offered a high price to buy them, driving the price of a free ticket up to 200,000 yuan. Even if it was a "bad" song concert, in their eyes, how bad could a production by Li Zichun be? Besides, these clips only happen once in a lifetime; there will never be another live performance by the artist himself. Missing it would be a lifetime loss.

Because e-tickets are based on codes, not people, and most of them are from long-time fans, no one was willing to sell them even at high prices, which caused an uproar online. How much love must one have to remain unmoved by money?

A group of seven sat on high stools, with sheet music in front of them displaying short lyrics. The live band was ready and began their final adjustments, while a countdown timer played on a small TV screen to the left of the five members.

As the hottest young stars in the entertainment industry right now, the number of people watching the behind-the-scenes footage on the live stream has easily exceeded one million, which is simply unbelievable. Li Zichun thought to himself, "You guys are really bored, not even letting go of the behind-the-scenes."

As fans arrived one after another, the theater, which could hold a thousand people, gradually became lively.

As evening fell, the lights dimmed, and the overhead spotlight shone on the five members and the band. The fans cheered, and the first song of the day finally began.

The first song is "Outside Shen Garden" sung by Zhao Qianfan and Li Jiawei: "In the middle of the pond/like in my arms back then/too many years apart we can no longer embrace/not yet in full bloom/but I see the sky turning red little by little/I thought it was gone/memories surged again/it's too hard to learn to be calm after growing up/there are always things to do, how can I be as brave as a butterfly?"

After watching Li Zichun wait a few seconds and nod, the music started, and Xue Qingrou sang "Deeply Trapped": "Wanting to capture a little light / to illuminate the calm water / to see the rumors clearly / longing to be seen / unwilling to reach out and take risks / why cry out for justice / being ensnared by weakness / being swallowed up / the flames thrown into the water / burning so fiercely / and then disappearing in an instant."

Zhao Qianfan then sang "Three Lives, Three Fortunes": "I hope it was you in the beginning, you in the end / and you in the end / If I don't love you, who will? / I can't let your relatives and friends, my old friends / be a joke / I hope the flowers bloom and the leaves fall / and we stay together until our hair turns white / If I don't love you, who will? / It must be my three lifetimes of good fortune to have met you / You are the best luck in my life."

Li Jiawei clapped her hands slightly, then smiled and nodded as she sang "Southern Hemisphere and Hokkaido" to the music: "I bid farewell to the Southern Hemisphere and headed to Hokkaido / I wish to become a bird that flies day and night to embrace you / I can't wait for the sky and the waves to lean on each other / I will watch you disappear into the corner of my eye with the sunset / I bid farewell to the Southern Hemisphere and fell to Hokkaido / My footsteps ran against the tide towards your direction / Unfortunately, the two times and spaces can't wait for the same dawn / In the end, I can only run away with memories."

Xue Qingrou nodded along with Li Jiawei's singing until she finished singing before continuing with "Illness": "One day I woke up and saw that you were not beside me / On my right was the toy you used to like / But when I stood up and looked for you in the room / All that was left was a letter with your scent / Just yesterday we were looking at our photos together / But now I feel like the lead actor in a bad drama / Why did this kind of thing happen to me / Is it because God didn't see my madness for you?"

After listening, Du Zihua nodded excitedly and said, "It's finally my turn."

The audience burst into laughter. He scratched his head, looked at Li Zichun, and continued singing "Between the Martial World": "Painting with a long sword on the riverbank / Writing flawlessly with the bright moon / The years pass in an instant / Love between men and women is like a fleeting flower / We cannot escape forgetting each other in the martial world / I cannot forget the fleeting glance / Alone I roll up the curtain and look at the few cold stars / I cannot hide from the years that age the young / I cannot find the entanglement of love and hate / Since we are not destined to find a good night's sleep."

Li Jiawei nodded and sang "It's You" with a smile: "We remember each other's youthful appearance / A face full of pride / An ice flower window that light cannot melt / It's you, it's you / The youth behind me is all you / Painted my mountains and streams / Let a torrential rain fall on me / Wash away the mud and awaken my true self / It's you, it's you / Planted a forest full of courage / Wiped away the desolation on the cloak / Let me become a flying fish and jump out of the sea / To touch the miracle."

Du Zihua looked at Li Zichun, nodded, and the two smiled at each other. Du Zihua picked up the microphone and sang "Beside You": "I love you, I'm not afraid of not having been here / I hate you, I never thought about it / It's because I'm afraid of thinking about someone too deeply / I love you, I'm not afraid of not having been here / I hate you, I never thought about it / The places I've been are familiar with the way they used to look / I thought I had forgotten how to miss you / But facing the sunset, I hope you will return to today / I remember holding your face / Quietly looking into your eyes between my hands / Like autumn leaves gently touching the whole world / I want to be by your side."

As they sang, their other hands unconsciously reached out towards each other's faces.

The scene was filled with screams and bursts of silly laughter. It seems that good-looking people should be with other good-looking people.

The only one who was unhappy at the scene was probably Zhao Qianfan.

Gu Qianyi, watching from the side, also felt a pang of envy, but given her status, she couldn't show it too obviously, so she kept a half-smile on her face, feeling incredibly uncomfortable.

Just as everyone was getting into the swing of things, the next song shattered this rosy fantasy.

PS: Song information is from Baidu Baike.

"Outside Shen Garden" is a song with lyrics by Yu Shitong, music by Xiaotian who loves writing songs, and sung by A Yueyue, Lige, and Xiaotian Music Club.

"Deeply Trapped" is a song performed by Jin Yu, released on May 27, 2022, and included in the album of the same name, "Deeply Trapped".

"Three Lives, Three Fortunes" is a song written, composed, and sung by Hailai Amu. It was released as a single on May 10, 2022.

The song "BINGBIAN" is from the album "BINGBIAN" released on June 23, 2017. The original singers are cubi, Fi9 Jiang Che, and Younglife.

"Between the Martial World" is a song performed by Cao Yuhang and Chaoge Yexian. It was released on June 16, 2022, and included in the album of the same name, "Between the Martial World".

"It's You" is a song sung by Meng Ran and included in the album of the same name released on July 25, 2022.

"Beside You" is a song written, composed and sung by Sheng Zhe, and was released on May 1, 2017.