Are you trying to force me to become a star?

Chapter 36 Meeting

Wednesday morning.

When Xu Jinyan arrived at the conference room on the tenth floor of Canglan Entertainment, there were already five or six people there. Large companies truly have a deep foundation; almost everyone attending this meeting had won the weekly charts and was extremely experienced.

Seeing him sit down, Shen Nan said, "The new song is pretty good!!"

Xu Jinyan glanced at Lao Shen and said with a smile, "Thanks to Teacher Shen's recommendation, Teacher Li is indeed amazing."

Shen Nan coughed awkwardly and said, "I didn't recommend anything. I can't not tell you since you asked. I just told you what I knew."

He paused, then changed the subject, "Let's not talk about that. Yesterday, Hua Chenyu's 'Mars' really topped the weekly charts, even surpassing your 'Huo Yuanjia.' Did you see what the media wrote about it? Can you tolerate that?"

Xu Jinyan said, "Sun Dakang arranged the music, and Hua Chenyu wrote the lyrics and composed the music. It's a powerful combination, so it's normal for it to surpass the previous one. Besides, my song has about the same potential."

It's already quite good that "Huo Yuanjia" can maintain its fifth position after more than a month of release, while "Mars" has only been released for one week and has had a good pre-release promotion, so it ranked second on the latest list.

He didn't actually care, but the media always liked to stir things up. They were both new generation members and debuted on the same stage. Comparing the two of them and putting them down would generate traffic.

At this moment, Wang Fan, a music producer standing nearby, laughed and said, "I didn't expect that young Xu would have such a magnanimous demeanor at such a young age. He's truly remarkable."

Xu Jinyan politely replied, "Teacher Wang, you flatter me."

His reaction was indifferent because he received negative emotions from the other party—they had never communicated before, yet they acted like a senior.

[Negative emotions from Wang Fan: +300]

He decided to ignore him and go find Lao Shen instead. He noticed that Lao Shen also didn't like chatting with this guy surnamed Wang.

As they were talking, more and more people came in, and then Director Chen came in too.

Chen Yunlu sat down and said directly, "Li Han has an S-level project. Three versions have been sent over, but the client is not satisfied with any of them. This is the only matter today. Let's see which teacher can take it on." After saying that, she looked at Li Han.

Li Han nodded, then distributed the photocopied materials to everyone present.

The document contained a plot summary and the client's requirements, similar to what Lin Wanqing had prepared for him before, except that both the summary and the requirements were more complex.

In short, the plot can be summarized as follows: Set in the Republican era, it depicts the love, hatred, and grudges of a chaotic world, intertwined with the clash between personal ideals and the dark reality, and the choices between national righteousness and personal love.

As for the client's requirements, he read them carefully; they were very detailed.

But how to put it? He didn't understand it; it was too abstract. It was like a layman saying, "I want that feeling, you know?"

This client is clearly someone with a lot of ideas and a domineering attitude.

Li Han couldn't help but chuckle as he watched them all frowning. It would be fine if the client let them improvise, but when the client had an answer in mind that they couldn't articulate, things became very difficult.

Seeing that everyone had finished watching, Li Han played his first demo on his phone. Everyone listened intently. After the demo finished, he said, "The client said that it focused too much on the grudges and feuds and lacked a grand narrative."

Then he played a second song. After listening to it, everyone said, "The client said it was grand, but it was a bit empty and boring."

Seeing that everyone was staring at him, he said, "I won't release the third one; the client said it would sound unpleasant."

Everyone in the conference room laughed.

In fact, both of Li Han's demos were above average. They didn't quite understand the client's requirements, but through the client's feedback on these two songs, they got a preliminary impression.

Seeing that no one spoke, Chen Yunlu said, "Just say whatever comes to mind, maybe it'll spark some inspiration."

Li Han spoke first: "The story takes place in the Republic of China era, which was a very complicated time."

"In the end, the protagonist of this story can only be considered a small person in that era, but his character is very well-developed. The key to seeing the microcosm of the era in this small person is how to integrate the two."

Others chimed in, discussing the background of the Republic of China era, suggesting what kind of arrangement to create what kind of atmosphere, and what instruments to use to highlight the grand narrative; regarding the integration of the era and the individual, the focus should still be on the lyrics; and some even said that efforts should be put into the composition, as a good song is the most basic and crucial element, and if it's not good, people won't bother listening to the lyrics.

Chen Yunlu nodded in agreement, saying, "That's a good idea. Which teacher would be interested in taking on this role?"

Everyone fell silent again, frowning in thought.

After the discussion, everyone had their own creative ideas, but no one was confident in taking on the project. The main reason was that the client was difficult to please, and they were not sure that what they produced would meet the client's expectations.

Li Han smiled wryly, "Old Shanghai, ordinary people, grudges and love affairs, and it still ends in a tragic ending. The crew started looking for suitable music as soon as filming began, and now that it's about to be released, they still haven't found a satisfactory piece. They're looking for a classic soundtrack."

Everyone nodded.

Xu Jinyan nodded in agreement, but suddenly he realized something was wrong.

[Negative emotions from Wang Fan: +999]

Good grief, what are they trying to do?

Sure enough, Wang Fan said with a smile, "Speaking of classic soundtracks, I'm reminded of the recently popular 'The Last Hero Zheng Chenggong.' Goodness, the fact that a web series with a serious tone can be so popular is largely thanks to Xiao Xu's 'Borrowing Five Hundred Years from Heaven.'"

No one responded.

The atmosphere was a little awkward. Was now the time to praise someone?

Xu Jinyan smiled and said, "Teacher Wang, you're too kind. It's mainly because Teacher Li Tian sang so well."

Wang Fan laughed and said, "Then 'Anhe Bridge' and 'Huo Yuanjia' are all your own achievements, right? Although Xiao Xu only has three songs, every single one of them is a classic."

Everyone listened quietly as Wang Fan spoke, unaware of any past grievances between the two that led him to put Xu Jinyan in such a precarious position in this setting.

"I noticed that Xiao Xu didn't talk much earlier. Does he already have some plan in mind?"

Before he could speak, Shen Nan said, "Oh, why is Teacher Wang being so modest today?" His words carried a sarcastic tone.

Wang Fan smiled and said, "There's no order of precedence in learning; those who are accomplished are teachers. Xu's achievements speak for themselves. Perhaps he's already decided to take on this project?"

Xu Jinyan stopped Lao Shen and decided to do it herself.

Ugh! Why did you have to provoke me?

Xu Jinyan smiled and said, "It's clear that Teacher Wang really, really likes my music. I can consider taking over this project."

"By the way," he looked around at everyone and said, "Teacher Wang just mentioned something—'There is no order of precedence in learning; those who are accomplished are teachers.' That's very well said."

He turned to look at Wang Fan beside him, "But you've been calling me 'Little Xu' all day!"

He paused, leaned back in his chair, and tentatively asked:

"You won't even... call me 'Teacher Xu'?"

[Negative emotions from Wang Fan: +999]

Wang Fan's smile froze. A young man wrote a few songs and asked him to call him teacher?

Still, no one spoke; everyone was intently watching the show. This kid was definitely not someone to mess with. Shen Nan even turned her head and raised an eyebrow at him: Quickly, call him teacher.

Silence fell over the meeting room as everyone watched the initially humble and polite young man turn his sharp edge towards Wang Fan.

Wang Fan's face turned red. Everyone was looking at him, waiting for him to speak. If he didn't speak, they would have to stay frozen like this.

Chen Yunlu, as the eldest brother, didn't interfere; he knew the kid wouldn't be bullied. He carefully examined the mineral water bottle in front of him, as if suddenly inspired.

Wang Fan let out a deep breath, looked at Xu Jinyan and smiled, "I knew Teacher Xu was talented, and sure enough, she was able to take on this project." You little brat, I've already called you teacher, so you have no choice but to accept it today.

Xu Jinyan didn't say anything, but just nodded at him with satisfaction, as if he were a promising student. Everyone suppressed their laughter as they watched this scene.

[Negative emotions from Wang Fan: +999]

Xu Jinyan turned around and said, "Since you've assigned this project to me, I'll take it. I'll have my agent contact Teacher Li later."

Then he stood up, turned to Wang Fan, and asked, "Time is tight and the task is heavy, I have to go now. Is there anything else, Director Wang?"

Wang Fan's face, which had just calmed down, suddenly turned red and warm as he glared at the brat.

Whom should we call the director?

Seeing that he didn't respond, Xu Jinyan lowered her head slightly and moved closer: "Director, say something."

Wang Fan's lips were already trembling. He didn't dare to look into Chen Yunlu's eyes, no, he didn't dare to look into anyone's eyes.

Xu Jinyan stood up straight with regret, nodded and smiled at everyone present, including Chen Yunlu, and then pushed open the door and left.

As Xu Jinyan left and the door closed, the atmosphere in the conference room became even more silent.

The task is completed, but what should we say next?

Everyone carefully examined the mineral water bottle in front of them, as if they had collectively been inspired to create something.

Shen Nan was rubbing her face vigorously with her hands, trying to hold it in for me.

It was Chen Yunlu who spoke first: "Since someone has taken over, let's go through the procedures." After saying that, he got up and left.

The atmosphere immediately brightened up as soon as the director left.

Shen Nan leaned back in his chair and laughed heartily, shouting out a single word: "Awesome!"

Today's meeting was really enjoyable. That kid still loves promoting people.

Wang Fan glared at him, then immediately got up to go find Chen Yunlu.