章 10: Chapter 10: Joining the Composition Department
November 7th.
Taking advantage of the school's weekend break, Sister Zhao drove to Qin Prefecture Art Academy to pick up Lin Yuan and facilitate his transfer to the Composition Department at Starlight Entertainment.
Lin Yuan had his textbooks with him this time, and he sat in the passenger seat as they made their way.
During the journey, Lin Yuan listened to music playing in the car. The song that was on repeat was "Life Like Summer Flowers."
For the past week, every time he was in the car with Sister Zhao, she would play this song, and surprisingly, it never got old. Occasionally, she even hummed along with the melody when she was in a good mood. This song seemed to hold special meaning in Sister Zhao's life.
"Oh, by the way."
As they were about to arrive at the company, Sister Zhao suddenly said to Lin Yuan, "Although 'Life Like Summer Flowers' is currently in second place on the Rankings, its download growth rate in the past week is higher than the song in first place. So, after the morning meeting today, the company has officially decided to compete with Sahara for the top spot on the Newcomer Rankings!"
"Second place?" Lin Yuan's face lit up.
But Sister Zhao was left speechless by his response. She wanted to emphasize to Lin Yuan that he should pay a bit more attention to the performance of his own song. Nevertheless, she held back and instead cautioned, "However, the situation for the first place is somewhat special, so I can't guarantee that we will definitely succeed."
Lin Yuan nodded. He had no idea that Starlight Entertainment hadn't initially planned for "Life Like Summer Flowers" to contend for the top spot, considering the significant presence and costs involved in chasing the number one position.
But Lin Yuan's song was thriving. Its popularity was consistently surpassing the song in the top spot in terms of downloads. Sister Zhao had also managed to persuade a senior executive at the company to support this competition with persuasive words and a touch of challenge, saying, "We can certainly give Sahara a tough competition!"
This showcased Sister Zhao's shrewdness. If she had directly stated that she wanted to increase resources for promoting "Life Like Summer Flowers" and vie for the top spot on the New Artists Rankings, the higher-ups might not have been as receptive. After all, this was a new song by a new artist, and excessive spending on promotion might not be cost-effective. However, if they could make Sahara feel the pressure, the higher-ups were more likely to agree.
In the end, it was just a matter of spending a little extra money, and annoying the competition was always a good thing. After all, the three major entertainment companies in Qin Prefecture were not exactly on friendly terms, especially Starlight and Sahara. The exact reasons for their rivalry had been lost to history, but in this industry, everyone seemed to be a natural adversary.
Most importantly, after this decision was made, the entire internet began promoting "Life Like Summer Flowers" vigorously, building hype for the song!
...
Upon reaching the company's entrance, Sister Zhao handed the car keys to the approaching security guard and took Lin Yuan directly to the Composition Department.
"Hello, Sister Zhao."
"Hello, Sister Zhao."
As they walked through the company, they exchanged greetings with numerous employees. There were more people than when Lin Yuan had first visited the company, and their attitudes were even more enthusiastic. Some of them glanced at Lin Yuan. However, due to his young age, few would have associated him with the recent talk of the company, the protagonist "Xianyu."
They pressed the elevator button for the 10th floor, and soon they arrived at the Composition Department.
Standing at the entrance, Lin Yuan observed the interior of the Composition Department. It was larger than he had imagined, with a spacious and well-designed workspace that exuded a touch of humanistic atmosphere. The desks were well spaced, and bookshelves lined the room, ensuring personal privacy. These bookshelves were filled with various music-related books.
The work environment reminded Lin Yuan of his school's library, and it felt comfortable.
"Sister Zhao."
The boss of the composition department, Old Zhou, had been waiting at the entrance with a beaming smile. However, his smile faded slightly when he saw Sister Zhao and Lin Yuan. He asked, "Where's Xianyu?"
The members of the composition department had all temporarily stopped their work and were curiously looking toward the entrance. They had received notice that Xianyu, the composer of "Life Like Summer Flowers," was coming to the Composition Department today. Now, they were all eager to see what Xianyu looked like.
"Isn't he here already?" Sister Zhao elegantly introduced Lin Yuan.
Old Zhou was taken aback for a moment. He had indeed seen Lin Yuan following Sister Zhao, but based on Lin Yuan's appearance, he had assumed that this was some new artist that Sister Zhao had brought in. He hadn't realized that this young-looking student was the legendary Xianyu.
Sister Zhao couldn't help but smile with amusement. She understood Old Zhou's surprise.
Her confidence had been sky-high when she initially signed Lin Yuan. It was because Lin Yuan possessed not only an astonishingly gifted singing voice but also a face that was impossible not to admire. With such qualities, he was naturally destined for stardom.
And it was for this very reason that even Sister Zhao hadn't expected Lin Yuan to have exceptionally strong songwriting talent, resulting in the creation of a song like "Life Like Summer Flowers." If his voice hadn't been damaged, he would have been a truly heaven-favored talent.
At this moment, not only was Old Zhou taken aback, but the members of the Composition Department were also collectively astonished, exchanging bewildered glances. This young man with the appearance of an idol was actually Xianyu?
"Haha!"
Old Zhou's smile suddenly widened again, and he warmly approached Lin Yuan, extending his hand. "Welcome, welcome!"
Xianyu is this young?
For Old Zhou, this was not a drawback at all. In fact, it was a great advantage. The younger Xianyu was, the more it indicated his abundant talent. All Old Zhou needed to do was provide Lin Yuan with room to grow. With more experience, Lin Yuan might write even better songs than "Life Like Summer Flowers." So after the initial surprise of Lin Yuan's youth, Old Zhou's mood improved.
"Thank you."
Lin Yuan shook his hand.
Sister Zhao, standing nearby, reminded, "Old Zhou, this kid's real name is Lin Yuan. He's currently a sophomore majoring in composition at the Qin Prefecture Art Academy. He can't come to the company when he has classes. I wanted to make this clear. In terms of compensation, I hope Lin Yuan receives the same treatment as the other members of the Composition Department."
"No problem."
Old Zhou readily agreed, saying, "We've had students from art schools in the Composition Department before, and besides, everyone in the company knows that the Composition Department is the most relaxed department. Some of the big shots here come to the office less than five times a year. How the hell can I boss them around if not by coaxing them every day?"
Sister Zhao frowned. "Don't use profanity in front of the kid."
Old Zhou chuckled and nodded repeatedly. However, he couldn't help but wonder inwardly. This was the first time he had seen Sister Zhao defending someone so fiercely within the company. It seemed that Lin Yuan held a special place in her heart.
However...
Entering the Composition Department, if this kid could still write songs of the caliber of "Life Like Summer Flowers," then he would naturally become a cherished protege of yours truly, Old Zhou.
Don't underestimate Old Zhou.
As the boss of Starlight's composition department, Old Zhou still carried significant prestige. After all, the department housed several top-notch composers, although most of them rarely showed up at the company. Don't ask why; they claimed they were seeking inspiration outside.
As long as these composers could write profitable songs for the company every year, even the company's big boss had no complaints about their absenteeism.
"Sure."
Sister Zhao patted Lin Yuan's shoulder and instructed, "From now on, you're a member of the Composition Department. If you encounter any issues, you can come to me. If you need a ride to the company, just call me. I'll come to pick you up when I'm available, and if I'm not, I'll send someone to get you."
"Are you trying to adopt him?"
Old Zhou laughed and said, "Alright, Little Zhao, now that I'm here, you can rest assured and go about your work."
Sister Zhao muttered, "..."
You can call yourself "Old Zhou" if you want; after all, you're older. But when a talented person is delivered to you, I've gone from being "Sister Zhao" back to "Little Zhao"?
You're to honest.
She gave them a friendly wave even with her back turned, then made her way to the elevator. Lin Yuan also gestured in Sister Zhao's direction, even though she didn't catch sight of it.
After that, Old Zhou had Lin Yuan sign several contracts.
The contracts contained numerous clauses, but Lin Yuan only focused on the key points. For example, the basic monthly salary in the composition department was ten thousand yuan, and earnings from compositions were counted separately. Composers held the rights to their compositions, but the company had the right of first use, and so on.
Overall, Starlight had a good reputation in the industry for using standard contract templates.
After spending half an hour reading the contracts and signing them, Lin Yuan officially became a member of Starlight Entertainment's Composition Department.
"This is your seat."
Old Zhou selected a window-side seat for Lin Yuan.
This was one of the best seats in the company, offering a view of the outside scenery when turning around.
Seeing Lin Yuan take his seat like this, the other members of the composition department felt a pang of envy.
"That's Daddy Yang's seat."
"It doesn't matter; those several spoiled Music Daddies in the department don't come to the office to work anyway. Whether or not this seat is empty, it won't be our turn to sit in it for a few years."
"... "
Next, Lin Yuan opened his backpack, took out several books, and began reading.
After all, he had exams coming up.
The group of graduate students in the Composition Department, who had graduated many years ago, were all secretly peering at Lin Yuan. However, when they saw the books Lin Yuan took out, they thought they must be seeing things, and some even rubbed their eyes in disbelief.
Because the three books Lin Yuan took out were: "Basic Composition Strengthening," "Theoretical and Practical Knowledge of Composition," and "Explanation of Simple Chords."
"Um..."
"It seems to be..."
"A second-year course..."
Lin Yuan, unaware of the people watching him from behind, was earnestly reviewing the content he might be tested on in his exams, softly reciting:
"Whichever note is in the highest voice within a chord determines the melodic position of that chord."
"The three melodic positions of major and minor chords, i.e., the root melodic position, the third melodic position, and the fifth melodic position."
"In practice, whether chords are closely spaced or open, voice crossing is not allowed. Voice crossing means that the alto voice is higher than the tenor voice, the bass voice is higher than the alto voice, or the soprano voice is lower than the tenor voice."
"... "
Is this the same Xianyu who composed "Life Like Summer Flowers"?
In the face of this slightly strange situation, the atmosphere in the Composition Department suddenly became peculiar.
Then everyone simultaneously developed two completely different psychological conflicts: "inferiority" and "pride."
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