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9.27% Superstars of Tomorrow / Chapter 47: Home Purchase

Chương 47: Home Purchase

Biên tập viên: Tennesh

When Fang Zhao had received his first paycheck, he had hired someone to follow Fang Sheng. He knew that once Fang Sheng had money, he would move out of the company dorm. Fang Sheng also liked to party at night.

He told the two thugs Fang Sheng's address and let them go. It was going to be an exciting night at Fang Sheng's place that night.

Fang Zhao stayed in the chair after the two men left. He sat quietly for some time, fondling his gun with his fingers and taking deep breaths. He was trying to suppress his instinct to kill.

He had nearly pulled the trigger just then. He knew his opponents weren't out to kill—they just wanted to send a message—but he'd had the urge to shoot.

Even though he was reborn into the New Era, Fang Zhao had spent most of his previous life in the apocalypse. He was still adjusting to his new surroundings. Even though he looked no different than anyone else and blended into the New Era well, he himself knew that he was suppressing a mean streak that was born during the end of days and had snowballed for nearly 100 years.

The two thugs had noticed his inner turmoil. That was why they'd been so obedient.

Fang Zhao didn't know how much longer he could control the mean streak. He didn't know if it would dissipate over time or accumulate like it had during the end of days. All he could do was keep repressing it and try not to act violently.

When he'd been mugged on the street corner, he had nearly killed the little punk after snatching his gun. He had fired the shot that Yue Qing had heard. He'd fired against the ground right by the kid's skull.

After that, Fang Zhao could sense his mean streak swell.

The New Era was a world regulated by laws. Even black streets had their codes of conduct. Fang Zhao didn't want to break the rules. All he could do was vent his anger over time when he had the chance.

That was why Fang Zhao was looking forward to having gaming equipment installed in his office. New Era games allowed players to communicate their thoughts and feelings. Whatever mean streak he couldn't vent in the real world, he would do so by gaming.

Just when Fang Zhao was wondering when he could game and vent his frustrations properly, Fang Sheng, who was waiting for an update at home, was paid a visit and badly beaten. He was also forced to fork over 500,000 as compensation.

He was robbed of 500,000 just when he'd received his severance pay of 1.5 million from Neon Culture. Luckily, he was cautious and deposited the 1.5 million into three accounts. Otherwise, he might have lost it all.

Fang Sheng didn't report the robbery or the beating. Investigating the matter would do him no good. He also wondered how the two men had found out his address. Weren't they supposed to steal Fang Zhao's bracelet? Why the hell did they beat him up instead?

Fang Sheng also remembered one of the men flashing his neon-green teeth and accusing him of setting them up. How had he set them up?

Fang Sheng was hospitalized for five days, and that was thanks to the fact that medical technology in the New Era was far superior to what it was before the end of days. If he were being treated before the apocalypse, he would have been hospitalized for at least a month.

Indeed, the two thugs had given Fang Sheng a rather heavy beating. They'd cowered before Fang Zhao because their well-honed instincts told them that he wasn't a pushover. It would have been a tough battle. They would have had to go all out. But they were just in it to earn a living—they had no intention of risking their lives. So they chose to play terrified. But matched up against Fang Sheng, they showed their true colors. They wanted to let him know what a black-street thug was really like.

Fang Zhao read the new messages on his bracelet. Fang Sheng had moved into a new place after leaving the hospital. He'd probably realized his old flat wasn't safe any more. He also wanted to avoid the two thugs.

After sending a message to his hired guns, Fang Zhao headed to an apartment block near Qi'an's Third Ring Road. The black streets were located beyond the Sixth Ring Road. The Third Ring Road was considered the outer limits of downtown Qi'an, although it was populated with mostly residential buildings, not commercial ones.

Fang Zhao had gotten word from Duan Qianji that the elderly composer looking to sell his home was back in town. He wanted to meet Fang Zhao and discuss the possible sale.

Fang Zhao located the building based on the address he was given. It was a 120-story, pyramid-shaped building about 600 meters tall. The lower floors were thousands of square meters in size, but by the top floor, the floor area was only around 200 square meters.

The apartment number Fang Zhao was given was the top-floor penthouse.

The owner of the penthouse was an old man some 160 years old. He was older than Fang Zhao's previous incarnation had been. He was a composer who edited and co-wrote quite a few composition textbooks used by local music schools. Fang Zhao could instantly recall a few.

Xue Jing was a well-known name in the music industry.

Xue Jing's assistant was waiting when Fang Zhao arrived.

"Please. Teacher Xue is inside." The assistant brought Fang Zhao to a room but didn't enter with him. Without Xue Jing's permission, the room was off-limits.

When Fang Zhao entered, Xue Jing was sitting on a sofa with a wooden frame. Few sofas were made of natural wood these days. The bookshelves, tables, and other pieces of furniture were also made of wood. The room had a distinctly antique feel to it.

The sofa and the chairs in the room were covered with cushions with a wood-grain pattern. The room temperature was moderate.

"How do you do, Teacher Xue?" Xue Jing was much older and a veteran teacher. The "teacher" honorific was appropriate.

Xue Jing put down the score he was reading and pointed to the single sofa chair across from him. "Sit."

Xue Jing was some 160 years old, which was equivalent to 60 or 70 years old before the end of days.

He had quite a few grey hairs but seemed quite energetic.

"What do you think of the decor in this room?" Xue Jing's scrutinizing gaze swept across Fang Zhao and met his eyes.

"You definitely don't have any pets," Fang Zhao responded.

The assistant who had Xue Jing's permission to enter the room to serve tea heard the response and glared at Fang Zhao. The aspiring musicians who had sat in the same chair typically lavished praise on the interior design, gushed at the painting on the wall comprising musical notes, which Xue Jing himself couldn't quite decipher, and kissed ass.

It seemed that Fang Zhao's brain was wired differently.

Pets?

The assistant reviewed his entire tenure with Xue. The elderly musician indeed had never had a pet. The sofa and bookshelves would have never survived.

The response also caught Xue Jing by surprise. He laughed, responding, "Indeed. You have a pet?"

"I have a dog. I found it on a black street," Fang Zhao said.

Most people would have avoided associating themselves with potentially self-demeaning references like "black street," but Fang Zhao didn't think it was a big deal. It was a fact that he lived on a black street. There was no need to lie. There was no point in lying, either. Xue Jing had most likely gotten a detailed lowdown from Duan Qianji.

"That's a shame. I was going to leave you the furniture," Xue Jing said with a sigh. The furniture was handcrafted by a master carpenter, not machine-made.

"The same score in the hands of different arrangers will turn out differently. It's not a big deal," Fang Zhao said.

"Indeed." Xue Jing laughed gently, a few deep creases forming on his face. "Nowadays, few young musicians can find the inner peace to compose. If Duan Qianji didn't assure me that you'd written the two movements, judging from the two pieces themselves, it would have been hard to believe the composer was so young. But now that I have met you, I have no doubt."

Xue Jing couldn't explain why, but when he laid eyes on Fang Zhao, he felt that this was someone who could produce those two movements.

"Age is not a good predictor of musical quality," Fang Zhao said.

"Indeed." Xue Jing gazed out the window quietly, exuding a sense of peace honed from an abundance of life experience. He could see quite a few taller buildings. There used to be a 100-plus-year-old building nearby, but it had been torn down recently. A new building was taking its place. It was going to be taller, prettier, and attract more eyeballs.


next chapter

Chương 48: An Order from Another Continent

Biên tập viên: Tennesh

Xue Jing only wanted to sell to someone that gave him good vibes. Good vibes were hard to define, but somehow, he felt that he wouldn't be upset if he sold his flat to Fang Zhao and the apartment was completely renovated.

Just as Fang Zhao put it, different arrangers would handle the same song differently. Different styles would come out. Everyone was equally entitled to leave their mark. Any buyer was simply a temporary custodian of the property.

Property prices in Qi'an were quite high, especially in this neighborhood. Flats that were located on the 100th floor or higher usually cost at least 10,000 dollars per square meter. There was only one penthouse apartment in the building. The entire property took up some 200 square meters, but the flat only accounted for half of it. A garden and a parking space took up the other half.

The price tag was 10 million, which was cheap compared to similar properties in the area. The market value was no less than 20 million.

One of the reasons why real estate in that neighborhood was expensive was the presence of security guards and regular patrols. Quite a few Yanzhou celebrities bought homes in the area to avoid media attention. Xue Jing had bought this place back then because he'd wanted the peace and quiet. He was no celebrity, but he was quite influential in the music industry. Many people sought him out for favors, hoping a word from Xue Jing would translate into shortcuts. Xue Jing got so fed up he moved here. "There's another reason I invited you here, besides selling you my apartment. It's entirely up to you. No pressure," Xue Jing said.

Fang Zhao had thought a favor might be attached when Xue Jing had announced his asking price. Given Xue Jing was so generous with his pricing, Fang Zhao would comply as long as it wasn't too big of a favor.

"Please continue," Fang Zhao said.

"As you know, I'm not teaching these days, focusing instead on editing and writing textbooks." Xue Jing looked at Fang Zhao. "I'm working on a book about symphonic works. I'd like to use your songs as an example."

Xue Jing was writing a textbook that analyzed symphonies and served as a how-to primer. Symphonies were an offbeat genre. Music students tended to avoid the specialty. Even though symphonies enjoyed greater prestige within the industry, they weren't too popular.

Xue Jing wasn't only concerned with turning a profit. The elders in the industry didn't bother with symphonies, but the genre had to be preserved. Xue Jing didn't want to cut and paste like previous authors. He wanted to present contemporary examples. This would require Fang Zhao to discuss his creative vision, his sources of inspiration, and some memorable moments from the creative process. In short, Xue Jing wanted Fang Zhao to pass on his knowledge and expose more students to the genre of symphonies. It would be the equivalent of a master class in written form. Of course, it was up to Fang Zhao to decide how much to reveal.

"As you know, this isn't a hit single. There won't be much money in it." Xue Jing was frank.

Fang Zhao's emergence gave Xue Jing hope. The "100-Year Period of Destruction" series probably made for the most memorable symphonic pop songs in the past century. More importantly, the series was not condescending. It took the accessible form of pop music and reached a broad audience.

Many young composers were reluctant to share their creative insight, so Xue Jing thought Fang Zhao would take his time to consider the request. Little did he expect Fang Zhao to agree immediately.

"No problem."

But Fang Zhao wasn't actually that young. He was happy to share his knowledge and pass on the lessons he'd learned from the end of days. Human life was finite, but there were no bounds to shared experience and knowledge.

Xue Jing was delighted. "Terrific. Terrific. I'll add your name to the list of consulting editors."

Textbooks in the New Era—whether in print or electronic form—identified their authors clearly. University regulations also required them to identify their editors and consulting editors.

Normally, protocol dictated that if the length of your contribution was brief and the content wasn't essential to the book, you weren't listed as a contributing editor. Xue Jing was thinking Fang Zhao probably wouldn't share at length, but the fact that he was willing to open up and share was worth applauding. Xue Jing was glad to give him credit.

"My assistant will brief you on the mechanics of contributing to the book. You could also organize your thoughts ahead of time. As for the apartment, I'll send for packers right away. I'll have all the paperwork completed and the flat vacated in three days. There's no rush in paying me. If you can't pay the full amount in one go, you can pay in installments over a few years. No hurry."

"It's OK. I can pay in full now," Fang Zhao said.

Fang Zhao left the apartment after the conversation ended. Xue Jing had him chauffeured back to Silver Wing. Fang Zhao got a call from Zhu Zhen, Duan Qianji's assistant, while en route.

"Fang Zhao, someone from Leizhou wants to use the third movement in a movie soundtrack. They don't want to buy the song outright—just license it for 30 days." In other words, there would be a moratorium on the song's release in other formats for 30 days after the film began screening in theaters.

Orders like this from another continent were rare and often translated into new opportunities.

"We haven't discussed the price yet. Chairman Duan wants to get your OK first," Zhu Zhen said.

"To use on a soundtrack? It's a production company from Leizhou?"

"Yes. The deal will help promote the song, but the production company doesn't have a great reputation."

Every continent had protectionist measures in place to shore up their own music and film industries. "Cocoon Breach" was a good example that illustrated this trend. After the song was proven to have an impact on Hull virus patients, the publicity on other continents glossed over the title of the song or made brief mention of it. The focus was on its effect on Hull virus carriers and related topics. The medical discussion took precedence, obscuring any talk of Polar Light or details about the first and second movements.

It was one thing if the two songs were merely released as songs. But the two movements were inextricably linked to a virtual idol, so they were heavily censored in Leizhou.

Media coverage of the songs in Leizhou not only buried the title of the songs and the names of the composer and production company—Polar Light wasn't mentioned at all. Few people who read the news reports searched for the songs. The first two movements also weren't available for download outside of Yanzhou.

So what Duan Qianji had in mind was using the Leizhou film as an alternative platform, even though it might be a crappy production. Given the fact that the two songs were not available for download outside of Yanzhou, they could license them for placement in films. This didn't affect their marketing plan in Yanzhou.

But Duan Qianji was worried that Fang Zhao would find the placement degrading if the film was a mediocre production just judging from appearances. He might be turned off. That was why she had asked Zhu Zhen to run the plan by Fang Zhao first before entering into negotiations.

After being briefed by Zhu Zhen, Fang Zhao thought for about two seconds. "I'd like to get a sense of the plot of the film and where exactly the song will be placed."

"I'm not entirely clear on either. Let me get back to you."

Half an hour later, Zhu Zhen sent Fang Zhao an encrypted file that outlined the plot and where the third movement would be placed.

The document also listed the names of the production company and key investors as well as the main actors.

The credits would have meant nothing to someone outside the entertainment industry in Yanzhou. But anyone from Leizhou could tell from the names of the production company and investors that the film was a shameless ploy to promote a certain star. What wass funny was that, despite their corny story lines and shitty acting, films like this did OK at the box office. People usually bitched as they watched these movies online. They knew they were crap but they couldn't resist watching. Maybe it was a form of venting.

Fang Zhao spent an afternoon watching previous releases backed by the same production company and investors. He had his answer by sundown.

"I'll sign off on this. My only request is that the third movement only be used for the scene specified. There is no leeway on this. It can only be played then."


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