Chapter 172: Ah Ming and Mao Mao Amin's Ming Min (Guaranteed 2 updates)

After sleeping, Zhou Huimin ran to the music store near the school again on Sunday morning to ask the boss about Mandarin songs.

The cassette tapes recommended by the boss were all by Taiwan singers, and Zhou Huimin was not very satisfied.

"Are there no Mandarin albums by Hong Kong singers? Not very famous ones are also okay."

In fact, she was more inclined to non-famous singers because she didn't have a clear understanding of the gold content of this song, and was worried that famous singers would look down on it.

The boss thought for a while and rummaged out a cassette tape from a corner.

"Here, just this one."

The album was called "Country Road." Zhou Huimin knew this song; it was Qi Yu's song, but this album was not Qi Yu's, but a cover by a Hong Kong singer.

The album also had other songs that were covers of old songs such as "Great Wall Ballad" and "Grandmother's Penghu Bay," and there were also a few original songs, but Zhou Huimin had never heard of them. Obviously, sales were average.

The singer's name was Zhang Mingmin, and the company was Eternal Records.

Although she had never heard of it, this name made Zhou Huimin feel very favorable. Ah Ming and Mao Mao Amin, isn't it Ming Min!

So Zhou Huimin bought this cassette tape and prepared to listen to it when she went home at night.

When she returned to the public housing area, she saw many neighbors surrounding together. Walking closer, it turned out that the one surrounded was Uncle Ghost, and Uncle Ghost seemed to be making something to sell to everyone.

Seeing Zhou Huimin coming over, Uncle Ghost laughed: "Mao Mao Amin, wait a moment. I'll make a pancake for you to take back to eat."

"Pancake?" Zhou Huimin had never heard of this northern delicacy.

When she took it, she felt it was hot, and took a bite. It was indeed very delicious. She didn't expect Uncle Ghost to have this skill.

"Uncle Ghost, do you need me to help you?"

"No, I can handle it. Hurry back to do your homework."

Zhou Huimin still wanted to ask why Uncle Ghost suddenly started selling pancakes? Why not be a hospital security guard?

It wasn't until she got home that she heard her mother mention it.

"Well, Ah Gui said that the job was resigned because the income was too low, so he started to switch to catering."

Zhou Huimin looked at the pancake in her hand. Is this considered catering?

After closing the stall and returning home, Old Ghost counted his income for today, and after deducting expenses, it was not bad. He earned nearly 100 yuan, and this was without going out in the morning. It was indeed much stronger than being a security guard.

His public housing was very small, and it was difficult for two people to live in it. Considering that if he couldn't return to the mainland in the future, if his son and grandson came to Hong Kong to see him, he couldn't wrong the children.

So he took out his previous savings, plus his grandson's royalties, and set up this set of equipment, becoming a mobile vendor, mainly selling Tianjin pancake fruit.

When he was doing underground work before, he had disguised himself as a pancake seller. After not operating for decades, he finally didn't forget all his skills.

It was a pity that he was alone, otherwise, he could increase items like soy milk and millet porridge.

He thought that when he earned more money in the future, he would rent a storefront, hire someone, and add the beverage item.

He might not be able to give his children and grandchildren great wealth, but he couldn't let them suffer and suffer after arriving in Hong Kong.

So Old Ghost, who was nearly sixty years old, thought about resigning and coming out to break through.

Lying on the bed, he was still thinking about how to improve the process to make it more in line with the taste of Hong Kong people.

Early the next morning, just as Zhou Huimin was about to go out, she saw Uncle Ghost. He had already set up the stall.

This time he wanted to give Mao Mao Amin a pancake, but Mao Mao Amin didn't agree and resolutely wanted

He might not be able to provide his children and grandchildren with great wealth, but he couldn't let them suffer and struggle with him after arriving in Hong Kong.

That was why Comrade Lao Gui, nearly sixty years old, thought about quitting his job to go out and try his luck.

Lying in bed, he was still thinking about how to improve his technique to better suit the tastes of Hong Kong people.

Early the next morning, just as Zhou Huimin was about to head out, she saw Uncle Gui; he had already set up his stall.

This time he wanted to give Mao Mao Amin a pancake, but she wouldn't have it and insisted on paying.

One dollar for an added egg; Uncle Gui specially added an extra egg for her.

These days, the monthly salary for an average Hong Kong worker is around one or two thousand; as for white-collar workers, the lower end is one or two thousand, and the higher end can be four or five thousand—all in Hong Kong dollars.

Even if one ate a one-dollar pancake every day, for every meal, it wouldn't reach one hundred dollars a month, and with eggs, vegetables, and a staple, it was quite cost-effective; even so, Uncle Gui still made a profit of at least fifty cents.

It just lacked meat, so Zhou Huimin suggested, "It would be even better if there were a grilled sausage inside."

Hearing this, Uncle Gui had a flash of inspiration—what a great idea!

There was a decent profit to be made from grilled sausages too!

There was no school today, but she had piano lessons; after finishing piano in the morning, Zhou Huimin didn't go home, but instead prepared to go to Eternal Records to sell a song.

Last night she listened to one of Zhang Mingmin's songs and felt he had the talent; he should be able to sing "The Slippery Her."

During class, she had specifically asked her piano teacher about the current market for songwriting and composing.

Although the teacher wasn't an industry insider, they were in the music business after all, so they certainly knew more than a middle school student like herself.

Eternal Records was not on Hong Kong Island; Zhou Huimin first took the Kowloon Motor Bus to the Kowloon Peninsula, then transferred to the Kwun Tong Line subway that had only opened last year, and finally walked for a few minutes to reach the office building.

Standing downstairs, Zhou Huimin finally felt a bit nervous; after all, she was only 13, and it was her first time doing something like this. "Excuse me, sir, do you know which floor Eternal Records is on?" Zhou Huimin stopped a passing man in glasses who looked quite kind.

Looking at the girl's height, Zhang Mingmin felt very hurt; he touched his own face—I'm only 24! And I'm already "uncle"?

"Come with me," Zhang Mingmin kindly took her upstairs and asked, "What are you doing at Eternal Records? Are you a newly signed singer?"

"Oh, no, I'm here to sell a song."

"You can write songs?" Zhang Mingmin was even more surprised; she was too young, could it be a family tradition?

Like the family of his teacher Dai Sicong, where he once studied music; although his daughter Yunhui was only 12, she had been immersed in music since childhood and had a deep foundation, yet even so, she hadn't written any decent songs, though she could sing well.

Zhou Huimin waved her hand: "It's a song written by a friend of mine; I'm helping him ask about it."

The elevator reached the eighth floor, where there were several companies; Eternal Records was relatively large among them, and Zhang Mingmin took her directly into the company.

Zhou Huimin noticed he didn't leave; he smiled and explained, "I'm a singer at this company. Let me introduce myself, my name is Zhang Mingmin."

"Ah, so you're Zhang Mingmin!" Zhou Huimin was greatly surprised.

"Yes, I am Zhang Mingmin." Zhang Mingmin was even more surprised—someone actually recognized him?

!

Although he had won two championship titles last year at the "All-Hong Kong Workers' Singing Competition" and the "All-Hong Kong Amateur Singers' Competition," when he actually debuted and released a record, there were very few takers.

Because the sales of "Country Road" were very poor, the company was now planning to arrange for Zhang Mingmin to sing at a cabaret, though of course, only after work.

Zhang Mingmin was not yet a full-time singer; fortunately, he hadn't quit his job at the electronic watch factory, otherwise, singing alone would likely be hard to live on.

Zhou Huimin took out Wei Ming's song: "I actually wanted to give this song to you to sing."

"Oh?" Zhang Mingmin was overjoyed; this little girl had actually come for him. "May I take a look at this song?"

Zhou Huimin handed it over.

Yo, it was a Mandarin song. Zhang Mingmin's musical literacy was far superior to Zhou Huimin's; he scanned it briefly and began to hum it softly.

Zhou Huimin felt it sounded much better than when she sang it; she felt that giving it to this uncle was a good choice.

After singing it through the first time, Zhang Mingmin sighed with emotion: "A good song, a truly good song!"

This song that had suddenly appeared was far better than the original songs the company had found for him before, and it was even on par with those Taiwanese songs he had covered, with a style in the melody that had a Taiwanese flavor.

"Is your friend Taiwanese?"

"No," Zhou Huimin shook her head, but didn't say where he was from either. She asked, "So, can it be sold? How much money can you give?"

She couldn't wait to tell Ah Ming the good news.

Zhang Mingmin knew that capitalists were greedy; this little girl looked like she didn't understand anything, and she would easily be cheated by their boss.

So he suggested, "First, have your friend join the Composers and Authors Society of Hong Kong with this song so that his work is protected, then come back to our company to find me, and I will introduce you to our boss."

In the past, Hong Kong didn't pay much attention to the rights of music creators, but since the establishment of the "Composers and Authors Society of Hong Kong" in 1976, this aspect had improved greatly; not only had the situation of rampant plagiarism improved significantly, but lyricists and composers could also enjoy a share of the sales from hit music works.

It was also Zhou Huimin's first time hearing of that association, and she felt a bit overwhelmed: "But my friend isn't in Hong Kong; can I register for him?"

"I think so."

"Does registration cost money?"

"Yes, but not much, about a hundred dollars or so."

Zhou Huimin was even more troubled; she didn't have a hundred dollars either.

Seeing her troubled expression, Zhang Mingmin hesitated for a moment and took out a hundred-dollar bill.

"I'll lend it to you first." After all, she had come specifically to give him a song, which meant she was likely his fan; he felt safe lending money to a fan.

Afterward, he wrote down the address of the association for Zhou Huimin.

Zhou Huimin also hurriedly left her home address; one hundred dollars was not a small sum for her.

Because she had to go to the Composers and Authors Society to register, Zhou Huimin delayed her return home.

By the time she got home, Uncle Gui had already packed up his stall; fortunately, her mother worked even later and didn't notice she had come home so late. She hurriedly made dinner, waiting for her mother to come home so they could eat together.

Although it delayed things a bit, fortunately, the registration was successful, though there were some twists and turns.

Because she only knew Ah Ming's real name, "Wei Ming," and his stage name, "Ah Ming," and had no birth date, no photo, and no address, strictly speaking, she couldn't register.

Fortunately, the staff saw she was just a little girl and made an exception, saying she could provide the details later, but the address left was her home.

But this way, she would have a chance to ask Ah Ming for his photo and birth date!

Thinking of this, Mao Mao Amin felt a bit expectant; how old was Ah Ming, and what did he look like?

……

(Begging for monthly tickets!)

(End of chapter)