Chapter 332: Work done, the whole of Hong Kong stays awake

Before the chorus began, Xia Meng and her husband were the first to respond, donating a check for 200,000 HKD.

Jin Yong didn't know how much they had donated, but upon seeing it, he hurriedly followed up with a check for 1 million, surely intending to exceed their amount.

However, there wasn't much response from others; after all, donating now would at most get you a moment in the spotlight, and the public wouldn't know how much you gave, which wasn't very flashy. So, if you were going to donate, you should have done it beforehand. For now, it was better to just listen to the music.

In the backstage area, Wei Ming wore headphones, lost in his writing, occasionally picking up his guitar to strum a few chords. No one disturbed him, with only Melinda keeping watch over him.

Zhou Huimin wished so much that she could be the one guarding him, but it was her turn to go on stage.

Wang Mingquan pointed to the large characters on the banner above: "Tomorrow Will Be Better, Hearts of Global Chinese Connected as One."

"The name of this Mandarin song is 'Tomorrow Will Be Better,' and it also embodies A-Ming's beautiful wishes for Sichuan, for China, and for world peace."

She stepped aside, and at that moment, a tall, slender girl wearing the uniform of St. Stephen's College walked to the center of the stage.

The camera focused on her slightly nervous face. Many viewers in front of their televisions, especially the younger ones, exclaimed, "So pretty!"

She had that "good girl" vibe; perhaps not every boy liked it, but parents would certainly appreciate it.

Zhou Ma and Hu Zi and the others immediately stood up excitedly to cheer for A-Min. Other stars had fanatical fans, but A-Min's appearance was quiet; her own family had to support her.

However, Zhou Huimin didn't notice them. She focused on listening to the intro, counting the beats, and then began to sing at the right moment. It was a Mandarin song.

"Gently knock to wake the sleeping soul, slowly open your eyes~"

It was a very clean, young girl's voice. After she finished this line, others joined in behind her. It was Zhang Mingmin: "Look at the busy world, is it still spinning lonely without end?"

Zhen Ni: "The spring breeze doesn't understand the mood, stirring the youth's heart."

Luo Wen: "Let the tear stains on yesterday's face dry with the wind along with the memories."

Tan Yonglin: "Look up to find the wings in the sky, the migratory birds reveal their traces."

Zhang Guorong: "Bringing news of the famine and ruthless war in the distance, still existing."

Chen Baiqiang: "The white snow drifts on Shushan, burning the youth's heart."

Zhong Zhong Zhen Tao: "Let true feelings melt into musical notes, pouring out distant blessings."

Chorus: "Sing out your passion, reach out your hands, let me embrace your dreams, let me possess your sincere face."

At this time, star singers took the stage one after another, and Zhou Huimin, who had sung the first line, had already retreated, standing in the back with her classmates to provide backing vocals.

Although this was a Mandarin song, there was no difficulty in understanding the lyrics. The audience at the venue could basically understand it, and even if the very young children couldn't understand the lyrics, they still felt the melody was quite pleasant.

Listening to this song, when the donation box reached him, Cheng Long felt his pockets. He didn't have much cash on him, so he simply put the Rolex he had just bought into it, which could also be considered reaching out his own hands.

Seeing his junior brother make a gesture, Hong Jinbao also emptied all the cash he had on him, fully displaying the demeanor of a big brother.

Liu Jialiang, watching in front of the television, thought after seeing the actions of Hong Jinbao and the other, that it was fortunate Wei Ming hadn't invited him, otherwise he would have had to lose money again. But this song really had something to it.

This song was quite long, lasting a full five and a half minutes. The remaining singers took the stage one after another, one line after another; what a magnificent spectacle of the music scene.

Relying on the quality of this song and the wonderful performances of numerous talented singers, audience members in the VIP seats began to donate one after another.

And Chen Pide, as a Taiwanese singer, felt it most deeply. If only this song could be released in Taiwan; he really wanted to gather all the singers in Taiwan to record a version, as it would surely be able to soothe people's hearts extremely well.

This song also gave many young people in Hong Kong, who only loved listening to Cantonese songs and were usually resistant to Mandarin songs, a different perspective on Mandarin music.

18-year-old Mei Yanfang was watching TV with her older brother, sister, and mother. Every time a new song came out, they would copy down the lyrics, thinking about going to sing at Lai Chi Kok Amusement Park the next day.

Because her father had gone out to sea to work on a ship when she was four and never returned, the five of them had lived a difficult life. Mei Yanfang had been following her sister to perform and sing to earn money since she was a few years old, mainly at the Lai Chi Kok Amusement Park, and she had basically only sung Cantonese songs.

However, the Mandarin and Minnan songs Wei Ming wrote tonight left a deep impression on her, especially this final song, "Tomorrow Will Be Better." Whether it was the lyrics, the melody, or the arrangement of the all-star chorus, it was all very shocking.

She looked at her family's somewhat cramped living environment and clasped her hands together: "Tomorrow will definitely be better, and I will definitely become a remarkable big star!"

Zhou Huimin wished so much that this song could be sung for a while longer. If only a song could last twenty minutes; it would give A-Ming backstage more time to write songs. But in the end, it had to come to an end.

"Let me possess your sincere face (your sincere face), let our smiles be filled with the pride of youth (pride of youth), let us look forward to tomorrow being better~"

The stars in the front and the choir in the back cooperated seamlessly to complete this final performance. As the last line of lyrics ended, this group of fourteen or fifteen-year-old boys and girls excitedly held hands.

At first, they were worried they had been tricked, but who could have imagined they would participate in such a great activity? This would be enough for them to talk about with relish when they recalled their entire middle school life on graduation day.

This was simply too cool!

And at this time, Li Xiaotian and Zheng Yuling, who were in charge of the donations, put their heads together. After exchanging glances, they arrived at a surprising result: in just this short while, they had raised over ten million!

On stage, Wang Mingquan continued to stall for time, solemnly introducing that the choir was from St. Stephen's College, and thanked them for their cooperation.

As she was speaking, Wei Ming walked out from behind with a guitar on his back. The scene immediately erupted with earth-shattering cheers and applause. Wang Mingquan, who hadn't seen this scene yet, turned her head and saw Wei Ming walking to her side, full of confidence.

At this moment, this big boy simply captivated everyone!

Even if he had produced something like "I am a spinach, spinach spinach spinach spinach spinach," everyone would probably have forgiven him.

Wang Mingquan: "A-Ming, have you already written a song?"

Wei Ming nodded: "But I haven't memorized the lyrics yet. Sister, could you help me hold the lyrics for a moment?"

Wang Mingquan: "Of course, no problem."

Wei Ming handed her a piece of paper covered in scribbles.

Sister said: "Do you want to tell everyone how you thought of creating such a song?"

Wei Ming said: "I know Sister Zhen Ni has a song called 'Pearl of the Orient,' which is very beautiful. I think the four characters 'Pearl of the Orient' are simply the most appropriate to describe Hong Kong, so my song is also called 'Pearl of the Orient,' but it is a Mandarin song."

Everyone didn't nitpick him on this aspect; after all, he was a mainlander, and in a short time, he would certainly only have had time to write Mandarin songs.

Their requirements weren't high either; if it could be half as good as "Tomorrow Will Be Better," it would pass.

Wei Ming didn't know if it could be considered half as good as "Tomorrow Will Be Better," but in any case, it was the most appropriate choice for this time, this place, and this scene.

Wang Mingquan held up the lyrics: "Then let's start."

Wei Ming: "Sorry to trouble you, Sister."

This was a performance without accompaniment; Wei Ming could only play and sing by himself.

Everyone behind, including Zhou Huimin, looked expectantly at Wei Ming in front of the stage. This was a song that no one knew, full of uncertainty.

Wei Ming began, his fingers started to move. Everyone didn't know how his singing level was, but his guitar playing had already reached a high level, and compared to most musicians at the scene, it was not inferior.

After playing for a while, Wei Ming finally opened his mouth under the gaze of everyone.

"The small river bends and flows south, flowing to the Pearl River to take a look."

Hmm, the melody was good, the singing skills were indeed a bit lacking. No wonder he didn't compete with singers for jobs; indeed, no one was 100% perfect and omnipotent.

"Pearl of the Orient, my lover, is your elegance still romantic?"

Comparing Hong Kong to his lover, this kind of writing was still rare, and everyone felt it was fresh.

"The crescent moon's harbor, the night scene is deep and the lights are shining, the Pearl of the Orient has not slept all night, guarding the promises of the changing seas and mulberry fields."

The emotions in the lyrics became more and more intense. As people born and raised in Hong Kong, and people who had lived in Hong Kong for most of their lives, this kind of intimate feeling was particularly strong.

Following that: "Let the sea breeze blow for five thousand years, every teardrop seems to speak of your dignity, let the sea tide accompany me to protect you, please don't forget my forever unchanging yellow face."

When singing this part, the camera focused on the faces of many VIP seat bigwigs, and everyone was quite moved.

Zheng Yuling, who was holding the donation box, was listening to the song when she was suddenly called over by someone. It was Lin Baixin, the father of Lin Jianyue and the boss of Lai Sun Group.

Lin Baixin had come to Hong Kong when he was in his twenties, and after living here for more than forty years, he had also experienced the painful experience of Hong Kong being invaded by Japan. That was a time without any dignity, a time unforgettable for life, a time he never wanted to relive again.

He took the initiative to hand Zheng Yuling a check. Zheng Yuling took it and looked: 3 million!

"The boat bends into the harbor, looking back at the vast sea, the Pearl of the Orient embraces me, let me warm your desolate chest..."

Wei Ming's singing style couldn't be called very clever; it was just a plain voice. However, the sincere interpretation moved every Hong Kong person present.

Subsequently, Guo Bingxiang, who hadn't donated a dime in the front, also donated two million.

Then He Chaoqiong also took out a large sum of pocket money, and Xu Jinheng, seeing this, hurriedly donated a sum as well.

Even Tan Yonglin and the others who participated in the performance backstage were moved to take out their wallets when they heard this "Pearl of the Orient."

More and more people began to give generously, for charity, for this gentle and sincere song, and also for the Pearl of the Orient.

Wei Ming originally thought he needed to look at the lyrics, but after he really started singing, he almost didn't look at the lyrics once, and he even started to play, sing, and move around on the stage, his emotions becoming more and more full.

After the last two lines, "Please don't forget my forever unchanging yellow face, please don't forget my forever unchanging yellow face~" were sung, Wei Ming closed his eyes, played the guitar, and slowly drew a period to this performance.

After this song was sung, the exhausted audience poured their last bit of strength into their hands and began to applaud desperately.

For Hong Kong people, singing about Hong Kong meant "Under the Lion Rock" or Zhen Ni's "Pearl of the Orient," but today, Wei Ming used his "Pearl of the Orient" to sing about Hong Kong from another angle. She was like a lover with a long history, who had suffered a lot, but was still gentle. This was Hong Kong in the eyes of an outsider.

The three hosts returned to the stage, and all the singers, the choir, the backup dancers, and the musicians who participated in the performance also took the stage.

Wang Mingquan: "So, today's performance ends here. A-Ming has provided a perfect ending for this performance. Thank you everyone, thank you to everyone tonight. Next, we will calculate the donation amount and details of this charity performance and announce them in newspapers such as 'Ming Pao' and 'Ta Kung Pao.' Goodbye."

Everyone on and off the stage waved together, and the organizers and the audience were all happy. With a ticket price of only 100, it felt like the ultimate experience of 10,000; it was worth it, so worth it!

However, when the audience began to leave in an orderly manner, they saw the donation box that had been standing at the entrance when they entered.

Why did they have a feeling of having taken advantage of the organizers?

The first audience member to go out suddenly had this thought, and then, as if possessed, stuffed the few hundred dollars of change he had on him into it. Seeing the first person's approach, the audience behind them also prepared their change in advance, and some even prepared a bundle of banknotes, at least several thousand.

A concert of this level deserved a higher return.

The same thing happened at several other entrances and exits. The queues that should have left quickly became slow again because of the donations.

Liang Jiahui and his girlfriend Li Dianxin, while queuing, also saw a familiar face. They were in two queues, almost adjacent.

Li Hansiang, who was just about to take out money, also saw them.

"Dad~" Li Dianxin let go of Liang Jiahui's arm and then introduced Liang Jiahui, who was starting a magazine, to him.

Li Hansiang asked: "What magazine?"

Liang Jiahui said: "'La Bouche,' a fashion magazine."

"Still using foreign words, never heard of it."

"Small magazine, small magazine," facing this famous big director, Liang Jiahui said somewhat nervously, "In addition, I am also learning acting at the TVB training class."

"Learning acting, huh." Li Hansiang began to seriously size up this boy with small eyes who wasn't considered very handsome.

On the other side, Liu Dehua, Qi Meizhen, Lian Jin, and other classmates were also excitedly discussing while queuing to leave.

Then they saw Xu Jinjiang in a parallel queue.

Liu Dehua was even surprised: "A-Jiang, why wasn't your seat with us? We thought you didn't come."

Xu Jinjiang scratched his head: "Oh, the tickets weren't consecutive."

Qi Meizhen said gratefully: "Thank you so much for the tickets. If I had the chance to come to the scene but could only watch it on TV, I would definitely regret it for the rest of my life."

Wu Jiali also said: "Yes, this is definitely the most unforgettable concert experience of my life!"

Xu Jinjiang smiled honestly: "As long as everyone likes it, I told you that friend of mine is very powerful."

A friend's friend is a friend; he had already defaulted to Wei Ming being his friend.

And Wei Ming simply regarded him as an idol.

At the exit, several young people from the TVB training class took out money and put it into the donation box, with the least being one hundred.

Then everyone looked at Xu Jinjiang, who had his hands in his pockets and made no indication.

Xu Jinjiang was stunned, only then realizing the meaning of this look.

What do you mean? I donated when I came in, and now I only have the fare for the way back in my pocket.

However, this could not be explained clearly. He really couldn't stand the "No way, no way" look from everyone, and finally painfully donated his fare as well.

Fortunately, after going out, Xu Jinjiang met his senior brother Liu Rulong. This was a true fellow disciple, and he didn't mind telling his embarrassing story to A-Long.

Uncle Liu Bin smiled: "A-Jiang, just come with our car, and Uncle will send you home later."

"Thank you, Uncle Bin."

"You're welcome, have your parents also moved to Hong Kong?"

"No, they are still working as doctors in Guangzhou. I came to make my own way."

"Impressive, impressive."

On the side, Hu Zi said to Zhou Ma, who was looking back: "Don't worry, A-Ming will send A-Min back. They are performers and definitely won't be able to come out for a while."

Zhou Ma nodded helplessly: "Then let's go first."

Backstage.

Everyone first took a group photo, and then those interested in each other could take photos in small groups. People most wanted to find Wei Ming to take photos with. Wei Ming urged them to help him print an extra copy when the time came; what a commemorative significance.

Then Wei Ming, as the initiator, sent the singers away one by one. He had to stay until the end, including Melinda and Sarah, who had left first.

But Zhou Huimin, who could have taken the school bus with her classmates, chose to stay to accompany Wei Ming.

Zhang Guorong, still not understanding, asked Tan Yonglin: "What is their relationship?"

Zhong Zhong Zhen Tao was also curious: "Isn't it said that the red-haired beauty is Melinda, A-Ming's ex-girlfriend? He even wrote that song specifically for her."

Tan Yonglin pushed them: "Don't ask what you shouldn't ask, let's go, let's go."

Finally, besides Zhou Huimin, there were only Wei Ming and the official personnel.

The branch president kindly shook Wei Ming's hand and said excitedly: "Comrade Little Wei, heroes have emerged from youth since ancient times!"

"President Wang, you overpraise me. If it weren't for the country's support behind the scenes, how would those big tycoons have given face to come here? And how would they have been willing to donate such large sums to charity? In the final analysis, it is the country's power that is strong, and they also hope to get the country's support and recognition."

"Humble, too humble." Immediately, President Wang invited Wei Ming to come to the agency tomorrow, first to calculate the results of this charity performance, and also to introduce him to a few people, people from China Resources and Bank of China.

Although Wei Ming was a commoner, what he did today was truly too successful and too dazzling. Such a young man was worth cultivating well; he was absolutely a pillar of the country!

Wei Ming nodded in agreement and watched President Wang and the others leave. Before leaving, they also glanced at Zhou Huimin, the little girl who was about to fall asleep.

After finishing this finishing work, it was already midnight. Wei Ming hurried over and called out: "A-Min, it's time to go home."

"Oh." Zhou Huimin stood up, but she seemed to be overly exhausted today, her body swaying slightly. Wei Ming hurriedly supported her.

"You worked hard today."

A-Min: "What hard work is it for me? You are the one who is truly hard-working. A-Ming, we raised over 100 million, right!"

"Hmm, over 100 million."

"Then can that save many people?"

"Hmm, this money will allow millions of people to escape hunger and post-disaster plagues, and give them the confidence to rebuild their homes," Wei Ming said firmly. From the beginning, Wei Ming had told the branch people that this money must be "specifically used for specific purposes," otherwise it would chill the hearts of the Hong Kong people.

However, at first, they hadn't thought there would be so much. It seemed he had to reiterate it again tomorrow.

Actually, Wei Ming hadn't thought it would reach this extent either. This concert was indeed carefully planned by him, and the first step was Guo He Nian.

When it was confirmed that the Min businessman Guo He Nian would come, Wei Ming changed the Mandarin song he originally planned to give to Zhang Mingmin to the Minnan song "To Win, You Must Fight."

Because he knew that Guo He Nian himself liked this song very much, and he was also a Malaysian Chinese businessman who often had "Three parts are destined by heaven, seven parts depend on hard work, to win, you must fight" on his lips.

So this was a targeted catering to his preferences, just for a good start.

It was just unexpected that it would be so popular, directly reaching 5 million. Then, the few songs that followed were also songs that could stir the emotions of the tycoons, so the amount became more and more.

Of course, the rich second generations couldn't be let go either, so several young singers also catered to their preferences.

It was just unexpected that the Gambling King He came with an unexpected assist, directly bringing the single donation amount to the ten-million level.

And then, with one big hit song after another, the donation amount also rose all the way.

Finally, several tycoons seemed to intend to compete for the name of the top philanthropist of this charity performance, which was destined to be recorded in history, and finally drove the donation amount to over 100 million, almost causing two shipping tycoons to fight.

Sure enough, no matter how good Wei Ming's planning and calculations were, they couldn't beat "Heaven helping me."

While reviewing, Wei Ming pulled A-Min's hand and walked out. She was a bit weak after being overly excited, and it was easy to stumble if he didn't hold her.

It was a bit chilly here at night, and A-Min was still wearing her school's uniform skirt. Wei Ming gentlemanly took off his jacket and draped it over her.

A-Min happily put her hand into the pocket of the leather jacket and then touched something.

In the car, she took it out and looked: a small square piece in plastic packaging.

Just as something flashed through her mind, Wei Ming hurriedly snatched it away: "Let's go, you can close your eyes and rest for a while, I'll call you when we arrive."

A-Min pouted. She already understood; that was a modern industrial product to prevent human pregnancy. A-Ming and Melinda had indeed rekindled their old relationship, right!

Or was it just a brief release.

If it was just the latter, she still had a chance.

When the car drove away from the stadium, A-Min, who had her eyes closed, suddenly said: "A-Ming, it's too late."

"Don't be afraid, I will personally send you upstairs."

A-Min said cautiously: "I mean, how about I stay at a hotel with you today? You open a room for me, I've never stayed in a hotel before, or if you don't open one, we can just make do."

"Screech!" Wei Ming slammed the car to a stop on the side of the road.

"Do you know what you are saying?"

A-Min didn't dare to look up at him, but her tone was firm: "I know, it's just too late, I don't want to wake Mom up."

Wei Ming smiled: "Don't worry, if a daughter doesn't come home, Mom definitely won't be able to sleep."

Zhou Huimin finally raised her head and looked at Wei Ming: "Then what if it's not for that reason? What if I just want to be with you..."

Wei Ming flicked her on the forehead, and a crisp sound rang out in the car, and A-Min's subsequent words were also blocked back.

A-Min bared her teeth and covered her head, while Wei Ming restarted the car and then changed the route~

(PS: The song list and donation numbers and personnel are as follows↓)

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 333 =====