Chapter 101: Zhou Yi, This Is My Dad

"No need to be so formal, keep it up."

"I'll do my best."

Faced with Zhou Yi's casual words of encouragement, Wang Xinling, who desperately wanted to seize every opportunity, responded with unusual seriousness.

Children from poor families grow up fast, and besides, starring in Zhou Yi's MV might very well attract the attention of other directors.

Chen Hao, who has already joined the cast of "Pink Lady" and is now shooting scenes in Japan, is a living example.

Countless people in the modeling circle are watching Zhou Yi's MV right now; for someone as unknown as her, being selected is, by industry standards, a stroke of ancestral luck.

After all, Lin Zhiling, who is more famous and has a better figure and face, was rejected—this alone proves Zhou Yi isn't the type to pick models based on looks alone.

"'Da Cheng Xiao Ai' is a sweet love song. Here's your script. You don't need to show off any strong acting skills—just play to your strengths in front of the camera."

After handing Wang Xinling the script and shot list agreed upon with the MV director, Zhou Yi laid out his requirements for her—

Smile.

A sweet smile.

As sweet as you can possibly make it.

The original Wang Lihong MV mostly features him alone, holding a guitar and singing—fine for a fresh, minimalist vibe, but it lacks the song's inherent sweetness.

That's why Zhou Yi added Wang Xinling, whose smile is sweet, into the MV.

No lines, no dialogue—just move and express in sync with the lyrics, and keep a sweet smile on your face.

Wang Xinling is perfect for this.

Despite lacking major physical advantages, she broke through the sea of idol dramas precisely because of her uniquely sweet smile.

After all, sweetness requires capital.

Some people's sweetness is genuine; others' sweetness makes you want to yell "Fuck!" after watching.

"Got it, I understand."

Receiving the two script copies from Zhou Yi with both hands, Wang Xinling walked aside solemnly to study them.

She wasn't new to shooting MVs—before Zhou Yi, her agent had gotten her roles in Cai Jianya's MVs.

But compared to that Cai Jianya shoot, she suddenly realized Zhou Yi's script was far more detailed: instead of vague hints leaving actors to find their own feeling, it meticulously listed exactly how to act, what emotion and expression to convey at every moment.

This was very comfortable.

For example, the first verse of the lyrics—

"Black hair tied into a loop, entwining all my longing for you."

"Behind a semi-transparent curtain, the words from my mouth hold no deception~"

The script required Wang Xinling to stand behind the curtain, tie up her long hair, and face the camera with a sweet, loving smile.

Opening with a close-up—admittedly, shooting Zhou Yi's MV is a dream: plenty of camera time, no risk of being just background filler.

Wang Xinling had assumed Zhou Yi's MV would be shot entirely in a studio, but upon receiving the actual plan, she discovered Warner's lavish budget had allowed Zhou Yi to shoot on location.

It's clear Warner has immense confidence in Zhou Yi's second album.

"OK, when you're ready, give it a try. Remember to sync with the lyrics."

Under the director's instructions, Wang Xinling quickly memorized the lyrics and movements, stepped in front of the camera, and as Zhou Yi's simple demo began playing, she performed exactly as the script demanded.

"Huh? Is this the actress in your new MV? She smiles pretty nicely."

Sun Yanzi, in unusually high spirits, walked into the studio with her hands behind her back, skipping along—then stopped when she spotted Wang Xinling auditioning, and tiptoed closer—

Her head suddenly popped up behind Zhou Yi, curiously studying the woman in the studio following the director's cues.

Zhou Yi, who had been standing with arms crossed, silently watching everything, glanced sideways at Sun Yanzi, who had sprung up like a groundhog: "Are you a ghost? You walk without a sound?"

Sun Yanzi grinned, showing her teeth: "I'm not arguing with you today—I don't want to ruin my good mood."

"Did you find money on the street? You're so happy?" Zhou Yi raised an eyebrow, clearly surprised.

Yesterday she was depressed; today her mood cleared up like clouds parting?

"Hehe, my dad came over from Singapore because I made the Golden Melody Awards shortlist."

Sun Yanzi raised her right hand and rested it on the man's shoulder, her eyes sparkling with joy: "I told him I probably won't win any of the three awards, but he didn't care."

"He said this is my first time participating in Taiwan's Golden Melody Awards—it's historic, he had to come."

"If my mom hadn't been completely tied up, she'd have come with him."

Since arriving in Taiwan, Sun Yanzi had only managed to return home for a few scattered days during the New Year—she was clearly thrilled that her father would accompany her on the red carpet.

Zhou Yi nodded understandingly: "That's great. When is your dad arriving? Need any help?"

Sun Yanzi rolled her eyes at the man: "No thanks—we're already under heavy scrutiny. I don't want to be linked to you, Mr. Heartbreaker. I'm still looking for a boyfriend."

"Thank goodness Jackie Chan was decent enough to throw a birthday party and bring out Zhang Ziyi to divert media attention. You wrote the soundtrack for his movie—worth every bit."

"If Jackie Chan heard you say that, he'd make you regret it."

"... You'll keep this quiet, right?" Sun Yanzi suddenly realized she'd spoken too freely, panicked, clapped a hand over her mouth, and looked up at the man beside her, blinking with pleading eyes: "Heaven knows, earth knows, you know, I know?"

Zhou Yi's lips curled upward, his gaze fixed straight ahead at the studio separated by a pane of glass: "We'll see how you behave."

"What kind of behavior do you want?"

"Well… I haven't decided yet. How about a million or two as hush money?"

"Go die, you thief! Why don't you just rob a bank?"

Sun Yanzi burst out laughing and slapped his shoulder with her palm: "I haven't sold nearly as many albums as you've sold with just one—how dare you extort me?"

By now, Zhou Yi's debut album "Zhou Yi," thanks to its exceptional quality and several promotional surges, had sold over 1.9 million legitimate copies across Asia.

Mainland China accounted for the majority of sales.

Especially after rumors spread that Taiwan had targeted Zhou Yi with a ban, his album sales in the mainland surged explosively.

Sun Yanzi's album sales in Taiwan and Xiangjiang could barely keep pace with Zhou Yi's, but once expanded to the mainland or across Asia, the gap widened dramatically.

Even in South Korea, after songs licensed to SM—like "Kuai Le Chong Bai"—were covered and became hits, Zhou Yi's own album sales saw a pleasant boost as well.

As for Sun Yanzi's album, it cannot even be said to be slightly famous in South Korea; at best, it is as if she does not exist.

After Jolin Tsai's "Love's Main Song" was released, it did occupy a certain market share in South Korea.

According to Qian Jiang's news, having tasted the sweetness, the South Korean companies seem to be coming to Zhou Yi again to buy the composition rights for "Love's Main Song" to cover.

This was something Zhou Yi had never anticipated.

He seemed to have become a delicacy in the eyes of several major South Korean entertainment companies, being watched and "plucked."

Before the Korean Wave had swept across the mainland, he had instead broken into the South Korean market a step ahead.

His avant-garde styling in the music videos for "Jing Wu Men," "My Microphone," and "It's Me" had now become an object of imitation and study for some South Korean youth.

Tall with excellent temperament, South Koreans really fell for that kind of thing.

"Forget it, I won't talk about these things with you anymore; I'm going to meet my dad." Sun Yanzi, feeling that continuing the conversation would likely shatter her self-confidence, saw Zhou Yi's smug face and directly chose to ignore it.

Humming a cheerful little tune with her hands behind her back, Sun Yanzi walked out of the studio again with a "tap-tap-tap," her happy appearance making Zhou Yi secretly laugh.

Seeing that Wang Xinling had passed the audition, been affirmed by the MV director, and gone with the Warner staff to sign the contract, Zhou Yi also left the studio, preparing to go home and tidy up the house first.

After all, his parents were also coming to the Treasure Island.

Just as he walked out of the Warner office building, preparing to wait for the driver to pick him up, he saw a man in a brown long trench coat standing dustily at the building's entrance, seemingly observing something—

Middle-aged and balding, a man's nightmare, indeed.

Noticing Zhou Yi's gaze, the balding man smiled and nodded at him, then walked toward the entrance of the Warner office building carrying his briefcase.

"Hello, I'd like to ask, which floor is the General Manager's office at Warner?"

"The ninth floor. However, he is not in the company right now; if you have something to discuss with him, I suggest calling to leave a message first."

Glancing at the black backpack the middle-aged man was holding, Zhou Yi, having nothing better to do, helped point the way, then casually started chatting with this older brother: "Big brother, you're not a local, right? Your accent doesn't sound like it's from the Treasure Island; Xiangjiang?"

The balding man looked at him in surprise, then, not knowing what he thought of, smiled and nodded: "No, but my ancestral home is in Guangdong; I got used to speaking it when I was young, so it carries a bit of an accent."

"No wonder."

Zhou Yi suddenly understood. Seeing his driver's car already coming out of the underground parking lot, Zhou Yi was just about to speak when he saw Sun Yanzi's face, filled with surprise and joy, appear inside the Warner building entrance—

"Dad?! How did you arrive so quickly? Didn't I say I would pick you up?"

Dad?

The moment he heard Sun Yanzi's greeting, even Zhou Yi, with his social butterfly attributes, scratched his head.

Just having spread an unfounded rumor about the man's daughter, and now in the blink of an eye calling him "big brother" and "big brother," wasn't that a bit of a generational gap?

(End of this chapter)