Chapter 287

Don't worry about all that—just enjoy it; this is definitely tomorrow's headline.

Zhou Yi, rarely seeing such entertainment at the Golden Melody Awards, embraced his "drink today's wine, live today's life" spirit and saw it through to the end.

Shoot, shoot however you like.

Am I, Zhou Yi, the kind of person who fears trouble?

Ever since F4 got so angry at being criticized that they started mindlessly spreading rumors about Sun Yanzi and Xiao Yaxuan, their relationship with Zhou Yi had been frozen solid.

While F4's brawling was still stuck in a primitive stage of not even using tools, Zhou Yi had already escalated to battlefield tactics—he immediately threw two chairs at them, knocking down the ones who couldn't face the shame and tried to help Wu Jianhao.

Then he took advantage of the situation by pinning them down and beating them up first.

Jay Chou's morale surged in imitation, but before he could unleash his full power, everyone rushed over quickly.

They really don't use their brains.

Sun Yanzi, after thinking about it, gave her sharp evaluation of these four oddballs.

She finally understood why local Taiwanese entertainment figures had such mixed opinions about F4.

The rumor that F4 "don't use their brains, can't speak properly"—which they had publicly denied on stage at the Golden Melody Awards—came back to haunt them in full force due to their own brainless actions, leaving Sun Yanzi astounded.

No wonder this idol group, from its very inception, had been outwardly united but inwardly divided; behind the scenes, their companies fought each other with even greater ferocity—not only were their mouths uncontrolled when angry, they were equally uncontrolled when calm.

On the Golden Melody Awards stage, Zhong Xingmin's acceptance speech was like a slap across their faces.

Especially with Zhou Yi and Jay Chou watching from below—their gazes were pure torture for F4.

Chai Zhiping's eyes burned with rage; she wanted to grab a knife and go up there and cut them down.

After the Best Arrangement Award ended, F4 slunk offstage, clearly aware they'd just lost face; back at their seats, each wore a forced smile.

Tao Jingying, constantly reminding herself she was a professional host and must not laugh, gritted her teeth to suppress the urge to smile while desperately maintaining a serious demeanor to keep the show flowing.

F4 fans who had witnessed their idol's humiliation stared at each other, glanced at fans holding Zhou Yi's signs, and some with even a shred of self-awareness felt a little deflated.

Oh no, is their idol about to fall from grace?

Fortunately, Tao Jingying's stage control was just barely adequate; she managed to restore normalcy with jokes and self-deprecating remarks about her figure, handing the show over to the next presenters—Liang Yongqi and Luo Zhixiang.

Best Music Video Award.

For the second time since last year's New Artist Award, the names Zhou Yi, Sun Yanzi, and Jay Chou appeared together in this category.

Zhou Yi's "Love Me or Him," Sun Yanzi's "Kite," Jay Chou's "Can't Speak," Wang Fei's "Flowing Years," Zhuo Wenxuan's "Missing Home," and ASOS's "Love You to Death."

"To be honest, comparing Zhou Yi's 'Love Me or Him' with Yanzi's 'Kite,' it just feels surreal."

Luo Zhixiang teased the wild rumors swirling around.

Liang Yongqi, former spokesperson for Sun Yanzi's short-haired image, also laughed with twinkling eyes: "Honestly, after reading that theory, I thought it was pretty plausible."

The plot of "Love Me or Him" could seamlessly connect to the fan-nicknamed "twin stars' token of affection"—the kite—

Zhou Yi, drifting between Taipei and Beijing, was like a kite in the sky, one end of the string held firmly in Sun Yanzi's hand.

Meanwhile, Jay Chou, secretly in love, couldn't speak up.

When "Flowing Years" passed, he began missing home, only to realize they were the true love who loved each other to death.

Jay Chou, who had made a cameo as the secret admirer in this story, clearly understood the joke; as the camera moved toward him, he pointed directly at the demurely behaving Sun Yanzi and Zhou Yi beside her: "Don't film me—film her, film them."

Jay Chou, previously dubbed the "CP king" by fans at Zhou Yi's victory party, once again earned unanimous praise from the "twin stars" fanbase.

"Zhou Yi, what do you think of this story?"

"Fans have great screenwriting skills."

"What about Yanzi?"

Ambitious Sun Yanzi rejected Zhou Yi's remark: "Fans' storytelling skills need improvement."

Zhou Yi immediately shot her a sidelong glance, striking a comical expression that would later become a meme—Anchelotti's signature uneven eyebrows and mismatched eyes.

Seeing Zhou Yi make that ridiculous face again, Sun Yanzi couldn't hold it in—she burst out laughing, instinctively slapping her thigh—

Then she winced in pain, her smile vanishing instantly.

The laughter immediately shifted to Zhou Yi's face and the audience's.

Amid Sun Yanzi's pained "Ssshh—Ssshh!" expression, Liang Yongqi and Luo Zhixiang on stage announced the winner of this award—

"Zhou Yi, 'Love Me or Him'! Director: Tian Wennian, congratulations!"

Zhou Yi, utterly surprised to hear his name in this category, quickly stood up to congratulate his music video director.

Winning an award like this meant he was essentially out of the running for Singer of the Year.

Indeed, as Zhou Yi had predicted, Singer of the Year went to Yu Chengqing, who had been repeatedly nominated for years; Zhou Yi, Jay Chou, and Wang Lihong—all three new-generation male singers—lost out.

In the Best Album Producer category, Jay Chou, who had missed out last year, finally won his first Golden Melody Award this year for his album "Fan Texi."

"I'm so moved—thank you to the company, thank you to Fang Wenshan, thank you to A Yi for encouraging me last year..."

Jay Chou, who had finally won his first Golden Melody Award after years of being held back by Zhou Yi, looked visibly emotional—and couldn't resist shouting out to him at the end: "No more milk tea now!"

The crowd erupted in laughter.

Taking advantage of the guest performances, Zhou Yi and Sun Yanzi, who were next up as presenters, stood and walked together toward the backstage area.

The Golden Melody Awards' presenter backstage was surprisingly basic—just a simple area with a row of chairs.

At Zhou Yi's suggestion, Sun Yanzi, wearing a beige dress today, sat down elegantly and took off her high heels to relieve her feet.

"Walking in these heels killed me—Chen Zeshan picked these for me today, with heels this thin."

With no one around, Sun Yanzi finally dropped her mask and sighed mournfully: "You know I don't like high heels."

"That's how female stars are—even if you're over 1.7 meters tall, you still have to wear heels at events."

Zhou Yi, seated, glanced at the woman's freely moving ankles: "When you get back, have your assistant boil some mugwort for a few minutes, then pour it into your foot soak with hot water—it'll warm your body and make you feel much better."

"?"

Before Sun Yanzi could ask, she heard heavy footsteps approaching and quickly sat up straight, slipping her shoes back on—

The moment she spotted the camera, Zhou Yi, barely holding back his laughter, stood up and used his body to shield her.

"Zhou Yi, we meet again. Your album has already won two trophies at tonight's Golden Melody Awards. Congratulations."

It was the same female host from last year. After smiling and congratulating Zhou Yi, she was just wondering what Sun Yanzi was up to, when the latter, having finished her business, quickly stood up, smiled politely, and said, "Nothing, nothing much."

"Let's interview Zhou Yi. As a guest presenter for the first time, what are your thoughts? If you could choose, who would you give this Best New Artist award to?"

"Thoughts? Yes, but not many. I always feel like I'm still a new artist, but reality tells me I've aged a year and can't pretend to be young anymore."

Glancing at the winner's envelope in the female host's hand, Zhou Yi shrugged: "As for choosing, I think the Best New Artist award should go to Shao Han."

"Same here." Sun Yanzi, who didn't really want to be interviewed, had already predicted the female host's intention.

"What about your two new albums? Can you reveal the progress? Many fans are eagerly awaiting your two new albums."

"As for me, I'll release it in the second half of this year. I can guarantee that much."

Zhou Yi, who had skillfully created a new folder for Sun Yanzi, spoke with a very serious tone. Hearing this, Sun Yanzi rolled her eyes internally but nodded in agreement on her face: "Same here."

Female host: "?"

Wait, Sun Yanzi, are you acting like a broken record here? Did you not win a single award tonight, including Best Female Singer, and feel unbalanced?

…………………………………………………………

Twenty minutes later, when Tao Jingying began to announce the introduction of the guest presenters for the Best New Artist award, which was also highly anticipated tonight, the gradually quieting audience finally became lively again—

"They are the leading figures of the new generation in the Chinese music scene. Their record sales last year were number one for male singers and number one for female singers respectively.

"They are the two 'Purple Star' talents sent from heaven, signed by Warner President Zhou Jianhui against all odds, helping Warner Records turn the tide in the record market. They are affectionately called the 'Warner Twins' by fans!

"Let's welcome—Zhou Yi! Sun Yanzi!"

Amidst the unified cheers of Tao Jingying and the audience, Sun Yanzi, walking onto the stage with music playing, held Zhou Yi's arm, grinned like she was walking a red carpet, and happily waved continuously to the crowd below.

The beige long dress and the black custom suit complemented each other, highlighting the unique temperament of each.

"I never thought that after mixing it up for a year, I'd end up on the awards presentation seat."

After the applause died down, Zhou Yi raised the microphone and joked: "To be honest, I'm not very willing to present this award, but Yanzi insisted she was afraid to present it alone, so I accepted her five million appearance fee and reluctantly came over to help."

"Fifty yuan, thanks. Don't inflate your own value. In my eyes, you might only be worth that much."

Sun Yanzi, elbowing Zhou Yi in a complaining manner, corrected him: "And it was clearly you begging me to bring you to the awards ceremony, saying you wanted to meet the new artists of the music scene this year. For this, you treated me to a fifty-yuan 'sky-high price' spicy hot pot."

"..."

Zhou Yi's performance of wanting to speak but holding back showed some sketch comedy talent. Their coordination with each other couldn't be called inseparable, but at least it could be described as harmonious like a zither and a lute.

In Zhou Yi's revised speech draft, everything about the Best New Artist award was brought up naturally by the two of them—

"The winner of the 13th Golden Melody Award for Best New Artist is—"

"'Fable', Zhang Shaohan! Congratulations, Shaohan!"

Sun Yanzi loudly announced the New King of this year. Below the stage, Zhang Shaohan, who was so nervous her breathing was coarse and heavy, immediately jumped up from her seat in excitement upon hearing her name, embraced her best friend Fan Texi beside her, and wept tears of joy!

"Congratulations, Shaohan."

As the winner of the Best New Artist award last year, Zhou Yi personally handed the trophy to the excited Zhang Shaohan. The latter bowed repeatedly in gratitude: "Thank you, thank you, Brother Yi."

Without Zhou Yi, there would be no debut for her, and certainly no Best New Artist award. She would forever keep this kindness in her heart.

"The final grand prize for Best Album belongs to Zhou Yi. He won it, so he should be able to offset the negative news tomorrow, right?"

In the backstage area of the organizing committee, Chairman You frowned, looking somewhat worried.

Five awards with eleven nominations in total were enough to show Zhou Yi's dominance, with multiple nominations not just for one category.

Sweeping the two major awards for Best Composition and Best Album, plus the Best Music Video award, three out of five. Although the number of wins decreased by one compared to last year, the competition this year was obviously fiercer than last year.

Jay Chou's 'Fan Texi' was of such high quality. With five awards and ten nominations in total, he only won Best Producer as a consolation prize. He became the only peer singer capable of snatching a Golden Melody trophy from the peak Zhou Yi, which was also enough to satisfy the local fans in Taiwan.

"Hard to say. Mainly because F4 made a huge fool of themselves."

Yao Qian, with his hands behind his back, made his prediction.

If Zhou Yi had only won one award or none at all as an upset, that heat might have been enough to cover up the two stupid things F4 did—fighting backstage and being 'illiterate' on stage.

Facts proved that Yao Qian, who was a general manager at a record company, understood the nature of those media outlets better—

Zhou Yi's victory and another big harvest at the Golden Melody Awards was no longer news, unless he swept all the awards of the Golden Melody Awards in one go.

The day after the Golden Melody Awards ended, the front-page headlines of newspapers in Taiwan and Hong Kong were all reporting on the conflicts and clashes between F4, Zhou Yi, and Jay Chou at this year's Golden Melody Awards—

'Street Fighter! Zhou Yi's Big Harvest at Golden Melody Awards, Kicks Domonji Five Meters Away in the Backstage!'

'Charge for Love! Jay Chou Beats Wu Jianhao with Nunchucks, Blood Flows Like a River!'

'Sister Thirteen Unleashes! Sun Yanzi Sweeps F4 with an Electric Baton, Chai Zhiping Kneels and Begs for Mercy!!!'

'The Three Stick Users of the Chinese Music Scene: The Wooden Stick User Zhou Yi, The Electric Baton User Sun Yanzi, The Nunchuck User Jay Chou!!!'

'The Fourth Person in the Golden Melody Awards Fight: Suspected Best New Artist Zhang Shaohan Locked the Battlefield Room Door from the Inside'

'Bearing Grudge? The Most Awkward Moment of the F4 Awards Ceremony, Suspected Illiteracy!'

'...'

One by one, piece by piece, compared to the media still reporting on traditional Golden Melody Awards news, these newspapers with eye-catching headlines instantly sold out!

Only the major mainland newspapers were honestly reporting on Zhou Yi's great achievements, while also praising his success in nurturing new talent—he himself won the Golden Melody Award for Best New Artist, helped craft two hit songs, and then guided Zhang Shaohan to win Best New Artist.

Zhou Yi felt very gratified.

It has to be the fellow countrymen from the mainland who are good—

'Live from the Backstage of the Taiwan Golden Melody Awards! Zhou Yi—Truly a Demon-Slaying Lord from Heaven, Like the God of Tai Sui on Earth!'

"..."

Just a single '6'.

The Taiwan Golden Melody Awards, which spent over ten million to hold the most luxurious awards ceremony in history, failed to get any attention after the competition. All the news sections were completely occupied by the pair of opponents, Zhou Yi and F4!

The organizing committee's mouths were almost twisted from anger.

Damn it!

Over fifteen million!

Even splashing into water would make several loud cracks!

The fifth watch!

……………………………………………………

PS: Recommending a friend's new book, a high-quality seedling; if you're interested, go take a look~

Book Title: "The Great Dao Lord of Liaozhai"

Synopsis: Folklore student Chen Xuance transmigrated in an instant to a spirit-and-demon world resembling Liaozhai.

In this place, warfare never ceases, demons and monsters run rampant, and dragons and snakes rise from the earth.

There are also shadowy people asking the way, old dogs digging graves, white snakes stirring up waves, black flood-dragons leaping over the Dragon Gate, true cultivators and heterodox paths, and arrogant ghosts and spirits.

Fortunately, Chen Xuance bears a Merit Stele; he need only slay demons and monsters to receive heaven-bestowed merit, using this to improve the quality of his techniques, spiritual medicines, and weapons.

Watch as Chen Xuance wields a three-foot copper coin sword, dives headfirst into this chaotic Great Qian world, and vows to make the demons and monsters here change the human realm!

(End of this chapter)