Chapter 408: Ning Hao: I've made it?! (4k)

In early November this year, American hiphop god Guo Tianwang released his autobiographical film "8 Mile". After raking in over fifty million dollars in its opening week, by the time it recently stopped screening, its North American box office alone had soared past one hundred million, shocking the entire North American film industry.

And as the target he publicly dissed during the film's promotion, Zhou Yi's potential response was enough to make the entire European and American music scene hold its breath in anticipation.

Li Yinxin knew about this; she had seen it in the files.

"Looks like you have a lot of confidence in this song, hiphop?"

Having listened to Zhou Yi's first album, Li Yinxin was no longer the ignorant novice; at the very least, she knew that Zhou Yi had first made his debut in China as a hiphop artist, a point strikingly similar to his nemesis, Guo Tianwang.

However, since his second album, Zhou Yi had significantly reduced his hiphop output in his works; for instance, in his latest album "Lianshan", there was only one strange track, "In the Name of the Father", that could count.

She had no interest in the Mafia, and even less desire to understand Chinese rap she couldn't comprehend; she had merely watched the five-minute version of the MV once and glanced at the Korean lyrics translation, that was all.

"No, it's rock plus hiphop."

Walking into the frenzied crowd of the bar with his back to Li Yinxin, Zhou Yi raised his hand and waved without turning around: "Still, many people will criticize it as very un-rock, rock."

"..."

Watching the man's figure fully merge into the wild party in the center of the dance floor, Li Yinxin, seeing him flirting with other women with his eyes, narrowed her gaze; half a moment later, after seeing Zhou Yi receive a public kiss from one of her sisters in the dance pool, which sparked cheers, she unconsciously shook her head.

Taking a sip from her wine glass, she grabbed her handbag and headed out of the bar.

"Young Lady."

"Let's go back; the greeting has been exchanged, I am not suited to stay here for long."

"Yes, Young Lady."

As the little Princess of the Samsung Li family, Li Yinxin, who always had a driver and escort for her travels, sat in the back seat of the Maybach, watching the street scenes and her own reflection speeding past the window as the car started, and pressed her lips tight.

To be honest, she envied her sisters.

It wasn't because of freedom, after all, everyone was the same; sooner or later, they would all marry as arranged by the family.

What she envied was her sisters' status as illegitimate daughters, which allowed them to completely disregard the family's influence.

If she were an illegitimate daughter, perhaps she could live so freely too...

While indulging in such wild thoughts, Li Yinxin was about to unzip her handbag to take out her phone, but unexpectedly discovered that her zipper wasn't even closed?

Huh?

Her fingertips, which should have touched her phone, unexpectedly brushed against the texture of a business card; finding it strange, Li Yinxin hurriedly opened her handbag, and there lay a business card quietly inside, the lines crossed out by a signature pen looking particularly familiar to her—

Is this?

Her business card?

Li Yinxin frowned, memories instantly flooding her mind—the image of Zhou Yi casually tossing out his business card was still vivid.

It shouldn't have flown out—wait, no, didn't he make a motion to hand the card towards her before tossing it?

Could it have been stuffed in at that moment?

Then whose business card did he toss?

Holding that business card scribbled over with a signature pen, the woman leaned against the car window, using the light of one after another dim streetlamp passing outside to make out the contents—

In the very center of the card, the two characters "Zhou Yi" replacing her own name made Li Yinxin's lips twitch for a while, and then a few genuine smiles crept into the corners of her eyes.

"Zhou Yi..."

……………………………

"Who?"

New York, USA, a certain music store.

A young man with a black buzz cut, upon hearing the owner introduce new stock, suddenly heard a tongue-twisting name that felt strangely familiar to him: "YiChou? Spike?"

"Yes, Spike."

The redneck owner smiled, pressing down on his baseball cap; his fat figure moved somewhat clumsily between the shelves: "That's his Chinese name; this is his newly released Chinese album 'Lianshan'. It's said to be selling very well in Asia."

"For real?"

"Would I lie to you? If you don't believe me, you can buy one and listen. But I still recommend you buy the deluxe edition which includes all the MVs plus a movie, because that's the most complete experience."

Seeing another customer walk in, the redneck owner, who had been doing this quite a bit over the past month, patted his chest and gave his word: "Trust me, Bob, I won't lie to you. I've already recommended it to over thirty people, and they all praise Spike's new album, saying the movie inside the album alone is worth the price of admission."

"?"

"That movie is called 'In the Name of the Father'. I swear on my character that this is absolutely a gangster film well worth watching; Spike is clearly paying homage to 'The Godfather', but with his own understanding and innovation."

"I have to admit, that director named Hao Ning is truly a genius; it's incredible that he's just an MV director. Has the Chinese film industry reached such a high level already?"

When talking about Zhou Yi's new album "Lianshan", the redneck owner was obviously much more excited: "If you ask me, the movie version of 'In the Name of the Father' shouldn't even be inside the album; Spike is too honest. He should have learned from Guo Tianwang and sent this movie to the cinemas."

He couldn't understand Chinese, but it didn't matter; Warner had added English subtitles to all of Zhou Yi's Chinese MVs.

Moreover, due to the Godfather theme, English subtitles didn't feel out of place—after all, when it comes to the Mafia, the Italian flavor is the most authentic, and Italy, for Americans, is just a foreign country anyway.

Italy aside, the Mafia culture has physically spread to countries across Europe and America, which directly means the themes of the Mafia and the Godfather naturally have a huge audience in the US and in Europe.

"That good? How much?"

"The deluxe edition album with the complete movie version MV of 'In the Name of the Father' is 69.9 dollars; seeing as you're a regular customer here, I'll give you a discount of 5.9 dollars."

"That expensive? Is Warner crazy?" The buzz-cut youth Bob, who was about to pay, was startled.

"Not expensive; Spike is famously conscientious. Just look at what's inside Guo Tianwang's deluxe edition, which sells for such a high price."

"Spike's deluxe edition is truly deluxe; not only does every song have an MV, but it also comes with Chinese and English lyric booklets, posters, exclusive merchandise, and even signed letters, photos, and other things. I even feel the movie version of 'In the Name of the Father' is given for free."

"..."

Given the owner's strong recommendation, the young man Bob, who had gone out for two months not long ago and earned some small money, gritted his teeth and paid: "Jesse, this is my first time buying a Chinese album. If it's not worth the price, don't sleep too soundly tonight."

For Bob, whose education level was only a tiny bit higher than that of a primary school dropout, if the owner hadn't hustled him so, he would absolutely never have bought a Chinese album, even if it was by Spike.

After returning home, out of habit, Bob started by listening to the songs—

This was a very novel experience for him; Zhou Yi's unique Chinese singing style, accompanied by the progression of the music, always made him sway along, even if he didn't understand.

And what amazed him most about the entire album was undoubtedly the MV of the song "In the Name of the Father"—

Although he didn't understand Chinese, he understood visual expression.

In just five minutes, it felt as though he had watched a movie trailer; the uniquely arranged music and melody of "In the Name of the Father" made his body sway involuntarily.

And when Bob, unable to wait, inserted the standalone "In the Name of the Father" movie version from the deluxe edition into the DVD, the ninety-minute performance nearly made him, who had grown up hustling on the streets, fly with pleasure—

So cool, so incredibly cool!

Spike's aura in this movie is just too good; the director really knows how to shoot!

The male lead is handsome, and the female lead is beautiful too!

Especially those segments paying tribute to "The Godfather," it was truly like dreaming back to those years!

A genius singer, a genius director, a perfect and flawless collaboration!

Feeling as though he had discovered a lost pearl, Bob immediately contacted his friends after the high wore off, telling them that the movie version of a song on Zhou Yi's new album was shot brilliantly.

And this scene, similar to Bob's, was not happening only in New York.

Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Washington, Seattle, and other cities; due to the hype surrounding Eminem's autobiographical film "8 Mile," Zhou Yi's brand new Chinese album "Lianshan," which had been fermenting in the United States for a month and a half, finally broke through the regional restrictions on Chinese songs in America thanks to the theme of "In the Name of the Father"—

It began to gain popularity in small circles.

This was something Warner had not expected; originally, they sold the Chinese album only considering the Chinese community in the US and Zhou Yi's die-hard fans.

Who would have thought that Zhou Yi's Chinese album would actually have such a bizarre... market in America?

After some research, this MV director named Ning Hao immediately came into the view of Warner and many of Zhou Yi's fans—

Especially for Zhou Yi's fans, this Ning Hao actually handled the MVs for all four songs on side A plus a movie version; isn't it a sheer waste of talent for a genius like him to do this?!

The Imperial Capital.

Ning Hao, who learned about this from classmates who had gone to the US and Europe for exchange and study, was stunned—

I'm famous?

I've made it?!

—Uh, no, wait...

Damn! I didn't shoot that MV for Zhou Yi?!

Before Ning Hao, who had just learned he was gaining some attention in small circles in Europe and America, could even be happy for a minute, he suddenly remembered the fact that he was a puppet.

Damn it...

Those days on the Zhou Yi MV set were nothing short of the most shameful years since he entered this industry; not only was there a Retired Emperor named Jiang Wen on the directing side, but Zhou Yi often fought with Jiang Wen on set, forcing him, the nominal director, to act as a mediator, making him look like a complete fool.

Money is hard to earn, and shit is hard to eat.

That was the first time Ning Hao deeply understood the deeper meaning behind that saying.

But now...

"You've made it, Haozi; when I was over in America, I even heard people say you shot it too well, saying that shooting MVs is a waste of your talent and that you should be making movies."

"... Heh, hehe."

Facing his classmates' envy and praise, Ning Hao, whose heart was filled with a mix of emotions, didn't know for a moment how to express his feelings—

Humorous, this is too humorous.

As the director on Zhou Yi's "Lianshan" set, I didn't even get a chance to yell "Cut"; this damn "In the Name of the Father" movie was shot by Jiang Wen, of course it's good?!

People in the circle have called Jiang Wen a tyrant on set; who can deny Jiang Wen's directing ability?

That person is a genius who was recognized and appreciated by master directors in Europe and America at a young age.

"To be honest, once your reputation spreads, I'm sure people will ask you to try making movies; you're going to get rich, Haozi."

"..."

Ning Hao, who wanted to say that this thing wasn't directed by him, opened his mouth, hesitated several times, and finally swallowed this glory in others' eyes and humiliation in his own with tears.

He also needed to save face.

Moreover, this might actually help him open up his fame domestically and internationally.

Didn't you see Fan Bingbin now transform herself and market herself as an "international superstar"?

In the face of potential benefits, he didn't care anymore.

Anyway, Jiang Wen's style is so distinct that anyone in the country who has seen his movies should be able to recognize that flavor; he didn't need to explain too much, and if all else failed, he could just pretend to be aggrieved and cry.

Of course, having received such good news, Ning Hao still sent a text message to Zhou Yi out of great gratitude—although he didn't know if Zhou Yi would read it.

Maybe Zhou Yi had long forgotten him, a small nobody, but he still had to observe proper etiquette; after Zhou Yi returned, he would have to bring gifts to Warner to express his thanks.

"Thank you, Brother Yi, for the opportunity?"

South Korea, Seoul, Shilla Hotel, inside the master bedroom of the suite.

Zhou Yi, just waking up and groggy, saw a message from Ning Hao, and his mind couldn't react immediately—

What opportunity did I give?

I haven't even met him since the MV was finished; how did I give an opportunity?

"Mmm... Oppa..."

Cheng Youli, awakened by the man's movement beside the pillow, also called out in confusion upon seeing him wake up.

Zhou Yi, who was just about to reply, was interrupted by a sudden ringtone—

Ring ring ring!

"Hello?"

"Ah Yi, are you awake? There's something important I need to tell you." From the other end of the phone, Qian Jiang's voice, urgent yet suppressing uncontrollable excitement, came through the receiver: "I'm already on my way back to the hotel."

"Uh, it might not be convenient in the room; let's borrow the conference hall at the Shilla Hotel." Zhou Yi glanced at Cheng Youli, who was obviously exhausted from last night, and suggested.

As an international hotel that has hosted many dignitaries, the Shilla Hotel has quite a few such conference halls convenient for VIPs to hold meetings and discussions, and they offer excellent confidentiality.

Twenty-plus minutes later, Zhou Yi, having finished washing up, changed into a sweater and a coat, sat in the conference room, and listened to Qian Jiang recount the absurd fact that Jiang Wen's version of "In the Name of the Father" had driven Chinese album sales in the US to climb steadily—

"A month and a half ago, when your 'Lianshan' was launched in America, the company also tried promotion, but the language barrier was a real stumbling block. The company had already given up, but unexpectedly, the movie version of 'In the Name of the Father' sparked discussion."

Feeling as though he had been hit by a pie from the sky, Qian Jiang was so happy his eyes nearly squinted into a single slit: "Jiang Wen's directing ability is unquestionable, and the theme of 'In the Name of the Father' is a subject with a huge audience in the West; many Westerners, even if they don't understand Chinese, can quickly immerse themselves in the movie emotions created by Jiang Wen through English subtitles.

"Do you know that, as of now, your Chinese album has broken through and sold a full one hundred and thirty thousand copies in North America! This is a Chinese album! And every single one sold was the top-tier deluxe edition!

"This is the effect brought by the movie version of 'In the Name of the Father,' because only the deluxe edition includes the movie DVD. Ah-Yi, having Jiang Wen come over was absolutely brilliant!

"In the whole country, only he can grasp the essence of this kind of subject matter so precisely. He's a genius — his visual language paired with this subject matter directly helped your album break through the language barrier."

Zhou Yi: "..."

Can I say that the reason I had Jiang Wen come in the first place was simply so that when people dig up my past later, I could show off a little?

(End of chapter)