[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-king-of-2000-a-mandopop-dynasty":3,"chapter-the-king-of-2000-a-mandopop-dynasty-the-king-of-2000-a-mandopop-dynasty-chapter-43":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The King of 2000: A Mandopop Dynasty",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2301299,4501,"Chapter 43: The Boss and the Second Boss Fight, the Third One Vanishes","the-king-of-2000-a-mandopop-dynasty-chapter-43",43,"\u003Cp>Don’t say it, this really hits the vibe—The Yi  Weekly sells like crazy for a reason.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Yi, who had been laughing at it, casually tossed the weekly onto the coffee table in the break room, shifted in his sofa, and chuckled: “But if I remember right, isn’t it famous in Hong Kong for being paparazzi-driven?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s true, but your achievements are too dazzling. Whether online or offline, discussions about you never stop—they won’t let this hotspot slip away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To be honest, I thought Sun Yanzi was already huge, but you’re even bigger than her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qian Jiang, a solidly built man, sat down on the fabric sofa, holding his schedule, and sighed: “You make me feel like I’m not managing a newcomer, but a king of the industry.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Which newcomer has ever taken on a whole roster of kings and queens?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who the hell is this Zhou Yi?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rock Records Tower, meeting room, Taiwan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rock Records’ boss Duan Zhongtan had opened all his documents and data, and seated on either side of the table were none other than Rock’s legendary figures—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Luo Dayou and Li Zongsheng.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These two father figures of the Chinese-language music industry together built Rock Records’ golden age; under their guidance, Rock once pushed back every major international label that entered the mainland market.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet now, these two music patriarchs were powerless against a young kid from the mainland.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He’s a student Zhou Jianhui dug up from the mainland—he’s still in college, just finished his third year at Peking University.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Zongsheng adjusted his glasses, staring at the data on the report, his tone filled with admiration: “Incredible—a nineteen-year-old has single-handedly carved out a new path for the industry and discovered a fresh musical direction.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Album: Zhou Yi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lyrics: Zhou Yi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Composition: Zhou Yi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arrangement: Zhou Yi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Vocals: Zhou Yi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The album has eleven songs—all written by Zhou Yi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Others might suspect fraud, but to someone like Li Zongsheng, truth or falsehood is just a matter of a few questions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The circle is small—if these groundbreaking songs were written by someone else and sold to Zhou Yi by Warner, that person would’ve already blown the whistle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Now’s not the time to praise him, Zongsheng. You know he’s our threat.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Duan Zhongtan rubbed his temples, then turned to Luo Dayou on his left: “What do you think?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We can’t stop him. This kid, Zhou Yi, has already gained momentum.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Luo Dayou, with his gravelly voice, shook his head and tossed the papers onto the table, looking up at the man seated diagonally across from him—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Kingkiller” Zhou Hua.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hua’s ‘Ghost Obsession’ and Liu Ruo’s ‘Love Me So Much’ were both crushed. Now ‘Later’ might not even hold onto the top spot much longer.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Luo Dayou sighed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A man who had devoted his life to Chinese-language music, he now felt a tangled mix of emotions, unsure what to say.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because the melody of ‘Later’ was bought from Japan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That means ‘Later’ still holds the top spot only because it’s cheating—using a foreign tune.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You’re mixing Chinese and Japanese elements, but Zhou Yi wrote everything himself—purely homegrown.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I listened to his album. The songs shook me deeply. I even felt lost—how could songs be sung like this? How could melodies and elements be fused like this?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Lao Duan, give up. If we fight this album, we’ll lose more than we gain.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a veteran of Rock Records, Zhou Hua had every right to speak in this private meeting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...I still want to try.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As boss, Duan Zhongtan clearly couldn’t let go.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the past two years, after Rock’s restructuring, every new investment failed, and with the financial crisis, the company’s layoffs were nearing 50%.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If not for the enduring power of its kings and queens, Rock might have gone bankrupt already.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Duan Zhongtan had pinned all his hopes on Liu Ruo’s album as Rock’s golden ticket to revival—he couldn’t swallow seeing a kid overtake him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No need.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this critical moment, Li Zongsheng frowned and stopped him: “Warner hasn’t played any dirty tricks—we shouldn’t either.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Besides, Zhou Yi is only nineteen—he’s young, his mental resilience isn’t like those old-timers from the 80s and 90s. Do you want to destroy him?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He’s a genius. His success means the industry has gained a new market for others to cultivate. You can’t do this.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fact that Li Zongsheng and Luo Dayou had brought Rock to half its empire meant their moral lines were not to be ignored.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yeah, and ‘Later’ has had a half-year head start—it might not lose in the end,” Zhou Hua chuckled. “Besides, we can use this momentum for marketing, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among these genuine musicians, Rock’s boss was finally talked out of his scheming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On July 16, Rock, unwilling to be overtaken by a newcomer, launched full-scale marketing—and cleverly framed Liu Ruo as the reigning queen waiting to be challenged, subtly elevating her further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rock’s artists all stepped forward to cheer for their queen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The proof? Rock, still wielding half its former empire, moved quickly—within two days, even people who never followed music knew:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A newcomer named Zhou Yi had defeated all Four Kings and now stood before Liu Ruo, ready to challenge her throne.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many who only bought pirated copies and never cared about status suddenly had one thought:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is Liu Ruo really that powerful?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even the Four Kings couldn’t beat her?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wasn’t she always crushed before?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And how come this newcomer Zhou Yi is so strong too?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When newspapers flooded with sales figures, airplay rates, and chart comparisons, these pirated-copy listeners—already the audience for the songs—took sudden interest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>People love spectacles, especially big ones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this battle that swept the entire Chinese-language music industry, many pirated-copy buyers felt guilty—under Rock’s subtle hints, they believed their piracy had let a greenhorn topple their beloved singer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That couldn’t stand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What nonsense—when Liu Ruo was fighting in the industry, how old was Zhou Yi?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, Liu Ruo’s decades-long queenly foundation finally paid off—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her vast pirated-copy user base was right there; even a tiny fraction converted could spike ‘Later’s’ numbers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, through hype alone, Rock Records—barely clinging on as Zhou Yi dominated the charts—miraculously elevated Liu Ruo’s status.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Worse, Rock’s hype campaign also firmly placed Zhou Yi on the table as the sole rival, eliminating any chance of other labels sneaking in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This left the other struggling labels stunned, especially PolyGram, which had only Zhang Xueyou left as its ace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wait, how dare Liu Ruo climb over my God of Songs?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just because of ‘Later’?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My Xueyou still has ‘Farewell Kiss’ at his peak!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But thanks to its release year, PolyGram could only suffer in silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Truthfully, Zhang Xueyou’s late-1999 album included ‘She Came to My Concert’—a classic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it was crushed by ‘Later’ upfront and then by ‘Chase the Idol’—a one-of-a-kind in the entire Chinese-language scene with no substitute—leaving him barely holding his ground in Hong Kong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even more anxious than PolyGram was Emperor Entertainment, which had entered July with full confidence—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wait, where’s our Xie Tingfeng?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Are Warner and Rock conspiring to scam us?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Our Xie Tingfeng’s ‘Because of Love’ is also a classic! Sales are still at 160,000, ranking in the top ten—why isn’t he included?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xie Tingfeng’s manager Hu Wenhxi tried to stir the pot and push him onto the table, but barely anyone paid attention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though Xie Tingfeng’s popularity pushed ‘Because of Love’ to third place—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the top two are fighting, no one cares about rankings behind them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On July 19, ‘Later,’ fueled by renewed pirated-copy buyers and new\u002Freturning purchases, widened its lead over ‘Chase the Idol’ and held firm at number one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On July 20, Warner copied the tactic, hyping up this so-called “New vs. Old King Battle.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Elevating Liu Ruo was not only a counter to her earlier help for Zhou Yi, but also successfully branded Zhou Yi as a “strong one.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Similarly, many young people who bought pirated copies of ‘Zhou Yi’ felt their dreams ignited—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Zhou Yi became their avatar; they felt they were charging forward with him, challenging the older generation that held all the power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How could they not support him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’ve hated my bald boss (teacher) who loves Liu Ruo for ages!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Youth never surrenders!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It’s just a CD—buying an original won’t kill me. Buy it!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you can afford a CD, buy a CD. If you can afford a cassette, buy a cassette. Give everything you’ve got!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, in this fully heated “Throne War,” both sides’ sales data began soaring—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the 22nd, Liu Ruo’s album sales miraculously rebounded, lifting ‘Later’ with it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But before Rock could celebrate, ‘Zhou Yi’ surged back, and ‘Chase the Idol’s’ numbers also skyrocketed, pulling far ahead of third-place ‘Because of Love.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the 26th, ‘Chase the Idol’ officially surpassed ‘Later’ in sales data from Taiwan’s major record stores, Rose Records, Taiwan Public Radio, and Taipei Music Radio, claiming the number one spot!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Zhou Yi’ album’s original sales broke 280,000 and were racing toward 300,000!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In contrast, popular king Xie Tingfeng lost a huge chunk of market share—his album sales barely crossed 220,000, and his lead single ‘Because of Love’ still ranked below ‘Later’ and ‘Chase the Idol.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now, except for Xie Tingfeng’s own fans, no one cared about his songs or album anymore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>People were far more interested in the back-and-forth lead changes between ‘Chase the Idol’ and ‘Later,’ eager to sit with a little stool and watch the two singers fight on the ring.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While Liu Ruo was on promotion tours, Zhou Yi was holding autograph sessions—both companies, playing clean, went head-to-head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On July 28, 2000, “Cherish the Adoration” had not even held the number-one spot for two days before “Later” reclaimed its top position.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next day, less than twenty-four hours later, “Later,” whose seat had barely warmed, was kicked off by “Cherish the Adoration.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Yi felt his hand was nearly smoking from signing autographs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Ruo was experiencing, for the first time in her decades-long career, how exhausting promotion could be.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How is this newcomer so fierce?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She’s a veteran diva!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On July 30, “Later” reclaimed the number-one spot again; the weary CEO of Rock Records even considered giving up, but was stopped by Li Zongsheng and Luo Dayou.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On July 31, the relentless “Cherish the Adoration” toppled Rock Records’ small stool once more and proudly crowned itself king.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The battle for first and second place brought Rock Records a surge of new popularity, reaped a large sum of album revenue, and greatly increased Liu Ruo’s exposure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Yi, meanwhile, directly stepped onto the ladder Rock Records handed him, using this musical war with Liu Ruo, which began in mid-July, to shed his label as “newcomer” and rapidly ascended to the top tier of the music scene.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Disagree?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you disagree, try fighting “Later” yourself?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Throughout July, the only one hurt was Xie Tingfeng, ranked third; since mid-July, his newly released album’s attention plummeted as all the heat was sucked up by the top two battling each other…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Because of Love, So Love” even dropped to sixth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yang Shoucheng of Emperor Entertainment nearly pulled out a knife to challenge Warner’s Zhou Jianhui and Rock Records’ Duan Zhongtan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those two old bastards aren’t playing fair—they’re pulling dirty tricks here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t believe this grand so-called “music war” happened without some prior coordination between them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>August 1,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the day the monthly chart was finalized, “Cherish the Adoration” still suppressed “Later,” maintaining its number-one position.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, Warner officially announced that Zhou Yi’s self-titled album “Zhou Yi” had surpassed 300,000 sales.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A music newcomer, in just one month, entered the 300,000-club and became Warner’s best-selling artist of the year.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Yi’s feelings were a mix of pain and joy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The pain came from sheer exhaustion—on Baodao, promotion ran nonstop, treating artists like beasts of burden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for the joy, it was the joy of counting money.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most importantly, his album didn’t require splitting royalty fees with anyone—he kept every penny for himself.\u003C\u002Fp>",2001,"2026-06-20T07:33:41.161Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","2c0bd0b16f4ec7aadae4954eccaa625f1847a593b44ad4a21462843a0e6b6739","the-king-of-2000-a-mandopop-dynasty-chapter-44","the-king-of-2000-a-mandopop-dynasty-chapter-42",883,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-king-of-2000-a-mandopop-dynasty-cover.jpg"]