[{"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-94":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},2301350,4501,"Chapter 94: The Mainland Grand Slam","the-king-of-2000-a-mandopop-dynasty-chapter-94",94,"\u003Cp>If one sentence were to describe the phenomenal popularity of \"Love in a Rainy Season,\" then \"2001's top-rated drama across both sides of the Taiwan Strait\" says it all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To some extent, this drama, alongside \"My Fair Princess\" and \"Journey to the West: Sequel,\" alternately dominated the summer rerun slots in the early years of the new century.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the height of her fame, Zhao Wei shattered the music scene with the theme song of the TV drama;\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hong Kong singer Ku Gijee earned his first retirement fund in the hearts of mainland audiences with \"I Really Really Want.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To minimize the impact he might face later, Zhou Yi immediately thought of an advertisement—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"When will Coca-Cola’s ad be released?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though he didn’t own the TV drama, Coca-Cola’s nationwide marketing channels could still help him gain visibility.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially TV commercials.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this era where television reigned supreme, TV ads could still attract massive audience attention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The most typical example was Wang Lihong, who would later sign a sponsorship deal with Wahaha and become a nationwide sensation through Wahaha’s TV ads and theme song.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You filmed in early April; it’s expected to roll out nationwide by mid-April.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After checking his schedule, Qian Jiang gave the answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then it’s not a big problem—'Love in a Rainy Season' probably didn’t air simultaneously on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Recalling the mainland broadcast date of \"Love in a Rainy Season,\" it had already reached September.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In April, he had Coca-Cola’s nationwide ad song \"Sad People Shouldn’t Listen to Slow Songs\";\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His second album was tentatively set for June release, while Jackie Chan’s \"Rush Hour 2\" would gradually premiere globally in July and August.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With first-mover advantage, the hit-song aura, and the movie soundtrack’s promotion, he might just be able to compete head-to-head with \"Love in a Rainy Season.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That’s true, but it’s still safer to take the initiative.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Zhou Yi’s laid-back attitude, Qian Jiang clearly preferred to strike first: \"Late March, there’s the 8th China Songs Chart Awards—it’s an official chart.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Most importantly, you can win an award.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And after you win this award, you’ll have achieved a full sweep of mainland newcomer awards—our company can start promoting this concept in advance.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After writing down on paper the possible awards Zhou Yi might win, Qian Jiang analyzed: \"This perfectly complements the news of your Golden Melody Awards participation.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If you also win the Golden Melody Award for Best New Artist, you can claim to have swept the full set of Mandarin pop newcomer awards.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This isn’t just a marketing point—it can also elevate your industry status.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he spoke, Qian Jiang showed him a pile of obscure newcomer awards—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides mainland pop music newcomer awards, there were even awards like \"Malaysia XX Award for Best New Artist,\" which nearly blinded Zhou Yi’s eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The only slip-up was Singapore, where he lost Best New Artist to Sun Yanzi, who had home-field advantage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Yi carefully counted: just the awards Qian Jiang listed totaled twenty-three, covering all major award ceremonies in the East Asian Mandarin-speaking cultural sphere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of these, the Mandarin Music Chart Awards and Hong Kong’s Top Ten Chinese Golden Melody Awards each contributed five, while the rest were mostly collected on his behalf by Warner’s representatives.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thanks to Warner’s PR, he even won several newcomer awards in South Korea and Japan—awards almost no one had heard of.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"For this year’s China Songs Chart in late March, I recommend you attend in person to secure at least two awards: Best New Artist and Best Album.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s an official award, limited to mainland artists only. With Sun Nan out of the race, your chances of winning are very high.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he spoke, Qian Jiang wrote \"25\" on the paper, looked up at him, and said solemnly: \"So far, no Mandarin pop artist has won twenty-five awards within a year of debut.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ayi, you have a real chance to become the first in history.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Don’t care how much hype is behind these twenty-five awards—if there are heavyweight trophies anchoring them, it’s an unprecedented achievement.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’ve won this many awards?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hadn’t realized how many he had—counting them now was a shock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Yi, who had never cared about his trophy count, carefully examined the report card before him, his face filled with unmistakable astonishment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Could he now start bragging like Zheng Yuanjie, the fairy tale king, and buy several houses just to store his trophies?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You think if your debut hadn’t been so recent, you’d already be a legitimate little king of pop.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Zhou Yi’s agent, Qian Jiang couldn’t help but feel a sense of shared pride: \"By the way, I’ve got another piece of good news.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A new sponsorship deal has come knocking—offering a price far exceeding comparable competitors.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh? Who? Which company?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Compared to worthless trophies, Zhou Yi was far more interested in clients who actively came to pay him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Anta, a shoe brand. They’re offering six million yuan for four years—far higher than Adidas and Nike’s offers.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Yi blinked at the number: \"Is Anta this rich?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his memory, Anta in the early 2000s was getting crushed by Li Ning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Have you heard of Kong Linghui? The table tennis prince who won gold in singles at last year’s Olympics?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mentioning Kong Linghui, Qian Jiang couldn’t help but marvel at Anta’s luck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Last year, Anta’s boss bet his entire fortune and paid half a million yuan to hire Kong Linghui as spokesperson.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Thanks to Kong Linghui’s outstanding performance at the Olympics, Anta’s brand suddenly turned around and began rolling in profits.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They not only signed Kong Linghui to a new contract but also started preparing to sign other celebrities to expand their brand influence.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They hadn’t noticed you at all—you’re just a singer.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then someone leaked that during college, you once scored 13–0 against the Chinese Literature Department in a football match…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though he did value exercise and fitness, endorsing a sports brand wasn’t an issue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Qian Jiang’s phrasing… why did it sound so off to him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amitabha, let’s hope the dark football history of Peking University’s Chinese Literature Department doesn’t start with me—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wait.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, that 13–0 wasn’t just him—he had teammates too. Why should he feel guilty?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of this, Zhou Yi, now dragging his former teammates into the blame, felt no psychological pressure at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>March 20.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After completing the recording of \"Sad People Shouldn’t Listen to Slow Songs\" in Warner’s Hong Kong office, Zhou Yi returned to the mainland to attend the China Songs Chart Awards in person—and naturally, reporters pressed him on the issue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thanks to the Chinese national team’s current World Cup campaign under coach Milu, football’s popularity in China had reached unprecedented heights.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a result, the weak Peking University Chinese Literature Department gained a bit of minor fame…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Football isn’t a one-man sport—I think my teammates share responsibility for that score.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Besides, the Chinese Literature Department’s football team is actually quite strong—if you don’t believe me, ask Lu Gengxu, he’s probably heard of it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the China Songs Chart Awards ceremony, Zhou Yi smiled politely at the reporters and passed the question to Lu Gengxu beside him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This guest performer, a Tsinghua graduate, had been seated next to Zhou Yi, a Peking University alumnus, by the official arrangement for tonight’s event.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Gengxu: \"…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had wanted camera time, but never imagined he’d get it this way—Lu Gengxu nearly lost control of his expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Behind Zhou Yi, the eyes of Yu Quan, Xu Wei, Dada Band, and Huang Qishan kept flickering toward him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone knew: as long as this man was present, he alone would be the big winner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The facts proved this rule correct.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Best New Artist: Zhou Yi;\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Top Ten Golden Melodies: \"Flower Mistake,\" Zhou Yi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Best Album: \"Zhou Yi\";\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most Popular Male Singer: Zhou Yi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In one night, Zhou Yi swept all four major awards at the China Songs Chart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially the Most Popular Male Singer award—he defeated Sun Nan again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Knowing he had no chance, Sun Nan didn’t even show up tonight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the cusp of turning twenty, Zhou Yi, less than a year into his debut, had completely dominated mainland music awards—an unprecedented feat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The day after the China Songs Chart, entertainment weeklies and newspapers nationwide unanimously chose photos of Zhou Yi holding four trophies after his stage performance—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Zhou Yi: The Youngest Ever Winner of a Full Sweep of Mainland Music Awards!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Five trophies from the Mandarin Music Chart Awards, five from Hong Kong’s Top Ten Chinese Golden Melody Awards, four from the China Songs Chart, plus a ten-million-yuan Coca-Cola endorsement.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No one can predict how far Zhou Yi will go—he’s like a carp that leaped over the Dragon Gate, transformed into a dragon, and soared into the heavens…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1468,"2026-06-20T07:33:41.161Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","79d432271c15f53c790a36563738598c3b079d50e836685f5d1473c3a66ab01b","the-king-of-2000-a-mandopop-dynasty-chapter-95","the-king-of-2000-a-mandopop-dynasty-chapter-93",883,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-king-of-2000-a-mandopop-dynasty-cover.jpg"]