Huayu96: My Thirty Years of a Prodigal Son

Three days later, at Sony Music's Beijing branch.

The red carpet stretched from the elevator entrance all the way to the conference room, with flower baskets lining both sides, creating a grand spectacle.

Chen Heping stood at the elevator entrance, dressed in a sharp suit and beaming.

Several Sony executives were also present, including Zhao Fang.

The elevator doors opened, and Qin Sheng stepped out.

"Oh my, our great talent has finally arrived!"

Chen Heping laughed heartily and went to greet Qin Sheng, giving him a tight hug.

After continuous negotiations and with Liu Huan acting as a go-between, both parties finally agreed to sign the contract today.

In the nearby tea room, several Sony-signed singers were holding coffee, looking on with envy at the pomp and circumstance.

"With this kind of entourage, you'd think Michael Jackson had come."

Zhou Feng, a male singer with long hair, pursed his lips.

He is considered a near-second-tier artist at Sony, having released two albums that were neither particularly successful nor unsuccessful.

With Liu Huan not coming often, he was like a kingpin in the company.

A female singer next to her also said in a slightly sour tone:

"That's right, he became an overnight sensation with just one song, and he really thinks he's something special."

Back in the day, which of us didn't have one or two hit songs?

"Alright, that's enough."

Another, slightly older singer lowered his voice and said:

"This kid is really something else. I heard he made his way in the world by creating original content."

I wrote songs for Lao Liu, Mao Amin, and Na Ying. It was thanks to their appreciation that I got the opportunity to release the songs, which led to the current "Too Softhearted".

"If it weren't for our high offer and the fact that his girlfriend was already signed to a record company, he would have been snatched up by other record labels long ago."

After hearing the older singer's inside information, the two looked at each other for a moment and then obediently shut their mouths.

These days, original works still have a very high value.

If this kid can not only sing, but also write songs, and write a lot of high-quality songs, then it's best not to offend him.

Who knows, in the future I might have to ask the other person for songs.

However, though they dared not say it openly, the sour feeling in their hearts remained.

"The album 'Too Softhearted' sold so well, but it was actually sold as part of a compilation album."

Even if he signs a contract now, he won't be able to catch up with the popularity of "Too Softhearted".

By the time his new album is finished and released in six months, it will be too late.

After uttering these two gloating words, Zhou Feng downed his coffee in one gulp, turned and left, no longer wanting to watch this lively scene that didn't belong to him.

The signing process went exceptionally smoothly in the conference room.

Qin Sheng signed his name and officially became a member of Sony.

The terms were exactly as agreed beforehand: Qin Sheng would receive 40% of the record deal and 60% of the commercial deal.

There was also a signing fee of 880,000.

However, at Qin Sheng's insistence, the contract was only signed for two years.

Thinking he could make quick money, Chen Heping agreed without much hesitation.

And to be honest, he didn't want to sign such an overly generous contract for too long.

Both sides were satisfied.

After signing the contract, Chen Heping put it away, beaming from ear to ear.

"Sheng, now that we're family, I won't stand on ceremony with you."

The sales of "Too Softhearted" are still rising, but every bit of increase is draining the blood from your new album.

Therefore, our top priority is to produce your new album as soon as possible.

Then they added "Too Softhearted" and "Liberation" to the market and put them on sale.

To put it bluntly, every second counts, so we must race against time!

I have already handed over the company's production and planning departments; they are all on standby to serve you.

You need to hurry up and select songs for your new album from the company's music library, and then start production as soon as possible.

Oh, and there's the budget, with no upper limit.

Chen Heping's meaning is very simple.

We need to race against time and release a new album as quickly as possible to capitalize on the momentum of "The Golden Autumn of 1996".

An album has ten songs, and two of them have been released so far.

Qin Sheng only needed to randomly select eight more similar songs from the music library provided by the company to make up the number, and then quickly start recording.

Once you've recorded it, start sending it right away.

Upon hearing this, Qin Sheng smiled and waved his hand.

"Mr. Chen, we can skip the song selection step; I have some ready-made."

Chen Heping was stunned for a moment, then his face lit up with surprise.

"Really? All eight songs are ready?"

Qin Sheng smiled and said, "I had anticipated this day, and I started preparing in the second week."

Everything is almost ready now.

Upon hearing this, Chen Heping frowned.

"Prepared in less than two weeks? Ah Sheng, isn't that a bit too rushed? Can you guarantee the quality?"

Why don't you listen to the company's music library and compare? The company's music library has quite a few good songs.

After listening in, Liu Huan also felt that the time was a bit too rushed.

But having witnessed Qin Sheng's rapid release of songs and his reputation for consistently producing only high-quality works, he is still willing to believe in Qin Sheng.

Just as I was about to say a few words on Qin Sheng's behalf, I saw that Qin Sheng had already opened his mouth with a smile.

"Well then, Mr. Chen, let the production team listen to my work first."

If there is indeed a difference in quality between the songs and those in the company's music library, that's fine; we'll use the company's songs.

If the quality is acceptable, how about using my song?

Qin Sheng was easy to talk to and didn't have the arrogance that geniuses often have, which made Chen Heping feel much better.

After thinking for a moment, Chen Heping nodded in agreement.

In any case, making comparisons is not a bad thing.

Everyone's just trying to make money!

So Chen Heping, Liu Huan, and Qin Sheng walked together toward the production department.

Upon arriving at the production department, Chen Heping introduced the head of the production department, who was also the company's chief producer, Han Jinhua, with a smile.

Han Jinhua's attitude towards Qin Sheng was relatively friendly, and she politely shook hands with him.

However, this was limited to mere politeness.

Having worked in the industry for so many years, Han Jinhua has seen all kinds of geniuses.

In his experience, most so-called geniuses are just flashes of inspiration, occasionally able to write one or two decent songs.

But if you're talking about consistently producing high-quality works, he's only ever met a handful of true geniuses in his life, such as Luo Dayou and Li Zongsheng.

Han Jinhua felt that she was already overestimating Qin Sheng.

"Too Softhearted" is so-so, "Relief" is alright, but "Heroes' Song" is a real eye-opener.

There are also three opera-style poems written for Zeng Li, which are quite impressive.

With this level of quality in his work, this kid is already considered one of the top geniuses he knows.

However, it still wasn't enough to earn my respect.

Being polite is the greatest respect you can give to someone.

Qin Sheng failed to notice the subtle distance hidden beneath Han Jinhua's polite demeanor.

Of course, it was obvious that he didn't care.

As a porter, he didn't have any artistic pride or obsessive-compulsive disorder.

The benefits that you actually receive are the most tangible.

Qin Sheng calmly handed over the CD and lyric booklet that he had prepared beforehand.

Han Jinhua politely accepted it and then politely opened it.

From beginning to end, it was uneventful.