Rebirth 03: Starting a Business After Giving Up a Secure Job

Chapter 136 "Winter Rain in Chengdu"

That same night, after Lin Feng met with Xu Guoliang in Shanghai, Zhou Zhongcheng compiled the interview records from the past few days into a summary table in his hotel room.

Guo Jian will be appointed as the stationmaster of Beijing Railway Station and will return to his post on the eighth day of the Lunar New Year.

Xu Guoliang, station manager of Dingmodu Station, will be on duty on the eighth day of the Lunar New Year.

Xiang Chao is not suitable; I have already declined.

Liu Zhigang, a candidate for station manager of Jiangcheng Station, is still in communication with headhunters, and a deal may not be finalized before the end of the year. Preparations for Huicheng Station are underway, with staff being drawn from Shenzhen by Wu Wenjie, and will begin after the new year.

Zhou Zhongcheng asked Lin Feng what to do if Jiangcheng couldn't recruit anyone before the end of the year.

Lin Feng requested that headhunters in Jiangcheng continue to recommend candidates. The end of the year and the beginning of the new year are peak job-hopping seasons; they needed to seize the window of opportunity.

Friday morning. Shen Jingyi called Lin Feng to ask if he could make it back to Rongcheng in time for the school performance on Saturday.

Lin Feng had promised to go see her performance, so naturally he couldn't go back on his word.

He decided to fly back to Chengdu that night and send Zhou Zhongcheng to Jiangcheng to continue the headhunting collaboration.

It was already evening when the plane landed at Shuangliu Airport. Lin Feng came out of the arrival hall and hailed a taxi back to Hongguangyuan.

The taxi driver was a Chengdu resident in his forties. When he heard that the destination was Hongguangyuan, he glanced at him in the rearview mirror and said that it was close to the university town, asking if he was a student or a teacher.

Lin Feng said no, he had graduated.

The driver turned the radio volume up a notch, and an old song was playing: Jacky Cheung's "She Came to My Concert".

Upon arriving at Hongguangyuan, Lin Feng inquired about the progress of Huicheng's preparations from Wu Wenjie.

Wu Wenjie replied: The office has been selected, located in Jiangbei CBD, Huicheng District, and will be renovated after the New Year. Half of the recruitment for the heads of each section has been completed, and they will be on duty after the New Year. The remaining positions will be temporarily filled by people from Shenzhen.

Lin Feng was tired after a long day, so he went to bed early.

On Saturday afternoon, he changed into a light-colored sweater, put on a black woolen overcoat, and walked from Hongguangyuan to Xichuan University of Technology to watch a performance.

The gymnasium is next to the East Campus playground.

When he arrived at the entrance of the stadium, it was already quite lively.

A poster board stood at the entrance of the stadium, with the words "Digital Music Club New Year's Party" written on it in acrylic paint.

Next to it stood a display stand with promotional slogans for Tongcheng Life Network and Fengchi Digital MP3, which was Su Wan's work.

Lin Feng entered through the side door.

When Shen Jingyi, who was directing the operation on site, saw Lin Feng arrive, she immediately ran over with a smile and personally led him to the middle seat in the second row of the VIP area.

Several longtime members of the music club greeted Lin Feng warmly and shook his hand.

Teacher Zheng from the school's Youth League Committee also arrived at the scene, and Lin Feng stepped forward to greet her. The teacher and student chatted cordially, with Teacher Zheng inquiring about Lin Feng's entrepreneurial endeavors, and Lin Feng briefly reporting on the "Tongcheng Life Network" to Teacher Zheng.

Teacher Zheng was very pleased. Half a year after graduation, Lin Feng's current image, temperament, and speech were exactly like those of a young entrepreneur.

During the conversation, the stadium's stands were already full of students, some holding glow sticks, others adjusting the focus of their digital cameras on the stage.

At seven o'clock sharp, the lights went out.

Two spotlights shone in the center of the stage, and a male and a female host walked out from the side curtain.

The male host wore a navy blue suit, and the female host wore a silver skirt; both wore badges from the Digital Music Club. They announced the official start of the New Year's Eve gala and introduced the attending school leaders and guests. Lin Feng, as a guest, waved to the younger students in the gymnasium.

The opening act was an electronic dance track.

Xu Feng and several technical staff members had set up mixing consoles and amplifiers on both sides of the stage in advance. The vibrations from the subwoofers came up from the floor, and three men and two women wearing silver reflective jackets performed a neatly choreographed modern dance. In the second half, several members came on stage with synthesizers and joined in spontaneously, instantly igniting the atmosphere.

The next two programs have completely different styles.

A boy held a classical guitar and played "Recuerdos de la Alhambra," his fingerpicking clean and crisp.

Next up was an a cappella group of three girls who sang an old song, "My Deskmate." During the chorus, some audience members hummed along, and glow sticks swayed gently in the darkness.

After several programs, the host returned to the stage.

The male host announced that the next song was an original work written by Shen Jingyi, the president of the Digital Music Club.

The female host then chimed in, saying that the club president had spent six months writing this song, and tonight was its premiere. The audience erupted in enthusiastic applause.

The stage lights were changed from silver to warm yellow.

Shen Jingyi walked onto the stage carrying a wooden guitar and sat down on a high stool.

She wore a beige long dress with a denim jacket over it, and her long hair was loose, hanging over her shoulders.

She lowered her head to adjust the height of the microphone stand, gently plucked the strings to test the sound, and then looked up and smiled at the audience.

"This song is called 'Winter Rain in Chengdu.' It's dedicated to one person, and also to everyone here who has waited for someone in Chengdu."

She lowered her head and strummed the strings, the intro flowing from the guitar. A few simple chords, like raindrops hitting the eaves of a blue-tiled roof, and then she began to sing.

The day the ginkgo leaves fell, you returned to me from the south. Winter in Chengdu had no snow, only light rain falling on the eaves. You were gone for 365 days, and I sang your song 365 times. I waited for you in the winter rain of Chengdu, waiting for a spring, waiting for news. I guard this beautiful campus, this beautiful city, watching over the song we never finished singing for you.

During the interlude, she closed her eyes and swayed gently, her fingers gliding across the strings as if caressing water.

"This child's creative abilities are becoming more and more mature!" Teacher Zheng turned her head and whispered to Lin Feng.

As the last chord fell, Shen Jingyi's fingers paused on the strings. Applause and cheers erupted from the back rows of the stadium, surging forward in waves.

Someone whistled, and many girls were deeply moved, wiping their eyes with the back of their hands when they heard the emotional parts.

Lin Feng smiled as he looked at Shen Jingyi, who was radiant!

She opened her eyes and bowed to the audience, her eyes glistening with tiny tears.

Unlike Lin Xiaowen, Shen Jingyi was born for the stage.

After Shen Jingyi stepped off the stage, the band brought up their drum kit and effects pedals to take over.

The party lasted for more than two hours, and as it ended, the audience poured out through several safety exits.

Lin Feng found Shen Jingyi backstage. Upon seeing him, she immediately dropped everything and greeted him with a smile.

"When was the song you sang tonight written?"

"Last winter. After you left—"

After saying that, she smiled again and looked at Lin Feng with deep affection in her eyes.

Lin Feng asked Shen Jingyi to invite all the members of the music club who were organizing the event that night, and also to invite the older members Wang Peng, Su Wan, Xu Feng, and Tan Zhao, to go out for hot pot.

About twenty people walked out of the school gate, turned right, and headed straight for the old hot pot restaurant by the side gate.

The hot pot restaurant owner pushed together several square tables against the wall to form a long table, and brought out three hot pot broths, two mild and one medium spicy, bubbling away.

The members found seats on their own. Shen Jingyi walked to Lin Feng's right, pulled the chair out a bit, and sat down.

Su Wan came over from the other side and called out from a few seats away, "President Lin, please sit in the head seat." Lin Feng said no need and casually took off his coat and draped it over the back of the chair.

Wang Peng, Xu Feng, and Tan Zhao sat down next to Su Wan.

The dishes were served quickly. Tripe, duck intestines, beef aorta, catfish, and luncheon meat were piled on the table one after another.

Shen Jingyi was the first to stand up. She was holding a cup of soy milk and facing Lin Feng.

"Former president, this glass is a toast to you on behalf of the music club. You founded the digital music club. After you graduated, we continued to operate according to the rules you left behind. In the past six months, we've been recruiting new members, rehearsing, and organizing parties, and no one has fallen behind."

Several other third-year core members also stood up to toast Lin Feng. Lin Feng raised his glass and clinked it with theirs. After drinking, he asked them to talk about the club's activities over the past six months.

Shen Jingyi started her story from the beginning of the new student recruitment in September. She and Xu Feng, along with a few veteran members, set up a table at the entrance of the freshman registration area. Su Wan helped them design a set of recruitment posters, which featured photos of the club's performance at the Digital Music Festival last year.

More than 100 people signed up over three days, and 20 were selected after screening.

She secured a small rehearsal room in the school's activity center, and rehearsals were held every Thursday evening without fail. Before National Day, they organized a welcome concert, and the venue was even approved by Teacher Zheng.

"We started rehearsing for this New Year's Eve party back in December," she said, pointing to several club members on the table. "Xu Feng is in charge of the stage sound, and Sister Su Wan is helping us with the publicity. She designed the posters and display stands, and we've rehearsed three times."

Several of Lin Feng's former core members from the music club—Wang Peng, Xu Qiang, Su Wan, and Tan Zhao—went to Lin Feng's company. Among them, Xu Qiang and Tan Zhao went to Shenzhen with him in the past six months.

After graduating, Wang Peng left the music club to focus on managing Fengchi Digital's online store. Only Su Wan, a junior, remained in the music club, responsible for both the publicity and promotion of Lin Feng's company and the music club itself.

This was tacitly approved by Lin Feng, and it also better maintained the cooperation between the company and the campus.

Lin Feng asked Shen Jingyi how many people were in the club. She said there were about fifty regular members, and a dozen or so were students from nearby colleges and universities who came to visit.

We've formed four bands and accumulated over a dozen original songs. After the New Year, we plan to record a compilation album of original campus songs.

"Is the funding sufficient?" Lin Feng asked.

"The school's Youth League Committee allocated some funds, and we also secured some sponsorships, which is barely enough," Shen Jingyi smiled.

"If you don't have enough money, come to my company and I'll sponsor you."

"Thank you, former president!" Several members nearby cheered.

Shen Jingyi raised her glass again, inviting the new members to toast the old president together.

Tan Zhao and Xu Feng sat next to each other, eating and chatting about things in Shenzhen.

Shen Jingyi turned her gaze to Tan Zhao, showing concern for Lin Feng and his life in Shenzhen over the past six months.

Su Wan leaned back, holding her teacup, and said that when she was coordinating materials with Li Ying last time, Li Ying mentioned that "Manager Tan is a ruthless person." She still didn't understand why he was a "ruthless person."

Tan Zhao swallowed the fish in his mouth, picked up his teacup and took a sip. Then, he said smugly, "Let me make this clear first, I'm not exaggerating when I tell stories."

He said that when he first went to Shenzhen, Tongcheng Life Network rented a small office on the third floor of the Innovation Building in the Science Park. He and Lin Xiaoqiang would go out at seven o'clock every morning, each taking a district and going door to door to copy down the rental listings.

The alleys of Baishizhou are like a maze, with walls covered with handwritten rental notices from landlords. They would copy them down one by one and then call back to verify them.

Lin Xiaoqiang was once yelled at by his landlord for five minutes. After the yelling, the landlord chased after him and asked if he wanted to list his house on their website for free. The landlord was stunned, but he actually did.

"Brother Qiang is a veteran, and he can handle more than any of us when it comes to running errands. In the summer, when it's 37 or 38 degrees Celsius in Shenzhen, he runs through the entire urban village area by himself. When he comes back, his clothes are soaked with sweat."

Su Wan asked what the "ruthless person" meant. Tan Zhao wanted to tell an exciting story about the fight, so he turned to look at Lin Feng.

Lin Feng smiled and said, "Go ahead and speak if you want."

Tan Zhao then mentioned that at the end of last year, there was a refurbished phone vendor in Huaqiangbei surnamed Ma. Because the local online marketplace required refurbished phones to be clearly labeled, he later started refurbishing phones in Yuanwang Digital City.

He still has a scar on his eyebrow bone from being scratched by a baton, and several of his brothers were also seriously injured.

"The ruthless person Li Ying was talking about is probably this one." Tan Zhao said with a smug expression.

Shen Jingyi looked at Lin Feng with a worried expression. Su Wan asked Lin Feng first if he was injured, and Lin Feng said no.

Tan Zhao continued to tell Wang Peng and Xu Feng stories about Shenzhen.

During the meal, Lin Feng clinked glasses with Shen Jingyi: "Your rendition of 'Winter Rain in Chengdu' tonight—the lyrics, melody, and arrangement—are a step up from last year's 'Autumn Letter.' Congratulations!"

"When you were singing on stage, I was thinking from the audience, 'With your current level, it's a shame you're not on a bigger stage. Have you ever thought about auditioning for Hunan TV's Super Girl this summer?'"

"Super Girl?" She looked at him in surprise. "That's the most popular talent show in the country. I just write songs in my club; I'm too far removed from that stage."

"Not far," Lin Feng said, looking at her.

Shen Jingyi loves music. From the first day she joined the digital music club in her freshman year, she dreamed of one day standing on a bigger stage and singing her own songs. But dreams are dreams, and she felt that they were out of reach.

"Brother Feng, it's not that I haven't thought about it. But it's a national competition, and there are tens of thousands of people registered for the Chengdu division alone. I'm only a sophomore."

"You're a perfect sophomore. Super Girl is looking for someone like you. You have original content, a distinctive style, and the kind of authentic energy that young people want to see. You dare to dream, and you dare to do it."

Shen Jingyi looked up at him; no one had ever encouraged her to pursue bigger dreams like this before.

"Practice your singing diligently. After the New Year, I'll have Zhao Ling allocate a special budget from the company to hire a vocal coach and a dance coach for you."

The company handles everything: song selection, arrangement, styling, and promotion. All you have to do is sing.

Shen Jingyi bit her lower lip, feeling incredulous. Her gaze towards Lin Feng was a mixture of admiration and anticipation for the future.

Her poem "Winter Rain in Chengdu" was written for Lin Feng.

It was almost 10 p.m. when the hot pot party ended. The club members went back to school in twos and threes, while Wang Peng and Tan Zhao also took taxis.

Lin Feng walked at the back, with Shen Jingyi quietly following beside him. The two walked side by side on the road, and Shen Jingyi took the initiative to link arms with Lin Feng.

The streetlights cast long shadows of the two people, sometimes overlapping, sometimes separating.