A song from Chengdu revived a closed-down pub.

Back at the station, the person in charge of applying for song licensing excitedly announced, "We got the license!"

Zhang Yunlong asked, "How much?"

Everyone looked over; at this crucial moment, the most important thing was to make a final push.

"free."

"free?"

"Yes, Su Fan did not charge any fees."

Everyone was stunned.

Zhang Yunlong remarked with emotion, "That's a great vision. I'll remember this favor in the future."

As everyone knows, some singers not only charge licensing fees for their work, but also take a cut based on the number of plays.

If a song becomes as popular as "Little Fairy," earning a few hundred thousand in dividends is a conservative estimate.

Su Fan said it was okay, so it was.

This surprised and delighted everyone.

That afternoon, the official Weibo account of Jiangxi Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism was updated.

The music video for "Little Fairy" is now available!

"Jiangxi Province isn't big, and Longhu Mountain isn't far. Come take a walk, watch the clouds, and listen to the wind. Jiangxi's culture and tourism await you!"

Su Fan was specifically mentioned in it.

"Thanks to Mr. Su Fan for his free authorization, which allowed this song to meet the landscape of Longhu Mountain."

The song "Little Fairy" was already quite popular, so it quickly attracted a lot of attention.

When you open the video, you'll see a young Taoist priest walking through a bamboo forest and sitting on a rock.

The background music is his own rendition of "Little Fairy".

The comment section exploded as soon as the music video was released.

"They're here! They're here! Jiangxi's cultural and tourism sector has finally caught this wave of visitors!"

"My goodness, this little Taoist priest is Huixin? Su Fan's junior disciple? He's so adorable!"

"After watching the music video, I booked a ticket to Longhu Mountain, not for any other reason than hoping to bump into this young Taoist priest at the mountain gate!"

"Su Fan granted a free license? That's quite a vision. No wonder he could write 'Little Immortal.' Only someone with mountains and rivers in their heart can write about them!"

"I suggest the entire national cultural and tourism sector learn from this: stop making those pretentious and empty promotional videos, find someone to write a song, and sing it simply—that's much better than anything else!"

"Su Fan single-handedly made two cities famous: Chengdu in Sichuan Province and Longhu Mountain in Jiangxi Province. Who's next?"

……

The number of followers on the official WeChat account of Jiangxi Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism jumped from tens of thousands before the announcement to hundreds of thousands.

Zhang Yunlong sat in his office, holding his phone, watching the data jump up one by one, unable to suppress the smile on his face.

He suddenly remembered Qi Tongwei from Sichuan Province's cultural and tourism sector. It was said that when Su Fan's song "Chengdu" became popular, Qi Tongwei was so excited that he wanted to set off firecrackers.

He understood that feeling.

After seeing Jiangxi Province's actions, tourism and cultural enterprises from other provinces couldn't help but exclaim, "Are you ever going to stop?!"

Wei Zhiran from Shaanxi Province's Culture and Tourism Department is envious again.

He sat in his office and watched the music video from Jiangxi Province over and over again, feeling increasingly heartbroken with each viewing.

Sichuan Province has a book called "Chengdu".

Jiangxi Province has a book called "Little Immortal".

What does Qin Province have?

There is Su Fan.

But Su Fanren has not returned yet.

He picked up the phone and dialed the number of Pan Lei, the Party Secretary of Lijiapo Village.

"Has Su Fan returned yet?"

Pan Lei also learned about what had happened in Sichuan Province, and he understood why Wei Zhirang, this high-ranking leader, had specifically requested to see Su Fan.

To be honest, he's still a little dazed.

How did Su Fan, who grew up in an orphanage and made a living by playing with the village band, suddenly become so powerful?

But the facts were there, leaving him no choice but to believe them.

"Director Wei," Pan Lei quickly said, "he's on his way back and said he'll arrive in the next couple of days."

"Okay, be sure to let me know when you arrive."

"Don't worry, I definitely will."

……

After hanging up the phone, Wei Zhirang leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling for a while, lost in thought.

He remembered that when he last spoke to Pan Lei on the phone, Su Fan was still singing "Chengdu" in that little bar in Sichuan Province.

At that time, he just felt that this young man had some talent and wanted to bring him back to boost the cultural tourism industry in Qin Province.

What now?

Su Fan is already a disciple of Longhu Mountain, with half of his connection to Jiangxi Province and a deep ties to Sichuan Province.

If he doesn't take action soon, Qin Province won't even get a drop of soup.

At this moment, Su Fan was on the train back to Qin Province.

He didn't take a plane back this time; instead, he chose the train.

Looking at the scenery along the way, it felt both strange and familiar.

He thought to himself, "Since I'm already here, I might as well make the best of it!"

The seat opposite Su Fan remained empty, and he assumed no one would come up this time.

But at the last moment before the car door closed, a figure rushed up, panting heavily.

Carrying a large canvas bag, he sat down opposite Su Fan, sweating profusely.

"Oh my god, I almost missed it."

Su Fan raised his head and glanced at the person opposite him.

He was in his early thirties, with a round face, thick eyebrows, and big eyes.

The man grinned at Su Fan.

"Hey bro, where are you going?"

Su Fan replied, "Qin Province."

"What a coincidence! I'm also in Qin Province. I heard the Terracotta Army there is really impressive, so I made a special trip to check it out. I just came from Mawangdui. You wouldn't believe it, but the museum in Hunan Province had a two-hour queue, but it was worth it. Lady Xin Zhui really looked like she was asleep..."

This person spoke like a machine gun, moving from one topic to another without Su Fan needing to respond at all.

Su Fan didn't interrupt, but leaned against the window and listened, occasionally nodding and smiling.

The two started chatting like that.

"Brother, my name is Qin Shen, what's yours?"

"Su Fan".

"Su Fan? How come your name is exactly the same as that guy who's really popular right now, the one who sang 'Chengdu'?"

Su Fan smiled but didn't reply.

Qin Shen didn't press the matter, probably thinking that there were plenty of people with the same name.

He changed the subject: "Hey bro, where are you from? Your Mandarin sounds pretty standard, no accent at all."

"I am from Shaanxi Province."

"Hello, Qin Province! Can you guess where I'm from?"

From the very first sentence Qin Shen uttered upon boarding the bus, he knew the other person was from Northeast China.

That accent couldn't be hidden.

Even if he felt he was speaking standard Mandarin.

But that tune, that rhythm, that warm enthusiasm—only people from Northeast China have that.

"Probably from Northeast China," Su Fan said.

Qin Shen's eyes widened in disbelief: "I don't have an accent when I speak, how did you tell?"

Su Fan then asked, "You're from Harbin, right?"

Qin Shen was even more surprised: "Holy crap, you're amazing, bro, you even know that?"

"I used to have a few friends from that area, but I haven't been in touch with them for many years."

The friend Su Fan mentioned was from his previous life.

Su Fan thought to himself, "Those guys are probably in some city in another world right now, eating barbecue, drinking beer, and chatting about their lives!"

Qin Shen patted his chest: "That's a pity, but it's okay. Next time you come to the Northeast, just look for me, it'll do!"

As they chatted, Qin Shen asked again, "By the way, brother, what do you do for a living? You don't look very old, are you going home for the Chinese New Year?"

"Me? I'm a musician, the kind who plays instruments and sings at other people's funerals."

Qin Shen's eyes lit up, and he slammed his hand on the table, startling the old man sleeping next to him.

"What a coincidence! That's what I do too!"

"Then let's stick together as colleagues."

"Of course! Three generations of my family have been doing this. My grandfather's generation started playing the suona, and it was passed down to me. It's not easy for someone so young to be doing this. Nowadays, it's mostly old men in this line of work. Who among young people would learn this?"

Su Fan laughed and said, "Strictly speaking, we can also be considered musicians."

"Musician, yes, absolutely right! From now on, if anyone asks me what I do, I'll just say I'm a musician."

……

The two got more and more excited as they chatted.

The conversation ranged from the tunes of the suona to the customs of funerals in different regions.

The conversation started with the "Crying at Seven Passes" tradition in Northeast China and then moved on to the filial piety songs of Shaanxi Province.

The more we talked, the more we felt we clicked.

Finally, the two exchanged contact information.

The train arrived in Qin Province in the evening.

"Brother Shen, I have to go home, so I can't stay with you any longer."

Qin Shen waved his hand dismissively: "Brother, you're busy. When you have time, come to the Northeast and look for me, it'll do you good."

The two then parted ways.

Su Fan boarded the bus and headed home.