A song from Chengdu revived a closed-down pub.

Zhou Haiyang recounted the information he had received in its entirety.

"He's at the funeral right now, preparing to play the suona in front of the mourning hall, and it's being live-streamed. There are already over 100,000 viewers in the live stream. You're telling me he's just here for fun? Is this how he's supposed to be?"

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone.

Then Qi Tongwei burst out laughing.

Zhou Haiyang's face darkened: "Are you laughing?"

"No, no, hahaha..."

You are laughing.

"Sorry, I couldn't help it, hahaha..."

Qi Tongwei completely dropped the pretense this time, laughing so hard his phone was shaking.

Zhou Haiyang's face turned ashen: "Is it that funny?"

Qi Tongwei took a deep breath, trying to make his voice sound more serious: "No, I've received professional training. I don't usually laugh unless I can't help it, pfft hahaha..."

Zhou Haiyang gritted his teeth and said, "Qi Tongwei, if you laugh again, believe me, I'll call Yang Qing and tell him about your affair with Bai Yan."

The laughter stopped abruptly.

Yang Qing is Qi Tongwei's wife and also their classmate.

Bai Yan was also their classmate.

The key point is that Yang Qing had no idea that Qi Tongwei had this history.

Qi Tongwei's voice immediately became serious: "Don't get excited, don't get excited, Lao Zhou, listen to me, it's a good thing that Su Fan is going to you! Didn't you tell me before that you wanted Su Fan to support you? Now that he's gone himself, why are you getting so worked up?"

Zhou Haiyang snorted coldly: "He wants to brag about this to us, and I don't want us to become famous because of it."

"Old Zhou, you don't understand. Once you have a reputation, who cares how you got it? Your top priority right now is to see if you can capitalize on this wave of popularity. Don't end up like Qin Sheng, who didn't even know to open his mouth when the meat was right in front of him."

"Then give me some advice, bro, on how I can capitalize on this surge in traffic?"

Qi Tongwei said slowly on the other end of the phone, "Just now someone threatened to expose my past. How cold-hearted people are."

Zhou Haiyang immediately changed his tune: "Seventh Brother, I was just kidding. How could I do something to ruin your marriage? We're like family."

"Who can say for sure? Some people think they can rely on this to control their lives forever."

Zhou Haiyang grew impatient and raised his voice again: "Are you never going to stop? Are you going to tell me or not? If you don't, I'm going to ask our class monitor, Yang Qing."

Qi Tongwei immediately backed down: "Tell me, tell me, it's actually quite simple. That place is having a joyous funeral. A centenarian is quite rare. To put it bluntly, it's a funeral, but in other words, it's a manifestation of local customs. It's lively, solemn, and full of life, unlike those wailing and lamenting funerals. If this is packaged well, it's a vivid display of Northeast folk culture. It's a joyous funeral for a centenarian veteran, with people from all around seeing him off. It's a warm continuation of traditional culture in modern society. If you steer it in that direction, no one can find fault with it."

Zhou Haiyang thought for a moment and asked, "But what does this have to do with boosting tourism here? I can't expect people to come to Harbin for a funeral, can I?"

Qi Tongwei sighed: "Old Zhou, why don't you understand? You need to generate buzz first before you can create tourist routes. You have nothing, yet you're thinking of instant success. Do you think Su Fan can write a song like 'Chengdu' and make your area famous overnight? Impossible. You know how difficult it is to create regional works. If the art is too high, no one will listen; if it's too low, people will criticize. You should be more realistic. Stabilize this buzz for as long as you can, and then look for opportunities in the meantime."

Zhou Haiyang began to think.

Qi Tongwei continued, "What you need to do now is not to get Su Fan to write songs for you, but to keep him here. As long as he stays with you, you'll have traffic every day. Whether he plays the suona, eats iron pot stew, or goes to the market, as long as you follow him, point the camera at him, and film the warmth and hospitality of Northeast China, you'll win this round."

Having said that, Zhou Haiyang understood: "You know that kid well, give me a heads-up, and I'll arrange the rest."

Qi Tongwei said, "Okay, but I want to make this clear to you: if you dare to mention Bai Yan's matter to Yang Qing, I'll dig up all those love letters you wrote to the school beauty during your college years and send them to your workplace."

"You dare!"

"If you dare, I dare!"

……

After hanging up the phone, Qi Tongwei opened the live streaming software, found Su Fan's live stream room, and started watching.

Zhou Haiyang then called his assistant and asked, "Liu Zhong, go and find out who has any connection with that centenarian's family."

Liu Zhong said, "There really is. Qin Mingdong, the deputy director of the local county's culture and tourism bureau, is that old man's nephew."

"Alright, come with me, we'll go and offer our respects as well."

……

At this moment, during the funeral, Qin Shen pointed the camera at Su Fan.

More than 100,000 eyes were glued to the screen in the live stream, and the chat fell silent in an instant.

Everyone was curious about what kind of music Su Fan could play.

Su Fan glanced at the old man's mourning hall and said, "Old sir, you spent half your life on the battlefield, bringing blessings to your descendants. You passed away peacefully, truly a life of perfect virtue. I have nothing to offer you in return, so I will use this poem, 'A Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix,' to bid you farewell!"

He raised his suona, the bronze bowl facing the sky, and took a deep breath.

The first sound was like a tear in silk.

That wasn't the joyful and boisterous atmosphere that people imagined "Song of the Phoenix" should have.

This sound was desolate and lingering.

Everyone in the courtyard stopped what they were doing at the same time.

The second note marks the beginning of a downward melody.

Like a person trudging through thick snow, step by step walking into the distance.

This sound was low and lingering.

There was no sorrow or reluctance in the music.

Some farewells are clean and simple.

Don't leave if it's not you.

Rather, I wish you well.

The third note suddenly opens up the melody.

The sound of the suona was no longer a solitary cry, no longer a lone sojourn, but rather as if something was converging from all directions.

The high notes sound like a hundred birds singing in unison, while the low notes sound like the wind rustling through the pines in a myriad of valleys.

Su Fan's suona melody shifted from desolate to melodious.

From distant to vast.

The last sound faded away, leaving nothing behind.

The echo lingered in the courtyard for a few seconds before being dispersed by the cold wind.

Quiet.

No one spoke, no one made a sound.

At this moment, Qin Shen asked, "Brother Fan, what kind of tune is this? Is it unique to your Qin Province? I've never heard it before."

Not only Qin Shen had never heard of it, but many of his colleagues and folk music enthusiasts in the live stream had also never heard of it.

Su Fan said, "This piece of music is called 'Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix'."

Qin Shen repeated it twice, then said, "That's not right, Brother Fan. I remember 'Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix' was a popular folk song, a rather cheerful tune. Later, after being arranged by Mr. Qu Feiming, it became a lively and cheerful melody. But the tune just now..."

Su Fan explained, "I played the mournful version."

"A lament?" Qin Shen's eyes widened. "Who wrote it? I've never heard of it before!"

"I figured it out myself."