Huayu: A master director who debuted as a singer

Chapter 67 The Song is Famous, But the Person Isn't

November 25th, PolyGram Marketing Department.

Everyone in the conference room had a rosy glow on their face, and the atmosphere was lively.

Director Wang stood at the conference table, holding a sales report in his hand: "Everyone, our colleagues in Hong Kong just confirmed the data this morning."

"One hundred thousand!"

"Since we changed our promotional strategy and focused on the middle-aged market, sales have quadrupled. Today, the album 'Stubborn' has officially reached double platinum status in Hong Kong!"

Applause and cheers erupted in the meeting room; their jobs were safe.

"It's even more outrageous in Taiwan!"

"Total shipments reached 360,000 copies! Just one step away from quadruple platinum status!"

A young employee raised his hand and asked, "Mr. Wang, I heard that in Taiwan, cassette tapes and CDs coexist. How are sales calculated?"

Director Wang replied, "That's a good question. The Taiwan market is quite unique; cassette tapes still account for about 20%. But we make our money from CDs. Even if we only consider CD sales, we're already close to triple platinum. What's more, the profit margin on cassette tapes isn't low either."

He looked around at his subordinates, whose fighting spirit had been rekindled.

"Everyone, this is just the final battle of the first album. Mr. Zheng said the next album will be even more crucial, so everyone better be on your toes!"

The name Zheng Hui can now be seen everywhere in Hong Kong newspapers, radio stations, and magazines.

Discussions about his lyrics and the social phenomena he represents have become some of the hottest topics in both the financial and cultural sections of the news.

Unfortunately, all of this remains just a name and a voice.

PolyGram's change to a no-show strategy was implemented too thoroughly; after shifting its focus to the middle-aged market, it removed all posters featuring portraits.

This led to a peculiar phenomenon.

Zheng Hui became Hong Kong's most famous invisible man. He could walk freely on the most crowded streets of Causeway Bay without anyone recognizing him.

He could sit quietly in the tea restaurant, listening to the people at the next table talking loudly and debating whether Zheng Hui's songs were good or not, while he himself was just a background figure drinking iced lemon tea.

Meanwhile, inside a luxury mansion on Hong Kong Island.

"Snapped!"

The TV remote was slammed against the wall and shattered into pieces.

Nicholas Tse's chest heaved violently as he stared intently at the television screen.

On the screen, an entertainment reporter is holding a microphone and asking a passerby, "What are your thoughts on Zheng Hui's new album sales? Who do you think better represents young people, him or Nicholas Tse?"

Mani Fok walked into the living room, looked at the mess on the floor, glanced at the television, and frowned.

"Losing your temper again?"

Nicholas Tse stood up from the sofa: "I don't want to hear that person's name again! Are those reporters crazy?!"

When I hold a concert, they ask Zheng Hui. When I do an event, they ask Zheng Hui! Now, even when I'm doing nothing, they're still asking Zheng Hui!

"How annoying!"

Mani Fok sighed: "Mr. Yang wants you to go to the company."

Emperor Entertainment Centre, top floor office.

Yang Shoucheng smoked a cigar, filling the office with smoke.

He looked at Nicholas Tse, who was standing in front of him with a resentful expression, and slowly said, "You can't stay in Hong Kong for the time being. You should go out and lay low for a while."

Nicholas Tse's temper flared up immediately: "Why should I leave? Why should I leave? He's the one who should leave!"

Mani Fok tugged at him and explained, "Nicholas, calm down. It's not a question of who's right or wrong now; public opinion has completely sided with him."

"With PolyGram personally involved, you can't compete. Now, whenever you appear in Hong Kong, reporters will swarm you, pressuring you to make a statement. Whatever you say is wrong, whatever you do is wrong."

"Let's go to Taiwan," Mani Fok said, revealing her pre-prepared plan.

"The media over there don't compare you and Zheng Hui as much, and your previous comments haven't reached them. You can focus on making your music and start anew."

Yang Shoucheng exhaled a smoke ring and added, "We will release your EP, 'The Cry of the End of the Century,' quietly in Hong Kong. We're not expecting sales; it's mainly to give your fans an explanation."

"You don't need to stay in Hong Kong for promotions. Emperor Entertainment's resources will all be concentrated in Taiwan to help you develop the market. In Taiwan, people still appreciate love songs."

He leaned back in his chair, analyzing the situation: "Zheng Hui is someone who benefited from the financial crisis, but his success was short-lived."

"When the economy improves next year and everyone has more money, who will want to listen to his melodramatic, slogan-shouting songs? At that time, what people want to hear is love and romance."

"Go to Taiwan and establish yourself with love songs first. That way, you can seize this market opportunity. Once Zheng Hui's popularity has died down, you can go back to Hong Kong. By then, the market will still be yours."

Nicholas Tse fell silent. Although he was unwilling to accept it, he knew that this was the only option at the moment.

Staying in Hong Kong was like being a live target tied to a bullseye, enduring attacks from all sides every day.

"Okay, I'll go." He squeezed out the three words through gritted teeth.

Yang Shoucheng and Huo Wenxi both breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that this was the best arrangement.

Little did they know that Zheng Hui's second album was already in the works, and it was a pure love song album.

On November 26th, Zheng Hui finished filming the last scene for his music video.

He had just returned to the hotel when he received a call from Manager Chen, asking him to come to the company immediately.

In the office, Zheng Donghan was looking at the freshly released sales report, his smile impossible to hide.

"Hui-zai, sit down."

He pushed the report in his hand in front of Zheng Hui.

"Look at your record."

Zheng Hui picked up the report, which clearly listed various data points.

"Yesterday, the 25th. Hong Kong, double platinum. Taiwan, 360,000 copies." Zheng Donghan leaned back on the sofa, his tone relaxed.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Your new album, 'Floating Life,' can officially begin its promotional campaign. I've already arranged the schedule with the TV station. The music videos for 'Thank You for Your Love 1999' and 'Because of Love, I Love' will be airing next week."

"Starting with this album, you can finally make your debut. Hong Kong audiences should also see what kind of person can write and sing songs like this."

Zheng Hui put down the report and said, "Mr. Zheng, I have something to tell you."

"speak."

"In mid-December, I'm going to CCTV. A program of mine has been selected for the Spring Festival Gala rehearsal."

Zheng Donghan was taken aback: "The CCTV Spring Festival Gala?"

"Yes," Zheng Hui added, "They're asking me to keep the specifics of the program confidential, so I can't go into details."

"In that case, I can only promote it until December 10th at the latest, after which I will have to fly to Beijing to prepare."

Zheng Donghan tapped his fingers lightly on the armrest of the sofa. This Hong Kong and Taiwan entertainment tycoon did not have much awe for the mainland's top stage.

In his view, it was just a highly-rated gala.

"The CCTV Spring Festival Gala? A good stage." He nodded: "It will benefit your reputation in mainland China."

He mentally calculated the time.

"That's enough. From the release date of December 1st to the 10th, you have ten days. That's enough time for you to make a trip to both Hong Kong and Taiwan and really build up the buzz. After that, let the market do its thing."

After the deal was settled, Zheng Hui came out of Zheng Donghan's office.

It was already evening, and instead of having the company send a car, he took Wang Dashan and walked into the night in Tsim Sha Tsui.

"Brother Dashan, let's just take a walk."

Wang Dashan followed behind him, cautiously observing the surroundings.

The two walked aimlessly and passed by a record store.

The poster with the lyrics of "Stubborn" in white lettering on a black background still hangs in the record store window.

"If I'm different from the world, then let me be different."

Below is the album title, "Stubborn".

Two girls in middle school uniforms were standing in front of the shop window, pointing at the posters.

A girl with a ponytail pouted, "This Zheng Hui must be ugly. Otherwise, why isn't his picture on the poster? A lot of people who sing well don't look good in person."

The short-haired girl next to her immediately retorted, "No way! My friend saw him on TV! It was on the 'Jade Solid Gold' show, he sang 'Stubborn,' he was so handsome! So stylish!"

The girl with the ponytail looked incredulous: "Really? Your friend isn't lying to you, is she? They always have good lighting on TV; maybe it's just the angle. Besides, if he were really handsome, why wouldn't the company release photos for promotion?"

The short-haired girl was a little speechless when asked the question, but she still insisted, "Anyway, my friend said he's really handsome!"

The two were arguing quietly, but loud enough for a young clerk in the record store who was tidying up the shelves to hear.

The shop assistant poked her head out and said to the two girls with a smile, "Ladies, stop arguing."

He pointed to the posters in the shop window: "Zheng Hui is very handsome. When PolyGram released this CD, they sent over a batch of posters with photos on them. He's really handsome in person."

The short-haired girl immediately puffed out her chest, looking smugly at her companion: "See! I told you so!"

The clerk continued, "But for some reason, the company called us again and told us to take away all the posters with photos and replace them with these ones that only have text."

The girl with the ponytail was still skeptical. She looked at the poster, which had nothing but lyrics, and muttered to herself.

"Really? — Who knows if it's true or not?"

Zheng Hui stood in the shadows not far away, listening to their conversation, and found it somewhat amusing.

He gently touched Wang Dashan's arm: "Let's go, Brother Dashan."

The question about his appearance will soon cease to be a question.