Get the perfect music system at the start

===Chapter 440 We've never met before, why are you looking at me like that?===

After Xu Fan finished speaking, he continued, "But don't worry, if I go to Yanjing next time, I will definitely visit you."

Grandpa Zhou Bingcheng then smiled and said, "Alright, it's settled then. I'll be waiting for you in Yanjing."

Xu Fan smiled and agreed. The two chatted for a while longer before hanging up.

Sometimes, Xu Fan felt that Old Master Zhou Bingcheng was too focused on business, but he wasn't too angry about it. At least for now, he didn't need to get angry over such trivial matters. Besides, the old man's words still showed enough approval, so he would naturally maintain enough respect in return.

Xu Fan lay in bed, and for some reason, he fell asleep very quickly.

There was no fascination, no obsession; he simply rested quietly, as if he were tired.

The next day, Xu Fan got up, washed up, and went directly to Zhonghai TV Station, the rehearsal site for the recording of this year's Spring Festival Gala branch venue.

Upon Xu Fan's arrival, the staff respectfully invited him in. Soon after, the sub-director in charge of the sub-venue found Xu Fan. The director's surname was Liu. Director Liu was very friendly when he saw Xu Fan and greeted him with a smile, saying, "Mr. Xu, I have truly heard of your great reputation. Meeting you today, Mr. Xu is even younger than I imagined."

Xu Fan paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "It's alright, not too old."

Director Liu laughed heartily and said, "Mr. Xu, please come in."

At Director Liu's invitation, Xu Fan followed him into the studio. There were already many people there. As soon as he entered, a young woman ran up to him and said, "Mr. Xu, you've arrived."

Xu Fan looked at the girl and couldn't help but smile, saying, "Not bad, you look very pretty today."

An Ran smiled, feeling slightly shy at Xu Fan's praise, and happily said, "Thank you, Mr. Xu."

Xu Fan received the message: "The pressure of preparing for the gala performances is considerable. Keep up the good work."

An Ran nodded and said to Director Liu beside her, "Director Liu, Mr. Xu is the boss of our Fanxing Film Industry. Why don't I entertain him for the time being?"

Director Liu paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Since you know each other, that's good. Xiao Ran, don't forget to sign a confidentiality agreement with Mr. Xu."

An Ran smiled and said, "Director Liu, please don't worry."

As soon as Director Liu left, Xu Fan asked An Ran curiously, "What, do we have to sign a confidentiality agreement?"

Xu Fan nodded and said, "Of course, all the program content and participants of the Spring Festival Gala must be disclosed within the last specified time, so a confidentiality agreement must be signed."

Xu Fan nodded, and then An Ran said, "President Xu, please wait a moment. I'll go and get the agreement, and I'll be right back."

An Ran led Xu Fan to a location and went to retrieve the agreement. Xu Fan sat there, looking around. Various celebrities were coming and going, but most of them were from Zhonghai.

In addition to the main venue in Yanjing, CCTV.com also set up four branch venues in four other locations.

For example, branch venues were set up in places such as Zhonghai, Yangcheng, Chang'an, and Rongcheng.

Just as Xu Fan was waiting, a person walked over with a smile in the distance. Xu Fan was taken aback and subconsciously stood up and walked towards the person.

"Teacher Xue, it's been a long time."

Xu Fan couldn't help but walk over and quickly shook hands. Xue Laiyi smiled and said, "Long time no see, Xiao Fan."

The two shook hands, and Xue Laiyi continued, "I wanted to look for you these past two days, but I've been busy. I figured you'd be here today, so I didn't call."

Xu Fan was taken aback for a moment, then quickly replied, "Teacher Xue, is there something you need? Please sit down, let's sit down and talk."

Xue Laiyi nodded and said with a smile, "There is something I need to do, but we can talk about it later. Please have a seat. How have you been lately?"

Xu Fan smiled and said, "It's alright, just so-so. How about you, Teacher Xue?"

The two chatted about everyday things for a while, then An Ran jogged over, looked at Xue Laiyi for a moment, and said, "Teacher Xue, you're here too!"

Xue Laiyi nodded and looked at An Ran, saying, "Are you the host from Fanxing Pictures?"

An Ran smiled and said, "Teacher Xue has a good memory. Did you sign the confidentiality agreement?"

After Xue Laiyi said he would sign, An Ran handed it over. Xu Fan glanced at it casually, then signed his name with a flourish. Xue Laiyi, who was standing next to him, said with a smile, "Your handwriting hasn't changed. You still need to practice."

Xu Fan chuckled and said, "No problem."

*Smack! Smack! Smack! Smack!*

Just then, Director Liu clapped his hands a few times in the distance, then picked up a megaphone and said loudly, "Dear actors, singers, and friends, all of you who have signed the confidentiality agreement, please proceed to the discussion hall. We will hold a temporary meeting to reminisce and set the theme and tone. Those who haven't signed, please contact our staff as soon as possible; they will assist you."

After the sound faded, Director Liu repeated it again before putting down the loudspeaker.

Xue Laiyi stood up and said with a smile, "Let's go."

Xu Fan asked in confusion, "Has Teacher Xue participated in the Spring Festival Gala before? Where is this discussion hall?"

Xue Laiyi shook his head and said, "This is my first time too. Let's just follow the others."

An Ran smiled slightly and said, "I arrived quite early. The discussion area is over there. I'll take you there."

Xu Fan and Xue Laiyi glanced at An Ran and nodded.

The discussion hall was large, with several tables at the top. Xu Fan was taken aback, wondering who was sitting there. It seemed that this formalism was quite comprehensive.

However, he didn't say anything. He looked at the seats below the stage, and each seat had a name in front of it. Xue Laiyi smiled and said, "It seems we'll have to sit separately."

An Ran said, "I have to go to the front; there are no seats available for the host."

Xu Fan paused for a moment, then nodded and said, "Go ahead and get busy."

Watching An Ran's retreating figure, Xu Fan frowned slightly. According to the format of this discussion hall, there shouldn't be a need for a host, right? But since it's a discussion, the host should also have a role, right? However, even so, he didn't say anything, and nodded, saying, "Find your place."

Xu Fan and Xue Laiyi searched for a while and found their respective seats. They smiled at each other and realized that the other person was not there. So they had to sit separately in their own seats.

As soon as Xu Fan sat down, a very pleasant voice rang out beside him, saying softly, "Are you Xu Fan?"

Xu Fan turned around and saw a girl in a long dress. If it weren't for the fact that the heating was very warm, Xu Fan would have been worried about the girl, but he still smiled and said, "Yes."

As he spoke, his gaze unconsciously drifted to the girl's name tag. After all, a star who could participate in a gala was bound to be extraordinary. Xu Fan felt the name looked familiar, but it was a name he couldn't reach for a favor, which was why he noticed the name on the tag.

Xu Fan paused for a moment when he saw those three words.

The girl was taken aback by Xu Fan's expression, but smiled and said, "We've never met before, why are you looking at me like that?"

Get the perfect music system at the start

===Chapter 441 Meeting Leng Xiaogu===

The girl's name tag had three words written on it: "Leng Xiaogu".

Upon hearing Leng Xiaogu's words, Xu Fan nodded and said, "Because the girl is pretty."

Leng Xiaogu said with a smile, "Xu Fan, the superstar, has very sweet words."

Xu Fan smiled and sat down, saying, "You flatter me, we really haven't met before."

Leng Xiaogu said, "But I've seen the movies you've acted in."

Xu Fan turned to look at Leng Xiaogu and said, "I've seen your movies too, your acting is pretty good."

Leng Xiaogu paused for a moment and said, "You mean 'Lost'? I also think it's not bad, but the effect is really not good."

Xu Fan smiled and said, "Many of Huazhou Pictures' movies are quite good. Although I have only seen your 'Lost,' I have to say that your acting is indeed good, it's just that the script is a bit over the top."

Leng Xiaogu said, "Is that so? Thinking about it later, I still regret it. By the way, Xu Juxing, you should still be a director, right? Or should I call you Director Xu?"

Xu Fan said with a smile, "You can call me whatever you want, Xu Fan is fine too."

Leng Xiaogu said, "Then I'll teach you Xu Fan. You can also call me Xiaogu."

Xu Fan nodded without speaking. He wasn't very familiar with the name Leng Xiaogu, but he did know that the opponent of his first film, "Lost and Found," was Huazhou Film's "Lost," and Leng Xiaogu was one of the leading actresses in it, making her quite the star.

Just then, Xu Fan suddenly heard Leng Xiaogu ask curiously, "Director Xu Fan, if you have any projects in the future, remember to call me!"

Xu Fan smiled and said, "Definitely, definitely."

Xu Fan wasn't being polite; the business rivalry was only at the company level, and had little to do with the actors.

Moreover, when he makes a film, the actor's personal ability and quality are the most basic requirements. Even though the film "Lost" in which Leng Xiaogu starred had a very low rating, her acting skills were definitely up to par overall. So if there is a suitable role, Xu Fan will not be stingy.

Soon, a middle-aged man sat down to Xu Fan's right. Xu Fan recognized him as a well-known actor in China, but they weren't very familiar with each other, so they just smiled at each other and greeted each other.

Soon after, the discussion hall was filled with people.

Looking around, the venue was packed, with every seat occupied by well-known actors or singers from across the country, including sketch comedy and vocal performers. There were even representatives from some dance troupes.

After everyone was seated, Xu Fan suddenly noticed that the people around him were clapping. He subconsciously started clapping as well, only to realize that a group of people had walked over from the stage. These people were none other than the leaders of CCTV.com.

Xu Fan felt inexplicably disgusted, but didn't say anything.

Director Liu was also among them. Although he was the official director of the Spring Festival Gala, he was just sitting on the side, while the person in the middle was a fat man with a big head and big ears.

Xu Fan looked at his figure and shook his head. He was almost a size bigger than Zhao Feiyang. His figure was really something else.

The fat man coughed once, then tested the microphone with a "hello, hello, hello" sound before saying, "Good morning, everyone."

After a brief self-introduction, another round of applause erupted from the audience.

The fat man waved his hand to stop clapping, and then said, "The annual Spring Festival Gala is coming soon. I hope our performance this year can bring a different kind of show to our audience. So, everyone, please agree to submit all the programs you have submitted. We will make unified plans and arrangements."

And so, the portly boss rambled on for over forty minutes, earning seven or eight rounds of applause, before finally stopping and saying, "Next up is Director Liu, the chief director of our Zhonghai branch venue for this year's Spring Festival Gala."

After he finished speaking, the applause continued.

Xu Fan's neighbor, Leng Xiaogu, said somewhat uncomfortably, "Don't you always talk too much, Fatty?"

Xu Fan glanced at the fat man, then thought for a moment and Zhao Feiyang nodded, saying, "It seems so."

Leng Xiaogu said helplessly, "I was almost asleep, but I don't know what I said. By the way, are you going to have a solo performance at this year's Spring Festival Gala?"

Xu Fan nodded and said, "That should be true."

At this moment, Director Liu on stage finally got the microphone, cleared his throat and said, "Good afternoon, fellow actors and singers, and all friends who have come to participate in the rehearsal of the China Sea branch venue of this year's Spring Festival Gala. In order not to take up your time, I will first give a brief report on the programs of this year's Spring Festival Gala at the China Sea branch venue as quickly as possible."

Leng Xiaogu sat up straight and said, "Most of the people here don't actually have the chance to participate, including me."

Xu Fan glanced at Leng Xiaogu, and then heard Leng Xiaogu continue, "All the submitted programs may be rejected."

Xu Fan nodded and said, "Actually, there's no need to care. If I gain it, I'm lucky; if I lose it, it's my fate."

Leng Xiaogu glanced at Xu Fan and said, "You seem to take it all in stride. But if I were you, I would definitely take it in stride too. But then again, your show shouldn't get cut."

Xu Fan paused for a moment, then asked curiously, "Why do you say that?"

Leng Xiaogu said, "And another thing, with your current fame, plus your positive energy and all sorts of halos surrounding you, under normal circumstances, as long as the show isn't too bad, there shouldn't be any problems."

Xu Fan nodded but didn't say anything. Director Liu on stage, however, began to speak: "Currently, our Spring Festival Gala performance is the same as last year, consisting of a combination of multiple programs such as dance, skits, crosstalk, acrobatics, and solo singing. For our Zhonghai branch venue, there are currently seventy-eight programs that have been applied for, but we can only actually perform seven in the end, so everyone is under a lot of pressure."

Everyone present listened quietly to Director Liu's words. Few people had paid attention to what the fat man had said earlier, because it was all just nonsense.

However, Director Liu's words concerned everyone on the show, and hearing about a probability of almost one in ten at this moment made people sigh.

Even Xu Fan was somewhat surprised, as Director Liu on stage continued, "According to the arrangements of the Spring Festival Gala's chief director, the comedy sketches will mainly be directed in Beijing, the performance sketches will mainly be directed in Chang'an, and Zhonghai will focus on music programs, including choral and solo performances, with only one performance sketch and one comedy sketch. Therefore, everyone must be well-prepared. Today's rehearsal will eliminate most of the programs, so please be ready as we will go through them one by one."