1990: Starting from Baojia Street

Wang Zuxian, who just said that Zhou Yan's villain's heart can judge a gentleman's heart, saw Ma Dongfang's appearance at this moment and believed Zhou Yan's words.

After Ma Dongfang finished playing a song, some neon people at the scene shouted, Let's do another one.

The street performer also went up and said a few words to Ma Dongfang, and then Ma Dongfang played two more songs, one Secret Joy and one Kite.

After playing two songs, Ma Dongfang and the others didn't bother to wander around. Although the audience was very enthusiastic and the street performer also tried to persuade him to stay, after all, it was someone else's stall, and it wouldn't be good for them to occupy it for too long.

Several people walked forward chatting and laughing. Zhou Yan turned to look at Wang Zuxian, Let's go too.

Yes. Wang Zuxian nodded.

Then the two held hands and walked in the other direction, continuing to discuss where to eat.

Zhou Yan knew nothing about Tokyo and was counting on Wang Zuxian, but Wang Zuxian was not much better than him. The two discussed it for a long time and finally decided to continue walking forward and walked in at the first place to eat.

After making this decision, they walked more than thirty steps and reached the door of an izakaya.

Let's go, that's it.

Zhou Yan pulled Wang Zuxian and walked in. The landlady was clearing the table. When she saw a customer coming in, she said warmly, Welcome.

She said welcome. Wang Zuxian looked at Zhou Yan as if he was taking credit.

Zhou Yan rolled his eyes, You're awesome.

Anyone who doesn't know a word of neon language will know that the proprietress means welcome.

The proprietress was a little surprised when she heard the two of them speaking Chinese, and then said to them in Chinese, Welcome.

What he said was not standard, and the boss lady seemed to know how to say it. After saying this, she looked at the two of them with a smile on her face.

From the 1970s to the present, the relationship between the two countries has gradually heated up. Especially after the 1980s, the people of Neon have become more and more interested in China, and there has even been a kind of China fever.

The popularity of Mysterious Country in Neon is also related to the current Neon environment. Neon people's interest in China is mainly reflected in Chinese traditional culture.

Nowadays, in the eyes of many Neon people, Zhou Yan’s music is the representative of traditional Chinese culture.

At this time, Wang Zuxian's poor neon language finally came in handy. She said to the proprietress in neon language, There are two of us, please give us the menu.

Please take a seat. The landlady nodded and went to get the menu.

Zhou Yan and Wang Zuxian sat down in the booth next to them.

After the landlady brought the menu, Zhou Yan stretched his head and looked at it. There were many Chinese characters on the menu, but he still couldn't tell what most of the dishes were.

After searching around, he pointed at a few of them that he recognized, Is this potato the same potato I know?

Wang Zuxian shook his head, No, this potato should be a yam.

Could this sand liver be fried liver?

I know this, it's chicken gizzards.

What about this Teyu-sama?

Chicken wings.

Zhou Yan curled his lips. He didn't guess a single thing correctly. Then he saw roast bird and said, I know this. Is it roast chicken?

Um.

Then I'll order this.

This is the only dish he knows, so naturally he can't miss it.

Wang Zuxian nodded, and then ordered the dishes to the proprietress in neon language.

After ordering a round, Wang Zuxian asked Zhou Yan again, Do you want to drink?

Well, drink some.

Then Wang Zuxian ordered another drink.

After the proprietress left, Zhou Yan looked around the inside of the izakaya and said, It looks quite deserted. There are not many customers.

Of course there are no customers. It's only around six o'clock now, and the izakaya has just opened. It's estimated that there will be more people here after eight o'clock, but that's okay, there are too many people and it's inconvenient.

Zhou Yan nodded. Neon's izakaya is not the same as a bar, but more like a barbecue stall. The product lines are similar.

The izakaya was quite quiet at first, probably because he saw some guests coming, so the boss played music again, which was a neon pop song that Zhou Yan had never heard before.

At first Zhou Yan didn't take it seriously, but after a while, Reunion (when it rained) was played in the store.

Wang Zuxian also heard that it was Reunion. She winked at Zhou Yan and said, It seems that the boss is also a fan of your music.

Zhou Yan smiled and shook his head, Maybe the boss doesn't even know the name of this song.

At present, Neon's music copyright control is not as abnormal as it was later. It is normal for shops on the streets to play music, and the fees are not strict. Unlike later, a certain copyright management agency wanted to collect money from all places that played music, and would sue if they couldn't collect the money. As a result, many street shops were afraid to play music.

Zhou Yan heard a very exaggerated rumor that this institution also collects money from music classrooms. That is to say, those music classrooms should also pay students when they teach music, because music classrooms are also profitable.

As for the idea that the boss is a fan of Zhou Yan music, it is not reliable. Most stores play this kind of pure music. In fact, they themselves don’t understand this music. They just think it sounds good and play it.

Unless the boss always plays Zhou Yan’s music...

But whatever comes to mind is what comes. After Reunion, Wind (Kikujiro's Summer) was played, and then Awakening and Forever Together were played. Obviously, this is based on the song in the Piano Boy album. They were played in order, except that the first song Kite was skipped.

At this point, Zhou Yan didn't think his boss was his music fan. After all, it was very normal to play a whole CD.

But when Zhou Yan and the others were about to finish eating, an outrageous scene occurred. After the entire album of Piano Boy was played, the boss actually replaced it with Mysterious Country.

As soon as Memory of the Forbidden City was played, Zhou Yan couldn't help but raise his eyebrows. Isn't this boss making trouble? An izakaya is playing this style of music.

And this is not the most outrageous thing. The most outrageous thing is that when Zhou Yan and the others were calling people to check out, the boss came out.

The boss spoke a little more Chinese than the wife. When he came up, he greeted Zhou Yan and the others, Hello, welcome, welcome.

Then he spoke again in neon language, and communicated with Wang Zuxian through words and gestures.

It took a lot of effort for Wang Zuxian to understand that the boss was indeed a fan of Zhou Yan, and he heard from the landlady that two Chinese people came to the store, so he specially played the two albums Piano Boy and Mysterious Country .

The boss also said that China has outstanding people and has produced outstanding musicians like Zhou Yan. The Neon people are very honored to be able to invite Zhou Yan to hold a concert.

After praising China and Zhou Yan, the boss asked again, How did you two eat?

Wang Zuxian translated this sentence, and Zhou Yan gave a thumbs up, It's very delicious. Thank you for your hospitality.

The boss was very happy to be praised by the customer, and asked again, Are you coming to Tokyo this time for tourism?

We came to attend Zhou Yan's concert. Wang Zuxian said.

The boss was very surprised, Did you come here from China to watch Zhou Yan's concert?

In the boss's view, Zhou Yan is a Chinese musician. It should be much easier for Chinese people to watch Zhou Yan's concert than for Neon people. There is no need to travel so far. The cost is too high.

Of course, it's hard to get tickets for Zhou Yan's concerts in China. Moreover, Tokyo is the first concert with the theme of Oriental Legacy. We have never heard it before. We don't know whether this concert will be different from the previous ones. What is the difference between The Piano Boy and Yanjing Silence.

This paragraph is not a long one, but Wang Zuxian stumbled and talked for a long time.

The boss listened to her very patiently, and then sighed, So that's it. It seems that you really love Zhou Yan. I hope you can have a good memory in Tokyo.

A customer at the next table heard their conversation and couldn't help but ask, Where are you from China?

I am from Taiwan and he is from Yanjing. Wang Zuxian said.

Which city is Zhou Yan from? the guest asked again.

Zhou Yan is from Yanjing.

The man looked at Zhou Yan in surprise, Isn't that the same city as him?

Seeing the man looking at him with a surprised expression, Zhou Yan asked Wang Zuxian, What did he say?

I told him that you were Zhou Yan, but he didn't believe it. Wang Zuxian said seriously.

Zhou Yan rolled his eyes. Looking at the expressions of the boss and the customer, he knew that it was definitely not what Wang Zuxian said.

This is the disadvantage of the language barrier. In Tokyo, he was manipulated by Xiaoxian classmate.

After Wang Zuxian finished fooling Zhou Yan, he went to fool the boss and the customer again, Yes, Zhou Yan and my boyfriend used to go to the same school.

Hearing this, the boss and the others were even more surprised.

I heard that Zhou Yan is from the best music school in China. So is your boyfriend?

Well, yes, but he is not as powerful as Zhou Yan.

The boss smiled and said, It's normal that you can't compare to Zhou Yan, but your boyfriend and Zhou Yan come from the same school, and they are very powerful. So, has your boyfriend met Zhou Yan?

Of course we have met. They had a pretty good relationship before.

At this time, the boss frowned. He suddenly felt that the little girl in front of him who had covered herself up was bragging to them. Just now she said that it was difficult to get tickets for Zhou Yan's concert, and now she said that her boyfriend and Zhou Yan has a good relationship, but this sounds illogical.

However, the boss didn't say anything. He chatted casually with Wang Zuxian for a few words and then went to the kitchen to get busy.

After leaving the izakaya, Zhou Yan asked Wang Zuxian, What did you just say?

Wang Zuxian then smiled and told Zhou Yan exactly what he had just said to his boss and the others.

After listening, Zhou Yan shook his head and said, Classmate Xiaoxian, you really like playing with fire more and more now.

Haha, don't you think it's quite interesting? Wang Zuxian took a few steps forward with his hands behind his back, then turned around and said with a smile, What's even more interesting is that you don't know neon language, so you can only Come on, I feel like my neon language skills have improved a lot in just a short while.

Okay, okay, I'll quit the translation later and let you be my translator.

Then you have to pay me a salary, and my salary is very high.

How high?

Wang Zuxian pointed to the Tokyo Tower next to him, It's higher than that.

Zhou Yan exaggeratedly said, Wow, it's so high. Then I don't have the money to pay. Can I use something else instead?

What to replace it with?

Zhou Yan pointed at himself and said seriously, Use my strong body.

Wang Zuxian gave Zhou Yan a roll of his eyes and made a running gesture, You'll catch me later.

Zhou Yan smiled and chased after him.

…

The band still rested the next day, but Zhou Yan still had work to do.

TV Asahi made an appointment with him for an interview. He came over this morning. The interview was held in the suite where Zhou Yan lived.

This time the person who came over was an acquaintance, Hide Nomura. After the two met, they exchanged a few words. Hide Nomura said, Mr. Zhou Yan, the list of questions has been given to you in advance, but before the formal interview, we still have to answer the questions first. Once again.”

Zhou Yan nodded, No problem.

When the formal interview is held later, some questions may be added temporarily. If you find it convenient, just answer them. If it is not convenient, just tell me to skip it. We will cut it out later. Don't worry about this. Nomura Xiu said again.

OK.

Even if Shu Nomura didn't say anything, Zhou Yan wouldn't answer questions he didn't want to answer.

Then the two began to answer questions. The questions on the list were very simple and mainly revolved around this concert.

After the questions were answered, the interview officially began.

After making a brief opening remarks, Shu Nomura turned to Zhou Yan and said, Mr. Zhou Yan, please say hello to the audience in front of the TV.

Zhou Yan looked at the camera: Dear Neon audience friends, hello everyone, I am Zhou Yan. I am very happy to come to Neon to meet you, and welcome everyone to my concert.

Nomura Shu smiled and said: I think a lot of audiences want to go to your concert live, but the tickets for the concert are so popular that most people can't buy them. Especially this one in Tokyo, as The world's first concert with the theme of Oriental Heritage, this one is particularly memorable. Mr. Zhou Yan, this is your first time in Tokyo. Can you tell us about your impression of Tokyo?

Zhou Yan: Although I'm a little embarrassed, my previous understanding of Tokyo basically came from the movie Tokyo Story.

Shu Nomura: That was a movie from a long time ago.

Zhou Yan: Although it is an old movie, it left a deep impression on me. Ozu is a very respectable director.

Nomura Shu: You arrived in Tokyo yesterday. Did you leave the hotel and walk outside?

Zhou Yan: I walked around Tokyo Tower last night.

Shu Nomura: Are you alone?

Zhou Yan: With a friend, I don't know neon language.

Shu Nomura: Has your impression of Tokyo changed after visiting it?

Zhou Yan: Of course, Tokyo is a very prosperous city, and the music atmosphere here is also very good. Last night, I saw street performers playing and singing next to Tokyo Tower, and the level was very good.

Shu Nomura: Because of your music, many neon people now want to travel to Yanjing. The Forbidden City and the Great Wall are hot spots. If neon people go to Yanjing, what advice do you have for everyone?

Zhou Yan: I personally think that when traveling to a city, in addition to the well-known attractions, you should also pay attention to the streets and alleys. Only in these places can you truly experience the city. In addition to the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, Yanjing has many other attractions in the city. There are many alleys worth visiting for tourists, and you will find many beautiful people and things there, as well as some delicacies unknown to outsiders.”

Shu Nomura: Many times, beautiful things are indeed hidden in places that the public cannot find. The theme of this concert Oriental Legacy is very interesting. Can you tell me why you got such a name?

Zhou Yan: I see that Neon here translates Yiyin as 'the sound that has been handed down.' This translation is not wrong, but it is not comprehensive enough. The word Yiyin has many meanings in China. One is the sound that has been left behind, and the other is the sound that has been passed down. There is a description of music, the endless aftertaste. There is a passage in Book of Rites·Music, The Qing Temple has a string of Zhu strings that are sparse, and when it is raised, it sighs three times, and there are some leftover sounds. Originally It means that beautiful music does not mean that all the sounds cannot be missed. Later, after derivation, the remaining sounds represent the beauty of the music. We also wanted to express these two meanings by giving this name to the concert.

Shu Nomura: Thank you for popularizing science for us. I think the audience of Neon will have a more comprehensive understanding of Yiyin in the future, and everyone will also be more interested in Chinese culture. Many viewers are curious. You were in The new song The Street Where the Wind Lives played on Yanjing Silence will be played on Oriental Legacy this time because I didn't see it on the program list.

This is a question added by Shu Nomura himself and was not corrected in advance.

Zhou Yan shook his head: There will be no The Street Where the Wind Lives at this concert.

Shu Nomura was stunned for a moment. He added this question on the spur of the moment, only thinking of two results. One was that Zhou Yan was trying to hide from them and did not answer directly, and the other was that Zhou Yan replied that The Street Where the Wind Lives would appear at the concert two days later.

He didn't expect Zhou Yan's answer to be simple and negative.

Although it was surprising, Shu Nomura's professionalism was still very good. He immediately said, Although it is a pity that I can't hear The Street Where the Wind Lives at the concert, I can hear other good songs at the concert. Everyone is very satisfied with the music.”

After putting this matter behind him, Shu Nomura continued to ask the questions on the list.

It's already 1994, can we see your new album this year?

Zhou Yan: There should be no problem, we are already making preparations.

Shu Nomura: The audience must be very happy to hear this news...

Later, Show Nomura basically asked questions according to the previously set list. Even if it was improvised, it would still ask some relatively simple questions.

Because he hopes to cooperate with Zhou Yan for a long time, TV Asahi will not do anything wrong.

After the interview ended, Shu Nomura stood up and shook hands with Zhou Yan, Mr. Zhou Yan, let's take our leave first. After we go back, we have to quickly produce the program and broadcast it tomorrow night. If you are free, then You can also pay attention.”

No problem, I will definitely pay attention then.

Not long after Nomura Shu and the others left, Zhang Youan came.

Zhang Youan attaches great importance to this Oriental Legacy concert, so he came several days in advance. However, when Zhou Yan and the others arrived yesterday, he was doing other things and did not come.

As soon as he met Zhou Yan, Zhang Youan told him good news, The sales volume of Piano Boy in Neon has exceeded one million. Now you have two music albums in Neon with sales exceeding one million, and According to the current situation, it will only be a matter of time before the sales of Mysterious Kingdom exceed two million.

It’s no wonder Zhang Youan was excited, because this result was really terrifying.

The neon music market is huge these days, but usually, the ones that can sell over a million copies are singles.

Neon is different from Mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. It is normal for musicians to release singles here, and music fans are very happy to pay for singles.

Singles are generally well-produced and of high quality. On the other hand, albums, although there are more songs, usually only have one or two main songs in an album, and the others are parallel imports that serve as a foil.

If they are not a loyal fan of musicians, they will definitely choose to spend less money to buy singles. They will feel that spending more money on those parallel-imported songs is a waste.

The reason why Zhou Yan's two albums sell so well is because they are both top-notch in terms of quantity and quality, which makes music fans feel that they are worth their money.

It is hard to imagine that the songs Distant Memory, The Great Wall, Nightingale, and Walking in the Snow to Seek Plum Blossoms are all in one album. If these songs were sold separately, they would still be sold. Millions of copies, and fans have to pay more.

Zhou Yan no longer felt much about these numbers. He nodded and said, That's good news.

Zhang Youan was used to Zhou Yan's indifference. He smiled and said, There is also good news, that is, last year's movie quota revenue rankings have been released, and The Piano Boy Who Wants to Fly squeezed into the top. Ten.”

What number? Zhou Yan asked.

Exactly tenth.

Oh, that's pretty good luck.

Don't underestimate this tenth place. This is the first Chinese-language film to enter the top ten since 1984. Do you know how many people envy this result? The ranking data will be announced in two days. I have already asked We have already written the announcement, and as soon as the news comes out here, there will be reports in China. The Sixth Sense will be released next year, and now we have to build momentum in advance.

Zhou Yan nodded, Thank you for your hard work. Which movie is Neon's No. 1 movie this year?

Jurassic Park, rationing revenue of 8.3 billion.

Hearing the number 8.3 billion, Zhou Yan was stunned and said, That's a huge gap.

Isn't that right? With a strong performance, Neon's top box office rankings this year have been dominated by Hollywood. The second-placed Bodyguard also has an allocation revenue of more than 4 billion. Neon's local Godzilla: Godzilla Dragon Fight is also good, but it doesn't make the top five. It also has Home Alone, Aladdin and The Fugitive.

Zhou Yan raised his eyebrows when he heard The Fugitive. This movie is of great significance to China's film reform because it is the first film to be credited after the reform of the film market.

Since then, China has officially launched the box office splitting model.

It can also be said that The Fugitive is the beginning of Chinese films entering the free market.

Now that The Fugitive is released on Neon, it should be released in China next year.

Seeing Zhou Yan deep in thought, Zhang Youan thought he had been hit by these Hollywood movies, so he smiled and consoled him, Don't worry, with your talent, sooner or later you will be able to defeat all these Hollywood movies.

Of course, Zhang Youan's words were purely to comfort Zhou Yan. Although he knew that Zhou Yan was talented, the possibility of making a Hollywood movie was too small.

Although he was ambitious, his ambition was not that big. He just thought that Zhou Yan could finally reach the top in Asia. The Piano Boy Who Wants to Fly is a very good start.

With this beginning, coupled with the popularity that Zhou Yan's two albums have gathered for him, the subsequent The Sixth Sense will definitely not be bad at the Neon box office.

If The Sixth Sense can also enter the top ten at the box office, preferably one or two more, Zhou Yan's reputation in the film industry will also rise to a higher level.

Zhou Yan also knew that Zhang Youan was trying to comfort himself. He had pursuits in movies, but he had not yet thought about quitting Hollywood.

In his opinion, as long as the movie's box office is almost profitable, he still wants to make some interesting movies.

He doesn't like some of the Hollywood movies that do well at the box office.

Zhang Youan came to see him, in addition to sharing these two pieces of good news, he also wanted to talk about the concert in two days.

This concert has been prepared for a long time and everything has been arranged. Zhang Youan mainly talked about going to the concert hall tomorrow to connect with the venue.

…

The night before the Oriental Legacy Tokyo concert, TV Asahi broadcast an interview with Zhou Yan.

This program was produced very quickly in order to be broadcast before the concert. The TV station also knew that it would have the highest ratings when it was broadcast at this time. Now many viewers are paying attention to this concert.

For example, Hiramatsu and Guang, their friends were standing in front of the TV before the program even aired.

Tell me, are there any performances in the show later? Rina Sato said.

Ibuki Suzune looked forward to it, It would be great if Zhou Yan could play The Street Where the Wind Lives in the show. I really want to listen to this song. Fifteen seconds is really not enough.

I don't care whether Zhou Yan will play in the show. I just want to know if this piece will be included in tomorrow's concert. Hiramatsu Kazuhiro said.

The other three people all turned to look at Hiramatsu and Hiro. Sato Rina rolled her eyes, That's why you said that because you have tickets to the concert.

Hiramatsu and Guang chuckled and said, Don't worry, if this piece of music is played at the concert, I will listen to it for you.

If there was no such piece of music at the concert, you wouldn't be able to play it. Rina Sato curled her lips.

Wow, you're so bad-

Stop talking, the show has started. Tian Zhongmao said.

When they heard the program started, they stopped talking and stared at the TV screen seriously.

This is a talk show, where the host Shu Nomura asks questions and Zhou Yan answers, but Hiramatsu and Hiro also watch it with interest.

They were all very happy to see Zhou Yan, especially when they heard Zhou Yan explain the name Oriental Legacy to them. They all felt that they had gained a lot of knowledge. Looking at the name of the concert, they also felt that it was much more powerful.

After a few questions, the host suddenly mentioned The Street Where the Wind Lives.

coming!

Everyone held their breath, waiting expectantly for Zhou Yan's answer.

But Zhou Yan's answer shattered their hopes.

There will be no Streets Where the Wind Lives at this concert.

Such a direct denial stunned Hiramatsu and Hiroshi.

He had been looking forward to it lately.

Everyone else was also very disappointed. Although Sato Rina just said that if this piece of music was not in the concert, Hiramatsu and Hiro would not be able to play, but that was purely a joke. Of course she hoped to have this piece of music in the concert.

Just when they were disappointed, the host asked about the new album again, and Zhou Yan gave an affirmative answer this time.

Tanakamaji comforted Hiramatsu and Hiro and said, It's okay. This song will definitely be included in the new album, and we will be able to hear it soon.

Hiramatsu and Hiro are still disappointed, but the news of the new album does make him feel relieved.

Forget it, since there isn't, Zhou Yan must have his own considerations, and it's the same when listening to other music.

After the show aired, many music fans were a little disappointed, especially those who had grabbed tickets. After all, they originally thought they could hear the complete Street Where the Wind Lives before others.

However, this disappointment was not enough to dampen their enthusiasm for going to the concert.

The next afternoon, at around five o'clock, Hiramatsu and Hiro arrived at the entrance of Suntory Concert Hall. Although the other three people did not have concert tickets, they also followed Hiramatsu and Hiro.

I heard that after the concert, Zhou Yan went back outside the concert hall to perform for free for those who had not bought tickets.

The concert started at seven o'clock, but at around five o'clock, a large group of people gathered outside the concert hall. Many people here did not have tickets like Tanakamaji and others.

Many media reporters also came to the scene. TV Asahi is right next to the concert hall, which is also close to the water. Shu Nomura took people to shoot outside the concert hall early in the morning. During the period, they would also find some music fans for interviews.

This time TV Asahi not only got an interview opportunity with Zhou Yan, but also had in-depth cooperation with Tomson Company. They will film the entire concert.

Just like CCTV's Yanjing Silence before, TV Asahi will also produce a special program Oriental Legacy this time, which will be broadcast on the TV station.

This was only discussed recently. TV Asahi did not get the broadcast rights of Yanjing Silence, so it came up with the idea of ​​Eastern Legacy.

For this exclusive broadcasting right, TV Asahi also paid a high price.

During this time, the TV station has been negotiating the price with Zhang Youan. They are not the only TV station that is competing, and several other TV stations have also shown varying degrees of interest.

And Zhang Youan is a person who specializes in business. Of course, TV Asahi cannot hand over the exclusive broadcast rights of Eastern Legacy at his doorstep, so it can only offer a high price and win it in one fell swoop. (End of chapter)