Chapter 58
The original 50 million-dollar investment was increased by 80 million. Plus, with sound, lighting, choreography, security and other expenses, the final cost would be more than 150 million. But, Huanya Entertainment Group’s top brass didn’t issue the slightest opposition to this. Firstly, Ou Zinan had true talent, enough to shut anyone up, and secondly, no one dared to defy Sun Xi Mu’s dignity.
Sun Xi Mu’s new hobby was to visit Huanya Group every day after work. Even if the drive was more than an hour, he didn’t find it troublesome. He was standing outside the recording studio, gazing across the window at the young man who was practicing his music, his expression was unprecedentedly focused and gentle.
The last song was simply perfect. Qin Taihe stood up and applauded, then the guitarist, bassist, drummer, sound engineer … … their initial apathy had eventually transformed into admiration. They had completely recognized the young man’s talents.
“You did so well.” Qin Taihe hugged the man after he walked out of the studio and exclaimed, “Compared to your version, Ge Mengshu’s ‘Because Of You’ is a piece of crap.”
The young man smiled shyly, his peach eyes were bright and dazzling.
Sun Xi Mu’s lips tilted, he strode up to the two and handed Zhou Yun Sheng a cup of warm milk, he slowly opened, “The concert is in three days. This is enough practice, take a rest.”
Zhou Yun Sheng drank the cup of milk and obediently nodded.
Sun Xi Mu’s face slightly softened. “There’s a banquet tonight. I’ll bring you to it so you can relax and meet some people.”
So I can make some contacts for the future? Zhou Yun Sheng quickly exposed a grateful look, nodded and said his thanks.
They changed their clothes and drove to a five-star hotel. The banquet organizers personally greeted them, their words and deeds were very attentive.
“Go eat something, no alcohol.” Sun Xi Mu had his arm around the young man, the intimate gesture was eye-catching. Everyone knew that Sun Xi Mu was a cold and serious neat freak. Forget about handshakes and hugs, he even hated it if anyone stood too close to him.
It was unprecedented that he would hold someone so closely, even his eyes were unusually warm.
Although they only knew each other for a short time, Sun Xi Mu instinctually knew all of Zhou Yun Sheng’s hobbies and habits. He knows that he likes milk and hated green peppers. He knows that he loves high-tech electronics. He even knows that he loved to drink wine, but he loses his inhibitions when he gets drunk … … he knew too many things that he shouldn’t know. This made Zhou Yun Sheng almost certain that he was his lover that had no name but would never disappear.
So, he never refuses Sun Xi Mu’s intimate acts, in fact, he accepted them like it was his right.
“What do you want to eat, I’ll get it for you.” Zhou Yun Sheng tugged on the taller man’s clothes.
“I’ll eat whatever you bring. Go ahead, Qin Taihe said you haven’t eaten dinner yet.” Sun Xi Mu was surrounded by several business partners, he couldn’t escape the circle so he had to let the young man leave by himself.
Zhou Yun Sheng nodded and pushed through the crowd to the eating area, then he started picking out his favorite foods.
“….Zinan, you’re here?” A pretty girl approached him, her expression stunned.
The girl was named Guo Ai Ni, she was Times Records’ new talent, and was also once Ou Zinan’s secret crush. Guo Ai Ni knew that he’d loved her, but she’d pretended not to notice, yet she still had tried to use his relationship with Lin Siqing to move upwards.
But it seemed to be a coincidence that the two met here.
Zhou Yun Sheng glanced at her, then he continued to fill his plate.
“Zinan, how do you know Chief Sun? Are you guys close?” The girl’s eyes sparkled with greed.
Zhou Yun Sheng ignored her, walked to a table and sat down to eat.
The girl was persistent, she followed him and gave him a flirtatious smile, “Zinan, how could you just ignore me? Anyway, I heard you’ll release evidence at the concert, is that true? That song was really written by you?”
Zhou Yun Sheng ate a bite of cake, then he wiped his mouth with a towel. He coldly opened, “Guo Ai Ni, you don’t have to try so hard to get news for Lin Siqing. Go back and tell him, ‘Ou Zinan will bury you so deep into the mud, you’ll never be able to escape. You’ll stay in there until you rot’.”
Strong hatred gushed out from the young man eyes, causing Guo Ai Ni to be scared silly. When the young man finished his food and wandered away, she quickly took out her phone and texted Ou Zinan’s message to Lin Siqing, verbatim.
Lin Siqing had repeatedly asked Ou Zinan if he had extra copies of the manuscript and Ou Zinan had trustingly told him no. That was the whole reason why he’d confidently allowed his broker to bring Ou Zinan to court. He’d always protected Ou Zinan, he was his most trusted friend in the world, Ou Zinan wouldn’t lie to him.
So, Lin Siqing scoffed at the threat, and also bluntly told his broker, “He thinks that climbing into Sun Xi Mu’s bed will reverse the situation, how naive.”
The broker sneered, “Yes, he even has the guts to hold a concert and invite fifty thousand people. I hope he drowns in all their spit.”
While the two were scorning away, Sun Xi Mu met Yun Zhiyuan and Ge Mengshu at the banquet.
“Has Chief Sun eaten yet? We were headed to the bar, come with us.” Yun Zhiyuan gently smiled.
Sun Xi Mu didn’t even give him a glance, he walked straight toward the bar where Ou Zinan was having a drink.
“Chief Sun, no one knows Zinan better than me. No matter why you intend to help him, I have to warn you that you may encounter the first investment fiasco of your career. This fifty thousand people concert will be a grand farce. Instead of throwing all that investment into the water, you should withdraw your hand early.” Yun Zhiyuan sincerely cautioned.
Ge Mengshu smiled and glanced at the back of Ou Zinan’s head, her eyes held ridicule and contempt.
Sun Xi Mu finally stopped, he turned to look at the two and slowly said, “Others sometimes call me the God of Investment….I don’t hate this title. You’ll know exactly how much Ou Zinan is worth in three days, please look forward to it.”
The two were frozen by his strong self-confidence and cold eyes, they stood in place for a good half-a-day. When they finally looked up again, the Chief was already by the youth’s side. He had one hand wrapped around the other man’s waist, and the other was reaching for the man’s glass. He took a sip from the glass, then whispered in the man’s ear, his lips seemingly unintentionally touched the young man’s black hair and white ear. The touch was very light.
His way of expressing his feelings was restrained and straightforward, but it couldn’t be ignored or resisted. Such a strong and cold man had softened so much in obvious love, it surprised many of the guests.
Ge Mengshu looked at Ou Zinan Nan deeply, her smile showed more contempt. Please look forward to it? Okay then. She’d patiently wait to see Ou Zinan burst into tears on stage.
Pssh. God of Investment, my ass!
————-
Zhou Yun Sheng adjusted his body’s data again, so when the concert day arrived, the staff were all excited about his stamina.
He was now backstage getting dressed. He wore leather pants that hugged his slender legs and firm butt, his waist, neat abdominal muscles and beautiful mermaid line became the focus of the stylist’s envy.
Sun Xi Mu had rushed to the scene as soon as he’d finished his business negotiations.
“Nervous?” He expressionlessly draped the coat over the young man’s shoulder.
“Not nervous, actually, I’m excited.” Zhou Yun Sheng looked up at him, his peach eyes were bright with anticipation, bright like the stars in the sky.
“That’s good. Go on, I’ll look after you from here.” Sun Xi Mu suppressed the urge to kiss the young man’s eyes and pushed him toward the stage elevator.
Zhou Yun Sheng took off his coat, put on a fitted black shirt, and turned back to beam out a bright smile.
Outside, the crowd was slowly pouring in, surrounded by heavily armed police and security, and posters on the wall that said- Cameras are watching, please be civil everyone.
The violent anti-fans had no choice but to calm down, they only used their words to attack.
The staff who were distributing free fluorescent sticks were being rejected. The audience expressed that their enthusiasm would never light up for Ou Zinan.
“Take it anyway, even if you don’t light it, it’s also good for throwing at the stage.” The staff joked.
Everyone was searched, so they had no projectile weapons. The people’s eyes immediately lit up when they heard this, and they rushed in for the light sticks, the scene was extraordinarily lively.
Half an hour later, the audience were all packed in, but they didn’t quiet down in anticipation for the music. They scolded, taunted, and screamed. Trying to bring down the concert.
The stage was behind schedule for show time, so it almost seemed like their maliciousness was successful.
But suddenly, a high-pitched sound resounded throughout the pavilion, followed by continuous drum beats and passionate electric guitar strumming colliding and igniting.
The stage instantly lit up, and Ou Zinan’s beautiful face appeared on the big screen. He sang with his eyes closed, there were no lyrics, only a warble of ‘Oh’. The extreme melody crashed into the audience’s eardrums, even the angriest anti-fan was quelled.
The sound grew louder and louder, causing the audience’s mood to boil. They’d forgotten they were supposed to be noisy, they just watched the big screen as the man’s voice rose, stunned.
From C2 to C, and even C3, C4, C5. He continued rising, his eyes closed, as his high clear voice reached the climax, the background music was replaced by a more luxurious symphony of drums and electric guitars.
The audience was swept away with the change in music tide, like the sea under the moonlight, vastly boundless, but also like the stars in the sky, endless. Even if some people thought to cover their ears, the music penetrated into their brain, and they couldn’t resist indulging in the luxurious sounds.
After the song ended, the previous uproars had calmed down until a needle drop could be heard. The young man finally opened his eyes and looked out into the dark, he gasped, ” ‘Ou Zinan can’t sing’, that’s just a rumor. No matter why you came to watch my concert, I want to thank you for coming. I will use my strength to light up Star Pavilion.”
Then, he didn’t give the anti-fans time to react, he immediately raised his ring finger to signal the band to play the next song. He wanted to destroy all their nerves, tear out their eardrums, and make this concert become their most unforgettable memory.