Chapter 132: Calling for Reinforcements

"That is the person I miss day and night, the one I love so deeply..."

As he sang, the accompaniment in his headphones suddenly cut out. Outside the recording booth, Ziran shook her head at him.

Zhou Miao sighed helplessly. He had been eating a bit too much spicy food lately, and his throat wasn't in top condition. In his past life, he was a Sichuan native, and in this life, he still drooled at the mere sight of spice.

Zhou Miao stepped out of the booth and took the honey pomelo tea his young assistant handed him, taking small sips to soothe his throat.

Yang Xiaoya, full of gossip, said, "Have you guys seen the news lately? Bu Yihao has been arrested."

"Bu Yihao? Arrested?" Zhou Miao was surprised. He was one of the most prominent veteran producers in the country. "What did he do?"

Ziran, standing nearby, sneered and made a gesture of smoking. "His business isn't exactly a secret in the industry. I knew he’d end up like this eventually."

"And the aftermath is huge. He wrote the theme song for the Winter Olympics. I just checked earlier, and all the audio and video files have been pulled. The Winter Olympics start next year—what a mess."

Zhou Miao's eyes lit up at the mention of the Winter Olympics. "Do you have any word on who will be writing the new theme song?"

Ziran tugged at a few stray hairs on her chin and frowned. "Probably Chen Ke, right? There are only a handful of people in the country qualified to write for an international event like the Olympics."

Chen Ke, a top-tier domestic producer, was known alongside Bu Yihao and Liu Shan as one of the three pillars of the Chinese music industry. Over the past few decades, the theme songs for international events hosted in China—like the Olympics and the Asian Games—had been almost exclusively monopolized by the three of them.

Zhou Miao pondered for a moment before asking Ziran, "Do you think I have a chance to secure the production rights for the Winter Olympics theme song?"

"You?" Ziran was surprised. She thought it over carefully and frowned. "It’s very difficult. You are indeed strong in the pop music field, but a Winter Olympics theme song requires a grand, all-encompassing anthem with a profound vision—a field where you are essentially a blank slate."

"Just tell me if there's any hope at all," Zhou Miao asked directly.

"Yes! But for this, you need President Qiu to step in. Have her ask Tencent for help. Tencent is a sponsor and organizer of the Winter Olympics; the Olympic Organizing Committee will at least give them some face." Ziran, a veteran who had been grinding in the music industry for over a decade, immediately hit upon a reliable solution.

Zhou Miao clapped his hands. "That makes sense. I’m going to find her right now."

In the office, Zuo Qiu was reviewing the financial statements for the past six months. Since the company had recruited more artists and gained support from Tencent's resources, Rainbow's revenue had more than doubled compared to before. They no longer had to rely entirely on Zhou Miao and Zhao Li to make ends meet.

Zhou Miao knocked and walked in. Zuo Qiu smiled and said, "What brings you here today?"

Zhou Miao sprawled lazily onto the sofa in her office. "I'm here to ask for a favor." He then explained his desire to compete for the Winter Olympics theme song.

Zuo Qiu was a bit surprised. "This seems to be the first time you've proactively fought for resources."

"I don't care much for other commercial opportunities, but the Winter Olympics theme song is different." Zhou Miao rested his elbows on his knees. "There is a saying in the music industry: third-rate producers write songs for themselves, second-rate producers write for others, and first-rate producers write for the country. Getting this qualification is very important to me!"

Zuo Qiu crossed her arms and thought for a moment. It was good that Zhou Miao wanted to aim higher, but the Winter Olympics theme song was a major matter; if he wrote something poorly, he could easily become a laughingstock. "How confident are you in writing a song for the Winter Olympics?"

"Eighty percent," Zhou Miao said. He didn't want to overpromise, but eighty percent was already quite high.

Zuo Qiu nodded. "As far as I know, the Organizing Committee is already in contact with Chen Ke. And he's a loudmouth—if you snatch his resources, he's definitely going to fire shots at you."

Zhou Miao smiled dismissively. "Plenty of people already curse me. Who does he think he is?"

Seeing this, Zuo Qiu didn't say anything more. She contacted the relevant person in charge at Tencent on the spot, asking them to put in a good word. Whether it would succeed, however, ultimately depended on the Organizing Committee's own considerations.

After receiving the message, the relevant officials of the Olympic Organizing Committee held a meeting.

"You've all probably heard of a young man named Zhou Miao. He's a very popular singer-songwriter lately. He wants to write a song for the Winter Olympics. What do you think?" the official asked.

"He's very famous, but he's a bit too young. Can he handle a Winter Olympics theme song?" the middle-aged man to the official's left questioned.

A middle-aged woman in the room had a different view. "I've heard some of his songs. 'Chinese Language' and the one he sang at the Spring Festival Gala, 'Yellow Race,' are excellent works that promote national spirit and culture. I think we should let him try."

"I agree. In terms of seniority, he's definitely not as experienced as Chen Ke, but when it comes to influence among young people, Zhou Miao is far superior."

...

After listening to everyone's opinions, the official pondered for a while and made a final decision: "Then let him write one first and see. If it really doesn't work out, we'll go with Chen Ke."

At the national level, there is no such thing as "first come, first served"—only what is suitable and what is not.

When Chen Ke learned that the Organizing Committee was planning to give Zhou Miao a chance, he sneered. The younger generation was truly formidable, daring to reach into their plates to steal food. In the past, he would have found an opportunity to scold him harshly in front of the media; now, everyone just used Weibo to conduct their business.

"It's good for young people to be confident, but don't take on the job if you don't have the tools, @ZhouSanShui."

Chen Ke's Weibo post left netizens confused. Why was this old man, Chen Ke, picking a fight with Zhou Miao? Where was the connection between the two?

"Alert: Zhou Miao is five seconds away from the battlefield. Front-row seats, get your popcorn ready!"

"I remember old man Chen has high blood pressure. Brother Miao, go easy on him."

...

Zhou Miao shook his head in dissatisfaction after seeing Chen Ke's post. "Did he skip lunch? There's no strength in his insults at all."

Chen Ke’s limp attack didn't give Zhou Miao any desire to retaliate, so he simply replied with a smiley face emoji.

Under Zhou Miao's reply, netizens left countless question marks. Was this really a reply from Zhou Miao himself? He didn't fly into a rage?

Yang Xiaoya was stunned. "Brother Miao, you didn't even curse back?"

Zhou Miao rolled his eyes at her. "I'm going to be a superstar one day. Have you ever seen a superstar constantly bickering with people online? It's so low-class!"

Yang Xiaoya sighed with regret. "If Brother Miao doesn't even curse anymore, what's the point of this entertainment industry?"

Zhou Miao deeply suspected that Yang Xiaoya was the leader of his anti-fan club, constantly stirring up trouble and hoping for a scene.

"Where are we going?" asked the driver, Old Wang.

"To the Central Conservatory of Music," Zhou Miao said. "I'm going to bring in reinforcements."