Chapter 99

When Yang Jingxing and the others went out, they found Fu Feirong standing beside them like a guard on duty. Zhang Yanhao looked at Fu Feirong and spoke first: "How are you feeling today? We're going to record a demo."

Yang Jingxing helped to answer: "No problem, we tried it before coming."

The group walked up a floor via the stairs. Upon entering, they found that the decoration and atmosphere were quite different, warm and cute, with various decorations, unlike an office area.

Gan Kaicheng introduced to Yang Jingxing that there were two recording studios here. Studio One was for recording vocals and single instruments, while Studio Two, which was larger, was for recording bands. However, the two studios could be used together.

Through the large soundproof glass, they could see five people in the monitoring room of Studio One, one of whom Fu Feirong and Yang Jingxing definitely recognized: Cheng Yaoyao.

Cheng Yaoyao was dressed in a commercial style in the recording studio, with full makeup, a carefully styled hairstyle, fluffy white boots, and thick purple stockings. She wore a short down jacket and a white knitted hat, looking very cute. She had a nice face, and even without makeup, she would still look good.

Seeing Zhang Yanhao, someone inside opened the door. Zhang Yanhao asked: "Are you done recording?"

The sound engineer sitting in front of the machine said: "Almost."

Zhang Yanhao introduced Yang Jingxing: "This is our chief sound engineer, Chang Yiming, and the editors, Du Yuhua and Zhao Ge. Yaoyao, you know her, right? Her assistant, Chu Xiaotong... This is Yang Jingxing, Room 402."

Chang Yiming shook hands with Yang Jingxing first: "Hello, I've heard about you from Sister Duan a few times."

Yang Jingxing shook hands with each of them and greeted them, then extended his hand to Cheng Yaoyao, who wasn't paying much attention to him: "Hello."

Cheng Yaoyao smiled and extended a few fingers for Yang Jingxing to lightly hold. Yang Jingxing then introduced: "Her name is Fu Feirong."

The group nodded at Fu Feirong, and Chu Xiaotong glanced at her a few more times. Fu Feirong started to act like a diva, with a cold expression, indifferent.

They listened to Cheng Yaoyao's recording, which was a relatively dynamic and cheerful song with a slight dance feel. The music was already prepared, and Cheng Yaoyao's singing was also good, meeting the standard.

Yang Jingxing clapped: "This is written by Yitao, right?" Yitao was a stage name, a relatively famous lyricist. Yitao was probably in his forties but had always been at the forefront of the times. He wrote folk songs and pop music a decade ago, and now he writes dance music, never falling behind.

Gan Kaicheng nodded: "Yes, the new album is in this style."

Zhang Yanhao said: "Good job, they're here to record a demo, get ready."

Gan Kaicheng looked inside the recording room and said to Yang Jingxing: "The Roland synthesizer, is it okay?"

Yang Jingxing said: "Sure." He then said to Fu Feirong: "Let's go in, we'll sing 'Girl.'"

Gan Kaicheng followed them into the recording room and explained the use of the synthesizer to Yang Jingxing. He then pointed to Fu Feirong: "Stand in front of the microphone... don't be nervous, sing like you would in a bar."

Fu Feirong stood in front of the microphone, facing the group of people behind the soundproof glass in the monitoring room. Gan Kaicheng closed the door and stayed inside, giving a signal to Chang Yiming: "We can start."

Seeing Fu Feirong's chest rise and fall rapidly, Yang Jingxing said: "Take a deep breath, adjust yourself."

After letting Fu Feirong adjust for a minute, Yang Jingxing said to start. The Roland professional synthesizer had excellent sound effects, and they said it performed better in string music than Yamaha, which was indeed the case. The texture of the piano sound was well-represented.

Fu Feirong's opening was a bit problematic, with a weak voice. Gan Kaicheng quickly signaled, raising his hand, and then Fu Feirong's voice suddenly became louder.

By professional recording studio standards, Fu Feirong's initial performance was quite poor, but fortunately, she didn't give up. By the middle of the song, she had adjusted and found her rhythm.

After one round of singing, Yang Jingxing looked at the reactions of the people in the monitoring room. Zhang Yanhao and Gan Kaicheng signaled, and then Gan Kaicheng said: "Let's do it again." He encouraged Fu Feirong: "That was great, adjust yourself again, pay attention to your breathing, don't sing too shallowly, focus on the emotion, you can close your eyes."

After giving Fu Feirong another minute, Yang Jingxing started again. Closing her eyes seemed to have a good effect, and this time she sang much better. The acoustic structure of the recording room made her voice characteristics more prominent, and her voice was fuller and more solid, even slightly deeper.

After this round, Yang Jingxing and the others were called out. Chang Yiming said to Fu Feirong, who was hiding behind Yang Jingxing: "Your voice is good, listen to it."

They played it back on the high-quality monitoring speakers, and Fu Feirong, with her head tilted back and her mouth slightly open, was amazed. Did she really sing that well? Of course, she wasn't yet critical enough to notice the multiple breathing errors and unclear pronunciation in the demo.

However, Fu Feirong's voice characteristics were not affected by these flaws, and the song's excellence was fully demonstrated.

After listening to it once, no one spoke first. Yang Jingxing asked: "Mr. Zhang, what do you think?"

Zhang Yanhao looked at Gan Kaicheng and Chang Yiming: "What do you think?"

Chang Yiming asked Yang Jingxing: "Is this a new song? How do you want to arrange the music?"

Yang Jingxing said: "I don't know much, I think it's fine."

Chang Yiming then asked Fu Feirong: "Have you recorded before?"

Fu Feirong shook her head, and Gan Kaicheng helped: "No, it's her first time."

Chang Yiming said: "No problem, take it slow, the song is good, and your voice is good."

Zhang Yanhao said to Yang Jingxing: "Since they both say it's fine, it's fine. Let's go down."

They went down to the chairman's office, and Zhang Yanhao asked Yang Jingxing: "Should I sign with you or with her?"

Yang Jingxing smiled: "Of course, with her."

Zhang Yanhao said: "You didn't understand my meaning. If I sign with you, you are responsible to the company and to her. If I sign with her, she is responsible to the company, and we are responsible to her."

Gan Kaicheng, although from the editorial department, was familiar with legal procedures and explained to Yang Jingxing. If the company signed with Yang Jingxing, then Yang Jingxing would be Fu Feirong's agent. The company would only have financial dealings with Yang Jingxing, and how Yang Jingxing and Fu Feirong handled things was their own business, and the company wouldn't interfere.

Generally, only very powerful agents with a large number of artists had such treatment, and Gan Kaicheng gave Yang Jingxing two examples. Yang Jingxing hadn't heard of the agents' names, but the artists they represented were all top stars.

Yang Jingxing felt a bit embarrassed: "Is this appropriate?"

Zhang Yanhao said: "There's nothing inappropriate, but I need to add a clause to the contract, your songs can only be given to our company... take a look at a sample."

This contract was much more intimidating than the one Yang Jingxing had for selling songs, a thick book of over a hundred pages. They said artist contracts were like indenture contracts, and Yang Jingxing's contract as an agent was no different.

For example, all activities of the artists under the agent's management had to be approved by the company. There were many ways to split the income, such as from performances, advertisements, or acting... Each category was different, and the company usually took the larger share, with the remaining split between the agent and the artist.

Moreover, the clause that the agent was responsible to the company was particularly shocking, essentially meaning the agent had to follow orders.

Yang Jingxing flipped through the pages quickly, like counting pages. When Zhang Yanhao saw Yang Jingxing looking at some overly harsh clauses, he reassured him: "Of course, these are negotiable."

Yang Jingxing smiled: "If they weren't negotiable, it would be terrifying."

After a while, Yang Jingxing remembered: "I don't have much time, can you find someone else from your company to be an agent and take care of Feifei's life?"

Fu Feirong, who had been quiet, finally spoke: "I don't need it."

Zhang Yanhao said: "This is necessary, as long as you agree, I don't mind."

Yang Jingxing thanked him and said he needed to leave to discuss with Fu Feirong. Fu Feirong also needed to discuss with her family.

Gan Kaicheng saw them off to the elevator and talked for about ten minutes, mainly about the contract. He gave a practical example: Duan Liying didn't sign with Hongxing but with Zhang Yanhao as her agent. Duan Liying was a top star, and Zhang Yanhao's purpose was to reduce the company's constraints on her and negotiate better terms in the contract, giving Duan Liying more favorable treatment than others.

Moreover, according to Gan Kaicheng, Zhang Yanhao didn't take a commission as Duan Liying's agent, which was why she had stayed with Hongxing for so many years.

Gan Kaicheng also said to Fu Feirong: "Your current goal is to release an album. No matter how the contract is signed, it won't harm you now. Once you have more bargaining power, you can negotiate other terms." He then looked at Yang Jingxing: "Old Duan must have spoken well of you, otherwise, it wouldn't be so simple."

Yang Jingxing sincerely thanked Gan Kaicheng and said goodbye. In the elevator, he looked at Fu Feirong: "They say you're good, it's up to you now."

Fu Feirong said: "I'll listen to you."

Yang Jingxing shook his head: "No, you have to decide for yourself. Do you want to be a singer? You should know that being a singer isn't necessarily easier than running a restaurant, and being a singer doesn't guarantee fame. Even if you become famous, it's not always glamorous..."

Fu Feirong said: "I understand all of that."

Yang Jingxing said: "Think about it carefully when you get home, and discuss it with your sister-in-law. This could be a life-changing decision. You're young, but you're not naive..."

Fu Feirong chuckled.

Yang Jingxing asked: "What are you laughing at?"

Fu Feirong shook her head and continued to laugh.

Yang Jingxing scolded: "Be serious. If you want to be a professional singer, or if you get lucky and become famous, it will be a different life. Or you can continue singing in the bar, which is fun and easy, or you can listen to your sister-in-law and go back to school..."

Fu Feirong looked at Yang Jingxing: "I'll listen to you, I know you won't harm me."

Yang Jingxing became more serious: "You need to understand, if I sign with the company and then sign with you, our rights and obligations won't be as simple as me writing songs for you... I'll take a part of your income, and it won't be a small part."

Fu Feirong said: "You can take it all, I have no objections."

Yang Jingxing smiled: "You see, you treat me as a friend, how can I take your money?"

Fu Feirong said: "We learned in junior high school politics, distribution according to work, the more you work, the more you get. What's the problem? We won't stop being friends."

On the way home, Yang Jingxing continued to warn Fu Feirong about the possible downsides, almost trying to dissuade her from becoming a professional singer. But Fu Feirong was very determined.

After dropping off Fu Feirong at the restaurant, the boss and the boss's wife looked worried because neither Yang Jingxing nor Fu Feirong seemed very happy.

Yang Jingxing said: "The company people said she's good and willing to help her release an album."

"Really!" The boss's wife jumped up, grabbing Fu Feirong's shoulders excitedly: "Feifei, Feifei, you're so lucky." Tears almost came to her eyes.

The boss, who was in his mid-twenties, also danced with joy: "Call your mom... wait, call later! Sit, sit, Yang Jingxing, thank you so much!"

Yang Jingxing said: "Don't be too happy yet, I need to explain some things to you."

The boss and his wife were startled and looked at Yang Jingxing fearfully.

After Yang Jingxing talked for a long time, the boss smiled: "It's fine, I'm a useless brother, making Feifei suffer so much. Being a star is better than working in a restaurant."

The boss's wife also said: "We don't expect her to be a star, if she likes singing, let her sing... We may not have seen much of the world, but we know no job is easy."

Yang Jingxing said: "I'm relieved to hear that. But you should still discuss it carefully, I'll come back tomorrow."

The boss's wife said: "You can't leave, have dinner first!"

Fu Feirong also smiled: "Go pick up Yuxinting and the others, let's celebrate."

Looking at the time, it was only five o'clock. Yang Jingxing called Yuxinting, who was overjoyed at the good news and asked if there was more smoked meat. Yang Jingxing then called Qiqingnuo, who asked very specific and detailed questions and noticed: "You're not selling her, you're selling yourself."

Yang Jingxing said: "The contract isn't signed yet, I hope we can negotiate."

Qiqingnuo was worried: "They won't budge... I'll ask my dad tonight."

Yang Jingxing then went back to school to pick up the others. Fu Feirong, following her sister-in-law's advice, went along but sat in the back. Yuxinting, Anxin, and Qiqingnuo were waiting at the school gate. Yuxinting waved and jumped when she saw the car, while Qiqingnuo kept smiling.

Qiqingnuo opened the front door and got in, asking Yang Jingxing: "Where's the contract?"

Yang Jingxing opened the glove compartment and let Qiqingnuo take it out herself. Yuxinting and Fu Feirong in the back were excited, and Yuxinting asked her about the interview.

Fu Feirong said: "They just asked some questions, then recorded a song, and they said it was okay."

Yuxinting asked: "What did you sing?"

"Girl."

Yuxinting giggled: "Of course it's okay."

Fu Feirong suddenly remembered: "I saw Cheng Yaoyao."

Yuxinting was envious: "Really? You saw her?"

...