Chapter 11

After hanging up the call with Little Pig, Tang Feng glanced at the time and realized it was already past five in the afternoon. He looked at his afternoon's work, a stack of dozens of songs. Although some of the songs still had flaws in the arrangement, a sense of pride welled up in his heart.

However, it was too late to go to the Music Association for certification today. He would have to wait until tomorrow. First, he needed to go out and fill his empty stomach.

He tidied up the sheets of lyrics and music, but before he could put them away, his phone rang again.

Seeing the number displayed as "Iron Wolf," Tang Feng knew it wasn't a person's name but the name of a band that shared the basement with him. When he had free time, he often went to watch them practice.

"Xiao Feng! Are you free tonight?" a somewhat rough voice came from the receiver as soon as he answered.

"Hey, can you stop calling me Xiao Feng? People might think I'm really crazy! What's up?" Tang Feng said irritably.

"If you're free, come out. The guys are treating us, at the usual place, let's have a few drinks!" said Chu Ge, the leader of Iron Wolf.

"The usual place, right? Okay, I'll be there soon!" Tang Feng was starving, so why not take advantage of a free meal?

...

The usual place was a regular spot for Tang Feng and his fellow basement 'roommates' to gather for meals, called the Old Place Night Market.

When Tang Feng arrived, everyone was already there, chatting and laughing.

"Our future big star, Mr. Tang Feng, has arrived. Everyone, let's give him a round of applause!" a young man with long hair and a somewhat artistic flair stood up and teased.

"Clap, clap, clap!" The others joined in, cheering and clapping.

"Alright, what future big star? I still need your help, Director Chen!" Tang Feng was used to their teasing. They often joked about him because once, when he was drunk, he boasted that he would definitely become a big star in the future.

"Sure, sure! Ha ha! We're all future big stars and directors. Three of us are about to become real big singers!" the short-haired young man next to the artistic one said with a smile.

The artistic young man and the short-haired one were brothers, named Chen Shao and Chen Jun. They claimed to have graduated from the directing department of a certain vocational arts college.

However, the two of them had only managed to do odd jobs for small production teams, often living hand to mouth.

"Oh? Chu Ge, Mr. Chu, are you guys about to make it big?" Tang Feng asked with a smile as he sat down.

"Don't listen to Director Chen's nonsense! It's not even certain yet!" Chu Ge waved his hand.

"What do you mean it's not certain? Haven't you made it to the finals?" another girl with thick glasses said.

This girl was named Li Fang. Despite her severe myopia and delicate features, everyone who knew her knew she was a tomboy and a scriptwriter. However, none of her scripts had ever been made into TV shows or movies!

"What finals? Tell me, what's going on?" Tang Feng was confused, but he couldn't find any information in his memory about Iron Wolf participating in a competition.

"Here, take a look!" Chu Ge handed him a flyer.

"Rock Night?" Tang Feng was surprised when he saw the four largest words on it.

"Great job, Chu Ge! You guys are finally making it!" Tang Feng was genuinely happy for them. They were all young people who had come to the capital to pursue their dreams. Tang Feng knew that Chu Ge and his friends' biggest dream was to hold a personal concert.

However, chasing dreams can be tough. Tang Feng knew that Iron Wolf initially had six members, but now only three remained.

Chen Shao and Chen Jun's dream was to become big directors, and Li Fang's dream was to see her scripts on the big screen.

"Exactly, what's there to be nervous about? It's said that this Rock Night, although sponsored by a Beijing bar, is actually a collaboration with the famous Tian Sheng Music. They say it's to discover grassroots singers. The first prize is a cash reward of 100,000 yuan, and the top three will sign directly with Tian Sheng Music," Chen Shao said.

"I propose a toast to Iron Wolf's upcoming success!" Li Fang said generously.

"Right, right, to Iron Wolf!"

"To our dreams!"

Soon, the beer glasses were filled, and the group raised their glasses together.

"It's just the finals. There are ten spots, and it's hard to say if we can make it into the top three," Chu Ge said with a smile, but Tang Feng noticed a hint of worry in his eyes.

"Don't be so pessimistic. You should aim for first place. With Iron Wolf's strength, you definitely have a chance to win!" Chen Shao said.

"I'm not being pessimistic. Of course, we'll aim for first place, but some things... well, never mind," Chu Ge shook his head and drained his glass.

"This competition is just a publicity stunt for Tian Sheng Music's new group. The first place is already decided," Xu Ming, sitting next to Chu Ge, said angrily.

"Even if we don't get first place, there's still second and third, right? As long as we can sign with Tian Sheng, that's enough, isn't it?" Tang Feng asked, puzzled. It was normal for competitions to have hidden rules. In his previous life, every talent show on Earth had its own hidden rules.

"That's what's frustrating. If it was just the first place being decided, that would be one thing. But the finals have a rule: each contestant must submit an original song. We know that the pre-determined first place is already a signed artist with Tian Sheng Music, and several others have professional songwriters and composers behind them. What do we have? Nothing!" Cao Mo, who had been silent, explained.

Hearing this, everyone understood. This so-called Rock Night was just a staged event. As Cao Mo said, how easy is it to create an original song?

A good song isn't easy to create. Often, a classic song can make an unknown singer famous, but a famous singer might not be able to turn an ordinary song into a classic.

Of course, geniuses are an exception, but there aren't that many geniuses in the world. Although Iron Wolf had original songs, they were just amateur singers and had a significant gap compared to professional songwriters and composers.

Even if they created a good song, unless it was truly a classic, the hidden rules would still prevent them from changing the outcome.