Chapter 52: The Initial Dream

Zhao Zejun could write songs, and rather good ones at that—Zhou Yuanyuan was well aware of this, which was precisely why she had sought his help.

Of course, reaching out to him voluntarily wasn’t entirely just for the sake of getting a theme song. The South Jiangsu Academy of Arts ranked among the very best nationwide, boasting throngs of talented young men and women. There was no shortage of people capable of penning a fine tune, and in choosing Zhao Zejun, Zhou Yuanyuan had her own specific reasons.

Even so, the fundamental prerequisite for asking for his assistance was the fact that he actually knew how to write music.

Yet, to Zhou Yuanyuan's utter astonishment, the man had merely glanced casually at the script, exchanged a few casual remarks, and conjured up a theme song on the spot in less than five minutes.

During their last karaoke outing, Zhao Zejun had indeed 'improvised' a song on the spot for Xia Yubing. However, Zhou Yuanyuan had never quite believed that the track was composed by him on the fly; from an onlooker's perspective, he must have known about Xia Yubing's birthday in advance and prepared it long before.

This time, however, the situation was completely different. A theme song, true to its name, had to be crafted in accordance with the specific content and theme of a short film. Without seeing the script first, writing a truly fitting piece was exceedingly difficult.

A song in five minutes, and a 'prompt-based composition' at that—was he really this gifted?

"What are you daydreaming about? Let's head to the recording studio. I'll sing it through once, and you can see if it fits." Zhao Zejun’s voice pulled Zhou Yuanyuan back from her train of thought.

"Okay!"

Suddenly, Zhou Yuanyuan was curious to hear how this five-minute on-the-spot creation would stack up against Miss Xia from back in the day.

The so-called 'recording studio' was located on the fourth floor of the teaching building, where half the entire floor had been sectioned off with an iron door and several rooms had been knocked through into one. When Zhou Yuanyuan led Zhao Zejun over, three young men were still chatting in front of the control console.

Catching sight of Zhou Yuanyuan, the three young guys simultaneously rushed forward like stars surrounding the moon, fencing her into the center.

"Hello, senior brothers," Zhou Yuanyuan greeted them with a sweet smile before continuing, "Let me introduce you. This is President Zhao, a good friend of mine who specifically came to help me write the theme song today. That interlude 'Miss Xia' from the 'Boys and Girls' show last time was President Zhao's masterpiece. President Zhao, these are my senior schoolmates—Zhang Hai, Sun Bai, and Zhen Hanqiang. They're all musical talents from our academy, and Zhen Hanqiang usually manages the recording studio. They specifically came over today to help out with the recording."

The three young men were all in their early twenties, and their attire looked quite fashionable by contemporary standards. Sun Hai sported a trendy Louis Koo-style center parting; Sun Bai wore a set of denim clothes washed to a pale white; as for Zhen Hanqiang... had Zhou Yuanyuan not actively introduced him as a senior brother, Zhao Zejun would have mistaken him for a long-haired senior sister.

Still, the title "President Zhao" grated somewhat on the ear. Just as Zhao Zejun was about to say something, Sun Bai had already lost his temper. Staring Zhao Zejun up and down, he let out a lukewarm hum and said, "That's an interesting name you've got—family name Zhao, personal name President. Anyone who doesn't know better would think some big boss had graced us with his presence."

Zhou Yuanyuan frowned and was about to speak when Zhao Zejun waved his hand, offering a faint smile. "Not at all. My name is Zhao Zejun; Zhou Yuanyuan is just joking."

"Oh..." Sun Bai dragged out the syllable. "Then it was my misunderstanding. But you know how it is—at an arts academy, we have lots of performances, and we constantly run into this 'President' or that 'Director'. These days, anybody and everybody is a boss, so I'm used to it. Don't take offense."

"Sun Bai, who the hell do you think you're scolding?" Zhou Yuanyuan's face darkened. Her previous sweet smile vanished entirely, replaced by a frosty expression as she said coldly, "If you guys don't want to help me out with this favor, I won't trouble you."

The young men evidently responded well to this tactic. The moment Zhou Yuanyuan put on a stern face, Sun Bai immediately chimed in with an ingratiating smile, "You misunderstood, Yuanyuan. Weren't we just joking around?"

"Oh," Zhou Yuanyuan replied indifferently, her chin slightly lifted, though her gaze remained averted from Sun Bai.

Zhao Zejun roughly figured it out. These three guys, especially Sun Bai, probably all had romantic designs on Zhou Yuanyuan. Seeing her treat him with such familiarity, it was inevitable that they would feel a bit hostile. Yet Zhou Yuanyuan handled them skillfully, keeping the three fellows thoroughly wrapped around her finger.

"Yuanyuan, honestly, writing a song is just too simple—why bother troubling others? Give me ten days, and I can definitely whip up something that satisfies you," declared Zhen Hanqiang, the long-haired fake senior sister.

"Thanks, but he's already finished writing it," Zhou Yuanyuan said, her expression shifting once more into a beaming smile. "As expected of a great talent—he finished it in five minutes right after reading the script. Pretty impressive, right?"

The two male students were momentarily stunned, but Zhen Hanqiang let out a mocking 'heh' and laughed, shaking his head. "I'm also in creative arts, so don't take this the wrong way—no hidden agenda here, let's just discuss this purely from an artistic standpoint. In my opinion, a good song requires continuous refinement and meticulous polishing. Coming up with a song in five minutes is just too farcical."

"Exactly, that's nothing more than doggerel," Sun Bai backed him up.

Zhao Zejun frowned inwardly. He had come here to help, so what was the meaning of these guys? What good was spitting out a string of barbed remarks?

Giving Zhou Yuanyuan a somewhat displeased look, he said indifferently, "Not necessarily. I've never heard of any master poet locking themselves away for a year and a half just to produce a single poem. On the contrary, I've heard plenty of fine tales of writers brimming with confidence who let their pens fly effortlessly. Li Bai could drink himself into oblivion and still rattle off brilliant poetry on command. Just because you can't fathom the concept of composing a poem in seven paces doesn't mean it doesn't exist."

Zhen Hanqiang said with displeasure, "I disagree with that point of view. Creative geniuses do exist, but creation is a highly professional endeavor. Student Zhao, I've heard of your 'Miss Xia' too. To be frank, in the eyes of professionals like us, the lyrics and composition of that song both have issues; it relied entirely on a rare vocal style and slightly sentimental lyrics to cater to a certain segment of listeners. That's simply a case of lacking foundational technique. For instance, the fact that you've come here to record today rather than writing the song down suggests you probably don't even know how to read standard musical notation..."

Zhao Zejun spent his entire day busy making money and conducting business; where would he find the inclination to bicker with these petty, self-important kids? After a few rounds of this, his patience wore thin. Cutting short Zhen Hanqiang's endless ramblings, he turned to Zhou Yuanyuan and asked, "Yuanyuan, are we recording or not? If not, I'll be leaving first. We can talk another time if there's an opportunity."

Zhou Yuanyuan was likewise thoroughly annoyed. These three guys had displayed hostility toward Zhao Zejun right from the start, making it look as though she had deliberately set them up to humiliate him. If he were to misunderstand her intentions, she would have been better off never asking for his help at all.

With a chilling expression, she asked, "What do you three seniors think? If you don't want to help, just say so directly, and I'll figure out another way."

"We're recording, of course we're recording."

Sun Bai hurriedly threw the recording studio door wide open and exchanged a knowing glance with Zhen Hanqiang. Zhen Hanqiang caught the hint, turned around, and began adjusting the equipment.

They certainly didn't believe that someone could genuinely improvise a melodic and fitting masterpiece in five minutes flat. Once this fellow named Zhao sang it through once, Zhou Yuanyuan would naturally realize she had asked the wrong person.

"How about this: I'll sing it a cappella once first. It's a song for a female vocalist, so I might not sing it all that well. Just listen and see if the lyrics and melody fit. If it works, we can talk about the accompaniment later," Zhao Zejun said to Zhou Yuanyuan.

"Alright. Does it have a title yet?" Zhou Yuanyuan asked.

"Mhm. Since you're filming an inspirational piece, let's call it 'The Initial Dream'."