yournovel Chapter 74 Building Momentum, Ready to Explode
Chapter 74 Building Momentum, Ready to Explode
It was almost 2 p.m. when Zhou Weidong parked his car at the west gate of the Normal University.
Li Si'an changed out of his camouflage uniform and into a white T-shirt and dark pants, waiting at the school gate. He opened the car door and got into the passenger seat, and Zhou Weidong glanced at him.
"I just called your department's vice dean and asked for a week's leave for you."
Li Si'an was taken aback. "A week's vacation?"
"You've got so much to do these past few days, there's no time for you to march in formation."
Zhou Weidong started the car and drove towards Tianningsiqian Street.
"Your department's vice dean, Zhao Dongping, and I have a long-standing relationship. I told him about your situation, and he was so happy to thank me that he insisted on treating me to drinks."
"Why?" Li Si'an turned to look at him. "Why did he invite you for drinks?"
Zhou Weidong glanced at him. "Are you stupid? Don't you think about what your status will be when the reporters interview you at Motorola's launch event?"
Li Si'an did not respond.
"A freshman at Beijing Normal University," Zhou Weidong said, emphasizing each word.
"You just entered the school, and you haven't even settled in yet, but you've already given Beijing Normal University such a big boost."
Motorola's global advertising slogan, "100,000 US dollars"—when those words are put in the news, followed by "Li Si'an, a freshman at Beijing Normal University." How could Old Zhao not thank me?
After listening, Li Si'an leaned back in her chair, smiled, and said nothing more.
The street scene outside the car window receded into the distance, and the September sun made the windshield scorching hot.
The car turned into an alley near Pinganli and stopped at the entrance of the China Record Corporation compound. The two people got out of the car, went upstairs, and knocked on the door of Xu Zhongming's office.
"Come in."
Xu Zhongming sat behind his desk, holding an enamel teacup. Seeing them enter, he put down the cup and gestured with his chin toward the sofa.
"sit."
Li Si'an and Zhou Weidong sat down on the sofa. Xu Zhongming leaned back in his chair, looking at Li Si'an.
"Any news from Motorola?"
"It's settled," Li Si'an said, her excitement, which she had managed to suppress, resurfacing.
"Headquarters approved it. GG sponsorship fee is 50,000, plus two free mobile phones. My GG video was bought out by the Asia-Pacific headquarters, plus the right to use the promotional slogan, the whole package is 100,000 US dollars. The press conference is on September 18th at BJ Company. I'm going to sign the contract tomorrow morning."
Li Si'an recited the news in one breath without pausing, as if she were reciting a tongue twister.
Xu Zhongming paused for a moment, holding the teacup.
"One hundred thousand US dollars?" He looked at Li Si'an.
"Yes. The money will arrive in about a week."
Xu Zhongming placed the teacup on the table, leaned back in his chair, stared at the ceiling for two seconds, and then smiled.
"You can make money much faster this way than writing songs," he said.
Li Si'an grinned and said, "Hey, this was just pure luck. I'll stick to writing songs from now on."
Xu Zhongming didn't respond to that, but leaned forward and placed his hands on the table, folded together.
"The press conference is on September 18th. So when do you plan to release your song?"
Li Si'an moved forward slightly. "President Xu, this is exactly what I'm here for. The press conference is on September 18th, the promotional slogan will be announced, the 'GG' movie will start airing, and my name will be linked to Motorola. I definitely want to take advantage of this opportunity."
"But I'm not sure when the song will be released."
Xu Zhongming looked at him. "What do you think?"
"I think there are pros and cons to both, but I have no experience in this kind of thing, so I'm asking you for your help in making a decision."
Xu Zhongming leaned back in his chair, picked up his teacup, took a sip, put it down, and then spoke.
"What I mean is—don't send it yet."
Li Si'an was stunned for a moment.
Xu Zhongming leaned forward slightly, his voice neither hurried nor slow.
"But all the preparations need to be done in advance. The goods should be distributed to all the distributors first, and they should be made clear that sales will only begin on the afternoon of September 18th. Anyone who sells before then will not be able to get any more goods later."
Zhou Weidong took out his notebook and began to take notes.
"Secondly," Xu Zhongming held up two fingers.
"Contact several radio music program hosts to create a suspenseful promotional campaign. Only play the chorus, not the whole song. After it's over, say—"
"This is the latest work from Motorola's new global tagline writer, who is eighteen years old this year." This builds up the suspense.
As Li Si'an listened, images gradually formed in her mind.
Xu Zhongming continued, "After the press conference on September 18th, when the news comes out and everyone knows who you are, then we can officially promote the song, release the whole track, and start selling the album."
The suspense built up over the previous days, culminating in a sudden release that day, had a much greater impact than simply releasing a song directly.
Zhou Weidong looked up. "This is a good idea."
Xu Zhongming leaned back in his chair and looked at Li Si'an.
"There's another reason. Your case isn't just entertainment news."
He paused, then continued, "An 18-year-old Chinese youth wrote a global slogan for Motorola, which was adopted by headquarters, earning him $100,000. Think about it, what kind of news is that?"
Li Si'an did not respond.
"This is breaking news." Xu Zhongming slammed his hand on the table.
"What do ordinary Chinese people buy into the most? The Chinese have conquered foreigners with their brains and knowledge. If this gets hyped up, it's not just a matter of making it into the entertainment section, it's a matter of whether it can be featured on 'Oriental Horizon' (a popular Chinese TV program)."
Zhou Weidong paused, his pen still. "Oriental Horizon?"
Xu Zhongming picked up his teacup and took a sip. "Forget about 'Son of the East,' but we might actually give the 'Living Space' segment a try."
He put down his teacup and looked at Li Si'an.
"So the issue now isn't about rushing to release the song, but about how to play this card to its maximum effect. Before September 18th, we need to get all the preparations in place—get the merchandise on the shelves, promote it on the radio, and put up posters."
On the afternoon of September 18th, as soon as the press conference started and the news was released, the song went on sale simultaneously. The radio stations also played the entire song at the same time.
Li Si'an leaned back on the sofa and went through Xu Zhongming's words in her mind.
"Okay. We'll do it your way."
Xu Zhongming nodded, picked up a folder from the table, opened it, looked at it, and then closed it again.
"Tomorrow I'll have someone contact the radio stations. We'll talk to several music programs on BJ Music Station and China National Radio. We won't say who it is yet, just mention the new song by the 'writer of Motorola's global slogan,' 'Eighteen Years Old.' That'll be enough buzz for them to talk about."
He looked at Zhou Weidong. "Weidong, you can start preparing the newspapers and magazines too. Also—you need to start hiring quickly. Copywriters, assistants, get everything you need. There will be more and more interviews coming up, you can't handle everything yourself."
Zhou Weidong made a note in his notebook and nodded.
Xu Zhongming then looked at Li Si'an.
"The poster needs to be reshot. The previous version was too plain and not eye-catching enough. There's no harm in using your face, so I'll find someone to take it, and you just need to cooperate."
He paused for a moment, then continued, "And there's the radio station—simply sending the sample tape over isn't enough; we need to treat them to a meal. Have you taken leave from school?"
"It's all arranged," Li Si'an said.
"Your phone will be on all the time these days. I've got you invited, so you need to come over and let them meet you. Why should they promote your music if you don't even know the person?
Li Si'an nodded.
Xu Zhongming leaned back in his chair and looked at Li Si'an.
"Just focus on preparing for the press conference. You'll be the star on September 18th. Leave the rest to us."
Li Si'an stood up from the sofa and nodded to Xu Zhongming. "Mr. Xu, thank you very much."
Xu Zhongming waved his hand. "Don't thank me. If this move goes well, your album won't just sell a few hundred thousand copies. Tai Zhengxiao's album 'One Thousand and One Nights' last year, which was also a Motorola GG song, sold over a million copies across Asia."
When I came out of Xu Zhongming's office, the sun was already setting.
The two got into the car, Zhou Weidong started the engine, and turned to Li Si'an, saying:
"After we sign the contract tomorrow, the two of us will get busy."