131: Chapter 131 Semifinal Theme

The process of registering a film and television company was much more complicated than anticipated.

Li Cheng had been running to the Administration for Industry and Commerce for two days, and he finally managed to submit all the basic documents.

"The license will be issued in seven working days at the earliest." On the other end of the line, Li Cheng's voice was mixed with the sound of car horns from the street, sounding chaotic.

"There's also an operating permit, which is harder to handle. The approval process is strict. I'll go find some contacts this afternoon to see if I can use a fast track. These people are so inefficient; it takes three days just to get a stamp."

"Thanks for your hard work."

"Cut the pleasantries." Li Cheng grumbled over the phone, "Treat me to a good meal tonight. A new seafood restaurant opened near the company, and I've had my eye on it for a while. You're paying."

"Fine, order whatever you want."

He hung up the phone.

Jiang Fan leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and summoned the system panel.

A translucent light screen appeared before his eyes.

[Lifespan Value: 45,900 points]

[Remaining Lifespan: 112 days]

He opened the store and switched to the "Film and Television Works" category.

The list of comedy films unfolded, with those familiar names from his past life arranged neatly.

Jiang Fan scrolled down from the top.

"Crazy Stone," a multi-linear narrative and the pinnacle of black humor.

But this thing had extremely high requirements for the director and editor's coordination. If a rookie team tried this structure for their first film, they would likely crash and burn.

"Detective Chinatown," it required filming abroad. Just the visas, location coordination, and setting up an overseas crew would take too much time.

"Dying to Survive."

A great film, a benchmark for realist themes, a success in both box office and critical acclaim, winning countless awards.

But this kind of drama had extremely strict requirements for the actors; it needed strong acting skills to carry it.

He currently couldn't find anyone in his hands capable of carrying this script.

Forcing it would only ruin the classic, so he would keep it for now and talk about it later.

He swiped past a dozen more; either the conditions weren't ripe, or the timing wasn't right.

His gaze stopped at the next line.

"goodbye mr. loser."

Time travel, youth, comedy, music.

Jiang Fan stared at these labels, his fingers hovering in mid-air, motionless.

The male lead is a middle-aged loser who has achieved nothing; he gets drunk at someone else's wedding and dreams of returning to his high school days.

Relying on the popular songs in his head that hadn't been written yet, he copies songs to fame, gains both fame and fortune, and reaches the pinnacle of life.

In the end, he wakes up from the dream and realizes that the most precious thing has never changed—it's the wife beside him whom he had ignored for half his life.

Jiang Fan stared at the screen, suddenly feeling a bit absurd.

What was the difference between what he was doing in this world and Xia Luo?

Both were "copying" songs based on memories from a past life.

The only difference was that one was in a dream, and the other was an actual time travel.

Even the path to getting rich was exactly the same.

He checked the exchange price.

[Script "goodbye mr. loser": Exchange requires 8,000 points of Lifespan Value]

Converted, it was nearly three months of his life.

But this script was worth the price.

The jokes were dense, the pace was fast, and a punchline was thrown every three or four minutes.

More importantly, the scenes were simple, mostly in schools and indoors, making the cost extremely controllable.

Moreover, it required a large number of classic old songs, which happened to be his strong suit.

Taking advantage of the film's momentum, he could also easily promote the songs in his music library—killing two birds with one stone.

Just as Jiang Fan was about to click exchange, the phone on the table vibrated.

Director Fang Yiming's name appeared on the screen.

"Jiang Fan, the results of the PK competition are out." Director Fang Yiming got straight to the point.

"Who advanced?"

"Chen Hao and Fang Xiaoxiao."

As expected.

Chen Hao's strength was obvious; there was no suspense for him in the PK competition.

Fang Xiaoxiao had fought her way up from the challenge competition; the bigger the stage, the more excited she became, and her on-the-spot performance was extremely stable.

"The semifinal is scheduled for next Saturday. How is Shen Nian's song coming along?"

"Still choosing."

"The rules for this round have changed." Director Fang Yiming's voice lowered by half a degree. "The official media just issued a notice. The song selection for the semifinal is limited to two themes: 'Joy' and 'Sorrow.' The four contestants will draw lots, and the two who draw the same theme will face off against each other."

"The contestants don't know which one they'll draw in advance?"

"Correct. So you have to prepare songs for both themes."

Jiang Fan acknowledged.

"There is one more thing." Director Fang Yiming lowered his voice. "Universal has hired a new vocal coach for Zhang Yihan, poached from abroad with a high salary, specializing in writing that gloomy and sorrowful style."

He paused.

"I always feel that the rules for this round are their doing. They intentionally limited the themes to a specific range to let Zhang Yihan play to her strengths."

Jiang Fan tapped his index finger on the table twice, not responding to that comment.

"Anyway, keep that in mind. I'll send the details of the rules to your email once I've organized them."

Director Fang Yiming hung up.

Jiang Fan set aside the script exchange for now and switched back to his work interface.

Evening.

Footsteps were heard in the hallway.

Shen Nian walked out of the Recording Studio and pushed open the office door.

Jiang Fan was writing something at the computer.

"What are you writing?"

Jiang Fan flipped the paper over and placed it face down on the table.

"It's not decided yet, don't peek."

Shen Nian pouted and walked around to sit opposite him.

She pulled her feet out of her slippers, stepped onto the edge of the chair, and hugged her knees with both arms.

"I saw the final four list." She rested her chin on her knees. "Chen Hao and Fang Xiaoxiao."

"Yeah." Jiang Fan didn't even look up, continuing to type on the computer.

"Fang Xiaoxiao is quite impressive. I've listened to her song 'Chasing Dreams' several times; the explosive power in the chorus is very strong. And needless to say, Chen Hao is great too."

Jiang Fan nodded.

Fang Xiaoxiao's vocal conditions were not as good as Shen Nian's, but she excelled in rich stage experience and a strong ability to mobilize emotions.

This type of contestant was very popular on stage and easily swept the audience along.

"Have you heard about the rules for this round?" Jiang Fan asked.

"I saw it on Weibo." Shen Nian placed her cup on the table. "Drawing lots, with two themes: 'Joy' and 'Sorrow.'"

She wrinkled her nose.

"I'm a bit afraid of drawing 'Joy.'"

"Afraid of what?"

"I'm not good at that kind of cheerful stuff." Shen Nian reached out and fiddled with the handle of her cup.

Jiang Fan flipped the paper on the table back over and pushed it in front of her.

Shen Nian looked down.

A song title was written on the paper.

"'Rice Field Aroma'?" She read aloud.

"Listen to it first."

Jiang Fan opened the computer and pulled up a demo he had recorded in the afternoon.

He pressed the play button.

The guitar strumming cut in, and the crisp sound of insects chirping rang out first.

Light, lively.

Shen Nian pricked up her ears and listened for a dozen seconds, and her brows relaxed.

"If you have too many complaints about this world—and you don't dare to keep moving forward after falling—"

It was a rough demo sung by Jiang Fan himself, without any auto-tune, his voice clean and carrying a casual laziness.

When the first line of the chorus came out, Shen Nian's toes began to move unconsciously to the beat.

"Do you still remember you said home is the only castle—keep running along the rice field river—smile slightly, I know the dreams of childhood—"

Shen Nian's body swayed unconsciously to the melody.

"Don't cry, let the fireflies take you away—the country ballads are an eternal reliance—come home, go back to the original beauty—"

The song finished.

The office was quiet for a moment.

Shen Nian looked up, her fingers tapping unconsciously on her knees.

"This song... it feels warm in my heart, very healing."

"Then what if you draw 'Sorrow'?"

Jiang Fan leaned back in his chair, his gaze passing over Shen Nian to look at the neon lights gradually lighting up outside the window.

"Haven't thought about it yet." Jiang Fan withdrew his gaze. "No rush, there are still a few days. Let's get the score for 'Rice Field Aroma' sorted out first, and go into the studio tomorrow to record the official Arrangement."

Shen Nian nodded, stuffed her feet back into her slippers, and stood up.

"What are we eating tonight?"

"Li Cheng said he wants to hit me up for a seafood meal."