The meeting was at Gu's Entertainment. As soon as Xia Qingtian entered, she saw Wen Ning and Li Mengxiao. Two men were also with them. One had a buzz cut and was slightly overweight.
The other was thin, with medium-length hair tied back in a low ponytail.
After exchanging greetings, Wen Ning introduced the two men to Xia Qingtian.
The buzz-cut, slightly overweight man was a representative from a company collaborating with Gu's Entertainment, named Brother Zhou.
They were responsible for all the technical aspects, including the creation of virtual idols' 3D models, motion capture, voice bank technology, and even post-production holographic programming.
The thin man with the low ponytail was a vocal coach Wen Ning had invited after discussing Xia Qingtian's vocal characteristics with others in the company. He was also the lyricist and composer for virtual idol songs.
Coincidentally, his surname was also Zhou.
"Brother Zhou, Teacher Zhou," Xia Qingtian differentiated the two with these titles and greeted them with a sweet smile.
"Miss Xia is truly beautiful. Even if you don't pursue virtual idols, with your attributes, you could debut directly," Brother Zhou said, shaking Xia Qingtian's hand with a smile. "The company was very excited when Sister Ning sent over the voice samples. Everyone really liked them."
"Your vocal quality is good, and your technique is passable. However, given your age, you need to be careful with showing off. Your voice isn't stable enough yet," Teacher Zhou looked much stricter. "You're still young, so I recommend increasing your physical activity to build up your lung capacity. Start with… jogging. And don't neglect your vocal fundamentals."
Xia Qingtian smiled and agreed.
The communication went very smoothly. Both the production company and the vocal coach were very satisfied with Xia Qingtian.
Teacher Zhou even asked Xia Qingtian to sing a melody on the spot and recorded it on his phone, saying he would consider lyrical and compositional ideas later.
During the hour-long meeting, Xia Qingtian listened attentively and interacted appropriately.
Li Mengxiao was observant and diligently refilled drinks.
Wen Ning only spoke on matters related to time and overall production progress.
Her voice remained indifferent, with an unyielding firmness.
Teacher Zhou seemed accustomed to Wen Ning's attitude and didn't argue with her.
Brother Zhou, on the other hand, wiped his sweat a few times, finding Wen Ning's aura quite powerful.
He couldn't help but think to himself: No wonder the company assigned this good opportunity to me. The trap is here.
However, thanks to Xia Qingtian's high cooperativeness and pleasant demeanor, plus her beauty, Brother Zhou felt slightly less dismayed.
After scheduling the next meeting and discussing the topics, the current meeting finally concluded.
After seeing Brother Zhou and Teacher Zhou off, Wen Ning said, "There are no issues with this company's technical capabilities. The company will also manage the contract details. You don't need to worry about the necessary material conditions for the virtual idol. As for the voice bank and motion capture, it's all up to you."
"Teacher Zhou is also a long-term collaborator with Gu's Entertainment. Whether you can achieve long-term cooperation in the future also depends on you."
Having said that, Wen Ning glanced at her watch and directly dismissed Xia Qingtian. "I have another meeting. You can go now."
"Yes, goodbye, Sister Ning." Although this wasn't Xia Qingtian's first time meeting Wen Ning, and she knew Wen Ning meant no harm, she still found it difficult to get used to Wen Ning's tone and attitude.
As Xia Qingtian and Li Mengxiao walked out of Gu's Entertainment together, Xia Qingtian heard Li Mengxiao exclaim excitedly, "Qingtian, Sister Ning must really think highly of you! You're definitely going to be famous!"
Is she?
Xia Qingtian blinked, a little unsure. Wen Ning's attitude was one of high regard; it would be good if she didn't dislike her at all…
"You might not know, but Teacher Zhou is very busy. He usually doesn't write songs for newcomers, but Sister Ning personally invited him, and only then did Teacher Zhou give Sister Ning face," Li Mengxiao said. "The songs that have been topping the charts by Ling Feng Han were all written by Teacher Zhou."
"Ling Feng Han?" Xia Qingtian knew this name. He was an idol she had admired for a long time in her past life!
However, she remembered that Ling Feng Han retired and disappeared a few years later due to defamation caused by sasaeng fans.
It was also around that time that Xia Qingtian learned that the person who appeared so vibrant on screen had been harassed by sasaeng fans in the name of love, and he had been struggling with depression for many years.
"Are you calling me?" A clear male voice came from behind Xia Qingtian, startling her.
When she turned around, she saw the face she had only seen on screen now magnified before her eyes.
Xia Qingtian took two steps back, almost losing her balance. It was only when Li Mengxiao pulled her that she managed to avoid being too impolite.
"Do I look that scary?" Ling Feng Han reached up to touch his face, then looked at Xia Qingtian with a somewhat disappointed expression.
Xia Qingtian quickly waved her hands. "No, it's just that we were talking about you, and then we ran into you."
"Teacher Ling, we are newly signed by Sister Ning. This is Xia Qingtian, and she'll be collaborating with Teacher Zhou soon," Li Mengxiao quickly explained from the side. "We were just talking about your chart-topping new songs."
Hearing the explanations from Li Mengxiao and Xia Qingtian, Ling Feng Han understood. He let out a hearty laugh, extended his hand, and said, "Teacher Zhou is very talented. We'll all be in the same fraternity from now on, so let's look out for each other."
Xia Qingtian then shook Ling Feng Han's hand with a dry laugh. "Your new songs are very good. I'm sure you'll do well at this year's Golden麦 Awards."
"Thank you." After shaking hands with Xia Qingtian, Ling Feng Han also shook hands with Li Mengxiao. Then, as his assistant called him, he waved and ran off.
He looked full of boundless energy and happiness.
Watching Ling Feng Han's retreating figure, Xia Qingtian's gaze dimmed.
She remembered that Ling Feng Han had indeed won top honors at this year's Golden麦 Awards, which was also the last major award he received before his retirement.
Based on the timeline, the sasaeng fans should have already found him by this time, and his depression should have started to show.
He looked so happy; it must have been tiring to maintain such a facade.
"Ling Feng Han is such a nice person!" Li Mengxiao rubbed her hands together. "I didn't expect him to shake my hand too. I don't even want to wash my hands tonight."
Hearing this, Xia Qingtian could only smile helplessly. After bidding farewell to Li Mengxiao, she went straight back to the Xia family home.
Her father was still working overtime, and Aunt Liu had gone to a friend's house. Only Xia Qingyu was home.
Upon seeing Xia Qingtian return, Xia Qingyu did not deliberately avoid her as she had before. Instead, she nodded in greeting.
Xia Qingtian noticed Xia Qingyu wearing headphones and walked over directly, removing one earbud and placing it in her own ear. "What are you listening to?"
Xia Qingyu seemed a little uncomfortable with Xia Qingtian's intimate gesture, but she cleared her throat and said, "Ling Feng Han's new song."
"Do you like him very much?" Xia Qingtian didn't know that Xia Qingyu was also a fan of Ling Feng Han.
"I wouldn't say I like him. The girls in class are all listening to it, so I'm just listening casually," Xia Qingyu replied.
"It's really good…" Listening to Ling Feng Han's voice in her ear, Xia Qingtian sighed faintly. Such an excellent person.
Just then, an electronic voice appeared in Xia Qingtian's mind.
[The Chosen One System has been activated.
Choice A: Approach Ling Feng Han and uncover the truth behind his retirement. Reward: One Time-Stop Device (15 minutes).
Choice B: Remain uninvolved and distant. Reward: Nomination for next year's Golden麦 Awards, 100,000 cash.]