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Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither could a recording studio be set up overnight.
Moving the Workshop was an even bigger task. Although Capital City was huge, finding a suitable venue wasn't easy.
Still, Lu Chen confidently assured Wang Hui to relax and focus on selecting the equipment first.
In fact, for Lu Chen, the most important thing right now wasn't selling the 'Autumn in My Heart' rights, nor moving and building the Recording Room, or even setting up the charity foundation, it was the upcoming Asian Chinese Music Awards ceremony on February 18th.
The Asian Chinese Music Awards was jointly founded by CCTV, China National Radio, and major national TV and radio stations. It had been held 15 times so far and was one of the most influential and authoritative pop music awards in China.
Most importantly, it was confirmed that this year's ceremony would be the last under the "Asian Chinese Music Awards" name. It would merge with the "Chinese Original Music Charts" to upgrade into the Global Chinese Music Awards.
This brand-new Global Chinese Music Awards was expected to become the top pop music gala in China, easily surpassing Xiangnan Satellite TV's Chinese Music Charts, becoming the definitive trendsetter in the pop music scene.
As for this last edition of the Asian Chinese Music Awards, it had attracted widespread attention outside the show business community. A large number of well-known vagabond singers, artists, musicians, and industry figures had been invited, and the printed guest list was estimated to be several meters long.
Lu Chen was among the invited guests, and he had received four important nominations: Best Newcomer, Best Composition, Best Lyrics, and Best Album.
2015 Chinese Golden Melody Chart nominations:
Best Newcomer (nominee)
Best Composition for 'I Love You, China' (nominee)
Best Lyrics for 'I Love You, China'
Best Album for 'My Old Classmate' (nominee)
The Asian Chinese Music Awards judging panel was composed entirely of professionals, including members of the Musicians Association, well-known senior figures in the show business community, professors from music colleges, famous music critics, and more, over a hundred members in total.
There was no easy audience voting or vote-rigging. The organizers were authoritative institutions, so the Asian Chinese Music Awards carried significant prestige. The nominations for all 21 awards were highly anticipated.
Securing four major nominations instantly raised Lu Chen's profile in the show business community. This completely wiped out the negative impact of him not winning any awards at Xiangnan Satellite TV's Chinese Music Charts, turning the tables in his favor.
However, Chen Fei'er analyzed the situation for Lu Chen. The award he was most likely to win was Best Newcomer, while Best Album was the least likely. As for Best Composition and Best Lyrics, there was always a seniority bias at the Asian Chinese Music Awards.
Lu Chen was still too young.
He wasn't angry or upset. His bratty teenage years were over, and he knew there had never been true fairness in the world. The judging panel members weren't robots either.
As long as people have feelings and biases, personal preferences inevitably influence decisions.
Winning Best Newcomer would satisfy Lu Chen enough. After dealing with his backlog of work, he called Li Mubai to check where he was.
To Lu Chen's surprise, Li Mubai was at Mu-Chen Company upstairs.
This amazed Lu Chen, because by custom, most private companies officially start work on the eighth day of the lunar new year. Li Mubai showing up on the very first day was impressively diligent.
Without asking further, Lu Chen went upstairs to find Third Young Master Li.
After selling most of the shares in Mu-Chen's crowdfunding to Li Mushi, he had rarely appeared at Mu-Chen Company or participated in its management, becoming an invisible founding shareholder.
Lu Chen hadn't seen Li Mubai for a while.
"Ah, no wonder I heard magpies chirping on the branches this morning."
As soon as he saw Lu Chen, Li Mubai teased in his typical tone, "Sure enough, it's a happy occasion! The big star graces this humble place with his presence, really lighting up my little corner of the world!"
They hadn't met for a while, but the Eldest Young Master hadn't changed much.
Lu Chen sat down opposite him and smiled, "Cut the crap. I'm here on serious business."
Li Mubai chuckled and straightened up, "What's the matter?"
Lu Chen got straight to the point, "I want to register a charity foundation and need your help."
A few years back, many domestic charity foundations and similar organizations had caused quite a few scandals, resulting in significant negative public opinion. Consequently, government departments tightened regulations, especially in the approval process, making the application cycle very long and complicated.
So when Lu Chen decided to move forward, the first person he thought to ask for help was Li Mubai.
As the saying goes, having connections in the right place makes things easier. If the Li family stepped in, the process would be much simpler.
Lu Chen wasn't a purist when it came to ethics or morals, and since he was doing a good deed, helping others through charity, the sooner the foundation was set up, the more patients in urgent need could be saved.
He knew Li Mubai's personality well enough to understand that being overly polite would hurt their friendship.
According to the Third Young Master of the Li family, "If you have to be polite, you're not real brothers!"
Li Mubai took the bait and immediately agreed without hesitation: "Your matter is my matter. I'll first check with Big Brother what procedures are needed and then let you know. If it's troublesome, I'll handle it myself."
Lu Chen smiled, "Thanks, I'll buy you a drink in a couple of days."
"Drinks sound good, but I actually need your help with something too."
Li Mubai unusually showed a hint of embarrassment. "I need you to help me with something."
Lu Chen was curious. "What is it? Writing a song? That's easy."
Li Mubai was also a pop music enthusiast and had a band with quite a cool style.
Lu Chen had previously given Li Mubai two songs, a long time ago. He assumed Li Mubai wanted some new songs for fun or for an album.
But Li Mubai shook his head and explained, "It's about Fanny. She really likes the TV play you made. If you shoot a new drama, could you arrange a role for her?"
Fanny?
Lu Chen remembered, wasn't she the girl Li Mubai had been pursuing all along? He recalled meeting her once, she was beautiful and elegant, and reportedly a returnee from abroad.
Li Mubai was clearly trying to win her favor through this request.
Lu Chen couldn't help but laugh, "No problem!"
A role? That was nothing.
But Li Mubai added a condition: "No bed scenes, no kissing scenes, and preferably no hand-holding either."
Lu Chen just shook his head in disbelief.
(End of chapter)