Chapter Fifty-Three: Conjectures

During the following week, Zhou Xuan, like everyone else, entered an intense period of review. Of course, what he was reviewing was high school material.

In just those few days, a song called My Voice in Your Heart swept across the country and could truly be said to have exploded in popularity. Fan Yixuan’s distinctive voice and richly flavored singing were being played by countless people on every street and in every alley.

As the album’s sales kept climbing, many people also began to pay attention to Fan Yixuan, that third-rate singer. It could be said that her popularity had now reached the level of a second-rate singer.

Everyone was extremely interested in her sudden rise, and many singers and record companies began investigating the origins of the lyricist and composer behind her signature song, My Voice in Your Heart.

It was at this moment that the Huaxia Voice of Music radio station, while recommending the song, publicly mentioned for the first time the relationship between the author of My Voice in Your Heart and the author of A History of the Ming Dynasty.

“My Voice in Your Heart is one of the title tracks on singer Fan Yixuan’s recently released self-titled album. From the moment it came out, it was deeply loved by listeners. Within a week of release, sales surpassed two hundred thousand copies, creating a miracle in today’s declining record market. It must be said that the lyricist and composer of this song is exceptionally skilled, as though it were written especially for Fan Yixuan’s voice. Sung with the unique timbre of Fan Yixuan, My Voice in Your Heart only grows more flavorful the more one listens, and everyone loves it.

“To be honest, I usually do not pay attention to who wrote a song. But when I accidentally saw the author credit for My Voice in Your Heart, I could hardly believe my eyes. And the reason is simple: I discovered that the lyricist and composer of My Voice in Your Heart was actually Zhou Zixuan.

“Speaking of Zhou Zixuan, I believe most people know who he is. He is the bestselling author of the wildly popular A History of the Ming Dynasty. I am also very fond of the Ming Dynasty myself, a fan of that era, and I even bought a copy of A History of the Ming Dynasty for my home.

“But I really did not expect Zhou Zixuan to be so talented. Not only does he write novels and articles brilliantly, he can also compose such wonderful songs.”

After the program aired, sales of the My Voice in Your Heart album, which had already begun to weaken, surged again, pushing toward three hundred thousand copies.

After that, many newspapers also increasingly speculated that the authors of A History of the Ming Dynasty and My Voice in Your Heart were the same person. At the same time, many reporters from various papers began trying to uncover Zhou Zixuan’s true identity.

Had Zhou Xuan not used his uncle’s address when submitting his manuscript back then, people would have found him long ago. Later, when publishing A History of the Ming Dynasty and Love of the Hawthorn Tree, Zhou Xuan specifically instructed the publisher not to reveal his true identity.

Thus, even now, Zhou Zixuan’s true identity had still not been exposed. People only knew that Zhou Zixuan was from Rongzhou in Province S; beyond that, they knew very little.

Not long after, someone on the Tsinghua University forum posted a thread speculating about Zhou Zixuan’s identity, which attracted a large number of replies and instantly became a hot post, later pinned by the administrator.

“Damn, Young Master Xuan is seriously awesome. Not only is he amazing at writing books, he’s incredible at writing songs too.”

Because of the fans of A History of the Ming Dynasty, everyone called Zhou Xuan Young Master Xuan. Simple and to the point.

“Exactly. I really don’t know how Young Master Xuan’s brain is wired. He can write science fiction, romance, youth fiction, historical fiction, and even songs. But up to now, no photo of Young Master Xuan has leaked. I really don’t know what he looks like.”

“Young Master Xuan is from Rongzhou in Province S. That was revealed by the magazine that originally accepted his submission. But the Xiling Publishing House keeps its lips tightly sealed, and reporters can’t get any useful information from them.”

“Heh heh, with Young Master Xuan being so secretive, could he be an ugly monster?”

“You’re the ugly monster! But I think the name Young Master Xuan is not quite right. He should be called Old Master Xuan. Think about it: someone who can write such excellent historical fiction must be an old historian.”

“Impossible. An old pedant would never write historical fiction in this style.”

For a time, speculation about Zhou Zixuan’s identity was discussed back and forth by everyone, and the name Zhou Zixuan became popular once again. Along with it, the sales of A History of the Ming Dynasty and My Voice in Your Heart experienced another small peak.

At Fan Yixuan’s record company, in the general manager’s office.

Fan Yixuan, dressed in white, sat before General Manager Chen with a bright smile on her face, clearly in an excellent mood thanks to her recent sales.

“Yixuan, the sales of My Voice in Your Heart are very good. They are now about to break through three hundred thousand copies. The company has decided to raise your status and sign you to an A-level contract,” Manager Chen said with evident delight, looking at Fan Yixuan with great satisfaction.

Fan Yixuan knew about the company’s A-level contract. It was the contract reserved for the company’s key artists, with a term of five years. Aside from receiving the company’s full support in training and development, the most important benefit was that for various performance and record sales revenues, the singer could receive seventy percent. One had to know that her previous contract was only a C-level one, with a miserable thirty percent split, enough, at best, to support herself.

“Thank you, Manager Chen. Thank you for the company’s cultivation and support,” Fan Yixuan said. She had not expected the company to value her so highly, granting her an A-level contract right away.

Manager Chen said with satisfaction, “Everyone knows how hard you have worked for the company. This is what you deserve. But your success this time owes a great deal to those two new songs of yours. I heard those two songs were written for you by Zhou Zixuan. Is that the same Zhou Zixuan who wrote A History of the Ming Dynasty?”

Even Fan Yixuan was not entirely sure about that. “Manager Chen, I’m not really certain whether it’s that Zhou Zixuan. These two songs were bought for me by a friend from Rongzhou. She’s a music teacher at Rongzhou College.”

“Since he’s from Rongzhou, then it’s most likely him. To have specially written these two songs according to your vocal qualities—his level is clearly extraordinary. If he could write a few more songs for you, it’s very possible you could become a top-tier singer. Can you get in touch with this master, Zhou Zixuan?”

Fan Yixuan had not expected Zhou Xuan to be this impressive, and in that instant she was filled with curiosity about him. For the sake of her future, she made up her mind to win Zhou Xuan over no matter what.

So she said, “I’ll have to ask my classmate for information about him. When I bought these two songs, I paid two hundred thousand. His asking price was not low at all.”

When Manager Chen heard this, he immediately reminded her, “Since he wants money, that makes things easier. As long as the songs are good, even three hundred thousand is no problem. You must move quickly. A lot of people in the industry are looking for Zhou Zixuan right now, so don’t let them get there first.”

“Okay, I’ll call my classmate as soon as I’m back downstairs.”

Both Fan Yixuan and Manager Chen were thinking of buying songs from Zhou Xuan, unaware that back then Zhou Xuan had sold his songs so cheaply only because he urgently needed starting funds.

Now that Zhou Xuan was no longer short of money, he would certainly not sell songs so readily. Even if he were to sell, only superstars like Liu the Heavenly King and Zhang the God of Song would be worth considering. Compared with a few hundred thousand yuan, earning a favor and building connections would be far more worthwhile.

While Zhou Xuan was buried in intense review, countless reporters were heading toward Rongzhou, hoping to uncover Zhou Zixuan’s true identity. Meanwhile, Wei Lian and the others were nearing the end of their promotion work in Rongcheng, and the money in Zhou Xuan’s bank card kept growing.