Lin Chudong hesitated for a long time, ultimately deciding not to use the card.
Relying entirely on luck to form a band just didn't seem reliable.
The drummer, keyboardist, and bassist were all new. If the guitarist was also a newbie, it would be too difficult to manage.
Liang Yin and Jing Feifei started chatting.
"You don't know who Da Fei is? You've never heard of Da Fei's band?"
Jing Feifei shook her head. "No, I don't. My dad never lets me pay attention to that stuff. I might have heard their songs, though."
"Have you heard 'Keep Up With the Rhythm'?"
"I have, I have! Your songs?" Jing Feifei's eyes lit up.
"It's not ours, it's Da Fei's, the former lead singer of the Da Fei Band…" The landlady began recounting Da Fei's glorious history.
Jia Lu shrugged, a bit surprised.
"You don't know Da Fei in this day and age?"
Lin Chudong forced a smile, "Coming from you, it's not like I'm a superstar."
Jia Lu chuckled, "You'll be a superstar sooner or later!"
Lin Chudong said, "Jing Feifei, you're lacking a lot in music theory, and your coordination with the band isn't great either. Let Wang Zhi give you some intensive tutoring on music theory these next few days. We might be performing on stage in a few days!"
Jing Feifei nodded excitedly, "Okay! Can I wear a studded leather jacket?"
Everyone was speechless.
"Do whatever you want."
They weren't at the stage where they had to wear matching outfits yet. For now, they could wear whatever they liked.
"Yay!" Jing Feifei was ecstatic. The others present didn't understand what this beautiful girl was so excited about. Was this how rich kids behaved?
Liang Yin said, "Feifei, are you sure you don't want a salary? You should at least make some demands. I feel uneasy otherwise."
They'd gotten a free keyboardist, and she didn't even want to be paid. Even if she was from a wealthy family, this still felt strange to Liang Yin.
Lin Chudong said, "If she doesn't want a base salary, we should still give her five percent of the performance fees."
Liang Yin nodded. That was acceptable. After all, if the band became popular, the base salary would be a small amount, and the performance fees would be the big money.
Jing Feifei said, "I don't have any demands. As long as we can rock out, that's enough. Da Fei, I heard you're amazing. Can you play something to get me hyped up?"
Lin Chudong was taken aback. "Now?"
Jia Lu was already seated by the drums. "Da Fei, let's play one!"
Liang Yin stood up excitedly. "Come on, come on! The band's first rehearsal, I'll record it for you guys!" Her phone was already set up to film.
Lin Chudong smiled. "Alright, let's do a short piece."
It seemed he needed to show off some real skills to win over this keyboardist.
"Xiao Jia, set a four-four time signature, tempo 118."
"Feifei, A major, chord progression 3523, just a semi-breakdown will do."
"Wang Zhi, improvise as you like..."
Wang Zhi: …
"Ready?"
"Little Jia, begin!"
Dong dong dong dong. After four prompt tones.
Lin Chudong's guitar sound rang out first. Hearing this melody, everyone was a little surprised. This melody was a bit strange, and it had a bit of a er ren zhuan feel.
But with the drums, it also had a feeling of rock opera.
Wang Zhi picked up his bass and quickly joined in. Jing Feifei immediately became excited, playing the piano while shaking her head, completely a dancing girl.
"If the east doesn't shine, the west will; I'll bask in the setting sun, I'll bask in sorrow."
"The night before isn't busy, the night after is, I dream of gold, then I dream of the millet."
"Spring rain doesn't wet the confidant ghost, autumn cold penetrates and hits the infatuated lover."
"Thinking of heaven, thinking of earth, thinking of confidants, looking at mountains, looking at water, I look at the morning!"
Liang Yin's jaw nearly dropped when those lyrics came out. Was this really Da Fei?
What kind of song was this?
Was it Da Fei's original?
Jing Feifei was ecstatic, loving it with all her heart. This was the band she wanted! It was much happier than classical music!
After the song ended, the others had strange expressions. The song was indeed unique, but they couldn't quite accept it yet.
Jing Feifei, on the other hand, was completely exhilarated. She said,
"Big Fei, you're really something! I'll follow your lead from now on!"
Lin Chudong smiled. Xian'er really could win over a rock veteran, or rather, a rock chick.
Seeing Liang Yin's shocked expression, Lin Chudong asked, "Boss Lady, what do you think?"
Liang Yin said resentfully, "You can't listen to this song unless you've been in a mental institution for ten years."
Lin Chudong patted her shoulder. "You've improved, Boss Lady."
"..."
Jing Feifei had had her fun and was ready to go home with Liang Yin to sleep.
Lin Chudong said in a low voice, "Tonight, find out what this girl's family does. Get a little information."
"Okay, got it!"
Lin Chudong was lying in his room, about to rest, when Wang Zhi knocked on the door.
"Hey, Fei-ge, not asleep yet."
"The door's not even closed, what are you being so polite for?"
Wang Zhi brought in a few bottles of beer and a couple of boxes of duck snacks.
"Want a drink?"
"What's up?"
"Da Fei, did we rush the hiring of the keyboard player today?"
Lin Chudong said, "Even you're calling yourself a bassist, and you think I rushed it?"
"..."
That was harsh. Da Fei sang well, but he was too cutting with his words.
"Da Fei, did you find a guitarist yet?"
Lin Chudong said, "Don't even think about it. If you don't put in the effort, I'll have to find another bassist too. Those two boxes of duck necks aren't going to cut it."
"No, no, no, I'll work hard, I definitely will. Come on, let's have a few drinks."
"Da Fei, do you think Jing Feifei is interested in me? She looked at me a few times today."
"Cough, cough, cough… That's because you missed several notes!"
"…"
Just then, Lin Chudong received a WeChat message. It was from Liang Yin, and it perked him right up.
Wang Zhi asked, "Da Fei, what's up?"
Lin Chudong said, "I advise you to stop thinking about Jing Feifei. Do you know who her dad is?"
"Who is it?"
"Get your phone out."
Wang Zhi opened his phone, and Lin Chudong pointed at a red app on the screen.
"Have you used this software before?"
"Yeah."
"It's from their company."
Lin Chudong patted his shoulder, not saying anything more.
Wang Zhi was instantly shocked. After a long silence, he finally spoke.
"Da Fei, do you think I won't have to pay for things anymore in the future?"
Lin Chudong: …
Even a toad wouldn't dream like that!
While they were chatting, a phone call suddenly came in.
"Hello, Yu Lin?"
"I have something to tell you. The lead singer of the Northern Band has collapsed. He's been taken in."
Lin Chudong stood up abruptly. "That old smoker finally got caught? When did this happen?"
"Just now. I saw it with my own eyes. There will probably be an official announcement tomorrow."
"Great! Yu Lin, this news is so important. I owe you a meal. I'll treat you to duck necks later!"
"Hmph, you owe me a lot more than that. Hurry up and go!"
After hanging up the phone, Lin Chudong quickly wiped his hands, put on his clothes, and ran outside.
"Da Fei, where are you going?"
"We'll talk on the way!"
The two got into a taxi, and Lin Chudong said, "You know Northern Band, right?"
"Yeah, I do. Not as famous as Da Fei Band, but they're alright. The lead singer's a skinny dude."
"Right, their lead singer probably messed up. He's the boss of Northern Band, so if something happens to him, the band will disband."
Wang Zhi analyzed the situation and immediately understood.
"I get it! You're going to buy their instruments?"
"Idiot! I'm going to poach their guitarist!"
Wang Zhi pulled out his phone and looked it up. Chen Jianguo, the guitarist of the Northern Band, was fifty-six years old. He was the guitar teacher of the famous guitarist Li Suyang, Huang Xiaojie, and the singer Xu Sanqian.
Wang Zhi said, "Damn, that's amazing, I didn't even know."
"It's normal you don't know. When Old Chen debuted, you were still in diapers."
"..."
"Why are you in such a hurry?"
"Of course I'm in a hurry! This is more intense than(#) a Huawei Mate60 Pro!"
(End of this chapter)