Xu An shook his head, walked over to the tuner on his own, turned on the computer beside it, and entered his email password.
"My arrangement is right here. Just extract it and upload it to the tuner."
Zhang Liang, who had followed him over, glanced at the computer screen, nodded, pulled up a chair, sat down, and began importing the file.
Once finished, he played the accompaniment through the tuner.
While not top-of-the-line, the audio equipment here was certainly first-tier in the domestic market, and the sound quality spoke for itself.
After listening for a moment, Zhang Liang couldn't help praising, "This arrangement is really good, especially the latter part. It really captures the Dunhuang style."
Although CCTV had a massive audience, it was impossible for everyone to watch, and Zhang Liang clearly hadn't seen it.
"I just added it on the spur of the moment. Shall we start recording now?"
Xu An was a bit anxious; he wanted to take this opportunity to make a trip back to Beijing and see for himself the girl named Yan Luomeng.
"You actually made this arrangement?" Zhang Liang looked surprised, then said, "No problem. We can record now if you're ready."
As far as he was concerned, any time was fine for recording.
"Then let's do it now." Without another word, Xu An walked straight into the recording booth, put on his headphones, and gave a thumbs-up gesture through the glass.
Seeing Xu An act so swiftly, Zhang Liang—who had participated in numerous recordings—was somewhat dumbfounded. Could he be any more casual?
Just then, the door of the recording studio was pushed open, and Chu Xingjun walked in wearing a white loungewear set.
Her long black hair fell loosely over her shoulders, her makeup was completely washed off, and she looked just woken up, devoid of any star image.
Yet even without makeup, Chu Xingjun's looks easily held their ground—easily a ninety-five out of ten.
Zhang Liang was just about to press the play button when he heard the door open. Turning around, his expression shifted to one of extreme surprise and delight: "Chu Xingjun!"
Inside the booth, Xu An felt a bit puzzled about why she wasn't properly recording her own songs and instead wandering over here.
And as for that tuner, aren't you going a bit too far? Talk about double standards!
Chu Xingjun smiled at Zhang Liang, then turned her gaze to Xu An inside the transparent glass: "I came to listen in. You don't mind, do you?"
Xu An shrugged. I'd like to mind, but what's the use? You're already here...
At that moment, Zhang Liang magically produced a notebook from somewhere, grabbed a pen in his other hand, and hurried over to Chu Xingjun with an excited tone: "Hello, hello! I'm a big fan. Could you give me an autograph?"
Although the studio owner had previously hinted at which celebrities would be coming, Zhang Liang had originally planned to wait until the recording finished before asking for a signature. He never expected one to deliver herself right to his doorstep, and he couldn't help marveling that an angel must have passed by and brushed against him.
Chu Xingjun put on no airs whatsoever. She took the notebook and pen, gracefully signed her name across the cover, and handed it back to Zhang Liang.
"Thank you so much, thank you~" Zhang Liang's hand trembled slightly as he held the notebook, overcome with excitement.
While Zhang Liang was thrilled, Xu An inside the recording booth felt rather disgruntled—the disparity in treatment was simply too glaring.
"Hey, hey, hey! Hurry up and record after you're done signing. You don't want to ask for a photo next, do you?"
This heavy hint of jealousy amused Chu Xingjun, who hadn't expected the guy to have this side to him.
As for Zhang Liang, upon hearing Xu An's words, he slapped himself hard on the forehead.
Just when Xu An thought the guy had finally remembered him, the rascal pulled out his phone instead, looking at Chu Xingjun with eager eyes: "Is it okay?"
Xu An: ？？？
Chu Xingjun: ...
Zhang Liang: ?(′???`) Heart shape
In the end, Chu Xingjun agreed to take a photo with Zhang Liang. Even though she was bare-faced, she didn't mind in the least.
With everything settled, Zhang Liang finally returned reluctantly to the tuner's desk and pressed the play button.
Listening to the accompaniment flowing through his headphones, Xu An couldn't be bothered to argue with them anymore. He rolled his eyes and instantly adjusted his mindset.
Meanwhile, Chu Xingjun sat on the sofa to the side, watching Xu An inside the recording booth.
"Forgotten sands flow and twist around fingertips.
Cloud-palace fairy with trailing water-sleeves.
Visitors arrive beneath the Jialan Bodhisattva tree.
A dream invites the dance of the Eight Legions.
..."
Hearing Xu An's gentle voice pour out from the speakers, even Chu Xingjun—who had already heard the song once before—couldn't help marveling at how breathtakingly beautiful it was, striking her anew with every listen.
As for Zhang Liang, who was hearing the song for the first time, his eyes gradually widened in sheer astonishment.
He had handled anywhere from eight hundred to a thousand songs in his career, but none of them could touch the quality of the piece before his eyes!
No wonder—no wonder even the pop princess of the Chinese music scene had come over to listen. The reason was right here.
At that moment, the door of Recording Studio No. 6 was pushed open again, and Xu Xingmo poked her head in, wearing a pink tracksuit to take a peek.
Hearing the music playing from the speakers, she immediately pushed the door open and walked in.
Chu Xingjun turned her head, spotted her, and looked slightly surprised. She didn't speak until the girl reached her side: "Why are you here?"
Xu Xingmo sat down beside Chu Xingjun, wrapped her arm around her, and laughed with a smile, "Why, aren't you here too?"
Seeing this, Chu Xingjun shook her head without pressing further, turning her attention back to Xu An, who had his eyes closed as he sang inside the booth.
"In a fleeting instant, vivid shadows float, casting light upon the palace.
Mistaking this era for a bygone age.
A light Huixuan dance, lanterns flickering, where to sleep eternal rest.
Accompanied by myriad stars reflecting across the heavens.
Snow buries and dyes, ten thousand rays of brilliant light chime, forming a Buddha niche with sound.
This journey leaves us in the dust, drinking from the feast of joy.
Though youthful faces change, how can the cave murals of bygone splendor be missing?
Only to awaken and watch the murals."
When the traditional operatic vocal style blended seamlessly with Xu An's gentle voice, it conquered the listeners present all over again.
Zhang Liang stood there as if struck dumb, his gaze fixed straight on Xu An through the transparent glass, unable to look away for a long time.
As the operatic vocals rang out, Chu Xingjun felt goosebumps erupt all over her body. Although it wasn't her first time hearing it, it was still utterly stunning.
"How on earth does his brain work? How can he combine traditional operatic singing with pop so harmoniously?"
Chu Xingjun watched Xu An and spoke to Xu Xingmo beside her.
Xu Xingmo was green with envy. "Who knows? It's not like nobody tried this kind of fusion before, but the final results were simply too ghastly to look at. Back then, my company even had a producer bug me to put out a single like this, but I refused flat out."
Everyone wanted to be the first to eat crab, but those who ate it first had already been poisoned; heaven knows what consequences would follow from trying again.
Major music companies had already given up on this kind of fusion because they couldn't see any path forward.
Well, now with Watching the Murals out, Xu An hadn't just carved out the path for everyone—he had even marked out the exact route. All they had to do was follow along.
"You were right to refuse back then. But looking at it now, the music industry is probably about to face a massive earthquake. The combination of operatic vocals and pop, or even operatic vocals and rock, is going to spring up endlessly. I wonder if this is a blessing or a curse for today's music scene."
Chu Xingjun felt a trace of worry, but anticipation outweighed it by far—after all, this was, by any measure, a brand-new genre.
......