Chapter 51 Copyright

Next, Cao Zhongyun fulfilled his role by pointing out some minor fingering flaws in Xiao Yao's playing and teaching him a few techniques on how to breathe imperceptibly while playing. Although he pointed out quite a few issues, Cao Zhongyun still gave a sincere and high evaluation of Xiao Yao's performance level. Among children in the same age group, or even among slightly older ones, Xiao Yao's proficiency could be considered exceptionally outstanding.

With the instrument introduction concluded, the segment should have naturally ended. However, since the director had previously informed Wang Yuan to add a segment showcasing Xiao Yao's calligraphy, Wang Yuan had no choice but to ask Cao Zhongyun to return backstage for a moment.

Facing the audience once again, Wang Yuan said, "Friends familiar with our show's flow should know that by now, our program should be coming to an end. But today, we have an Easter egg prepared for everyone."

"Oh?" Prompted by Wang Yuan's words, the audience members, who had just been feeling somewhat puzzled, instantly perked up with interest.

"Everyone should remember Ba Yi mentioning at the beginning of the show that he has studied calligraphy. So, our Easter egg today is to let Ba Yi wield his brush and ink right here on the spot. Would everyone like to see Ba Yi's calligraphy?"

"Yes!" shouted the audience below in unison. Today they were truly here to witness a prodigy. Those internet trolls claiming that Xiao Yao's performance was stage-managed by the production team could go drown in sorrow.

"Come on, bring out the Four Treasures of the Study!" Wang Yuan called out to the staff below the stage.

Receiving the instruction, two staff members immediately lifted a desk equipped with the Four Treasures of the Study and placed it right in the center of the stage.

"Please go ahead, Ba Yi, let us witness your calligraphy," Wang Yuan said to Xiao Yao.

After a brief moment of surprise, adopting the attitude of accepting whatever came his way, Xiao Yao walked up to the desk and began to grind the ink.

Since this was the live recording stage of Day Day Up, Xiao Yao simply wrote four large characters: "Tian Tian Xiang Shang" (Upward and Onward).

The characters were written quite well in a standard running script. Although one could not discern any particularly striking individual bone structure or style, there was nothing to fault purely in terms of form. It was just that these four characters had relatively few strokes and appeared slightly simple. Just as Wang Yuan was about to open his mouth and ask Xiao Yao to write something else, Xiao Yao formally added an inscription on the far left of the white paper: "Inscribed by Xiao Yao on the twenty-eighth day of the ninth month of the Gengchen year." The characters for "Yao", "Geng", and "Ti" contained quite a number of strokes. Coupled with the fact that Xiao Yao actually knew how to write the lunar date and the character for "twenty" (nián), this piece of calligraphy was certainly presentable enough, sparing Wang Yuan the need to ask Xiao Yao for anything else.

At this moment, Xiao Siqi suddenly took out his smartphone from his pocket, operated it for a moment, and then whispered a few words into Wang Yuan's ear.

Upon hearing this, Wang Yuan immediately beamed with joy and asked in a low voice, "Really? Let me see."

"Here you go," Xiao Siqi said as he handed the phone over.

Wang Yuan glanced at it, immediately raised the phone towards the cameraman, and said, "Here, give us a close-up." He then instructed the director, "Director, please split the screen: put the calligraphy Ba Yi just wrote on one half, and cut to this close-up on the other."

Everyone looked towards the massive screen with curiosity. As it turned out, the close-up of the phone on the big screen displayed a photograph. The photo showed a piece of plaster cast, upon which were scrawled the crooked signature of the three characters "Xiao Ba Yi".

Wang Yuan smiled and explained, "This plaster signature was signed by Ba Yi a year and a half ago after their family was involved in a car accident, right on the cast wrapped around his father's injured arm. Everyone take a look at it alongside the calligraphy Ba Yi just wrote—isn't it quite interesting? It looks completely unlike something written by the same person."

"Dad, is there anyone else who would sabotage their own son like this?" Xiao Yao complained with a feigned look of dissatisfaction, covering his face with his hands as if he couldn't bear to watch.

The audience finally understood Wang Yuan's intention and burst into happy laughter. Nevertheless, everyone expressed their appreciation for Xiao Yao's current handwriting with enthusiastic applause.

Only then could the recording of the show be considered truly concluded.

With the recording finished, the five hosts and the father-son duo of Xiao Siqi returned backstage together. Wang Yuan said to Xiao Siqi, "You've both worked hard today. Do you have any other itinerary planned for tonight? If not, let me treat the two of you to dinner."

After a recording session wrapped up, provided the guests' schedules permitted and it didn't interfere with their work itineraries, Wang Yuan made it a habit to invite them out for dinner. This had long become second nature to him. Currently holding the rank of a top-tier gold-medal host in the country, Wang Yuan possessed deeply rooted connections within the entertainment industry. Aside from his own agreeable temperament and personality, his meticulous handling of such details was precisely one of the most vital reasons for his extensive network.

Having previously appeared on Wang Yuan's show, Xiao Siqi was somewhat familiar with this habit of his. Last time, being busy with album promotions and having a fully packed schedule, he had felt rather guilty about turning down the invitation. Since they happened to have free time today, he naturally accepted on the spot.

"What about you folks?" Wang Yuan turned to ask the other hosts standing nearby. Wang Yuan took great care of his younger colleagues and junior partners, always trying to bring them along for such occasions. While they didn't have to spend their own money on meals, it gave them opportunities to privately interact with industry stars, which accumulated valuable connections for their own future development.

The other four likewise expressed that they were free and willing to join the dinner. Xiao Siqi was currently surging in popularity and possessed such a prodigal son; interacting more with this father-son pair would undoubtedly benefit their future prospects.

Having agreed to meet in the first-floor lobby, the guests and hosts went back to their respective lounges and dressing rooms to change clothes.

When Xiao Siqi led Xiao Yao out of the lounge and into the first-floor lobby, he discovered that Wang Yuan and the other hosts had not yet appeared. Instead, Mr. Cao Zhongyun, whom they had met during the recording, was standing near the entrance of the lobby, looking around with a slightly anxious expression. Spotting the appearance of Xiao Siqi and his son, Cao Zhongyun immediately hurried over.

"Hello, Mr. Xiao," Cao Zhongyun took the initiative to extend his hand.

"Oh, hello Mr. Cao. Is there something you need me for?" Xiao Siqi asked with a hint of perplexity.

"Yes," Cao Zhongyun nodded and said, "It is a bit presumptuous, but there is indeed a matter I would like to ask Mr. Xiao's help with."

"Please don't stand on ceremony. What is it? Do go ahead," Xiao Siqi replied.

"It's like this: I listened to that Ocarina tune Xiao Yao played earlier, and I felt it was a truly superb piece of work. I remember you mentioning that it was composed by someone named . I would love to meet this person, but apart from you, who has collaborated with him on lyrics and composition, it seems no one else knows who he is. Therefore, I wanted to ask for your help in arranging a meeting between us. Or, if you don't have the time to arrange it, just tell me who he is and where he lives, and I can pay him a visit myself," Cao Zhongyun said earnestly.

"Ah?" Xiao Siqi said with a somewhat troubled expression, "This person has a rather peculiar temperament and is quite reluctant to disclose his identity. I previously promised him that I would keep his identity confidential, so your request for a meeting is probably something I cannot fulfill." Pausing for a moment as he observed Cao Zhongyun's look of disappointment, Xiao Siqi added, "However, I don't know what your purpose is in wanting to meet him. As long as you don't need to know his true identity, I can help convey your other requests to him and then pass his decision back to you."

A flicker of hope reignited within Cao Zhongyun, and he immediately said, "It's like this: I liked that ocarina piece very much just now, so I'd love to get acquainted with the author and exchange ideas. Moreover, I currently have a film scoring project on my hands, and I believe a certain segment of it would be a perfect fit for that ocarina piece, so I'd like to include it in the soundtrack. This involves copyright issues, and we also need to discuss compensation regarding this matter."

"I see," Xiao Siqi subconsciously glanced at Xiao Yao. However, it was certainly inconvenient for Xiao Yao to show any reaction at this moment, so he could only look on with a blank expression. After pondering for a moment, Xiao Siqi said, "Arranging a meeting, I'm afraid, will be quite difficult. Based on my understanding of him, he is not very willing to meet strangers. However, I think the matter of authorization is negotiable. How about this: after I go back, I will contact him and convey your thoughts. Please leave me your contact information, and once there's a result, I will notify you. How does that sound?"

"Of course, thank you," Cao Zhongyun pulled out a business card and handed it to Xiao Siqi, saying, "This is my card. Just call the number on it directly once there is a result. Of course, I know you are also an outstanding musician; even if this matter doesn't pan out, we can still exchange ideas in the future, or perhaps even have the opportunity to collaborate."

"Certainly," Xiao Siqi responded with a smile, "I apologize, but my manager had to leave early for some matters, so I didn't bring any business cards with me. However, regardless of whether this works out or not, I will contact you with a reply, and by then you'll have my contact information."

"Oh, why are the two of you chatting here?" At this moment, Wang Yuan emerged with the other hosts. Catching sight of the two people chatting in the lobby at a glance, he walked over and said with a smile.

Cao Zhongyun and Xiao Siqi briefly filled Wang Yuan and the others in on the matter they had just discussed, which naturally provoked another round of comments from the group regarding the mysterious . The gossipy hosts took the opportunity to pressure Xiao Siqi once more about that person's true identity, but Xiao Siqi remained tight-lipped as ever.

"We're all going out to dinner together—would Mr. Cao care to join us?" Seeing that Xiao Siqi refused to budge, Wang Yuan shifted his attention to Cao Zhongyun and extended an invitation.

"I'm sorry, I have matters to attend to, so I won't be going. Thank you for the invitation," Cao Zhongyun said. With that, he bade farewell and departed.

"Where is your manager, Ms. Xu?" Wang Yuan watched Cao Zhongyun leave, only to realize that aside from Xiao Yao, Xiao Siqi was the only one left in the lobby, so he asked.

"Sister Xu had to leave early for something and asked me to say sorry to you. Tonight it's just the two of us father and son," Xiao Siqi said with a touch of embarrassment.

"It's nothing, what's there to apologize for? Work comes first," Wang Yuan waved his hand dismissively and turned to say, "Then let's set off."

Wang Yuan led the group to a specialty Hunan restaurant known for its good privacy, and they enjoyed a hearty meal.

During the banquet, the hosts inevitably broke out in sighs of amazement once more over Xiao Yao's performance on the show. Xiao Yao remained silent and reserved, while Xiao Siqi wore an expression of undisguised pride.

Aside from discussing Xiao Yao, Wang Yuan also expressed some emotional reflections regarding this episode of the show. His general sentiment was that nowadays, the popularity of Western musical instruments far surpassed that of traditional Chinese instruments. Currently, whether they were children or young adults, far more people studied Western instruments than traditional ones.

Wang Yuan's words carried no targeted intent; after all, this was simply the current status quo, not something that any single individual or small group of people could change overnight. The instruments popular worldwide nowadays were limited to just those few, and it wasn't just China—the indigenous instruments of many countries lagged behind universally recognized world instruments like the guitar and piano in terms of popularity.

Yet, Xiao Siqi unconsciously drew associations to Xiao Yao. Today, Xiao Yao had demonstrated two instruments—the ukulele and the ocarina—both of which were foreign instruments, while indigenous instruments like the pipa and xun were not among them. Smiling, he said to Wang Yuan, "Brother Yuan, you don't need to be too pessimistic. The whole situation is like this worldwide. Although native instruments aren't as popular as the guitar or piano, at least Chinese instruments possess a very long historical accumulation, so there's no need to worry about the heritage being cut off. Take Ba Yi for example: although all the instruments I've taught him are Western ones, and the ones he demonstrated today were also Western, he isn't completely devoid of interest in native instruments. The last time we went to Zhejiang Province, he even specifically sought out a local elderly person to learn how to play the erhu."

"Ba Yi knows how to play the erhu too?" Wang Yuan and the others were completely rendered speechless regarding Xiao Yao. Just how many things did this prodigy know how to do?

"Not really, the time I spent studying it wasn't long. The basic techniques and scales are clear to me, but as for complete tunes, I can currently only play one or two," Xiao Yao said modestly. He certainly wasn't going to mention that he had only studied it for a little over an hour.

"If I had known, we should have let Ba Yi showcase that on the show as well," Wang Yuan said regretfully.

Xiao Yao remained silent, but Wang Yuan's lament had stirred up a train of thought in his mind. Xiao Yao remembered that in his past life, there was a musical ensemble called the "Twelve Girls Band," which was a musical group specializing in the performance of ethnic musical instruments. Through modern packaging, supplemented by drum kits and electronic sound effects, they greatly enhanced the visual appeal and listenability of ethnic instrument performances. They became quite popular for a period and expanded the audience base for ethnic instruments significantly. He had listened to some of their tunes; they felt very novel and wonderful. No similar ensemble had emerged in this world yet. While it would still be somewhat difficult for him to undertake this right now, once he grew up, if no such group had appeared yet, could he organize and start one himself?