Mysterious Assistant of the Washed-Up Queen-Chapter 434 - 294: Classic, another classic! The server crashed! _2
Xu Qingqiu actually wanted to say that she’d be utterly embarrassed to be seen without washing her face, but hearing Chu Tian’s words, she worried that it would be even worse if she truly wasn’t in the right state tomorrow.
After some hesitation, she ultimately gave up on washing her face, put on her sunglasses and mask, and hurriedly went downstairs.
Chu Tian wanted to follow her, but he still had to worry about the album. Besides, Sister Hua and Yiyi were already accompanying her. If he left too, there would be no one left to make decisions, so he had no choice but to abandon the idea.
Watching the car depart, Chu Tian zoned out for a moment but didn’t linger. Going home would waste too much time, so he decided to make do with staying at the studio.
「The next morning at eight o’clock」
Chu Tian washed his face in the restroom. When he returned, he saw that the employees had all arrived early.
It was a critical moment for the new album. Everyone knew the drill, so the usual nine-to-six schedule had to be set aside for now. They generally arrived early and left late, prioritizing the project above all else.
"Meng, I want you to summarize the public sentiment information and get it to me within half an hour."
"Yuan, send me last night’s download data and kick off today’s promotion plan."
"Also, have the other two songs been linked up with the music platforms? Check again to ensure they go live on schedule. If there’s any issue, come straight to me. Don’t hesitate. Do you all understand?"
After a moderately-sized morning meeting to discuss key issues, the studio once again became a hive of bustling activity.
Right on time, the music platforms synchronized the release, and Xu Qingqiu’s new album page was updated with two new songs.
The first banner on the music platform client’s homepage carousel was a promotional image for Xu Qingqiu’s new album.
Early-rising fans and casual listeners, following their usual habit, couldn’t help clicking to take a look and happened to see the two new songs pop up.
"Damn, first!"
"Seriously? Dropping new songs without any warning?"
A quick-fingered netizen immediately posted two comments in a row. After about half a minute, more comments started flooding in.
"Dude, your fingers are way too fast! You snatched the first comment, and you’re not even leaving the second (the floor) for anyone else?"
"Is it possible you’re the one who’s too quick? I just saw the notification and came right over, but you, you beat me to it."
He really was too quick. Normally, both the song releases and the official announcements are sent out at scheduled times.
But nobody expected someone to ignore the notifications and wait directly on the album’s dedicated page.
Once all the official studio accounts released the information simultaneously, everyone who had set up notifications rushed over. But they were no match for those already waiting.
As for why there wasn’t a notification last night? Well, Chu Tian hadn’t even finished recording the songs. He wasn’t even sure how many could be released the next day. The current release was completely rushed, an attempt to get ahead of the Spring Festival Gala.
All plans were made on the fly, with no time to prepare and coordinate properly. The entire operation was being meticulously managed and pushed through by the team in real-time.
Ideally, new songs would be released daily, but who knew if a day might come with no new songs, leading to a gap.
Chu Tian was now doing his utmost to avoid such a situation, let alone pre-scheduling release times.
After all, Xu Qingqiu wasn’t currently chasing numbers but influence and recognition. Thus, the short-term data of the songs weren’t that important. Instead, the popularity generated by long-term marketing was crucial.
This was also why they were releasing songs so far in advance while still recording. He had other strategies up his sleeve.
"Just as I thought! Is this entire album going to be filled with couple-y stuff that makes us singles jealous? I feel personally attacked!"
"Haha, two new songs! ’Finally Waiting for You’ and ’As Love Approaches’? Sweet romance, I like it!"
"’Encounter,’ ’Finally Waiting for You,’ ’As Love Approaches’... Hmm, why do I feel like this reflects President Xu’s life experiences? Could Youmeng have specially tailored it for her?"
"Damn, I wouldn’t have even realized if you hadn’t pointed it out! My wild guess is they’re going to make the entire journey—meeting, getting acquainted, discovering love, falling deeply in love, and passionate romance—into one album, right? If that’s true, that’s incredible!"
"Whoa, commenter above, don’t freak me out! After what you said, I can’t decide if President Xu is more amazing or if Youmeng is!"
"Do you even have to ask? Obviously, Youmeng is amazing! This is custom-made, isn’t it? And if every song is this classic, it’ll be legendary, right?"
"Guys, why don’t we listen to the songs first?"
"Sorry, already listened. ’Finally Waiting for You’ gets a thumbs up! Currently listening to ’As Love Approaches’—highly recommend!!"
"You’re awesome! I’m going to listen to the songs now..."
While they were still discussing, things exploded elsewhere.
"Holy crap! The Free Music server crashed!!"
"What, what? Whose crashed?"
"The Free Music servers! Too many people tried to log in this morning, and it crashed. I was listening to a song and reading comments, then it lagged and went straight to a 404 error!"
"Hahaha, the server crashed! I’m dying! I was just trying to make a purchase, and I couldn’t even complete the payment."
In an instant, as users of Free Music scattered, news of the server crash spread like wildfire, quickly surging to the top of trending searches.
And displayed prominently under the trending search entry was a sentence:
[Xu Qingqiu’s new album releases two more singles, leading to Free Music’s server crash due to user overload]
Onlooking netizens who saw this news grew curious.
"Goodness, what kind of songs are these to cause such a stir? I’ve heard of Weibo’s servers crashing, and forum servers too, but this is the first time I’m hearing about a music platform’s servers crashing."
"Does Xu Qingqiu have that many fans? Enough to crash the servers?"
"Hmph, obviously the work of obsessive fans. Didn’t some K-pop idol go to America a few years ago and overwhelm their Billboard charts? Then the Americans got the obsessive fans trending with criticism."
"Bro, Xu Qingqiu isn’t just some viral singer; she’s got legit talent. Listen for yourself, and you’ll know."
Actually, there was no need to actively seek them out; by this time, the new songs had already spread to other platforms.
Not only short video platforms but even Weibo had them now.
The only regrettable thing was that the MVs hadn’t been filmed yet, so without exception, all the videos circulating online were unofficial edits or montages.
"Finally waiting for you, I almost missed you"
"Meeting you in the prime of my life"
"Means I haven’t failed myself"
...
Seeing these lyrics, paired with scenes from various romantic TV dramas, many sentimental people found themselves smiling happily, loving the songs more with each listen.
And some who harbored regrets were moved to tears.
"I, too, once met the most compatible person but accidentally lost him."
"Back then, we were the same, with eyes only for each other. We also thought we’d be happy forever, but in the end, we lost to reality."
Beneath each video, comments were clearly divided into two distinct groups.
Happy people flaunted their bliss with countless photos: couple shots, wedding pictures, and marriage certificates, a visual flood of joy.
Meanwhile, those with bittersweet memories seemed to console each other, sharing their pasts and trying to come to terms with irreplaceable regrets.
"Every time love draws near"
"It feels like he’s holding you tightly"
"He stirs your heart"
"Covers your eyes"
"And won’t let you know where to go"
Two different songs, with different melodies, yet telling the same story.
The sweetness seemed to pour out from the screen, immersing everyone who listened in happiness.
"BOO HOO HOO, this song is so sweet, but why do I feel so sad~"
"BOO HOO HOO~ I’m not sad because I have a partner! Person above, are you sad because you’re single?"
"Wow, man, that’s a low blow. I’m single too..."
"Hahahaha, this song is so good, look, my girlfriend even fell asleep listening to it [Girlfriend asleep on boy’s lap.jpg]"
"Reported, you’re welcome. You found love, but you’re about to lose your username! Single friends, let’s do this, give him a hard time!"
"PFFT~ That’s harsh, I love it! Reported him too. Bro, try not to be such a jerk in your next life."
"Hahaha, he lost his username—serves him right for showing off! It’s hilarious. What goes around comes around, truly!"
"No, bros, go easy on me! It was just a joke, are you guys serious? The platform already warned me, stop messing around! This is a couple’s username; if I lose it, my girlfriend will kill me! [Screenshot.jpg]"
While netizens were having a blast here, Weibo seemed to be having its own simultaneous carnival.
[Classic! Another classic! Youmeng is truly a big shot! I bet this will be another divine album!]
[I’m convinced. After writing songs for over a decade, I declare Youmeng to be the only god in my heart for this lifetime!]
[With three classic songs now released, what are Xu Qingqiu’s limits?]
