Chapter 507: Before the Concert

Chapter 507: Before the Concert

Ordinary singers generally needed to step up their physical training before a concert, especially for a solo show, which was a grueling test of endurance; without top-tier stamina, never mind a whole tour, even a single performance could prove overwhelming. Even if guest performers were invited to grant the host a brief respite mid-show, it wouldn't suffice, for while the audience's critical ear might dull toward the end of the night—swept away by euphoria or slipping into exhaustion—any dip in stamina that caused a shaky breath remained unforgivingly easy to detect.

For a star like Shi Shiwu, an annual tour posed no great challenge, given his vast repertoire of songs, a fiercely loyal fanbase, and consistently stellar box office returns for every venue; as to why he refrained from staging them frequently, the immense drain on physical strength and vitality stood as the primary reason.

Compared to appearing on variety shows, even as a seasoned regular on a seasonal program, a solo concert was genuinely exhausting—not merely the performance itself, but the relentless grind of the preparations beforehand.

Meng Fan differed vastly from other vocalists in two major respects: first, he harbored not the slightest anxiety regarding physical endurance, meaning that far from a single concert, he could easily weather another ten in succession; second, while other artists found themselves frantic and spent during the concert season, he left the bulk of the exhausting labor to Shi Shiwu, Jin Xiaowen, and their team, maintaining a life of serene leisure himself.

Prior to the first dress rehearsal, the crew on site, including Shi Shiwu and Jin Xiaowen, were consumed by a whirlwind of tasks, while Meng Fan strolled about with his hands clasped behind his back like an old man wandering through a public park, essentially left with nothing to do. After all, the songs had already been run through several times in the recording studio, and he had already found his rhythm with the live band; as for other matters, though he wished to help, he lacked the expertise. In short, after he inadvertently made things worse a few times, no one dared let Meng Fan interfere again.

On the ninth day, during the first rehearsal, the singing proved not the least bit tiring, but the various stage blocking and the coordination with the stage design and dancers left Meng Fan utterly spent. Fortunately, possessing great self-awareness, Meng Fan had reduced the required choreography with the dance troupe to an absolute minimum, leaving him with scarcely any dance moves to memorize; otherwise, the energy expended on preparing for this concert would likely have doubled.

For this particular rehearsal, the only guest performers present were Shi Shiwu and Jin Xiaowen—well, the two of them had been there every single day of late—whereas Bai Zhi and Su Qingcen were not scheduled to arrive until the following day for the final rehearsal, having already made two dedicated trips for prior practices, and Tan Jing was also due to arrive tomorrow.

Everything proceeded with remarkable smoothness.

As for the live broadcast, the decision had ultimately been made to proceed with it, utilizing no other venue than Station 8, and specifically within the very livestream room Meng Fan had always used, though the capacity for concurrent viewers had been expanded many times over, with several backup streams established to accommodate a truly massive audience.

Regarding the viewing options, Meng Fan had negotiated with Station 8 so that any viewer possessing fan value in that specific room could enter and watch free of charge; otherwise, entry required a Station 8 VIP membership, or the purchase of a ticket priced at 11.1.

The revenue-sharing model involved Station 8 purchasing the broadcasting rights for this concert outright for a substantial fee, with Meng Fan poised to earn additional profit shares from subsequent on-demand viewings. Station 8 estimated that, combined with the buyout fee, Meng Fan stood to gain an extra eight-figure income through the livestream alone; after all, the subsequent on-demand viewing included a share of advertising revenue, rendering it far more lucrative than the concert's box office sales.

The arrangement was highly intricate in its details, and Meng Fan understood little of it, but fortunately, dedicated professionals were handling the matter.

Meng Fan barely had to concern himself with the livestream affairs, as the broadcasting team adjusted entirely to his schedule, meaning the additional workload imposed upon Meng Fan's own concert crew was minimal.

The announcement regarding the livestream of Meng Fan's concert was only officially finalized on January 5th, with the formal public declaration occurring on the 8th. From the moment the official announcement dropped, the number of VIP purchases and renewals on Station 8 began to surge noticeably, and the volume of livestream tickets sold soared to more than a dozen times the historical peak for Station 8's ticketed streams before midnight on that very day—though ticketed streams themselves were rare, and their sales volumes typically modest.

Before midnight—or rather, strictly speaking, from the very moment they learned that Meng Fan's concert might be broadcast live—Station 8 knew with absolute certainty that securing the broadcasting rights would guarantee an immense profit. This profit encompassed far more than mere revenue from VIP memberships and ticket sales; the most vital gains lay in the massive influx of traffic and heightened user stickiness.

In the blink of an eye, January 11th arrived—the Single's Day, which was the very day of Meng Fan's concert.

The concert was not scheduled to begin until eight o'clock in the evening, yet by three o'clock in the afternoon, a small-scale party had already commenced at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center, taking the form of a cosplay gathering for a group of anime enthusiasts, whose chosen characters were drawn almost entirely from *The Wonders of the Mountains and Seas* and *There is a Soul Underground*.

A small portion of them had successfully secured tickets, another small portion had obtained them through various alternative means or lucky draws, while the vast majority had failed to purchase tickets at all; yet this brought only a tinge of regret, doing nothing to hinder their gathering that afternoon.

Yulong Xue was a cosplayer who commanded quite a reputation within the community, blessed with striking looks and an aura that carried a hint of classical elegance, paired with a remarkably ascetic gaze. Having majored in fashion design at university, he was also a content creator on Station 8, possessing talents that included backflips and sword dancing, which allowed him to slip into many roles with effortless grace.

Naturally, Yulong Xue was merely his stage name.

He had failed to secure a ticket himself, but his girlfriend had managed to "snatch" them, and she had even managed to secure two.

His girlfriend was likewise a cosplay enthusiast who had naturally attended this gathering, and the two had cosplayed as a romantic pair from *The Wonders of the Mountains and Seas*.

Speaking of which, the genesis of their relationship owed a great deal to Meng Fan.

The two had been among the earliest viewers in Meng Fan's livestream room, belonging to that original cohort who watched Meng Fan sketch back when he was still quite stout. Having joined the viewer group chat, their frequent banter eventually blossomed into an acquaintance; since both resided in Hangzhou, they finally met in person due to an offline gathering organized by Meng Fan—which, in truth, was merely a gathering Meng Fan frequently arranged back then to drag viewers out for karaoke in order to complete his "Karaoke King" achievement. Upon meeting, perhaps because both happened to be quite attractive, and because their hobbies shared so many overlaps, their conversations naturally grew increasingly intimate, and it was not long before they became a couple, having now been dating for a full year.

Though it had been a mere year, an extraordinary number of events had unfolded between them, both good and bad, marked by what could be described as profound twists and turns; not only was their emotional journey complex, but their lives had been filled with trials and deeply moving moments, to the extent that even Meng Fan had heard tales of their experiences.

This couple stood as fiercely loyal fans of Meng Fan and were among the organizers of this very gathering, dedicating whatever efforts they could muster to promote and publicize anything related to him.

Once the gathering concluded, the crowd departed to enjoy dinner nearby. Those holding tickets hurried over to line up outside the entrance of the comprehensive arena, waiting to gain entry, while those without tickets had long since booked out a quiet bar to gather and watch the livestream together. Their numbers were truly formidable, and they had gone to the trouble of decorating the establishment, creating a scene that mirrored the major bars during the World Cup—intensely thematic.

For the die-hard fans, this concert of Meng Fan's represented nothing less than a grand revelry, unfurling both within the arena walls and far beyond them.

(End of Chapter)