Chapter 97: Chapter 97 Actually… This Money Isn’t a Must to Earn
The deceased was a ninety-year-old grandmother, and coincidentally, the African man who did five hundred push-ups that day was her grandson.
At this moment, he knelt in the ancestral hall, crying loudly, “Grandma, grandma! How can we live without you?”
No technique, all emotion.
In the countryside, funerals aren’t that elaborate: set up a table, play the suona, perform the rituals, keep the body in the hall for two days, and then it can be carried up the mountain on the third day.
Ji Tian had stayed in this village for three days, and most of the villagers recognized them by now, knowing they were here to film a show. Curious eyes measured them up momentarily.
Under such scrutiny, Quan Jingyou felt a bit uneasy. He walked over to Ji Tian and whispered, “Sister Tian, even if you’re hungry, let’s wait for the banquet this afternoon. It’s still early, and the feast isn’t ready yet.”
...
“Think big; we are here to make money.”
Quan Jingyou: “…”
Seeing them, the African man stopped crying and hurriedly stood up, “Oh, why are you here? Do you need any help?”
Ji Tian looked around and spotted the suona, waist drums, drum set, gongs, cymbals, and sheng not far away.
And it seemed like everyone in the band had eaten something bad.
Ji Tian could only think… What great luck!
A chance to make some easy money.
She smiled slightly, “I’m here to help you.”
The African man’s face was full of question marks, his lips quivering as he slowly asked, “You said…”
“Well, aren’t you short on people to run things? Conveniently, I am a prospective student at the world-renowned Sunny Music Academy, my musical talent can only be described as ‘exaggerated,’ I’m proficient in twelve languages, familiar with songs from various countries, and my strongest skill is playing the suona. No emotion, all technique. Anyone who hears it will cry, and those who see it will feel heartache. Leave this band’s responsibilities to us, ensuring your grandmother leaves comfortably and worry-free.”
African man: “…”
Quan Jingyou and his team: “…”
I mean, you’re awesome, but you aren’t supposed to brag like this.
[Everyone, I’m speechless.]
[I’m clammed up too… Sunny Music Academy? What is that, I’ve never heard of this university? Since when did Ji Tian attend a music academy?]
[Think about the pun… seeing you off, haha, what kind of genius speaks twelve languages? Don’t be ridiculous.]
The African man was stunned for a while before he snapped back, “This is a funeral… and what makes you think I’d hire you?”
Ji Tian smiled even wider, “Because we’re professionals, and we’re cheap!”
“How much does the town’s suona band charge?”
“Five… five hundred.”
“How about this, since we know each other, I’ll charge you three hundred. My team is all elites skilled in playing instruments, singing, and rapping. You won’t be disappointed.”
Her team behind her: “…”
He Chenxi wanted to run, Yu Chuang wanted to escape, and Quan Jingyou awkwardly looked down.
Actually… earning this money isn’t absolutely necessary.
Just then, a villager who had gone to town came back with a worried expression, “Dazhuang, the town’s funeral band has gone elsewhere. What should we do now?”
The African man, named Dazhuang: “…”
What else could be done but to use Ji Tian’s not-so-reliable team.
Grudgingly, he agreed, “Alright, then I’ll give you a chance. It’s about to start soon; the instruments are over there, already set up. You know what kind of music should be played at a funeral, right?”
Ji Tian nodded seriously and pulled out her phone, “No problem, I’ll learn online in five minutes.”
Black Man: “???” Damn, a pirate ship!
But once he had agreed, there was nothing he could do about it; he might as well consider it a good deed!
Ji Tian turned around and started assigning tasks, “Sister Chenxi, can you play the sheng? It’s not hard. Yu Chuang will play the cymbals, Quan Jingyou will play the gong, Sister Jiangxue will play the waist drum. Qin Jiangsheng, can you handle the drum set?”
Qin Jiangsheng nodded, indicating he had no problem.
It seemed like only Qin Jiangsheng was willing to cooperate with Ji Tian; didn’t you see that none of the others even spoke up?
He Chenxi stayed silent for a few seconds before struggling to say, “I can… it’s just that we…”
“OK, let’s see some professionalism from you artists and grab this money.”
She created a WeChat group and pulled everyone into it all at once.
Then she sent a video into the group, a five-minute music tutorial.
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“You have three minutes to master this funeral music.”
“…”
Seeing Ji Tian was determined to make the money, the others started to accept the task with gloomy faces, which looked even more tragic than if someone had actually died.
Passers-by would all compliment them: “Very professional.”
It wasn’t too difficult. Thanks to her Midas touch, Ji Tian quickly learned it herself and then taught Quan Jingyou, paying careful attention to the rhythm and speaking confidently. Quan Jingyou found it wasn’t too difficult after learning.
As the leader of a girl group who had carved out her niche in a talent show, He Chenxi knew how to play all these instruments, but she disdained them. She even cleaned the sheng and suona before starting to practice.
The short five minutes felt as heavy as fifty years to them.
Wen Jiangxue, thinking the waist drum was too ugly and that it would reduce her attractiveness, borrowed an erhu and cheerfully took her position.
Yu Chuang, holding the cymbals, asked with some surprise, “Sister Jiangxue, you can play the erhu?”
Wen Jiangxue, after tuning the instrument, nodded and said, “Yes, I used to play the erhu at funerals in our village. I played it when my grandparents passed away. If I hadn’t been so poor and unable to afford school, I would have enrolled in an erhu class to improve my skills.”
Yu Chuang: “… Sorry, didn’t mean to bring up a sad subject.”
Wen Jiangxue smiled slyly: “It’s fine. I’m actually happy thinking about how I personally sent them off.”
“…”
No, sister, how am I supposed to respond to that!
[Here we go with the tragic backstory again, what era is it still that you can’t afford education? It’s ridiculous!]
[Get to work, dig up Wen Jiangxue’s past. She loves scoring internet points, well, I really want to see just how tough her life was.]
[No sense of filial piety at all. Her grandparents died, and she even dares to say she’s happy. I just want to ask, what kind of messed-up values do her fans have?]
Yu Chuang kept silent; this sister really did whatever she wanted and wasn’t afraid of offending the public…
But when he thought about her nearly ten million haters on her account, he suddenly understood.
When you’re hated to a certain extent, you become indifferent to fame and fortune and adopt a more Zen attitude—let the haters hate; it doesn’t affect her money-making.
The rest were all struggling with learning, except for the calm Qin Jiangsheng, who walked up to the drum set and performed an impromptu piece.
Instantly, he caught the attention of various onlookers.
His outstanding appearance and impressive height made him the focal point.
People sneakily took out their phones to capture his profile and went to their girls’ groups to ask which celebrity he was. Not getting an answer, they found the live studio of the “True Boss” show.
In an instant, a flood of strangers poured in.