Chapter 210: The Album’s Grand Success – The Dream Has Just Begun! (4K)
January 14.
Today is a special day.
Wang Ming, who usually enjoys sleeping until noon on weekends, dragged himself out of bed at six this morning.
He quickly threw on some clothes and, with a piece of bread clamped in his mouth, dashed out the door.
Destination: the only physical CD store in town.
Today, his grandfather, Tong Tai, had given him an order.
No matter what, he had to bring that precious item back home!
It was especially annoying because he was the one who started watching it first.
Now, his grandfather was more obsessed than he was! Not only did he babble about the tunes at home every day, but he also yanked the covers off Wang Ming this morning, forcing him out of bed in the chilly southern weather.
Of course, Wang Ming was actually looking forward to it. He had been planning for a long time!
But what he didn’t understand was:
“Why do I need to get up at six just to buy a CD?”
He grumbled as he breathed in the cold air.
However, when he finally reached his destination, he was left speechless.
At the small CD shop, a line stretched for dozens of meters, taking over the entire street!
From a distance, the heads looked tiny, like a line of caterpillars.
He quickly stopped a passerby from the queue.
“Hey! Bro, what are you all here to buy today?”
“Uh?”
The guy was taken aback for a second, then wore a ‘this is normal’ smile.
“Of course, we’re here for the new album by Moonlight and Cat!”
“There are so many people, and they’re all here for that??”
“Of course.”
The passerby shot back, “What about you? What’re you here for?”
“I’m here to buy the new album by Moonlight and Cat too.”
“Hahahahahaha!!”
As soon as he said that, everyone around burst out laughing.
The atmosphere was filled with joviality.
People threw him looks that said, “Are you for real?”
“You seriously think this is a good time to come? You must not have woken up yet.”
“Just queue up like a good boy behind us. We started lining up at four when it was still dark, and there were already twenty to thirty meters of us! I heard some people camped at the store entrance overnight. This is Moonlight and Cat’s album—we can’t take you seriously!”
In an instant, Wang Ming’s cheeks turned crimson, feeling like the sky was collapsing around him.
He quickly dashed to the end of the queue and started waiting.
As the motorcycle-riding boss casually appeared with a cigarette in his mouth, the entire queue buzzed with excitement.
In the glow of admiration, the boss rolled up the shutter door and opened the shop.
Finally, the queue began to move!
One after another, people stepped inside, then emerged with bags, beaming smiles plastered on their faces.
Those still waiting stretched their necks, filled with curious and excited expressions.
As a guy with an album squeezed past Wang Ming, his eyes bulged.
The guy was holding an album cover featuring half-body photos of Moonlight Brother and Cat!
This…this cover is ridiculously cool!!
Wang Ming’s excitement skyrocketed.
Nervously clutching his phone, he muttered in his head.
“123”
With each person who emerged from the store with CDs, the queue grew shorter.
Wang Ming found himself drawing countless crosses on his chest, praying.
Please!
Load up on stock!
And so, from eight in the morning, he waited until eleven.
Watching the guy in front of him walk away with ten albums in a supermarket bag, sporting a grin that could make a cat jealous, Wang Ming’s emotions hit a breaking point.
Finally, it was the turn of a girl in front of him. At the counter, she suddenly raised her hand and shouted,
“Boss! One copy of Rainy Days Wet! ”
“Sorry, we’re sold out for today. Come back another day.”
The boss, puffing out a smoke ring, said helplessly.
Instantly, the entire queue erupted with gasps of despair.
Some cursed, some hung their heads in defeat, while others screamed in disbelief.
Wang Ming quickly pushed his way to the front.
“So, when will you have more stock, boss?”
“Stock? We’re all out for the week! If you want, you’ll have to check the city, but I reckon they’ll be sold out there too.”
Wang Ming sank into despair at that news.
As he left the store, he bumped into a boy sitting on a street bench, joyfully admiring his newly bought album.
Then, he pulled out an old laptop from his backpack and plugged in the CD!
The boy settled back on the bench, put on his headphones, started listening, and glanced at the screen.
He grooved, lost in the music, occasionally laughing out loud.
Everyone around him itched with envy.
Low risk, high insult!
The crowd closed in, their faces twisted in annoyance.
“Hey, kid! What the heck do you know about Moonlight and Cat? Let me give you a listen!”
“You barely graduated middle school—what makes you think you understand this? Can a kid like you even grasp classical music?”
In no time, Wang Ming and a bunch of disgruntled comrades crammed next to the boy, ripping out the headphones and switching it to speaker mode.
A magical scene unfolded.
On the midday street, a massive group of adults huddled around a kid, clogging the sidewalk. Cheers and laughter erupted, sending passersby fleeing in terror, thinking a sinister ceremony was underway.
Since the laptop’s speakers were tiny, any random chatter from the crowd was quickly shushed; it was like an instant eviction from the group!
Amid this freebie frenzy, Wang Ming finally got a glimpse of the album’s full glory.
This Rainy Days Wet CD not only featured numerous unpublished tracks from Moonlight and Cat, like the four movements of “E Minor Cello Concerto” and “G Minor ‘Pathetique’ Symphony,” but also a special edition MV of One Step Away—a complete live recording.
The bonus content was nearly as extensive as the duo’s prior releases.
The DLC size was even bigger than the main album!
Who could resist that?
Thus, the CD’s price of 168 yuan was seen as a steal in the eyes of all the music fans.
No wonder everyone was clamoring to get one.
Wang Ming had no choice but to savor the details himself and narrate them to his grandfather when he got home.
By the time Lin Tian got the news, the studio was in an uproar.
He Zhi Chen sent Lin Tian three messages to report on the situation.
They expected sales to be high but never this explosive!
On the first day of launch, physical CD stores nationwide were practically wiped clean!
Videos of long lines went viral on Douyin.
Numerous fans called in, complaining about their inability to purchase the album, accusing the company of starvation marketing; some even resorted to cursing up a storm.
That day, the customer service department was in shambles. The phone kept ringing with complaints and inquiries about when they could secure a copy.
The production and manufacturing departments were ordered to work overtime to ramp up production of Rainy Days Wet.
It was the first time in the company’s 20-year history that a new album’s launch announced an increase in production on day one.
Even the old chairman couldn’t help but exclaim:
“Having these two kids is a blessing for our company.”
Later that day, the official Weibo account announced they were expanding record production and expected to open up pre-orders for a second batch within three days.
At last, the uproar began to calm down.
And after that day, the internet erupted with a bizarre trend.
Many who had gotten their hands on the Moonlight and Cat physical album began posting videos on Douyin and Bilibili.
Various pretentious “unboxing” and “first impressions” videos flooded the shows—filled with nothing but bragging!
Netizens couldn’t help but feel envious.
“d*mn! If I had known, I would have pre-ordered! Who knew it would be this hard to snag one!”
“Ugh, it’s not an electronic product—how can you test it? It’s clearly just showing off!”
“Call me ‘bro,’ and I’ll randomly give away three copies of the new album to you!”
“Does anyone have an extra copy? I really want one!”
With all that happening, the album’s value quickly diminished.
Holding a copy of Rainy Days Wet now was like a badge of honor on the internet.
Even F426 would think twice before laying claim to being the ruler.
If it were just straightforward bragging, everyone could roll with it!
But what really irked people was how some had begun to get creative.
“Hey, everyone come help me figure out how to wear these stockings?”
—“Hey, isn’t this Rainy Days Wet, the debut album I just got for 168 bucks, complete with the One Step Away bonus MV where you can see Moonlight Brother and Cat Sister’s original dance?!”
This drove netizens bonkers!
Scrolling through videos, suddenly seeing someone whip out the album mid-clip sent everyone fuming.
The two most detested situations online—
Zero frame starts and super long buildups!
It was like waiting for the cosmic respawn!
On secondhand platforms, a brand new, unopened copy of Rainy Days Wet was being resold for over a thousand yuan, six times its original price, and even that was hard to find!
“..”
Watching this madness unfold online, Lin Tian was floored.
He had no idea an album would create such a monumental impact.
Had they really overhyped it?
Meanwhile, following He Zhi Chen’s suggestion, Lin Tian logged onto a forum called “Light of Music.”
This was a specialized community for discussing pure music, packed with professionals and enthusiasts alike, including certified musicians. The place was mostly serious, with little entertainment value, making it unfriendly to outsiders.
It was essentially the most authoritative forum in the music circle.
Before the album was released, Lin Tian had logged in before, but back then, discussions about him were few; most exchanges focused on composers from HX-board.
Now, upon logging in again, “Moonlight and Cat” dominated the threads.
On the HX-board Tianchao chart, today, the names Moonlight and Cat surged to the top, with first-day physical CD sales at “43,200” and “915,400” in single-day streaming volume.
On the HX-board musician ranking, their names even made it to the “98th” position.
To put this into perspective:
The HX-board musician ranks get updated every quarter and majorly reset once a year; typical fluctuations are minimal.
Rankings usually consider a musician’s history over the last five years!
So, breaking into the TOP100 meant significant contributions to the Tianchao music scene.
In short, Moonlight and Cat had managed to enter TOP100 with just one album.
Suddenly, the “Light of Music” forum erupted.
【Who are Moonlight and Cat? They’re in the TOP100 just with their debut album?】
【Internet-famous with built-in traffic, high sales are to be expected, but this track quality… is downright terrifying. I’ve listened, and their compositional ability is absolutely top-notch!】
【Did you hear they’re only 18? Haha, I feel like some folks in our country are going to get anxious!】
【Next quarter’s HX-board refresh is bound to expose the charlatans—we definitely need Moonlight to shake things up in this scene. Some old geezers have gotten far too comfortable!】
【..】
All at once, whether in entertainment, the music world, or from the high school starstruck fans to older lovers of music, everyone began noticing this incredible duo thanks to Rainy Days Wet, sparking endless discussion.
Meanwhile, in a coffee shop.
Gan Yan Yu lounged on the sofa, staring at her phone.
She scrolled through comments, critiques, and various anecdotes stemming from album purchases.
The girl’s expression, initially tense, gradually eased into a smile as she read through the remarks.
“..”
Seeing this made Lin Tian fully grasp Gan Yan Yu’s feelings.
For her,
Besides the Ke’er Cup,
Her biggest dream is to let more people hear her music.
Especially to make more folks fall in love with classical music!
In Tianchao, most young people completely disregard classical music, or they don’t understand it at all.
Seeing people gradually warm up to music made Gan Yan Yu incredibly happy.
Being able to keep pursuing this passion was a rare blessing for her.
But.
This is just the beginning!
The first album has just been released.
The dream has only just started!
Now, there were more important things to tackle.
“Teacher Gan,”
Lin Tian stood up and approached Gan Yan Yu.
He placed a notebook in front of her.
On the very day the album launched, Lin Tian hadn’t been idle.
“I’ve already written the piece for our performance in a few days’ finals.”
“A new piece?”
Gan Yan Yu sat up, surprised.
Because Lin Tian had never mentioned it to her before; she assumed he would have her keep trying Ode to Love.
“After this semi-final, I thought a lot. Regardless of the outcome, I hope we can finish the Ke’er Cup performance in a relaxed and enjoyable manner,” Lin Tian said earnestly.
Gan Yan Yu glanced down at the notebook to see the title—
Hungarian Dance No. 5 in G Minor.
(End of Chapter)
