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"...
I once crossed mountains and oceans,
And through seas of people.
I once had everything,
But it all vanished like smoke.
I once felt lost, hopeless, and directionless,
Until I saw that being ordinary was the only answer!
..."
This song, "Ordinary Road", was specially composed by Lu Chen for Zhonghua Auto's Yuanjing R100 travel car. With its characteristic Trip-Hop chord progression and strong folk influence, the track carried a slow, lyrical rhythm. Lu Chen's clear voice and soft delivery lent the song a quiet warmth laced with melancholy.
In the MV, Lu Chen personally edited using online footage, and cars and landscapes were the eternal theme. The shifting sceneries and his heartfelt, evocative vocals complemented each other, exuding a strange but compelling charm. Viewers couldn't help but feel as though their hearts were racing off into the distance along with the car on screen.
It was a song that offered the listener a sense of peace and youth, and helped them find direction amid confusion and sorrow.
"...
I'm just like you, like him, like the wild grass and flowers,
Perhaps this path was always destined to be mine.
Time slips away silently,
Tomorrow already calls, hiahia...
The road the wind has swept remains long ahead, so where were you last in your story?"
...
A look of surprise and subtle awe froze in Zhuang Jingwei's eyes.
Before watching this MV, MaiVision Advertising's creative director had been deeply skeptical of Lu Chen's "work." He was practically itching to give the young celebrity a reality check, to show him that in the world of professional advertising, not just anyone could step in and make noise.
But halfway through the video, Zhuang Jingwei fell completely silent.
From a purely technical production standpoint, the MV was extremely rough. The editing was amateurish, the transitions clunky and unnatural, a textbook novice effort.
If one of his own staff had produced something like this, Zhuang Jingwei wouldn't have hesitated to fire them on the spot.
But he wasn't so brainless as to criticize Lu Chen for that.
Because this was just a concept demo, like a storyboard for a film. The technique wasn't the point. What mattered was the concept, the creative direction, and the message.
And on those three most important fronts… Zhuang Jingwei couldn't find any real fault.
The soundtrack was excellent. The theme song was perfect.
The R100 was aimed at urban white-collar professionals aged 25–40, people with stable incomes and career success, but who increasingly yearned for freedom and soulful experiences.
Road trips and independent travel were lifestyle choices emblematic of this demographic.
And Lu Chen's creative vision, this MV, spoke directly to their emotional core. It was sincere, bold, and evocative of a journey through an extraordinary life.
The lyrics had a deliberate rawness, and the rap section at the end went straight for the heart. It expressed the true voice of its target audience, a rare and heartfelt anthem that captured deep, personal emotion.
Even Zhuang Jingwei, while watching and listening, felt a sudden urge to just pack up and hit the road.
Unlike typical auto ads, the video said nothing about vehicle specs or features. There wasn't even a single shot that explained what the car could do.
Instead, the MV was pure emotion and resonance.
And only that could truly move people.
As the final verse faded and the screen gradually went black, a silent line of text emerged:
"The body hasn't moved, but the heart is already far away."
Moments later, that line dissolved, and the logos for Zhonghua Auto and Yuanjing R100 quietly appeared.
The frame froze.
The room was silent. Time itself seemed to pause.
Then, someone began to clap.
And soon after, a wave of applause filled the conference room.
Half of the people present were executives from MaiVision Advertising. As professionals in the advertising field, even if they didn't analyze things as deeply as Zhuang Jingwei, they could still recognize a good advertisement when they saw one.
From a pure creative standpoint, the concept of this MV wasn't particularly novel or groundbreaking. Even if it were polished with a big budget and entered into international competitions, it likely wouldn't win any major awards.
However, the thematic alignment with the product was extremely high, and the theme song was nothing short of perfection. Within the context of the domestic market, this was without doubt an excellent piece of advertising work.
And when Lu Chen's popularity was factored in, the impact potential became impossible to ignore.
What left the advertising professionals, Zhuang Jingwei included, speechless was the fact that this impressive demonstration video had been edited and conceived by a pop singer, not one of their industry peers.
It was… a little embarrassing.
After the applause, Cai Jin turned to ask, "Director Zhuang, do you have any comments?"
Zhuang Jingwei gave it a moment of thought and replied seriously, "The concept and message are excellent. The theme song is top-tier. The core direction doesn't need to change. If we reshoot the commercial using this framework, it will definitely be an outstanding ad."
"I have full confidence in that."
He looked directly at Lu Chen, and with genuine admiration, said, "Mr. Lu Chen, it's an honor for me and for MaiVision to collaborate with such a talented artist as yourself."
His words brought smiles to everyone's faces.
The team from Zhonghua Auto had already seen the demo beforehand. What they needed now was professional validation. With MaiVision's recognition and praise, they felt confident, they had chosen the right spokesperson.
Time is money, and the sooner the commercial could be shot, the better it would serve the promotion of their new vehicle model.
For Zhuang Jingwei's colleagues, it was a rare sight to see their director so thoroughly convinced by a non-industry outsider. Some even found it amusing, and thought it would make for a great anecdote in the future.
As for Lu Xi, who had accompanied Lu Chen to the meeting, she was overjoyed. This essentially locked in the endorsement deal with Zhonghua Auto.
She also felt immensely proud of Lu Chen.
With just one song and a rough demo MV, Lu Chen had won over two influential collaborators with ease.
Lu Chen smiled and said, "Thank you. It's just as much my honor to collaborate with Zhonghua Auto and MaiVision Advertising."
There were no heated arguments, no political scheming, this three-party negotiation was surprisingly smooth and cordial. The representatives from Zhonghua Auto confirmed the advertising concept on the spot, and the discussion naturally moved on to details regarding the actual shoot.
Since Lu Chen had used online footage for the demo, most of it from domestic and international films, none of it could be used legally in the final production due to copyright restrictions. Some clips could be replaced with purchased stock footage, but many scenes would need to be re-shot.
As one of the key figures in the ad, Lu Chen's involvement in the shoot was inevitable. Early coordination became especially important.
The next day, Lu Chen's Workshop officially signed the endorsement deal with Zhonghua Auto.
12 million yuan over two years, not including extra payments for non-contractual work, like the song 'Ordinary Road', for which Zhonghua Auto agreed to pay an additional 500,000 yuan for usage rights.
With that first major endorsement payment in the account, the Workshop's financial situation greatly improved.
Production for the new TV drama was also pushed up on the agenda.
But before that, Lu Chen had one more major event to attend, The 72-Hour Music Festival!
(End of Chapter)