Generation Z Artists

Chapter 107 New Year's Eve, Domination

The cultural world in the last century was by no means harmonious, with everyone doing well.

It is common for writers to rant in newspapers, and they are usually very blunt.

What gradually curbed this phenomenon was not the rise of the Internet, but the expansion of the economic scale and the expansion of the industry itself.

In other words, everyone has money, everyone has new shoes, and naturally begins to value their reputation. The open wars within various industries have gradually turned into covert wars, and industry executives have also begun to work hard to maintain superficial peace and harmony.

At this moment, at the tail end of the chaotic period, the verbal battles are still very intense.

The famous and upright sects called the Blood Blade disciples "shoulders" and "pot-selling thieves", the evil sect masters called the government's tyranny, and the little hooligans called the big hooligans "stinky hooligans"...

For example, in April this year, Yu Jian satirized a certain academic poet for "being in the glass house of rhetoric" and getting dirty wherever he went.

Also this year, when Yangshuo and Jin Yong opened their film business, they called Jin Yong's novels "the first of the four vulgarities" and compared martial arts literature to "spiritual Viagra for adults", which caused a big stir.

But there has never been anyone who can write a bunch of highly contagious golden sentences like Fang Xinghe, in a cool snap, and pile them all on one person's forehead, while making them vigorous, incisive, and hurtful, and making the public talk about them with relish.

As soon as the response was published, Bian Que became famous.

There were no homemade emoticons on the Internet yet, but in every forum one could see people replying with those three sentences.

“People fly in the sky, their souls chase them on the ground” has also become popular. Comparatively speaking, this jingle is the most profound, so it has been quoted by many newspapers and magazines, and has become a sentence pattern specifically used to describe “the hasty rescue efforts of those who are high and mighty and their high and mighty attitudes after being broken, but the end is doomed”.

In just 10 words, a very complex dynamic situation, from causes to current situation to development to results, is condensed completely, and it is so vivid and interesting that it deserves to be sought after.

And "this person is very soft" instantly became popular in schools at all levels. From junior high school to university, boys often say "this person is very soft". It is perfect when said in a joking tone which is neither too intense nor with some half-true and half-false sarcasm.

Brothers can joke with each other for real, and they can also pretend to joke when they don’t get along. It is very practical and attracts students to imitate it.

Finally, there is the sentence “XX, this is how my life is.”

The tone of the sentence itself is condescending, and the emotions it expresses are regret, pity and disdain. The final conclusion has a sense of authority and power. It is applicable to all age groups and any occasion, so it is the most popular.

In fact, this sentence cannot be considered original, as there are similar expressions in various folk dialects. However, Fang Xinghe used it well and cleverly, so it was given more cultural significance and created a meme.

So, what will happen when a bunch of such fresh and interesting memes are put on one person at the same time?
Three levels exploded simultaneously.

At the general public level, the onlookers had an orgasm on the spot, and Shuo Ye’s fans were so angry that they urinated blood.

At the media level, they were full of enthusiasm and started live broadcasting the grand event of the group opening.

On a personal level, Master Shuo was so upset that he responded with insults that very day, and it was published in an evening newspaper in Beijing without even being published overnight.

Then once he started ranting, most of the Beijing circle followed suit, and it started the next day with a big bang.

Afterwards, a large number of Wang Shuo's fans came out and directed their fire at Fang Xinghe.

In this era, Yang Shuo really has a large number of fans. The Z generation feels that he has no ability, no works, and no achievements, which is actually not objective.

He was just eliminated by the rapidly developing era, not that he was a bad player from the beginning.

If we look at it from a perspective of the times, his works were indeed very enjoyable to read in the early years. The success of the film and television dramas adapted from them is enough to prove that the core of his works can perfectly meet the spiritual needs of the general public.

Fang Xinghe certainly understood this principle. When he first prepared "Cang Ye Xue", he decided to "keep pace with the times and only go half a step ahead."

But the problem now is that, based on the work in 99, you, Brother Fang, were half a step ahead of the times, about 5 to 6 years in advance, and created new youth literature in advance, while Yang Shuo's works are still stuck in the early 90s. The gap is a full ten years.

Then, separation becomes inevitable.

The Shuo fans of the previous generation criticized Fang Xinghe crazily, but the Fang fans of this generation have no say and can only watch.

Some people in the literary circle supported Fang Xinghe, but their numbers were small and their will to fight to the death was not strong, so they quickly fell into a disadvantage.

Yes, Fang Xinghe almost nailed Yang Shuo himself to the pillar of shame in history, but he fell behind in terms of public opinion. This is the magic of the print media era.

Then, just one day later, the top contemporary commercial director Xiao Gangpao also started to criticize: "Fang Xinghe is just a little kid. He has no idea how high the sky is and how deep the earth is after selling a few books. He is too uneducated.

I just don’t understand, how can an arrogant gangster who doesn’t respect his predecessors become a teenage idol?

Life is so good now, our young kids don’t care about character and morals, they just chase celebrities based on looks, I really can’t stand it, the world is going downhill!”

As soon as Xiao Gangpao spoke, people immediately realized that he didn't know Fang Xinghe at all, at least he hadn't watched that episode of "Focus Interview".

Now, few people attack Fang Xinghe's character because the official media has spent a lot of effort to promote his "meeting at the top".

The little cannon was also unlucky. Not even a day after he blasted Fang Xinghe in the capital's media, at the same time, the president of Renri wrote another article praising Fang Xinghe.

"When many people criticize Fang Xinghe, they deliberately ignore the most important thing - he is only 14 years old this year and is still at the age where he should act like a spoiled brat to his parents.

At this age, even if they really do something wrong, they should not be severely punished. Our laws and systems require us to be fully inclusive of teenagers under the age of 18. 14 years old is another level.

Not to mention, Fang Xinghe became a little extreme due to special circumstances, and he is still a long way from making a real mistake.

Therefore, judging him morally is a very despicable, low and disgusting behavior. No matter how twisted some people talk, they cannot erase the essence of it - they band together and maliciously bully an orphan.

Such behavior will not convince the general public and will certainly be condemned by the conscience of society.

I even feel that Fang Xinghe's moral character is a hundred times better than some people. His character has not yet lost the extreme, violent and unruly nature caused by his experiences, but his heart has long been reconciled with the traditional virtues of China.

He said: I know the extent of my influence and where I should take it, and I am working hard.

And from his behavior, we can see his restraint and consideration.

That beautiful wish of meeting at the top is far better than all the high-handed preaching and accusations. Fang Xinghe is trying hard to warm the children who are not well managed by their parents and schools. This makes me feel ashamed and inspired..."

Summary: Two main points.

First, Fang Xinghe is young, and his previous mistakes don’t count.

Second, although he is young, he is mature in thought, politically reliable and of high quality, making him a good idol of the new era.

It’s no wonder they praise it so much, because there has never been a teenage idol before... No, there has never been someone like Fang Xinghe before.

The number of floating fans of Hong Kong and Taiwan superstars is even more exaggerated, and there are also quite a few crazy fans among young fans. However, compared with Fang fans, their numbers are scattered and simple, not enough to give rise to a certain phenomenon.

The previous generation of mainland superstars were old-school rock stars, with Cui Jian as the leader, and the number of fanatical fans once exploded. But their influence was marginal and did not actually penetrate into campuses, which was different from the influence of Korean idols that hit campuses at the first time.

Fang Xinghe is the only domestic idol who rose to prominence at the same time as the Korean Wave.

He is even the first idol to rise to fame via the Internet.

On the not-so-thriving Internet at that time, Fang Xinghe was almost an unstoppable hit - Fang fans inexplicably accounted for a high proportion of Internet users, and most Internet users knew about his deeds.

If such influence gets out of control, the harm it causes would probably be enormous.

Some people within the system foresaw this situation, and their opinions varied, from some frowning to some relieved.

So they sealed the book while clearing his name.

At first glance it seems like schizophrenia, but in essence it is because the current environment is too relaxed and does not allow people to be convicted for their words - if there is no punishment for negative speech, how can a child be punished?
If we can't seal it, we can only guide it.

Therefore, some official media consciously established Fang Xinghe as a positive energy idol, hoping to use this method to elevate him and allow him to exert influence in a positive direction.

No one had ever enjoyed this kind of treatment before.

From now on, it will probably be difficult for the new generation of idols to enjoy this kind of treatment, because there is a pervert standing in front of them, and it would be strange if the official media did not make a comparison when naming them.

In short, your brother Fang accidentally found himself in a dead end and became the only one who was beaten and coaxed at the same time.

As a result, the little cannon felt uncomfortable.

When the two news reports were put on the newsstand, he stood there cursing, while the People's Daily social edition praised the news again and again. Who should the readers believe?

In fact, it doesn’t matter whether you believe it or not. At most, it will just hurt a little when you get slapped on the face.

But this result was quite unsatisfactory for Fang Xinghe.

My opponent, let me curse myself, OK?

Brother Fang was just about to write a new essay for Little Cannon, but as soon as Renri started talking, he was unable to fight back - he was praising her so enthusiastically, and you were criticizing her despite the praise, how embarrassing!

There is no need to be polite to those who deserve to be beaten, and there is no need to sabotage those who should be united.

So, he put down the pen on the manuscript paper, stopped writing the essay, and started to write down the list.

"On December 1999, 12, someone in the Beijing circle cursed me in the newspaper. The original words were... I am recording them here for self-reflection. What he said has some truth. If there is truth, I will correct it. If there is no truth, I will encourage myself. That's all."

If someone is able to see Brother Fang’s diary and manuscripts in the future, they will surely feel sincere admiration for his broad-mindedness, right?

At the end, Fang Xinghe drew a star on Xiao Gangpao's name, and finally drew a circle on the two words "Beijing Circle", and then called it a day.

Since this day, time has suddenly accelerated.

Fang Xinghe did not respond any further, allowing the "last spray at the end of the century" to ferment naturally, and he completely returned to campus life.

Since I don’t take on any commercial collaborations, I have a high degree of autonomy over my schedule.

Also, because there is no rush to publish the new book and I need to wait for pirated copies of "Cang Ye Xue" to fill the entire market, the writing pressure is not that great.

In other aspects, no matter the entanglement of the Beijing circle or the hidden arrows and cold knives of the difficult-to-defend system, they could not shake his determination to shut up and digest what he had gained.

So, the world finally returned to peace.

A new hotspot was quietly born - the millennium was finally coming.

Rumors about the Y2K virus have become a hot topic with the help of various factors. Generation Z is full of questions: How did a technical defect become a virus?
But this was the real 1999, an era where rumors were rampant and people made a fuss about everything.

When the New Year's Eve really came, the sky was full of fireworks.

On the New Year's Eve of 98-99, there was nothing unusual around Fang Xinghe. Everyone just treated New Year's Day as a holiday, and there was no festive atmosphere at all.

The millennium was completely different. Too many people walked into the streets, girls and boys made appointments to celebrate the New Year together, stayed up late at night, watched the fireworks, counted the stars, and truly treated this day as an important festival.

Fang Xinghe's yard was filled with half-grown children. Fang Dadan and Lu Mensao came over to make small talk. Several pretty senior sisters continued to be enthusiastically admired by the young eagles. Two beautiful snowmen were piled up with the accumulated snow in the yard. A kang table was placed on the warm kang in the room. A pile of beer and drinks surrounded a cup of tea. The Maojian tea from Xiao Wang exuded a faint tea fragrance.

The phone started ringing at 8 o'clock, but gradually stopped ringing as it approached 12 o'clock.

Fang Xinghe was flipping through his notebook intently, which recorded all the major and minor public opinions and major events of this year.

The little swallow swept through the streets and alleys, forming a cultural phenomenon.

Lee Jung-hyun swept the streets and alleys, creating a cultural phenomenon.

The levels of HOT and babyvox are not that high, but the Korean Wave as a whole has indeed swept the streets and alleys of the country and formed a cultural phenomenon.

Utada Hikaru's "First Love" became a milestone of J-POP in China with its unique cultural penetration. It did not sweep the streets, but it opened up the long-term peak of Japanese singers and idols in China.

The little cannon opened the year with "See You Tomorrow" and ended the year with "Never Ending", continuing the dominance of Feng's comedy style.

Xiao Tong, the white moonlight, gradually gave up her popularity because of Lu Yi's lack of activity. From what was shown later on, Lu Yi himself was very happy to enjoy life outside the spotlight, so this is not a regret, but an insight.

Xie Tingfeng accepted CCTV's invitation to participate in this year's Spring Festival Gala rehearsal, which aroused unprecedented expectations.

In such a chaotic era where one person takes his place and another takes his place, Fang Xinghe is no longer an unknown figure. He cannot challenge Xiaoyanzi, Lee Jung-hyun and the entire Korean Wave, but he has also created a phenomenon named after him.

The core of the Fang Xinghe phenomenon is resistance, a kind of rebellion with a deep understanding of the reasons. The scope of influence is not wide enough, but from the core to the concept, it has the highest degree of completeness, the strongest fashion, and the proudest attitude.

Listening to the countdown sounds of his friends who were suddenly excited, Fang Xinghe said to himself silently: I have not wasted my time, nor have I wasted this miraculous new life. This has been a wonderful year, and I have completely and utterly dominated my life.

In 2000, I will dominate even more.

Start anywhere.

Starting from the next moment.

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My eyes still can't look at the computer because they hurt so much. So this chapter has fewer words, please forgive me.

(End of this chapter)