Have you ever been a celebrity? Why are you writing about entertainment?

"I will not tolerate this nonsense and will return to the music scene to teach them a lesson."

Meng Han gritted his teeth on the phone. Yu Wei was rarely impulsive, and a bunch of people jumped out and made sarcastic remarks, which made him very unhappy.

The little karaoke fans can find a chance to chat, but some comedians actually came out to act as rational and objective people, openly posting that Yu Wei "acted big."

Even an old comedian whose reputation has long since crumbled has resorted to the old tricks of comparing himself to others and riding the wave of popularity.

To put it bluntly, these stray dogs can't stand seeing others do well. They usually only dare to gossip in secret, but this time they think they've found an opportunity.

Even if Yu Wei's skit is released and the quality is mediocre, it's not something they can try to piggyback on. What a piece of trash!
"Brother Han, don't worry."

Yu Wei herself wasn't this angry. She felt that Meng Han's tone was so harsh it could kill. For someone to get this angry because of him, Teacher Meng must be a very genuine person.

Actually, the public opinion wasn't serious, and no one was cursing anyone. It was just some marketing accounts from other companies that said he was pretentious.

No one dares to criticize his songwriting skills, but when it comes to writing skits, he's the worst of the worst, and others will naturally criticize him...

"Don't pay attention to those sycophants who are praising you and belittling you. They're just trying to take advantage of your change of course to suppress your arrogance."

Meng Han himself has never been this angry when he was scolded. Our Xiao Yu is not in good mental health. If he were to get seriously injured from being scolded, he would curse those people's ancestors for eight generations!

"Calm down first, I understand."

Yu Wei is someone who has weathered many storms. How could he possibly break down over something like this? He's been writing online novels for so many years, and he's endured plenty of criticism without making any money.

He could understand this dark mentality; seeing someone who is glamorous and successful makes one secretly want to see them stumble and fall.

Everyone has this thought to some extent, but this time, he just happens to be the one who is about to stumble in everyone's eyes.

Instead of taking this "just having fun" mentality seriously, we should turn the tables and enjoy their fun, since fun is relative.

They found their own falls hilarious, but Yu Wei did a backflip, and he became the one watching the fun...

"Ugh."

Meng Han sighed. To be honest, he didn't understand why Yu Wei suddenly started writing sketches. Wouldn't it have been better to continue dominating the music scene?

But since things had come to this point, he had nothing to say. Yu Wei must have his reasons for doing this.

"Is there anything I can help you with, besides that song 'A Man Should Be Self-Reliant'?"

Although I don't know what Yu Wei is up to, he wrote seven skits in one go, so he must be short-handed. Meng Han is too idle since he's not going to be on the Spring Festival Gala, so why not lend a hand?

"That's a huge shortage."

To put on a fake Spring Festival Gala, not only do you need good programs, but you also need a lot of big-name celebrities, otherwise how can you compete with the official ones for popularity?

Meng Han has already been in charge of one song, so it would be perfect if he were to come over and perform a skit as well.

"Senior Lin, are you free?"

So many people say he's faking it, so Yu Weike might as well really fake it big, calling over all his friends and making a big fuss about it.

Sister Nan shouldn't forget either, everyone come and show yourselves!
"He does have free time, but he likes to act a bit pretentious, so he'd probably refuse roles where he has to play an ugly character."

Meng Han understood Lin Puyan; he wanted to play a sophisticated role, and the amount of screen time wasn't important—he had to act the part.

"That's great, I happen to have a role that needs to be played."

Yu Wei didn't dare to delay either. The scripts for the five new skits hadn't been written yet, and everyone was so eager to perform that he couldn't spoil their fun.

He had only been typing for a short while when Liu Ning suddenly called, saying that there had been some problems at work.

"The director who had agreed to buy the script for 'Kung Fu Jungle' suddenly changed his mind."

"What a coincidence?"

When a trivial matter comes up, everyone rushes in. Just as Yu Wei was about to ask a couple of questions, he instantly figured out the reason himself.

It wasn't a coincidence, but a cause-and-effect relationship. It was precisely because his writing of sketches was questioned that the director decided to cut ties with him.

They bought Yu Wei's script mainly for three reasons: the film itself has a certain degree of popularity and there is a guaranteed box office.

As a screenwriter, Yu Wei has the advantage of a large following and publicity; the quality of the script and the story itself are the last considerations.

Now that Yu Wei has stumbled, the reputation of his writing will naturally be affected. If the movie really flops, wouldn't it be a complete financial disaster?
From a business perspective, there's nothing wrong with it. The contract hasn't been signed yet, so there's no question of breach of contract. Although it might be unethical, it's better than losing money.

"He's fallen on hard times..."

That's how the entertainment industry works: when you're popular, everyone flocks to you, but at the slightest sign of trouble, they scatter like birds and beasts.

He hasn't even had a major incident, just some negative reviews. If he really had a major incident, wouldn't he be trampled into the mud?
Thinking about it this way, it's actually quite amusing; you can even watch face-changing performances.

"It's a good thing to change your mind."

They say true friendship is revealed in times of trouble. If we were to actually work with this kind of director, there would definitely be a lot of problems later on. It's better to avoid some risks by generating a little controversy in advance.

There's nothing to worry about. Quite a few directors wanted to buy the film, but the one who ran away offered the highest price.

"Try contacting the directors you were interested in before; those who are still willing to work with you now are definitely honest people."

Liu Ning naturally understood this simple principle. In fact, she had already asked before calling Yu Wei, but so far only one company had responded.

This person is Zhao Jingming. He is a martial arts star who has crossed over into directing. He has zero directing experience and his asking price is not high, so he was not originally considered.

Unexpectedly, he was still willing to cooperate at this time, and did not take advantage of the situation; the price was exactly the same as before.

"interesting."

A stranger wouldn't trust you that much, Yu Wei felt there might be some sense of shared misfortune involved.

They were both initially met with skepticism when they ventured into new fields, but it's quite a coincidence.

"Just him."

It's true that not many celebrities make a name for themselves by crossing over into directing, but their sincerity is undeniable, and the other celebrities have no reason to refuse.

Of course, Yu Wei wasn't just going for sincerity; he wasn't that idealistic. The main reason he chose this person was because he valued their experience.

Martial arts stars who cross over into directing may not be good at other things, but their action sequences will definitely be excellent.

The most important part of the film "Kung Fu Jungle" is the action scenes, which are a perfect match for the film's production team. "Then I'll go talk to them."

Just as Liu Ning was about to hang up, Yu Wei stopped her and asked if she was free recently.

"I'll have some free time once the movie project is finished."

The studio's artists are all participating in the Spring Festival Gala, so the staff members don't really have any plans right now, provided Yu Wei doesn't cause any trouble...

"Could you come to the capital? I need your help with something."

"Okay, I'll be there as soon as I'm done."

Liu Ning didn't even ask what it was about. It's only natural for an agent to help a celebrity with their affairs. She'd just go if needed. Yu Wei was short-handed at the time.

The artists from the studio are all there, so it's convenient for her to wait nearby.

"We want you to film a skit."

"what?"

The usually mature and composed Sister Liu was unusually bewildered. No, she was perfectly fine with discussing business matters with her, even serving her tea and water, but was filming something a bit outrageous?

She's just an agent, she doesn't understand this either...

Yu Wei plans to ask Sister Liu to play the role of Teacher Zhao Lirong in "A Working Adventure". This skit is a classic with many famous lines.

Among the celebrities he knew, none matched Zhao Lirong's temperament; that kind and down-to-earth feeling couldn't be faked.

Yu Wei was quite worried about this role, but after talking to Sister Liu on the phone just now, he suddenly realized that Sister Liu is short and chubby and a good person, which is exactly what the role is like.

She's an amateur, so performing on stage is definitely out of the question. But their fake Spring Festival Gala relies on filming, and there's no audience, so the threshold is much lower.

With him guiding her, she only needed to follow the rhythm and didn't even need to act; she could be herself and look seven or eight parts like the character.

"I... I can't do it."

"Sister Liu, only you can help me."

"..."

Liu Ning softened. Yu Wei was indeed facing some problems. Although he didn't have much experience, he had already said so, and Liu Ning really couldn't just sit idly by.

Hearing Sister Liu sigh and agree, Yu Wei immediately revealed a smug smile. Great, another freebie.

Teacher Zhao Lirong was indeed a respected senior. Despite having late-stage lung cancer and coughing up blood, she still performed on stage, promising before the performance: "I will take full responsibility for any problems that arise, and it has nothing to do with CCTV."

The calligraphy of the four characters "货真价实" at the end of "A Working Adventure" was very well written. Later, Yu Wei learned that the old lady Zhao was illiterate at all and had learned to write by copying. She was 68 years old that year.

He can make do with other sketches and other roles, but for this one, he wants to be as authentic as possible, even if it means going through some trouble.

After hanging up the phone, Yu Wei continued writing. The skits he chose were all very representative, and each one had a very famous joke.

As long as a meme can go viral, it can easily outperform the Spring Festival Gala's performances simply through spontaneous promotion by netizens.

They use popular internet memes, and they create their own!

That afternoon, Yu Wei finished writing two scripts, namely "A Working Adventure" and "Renovation".

The former is "Imperial Jade Liquor," and the latter is "Big Hammer Eighty, Small Hammer Forty," both classic works on the Spring Festival Gala stage.

Whether it goes viral depends on how catchy the joke is...

Yu Wei had barely arrived at the hotel when Lin Puyan immediately urged him three times, "I heard there's a really pretentious character?"

Whether I pretend or not is irrelevant; I just want to help out.

"of course."

Without hesitation, Yu Wei sent him the "Renovation" article she had just finished writing that afternoon. "So, tell me, are you going to renovate or not?"
After seeing the script, Lin Puyan quickly clicked on it. To be honest, he was quite worried about Yu Wei's situation and hoped that the script was not bad.

The script synopsis is only a few hundred words long, telling the story of a misunderstanding caused by a somewhat stubborn renovation worker who comes to a house to break down a wall.

It's a standard slice-of-life story, a standard character mismatch, and a standard comedic framework.

But the pace was so fast that it didn't feel like a Spring Festival Gala skit. There were no pleasantries or build-up; it went straight to the core conflict.

"Do we absolutely have to break down this wall?"

This alone makes it far better than the current Spring Festival Gala. The current Gala is not only unfunny, but also extremely drawn out, with no useful information at the beginning, just awkward performances.

"It absolutely has to be smashed! This wall makes the living room feel small and cramped!"

The worker nodded, rubbed his hands together, and then uttered the line that was destined to be etched into the memories of countless people: "Alright, eighty for the big hammer, forty for the small hammer."

His pronunciation was clear and standard, but unremarkable, like reciting a menu.

There was no forced punchline, but Lin Puyan inexplicably found it interesting and couldn't help but continue watching.

Beyond the humor and wit, there seems to be something else in this skit. Is what they're trying to smash down really just the wall in front of them?
The script is full of realistic details, such as lines like "changing doors to keep out construction workers" and "a dog is worth five security guards," all of which stem from a deep understanding of the chaos in the decoration industry.

Lin Puyan read it in one go, and already had a detailed picture in his mind. This book was indeed good, with solid text and a good balance of satire.

If the rest of the skits are all this good, then there's nothing to worry about. This kid really has some talent.

"So, how do I pretend?"

Lin Puyan snapped out of his daze, looked around for a long time, and still couldn't see where the sophistication was. Don't tell him that interior design counts as "pretentious"...

"Why wouldn't you install it if you were smashing the wall with a big sledgehammer?"

Bringing equipment to the Spring Festival Gala? How pretentious!

After filming this skit, he was promoted to the construction measurement unit on the spot. From now on, whenever someone uses a hammer, people will spam the comments with "80". He's really showing off.

"I believe you."

Lin Puyan agreed with a grumbling, because he found that the skit was actually quite good.

He had a feeling he might be able to pull off something big. (End of Chapter)