Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 197 Chen Xiu's Speech: Dream Less, Do More!

Chen Xiu turned around and saw that the other side of the playground had been filled with people.

Men and women alike were spontaneously applauding him.

Last month, at the Rio Olympics, which just ended, the archery competition had a range of 70 meters, and Chen Xiugang's last arrow was shot at 60 meters.

His skill level is already comparable to that of professional athletes, and he deserves everyone's applause.

As the applause subsided, a beautiful figure suddenly stepped out from the crowd and jogged over to Chen Xiu.

"Senior Brother Chen Xiu, that arrow you just shot was amazing!"

After saying that, Meng Ziyi solemnly clapped his hands twice more.

Upon hearing how she addressed him, a glint flashed in Chen Xiu's eyes. She raised one eyebrow slightly, and her tone of voice became more formal.

"I was lucky; I used to miss the target a lot during practice."

"Oh, where do you usually practice? Tell me, and we can practice together next time."

Seeing the smile almost overflowing in the eyes of the silly beauty, Chen Xiu pursed his lips, preparing to continue playing the role of pretending not to know her, but with a slightly more intense approach.

"Don't you know where I practice?"

"Huh? I know?"

"Yeah! I told you during our last live stream that I practice archery at home, didn't you remember?"

"Oh~~, I remember now!"

The last syllable of the character "孟" was drawn out, and her peach blossom eyes shone brightly like stars.

She was deliberately pretending that she wasn't familiar with Chen Xiu, and then showing off her affection in front of everyone. But she got "too into character" and forgot that she and Chen Xiu had acted in "Love O2O" and even appeared on a live stream together.

After Chen Xiu's reminder, the silly beauty immediately realized that she had gone too far in her acting.

Couples usually communicate using secret codes.

Just like before, when Meng Ziyi addressed Chen Xiu as "senior brother," Chen Xiu already knew what she was up to.

After working together for a while, seeing the puzzled looks from the surrounding crowd, the two found it very amusing and even enjoyed themselves.

However, their act of pretending not to know each other, despite clearly being acquainted, has sparked much speculation among those around them.

Zhang Wanyi, who was standing closest, exclaimed "Huh?" with a hint of surprise in his voice.

He and Meng Ziyi were classmates. They had quite a bit of contact during their freshman year, and he could barely say that he understood this carefree and outspoken girl from Northeast China.

Zhang Wanyi had never seen Meng Ziyi display the same behavior towards anyone else when communicating with Chen Xiu.

Then, Chen Xiu's attitude toward Meng Ziyi was in stark contrast to his nonchalant attitude before shooting the arrow.

Zhang Wanyi could only attribute this special treatment to the mutual attraction between the opposite sexes, and silently sighed in her heart: It's a pity I'm not a woman!
On the other side, Yang Mi, who was standing to the side, let out a soft "Oh~" after witnessing the conversation between Chen Xiu and Meng Ziyi.

As a seasoned player in the dating scene, Yang Mi didn't need any evidence; she knew from her intuition that there was something going on between Chen Xiu and Meng Ziyi.

She knew about Dilraba's relationship with Chen Xiu, and now seeing Meng Ziyi, plus the ambiguous name of Nazha, Yang Mi naturally labeled Chen Xiu as a womanizer and philanderer.

Yang Mi felt that this wasn't a bad thing...

The person with the most complicated feelings on the playground was undoubtedly Nezha.

Looking at Meng Ziyi, whose gaze was meeting Chen Xiu's, she felt incredibly bitter. Then, the thought that had crossed her mind many times before resurfaced: That should have been my place!
With her hands clasped tightly, Nezha pursed her lips, her heart pounding, knowing that she would never give up on Chen Xiu!

After the unexpected incident last year, she could clearly feel that her relationship with Chen Xiu was getting better, so as long as she didn't give up, she would be able to win him back sooner or later.

In the past two years, there have been male celebrities in the industry who have come forward to pursue her from time to time.

These people were no match for Chen Xiu in Na Zha's eyes, so naturally he wouldn't treat them with any respect.

Aside from the three's elaborate schemes, the freshmen from Beijing Film Academy standing on the outer circle stared at Chen Xiu with curiosity and excitement.

Finally, when a teacher arrived to inform them that the opening ceremony was about to begin, everyone dispersed and headed towards the venue.

……

"...Next, please welcome Chen Xiu, an outstanding graduate representative, to the stage to share his views on the film and television industry. Let's give him a round of applause!"

"Clap clap clap!"

As applause erupted, Chen Xiu, who had just made a splash on the playground, stepped onto the stage from the other side.

Approaching the host, Chen Xiu smiled and took the microphone from her hand, then turned to face the audience.

"I originally thought that the outstanding graduate speech would be a group speech, but I didn't expect it to be a speech by me alone!"

This seemingly casual remark instantly energized the bored and drowsy students from the Beijing Film Academy. They could detect a stand-up comedy vibe in Chen Xiu's tone.

This seems to suggest that this speech will not be as boring as the previous ones.

Meeting the expectant gazes of these younger students, Chen Xiu's second sentence certainly did not disappoint them.

"To be honest, I don't understand why I can be considered an outstanding graduate."

Upon hearing this, Liu Zuoting, who was sitting in the second row below the stage, began to sweat.

Before he could think too much about it, Chen Xiu had already finished speaking his long string of words.

"Although Professor Chen Yi, the dean of our performing arts academy, told me before I came that I should try not to mention my entrepreneurship, everyone can easily find out about it by searching online, so there is no need to hide it."

"During my four years of university, I was basically running my own business. My grades were just so-so. My company just acquired an international company in the same industry a few days ago. Its market value is now close to 400 billion, making it the number one in its niche internet industry. Oh, and by 400 billion, I mean in US dollars."

"Clap clap clap!"

The applause was spontaneous, and many students in the audience even started laughing.

As Chen Xiu himself said, these things can be found online.

However, when he said it in a nonchalant tone, the young people also felt a strange sense of carefree humor from it.

When the applause subsided, Chen Xiu raised the microphone to her mouth again: "Actually, I officially debuted in May 2014. The situation at that time was like this..."

The audience, who were listening to what sounded more and more like a stand-up comedy show, all looked up at Chen Xiu when he suddenly stopped talking, only to find him searching for something on stage.

Chen Xiu walked to the side of the stage and stopped, continuing, "...For some reasons that I can't say out loud, I wanted to start acting again, so I went to find my mentor Liu Zuoting, hoping that he could give this bad student, who had rekindled her dream of acting, a chance to start over."

Liu Zuoting, sitting in his seat, felt extremely uneasy, with sweat pouring down his forehead, fearing that Chen Xiu, who dared to say anything, would also reveal the matter of the tea.

Fortunately, Chen Xiu was very tactful in her speech: "Teacher Liu is very easy to talk to and is very willing to help students start over. Through his introduction, I got my first audition role."

"Hu~~"

Liu Zuoting let out a long breath, leaned back in his seat, and his worries vanished instantly.

Looking up at Chen Xiu again, Liu Zuoting suddenly thought to himself: No wonder he succeeded in starting his business. I will remember him for the rest of my life for his emotional intelligence!

After explaining the reason for her debut, Chen Xiu continued, "After playing my first role, as everyone knows, I got the role of the second male lead in 'Diamond Lover,' and then I got the male lead role in 'Love O2O.'"

"His career has been incredibly smooth. Did he use connections? You don't need to guess, I can tell you very clearly, he definitely did!"

Another surprising statement.

Suppressed gasps from the audience rose and fell in waves.

However, before they could discuss it with those around them, Chen Xiu changed the subject again.

"One of the connections I used was with Ms. Gu Man, the original author of 'Love O2O.' She personally approached the production company and asked me to play the male lead, Xiao Nai."

“When filming started last year, I asked her why. Her answer was that I could understand the core of the character she wrote, and my personal experience was very similar to Xiao Nai's, so she believed that I could play Xiao Nai well.”

“When the TV series aired, I, the male lead, wasn’t criticized; the audience actually liked me quite a bit. So sometimes, I feel that the screenwriter is the one who understands the work best, but the screenwriter often has very little say in the production team.”

The audience's attention was still focused on the dramatic shift in the topic: Chen Xiu used his connections to get the role, and those connections referred to Gu Man's appreciation for him.

Chen Xiu, however, used that last sentence as a pretext to begin expressing what she truly wanted to say.

"The screenwriter has very little say in the production team; it seems like anyone can make him change the script. The result is that a story that was originally logically sound becomes unrecognizable, ultimately turning into a terrible drama that everyone criticizes!"

The sudden shift to a serious topic caused the audience to unconsciously sit up straight.

Holding the microphone, Chen Xiu said, "I have personally participated in some screenwriting work, so I am quite aware of the importance of screenwriters having a voice. However, there are many people in the production team who are good at talking about abstract things but not good at doing practical things who hold the power of the voice."

The group of people being referred to now seems to become clearer.

Before the audience could even begin to discuss, Chen Xiu adopted a storytelling tone: "What does it mean to only talk the talk but not walk the walk? I'll give you an example and you'll understand."

"When the script of 'The Song of Qin King Breaking the Enemy' was approved, I found a director in the industry to be in charge of drawing the storyboard. I can't reveal the identity of this director, so let's call him Zhang San for now."

This ordinary name made the audience laugh.

Chen Xiu ignored him and continued to make veiled accusations.

"Director Zhang San's storyboards are very professional, but the art he wants to express is too profound. The finished product is abstract. Every time I check the progress of the work, he always likes to explain to me, but in the end he can't make sense of it."

"Until one day, Zhang San suddenly called me and said that he had a dream and wanted me to revise the script according to the meaning of his dream in order to convey his artistic thinking."

"My reply to him was very simple, just one sentence: Stop dreaming and do more. Works are made for the audience, not for your self-satisfaction. If a director can't make something that the audience can understand, or if an actor can't play their role well, then leave!"

(End of this chapter)