From unemployment in crosstalk to top star in Chinese entertainment

Three days after the broadcast of "Roast Conference", Yu Liang's Weibo and Douyin followers both reached five million.

In the comments section, the praise grew louder and louder.

I watched Yu Liang's rant twenty times; his background as a crosstalk performer is truly impressive.

Please, please appear on more variety shows! It's been a long time since the Chinese entertainment industry has had someone this interesting.

From fashion blogger to stand-up comedy icon, how many more surprises does this man have in store?

But some people were not happy about it.

I don't know which forum it started from, but a wave of haters flooded into the Weibo comment section.

[A comedian wants to be an actor? Every single one of you from Deyun Society, how many of you are qualified to act?]

[The movies your club makes are utter garbage. And all that talk about "clouds, cranes, nine heavens, dragons soaring across the four seas"—if you didn't know better, you'd think it was a tattoo you got to join the club.]

[With so many people in the club and so many movies made, the only thing they can really be proud of is the line "Swallow, Swallow."]

Yu Liang hadn't intended to pay any attention to it.

But the more I scrolled through it, the angrier I got.

"No way, are these people crazy?!" He suddenly sat up while lying in bed.

"Go criticize my acting skills under Guo Degang's posts. I've only acted in a few plays and had a few lines."

The key point is that although these people are foul-mouthed, some of what they say does make some sense.

The film and television works produced by Deyun Society... are indeed not very impressive.

However, the original owner only made a cameo appearance in the drama "The General," appearing on screen for less than 5 seconds. How can one judge an actor's skills from that?

You want to criticize me?

Go to war.

Yu Liang rolled up his sleeves and began replying to each message one by one.

Pointing out my shortcomings is for my own good? Then why did you insult my family?!

[Advising me to be more magnanimous?]

You should stay away from this kind of person, lest you get caught in the crossfire when he gets struck by lightning.

[A comedian who doesn't even have a partner dares to dream of becoming an actor?]

[You get all worked up over just a few words? What kind of monsters and freaks come out of Deyun Society?]

Yu Liang replied: 【I'm getting angry? I'm just showing equal contempt for every keyboard warrior.】

And so, Yu Liang nestled on the sofa, wrapped in a blanket, and single-handedly fought against a hundred men, from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m.

Midway through, Wang Churan sent a WeChat message: "Yu Liang, you're still awake?"

Yu Liang replied instantly: "In battle."

Wang Churan: "..."

Wang Churan sent a facepalm emoji and didn't say anything more.

At 5 a.m., Yu Liang finally finished responding to the last comment and threw his phone aside.

My eyes were so sore I could barely open them, but I felt much better.

---

At 2 p.m., Yu Liang was woken up by her phone vibrating.

I opened it in a daze, and the background message bar was flooded with messages again.

But this time it's not about praising his good looks, nor is it about criticizing him for being a widow and unemployed.

Instead, it was his battle record from last night that was screenshotted by netizens and compiled into a compilation, which went viral across the internet.

[This is hilarious! This guy hasn't slept a wink all night!]

[His fighting power is off the charts! Why did you all mess with him?! Don't you know he has nothing better to do right now, hahaha!]

This is the first time I've seen a celebrity argue with their haters, and every single thing they say is hilarious!

[Yu Liang: I'm getting angry? I'm just showing equal contempt for every keyboard warrior. —I declare this to be my motto for this year.]

Some netizens, seemingly enjoying the drama, even compared him to other celebrities:

Other celebrities were criticized: "Do they want to die?"

[Yu Liang gets scolded: "I've got work to do!"]

He didn't dare sleep a wink that night, afraid people would think he'd given up. It's hilarious!

[What an interesting celebrity, and he's handsome too! I'm a fan now!]

Yu Liang was scrolling through the comments section when she suddenly remembered—

It seems Wang Churan sent him a message last night.

He scrolled through the chat history and saw the conversation that started at 3 a.m., and felt a little embarrassed.

Yu Liang: "The battle was intense last night, I didn't have time to reply to you."

Wang Churan replied instantly: "I watched it all night."

Yu Liang: "???"

Wang Churan: "The whole internet is watching you roast people. Sister Sichun called me in the middle of the night, laughing so hard she could barely speak."

Yu Liang: "..."

Wang Churan: "She said you are the first artist in the Chinese entertainment industry to fight with anti-fans until 5 a.m.

Yu Liang: "This is called persuading people with reason."

Wang Churan sent a "Are you sure?" emoji.

Yu Liang didn't reply again because he saw a new comment from a hater.

This person used extremely offensive language, and every comment contained phrases like "A comedian is not qualified to act."

Yu Liang took a deep breath.

Then I changed into black training clothes, picked up my phone, and set up the camera.

A video of someone wielding a knife with both hands, filmed in one go.

He leaped into the air, turned around, did a split, and kicked the knife.

The blade grazed the lens, creating a whooshing sound.

He captioned the post: "If reasoning doesn't work, then this old man also knows a bit of martial arts."

The video has been released.

The comment section was initially taken aback.

Then it exploded.

Wait, there's more to this?!

This copywriting is absolutely brilliant!

Wait, don't just focus on the text, watch the video carefully!

[Yu Liang's swordplay is so cool!]

[Leaps into the air! Turns! Dos a split! Flying kick with a knife!]

【Wow! Is this special effects?】

I looked at it frame by frame, but I couldn't tell it was a special effect.

[I tried, the knife fell, and my feet are still spinning in the air. What should I do? I need help urgently!]

The haters suddenly fell silent.

It's not that I chickened out,

It's not that this person really considers themselves a celebrity.

If you insult him once, he'll insult you ten times.

If you keep cursing, he'll take a knife and attack you.

How can we play like this?

One of the most vocal haters has quietly started deleting comments.

But Yu Liang didn't let him off the hook.

He went to the person's account page and commented under the only post:

[Young man, lacking martial ethics, like a rat's tail juice.]

Netizens were stunned.

No, he actually chased after me and started cursing! It's hilarious!

[Look, that troll has set their account to private, hahaha!]

This is the true meaning of "winning people over with virtue" and "winning people over with martial virtue."

[Will Yu Liang even hit himself when he goes crazy?]

Just as the whole internet was enjoying the gossip—

---

Beijing, New Classics Media Building.

The atmosphere in the casting meeting room for the TV series "Joy of Life" was somewhat somber.

"Is there still no suitable candidate for the role of Teng Zijing?" Director Sun Hao asked, his brow furrowed as he flipped through the documents in his hand.

The casting director sighed: "More than a dozen people have come in the past few days. Those with good looks don't have a martial arts background, and those with a background don't quite have the looks."

"This role has very high requirements; not only does he have to be handsome, he also has to be a real fighter."

"But we need to start filming right after New Year's Day."

Sun Hao rubbed his eyebrows and said, "If I can't find it anymore, I can only settle for the next best thing."

In the corner, a young staff member was looking down at his phone.

He was just idly browsing the trending topic #YuLiangisSlightlySkilledInMartialArts# when he casually clicked on the video of him wielding a knife.

Thirty seconds later, he suddenly looked up.

"Director! Look at this!"

He handed the phone over.

On the screen, Yu Liang was leaping and kicking a knife, the wind whistling as the blade passed.

Sun Hao took it and read it once.

I watched it again.

The meeting room was silent for five seconds.

"Who is this person?" Sun Hao turned to the casting director. "What has he acted in?"

The casting director leaned over to glance at the face on the screen, then paused, stunned: "Yu Liang? Isn't that the... crosstalk comedian who's been trending these past few days?"

"A comedian?" Sun Hao frowned. "That flying knife kick move takes at least ten years of practice to master."

The staff quickly added, "Director, he used to be a crosstalk performer at Deyun Society, and he's recently become very popular on Douyin. He even appeared on 'Roast Conference' a couple of days ago."

"There's absolutely no problem with my appearance."

Sun Hao didn't say anything, and watched the video again.

Leaping into the air, turning around, doing a split, and then kicking the knife—the movements were clean and crisp, without the slightest hesitation.

"Contact him." Sun Hao put down his phone. "Have him come for an audition."

"Director," the casting director hesitated for a moment, "he comes from a background of stand-up comedy, he has no acting experience..."

"Acting skills can be honed."

Sun Hao interrupted him, "But I've been looking for this kind of person for three months."

He paused, then added, "By the way, you said he's from Deyun Society?"

Sun Hao remembered that Guo Qilin had just been cast as Fan Sizhe a few days ago.

"Yes."

"I'll call Guo Qilin later and ask about Yu Liang's situation."

---

A rental apartment in Chaoyang District.

Yu Liang had just finished showering when his phone rang.

An unfamiliar number.

He answered: "Feed? Hello."

"Excuse me, are you Mr. Yu Liang? I am the casting director for the drama series 'Joy of Life'."

Yu Liang was taken aback: "...Joy of Life?"

"Yes. Director Sun Hao saw the video of you wielding a sword and would like to invite you to audition for a role."

Yu Liang tightened her grip on her phone slightly.

Joy of Life.

Of course he knows about this show.

In its previous life, this drama became a hit across the internet, making a large number of actors famous.

The character Teng Zijing, in particular, has a great personality despite not having many scenes.

Loyalty and righteousness combined, sacrificing oneself for a friend, is the first major tearjerker moment in the entire series.

"Which role are you auditioning for?" he asked.

"Teng Zijing".

Yu Liang took a deep breath.

really.