Chapter 193: Witty Exchanges

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Cheng Chen hadn't even had a few days of being lovey-dovey with Yan Danchen before news came from the Candy Man's side.

"Xianjian Yi" was about to start its promotional campaign.

For TV drama promotion, press releases blasted across the entire web, magazines, variety shows, roadshows—none of it could be skipped.

For Cheng Chen's fans, this period was truly satisfying.

Ever since he appeared in "World's Finest" back in August, news had been breaking out constantly.

Then there was the bombshell from the "Little Fish and Flower" crew, followed by the promotion for "Kung Fu."

After that, news kept leaking out from the concert, then immediately after, "Crazy Stone" flooded the screens, and now here comes "Xianjian Yi."

Cheng Chen maintained a remarkably high level of exposure throughout the entire second half of the year.

As for "Crazy Stone" and "Xianjian Yi," both productions were invested in by Cheng Chen.

The palm and the back of the hand are both flesh; he couldn't play favorites.

Moreover, "Xianjian Yi" was also the first time he took on the lead male role.

He would definitely put in great effort to promote it—at the very least, no less wholeheartedly than he did for "Crazy Stone."

This period of frequent exposure also earned Cheng Chen quite a few new fans.

When "Xianjian Yi" first arrived at a certain university for a roadshow, it quickly attracted many students.

"Thank you, thank you, students, for your enthusiasm, and thank you all for your attention to 'Xianjian Qixia Zhuan Yi.' Hello everyone, I'm your host, An An."

Cheng Chen and the "Xianjian Yi" crew arrived at a university in Jingcheng, and while the college students hadn't yet broken for winter vacation, the publicity team wanted to take the chance to harvest a wave of traffic.

After all, this drama was aimed at young viewers, and Cheng Chen, Liu Tianxian, and others had huge followings among young audiences.

Choosing to promote at a university was undoubtedly a move to go after the youth demographic.

The host was a junior-year broadcasting and hosting student arranged by the school—though compared to hosts from outside, she was a bit green.

But she had the advantage of youth and energy, and she also had a certain pull within this university.

"Oh~ Cheng Chen, you're my idol!"

"Sister Liu Tianxian, I love you so much!"

"Ahhh, Cheng Chen really came to our school!"

The scene was filled with screams, and the entire lecture hall was bursting with youthful energy.

"Students, quiet down please. I completely understand how you feel seeing your idols.

Me too—just now backstage, after I met Teacher Cheng Chen, my legs are still weak until now, I'm so excited!

But everyone, please tidy up your image a little, let your idols see the best side of you, alright?"

"Okay!"

This An An really had influence at the school; the students on site all gave her face and quieted down.

"Thank you, students. Next I'll introduce the guests who arrived today. They are respectively the director of 'Xianjian Yi,' Li Guoli…"

Every time a person was introduced, the students would very graciously applaud, even if they had never heard that person's name.

Then came the actors from the crew sharing some fun stories that happened on set.

As time went on, the news of Cheng Chen coming to the school for a roadshow spread wider and wider, even students from neighboring schools rushed over.

The lecture hall, which could originally only hold a little over four hundred people, was forcibly crammed with nearly a thousand.

The school side finally had no choice but to close the gates, no longer letting anyone in; students of this school could enter and exit only with their student ID and meal card.

On the campus network, there even appeared news of meal cards for Beijing University of Economics being rented out—one meal card rented for half a day, at the high price of five hundred yuan.

The school also deployed a large number of security guards to the scene to maintain order, but despite that, the venue was still in an uproar.

"Next is the Q&A time. Students, if you have any questions for the guests on stage, raise your hand to ask."

An An looked at the crowded audience below and felt very nervous. It wasn't as if she hadn't seen big scenes before.

After all, she often participated in the school's large-scale events, but none of those events had ever had this many people!

The moment An An's words fell, the audience below raised their hands in unison.

"So many people. Then we'll pick at random—the student in the sixth seat of the fifth row, you ask."

Immediately after, a staff member passed the microphone down.

It was a tall boy wearing glasses; he excitedly took the microphone and said:

"I'm an old player of 'Xianjian.' When I heard you were starring in 'Xianjian Yi,' I was especially excited. I really love your 'Blue Lotus.'"

"That's it?"

"That's it."

An An looked at the boy speechlessly—she told him to ask a question, not to express his love for his idol.

The other students, hearing the boy's answer, also let out good-natured laughter.

"Alright, let's move on to the next student to ask. Let me say one thing in advance.

Students, think clearly about the question you want to ask before raising your hand. Student in the seventh seat of the ninth row, do you have anything you want to ask?"

That student took the microphone and asked:

"I'd like to ask Teacher Cheng Chen—regarding how you've been frequently appearing in public lately, going on variety shows, running promotional appearances, filming ads, acting, and so on.

How do you manage to maintain high-intensity, high-quality creative output during such a busy schedule?

And the quality of every song is so high—do you have unique insights into time management? Please share with us."

The moment he heard the words "time management," Cheng Chen immediately thought of that master of time management.

But looking at the kid's pure gaze, Cheng Chen felt he was overthinking it.

As expected of college students, the questions they ask are this cute.

Cheng Chen took the microphone and said:

"Regarding this student's question, my answer is: reject procrastination!

Procrastination is a widespread phenomenon — as the name suggests, it's an illness, and it needs to be treated!

Severe procrastination brings negative effects on an individual's physical and mental health.

It causes intense self-blame, guilt, constant self-denial and self-deprecation.

It also comes with anxiety, depression, and other psychological disorders. So, don't put things off — finish them right away.

As the saying goes: tomorrow after tomorrow, how many tomorrows are there? Whatever can be settled today, settle it today."

Cheng Chen's answer left many students in the audience looking thoughtful.

"What a wonderful answer — next student, please."

"I'd like to ask Liu Tianxian a question…"

The students below took turns asking questions, and the actors on stage answered them in turn.

Among them, the one asked about the most was, without question, Cheng Chen.

After eight or nine students had asked their questions, the host An An said:

"One last question, everyone — grab the chance."

"Alright, this student, please go ahead."

A tall, dark-skinned young man wearing glasses stood up. Holding the microphone, he looked nervous and at a loss.

"G-good afternoon, Teacher Cheng Chen. I-I'm a senior in the School of Economics and Management. I… I'm a student from deep in the mountains.

Now I'm facing the difficulty of choosing a job after graduation. I-I want to go back home to teach, to help the children in the mountains walk out of the mountains just like I did.

But my family wants me to stay in Jingcheng, in the big city, to fight for my future. I'm really lost right now — what do you think I should do?"

This student's question drew many eyes toward Cheng Chen.

Clearly, some of them were facing the same career-choice dilemma, and were just as troubled as this student.

Facing so many pairs of eyes, Cheng Chen felt pressure for the first time.

This was different from his eighty-thousand-person concert in Modu — he could feel the weight behind this question.

Seeing Cheng Chen holding the microphone in silence, she assumed he didn't want to answer and stepped in to help, saying:

"This student, today we're asking questions about 'Chinese Paladin One' — could you switch to another…"

"Host, hold on a moment."

Cheng Chen suddenly cut in. He looked seriously at the dark-skinned student, whose face was full of hope, and said:

"We were born under the red flag, we grew up in the spring breeze; the people have faith, and the nation has strength.

I have always believed that the purpose of receiving higher education is not to help us escape our impoverished hometowns.

It is to help our hometowns escape poverty!"

After Cheng Chen finished speaking, everyone in the entire lecture hall froze for a moment, as if time had stopped for several seconds.

Then, thunderous applause erupted. Everyone rose from their seats, gazing at Cheng Chen with worship in their eyes.

"Born under the red flag, grown up in the spring breeze; the people have faith, and the nation has strength."

"The purpose of receiving higher education is not to escape our impoverished hometowns.

It is to help our hometowns escape poverty!"

These two lines were truly spoken so well!

Hearing Cheng Chen's words, the dark-skinned student's eyes immediately brightened. Gripping the microphone, he said excitedly:

"Thank you, thank you, Teacher Cheng Chen — I know what I should do now! Thank you so much!"

Liu Tianxian, standing nearby, also glanced at Cheng Chen sideways. What Brother Cheng Chen said was truly wonderful!

To be able to say such words, what a vision he must have!

Yan Danchen, meanwhile, looked at Cheng Chen, a proud little smile on her face.

This is her man!

"I'm glad I could help."

Cheng Chen said with a smile to the student who had asked the question.

"Alright, thank you, Teacher Cheng Chen, for that wonderful speech. Well, today's roadshow ends here.

Thank you to all the students for attending. Please exit in an orderly fashion…"

The students walked excitedly out of the lecture hall, and Cheng Chen's words were quickly spread by the students to the university forum.

From there, they were reposted onto Weibo.

"Damn, the vision in those two lines is on another level — which great writer said that?"

"Just reading it gets your blood pumping — it's truly amazing!"

"Got these two lines spammed all over my feed today — is this some official document from the government?"

Along with people's questions, someone quickly provided the answer.

It turned out these words were something Cheng Chen had said while promoting a TV drama at a university, in response to a student's question.

And this exchange had been filmed and uploaded to Weibo.

"Holy crap, the boss is way too cool!"

"As expected of the man I stan — what a broad mind!"

"Truly a man of culture — no wonder Cheng Chen can write so many beautiful lyrics!"

Of course, where there is praise, there is also dislike.

Immediately, some pointed out that Cheng Chen's words were more of a publicity stunt.

The reason being that Cheng Chen himself works in a big city, using big-city resources to urge students to return to the countryside.

But right away, people posted evidence of Cheng Chen building roads and schools in his hometown and donating supplies to children in the mountains — a resounding slap in the face.

……

On the internet, where there are praise, there are always criticisms.

Regarding his latest appearance on the trending list, Cheng Chen said he was completely calm.

At this moment, he was busy discussing the screenplay with Yan Danchen.

Yeah, a seriously focused screenplay discussion…

At home, on set.

Yan Danchen lay on the bed, her hair loose and spread out…

In her hand, she held a thick stack of script pages, completely absorbed in reading them.

"You're truly amazing—you can read a screenplay like it's a novel and still find it utterly captivating."

Cheng Chen, sitting at his computer, turned around and smiled at Yan Danchen.

As everyone knows, a screenplay is extremely dry—it consists mostly of dialogue and descriptions of characters' expressions and movements.

There will be no rhetorical flourishes or extensive atmospheric buildup.

After all, a screenplay is meant for the director; it doesn't need much literary flair. If you overdo the abstract elements, the director won't be able to film them.

"Your screenplay is excellent—just reading it lets you visualize every scene, and the plot is refreshingly original."

Yan Danchen murmured slowly, eyes fixed on the script.

What Yan Danchen was reading now was precisely the screenplay of "Langya Bang" that Cheng Chen had mentioned to her earlier.

During this period, apart from promotional tours and rehearsing for the Spring Festival Gala, Cheng Chen devoted most of his time to writing the screenplay.

"Langya Bang" was adapted from a web novel, serialized on Diannv from December 2006 to 2007.

Calculating the time, there were still two full years before Hai Yan would write "Langya Bang."

But that didn't stop Cheng Chen from adapting this story into a screenplay.

If necessary, he could try to track down the original author and see if she had any concept of "Langya Bang" yet.

If she didn't, he could boldly proceed with filming.

"Langya Bang" centers on clearing wrongful convictions, supporting a wise ruler, and reviving the nation.

It tells the story of Mei Zhangsu, the Kirin Talent, whose brilliance surpasses all others, who, despite his frail body, dispels layers of deception and outwits corrupt officials.

All to vindicate years of injustice and install a new sovereign.

In the future, nearly 660,000 viewers gave it a high score of 9.4.

Among domestic TV dramas released in the past decade, "Langya Bang" had become one of the undisputed kings of the genre.

How popular was "Langya Bang" back then?

In the year it aired, all major television drama awards were swept up by the "Langya Bang" production team.

Such as the Feitian Award for Outstanding Historical Drama, the Outstanding Director Award to Kong Sheng, and the 28th China TV Golden Eagle Award.

The Audience's Favorite Male Actor Award to Hu Ge, and the Most Popular Actor Award to Hu Ge.

The 22nd Shanghai TV Festival Magnolia Award, and a nomination for Best Chinese Television Drama.

Best Director of a TV Series: Kong Sheng, Li Xue; Best Screenwriter of a TV Series: Hai Yan.

Best Male Lead of a TV Series: Hu Ge, and so on.

The cumulative number of plays of "Langya Bang" across major video platforms had reached 3.5 billion.

Among them, 271 had the highest viewership, at 2.3 billion.

When "Langya Bang" premiered its first episode on Han Guo's TV channel China TV, its ratings were dazzling and praise poured in.

Meanwhile, the commercial value of "Langya Bang" was also wildly hot.

Its film and television production company's net worth increased by 1.2 billion yuan in just two weeks.

Additionally, the mobile game publisher raised 55 million yuan—astronomical figures, unimaginable.

Based on these dazzling achievements, Cheng Chen planned to begin filming this TV drama after the New Year.

Of course, a great TV drama requires not only a strong screenplay but also excellent actors.

So in casting, Cheng Chen found himself stuck—the male lead, Mei Zhangsu, was unquestionably him.

The female lead, Nihuang Junzhu, had already been cast as Yan Danchen; as for the other roles…

……