During the day.
Caishikou, outside Zhang Ye's parents' old neighborhood.
Xiaoxue was riding her electric scooter with an interview bag slung over her shoulder. She was speeding over, her hair messed up by the wind. Seeing that she was at the entrance of the neighborhood, she squeezed the brake. What she saw were many media colleagues with cameras on their shoulders. There were reporters from the Beijing Times, Beijing Evening News, Beihe Province reporters stationed in Beijing, as well as colleagues from the National Youth Daily.
Whoa, so many people?
It's over, I definitely won't be able to get an interview today!
With this group of people blocking the entrance, how could Zhang Ye possibly appear!
Xiaoxue got out of the scooter listlessly. She did not hold out much hope in the first place. When the newspaper gave her the assignment this morning, she did not think that she would be able to get an interview with Zhang Ye. She was an entertainment news reporter. Although she had only been in the industry for half a year, she had experienced all sorts of situations and knew the difficulties of being an entertainment news reporter. It was easy to interview some of the less famous public figures, but most of them were worthless and would not make it onto the front page. If they wanted to make it onto the front page or the second page, they would have to interview the big shots. It had to be news about the big shots, but what was the concept of a B-list celebrity? That was a nationally famous celebrity. Getting an interview with a B-list celebrity and above was something that could only be chanced upon. You had to have information, a way, an informant, a strategy, and even the ability to communicate. Sometimes, you even had to climb over walls and use all sorts of methods to get an interview with the big shots in a private setting. It was as difficult as ascending to the heavens.
"Xiaoxue!" a middle-aged man called out to her.
Xiaoxue locked her scooter and ran over, "Brother An."
Brother An said with his camera on his back, "Why are you so late?"
"My scooter broke down on the way here. Sorry, Brother An," Xiaoxue apologized.
Brother An called out, "Come quickly, find a spot for yourself. When Zhang Ye or his parents come out, we will squeeze in. We must get a good spot, hurry, hurry!"
Xiaoxue said helplessly, "Zhang Ye definitely won't come out, right?"
Brother An asked, "Why?"
"He's such a big shot, how can it be that easy to get an interview with him? Besides, this address might not even be correct, right? Why would Zhang Ye live here if all the media knows the address? "Xiaoxue said.
Beside her, a cameraman from another newspaper said with a smile, "Miss, you must be new, right?"
"Ah?" Snowy looked over.
A 40-year-old female reporter beside her also said, "If you want to interview the other A-listers in a private setting without an appointment, it's almost impossible. You might not even be able to interview the C-listers, but Zhang Ye is different. He never hides from the camera. If we were talking about the easiest celebrities to interview in the country's D-listers and above, then Zhang Ye would definitely be ranked first. As long as you don't meet him when he's in a bad mood, and don't knock on his door to disturb his daily life, then if you interview him, Zhang Ye will at least say a few words to you."
Xiaoxue said in surprise, "Zhang Ye is so easy to talk to? I saw on the news that he has a bad temper and is always scolding people. "
The female reporter laughed and said, "It'll be fine as long as you don't provoke him. Zhang Ye is much easier to talk to than you think. He's a little different from the other celebrities in the entertainment industry."
Brother An added with a smile, "It's very different!"
Suddenly, a few shouts were heard!
"He's here!"
"They're out!"
"It's Zhang Ye!"
"Hurry, hurry, hurry!"
"Teacher Zhang!"
Like a gust of wind, with a whoosh, more than 20 media reporters rushed forward. Brother An was also the first to bear the brunt. Xiaoxue was a step slower, but she also quickly squeezed her way forward.
Zhang Ye had a white towel around his neck and was jogging down the stairs. After running for 20 meters, he was surrounded by reporters and could not run another step. Zhang Ye helplessly stopped and waved to them, "It's rare for me to exercise in the morning. Everyone, please be merciful and let me run a lap first, alright?"
The female reporter from before hurriedly said, "Teacher Zhang, I've been here since 5 AM. I'm still sleepy and can't even open my eyes. Can you just give us a few minutes?"
A young female reporter said, "That's right, Teacher Zhang. If I don't get to interview you today, I won't be able to answer to the higher-ups when I get back. They'll definitely scold me to death."
If it were any other celebrity, they could have arranged for an interview in advance and wouldn't have had to block the entrance like this. But Zhang Ye was different. He did not have an agent, nor did he have a talent agency, nor did he have any work unit for the time being. As such, there were some obstacles in the communication between the media and him. Furthermore, Zhang Ye's promotion to the B-list rankings was rather sudden this time. A lot of the media were not prepared for it, so they could only rush over to the entrance. This kind of news had to be done today because it was something that would happen today. If they were to arrange for an interview according to schedule and wait for it to be reported a few days later, it would be too late. How could it still be considered news if it was a few days later? News was all about timeliness.
The reporters were chattering away.
Zhang Ye was also helpless and said, "Alright then, five minutes it is. Go ahead and ask away."
Xiaoxue: "…" Damn! Zhang Ye was really easy to talk to!
Brother An was the quickest to respond. Just as Zhang Ye finished speaking, he immediately asked, "Teacher Zhang, you're now a B-list celebrity in the latest rankings. Let me congratulate you first."
Zhang Ye smiled and said, "Thank you."
Brother An said, "Right now, a lot of people are talking about you. They're saying that you're the celebrity whose popularity has soared the fastest in recent years. From an unknown celebrity to a B-list celebrity, you only used a little over a year's time. It's like a road that other public figures can't even reach in their entire lifetimes, but you've done it in the blink of an eye."
"Blink of an eye?" Zhang Ye muttered to himself.
A Huadong Daily News reporter interrupted, "I'm not sure if you've seen it, but a lot of netizens have left comments after the news was released at midnight. Other than congratulating you, there are also voices of doubt. They feel that with your personal qualities and niche style, it's a miracle that you've made it this far. I've seen some of your fellow industry insiders giving you the same evaluation. Everyone acknowledges your talent, but at the same time, they also feel that your luck is more important than your talent. What do you think of this?"
There were indeed a lot of such voices on the Internet.
Browsing through the forums and Weibo, many places were discussing Zhang Ye's promotion to the B-list. This was considered quite a big deal in the entertainment industry.
"It's really a miracle!"
"Zhang Ye's luck is too good. If he had any bad luck, he wouldn't have made it this far!"
"Zhang Ye doesn't look too good, but he can still become a celebrity? He's already in the B-list? I can do it too! I'm at least a little more handsome than Zhang Ye! "
"Zhang Ye's success is indeed due to an element of chance."
"If only I had Zhang Ye's luck and talent, how great would that be!"
"Zhang Ye is a newcomer who hasn't filmed many movies or sung before. All he did was participate in a few local and online television programs, and with a few poems and speeches, he managed to gain the popularity he has today. How can those 'old timers' in the entertainment industry accept this!? He's already made it to the B-list. If there comes a day when Zhang Ye officially enters the film industry or the singing industry, then if he does a few variety shows on a satellite channel that has nationwide coverage, wouldn't his popularity be heaven-defying? "
"If it's not heaven-defying, then he'll be able to break out of the Earth!"
"This fellow has opened up a different path in the entertainment industry!"
"Other celebrities have been working hard for so many years without necessarily achieving anything. Zhang Ye has only debuted for slightly more than a year, so it's really not fair to compare them like this."
"Yeah, a lot of his peers are not convinced by him."
"That's right. His mathematical and literary standards are not considered to be in the proper entertainment industry. Relying on these to increase his popularity has left those celebrities in the entertainment industry helpless."
There were a lot of comments.
It was a normal phenomenon for a popular person to have a lot of controversies.
Faced with the questions from the reporters, Zhang Ye also fell silent for a moment.
Xiaoxue raised her recording pen and asked, "Teacher Zhang, what do you think of the comments that a minority of the people and your peers in the entertainment industry have for you?"
Unfair?
Relying on luck?
Taking the unorthodox path of non-traditional entertainment?
Seeing all the reporters waiting for his answer without blinking, Zhang Ye smiled. He was not angered by these questions at all. Instead, he said in a very talkative manner, "I've said it before. No person or form of art can be liked and accepted by everyone. There are people who like me, and there are also people who don't like me. I can accept whatever evaluation the commoners have of me, but as for the evaluation of some of my peers …" After pausing for a while, Zhang Ye's interest was suddenly piqued. "I have a poem here, a short poem."
When everyone heard this, they all felt like they were on steroids!
"What poem?"
"Teacher Zhang, please speak!"
"Wait, wait, wait! My recording pen is broken! I'll change to another one! "
"Those in front, please squat down! I can't get it! Those inside, please squat down a little! "
Anyone who knew a little about Zhang Ye's growth would know that Zhang Ye was not famous for his mathematical talent, crosstalk, or hosting skills, but for his poems!
Zhang Ye said softly.
"'The Flower of Success'.
"People only admire his beauty now!"
"But back then, his Ya 'er.
"Soaked with the tears of his struggle.
"Sprinkled with the blood of sacrifice!"
The poem was finished.
Tears?
Rain of blood?
Sacrifice?
At this moment, an old neighbor of Zhang Ye's spoke up. He had been listening to the interview when he saw the reporters. This time, he could not listen anymore. "Little Ye, don't listen to the sarcastic remarks of those peers! We watched you grow up. We all know how much you've sacrificed. You've always stayed up all the time to record the show. For work, you often risked your life and worked hard. Which one of them has seen that? "
Zhang Ye gave a fist and palm salute and said with a smile, "Grandma Cui, thank you."
An old man said, "Little Ye, do a good job. We will all support you."
A woman said, "Right, don't listen to their nonsense!"
The poem was very short. It was only four lines, but the weight of this poem made the hearts of the reporters sink. That's right, everyone only saw Zhang Ye's success, but how many of them had seen his hard work and sacrifice? And how many of them knew about it?
Xiaoxue looked at Zhang Ye. This was the first time she was interviewing Zhang Ye. With this face-to-face interaction, she suddenly felt that she understood this person a little better!
Back when the plane hijacking incident happened, everyone had been talking about how Zhang Ye was lucky enough to land the plane. But how many of them thought that Zhang Ye had nearly died in the crash of the plane? Everyone had seen Zhang Ye's killing spree in the crosstalk competition, but who cared that Zhang Ye had been banned by the SARFT and had nearly bid farewell to the entertainment industry! Luck? Luck? Chance? Zhang Ye did not rely on these to get here! It could be said that he had fought his way out in the midst of great storms and great waves time and time again!
The suppression of the leaders!
The siege of his peers!
The moment of life and death!
The choice to compromise or not!
No matter when or where, Zhang Ye dared to pat his chest and say: The path he took was not a shortcut, nor was it smooth sailing. The path he chose was one that was more difficult than anyone else's!
"The Flower of Success".
This was the work of the famous essayist Bing Xin. Bing Xin was most famous for her prose, but this poem was one of Bing Xin's rare masterpieces. Faced with the questions from the reporters and the doubts from his peers, Zhang Ye felt that this poem best represented his current thoughts. He also liked this poem a lot back in his previous world. What he liked most was the word "sacrifice". Hence, when he recited this poem, Zhang Ye's expression was not one of complaint, nor was he crying, nor was he talking about how difficult it was for him. It was more of a smile and pride. This was because the word "sacrifice" in the poem was not a form of pain or suffering for Zhang Ye. Instead, it was his backbone. It was the capital that allowed him to hold his head up high. This was because it was not a sacrifice due to the unfairness of fate, but the price and sacrifice that he paid for by never compromising!
… …
On the same day.
This poem appeared in the newspapers and media outlets all over the country!
"Success and Sacrifice!"
"Zhang Ye's Voice!"
"A Flower of Success!"
"Zhang Ye: A Flower That Burns Blood!"
When this poem was published, it immediately caused a heated discussion on the Internet.
"Teacher Zhang, you're the best!"
"Don't care what others say. We all understand you! We all know how much you've sacrificed! "
"Fuck, so what if we're 'unorthodox'? So what if we're unorthodox? We're just fucking unorthodox! Even so, we'll still abuse them! We'll count as one! We'll count as one! "
"Strongly supporting Zhang Ye!"
"Teacher Zhang Ye is fully deserving of his B-list ranking!"
"Those who don't know anything, go take a look at Teacher Zhang's resume before you speak!"
"The Flower of Success" was not as passionate as Zhang Ye's previous modern poems, nor was it as breathtaking as them. However, it had a heavy weight to it that made people's hearts sink when they read it. That line, "soaked in the tears of struggle, sprinkled with the blood of sacrifice," made many of those who had voiced their jealousy and doubts about Zhang Ye fall silent. Thinking back to the path that Zhang Ye had taken, they did not say another word.
Difficult?
There was a C-list movie star who suffered a fracture during filming. He posted on Weibo and cried for an entire month. His fans all said that it was too hard for him!
There was a Korean singer who had a few pimples on his face. His fans cried and shouted, lamenting the unfairness of fate. They lamented that the Korean singer had suffered too many disasters and difficulties!
Was this difficult?
Compared to Zhang Ye, they were really nothing!
He had been sent to the police station twice. Beijing Radio Station had forced him to resign, Beijing Television had fired him, Peking University had suspended him, he had nearly lost his life in a plane hijacking, he had been banned by the Shanghai SARFT, he had even been banned by the strictest decree in the history of the SARFT, and he had even become a big shot at the B-list celebrity level. Yet, Zhang Ye still had not received any offers from any new employers and was still unemployed. He was so free that he could only "leisurely" go out for a jog in the morning. In the entertainment industry, if they were compared, who would dare say that it was harder for them than Zhang Ye?
No one would dare!
No one was more difficult than him!
And even so, even so, Zhang Ye was still able to withstand the rain of knives and swords to stand at the B-list celebrity level. What sort of a concept was this!
Heaven and earth.
Who could compare!?
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