Love Variety Show: The despised me exploded in popularity

"Times have changed, and not every part of Europe and America is trendy. Poetry is a manifestation of cultural confidence. Dante could secure a spot in hell for the Pope in "The Divine Comedy," sparking the Renaissance. That's their culture."

"We can proudly recite poems atop the Pavilion of Prince Teng, belt out songs during a spring outing, and wave the five-starred red flag on the summits of Mount Lao, Mount Hua, and Mount Tai. This is our culture, the romanticism in our bones; we're not afraid to express ourselves, not ashamed of our culture."

"What's there to be ashamed of? Just because it's taught from childhood and many people know it? Does that mean it's not niche or trendy enough?"

Xu Qingyan's speech was well-reasoned, starting off explanatory. Gradually, her pace quickened, and for some reason, she became more and more spirited, nearly letting out a TMD.

Luckily, she caught herself, coughed, and suddenly realized the room had fallen silent.

The person who had initially disagreed could no longer find words to say, his face showing a complex mix of emotions. It was as if he was thinking he had come across an uber critic by not checking the calendar before he left home.

Ji Shi'an, however, showed a smile on his face and even let out a quiet laugh. In the silence of the room, the faint laughter seemed incredibly loud.

Almost everyone turned to look at the chief director, Ji Shi'an, who then seemed a bit embarrassed.

"Xu Qingyan has made some excellent points, and I think this suggestion is quite good."

After speaking, he looked around, his gaze finally settling on the other two lead directors, Lu Liangsheng and He Guojin, as he inquired.

"What do you guys think?"

"It's good, but the animation technology might be a bit challenging," Lu Liangsheng stroked his chin, "however, thinking about the impact, it could be quite stunning if we find a plan..."

"The theme of poetry is indeed good. We had considered this topic when we were exploring the city of Chang'an before," He Guojin joined in.

"Now it seems, the ideas Xu Qingyan discussed with us these past few days coincide with ours. This could also be a sign that young people are indeed more receptive to our traditional culture than before."

At this, Ji Shi'an sighed.

"Yeah, times really have changed. It used to be that the less traditional culture, the better. Any mention of folklore would invite criticism. Now, young people are quite different indeed."

"Cultural confidence," Lu Liangsheng summed up with a cheerful smile, "Xu Qingyan hit the nail on the head, young people's ideas really differ from ours."

"Pooling wisdom from all sides is good. Having ideas is also good," Ji Shi'an nodded.

The directors around them exchanged glances as if they had seen a one-sided debate. This unfamiliar Xu something... single-handedly seemed to have persuaded the directors.

What kind of invincible, cool story is this, damn it, who the hell is this guy?

It wasn't until they heard Ji Shi'an suddenly turn to another top director, He Guojin, and ask, "Would you mind if I took Xu Qingyan to my team?"

Huh??? Everyone was baffled, their eyes turning to He Guojin.

He Guojin smiled elegantly, "I have no objections. A talent must be placed where they can be most effective, and right now, the most important thing is to produce a good Spring Festival Gala for the people."

The crowd had an epiphany, Oh, damn it, it's all about connections!

Zou Lewei could not accept it, fiercely gripping his friend, and whispered fiercely.

"Why, just because they're connected, can things be like this?"

His friend, slightly overweight, turned to look at Zou Lewei's somewhat fierce expression. He opened his mouth to say something but ultimately said nothing, thinking to himself, seriously cnm.

It's the first time I've seen the pot call the kettle black. Aren't you a beneficiary of connections too, Brother Wei?

At least Qingyan has real substance; all three directors nodded their approval. To be honest, even if it's just armchair strategizing, such eloquence is a talent in itself, why the fuss...

Why the fuss? The person is impressive, that's why.

Zou Lewei was livid, his gaze drifting towards the head director, Ji Shi'an, who was smiling and saying something to Xu Qingyan, looking for all the world like a courtesan who'd been abandoned.

When he finally had the chance as the crowd dispersed, he stepped forward, blocking Xu Qingyan's way with an indignant face.

"I can't agree with the idea you just had."

Xu Qingyan stepped to the side, his stride unbroken. People were still waiting for him outside; work wasn't finished yet. As a PD, he had to either take the team out for a meal or send the artists away.

As he turned around, out of courtesy, he still asked him a question.

"Who are you?"

The question hit Zou Lewei hard, right at that moment. Who am I...? Damn it, could there really be someone in the director's team who doesn't know me, I'm Zou Le...

He had so much to say, words that were stuck in his chest, choked back before he could express them.

But when he managed to get out a strained "I," he found that the other person had already walked off without looking back. Just like that... walked away, blending into the crowd, not turning back once.

Damn!

Xu Qingyan squeezed through the door, hurriedly looking for the Best Actress Luo Yuexiu, who was sitting down, supported by a female assistant by her side, looking rather unwell.

"Sorry about that, Teacher Luo, it's all my fault..."

His apology was earnest, as if he had done something terribly wrong in his past eight lives. Indeed, it was his fault; when the director called out to him, he hadn't anticipated it, making the artist he was with wait for nearly twenty minutes.

Luo Yuexiu was already feeling irritated from waiting and was struggling to hold up.

She was already quite angry, but his sincere apologies abruptly doused her anger. The man was strange; just that morning, he had seemed indifferent and detached.

Now, faced with a mistake at work, he was sincerely apologizing without a hint of deflection.

"It's okay, I didn't wait long." Luo Yuexiu sighed, thinking to herself that he was a lucky guy, "Let's go out first, I'd like to rest in the car for a bit."

"Sure, do you want... for lunch?" Xu Qingyan was attentive to the smallest details, noticing that Luo Yuexiu might not be feeling well, and stepped to the side to offer a virtual hand of support.

"No, it's fine, let's just head back."

"Okay, I'm really sorry."

Luo Yuexiu didn't say much; she knew why he had lingered in the hall. People tend to indulge geniuses, and she was no exception.

The next day, the badge on his neck had changed again, this time to that of the director's team.

Meanwhile, Xu Qingyan finally had some time to rest after several grueling days.

"Xu, up for a hike?" Gan Yingchang patted his shoulder, enthusiastically inviting him, "Most of our group is going, it's a good chance for team building."

"No thanks, I need to head back to Xinghai." Xu Qingyan was eager, almost as if he had bought his flight ticket way in advance, never before had he been in such a hurry, his desire to return almost visceral.

The progress at the Chang'an venue was slightly delayed, and it wasn't yet the time of ultimate busyness. With three months left until the Spring Festival Gala broadcast, the holiday schedule was quite generous.

Typically, after a program's concept was approved and confirmed, the first rehearsal would be conducted around mid-December, followed by a full dress rehearsal towards the end of January.

Having received five days off, Xu Qingyan naturally thought of returning to Xinghai. It was his first taste of the limelight, and utterly exhausting, urgently needing to retreat to his old Xinghai den for recovery before setting out again.

"Alright then, do what you need to do." Gan Yingchang said cheerfully, aware that Xu Qingyan was different from him; now the guy was a hotshot director, constantly in the presence of the higher-ups.