Chapter 49

"They learn quickly," Gongchi said with a slight sneer, holding a delicate snuff bottle in his hand and taking a light sniff, his eyes moving away from the TV screen. "But it's clearly a foolish move."

"Copying our ideas," a young man sitting beside him added.

"Us?" Gongchi looked at the young man, his tone slightly displeased, "This is the achievement of Chengpin and Cheng'en. What does it have to do with you, Gong Chengde?"

The young man lowered his head and said nothing.

"Scolding your son again," a noblewoman came out from the inner room and sat beside her husband, chiding lightly, "Do you two have a grudge from a past life?"

Gongchi shook his head and said nothing, then went to sniff his snuff bottle again.

"This time, the second family has taken the spotlight, but ultimately, it's still bringing glory to the Gong family." As she said this, Mrs. Gong frowned, "Cheng'en's move this time was truly unexpected. He came up with such an idea. Hmm, do you think the second family suggested it to boost his position at home and improve the old man's impression of him?"

Gongchi waved his hand and said, "It doesn't seem like the second family's style."

At this, Gong Chengde raised his head, hesitated, and then spoke, "I heard it's related to the previous essay contest."

"Essay contest?" Mrs. Gong thought for a moment and said, "The 'Legend Cup' essay contest?"

Gong Chengde nodded and said, "Our TV station also ran ads for it."

Mrs. Gong nodded and asked, "Then what happened?"

"In this essay contest, there was a novel called 'The Sword of the Yue Maiden' that suddenly became popular. Many people were discussing it online. Then the author came out and revealed his identity, apparently a previously banned author. I'm not entirely clear on the specifics, but after this hype, the author and the book became even more popular. Cheng'en then bought the copyright to the book and said he would make it into a TV series."

Gongchi, who had been sitting indifferently, suddenly spoke, "Seizing the opportunity and acting swiftly are basic qualities in the media industry. Your grandfather often says that one should not follow the trend when the wind is blowing but should lead the wind when it starts. This time, Cheng'en did well. You should learn from this."

Gong Chengde nodded in agreement. Mrs. Gong quickly spoke up for her son, "Xiao De has been working hard. He hasn't been idle recently." She turned to her son and asked, "How is the talk show you're planning coming along?"

Gong Chengde's eyes lit up, and he replied, "The proposal is already written, and we're currently discussing the host selection."

"Every TV station does talk shows. To stand out, you need to study successful talk shows, see what you can learn from them, what can be improved, and most importantly, what new elements can be added to create your own style and uniqueness."

Gong Chengde nodded repeatedly, and Mrs. Gong watched her husband teach their son with a smile.

"Among the four of you, Chengpin has performed the best so far. This beauty pageant was ultimately orchestrated by him. Your grandfather didn't mention his name but only patted Cheng'en on the shoulder, to avoid any imbalance in the hearts of me and your third uncle. You need to remember this."

Mrs. Gong interjected, "Chengpin is too calculating, always serious and lacking the vigor of youth. The old man..."

Gongchi waved his hand and said, "Whoever has the ability will rise to the top, in any field. Don't think the old man doesn't know this. This year's TV station anniversary might be entrusted to Chengpin."

Mrs. Gong frowned slightly, "Chengpin is already so outstanding, and now it seems Cheng'en is also rising. Heaven is too kind to the second family."

"It's too early to say. Let's wait and see. In two years, the TV station will celebrate its 50th anniversary, and the old man will evaluate them. We'll see if this little Cheng'en is truly awakened or just a fleeting flower."

"Speaking of which, the variety show that the third family is working on seems to be coming out soon. They've put a lot of effort into it this time."

"Preparing the way for Xiao Hui," Gongchi said, glancing at his son. "If you can participate in the TV series that Chengpin and Cheng'en are making, try to get involved as much as possible. After the cast is selected, they will definitely visit various TV stations, and your talk show can do a special episode for them."

"I've already talked to Big Brother Chengpin," Gong Chengde quickly replied.

Gongchi nodded, rarely showing approval for his son's performance, "What's the name of that TV series? 'The Sword of the Yue Maiden'?"

...

"Tell me honestly, what do you really think about the adaptation of this TV series?"

Mi Hu and Liu Jingteng each held a Häagen-Dazs ice cream and walked side by side on the brick road. The maple trees lining the road extended far, their lush branches casting shadows on the path, with flickering light spots occasionally falling on the two of them.

"What's so special about this Häagen-Dazs? It feels so different from the ice cream I ate as a child," Liu Jingteng seemed not to have heard Mi Hu's question, shaking his head as he commented on the ice cream in his hand.

Mi Hu lightly kicked his calf and raised his voice, "Are you listening to me?"

Liu Jingteng shook the ice cream in his hand, "Explain to me first, why do you like this thing?"

Mi Hu "hmm"ed and explained matter-of-factly, "Because Yi Shui'an likes it. The female protagonist in her book likes Häagen-Dazs. As her fan, I can't help but like it too."

Liu Jingteng laughed, "That's a typical soft advertisement. But thinking about it, Yi Shui'an does indeed like to describe these details. The ice cream must be Häagen-Dazs, the coffee must be cappuccino, and the oral liquid must be the blue bottle calcium..."

"What?" Mi Hu, hearing "blue bottle calcium," knew he was joking again and couldn't help but kick him again, "You're not allowed to make fun of An."

"No, I understand it's her style," Liu Jingteng took a bite of the melting ice cream in his hand and continued, "And as a writer, one must have some faith or obsessive preferences."

"What are your faith and hobbies?"

Liu Jingteng sighed and said, "If I tell you, I'll get kicked again, so I'll pass."

"Two kicks if you don't."

Liu Jingteng quickly said seriously, "Beautiful women."

After saying that, Liu Jingteng was kicked three times.

"How can you be so unreasonable?"

"Who asked you to be so shameless?"

"I said it's in the book. In the real world, I'm definitely loyal. Look, I even applied to your school."

Mi Hu, with a stern face, said, "Quickly answer my first question. What do you think about the adaptation of 'The Sword of the Yue Maiden'?"

Liu Jingteng pouted and said, "To be honest, if they simply adapt the novel, it will likely end up lukewarm. In their view, the most appealing part of the Wu-Yue rivalry to the audience will be the emotional entanglements between Xi Shi and several men. They will probably make this the core selling point, similar to the 'Secret History of Xi Shi.' But if they do this, it won't be 'The Sword of the Yue Maiden' anymore."

Mi Hu nodded, "They are currently holding auditions for Xi Shi. By the way, have you ever thought about writing novels that can be adapted into TV series?"

Liu Jingteng said, "It's best to let things happen naturally. Hey, I really can't bear to be humble. In any case, the future landscape of TV series will be very different, and you can look forward to it."

Mi Hu, although making a face that said "don't be so full of yourself," did not contradict Liu Jingteng's bold words, and said, "What about 'Seven Swords Descend from Heaven'?"

Liu Jingteng nodded, "There's a lot to explore in this one. It can be made into both movies and TV series. But let's not talk about this. I asked you out today to tell you something."

"Go ahead."

Liu Jingteng's expression became serious, and after a moment of thought, he said, "Can I hold your hand?"

Liu Jingteng's calf was kicked three more times, and he yelped, "We're both in our twenties, and we've been dating for so long without even holding hands. I'm embarrassed to stay in the early love scene."

Mi Hu smiled at him, "You're still so young. Grow up a bit more."

After lunch, the two walked around the streets for a while. Liu Jingteng accompanied Mi Hu to countless clothing, accessory, and bag stores, and he realized again that aimless shopping is a mandatory course for every boy.

...

While Liu Jingteng and Mi Hu were looking at clothes in a mall, Xue Muliang, the chairman of Dingjie Culture, and famous young writer Beige Tang, both posted a message on their microblogs. The latest issue of 'Ding Novel' would feature a special supplement, 'Ding Fantasy,' which would publish Beige Tang's latest martial arts masterpiece, 'Tianlu Tower.'

After a week of intense discussion, the Dingjie editorial department finally decided on the topic and outlined the story. Xue Muliang personally chose Beige Tang to complete this story, marking the official entry of 'Ding Novel' into the martial arts novel genre.

To allow Beige Tang the freedom to create and avoid unnecessary disturbances, the background of 'Tianlu Tower' was set in a fictional historical space, roughly telling the story of a young man who rises from the ashes of his family's destruction to become a martial arts master.

Compared to Beige Tang's representative work, 'Phoenix Descendants,' this story was not particularly challenging for him, and he was confident that he could write a more exciting story than 'Dragon Tiger Battle in Jinghua,' 'The Sword of the Yue Maiden,' and 'Seven Swords Descend from Heaven.'

Almost every author preparing to write a story has a similar feeling at the beginning, believing that their story will be extraordinary.

Xue Muliang's decision to enter the martial arts genre when Gu Yongsheng had already made a name for it showed his boldness. He knew that once this news was released, there would inevitably be voices questioning whether they were following the trend. Countless facts have shown that paying too much attention to these voices is harmful and not beneficial.

"This is called 'using their methods to defeat them,'" Xue Muliang said to Beige Tang, giving him a heads-up, "We are going to win a beautiful battle using their methods."

When Xue Muliang said "using their methods to defeat them," he never imagined that many years later, Gu Yongsheng would create a character in another shocking work whose ultimate skill was "using their methods to defeat them."

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