Cheng Che remained calm because he knew that the projects he was approaching might not be good ones.
The entertainment industry has a strict hierarchy. He's a former tennis player with no serious works to his name. How could he possibly get top-tier resources?
What he can get now is most likely the kind of "fast-moving consumer goods that ride the wave of popularity."
While he's still riding high from the Master tournament, let's quickly make a terrible movie and make a quick buck.
He'd rather not have this kind of project.
Moreover, he needs to find someone knowledgeable about the entertainment industry to consult.
Yan Ruanning was sitting right next to her, but the atmosphere was too subtle at the moment.
Su Miaoyin was serving food to Jiang Xue, Pei Jingshu was quietly eating her snacks, Yan Ruanning was serving soup to Jiang Xue.
All three people are present.
If he were to lean over and ask Yan Ruanning at this moment, "What do you think of this script?" it would be tantamount to throwing a grenade onto an already shaky dining table.
never mind.
We'll talk about it when we get back to Peking University.
He looked down at his phone and opened the marathon registration information.
The Stamina Trial Fourth Stage is still missing a running Champion.
The tennis game is finished, but the running game is still missing one.
He prefers marathons because there are many marathon events, the entry requirements are low, and he has been training in endurance running for so long that marathons are the sport he is most comfortable with.
He's not cut out for sprinting; he's not even eligible to register.
He flipped through the recent marathon events.
There will be a Hang City Marathon in mid-November, and the registration deadline is the end of October.
He glanced at the calendar; there were less than two weeks left.
Coincidentally, he didn't have any plans at Peking University during that time.
He clicked the sign-up button, the page redirected, he filled in the information, and submitted.
Done.
At this moment, his popularity on the internet remains high.
After the cover photo of Esquire was released, the entire internet felt like it had been bombed.
It wasn't just the fans who were going crazy; many bystanders also joined the discussion.
Someone without a talent agency, a team, or hiring online trolls appeared on the cover of China's top men's fashion magazine, and the photo quality was ridiculously good.
This incident itself challenges many people's understanding of the entertainment industry.
But the most upset people weren't the ordinary passersby, but the male celebrities.
The cover of Esquire has always been a battleground for male celebrities.
However, in recent years, in pursuit of so-called "artistic appeal," magazines have frequently given male celebrities some very unattractive looks.
Fans cried out "Give me back my brother!" in the comments section, and passersby took screenshots and posted them online to mock him. Even the celebrity himself probably doesn't know what he actually looks like in that photo.
This hairstyle has a specific term online: "Thunder Style".
And what about Cheng Che?
Esquire released only one picture: a black turtleneck sweater, a dark gray suit jacket, exuding an air of asceticism, aloofness, and unapproachability.
This cover photo was shared over 500,000 times within half an hour, and the comments section was full of "husband" and "buy it all".
Those male celebrities who were photographed in gritty outfits by Esquire must be feeling pretty good about it.
They watched Cheng Che's videos and saw his photos, and knew that the boy was indeed good-looking.
But they felt those photos were all photoshopped.
Who doesn't use Photoshop these days?
Magazine covers are a prime example of photo retouching.
Cheng Che's photo was definitely edited.
What upset them even more was that Esquire magazine released a behind-the-scenes video of the photoshoot.
In the video, the main cinematographer Chen Man, sits behind the monitor, looking at Cheng Che on the screen, her tone filled with barely suppressed emotion.
"He's the first person I've photographed for magazines in all these years who I don't need to teach you how to pose. His body knows where to lean, and his eyes know where to look. His presence in front of the camera is better than many professional models."
This statement immediately angered the male celebrity's fans.
Did Chen Man receive money?
"What kind of camera presence can a tennis player have?"
" Esquire went too far with this marketing campaign."
"Just a marketing ploy; he'll show his true colors in a couple of days."
But what really caused things to spiral out of control was that someone gave Cheng Che a derogatory nickname.
" Four-Thousand-Year Pretty Boy."
This term was originally used to mock idols who over-marketed their beauty.
In the context of the internet, the phrase "four thousand years" itself carries a sense of exaggerated and absurd irony.
The problem is, after carefully examining the cover photo and looking at photos of Cheng Che on and off the court, Cheng Che's fans realized that he... actually seems to be worthy of it.
Although that's what the fans think, it's impossible for them to tolerate being belittled like this.
The supertopic exploded.
[ Four-Thousand-Year Pretty Boy? That's clearly a derogatory term!]
They're just jealous. Don't they know how badly their own brother was photographed by Esquire?
Sisters, let's go! We won't let anyone get away with these derogatory nicknames!
[I've already seen several fan groups making sarcastic remarks. Let's take them down one by one.]
Cheng Che's fans began their attack.
They gave the fans of the male celebrities who participated in the fight all sorts of derogatory nicknames in return.
A male celebrity recently filmed a period drama, and his appearance was criticized as "looking like a eunuch," so fans nicknamed him "Eunuch Brother."
Another male celebrity was photographed looking like a " Wawa " in a magazine shoot, so fans started calling him "Big-Headed Son."
Another male celebrity was accused of plagiarism when he released a new song, so his fans called him "The Tailor."
An internet war is about to break out.
At the dinner table, Cheng Che was completely unaware of all this.
He had just finished registering, put down his phone, picked up his chopsticks, and took a piece of braised pork.
Pei Jingshu leaned closer and asked him in Korean, "What are you looking at?"
"Register." Cheng Che replied to her in Korean, "Marathon."
"You're going to run a marathon?" Pei Jingshu's eyes lit up. "I like running too."
Upon hearing the word "marathon," Su Miaoyin turned her head and glanced at Cheng Che.
Her lips twitched, but she didn't speak.
Yan Ruanning heard it too. She put down her soup spoon, glanced at Cheng Che, and asked casually, "When are we running?"
"November," Cheng Che said, " Hang City Marathon."
Yan Ruanning nodded. "I've heard of that competition; the scenery is nice."
"Um."
Su Miaoyin put down her chopsticks and looked at Cheng Che.
"You need to pay attention to your diet and sleep schedule before running a marathon; you can't eat just anything."
"I know."
Pei Jingshu couldn't understand what they were saying, but she saw Su Miaoyin and Yan Ruanning talking to Cheng Che, and she wanted to join in.
She asked Cheng Che in Korean, "What are you talking about?"
"Let's talk about marathons," Cheng Che said.
Pei Jingshu nodded, then said earnestly in broken Chinese, "I'll go and cheer you on."
Looking into her earnest gaze, Cheng Che's heart softened. He smiled and said, "Thank you."
Upon hearing this, the other two were displeased and cursed inwardly, "Green tea!"
Jiang Xue watched the three girls surrounding her son, and felt a mix of emotions she couldn't quite describe.
I'm happy because my son is popular. I'm annoyed because he's too popular.
She glanced at Cheng Jianguo. Cheng Jianguo was clinking glasses with Qin Lie, his expression calm.
He's probably used to it by now.
Jiang Xue sighed, picked up a piece of fish, and put it in her mouth.
Eating this meal was more tiring than selling breakfast.