This director lacks vision.

Chapter 43 Old Boys Released

December 2009, 7.

Shanghai Tudou.com Headquarters Office.

It was already 7:50 p.m., but the office area was still full of people, with most employees still working overtime.

As a startup aiming for an IPO, Tudou.com's employees enjoy the basic "blessing" of working 996 (9 am to 9 pm, 6 days a week) and look forward to one day cashing in their stock options.

Inside conference room A01, several of the company's senior executives sat together.

The online movie "Old Boys," heavily promoted by Sohu Video, will be released tonight at 8 PM.

As a competitor, Tudou.com is paying close attention to this.

Boss Wang Wei specially called everyone to the conference room to watch the movie together.

Inside the meeting room, everyone was quiet, and the overall atmosphere wasn't very good.

This year, Sohu Video Network went on a buying spree, purchasing copyrights, distributing genuine films and television shows, and establishing an anti-piracy alliance. It also launched a creator partner program, which attracted a large number of high-quality video bloggers.

Tudou.com was the most affected.

Not only did its market share slip to second place, but its advertising revenue also experienced negative growth.

This makes it even more difficult for companies to raise funds.

Baidu has now invested another 10 billion yuan to establish iQiyi Video.

Tudou.com is facing increasing competitive pressure.

At 8 p.m. sharp, the assistant refreshed the webpage and saw that Jiang Yifeng's account had updated with a new video.

[Old Boys – A generation will eventually grow old, but there will always be someone young.]

Upon seeing the title, Wang Wei remarked, "Jiang Yifeng is really good at playing word games. This title is very evocative; I couldn't help but click to see the details."

Bai Zhongchun, the head of the advertising production department, nodded and said, "There is indeed something there. Our advertising production department has also been studying Jiang Yifeng's web series content recently."

Content Director Wang Xiangyun immediately said, "We have thoroughly studied Jiang Yifeng's web series formula, and the new self-produced series will be launched soon."

Seeing Wang Wei nod, the assistant clicked play.

The program begins with a 60-second advertisement, one segment featuring Meizu mobile phones and the other featuring Semir clothing.

Wang Wei was very envious after seeing these two advertisements.

Tudou.com has poor advertising resources; most of the ads are for games and gray-area websites, with virtually no first- or second-tier brands.

Fan Jun from the advertising sales department saw what the boss was thinking. He opened his mouth, but in the end, he didn't say anything.

Tudou.com's advertising revenue for the entire year of 2008 was approximately 3000 million RMB.

Baidu has 4 million USD, while Sohu has 2 million USD.

This is the stark difference.

Fan Jun has worked very hard; Tudou.com's advertising revenue has more than doubled year-on-year this year.

After the commercial break, with a click, the spotlight turned on, illuminating Dapeng and Qiaoshan on the stage.

The two men, dressed as Michael Jackson, performed the moonwalk on stage.

The camera zoomed in very close, revealing the sweat on Dapeng and Qiaoshan's faces and their heavy breathing.

This close-up shot creates a tense atmosphere and enhances the audience's sense of immersion.

The two dancers' performance was not up to standard, appearing somewhat comical and awkward. The audience whispered among themselves, and the judges shook their heads.

"The number one seed won't be here for another 15 minutes. You guys chat with the players on stage a little longer to buy time."

After receiving the director's notification, the judges began, "Please introduce yourselves."

"Hello everyone, I'm Dapeng, and I'm 30 years old."

"I am Qiao Shan, and I am 30 years old."

The audience below was whispering.

"He's 30 years old, a middle-aged man, not handsome and without any talent, and he still comes to a talent show, it's shameful!"

"Exactly! A 30-year-old man should be earning money to support his family and taking on responsibilities. Why is he participating in a talent show? It's not his proper job!"

Dapeng and Qiaoshan were even more embarrassed.

The judge asked, "Judging from your attire, you must be Michael Jackson fans. Did you learn the moonwalk before?"

Da Peng and Qiao Shan exchanged a glance and said together, "We learned it, back in high school..."

As the word "high school" appears, the scene flashes back to a high school classroom.

The desks were piled high with textbooks and materials, a banner at the back of the classroom read "183 days until the college entrance exam," students were talking during self-study, and the homeroom teacher stood outside the window watching...

These familiar scenes instantly transported everyone back to their school days.

Jingle Bell!
The school bell rang.

Dapeng and Qiaoshan rushed out of the classroom immediately, chasing each other to an intersection.

This is the only way from the teaching building to the cafeteria.

"They're here! The school beauty is here!"

Qiao Shan shouted excitedly.

Dapeng didn't respond; he just stared blankly ahead.

The school beauty walked over with two female classmates, chatting and laughing.

Gao Yuanyuan is already beautiful. Here, Jiang Yifeng used Dapeng's first-person perspective and added a filter to give Gao Yuanyuan a 28-second long shot.

The pure and beautiful school beauty walks slowly towards you, like the eternal white moonlight in your heart, blooming and never fading.

After seeing it, Wang Wei felt a flutter in his heart and suddenly felt that his lover, Tan Yuanyuan, was not so appealing anymore.

They're both Yuanyuan, but there's a huge difference between them.

He glanced at Fan Jun, Bai Zhongchun, and the others, and noticed that they were all staring intently at the screen.

This shows that Gao Yuanyuan's appearance was a success.

Gao Yuanyuan's portrayal of the school beauty is incredibly convincing.

If the female lead's character is well-established, the movie "Good Boy" is already halfway to success.

The following plot will focus on Dapeng and Qiaoshan's high school life.

Dapeng's academic performance is above average; with some effort, he might be able to get into a top-tier university.

He likes to sing and play ball, but these hobbies have been suppressed.

Li Mingqi plays the homeroom teacher, Ms. Su, who is the culprit. She keeps a close eye on Da Peng and often beats and scolds him, which makes the audience frown.

Qiao Shan's grades were poor, so he gave up and spent his days studying the moonwalk.

He was a bit chubby, and his moonwalk looked ridiculous, often making him the target of ridicule from his classmates.

Only Dapeng didn't laugh at Qiao Shan; instead, he admired his courage. Dapeng felt that he lacked courage and always followed the arrangements made by his parents and teachers.

Both of them liked the school beauty and wanted to show off in front of her.

It just so happened that the school was having a talent show, so the two of them put together a singing and dancing performance of Michael Jackson's "Beat It".

When Teacher Su found out about this, she immediately canceled the program.

Unable to perform on stage, the two could only perform a moonwalk for the school beauty at the intersection where they often waited.

Unfortunately, the school beauty remained expressionless, ignored the two of them, and walked away lightly.

The scene abruptly ends here, then cuts back to the real-life stage.

The judges mocked, "It's a good thing the school beauty didn't see your moonwalk. If she had seen your clumsy performance, it would have backfired."

The judges casually mocked Da Peng and Qiao Shan, expecting the audience to join in, but the audience remained silent.

Before the seeded players even arrived, the judges asked again, "What do you guys do?"

Why did you choose to participate in the talent show for "Happy Master"?

As the judges continued to ask questions, the scene began to change.

Viewers began to learn about Dapeng and Qiao Shan's current lives.

Dapeng performed exceptionally well in the college entrance examination and was admitted to a top-tier university. After graduation, he worked as a real estate salesman, but his income could not keep up with the rising housing prices, making it impossible for him to afford a house. His future mother-in-law made things difficult for him in various ways, and his girlfriend broke up with him in disappointment.

I'm thirty and still single.

Qiao Shan didn't do well in school, so he went out to work after graduating from high school. Now he owns a hair salon and has married a wife who weighs 200 pounds.

Every day, he not only has to endure his wife's disdain, but also the harassment from a bunch of flamboyant teenagers.

When Dapeng lost his temper and shouted furiously, "To hell with the house! House, house, house! Am I not a man without a house?!"

When Qiao Shan broke down emotionally, he shouted, "Shamate, Shamate, what the hell is 'shamate'! Shamate is so stupid! I'm such a stupid idiot!!"

The audience's sense of immersion was immediately maximized, and their emotions reached their peak.

In life, academic high-achievers and good-looking people are ultimately a minority.

Most people have average grades and ordinary looks. Dapeng and Qiaoshan's experiences represent the majority, and everyone can empathize with them.

This is what youth is like for ordinary people: full of compromises and regrets. After entering society, they encounter setbacks everywhere and are gradually worn down by life.

The emotions reached their peak, and the singing came at just the right moment.

Dapeng and Qiao Shan took turns singing.

"That's the person I miss and love day and night. How should I express my feelings? Will she accept me?"

"Perhaps I will never say those words to her. I am destined to wander the world. How can I have any attachments?"

"If dreams always seem unattainable, should we give up?"

"Flowers bloom and fade, another season has come; where are you, spring?"

Accompanied by this questioning performance, scenes from the past and present intertwined, stirring the audience's emotions.

Youth is like a rushing river, once gone, it never returns, and there's no time to say goodbye!

All that's left is a numb me, the passion I once had is gone~~~

"Look at those flowers falling all over the sky, withering at their most beautiful moment!"
Who will remember that she ever came into this world?

As the chorus began, the audience in the movie started to shed tears, and the school beauty and others watching the live stream also cried.

In reality, Wang Wei and others also felt this way.

Wang Xiangyun is a woman, and quite emotional; she was already silently wiping away her tears with a tissue.

Whether you are successful or not, you will always have memories of your youth.

Especially after being veiled by memories, the troubles and pains of youth fade away, while the beautiful things become more and more memorable.

After the song ended, the audience applauded.

The long-awaited seed has finally arrived.

"Teacher Su!"

Dapeng and Qiaoshan exclaimed in surprise!

Teacher Su glared at the two of them, her usual scolding tone still ringing out.

"I've been retired for a long time, so don't call me Teacher Su! Call me Aunt Susan!"

"Aunt Susan?"

Dapeng and Qiaoshan used a common chair-dropping technique to show their surprise.

The film concludes with this hilarious twist.

The end credits begin to appear, and the credits roll.

About 20 seconds later, a line of text appeared.

"The Mountain Brothers are ultimately too ordinary. It's a pity that they stopped at the top 64 of the Happy Talent Show and returned to their ordinary lives."

The screen lit up again.

Qiao Shan, dressed in a flamboyant, "punk" style outfit, celebrated with Da Peng.

"Congratulations, brother. After ten years of hard work, you've finally become a noble mortgage slave and are eligible to pay off a 30-year mortgage."

Dapeng sighed and said, "What can we do? Life goes on."

"Aren't you the same? You joined the 'Shamate' family too?"

"There's nothing wrong with being a 'Shamate' (a subculture characterized by flamboyant and unconventional styles). We were 'Shamate' too. Back in our school days, we used unconventional methods to show our presence and attract the attention of the school beauty."

Dapeng patted Qiao Shan on the shoulder and said with a smile, "Want to do a bit?"

"Come on, come on!"

The two of them started moonwalking in the sales office, oblivious to everyone around them.

With a backward dance step, the scene smoothly transitions back to high school.

Dapeng and Qiaoshan danced for the school beauty at the intersection of the campus road.

The school beauty walked by expressionlessly.

She had only walked two meters when she suddenly turned around and looked back, a happy smile on her face.

Seeing this, Wang Wei felt as if she had been electrocuted, and goosebumps rose all over her body.

If the unexpected turn of events involving the homeroom teacher, Ms. Su, a top prospect, is simply exciting, then it's not.

The final scene, where the school beauty turns around and smiles, neatly resolves the foreshadowing from earlier moments—a truly inspired touch.

This glance back seems to represent all the viewers looking back on their own youth!

(End of this chapter)