The younger generation, starting from where the wind blows...

Chapter 112 Plastic Brothers
Yang Muye looked at the stunned Xu Kaiyang and Zhang Kai with amusement in his eyes: "If you don't believe me, you can go ask someone who studies law?"

Xu Kaiyang and Zhang Kai subconsciously conjured up an image of someone with half a piece of instant noodles in their mouth that they hadn't swallowed.

Since we all live in the same dorm, I'll go upstairs and ask later.

So what exactly do you want?

"I started an MCN company, which is basically an influencer agency. Cheng Feng and Wu Di are both signed influencers with the company. Would you two like to give it a try?"

Xu Kaiyang and Zhang Kai said in unison:
"You want to sign with us?"

Xu Kaiyang spoke first: "No, even if you forgive and forget about our past grievances, we're still worried. What if you trick us?"

Cheng Feng glanced over.

"Xu Kaiyang, don't be ungrateful!"

Xu Kaiyang was about to retort when Zhang Kai's voice rang out first.

"I'm not trying to argue, but what do you see in us?"

"Weren't you guys planning to imitate the Back Dorm Boys? That's what I like about you. To put it more bluntly, I think you two are perfect for being silly and cheeky."

He opened his mouth and moved it slightly, then turned to look at Xu Kaiyang:
Is he insulting us?

Just as Xu Kaiyang was about to speak, Yang Muye's voice rang out first.

"Yes, this is an insult directed at you, but didn't you choose this path yourselves?"

So we deserve to be scolded, right?

Xu Kaiyang and Zhang Kai wanted to refute, but in their hearts they had to admit that Yang Muye was right.

This is so damn difficult!
"Xu Kaiyang, that's all you've got. You only dare to cause trouble behind the scenes. You're cowardly when it comes to open and honest things. How about this, as long as you two apologize to each other in person, we'll let this matter of you trying to extort money from us Old Boys go."

Cheng Feng's voice rang out again.

Xu Kaiyang was speechless.

Am I that stupid?

The key issue is that this attempt to provoke them is too clumsy; who are they looking down on?
Finally, Xu Kaiyang steeled himself, looked up at Yang Muye, and asked, "If Zhang Kai agrees to sign with your MCN, how do you plan to develop us?"

Seeing Xu Kaiyang's change in attitude, Zhang Kai immediately changed his tune: "That's right, don't you know how to write songs? We don't have high requirements, just write us a song similar to 'The Lone Warrior'."

Yang Muye shrugged.

“I do have the song, but the question is, can you two sing it? I don’t mean the kind of singing that you can just do with your mouth, but the kind that you have to have seriously studied for a while and have some basic knowledge of.

Xu Kaiyang and Zhang Kai exchanged a glance.

Both of them are masters of empty talk, but they chicken out when it comes to showing their true abilities.

"As I just said, leave professional matters to professionals. You two are suited to the quirky and cheeky route of Back Dorm Boys. Of course, I'm not telling you to follow the Back Dorm Boys' example and go into the entertainment industry after becoming famous online. They have already proven that this is the wrong path for you."

As soon as he finished speaking, he opened his hand and raised it.

Yang Muye laughed: "I'm not giving you a lecture. Ask whatever you want, no need to raise your hand."

He opened his hands, lowered them, and asked expectantly, "If we sign with your company, will we be able to make money?"

"Nonsense, do you think I started this company to play games with you? If I didn't expect you to make money for me, why would I sign with you? Being an internet celebrity may not sound as glamorous as being a star, but once you become a top influencer, your fame and income may not be comparable to those top stars, but it will definitely surpass those second- or third-tier artists."

Yang Muye's words were not only for Xu Kaiyang and Zhang Kai, but also for Cheng Feng and Wu Di.

"Aside from the fact that their income and fame may not be comparable to top celebrities, being an internet celebrity is all about advantages. The threshold is low and there is less competition. Especially for the first batch of people to try it out, they can make a lot of money just from the dividends of the times. As long as they don't do anything illegal or disorderly, even if they have some minor flaws, they won't be scrutinized by the public and the media like celebrities do."

In summary, the work is simple and easy, with little to do and high pay.

Upon hearing about such a good thing, Zhang Kai was immediately excited and turned to look at Xu Kaiyang with eager eyes.

Before he could even speak, Xu Kaiyang's voice rang out first.

"You believed him just because he said so? He's just making empty promises to us, you know?"

That's what they said, but their tone had clearly softened considerably.

Zhang Kai knew that Xu Kaiyang was just too proud to admit it, so he chuckled and said, "Whether it's just empty talk or not, at least I have material to dream about tonight."

Xu Kaiyang verbally berated Zhang Kai for being useless, but then readily agreed to Yang Muye's request.

Zhang Kai immediately said, "Shouldn't we come up with a new name for our duo?"

Now this guy is willing to admit that the name "Old Boy" is too tacky.

Xu Kaiyang looked at Yang Muye with a hint of scrutiny in his eyes.

To be their boss, you need to at least demonstrate some convincing skills.

"There's a saying: 'Those who learn from me live, those who imitate me die.' After the Back Dorm Boys became popular, none of the groups that imitated them and named themselves 'Boys' or 'Boys' became popular. The same goes for the current 'Old Boys.' No matter what they call themselves, they won't have a future. They should either come up with something fancy, like 'BOY,' and make sure it's all in English. Combining Chinese and English is too tacky. Or they can just call themselves 'Brothers.'"

Xu Kaiyang and Zhang Kai exchanged a glance, their opinions diverging.

Xu Kaiyang prefers the full English name "Boys," because it sounds more sophisticated.

Zhang Kai prefers brothers; it's obvious he's watched too many Hong Kong films like Hung Hing Tsai.

Neither of them could convince the other, so Yang Muye made the final decision.

"Stop arguing, you two can just call each other plastic brothers!"

what?
Xu Kaiyang and Zhang Kaiqi were both stunned.

Is there any story behind this name?

Zhang Kai spoke first, asking the question.

"Brothers represent the friendship between men, while plastic means that your friendship is as fragile as plastic, and the boat of friendship can capsize at any moment."

There's no such thing as "plastic sisters" yet, so Yang Muye decided to use "plastic brothers" to fill that gap for now.

Xu Kaiyang looked at Chen Xiaozheng with some frustration and asked, "Is the relationship between Zhang Kai and me really like plastic?"

Chen Xiaozheng nodded and answered very seriously, "It does look quite similar."

Zhang Kai, looking like he knew everything, quickly answered, "Like in Stephen Chow's movies, it's nonsensical self-deprecation, right?"

"Yes, you two usually imitate Stephen Chow's nonsensical style, making skits with the theme of friendships capsizing easily, um, that's what I mean by sketch comedy."

The term "joke writer" hasn't been used yet, so Yang Muyi specifically corrected it.

"So you're not going to make the parody videos of 'The Lone Warrior' anymore?" Xu Kaiyang suddenly asked.

"Go for it! If you don't ride the coattails of 'Old Boys,' how will you plastic brothers debut?"

Yang Muyi added, "Of course we have to find a different way to piggyback on their popularity. The way we imitated the Back Dorm Boys is outdated and won't be very effective. How about this, I'll change the lyrics of 'The Lone Warrior' and you guys sing it."

I thought Xu Kaiyang and Zhang Kaihui would readily agree, but to my surprise, they hesitated.

"Can we just lip-sync instead of singing?" Zhang Kai asked somewhat embarrassedly.

The reason they initially decided to imitate the Back Dorm Boys was because all they had to do was lip-sync to make some abstract and funny expressions, without actually singing.

Unexpectedly, Yang Muye was easier to talk to than I had imagined. "Okay, then let's lip-sync, and use Cheng Feng's voice."

Cheng Feng was furious.

It was agreed that the "Plastic Brothers" were meant to ride the coattails of the "Old Boys" trend, not that the "Old Boys" were meant to promote the "Plastic Brothers" to debut.

Anyway, he won't be a stand-in singer for his plastic brother.

"You don't need to sing for them, just re-edit your voices."

Yang Muye offered an explanation.

Everyone was even more confused after hearing this.

What do you mean?
"You've all misunderstood. I just changed the lyrics for Plastic Brothers, not rewrote them and turned them into a nonsensical version."

Yang Muyi gave a specific example.

The original song includes the lyrics: "The wound on your forehead, your differences, the mistakes you made."

The simplified version is "The wound on your forehead, your wound, on your forehead."

The lyrics of the entire song will become this kind of repetitive talk, and at the same time, Xu Kaiyang and Zhang Kai will imitate the music video of "Old Boys" one-to-one and remake a knock-off comedy version of the music video.

This is based on the same underlying logic as "A Bloodbath Caused by a Steamed Bun," and people online seem to buy into this.

After uploading the video, there are two ways to play.

The first approach is like Director Chen, who filed a lawsuit against Hu Ge, using the lawsuit to generate buzz and attract attention.

This may not have been Director Chen's original intention, but the capital forces behind "The Promise" certainly played a role in pushing things along.

However, Director Chen bore all the blame.

This tactic is only effective when the two parties are not on the same side; otherwise, once exposed, it becomes a baseless and malicious hype that could easily lead to a collapse of the reputation.

Another approach is like what happened between Leather Pants Wang and Rising Sun in their previous lives. After "In the Spring" became a hit, Leather Pants Wang generously praised the two and even invited them to participate in his concert.

It wasn't until he discovered that the cover version was more popular than the original singer himself, and that the other singer wasn't paying him royalties, that Leather Pants Wang regretted his decision and forbade Rising Sun Gang from singing "In the Spring" again.

Since Plastic Brothers and Old Boys are currently under the same company, there is naturally no issue of infringement.

Plastic Brothers can openly ride the coattails of Old Boys and Lone Warriors.

Meanwhile, the Old Boys also followed the example of Leather Pants Wang, forwarding and liking the nonsense version of "The Lone Warrior," and even inviting Plastic Brothers to sing "The Lone Warrior" together, without worrying about the cover version killing the original singer.

After all, they are not on the same track.

There was actually an even bigger ambition hidden in this, but he didn't reveal it while eating barbecue.

After finishing the barbecue, Yang Muyi first saw Xie Zhiyao and Xie Qiang off, and then walked back to the dormitory with Cheng Feng, Wu Di, and Shi Xiaomeng.

On the way, Yang Muyi suddenly suggested, "We don't have classes tomorrow afternoon, so why don't we go see a movie together in our dorm?"

Wu Di was the first to speak: "Just the four of us?"

Yang Muyi looked at Wu Di strangely. Shouldn't a normal person's first reaction be to ask what movie they want to watch?

"Yeah, it's just the four of us going. Who else do you want to invite?"

Wu Di realized that he had inadvertently revealed his true intentions and was preparing to use Ding Ning from the next dormitory as a cover.

Cheng Feng put his arm around Wu Di's shoulder and said, "No problem, I'll call Xia Qing right now and ask if they have any classes in dormitory 203 tomorrow afternoon."

"No, that's not what I meant," Wu Di said, blushing.

Cheng Feng picked up his phone and then put it down again.

"Okay, then I won't play."

Wu Di was dumbfounded.

I was just being coy, did you really take it seriously?
Yang Muye took out his phone: "I'll call Chen Nanxing."

When the call connected, it was Xu Hongdou's voice that came on the other end.

"Is something wrong?"

"I'm quite curious, what excuse did Chen Nanxing use this time to trick you into answering the phone for her?"

"You guessed wrong this time. Nan Nan went to take a shower and left her phone in the dorm."

"She's not here, you don't have to answer."

"If Nan Nan isn't answering the phone, you should call me next. Why should I bother?"

Do you have classes tomorrow afternoon?

"I have classes, both in the morning and afternoon."

"Okay, you guys are sure to have time tonight, so why don't you invite the rest of your dorm to go see a movie together? It's on me."

"what movie?"

"Marvel's special effects blockbuster, The Incredible Hulk."

"I haven't paid much attention to it. This movie is probably for guys. Why did you invite us girls to watch it together?"

"You know Li An, right? He made a movie called 'The Incredible Hulk' in Hollywood, which is a prequel to The Incredible Hulk. Unfortunately, that movie was a box office and critical flop."

"Then why did you invite us to see the sequel?"

"The sequel has a different director and lead actor. You can think of it as an independent film, but it's not completely independent. It has a tiny bit of connection to Iron Man, which was released earlier this year."

I've heard of it, but I haven't seen it.

Iron Man was released at the end of April, which was during the final sprint of high school students' senior year. Xu Hongdou knew about the movie from her older sister, Xu Hongmi.

"Honestly, Iron Man is a really good movie. There are lots of resources available online, you can download it and watch it."

Yang Muyi switched to holding the phone and offered his earnest advice.

"Have you seen Iron Man? What's the connection between us going to the movies together?"

"This is called doing your homework in advance. Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk were both made by the same company. Although there is no direct connection in the plot, the production company Marvel is trying a very new approach, which I call a cinematic universe. Simply put, the main characters in different movies share a common world view. When the time is right, these main characters will appear in the same movie."

Although Xu Hongdou still didn't quite understand, she agreed to ask her other roommates for their opinions, considering how much Yang Muyi had explained.

After hanging up the phone, Wu Di immediately asked Yang Muye if they needed to do some research and download Iron Man to their computers to watch it.

Yang Muye looked at Cheng Feng and Shi Xiaomeng.

"None of you have seen it?"

Cheng Feng and Shi Xiaomeng both shook their heads.

"Go ahead and watch this movie, especially the one about the madman. You should watch it carefully and learn how he acts cool and picks up girls."

Yang Muye concluded.

(End of this chapter)