You were asked to write a political intrigue drama, but you wrote "Da Ming 1566".

"Don't you want your money anymore? What are you all standing there for?!" In the group chat, the usually sycophantic online commentators, who always obeyed their leader's every command, remained silent. After a moment, someone finally asked, "How do we make this line sarcastic?" Another commenter silently typed, "I miss my parents."

"I feel like... I really haven't properly repaid them yet..."

The head of the online trolls was taken aback. After a moment, he lost interest. "Never mind."

"Let's not criticize for now." "I'll make up for the missed comments later, I'm going to go for a smoke." At this moment, as the comments from the paid trolls subsided, the chaotic atmosphere in Chen Yu's live stream cleared up. Immediately afterward, a series of donation notifications appeared. Countless ordinary viewers, donating a few yuan or tens of yuan, expressed their feelings about this line from "The Ming Dynasty" in this way.

One of the comments, a donation of 100 yuan, flashed across the live stream screen. "The dialogue is great in every way, except it's a waste of cigarettes." At that moment, with the dialogue between Yan Song and Xu Jie in the first half of the twenty-second scene, "The Ming Dynasty" quietly climbed another step up in the ranking of top dramas.

From its initial position at the very bottom of the list, it jumped several places to reach number ninety-fifth. Although the ranking only improved by five places, it's important to understand that every drama on this list is one of the most outstanding film and television works produced in China over the past twenty years.

Every step forward is equivalent to surpassing a classic, or even a great, film or television drama. Moreover, "The Ming Dynasty" hasn't even been filmed yet; it's just a half-finished script. A single line of dialogue propelling it five places in the rankings is already unimaginable.

When this news broke, the audience gasped in shock.

At the Creator Competition, Qin Lan looked at Chen Yu on the screen, who was smiling and full of confidence. Her originally tense and worried mood suddenly calmed down as if she had gained confidence.

Others might think Chen Yu's claim that "The Ming Dynasty" is undoubtedly the top-rated drama is nonsense, but at this moment, Qin Lan had a feeling. This might actually be true. When "The Ming Dynasty" reaches its peak, it might not just be the top-rated drama, but an insurmountable monument in the history of Chinese film and television!

At this point, because of the previous mistake, the production team was afraid of interrupting Chen Yu's inspiration again, so they didn't dare to tell Chen Yu the news immediately.

Chen Yu's fingers continued to fly across the keyboard, making a loud clattering sound.

After this conversation, Yan Song finally got to the point, asking Xu Jie step by step why Jiajing had asked them to write this poem to highlight the true meaning of the character "贞" (zhen, meaning chastity).

Xu Jie clearly saw through everything, but he still maintained the characteristics of a wise old turtle, feigning ignorance and pretending to be stupid. It wasn't until Yan Song brought everything up clearly, stating that Jiajing had instructed them to make good use of Hu Zongxian and Zhao Zhenji to successfully implement the conversion of rice paddies to mulberry fields.

Yan Song directly ordered Xu Jie to immediately write a letter to Zhao Zhenji, requesting that Zhao borrow grain to relieve Zhejiang's predicament. Xu Jie, feigning fervor, declared he would immediately write the letter and send it to Zhao Zhenji via express courier. After Xu Jie's gesture, Yan Song uttered the following statement: "The position of Grand Secretary will not be passed to Yan Shifan; only you are qualified." This concludes the first half of Act Twenty-Two.

The witty exchange between Yan Song and Xu Jie ultimately led to the introduction of a new character—Zhao Zhenji. Some viewers could already vaguely sense that Zhao Zhenji was definitely a master as well.

The reason is simple: according to the principle of role correspondence that has proven true so far, Gao Gong and Yan Shifan are essentially the same, only their behavior differs due to their different stances and pursuits. The same applies to Yan Song and Xu Jie. Therefore, mentioning Hu Zongxian and Zhao Zhenji simultaneously, with the character "Zhen" representing both individuals, is sufficient to indicate that Zhao Zhenji corresponds to Hu Zongxian.

Moreover, his relationship with Hu Zongxian should be similar to that of Xu Jie and Yan Song!

It's important to understand that Hu Zongxian's popularity among viewers of "The Ming Dynasty" is absolutely unparalleled, boasting countless followers. Now, a new figure, Zhao Zhenji, has emerged, vaguely corresponding to Hu Zongxian. This has sparked considerable curiosity among viewers.

Who exactly is this Zhao Zhenji, that he can be compared to Hu Zongxian? Many viewers in the live chat are discussing this.

In addition, there were those newly converted Ming Dynasty viewers who were watching the script and analysis, occasionally letting out bursts of amazement.

The overall popularity of the live stream has not decreased compared to before Chen Yu declared that the top spot for a hit drama was undoubtedly "The Ming Dynasty". On the contrary, it has increased significantly.

Behind the scenes, the top film and television companies and executives of Huaying Cinema clenched their fists and gritted their teeth in frustration at the sight. "Famous lines, lines of this caliber again! That's why Chen Yu's twenty-second scene has such a great reception right from the start!" "No way, does this guy have an inexhaustible supply of inspiration? Can't he ever finish writing all those high-caliber lines?!" After a moment, they took a deep breath, continuing to stare intently at the screen, their expressions one of disbelief. "Yan Song and Xu Jie are both veteran characters with significant roles, and their personalities have been thoroughly developed. With their appearances, Chen Yu doesn't need to worry about refining the characters anymore; he can focus his energy on the lines and the scenes."

"If this can create memorable scenes and lines, then I'll accept it."

"But I just don't believe it. The new character Zhao Zhenji is about to appear in this scene, and it's obvious that his role is still very important." "I just don't believe that Chen Yu can design memorable scenes and lines for a character whose image hasn't even been established yet in such a short time?"

"I don't believe it!" At that moment, Chen Yu glanced at the live stream comments and noticed that the viewers all seemed satisfied. It seemed that the first half of the dialogue between Yan Song and Xu Jie in this twenty-second scene had already satisfied them. A smile crept onto Chen Yu's lips, and he chuckled inwardly. "This is nothing, and they're already satisfied?"

"The main event of this scene hasn't even been served yet." "Well then..." "Please welcome the first non-stick pan of the Ming Dynasty, the first mathematician of the Ming Dynasty, to the stage! His famous scene is about to begin!"

The sound of Chen Yu's rapid typing resumed, and the second half of Act Twenty-Two began. The perspective in the script shifted from Yan Song and Xu Jie to Yingtian, focusing on Hu Zongxian, who had come to borrow grain. Hu Zongxian, upon entering, immediately began coughing, appearing quite weak. This sight evoked a pang of sympathy from the audience. "Minister Hu, please take care of yourself." "Alas, you're really working too hard."

"On one hand, we have to fight against the Japanese pirates, and on the other hand, we have to clean up the mess caused by the conversion of rice paddies to mulberry fields. Even the strongest person couldn't withstand that."

However, to the audience's surprise, it was expected that Zhao Zhenji would appear soon.

After all, a considerable amount of time has passed since the twenty-second act began, and there has been no sign of the four words "the saint is not benevolent" in Chen Yuqi's title.

If Zhao Zhenji doesn't appear soon, there won't be much time left in the story. But the next character to appear is a doctor named Li Shizhen, who is taking Hu Zongxian's pulse.

Chen Yu's writing doesn't gloss over Li Shizhen; rather, he dedicates a significant portion of the story to him. Clearly, he will be a rather important character. This has surprised some viewers.

There's not much space left in Act Twenty-Two. Instead of focusing on Zhao Zhenji, why is Chen Yu still spending time on a doctor? What is Chen Yu thinking?

The executives of the top film and television companies behind the scenes, as well as the executives of Huaying, frowned and asked the screenwriters in the company for questions.

"What kind of technique is this?"

"Shouldn't the main characters in this scene be Hu Zongxian and Zhao Zhenji?" "Yan Song and Xu Jie spent so much time exchanging witty remarks to introduce the character of Zhao Zhenji, but why aren't they writing about Zhao Zhenji yet, instead of focusing on Li Shizhen, this quack doctor?"

"What's the deeper meaning behind this?" These screenwriters from top-tier film and television companies, who should be seasoned veterans with extensive creative experience, couldn't help but look puzzled as they watched Chen Yu leisurely write the dialogue between Li Shizhen and Hu Zongxian. They couldn't understand why, after so much writing, he wasn't getting straight to the point. Why write about such a person? After frowning for a long time, they exchanged a glance, their faces showing certainty and joy.

"This proves one thing: Chen Yu hasn't figured out how to portray the character of Zhao Zhenji at all." "Writing about such an unimportant character as Li Shizhen now is just stalling for time." "We said before that in such a short time, it's already good enough that Chen Yu could figure out the dialogue between Yan Song and Xu Jie, let alone use the limited space to portray a new character almost equal to Hu Zongxian?"

"They even want to design iconic scenes and lines?" "That's absolutely impossible!"

"Isn't this a case of 'it' coming true now'? With Chen Yu writing it this way, I reckon even after this scene is finished, Zhao Zhenji's character might not be able to be established, let alone any memorable scenes or lines." As they spoke, the screenwriters became more and more excited, their eyes shining.

"As we said before, there's no way there will be any climax in Chen Yu's scene. Writing a title like that is just to attract viewers' attention; it's clickbait."

"Now that's proven, isn't it?"

"We suggest that you quickly get your online trolls ready so that once this scene is written but there's no climax at all, you can launch a massive attack to smear Chen Yu!"

While the screenwriters were full of confidence and excitement, the executives of the film and television companies were full of doubts.

The reason is simple. They've heard these kinds of confident pronouncements countless times before. But what was the result?

The popularity and influence of "Ming Dynasty" are growing. Their company's professional screenwriters are being proven wrong time and time again.

They'd already been thoroughly slapped in the face; hearing their confident pronouncements now, anyone would start to doubt them, right? The executives looked at the screenwriters with suspicion. "Is what you're saying true?" "Don't let your claims be proven wrong again soon." At this, the screenwriters blushed. "Are you questioning our professionalism?" "We're professionals, okay!"

"We're all classically trained, professionally trained graduates from the top film academies in the country!" "I guarantee what we just said is absolutely true. If you don't believe me, just keep watching. But if you miss the chance to stir up trouble and smear Chen Yu, don't blame it on us!"

Seeing their screenwriters looking rather annoyed, the film company executives chuckled awkwardly. "It's just to confirm, just in case." "Alright, since you're all so sure, then we'll make the arrangements." Just then, on the screen, the script for *The Ming Dynasty* continued to progress. While Li Shizhen was taking his pulse, Hu Zongxian inquired about the progress of Tan Lun's attempt to borrow grain from Zhao Zhenji. Tan Lun sighed and told Hu Zongxian that Zhao Zhenji had been making excuses, and after two days, they had only managed to gather less than ten boatloads of grain.

During this process, Li Shizhen frowned and sighed that Hu Zongxian's illness was incurable. Then, Zhao Zhenji, the protagonist of this scene, appeared. His words upon entering revealed a shrewd and diplomatic nature. "Minister, we can discuss the grain loan later; the illness still needs to be treated, right?"

Let Physician Li write down the prescription first, then we can discuss it, okay?

Clearly, Zhao Zhenji's main strategy is stalling. He'll delay as long as possible. Right now, he's just using the pretext of visiting Hu Zongxian and treating his illness to get Li Shizhen to prescribe medicine, thus postponing the matter of borrowing grain.

The audience, upon seeing Zhao Zhenji's words after his entrance and then looking at Hu Zongxian reclining in his chair, were filled with rage. "Hu Zongxian has traveled so far, don't you, Zhao Zhenji, know why?" "Isn't it just to borrow grain? That's why he dragged his ailing body here. Grain is Hu Zongxian's real worry." "Zhao Zhenji's talk of getting prescriptions and seeing a doctor is just an excuse to postpone things. I've met people like that in real life; they use so many excuses, and they're so high-sounding."

"But what you want to do? Sorry, that's absolutely not going to happen. We'll drag it out as long as we can." "Damn it, that's infuriating!" Just then, Li Shizhen asked a question.

"I've written a prescription. Will you be able to pick the medicine according to the prescription?" After Zhao Zhenji nodded in agreement, Li Shizhen smiled slightly, then ground ink and wrote a prescription, asking Tan Lun to read out the prescription he had written for Hu Zongxian.

Viewers frowned slightly while watching this scene.

They had thought this was a clash between Zhao Zhenji and Hu Zongxian, a contest between two figures nearing the pinnacle of political maneuvering. "Why is all the focus on the opening move?" a viewer whispered.

"I feel like Chen Yu's performance in this part was a bit below par."

"I had high expectations for this twenty-second act because Chen Yu wrote a title for it. Based on past experience, an act with a title is always extraordinary and explosive."

"But up to now, the conversation between Yan Song and Xu Jie was impressive, but after Zhao Zhenji, the level seems to drop very quickly."

"Actually, the character of Zhao Zhenji hasn't been fully established yet, so why spend so much time writing about prescribing medicine?"