Rebirth 09: Starting from taking charge of Running Man on CCTV

The next morning, at 10:00 AM.

The seventh floor of an office building in Chaoyang District, Beijing.

The agency Li Chen signed with was small, occupying half a floor in an old mixed-use commercial and residential building. There was only one young woman at the front desk, and the reception area had two leather sofas and a few outdated copies of "Popular Cinema" on the coffee table.

A row of celebrity posters hung on the wall, with Li Chen's poster placed in the most prominent position.

The promotional photos for "My Chief and My Regiment" show him in military uniform, with a resolute gaze and a jawline so sharp it could cut.

Chen Yang stood at the front desk, glanced at the poster, and turned to Ma Li to say something.

"Let's go up."

Ma Li followed behind him, lowering her voice.

"Have you thought about what you're going to say?"

"We'll talk about it when we meet the person."

"You're quite composed."

"Sister Li, they're giving a proper rejection, they're not just being difficult."

Chen Yang pushed open the door to the stairwell.

"When someone refuses you politely, you have to do it politely."

The brokerage firm's small meeting room is at the end of the corridor.

The door was open.

Li Chen stood at the door waiting for them.

The 31-year-old man had neat short hair and wore a dark gray crew neck sweatshirt. He stood straight, unsure of what to do with his hands. He crossed them in front of his chest, then put them down and put them in his pockets.

Very reserved.

They were even a little at a loss.

He's completely different from the tough guy on TV who charges into battle with a gun.

"Director Chen, Sister Ma, I'm sorry to have troubled you."

Li Chen took the initiative to extend his hand.

His palms were dry, and he gripped the hand with great force, but released it just as quickly, as if afraid of being impolite for using too much force.

"Brother Chen, just call me Chen Yang."

Chen Yang smiled and shook hands with him in return.

"Even if a deal falls through, let's remain friendly. Let's not talk about work today, let's just make friends."

Li Chen was stunned for a moment, and his ears turned slightly red.

"Then... come in and sit down."

He stepped aside to make way, hurriedly gathered several magazines from the conference table, and poured paper cups of mineral water for the two of them.

The movements were solid, but not very nimble.

Sitting next to him was a man in his thirties, Li Chen's agent, Lao Liu. He wore glasses, nodded in greeting, and didn't say much.

The four people sat down around the small conference table.

The atmosphere was a bit dull.

Li Chen rubbed his hands together and spoke first.

"Director Chen... Chen Yang, I need to apologize to you for what happened yesterday."

He kept his head down, his voice muffled.

"It's not about money, nor is it about scheduling."

"I know how important CCTV's prime time slot is, and I also know how rare this opportunity is."

He raised his head, looked into Chen Yang's eyes, and his expression was so serious that it was almost competitive.

"But I'm really not being dramatic."

"I'm really afraid that I'll embarrass you if I go."

Chen Yang didn't reply, but took a sip of water from his paper cup.

Li Chen continued speaking slowly, one sentence at a time, as if he had thought about it all night.

"As anyone in the industry knows, I'm a quiet person."

"I can't throw out jokes or catch them. When someone tells a joke, it takes me three seconds to realize what they're saying."

"Last time, a talk show on Hunan TV invited me. The host talked to me for forty minutes, and she did all the talking the whole time."

"I just kept humming and hawing next to them, and in the end, I had to forcefully cut off the conversation."

He scratched the back of his head and gave a wry smile.

"Another time, a variety show asked me to be a guest. It was a quick Q&A game, and the host asked me what my favorite color was."

I thought for five seconds and said black.

The host asked why.

"I thought for another five seconds and said...it goes well together."

"Not a single person in the entire audience laughed."

Ma Li couldn't help but chime in.

"Brother Chen, that's not a problem. The production team has a scriptwriting team that can teach you how to pick up on jokes in advance..."

"It's not a matter of whether or not to teach."

Li Chen shook his head, his attitude resolute.

"Some people are born for variety shows; they're quick-witted, have sharp tongues, and can handle any topic."

"I can't."

"I'm just a boring person."

When he said this, there was no self-deprecation in his tone; he was serious.

A sincerity so earnest it's almost heartbreaking.

The meeting room fell silent for a few seconds.

Old Liu pushed up his glasses, seemingly wanting to say something, but after glancing at Li Chen's expression, he shut his mouth again.

The atmosphere froze.

Then Chen Yang smiled.

It wasn't a polite smile.

He really laughed, laughed out loud, and slapped his thigh with a loud "smack".

"Brother Chen!"

He pointed at Li Chen, his eyes shining brightly.

"Do you know that these very flaws you just mentioned are precisely the reason I've been searching high and low for you?"

Li Chen was stunned.

Ma Li was also taken aback for a moment.

"You said you're boring, can't catch jokes, are slow to react, and are uninteresting."

Chen Yang placed the paper cup on the table and leaned forward halfway.

"Brother Chen, your role on this show isn't to be funny."

"Why are you trying to be funny?"

"I have Shen Teng, Chen He, and Deng Chao on my side. If the three of them are together, they can make any conversation explode."

"Add to that the lovable, cheeky Zheng Kai, and the laughs are already overflowing."

Why would I need to find another comedian?

He tapped one finger on the table.

"What I lack is a cow."

Li Chen blinked.

"……ox?"

"Yes, cow."

Chen Yang stood up, walked around to Li Chen's side, and put one hand on his shoulder.

Imagine a scene.

"During the game, everyone was cheating and exploiting loopholes in the rules."

"Shen Teng leaned against the wall and pretended to be dead, Chen He tried to be clever but ended up crashing and burning, and Deng Chao was giving orders for a long time but ended up making himself dizzy."

"You were all alone, without saying a word, carrying a prop box weighing over 100 pounds from the starting point to the finish line, drenched in sweat. When you arrived, you put the box on the ground, looked back at them still making a fuss, and just smiled helplessly."

Chen Yang released his grip and took a step back.

"That one laugh melted the hearts of the entire nation."

Li Chen's mouth was slightly open, not closed.

"You don't need to be funny."

Chen Yang's tone became increasingly confident.

"You just need to be yourself."

"When others cheat, you take it seriously."

"While others slack off, you do the work."

When others panic, you step forward and say: "Don't worry, leave it to me."

"What's this called?"

He looked into Li Chen's eyes.

"That's called contrast."

"That's the ultimate charm of an honest person."

"This is called—the man who evokes the most heartache in all of China."

Ma Li almost slammed her hand on the table.

She had only known Chen Yang for a few days, and this was the first time she had seen him deceive people to this extent.

The key point is that not a single sentence was made up.

She knew all too well that in the domestic variety show industry right now, everyone was vying for the funny, the sweet-talking, and the quick-witted.

But no one ever thought about what would happen if a clumsy, silent, honest to the point of being a bit silly person were placed among a group of clever monkeys.

Li Chen's Adam's apple bobbed twice.

His hands were braced on the table, his knuckles slightly white.

It's not nervousness.

It was as if I had been struck by something I had never experienced before.

For more than 20 years, everyone has been telling him that he is too boring, that he needs to learn to talk, and that he needs to become interesting.

Today, for the first time, someone told him that his brooding nature is his greatest weapon.

"Brother Chen, let me do another calculation for you."

Chen Yang sat back in his chair, his speech slowing down, but every word he uttered was delivered with conviction.

"What is your current audience profile? Primarily male, military enthusiasts, fans of serious dramas, and over thirty years old."

"This circle is very stable, but also very narrow."

"If you appear on my show, every Saturday at 8 PM, mothers all over the country will watch it with their children, and eight girls in a college dorm will gather around to watch it."

"They saw you, a tall guy over 1.8 meters, playing the game clumsily, getting tricked but still looking serious, and finally carrying everyone's work to complete the whole course."

"What do you think they'll say?"

Chen Yang smiled.

"They would say, 'This man is so reliable, I really want to marry him.'"

"Brother Chen, even if you act in ten tough-guy dramas, you still won't attract this audience."

"But if they show up on my show with those awkward smiles for three episodes, they're all yours."

Old Liu's notebook was already half full.

He pushed up his glasses and glanced at Li Chen.

The meaning in that look was very clear: what are you still hesitating for?

Li Chen didn't look at him.

He stared at Chen Yang and remained silent for a full ten seconds.

Then he spoke.

The sound wasn't loud, but it was as steady as a nail.

"Chen Yang".

"Um."

"The scene you described, carrying a suitcase and running the whole way, then turning around and smiling."

The corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

"I've done that kind of work my whole life."

"When I was at the military arts academy, I carried sandbags; when I joined a film crew, I carried equipment; and when I was an extra, I helped the lighting technician move light stands."

"Nobody has ever thought there was anything interesting about this."

His eyes were red-rimmed, but they didn't fall.

"You're the first one."

Ma Li turned her face away.

She has a fiery temper and can't stand this kind of scene.

Chen Yang didn't try to be sentimental.

He pulled the letter of intent out of the file folder and placed it in the center of the table.

"Brother Chen, do you have a pen?"

Li Chen remained silent.

He reached out and pulled the ballpoint pen from Lao Liu's notebook.

Turn to the last page, to the signature section.

The pen tip touches down.

The two characters "Li Chen" were written in a neat, square shape, just like the person he was.

Old Liu breathed a sigh of relief and bumped fists with Ma Li.

"Sister Ma, your Director Chen is truly extraordinary."

Ma Li smiled.

"Of course, most people wouldn't dare to be the chief director at CCTV at the age of 24."