My Years as a Copyist in Taiwan

Sitting in front of the TV watching... Li Ao was one of those who criticized "Princess Pearl".

Mr. Snail's antics today have really stumped him.

He's the kind of person who responds better to gentle persuasion than force. His criticism of "Princess Pearl" and popular culture is a genuine expression of his "heartache" for Zhao Wen. In his view, apart from himself, this person is truly the future of Taiwan's literary scene!

As a result, Zhao Wen accepted all of his insults and even admitted his mistake with such a humble attitude. This kind of demeanor is reminiscent of the literary master Ye Gong in his prime. What else could I do?

...

In every family in Taiwan that watches "My Fair Princess," many people are reading Mr. Snail's sincere "apology letter" while waiting for the main episode to begin.

Many kind-hearted viewers were moved to tears, and those who were both fans of Zhao Wenshu and the drama were even more touched!

"The first author in history to proactively admit their mistakes and even publish a statement of self-reflection!"

"He's already been deified, yet he sincerely bows his head and reflects on his actions..."

"So kind, so insightful, so noble! He surpasses all other intellectuals!"

"This show is truly excellent, and Mr. Snail's apology is genuinely magnanimous! The two aspects don't contradict each other!"

Originally, Li Ao's criticism of Zhao Wen might have made some people think the show was bad, but Zhao Wen's public apology and announcement that he would no longer write melodramatic dramas directly convinced 99% of the island's population that—

Mr. Snail is a gentleman among men and the most clear-headed author of our time!

In a private room at Zuixianlou Restaurant, Liu Jiachang was also reading the newspaper, waiting for the ninth episode of "Princess Pearl" to air. As he read, he sighed repeatedly.

"It's over, it's really over this time."

Wu Deng was sitting next to Rong Ge, who asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"

Liu Jiachang sighed: "Don't you understand? Zhao Wen publicly admitting his mistake is tantamount to publicly denying 'My Fair Princess'! The audience is completely devastated!"

The author himself said this show is melodramatic and overly entertaining! Who would still watch it?

71% viewership! What a pity! All the buzz, all the subsequent rights... gone!

Wu Deng chuckled, looking out the window at the deserted streets that were already empty at seven o'clock, and said:

"It's okay, he's my brother. He can do whatever he wants. If he's willing to back down, that's his character. The hype will fade when it's over. Brotherhood is more important than anything else."

......

The next morning, the newsstand owner:

Breaking News from the United Daily News! "My Fair Princess" viewership surpasses 71.5!

The entertainment sections of the United Daily News and China Times ran headlines with eye-catching headlines: "Princess Pearl" continues to climb to a record-breaking 71.5 in single-episode ratings!

As the number of people on the street increased, discussions about the plot of last night's "Princess Pearl" could be heard from time to time.

Those industry insiders who were waiting for Zhao Wen to crash and burn last night all fell silent after getting up. Those who had the opportunity picked up newspapers and pondered deeply, wondering what kind of scheme this was all about!

After Zhao Wen's sincere apology yesterday, the audience not only didn't abandon the show, but went crazy, becoming even more fanatical and loyal. Can anyone explain this?

"Mr. Snail is so clean and transparent!"

"He's so sincerely admitting his mistake, we should support him even more!"

"Furthermore, Mr. Snail said he will never write another melodramatic story; this is a collector's item..."

Not only did no one stop being a fan, but casual viewers flocked to him and became die-hard fans, causing his popularity to explode once again, and Zhao Wen's public favorability skyrocketed!

The streets remained deserted on Saturday and Sunday.

On Monday, major newspapers across the island began a real celebration, with the new viewership rating for "My Fair Princess" settling at 75%!

These are despairing statistics for those in the entertainment industry; no one in the industry believes that anyone can catch up with Mr. Snail.

Therefore, Zhao Wen had to admire that the genius tailor Phoenix was indeed talented; at least in terms of plagiarism, no one could compare to her.

In 88, after seeing Princess Tomb for the first time in Beijing, she began sewing the "original TV series" *Princess Pearl*.

The story was told by the tour guide at Princess Tomb. The earth-shattering declaration of love, "Even if the mountains have no ridges...", comes from the ancient Chinese text "Shang Xie" from 2000 years ago, and she only changed one character. As for the other famous lines from Bai Juyi, Ouyang Xiu, and the Book of Rites, she ruthlessly deleted and modified a few words, completely turning "Princess Pearl" into the most shrewd tool for showing off.

In the late 1990s, most mainland viewers had a very shallow understanding of classical Chinese literature. Who would bother reading Han Dynasty folk songs? After watching the TV series, they were convinced that this eternal vow was an original creation of Phoenix TV. Back then, Zhao Wen once argued with an idiot about this and broke off their friendship for three days.

Phoenix, of course, will not take the initiative to explain the source, but has enjoyed the benefits of the mainland for twenty years by relying on this "original golden quote".

If she wanted to replicate that nationwide popularity in the future, it would be impossible for her to achieve it with the subsequent drama "Romance in the Rain". When "Romance in the Rain" aired in 2001, it only achieved an average viewership of 11.2% thanks to the nostalgia of old fans of "My Fair Princess", and was crushed by the popularity of "The Grand Mansion Gate".

Now that "Princess Pearl" has been hijacked, it's like completely cutting off the clutches of older women who are trying to seduce younger girls.

When Zhao Wen received the good news call from Editor Gao, he couldn't help but burst into laughter several times.

It's not about how much money the show will make, but the feeling of having truly won a battle after time-traveling through time.

Being criticized by Brother Taibao, and then criticizing yourself in return—I accept the gentlemanly image while dumping all the negative feedback on Phoenix—is like knowing your neighbor is a thief, secretly sabotaging her without her even realizing it. You only know how wonderful that feeling is once you've experienced it yourself...

Someone made a bet that CTV spent 280 million to buy the broadcasting rights, and that they would definitely lose money. A Qing Dynasty drama with no name or background would be lucky to get a 30% viewership rating at most.

CTV also signed the contract with a gambler's mentality. During a meeting at the station, the purchasing director made the decision: "Just consider it buying Mr. Snail's fame. We can't lose too much, and what if it becomes a hit?"

No one expected that this gamble would pay off, and that they would win big. After episodes 9, 10, and 11 aired, the price of prime-time slots on CTV tripled, and the competition among businesses for second and third-run prime-time slots became increasingly fierce.

But CTV no longer has the rights to broadcast it a second time!

Wu Deng has an office, and right now, not only the old three-person team is blocking his office, but also seven or eight people from the overseas Chinese community. My brother Deng is beaming with pride, handing out cigarettes to everyone, just like when he won a fight in the military dependents' village and came back to show off.

In fact, the copyright war among the three major TV stations had already quietly begun when the series aired up to the tenth episode.

The purchasing director of CTS was the first to approach them, and quoted a price of 450 million for the second round of broadcasting rights, which was nearly 170 million higher than the first round price.

TTV followed suit, offering not only NT$500 million but also a prime-time personal interview as a bonus, creating a special program to boost Zhao Wen's profile. Although Zhao Wen didn't need it, their sincerity was evident.

The old foxes had all done the math: even if the second run only got 60-70% of the ratings as the first, they would still make a profit. Not to mention that the show's popularity was still rising, and the rerun ratings would only be higher, not lower.

Meanwhile, reports that Mr. Snail had made tens of millions of dollars in Japan with just the title "The Devotion of Suspect X" began to spread in Taiwan.