Flowing water and drifting clouds speak no different words, pearls sinking and jade shattering are even more heart-wrenching. The text of ‘Hongmei Ge’ also comes from the Zidi Shu tradition, and Qi Shejiang is as familiar with it as can be. Regardless, the performance still garnered applause from the entire audience. That a crosstalk performer could sing to this level is truly unbelievable. After these two sections, Qi Shejiang refused to sing any further, took a bow and stepped back, his expression still calm. He was calm, but the livestream room was not tranquil at all. [You… I…] [Can all those who confidently claimed Jesse would flop please step forward? Are you telling me these audiences are booing?] [Flabbergasted! So he’s not bad at Daggu, but sings particularly well? Then why did some say that section in ‘He Bi Xiang’ was off-key?!] […Wow, this is definitely not something that can be practiced in a short time; perhaps it had simply been adapted, it wasn’t off-key at all.] [The camera panned over, showing many uncles and older gentlemen cheering [laughing and crying]] [I didn’t catch the name of this piece earlier, what was it? I suddenly appreciate the beauty of Daggu!
From the start of this performance until its conclusion, several keywords related to Qi Shejiang surged on the search rankings, from “Qi Shejiang Peking Opera,” “Qi Shejiang Meihua Daggu,” to “Qi Shejiang vs. Zhang Yue,” and the most surprising one was “Qi Shejiang’s partner Liu Qing.” Netizens were quite busy, first criticizing the crosstalk predecessors who had previously taken issues with Qi Shejiang, then going to Zhang Yue’s place to express sympathy, and inviting Peking opera stars on Weibo for their assessment. In the end, everyone worked to find Liu Qing’s Weibo, going through his posts to express admiration and congratulations.
They even conferred him the title of ‘concubine,’ hoping he would continue to work hard and secure his position. After all, upon investigation, everyone discovered that Liu Qing came from a distinguished lineage, and given his duet performance with Qi Shejiang, being a concubine was quite sufficient.
In just a few days, Liu Qing unexpectedly gained some buzz; his Weibo followers skyrocketed, and he looked utterly bewildered. He had anticipated a bit of exposure but didn’t expect such enthusiasm from netizens, so he could only post some rehearsal photos of Qi Shejiang to reciprocate.
As for Zhang Yue, to everyone’s surprise, he didn’t show up at all that night. People were murmuring, lucky for him not showing up; otherwise, if he were to mock Qi Shejiang, he would end up being slapped in the face later. By the next day, the incident had fermented; those who went to bed early were now getting up, all inundated with related news. Busy reporters were running around, hoping to interview crosstalk predecessors, but those individuals were avoiding them. Finally, they managed to catch one who had a performance and could only accept the interview.
“Teacher Lin Yang, can you talk about Jesse’s performance last night? He assisted Teacher Zhou Sihe very successfully, and his Peking opera was praised by netizens for its authenticity; it’s clear he has a solid foundation. Do you think such a foundation qualifies him to be a crosstalk performer?” The reporter’s microphone was almost in his face.
With a sullen face and in an annoyed tone, he said, “This has nothing to do with basic skills; he’s at best a decent amateur. Besides, each craft has its specialization; I know Teacher Mo Gan, and his artistic level is not something ordinary people can reach. What do you mean by authenticity?”
Everyone in the crosstalk industry recognized Mo Gan, but this line of reasoning was shameless and targeted, trying to downplay Qi Shejiang’s performance.
The reporter lifted his head and said, “What do you think about what Teacher Mo Gan said during his interview, that many young Peking opera performers sing far worse than Jesse? If the crosstalk community isn’t welcoming, he invites Jesse to switch to the Peking opera troupe—what’s your opinion on that?”
Lin Yang: “………………” Damn, is he playing me?!
Today’s reporters have deep tricks, and Lin Yang had no experience in dealing with this. He angrily swept his sleeves and left; his anger was partly genuine, partly feigned—partly from not wanting to lose face, and partly… he truly didn’t know how to respond.
Teacher Mo Gan is known for his straightforward temper and has reached a management level in his unit; he has the confidence to say such things and the identity to extend such an invitation. Although Mo Gan did not know Qi Shejiang, he understood the recent discussions in the crosstalk community. In fact, the Peking opera circles and the crosstalk community are quite similar; wanting to smooth things over is not easy.
Mou Ge had a higher artistic achievement, and when a reporter showed him several of his performances, he didn’t care about the debate among the jianghu people. He simply expressed his appreciation.
This interview came out, and everyone was shocked.
Although it was clear that he was half-joking, Mou Ge’s attitude completely justified it. Qie Shi Jiang’s mimicry was so successful that even an insider would acknowledge that it was at a master level!
In the jianghu, there were not many seniors with such abilities. Not only did he receive recognition from the fans, but even Mou Ge himself acknowledged it. It could be said to be the most recognized certification.
In comparison, those who had been criticizing him looked even more petty. They were still holding onto their biases at this point. Now even the netizens could see that something was off. These people were clearly just adhering to their own biases.
Why doesn’t Jesse become Mr. Meng’s disciple instead of being a wild card?
That makes sense, but it’s also kind of nasty. I support Jesse for doing things his own way!
I work at the theater company and have some connections with Mr. Meng’s troupe. I heard that Mr. Meng also thought about this, but Lin Yang kept going around telling everyone about it. Think about it, Lin Yang is younger than Mr. Meng, and if Jesse became Mr. Meng’s disciple, he would be even higher up in terms of seniority. One sea turtle and one wild goose, both of them are young and have high seniority. They would have to call each other “junior uncle” or “junior great-uncle,” which is something they wouldn’t be happy about.
So that explains why they’re reacting so strongly. It’s not just because Jesse is a wild card, but also because Mr. Meng and Master Zhou consider Jesse to be a junior, and Mr. Meng is from the Meng family, which has a high social status.
Indeed, Mr. Meng Jianru asked Qie Shi Jiang if he wanted to become his disciple or Master Wen’s disciple, but Qie Shi Jiang didn’t agree. He said that he respected his own master and didn’t want to offend him by becoming someone else’s disciple. Qie Shi Jiang knew that he would never be able to become Mr. Meng Jianru’s disciple because it would be an insult to his real master.
He had already formally become his master’s disciple and had bowed to his ancestors, and he couldn’t possibly betray him like that.
After the performance, Qie Shi Jiang started his break period, and he had some time to look over the script for “Returning to the Garden”. The recording schedule was still far away.
In his free time, he decided to tidy up his brother’s books. He was also waiting for Zhang Yuo to finish promoting his latest project, which was coming to an end soon.
At home, Zhang Yuo came to visit Qie Shi Jiang, partly to see how the script was coming along and partly to complain about how Qie Shi Jiang had hurt him earlier.
“You know, since you used me as a joke in your act, I’ve been getting a lot of teasing from everyone,” Zhang Yuo said. “Even my fans are making fun of me on social media.”
