Laughter erupted from the hall, with some people so amused they collapsed onto the floor.
Yet, the performers on stage remained unfazed, fully immersed in their roles, delivering each punchline perfectly.
At that moment, everyone overlooked the performer's ordinary face. Instead, the person on stage seemed to radiate light, naturally drawing affection.
Wei Tian, despite her efforts to hold back, still trembled with laughter. Sensing Zhao Wei's scornful gaze, she felt as if she had been slapped dozens of times. Biting her tongue, she regained control of her emotions and stopped watching the performance, her mind wandering to random thoughts to distract herself.
Only after the performance concluded did she secretly breathe a sigh of relief, then cast a triumphant glance at Zhao Wei, as if to say, "That's all there is to it."
After Xiang Fei finished his performance, he waited for the interviewers' comments.
Wei Tian first asked Wu Qian, "President Wu, please go first."
Wu Qian, however, smiled slightly and waved his hand, "You all came, I'm just here for the show."
Wei Tian then picked up the microphone, her expression nonchalant, "It was alright, but the performance style was too monotonous, and the technical skill was lacking..."
"Manager Wei," Zhao Wei interrupted, "Judging by your reaction earlier, it was more than just 'alright,' wasn't it? Weren't you laughing heartily during the performance? Honestly, can such a performance be considered 'alright'?"
Wei Tian sneered, "I admit there were a few parts he handled well, but these were superficial performance techniques, not natural at all. The latter half was the climax, but did you see me laugh even once?"
"You didn't laugh, you didn't even know what he was performing. You were staring at your phone the entire time, not even looking up. Don't make me laugh, you didn't even show basic respect," Zhao Wei retorted mercilessly.
Wei Tian quickly defended herself, "I was looking at the script, checking if his performance matched the script."
"You know what you were doing," Zhao Wei said impatiently, abandoning the critique. "Li Gui, you go next. We'll comment on both of you together."
Li Gui had not watched Xiang Fei's performance at all, as he was busy memorizing the script. Even so, memorizing such a lengthy script, lasting three to four minutes, was not easy.
Wei Tian's words undoubtedly put him at ease, suggesting Xiang Fei was not very capable.
With such confidence, Li Gui took the stage.
During the subsequent stage time, although there were occasional bursts of laughter, primarily from Wei Tian, Li Gui himself realized the atmosphere had become stiff.
The most awkward situation for a comedian was the audience's indifference. After performing for nearly half the time, Li Gui couldn't continue and had to stop, making an excuse, "The time was too short, and the preparation was too rushed. This is all I remember."
Wei Tian applauded, giving him generous praise, "You performed very well. This is a stage, and there were many distractions from the audience. For you to perform at this level despite all the difficulties is truly remarkable. You definitely have the potential to be Ren Chao's successor. I hope you continue to work hard in the future."
Li Gui felt proud and did not show any false modesty, "President Wei, rest assured, I will prove that your judgment is correct."
Zhao Wei, however, picked up the microphone and said expressionlessly, "Regarding the evaluation of you two, I have only one sentence: The preceding jade makes the following tiles seem worthless."
Li Gui's face turned pale. He froze for a moment before forcing a strained, insincere smile, "I didn't perform well this time. If Manager Zhao is not satisfied, I can perform again."
Zhao Wei waved his hand, "I have seen your level. You even had more time to prepare than Xiang Fei, but honestly, you are not as good as Xiang Fei. I don't know what the company has trained you for in the past three months. Either you didn't learn well, or the company's training department didn't teach well. I think this is something both you and the training department need to reflect upon."
Li Gui was signed on Wei Tian's recommendation. Criticizing Li Gui was tantamount to criticizing Wei Tian. With the boss present, Wei Tian was unwilling to concede and retorted, "You are questioning the company's capabilities. Are you saying our Smile Always Training Department is inferior to a mere youngster? If he's so good, let him be a lecturer."
Zhao Wei was equally unyielding, "Who is good and who is not will be clear if the audience votes."
He signaled to one of his subordinates.
The subordinate understood, cut twelve slips of paper, and distributed one to each person.
Zhao Wei continued, "Vote anonymously. Write the name of the person you support. One minute."
Apart from the few interviewees and the general manager, everyone else present was an onlooker. The voting quickly concluded, and the subordinate collected the slips. Zhao Wei then handed the results to the general manager.
"President Wu, please officiate."
Wu Qian stood up with a smile and read the names one by one.
"Xiang Fei, Xiang Fei, Li Gui, Xiang Fei..."
Out of twelve votes, Xiang Fei received eight, and Li Gui received four, a two-to-one ratio.
Li Gui's face turned ashen, but he couldn't retaliate. He could only endure the humiliation and offer a perfunctory congratulation to Xiang Fei.
Xiang Fei did not gloat. He simply waited calmly for the final result.
The only one to complain about the voting outcome was Wei Tian.
She frowned, "This is completely unfair. The script must have been shown to Xiang Fei beforehand. Anyway, she recommended him, and she wrote the script, so whatever she says goes. But I can also suspect they rehearsed beforehand."
"You are being unreasonable," Zhao Wei said. Although Xiang Fei's performance had exceeded his expectations, he believed Quan Jiu would not lie and had no reason to.
Wei Tian sneered, "This is my reasonable suspicion. You have no evidence to prove he hadn't seen the script before, so you cannot deny the reasonableness of my suspicion."
"We can have another match," a calm voice came from the backstage area.
Everyone turned towards the source of the voice. Upon seeing the person clearly, the hall fell silent, with only the sound of footsteps.
Quan Jiu approached Wu Qian and greeted him with a smile, "Hello, President Wu. I am nine."
Wu Qian's eyes sparkled, and he said with a smile, "I never expected the renowned screenwriter to be so beautiful and young. Have you considered entering the entertainment industry? Smile Always is always open to you."
Quan Jiu smiled faintly, "Thank you for the offer, President Wu, but I'm really not cut out for it."
Wei Tian's eyes widened in disbelief, her suspicion evident, "You are nine?" This was nothing like what was rumored online. She had been waiting to mock him, but the actual person possessed such an enviable face.
The onlookers in the back rows were also stunned. This was a natural endowment that could rival a major star.
Quan Jiu walked up to Wei Tian. Though her words were soft, what she said was sharp, "How about another match?"
A beautiful person, every smile and word carried pressure. Wei Tian suppressed her feelings of inadequacy and tried to project an aura of confidence, but the more she did so, the more her lack of presence was apparent.
"If we compete, we compete. Li Gui was carefully selected, and his strength is evident to all."
Quan Jiu nodded slightly, then added, "A simple competition might be a bit dull. How about we make a bet?"
Wei Tian's brow furrowed slightly, and she asked, biting the bullet, "What kind of bet do you propose?"
"It's very simple. The winner takes all, the loser is defeated. If Li Gui wins, Xiang Fei permanently withdraws from the entertainment industry. If Xiang Fei wins, Li Gui withdraws from Smile Always and goes into hiding for three years. What do you say? Dare to bet?"
Wei Tian's face showed surprise, and she frowned, "You're betting their futures."
"Sometimes, without a bit of ruthlessness towards oneself, one cannot achieve much. I prefer to call this a gamble," Quan Jiu smiled faintly.