Chapter 809: This is a poem fit for a cultured civilization! [1.]

Translator: Legge Editor: Legge

There were countless of comments!

"Good poem!"

"Well said!"

"Fuck, fight it out with them!"

"Have long since chewed through my flesh? Isn't that describing Zhang Ye's current plight? Right, from the time he joined Central TV Department 1, they have been chewing through his flesh!"

"This poem is very similar to Dead Water which Zhang Ye composed in the past!"

"How long ago was it since Zhang Ye wrote a poem? I've already forgotten when I last read a poem by him. I can see that Zhang Ye is really furious this time. Every time Teacher Zhang gets angry, he writes a poem. But as for this soul wearing a pea-green vest? Leap out grinning from ear to ear? What does he mean by that?"

"I don't know either."

"I don't quite understand the last two lines of the poem."

"Does Teacher Zhang mean that he's going to show his prowess? But with what would he show his prowess?"

"Who cares? Anyways, this poem gives me the chills when I read it! It's incredible!"

...

At Central TV.

Deputy Station Head Zhou who had helped Central TV Department 1 get the "loan" was just leaving work. While he was taking the elevator down, he heard the gossip of some staffers who were holding their cell phones and discussing in low whispers. They were pointing at the screens but he did not know what they were talking about. Occasionally, he could vaguely hear the words "Weibo" and "Zhang Ye."

Deputy Station Head Zhou asked offhandedly, "What are you guys talking about?"

The several of them hurriedly said, "Nothing, nothing, we're just chatting. You're off work now, Station Head Zhou?"

Deputy Station Head Zhou nodded at that. When he arrived downstairs, his chauffeur was already waiting there for him. He entered the backseat of the car before he took out his cell phone curiously to have a look at Weibo. At that moment, he saw the poem that was just posted by Zhang Ye.

Rotten fruit?

Chewed through by black bugs?

Deputy Station Head Zhou shook his head unhappily and immediately called Yan Tianfei.

The call connected.

"Hello, Old Yan."

"What's the matter?"

"Did you see Zhang Ye's poem?"

"What poem?"

"The one that Zhang Ye just posted on Weibo! Get him to delete it right away!"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Go and take a look then! Take a look at it right now!"

"I can't check because my home Internet is down."

"Are you purposely pretending not to know? Your Internet is down? Fine, then I will read it out to you. Rotten Fruit. Black bugs have long since chewed through my flesh. / I lie on a bed of moss so cold it stings…" After he finished reading it, Deputy Station Head Zhou asked coldly: "Answer me, Old Yan, who are the black bugs referring to?"

Yan Tianfei answered without even thinking: "Black bugs are bugs which are black in color. What's the matter with this poem? Isn't it just describing a fruit that is slowly spoiling? The meaning of the entire poem is so clearly expressed. Rotten Fruit wants to teach people how to economize food, to pay attention to their nutritional intake of fruits and vegetables which should not be wasted. Otherwise, when a fruit rots, it will turn into a spirit that haunts people who waste their food. How educational! This passage is littered with ideas promoting a cultured civilization with the five disciplines and four graces!"

When he heard Yan Tianfei say that, Deputy Station Head Zhou nearly fainted!

Economize food?

Nutrition intake?

Five disciplines and four graces?

Fuck, where the hell did you get that from?!

Deputy Station Head knew Old Yan was messing with him. He was so angry that he hung up on him straightaway!

On the other end, after Yan Tianfei hung up, he gave a contemptuous laugh. You people at the station were so biased toward Central TV Department 1 that you didn't even leave a single cent of promotional budget to us. Now that you have forced Little Zhang into a corner, oh, you won't even allow him to write a poem to mock you for a bit? Ha, what logic is that! All the good things are always left for you, huh?

...

Central TV Department 1.

In the program team office of Rise to the Dance.

"Hey, quickly have a look at this. That Zhang Ye has written a poem again!" someone shouted.

Actually, besides the person who shouted that, many of the other staff had already seen it. However, they were too embarrassed to mention it to others. After all, Zhang Ye had a rather complicated relationship with their program team, as well as with the two directors, Xu Yipeng and Chen Ye. That was why Zhang Ye's name was never casually mentioned within their office area.

Chen Ye frowned. "Are you the only one who has nothing to do?"

That person could only whimper.

Chen Ye ordered, "Get back to your work! Read something useful instead!"

That person hurriedly said, "I understand."

Actually, Chen Ye and Xu Yipeng had also read that poem. When they clocked out, Chen Ye took the initiative and left with Xu Yipeng. They went downstairs together.

"Zhang Ye was indirectly scolding us," Chen Ye said.

Xu Yipeng shook his head and just said, "Ignore him. He's only good at blustering. Do you really expect him to use a documentary to compete and fight it out with us?"

Chen Ye smiled and said, "Of course not."

Xu Yipeng couldn't help but laugh. "If we can't even beat his documentary, then we should just quit our jobs, pack up, and go home. Hur hur, the people in the program team now are the elites of the station, while the invited guests are all big shots. With every aspect of the promotions in place, would we be afraid that a documentary that no one watches would be a threat to us? Even if those hardcore fans of Zhang Ye really tune in to watch A Bite of China when it gets broadcast, it still wouldn't be able to apportion 0.0-something percent of our viewership ratings. 0.0-something percent? That is as good as a negligible figure, so let alone being a threat, it won't even be an obstacle to us!"

Chen Ye smiled and remarked, "That's right, Zhang Ye has really taken us to be laymen in this area. But even if it's a layman making a variety show, there's no reason it will do worse than a documentary's viewership ratings!"

Xu Yipeng stated, "In this past two years, Zhang Ye has indeed created some very popular TV shows, but this has made him a little arrogant and he has lost the reverence for this industry as well. We can't totally blame him either. As a director and host of variety shows who has been transferred to a documentary channel, he has never had any experience with documentaries before. He probably still does not know how deep the water runs for a documentary type of show. After his documentary gets broadcast, the viewership ratings and advertising revenue will make him realize that there some things that just can't be changed because of an individual's heroics. Documentaries are a stagnant genre, so no matter how good Zhang Ye is or how strong his program planning and directing abilities are, there's not much that he can do about it! No one can bring life back to that puddle of stagnant water!"

...

At a restaurant.

Jiang Naixiong, Jiang Yuan, and some others had left work early and were dining together.

During dinner, an executive of Central TV Department 1 was suddenly stunned by what he saw on his cell phone. Then he said in a speechless manner, "Zhang Ye is making a scene again. He wrote a poem to scold us this time!"

"What happened?"

"Let me take a look!"

The several of them read that poem.

Jiang Yuan said angrily, "Rotten fruit? Black bugs?"

Jiang Naixiong did not look happy either. "This Zhang Ye is getting more and more out of hand. Not only is he mocking Central TV Department 1, he's even bringing Central TV into this?"

Jiang Yuan took out his cell phone and said angrily, "Who's he calling black bugs? I must call Old Yan, what the hell!"

A deputy director said, "Don't you know what sort of temper Old Yan has? If Zhang Ye did not write a poem and instead bluntly called out our names to scold us on Weibo, Old Yan would surely still pretend not to see it!"

Jiang Yuan felt a little upset and said, "I'm afraid Zhang Ye will stir up a commotion and affect the reputation of our Rise to the Dance. After all, it would be for the best if there's less negative news. This is the golden period for the promotions and the most crucial time for us! Can no one really do anything about this Zhang Ye? The show will be broadcast the week after next, but not only is he not worried about his own show, he even has time to bother other people? If he has the time, shouldn't he be thinking about what to do with that documentary of theirs which doesn't even have a chance to be promoted? If the viewership ratings turn out too low, who would be the one embarrassed instead?"

What imprisoned soul?

What leaping out?

You have already been transferred to the documentary channel, yet you are still thinking about giving others a face-smacking? What the heck! Alright then, we would like to see how you are going to wear a pea-green vest and leap out grinning ear to ear!

TL Note:

[1. "five stresses and four points of beauty"—requirements for a cultured civilization]

Translator's Thoughts

Legge Legge

TL Note: