China Entertainment 1997

Backstage 3 minutes ago, in the corridor from the backstage of the Spring Festival Gala to the stage, Empress Nishinomiya, dressed in palace costume, had a nervous face that turned slightly pale.

The Spring Festival Gala is broadcast live, facing hundreds of millions or even more than a billion Chinese viewers in front of TV sets.

That kind of suffocating psychological pressure cannot be overcome by just overcoming it.

In the Spring Festival Gala for decades, there are many actors who break down emotionally before going on stage. This is what the recording and broadcasting tapes are designed to prevent.

Even a veteran like Cao Xuan cannot be emotionless before taking the stage, let alone a newcomer to the Spring Festival Gala like Zeng Li.

"I kind of regret it."

Beauty Zeng looked at the scene on the stage and gave Cao Xuan a wry smile.

She is different from Hu Jing. Although the Empress of the East Palace is the most low-key of the four actresses, she is very popular here. She has always been under the spotlight. She has seen many big scenes and has been honed in all aspects.

On the contrary, when Zeng Li went to college, he never came out of the ivory tower of the campus. When he came to take roles, it was the "nanny" crew arranged by Cao Xuan, and he was protected in every aspect.

Her reputation is tepid, she acts low-key, and Cao Xuan suppresses the media. Except for the scandal she had with Cao Xuan, which received a certain amount of public opinion, she has not experienced any major public events in the past two years.

She actually doesn't take the Spring Festival Gala that seriously. After all, her husband attends it every year, and so does Hu Jing.

Under the influence, it seemed that attending the Spring Festival Gala was a very common thing. Zeng Li once thought that he was just following Cao Xuan for fun. Before that, he excitedly called his mother and sister in the dressing room to let them watch the show.

It was only now, before going on stage, and standing in the backstage waiting area, that Zeng Li slowly felt the terrifying attention on this stage.

The relaxed mood also turned into worrying about gains and losses. If the performance failed, wouldn't it be a laughing stock across the country?

The performance was about to begin, and Cao Xuan didn't have time to say a long speech to appease her, so he just held her hand.

"It doesn't matter if the performance fails, I have everything."

The dancers next to them looked at the two people's clasped hands with expressions that were indeed true.

During the previous rehearsals, they felt that the relationship between the two was probably not simple, but they did not get a solid result. Now at the critical moment, the two finally stopped acting.

But, this is happening right away. Isn't it a bit inappropriate for the two of you to be flirting right now?

Can you respect the Spring Festival Gala!

Can you respect the hundreds of millions of viewers in front of the TV?

Can you please respect them as living beings? The King of Heaven’s love affair is so real, it affects the performance very much!

Fortunately, the two of them still had consciences and thought of these melon-eating people.

"Come on everyone, I'll treat you all to a big dinner later, and you can go shopping in Xidan, Guomao, and Xintiandi."

Whether it's hush money or a generous reward for a brave woman, the "coin throwing method" will never go out of style. Several people quietly clapped and stepped onto the stage.

The Empress of the West Palace and the dancers appeared first to create the atmosphere, and the dramatic recitation served as an introduction. Then Cao Xuan appeared and sang the main song of "The Drunken Concubine".

"Chinese style, sounds good."

In front of the TV, Jiang Chang, a big fan of Cao Xuan, immediately started singing without thinking. The landlady was more sensible than him, but she also thought the song was good.

Cao Xuan has participated in the Spring Festival Gala six times. Except for one "Yellow Race", the other songs can hardly be called Chinese-style songs. Many fans deeply regret it. Many people hope that Cao Xuan can sing a Chinese-style song in the Spring Festival Gala.

Today's "The New Drunk Concubine", with its familiar Chinese-style melody and lyrics, has surprised many viewers and fans.

But no one expected that the soul of the song "The Drunken Concubine" was not Cao Xuan.

After all, given Cao Xuan's exclusive status in the Chinese music scene, it is hard to imagine that Cao Xuan would be willing to be a partner in pop music.

But Cao Xuan told everyone today that others would certainly not be able to, but he was still willing to pamper his own wife.

"Jianmenguan is your deep longing for me.

Mawei slope is willing to die for true love

…”

After singing this sentence, Cao Xuan put down the microphone and looked back at the "noble concubine" on the high platform.

Zeng Li, who had been preparing silently for a long time, was wearing a graceful and gorgeous palace dress, raising her sleeves slightly to cover her face, her eyes were slightly intoxicated, shining with hope, deep in love, sultry, and her cherry lips were lightly parted with a sad and clear look. The spirit still has a high-pitched dramatic voice that resounds across the stage

"Love and hate are in a moment

Raise a glass to the moon and love the sky

Love and hate are boundless

Ask you when you wish

…”

As mentioned before, Empress Xigong has a serious background in opera. She started studying opera when she was in her early 10s. She can sing in Tsing Yi and Hua Dan, and is better at Tsing Yi. Before being admitted to the Chinese Opera, she was a professional actor in the Hubei Province Peking Opera Troupe.

After college, although I often practice basic skills, my overall level has definitely declined.

However, after deciding to sing "The New Drunken Concubine", Nishinomiya picked up the basic skills of the year, practiced hard for more than half a year, and asked the big boss for guidance.

The overall level is definitely incomparable with those opera performing artists who can attend the Spring Festival Gala.

But it is definitely much better than many high-end fans, and it is not without its ability to compete with professional actors. Especially in the words "The New Royal Concubine is Drunk", professional actors can't fault it.

At the same time, because of Cao Xuan's "inspiring ideas" in the early stage, the audience's attention was drawn to him, and Zeng Li suddenly burst into drama again.

The great sense of contrast and the clear and melodious melody of the drama, coupled with Zeng Li's exquisite facial makeup, caught everyone's ears and eyes at once.

Two word evaluation——

Stunning!

Jiang Chang and his wife were swayed by the drama of the Queen of the West Palace's "The Drunken Concubine".

"Chinese style and drama, this song is really amazing."

Chinese style and drama were both introduced by Cao Xuan's "Chinese Style" album. The song "Chi Ling" still appears on major on-demand charts and TV rebroadcasts from time to time.

Subsequently, there were also singers who imitated dramatic songs similar to "Chi Ling", and there were many excellent ones, but the most impressive one was Cao Xuan's "Chi Ling".

Not only because of the quality of the song "Chi Ling", but also the story in the MV and the feelings of family and country revealed in the entire song.

However, Cao Xuan has not released any more dramatic songs since "Red Ling". Many people regretted this, but they never thought that they would discover a new song at the Spring Festival Gala today.

It's a pity that Cao Xuan didn't sing the drama, but Zeng Li's performance was also good, and his appearance was even better.

Cao Tianwang is 1.8 meters tall, so it is very difficult to play a male lead. Even though the MV uses technical manipulation to minimize the violation, there is still a bit of "heroine" aura.

Fortunately, the story itself is about fighting against the invaders, so it is not particularly abrupt.

But in terms of Hua Dan's figure, softness, style, excellent capital and professional background, Zeng Da beauty is absolutely better than Cao Datianwang.

In front of the TV, countless people looked at that graceful and sad face, and licked the screen crazily...

For example, the landlady praised Zeng Li for her beauty over and over again, and expressed it categorically.

"This Concubine Yang must have had an affair with Cao Xuan, otherwise Cao Xuan wouldn't praise her so much."

"How can I see it?"

Although Jiang Chang is a man, when he heard that his idol had a partner, his first reaction was mainly resistance, feeling that others were not worthy of Cao Xuan.

"If nothing happened to them, why would Cao Xuan write songs for her, collaborate with her, and let her sing and show her face? The climax of this song is all about drama. You don't think that Cao Xuan can't sing drama. Bar?"

"this……"

Although Jiang Chang wanted to refute, he was a little convinced. The landlady ignored him and showed an excited face of gossip.

"Just watch, the scandal between Cao Xuan and her will definitely be flying around in the next few days, it will be interesting to watch."

Jiang Chang ignored her. As a big fan of Cao Xuan, even if he didn't pay much attention to current affairs news, Cao Tianwang had 600+ scandal targets. Even if he heard one tenth of it, he was basically immune to the scandals of Cao Daguan.

Unless the person who spreads the scandal is a man, or Cao Xuan personally announces it or other major circumstances, everyone is still in a calm mood.

"The New Drunken Concubine" is over, and the next show is a medley of pop songs. Popular Hong Kong and Taiwan pop singers such as Cai Yilin, Wang, Joey Yung, She Tuan, Cheng Liuzi, etc., appeared one by one.

In addition, two programs later, there is a medley of online songs.

"The First Snow in 2002", "Two Butterflies", "Above the Moon", "Mouse Loves Rice", "I'm Not Huang Rong" and other popular songs this year have their turn to appear.

The appearance of so many popular new stars and explosive songs has firmly kept the audience in front of the TV. It is rare that they will leave the TV after seeing a song and dance program like before.

After that, Naying and Cheng Long contributed another outstanding solo performance, and Han Hong's "Heavenly Road" was vast and clear.

It can be said that it suppressed the previous noisy songs and made the whole party's song and dance program lively and solemn at the same time.

Many old viewers couldn't help but sigh, finding that there were so many good singing and dancing programs in this year's Spring Festival Gala, one after another, with few leaks.

The language programs are also excellent.

The opening cross talk "Consultation Hotline" was full of burdens. Huang Hong's "Decoration" swept away the decadence of previous years. Feng Gong teamed up with Zhu Jun to spoof "Art Life" both inside and outside the show, with laughter and tears.

Another host, Li Yong, will also tell two other representative comedians Wei San and Sun Xiaobao from the Northeast to play "Extraordinary Star".

But as for the finale, it has to be "Kung Fu", the last part of Lao Zhao and Fan Wei's "Kung Fu" trilogy.

Although the iron triangle was missing a corner, the two apprentices "Wang Laoqi" and "Li Daguo" barely managed to hold on. The golden partner of Lao Zhao and Fan Wei performed steadily and won the house again without any surprise.

"The pig hit the tree, you hit the pig?"

"Oh, it's hard to guard against it!"

"Do you know why it failed? He is a cook who doesn't read the recipes and studies the art of war."

"Ah, ah, ah, ah, this world is so crazy, even mice have become bridesmaids to cats, oh my god!"

One thing to say, this sketch actually has less script baggage and less laughs than the previous two. The reason is that the screenwriter has changed.

The Iron Triangle seems to have some conflicts. The original screenwriter He Qingkui quit. This is also a major reason why the Iron Triangle between Zhao, Gao and Fan did not collaborate this year.

However, Lao Zhao and Fan Wei's tacit understanding and grasp of the comedy performance allowed them to make up for the shortcomings of the script, so that the final effect of this sketch was not inferior to the first two.

However, Fan Wei also made mistakes during the performance, which made him feel more and more pressured by the Spring Festival Gala.

Coupled with other reasons, this skit became his last Spring Festival Gala work. After that, only Lao Zhao was left in the Iron Triangle to struggle on the Spring Festival Gala stage. The golden partner of the Spring Festival Gala that year became his swan song.

Lao Zhao's "Kung Fu" is scheduled around 10 o'clock, and the finale of this year's Spring Festival Gala is the duet between Cao Xuan and Xiao Zhou.

This is also the only zero-point finale that Cao Xuan has experienced in seven Spring Festival Galas.

There are many reasons. On the one hand, the Spring Festival Gala program team likes the gimmick of two generations of kings singing together, but at the same time, there is nothing they can do about it.

The finale show at zero o'clock is not easy to come, and Lao Zhao always puts it forward when he can. The reason why Cao Xuan didn't do the finale before was not because he was not qualified, but because he didn't want to bear the burden.

But this time Cao Xuan has an official status, and things that he could push in the past are not easy to push this year, so he can only take Xiao Zhou with him.

But there is one thing to say, the zero o'clock finale of the Spring Festival Gala is pressure, but it is also a different kind of honor.

Ordinary programs and artists are not qualified to be the finale!

Near midnight, a song and dance program ended, and hosts Zhu Jun and Dong Qing appeared on the screen.

"Hey, Dong Qing, I've been looking forward to this show for a long time."

"Really, what kind of show."

"Let me ask you first, do you know what Chinese style is."

"Of course I know, Chinese style is..."

"Looks like I can't pass you. The next two singers will bring us a very nice Chinese-style song.

They are the best singers in the current Chinese pop music scene, and they are also a pair of very good friends. They are affectionately called [Beicao Nanzhou] by their fans. "

"Invited, Cao Xuan, Zhou Jielun!"

There was continuous applause at the scene, and Jiang Chang and his wife were also very excited. They had finally waited for this song. However, when the host called them "Bei Cao Nan Zhou", Jiang Chang inevitably frowned and curled his lips.

"Jielun has only released a few albums this year, and he has just become popular. What qualifications do he have to be ranked alongside Cao Xuan."

"He's not bad either. "Qili Xiang" was very popular."

""The Ordinary Road" is even more popular, "Blue and White Porcelain", "Fairy Tale", "The Wind Rises", "Ten Years", "Your Answer" and "Dusk", any one of Cao Xuan's works is a big hit, similar to There are dozens of songs. How can someone named Zhou compare with Cao Xuan?

That's it, not counting Cao Xuan's English songs, which won the Grammy and Billboard singles charts. Jay Chou's name has become famous in the Chinese circle, and several people know him..."

Jiang Chang was a little excited. This is also the view of many Cao Xuan fans. In the past, everyone had a good impression of Xiao Zhou and regarded him as Cao Xuan's younger brother.

Now the younger brother dares to be on an equal footing with the elder brother, which is intolerable to many Cao Xuan fans.

It’s not that they hate Zhou Jielun, but they can’t tolerate [Bei Cao and Southern Zhou].

It is precisely because of their persistence that the saying in the Chinese music scene that "one dominates, one is super powerful" has not been covered up by "Bei Cao Nan Zhou", but there is a faint tendency to overtake them.

After all, except for Zhou's fans, in the eyes of most passers-by, Cao Xuan and Xiao Zhou are indeed not on the same level.

Including this Spring Festival Gala, although the media said that the two kings joined forces, in most people's eyes, Cao Xuan supported his younger brother and added gimmicks to the Spring Festival Gala.

Although the landlady felt that Jiang Chang was a bit serious, she was right after thinking about it, so she just comforted him.

"Listen to the song, I think they have a good relationship. Cao Xuan treats him as his younger brother, and Jay Chou respects him very much. You don't need to tell them too clearly."

The landlady is not a star-chaser and is not interested in these rip-offs. Although she loves Wu Ji Wu and prefers Cao Xuan, she also listens to good songs by other singers.

Jiang Chang didn't elaborate on it with her. They had different ways of thinking. Besides, when the show started, he wanted to listen to the song.

On the stage, Cao Xuan and Xiao Zhou slowly walked out from both sides, faced each other, and walked to the center.

Jay Chou is wearing a bright gold and black suit with some glitter rivets on it, some highlights on his hair, and a necklace hanging around his neck, making him fashionable and cool.

Cao Xuan was wearing a pale white gown embroidered with green bamboo and bluestone. His half-long black hair was combed into a simple and neat back part. Behind his left hand, he walked slowly and elegantly.

"The eaves are like a cliff

Wind chimes are like the sea

I'm waiting for Yan to come back

…”

The two walked to the middle of the stage. Jay Chou sang a verse first, followed closely by Cao Xuan.

"The time is arranged

act an accident

you walk away quietly

…”

The two people's singing voices, singing styles and appearance are vaguely consistent.

Jay Chou's singing voice and rhythm are more brisk, and it is also the R\u0026amp;amp;B genre that he is particularly good at.

Cao Xuan's singing voice is more stable, clear and soft, with a hint of bel canto.

The two completely different styles give this song a sense of contrast. It has both fashionable melody and traditional ancient style, bringing a unique auditory impact.

At the same time, this kind of contrast allows people to easily distinguish the differences, but it also feels inexplicably harmonious and compatible, with a natural flavor.

There is a saying that in the song "Thousands of Miles Away", Zhou's part is more auxiliary, and the C position is the original dirty demon king.

The song itself is vaguely written based on part of Fei's experience. At the same time, Fei is also Xiao Zhou's idol.

His, his, idol, that is, the idol of Xiao Zhou’s mother, Ye Huimei, must be clear in the sentences...

Now that Cao Xuan has taken the place of the Evil Demon King, he is still the main attacker, with Xiao Zhou playing the supporting role.

Several years of professional training have made Cao Xuan's singing skills extremely close to the top. At least in this collaboration, he completely surpassed Xiao Zhou, who has not yet reached his peak. The climax was perfectly presented.

"I'll send you away, thousands of miles away

You are silent and black and white

In the age of silence, maybe we shouldn’t

Too far in love

…”

"Thousands of Miles Away" is a classic work representing the Chinese style of the original time and space, with excellent lyrics and melody.

Perhaps Cao Xuan's singing skills are slightly inferior to the Dirty Demon King, but his emotional state today is very good, which makes up for this slight disadvantage. He also feels that his cooperation with Xiao Zhou is better than the original version.

Perhaps because of the emotional status of the two, Xiao Zhou is willing to play the supporting role honestly, which is more harmonious than the original version.

Although the original version of the Lich King has a high status and seniority, he is a guest army after all. He has "lack of confidence" when cooperating, and is not as calm as Cao Xuan when he is the main attacker.

As far as this performance is concerned, Cao Xuan is personally very satisfied. Although it is not his peak Spring Festival Gala performance, it is still above average.

After singing the song, the audience applauded like thunder, and the fans in front of the TV, including Jiang Chang, also expressed their sincere praise.

"Listen to the song at the Spring Festival Gala, and it has to be Cao Xuan!"

………

Backstage at the Spring Festival Gala, Cao Xuan took off his equipment and let out a sigh of relief.

He has successfully completed 90% of today's tasks. As long as the program after midnight is completed perfectly, he can go back to sleep comfortably.

Xiao Zhou also took off his equipment: "Brother Xuan, when will you leave? I'll wait for you."

"No need, I have to hold on until the end. Your sister-in-law is here. You can leave first. Auntie is still waiting for you to come home for the New Year."

Jay Chou wasn't pretentious. After all, within ten minutes of Cao Xuan's return home, he had to catch a flight to Taiwan Province. He was the one with the longest distance between the two of them.

"Don't forget to call Shangshang Lin. It's convenient to walk together."

Cao Xuan gave instructions, but Xiao Zhou looked a little hesitant. He hesitated and said, "Brother, I broke up with her."

"?"

Cao Xuan was stunned for a moment, then realized that the two had been close before, and he must have known that he was the one who helped pull the string to trace the origin, but he really didn't know about the separation.

He was usually too busy. He came and went in a hurry during the Spring Festival Gala rehearsals, and he really didn't pay special attention to the situation of the two of them.

After all, if the rightful owner doesn't talk about this kind of private emotional matter, Cao Xuan won't pursue it.

The two didn't have much contact with each other during rehearsals before. They thought they were deliberately avoiding suspicion to prevent scandals. After all, he and Zeng Li didn't show much intimacy during rehearsals. Only now did they know they were broken up.

The atmosphere was slightly awkward, and Cao Xuan didn't know what to say. He could only pat Xiao Zhou on the shoulder in a comforting manner, saying nothing.

Xiao Zhou was not very sad, but said: "Actually, I talked about another one. I wanted to tell you before, but I didn't find the chance. I'm a little embarrassed."

Although Cao Xuan did not personally match up, the two first met because Cao Xuan encouraged them to match up. Now that they have broken up, Xiao Zhou doesn't know how to bring it up, and it has been delayed until now.

Cao Xuan: "..."

He didn't know whether it was embarrassing for him to complain about Xiao Zhou, or whether he should complain about Xiao Zhou's moving too quickly and finding a "substitute" so quickly.

"What are the names of the new siblings?"

"Hou Peichen is the TV host."

"Not very familiar."

Cao Xuan's words were half true and half false. He knew this person, Xiao Zhou's rare public girlfriend, but he was really not very familiar with her.

But again, he doesn't need his consent for someone else's girlfriend. Anyway, he has a brother, not a younger sibling.

"When I have the opportunity to bring it to you someday, I will give you a backup gift."

Cao Xuan gave the order and then remembered the Cartier watch he gave to his younger brother and sister Cai Yilin after learning about [Double J Love] two years ago.

Before, Xiao Zhou honored his two sisters-in-law with gifts. He thought he had made a profit, but now he has returned them all. Moreover, based on the experience of later generations, Xiao Zhou does not know how many more gifts he will have to exchange.

Although Cao Xuan didn't care about the money, he still felt like he was losing money. He was wondering if he could take the time to introduce the South Korean True Concubine and Xiao Zhou to get acquainted with him, so that he could make some money back.

How about having more children and carrying out a roundabout strategy.

He remembered that Xiao Zhou had two children, and he had two children in the east and west houses. No matter what, he had to have more children than him...

After bidding farewell to Xiao Zhou, Cao Xuan went to the dressing room and saw Empress Xigong waiting for him here watching TV. He asked her to wait for a while, then he went to the director's studio and stood up for the last shift.

"Unforgettable tonight, unforgettable tonight

Regardless of the ends of the earth and the ends of the earth

…”

Senior Li Guyi did not come, but "Unforgettable Tonight" still ended this year's Spring Festival Gala with the chorus of several singers and many hosts.

The studio was buzzing with excitement. Many staff members started joining the directing team from August to September last year. After half a year, the task was finally completed successfully.

According to normal logic, after such a large-scale event, there will usually be a celebration banquet.

But the Spring Festival Gala is different. It is New Year's Eve after all, and most people want to go home and sleep hard for a few days.

So, except for the staff who couldn't go home, they gathered together to celebrate the New Year, and everyone else went back to their homes.

Cao Xuan drove Zeng Li to Dashizuo Hutong. This year, Hu Jing returned to her hometown to celebrate the New Year. Not only did the Empress of the West Palace attend the Spring Festival Gala, but she also dominated the harem during the New Year.

Cao Daguan did not treat one favorably. The year before last, he took Hu Jing to the homes of Li Xuejian and several other relatives and friends to pay New Year greetings. This year, he also took Zeng away for the same trip.

Many people thought he had broken up with Hu Jing and asked quietly, but Cao Xuan smiled and said nothing.

That's fine, as long as the three of them don't appear together, the worst they can do is "break up and get back together".

After all, they are all unmarried young people. It is normal for men and women to have some fluctuations in their relationship...