To tell the truth, compared to the sketch comedy of Shen Teng and Song Xiaobao, Liu Zhou was most familiar with the works of Zhao Benshan.
He had watched them not only in his youth, but later on, when contemporary sketch comedy became too painful to watch, he actively sought out Zhao Benshan’s old works to rewatch. Even after a decade or two, Liu Zhou and his family still found immense enjoyment in revisiting those sketches.
It wasn't that Shen Teng and his peers weren't funny; rather, compared to the works of Teacher Zhao Benshan, something was missing. People in later generations often called those born in the eighties the most unfortunate generation, yet they were the ones who enjoyed the finest film, television, and musical works.
The script Liu Zhou had prepared this time for Liu Ye was none other than Teacher Zhao Benshan’s 1999 Spring Festival Gala masterpiece, *Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow*. For someone as wealthy in talent as Teacher Zhao, "borrowing" a bit of wool from him shouldn't cause too much of an impact.
*Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow* possessed a certain degree of innovation. It was the first time a sketch had been combined with a television talk show format, and it also marked the first collaboration between Zhao Benshan and Song Dandan. Anyone familiar with Teacher Zhao's work would know that beyond the densely packed punchlines, another major characteristic was his exceptionally rhyming dialogue.
Liu Zhou certainly couldn't replicate every single line of the original sketch one hundred percent. However, precisely because of those rhymes, relying on his familiar memory allowed him to better refine the dialogue and preserve the authentic flavor of the sketch. Aside from the rhyming, due to the difference in eras, some modifications to the lines were necessary, as the original script referenced current events from the subsequent three years that hadn't happened yet at this point in time.
Fortunately, Cui Yongyuan’s talk show *Tell the Truth* had already premiered this March. To avoid unnecessary trouble, however, Liu Zhou changed the name of the show to *Tell the Truth* within his script. This way, it would prevent any unnecessary disputes while still allowing everyone to guess exactly which show was being referenced.
Once he had conceived the framework, Liu Zhou began to write. This time, he went all out for Liu Ye; even though he had classes in the afternoon, he skipped them entirely and stayed in the dormitory, burying his head in his work.
Just before lights out that evening, Liu Zhou finally finished. After double-checking everything and finding no issues, he headed over to Liu Ye’s dorm.
"Old Liu, did you really finish the script today?" Liu Ye asked first as he saw Liu Zhou walk in holding a stack of manuscripts.
"Of course! I said I'd bring it to you tonight, and it wouldn't be a minute past midnight!"
Liu Ye didn't mind Liu Zhou's showing off; he took the manuscript and began to read it earnestly. Seeing that Liu Zhou had managed to churn out a sketch script in less than a day, Liu Ye hadn't held out much hope for its quality. But as he flipped through the pages, he realized he had severely underestimated Liu Zhou's talent. Even on paper, reading those lines made him burst into laughter every now and then.
After reading the entire script, Liu Ye looked at Liu Zhou in pleasant surprise and said, "Old Liu, you are truly amazing! I now admit that you are an absolute genius."
"Then you'd better act your heart out. I skipped class for this to write it for you, so don't waste my hard work."
"Definitely won't!"
"Definitely won't what?" Qin Hao’s voice suddenly rang out beside them. "I've been seeing you two acting all sneaky. What shady business are you plotting?"
"I asked Old Liu to put together a script for me to use in next month's literary and artistic gala."
"Let me take a look."
With that, Qin Hao picked up the manuscript from Liu Ye’s desk and began to read it carefully. Once he finished, he immediately said with excitement, "I want to perform in this sketch too!"
"On what grounds? Old Liu wrote this specifically for me."
"There are three characters in this script. Can you handle all of them by yourself?"
"Well, no. I can go find Dang Hao; he's from the Northeast too."
"Dang Hao already has a program, and he's the lead. There are only two of us in this dorm who are just playing extras and have this much free time, and I advise you not to be ungrateful!"
"Hey, are you threatening me now?"
"Just tell me if it's a yes or no. Give me a straight answer!"
"I can let you participate, but you have to treat me and Old Liu to three meals at a restaurant!"
Seeing Liu Ye's smug, riding-on-someone-else's-coattails expression, Qin Hao wanted nothing more than to punch him twice, but he held back. Gritting his teeth, he said, "No problem!"
Seeing Qin Hao agree, Liu Ye smiled and said, "Deal!"
In truth, even if Qin Hao hadn't squeezed his way in, Liu Ye had been planning to invite him anyway. Not only was Qin Hao from the Northeast, making him a good fit for the script's characters, but among the boys, they were the only two left playing bit parts in the currently confirmed programs. But since Qin Hao volunteered himself, Liu Ye naturally had to bleed him for a good meal—no, three meals.
"You'll play the show host, and I'll play Bantoo," Liu Ye continued.
"Fine by me." Qin Hao wasn't picky about the role, especially since this one had plenty of screen time. "Then who are we getting to play Cloud?"
"Old Liu, who do you think would be best to play Cloud?"
"Naturally, the person who fits the role best. Isn't Qin Hailu the only girl from the Northeast in your class?"
"That's right."
"Then it's her. Anyone else wouldn't have enough time to learn to speak with a Northeastern accent now."
"Alright, I'll go invite her tomorrow."
"Let's leave it at that for now, then. I'm exhausted and need to sleep."
"Old Liu, thanks."
"Don't mention it. I'm off."
With the sketch script handed over to Liu Ye, Liu Zhou finally breathed a sigh of relief. The rest was up to them to figure out through hard work; Liu Zhou couldn't manage every little detail.
Over the next few days, Liu Zhou went about his own business at his own pace. As November arrived, the weather in Beijing turned noticeably colder.
On the evening of the first, Liu Zhou was holding *Introduction to Film Theory and Criticism*—a classic masterpiece by the American film theorist and founder of the Yale Film Study Center, Dudley Andrew—and reading it intently. This book had been recommended to them by their directing professors at the Beijing Film Academy as introductory reading for aspiring directors.
Before Liu Zhou had even turned a few pages, Liu Ye rushed into his dorm once again.
"Liu Ye, can you stop bursting in here like a whirlwind every single time?"
"I ran all the way over just now and couldn't brake in time."
"What do you want this time?"
"Well, since we've already finished rehearsals for *Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow*, we wanted to ask you to come take a look and see where we need to improve."
"Right now?"
"Of course right now."
"Let's go, then."
Liu Zhou was also curious to see how this classic sketch would turn out in their hands.
Arriving at the acting class rehearsal room with Liu Ye, Liu Zhou found quite a few people there. Besides the two main leads, Qin Hao and Qin Hailu, there were also Zeng Li, Yuan Quan, Hu Jing, Dang Hao, and several others from the class.
"Great Talent, you're finally here. We've been waiting just for you."
As soon as Liu Zhou stepped through the door, the bright and open-hearted Qin Hailu smiled and greeted him.
"What kind of talent am I? I'm just an ordinary freshman at the Central Academy of Drama," Liu Zhou replied with a smile.
"Can an ordinary freshman write such an outstanding script? To participate in this sketch, I even dropped out of the Peking Opera program with Zeli and Quan."
"Zeng Li, Yuan Quan, I refuse to take the blame for this. I didn't tell Sister Lu to drop out," Liu Zhou said with a smile to the two of them.
"We're not blaming you, and stop playing with words. We invited you here today hoping that you, the original author, could offer some comments and suggestions."
With that, Qin Hailu, Liu Ye, and Qin Hao took their places on stage to get ready. The other classmates also stopped what they were doing, wanting to see how well they performed.
Liu Zhou watched very attentively, constantly comparing their performance in his mind with the original one by Teacher Zhao Benshan and his partner. The stage effect naturally fell quite short compared to Teacher Zhao's performance, but it was clear that Liu Ye and the others had put in genuine effort; at the very least, they had memorized their lines thoroughly.
Just as Liu Zhou was watching intently, Zeng Li walked over to his side and asked in a low voice, "Why did you pick Sister Lu for the lead role in this sketch instead of me?"
"You're not from the Northeast."
"Me not being from the Northeast doesn't mean I can't speak with a Northeastern accent."
"You can speak with a Northeastern accent?" Liu Zhou asked, somewhat surprised.
"No, I can't!"
"If you can't, why are you making a fuss?" Liu Zhou said, exasperated.
"Just because I can't doesn't mean I can't learn. Don't you know that learning regional dialects is a basic skill for an actor?"
That point was undeniable. Song Dandan was a native Beijinger, yet when partnering with Zhao Benshan, she spoke fluent Northeastern dialect. He Bing was also a native Beijinger, yet while filming the TV series *White Deer Plain*, he spoke standard Shaanxi dialect as well.
However, mastering a dialect was not something that could be achieved in just a few days.
"Unless you're a linguistic genius, with less than ten days until the gala, how on earth are you going to learn the Northeastern accent? You'll just end up making a fool of yourself on stage with some half-baked accent."
"You promised a few days ago that you'd let me play the lead role. I'll let it slide this time, but the next time you have a new work, you have to cast me."
"I think that sentence right there was your real goal all along," Liu Zhou said, rolling his eyes.
"You got me!" Zeng Li replied with a smile.
"Then you'll be waiting a long time. I have no idea when my next work will come out."
"I'll wait, then."
"Oh right, did Sister Lu dropping out of your program affect you guys much?"
"Not really. The three of us have studied Peking Opera since we were kids; since she dropped out, Yuan and I will just put together a new program."
"As long as it doesn't affect you much, that's fine."
By this time, the sketch performance was nearing its conclusion, and Liu Zhou and Zeng Li stopped talking. Although Liu Zhou had been chatting with Zeng Li just moments before, his eyes had remained fixed on the stage, and he had a clear measure of how well they were performing.