Chapter Forty-Four: The Birth of the Northeast F4

"By the way, the recording for *Comedy King* is about to start. Aren't you coming over to oversee things in person, Brother Ming?" Cheng Ye asked.

The others nearby all turned to look at Xu Ming.

This was the first time any of them was participating in a competitive variety show.

Aside from the novelty, they felt immense pressure. What if they ended up humiliating Benshan Media?

"Yeah, I heard Liaoning TV has invited quite a few formidable teams—Demonshe, Mahua FunAge, and those two disciples of Feng Gong, what are their names again? Jia Ling and Bai Kainan."

Song Xiaobao paused, then hesitated before adding, "And word has it that Sun Tao might show up too."

Damn, that was brutal.

He was a familiar face on the Spring Festival Gala.

Counting this year, the guy had already appeared on the Gala seven times.

With a heavyweight like that entering the competition, were they even supposed to have a way out?

Subconsciously, everyone looked at Xu Ming with hopeful eyes.

Although the latter was technically a junior brother in terms of seniority within the media company, his fame nowadays was such that calling him Senior Brother Supreme would be entirely appropriate.

"Heh, just keep a relaxed mindset. Think about it—if Sun Tao isn't afraid of losing, what do we have to be afraid of? Besides, Liaoning TV's censorship is definitely going to be more relaxed than the Spring Festival Gala's, so our creative work can be much bolder."

"Also, when going on variety shows, winning is certainly important, but the crucial part is knowing how to steal the spotlight. What do I mean? Don't be fooled by people who win yet fail to leave any impression on the audience—that makes for a very unsuccessful variety show appearance. You have to be clear about the purpose of doing variety shows."

"To become famous, you must find every possible way to make the audience remember you. Create your programs oriented around that goal, and you won't go wrong."

Xu Ming comforted everyone, laying out the essence of variety shows in just a few words.

When variety shows first started gaining traction domestically, many artists were actually quite earnest, showing their genuine personalities on every program.

It wasn't until variety shows matured that people realized it was just acting in a different venue.

Some artists couldn't even pull it off.

Why? Because they couldn't let go of their inhibitions. Some variety shows looked awkward simply because the guests were too dull and the hosts couldn't drag them along.

Take the first season of Dragon TV's *Comedy King* in his past life, for instance. The champion was Shen Teng from Mahua FunAge, but the person who benefited the most was Song Xiaobao.

With a single line—"I am Concubine Ka"—he blew up across the internet and landed spots on numerous variety shows.

Along with him, supporting actors like Wensong and Yang Bing also gained a massive following. That was the correct way to approach a variety show.

Aside from building a persona, it was all about building a persona.

"You telling us to create programs is easy enough, but figuring out how to make the audience remember us—that's a bit directionless," Song Xiaobao said. "Normally, we just perform on the grand stage; making the audience laugh enough to get their money's worth is all it takes."

"I think I get the gist of it," Xiao Shenyang chimed in. "Shows on TV are different from our grand stage. When Master used to lead us junior brothers to the Spring Festival Gala—like when Xu Ming performed, the audience remembered him right away, while others left no impression after acting."

Hearing the group's vexation, Xu Ming rubbed his chin.

Since he was the one who proposed the show in the first place, it would look bad if they didn't achieve any results.

After all, his cooperation with Liaoning TV would be a long-term affair. For instance, he had just submitted *Love Apartment* to them, and they were currently studying and considering it.

Try having someone else do that; simply submitting it wouldn't be easy.

Furthermore, the junior brothers before him formed his own core faction within Benshan Media, at least for now, as they were leaning toward him.

"How about this? I'll set an example and kick things off for you. Afterward, you guys can ponder and develop further along this format."

Xu Ming said as he stood up, first pointing at Xiao Shenyang: "Even though Shenyang is leading the team this time, we should try to let everyone shine on the show, so relying on just one person as the core won't work."

Xiao Shenyang nodded without speaking. The opportunity to lead the team had been secured for him by the other man, so even if he wanted to shine on his own, he couldn't bring himself to say it now.

Song Xiaobao, Cheng Ye, and the others couldn't help the corners of their mouths twitching upward before quickly suppressing them, a wave of warmth rising in their hearts.

It had to be Xu Ming; he was always willing to consider everyone.

"Over in Hong Kong and Taiwan, you have the Four Heavenly Kings, and on the mainland, the Four Young Scholars and the Four Dan Actresses. Here, counting me, there are exactly four of us, so we can form a group called the Four Great Scholars, with the alias Northeast F4."

"When the three of you get on stage, if someone asks why only three of the Four Great Scholars showed up, you can make fun of me—saying I went solo, got too arrogant, or didn't want to play with the three of you. If the plot requires adding someone, you can just say that generally, the Four Heavenly Kings actually consist of five people."

"For the first episode, I suggest establishing a background that can be turned into a series. For instance, our media company is holding auditions, and the few of you go to audition. Genres like idol dramas, martial arts dramas, and mystery dramas can each be expanded into a separate episode."

Xu Ming practically broke things down and chewed them up for the three of them, arranging their material by pulling out the comedy sketches he had seen them perform in the first season of *Comedy King* from his past life.

Moreover, because he was working backward from the end result, what he explained was much more complete and intuitive.

The concept of the Four Great Scholars wasn't introduced until later in the show, but under the premise of an early-stage program background, it wouldn't feel abrupt at all.

As for the Northeast F4, that was simply a running gag from *Jian Bing Man*, originally consisting of Xiao Shenyang, Song Xiaobao, Liu Xiaoguang, and Wang Xiaoli.

Xu Ming simply kicked the last two out.

"Ming'er, everything you've said is great, but won't dragging you into the Northeast F4 affect you? If we pull this off, it'll look like the three of us are riding on your coattails for clout," Song Xiaobao said.

It was true. Measured this way, Xu Ming's popularity within the Northeast F4 was miles ahead; the other three combined couldn't compare.

"If this clout is going to be ridden by my own people, it's still better than letting outsiders do it. Besides, at least I have clout to be ridden right now; the day I want someone to ride my coattails and nobody does—that's the real tragedy," Xu Ming waved his hand and said magnanimously.

He definitely wouldn't be able to shake off the banner of Benshan Media in the short term, and before his wings were fully grown, he had no desire to prematurely branch out on his own.

Especially now, having offended so many people.

Cultivating his own faction of loyal followers within the company and building his own sphere of influence was practically essential.

As for his master's suspicions?

Junk that idea. He was personally helping the company make his junior brothers famous, accomplishing something management had failed to achieve after years on the job.

Even if his master had any misgivings, he'd have to swallow them back given the company's rising profits.

Besides, based on his understanding of his master, the latter's mind hadn't been in the entertainment industry for years; he was playing at a much higher level. Where would he find the time to care about such minor matters?

That's right. Compared to what his master was up to, Benshan Media was purely a retirement home the former kept for himself.

"I won't say anything else, Brother Ming. Just watch my performance from now on," Cheng Ye said, his eyes turning red with gratitude.

He was the last one to align himself with Xu Ming among them all, lacking Xiao Shenyang's fame and Song Xiaobao's deep bond.

For Xu Ming to be willing to bring him along felt like smoke billowing from his ancestors' graves.

"We're brothers of the same house, it's only right."

Xu Ming reached out and rubbed Cheng Ye's completely bald head, giving it a light slap—the texture felt just like a basketball.

The phone in his trouser pocket vibrated. He pulled his hand back and answered the call.

Teng Huatao's sigh came through the receiver: "Xu Ming, you've ruined me."