Dad, Please Try a Little Harder - Chapter 25
Chapter 25 Qian Quan’s Interview Performance: Absolutely Brilliant
In the internet era, the dissemination of information often takes on an unpredictable, beyond-expectations, and unreplicable state.
Many years ago, a netizen posted a thread titled “Jia Junpeng, Your Mom’s Calling You Home for Dinner” on a certain forum, quickly igniting the online world. In just three days, the post garnered over 7.8 million clicks and more than 300,000 replies, with the numbers still continuing to rise.
Countless netizens took the theme and ran with it, creating various derivative and satirical images even putting up banners in some places.
This phrase soon became a famous catchphrase on the internet that year, and it was even selected as one of the “Ten Things of the New Century” by the
New Weekly
magazine.
As the saying goes, the origin of a meme is often unknown, but it can explode in popularity in an instant.
Subsequently, similar unexpected internet phenomena happened from time to time. There were posts, images, and videos – although later on, some of these events showed signs of having behind-the-scenes orchestrators, the truly viral internet memes still carried an element of randomness.
It’s like you can never truly know the specific characteristics of the amusement that resonates with the vast online community.
At this moment, Bai Yuanzhi looked at the comment section of her video where people were discussing Qian Quan, and she also felt a sense of unexpected emotion.
She had guessed that many netizens, especially female ones, would notice him, but she hadn’t expected it to gather such a massive following, regardless of gender.
The first top comment was from a male netizen who had already garnered over ten thousand likes.
But what was even more surprising was the next day.
Qian Quan’s video clips were extracted and creatively modified by netizens for their own adaptations.
The unforgettable voiceover “Bring it on, all three of you! I’m not scared!” was used in various contexts.
Facing a job interview, defending a thesis in front of professors, a little baby surrounded by family members, even a cat facing off against three dogs…
In addition to this, many content creators went the extra mile by producing narrative-rich videos.
Usually, a protagonist seemed very weak when confronted by three burly figures. After saying, “Bring it on, all three of you! I’m not scared!” the protagonist would then be mercilessly beaten.
Then, the initially weak character would say, “Seems like facing three at once is indeed a bit challenging.”
Another kind of twist in the story was that after delivering the line, the protagonist would turn around and walk away, visibly trembling and sweating profusely.
In short, when deconstructing and creating content based on this clip,” people followed the principles of “tough talk, inner hesitation” and “bold façade, anxious heart.”
With the broad participation of netizens, both “Bring it on, all three of you! I’m not scared!” and “Tai Chi-Yuanzhi” made it to the trending topics list, and the former gradually became a subject of discussion on social platforms.
A new internet catchphrase was beginning to take shape.
Online, numerous accounts emerged claiming to be the boy in this video, accompanied by some credible-sounding exposés, asserting that they had unveiled the real identity of the boy in the video.
Bai Yuanzhi quickly got in touch with Qian Quan and discussed the current situation with him.
There were two potential solutions.
First, he could go ahead and open a personal account, leveraging Bai Yuanzhi’s and the platform’s official help to direct traffic, fully seizing this wave of popularity dividends.
The second option was for Bai Yuanzhi to make a statement confirming that Qian Quan was just an ordinary college student and he currently didn’t have a personal account. In the future, if an opportunity arose, she would invite him to collaborate on creating videos.
Qian Quan opted for the second option, not because he was averse to becoming an internet celebrity, but because he felt that such a fleeting surge of popularity would not bring more benefits. Instead, it could lead to unnecessary complications.
People were focusing on the event itself rather than the individual.
Later on, Bai Yuanzhi released a statement video. She dispelled the rumors and briefly introduced Qian Quan as a new college student. She mentioned that he didn’t have an official personal account at the moment, and due to academic considerations, he wasn’t planning to create one anytime soon.
Towards the end, Bai Yuanzhi laid the groundwork, stating that in the future, Qian Quan would be invited to collaborate on new projects at an appropriate time.
This statement video shattered many rumors but didn’t hamper the ongoing growth of the “Bring it on, all three of you! I’m not scared!” phenomenon.
In reality, discussions about this matter were happening in Qian Quan’s family chat groups, high school friends’ chat groups, university freshman chat groups, and class chat groups. People were brainstorming ideas and frequently tagging him.
Qian Quan only responded with a series of emojis.
What relieved Qian Quan was that his mother didn’t jump onto this popularity bandwagon. She didn’t push him to seize the opportunity and become an internet sensation. Instead, she aligned herself with his father’s viewpoint, reminding him to focus on his studies first.
As for Ding Linlang, who already knew that Qian Quan would be joining Bai Yuanzhi’s team, she playfully warned him, “No matter if you become an internet sensation or a professional artist in the future, remember to maintain a good relationship with me. I have a full collection of your embarrassing history from every phase, all in high definition!”
Qian Quan retorted, “What are you saying? My lifelong agent, Miss Ding!”
The temporary surge of fame brought some social pressure and added certain conveniences to his life.
For instance, he was overwhelmingly chosen as the class monitor during the second class meeting’s committee election.
His aloof roommate, Shen Fei, started initiating greetings and conversations with him.
For instance, his entrance naturally drew extra attention during the weekend’s club interview.
The first interview was for the basketball club, which was fine. They didn’t judge by appearance or fame; they only focused on skills.
Though Qian Quan’s height was just under 1.8 meters barefoot, it was sufficient for the campus basketball club. Moreover, the skills he honed through hundreds of one-on-one matches with Ding Linlang made him a strong player. In the context of Seacoast Normal University’s basketball club, he could easily secure a spot in the starting lineup.
During the interview, Qian Quan, Guo Hongyi, and another new student played a 10-point 3v3 match against three basketball club members. In the end, Qian Quan’s team won with a score of 10 to 6, and he personally scored 7 points.
Wang Teng, the head of the basketball club, watched with a broad smile and said, “We finally hit the jackpot this time. Let’s aim for a star for our club this year!”
Both Qian Quan and Guo Hongyi passed the interview, officially joining the basketball club.
After that, Qian Quan participated in the second interview, this time with the Luminous Drama Society.
As the oldest and most influential five-star club at Seacoast Normal University, the Luminous Drama Society held high prestige across the entire university system. Similar to Tongji University’s basketball club and Jiao Tong University’s Chinese chess society, the Luminous Drama Society had been recognized multiple times as one of the top ten societies at Azure Bay.
Consequently, their interview attracted the most participants, and the process was the most rigorous.
There were nine interviewers present, three main interviewers, and six deputy interviewers.
Even so, when the online celebrity Qian Quan made an appearance, it triggered a wave of whispered conversations among the interviewers.
Then, to Qian Quan’s surprise, he noticed that Wang Tongyu was one of the six assistant interviewers. Seated in the middle of the second row, she nodded at him and gave a thumbs-up gesture, encouraging him.
“Let’s start with a self-introduction.” The main interviewer, a serious senior student sitting in the center of the first row, had a square face that gave off a very dignified impression.
Initially, Qian Quan didn’t have high hopes for joining this society. Seeing the long line of applicants outside made him feel even more doubtful about his chances. Thus, he felt no pressure or psychological burden. He calmly introduced himself, mentioning his new involvement in the Chinese chess and basketball clubs.
“You passed the interviews for the Chinese chess club and basketball club?” The serious senior student asked curiously.
“Yes, I’ve already passed. I also have an interview with the martial arts club later.”
“How many clubs did you apply for in total?”
“Just these four, no others.”
“Alright, tell us about your performance experience.”
“In fifth grade of elementary school, I participated in a campus choir competition and won the county championship.” Qian Quan answered confidently.
The serious senior student was speechless.
A few female interviewers were already suppressing giggles.
“I’m asking about your personal performance experience!” The serious senior student emphasized.
Qian Quan thought for a moment and said, “Does playing the role of a traffic police officer in the kindergarten’s middle-class count?”
The serious senior student had a puzzled expression.
Laughter erupted from the audience.
The two senior student interviewers sitting on the left and right sides of the serious senior student were also shaking with laughter.
The one on the left said to the serious senior student, “Don’t you find it quite amusing the way he says these things with such seriousness? It’s the dry humor style.”
The one on the right added, “I was just about to say he reminds me of the deadpan comedian Xu Guanwen.”
Wang Tongyu added in a timely manner, “His performance in Bai Yuanzhi’s video could also count.”
“Alright, you all need to calm down. Show some professionalism!” the serious senior student cautioned, then turned to Qian Quan and said, “Qian Quan, you need to understand that if you want to join our society, being handsome alone won’t cut it…”
Qian Quan’s face fell with disappointment as he said, “Oh, is that how it is? I just saw you and thought that as long as guys are handsome enough, they’re good to go…”
As these words were spoken, the expressions on the faces of the other interviewers, aside from the serious senior student, seemed to say, “Hey, this guy is impressive.”
Even the serious senior student found himself slightly stunned. A faint sense of delight started growing in him, slowly rising from within. When it reached his face, it was immediately suppressed by his strong professional demeanor.
Being confident in one’s own looks was one thing, but having a new junior student who was equally handsome and seemingly without ulterior motives openly complimenting him was another.
He cleared his throat, then checked the box for approval with his pen, offering his assessment:
“While there’s a hint of flattery suspicion, your adaptability is good. Various unexpected situations often occur on our drama stage, and we need quick-witted actors like you. Most importantly, from the moment you stepped on stage until now, you’ve shown a relaxed demeanor, indicating good potential for growth.”
The other interviewers listened with smiles on their faces.
“Thank you,” Qian Quan replied sincerely.
Next, the other interviewers asked a few questions, and Qian Quan answered each one. The interview came to an end.
In terms of this interview, Qian Quan’s looks and his internet celebrity aura contributed to a significant portion of his score. He was a shoo-in for the Luminous Drama Society as long as his performance wasn’t too outrageous.
In the afternoon, there was one final interview for the martial arts club.
For Qian Quan, this was essentially just a formality.
The club president had already interviewed him separately and even personally invited him, so there shouldn’t be any issues.
However, Qian Quan encountered some unexpected situations when he arrived at the martial arts club interview venue.
First, he saw Bai Yuanzhi. When she saw him, her face showed surprise, and she exaggeratedly said, “You there, I sense you’re like a once-in-a-lifetime martial arts prodigy. What kind of martial arts are you practicing?”
Qian Quan found this amusing in his heart, but he responded seriously on the surface, “Wing Chun.”
Bai Yuanzhi nodded, “I see. When I saw your agility and ease in your movements, it must be the result of long-term practice in Wing Chun. Well done!”
Turning her head, she asked the other two interviewers, “Do you have any other questions?”
A well-built senior stood up as Qian Quan was inwardly teasing Bai Yuanzhi’s acting skills, certain that she wouldn’t pass the Luminous Drama Society’s interview with them. He looked at Qian Quan and said, “You practice Wing Chun?”
“Yes.”
“What a coincidence, I practice Wing Chun too. Can we have a brief exchange of moves?”
Bai Yuanzhi introduced, “This is Zhang Tianran, our martial arts club’s vice president. He’s good friends with the vice president of the karate club, Qin Shenglong.”
“Hello,” Qian Quan greeted, “I have no problem if you want to spar with me.”
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