I am a Big Player
Chapter 202 - 200, Three Swordsmen (Second Update)_1

Chapter 202: 200, Three Swordsmen (Second Update)_1

When Jiang Haoyang and Liu Bing asked Ren He what kind of deal he wanted to make, Ren He pulled them aside privately and whispered the details. Liu Bing was astonished, "Just this?"

"Yes, just this," Ren He confirmed. He certainly wasn’t about to spill the entire plan. He nearly broke into tears with emotional appeal and reasoned explanations, all to get these two guys to fuel the fire for him.

Jiang Haoyang and Liu Bing always felt that something was amiss, but they didn’t want to give up the chance for a brilliant comic dialogue, and the condition proposed by Ren He seemed like a trivial effort for them.

It wouldn’t really require any actual sacrifice!

So, the two took the crosstalk script Ren He had written for them and set out to contact former classmates to help Ren He complete the task. When it mattered, they proved to be reliable, even reaching out to some of their own upperclassmen they knew.

Everything was happening behind the scenes, and the students from Class 5 of Senior Year One were curious about what little schemes the trio was concocting, just like the tumultuous waves churning beneath a calm lake surface.

However, what was odd was that both Liu Bing and Jiang Haoyang seemed overly confident when facing internal class competition, while Ren He didn’t seem to have any intention of signing up at all.

Liu Bing and Jiang Haoyang, of course, were confident for good reason. They rehearsed the script countless times before the final selection, often even cracking themselves up. The day before the last day of military training was when they were set to compete in their class.

The classmates showcased their diverse talents, performing on instruments, singing in choirs with a good vocal foundation, and even some performing falsetto as female characters—there was a bit of everything.

However, when Liu Bing and Jiang Haoyang stood out in the crowd wearing their carefully chosen long gowns and mandarin jackets, they immediately caught everyone’s attention. The outfits indeed made them look the part, with Liu Bing playing the straight man and Jiang Haoyang the funny man.

In high school, crosstalk acts were rarer, so just by variety alone, they had an innate advantage over those playing instruments—after all, scarcity adds value.

Of course, it wouldn’t work if the performance wasn’t funny and failed to make the audience laugh, and most classmates were still doubtful.

Yet some remembered Liu Bing’s previous teasing of Yang Lan and looked forward to their act with hopeful anticipation.

At least Liu Bing didn’t disappoint Ren He. Slim and short, his eyes gleamed with mischief as if he was born to throw sarcastic jabs.

After a series of jokes lasting for 15 minutes, Jiang Haoyang and Liu Bing had the class laughing for the full duration. Ren He found it amusing to see the crosstalk of Guo Degang being recreated in this world.

One must know that Jiang Haoyang and Liu Bing were indeed diligent. As the saying goes, "Ten years of practice for a ten-minute performance on stage." When it comes to imitating crosstalk, poor acting can lead to cringeworthy moments and ruin the punchline if you’re not fully in character.

They started practicing in front of a mirror, but then brought in Ren He, the original writer, to observe them. Ren He even performed the act twice for them, once imitating Guo Degang and another time imitating Yu Qian, which turned their practice sessions into nightly endeavors, stretching past 10 pm.

It must be said that the success of No.4 Middle School students had its reasons—they had talent and truly worked hard!

By the time they performed on stage and managed to make the entire audience laugh, it was an achievement Jiang Haoyang and Liu Bing had earned through their hard work. Ren He would never take the credit for their success.

Without any doubt, among the various performances, an excellent original crosstalk piece stood out. Liu Bing and Jiang Haoyang didn’t hog the credit and openly admitted that it was a script written for them by Ren He.

At that moment, everyone turned their surprised gazes towards Ren He, not expecting such a unique individual in the class. Ren He was quite noticeable in the class, mainly because his charm attributes were so high, and he had an energetic spirit, shining like a beacon among his peers. This is why some of the girls in class had a good impression of him from the beginning.

But it was limited to just that—good impressions. The Divine Punishment System wasn’t miraculous enough to make someone fall in love at first sight with just one glance; that would be a BUG.

There were quite a few beautiful girls in the class, at least more than there were in Ren He’s previous school, No.13 Middle School. Some people always say that pretty girls don’t do well in studies. It seems that might often be the case, but there were indeed not a few girls in No.4 Middle School who possessed both beauty and brains.

You have to admit, some people’s starting lines are from their genes...

However, everyone was a bit curious, why didn’t Ren He participate in the performance himself? Seemed a bit low-profile, didn’t it, which didn’t quite match his personality.

In No.4 Middle School, Ren He was anything but low-key, like the time during military training a few days ago when he stood under the blazing sun for 3 hours, which became well-known. It wasn’t because standing in the sun was awesome, but because of his conversation with the instructor...

"I just want to stand right here..." That had the instructor totally bewildered.

So, after the time it took to eat lunch, quite a few students from other classes knew that Class 5 had a guy who dared to oppose the instructor. Some thought he was showing off, others believed he was genuinely awesome. At least standing at attention for 3 hours and then acting like nothing happened was quite impressive.

Ren He’s explanation to his classmates was that he couldn’t think of a performance piece and that he wasn’t skilled at performing. The classmates were skeptical, but nobody really pried into it too much.

Only Jiang Haoyang and Liu Bing knew, how could Ren He possibly be bad at performing? Their own acts were learned authentically from Ren He!

When the military training was down to its final day, it was time for Liu Bing and Jiang Haoyang to compete against the whole grade. This time their performance became famous among the 60 competing groups in the grade. Although most students hadn’t heard their crosstalk, many had become aware that there was a crosstalk act well worth anticipating this year!

In the end, their crosstalk was chosen as one of the 15 selected acts. Liu Bing and Jiang Haoyang treated Ren He to a good meal to thank him, and Liu Bing also slipped Ren He two packs of cigarettes he’d filched from home.

Ren He examined the two packs of cigarettes and realized he’d never even seen them before – just a white pack with the words "Special Supply" on them, nothing else.

Admitting his limited experience, he hadn’t smoked real "Special Supply" cigarettes in his past life and so couldn’t recognize what they were.

The three of them were now known in class as the Iron Triangle, having quickly formed an alliance after a session of military training and a crosstalk performance. However, "Iron Triangle" was a nickname given by their classmates; they called themselves the Three Swordsmen, a name originated by Liu Bing. Ren He had wanted to change it to The Three Musketeers but then thought better of it...

With only one day left until the freshman party, the forums were full of topics about it – some even spoiling the list of programs and the content of the performances, all acting like they knew something profound.

Occasionally, a senior would spoil which act featured a stunning beauty, claiming to have seen her during the selection process, really a goddess-level beauty!

Below, a junior would comment, "Please leave some beauty for us juniors too."

Ren He found browsing the No.4 Middle School forum seemed quite interesting, yet after the performance list had been leaked, the last two acts were still the most appealing.

It seemed those two acts were the most dazzling, impossible for anyone to truly ignore!

Act 31, Performer: Yang Xi, "Wonderful Ability Song"

Act 32, Performer: Yang Xi, "Encounter"

...

According to tradition? No, no, no, let’s finish in one go! Bringing you directly to the long-anticipated reunion of Yang Xi and Ren He!