On a cold winter day in 1957, in a small county town called Kaiyuan in Liaoning Province, the cry pierced the depressed sky - this crying baby was Zhao Benshan, who would write a legend in the future.
However, the good times did not last long, he lost his mother when he was just 6 years old, and followed his father to wander around, living a life of exile. Fortunately, God paid off, and an uncle who was also ill-fated took Zhao Benshan in and began to teach him all kinds of acrobatics and forge stunts for his future.
When he was 18 years old, Zhao Benshan married a girl named Ge Shuzhen from a neighboring village, and soon he had both children and a family of five living in a simple tiled house. The self-made Zhao Benshan understood the hardships of life too well, and resolutely decided to join a county quyi troupe to let his talent shine on the stage.
At first, the audience didn't buy it, but he gradually moved people's hearts with his solid acting skills and realistic performances. A performance called "Wrestling the Three Strings" completely made him famous, and he was known as a local pillar.
In 1987, cross talk master Jiang Kun came here to perform. Hearing that a young actor named Zhao Benshan was funnier than himself, he was furious and decided to come to the scene to observe.
Unexpectedly, Zhao Benshan's performance was really vivid, which caused Jiang Kun to laugh.
If it weren't for the "Falling Three Strings", if it weren't for Jiang Kun's favor, we wouldn't be able to see this "sketch king" today. And behind all this, there is a fiery and persistent heart, burning with dazzling light in the face of adversity.
Since 1990, Zhao Benshan has appeared on the stage of CCTV Spring Festival Gala for 13 consecutive years, and has won the highest awards in sketches many times. The drama-like delicate and exaggerated performance style, combined with the typical and vivid character design, successfully amused the audience, and for a time the name Zhao Benshan became a household name in the country.
Not only is he himself overwhelmingly famous, but his partners Fan Wei and Gao Xiumin have also become popular with the help of this Spring Festival Gala and have gained huge popularity.
However, the good times did not last long, and it was difficult for Zhao Benshan to be satisfied with the original achievements. Especially as the partners who have been working together for many years go their separate ways and begin to surpass themselves, a sense of anxiety and crisis sprouts in their hearts.
So adhering to the determination to create new heights, Zhao Benshan decided to be fine rather than bigger, and set up his own door and start anew. In 2003, he resolutely founded the "Liu Laogen Grand Stage" and began to train his own apprentices.
The creativity and adventurous spirit shown by Zhao Benshan at his peak is admirable. But behind it is also a reflection of an insatiable heart, stubbornly chasing self-success, eager to get more public attention.
And then comes more inner and practical tests.
In 2003, the "Liu Laogen Stage" created by Zhao Benshan was officially opened. As the master and mentor of this stage, he methodically selects and trains batches of young apprentices.
Among them, the most eye-catching are those names that later became popular in the entertainment industry, such as Song Xiaobao, Xiao Shenyang and so on. It can be said that it is Zhao Benshan's stage that has completed their shortcut to star and success.
At the same time, Zhao Benshan also began to try to let his apprentices show their skills through film and television dramas. Those familiar faces are all laughing at the audience in front of the camera, from obscurity to first-line stars.
And the most thought-provoking thing is the huge business empire that Zhao Benshan has gradually built. TV series licensing, stage box office, network traffic, and a steady stream of income have made the value of this ordinary old undergraduate artist rise higher and higher, and he will be a billionaire a few years later.
The increase in money and fame seems to have made Zhao Benshan more powerful and domineering, and it has gradually exposed the growing contradictions between him and his apprentices.
Recently, a number of Zhao Benshan's apprentices have repeatedly broken the news and complained, saying that the teacher suppressed his own development, resulting in a pitiful income. "We worked hard to help Lao Zhao earn so much money, but we still eat dirt? Isn't this exploiting us?" For a time, the "crying poor" video of the apprentices went viral on the Internet.
In response to the various accusations that are difficult to distinguish between truth and falsehood, an uproar has also been set off in the field of public opinion, and people are divided into two factions, and saliva is splashing everywhere.
Some members of the public stood in the position of the young apprentices, and attacked Zhao Benshan personally, accusing him of "rushing forward and succeeding" and "insatiable", and after success, he would step on multiple boats; The other part held a sarcastic and disapproving attitude, and ridiculed each other that the apprentices could not "forget to say thank you" on the premise of "not forgetting the well digger".
The-for-tat rhetoric has pushed the contradiction to a fever pitch, and everyone is seeking a definitive conclusion and explanation.
And Zhao Benshan, the party involved in all this, has always been silent in the noise of a war of words. He did not give any clear response to the accusations of the apprentices, nor did he show up to defend the netizens, but continued to prepare elaborate dishes for the students without saying a word.
This puzzling move seems to tell us that the truth of the matter is far more complicated than what we see; The traces of the passage of time have also unconsciously eroded the softest corner of a successful person's heart.
In the face of various "encirclement and suppression" from apprentices and the public, 65-year-old Zhao Benshan chose to respond with actions. He spent the whole day busy running around for his disciples, thinking about new dishes.
Tender spinach, tender tofu, and secret red oil chili peppers quickly overflow with aroma. The old artist gently stirred the spatula, but his face was not as proud as before, but instead there was a trace of sadness in forbearance.
Maybe Zhao Benshan himself can't tell the reason for all this, he is just waiting in the way he is best at - waiting for the children to change their minds and return to him.
Even if he couldn't wait in the end, even if the big family was broken up forever, he repaid his gratitude and didn't dare to complain.
At this moment, we seem to see through the thin pot of smoke, the frank and depressed inner world of an ordinary old man. He may not be perfect, but at least he stands where he is; He may be responsible for his own decisions, but at least he has a pure heart.
This wordless insistence is inexplicably admirable and contemplative.
When we Xi mention the name Zhao Benshan, the first thing that comes to mind is often his deep relationship with the Spring Festival Gala sketches, and the fragments of him laughing and scolding with a group of apprentices.
We praise him for bringing joy to thousands of families, but few people really care about the true portrayal of the heart of such an ordinary old man.
However, when the grievances and hatred between him and his disciples were spread and exaggerated, what we saw was the most authentic side of this person. is neither humble nor arrogant, and faces criticism with a normal heart; No complaints, no regrets, with action to protect the past commitment.
Such an attitude is truly commendable and can be called a model for many successful people.
I don't know how this "infighting" will end in the end, but at least it gives us a new look at the process of a person's life from the ordinary to the noble and back to the ordinary.
I sincerely hope that Mr. Zhao can regain his faith and smile and get back together; I also hope that his spirit can last for a long time, and inspire future generations to stay true to his original intention and forge ahead.