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in fact, this was zeng zhiwei's first live broadcast on the opening day of the hong kong branch of three sheep (august 21), and it was also the best time for him to learn how to sell goods. that day, they jointly live-broadcasted for 4 and a half hours, and the sales exceeded 100 million yuan; and although it only took 10 minutes to sell the so-called hong kong meicheng mooncakes, it earned more than 3 million yuan.

this was an eye-opener for zeng zhiwei, who was used to big scenes. no wonder he was still making jokes around the crazy little yang ge at the age of 71. the big and small yang ge seemed very casual, and they were arm in arm with zeng zhiwei, looking like they were in charge of everything.

in the live broadcast room, eric tsang showed his acting skills to the fullest, bringing the atmosphere to a climax. although this is the peak of eric tsang's acting skills, in front of the two brothers, he can only win a hong kong film award for "best newcomer" at most - in the live broadcast sales industry, crazy brother yang is oscar-level.

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in addition to selling goods, zeng zhiwei also introduced many hong kong artists during the live broadcast, such as ma guoming,yau shu-ching's daughter, shum yue, chong simin, kenneth cheng, raymond siu... these hong kong stars are all as well-behaved as pet cats in front of brother yang.

when eric tsang introduced his son derek tsang's wife, minyi wang, a classic scene came -

this live broadcast lasted 270 minutes, like a big drama, starring yang ge, yang ge and zeng zhiwei, with breakthrough acting skills, it is worth watching. moreover, it can be seen from it that yang ge is very arrogant, and has a hint of madness before the collapse of the building.

this live drama is no less impressive than any movie in a movie theater. the only difference is that instead of hearing the sound of the projector rewinding the film, you hear:

the crisp sound of a sharp sickle cutting off leeks.

like gold coins falling into the bag.

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selling goods is like acting, it all depends on your acting skills.

compared to xiao yangge's wild style, eric tsang, the "genuine actor" who won the "best actor" at the 11th hong kong film awards in 1992, seems to be very suitable - but also extremely incongruous.

it is not surprising that this irrepressible sense of disharmony suddenly exploded 20 days later.

therefore, despite his superb acting skills, we have to say: brother zeng zhiwei, you owe the public an apology (at least the consumers who purchased the product).

in the hong kong meicheng mooncake incident, eric tsang was not only the "endorser" but also the "accomplice".

even if the manufacturer of meicheng mooncakes argues that "it is not illegal to produce hong kong brands in the mainland", it cannot change one fact - in the live broadcast room, brother yang kept saying "hong kong brand, high-end and atmospheric", misleading consumers into thinking that it is a big-name hong kong product. in fact, from all the information currently obtained, it can be confirmed that it is just a "copycat" product.

but when xiao yangge said "hong kong people know it", zeng zhiwei, as an old hong konger, had an intriguing attitude. he remained silent and even agreed. living in hong kong for 70 years, how could he not know that there is no such brand as meicheng? what's more, in this live broadcast, the "authentic hong kong brand" maxim's mooncakes were also sold?

(35 minutes into the live broadcast, a maxim's lava mooncake priced at 259 yuan a box was introduced, but it seemed that not many were sold. brother yang did not excitedly report the data, but just said "too expensive". after 3 minutes, the introduction of this product ended hastily, which was 10 minutes shorter than that of meicheng)

although everyone knew that meicheng was a fake hong kong product, zeng zhiwei still said "giving gifts is the best", completing the whole process from "endorsement" to "accomplice" - xiao yangge's intention was very obvious, making everyone believe it and using a veteran hong kong star to confirm the hong kong "bloodline" of "meicheng".

some netizens complained about zeng zhiwei, who was playing with a hawk and was pecked in the eye by a house sparrow.

in fact, he was willing to be used, or in other words, he was willing to join forces with brother yang. it was only because there were huge interests behind it that made this movie star fall completely.

in another live broadcast earlier, xiao yangge talked about how he bought dozens of boxes of genuine hong kong "maxim's", each box costing hundreds of dollars, and even showed the bill, saying that he bought it for his family and friends; then he turned around and shouted "meicheng". no wonder he was teased by netizens:

give your family members maxim’s and meicheng’s food.

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compared with commercial tactics like "cutting leeks", we actually care more about the symbolic meaning at the cultural level - which is particularly sad.

thirty-four years ago, the tiny place of hong kong (together with taiwan) was called a "cultural desert". what was exported to the mainland were jin yong's martial arts novels, various hong kong films, qiong yao's romances, the four heavenly kings... more than 20 years ago, these things were despised by knowledgeable people in the mainland. mr. wang shuo even indignantly called them the "four major vulgarities"; today, these former "cultural vulgarities" have become classics that are difficult to replicate.

thirty years in the east, thirty years in the west. now, the mainland has begun to export in the opposite direction. what has it exported? ... is it xiao yangge's live broadcast sales tactics?

a group of hong kong celebrities, led by eric tsang, gave their full support. the scene was puzzling yet clear at the same time - the money power was unparalleled.

but, in time, will xiao yang's cry of "get on the bus" be passed down to future generations like the cultural symbol of hong kong back then?

i'm afraid that only embarrassment and laughing stock will be left.

however, reality is stronger than people. even the hong kong movie king has aged, just like hong kong movies have long lost their competitiveness. zeng zhiwei and others can only dance with the so-called "trend". when hong kong movies were flourishing in the past, people from all walks of life poured in, and live streaming is just another way to quickly realize cash.

30 years ago, hong kong and taiwan movies were still a profitable business, and people in the underworld all switched to other industries. zhu yanping, the director of "slam dunk" starring eric tsang, was kidnapped by gangsters for 18 years and forced to make movies to make money. in a talk show in 2022, zhu looked back on the past with emotion. he was not sad that he was controlled by the gangsters, but:

"the film and television industry is really not doing well now. even the mafia doesn't want to get involved. because the mafia people are the best at reading the wind and know which business is profitable."

as he said, in the past few years, the most popular live-streaming anchor in zhu yanping's hometown, taiwan, is named lian qianyi, a gangster. he joined the bamboo union gang in his early years and was imprisoned for usury and violent debt collection. later, he joined the "tiandao league sun club" and once served as the "chairman of the sun club kaohsiung branch."

after being released from prison, lian qianyi joined the online sales industry. his live broadcast style is very jianghu-like. he imitates taiwanese street hawking to sell goods. he also likes to quote classics, idioms, proverbs, and two-part allegorical sayings, occasionally using taiwanese jargon. lian qianyi is very popular because he is down-to-earth enough. he even sold helicopters worth tens of millions of yuan. therefore, he is worth a lot of money and calls himself "asian live broadcast king".

however, even so, lian qianyi still couldn't change his bad habits of committing crimes. he had offline fights with other live broadcasters and threatened users with refunds. he also sold a large number of counterfeit products of famous brands, including handbags, wallets, watches, purses, etc. in may 2023, he was sentenced to seven years in prison after the third trial by the court.

perhaps, as zhu yanping said, gangsters are the best at "reading the wind direction", and live streaming is just like the hong kong movies 30 years ago. therefore, everyone has entered the industry - even compared to investing in movies, the threshold for live streaming is zero. don't you see that there are not many rogue anchors on a short video platform in the mainland?

of course, talking about lian qianyi does not mean to imply anything, but what i want to say is that in this industry where there are all kinds of people, the top players must keep themselves clean and set a good example.

yes, i am talking about brother xiao yang and zeng zhiwei who may enter the live streaming e-commerce industry.

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on september 17, mid-autumn festival, brother yang may have a sleepless night.

at noon that day, the official wechat account of the hefei municipal government information office, "hefei release", issued a "situation report" announcing the filing of an investigation into "three sheep". the report revealed that due to the recent attention paid to the "hong kong meicheng mooncakes" promoted by three sheep, they were suspected of "misleading consumers" during the live broadcast and are now under investigation. the case will be handled in accordance with the law and regulations based on the results of the investigation.

so, how will brother yang break out of this predicament?

even if the issue can be resolved at the official level (such as by imposing a fine), it will be of no use if brother yang does not come forward to face it and recognize where he went wrong, and there will be a risk of a disaster in the future.

as a senior artist, although zeng zhiwei is new to the live streaming industry, he should also show the style of a veteran hong kong star and be sincere. apologizing is the most basic thing, right? just like when he was asked about the "mooncake incident" at the miss hong kong 2024 finals, he flashed away... it is difficult to deal with public opinion in this way.

in infernal affairs, although han chen’s opening line is worth recalling, the most classic line was said by another gangster boss ni kun, and zeng zhiwei may be very familiar with it, so as to serve as a warning:

"you will pay for what you have done sooner or later.”