This celebrity became even more popular after being exposed of having multiple girlfriends

Zhao Dongdong had a good impression of this masked performer and couldn't associate him with that detestable person in her mind.

But what left her bewildered was that there seemed to be many people on Weibo and in earlier bullet comments who thought this person was that detestable one.

The comment she was reading had been pushed to the top, and many people were agreeing with it.

"He looks, too similar! I just opened Weibo, didn't see the name clearly, subconsciously thought you guys were discussing Wu Mu, was even wondering what Wu Mu had done recently."

"Isn't it obvious that it's Wu Mu? He officially announced he was participating in the Bilibili New Year's Festival, then he himself went silent, and suddenly a masked person appears. Anyone can figure out it's him with a little thought, otherwise how could such a coincidence happen?"

"Yeah, and the overall vibe is exactly the same. Even though wearing a mask, even if he seems a bit reserved, doesn't he still give off that dog vibe no matter how you look at it?"

Many people wondered what there was to discuss; it was obvious.

Watching this made Zhao Dongdong's heart tighten with anxiety.

But fortunately, not everyone agreed; there were quite a few dissenters.

"I agree that it might be Wu Mu, because there is a bit of that feeling, but to say it's definitely Wu Mu is going too far. There are so many people in the country, you never know how many talented individuals there are hidden among us. Isn't it not surprising for someone like this to pop up, like that Wang Xinfan who appeared at the Spring Festival Gala a few years ago, amazing everyone with his proficiency in various instruments like the Hu flute, three-string, and guzheng?"

"For those saying it's Wu Mu, could you take a moment to count how many skills Wu Mu supposedly has? Can they even fit on a single sheet of paper? It's completely mindless."

"And besides, this kind of skill requires time and training in martial arts and magic. Does Wu Mu seem like someone who spends time learning these things based on his private interviews? If this really is him, then I might start believing the words of his anti-fans, suspect if his show was rigged from the start for marketing, building a genius persona."

"Haven't you seen that "Star Agency" program where Wu Mu first started gaining popularity again? He tricked people into thinking he knew magic, then grabbed a slip of paper and ran, clearly showing he had no skills back then. Less than a year passed, and he supposedly learned to this level? Let's speak with some realism and logic here."

"I feel like if this is really Wu Mu, either he's really marketing himself, or he's... putting on a slack appearance on the surface while secretly working hard on various skills behind the scenes?"

The opponents' arguments were logical, and many people pulled footage from Wu Mu's previous programs to substantiate their claims.

Zhao Dongdong kept nodding, yes, can we get some realistic logic?

The speculation about the masked person's identity had become a hot topic.

Not only online but also at the Spring Festival Gala venue, where senior individuals who had watched the performance were whispering among themselves.

"There's not much overlap between martial arts and magic. I feel like this must be someone from a martial arts family, nurtured from a young age, who also happens to like magic and trained to this point."

"There are indeed various martial arts families in the country, but guessing someone as young as him is a bit challenging."

Lu Yao looked smug, with her head held high and a little fist clenched, "It's little Wu!"

The seniors seemed not to hear and continued their conversation, "But it could also be a folk expert, there are always hidden talents among the people."

"Exactly, when I used to shoot movies, many stunt doubles I met stunned me, surprising that they trained themselves bit by bit while watching TV."

Lu Yao leaned over, blocking their view of each other, "It's little Wu!"

A few seniors avoided her gaze, looking down in thought, "Or they directly switched performers mid-way, although a bit unwise, but now these websites for traffic..."

"It's little Wu!" Lu Yao interrupted loudly.

Finally, someone couldn't hold back and glanced at her incredulously, how could it be Wu Mu?

They've lived for most of their lives and never dared to claim mastery of any skills; even if Wu Mu has the talent, could he really reach such a level?

Are they really giving others a chance to live?

...

Many were guessing the masked person's identity, and the live host's next action further fueled the speculation.

The host on stage announced with amazement, "Thank you, Mask Teacher, for the wonderful performance, it was just like magic. But the next program is also extremely exciting, next is a solo crosstalk performance..."

She paused, with a mysterious expression on her face, "You'll never guess who the performer is—welcome Mask Teacher to perform the solo crosstalk "Three Ranks in a Row"!"

With her announcement, the stage lights slowly dimmed, and a masked person in a white phantom thief costume walked leisurely onto the stage under the spotlight.

Everyone was stunned.

Halfway through, the masked phantom thief seemed to remember his costume, tapped lightly on his sad face mask with his finger, and the mask suddenly changed to an angry face.

Then he continued walking forward, and his clothes silently transformed into a traditional red robe with each step.

Instantly, the audience erupted in astonished cries.

The next program was actually another mask performance?

Was he performing three acts in a row?

And he could even do crosstalk?

Amid the audience's exclamations, Wu Mu had already reached a table in the center of the stage and tapped a wooden block on it, "This year, I'm going to tell everyone a story that happened long ago, probably during the Ming Dynasty's Tianqi era, about a person from the Tianqi era..."

Halfway through his speech, seeing the audience barely quiet down, he paused again, smiling, "Oh right, I seem to have forgotten something for everyone."

He lifted a red cloth off the table, revealing a mobile phone, car keys, and photos, "Returning the treasures taken earlier to these viewers; remember to keep them safe next time."

This move undoubtedly stirred another wave of shouts at the scene.

Just like the online reveals, his magic effects relied mainly on technique, his high dexterity, nimble fingers, and specialized skills made his sleight of hand extremely hidden and swift, appearing flawless.

His stealing treasures, forcing cards, grabbing objects out of thin air, and instant mask changes were purely sleight of hand, while the costume changes and disappearing acts involved some props and stage magic.

For instance, just now when changing costumes, he had actually left the stage earlier and changed into a seemingly identical but easier-to-remove phantom thief outfit, then reached a specific position on stage where the costume was instantly pulled away by props, revealing the robe underneath.

There's really nothing to it, but if the technique is strong and practiced enough, it will appear flawless.

The few audience members from the previous segment went on stage to retrieve their stolen treasures.

Phones, car keys, safety charms.

The Japanese female audience member whose photo was taken away glared at Wu Mu with a bit of anger, thinking it was really annoying that her treasure was taken by someone who looked down on Mumu-chan.

But... as she looked down at the photo, she suddenly froze.

In the photo in her hand, it was still the same person, Wu Mu shyly waving to everyone, but at the edge of the photo, a signature had somehow appeared, with the word "Mask".

The Japanese female audience member was momentarily stunned, her eyes bewildered as she looked at Wu Mu in front of the table.

Wu Mu didn't respond to her, but continued the previous story: "During the Tianqi era of the Ming Dynasty, there was this person who was illiterate, couldn't even write his own name, but he went to the capital for the imperial exam."

"Eh～, he not only passed, he rose through the ranks and even became a minister in the cabinet."

The story of "Three Ranks in a Row" is about what kind of tale.

Roughly, it's about an uneducated and ignorant rich kid, who got tricked into taking the imperial exam in the capital to teach him a lesson, but incidentally encountered the motorcade of Chief Eunuch Wei Zhongxian, and through a series of fortunate accidents, ended up not writing a single word but still came in second place in the exams, becoming a key protégée of Wei Zhongxian.

Later, it was revealed he was uneducated, and he was tricked into delivering couplets insulting Wei Zhongxian to him, which unexpectedly became the biggest evidence of his loyalty after Wei Zhongxian's downfall, resulting in his promotion through three ranks in a row.

The whole story is very absurd and funny, seems unrealistic, but it actually addresses various universally understood phenomena.

In reality, the story might not be so exaggerated, but the situation where someone unskilled and ignorant rises to a high position through connections and background is quite common, like someone named Dong.

The core of this story is timeless, an absolute masterpiece of satirical art.

After Wu Mu told these few segments, he completely erased the audience's doubts, proving that he truly could perform stand-up comedy, and it was especially exciting.

The story was engaging, and the various tones and descriptions were vivid and lifelike.

Mm, Wu Mu secretly used his vocal mimicry skills.

The audience below was completely engrossed.

However, due to time constraints, "Three Ranks in a Row" is over twenty minutes long and can't be finished, so Wu Mu only told half the story before ending it.

"Just like that, an illiterate, uneducated rich second generation passed, became second place, and then after passing, the story only got more exciting, because after the imperial exams, wouldn't you go pay respect to the teacher..."

Wu Mu slapped the wooden block, "To find out what happens next, please tune in to the next episode."

The entranced audience below stared at him with wide eyes.

But after Wu Mu slapped the block, he didn't linger and walked backstage.

...

"What's the hype level now?" Yang Sheng excitedly asked the assistant director beside him.

"Seven billion, three hundred million, eight hundred thousand!"

"Good, good, good!" Yang Sheng was so excited he could barely sit still.

It's already surpassed seven billion!

Two billion more than their highest level in previous years!

"What about the number of online viewers in the livestream room?" Yang Sheng pressed on.

"Thirteen million two hundred thousand!" replied the assistant director, his face full of excitement, "Over five million more than last year's peak!"

Inviting Wu Mu was definitely the right choice!

Yang Sheng pumped his fists in excitement.

In terms of program performance and hype, Wu Mu really delivered full value for the money.

Though his usual shows have a base audience of five to six million, taking advantage a bit of the Spring Festival Gala not fully kicking off yet, being able to achieve such a large boost was still beyond his imagination.

We can only say Wu Mu really knows how to spark hype; once he's trending across various platforms, how could he not attract a huge audience to check out the buzz?

And... the bigger things are yet to come!

Compared to magic, comedy programs undoubtedly have fewer explosive points, but the platform intentionally arranged it this way to let the pace slow down, giving those attracted by trending searches time to gather around.

Because next, it would be Wu Mu's publicly acknowledged specialty!

Yang Sheng fixed his eyes on the host going on stage, "The big scene is about to start!"

...

The stage setup transformed at the end of the program, from the previous comedy table to a piano placed at the center of the stage.

"Is the next performance a singing program?"

The audience speculated.

Then in anticipation, the host came back on stage, "That was truly an excellent comedy act, it's a pity why didn't Mask Master finish the story."

She looked regretful, then transitioned, "But it's alright, after tonight's gala, we'll release the full version of the program online, by then everyone can see the complete version."

Then, she gave a mysterious wink to everyone, "And the next program coming up is really something to look forward to is..."