A post about how a shit stain waste of space @ajawrites @bookshop attacked fans of Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan in an article she wrote for @vox, and then went on to slander and defame Zhang Zhehan in an attempt to get the only article published about his cancellation by CAPA retracted.
Here's the context: On June 6, 2022, @vox published an article written by @ajawrites @bookshop claiming that fans of Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan are "conspiracy theorists". In it, she makes all types of claims defaming myself and the entire JunZhe fandom (both here and in China) for being conspiracy theorists because we do not believe Zhang Zhehan's Instagram account is controlled by him. For those who don't know, Instagram fraud is rampant and there have been several Chinese celebrities who have been the victim of this. Zhang Zhehan's solo fans encouraged the reposting of this article and defended it because they somehow believe that Zhang Zhehan would "comeback" on an international platform before his name is cleared in China (another story for another day).
On June 14, 2022, less than one week after the publication of that article, The China Story published an article about why Zhang Zhehan was cancelled, and specifically that a non-governmental organization called the China Association of Performing Arts (CAPA) was behind the cancellation, not the Chinese government. It also described the efforts made by Li Xuezheng, a famous government-affiliated director, to clear his name. To my knowledge, this is the only story in the world to shine a light on CAPA's role in Zhang Zhehan's cancellation.
After this article was published, @ajawrites @bookshop wrote a long email to the China Story on June 18, 2022 seeking that the article be retracted. She claimed she had done "research" which showed that the article was part of a conspiracy theory (false), that Zhang Zhehan's family was linked to Japan (false), that Zhang Zhehan was cancelled by the government (false), that CAPA wasn't involved (false), and that all those who believe they are are "conspiracy theorists" (false). She repeats anti talking points to smear Zhang Zhehan in an attempt to obtain a retraction of the article.
Yes, @ajawrites @bookshop attempted to get the only article in the world that described CAPA in a negative light retracted.
We have a copy of the email. Here are some excerpts of her own words.
Here's @ajawrites @bookshop insinuating that Zhang Zhehan was banned by the government, when it has been proven on multiple occasions that the government did not ban Zhang Zhehan.
A writer who cannot even get this fact right does not deserve to be called a writer or a thinking human being.
Here's @ajawrites @bookshop claiming that Zhang Zhehan has family ties to Japan, which is FALSE.
Zhang Zhehan himself stated in his interview with Li Xuezheng on January 1, 2022 (seven months before this email) that this was not true. Yet, @ajawrites @bookshop continued to spread this smear to the editors of The China Story.
How does someone who is too lazy to confirm facts become a "culture writer" for @vox?
Here's @ajawrites @bookshop claiming that their "research" shows that the public genuinely hated Zhang Zhehan. They claim that Zhang Zhehan was not cancelled by bad actors, but rather by the "public".
They ignore all the proof and statements that what happened was due to malicious competition and monopoly. All of this was readily available, had @ajawrites @bookshop actually done diligent research. Li Xuezheng had, after all, talked about it for weeks at the end of 2021 and early 2022.
But of course @ajawrites @bookshop knows better! They know better than even Chinese people! They even know that CAPA is a government organization, when CAPA itself said that it is not government and does not represent government.
Pretty rich for white journalist @ajawrites @bookshop to claim that when Li Xuezheng, a renowned government affiliated film director, says that Zhang Zhehan's cancellation was not done by the Chinese government but instead by CAPA, he is spouting a "conspiracy theory".
@vox is this the type of sinophobic journalists that your publication now employs?
Here's @ajawrites @bookshop defending CAPA by stating that it is not to blame for Zhang Zhehan's censorship from all media platforms in China.
Except they failed to read the multiple media reports indicating that CAPA had allied itself with multiple media platforms to ban those it deems "immoral". These media resources includes a western outlet, Reuters. Basic due diligence would have unearthed this, but it appears neither @ajawrites @bookshop or @vox care about the facts.
Here's @ajawrites @bookshop suggesting (as a white foreign writer with zero access to his case), that it is "unlikely" that Zhang Zhehan's investigation would go anywhere, that he can't come back, that he is "already back".
These are clear anti talking points easily found on Chinese social media.
Of particular note is that @ajawrites @bookshop claims that these conclusions are a result of their "research". Yes in their own words, in 2020 they were just learning Chinese. With their level of genius, I bet they're not far from being a beginner.
Yet, this is the type of "expert" that @vox employs to write about Chinese fan culture.
The article in China Story is one of the only published articles in the world that details how Zhang Zhehan was cancelled by CAPA, not the Chinese government. Yet @ajawrites @bookshop, great friend to Zhang Zhehan solo fans asked for a retraction.
Yes, we have the email. They actually did.
Who has incentive to take down an article that speaks negatively about CAPA? Who has incentive to water down statements negative to CAPA? Who has incentive to perpetuate smears against Zhang Zhehan internationally?
Who better to manipulate than a lazy and dumb writer like @ajawrites @bookshop
I do wonder how @vox and its advertisers feels about @ajawrites @bookshop spreading slander about a Chinese celebrity and his fandom? I wonder if @vox even bothers with basic fact-checking? I wonder if @vox is okay with one of its writers contacting another publication in an attempt to supports their biased views?
To the Zhang Zhehan fans (Zhang Sanjian believers) who have fawned at the feet of @ajawrites @bookshop: good to know that you support those who defend CAPA, the organization that cancelled Zhang Zhehan.
And one last thing to @ajawrites @bookshop: only a shit stain waste of space would write an article about a celebrity to gain a following in his fandom while actually despising him, believing the smears against him, and thinking he's a t******.
aka the question that's been plaguing us all since last year. But now we have enough info to put together a theory. (As always all this info is thanks to the hard work of QV and her friends. I'm just compiling)
During 813, Xie Yihua's son, Abner, said in a comment on Bilibili that ZZH's instagram account isn't actually his. It was set up by staff when ZZH was still under the management of his former boss, Yu Zheng, and that the phone number that was registered to the account doesn't belong to ZZH.
This means whoever has access to the actual phone number can reset the password and take control of the account.
Also how on earth did Abner know the details of the IG's account's security (or lack thereof)? Did his mother tell him? We already know Xie Yihua is ZSJ's handler.
On June 2020, ZZH posted on his IG after months of inactivity, and in the comments section he thanked a woman named Virginia. We can infer from their convo that he had lost access to the account sometime ago and that this Virginia helped him gain access again.
Based on ZZH's IG activity, he did stop posting for a few months and only started posted there again when he started filming WOH. That's when he thanked this Virginia person.
There's an interesting comment under Flora's tweet saying that when they first read this, their interpretation was that this Virginia helped ZZH gain access to his account by setting up a VPN for him. And I was the same. That's also how I initially interpreted it, that ZZH wasn't able to access his IG because of the Great Firewall. But with all the info that has come to light, it looks more like ZZH was unable to access it because it was set up by someone else, with a number that didn't belong to him. And Virginia probably helped him by contacting whoever it was that had access to the account in Yu Zheng's management.
So if all this time ZZH's IG account was under the control of someone from Yu Zheng's studio, how did it wind up in the hands of ZSJ's team?
Recently, Yu Zheng was seen promoting the hat from ZSJ's brand. (Photos from bluebird and QV)
It's worth noting that Yu Zheng doesn't seem to like ZZH very much. He interacted with a ZZH anti and implied that it's ZZH fault Zhao Ge did not air. So why is Yu Zheng promoting "ZZH's" brand if he doesn't even like him?
The person Yu Zheng interacted with literally has the username 'zzh liar' and is an active ZZH anti.
And for those who don't know what Zhao Ge is, it's the show where Yu Zheng asked ZZH to come back for additional shoots while he was still recovering from his knee injury. This is widely understood to be the reason why ZZH's knee was messed up for good. More details here.
Zhao Ge was already running into problems way before 813. The script had a lot of elements that likely got it into trouble with the censors, plus in December 2020 more than a hundred industry folks signed a letter calling for a boycott against Yu Zheng and another person for being notorious plagiarists and all around shitty human beings. If it's not the script that sank Zhao Ge's chances of airing, then it's Yu Zheng's awful reputation as a plagiarist amongst his peers. Even before 813, the chances of Zhao Ge airing were not looking good.
Yu Zheng was brought to court by Taiwanese author and producer Qiong Yao for plagiarizing one of her novels, and a Beijing court later ruled in her favor. He was ordered to pay her millions. So you know...Yu Zheng is quite literally a criminal. That along with the script is probably why Zhao Ge will never see the light of day. ZZH should actually be the angry one here because his knee was pretty much ruined forever just for a shitty drama that will never even air.
A document that was circulated amongst ZZH fans last year and associated with him can also be linked back to a lawyer that once worked on Yu Zheng's legal counsel. Coincidence? Maybe. But it's interesting how many times his name comes up in relation to ZSJ.
And this is just personal speculation but I wonder if Yu Zheng was pissed when ZZH blew up after he was no longer within his management, and he could no longer reap the benefits of ZZH's fame for himself. Remember during the WOH concert ZZH mentioned that a lot of old friends suddenly came up to him after WOH's success, asking for all sorts of favours and whatnot, and then him apologizing for not being able to attend to them all. Looking back on that, it's interesting that a lot of people involved in the scam had more or less a connection with ZZH in the past. The Chens from the teashop, Xie Yihua, Zhang Su, Xiao Chu Nada, etc. And now Yu Zheng.
So yeah this is it. Yu Zheng's involvement with ZSJ was the last piece of the mystery behind the compromised IG account.
Zhang Zhehan and Gong Jun Shows and Movies Masterlist
I seem to have gained a bit of a reputation as The Person With Links, so this is a masterlist of streaming links to all of Zhang Zhehanâs and Gong Junâs dramas, films, and reality shows. Interviews and variety show guest appearances are not included here.
The inconsistent way Zhang Sanjian (i.e. the Zhang Zhehan persona that appeared after 813) behaves from the old Zhang Zhehan is one of the biggest giveaways that he is not the real thing. This includes Zhang Sanjian's "return" to basketball, which first appeared on the Super_3 IG in July 2022 and then resurfaced on multiple occasions afterwards, the most recent being last month.
It should be noted that Zhang Zhehan had said on multiple occasions that as a result of his injury, he is unable to return to basketball and chose golf instead. Zhongwans' blog here includes a detailed explanation of this injury.
Hi zhongwans, can you help us remember the exact injury of Zhang Zhehan back in 2017-2018?
From what I can remember he had his ACL reconstr
Bottom line is that 80% of Zhang Zhehan's meniscus was removed, and despite attempting to recover, he had to face the reality that he would not be returning to basketball. Zhang Zhehan gave multiple interviews about this, including this one on IFeng where he talks about how he had to give up his obsession with basketball because to continue would impact on his career and life.
So it was extremely surprising that Zhang Sanjian would appear for the first time in July of last year with photos and videos of "him" playing basketball. At that time, the Super_3 IG posted pictures of Zhang Sanjian playing with his new "best buddy" Lexus (there are many problems with this character), and someone who appeared to look like Xiaoyu.
The July photos were accompanied by a 46 minute CCTV of him playing basketball, which was spread among fans as "proof" that he was "back" playing basketball.
That CCTV video was interesting. I watched the entire thing and it was apparent how different this Sanjian character played basketball in comparison to Zhang Zhehan. In the entire 46 minutes:
Zhang Sanjian attempted 113 baskets; made approximately 33.
There were two makeup artists who touched up his make up 6 times.
There were no successful baskets from the 3 point line.
Most attempts were from the free throw line or closer.
There was no team play
He was mostly shooting by himself at the free throw line or with one other person.
It was apparent that this was not someone who had once played basketball at the level of almost a pro, winning a MVP award in the 2017 Tencent Super Penguin All Star Basketball Game.
Listening to Zhang Zhehan's old interviews, this is a man who demands excellence of himself. Whatever he does, he will do to the extreme to do the best he can. It is baffling that this mediocre player would be him, particularly when he has said in multiple interviews that he would no longer play basketball.
Last month, pictures of Zhang Sanjian playing basketball were again posted on the Super_3 account, accompanied by a video. Strangely enough, these photos showed Zhang Sanjian playing with his shoelaces untied. One can only assume it was deliberate given the poses. The message here is his knee is so much not a concern that he is able to play basketball... without properly tying his shoes. Who does this?!
Even his scar from his surgery can no longer be seen!
Meniscus removal is a long-term injury which is very painful. It does not grow back, it does not heal, and continued improper use of the knee and re-injury could be devastating for him. Would a person whose primary career is in acting put himself at risk of permanent disability - to the point of being unable to do the work he loves as an actor in the future - for mediocre basketball?
It should be noted that antis on WB have already claimed that these new Zhang Sanjian pictures and videos show that Zhang Zhehan was previously lying about the extent of his injuries and had used pity to get fan sympathy prior to 813. For example:
Would a person like Zhang Zhehan, who was subject to a smear like 813 deliberately give black material to antis to smear him back? This and many of Zhang Sanjian's other actions make no sense, and indeed, are used by antis to paint him as an immoral person (note this was what he was cancelled for; being an "immoral" actor), a liar, and a person who rips off fans.
As some might know, we organized a birthday fundraiser in Zhang Zhehan's name for the Canadian Charity Educating Girls of Rural China (EGRC) this year. After a month of donating, I'm proud to report that this year, we raised $15,133 CAD (78,657 RMB) in Zhang Zhehan's name to this worthy charity!
This builds on our success in 2022, where we raised $10,224.98 CAD (52,904 RMB) in an impromptu fundraiser also on behalf of Zhang Zhehan to EGRC.
These are amazing results! Thank you to everyone who participated!
As a result of our gift this year, we sponsored 12 girls living in rural China to complete one year of EGRC's program which includes financial aid. emotional support, guidance, and coaching.
Since 2005, EGRC has sponsored over 2000 girls through its program. Their girls have a 99% graduation rate and 100% of their graduates have found jobs. These graduates contribute back to their families, helping to lift them out of poverty, and become mentors for other girls as well.
It is so lovely to see our small but strong community on Twitter contributing to this project.
Giving to charity and doing good is consistent with who Zhang Zhehan was as a person. On many occasions, he emphasized the importance of having love in one's heart and sharing that love. As a result of his words, his fans donated to many causes.
This is a video of Zhang Zhehan thanking his fans for their charity work at his 2019 birthday event. Listen to how he talks about the importance of living with love in our hearts.
This is the Real Zhang Zhehan, the person who CAPA sought to erase and whose character continues to be replaced by that copycat Zhang Sanjian. If only Zhang Sanjian had also preached love instead of toxic hatred and naked greed, so many more would have fallen for it.
this might be a very stupid question, but could that mean that there is progress for zzh behind the scenes/at court that led to weibo acting and censoring the pictures?
I think it's very possible. Also this is China so we can't expect any info whatsoever about the case leaking out while it's still in progress, especially a massive case like this which has the potential to implicate big players within the CN entertainment industry and possibly even the corrupt officials that serve as their protectors. So expect absolute silence from official channels regarding the case (including absolute silence from ZZH) but that definitely doesn't mean that nothing is happening. We just have to wait. Plus, there's good reason to suspect that the government has taken an interest in his case. Remember that interview he had with Li Xuezheng? There were officials from the National People's Congress present (aka the highest legislative body in the country)
The CN government has been wanting to clean up the c-ent industry for a while now and ZZH's case is probably one of the best examples of how far that industry can stoop to take out competition and especially people who refuse to bow to them.
not to be rude, but what if you're wrong? what if zhang sanjian IS zhang zhehan and all this time that you're "waiting" you're continuing to support gong jun, the one responsible for his downfall as he stated himself? again, not being rude, just asking. đ
You're not being rude, you're just being passive agressive đ Also let me get something straight here, the reason I don't support ZSJ is not just because I think he's a fake, but because I think he's a spiteful little coward. Even if he is actually ZZH, it won't change my opinion of ZSJ, but it will change my opinion of ZZH.
The accusations ZSJ threw against GJ in that instagram video are not only baseless, but contradictory to ZZH's previous behaviour. If you've seen all their shenanigans during the WOH promotional period and the concert, can you in good faith say that only GJ was involved in the CP fanservice? They were both playing into it and ZSJ accusing GJ of CP fanservice only makes ZZH look like a hypocrite. If "ZZH" regrets that and now wants to become the patron saint of heterosexuality, he's free to do as he pleases, but the attack against GJ for the same actions that he himself took part in is unacceptable. Not to mention him accusing GJ of being the one behind 813 without providing a shred of proof. Again, not only are those accusations baseless, they also don't make any sense, considering what it takes to pull off something at the scale of 813. ZSJ didn't even have the guts to drop GJ's name. If you're going to accuse someone of something so serious without any proof, the least you could do is own up to it entirely instead of hiding behind plausible deniability.
What if I'm wrong, you ask? Then it only means I was wrong about ZZH and I was wrong to believe in the integrity of his character. But what about you? What if you're wrong? Unfriendly reminder that the Bangkok concert was handled by a production company that has ties with CAPA, the very organization that played a massive role in the destruction of ZZH's career. The same hate accounts on weibo who have been shitting on ZZH since WOH was airing are now the same people supporting ZSJ and harassing GJ. What if you're wrong and all along you've been sucking CAPA's gangrenous dick thinking that you're defending ZZH by doing so? What if all this time you've been rallying behind the same people who ruined ZZH's life?
If I'm wrong, I can live with it. But can you say the same for yourself?
Summary of Hao Jingfang's involvement in the WOH fandom:
Who is Hao Jingfang? Hao Jingfang éćŻčł is a Science Fiction writer who won the Hugo Award for her novelette Folding Beijing back in 2016.
May 6, 2021 (two days after the WOH concert)âHao Jingfang posted a review of WOH. She claimed the show helped her get rid of her writer's block and inspired her to continue working on her new book. She said she liked Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan and wanted them to star as the main leads of the film adaptation of said book. She said that she planned to have Word of Honor's scriptwriter, Xiao Chu, adapt the novel for screenplay.
Hao Jingfang soon started publishing chapters of the novelâtitled ĺŽĺŽčˇčżč (Cosmic Jumper)âonline. And everytime she would put Junzhe/LLD references on her blurbs. A huge chunk of Junzhe fans expressed support for this project.
When 813 happened, Hao Jingfang condemned Zhang Zhehan on the blurb of a newly posted chapter (without explicity naming him, but it was very obvious who she was talking about)
She said that since she was writing a story about "heroic Chinese people leading the world" it was very important to her that the actors starring in the adaptation have clean reputations. In the last line, she implies that ZZH's moral character and patriotism is lacking. She deleted it a few hours later.
A few days later, she posted a new chapter and the blurb contains more Junzhe references. Junzhe fans called her out for still using the references after she had already condemned ZZH. She deleted it and never used Junzhe references on her blurbs after this again.
The fandom stopped paying attention to her and supporting her work after 813 and she slowly disappeared from the fandom's radar. She appeared again sometime in December when Li Xuezheng was active and talking about ZZH's case. She made a post that can be read as veiled support for ZZH.
Months later at around May 2022, Hao Jingfang once again appeared in the fandom when her main weibo account was muted. She then accused GJ on her side account of being the one behind the muting of her main account. Did she provide a shred of evidence? No.
It's worth noting that prior to the muting Hao Jingfang wrote and posted an essay talking about the war in Ukraine and the COVID situation in China. These topics (especially at the time) were considered to be highly sensitive and controversial. Her being a public figure talking about these topics on weibo is the most likely reason she was muted, especially since it was clearly stated that she was muted for violating laws and regulations, and not just for community guidelines.
Fans then found out that Hao Jingfang is actually friends with the Word of Honor scriptwriter Xiao Chu and a man by the name of Zhang Peichao.
Who is Zhang Peichao? Zhang Peichao, also known as Patrick Zhang and "Doc Creepy", is a psychoanalyst based in Shenzhen who follows the teachings of Freud, believes in stuff like the Oedipus complex, asserts that homosexuality is a response to childhood trauma, encourages gay conversion therapy, etc etc. He first appeared in the fandom when WOH was still airing and published a few essays about the show. One gimmick of his is psychoanalysing the characters according to his sick and perverted views, like saying that Wen Kexing's sexuality is due to Oedipus Complex. Zhang Peichao also seems to be obsessed with the actors themselves, particularly with ZZH and the character he plays in WOH, Zhou Zishu.
TLDR; he is a creepy perverted slimeball hence the nickname "Doc Creepy"
But the reason Hao Jingfang's connection with Zhang Peichao is interesting is because he's suspected by the fandom to be the heart and soul of the Zhang Sanjian scam. And the big accounts that heavily promote Zhang Sanjian have also expressed their support for Hao Jingfang's unfounded accusations against Gong Jun.
Since she attempted (and failed) to start a smear campaign against Gong Jun, we haven't really heard from Hao Jingfang after that. The rest of the updates on this situation are from unverified sources (eg. released chatlogs) so I won't include them.
P.S. I've read about half of her novel ĺŽĺŽčˇčżč and it sucks. Don't bother wasting your time and money on it. If she's "at the forefront of Chinese sci-fi" then Chinese sci-fi is fucking doomed. There are much better sci fi works on jjwxc.
Second anniversary of the release of Gu Meng ĺ¤ć˘Ś. Enjoy Zhang Zhehan's real voice singing this song during the rehearsal for the Word Of Honor concert.
His real voice is musical with good technique. He respects his art and the audience. He is a person with a clear love for performing.
Credit and with permission: ćżććşçĺ°ĺ§ĺ§9291
You guys must have seen that article from Vox that was filled with misinformation about ZZH's case written by someone called Aja Romano.
The article was very hostile towards Junzhe CP fans, which is actually not that strange knowing how RPS fandoms are seen, but since Romano herself was part of RPS fandoms and even believes that Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo are in a secret relatonship, you've got to wonder where all the hostility is coming from. It's also very interesting that she never once showed any interest in WOH ever since it aired, but then suddenly appears and writes a scathing article about Junzhe CP fans a full year later, even regurgitating anti talking points from weibo beat by beat. So when I first read it I suspected that it wasn't written by a passerby journalist, but rather by someone who was very familiar with the WOH fandom and specifically with Junzhe CP fans. Someone who was keeping an eye on the fandom's conversations. And also possibly, someone who has something against us or ZZH and GJ.
On June 2022, an article that was published on The China Story finally laid out the facts about ZZH's case: that he wasn't banned by the CN government, that CAPA wasn't a government entity and therefore had absolutely no right to issue a boycott, that ZZH was the victim of a vicious smear campain that must have taken millions to fund. After the horrible articles Aja Romano wrote for Vox, it was a welcome relief.
Well now some amazing people over on twitter found out that Aja Romano actually emailed the editors of The China Story, asking to retract the article. It's the ONLY article that contains the truth about his case, and has all the facts that Li Xuezheng himself stated. And she asked for it to be taken down.
She claimed that the article was filled with misinformation, even though the article was based only on facts that were verified during the time Li Xuezheng was active. Aja insisted that ZZH was banned by the government, even though that was debunked three times, twice by the NRTA and once by the MCT. Since when did a chronically online waste of space and human equivalent of watery diarrhea like Aja Romano have more say about ZZH's case than the literal Chinese government?
Like what you like, ship what you ship. Mind your own fucking business. There's no rule saying you must stuck your rancid dick in other fandoms just to enjoy your own.
Full post about Aja Romano's email here:
A post about how a shit stain waste of space @ajawrites @bookshop attacked fans of Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan in an article she wrote for @vo
This is a translation of the interview Zhang Zhehan did with Elle, published on April 8, 2021.
On the day of the photoshoot, we encountered a rare windy day at Beihai. The weather forecast was for rain, which made everyone a bit discouraged. âCan we still do the photoshoot by the seaside?â, âdo we need to change the location?â Everyone was worried, but fortunately in the end the rain never came, although there was a steep drop in temperature and screaming winds.
While on the road to the shoot location, Zhang Zhehan recorded the sound of the wind from outside of his window. In order to make it before the sun completely set, he only had one hour after filming to rush back to his hotel, eat a meal, change his clothing, and put on makeup. And now, after doing all of that, he also used his remaining free time to chat with his long-waiting fans in the dramaâs interactive area.
Being busy is to be expected. However, when you see him on location, you cannot see any traces of being busy on his face. The wind blew the gravel from the beach everywhere. Between shots, no one could help but complain about the cold wind and the sand all over our faces. Only Zhang Zhehan looked relaxed, as if he did not come from the same beach as everyone else.
It was only after changing locations to a coffee shop did we have time to sit down and have a chat. He asked a staff member to get a cushion for his back. It was the first time in the entire day that it became apparent that he was actually very tired. âBeing an actor must be quite difficult and tiring.â Before I could finish the sentence, he already said he disagreed with my statement. âIn fact, it is all the same. Every job is difficult and tiring.â
He seems to have a big heart.
For his university graduation trip, he chose to ride to Tibet with his friends. According to his mother, he always has this spirit of âlooking for sufferingâ. While talking about this trip, he said, âOur lives have become very fortunate. Most families do not need to worry about basic necessities, and we no longer go through many hardships. I very admire what teacher Wang Lei once said: âOnly after suffering can a person develop faith, only after suffering can a person understand kindness. Only after seeing the sufferings of the world, after experiencing suffering, can a person have kindness towards others.â This is also my thinking.â
Only after listening to him speak will you realize that saying he is âbig heartedâ is perhaps a misunderstanding. It is not that he is better at reducing the feeling of âsufferingâ, instead, during those times when he is âlooking for sufferingâ, his understanding of âsufferingâ is in fact more fulsome and intense than most other people.
He has a very sensitive side, through which he feels, understands, and hides his âsufferingâ. As a result, his experience of and feelings towards suffering is something that others have difficulty perceiving.
âWhen we go through hardships, we only see the suffering itself, and do not understand that the act of suffering is reminding us of some things and teaching us other things.â This is his understanding of being mature â the ability to see the many sides of things.
âBruce Almightyâ, âThe Pursuit of Happinessâ, and âThe Bucket Listâ are movies that he likes very much. âThere is a line in Bruce Almighty that had a deep impact on me. In that movie, there is a hypothetical God who said, âdo you really hope that God will give you happiness?â. Perhaps everyoneâs belief in what is happiness is not the same, but in the movie, the main character had to reach the end before suddenly coming to the truth: in fact, God really had given him happiness, but what was given wasnât âso-calledâ happiness but rather the ability to achieve happinessâŚâ He earnestly shared his impression of the movie while propping up his chin with his thumb, with eyes looking slightly downwards.
He added, âThis is actually about changing your perspective on how to see problemsâ, just like how he wrote previously, âmaturing is seeing things that you could not see before.â
Maybe only when one has settled for a long enough period of time can one remain calm in changing tides, and hold onto oneself despite the quicksand under oneâs feet. When faced with the problem of popularity, he is more at ease than one would expect.
âPopularity is obviously important to an actor. I think they complement each other. Having greater popularity and the attention of more people, and being able to carry more on your shoulders, first proves that you have the ability, and second proves you have received the acknowledgment of the market.â
âAs actors, we need to be acknowledged by the market. I have seen some excellent actors who work hard to portray each role, but because they have not had the opportunity to be acknowledged by the market, they continue to be unknown to the public. That is why they naturally will not receive opportunities to act in great roles.â It sounds cruel, but it is an undeniable fact. âIf you do not have popularity, good scripts will not find you.â
For Zhang Zhehan, the success of Word of Honor is like winning the lottery.
âThe success of a drama depends on timing, location, and social conditions all being favorable at the same time. There are hundreds to thousands of dramas filmed each year, but in the end only one or two is loved by everyone. That is why it is a bit like winning the lottery.â
Working hard is common. He thinks it is a bit unreasonable to ask why one is not appreciated if one works hard. It is like how he feels when people complement him for being an experiential actor, when he is complimented for his immersive style of acting. He feels this is just making sense of acting, it is what actors are supposed to do.
âAs an actor, if you donât experience the character, how can you properly portray the character? If you donât get into the character, then how can you give life to this character?â
Hard work, experience, immersion â he sees these elements as part of the definition of being an actor, the requirements for winning the lottery. As for whether one is able to win the prize in the end, no one can say for sure. At a minimum in his own experience, he has waited 11 years for that winning lottery ticket.
After filming ended, he wrote on his Weibo âJianghu, goodbyeâ to say goodbye to Zhou Zishu. When the final episode aired, it was exactly half a year from that post. As well, his Weibo was set to posts being visible for 6 months. It was as if there was another pre-destined farewell a half year later.
Maybe for him, the character of Zhou Zishu was really predestined to be his. During the four months of filming, he needed to slowly, little by little, brush away the two thousand layers of dust on Zhou Zishu, find him, become him, and in the end live his entire life for him.
Generally speaking, actors must infuse their characters with their own emotions and experience in order to make the character come to life. And in the process of making a character come to life, actors are required to feel and experience life again.
âLife is a series of experiences. You need to take those experiences and give it to your character.â
Hegel said in âAestheticsâ: âArt by means of an image can mitigate the cruelest tragic destiny, and make it become an object of appreciation.â
Perhaps the reason why so-called sufferings are endowed with aesthetic tension is because they are âbeing viewedâ. The most beautiful things are not being destroyed in real life, rather they have become a âperformance of being destroyedâ, they are moved to the stage and onto the screen. The existence of an aesthetic distance has made suffering became something that can be endured, and something that can be appreciated.
What about for the actor? That so-called âsense of painâ, will it be experienced more directly, without buffer? In his previous interview, he assessed Zhou Zishu as âa profound character that has hurt him the mostâ. When we speak again about âbeing hurtâ, he believes that it is unavoidable.
âI have often said actors have to throw oneself into the role, but yet must also get out of character quickly. But every time you act in a very happy drama, this happy feeling may only stay with you for one or a few days. When you act in a tragedy, even though you might say âit doesnât matter it doesnât matter, there is no impactâ, but in reality it will impact on your mood, including some of your actions. When you go back to your room, you might not be able to help but think back, and you may not wish to go out and socialize with others.â
âSo, do you think that acting is a process that depletes your energy, and in particular depletes your emotions?â
âOf course, of course, of course, it will deplete your energy.â, he said âof courseâ three times consecutively. âNot only will it deplete your emotions, but it will also deplete your physical strength, deplete your experience, deplete many things about yourself. That is why if I want to act well in a drama, I cannot go to the next drama immediately after finishing the first. Because you continue to have the previous dramaâs shadow on you, making it actually extremely difficult to accept, and difficult to fully enter the next role.
âI personally prefer to stay with the filming crew. Why do I say Zhou Zishu is great? Itâs because during the pandemic, we could not do other activities. During those four months, I quietly and peacefully stayed with the filming crew. I was able to carefully consider and experience the character.â
That day, the question and answer about acting was the most carefree part of the entire interview. To every question that was tossed out, I received an eloquent response. From a bystanderâs perspective, one can obviously feel that in this specialized area, he is the type of person who sparkles with light.
After each drama finishes filming, he will choose to vacation for a few days and leave that environment. âItâs not that I am insisting on disengaging from the drama, but rather it is to allow me to relax a bit, to return to myself, to return to the life of Zhang Zhehan.â
âSo now looking at Zhou Zishu from the perspective of an audience member, do you have any different sentiments?â
âYes, I will think about some amusing parts, some amusing things that happened. You can see some of the interesting things that I added into this character.â
What is worth celebrating is that an actor can have the same happiness as an ordinary member of the audience.
In the few minutes of conversation, the phrase he used the most was âgentle yet strongâ.
âI particularly like that netizens describe Zhou Zishu as being gentle yet strong.â
âRight now, the quality that I admire the most is being gentle yet strong.â
âRight now, I want to be like A-Xu, someone who is gentle yet strong.â
âI would like to be more like Ah-Xu, a bit more gentle.â
He feels that this seemingly contradictory combination is ingenious, âSee, the word âstrengthâ seems to describe a person who is very tough, while the word âgentleâ describes a person who is very soft. On the surface, it seems that these two words do not have any relationship. However, when you put it together, there is a perfect relationship.â
âI did not use to think this way. Before, I thought that a person should be unyielding and powerful. How can a person be both gentle and strong? I believe that this is what I need to learn right now; to be a person who is able to interact easily with others, able to care for others, and yet at the same time be a strong and capable individual.â
âBe like water, I guess; when it is calm it is a certain way, when the waves are choppy it is another way.â He used all sorts of hand gestures to fully describe what he wished to say from his heart.
âGentle yet strongâ, this is what he saw and felt from Zhou Zishu. It is also the experience learned from the character that he most wishes to preserve.
âIf we talk about what has not changed in these 11 years, it is that I am still acting. But if we talk about what has changed, the change has been significant. My years of experience has turned into my understanding of each role. In other words, my 11 years of acting experience has allowed me to learn a lot from my roles.â
In these 11 years, every large and small role was a mutual encounter. He gave his characters something of himself, and at the same time his characters also left something of themselves for him.
Those who have seen him act has praised him for being a person who truly understands Zhou Zishu. When asked how he is able to stand in Zhou Zishuâs place and understand everything he said and did, he said that he does not believe it is about understanding, but rather that everything flowed naturally.
âI did not deliberately go out of my way to understand him. I believe that everything he did comes from his heart; I will do it if I feel that it is right. I will ask myself, if it is me, can I do this? Can I accept it? If I feel that I can, then there is no problem, then it is right. If I feel that I cannot accept it, I would definitely speak to the director and say, âI do not want to act it this way.ââ
âToday, I read another book. The main idea in the book is that a person must know himself. Only when you know yourself and understand who you are as a person can you know this world. You have to learn how to be reconciled to yourself, learn how to communicate with yourself, tell yourself when it is necessary to persevere, when it is necessary to compromise, when it is necessary to understand, when it is necessary to be strongâŚYou have to insist on being true to yourself, but at certain times also persuade yourself.â
Encountering Zhou Zishu, for Zhang Zhehan, was also a process of meeting himself and understanding himself. âBut I might not be as mighty as Zhou Zishu, right?â he said while laughing.
He feels that he is not yet old enough to look back. Those events in the past, what has past is past. âThere is nothing to deliberately remember, nothing that is profoundly impressive. Moreover, in my work, there are many people who will help you remember. They will remember the things you did well, remember your every moment, that is why you do not need to remember for yourself. Living my life well, my present life, my future life, devoting myself to my next role, those are my tasks at this moment.â
âWhen I reach the day where I really cannot act, I might look back more at the past.â
Right now, there is a new area that he would like to challenge himself with. âActually, I really would like to act in movies, act in more movies. Acting in a 40-episode series is very different from a two-hour movie. Condensing the time requires getting at the essence. How to act well in these two hours is something that I must still learn.â
And then afterwards, âAfterwards, I would like to one day be a director.â
The whole earth is filled with the spring light. It is fortunate that we met.
These twitter posts contain posts, resources, and sources clarifying the smears against Zhang Zhehan in August 2021. In the space of two days, a large number of false smears against Zhang Zhehan were posted by marketing accounts on Weibo, creating a wave of misinformation about Zhang Zhehan. Many of these claims were clearly false and the work of malicious capital, seeking to destroy a rising star.
