Three hours flew by.
In the final act of the play, Jim was still obsessing over cutting the military budget.
Humphrey didn't rush to oppose him but praised the Prime Minister's decision as bold.
Thus, the final exchange unfolded:
Humphrey: "If we truly cut the military budget, the costs of our operations in the Boer War will certainly leak to the media."
Jim: "Surely not…"
Humphrey: "Unless you have complete faith in the Navy's ability to keep secrets."
Jim: "Don't be silly; they leak like a sieve."
Humphrey: "Then it's inevitable. 'Prime Minister Obsessed with Boers, Royal Navy Foots the Bill'—what a sensational headline…"
Jim: "That said, we can't cut the budget too drastically. National defense is the government's primary duty. There are always emergencies… Afghanistan, the Boers, West Africa, Germany… I suppose I've underestimated the complexities. In that case, let's refer the matter to a committee first. What do you think?"
Humphrey: "Yes, Prime Minister."
Music began to play from the side of the stage.
The conductor waved his baton, and the fourth movement of "Ode to Joy" filled the air, grand and majestic, yet dripping with irony.
At the same time, the curtain slowly fell.
The entire Lyceum Theatre buzzed with a sense of exhilaration, the murmurs growing louder, turning the place into a marketplace that seemed to hold thousands of people.
Shaw was full of emotion.
"I've never seen anything like this. Shakespeare couldn't do it, Chekhov couldn't do it, Wilde couldn't do it, and I couldn't do it…"
As he spoke, Shaw turned to Lu Shi, as if to say, "You did it."
Though unspoken, the sentiment was clear.
Lu Shi thanked him, "I must thank you, Mr. Shaw, for refining the script of 'Yes, Prime Minister.' For example, that 'Ode to Joy' segment was a stroke of genius, perfectly balancing contradiction and unity."
Shaw laughed heartily.
"It was my honor to refine your work. It's I who should be thanking you."
As they spoke, the curtain reopened, and the actors came on stage for their curtain call.
Instantly, all the audience members stood up, their applause thunderous, echoing through the theatre.
Shouts filled the air:
"Humphrey!"
"Humphrey!"
"Humphrey!"
…
Henry Irving, who played Humphrey, had to bow repeatedly to acknowledge the audience's enthusiasm.
Lu Shi couldn't help but chuckle.
It seemed that audiences of every era shared similar tastes, universally adoring the witty and clever Humphrey.
Shaw whispered, "Lu, although you're already quite famous, after tonight, your fame will transform. Your pen name—Lu—will resonate throughout England. Soon enough, people will compare you to Shakespeare."
Lu Shi's mouth dropped open.
"This…"
Shaw interrupted, "Not to equate you with Shakespeare, but to compare you."
Is there really a difference?
Lu Shi was speechless.
Nevertheless, he understood what Shaw meant.
Shakespeare was a playwright of the Renaissance, hailed as "the Zeus of the Olympus of human literature," with a style that emphasized elaborate plots, intertwining lines, and a blend of tragedy and comedy, with abundant soliloquies in his dialogue.
Because of these aesthetic pursuits, Shakespeare's language could be quite dense and complex.
In contrast, "Yes, Prime Minister" was the opposite.
Lu Shi wrote almost entirely in colloquial language, with minimal descriptions of the characters' inner worlds, leaving it to the actors' performances to convey deeper motivations.
Compared to "Yes, Prime Minister," even Shaw's new plays seemed old-fashioned.
Shaw sighed, "I never thought… it could be done this way."
Lu Shi didn't respond.
Mainly because he couldn't explain.
"Yes, Prime Minister" originated from a mini-series format, where the clarity of the camera far exceeded that of the human eye watching a stage, allowing actors to perform more subtly and convey emotions through expressions.
Stage acting, however, required more exaggerated performances.
Lu Shi couldn't exactly explain what a TV series was to Shaw.
He smiled, "Shakespeare is the pride of England. Mr. Shaw, I don't want to be put on such a high pedestal."
Shaw burst out laughing.
"Whether you want to or not, 'Yes, Prime Minister' is too fresh and too good not to become a sensational topic."
Lu Shi didn't mind either way.
Since he had decided to write scripts, he didn't mind gaining more fame and earning more money.
He said, "Next time we have a performance, let's get some tickets."
Shaw shook his head.
"A few won't be enough. Sir Wodehouse will probably need quite a few to use as favors."
They hadn't prepared tickets for Wodehouse and others this time because it was the first performance of "Yes, Prime Minister," and its success was uncertain.
Now, seeing the audience's reaction, it was undoubtedly a success, so sending tickets later would be timely.
Lu Shi stretched and glanced at the first floor.
"We should leave quickly."
Shaw also looked at the enthusiastic audience below and nodded in agreement. "Yes, let's go before we get blocked."
They left the box with Natsume Soseki.
As they descended, they overheard a gentleman's voice, "We arrived late today and had to buy a second-floor box ticket instead of the first floor. Surprisingly, I feel the ticket price was worth it."
He was speaking to a lady beside him.
The lady laughed lightly.
"I told you, Sir Irving never disappoints."
She looked starry-eyed, clearly a fervent fan of Irving.
Lu Shi thought Irving must be around sixty and still a ladies' man, which amused him.
He slowed down to listen to their conversation.
The gentleman, perhaps a bit jealous of Irving, said discontentedly, "Irving is impressive, but I think the real brilliance lies in the playwright of 'Yes, Prime Minister.' I feel this writer must work in Downing Street or Whitehall."
As he spoke, the gentleman braced himself.
He expected the lady to continue praising Irving, ready to argue back.
Unexpectedly, the lady agreed.
"Indeed."
The gentleman was taken aback, his momentum lost, and he weakly said, "I didn't notice who the playwright was. I'll check the poster later."
The lady said, "I remember seeing Shaw's name."
The gentleman was puzzled, "What do you mean 'seeing Shaw'? Is it a collaborative work?"
The lady tilted her head, thinking for a moment.
"No, it's not. I remember Shaw's name was written small, second to the main playwright, someone named Lu."
The gentleman was even more shocked, raising his voice, "You mean Shaw is just a co-writer? Who on earth is this Lu, to outshine Shaw? Lu… that name sounds… strangely familiar…"
Hearing this, Shaw winked at Lu Shi.
"Want to reveal yourself?"
Lu Shi replied irritably, "What? Should I go over and say, 'I'm Lu, can I give you an autograph'?"
Shaw laughed heartily.
"Not a bad idea. I would definitely do something like that."