CHAPTER 50

"Zui Xiaoyao" began airing on September 20th and trended continuously for four days, cycling through various trending topics. First, rumors surfaced about the male and female lead—then their fans got into a fight—followed by the male and female lead' fans targeting the second female lead—then the first and second female leads clashed with the male lead—and finally discussions about the second female lead's acting skills.

The drama remained in the top ten trending topics, attracting widespread attention across various platforms, sparking discussions among onlookers that seemed never-ending. The marketing teams were overwhelmed with the amount of content being generated.

Boyi was both happy and troubled. The 'Zui Xiaoyao' project team was delighted as only half of the PR budget had been spent, yet the discussion around the drama had reached an unprecedented level.

However, there were tensions within the team of Fang Hao, the director, and the project team. Li Feng, the head of publicity, clashed with these three factions. The large company factions were at odds, each with their own key performance indicators and project targets. While the discussion around the drama was high, the likability of Fang Hao among the general public had decreased significantly, which was detrimental to his career transition.

The screenwriter, Shi Hai, was so angry that he called to directly criticize Li Feng's promotional strategies. Fang Hao's team blamed Li Feng's publicity while Li Feng's team blamed Fang Hao's team for not managing the fan support properly. Fang Hao's team accused the 'Zui Xiaoyao' project team of being bystanders, while the project team claimed they were focused on the success of the drama for the company, suggesting that Fang Hao lacked popularity. Why did nothing happen to the first female lead and the second female lead?

Ye, Fang Hao's manager, wore a dark expression throughout and directly asked Fang Hao, "Are you sure Zou Yirui is dating the young master of the Lu family?"

Fang Hao hesitated for a moment before nodding.

Manger Ye responded, "Alright, that's settled."

At that time, Manager Ye was on maternity leave, and the artists under her management had been reassigned to other agents by the company. When she returned from her leave, the company assigned her solely to manage Fang Hao. Fang Hao had a good appearance but lacked some acting skills. Relying on fan support for the past two years, he was considered a key influencer, but he couldn't shake off the impression of lacking acting skills.

He had faced backlash from excessive praise before, and the current situation was turning increasingly unfavorable for him. He needed to find a way to shift the public's attention.

So, Manager Ye privately contacted Li Feng's publicity team.

On the fifth day, while netizens were discussing the aftermath of the previous trending topics, a shocking revelation appeared out of nowhere, supposedly from an 'informed source.'

"Zou Yirui's love interest is someone else, and Fang Hao was unjustly criticized for trying to help."

"Zou Yirui intends to marry into a wealthy family, longing for the young master of the Lu family."

The post included a picture of Zou Yirui and a young man passionately kissing in a dimly lit setting.

This picture was much more explosive than the ones from a few days ago.

Soon, "Zou Yirui's relationship exposed" and 'pity for Fang Hao' were back on the top trending lists on Weibo.

Apart from the fans of both sides reigniting their feud, most onlookers were left feeling a sense of déjà vu, as if they had seen this scene play out before."

Xiaoyuan had been so excited yesterday that she couldn't sleep. By evening, Cai Juan woke her up and pointed to the trending topics.

"Fang Hao, Lu Jingnian" was already at the top of the hot search, followed by a dark red "Explosive" word.

Xiaoyuan woke up instantly.

Without hesitation, she immediately called Zou Yirui. She didn't answer at first, but she called back after a while.

The two remained silent for a moment before Zou Yirui spoke, "...You saw it."

"Yeah, sigh."

Xiaoyuan didn't expect Zou Yirui to actually use the photo taken that day, nor did she expect that Zou Yirui had also recorded a short video.

In the video, Fang Hao and Lu Jingnian were arguing, with Lu Jingnian covering her face and crying. Fang Hao looked distressed, then leaned down to comfort her, and they embraced. For Fang Hao's fans, while photos could be manipulated, the authenticity of the video was almost devastating.

Lu Jingnian's fans were also caught off guard, confused and unprepared.

This time, Boyi was in for a major upheaval.

However, this had nothing to do with her. Xiaoyuan was actually a bit worried about Zou Yirui instead. "Are you okay?"

Zou Yirui sighed, "I didn't want this either. I'm just protecting myself. I thought that night Fang Hao was genuinely trying to help me out, but I didn't expect he also took photos."

Xiang Xiaoyuan and Zou Yirui fell silent for several seconds.

That night, the three of them had been together, joyfully playing around and joking, as if they were old friends.

Not much time had passed since that night.

But they both understood that they could never return to that moment.

"So, you're okay now?"

"I lied to my manager. Now Tonghua and Boyi are at odds, and my manager has been called for a meeting."

"What will happen?"

"I don't know. This will likely have to be reported to the big boss. I think I'm in trouble this time."

The big boss...

Wei Zhuang...

Xiaoyuan got distracted for a moment.

"By the way, Boyi is still uncertain about who took the photos of Fang Hao and Lu Jingnian, so they might suspect the two of us. I might be fine, the company will protect me. Boyi wouldn't want to openly clash with Tonghua again, but you should be careful."

Xiaoyuan: "How does this involve me again?"

Zou Yirui sighed, "Li Feng under Boyi has no boundaries, and my manager said Fang Hao's manager is also quite crazy."

Xiaoyuan replied, "I understand. Thank you."

Zou Yirui chuckled, "See, at least one hot search is still genuine. The two of us do have a decent relationship."

Xiaoyuan: "...Just take care of yourself and let me know if there's any news."

Zou Yirui responded, "...Who knows, I might really need you to recommend me for roles in the future."

Xiaoyuan replied, "It won't come to that."

Zou Yirui paused, her voice tinged with a hint of crying, "You don't know, I'm really scared of the big boss! Wei Jiabao isn't even in the country!"

Xiaoyuan comforted her for a while, hung up the phone, and briefed Xiang Zhishi and Cai Juan on the situation.

Cai Juan nodded, saying, "We definitely need to be cautious, they're bound to lash out now that their internal conflict has surfaced!"

Xiang Zhishi pondered, "We were lucky yesterday and definitely benefited from it. Even if Boyi stirs up more trouble, Xiaoyuan has gained quite a bit of goodwill from the public, and that's something they can't take away."

"...Hmm, I also think the current level of attention is just right, going overboard would be excessive." Feiyi, the publicist, remarked.

Xiang Zhishi patted Xiaoyuan's head, "There might still be some harsh words thrown around, but it shouldn't have a big impact."

Cai Juan said, "Exactly. Let's just keep a low profile and wait for 'Zui Xiaoyao' to premiere."

Talent is their strongest endorsement.

Xiaoyuan nodded, Cai Juan let out a sigh, it had been a long time since he had been through this kind of "war."

Sitting down, he took out his phone, making sounds of amazement, saying, "Honestly, if it were an ordinary person, they would probably be overwhelmed, with just two eyes not being enough to keep up!"

"Wow, it's so exciting!" he exclaimed.

.....

"Click, click, click!" Assistant Gao was in a side room of the conference hall, engrossed in her phone, enjoying the gossip.

When Xiaoyuan rose to the top of the hot search last night, she couldn't help but burst into laughter.

She had a private Weibo account, not often used, but she immediately went to show support.

By morning, Xiaoyuan's Weibo fans had already surpassed three million, from just a few hundred thousand previously.

To be honest, Assistant Gao was more accustomed to seeing Xiaoyuan as a signed actress under the boss's management. Although she had watched the company's production "Choice," Xiaoyuan wasn't the main character in that film. It was only after watching Duo Miaojiang's edited video that she truly realized Xiaoyuan was a talented actress with another layer of significance.

As an actress, she shone brightly, that pure passion made her stunning, even when playing dirty, ugly roles.

A born actress.

Assistant Gao secretly thought that the boss had really good taste.

What a pity they hadn't renewed their contract last time.

Assistant Gao had never seen Wei Zhuang with such an expression before. She neither looked angry nor calm, neither happy nor upset.

It was difficult for her to describe that feeling. A person usually lacking in strong emotions, now had this inexplicable vividness, as if suddenly catching a glimpse of a deep and mysterious alternate world.

For the boss, Xiaoyuan might truly be someone special.

At 9:30 PM, the vice president, two directors from the publicity department, the director of the film and television department, the project manager, the director of human resources, and Zou Yirui's manager were all in the meeting room, getting briefed on the situation while waiting for the big boss to arrive.

Assistant Gao unlocked her iPad to check Wei Zhuang's schedule. In the past two years, one of the four major business groups under Tonghua Group, the Commercial Management Group, had gradually completed the divestiture of its real estate business, finally transforming this year into a "light asset company" for commercial operations. Numerous light asset projects had been launched, and as the big boss of the group, Wei Zhuang was involved in many collaborative business meetings and private negotiations.

The deputy director of the film and television department was sitting in the lead over here, who knew something unexpected would happen suddenly.

Now it was no longer just an issue among artists, it was between Tonghua and Boyi.

It could be serious or trivial.

Assistant Gao put away her iPad and slipped into the conference room, finding a corner to sit down. Her boss, Wei Zhuang, was listening to the reports below.

The screen wall in the meeting room was displaying the hot topics of the past few days.

Under the indigo night sky, the world of lights thrived, with the distant, endless streams of car lights and street lamps intertwining into golden ribbons, bringing and sending off many stories.

Once the director from the publicity department finished speaking, Wei Zhuang had also heard enough.

Zou Yirui's manager sat quietly at the back of the conference table, feeling uneasy. It was careless of her, she had actually been kept in the dark by Zou Yirui.

Everyone knew that the boss disliked gossip hype and she wasn't fond of signing traffic stars. Zou Yirui was a rising star with traffic appeal, but she was hardly qualified to sign with Tonghua. She was an exception, brought in by Wei Jiabao, and perhaps the big boss wouldn't be too strict due to that connection, right?

The manager couldn't be sure.

Sweat trickled down the manager's palm as she clenched her hands tightly.

With the big boss silent, everyone else felt uncertain about her thoughts, not daring to speak up.

At that moment, Wei Zhuang said, "Let's play the trailer for 'Zui Xiaoyao.'"

Everyone was momentarily taken aback, and the director of the film and television department exchanged a glance with the project manager, who quickly complied.

The trailer played—it was the most complete preview of "Zui Xiaoyao," lasting over three minutes.

Once it ended, Assistant Gao watched the dazzling Ling Yao in the trailer and sneaked a glance at Wei Zhuang. Wei Zhuang was slightly reclined on the sofa, propped up on her arms, her eyes fixed on the screen.

Observing closely, Assistant Gao seemed to see a slight curve of Wei Zhuang's red lips and her cold, pale facial features softening a bit.

Was it just her imagination?

In the next moment, she heard Wei Zhuang ask the vice president, "Have you found out who released the initial photos?"

The vice president replied, "Yes, it was Lu Jingnian from Boyi who privately contacted someone to release the photos of Zou Yirui and Fang Hao."

This was the spark that ignited everything, a spark that no one had anticipated.

What was her purpose? Was it to let Zou Yirui bear the brunt of the relationship rumors with Fang Hao, to test the waters for her, or to test Boyi?

None of these mattered.

"President Wei," the project manager said as he checked his computer, "the latest trending topic has come out."

Everyone looked up.

Xiang Xiaoyuan had climbed to second place on the trending list.

On the real-time feed, most comments were accusing her of being behind the chaos, claiming that the real beneficiary of the turmoil was her. The drama hadn't even aired yet, and people were already talking about her acting skills and how she was trying to gain attention. There were accusations that she had exposed the private lives of the male and female leads, and that she was aiming for a higher status, with many insisting she couldn't have done it without backing.

It was clear that Boyi had personally intervened to escalate the topic. Meanwhile, Fang Hao's fans began to act "rationally," steering clear of the romance between Lu Jingnian and Fang Hao. They focused instead on supporting his work and respecting his private life, with many fans expressing tearful blessings.

The comments about Xiaoyuan were harsh, while those about Fang Hao were gentle.

Once Li Feng from Boyi took action, he showed no mercy. He quickly mobilized all available resources and targeted the "soft targets."

Among the numerous discussions, there were subtle insinuations suggesting that Tonghua was using Xiaoyuan as a pawn against Boyi.

It seemed that Boyi's strategy this time was: "I'm stuck in the mud, and I won't let you escape unscathed. I'll splash you with dirt too."

Assistant Gao watched the big screen, her phone in hand, and a surge of anger began to rise within her.

The project manager had only highlighted a few comments, but it felt like the air in the conference room suddenly solidified.

Assistant Gao took a slow breath, her eyes glinting with curiosity.

After a while, the vice president said, "President Wei, what do you think about Zou Yirui?"

Wei Zhuang glanced at the director of the human resources department and then at Zou Yirui's manager, saying, "This will not happen again."

Many people breathed a sigh of relief in secret, the manager sweating on her back, "Yes, understood, Wei Zhuang."

Wei Zhuang continued, "Director Shen will stay, everyone else can leave."

Assistant Gao watched as the directors and manager left one by one. Since Wei Zhuang didn't indicate for her to leave as well, she defined herself as not being "everyone else," quietly sitting in the corner as if she were a transparent person with ears pricked up.

Vice President Shen asked, "President Wei, are you suggesting...?"

Wei Zhuang replied, "Sun Xin."

Assistant Gao listened intently, her excitement gradually becoming hard to contain, silently letting out a "wow."

The boss was taking action!

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