Generation Z Artists

Chapter 180 Such a wonderful day, why is it all Fang Xinghe?!

Given Fang Xinghe's current influence, it's unbelievable that someone would dare to say such harsh words to him.

Wang Charlie couldn't understand it at all: "Are they crazy? Who gave them the audacity?"

Of course, it's the local forces and the island's residents.

Fang Xinghe stared at the starlight panel, his eyes deep and thoughtful, his mind constantly shifting between different considerations.

【Wanwan】

Level 3 loyalist: 12581
Level 4 Frenzy: 1082
Level 5 Belief: 2
Hong Kong Island

Level 3 loyalist: 16115
Level 4 Frenzy: 1508
Level 5 Belief: 8
After the system upgrade, the Starlight panel can be expanded to display details, allowing users to view the specific fan composition by country and region.

The real data is shocking.

He has over 80 die-hard fans in China, with those from Hong Kong and Taiwan accounting for less than one-thirtieth of his total fanbase.

He also has 15 enthusiastic fans from abroad, which is less than one-fiftieth of the number in Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Wang Chali and the others were unaware of the fan data, but they could see the sales figures for "Born to Sing Wildly," so they were completely baffled: "With such a developed economy, the sales are not as good as those in China. It just seems too absurd..."

"Not outrageous."

Fang Xinghe chuckled and shook his head: "Extremely xenophobic, huh?"

Hong Kong and Taiwan regions are indeed very resistant to him and even hostile to him, thus creating a huge void in his influence.

Of course, there have been some special circumstances recently—the relationship between Faye Wong and Nicholas Tse in Hong Kong and the sudden emergence of Meteor Garden in Taiwan have had a huge impact on his fans.

However, his base of fans in Hong Kong and Taiwan is low, and the number of casual fans in Southeast Asia has dropped even more, while the number of casual fans remains stable.

In fact, Hong Kong and Taiwan are not targeting Fang Xinghe, but rather are equally hostile to all people and things from the mainland.

And this will remain true not only now, but also thirty years from now.

At that time, the top male and female celebrities in the Chinese entertainment industry had a great influence all over the world. They could top the global trend charts by making a little noise, but they had no voice at all in Hong Kong and Taiwan.

The top celebrity in Hong Kong Island will always be Keung To, the Emperor of Love. Every April, all the girls in Hong Kong celebrate his birthday with him.

Even the lower-ranked members of the MIRROR boy band have much more prestige than Xia Ge and Kun Kun.

Are Chinese celebrities not good-looking enough?
Or is it due to a lack of professional skills?

No, it's just that they have an inherently superior mentality and look down on you bumpkins from the mainland.

When Tao Di first gained popularity, his fans immediately targeted the mainland entertainment industry to compete: Hong Kong must have its own top stars, so that mainland traffic can go back to the mainland!

With their united efforts, they single-handedly created their own top star.

However, even a big shot like Da Fang, a prominent figure in the entertainment industry's online trolls, describes them as... a self-isolating island.

This period is known as the "Island of Self-Isolation," a time when people would shut themselves off and play by themselves.

The same applies to Hong Kong Island and Taiwan.

Don't you see, the Golden Horse Awards, Hong Kong Film Awards, Golden Melody Awards, Ultimate Song Chart Awards, Miss Hong Kong... all the grand events that once shook Asia have faded away?
From the perspective of the industry as a whole, many people feel sorry for them.

But they themselves had no regrets, stubbornly sticking to their guns, preferring to suffocate on their small island rather than share it with the mainland bumpkins.

From industry leaders to ordinary citizens, everyone collectively decided on this outcome.

The aversion to the mainland seems to be ingrained in their bones.

Japan and South Korea also insulted China, but they ultimately respect the few strong ones. Andy Lau's "A Moment of Romance" caused a sensation in South Korea, Liu Ye's "Postmen in the Mountains" moved Japan, Yao Ming was surrounded by thousands of people when he visited South Korea, and Hiroko ignited the Japanese BL (Boys' Love) culture circle...

Generation after generation, there have always been Chinese celebrities who have been able to counterattack Japan and South Korea.

Fang Xinghe's cultural outreach has faced setbacks and obstacles, but ultimately it has yielded fruitful results.

However, he conquered half of Japan and half of South Korea, but he couldn't conquer Hong Kong and Taiwan.

The media gossips and mocks, understates honors and conceals them, and the public humiliates them at will, with terms like "Northern Man," "Ah Chan," and "Lao Zai" frequently on their lips.

After the news of Faye Wong and Nicholas Tse's relationship broke, Nicholas Tse became extremely popular, and Hong Kong media used him as a stepping stone to promote the young superstar.

With the hit drama "Meteor Garden" and F4's explosive popularity across Asia, Taiwanese media are using him to elevate the status of four ordinary people.

Now it's even more incredible! The team launched a promotional campaign for "Born to Sing" in Hong Kong and Taiwan, and yet quite a few people are preventing him from coming to the island?!
They're so damn spoiled!

I didn't have time before, I had too many important things to do, but now that I finally have some free time, I can't help but want to meet up with them.

"I'll try to find out who's stopping us."

Wang Chali hurried off to take care of some business, but it required a bit of patience, so Fang Xinghe could only focus on preparing for the Singapore book signing for the time being.

A day later, the book signing event concluded successfully, and local sales of "Born to Sing" surpassed 40 copies, causing a minor upheaval in Singapore's fashion scene...

That night, International Times Publishing Group held a celebration banquet for Fang Xinghe.

Distributors, celebrities, and fashion figures all gathered together.

Fang Xinghe didn't care much about others, but he was gratified to see a plain-looking little girl—Sun Yanni, a relatively unknown singer who had just debuted.

At this moment, green light was blooming all over the land of China, but Fang Xinghe's favorite was "Darkness Falls".

I had never heard this gentle and peaceful tune in my past life, but I fell in love with it the moment I heard it in this life.

"Can I trade you a photo album for one of my albums?" he asked kindly. "Ideally, the one with 'Darkness Falls' would be the best."

How could she possibly bring such a thing to a banquet? But her agent was overjoyed and rushed out to get it.

"thanks, thanks!"

A somewhat bewildered Yanni kept bowing, completely unsure how to communicate with Fang Xinghe.

Finally, she stood there, confused, signing the album, surrounded by people watching her with knowing expressions.

Fang Xinghe didn't care that much. Looking at the congratulatory message on the album, he nodded with satisfaction: "When you go out and make your way in the world in the future, you can tell those seniors who act like they're old masters that I'm your fan."

After saying that, he waved goodbye to her.

If we keep talking like this, the rumors will get out of control, since there are so many Hong Kong and Taiwan reporters in the banquet hall.

Li Hanliang, the general manager of the publishing group, secretly winked at Fang Xinghe: "So you like this one... Do you need my help?"

"Neuropathy."

Brother Fang didn't tolerate him and started cursing.

"If you have nothing better to do, go find me a spokesperson. Of all ten Asian countries, Singapore is the most useless."

“Well, I can’t help you with that.” Li Hanliang continued his lewd joke without changing his expression. “I’m good at pimping, and getting endorsements… Singapore makes all its money from finance and ports, how do I do that? Hey, you really don’t like her? Let me be of some use!”

Fang Xinghe wasn't afraid of being misunderstood, but he didn't want to cause trouble for others unnecessarily, so he gave a serious explanation.

"I really don't have that idea, don't make things worse."

Li Hanliang scratched his head: "That's strange, who are you usually so enthusiastic and attentive to..."

"She's a singer with a lot of potential, why can't we give her some support?"

Li Hanliang curled his lip: "There are plenty of girls with potential. I heard from my Japanese friends that they brought Mai Kuraki to visit you, but they couldn't even get in the door. Aren't they the same type?"

Fang Xinghe was too lazy to pay any more attention to him and threw out his last words.

“Sun Yanni sings Chinese songs, while Kuraki Mai sings Japanese songs. Since her career isn’t going well, Chinese people can only idolize Japanese singers. That’s the only difference.”

After Fang Xinghe left, Li Hanliang's smile slowly faded, and he suddenly shook his head and scoffed.

"At such a young age, what kind of perspective do you have on issues? You really think you're the leader of China's entertainment industry... Tch!"

Fang Xinghe, of course, didn't hear it.

However, whether he heard it or not did not prevent him from distrusting any international business partners.

They've gathered because of mutual benefit; they all want to tear him apart. Just be wary of him.

If it's not beneficial for promoting the cause, who would waste their time with them?

However, today's trip was definitely worthwhile. The latter half of the celebration banquet could basically be described as the Singapore fashion circle kneeling to welcome the victorious army.

Singapore is now one of the Four Asian Tigers, with a highly developed economy, but it is considered a small country in terms of culture and fashion.

There are practically no fashion icons, only a handful of new local brands, and their international influence is extremely, extremely, extremely weak.

Fang Xinghe, who straddles the cultural and fashion industries, arrived in Singapore with the lingering momentum of his recent conquest of the Japanese fashion world, almost like a god from another realm.

All—note, all—all the local fashion publications, fashion figures, designers, photographers, and painters struggling to survive in Singapore are trying to learn from Master Fang.

They weren't good at it themselves, but they loved to chat. They talked about everything from the past and present of "Born to Sing Wildly" to the differences between Japanese and Korean trends. The names of various masters flowed from their mouths, and all kinds of ideas collided around them. Then they asked Fang Xinghe for his final opinion.

It's really outrageous, but also very realistic. With their status and influence, if they miss this opportunity, it will be difficult for them to even get close to Fang Xinghe, let alone collaborate with him.

Therefore, it's a natural choice to take advantage of the opportunity to gather some impressive, bragging-worthy information.

Fang Xinghe patiently chatted with them in a kind and gentle manner, offering advice whenever possible, without caring about any reward.

For example, this sentence—

"The biggest problem in doing fashion in Singapore is that the costs for non-professionals are too high. Rent, labor, utilities, there is pressure everywhere, and only a small part of the investment can be put into the professional aspects. This is a typical case of lacking the right location."

So my advice is... go out and explore.

Go to places with low costs and plenty of materials, survive first, and then go back to local fashion once you have a certain scale.

Don't get fixated on the word "local" right now; first, let's get the fashion itself looking good.

Fang Xinghe only touched on the topic briefly and didn't delve into it, but this only stirred up their inner turmoil, leading them to complain endlessly.

By the end of the conversation, it seemed like they really considered Fang Xinghe a big shot.

Two of the designers, who run clothing brands, asked him on the spot whether Shenzhen or Shanghai was a better place to develop their careers.

"Costs are lower in Shenzhen, and fashion resources are better in Shanghai. You can investigate the specifics yourselves; I'm not an expert."

Having said all that, I turned and left.

The very next day, the Singapore fashion industry erupted in praise of him across all related sectors, demonstrating remarkable unity and solidarity.

Although its influence wasn't significant, its momentum was truly astonishing, even shattering the official indifference.

It's rare for Channel 8 Chinese to praise the artistic innovation of "Born to Sing Wildly".

The senior students were both amused and exasperated: "Wow, so you actually built your first fashion foundation in Singapore?!"

Good news: We now have a solid fashion base.

Bad news: It's useless.

Fang Xinghe didn't even look up: "A thousand words of praise from them are not as good as the Hong Kong media completely opening up... What's the situation over there?"

Senior Sister Shi sighed: "The newspapers still don't have anything nice to say, but Mr. Yang from Emperor Group has invited you to visit again."

That means you've wasted your time.

Hong Kong media did report on these two major incidents, but they adopted a dismissive attitude and engaged in nitpicking, selective reporting that took things out of context and engaged in vicious attacks.

Fangzai rakes in a staggering 10 billion!

Fang Xinghe, a self-proclaimed expert in ball games, boasts of beating Jordan!

Mainland China's No. 1 leading man, Fang Xinghe, ushers in a new era for male celebrities making money through photo albums!

"A must-see for housewives! You'll definitely get wet! A wildly popular hit across Asia!"

……

I'm going to Hong Kong for a book signing tomorrow, and I'm looking at what's on the newspapers.

Even a cheater can't do anything about this kind of top-down rejection.

My senior sister was furious: "Why don't we just not go? Let them play by themselves. They'll come to the mainland eventually, and then..."

With a loud crack, the senior sister swung her fist with murderous intent.

The sixth move of Wudang Longhua Fist will smash your dog's head.

Why don't you go?

Fang Xinghe waved his hand and smiled calmly.

"We can skip the events that generate buzz for them, but why not do business that makes us money? Not only should we go, but we should go openly and enthusiastically."

"At that time, these media outlets will definitely chase after you like dogs..."

Her fears were almost certain to come true, but she had to go anyway.

He chuckled and said, "There aren't many normal people in Hong Kong and Taiwan, but there are some. If we don't fight for them, they will never stand on our side."

Before a large group of Chinese people could react, Wang Chali suddenly realized: "The great man taught us that the so-called struggle is about getting as many people as possible to support us and as few people as possible to oppose us. That's the way of the king!"

The senior students all turned to look at them.

Wow, you're really famous...

In fact, Fang Xinghe really didn't like taking the orthodox path. At the age of 16, it was the perfect time to take the crooked path.

But this time is different. The core reason he insisted on stirring things up in Hong Kong and Taiwan this time is... to seek reciprocal revenge.

Fang Xinghe had been disgusted by the Hong Kong and Taiwan media for a long time, but he hadn't had the time to deal with them before. This time, since he had to do publicity anyway, he might as well slap them a few times to cheer himself up.

Moreover, the combined 3 high-end fans in the two regions, if properly maintained, would be an extremely sturdy force, enough to equally torment any new generation of competitors.

If you won't let me be comfortable, then you won't be comfortable either. Let's have a blood transfusion, who's afraid of who?

With this in mind, he had Charlie Wong announce his itinerary on the official fan cafe a day in advance, giving a preview of his trip to Hong Kong Island.

I landed on the morning of August 8th, and as expected, the small airport on Hong Kong Island was jammed.

Ten thousand die-hard fans is not a lot, but this place is small. If one-tenth of them comes, that's 1500. Add in the mid-level fans who just want to join in the fun, and the banners will fill the airport.

After disembarking, he didn't use the VIP channel but instead put on a friendly fashion show in the waiting hall.

The Hong Kong Island fans have no discipline; right now, only Han Fei is capable of handling high-level operations, and these Hong Kong fans will cry and call for their younger brother or husband.

Fang Xinghe didn't mind at all, and waved to them with a big smile: "Hello, thank you all for coming to see me."

Then, lol, several people fainted...

Airport security and police were driven to desperation by the abuse.

This place isn't that sensitive for ordinary celebrities, but Fang Xinghe is different. He comes here rarely and is usually too aloof, so his die-hard fans react quite strongly.

Then, when they left the hall, the senior students reduced the cordon to about 2 meters, allowing reporters to take close-up photos and giving them the opportunity to ask questions up close.

However, hearing a question does not mean you have to answer it.

Brother Fang is all ears, ignoring all serious questions, just waiting for a provocation.

The media present today are quite comprehensive: the top-ranked Oriental Daily News, the most serious Ming Pao, the most orthodox Sing Pao, the most gossipy Apple Daily, and the most unscrupulous Next Magazine... Obviously, there will be provocative questions.

Apple Daily reporter: "Fang Xinghe, your photo albums sell very well in other places, but they are not well received in Hong Kong. Several fashion celebrities have commented that you are all show and no substance and can only fool laymen. What are your thoughts on this?"

The question was trivial yet contained a trap, so Fang Xinghe ignored it.

As a result, this guy kept asking questions and became more and more outrageous.

“The people of Hong Kong Island are generally more educated and have seen more of the world. They are not as easily fooled as some people from rural areas. Have you ever considered that the sales of your photo album in Hong Kong Island might flop?”

"Fang Xinghe, Hong Kong people aren't buying it. Do you dare to give a straight answer?"

Frustrated by the persistent questioning, Fang Xinghe coldly replied, "What's the reason? Wild boars can't eat fine chaff!"

This one sentence immediately brought all the reporters great joy.

With this recording, they can make up whatever they want when they get back.

However, this isn't necessarily a bad thing. At least today's headlines are secure, and someone is bound to break through, right?

Fang was secretly pleased and ignored everyone else, getting into the car with a cold face.

As soon as the car door closed, he couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth into a smile.

It's so damn satisfying to unleash a barrage of attacks across the entire map.

It's incredibly satisfying to launch a map-wide attack on a map that rejects you.

But that's not the goal, just a means to an end—the real fun is yet to come.

I know some of you are unhappy, but hold on, you'll be even more unhappy at the press conference before the book signing this afternoon...

However, before the afternoon even arrived, the most unhappy victim appeared.

"Making outrageous statements, the Faye Wong and Nicholas Tse romance can't compete with Fang Xinghe's popularity!"

What a coincidence, isn't it?

Today, August 8th, happens to be the Empress's 32nd birthday. Nicholas Tse spent 800,000 yuan to buy her a license plate with the number FE1. He was all lovey-dovey in front of reporters, but when he saw the news at noon, he almost spat out blood.

No way, on such a wonderful day, why is it all Fang Xinghe?!

(End of this chapter)