Top Chinese celebrity: Debuted from Running Man

Chapter 387 "Love O2O" (7k)
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Gu Qing took the folder from Zhao Ya, ran his fingertip along the smooth cover, and glanced at it casually.

However, the next second, his gaze suddenly froze—

On the pristine white cover, several simple yet powerful black characters were clearly printed:

Love O2O!
"Love O2O?!"

Gu Qing's eyes widened slightly, a look of disbelief flashing across them in an instant. "This is... a treasure trove?!"

Even though he has been through many ups and downs in the industry and is used to controlling his emotions, at this moment, the light script in his hand is like a boulder thrown into a lake, stirring up ripples that are hard to suppress.

A long-lost sense of excitement, purely that of an "actor" receiving a good script, welled up within me.

This is a truly phenomenal hit drama of the year in his memory!
It is a phenomenal work destined to be recorded in the history of the traffic era!

When it was released and broadcast, it instantly propelled the main cast, represented by Yang Yang and Shuangzi, to the pinnacle of male and female celebrities in the Chinese entertainment industry. With its unique sweet storm, it swept the entire summer and became the "white moonlight" in the hearts of countless viewers!
The level of discussion and fan frenzy it sparked was in no way inferior to that of "The Journey of Flower" back then, making it another milestone in the field of youth idol dramas.

However, a sliver of doubt quietly crept into Gu Qing's mind.

According to his memories from his previous life, this drama should have aired in 16. Why did the script only finally get to him in 17?

Could it be that... his accidental intrusion as a butterfly, with its gentle flapping of wings, has already triggered such a huge chain reaction?
……

In a place unknown to Gu Qing
The fate of the drama "Love O2O" was indeed full of twists and turns because of him, changing hands with multiple investors and production teams.

The earliest date for the film and television adaptation of "Love O2O" can be traced back to the end of 2014.

Around 15, investors recognized the potential of its intellectual property and decided to pursue a two-pronged approach, launching both a film and a television series simultaneously, with both expected to be released in the second half of 16.

The aim is to create a grand situation of "film and television synergy" and mutual promotion.

The film's copyright fell into the hands of Huayi Brothers, an industry giant.

This well-known youth novel, which had already amassed a huge fan base in its early years, perfectly fits the market's youth idol drama genre, making it an excellent choice for Huayi Brothers to promote its own new generation of actors.

then,

In the latter half of 15, Huayi Brothers ambitiously launched a film version project, directly targeting the company's two most popular and promising artists at the time:

Yang Ying, who has gained immense popularity through variety shows, and Jing Boran, who has made a name for himself with his handsome appearance through numerous works.

But man proposes, God disposes.
At this critical juncture, a media storm sweeping across the Chinese entertainment industry was sparked by "Running Man".

Huang Xiaoming's interference unexpectedly ignited the fury of Gu Qing and Yang Ying's huge CP fans, plunging the entire Chinese entertainment industry into unprecedented turmoil.

The bloody battles that took place on the internet during that period are still fresh in people's minds.

In the first half, irrational CP fans launched a frenzied cyberbullying attack on Gu Qing;

In the latter half, as Gu Qing proved her innocence with swift and decisive action, public opinion instantly reversed, and all the blame shifted to Huang Xiaoming and Yang Ying.

The controversy only subsided as the filming of the second season of Running Man neared its end, and strangely, it even spawned a group of fans who were even more determined to ship Gu Qing and Yang Ying as a couple.

Having witnessed this exciting and terrifying battle of public opinion, Jing Boran, who had just struggled out of what could be described as a "battlefield of interpersonal relationships" in the second season of "Divas Hit the Road," was already exhausted and now felt even more apprehensive.

He just wanted to find a quiet place where his heart, which had been wounded by all sorts of open and covert attacks in "Divas Hit the Road" and frightened by the storm of public opinion, could slowly heal and he could quietly make a few more films.

Partnering with Yang Ying, who is currently at the center of a media storm and has a huge and enthusiastic fanbase for the couple?

Just thinking about the indispensable intimate kissing scenes in the script sent chills down Jing Boran's spine and made him tremble.

He seemed to have already foreseen that once the movie was released, he would be the first to be torn to shreds by angry CP fans!
Even someone with Huang Xiaoming's status in the martial arts world almost couldn't withstand it, so how could his small frame dare to take on the challenge head-on?
In the movie version, the male lead hesitates and shrinks back.

Meanwhile, the female lead, Yang Ying, also had many concerns.

Having just experienced a fan riot caused by Huang Xiaoming, and only after much difficulty stabilizing the situation, she is currently in a sensitive period where she must be cautious in her words and actions.

Furthermore, Gu Qing's willingness to return to Running Man in the latter half of the season and continue recording with her made her secretly believe that the two had reconciled.

In the upcoming seasons of Running Man, Gu Qing will still be the "good younger brother" who works seamlessly with her and brings her popularity.

At this delicate juncture, in order to avoid further provoking the sensitive fan base and triggering an uncontrollable backlash from public opinion.

She also prefers to temporarily avoid taking on romantic films that are prone to sparking associations and controversy.

Both the male and female leads declined, and the film project was thus awkwardly shelved and stalled.

Turning back to television dramas...

When it came to choosing the actors, the production company "Juku" also faced a deep dilemma.

"Love O2O" is a standard female-oriented work, with its core audience being women.

However, since the era of internet traffic officially began in 14, the main consumers in the entertainment industry have long been female viewers.
Therefore, the choice of the male lead is the most crucial factor in determining the success or failure of a drama.

This is why high-quality male actors are considered more "precious" than female actors in the market.

Then,

During this period, the goal is to find someone who possesses both top-tier looks and popularity, as well as an impeccable youthful charm.

Who should we cast as a handsome young male actor who looks like he stepped out of a campus novel?

The answer is almost obvious.

Just in time, the movie "The Left Ear," starring Gu Qing, was showing in theaters.

His portrayal of Xu Yi in the film, with his stunningly handsome and sunny school heartthrob image in the early stages, captivated countless viewers.

The film ultimately grossed 9 million yuan at the box office, and Gu Qing, with his role, with his unparalleled youthful charm and the persona of a "national school heartthrob," swept through the entire Chinese entertainment industry and became the white moonlight in the hearts of countless girls!

Li Yifeng: "This is my persona!!"

not to mention,
Gu Qing has also demonstrated his impressive gaming skills on multiple occasions in public and variety shows, accumulating considerable fame and popularity in the e-sports circle.

This...this is practically a living, breathing version of the legendary "Xiao Nai" character!
Even Gu Man, the author of the original novel "Love O2O", couldn't help but feel dazed when she accidentally saw Gu Qing's scenes in "The Left Ear".

Could there really be a real-life counterpart to the perfect male protagonist she created, who is handsome, talented, and aloof?
Campus heartthrob, e-sports prodigy, academic genius... the degree to which these labels overlap with Gu Qing is astonishing.

There were still some doubts about the academic high-achievers.

But with Gu Qing's stunning appearance on CCTV's "Chinese Poetry Competition," she captivated the audience with her profound cultural knowledge and composed demeanor, completely shattering any remaining doubts!
"Gu Qing is Xiao Nai!"

"Xiao Nai is Gu Qing!"

This idea grew wildly in Gu Man's mind. She even felt that if she didn't invite Gu Qing to play Xiao Nai, she would be letting down the character she created and the many fans who had supported her for so many years!
All these coincidences seem like a twist of fate—

An actress who can perfectly match all the characteristics of the character in her book, including appearance and temperament!
Moreover, they all share the surname "Gu"!
Is there any more coincidence in the world?

As one of the very few original authors and screenwriters in the industry who have considerable say in casting, Gu Man immediately made extremely firm suggestions to the production company "Juku"—

We'll spare no expense to invite Gu Qing to play the male lead, Xiao Nai!

"Juku" is a company with quite a background; it was very famous in its previous life.

Their ability to create dramas and their keen eye for talent are in no way inferior to industry leaders such as Zhengwu Sunshine.

Looking back at its illustrious track record, a series of well-known hit dramas have come from its hands: "Battle Flag," "My Sunshine," "Boss & Me," "Love O2O," "Eternal Love," "Go Go Squid!"...

At present,

Juku has already begun to emerge, and with its first two collaborations with Gu Man, "My Sunshine" and "Boss & Me", it has successfully made a name for itself in the industry and earned a fortune.

This third installment, "Love O2O," marks the third collaboration between the two companies, which they have high hopes for.

Faced with the firm suggestion from the original author and award-winning screenwriter Gu Man,
Juku was initially more than happy to welcome it.

however,
When the person in charge of Juku heard Gu Man say the name "Gu Qing" with such certainty, they were instantly dumbfounded, as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over them.

"Teacher Man! It's not that we don't want to, it's that we can't afford it!"

The person in charge sounded like he was about to cry, "You know how high Gu Qing's status is now... she's someone a company of our size can't afford to hire!"
Even if we sold our company, we probably still wouldn't have enough budget to hire him!

"Don't try to fool me."

Gu Man wasn't buying it at all. She adjusted her round-framed glasses and asked in an unquestionable tone, "Where did all the money you made from your first two dramas go?"

Gu Qing is the chosen one, Xiao Nai. Without him, this drama couldn't have been made. Getting him on board guarantees this drama will be a hit!

"My dear teacher! How could we not know that hiring Gu Qinglai would be a hit? He's practically a walking ratings guarantee and a walking advertisement for businesses. Who in this industry doesn't know that?"

The person in charge looked distressed and pleaded earnestly, "But...but we really can't invite enough people!"

To be honest, I'll let you in on a little secret. I heard from someone in the industry that ever since "The Left Ear" became a hit, guess how much Gu Qing's fee for a single film has increased?

"Do you think I'm a three-year-old? You want me to guess?" Gu Man replied irritably.

"One hundred million! A hundred million for the film's salary!!"

The person in charge's voice was trembling, "Tell me, who can afford this?! The total production cost of this whole show might not even reach 100 million!"

"How many?!"

Gu Man was also stunned by this astronomical figure, and even the round-framed glasses hanging on the bridge of her nose slipped down slightly in surprise.

But she quickly realized the flaw in the other person's words: "If a production team is willing to invest in a film with a salary of 100 million, doesn't that just prove that he is worth the price?"

This further confirms my conjecture: if we invite him, the show's popularity will definitely not be lower than that of "The Journey of Flower" and "The Mystic Nine"!

Gu Man has absolute confidence in her work, especially given the consecutive successes of her first two works.
This convinced her that none of the screenwriters in the entire entertainment industry combined understood what female viewers really wanted to see better than she did.

"Teacher Man, I didn't say they really wanted 100 million in cash!"

The person in charge was sweating profusely and explained in a more emphasizing tone, "They're not using a fixed-salary model at all; it's a commercial revenue-sharing contract!"
The revenue share from video platform views, advertising revenue, VIP membership referrals, and so on, is 10% of all these combined!
And it's being distributed like this every year! So much real money, are you willing to part with it?

"I'm willing to give it up."

Gu Man replied almost instantly, her tone calm and even.

Her contract was already signed, and the screenwriter's share she would receive for each drama was a fixed amount.

Gu Qing taking 10% of the profits has nothing to do with her, the screenwriter who gets a fixed percentage.

She only cares about whether the work can achieve the best effect.

"..."

The voice on the other end of the phone froze, as if a goose had been strangled. "You're willing to do it, but we're not!"
10% of the long-term profits, given to an actor?
This was something they had never heard of before!

This is far more painful than paying a one-time fee of 100 million!

This means that for the next few years, or even longer, as long as the show continues to generate revenue, they will have to continuously cut a large portion of their profits and give it to Gu Qing!

Juku was unwilling to relinquish such a huge long-term benefit, while Gu Man insisted on "not using anyone but Gu Qing".

The casting process for the TV series also fell into a similar deadlock as the movie version due to the influence of Gu Qing, the "butterfly," and was forced to come to a standstill.

Time went by, and it wasn't until the beginning of this year that things came to a head.

First, things took a turn for the better at Huayi.

Yang Ying's reputation suffered a blow due to her poor performances and low ratings in several TV dramas, including "The Great Han Love Song."

In addition, Gu Qing's later clear stance, not hesitating to "angrily confront CP fans" to draw a line, made her realize that she must rely on her works to prove herself again.

then,

She changed her attitude and agreed to take on the lead role in the movie version of "Love O2O".

Since the female lead had already accepted, Jing Boran, who was also under Huayi Brothers and had initially refused, had no choice but to accept the script under pressure from the company's senior management.

The film version was finally able to start filming after some bumps along the way, and it has been almost two months since filming began.

For television dramas, the real turning point came after the Spring Festival season.

"Detective Chinatown," starring Gu Qing, became a dark horse, raking in over 30 billion yuan at the box office and breaking the record in Chinese film history to become the champion!

The film's huge success propelled Gu Qing's popularity, commercial value, and industry status to unprecedented heights, truly making him stand out from the crowd and become the top of the four leading celebrities, a phenomenon among phenomena.

Faced with Gu Qing's terrifying appeal and his proven "golden touch" qualities, Juku Media finally made a painful decision—to sacrifice their own flesh to feed the eagle, they had to win him over!
That's how this meticulously prepared script came about, and it was solemnly handed over to Zhao Ya.

……

"Boss, Gu Man's works are all top-notch in the entertainment industry; they're basically guaranteed to be hits!"

Zhao Ya's voice pulled Gu Qing back to reality from her chaotic thoughts. She excitedly recommended the book, "And I stayed up all night reading the original novel; the way the male and female leads interact is incredibly sweet!"
It's a high-IQ, mutually pursuing relationship between a man and a woman, completely devoid of any angst, unlike those current idol dramas that are constantly filled with misunderstandings, car accidents, and amnesia! Audiences will absolutely love it!

Zhao Ya is a genuine, ordinary female viewer and a fan of the original novel. Her intuitive feelings and preferences largely represent a large number of potential viewers and often provide Gu Qing with some reference opinions from the forefront of the market.

In fact,
The phenomenal success of its predecessor, "Love O2O," indeed proved that it precisely captured the favor of the vast majority of young viewers at the time.
It ushered in a new trend of idol dramas that are "completely free of angst and sweet to the end".

Gu Qing flipped through a few pages of the script, and the delicate writing and familiar plot made him nod slightly.

But he was more practical, and looked up to ask, "Sister Xiaoya, are the film crew aware that I currently need to attend classes at school?"

"Boss, don't worry! I emphasized this to them immediately, and I emphasized it repeatedly!"

Zhao Ya immediately explained with great enthusiasm, as if she had anticipated this question, "The production team gave a very clear guarantee: as long as you agree to take the role,
They are willing to fully cooperate and communicate with the Beijing Film Academy to arrange for most of the filming to take place on the school campus!

She became more and more excited as she spoke: "Boss, think about it, you are now the living advertisement of Beijing Film Academy, the student that the school values ​​most and is most proud of!"
If you agree, the school will be very likely to grant the film crew this favor, which would be a great thing for promoting the Beijing Film Academy.

Moreover, since "Love O2O" is a youth drama with a campus background, filming at the Beijing Film Academy was a perfect combination of timing, location, and people!

This will not significantly impact your studies, will ensure the filming schedule, and will also provide an opportunity to showcase the campus life of the Beijing Film Academy. It's a win-win-win situation for us, the production team, and the school!

Zhao Ya's eyes sparkled, with a hint of pride: "This is one of the main reasons why I dared to bring this notebook directly to you."

Boss, what do you think?

Gu Qing closed the script, her fingertips lightly tracing the title on the cover. She looked up at Zhao Ya and gave her an approving smile: "Not bad, Sister Xiao Ya, your judgment this time was very accurate, and your considerations were very thorough."

He made a decision: "First, let the production team formally contact the school to finalize the filming location."

If the school agrees, and provided it doesn't interfere with my studies, I would be happy to accept Ms. Gu Man's invitation to act in this drama.

He paused, then added, "And please give Ms. Gu Man a message for me, saying... I admire her work and am honored to receive her recognition."

"Yes, boss! I've got this covered!!"

Zhao Ya nodded excitedly, eager to make the call immediately, "I'll give them a formal reply as soon as I get back!"

"Ah."

Gu Qing rubbed her slightly sore eyes, feeling a bit of mental fatigue from handling several important matters in a row. "Sister Xiaoya, is there anything else that needs to be done today?"

"Uh... that's basically all the important business."

Zhao Ya glanced at Gu Qing's face secretly, lowered her voice, and hesitated, "The only other thing that is rather... troublesome and trivial is from the company."

She carefully chose her words: "They call me almost every day, their attitude...sometimes good, sometimes bad."

When things are good, they apologize and say nice things; when things are bad... it sounds a bit like a threat.

The core message is simple: we want you, boss, to resume business activities and accept gigs as soon as possible.

Zhao Ya pursed her lips: "The company is really panicking now. They seem to genuinely believe that you, boss, are going to study for the full three years and endure until your contract expires and you graduate."

Just thinking about this possibility would probably terrify their higher-ups.

"threaten?"

Gu Qing scoffed, a hint of coldness flashing in her eyes. "Since I signed the contract and debuted, I haven't seen much of them actually help me run my career. But they've been incredibly good at teaming up with outsiders to stab their own people in the back and drag me down."

His tone was indifferent and detached: "Didn't they publish articles with righteous indignation to support my 'focus on learning'? Well then, I'll do as they wish and go to school properly."

"Keep the new script a secret for now. Don't leak any information to the company before we officially sign the contract."

Gu Qing instructed, "Let them worry a little longer. It's time to teach them a lesson."

"Okay, I understand! Don't worry, boss, I'm very tight-lipped!"

Zhao Ya obediently agreed and made a gesture to seal the opening.

"Alright, business is done."

Gu Qing stretched, a relaxed smile returning to her face. "Let's go, you've all worked hard today. Is there anything you'd like to eat or do? It's on me."

He glanced at the time and said, "Starting tomorrow, you and your team will have two more days off."

Teacher He and Sister Liying have arranged to come to the capital tomorrow and will pick me up. The three of us should probably walk around the area together.

"Long live the boss! Then I won't stand on ceremony!"

Zhao Ya immediately cheered, though she felt a little disappointed—

I finally got to see my boss, but we'll have to "separate" again tomorrow.

But the thought of getting paid leave and enjoying delicious food immediately dispelled that little bit of disappointment. "I want to eat Quanjude roast duck! I want the most authentic one!"

"No problem, let's set off then, destination Quanjude!"

Gu Qing waved with a smile, and the group headed towards their destination of delicious food in a relaxed atmosphere.

at the same time,

While Gu Qing was enjoying the delicious roast duck in a harmonious atmosphere, the company where he had a tense relationship was actually in a state of turmoil.

Having received no positive response or even a kind word from Gu Qing, the company's senior management had completely descended into madness and despair.

go to school?

Gu Qing actually went to school without any qualms?!

All their previous efforts were like punching cotton, with no point of contact whatsoever.

They sadly discovered that they had very few bargaining chips left to use against Gu Qing, and were truly at their wits' end.

The only thing that still has some binding force on paper is the revenue target that Gu Qing is required to achieve for the company each year, as stipulated in the brokerage contract.

"Sue him in court! Sue him for breach of contract and failure to fulfill his contractual obligations!" someone shouted angrily, slamming their fist on the table in the conference room.

"Are you crazy or am I?! The contract states the total amount for the whole year. With Gu Qing's current net worth and influence, even if he... in the last month of the year..."

He could easily reach that amount by simply taking on a few top-tier endorsements and filming a single advertisement! Sue him?
What grounds are we to sue? We'll be the ones who lose face!

Someone immediately spoke up in rebuttal, their tone filled with a sense of powerlessness.

“But can our company wait that long?! There are hundreds of people in the company, so many projects, so many expenses, and right now we are basically relying on his income to support us.”

"The most important thing now is to get him to be willing to communicate with us! To get in touch with him!"

"I told you long ago not to go too far! But you wouldn't listen and insisted on playing the cold shoulder and pressuring him to give in!"

Now look what's happened! You've completely turned your biggest cash cow, your only pillar of support, out the door. Do you think we're Huayi?

"If you want to freeze an artist's career, then freeze an artist's career!"

Executives who had previously opposed the idea couldn't help but make sarcastic remarks.

The meeting room was noisy and chaotic, like a marketplace, filled with anxiety, complaints, and mutual blame.

"So what do we do now? Go back to apologize? We've already sent several rounds of gifts as apologies, but they won't even look at them!"

"Screw your submission! If I ever back down, I'll be kneeling before his little assistant! He won't even give us a second glance!"

"I think we should just go down this path to the bitter end! Neither we nor he should have an easy time!"

An executive with a gloomy face said, "We'll spend money right now to buy press releases and hire online trolls to expose Gu Qing's revenue-sharing contract!"
Tell everyone in the entertainment industry that Gu Qing earns not just tens of millions from filming one movie, he earns hundreds of millions! Three hundred million!! Just listen to that, three hundred million!!

He waved his arms excitedly, his face showing a kind of desperate madness: "I want to see how those other companies and those envious artist teams will react when they find out."
Will they be so envious and jealous that they see him as the public enemy of the entire entertainment industry?!
Let those production crews who were originally considering casting him think twice about whether it's worth it to hire him again! I'll make sure he never gets any roles again!!

In their despair and extreme anxiety and anger, this group of insects inadvertently "contributed" to Gu Qing the biggest "hidden benefit" he might have brought since joining the company.

They will use the most extreme methods to publicly reveal Gu Qing's forward-thinking and commercially valuable compensation model, which is ahead of its time.

At eight o'clock sharp.

By pooling the last remaining financial resources and connections of the entire company, several meticulously crafted, sensational articles with headlines about "sky-high salaries" propelled Gu Qing to the top of the trending search list.

And so... the Chinese entertainment industry was shaken!
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(End of this chapter)