Top Chinese celebrity: Debuted from Running Man

Chapter 420 Ah Dou Unleashes His Power, Brother Qian Attacks (7k)
……

……

Friday evening, in a female dormitory at a university.

"Sigh, what show should I watch while eating?"

The aroma of spicy hot pot was irresistible, but Xie Lin's fingers were aimlessly swiping across the icons of various video platforms on her phone screen, her brows furrowed into a tight knot.

"A TV show drought is truly one of life's greatest pains!"

Xie Lin is a typical Gen Z female college student. She has a cheerful and lively personality, is the life of the party in the dormitory, and is very popular.

But she has a very distinct characteristic—she is not a fan of celebrities, and even scoffs at the idea.

She could never understand why people would scrimp and save to spend money on online rankings and emotionally charged support for their idols, who were out of reach of their time.

Fans who constantly feel sorry for their "older brothers and sisters" because they think they're working too hard.

In her view, this was simply challenging the lower limit of human intelligence—"

The money someone earns from one movie is enough for you to work hard for several lifetimes. Do you need to pity them?
Wouldn't it be better to spend that time caring more about yourself and your parents?

She describes herself as "the purest film and television consumer" or "a noble passerby".

Shailene's preferences are very straightforward: if a song is good, she'll add it to her playlist;

If a show is good, she'll watch it.
When she happens to come across a stunningly beautiful celebrity, she will honestly exclaim "Wow!" and give it a like.

But if I don't see it, I will never specifically search for it or follow it; everything depends on fate and the quality of the work itself.

however,
Recently, Xie Lin has been experiencing a severe "drama drought".

Looking around,

The two most heavily promoted dramas on the market are undoubtedly "Nirvana in Fire" and "Fighter of the Destiny".

Faced with the overwhelming barrage of advertisements both online and offline, she was also "tricked" into glancing at them.

The summary is:

Nirvana in Fire?
She forced herself to watch the first episode, but the intricate relationships between the characters left her dizzy and confused, so she eventually gave up.

"Fighter of the Destiny"?
That would have been even faster; they only managed to get to the beginning.

When Xie Lin saw the "heaven-defying" special effects that seemed to be stuck at the level of a web game, and the male lead's overly "refined" performance, she felt that her intelligence had been insulted and clicked close without hesitation.

This thing is absolutely an eyesore!
"It's all over, is the Chinese entertainment industry really doomed?"

Xie Lin picked at the sliced ​​beef in her spicy hot pot, and sighed dejectedly, "Is there not even a single drama that I can watch while I eat?"
I can't possibly watch "My Own Swordsman" for the 20th time, can I? 'Oh my god!'

She angrily quit Tencent Video, which displayed a huge advertisement for "Fighter of the Destiny" as soon as she opened it, and even her appetite was affected.

Forget it, I might as well watch some videos to kill time.

Clicking on the TV icon on Bilibili, Xie Lin habitually glanced at her following list first.

The profile pictures of several food-related content creators I frequently follow are all grayed out, indicating "No updates available."

"No way, officer... even this little website has abandoned me? Can't I even enjoy my meal now?"

She grumbled in frustration and had no choice but to settle for second best by checking the "Today's Hot" video list on the homepage.

In the homepage recommendations,
The majority of the space was occupied by various cool and eye-catching cosplay girls.

They wore minimally made anime-style costumes, various stockings, and showed off their long, fair legs, dancing energetically to upbeat music.

"Vulgar! Superficial! All they know is these 'charming guy' tricks!"

Xie Lin was exasperated, but her fingers moved quickly and honestly – “Click in, favorite, add coins, triple combo!” The movements were smooth and seamless.

I plan to wait until late at night when everyone is quiet before giving these "morally bankrupt" young ladies a proper "criticism".

Just as she was about to give up on Bilibili after continuing her "critical collection," a video title that stood out caught her eye.

A Beijing Film Academy professor provides an in-depth analysis of "Nirvana in Fire," calling it one of the best works in recent years.

Views: 37.8, and are growing rapidly.

"A professor from Beijing Film Academy? In-depth analysis? And the best?"

Xie Lin's first reaction was to curl her lip, "They really dare to exaggerate. These days, clickbait headlines have no bottom line when it comes to getting clicks."

She instinctively felt some aversion to this seemingly "overhyped" marketing.

But the hot pot in the bowl was getting cold, and the video was over twenty minutes long, perfect for use as background noise while eating.

With the mindset of "I want to see what kind of nonsense you can come up with" and "I can't waste food," Xie Lin reluctantly clicked on the video.

The video quality is very clear.
It was clearly taken by a student sitting in the front row of the classroom using a mobile phone.

The camera is mainly focused on the left side of the podium, where a middle-aged male teacher with a refined demeanor is standing next to the projection screen, speaking eloquently.

A scene from "Nirvana in Fire" was frozen on the screen.

The teacher's voice came through the phone's microphone; it was deep and magnetic, with standard Mandarin and clear pronunciation, making it very pleasant to listen to, just like a university professor lecturing.

"Classmates, this is the beginning of episode 1 of 'Nirvana in Fire'."

Zhang Songwen pointed to the frozen frame and said, "In fact, the screenwriter and director have already used the language of the camera to clearly explain to us the transformation of the protagonist Lin Shu into Mei Changsu."

Xie Lin picked up a piece of enoki mushroom with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth, listening casually as if it were a science lesson.

"The opening of 'Nirvana in Fire' uses extremely tragic and impactful war scenes to directly sow the seeds of 'hatred'."

This is the most primal and powerful driving force propelling the entire story forward.

As Teacher Zhang spoke, he controlled the video progress, pausing the shot at a close-up of 'Mei Changsu' waking up from a nightmare and looking out the window.

"Everyone, watch Gu Qing's performance carefully."

Zhang Songwen guided, "From his eyes and micro-expressions, what kind of emotion can you clearly feel?"

"Isn't it just hatred?"

Sheryl didn't take it seriously.

"Teacher Zhang, it's hatred!"

The next second, in the video, the students in the classroom answered with a jumble of voices.

This actually cheered Shailene up; it seems she has the potential to be a film critic.

"The students understood it perfectly! It's 'hatred'!"

Zhang Songwen nodded approvingly, then proceeded to analyze the matter in depth.

"The 'hatred' contained in Mei Changsu's eyes at this moment is the finishing touch of the entire opening scene, and it is also the main theme that runs through the entire drama."

"His hatred instantly transformed the previous brutal war into a 'conspiracy'!"

"Of course, I also want to commend Gu Qing for her performance. Her facial muscle control was perfect; her face was calm, yet she conveyed all her emotions through her eyes."

It is indirectly shown that Mei Changsu is a person who knows how to be very patient and restrained.

As they were talking, the camera suddenly panned to the back row.
【Aaaaaaaahhhhhh!!! !!! !!! !!! !!! 】

[Warning: High-energy content ahead! The most beautiful woman is on the move!]

My brother killed me!!!

[Gu Qing!!! It's the real Gu Qing!!! In the classroom!!!]

[The senior is so handsome! I want to get into Beijing Film Academy!!!]

……

The screen was instantly flooded with countless "ah" sounds and various exclamation marks, making it almost impossible to see the image.

"What the hell?! What's wrong with him?!"

Xie Lin was so startled by the sudden "bullet screen mudslide" that her hand trembled and she almost dropped her chopsticks.

She then understood what the "High Energy Ahead" warning that had just flashed by meant. She was complaining...
"These fangirls are terrifying."
I hurriedly and frantically turned off the bullet comment function, and finally the world became quiet.

Zhang Songwen continued his explanation in a gentle voice:

"The army's defeat and Lin Shu's fall off the cliff were not due to the enemy's superior numbers, but rather because someone plotted against us from behind!"

"So, the first thing someone who survived falling off a cliff should do is seek revenge and find the truth!"

He meticulously dissected the content of the first two episodes, analyzing them thoroughly.

Lin Chen, who saved Mei Changsu, owns the Langya Pavilion and can gather information from all over the world. He is clearly a key figure in helping Mei Changsu find the mastermind behind the scenes.

The sixth prince of Northern Yan, with no background or strength, managed to secure his position as crown prince with the help of 'Lin Shu', who was using the alias Mei Changsu.

This made Mei Changsu famous overnight, thus attracting the attention of the princes of Liang!

Was this something Mei Changsu did intentionally?

Is the person who framed him located in Daliang?

Is it that the prince wants to use Mei Changsu to seize the position of crown prince, or does Mei Changsu also want to use the prince to find the real culprit who framed him?

Xie Lin and most of the other viewers watching live gradually became engrossed in Zhang Songwen's captivating storytelling voice.

Especially Shailene,
She had actually watched the first episode of Nirvana in Fire, and had a vague impression of the plot in her mind.

Especially with the jumbled characters, she couldn't possibly make sense of it all.

But after Zhang Songwen analyzed the audio-visual data, he suddenly realized, "It really is!"

"Who is the real culprit who framed Mei Changsu?"

"When Mei Changsu enters the Great Liang, which prince will he ultimately assist?!"

Various thoughts flooded Xie Lin's mind, making her eager to know the truth.

But at this very moment,
The video ends abruptly.

"What the hell?! It's gone?! It's gone just like that?!"

Xie Lin was engrossed in watching the video when she looked at the black screen and could hardly believe her eyes.

"What the hell?! The video cuts out in this kind of place?!"

My binge-watching spirit has just been ignited! Where's episode two?! Where's the follow-up analysis?!

She hurriedly clicked on the homepage of the content creator who posted the video, but after scrolling through all the posts, she couldn't find the so-called "sequel" or "next episode".

Undeterred, she scrolled to the video's comment section and, sure enough, found it filled with lamentations and countless netizens frantically commenting:

"Please update!"

"Your triple combo is gone!"

"Are you even human if you break down here?!"

Comments like these expressed sympathy for her.

“Linlin,”

Even my roommate, who had been silent on the top bunk, was intrigued and poked his head out to ask curiously, "What show analysis are you guys watching downstairs? It sounds interesting! What's it called?"

"It's called 'Nirvana in Fire'."

Xie Lin answered subconsciously, but swallowed back the "a bit boring" she was about to say and changed her words to "it's...it's a pretty interesting political drama. It feels like it has a grand scale, unlike those silly romance dramas."

Even Xie Lin herself didn't realize that after Zhang Songwen's in-depth analysis,
Her opinion of the show has quietly taken a 180-degree turn, and she has even begun to think that it has a lot of "depth" and "meaning"!
This feeling is quite similar to the situation when the classic historical drama "Da Ming Dynasty 1566" became a hit on Bilibili.

At that time, a large group of "history experts" and "political strategy analysis masters" suddenly appeared in the comment section of Bilibili.

In the comment sections of various film and television clips and fan-made videos, people quote extensively and engage in lofty discussions, deeply "analyzing" the political games and human struggles within the drama.
To help other netizens who haven't seen the show "popularize" how "magical" and "profound" this show is.

But what about the actual situation?

The number of viewers who actually watch "Da Ming Dynasty 1566" from beginning to end, without missing a single episode, is actually very small.

What most people know and talk about are just "commentary videos" processed by film and television content creators and heavily influenced by their personal interpretations.

The brilliance of "Nirvana in Fire" lies in the fact that its "reading threshold" is precisely positioned at a very ingenious level.

Unlike "Da Ming Dynasty 1566," it is not profound and obscure, which makes ordinary viewers hesitant to watch it;
Unlike most period dramas on the market that are low-brow and have weak plots, making them completely uninteresting.

It perfectly blends the mind-bending power struggles, the thrill of revenge, the charm of its characters, and exquisite production.
It perfectly hits the sweet spot for those "advanced viewers" and "pseudo-political intrigue enthusiasts" who want to see something "meaningful" but don't want to use their brains too much.

then,

Zhang Songwen's video analyzing "Nirvana in Fire" quickly went viral on Bilibili, like a pebble thrown into a lake.

In particular, Gu Qing's brief appearance in the video injected a huge amount of traffic into the video.

His fans reacted swiftly and enthusiastically, causing the video's popularity to soar.

More importantly, what kind of status does Gu Qing have on Bilibili?
That person is affectionately known by many Bilibili users as "the son of Bilibili" or "one of Bilibili's own people"!

They are the bread and butter of countless music and traditional Chinese style content creators!
How many people have gained their first 100,000 or even a million followers and reached the "pinnacle" of content creation by covering his songs and editing his videos?
"Is this incredible wealth finally going to fall on our film and television section?!"

Seeing his peers in the music and traditional Chinese style sections making a fortune from Gu Qing-related content, he was amazed.

The content creators in the film and television section were already so envious that tears were streaming down their faces.

Seeing the huge success of Zhang Songwen's commentary video on "Nirvana in Fire," they felt as if they had seen the secret to wealth and the dawn of online traffic, and they were all so excited that they burst into tears.

Now or never!
Content creators in the film and television section seized this inspiration and began working overtime and burning the midnight oil.

While meticulously rewatching "Nirvana in Fire," they frantically researched, wrote scripts, and edited videos, attempting to uncover more overlooked details, foreshadowing, and deeper meanings from different angles.

"Understanding the Relationships Between Characters in Nirvana in Fire in 5 Minutes"

"In-depth analysis of the power struggles and intrigues in 'Nirvana in Fire'—a chilling prospect!"

Hidden Details Revealed in "Nirvana in Fire": 99% of People Haven't Noticed Them!

Various interpretive videos have sprung up like mushrooms after rain and frequently topped the Bilibili trending list.

The official operators of Bilibili (the website) were naturally happy to see this happen, and even provided additional traffic support in terms of algorithms.

after all,

In the early days of the platform, when it was struggling, had few users, and lacked content, it was Gu Qing who attracted the first batch of core fans of ancient Chinese style and viewers of quality dramas to Bilibili, thus stabilizing the platform's core user base.

This act of kindness, like a gentle white moonlight lingering in one's heart during times of poverty, has made A-B and his users always feel a special favor and closeness towards Gu Qing.

Unfortunately, although Bilibili had a strong community atmosphere and high user stickiness, its influence at the time was mainly concentrated in a specific ACG (Anime, Comics, and Games) circle.

In addition, its unique "high-difficulty" membership mechanism, which requires answering a large number of professional questions to become a full-fledged member,
This has created an invisible barrier, making it difficult for its popularity to quickly break out of its niche and reach a wider audience like other mainstream platforms.

Fortunately,

There are always more solutions than problems!
"Stealing (moving) videos!"

Although this behavior is highly unethical and infringes on the rights of original content creators.

But this is the fastest and most effective way to spread information.

Many fans who are keen to promote Gu Qing, or marketing accounts that simply want to ride this wave of popularity,
They started to repost a large number of high-quality commentary and fan-made videos about "Nirvana in Fire" from Bilibili and distribute them to platforms with a larger user base and higher popularity, such as blogs, Kuaishou, Tieba, etc.

unfortunately,

This path of "piracy" did not go smoothly at first, and it encountered setbacks one after another.

Blogs, as the main battleground for fans and public opinion in the Chinese entertainment industry, have an extremely complex environment.

This place is home to the most fervent and combative fans of various celebrities, filled with paid online trolls who manipulate public opinion, and online trolls who are simply there to vent their anger.

As the most popular celebrity, Gu Qing naturally became the "number one imaginary enemy" and "the one who must be brought down" in the eyes of other celebrities' fans.

In addition, rival companies, unwilling to see him continue to enjoy his success, were stirring things up behind the scenes and hiring online trolls...

Almost every commentary video of "Nirvana in Fire" that was reposted to blogs was filled with vile mockery and attacks:

[They've got no shame in hiring their own school's teachers to brag like that!]

Gu Qing's marketing tactics are incredibly low-class; he's just trying too hard to pat himself on the back!

[How can a terrible drama with an incredibly slow pace and unattractive actors be touted as having depth? Gu Qing's maidservant is truly something else!]

……

The blog's public opinion stronghold was difficult to conquer in a short period of time, and the propaganda campaign suffered a major setback.

The situation with chopsticks is also not optimistic.

Because Gu Qing had some unpleasant experiences with Kuaishou in the past, the platform was not friendly to Gu Qing's content and imposed traffic restrictions.

The videos that were copied and pasted disappeared without a trace, like stones sinking into the sea.

As for Tieba?

That area is also a major source of "abstract culture" and "online flame wars".

The comments from the guys were even more crude, offensive, and offensive, filled with all sorts of internet slang and personal attacks, leaving Gu Qing's fans who were trying to promote the character feeling physically and mentally exhausted.

For a time,

Gu Qing's fans felt surrounded by enemies, and after being repeatedly rejected on various platforms, they were quite disheartened.

Just when all hope seemed lost,

Adou: "Have you... forgotten about me?"

When the first person to dare to "take the plunge" edited and adapted the well-made "Nirvana in Fire" commentary videos from Bilibili and uploaded them to the Douyin platform...

Something amazing happened: the video's popularity skyrocketed, becoming unstoppable!
Among the back-end operations staff of Adou, there are quite a few young employees who like to "use public funds to chase stars".

They would secretly increase the recommendation rate of their favorite celebrities' videos, but this was usually done covertly and on a small scale.

however,
When it came to Gu Qing, the situation was completely different!
"Gu Qing, my dear brother... oops! President Gu! Boss Gu! He's one of Ah Dou's own people! He's a strategic partner!!"

An internal consensus has been reached.

In addition, there's Gu Qing's large and active fan base—

The "data workers" began to work in an organized and disciplined manner on Douyin, liking, commenting, and forwarding posts, producing impressive data.

Although the Adou platform has only been around for a little over six months, its user growth rate is terrifying!
Aside from the massive traffic generated by Gu Qing herself, and the large number of users attracted from competitor Kuaishou.

In just six months, thanks to its unique algorithm recommendation and easy-to-entertain content ecosystem, Adou has nurtured several viral "phenomenal" videos and internet celebrities.

For example:

"Sa Beining Kills a Black Chicken" - a video of a ghost dance accompanied by the catchy music "Seve" sparked a nationwide imitation craze and was undoubtedly the most popular dance cover at the time.

"We are different!"

Singer Da Zhuang's song, with its weathered and hoarse voice and catchy melody, quickly swept through A Dou, with a single video exceeding 3080 million views and as many as 38 comments!

·
Besides singing and dancing,

Ah Dou's "finger dance" track is also unique.

The video of internet celebrity Zhang Xinyao performing the song "Do You Want to Be My Girlfriend?" in perfect sync to the beat has garnered 260 million likes and 25 comments.
Rapper Longzhu's lip-syncing video of "All of You" also easily surpassed one million likes.

There are also cool special effects videos from tech blogger 'Blackface V'...

The variety of creative content is dazzling, and users can find content that interests them almost anywhere here.

In contrast, at this time, Kuaishou's content ecosystem seems to be stuck in the stage of various "shaking and swaying" and similar plots of "rustic social dance" and "rustic sitcom".

They rose to prominence by relying on a few "founding fathers" and "founding mothers." A comparison between the two clearly shows the difference in their strengths.

This intuitive difference in content and user experience caused Adou's user base to skyrocket.

At this point, its number of registered users had already surpassed the 1000 million mark.
And the number of daily active users has reached an astonishing 173 million!
then,

The next day, when these 173 million daily active users, as usual, sleepily picked up their phones and habitually started scrolling through Douyin...

Before they had even watched a few videos, big data accurately presented them with one brilliant narration clip and highlight reel of "Nirvana in Fire" after another.

The impact of this almost "saturation bombardment" of recommendations is terrifying and immediate!
Even if only 1% of users are attracted by a certain segment or a certain explanation.

This leads to the thought, "Hmm? This show seems interesting?", prompting viewers to search for and watch it on video websites, or leave a positive review in the comments section.

Even just mentioning it casually during a chat with friends...

These small streams, when gathered together, will create a wave of positive word-of-mouth and a tremendous impact on public opinion!
To know,
In the entertainment industry, a top-tier celebrity who can maintain 3 real, active, and spending-money-driven core fans can roam freely in the entertainment world worldwide.

Almost overnight, public opinion began to shift.

The viewing frenzy ignited by A Dou has had its effects most directly reflected in the data:
Saturday night's primetime ratings are out:

Nirvana in Fire: 2.1%

*Ze Tian Ji* (The Way of Choices): 1.5%

The ratings throne that "Fighter of the Destiny" held for less than a week was ruthlessly kicked down by "Nirvana in Fire" with an absolute advantage!
And even more exaggerated,

A better indicator of online popularity and audience (especially young viewers) preferences is the number of views per episode on online video platforms:
The number of views for a single episode of "Nirvana in Fire" has exceeded 1 million!
The number of views per episode of "Fighter of the Destiny" is approximately 5000 million.

The lead of "Nirvana in Fire" reached an astonishing 50%!
Furthermore, its online ratings and reputation continue to rise, and discussions on major social media platforms remain high.

Positive reviews such as "conscientious drama", "powerful acting", and "masterpiece of political intrigue" have become mainstream.

In contrast, "Fighter of the Destiny" continued to decline in reputation amidst a barrage of criticism.

The drastically altered plot deviated significantly from the essence of the original work, the actors' performances were heavily criticized, and the cheap special effects became a laughing stock.

Even the most formidable fighter, Sister Luwei, could no longer control the comments section when faced with a tsunami of genuine criticism from viewers.

The promised "S+ masterpiece" now seems more like a huge bubble.

Gu Qing's "lucky charm" legend continues!
Yet another top star suffered a complete collapse in this head-on collision, with both his reputation and expectations shattered.

"Who else?!"

At this time, the Gu family members were terrifyingly powerful, standing tall and proud on various social media platforms, mocking everyone.

But at the same time,
The recording site of a variety show.
Excuse me, may I ask...?

Do you have...freestyle?

A 'cool guy' wearing sunglasses, holding a gold chain, is coldly questioning a war god with a crooked mouth.

……

……

(End of this chapter)