Entertainment mogul: Starting his business with the internet

Chapter 426 Looking for Death
On the morning of the 8th, the sky was overcast, and a strong wind suddenly rose outside, carrying with it a sense of impending rain.

On the seventh floor of the Tengda Technology Building, in the CEO's office of Toutiao Video, Zhou Juan hurriedly summoned Chen Mingyu early in the morning.

As soon as he closed the door, he couldn't wait to ask, "President Chen, the scandal involving Dong Jie and Pan Yueming has caused such a big uproar. Has it affected 'Day and Night'?"

"Mr. Zhou, the situation is not good." Chen Mingyu's expression was grave. As the producer and supervisor of this drama, he was also closely monitoring the development of the situation.

"The male lead, Pan Yueming, has been embroiled in controversy, and netizens are now boycotting him. The drama 'Day and Night' has basically been dragged down with him."

Upon hearing how dire the situation was, Zhou Juan instantly exploded, abandoning all her usual decorum towards her deputy and sternly demanding, "What kind of producer are you? What kind of scumbag male lead did you choose!"

Chen Mingyu gave a wry smile and quickly explained, "President Zhou, 'Day and Night' is a co-production between our company and Madam Studio. The male lead was chosen after the director auditioned. The director and production team are all from Madam Studio, so I didn't interfere at the time."

And to be honest, Pan Yueming's temperament and image really fit the role perfectly, so the director's casting was flawless. Who could have imagined something like this would happen?

Upon hearing the words "Madam's Studio," Zhou Juan felt an overwhelming surge of anger, barely containing her rage. She forced herself to ask, "Is there any way to salvage the situation? Is it too late to reshoot with a different person?"

Chen Mingyu shook his head, his tone heavy: "Pan Yueming is the lead actor, and he has 60% of the scenes that have already been filmed."

If we replace him now, all the scenes involving him will have to be reshot. The losses, including location rental fees, costume and prop replacement fees, and crew salaries, could amount to as much as 3000 million.

Moreover, post-production, dubbing, and submission for review will all be delayed, and the time cost is simply too high.

Most importantly, the new male lead's acting style may not be compatible with the already filmed storyline, potentially leading to a disconnect in the character. If that happens, the creative integrity of "Day and Night" will collapse, and it certainly won't become a high-quality online drama.

After speaking, Chen Mingyu glanced at Zhou Juan, whose face was ashen, and sighed helplessly: "Instead of wasting money and effort to replace the actors and reshoot, it would be better to simply restart the project."

"Absolutely no reshoots!" Zhou Juan refused resolutely, her words carrying an undeniable firmness: "Toutiao Video is about to become an independent subsidiary."

Upgrading broadband has already stretched our finances thin, and now we have to abandon "Day and Night," which would result in losses exceeding ten million yuan in the initial stages alone. I absolutely disagree.

Seeing the president's resolute attitude, Chen Mingyu carefully spoke up: "If we don't reshoot, we can only protect Pan Yueming to the death and try to reverse public opinion in order to have a chance to get out of this predicament."

“I saw the Weibo post yesterday. Dong Jie can’t produce any solid evidence, so we should protect Pan Yueming.” Zhou Juan’s tone was resolute. “This is the company’s first high-quality web series, and it absolutely cannot be allowed to fall through like this.”

The matter has just started to escalate, and netizens are still quite agitated. Let's calm things down first. You should communicate with your wife's studio and make sure to suppress the public opinion. I'll also contact Mr. Liu from Weibo to see if we can find a way to reduce the heat.”

"That's all we can do for now." Chen Mingyu nodded. "If President Zhou has nothing else, I'll take care of it right away."

"Thank you for your trouble, Mr. Chen." Zhou Juan rubbed her throbbing temples. At this crucial moment when Toutiao was operating independently, she had run into this kind of trouble, which was really making her extremely anxious.

While Zhou Juan was suffering from a splitting headache due to this troublesome matter, Liu Shishi was also burning with anger.

It wasn't that she was reluctant to see "Day and Night" flop and lose money; what really bothered her was the worry that her own studio might make mistakes that dragged down Toutiao Video and, more importantly, embarrass her husband.

In the afternoon in Beiping, a heavy rain had just passed, and the air was exceptionally fresh.

In an elegant private coffee shop room, Liu Shishi sat by the window, gazing at the striking Tengda headquarters building across the street.

Gently stirring the coffee in his cup with a small spoon, he looked up and asked, "Is there any way to turn things around?"

Sitting opposite him was Jiang Wei, who had flown to Beiping overnight from the film crew in Northeast China. He quickly replied, "President Liu, the situation is not good. Netizens don't believe Pan Yueming and the film crew's statement at all."

The top female executive turned to the studio's general manager, her executive agent: "Yuanyuan, what do you think we should do?"

Producer Jiang Yuanyuan shook her head helplessly. After all, she was young and inexperienced and had little experience in crisis public relations. She couldn't think of any good solutions for the time being.

Liu Shishi picked up her coffee cup and took a sip: "Sometimes, that's just how people are. Once a preconceived notion takes root, they can't listen to explanations or see the truth."

Director Jiang, can you guarantee 100% that Pan Yueming is completely innocent in this matter?

“Absolutely no problem!” Jiang Wei’s expression turned serious, and his tone became exceptionally solemn.

Then, filled with righteous indignation, he added, "President Liu, Dong Jie is outrageous. After this incident blew up, Pan Yueming's father's old illness relapsed, and he was hospitalized. The old man's condition is very bad. At this critical moment, he just wants to see his grandson, which may be the last time he sees him."

Pan Yueming contacted Dong Jie, wanting the child to see his grandfather, but Dong Jie actually replied, "She has no obligation," which was utterly cold-blooded and heartless!

Liu Shishi was stunned by Dong Jie's words, not expecting her to be so heartless. After all, they had been husband and wife, and Pan Yueming was, after all, the father of their child. It was simply unreasonable and unacceptable that he wouldn't even let her see her seriously ill grandfather one last time.

"Yuanyuan, have you found anything over there?"

"Time has been too short, and we haven't uncovered any useful clues yet. It's unclear whether this is simply a marital conflict or if someone is stirring things up behind the scenes."

However, Dong Jie's studio posted several short posts online this morning, clearly trying to gain sympathy from netizens.

"Which company is she an artist under?"

"Dong Jie has her own independent studio, but some of her agency contracts are under Wong Kar-wai's company."

After a moment's thought, the woman recalled that Wong Kar-wai had no conflicts with Tenda or Tangren.

Jiang Yuanyuan glanced at the calm-looking First Sister and said cautiously, "Shishi, the vice president of Toutiao Video contacted me this morning, meaning that we should try our best to protect Pan Yueming. The 'Day and Night' project cannot be allowed to go wrong."

Liu Shishi nodded slightly: "Since Pan Yueming is fine, we should naturally protect him. 'Day and Night' is a co-production between the studio and Toutiao Video."

He's practically a part of Tengda's circle; nobody in the entertainment industry can easily drag Tengda down. Yuanyuan, you handle the rest.

The top manager set the tone and handed the matter over to Jiang Yuanyuan, which also served as an opportunity for the executive agent to gain experience.

"Don't worry, Shishi, I'll handle it properly. I'll talk to Dong Jie in a bit; she should give Tengda and Tangren some face and try to make this a small matter, or even nothing at all."

That evening, Liu Shishi Film and Television Culture Studio and Toutiao Video successively issued statements, publicly supporting Pan Yueming and stating that Dong Jie's numerous accusations against him on the Internet were pure nonsense.

The statement clearly states that they will sue Dong Jie's agent and unscrupulous media outlets such as the Shenjiang Daily for reporting false information such as Pan Yueming "grabbing a house" and "seizing his son," demanding that they immediately cease the infringement, issue a public apology, and provide compensation.

With the intervention of Dong Jie's studio and Tengda Group to protect her, and the fact that Dong Jie's side has consistently failed to produce substantial evidence, the originally confusing situation has gradually changed.

A small number of netizens began to view the matter rationally and chose to believe Pan Yueming, and there were signs of a slight shift in public opinion online.

However, Dong Jie did not give up. After issuing the two statements, she immediately released a recording, declaring that she would never compromise with the "perpetrators" and capital, and calling on netizens to stand by her side.

The content of this phone recording is roughly about advising Dong Jie to shake hands and make peace with Pan Yueming, while reminding her that Pan Yueming is the male lead in "Day and Night".

This drama was jointly invested in by Liu Shishi's studio and Toutiao Video, and is backed by Tangren Media and Tengda Group. They will definitely protect Pan Yueming. Hopefully, Dong Jie can see reality and be more pragmatic. Soon, netizens discovered the identity of the speaker in the recording. It was Jiang Yuanyuan, Liu Shishi's executive agent, studio general manager, and producer of "Day and Night".

The entire internet was in an uproar, and public sentiment was outraged.

The hashtag "Pan Yueming get out of the entertainment industry" quickly dominated the trending searches, and even Tangren Media and Tengda Group were dragged into the controversy, which escalated to an uncontrollable point.

Netizens flooded the official Weibo accounts of Liu Shishi's studio and Toutiao Video, leaving messages demanding an explanation:

"This is garbage. They insist on using scum to make movies. I'm uninstalling it immediately."

"Where are Liu Shishi and Cai Yinong? You are women too, how can you condone your subordinates threatening Dong Jie? Don't you feel any remorse?"

"Make that wicked woman Jiang Yuanyuan apologize to Dong Jie."

"As expected of top-tier capital in the entertainment industry, such arrogance! They're forcing others to bow down!"

. . .

Of course, some supporters of Xiaoshi and Tangren Media stood up to defend Liu Shishi, but these voices seemed insignificant in the face of the overwhelming public opinion.

At her home in Jingyuan, Liu Shishi watched as public opinion took a sharp turn for the worse. Countless netizens flooded her Weibo account demanding an explanation and criticizing her for "using capital to oppress the kind-hearted," losing her former elegance and composure.

He couldn't help but curse, "They really don't know what's good for them, they're being ungrateful."

Then, angrily, she said, "Yuanyuan is the same; she's so careless and fell into Dong Jie's trap."

Liu Shishi sat on the sofa, her face ashen, constantly refreshing the latest updates on the incident.

When she saw Dong Jie subtly mocking her and even inciting netizens to harass Song Ci, a hint of murderous intent flashed across her gentle face.

"You're courting death!" Liu Shishi's tone was icy. Dragons have scales that cannot be touched, and her husband was her scale.

"I don't believe you have no problems at all. Even if you don't, based on what you did today, I will completely blacklist you."

After saying that, Liu Shishi opened her phone's contact list, found a number, and dialed it. The call was quickly connected.

A deep male voice came through the receiver: "Madam Song."

"You know about the online drama tonight, right?"

"You mean...?"

Liu Shishi snorted irritably: "Don't play dumb with me, Weibo is my property! The blogger 'Ba Zhanggui,' who first broke the news that Dong Jie had found a new lover, is your account, right?"

When the other party saw that the top female star had brought the matter up, they stopped hiding it and frankly admitted: "It's the studio's account."

“I liked your post using my husband’s alternate account, which helped you gain over two million followers. Your Taobao store must be selling like crazy now.”

The other party chuckled and said, "Thank you, Madam! I have indeed made a little money recently."

"It's time for you to repay me!" Liu Shishi's eyes flashed with a cold light: "That bitch Dong Jie actually dared to incite netizens to harass my husband!"

"Put out all the evidence you have. Before sunrise tomorrow, I want this matter completely settled, and she nailed to the spot!"

"Are you so sure Dong Jie has a problem? And so sure I have evidence?"

Liu Shishi sneered: "I've investigated. Dong Jie has no one backing her! There's only one reason why she's acting so irrationally towards her husband: she's fallen out of love."

My husband went to Donghai this afternoon to attend to something important, and I don't want the scandals in the entertainment industry to affect him!

The other party quickly replied, "Mr. Song, this is a very important matter! Please rest assured, Madam, I will take care of it tonight."

"I'm waiting for your good news."

At this moment, Donghai Fengxing Studio.

Zhuo Wei, the notorious "King of Paparazzi" in the entertainment industry, just finished a call and couldn't help but sigh: "Heaven's sins can be forgiven, but self-inflicted sins are unforgivable. Dong Jie, oh Dong Jie, you really don't know your place!"
Your private affairs are none of my business, but you had to act impulsively and offend someone you shouldn't have!

The person who just spoke to the top female celebrity was Zhuo Wei. He's been thriving in the entertainment industry thanks to the backing of the richest man in China. He's been training for a long time, and today he's going to show the richest man and the top female celebrity what he's capable of, lest he be seen as a useless pawn.

Without delay, Zhuo Wei logged into his "Eight Shopkeepers" account and posted a new, sarcastic message: "A bunch of idiots, actually pitying 'Dong Lianhua'."

He also tagged Dong Jie: Please stop acting, it's disgusting to watch.

Netizens who sided with Dong Jie were enraged by this mockery and launched a frenzy of curses and attacks against "Eight-Headed Boss".

Zhuo Wei was completely unconcerned about the thousands of negative comments. Instead, he cheerfully muttered to himself, "Go ahead and criticize, let the dust settle. You're all part of my traffic!"

Before Dong Jie could reply, Wang Dazhi immediately jumped in to show his support: "...Teacher Dong, the people of Shaanxi Province support you!"

Zhuo Wei was overjoyed to see Wang Dazhi walk right into his trap. He immediately replied on Weibo, mercilessly mocking her: "This is hilarious! A mistress dares to assert her sovereignty? You think you're worthy to represent the people of Shaanxi Province?"
Stop bringing shame to Shaanxi Province! You clowns, see you at 10 PM tonight, then netizens will see your true colors.

The comment section exploded:
"Just tell us what you have to say, stop playing games."

"If you can't release evidence by 10 o'clock, I'll report you until your account is banned."

"This is definitely just attention-seeking, trash blogger!"

As time ticked by, the incident continued to gain traction online, attracting everyone's attention.

At 10 o'clock sharp, Zhuo Wei released two videos on time, featuring Dong Jie and Wang Dazhi.

One scene shows the two behaving intimately on set, while another shows them passionately kissing in a hotel.

Eight Shopkeeper V: "I didn't want to get involved in this mess, but my kind heart simply can't tolerate you two scoundrels bullying an honest man like Pan Yueming."

We will not tolerate you exploiting netizens' sympathy. What goes around comes around; if you don't want people to know, don't do it in the first place. Justice resides in the hearts of the people! @DongJiev @WangDazhiv

(End of this chapter)