Entertainment: Who exactly is trying to whitewash me?

at the same time.

In the monitoring room of the resort's program crew.

Liu Xin was staring intently at the data curve on the screen, which was constantly climbing.

But just a moment later, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up in a smile.

Today is the first day of the program's live broadcast.

The program's overall data, however, far exceeded his expectations.

"Old Liu, something's wrong! Come look at this!"

Beside him, assistant director Li Zhouneng frowned and pulled Liu Xin to the detailed data trend chart.

He pointed to several peaks on the screen: "You see, every time the number of viewers spikes, it almost always seems to be related to Lu Ang. Either he throws his luggage to the cameraman, or he grabs the biggest room..."

Liu Xin looked closer for a while and found that it was indeed the case.

"Then look here,"

Li Zhouneng then pointed to several points where the ratings plummeted: "As soon as the camera switched to other celebrities, the ratings immediately dropped."

Liu Xin also frowned.

He stroked his chin, lost in thought.

From this perspective, the flow of traffic does seem rather strange.

It seems that nearly half of the reason for the livestream's success, if not all, is due to Lu Ang...

"Director Liu, the material cutting data for today is also in."

A staff member handed me a tablet.

Liu Xin took it and he and Li Zhou leaned over to examine it closely.

The highlights of today's live stream have been released on short video platforms.

The two looked through it again and found another strange, yet somewhat familiar phenomenon.

Of all the guests,

Lu Ang has the fewest edited videos, only three.

But his video views are unparalleled, ranking first!

The first video, titled "Demanding Payment for Reposting," has already garnered over 500,000 views.

He clicked on the comments, and they were all insults:

"I've seen people beg for money before, but I've never seen anyone beg for money this shamelessly!"

"How could this person have such a nerve?"

"Where's your face?"

Liu Xin then clicked on the second video, "No Ice Cream".

The comments section, however, took a sudden turn.

"Although he's shameless, he's strangely kind of funny."

"This kid is a real talent."

"I'm dying of laughter, Lin Shishi's expression is absolutely hilarious."

"I've never seen such a shameless person, but I actually finished watching it."

The third.

is also like this.

the fourth.

is also like this.

even.

As more and more slices and comments are added.

Lu Ang's reputation seems to have improved somewhat?

What kind of outrageous situation is this?

Liu Xin and Li Zhou looked at each other in bewilderment.

His face was filled with shock and bewilderment.

"Are audiences these days so morbidly curious?" Liu Xin asked, looking incredulous. "The more they're criticized, the more they enjoy watching?"

Li Zhou asked worriedly, "What should we do? This viewership is a bit strange. We're a dating reality show, and now everyone's watching Lu Ang. Isn't this... not a good thing?"

Liu Xin shook his head, picked up the thermos beside him, and slowly took a sip of goji berry water.

"Don't worry,"

Liu Xin waved his hand, "Lu Ang's performance in attracting haters is excellent, which is all within my expectations. There's no need for any intervention at the moment. No matter how harsh the insults are, it's Lu Ang who's being criticized. As for those who aren't here to watch the dating show, we can bring the focus back to the main storyline of the show once the main episodes start filming tomorrow. Maybe we can even retain quite a few viewers that way."

After listening to the whole story, Li Zhou also agreed that it made sense.

He nodded, preparing to continue the conversation about other data-related matters.

Just then, the door to the monitoring room was hurriedly pushed open.

A staff member poked his head in, sounding a little anxious: "Director Liu, there's a call for you. They say it's from the Xusheng Group, and they specifically want to speak with you!"

Liu Xin frowned!

He took the phone from the staff member and put it to his ear.

"Feed?"

A middle-aged man's voice came from the other end of the phone, his tone businesslike: "Director Liu, I am Wang Qiuchen, an agent from Xusheng Group."

"Manager Wang, what's the matter?"

"It's like this," Wang Qiuchen cleared his throat, "After careful consideration, we feel that Lu Ang's participation in your program is not suitable. We'd like to find someone else to replace him. Is that convenient?"

The smile on Liu Xin's face gradually froze.

"Change the player?"

"Yes, we can send a more famous and popular artist over here, and the price is negotiable. We guarantee it will be more effective than Lu Ang's."

Liu Xin took a deep breath: "But Lu Ang has already signed the contract, and recording has already started..."

"We'll pay the penalty for breach of contract."

Wang Qiuchen interrupted him, "We will not hold you responsible in any way. The only condition is that Lu Ang must be kicked off the show."

Liu Xin's face darkened completely.

But what about this agent from the Sukatsu Group?

He really didn't dare to say anything more.

He was silent for a few seconds before slowly saying, "I'll think about it."

"Director Liu, we hope you can give us a reply as soon as possible."

Wang Qiuchen's tone remained polite, but it carried an air of firmness: "We're on a tight schedule here."

The phone hangs up.

Liu Xin fell silent.

Then he plopped down heavily on the chair.

Did the chair scream a few times?

"What's wrong?" Li Zhouneng leaned closer. "Xusheng Group? Isn't that Sister Lan and Lu Ang's company? What were they saying over there?"

Although I'm asking.

But he already had a bad feeling.

Because of this situation.

When they accepted Lu Angjin's program.

Shen Lan had already told them.

Moreover, Shen Lan had said at the time that she hoped they would do their best to save Lu Ang.

Of course, if it's truly impossible to save them, we won't blame them.

Liu Xin took a deep breath and relayed the contents of the phone call: "The other party is asking for a replacement, to send a more popular artist at a lower price, on the condition that Lu Ang be kicked out of the show, and they will not pursue any breach of contract liability."

Li Zhouneng paused for a moment, then sighed.

He glanced at the data next to him, then at the live stream, and after a moment of silence, he shook his head.

"But Lu Ang gave us so much traffic..."

"They promised that there would be more new people, and if that's not enough, there would be compensation." Liu Xin sighed helplessly and slumped back in his chair.

"Then... can we disagree?" Li Zhou asked tentatively.

He didn't actually have any relationship with Lu Ang.

It's not that I'm reluctant to part with it.

But... after watching this for a day...

He always felt that Lu Ang could actually make their D-level program, which had little hope of becoming popular and had other motives, go viral.

There is more hope and a better future.

After all, Lu Ang was risking his life to create a good show for them!

This kind of thing.

Even if Sukyo replaces someone else... unless it's a first or second-tier celebrity.

I'm afraid none of them will be of any use.

Liu Xin replied in a deep voice, "If we disagree, we'll offend a large company like Xusheng Group. They're clearly trying to destroy Lu Ang..."

He paused, his brow furrowed. "I don't know what grudge they hold against us. I've seen all the dirt on Lu Ang, but surely it's not enough to justify a company targeting its own artist like this?"

Li Zhou stared at Liu Xin, frowned, and asked.

"So...should we remove Lu Ang from the list?"

Liu Xin's expression was extremely solemn, and he remained silent for a long time.

But inwardly, he sighed.

They even go to such lengths to destroy their own company.

Lu Ang's career as an entertainer has probably come to a complete end...

Alas, what a pity.

He was clearly born to do this, but unfortunately, he ended up in this mess.

But there's nothing I can do to help. I absolutely cannot offend those with vast resources just for the sake of an ordinary person...

Li Zhou didn't hear a reply, but seeing Liu Xin's expression, he felt he understood to some extent...

The monitoring room fell into a deathly silence.

Outside the window, the dark clouds gathered and grew thicker.

It looks like a storm is about to break.

After a long while.

Liu Xin sighed deeply and slowly sat up straight.

There's nothing we can do.

Their small production team can't afford to mess with those big shots.

Lu Ang will have to suffer in silence.

He reached out and picked up the thermos on the table, but didn't drink from it; he just held it.

Then, he reached into his pocket with his other hand, ready to take out his phone and call back Wang Qiuchen from the Xusheng Group.

And just as his finger touched the phone.

"Squeak..."

The door to the monitoring room was suddenly pushed open.

Liu Xin and Li Zhou were able to look up at the same time.

A young man was standing at the door.

Wearing a beige custom-made casual suit, gold-rimmed glasses, and holding a silk handkerchief, he was slowly wiping his glasses.

It was Gu Yan who appeared on the show today, along with Lu Ang and the others.

At the same time, he is also the financial backer of this program!

Liu Xin suddenly jumped up from his chair, almost knocking over his thermos.

"Young Master Gu...?"

Li Zhouneng hurriedly stood up straight, forcing a respectful smile: "Young Master Gu, what brings you here?"

"Come and take a look." Gu Yan said with a smile.

He stepped into the monitoring room, his gaze sweeping over the wall of monitor screens before finally settling on Liu Xin's face.

"How are the data today?"

The voice was soothing, with its usual elegance.

Liu Xin paused for a moment, then quickly nodded: "Today's data... can be described as excellent, much better than expected!"

"Is that so?"

Gu Yan was a little surprised. He put on his glasses, walked to the main screen, and looked at the densely packed data charts.

Liu Xin and Li Zhou exchanged a glance and quickly followed.

"Young Master Gu, look here,"

Li Zhou pointed to the peak on the screen, "Today's ratings are three times higher than we predicted."

"three times?"

Gu Yan raised an eyebrow slightly.

Liu Xin took a deep breath and picked up the conversation, hesitating slightly: "However, most of this traffic... is related to one person."

"Who?"

"Lu Ang".

Liu Xin brought up the data report and turned the screen towards Gu Yan.

Upon hearing this, Gu Yan's brows relaxed slightly.

They didn't seem particularly surprised.

"Young Master Gu, you see, every time the ratings soar, it's basically Lu Ang stirring things up. Either he's stealing rooms, or he's arguing with Zhou Lei, or he's teasing the other guests..."

He pointed to several points where the data plummeted: "But as soon as the camera pans away, the data immediately drops, you see..."

Liu Xin kept talking.

Gu Yan stared at the screen without saying a word.

His eyes, however, were slightly narrowed behind his gold-rimmed glasses.

Li Zhouneng added, "And on the short video side, Lu Ang has the fewest video clips, only a few, but his views are far ahead of the competition. The sentiment in the comments section is also very interesting; it went from being all negative at the beginning to... well, it's gotten a bit different now."

"It's gone bad?"

"Yes," Li Zhouneng scratched his head, "it seems like the more they criticize, the more they enjoy watching it."

After hearing this, Gu Yan's lips curled up slightly.

"interesting."

He turned to Liu Xin and asked, "So? What are your thoughts?"

Liu Xin's heart skipped a beat.

Why did he feel that the young master Gu in front of him didn't seem to dislike Lu Ang as much as he thought...?

He carefully observed Gu Yan's expression and hesitated before speaking, "Young Master Gu, actually... Xusheng Group called just now."

"Sushin Group?"

"Yes, it's Lu Ang's company."

Liu Xin swallowed hard, not daring to keep them in suspense, and said directly, "They said they want to replace Lu Ang with a more famous artist. The price is negotiable, and they guarantee better results and won't pursue breach of contract liability."

Gu Yan listened without saying a word.

He simply looked at Liu Xin quietly, his eyes calm.

Feeling uneasy under her gaze, Liu Xin quickly added, "I originally thought that this was... a good thing for the show? After all, the newcomers have more viewership and can get compensation..."

Before he could finish speaking, Gu Yan suddenly spoke up.

"Director Liu."

The voice remained soothing, yet it made Liu Xin freeze.

"Have you forgotten?"

Gu Yan slowly took out a silk handkerchief from his pocket and began wiping his glasses. "Why did I ask you to run this program? Do I really need the money?"

Liu Xin was taken aback.

Gu Yan continued, her tone still calm: "Do I really need to increase the show's popularity?"

Liu Xin opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but found that he couldn't say anything at all.

Gu Yan put her glasses back on, her tone unchanged: "What if a new male guest comes along, and the person I like falls for him?"

Liu Xin: "..."

He opened his mouth, but found that he couldn't utter a single word.

Yup!

How could he be so confused!

The purpose of this show was originally to help Gu Yan pursue Lin Shishi!

What if we bring in a more famous male guest and he steals Lin Shishi away?!

Liu Xin suddenly shuddered, his back instantly soaked with cold sweat.

Seeing the change in his expression, Gu Yan softened his tone: "Besides, Xu Sheng's desire to replace Lu Ang is most likely just an internal conflict within the company. They wouldn't bother with a small program team like ours... or with me, over something so trivial."

He paused for a moment, then asked, "What do you think?"

Liu Xin remained silent for a few seconds.

Gu Yan makes a good point.

Xusheng Group is indeed a large and powerful company, but such personnel changes are most likely due to someone within the company trying to get rid of Lu Ang.

The fact that the other party offered such good terms shows that they don't want to escalate the situation.

If we refuse, the other party probably won't risk a falling out with the production team over such a small matter.

Moreover, Gu Yan is no pushover either.

Gu Yan is behind this show.

They were both afraid of Xu Sheng.

Gu Yan, however, has nothing to fear!