The Heiress's Game

The conference room of Xingyao Media.

PR Director Lao Zhou stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray. On the laptop screen in front of him, the fans in Randy's fan community had gone completely crazy.

Some people cried and begged the studio to issue another statement, some started to organize their own "anti-black" campaign, and others started deleting posts. Those CP posts that were once the most enthusiastic were now being deleted faster than anyone else.

"Is this really true?" Xiao Liu from the legal department pushed up his glasses.

"What if it's fake? That 'Myna Bird' guy, none of his previous leaks have been accurate—"

"The problem is that this time they dare to challenge us," Old Zhou interrupted him, his tone irritated.

"Have you ever seen someone spreading rumors dare to directly confront an artist's studio and demand they 'say it again'?"

"Not necessarily," said Sister Lin from the content department. She had been working in entertainment content for fifteen years and had seen more ups and downs than most people present.

"There is a possibility that he does have something in his possession."

In any case, the most critical issue right now is that we still can't get in touch with Randy.

His agent's phone was switched off, and his assistant said they couldn't reach him that afternoon. Think about it, what does it mean if you can't contact a top-tier celebrity?

No one responded; the meeting room was deathly silent.

The young directors sitting in the corner looked at each other, none of them daring to speak first.

They were the lowest-level implementers in this project, and they didn't even have the right to attend meetings with senior executives normally. They were called in to sit in today.

"Heartbeat Countdown" is the culmination of their hard work over the past six months, from casting to recording to post-production.

Every step was like walking a tightrope; they finally achieved phenomenal success, and it seemed like they were on the verge of legendary status—

Nanzhenquan hasn't arrived yet.

His assistant called three times, and finally got through on the last call. Mr. Nan only said four words, "On the way, soon," and then hung up.

Just then, the conference room door was pushed open.

Almost everyone turned around at the same time, and the person who walked in was the big boss, Gu Yunjin.

Gu Yunjin was wearing a gray suit jacket, her hair was casually tied back, and her expression was calm.

But the person following behind her was not so calm; her assistant, Li Chunjing, was holding a tablet computer.

His face was pale, his forehead was covered with a fine layer of sweat, and his lips were pressed into a thin line.

Gu Yunjin sat down at the head of the long table, put her handbag aside, and scanned the faces of everyone present.

"No need to wait for Mr. Nan. He messaged me saying he'll be a little late because of traffic."

"My husband's friend helped me look into Randy's matter."

"The news is true. The person was taken away this afternoon and is currently still at the police station. We cannot disclose specific details at this time, but the basic facts are correct."

Old Zhou dropped the cigarette butt from his hand onto the table. Sister Lin's face turned ashen. Her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but she swallowed it back.

The young directors were completely stunned.

"Impossible..." Xiao Liu from the legal department murmured repeatedly.

"That can't be... What... what would he be after?"

This question reflects the sentiments of everyone present.

Yeah, what's the point? Who is Randy?

She debuted at the age of 23 and reached her peak immediately; her face was praised by the fashion industry as having "the most perfect bone structure in Asia".

After the broadcast of "Heartbeat Countdown", his popularity soared, with 90 million Weibo followers and endorsement fees starting in the eight figures.

Couple fans and solo fans combined can generate half the traffic in the entertainment industry.

A man like this, who has money, fame, and good looks, and could have a long line of girlfriends from all over the world if he wanted to—he goes to prostitutes?

"Was he set up?" a director from the content department asked cautiously.

Gu Yunjin glanced at her but didn't say anything.

But the meaning of that glance was clear—whether it was a setup or a stupid mistake, the result was the same.

The incident has already occurred, the police have intervened, and the person has been taken away. These are things that Xingyao Media cannot control.

The question they now face is not "Why did Randy get into trouble?", but "What should Xingyao do?"

Nan Zhenquan rushed in at that moment.

His hair was a mess from the wind, and the first thing he looked at when he entered was Gu Yunjin.

Their eyes met briefly in the air, and Nan Zhenquan's Adam's apple bobbed, as if he had read the answer from Gu Yunjin's expression.

He walked to his seat, sat down, placed the half-eaten sandwich on the table, and took a deep breath.

"Is it confirmed?" His voice was a little hoarse.

Gu Yunjin nodded.

Nan Zhenquan closed his eyes.

"President Gu," Old Zhou broke the silence first.

"Could we... suppress this for now? Pay to remove it from the trending topics, communicate with the platform, and say it's just a rumor. We'll wait for the police to have a clear conclusion before we do it again—"

"It can't be suppressed."

"My husband's friends have made it very clear that an official statement about this case will be released in a few days."

Even if we spend 100 million to remove the trending topics now, once the official announcement in blue and white is released, everyone will know we are lying.

At that point, it won't just be one program that suffers, but the entire credibility of Star Shine.

"Then can we try to find someone higher up..." Old Zhou persisted.

"No," Gu Yunjin interrupted him.

"Randy is not an artist under our company; we are just the production team."

He is a signed artist of his own studio. If he has problems, we have neither the right nor the ability to help him resolve them.

Besides, who would dare to get involved in something like this?

No one dared to refute this statement.

Xiao Zhou finally couldn't hold back anymore, tears streamed down her face, and her voice was choked with sobs:

"But we've already filmed five episodes...and we've already edited half of the footage for the sixth episode...so much footage, such great content..."

She couldn't continue.

Everyone present knew what she was talking about. The fifth episode was about Randy and Shen Wei's late-night conversation on the beach.

The production team set up six cameras that night and recorded nearly three hours of footage. The two of them sat on a bench at the end of the boardwalk, with the dark sea below and the stars above.

Randy asked Shen Wei, "Do you think there's a possibility between us?" Shen Wei was silent for a long time before saying, "I don't know, but I'm willing to try."

At that moment, even the cameraman holding the camera forgot to breathe.

This footage was dubbed the "Night of Godhood" by the editing team, and everyone was certain that after this episode aired, "Heartbeat Countdown" would become an unsurpassable benchmark in the history of domestic dating reality shows.

Now, this benchmark has become a pile of scrap.

"Then... could we cut Randy's scenes?" Sister Lin asked tentatively.

"Or blurring the image? AI face-swapping? Other programs have done similar things before—"

"Let's stop broadcasting everything," Gu Yunjin sighed.

"The five episodes that have already been filmed, along with the sixth episode that is currently in production, have all been taken off the air."

No cuts, no changes, no broadcast.

All materials related to Randy will be archived starting today.

The meeting room erupted in chaos.

The head of the finance department was the first to stand up: "President Gu, do you know how much loss this means?"

Sponsorship fees, product placement with Google, platform revenue sharing, merchandise licensing... We signed nearly 200 million yuan in sponsorship deals just for the first three phases, and that doesn't even include subsequent additional payments—”

"I know," Gu Yunjin said, looking at him.

"But have you ever thought about another question? What is 'Heartbeat Countdown'? It's a dating reality show."

What does it mean that a male guest on a dating reality show was arrested for soliciting prostitution?

This means that the core message of the entire program has completely collapsed. Why do viewers love watching this program?

Because they believe those glances are real, those heart-fluttering moments are real, those cautious probings and blushing, heart-pounding confessions are real.

Now you're telling them that the male guest they were so obsessed with went to a prostitute during filming—what do you think the audience will believe?

Gu Yunjin was exhausted. "A crisis of trust has already occurred."

Even if we cut all of Randy's scenes and re-record with a different male guest, the audience still wouldn't believe the show.

They would feel that everyone is acting, all the sugar is industrial saccharin, and all the confessions are scripted.

By then, what we'll lose won't just be money, but also the reputation of the Xingyao Media brand.

After listening to Gu Yunjin's words, Nan Zhenquan also spoke up, "I agree with President Gu's decision, let's stop all broadcasts."

He looked up at Gu Yunjin.

"Mr. Gu, what are the next steps?"

"Leave the legal and public relations departments to handle the countdown to the heartbeat."

Negotiate the termination terms with the platform and communicate the compensation plan with the brand to keep the losses within an acceptable range as much as possible.

Mr. Nan, please keep the core members of your team stable and prevent talent loss due to the failure of this one project. As for Xingyao's future focus, it will still be on partnering with Brilliant.

"This is the foundation of our Star Shine. Countdown to Heartbeat is our hit, but 'Walking with Brilliance' is our lifeblood."

The sponsorship revenue for this show has doubled every season, and this year's title sponsorship fee has broken records.

Instead of wasting time on a project that has already collapsed, we should concentrate all our resources on "Walking with Brilliance."

Old Zhou opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he just sighed and leaned back heavily in his chair.

Sister Lin lowered her head and unconsciously drew circles on her notebook with her pen.

The young directors had stopped crying; instead, they were filled with a bewildered exhaustion—like an army that had won a great victory but hadn't even had time to celebrate before being informed by a transfer order that the war was over.

"President Nan," Gu Yunjin's voice came through.

"Come to my office with me, I want to talk to you alone."

He nodded, picked up his coat from the back of the chair, and followed her out of the conference room.

The moment the conference room door closed behind me, the emotions that had been suppressed for so long finally erupted.

Xiao Zhou buried his face in his hands and burst into tears. Sister Lin slammed her laptop shut and cursed. Old Zhou lit another cigarette, took a deep drag, and the smoke blurred the expression on his face.

"I've been doing content creation for fifteen years," came Sister Lin's voice.

"I've seen guest appearances collapse, but I've never seen one collapse this outrageously."

Prostitution? A top star with a promising future, going to prostitute himself? What's going on in his head?