Chapter 154: The Cameraman

Jet-black, thick hair, though seemingly unstyled, looked neat and clean, not messy or flashy.

Beneath long, curled eyelashes, a pair of phoenix eyes lifted slightly, their gaze clear as if holding a pool of spring water.

Slightly upturned brows retained a touch of youthful recklessness.

The faintly upturned lips carried no hint of a dragon king—only added an air of untamed freedom and an extreme contrast of calm.

The camera slowly panned from profile to frontal view, as if activating a magnifier, delivering an unfiltered, overwhelming visual impact to every viewer seated before their television!

Face shape, features, skin—this shot lasted unusually long; many viewers even felt a strong sense of boasting.

The cameraman's boasting.

Lin Yufen: This is idol drama! Kid!

You might not believe it, but the longest single scene shot in the entire series was this opening appearance of the male lead.

Lin Yufen and the crew spent three full days drilling Bai Liang.

It wasn't that his acting suddenly dropped.

It was simply that filming went too smoothly, leaving too much time, so they started carving flowers on grains of rice.

The crew of women gathered together and came up with a dozen ideas—all with one goal: handsome, most handsome, even more handsome!

God knows how many angles and shooting methods they tried.

With Bai Liang's shooting efficiency, three days gave them plenty of time to go wild!

Just for this one opening scene of the male lead, the first episode's opening credits were specially made.

They didn't show Bai Liang's face even once.

Starting from the second episode, the opening credits returned to normal.

All the meticulous planning, all the teasers from the opening credits—everything was just for this one reveal!

There are many pretty-face actors in the industry, but even among them, there are levels.

Some pretty-face actors can, with their looks alone, elevate the entire drama—though of course, the director must know how to shoot.

Clearly, the team behind "Wee" had been ignited by Bai Liang with a strange ambition.

Though it seemed odd for film professionals to apply ambition to idol dramas, the mostly female directorial team was highly motivated.

They were thrilled at the prospect of throwing a beauty feast, a fanboy frenzy!

As the saying goes, when golden wind meets jade dew, they meet.

They might not produce anything with high artistic merit, but in the idol drama realm, they wanted to create a...

The King of Beauty in the Chinese entertainment industry!

"Aaaah!"

"Oh my god!"

The sound was like the kettle in Meng Ziyi's house boiling over.

But Li Yitong knew for sure no water had been boiled—she was drinking mineral water, and the two beside her were drinking coconut juice.

Yet this twin scream chorus was indistinguishable from the sound of a boiling kettle.

She was twenty-five, so she couldn't naturally join in the excitement of these two twenty-year-old girls.

Put plainly, she had some mature baggage.

Now she was truly acting like an undercover agent!

But at this moment, she also bit her lips, staring fixedly at the TV screen.

She felt a quiet sense of relief—thank goodness she came to watch at Meng Ziyi's place; this hundred-inch TV was amazing!

If she'd watched on a computer, the impact would've been at least half as strong.

Compared to the two beside her, who showed no restraint in their excitement, she now looked like a thief—her eyes darting, desperately suppressing the smile threatening to break across her face and the upward curve of her lips.

But no matter how her eyes wandered, they kept spinning wildly within that hundred-inch frame.

As if glued there by a magnet.

This damn male succubus—how did they shoot him so handsome?!

"Meng Meng, you really acted with him as a pair before? Wow! So jealous!"

To be fair, though Yu Shuxin's voice was overly saccharine, she was genuinely good at delivering emotional value at this moment.

It was clear Meng Ziyi had tried hard to hide her smile.

But the pride in her big eyes was utterly impossible to conceal!

Within two seconds, her face was beaming, and she was pressing her hands hard over her mouth, afraid her teeth might show, like she'd won the whole world.

She unconsciously glanced at the insider, Li Yitong.

Not just acted as a pair, sister! I've tasted what a god is like~

Right, Tongtong?

Li Yitong: You two will spill everything eventually!

And don't interrupt her watching the drama, you jerk!

At this moment, though she fiercely denied it in her heart, her instinct made her unconsciously wonder—just what did it taste like?

The first two episodes' plot could be summarized as the male and female leads' first meeting, plus their bond formed in the game.

But who actually talks about TV plotlines?

Before the first episode even ended, the internet "exploded."

Lin Yufen's meticulously designed male lead debut received far greater response and returns than expected.

Those three days of drilling were worth it.

God knows how many "screen-licking" posts those fangirls posted.

Meanwhile, Bai Liang's Weibo follower count was surging at a startling rate.

Idol dramas really do build people up too much.

They can take a young actor's popularity straight to the top in one step!

Back on set, the directing team used to joke with Bai Liang, saying things like "Once this drama wraps, our Xiao Bai might just be top-tier too."

Looking at it now, that joke might actually be coming true!

After Li Yitong and the others finished watching two episodes, they belatedly opened Weibo.

"Wow! Already number one on the trending list! Amazing!"

"Number one is Bai Liang, number two is Xiao Nai, number three is Bei Weiwei—what terrifying popularity!"

"Honestly, I don't even really remember what I watched in the first two episodes. My mind was just full of that male god's face~"

Seeing Yu Shuxin acting so over the top, the other two gradually started losing it too—Sister, are you really this outgoing?

And he's already been promoted to male god?!

At this point, Li Yitong also noticed Mencius's little move. She had somehow pulled out her phone and seemed to be texting someone~

She stealthily tilted her head over to sneak a peek.

But Mencius, as if she had a sixth sense, quickly switched to the chat screen with her own dear mom, Sister Qian.

"Your mom watches dramas too?"

"Yep~ Sister Qian's even more into it than me. Look, she says she went to vote for Little Hedgehog."

One slip of the tongue and the pet name came right out.

Luckily Yu Shuxin next to her was still "going crazy," so Li Yitong heard it and pretended she didn't.

Ding dong~

Right then, Bai Liang's reply came in—a sticker of him smirking behind sunglasses, very much his style.

Li Yitong: Tch! Show-off~

But at this point she also secretly pulled out her phone and carefully started typing away.

She didn't even know why—she had only meant to send one line of congratulations, but the more she wrote, the more it grew.

A few dozen characters already counts as a little essay.

Anyone who didn't know would think she was writing a review over there.

Bai Liang, however, didn't treat her any differently, and quickly replied to her message, picking out six typos Li Yitong had made along the way.

Despicable!

But seeing the "mua mua~" he sent at the end, Miss Li decided to be the bigger person and not stoop to his level.

It's just that~ Bai Liang seems to be getting more and more popular.

Back when they were on the set of *The Legend of the Condor Heroes*, Li Yitong had joked about them co-starring as the male and female leads someday.

They were at least friends who'd fed each other wall plaster, after all~

But looking at it now, forget male and female leads—she might not even get to play his accessory in the future. Their popularity and buzz have been pulled too far apart!

It really gives that Run Tu and Brother Xun vibe.

Of course, she's a girl, so she has a bit of an advantage there.

And there's someone even worse off right next to her~

Meng Jie, don't even mention wanting to co-star with Bai Liang again. The CP she had with Bai Liang in *The Legend of the Condor Heroes* barely has any "remnants" left now.

Dilireba and Bai Liang's CP fans are now wildly raising their banners online, looking like they're about to wipe out all "heretics," like the Crusaders marching off to war.

Thinking of this, Li Yitong even felt a bit of sympathy for Mencius.

Especially since the two of them had discussed before the matter of *Grade One* inviting Bai Liang as a guest for one episode.

Mencius had been really looking forward to it back then, thinking she'd get to see Bai Liang on the show.

Looking at it now, how could he possibly go?

According to the entertainment circle's ecosystem, Bai Liang basically couldn't have any further connection with Mencius.

Later that night, Yu Shuxin, whose home was in Shanghai, said goodbye to the two and headed back.

But Li Yitong ended up staying the night at Mencius's place.

She had originally planned to find a guest room to sleep in, but the thing is—every room in Mencius's house was already "taken."

The master bedroom was Mencius's own, one of the secondary bedrooms was reserved for her parents, a small bedroom was occasionally used by her assistant, and the remaining secondary bedroom—

In the end, the two girls washed up and sweetly lay down in the same bed.

Good sisters have to sleep together, after all~

"I don't know when I'll get to see him again. I asked the director of *Grade One*, and they said they've sent him an invitation. Tongtong, do you think he'll come?"

Hearing this, Li Yitong decided not to say anything comforting this time. "He won't have the time. *Wei Wei*'s buzz has exploded. Even though I don't know how high the ratings and click-throughs are, just looking at the momentum online right now, they definitely can't be low. In that situation, god knows how many gigs will come knocking for him."

Li Yitong said a whole string of things, then added at the end: "Appearing on your show wouldn't do him any good. If I were his manager, I definitely wouldn't take it."

After saying that she kind of regretted it, because Mencius's originally bright, sparkling big eyes seemed to dim all at once.

Pouting as if a little wronged, she finally just murmured: "I guess you're right. But I feel like he's different from everyone else."

Different?

He really is quite different~

But Li Yitong still felt that as long as Bai Liang had a clear head, he wouldn't take on any random shows at a time like this.

Let alone appearing in the same frame with a former CP actress.

When it comes down to reality and one's own career development, anyone would know what to choose~

This isn't some trolley problem, and it wouldn't make anyone agonize over the decision.

——

Dragon TV's first-day ratings: 1.01, ranking first in its time slot.

Jiangsu TV's first-day viewership rating was 0.98, ranking second in its time slot.

This is even after accounting for the fact that the online game theme deterred most middle-aged and elderly viewers.

The core audience for television viewing remains middle-aged and elderly people, while the younger generation is increasingly forming a "non-TV-watching" cohort, for whom TVs have become optional compared to their obsession with smartphones and tablets.

In contrast, "Wei Wei" attracted a group of gaming enthusiasts due to its realistic portrayal of online games.

!. Read

Most of these people choose to watch the drama on online platforms.

In other words, a TV drama with heavy online game plotlines does not belong to the family-friendly genre; its thematic limitations make it hard to become a hit on traditional TV.

Achieving such viewership figures under these conditions is almost unimaginable to many.

This drama was never destined to become a breakout hit on broadcast TV; its main battlefield is online streaming platforms.

So.

Within 16 hours of its launch, "Wei Wei" surpassed 300 million online views!

One day after the drama's premiere, its search index peaked, breaking one million.

As time passed, starting from the second day of broadcast, Bai Liang consistently topped the new media index.

By the time it reached episode 17, click volume had surpassed 4 billion.

At this point, online popularity began to boost TV ratings, and the combined peak ratings of both platforms exceeded three.

Meanwhile, the two lead actors' popularity and fame naturally experienced a terrifying surge.

Idol dramas are simply too effective at launching stars; since "Meteor Garden," any wildly popular idol drama has almost always launched the hottest young idol of the moment.

This year, that person's name is Bai Liang.

It's not that Li Reba is truly that much less talented—mainly because the core audience of idol dramas are young girls, and male actors benefit more in this regard.

Even within the entertainment industry's hierarchy, male top flows are simply more valuable than female top flows.

These past two days, the crew of "Three Lives Three Worlds" began looking at Bai Liang and Li Reba with strange eyes.

Li Reba felt this change acutely.

The Gamma Entertainment staff who previously rushed her constantly and pushed her relentlessly now spoke to her in gentle, soft tones.

After briefly gaining popularity from "Kela Lianren," she had briefly enjoyed this feeling before.

But it was too short-lived; afterward came the relentless grind of endless promotions, with everyone pushing her nonstop.

This time… it's different.

More specifically, she even felt some people looked at her the way they looked at Big Mi Mi.

Even Zeng Jia came personally to the set to encourage her.

And he brought good news: the highly popular variety show they had been negotiating for was finally confirmed.

Running Man.

Because Da Da Da Baobei was pregnant, the Running Man production team had long sought a female artist to replace her in the next season.

Gamma Entertainment had been fighting for Li Reba, but many female artists were eyeing this show.

After all, it was Da Da Da Baobei's "signature work"—who wouldn't covet it?

But after "Wei Wei" aired, the outcome of this competition was instantly decided, saving Gamma Entertainment considerable resources and favors.

The Running Man team, previously ambiguous in attitude, proactively contacted and finalized the deal, confirming Li Reba as a permanent guest in next season.

Under these circumstances, how could Zeng Jia not treat Li Reba better?

He was practically elevating her importance to the company to Big Mi Mi's level.

Yet when Zeng Jia came, he only offered Li Reba warm concern; his attitude toward Bai Liang, however, improved even further than before, and he no longer mentioned anything about Gamma's benefits.

Gamma's benefits are good… but they can never match a top flow's treatment!

You can't just give him company shares.

Otherwise, Zeng Jia couldn't conceive of any way to sign Bai Liang.

Let me put it this way: any artist as popular as Bai Liang would never sign with Gamma to be a slave.

Their only chance was to secure Bai Liang before "Wei Wei" aired.

The proof? They failed.

Zeng Jia couldn't help but complain a little to Big Mi Mi: "Big Mi Mi, if you'd just pushed harder to sign Bai Liang, we could've met our bet early this year."

Big Mi Mi:???

Her own home was on fire—how could she possibly care about this?

She snapped back: "I've tried! Am I supposed to strip naked to seduce this kid?"

"That's an exaggeration, really—by the way, what's going on between him and Li Reba?"

"Nothing's going on—they're just good friends. Zhu Zhu Xudan and Huang Jingyu are watching closely; the two of them haven't even held hands on set."

Hearing this, there was nothing more to say—he was clearly a man who could sit calmly even among beauties~

Big Mi Mi couldn't seduce him, and he stayed "proper and restrained" even while constantly hanging out with Li Reba—could this guy be… into men?

Cough cough!

She teased Bai Liang a little—after all, when you can't have something, you spread rumors~

Just venting some frustration—nothing wrong with that.

"By the way, how's he been lately?"

"What do you mean, how's he been?"

"Bai Liang—he's truly exploded in fame now. Has anything changed?" Zeng Jia asked curiously.

At this, Big Mi Mi also felt something was odd.

It really did seem like nothing had changed.

As usual, he kept up his morning exercises, did what he needed to do on set, and in his free time either chatted with people about scripts, zoned out, or curled up in the trailer playing games.

Oh right, the fruit and snacks he'd been buying lately seemed to be a bit more than before.

That seemed to be the only change in Bai Liang.

But Yang Mi suspected it might be because the "Eternal Love" crew had paid him a second installment of his fee — it had nothing to do with the explosive popularity of "Love O2O."

Oh right, there was one more change.

That was, recently there were a lot more fans of Bai Liang and Dilireba gathered outside the "Eternal Love" crew.

The two of them were both quite fond of their fans, and every day after filming they would spend quite a bit of time signing autographs for them.

This even made it onto the trending searches.

In the fans' eyes, this was the two of them doing couple activities together!

The CP from the drama had become real — it was just too satisfying to ship!

Then it drew even more fans to gather outside the crew for autographs — they just couldn't finish signing them all.

But Bai Liang was quite willing to try his best to fulfill those little wishes of the fans; for him it was just sacrificing a bit of gaming time.

In Sister Yanzi's words, fans are the stars' bread and butter — no matter whether it's taking on roles or endorsements, having more fans always helps.

Bai Liang thought that made a lot of sense, and even felt that in a certain sense, wasn't this just eating the fans' "soft rice"?

A large group of female fans combined was basically one rich woman conglomerate.

Making money off "rich women" — of course you had to provide them with emotional value.

When it came to this, he was crystal clear.

——

First update, five thousand characters. I woke up this morning not feeling great.

But the update won't be short — just a bit later.

(End of chapter)