Chapter 246: The Male-Channel Free-for-All Is About to Begin

The "magical" scene on the plane made Yanzi feel that, no matter what happened at the Golden Crane Awards afterward, nothing should surprise her anymore.

The only thing she worried about was that Shuangzi would scribble nonsense in her book.

If she turned around and made up some romantic love story with her own little Bai-ge, Yanzi would really throw up!

Of course, if the other party really dared to make up such nonsense, she'd definitely sue her~

But after all, the other party was Shuangzi, so it always felt like nothing they did would be surprising.

Yanzi had long since learned this firsthand — the other party could simultaneously not want Bai Liang to star in "Weiwei," and then flip the table and help promote Bai Liang's new drama, an absurd move that said everything about how abstract they were.

Fortunately, by the time of the Golden Crane Awards, Shuangzi had already vanished.

The other party seemed to have simply taken the stage for "Wukong's Tale," and then slipped away.

Actually, it was quite reasonable — although Shuangzi had stolen the center spot, the female lead of this "Wukong's Tale" was, after all, Unlike Ni Ni~

She had actually been quite active these past two days, frequently showing up around the film exhibition booths.

And for no reason at all, she always liked to run over to the "Wolf Warrior 2" side.

The only pity was that she noticed Bai Liang suddenly didn't seem to want to tour Tokyo anymore — don't ask, the answer was national enmity and family hatred.

The guy had elevated things to such a level — what could Unlike Ni Ni even say?

Mm. She'd ask him after the Golden Crane Awards were over~

The Golden Crane Awards ceremony.

Bai Liang finally saw the main creative team of the "Three Lives Three Worlds" film.

"Hey, how've you been lately?"

". Alright."

Yang Yang, who had originally been quite happy, nearly couldn't keep a straight face when he saw Bai Liang.

He'd only just recently managed to pull himself together, but Yang Yang felt that tonight he was probably going to get emo again.

To him, Bai Liang was like a ghost — no matter how hard he fought, he just couldn't win~

From TV dramas to films, crushed on every front.

One or two more rounds of this, and he'd really develop a psychological shadow.

Originally, Yang Yang had only thought that Bai Liang was coming over to say hello — the two of them weren't particularly close, and there was even a competitive relationship between them.

Turns out he was wrong.

Bai Liang, this guy, just wouldn't leave him alone.

Yang Yang:??? What the hell?

Bai Liang: Good buddy, do me a favor, you'll know in a second.

A few minutes later, the main creative team of "Wukong's Tale" also arrived.

Unlike Ni Ni locked onto Bai Liang's position as if she'd caught a scent.

But just as she was about to come over and chat, she spotted Yang Yang beside him, and Liu Yifei not far away.

After thinking it over, she decided not to go over.

Bai Liang: Jingbao, oh Jingbao, everything a bro could do, I've done!

Yang Yang: Can you get away from me? Chasing me down to kill?

Originally, "Three Lives Three Worlds" being ground into the dirt and beaten senseless by "Wolf Warrior 2" had already made him break down in tears during the roadshow.

And now Bai Liang insisted on flitting back and forth right in front of his eyes — it felt like he was deliberately coming to mock him.

The key thing was, if it were really mockery, that'd be one thing.

But Bai Liang, this guy, clearly had no such intention — his attitude was gentle, and he spoke with a smile.

He didn't bring up the film to poke at his wound either, just purely chatting about nothing.

People nearby, watching, even thought he and Yang Yang were some kind of good buddies.

Faced with such a docile capybara, a normal person really couldn't just throw a punch and chase it away.

Yang Yang: Sometimes I really want to call the cops! You have to kill AND destroy the heart?

He was also the type who'd gotten used to keeping up appearances, so right now he could only maintain a polite smile while mentally cursing Bai Liang up one side and down the other.

And Bai Liang, so considerate, quickly noticed Yang Yang's discomfort.

"Are you secretly cursing me out?"

Yang Yang got a fright — wait, you can even tell that?

His nickname is the Great Immortal — does he actually have magical powers?

"Not at all, but why do you keep hanging around me?" He really couldn't help but ask.

"Hmm, how should I put this — have you ever had the experience of your girlfriend, or an ex-girlfriend, being especially close with another man?"

At these words, Yang Yang really couldn't hold it in anymore!

His face instantly darkened, and it took him several seconds to barely pull himself back together.

Bai Liang immediately sensed something was off — this seemed a bit like rubbing it in someone's face~

"Sorry~ that's not what I meant."

"Oh, I thank you so much."

Faced with Bai Liang's utterly sincere and earnest expression, Yang Yang helplessly believed him.

Fine, you didn't mean it — so can you get away from me now?

Bai Liang felt that staying any longer really would be a bit impolite.

But just as he was about to slip away, the arrival of a figure turned the duo into a trio.

Most of the films at this Golden Crane Awards were, in fact, pitiful wretches crushed under the wheels of "Wolf Warrior 2," but that didn't affect how popular Bai Liang was here.

See, another female artist had "defected" from her original camp and come over.

Zhang Tian'ai came over under the pretext of greeting Yang Yang — the two had just co-starred in *Martial Universe*, a big male-oriented IP TV drama.

That's right, Yang Yang is also one of the developers in the male-oriented IP space.

Earlier ones include Lu Han's *Fighter of the Destiny* and Li Yifeng's *Noble Aspirations* — the response, as everyone knows, was clearly nothing spectacular, propped up entirely by fan traffic.

None of them produced the hit drama the producers wanted.

But male-oriented IP development clearly wouldn't stop there — every permutation and combination has been tried, you could say people have played themselves silly with it.

Yang Yang's *Martial Universe*, Chen Feiyu's *Ever Night*, Wu Lei's *Battle Through the Heavens*.

These are all projects already wrapped or currently filming.

And after that, there's Liu Haoran's *Novoland: Eagle Flag*, and Bai Liang's *Joy of Life*.

The next two years will kick off the male-oriented IP free-for-all mode.

All the traffic young idols are about to take the stage in turn — whoever flops gets mocked.

The highest-ranked among them are Liu Haoran and Bai Liang — both have already made names for themselves in the film industry.

Clearly a notch above the previous few, and both their projects come later, so there's a chance for a direct face-off.

But obviously, the two of them are also excellent stepping stones for the other contestants.

The young traffic stars are full of ambition, wanting to climb to the top by stepping on their predecessors' "corpses."

And Yang Yang, as a "victim" repeatedly struck down by Bai Liang, although he also has the heart to "compete with the heroes of Heshuo," at this moment has a very bad premonition:

His future career — is it really going to be forever shadowed by that capybara?

He can't possibly be that unlucky, right? Another "brutal" comparison?

Just thinking about it is a bit despairing.

However, the male-oriented IP free-for-all and the male traffic stars' battles have nothing to do with the young ladies.

In male-lead dramas, the female lead is generally used as the scapegoat when the show flops.

But it also depends on each team's skill — whether they can actually toss the pot over is anyone's guess.

In any case, Zhang Tian'ai had no intention of "charging into battle" for Yang Yang. On the contrary, she used greeting Yang Yang as a way to strike up a conversation with Bai Liang.

This young lady's face was written all over with a hunger for buzz and traffic.

Very direct! Very obvious!

Bai Liang and Yang Yang exchanged a glance instinctively — both saw it.

In 2015, the year Bai Liang debuted, Zhang Tian'ai blew up overnight with the drama *Go Princess Go*.

With the gorgeous, clever, and domineering role of "Zhang Peng Peng," she won countless fans and became an instant sensation.

She went straight from an unknown actress to that year's breakout star.

Her later starring role in *I Belonged to You* also pulled in 800 million at the box office — a decent run.

But starting this year, this young lady's luck took a nosedive.

Whatever she touched flopped.

The *Legend of the Naga Pearls* she brought to the Golden Crane Awards flopped miserably — she's also one of the victims crushed by *Wolf Warrior 2*, but her box office was even worse than *Eternal Love*, lagging far behind.

The entertainment circle is brutal — when an artist fails too many times and hasn't accumulated enough capital, what follows is of course a downgrade in resources. Generally, when things reach this point, one has to start scheming.

Bai Liang really is a very good candidate.

Most importantly, several female stars have already set the example.

Riding Bai Liang's traffic doesn't easily backfire — even his fans have an extremely high tolerance for this sort of thing.

And you really do get benefits from it.

"What's wrong with you?"

As Yang Yang quietly retreated a few steps, his face an expression of both discomfort and barely suppressed laughter, Liu Yifei finally couldn't hold back and asked.

Yang Yang waved his hand, no longer able to keep a straight face at all. "Ran into a dog. Hehe~"

Liu Yifei: Don't be like that, it's kind of creepy.

"Ahem." Yang Yang quickly composed himself. "Nothing, just chatted with an acquaintance for a bit."

Liu Yifei's gaze swept past Bai Liang not far away and Zhang Tian'ai beside him, whose smile was especially radiant.

No errors, no missing chapters — read everything here!

"Bai Liang? I've heard he's actually quite interesting~"

". The guy really is pretty decent."

The most infuriating part is exactly this — the other party stabs you over and over, but you just can't bring yourself to truly hate or dislike him.

Still, at this moment, Yang Yang actually felt vindicated.

He'd worked with Zhang Tian'ai before and knew this Miss had some tricks up her sleeve. Who knows, she might just be able to pin down that detestable capybara!

Yang Yang silently cheered her on~

And seizing the chance to slip away, he could finally watch Bai Liang's "show."

Bai Liang: It's not that serious — the young lady just invited him to tour Tokyo together, that's all.

Zhang Tian'ai hadn't expected Bai Liang to be this easy to flirt with.

She hadn't even used any tricks, and the guy just went along with everything like a dopey goose, nodding dumbly to it all.

Kind of cute~

"Then it's settled — once things wrap up here, let's go wander around together. A girl like me really doesn't dare to roam around alone." Zhang Tian'ai said with a rather charming smile.

To be fair, this young lady's looks and figure really are something.

Her fame wasn't built on a single trash drama alone — her own conditions are right there.

Swap in someone less good-looking, and they probably wouldn't have the same effect.

Bai Liang didn't pay much attention to the flaws in her words either, just said: "Once things wrap up here, I have a friend coming in Tokyo — might as well come along."

"A friend from Tokyo? Boy or girl?"

"A guy."

A guy will do!

Anyway, Zhang Tian'ai has a hundred ways to make a "two people touring Tokyo together" trending topic appear domestically tomorrow.

A hundred ways!

The Golden Crane Awards ceremony wasn't very long, because there weren't that many awards to begin with.

Best Actor, Best Work, Best Director — Wu Jing went up to accept all of them.

Bai Liang went up on stage and accepted a Most Promising Newcomer award.

Achieving a breakthrough in film awards from zero to one — that should count as something worth being happy about.

Best Actress went to Liu Yifei, though it's unclear whether that counts as an international film queen.

After things wrapped up here, Bai Liang kept his word and prepared to put on a "night tour of Tokyo" with Zhang Tian'ai.

"Is your friend Japanese?" Zhang Tian'ai asked curiously.

That question was pretty rude.

Felt just like cursing someone out.

Bai Liang almost fired back with something even ruder — like asking her what year she was actually born.

Fortunately, he had some breeding, and at the same time, that friend in Japan arrived.

The moment he showed up, he nearly scared Zhang Tian'ai out of her wits — her expression froze on the spot.

The large tattoos covering his arms and legs made people instinctively think of yakuza members here in Japan.

Zhang Tian'ai: Your friend is from the Yamaguchi-gumi?!

Bai Liang: …This f**king bastard is Jiang Jinfu.

This guy has now almost faded out of the entertainment circle, having stayed in Japan for a while recently.

The pretty-sounding reason was to relax and study.

"Six point six billion at the box office — badass!"

The moment they met, Jiang Jinfu threw a punch at Bai Liang's shoulder first.

Zhang Tian'ai looked at his thick arms and tattoo-covered limbs and was a little worried he'd hurt Bai Liang.

After all, from a visual standpoint, Bai Liang looked gentle and "bookish and frail" — completely a different style from this masked, tattoo-covered tough guy.

But Bai Liang just lightly reached out and brushed off his shoulder. "Your force has gotten weaker, not fast enough, and definitely not vicious enough. You must have been letting yourself go in Japan!"

Jiang Jinfu: How the f**k do you even know that?

"Great immortal, oh great immortal, I really take my hat off to you. I just got a Japanese girlfriend — want me to introduce her to you sometime?"

Before Bai Liang could even respond, Jiang Jinfu shook his head on his own. "No, can't introduce her to you. Forget I said anything."

"Hey! That stingy? Let me vet her for you~ Let me tell you secretly — I heard the cheating rate over here in Japan is super high."

"I'm afraid you might accidentally get cheated on."

"What do you take me for?" Bai Liang said, exasperated.

Jiang Jinfu looked utterly disdainful, glanced at Zhang Tian'ai, and lowered his voice: "A succubus, right? I've heard about it even in Japan — pretty fitting."

"That's all a nickname made up by antis — you actually believe that?"

Although the "succubus" nickname was first started by Li Yitong, and later it turned into "public fox spirit."

But she never spread it around~ She only called him that in private, when it was just the two of them.

And what Jiang Jinfu knew was definitely the "antis nickname" coined by Bai Liang's antis.

It corresponded to his scandals and CP pairings.

But Sister Yanzi had always suspected the ones calling him that might not be antis, but rather fans just there for the drama.

Because the killing power was really just so-so — even nastier nicknames like "sex-crazed stud" never stirred up any waves at all.

As for the whole "antis nickname" thing, Jiang Jinfu's take was: "If I didn't know you, I definitely wouldn't believe it."

The meaning of that was obvious: How could I not know what kind of person you are?

Logical and well-grounded! Convincing!

After all, Zhang Tian'ai was standing right there beside them.

Although the young lady was scared, she figured Bai Liang probably wouldn't sell her out… He couldn't be that bad, right?

So Zhang Tian'ai, mustering her courage, asked: "So where are we going?"

"A host club."

"Huh?!"

—

Third watch, thirteen thousand characters — Happy New Year, everyone.

New Year's Eve had a lot going on, and my writing condition wasn't great either. I'll try to adjust.

Begging for monthly tickets.

(End of chapter)