At least you'll have to peel off a layer of skin.

Jiang Songhe specifically booked the last direct flight on March 1st.

He brought his suitcase into the company in the morning and waited for all the project staff to arrive. He then held a meeting to listen to the progress and review reports of the work completed by each group, as well as the problems and solutions expected in the short term. After adding a few points, he announced that he would be going abroad that night.

Although Ciyi was still making some underhanded attempts to cause trouble, fortunately, they were all common tactics. Yunhe was able to anticipate and respond to these tactics, and once the signs were detected, they were quickly suppressed.

Jiang Songhe felt like he was sitting on pins and needles even after a full day at work. On the one hand, he was eager to go back to Maner to see Jonathan and Jiang Songyun, but on the other hand, he felt that Ciyi's relationship was not just a small matter.

Until three hours before takeoff, he was prepared to rebook at any time.

At 19:55, six episodes of "Yan Ge Xing" have been released for members and four episodes for free. With its strong cast, realistic action scenes, top-notch production, and tight plot, the show has seen a rapid increase in viewership and its market share has jumped to 16%.

In contrast, Ciyi's "Dream Pillow Life" still tops the list of long-running dramas on the Kaiai TV series chart, but its market share has dropped to 17%. The press releases and official marketing materials linked to the page are gradually being overshadowed by audience scrutiny.

The terms "excessive filters," "padded plot," and "poor post-production" trended on social media. The official Weibo account of the State Administration of Radio and Television then issued a statement, specifically criticizing the show for contradicting the guiding principle of "preventing opportunism and padding" and suggesting that it be immediately taken off the air for rectification before being re-released.

The baseless accusations fell apart on their own, and public opinion shifted dramatically.

Jiang Songhe felt a little relieved, but he didn't feel any great satisfaction at getting revenge. He just thought that Ciyi would be too busy to take care of herself after being called out, and would stop attacking Yunhe for a few days. That's why he called a car to go to the airport.

On the way, Jiang Songhe was about to catch up on today's phone call, wanting to tell Jonathan that he was leaving tonight and, barring any unforeseen circumstances, would be able to land around 3 a.m. tomorrow, Manchester time.

But an unexpected incident occurred.

Jiang Songhe remembered that Jonathan had said he would be recording the final song with the contestants on March 1st. Before he could make the call, Lin Duole called.

Less than an hour after leaving the company, the phone call without sending a WeChat message gave Jiang Songhe a bad feeling.

He answered the call with a frown, and his brows furrowed even more as he listened. Before hanging up, he patted the back of the driver's seat and said to the driver, "Sir, please turn around. I'm changing my address to go back to Yunhe Entertainment."

...

"***, they dare to call me to audition for any crappy drama. Do they even need to audition for a vertical short drama? Oh, they said you could get attention just because someone mentioned viewership, do you even have a mouth? Couldn't you ask questions?! That female lead can't even speak fluent Mandarin, does she even deserve to be called an actress?!"

"***, are those two holes under your eyebrows for breathing?"

"Giving you such a high salary is like paying your ass a waste; you might as well just burn him like paper money!"

"***, what else can you do besides play dead?"

"***! ****!! ****!!!"

"..."

On the computer screen, on the homepage of the account named "Xianyu BOT", there was a spliced ​​video of Jiang Songyun's outburst and a secretly filmed video. The "***" was maliciously censored. If Jiang Songhe hadn't guessed who the source was from the background, she would have thought her brother was swearing at first glance.

The video titled "What else can he do besides play dead?" shows Jiang Songyun grabbing a handful of makeup brushes and throwing them at the camera from a candid angle. This scene took place in a photography studio in Shanghai, where Jiang Songyun was preparing to shoot a photoshoot for WANTON WU's first menswear line.

The censored part is "Li Qinghai".

Jiang Songyun's former executive agent and current artist director of Ciyi.

“We contacted the original poster and the platform immediately to delete the post and remove it from the trending topics, but it seems like this post was bought and the spread was too great. Many netizens recorded and forwarded it, and we couldn’t cover it up…” Lin Duole’s voice was weak with anxiety as he looked at his messy hair.

While baseless accusations may be met with public outcry, Jiang Songyun undeniably showed his face and made his voice heard in these videos and recordings.

Moreover, the remarks involved belittling staff, actresses, and vertical screen short dramas. If someone intends to stir up trouble, it could quickly escalate into accusations of workplace bullying, offending women and short drama professionals, and being arrogant and diva-like, which are all fatal flaws in the industry.

He neither educated his younger brother well nor protected him properly.

Self-blame weighed heavily on Jiang Songhe, leaving him unable to move. He didn't delve into the reasons for his younger brother's drastic change in personality, nor did he interfere with the selection of his executive agent. He even failed to notice the secret filming happening right under his nose.

They had all sorts of contingency plans, but none of them had anticipated that Ciyi might have Li Qinghai as a potential threat.

If he had been more vigilant back then, his younger brother wouldn't have been caught in this endless crisis and would have been able to smoothly embark on a successful career path upon reaching adulthood.

The fault lies entirely with me, yet my younger brother has been exposed and become the target of public criticism. How can I be a brother like that? How can I explain this to my parents?

Damn it.

"Mr. Jiang, should we send a lawyer's letter?"

"It needs to be posted." Jiang Songhe composed himself. "Starting from the perspective of infringing on portrait rights and privacy rights, warn those who spread this infringement of serious consequences, and minimize the scope of its dissemination as much as possible. Also—"

Jiang Songhe stared at the Jingting IP address on the page, his eyes darkening: "Call the police privately and dig out the anonymous contributor from this account owner."

That damned other one will at least suffer a severe beating.

-

After finishing her recording work on March 1st, Jonathan first went to Tang Lan's medical room for a routine check-up, left Wasin, whose face was suspiciously red, at the same time, and then took the internal elevator directly to the top floor.

With the contract renewal date fast approaching, Tang Fan talks to Jonathan about long-term plans for the next decade.

How much to increase commission sharing, what style of music and persona to take, how many high-end brands to endorse... For the past ten years, Tang Fan has always arranged these things, and Jonathan has accepted them.

As long as Jonathan perfectly plays the role of Janus, Tang Fan will generously shower him with money and fame without him even having to ask.

In the past, he felt that the more he invested, the better, as it would make him feel valuable and thus secure.

Now, however, he had a different thought: gaining more meant giving more in return. Faced with the meticulously planned arrangements, he suddenly felt an urge to slow down.

This way, I can have some breathing room and steal a few days to be an ordinary person.

Those days should be spent with loved ones, whether to deepen understanding, solve problems, argue and have sex, or simply do nothing and waste time together.

So when Tang Fan mentioned this year's global tour, he unusually interrupted, smiling broadly as he asked, "Is it possible that your focus will shift towards the porcelain region in the future?"

The Montblanc fountain pen, engraved and inlaid with diamonds, tapped on the totem ring with a snake entwined with jasmine: "Are you trying to negotiate with me?"

Jonah's eyes flickered with barely suppressed excitement, but she continued with her bright smile, "Is it not allowed?"

Tang Fan gripped the pen and placed his hands on the boss's desk, one on top of the other: "Of course we can negotiate, but if you want to develop in the porcelain district, you need to give me a compelling reason to convince me."

The only thing that could convince Tang Fan was a condition that would guarantee Janus's value would not decrease.

Jonathan's smile faded, and he was speechless for a moment.

"As far as I know, the entertainment industry in China has extremely high standards for the moral conduct of its artists." Tang Fan put down his pen, interlaced his fingers, and his cold, elegant voice carried a hint of sarcasm. "This includes sexual orientation, which is also within the scope of scrutiny."

“Maner is diverse and open enough, so you can be completely absorbed in… mini-games while still maintaining a high level of perfection.” Tang Fan paused, glanced under the opposite table, and quickly looked away.

Jonah felt a chill run down his spine from that glance, and suddenly felt a strong sense of estrangement from the person in front of him. A feeling of being watched, seen through, and targeted came from nowhere.

...

Last night, Jonathan returned to his Nest Winza apartment, still unable to let go of the phone call from Jiang Songhe, who remained tight-lipped about his recent situation, only saying that he was fine.

He was angry that Song Yun was so stubborn and unwilling to show weakness or rely on him. So, even though he had prepared to ask Song Yun to sing the theme song of "Yan Ge Xing" to help him share his burdens, he still gave up because he couldn't wait any longer and his prince complex kicked in.

Giving up would be painful.

During his two weeks in Jingting, he discovered that Jiang Songhe's work style was exactly like his personality: independent. He had quite a few employees, but he still insisted on doing everything himself. Would it kill him to ask someone to share the workload?

The thought of "death" immediately brought to mind Jiang Songhe's alcohol poisoning from socializing, lying stiffly on the hospital bed, which made me feel even worse.

But I didn't want to bow my head so easily, because bowing your head will cause your crown to fall.

So he imagined that, just like when he got off the plane, he would first address the root cause of the problem and then claim credit, without giving Jiang Songhe any chance to refuse. Jiang Songhe's words would then soften and become easier to understand because of his gratitude.

Song Yun said that the video software Maner from China cannot be viewed, and also said that Chinese celebrities often use a social media software called Weibo.

Jonathan launched WeChat, tapped the other two people in the three-person group chat, and thanked Wu Fang Si Yuan Xiao for contributing the love token and the conch shell before getting to the point and asking for help.

He wanted to know what the situation was like for "Yan Ge Xing" in the country at that time.

Fortunately, the schedules of the fashion designers and stylists were similar to those of the foreign singers. It was past 3 a.m. in China when the two quickly replied and sent several screenshots from Weibo and video platforms.

Overall, the response has been very positive, and the costumes and makeup are exquisite. After browsing through the exhibits, many people are now looking forward to seeing it.

It seems the problem is solved, even without my direct intervention. I should be happy for Jiang Songhe, but Jonathan suddenly feels a pang of disappointment, his fingertips unconsciously switching between images.

Switching to a particular image, the name Janus in the previous blog post caught Jonathan's attention.

"It's pure fantasy for Yan Ge Xing to compete with Meng Zhen Fu Sheng. Unless they play Janus's 'Sacrifice at Dawn', they'll definitely lose completely if they air at the same time."

Jonah belatedly remembered why he had called Jiang Songhe earlier today—the premiere of "Yan Ge Xing" was earlier than the premiere of "Ji Ye Li Ming".

Suddenly finding it difficult to think deeply, Jonathan had no choice but to ask his two helpful friends to show him the result directly: "Will you please show me the end credits?"

Wu Fangsi didn't reply for a long time, but Yuan Xiao remained efficient and considerate. She guessed what Jonathan wanted to see, so she specially filmed the music production part and even appeared in a separate photo to warmly congratulate him: "First broadcast commemoration!"

A few minutes later, Wu Fangsi sent a separate WeChat message.

Jonathan sent Yuan Xiao a string of [kiss][hug][sun] to express his gratitude, then left the group chat without expression and clicked to play Wu Fangsi's voice message.

"Why are you suddenly speaking English? Are you... alright?"

not good.

Jiang Songhe ultimately did not choose to use this transformative work of his, and the grand, comforting surprise turned into a self-indulgent, presumptuous bubble, which felt very bad.

"Oh, it's nothing to do with him. I was just talking to my colleagues in the recording studio and forgot to switch."

...

Jonah had been struggling with this dilemma all night, and just a glance from Tang Fan made a terrible possibility flash into his mind: Tang Fan never intended to collaborate with Yunhe on "The Night of Sacrifice and Dawn".

Moreover, they really did say something to Jiang Songhe.