Chapter 52 Public Opinion, Insider Connections, and Internal Staff...

After the list of mentors was announced, some of the attention was diverted from the sudden increase in the competition schedule. Regardless of whether the five mentors were suitable for the performance stage, they still generated a lot of discussion.

The next day, Shi Yao declined Xiao Shu and Xiao Yu's request to accompany her, dressed simply, and set off alone to Factory No. 1 ahead of time.

Today was completely different from yesterday. Shi Yao left home half an hour earlier than usual, but there were far more people at the door than yesterday.

Shi Yao saw many familiar faces; the fansite admins who couldn't make it yesterday had indeed arrived today.

The trainees hadn't started work yet, and there was still at least half an hour before they started. The fansite admins were sitting in twos and threes on stone benches or chairs by the roadside. When Shi Yao passed by, she heard a lot of complaints.

"Is the production team really crazy? They suddenly added more competitions but didn't update the schedule. Are we who paid money just being cheated?"

"Who knows what the production team was thinking? I was chatting with that security guard when I left the day before yesterday, and I specifically asked him if there was any filming the next day. He told me no. Haha, what a waste of all the cigarettes I bought for him."

"Why were there no collaboration stages in the previous two seasons? Why did they suddenly add one this year? The production team is just doing whatever they want."

"Yes, even three days of rest are being taken away. You can't treat a landlord's ox like that."

"I'm not kidding, I feel like I'm more tired than the trainees. I get up earlier than the chickens and go to bed later than the dogs every day. I have to stay here all day and carry a bunch of things to edit their photos at any time."

"That's why being a fan site manager is physically demanding. If you're not physically fit, you'll be too tired to get up after just one day of this."

"Hey, those of you who took the pictures yesterday, do you think you have some inside information? I feel like saying it was just good luck is a bit far-fetched."

"Umm... I guess so. After all, even the mentors' fans didn't receive the news, and none of their fan site admins came. It seems like it was all done on short notice."

"Oh yeah, even Pei Zixuan's fan site admins didn't come. I remember he has a few really powerful fan site admins, so it must have been a last-minute arrangement."

"Don't his fans check flight information from time to time? Even if it's a last-minute decision, they should book it the night before, which would definitely result in a flight number or ticket number."

"Because Pei Zixuan has been in the capital recently... He came in a van, and he doesn't have a flight number."

"What about the others? Are they all in the capital as well?"

"Yes, Fang Xuran is filming near the capital, Ye Jingyu has been in the capital for the past two weeks, and the other two are also based in the capital. They don't need to travel by car or plane, so there is no travel information."

"...It's really weird. How come the production team just happened to invite five artists who are all in the capital to be mentors? If even one of them were absent, we could have guessed in advance that the collaboration stage would be recorded in the next few days."

"Maybe one of the selection criteria is that they have to be from the capital. There are only three days for practice and recording. It would be too much of a hassle to fly over from other places."

"Hey, where are the professors staying? Are they staying at the factory too? They must be staying there for the next few days, since Yuyang is quite remote."

"It seems like we live with the production team in an empty dormitory building."

"The dormitory building... I hope to arrange some normal dormitories. Every time I read their dormitory diaries, I feel that they are so shabby that it's a bit pitiful. My university dormitory was not even that shabby."

"Who says otherwise..."

"Those solo fans who didn't know the news yesterday were really lucky. They stumbled upon the opportunity by accident. I noticed that because there were fewer fansite admins taking pictures yesterday, almost everyone interacted for quite a while. They were much more attentive than usual. Speechless, I have absolutely no luck when it comes to following celebrities."

"Isn't the key point the interaction time? Isn't the key point that they not only photographed all the trainees but also the five mentors? There weren't even any mentors' own fans competing with them. With so many followers, they must have made a fortune. Pei Zixuan alone is worth a lot of money."

"Hey, have you guys ever seen a ray of light? I'm really curious about who she is. I've been following her for so long but I've never seen her in person. When I ask other people, they all say they don't know what she looks like."

"I've never seen her before. She's really mysterious. I can recognize most of the people I follow offline, but I just can't match her face to her account."

"It's really amazing. If I didn't know that her photos weren't bought and that they were very unique, I would have really thought that she had been buying photos and relying on other fansite admins to take them for her."

"It's not impossible. Maybe she's been hiring professional photographers to take pictures for her all along. Those photographers weren't coming every day recently. I wonder who they sold the pictures to. Maybe she got some of them."

"Come on, I know all those photographers. Their photography style is not like that one, and I also know who they sell their photos to. It's definitely not Yi Lu Tian Guang."

"I mean, it's possible that Yilu Tianguang (a photographer) specifically hired a proxy photographer to take photos for her, so that the style would be consistent and the photos would be produced consistently."

"...No way! That would cost so much money. What kind of family could afford to do that?"

"How many of the fansite managers are poor? If they weren't rich, how could they afford to live here every day and cover all the expenses? I have to share an apartment with someone."

"Don't even mention it, my family is just average, and I'm actually spending money to support my idols. Being a fan is my misfortune, but why am I still doing it?"

"Absolutely! The offline expenses are just flowing out like water. And now we don't even dare to release photobooks. If we release one, our fans will accuse us of trying to cash in and run away. Oh my god, can you reimburse me for these expenses? It's so great to be able to see pictures for free every day."

"Not all screen fans are like that. They don't follow any of the schedules, but they comment on every single one. Offline fans will get scolded. If you ask me, they'll behave themselves after following the show twice. Nobody's money comes from thin air. Fan site admins are people too, and they don't owe anyone anything."

"Will I get a lot of flak for releasing a photobook now? I'm about to release a photobook announcement, and I've already booked the article..."

"I advise you not to. The competition isn't over yet. Selling photobooks at this time will not only result in poor sales, but you will also be 200% accused of being a heartless fan site manager who is trying to make money and run away. If you want to be blacklisted, then go ahead and do it."

"If you want to sell photobooks, it's best to wait until after the finals. By then, they'll be in seclusion for a while to prepare their debut album, and the fans they've gained won't have anywhere to spend their money. That's when photobooks will sell the best, and there will be more people selling them then, so you're less likely to get criticized. Even if you do get criticized, there will be people there to support you."

"Ah... but I'm worried that if I don't make it to the finals, he'll be eliminated, what should I do..."

"Uh, then you should probably stop selling PBs. If you didn't even make it to the finals, your fans won't be in the mood to buy them."

"That's not necessarily true. My favorite from last year didn't debut, but the PB sales were pretty good, higher than several debuting groups. You can wait for the right time, release yours when everyone else has released theirs, or release it before your fans leave, to make one last profit."

"I know a graphic designer who's really good at creating promotional images, I'll recommend him to you."

"I'm curious if Yilu Tianguang sells photobooks. She always seems very aloof. Even other fan site admins said they didn't know her. She never participates in fan site group activities. Last time I asked another fan site admin, she said that Yilu Tianguang hasn't even joined the group chat. She's a pure solo artist and very aloof."

"Huh? That's too much of a solitary personality. Is she socially awkward?"

"But I can't tell from her videos that she has social anxiety. And if I remember correctly, her videos often have multiple camera angles. How can she have multiple camera angles if she's just chasing someone by herself?"

"Maybe other offline friends will accompany you?"

"It's possible, but what I find strangest is the direct shot of the third public performance. Her video even has camera movement, so she must have moved around. The pit below is so crowded, and she's holding such a big camera. Putting aside whether she could move around properly, how could the security guards not notice her at all? It's too strange."

"I think so too... I don't dare to say it, for fear of being accused of being jealous. But her behavior is really strange in every way. It has nothing to do with jealousy. Everyone who went there knows how strict the security was that day. How could she have missed such a long and big performance? It's just outrageous."

"Are there any people who weren't kicked out that day and were just being sabotaged by the audience? With just a ray of sunlight shooting a close-up shot, it shouldn't be hard to notice such big movements, right? Does anyone remember?"

"The strangest thing is that everyone in the reports says it doesn't exist..."

"Umm, I really feel like she has connections on the inside. Her behavior in every aspect is very strange. I won't say more, lest you say I'm jealous of her."

"Who says otherwise? For example, she was able to make it to the collaboration stage just in time. If the other people who posted pictures are new solo fans who don't know much about offline events, then she isn't. How could she have made it to the wrong time so perfectly? It feels like she was well-prepared before going."

"Does nobody really know her? I really want to know what she looks like. I'm so curious. How can someone go to so many offline events and never be recognized?"

"Let's see if there's a chance today. She should be here too. We'll see if there are any new faces, and then we'll check the camera angles and positions after the pictures are posted. If she's here, we'll be able to locate her."

Shi Yao listened to gossip the whole way. The fansites didn't try to keep their voices down. They got up early in the morning to come and follow the offline photo shoot. Everyone was full of resentment and didn't hold back when they complained.

Hearing people around her say they wanted to expose her, Shi Yao felt a little creeped out. She didn't know why everyone was so curious about her real situation offline. She was a fan site admin, not an artist. Why did they have to look at her appearance?

Shi Yao wore a huge mask today, which covered most of her face and her chin completely, leaving only her clear and bright eyes exposed. She wore casual clothes that were easy to move in, with mint green and pure white, which looked fresh and natural.

She carried a canvas bag and handed her temporary pass to the security guard at the gate. The guard looked at the pass carefully, then picked up a small notebook from the table and stared at Shi Yao for more than ten seconds before letting her in.

After Shi Yao went inside, the fansites behind her started chattering again.

"Who is this? Is he a staff member? How did he get in?"

"Probably, but they weren't wearing a uniform, and they looked a bit unfamiliar."

"Work clothes are changed after entering the workstation, so it's not surprising. It's just that staff usually don't come in from here, which is a bit strange."

"She must be a new employee. She's not familiar with the layout of this place. Also, her name tag is different from the other staff members. Theirs is red with white lettering, but hers is blue with white lettering. She must be an outsourced employee or something."

"I'm so envious! I want to go in too. Can I sneak in and take a picture of my idol? I just want to know what the costumes for the collaboration stage look like."

"We'll have news in a couple of days at most. We'll be back to recording tomorrow afternoon, and then there'll be some juicy gossip."

"Are we going to invite any audience members to tomorrow's recording? Why haven't they drawn the tickets yet?"

"I feel like they probably won't be inviting any more mentors. The first season started with an online ticket lottery after announcing the mentor collaboration stage, and they even invited 100 audience members offline. This year, there's been no such activity. I guess they're going to keep the filming a secret."

"Ah... then there won't be any leaked photos. I still want to see the outfits."

"Let's pray that someone will appear to distribute the tickets. This year is really too unpredictable. I don't know if anyone will be able to distribute them. I don't even know how to get the tickets now."

The focus of the fansites gradually shifted to the performance tickets. Shi Yao was also concerned about this issue, so she went into the building and asked the director. She learned that the recording would not be open to the public, there would be no audience on any of the five stages, and the tickets would be released in the next episode after the recording, following Sam Soon as a segment in Sam Soon's life.

Shi Yao was surprised by this change, because the first collaboration stage and Sam Soon were in two separate episodes. After all, there were five stages in total, so it was perfectly reasonable for them to take up a whole episode. But this time, they were combined into one.

She initially thought the show added mentor collaboration stages to extend the competition, but now it seems that's not the case; they're still proceeding according to the published schedule.

"Actually, we initially wanted to invite an audience member. After all, it's a stage, and feedback can make people more passionate. However, firstly, time is really tight, and we probably wouldn't have enough time to verify all the personal information when drawing tickets now. Secondly, mentor Pei Zixuan has some special requirements, and his stage filming style is not suitable for having an audience present. So we discussed it and decided that none of the five of them would invite an audience member."

The director briefly explained the reason to Shi Yao, and then looked at her with some curiosity, surprised that she would care so much about this.

"Why is this young lady so concerned about the competition schedule? Are you watching our show?" The director's eyes held a probing and slightly aggressive look, as if he would make Shi Yao leave immediately if she nodded in acknowledgment.

An unwritten rule in the entertainment industry is that fans should never be hired as staff, otherwise it will be biased and may lead to impulsive behavior.

Shi Yao was dressed casually today, wearing sneakers and a high ponytail. It was simple and neat, with a camera hanging on her shoulder. It was a very standard outfit for a fan site admin, so it's normal for the director to be a little wary.

After looking her up and down, the director's expression became even more serious. He tapped the table and asked Shi Yao, "Can I see your employee ID? Which department are you an outsourced worker from?"

I'm genuinely worried that she might be a fan who infiltrated the community disguised as someone else.

Shi Yao handed over the pass quite calmly and said simply, "I'm Teacher Pei Zixuan's personal photographer. I'll be taking some stills here these few days. Is that alright?"

After receiving the pass, the director realized that he must have misunderstood. Although their pass looked simple, it actually had anti-counterfeiting features on the back. The badge looked like anyone could wear it, but the requirements for issuing it were very high, and most outsourced workers could not obtain this pass.

Upon hearing Shi Yao say that she was an employee of Pei Zixuan's studio, the director's expression softened further, and he put on a warm smile again: "So you're one of Teacher Pei's people. You're quite capable, young lady. You're so young, but you're truly a force to be reckoned with!"

Listening to the director's forced praise, which he dug out from various nooks and crannies, Shi Yao couldn't help but twitch her lips slightly. After all, she still had to stay here for two more days, so she accepted the other party's goodwill: "It's alright, it's just a temporary collaboration. I'm not from Teacher Pei's studio. I've watched a few episodes of the show and I know a few of your trainees, so I'm a fan of the show."

“I’ve watched a few episodes from previous seasons, but not all of them, so I’m not very familiar with our competition format. When I came here today, I heard some fans outside discussing the competition schedule, so I was just wondering if I could ask you something. I hope I’m not being offensive?”

Upon hearing Shi Yao's reply, the director's smile became even more sincere. He nodded repeatedly and said with a smile, "No, no, how could I be offended? Since you work here, we're all family. Insiders know all about these things. If you want to know anything else, you can ask me. I'll tell you everything I can. Oh, by the way, young lady, what's your surname?"

"Shi, the 'Shi' in 'stone'." Shi Yao casually picked out a word, secretly complaining about the director's excessive enthusiasm. She just didn't want the other party to misunderstand, and also wanted to make things a little easier for herself these past few days, but the director's enthusiasm was simply terrifying.

"Okay, Xiao Shi, my surname is Hu. You can call me Director Hu or Brother Hu, it's up to you. This is my business card. You can add me on WeChat when you have time. We might have the chance to work together again in the future. Teacher Pei is an artist that our platform particularly likes. After all, he is a big star who came out of our platform, right?" Director Hu smiled broadly, his wrinkles crinkling together.

Shi Yao felt helpless. She hadn't heard a word of what Director Hu had said. No wonder he was so enthusiastic. It turned out he still thought of her as someone from Pei Zixuan's studio and probably wanted to find an opportunity to invite Pei Zixuan through her later.

He really thinks highly of her.

Shi Yao chuckled briefly in agreement, then forced herself to find out the next steps, before quickly making up an excuse that Pei Zixuan was looking for her and slipping away.

Although Director Hu was a bit difficult to deal with, fortunately he still managed to say everything he needed to know.

First of all, the collaboration stage was not recorded publicly, and there were no audiences or fans. The five groups recorded separately in different recording studios. Pei Zixuan provided his own recording venue, and he took care of everything from costumes and makeup to stage design and photography. The production team only needed to cooperate with the publicity. The remaining four groups were filmed in the Yuyang Film and Television Base, in studios five to eight respectively.

Upon hearing this news, Yao couldn't help but feel grateful that Pei Zixuan had given her a temporary pass, allowing her to disguise herself as a staff member. Who would have thought that this stage recording wouldn't invite any audience members? Now that she had a work pass, she could pretend to be a staff member and go in to take pictures. If she didn't have this, she probably would have had to find a way to contact internal staff to buy pictures.

However, Shi Yao doesn't like buying photos, or rather, she doesn't trust them. She always feels that photos, especially stage performance photos, must be taken by herself, because every moment on stage is fleeting, and it's difficult to capture that crucial second and capture a sense of dynamism.

It's not only difficult, but it also tests the fan site manager's familiarity with the idol's stage presence and the level of synergy between the two sides.

An experienced fan site admin will be very familiar with their favorite idol's dancing habits and will be more likely to capture wonderful moments, thus producing amazing photos.

There's a saying that goes, "Love and hate are obvious." Some amazing photos from performances make you feel that the fansite admins are full of love. You can't take such charming photos without love in your heart.

However, some performance photos feel very formulaic and lack emotion. They seem bland and uninteresting. Even though the editing and selection of photos are very careful and the colors are well adjusted, they just don't resonate with the viewer. They just look at an ordinary photo.

Photos taken by proxy photographers have this common problem. As professionals, they are naturally very skilled at taking photos, but precisely because they are so skilled, the photos they take are very prone to becoming formulaic and template-based. When you buy a set of bags and take them home, you can't find many that are worth picking out.

It's not bad, and it's even better than many photos taken by fan site admins, but it can't reach the best level because it lacks passion.

Fan site admins who are still obsessed with their idols take photos out of love, while proxy photographers take photos out of emotion.

Love and not love are very obvious.

Some fansite admins even have huge differences between their early and later photos, because their love gradually fades. At the beginning, they put a lot of effort into taking, selecting and editing photos, but in the end, they may just buy a set of photos from a proxy photographer out of a sense of responsibility, pick a couple of photos, edit them and post them, which is full of routine perfunctory work.

This is also why Shi Yao doesn't want to hire a photographer during performances. It doesn't matter if she takes photos at work, since it's only a short commute and the photos don't really capture much. The photographer's skills are sufficient.

But public performances are different. First, tickets are hard to get, and second, it's impossible to be sure if the other person's performance is good enough. So Shi Yao chose to perform herself.

Shi Yao felt relieved to know that she could enter the performance recording venue to take photos and that no one else could take photos.

She wasn't worried about what kind of discussion would arise if she was the only one posting pictures and no one else did.

It's nothing more than the same old three things: illegitimate child, having inside connections, or she herself being an insider.

The claim that she was a stalker is untenable; no stalker could have such connections and remain undetected by the production team.

The other two guesses didn't matter to Shi Yao; in fact, the more mysterious the fan account "A Ray of Light" was to her, the better.

Some fan site administrators do have inside connections, and they even openly display them. This isn't a black mark; on the contrary, it inspires awe.

Hopefully, after the photos from this performance are released, those people will realize that Shi Yao's background is not simple and will stop throwing mud at her from now on.

Author's note: I worked very late, so I'm late. I was in a bit of a rush and there might be some typos. I'll fix them later. Everyone, go to bed early.

Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2024-07-10 23:04:50 and 2024-07-11 23:56:21!

Thank you to the little angels who watered with nutrient solution: 40 bottles of Jinglei (planted half a bowl); 5 bottles of Wenwen (planted 5 bottles);

Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!