Chapter 107, Section 104: Continuing to tear Lin Yuan apart, he deeply regretted it.
Chapter 107
There's an unwritten rule in the entertainment industry: unless a celebrity is definitively proven to be a criminal, colleagues, platforms, and even marketing accounts will exercise restraint when criticizing them, and won't push them to the brink.
After all, we'll run into each other again eventually, and we're likely to continue working together in the future. Plus, the fact that this person has had so much negative press doesn't mean he's clean.
Geng Yue's current situation is only slightly better than that of a lawbreaker.
Although he only wholeheartedly targeted Lu Chen and Chu Honglie, other celebrities couldn't help but wonder if he was also targeting them.
"He laid the groundwork for Hei Linyuan so early on."
"Tsk."
Geng Yue has quite a few fans, and they are quite capable, but his strength is limited. His fans kept saying "It's no big deal," but when other celebrities' fans swarmed him and berated him until he dared not talk back.
Lu Chen and Chu Honglie's fans were especially excited.
To some extent, it's very difficult for a male actor like Geng Yue, who has achieved success, to collapse overnight. However, once the industry starts to avoid him, Geng Yue will slowly disappear without anyone noticing.
Celebrities, after all, need exposure.
Geng Yue's fans all believe it's Lin Yuan's fault: "Why is it that whoever doesn't get along with Lin Yuan always suffers? From Xie Yu to Ye Liuchuan, and now to Geng Yue, Lin Yuan, you've harmed so many people and you're still not satisfied?"
But this time, it was still not Lin Yuan's fans who spoke up. Lu Chen and Chu Honglie's fans started cursing first: "Lin Yuan is doing a service to the people!"
"Lin Yuan had better not say anything. Are you just letting Geng Yue continue to scam people? Don't be so shameless!"
Amidst the online uproar and debates, Geng Yue completely lost all the goodwill he had built up with the public after becoming the male lead.
The brokerage firms are also under a lot of pressure.
It's not that the agency is unwilling to help Geng Yue; after all, they invested a lot of money to promote him. However, Geng Yue hasn't had any outstanding works in the past two years, and he alone can't support the company. The agency has to find a way to promote new talent to take over from Geng Yue.
Even if Geng Yue is managed to be saved this time, his popularity will inevitably decline. At that point, he will be unable to participate in events and his commercial performance will be mediocre. For the agency, this will not be cost-effective.
Most importantly, Geng Yue's contract is about to expire.
Back when Geng Yue wasn't very famous, he would have signed the contract long ago without the company even having to ask.
This time, Geng Yue has become powerful again and is the company's top star. The senior management of the agency has mentioned the contract renewal several times, but Geng Yue has been making excuses and has not yet made a statement.
The agency wasn't sure whether he had already found another agency or was trying to negotiate terms by backing down.
However, given this situation, it's destined that it will be difficult for the agency to be of one mind with Geng Yue.
...
Feng asked Lin Yuan, "Did you anticipate this situation?"
Lin Yuan gestured with his fingers: "A little bit."
He started it, but the rest of the work was actually done by his agent, and later... He Xun's agency also contributed.
Although He Xun no longer cares about being kicked out of "Let's Travel," his agency can still do the same thing, adding fuel to the fire.
Indeed, some netizens have discovered the timeline between the two movies, "An Apple" and "Lily's Whispers," but it's difficult for netizens alone to ignite the fire.
This is where professional assistance is needed.
Feng played a supporting role in this.
“It’s purely my intuition,” Lin Yuan said. “After reading what Pan Qi posted, I feel that he and Geng Yue have a good relationship. In short, he can’t bear to scold Geng Yue.”
In his previous life, Lin Yuan happened to know a so-called "film critic" whose style was similar to Pan Qi's.
He just didn't expect that Pan Qi would also be acting as Geng Yue's henchman.
The two film critics share an astonishing 100% similarity in their personalities.
Then, by following the clues, everything will become clear.
Lin Yuan's post on Weibo homepage was just meant to expose Pan Qi's true colors, at most to set a trap for Geng Yue, and to disgust him by using Pan Qi's praise of Geng Yue's acting skills.
As it turned out, things developed much faster than he had anticipated.
Although Geng Yue is currently in a bad situation, Lin Yuan finds it difficult to feel any sympathy for him. He could have used Pan Qi to gain favor with the judges of major awards like the Golden Wing Award, but instead, he chose not to and used his methods on his competitor.
“Pan Qi can’t win people’s favor,” Feng Zeng said. “Among film critics, Pan Qi is also the type who is ignorant and incompetent, and doesn’t have much knowledge.”
Therefore, although Pan Qi has a lot of buzz, he lacks brand recognition.
"Who can't see it? Compared to the other nominated actors, Geng Yue's acting skills are far inferior. No matter how much Pan Qi praises him, not many people will respond."
Lin Yuan nodded.
“Geng Yue’s resources have plummeted recently,” Feng Zeng told Lin Yuan. “His fans are still stubbornly insisting that it has no impact, but in fact, it has had a significant impact.”
Although the celebrities didn't say it, they were still worried that Geng Yue might stab them in the back halfway through.
"Besides, he's reached this stage himself."
Geng Yue initially rose to prominence, but his popularity has been gradually declining as he lost the Golden Wing Award and failed to produce another hit work.
Whether Geng Yue himself was willing or not, he would eventually have to step down.
"That's how the acting world is; if you don't move forward, you fall behind." Feng patted Lin Yuan on the shoulder. "You may face this situation in the future. Remember to stay calm and don't panic. Staying true to yourself is the most important thing."
In Feng Zeng's mind, winning awards and standing at the top of the pyramid are certainly important, but he is afraid that Lin Yuan will lose his way because of it.
Even former superstars may one day fall from grace.
No one can be famous forever, but some people will always become famous.
There are far too many celebrities in this industry who were once wildly popular but then disappeared from the public eye.
Someone will always be eliminated.
"I know."
A few days after the incident was exposed, three or four brands quietly canceled their cooperation with Geng Yue and replaced their advertisements with posters featuring the new spokesperson.
Then came the change in the variety show lineup.
When the production team of "Let's Travel" replaced He Xun under Geng Yue's intervention, the team refused to admit it after the news was exposed, saying that they had never considered inviting He Xun.
This time, Geng Yue was replaced, and fans protested to the production team. The new variety show's production team directly copied and pasted the script from the "Let's Travel" production team.
[XXX has never intended to invite Mr. Geng Yue.]
The show's attitude was extremely perfunctory. Fans originally thought they could get an explanation for Geng Yue, but now they only got laughs instead.
"Where did that bullying attitude you had towards He Xun go? Where did it go?"
"When He Xun was kicked out, the announcement from the production team was treated like gospel by your fans, but you can't accept it when it happens to you? Didn't you ever think about how He Xun's fans felt at the time?"
"And by the way, what about the feelings of Lin Yuan's fans, Lu Chen's fans, and Chu Honglie's fans? I know you won't consider it. If you were willing to consider it, you wouldn't have taken the initiative to trick them."
"Hahaha, all I can say is, he deserved it! Although I'm not a fan of any of the people mentioned above, I still remember how Pan Qi badmouthed Fang Linzhen, saying his acting was worthless. Fang Linzhen was depressed for a long time, but then he turned around and won an acting award. Pan Qi and Geng Yue have both done a lot of harm. Let them both collapse. I have no regrets at all."
It's fair to say that if Geng Yue were a decent person, netizens would feel a pang of regret upon seeing his plight.
As a result, when he fell from grace, netizens discovered that apart from his fans, very few people spoke up for him.
Not only that, but more and more people are pouring oil into the market, and even celebrities from Geng Yue's company are getting involved.
"How utterly pathetic is this person?"
"Is this the first day upstairs? Think about it carefully, did He Xun and Geng Yue have any grudges in the first place? They are two people who have nothing to do with each other. Just because He Xun and Lin Yuan have worked together on 'The Powerful Minister' and have a good relationship, does Geng Yue have to make things difficult for him? Can't you see what kind of person he is?"
"+1, Lin Yuan was so obscure before, but when he sang on the county town's big stage, people still praised his good attitude."
The fact that virtually no one in the industry spoke up for Geng Yue accelerated the collapse of his reputation, and his resources were divided up even more fiercely.
Geng Yue's fellow artists from the same company inevitably faced questions, especially Wang Chen, who replaced He Xun on "Let's Travel".
In the video, Wang Chen's expression was so innocent: "We...aren't that close."
"Brother Geng is too famous. He is someone I have to look up to. Although we are signed with the same company, we have not actually spoken much."
Since Wang Chen was interviewed, the old story from "Let's Travel" was naturally brought up.
Wang Chen looked even more innocent: "If I said I didn't know anything, no one would believe me, right? But this is the truth. My agent approached me and said that a travel variety show was short of a youngest member. The production team thought my image was suitable, so they sent me. They didn't say much else, just that I should run errands and eat less."
Wang Chen is prone to weight gain, and his love of food has become a running joke. Whenever he sees something delicious but is prevented from doing so by various means, his fans feel sorry for him.
"Eat less... that's what Wang Chen's agent would say. The child has really had a tough time."
“Geng Yue is Geng Yue, and Wang Chen is Wang Chen. Has Pan Qi ever spoken up for Wang Chen? Just because Geng Yue and Wang Chen are in the same agency doesn’t mean we should look at Wang Chen with prejudice. Can’t you see it in the show ‘Let’s Travel’? Wang Chen is just Geng Yue’s errand boy.”
"If anyone thinks Wang Chen took advantage of Geng Yue, I wish your company also had such a great senior. If one isn't enough, bring ten! Pack them all up and send them to your house."
"+1+1".
After Geng Yue's incident, Wang Chen's fans tried their best to distance themselves from Geng Yue and Wang Chen, completely forgetting that Wang Chen himself had mentioned "Brother Yue" many times in his live broadcasts, saying things like, "Brother Yue is a very good person and takes good care of me," and "Yesterday I got Brother Yue's autograph, it's exclusive."
The fans, along with Wang Chen himself, have lost their memories.
Geng Yue's fans have been unable to vent their anger, since compared to Geng Yue, other celebrities can be considered innocent victims.
But Wang Chen is different.
Seeing the comments made by Wang Chen and his fans, Geng Yue's fans were truly enraged.
What's the difference between Wang Chen and an ingrate?
Geng Yue may have wronged others, but he didn't wrong Wang Chen. Besides, Wang Chen took advantage of Geng Yue's connections to gain access to a lot of resources.
Now they're running around playing the victim, claiming they're not familiar with each other and that they're innocent. Do they think the whole world is stupid?
Geng Yue's fans are currently no match for the swarming celebrity fans, and they are in the wrong against Lu Chen's and Chu Honglie's fans, but they are not afraid of Wang Chen's fans at all.
The two fan groups quickly started arguing.
Midway through the argument, onlookers tagged He Xun, inviting him to watch the spectacle.
He Xun: "..."
Lin Yuan asked him about his impressions of watching.
"I'm definitely not good at arguing," He Xun sighed. "It's better for me to stay home and sleep all day."
He could neither do what Geng Yue did, nor say what Wang Chen said.
Wang Chen's tone... was as if he were also a victim, unlucky to be in the same agency as Geng Yue, unlucky to be involved with "Let's Travel," without mentioning a word about the benefits he gained from it.
Lin Yuan: "...This reminds me of someone."
"If I hadn't debuted back then, I should be happier?" He Xun quickly replied.
Lin Yuan: "..."
Please don't memorize other people's lines so well, okay?
He thought this was his unique skill.
"That's not true anymore. Your secret technique is #kindness#."
Lin Yuan: "..."
He agreed that He Xun had better not say anything.
The thought that he was the one who inspired He Xun's talkativeness filled Lin Yuan with immense regret.
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Author's Note: Update! [doge][doge][doge]
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