Chapter 341: Flowering Journey
Thanks to the concerted promotional efforts of the platform and the series, when "Flower Journey" surpassed 7,000 views on Blueberry Video within an hour, many netizens who had been on the sidelines began to sense that a hit drama was about to happen right under their noses.
Although the show didn't air for very long, some netizens have already been binge-watching all four episodes. Many who initially came expecting to find fault were surprised to find how smooth and fast-paced the first few episodes were.
The majority of the deleted content has now become a major promotional slogan that fans are spreading. A series that prioritizes the audience's feelings is the honor they are holding high.
Inside a residential building in Chengpu City, Guan Yunxia watched the battle report from the official Weibo account of "Flowering Journey" and couldn't help but excitedly offer her congratulations in the comments section. Her excitement peaked when she saw the official Weibo post announcing two extra episodes tonight.
Putting aside other things, which drama in the past would choose to add an extra episode that same day just because of the enthusiastic response from the audience? At least in Guan Yunxia's many years of watching dramas, she's never done that!
Some shows even resort to gimmickry, cutting the originally scheduled number of episodes to just one or even ceasing the series altogether. This kind of drama, driven solely by viewership and appetite for viewership, is incredibly common! They're simply relying on the fact that viewers are willing to pay for their shows, allowing them to remain so impunity.
Guan Yunxia isn't a fan of anyone; she was even drawn into the show early on by its "scam" promotions. Because she was so cute in the wrap-up special, she's the one who posted many of the "Flower Walk" promotional posts on forums.
However, after the press conference, these Amway posts quickly became a "stain on Guan Yunxia's life." Forums were particularly fond of "dig up past experiences" to refute her, and even these purely Amway posts were often mocked.
She went from being a fan to a hater of the show almost as quickly as she fell out with him. But Guan Yunxia discovered that fate had finally found her! Just as she was feeling hopeless, news of a plot reshuffle spread online!
As the plot began to overlap with the show's promotional videos, Guan Yunxia, like all other fans of the show, became a virtual shareholder in "Flower Walk," closely following the show's rising popularity!
On the first day, the popularity of "Flower Walk" soared from 7,000 to 7,700, becoming the top-ranked Blueberry Video drama series in terms of first-day popularity in 2025. On the second day, the popularity exceeded 8,500. On the third day, the popularity exceeded 9,000...
Blueberry Video's popularity is a key industry benchmark, and one the platform maintains most closely. If its performance continues to rise, it's only a matter of time before a celebration at the headquarters takes place.
However, just as the popularity of the series was rising and it was hoped that the series would break 10,000 viewers, on the fifth day of the premiere, that is, on the morning of March 4, paparazzi leaked a video of the male lead of "Flower Walk" Jiang Linhe smoking outdoors and throwing cigarette butts on the ground.
The leaked video has a very tricky angle, like a tailgating scene. It follows Jiang Linhe from the end of the day's filming of "Flower Walk" to the moment he reappears, smoking on the street with only a wig on his head, out of costume.
Moreover, the smoking posture of Jiang Linhe in the video clearly shows that he is a heavy smoker. At present, many fans of the drama have had their image of the male lead, Ren Hongzhe, shattered.
This video was like oil in a frying pan, and within just ten minutes of being released, it had already become a trending search term. Although the initial popularity and discussion of the topic was low, at only 200 or 300, it was enough to attract passers-by to click on it.
As the most beloved drama of the year (and one that has generated the most mixed reactions), "Flower Walk" had already sparked discussion on its official Weibo account on its third day. It's safe to say that without this video, everything would have been moving in a positive direction.
…
In the dressing room, Lu Mengqi, looking at the word "explosive" on the trending search, touched her beating heart with lingering fear. She looked at her manager with a sullen expression and said thankfully, "Luckily, we haven't started hyping up the CP yet! Tying them together! That would be too scary, wouldn't it?"
I just don't know which part of this sentence irritated Chen Suhua. Seeing her agent's face turn from pale to livid, Lu Mengqi sensibly shut up. Her animal instincts kicked in at this moment.
Chen Suhua, her face livid, stared down at the trending post. She soon realized that many of the marketing accounts were familiar faces. Specifically, they were the kind of marketing teams that would publish smear campaigns for a fee.
In particular, many of these comments appeared to be speaking in Jiang Linhe's favor, but were actually fanning the flames. This coordinated effort, coupled with the popular black marketing accounts, was a masterstroke.
"Talk less on the variety show later and be more active when playing games," Chen Suhua said to Lu Mengqi in a serious tone, putting down her phone. Fortunately, under her supervision, Lu Mengqi followed her ideas on everything related to her career, except for her loose talk.
Chen Suhua knew that this revelation wasn't just aimed at Jiang Linhe. On the one hand, it could directly damage the reputation of "Flower Journey." On the other hand, it could completely destroy the "meal" that their two agencies had prepared in advance to hype up their relationship.
But the "meal" hasn't been served yet!
So this is not just targeting Jiang Linhe's side, this is calculating everyone step by step! He also deliberately broke the news before the CP trend, directly cutting off Lu Mengqi's way of attracting fans.
…
——【Entertainment Forum】——[March 4th, noon]
【Topic】Brother, can you please control your mouth? Are cigarettes really that good?
[Main Post] The author of the post is really crying, because the perfect character of Ren Hongzhe in the play has been transferred to Jiang Linhe! Who knew that he would actually wear my Ren Gongzi's headgear and squat on the curb to smoke [sweat] I really feel like I am being stinked [crying]
1L OP
But the show is still good... "Flower Journey" is the first show I followed this year, and it's impossible not to love every character in the show. Even the villains, in my opinion, are excellent and non-stereotypical.
34L
Fortunately, Jiang Linhe and Lu Mengqi haven't teamed up to sweep the building, and this CP player has not yet joined the pit because he has been busy recently! In a word, thank you Mr. Paparazzi for saving me from a cyber criminal record~hhhhhh
88L
Didn't XZC say they were going to be featured on a double cover? I wonder if they'll still do it now? As far as I can remember, neither of them has ever been on this magazine. It's a top women's magazine, but just thinking about it makes me cringe...
176Lmomo
Reply to 88L: I don’t know whether the double cover will be shot or not, but from what I heard, the domestic version of "XZC" is not in a good situation at the moment.
203L
A network girl suddenly appeared in the woc building! Please tell me more if you have any gossip! I love to hear it!
…
That same evening, the original XZC brand issued an announcement on Weibo, announcing the end of its collaboration with the Chinese version. This immediately sent the fashion world into a frenzy.
Zhou Xiao was far more shocked than anyone else when she heard the news. Just yesterday, she had declined Tong Yin's invitation to film a two-person blockbuster for Jiang Linhe and Lu Mengqi's "XZC."
During the discussion, Zhou Xiao also saw a recruitment announcement for XZC on WeChat Moments. It looked like the company was still going strong, with no sign of a contract renewal. He wondered if the recruiters were completely unaware of this, or if there was already a wave of resignations within the company.
Most of the first- and second-tier magazines in China are imported products. They rely on the status of their parent publications in the international fashion circle to seize the initiative and take root in the Chinese fashion magazine industry.
Although it is not yet known which party made the decision not to renew the contract, the biggest problem on the horizon is that the future landscape of the fashion industry is likely to be rewritten again.
The Chinese version of "XZC", which has lost the support of its parent publication, is not only facing the need to change its name, but its already precarious position as a first-line women's magazine also seems to be on the verge of being replaced by new forces at any time.
Zhou Xiao sighed. A lot had indeed happened during her time spent in seclusion drawing storyboards. For example, would the ever-popular "Flower Walk" be silenced today by negative searches? That would depend on how the show performed tonight.
Just as he was thinking, there was a buzzing sound, and the phone on the table vibrated. Zhou Xiao clicked on the screen and saw Tong Yin sent a lawyer's letter to the "Flowering Journey" group chat and tagged all members.
The moment Zhou Xiao clicked on the picture, she was a little confused about who the name was. Why did it look so familiar? But after seeing Wang Hao's explanation in the group chat, she suddenly slapped her thigh and remembered!
When short dramas were popular in film studios, many crew members relied on their fame to secure extra work. Earning extra cash isn't a bad thing, but if it leads to a lack of dedication to your current work, that's not a good thing.
Zhou Xiao recalled Director Fang's decisive dismissal, then reflected on the video that had surfaced online today, and fell silent for a moment. Two of the individuals originally fired had "coincidentally" appeared in the lawyer's letter that Tongyin had sent to the group today.
Watching the lively discussion in the group, Zhou Xiao clicked on Tong Yin's homepage and happened to see a new video she had posted. Besides the rivalry between the male and female leads in the drama, there was also a line Zhou Xiao was quite familiar with, one that had also been used in the promotion.
Chang Ying looked down at the handsome young man below her. He was looking at her with his head held high, a smile on his face. He was waving a folding fan in his hand, completely different from his usual confrontational demeanor.
"Do you dare to challenge me again?" The girl propped up her chin with one hand, her voice gradually becoming deeper due to her disguise, and filled with provocation.
The exquisite pavilion serves as the backdrop, and the two figures, one above and one below, form a striking contrast. This provocation heightens the dramatic tension between them. This section of the plot is the highlight of today's broadcast.
One, two, three... Before the show was broadcast tonight, Tong Yin seemed to have put in all her effort and posted the stills that Zhou Xiao had taken for these episodes in advance on her circle of friends.
The early release of a large number of promotional images was immediately passed on from one hand to another by people in her circle of friends... and soon spread across the Internet, directly attracting many viewers who were on the verge of abandoning the show because of Jiang Linhe's negative news.
Although it was a bit jarring, after the host of the drama published a short essay on "The Separation of Characters and Real People", with this step up, coupled with a lot of fresh new food, many people came back.
What they liked was the drama and the characters in it; what did that have to do with real people? By chance, this also set a precedent for a Chinese entertainment drama to be popular but the actors themselves were not. Of course, that's all a story for later.
Because of this tacit understanding, many wives of artists who originally wanted to delete their blogs and run away, also started drawing today's stills with their digital tablets! Of course, this time there is really only [Chang Ying×Ren Hongzhe] left.
That night, when Zhou Xiao opened the Blueberry Video app, thinking about supporting the drama, the screen was filled with exploding fireworks, followed by a joyful blessing.
Congratulations to "Flowering Journey" for breaking 10,000 views on the site! Join the Blueberry Video Popularity Club!
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