Chapter 61: When the Time Is Right, He Will Make His Move (Please Follow)

The New Year had just passed.

Entertainment gossip and major video platforms began to stir restlessly. The lingering heat from the pre-holiday teasers by various production teams had not yet dissipated. With increased media promotion, the much-anticipated historical romance dramas finally began their official publicity campaigns!

Weibo’s trending topics:

Hot 1: LOL Asian Games, no active players...
Hot 2: Li Xinjie’s “Destined Across Two Lifetimes” hot↑
Hot 3: “The New Four Talents” NNQT
Hot 4: Chen Yang’s “Heavenly Order”
Hot 5: Kiwi Oil Depot’s new drama launched!
Hot 6: Why is Penguin’s new drama so slow?
Hot 7... This year’s explosion of historical romance dramas!

With the platforms’ behind-the-scenes promotions, nearly all trending searches these days revolved around new releases. Kiwi and Oil Depot, two major platforms, had already posted teasers on their drama section pages. Besides the main lineup of grand historical romances, small-budget web dramas were also being launched, though just to catch some of the hype.

Yet, Zhang Huaimou and Penguin Video seemed sluggish, as their official accounts had yet to announce a release date for their new drama. Thus, Kiwi and Oil Depot became the centers of attention.

The public’s sentiment followed previous predictions: this year, audiences were indeed more eager for historical romance content. The most anticipated scripts remained firmly at the top of the trending charts, with Li Xinjie’s “Destined Across Two Lifetimes” enjoying the highest popularity.

Of course, it wasn’t that the original novel was particularly famous before adaptation. Rather, many netizens and fans dredged up last year’s old disputes.

[Comments:
“I just want to ask: where’s Sumu’s drama? Don’t tell me it won’t air this year?”
“The internet remembers. He said Li Xinjie should wait at the Summit Awards—looks like he spoke too soon. He’s bound to lose!”
“That’s right! I watched the behind-the-scenes for Li Xinjie’s new show! Fantasy and tragic romance, it’s absolutely amazing!”
“Sumu’s been silent for half a year—did something happen, or did his project sink?”
“I heard he’s still filming in the crew. Haha, probably didn’t do well and now he’s afraid to speak!”
“Yeah, I just want to know: does Sumu even dare to say anything now? Win awards? With so many new dramas this year, even getting nominated is hard!”
“Who still thinks Sumu’s old statements were impressive? Now it’s just laughable. I wonder how he’ll compare with these new shows:
‘Destined...’ ‘Four Talents’ ‘Heavenly Order’ ‘Moonlit Flower Demon’...
How can he compete? Still wants awards? Is his ‘Langya List’ up to it?”]

Online commentary had begun to form a trend. At first, Sumu’s fan group could still argue back against these trolls. But half a month passed.

Sumu never responded, which left his supporters passive and unable to persuade anyone. Over time, their momentum seemed to wane.

In truth, public expectations for Sumu had been the highest. His performance in last year’s “Surge” left a deep impression and still attracted fans. But “Langya List” was slow to begin its publicity, naturally losing a significant amount of heat and audience traffic.

No one knew what Zhang Huaimou and Penguin Video were planning.

...

Giant Elephant Media.

Li Hui’s face was bright, as if all previous gloom had been swept away. “President Zhou, Xinjie has the highest popularity right now. With this opportunity, once our company’s drama premieres at the end of March, it’s bound to become a hit!”

Zhou Wanming looked at Li Hui, smiling approvingly. “Very good. I really didn’t expect Li Xinjie’s popularity to surpass Chen Yang’s. You know, next door at Star Media, their boy band filmed the historical romance ‘The New Four Talents’, and the appeal of their female fans is no joke.”

Li Hui listened with inner pride. For months, he had racked his brains to devise a strategy to heat up Li Xinjie’s visibility. When he saw online doubts about Sumu and Zhang Huaimou’s new drama’s delayed publicity, Li Hui seized this opportunity. He didn’t need to push hard—just gently fanned the flames, reminding netizens of Sumu’s previous words. The buzz followed naturally.

He had to admit, his timing was perfect—right at the critical moment. Li Xinjie soared to the top of the trending list. Even if it wouldn’t last long, it was enough; once the hype faded, Li Xinjie’s new drama would premiere, and all goals would be achieved.

Li Hui secretly rejoiced, feeling he had finally regained an advantage. He genuinely wanted to see Qian Jida’s frustrated expression now. So what if Sumu had many offers? Sometimes, one hit drama was worth more than dozens of mediocre ones.

Looking at Li Hui, Zhou Wanming smiled, “I’ve had someone check—most new dramas this year will premiere in March or April. It’ll be a fierce competition.”

Li Hui replied, “President Zhou, this drama was carefully selected by our company, the script is solid, and many media reviews are positive. I have absolute confidence.”

Zhou Wanming said, “Very well. If Xinjie’s drama explodes, the company will invest even more resources.”

Li Hui: “Thank you, President Zhou!”

...

Next door, at Star Media.

At this moment, Zhang Hua’an shared similar feelings to Li Hui. When it came to rivalry, Qian Jida was his fiercest competitor. As for Li Hui and Li Xinjie, he barely even considered them.

Zhang Hua’an held his tablet, constantly refreshing the latest news. After much thought, he began to plot for endorsements.

He dialed Liu Qiangxi’s number.

“Hello, Director Liu.”

Liu Qiangxi replied, “Oh, President Zhang, long time no see.”

Zhang Hua’an said, “Yes, I’ve been busy with my artists filming lately. Just got some free time and now we’re trending again. The popularity is too high, so I have to monitor public relations every day.
By the way, I heard your new brand launched and you got Sumu as the spokesperson?”

Liu Qiangxi answered, “Yes, it’s still him.”

Zhang Hua’an remarked, “But lately I haven’t seen much publicity for Sumu’s new drama. Seems like his popularity isn’t very high...”

Liu Qiangxi replied, “I’m not really sure. I’ve been busy, but I don’t think it’s anything to worry about.”

Zhang Hua’an: “Oh?”

On the other end, Liu Qiangxi gave a knowing smile, “I understand him—when the time is right, he’ll make his move.”

Zhang Hua’an: “???”

...

At this moment.

While all public attention was focused on the upcoming premieres, Sumu, Zhang Huaimou, Yu Hong, and the four directors of Penguin’s drama section were in a WeChat group discussing.

Director: “Everyone, the drama section page is already being laid out, ready to update at any time.”

Zhang Huaimou: “Is the final cut ready?”

Director: “No problem. But I must say, as someone who’s directed the section for years, this is a first: launching publicity and the premiere together, with only one day’s notice. Do you realize how much pre-release traffic and ad revenue this will cost?”

Yu Hong: “Hm.”

Zhang Huaimou: “Hm.”

Director: “Director Yu, with all due respect, you’re good at strategy, but when it comes to practical operations, you’re not as experienced as us frontline staff.”

Director: “Let me be frank—right now, Kiwi and Oil Depot’s promotions are generating massive heat. Even if you use this surprise attack strategy, it might not have any miraculous effect.”

Zhang Huaimou: “...”

Yu Hong: “Sumu, what do you think?”

Sumu: “Just to confirm, the final cut is ready in your video backend system, right?”

Director: “Of course.”

Sumu: “Layout’s fine, main page feature.”

Director: “Yes.”

Sumu: “OK, you two don’t move. I’ll handle it.”

Director: “But I want to add... I’ve heard that the scripts for ‘Destined Across Two Lifetimes’ and ‘Moonlit Flower Demon’ are both solid, so how can you believe that premiering ‘Langya List’ will elevate the audience’s taste?”

Director: “On what grounds?”

[Notification: You have been removed from the group chat]

Director: “???”