The battle for traffic in Chinese entertainment

Chapter 491 Trainee Yoo Jimin's Debut Mission

"Mulan" was released at the beginning of the month, first on the streaming platform Disney+, and then in mainland China a week later.

It was a spectacular and dramatic event.

The more hype fans gave it before its release, the worse it flopped after its release. Last weekend, the combined box office for "Mulan" was less than 500 million.

After 20 days in theaters, the verdict is already clear: 3 million is an insurmountable barrier.

The current box office of 2.7 million yuan has already reached its peak.

Overseas, the most important regions are Europe and America, where it was released in D+ format, while in other regions where it was released in theaters, the box office was negligible.

$2 million, or 14 billion in production cost, and $2.7 million in box office revenue... It's fortunate that it was released in D+, giving fans room to defend it.

But no matter how much you wash it, it's still a giant puffball.

The box office flopped, and the word-of-mouth was even worse.

The stereotypical portrayals and heavy Western arrogance made the audience feel uncomfortable.

From the day it was broadcast on the media, the Chinese internet was flooded with complaints.

The marketing team struggled to promote the positive overseas reviews, but instead received more ridicule.

The fans gritted their teeth, while the rivals laughed until they were bent over.

As for Ms. Liu Yifei, Xu Xinggang just glanced at her WeChat Moments. Last week, she posted a completely black picture, which probably indicated that she was in a bad mood.

Perhaps because everyone knew she was in a bad mood, no one gave her a thumbs up.

For example, Tang Yan, who was on good terms with her, didn't order any.

Now she's sending a WeChat message... what are her intentions?

There's been so much going on lately.

Xu Xingxian went back first.

Everyone knows that Ms. Liu's "Mulan" flopped completely in September, and everyone also knows that Xu Xing's strong response to the Korean group's debut in September shocked the world.

Speaking of which, Teacher Yang's unusual happiness is partly due to the failure of "Mulan".

If "Mulan" doesn't flop, then no other actresses in China will have a future.

The fan community also used Teacher Yang to criticize Ms. Liu.

The wasps started blowing 851 again.

The box office of her movies is much higher than Ms. Liu's, and she has also produced quite a few hit TV series. Now, Ms. Yang knows how to cultivate herself.

Where is Ms. Liu?

So all they do is cooperate with the West to vilify China!

What's so special about Disney princesses who idolize foreign things?

My sister Mi will only be a princess of China!
The Chinese princess is so skilled!

Disney princesses also responded quickly.

Yes, you're so busy...

?

Why does she seem to be acting sarcastic and unsettling?

Xu Xing mentally complained and prepared to close the chat window to tell her that she was really busy.

I want to chat with you, but I don't know when the right time will be.

She sent it again.

Xu Xing will reply again.

There really isn't much time to chat.

Liu Yifei: [And now?]

Xu Xing: [A ton of things to do at the company, plus a bunch of upcoming projects and other miscellaneous tasks. When inspiration strikes, I need to write songs and scripts, and I also need to memorize tomorrow's lines again.]

Liu: [Thumbs up!] Such a successful career man! He's amazing!

Xu: [Laughing and crying emoji]

Liu: [There's not even any time to rest.]

Xu: [It's okay, work and rest don't conflict. I'm hanging up now, my agent is calling.]

Liu: [Oh, okay! You're busy.]

The conversation was quite boring, so Xu Xing ended it as soon as possible and called Liu Cheng back beforehand.

The phone call was about organizing a music festival.

In his previous life, the opening up of the market did indeed bring about a peak in the offline performance market, but for Xu Xing, making that much money was quite troublesome.

During that peak, music festival ticket prices were rising, but musicians' appearance fees were also skyrocketing. Many music festivals that were announced and then cancelled were due to poor ticket sales and an inability to recoup their costs.

So you can't make much money.

Therefore, Hsu Hsing's music career has mainly focused on overseas markets, and she hasn't considered this area.

It was Liu Cheng who brought it up, asking Xu Xing for his views on the future offline performance market, saying he wanted to invest in it and that he had had this idea before. Xu Xing then supported him.

Currently, Sun Man is primarily responsible for Xu Xing's management. Liu Cheng doesn't have much to do in the daily operations of Lucky Star.

Xu Xing had no intention of expanding the scale of Lucky Star, and Liu Cheng was also not keen on taking on a senior management position at Zheng Rong to further his career.

Liu Chengjiu lived a very leisurely life.

He frequents livehouses, drinks and chats with his friends, and is often caught by Hsu Hsing's fans who take photos of him and post them online.

[He's said to be the man with the most resurrection armor in the world!]
[@LuckyStar, your company's employees are slacking off again, deduct their wages!!!]
Sometimes Liu Cheng would even reply using his own account—[Thanks for reporting, the money has been deducted.]
At first, some girls scolded him for being shameless and despicable, but they gradually got along well.

[My best friend, who's an 8 out of 10 in looks, tested the waters, and she didn't take the opportunity to have an affair and ruin Yukito's reputation. Her unwavering adherence to male virtues is so terrifying, it's actually making my best friend a little infatuated...]
[Has Cheng Chu been fired? How come he doesn't know anything about Xing Sheng's affairs?]
[How come Cheng Chu can't even get the code for the Grandmaster Qing Emperor's sniper rifle?]
[I heard the NPCs are respawning tonight, any ladies want to go and give out resurrection armor?]
[Check-in successful!]
Xu Xing accidentally stumbled upon him on Xiaohongshu and realized that he had become an internet celebrity NPC.

Liu Cheng wanted to organize a music festival, which, according to him, was also to help his friends in the industry.

After Livehouses closed at the beginning of the year, the situation became extremely difficult for many underground musicians who relied on them for a living, and related professionals were also struggling to make ends meet.

Although offline performances have begun to recover and large music festivals have started to be held again, the latest prevention and control requirements limit the number of people to 50%, and many audience members still have concerns.

Because of the ever-present risks, the music festival could be canceled at any time before it even takes place.

No one in the industry knows when the offline market will recover to its previous level, so everyone is working hard to develop the online performance market. Some industry leaders believe that this is the future trend.

In the previous life, 2022 was the lowest point for the offline performance market, and it only started to boom in 2023.

Actually, Liu Cheng also felt that he probably wouldn't make much money, but he didn't have that much money himself... He asked casually, and to his surprise, Xu Xing agreed.

This left Liu Cheng with many emotions.

Once the music scene started buzzing, even veteran rockers and young folks were full of praise, once again showering Xing Sheng with compliments on his dedication to the development of domestic music.

This is entering the game at the most difficult time.

The Nebula Music Festival, organized by Liu Cheng, will begin next month.

During the phone call, Liu Cheng explained the ticket sales situation. He said that the music festival should break even this time, and the main goal was to do a good job in prevention and control and to accumulate experience.

The call was short.

But Xu Xing's composure and confidence when talking about work made Teacher Yang's eyes light up.

Overseas media outlets such as CNN and The New York Times, in order to prove that Xu Xing has a powerful background, have reported on the investments that Xu Xing has made, which are things that they do not talk about and that few people outside know.

Teacher Yang, who had ridden in the car with Xu Xing twice, knew that it was only a small part of the group.

Xu Xing is really amazing!

Teacher Yang had secretly thought many times about whether Xu Xing's body or ability was more powerful. Every time she thought about it, she felt that he was more and more powerful, like stepping on his right foot with his left foot and soaring into the sky... that's how heaven-defying he was.

After hanging up the phone, Xu Xing stretched, and Teacher Yang instinctively stepped forward.

At first, she instinctively moved backward, which is normal for most people. But Teacher Yang changed herself for Xu Xing, even though she would shed tears every time.

Unfortunately, Xu Xing's hand was still gently stroking, and she continued to look at the phone screen.

I didn't look at her, nor did I say a word of praise to her.

Are you done with your work?

[You're so busy, haven't you seen "Mulan" yet...? [laughing and crying emoji]]

Could you share your thoughts on this movie?

Ms. Liu sent three messages in a row while Xu Xing was on the phone.

Xu Xing is difficult to evaluate.

It seems Ms. Liu wanted some affirmation from me?
But Xu Xing's virtue is honesty.

[I watched it, it was pretty bad. I never thought they could make a good film about our story.]

Send it over.

After Xu Xing finished taking photos of Teacher Yang, Ms. Liu still hadn't replied.

Xu Xing put down her phone and began to reward Teacher Yang.

Teacher Yang also has a gentle side, which is quite nice.

After giving the reward, with Teacher Yang's help, we completed the tasks that we had to do every night, which were the ones we had told Ms. Liu about.

After a final relaxing session before bed and a shower together, Xu Xing, lying on the bedside table, picked up her phone and saw four WeChat messages from Ms. Liu.

You're going too far...

Ten minutes later.

However, it seems like you're the only one who told me the truth... even though I thought the movie was really good.

Almost half an hour later.

Did you guess the answer to that question you asked me back then...?

Can I trust you...?

What is this for?
It is not advisable to easily trust strangers.

Reply to the past.

After replying to all the other women's bedtime greetings, Xu Xing went to sleep.

As it turns out, there really was a spark between Ms. Yang and Ms. Bae Joo-hyun.

At first, Bae Joo-hyun was somewhat indifferent to the new woman Heo Haeng brought.

Xu Xing had previously summoned Yang Chaoyue, who had worked with her before, Teacher Fan who could appear out of nowhere, and Zhou Jieqiong, who had experience working in South Korea, to introduce her to her Chinese friends.

When I'm with other people, the atmosphere is always very polite.

Only Teacher Yang, upon meeting me, would look me up and down with a half-smile, and then say something.

"He certainly seems like someone not to be trifled with."

Bae Joo-hyun, who was feeling a bit reserved, was immediately filled with questions, but she couldn't show them.

Ms. Pei only began to fight back after she had been speaking in a humble and submissive manner and getting to the point.

Even in her own country, Teacher Yang did not allow a South Korean woman to act so arrogantly, and she responded with a strong stance.

Both of them were burning with anger, but because of Xu Xing, they didn't dare to completely break off relations. Xu Xing would intervene and break up the fight if she saw any signs of trouble, so they could only keep their expressions a mix of anger and confusion.

They fought tooth and nail, their actions reaching the extreme of shamelessness; they were two particularly quintessential cold and aloof bitches.

Finally, they kissed again, completely lost in the moment...

So, whenever this happens, Xu Xing tells herself that she needs to work harder and harder!

Only by doing a good job can you enjoy life more. The next day, from waking up to finishing breakfast, there was another continuous struggle.

Upon learning that Xu Xing intended to leave Teacher Yang at the villa as well, Ms. Pei finally couldn't help but ask Xu Xing if someone else could come instead when he returned that evening.

Before Xu Xing could respond, Teacher Yang, who had overheard, chuckled and hugged her from behind, telling her not to misunderstand, that she had simply preferred it that way before.

He also assured Xu Xing that he would definitely get along well with Pei Meimei so that Xu Xing could focus on acting and not be distracted.

It's like a bully hugging their victim while answering a teacher's questions.

When Xu Xing returned home that evening, she saw a pair of the most superficial best friends.

They didn't tear each other apart like they did yesterday, but their words became increasingly sarcastic and sarcastic.

Xu Xingdu almost broke down several times.

At first, Xu Xing laughed out loud, Teacher Yang remained calm, but Ms. Pei felt embarrassed.

But after it happened many times, Ms. Pei stopped caring and started openly and subtly criticizing Teacher Yang.

Xu Xing watched it like a comedy sketch.

Teacher Yang must have done her homework during the day, searching online for all the things Ms. Pei had to say about her, besides this bullying incident, and every single one of them hit the nail on the head.

Completely unprepared, Ms. Pei, who had been adjusting her mindset all day, suffered a great loss. However, she would switch to Korean, leaving Teacher Yang unable to understand and anxious.

Xu Xing used to dislike her communicating in Korean, but this time Xu Xing acquiesced.

Ms. Pei responded in Korean, feeling increasingly sweet inside, and her smile grew more relaxed.

In her frustration, Ms. Yang angrily smacked her on the lips to stop her from continuing.

Ms. Pei responded fiercely.

Xu Xing laughed heartily and clapped repeatedly, which made the two of them even more excited.

Teacher Yang is a lively and energetic person, while Ms. Pei is truly determined; even in a foreign country, she is unwilling to admit defeat and is very strong-willed.

It wasn't until Xu Xing received a call from Sun Man that she started surfing the internet.

They noticed that Xu Xing had quieted down, so they quickly separated and snuggled together.

Xu Xing glanced at them and smiled at Ms. Pei.

"Your company's new visual member has had her chat history leaked by her best friend, who says that your company and Kpop are doomed."

Ms. Liu Zhimin has triggered her debut mission once again.

"That young lady?" Yang Mi asked quickly, "Is she pretty?"

Looking at Xu Xing's phone, Bae Joo-hyun murmured something.

"It really is her. Did the president introduce her to Dad as well?"

The Weibo post on the screen was just a marketing account hyping things up; this SM trainee was criticizing everyone except Xu Xing—

[Unbelievably handsome, even more so in person than in the movies! No wonder the whole world loves him!]
[If they can't even keep trainees like this, SM Entertainment is probably doomed!]
[What a pity, she was supposed to be his junior sister...]
When her best friend mentioned Xu Xing, Liu Zhimin shared her experience of accidentally seeing Xu Xing when Xu Xing returned to SM Entertainment and gave her evaluation.

She looked like a lovesick fangirl.

However, Bae Joo-hyun, who could only speak some Chinese and didn't know many Chinese characters, instinctively felt that Lee Soo-man had already introduced Yoo Jimin to Heo Haeng when she saw Yoo Jimin's name.

Because SM Entertainment only recently announced the launch of their new girl group, the public has no idea who the members are or who the visual is.

The media is still referring to Yoo Jimin as a "suspected member of a new girl group".

Bae Joo-hyun felt a little sad.

She only came to her senses after Xu Xing casually pulled her into his arms.

Then, Teacher Yang couldn't help but laugh.

"This trainee even insulted Sister Pei! How dare she!"

"what?"

Bae Joo-hyun frowned angrily.

She quickly checked Xu Xing's phone and saw her name, but still couldn't understand what had been said about her.

She had no choice but to hurriedly get up and grab her own phone.

Upon seeing this, he was even more enraged.

That's absolutely outrageous!!!
Showing absolutely no respect for their seniors!!!

If she were still in China, Bae Joo-hyun would have stormed into the dorm and torn that little bitch's mouth apart!
What does it mean to say "the real person is particularly unattractive, and the proportions are worse than expected"?
The poor proportions were a sore spot for Bae Joo-hyun... After Heo Haeng-hyun made her take off like an airplane, she had stopped caring so much...

Teacher Yang noticed Bae Joo-hyun's increasingly sour face and couldn't help but smile.

And they couldn't resist stirring things up.

"I heard that Koreans are very strict with their seniors and juniors. This junior would definitely apologize to Bae-sister, right?"

"……certainly."

Bae Joo-hyun said irritably.

Just then, Xu Xing wanted to press her little head down and pull her into his arms to comfort her.

Bae Joo-hyun thought Heo Haeng was going to criticize her, and the eye roll she had just made quickly turned into a forced smile.

Teacher Yang couldn't help but chuckle again.

Bae Joo-hyun met her gaze, and suddenly a feeling of grievance and sadness welled up in her heart again.

However, upon seeing this, Teacher Yang suddenly stopped smiling, and her eyes turned to concern.

"It's okay, Dad will teach her a lesson in the future."

Teacher Yang knew all too well that the more individualistic Xu Xing was, the more energetic she would become, until she and Bae Joo-hyun would both become as obedient as she and Bae Joo-hyun...

"What?! I don't know her at all!" Xu Xing was speechless and immediately criticized Liu Zhimin to clarify her position. "She went too far! Even Irene didn't criticize Im Yoona!"

"..."

Just as Bae Joo-hyun felt a surge of sweetness in her heart, her face immediately turned ashamed.

She had so many complaints...

Especially after learning that Lim Yoona had hooked up with Xu Xing, before she actually did, she was constantly thinking to herself: What a disgrace to her fans! What kind of innocent little deer is she? When will her true colors be revealed?
Teacher Yang almost burst out laughing again.

Bae Joo-hyun's shame flashed by for a moment, and she spoke with remarkable composure.

"of course not."

After leaving aside the part about criticizing Bae Joo-hyun, the three of them looked at and discussed the remaining chat logs together.

Apart from the section about Xu Xing, the part that differs from the previous life's chat logs is the mention of Bigit.

This time, trainee Yoo Jimin no longer regretted not choosing to join Bighit because she thought BTS was ugly. Instead, she was glad she didn't go because she felt that Bighit was now finished.

SM is on the verge of collapse.

"SM is finished, Bighit is finished, Kpop is finished," trainee Yoo Jimin lamented in a chat log.

Domestic netizens expressed their approval of her assessment.

The part where she complained that BTS was too ugly also earned her praise from netizens, who said that at least the girl's taste was not wrong.

Even the king oyster mushroom fans, who love watching the drama unfold, are all supporting her.

"The anxiety in our country is indeed very serious. The failures of Bigit and BTS have filled everyone with pessimism. In particular, the criticism and doubts about Kpop from fans and netizens are the most unacceptable thing for everyone."

Bae Joo-hyun's tone carried a sense of worry about her future.

With the opening of the Chinese market still a long way off, Bighit's seemingly bright path is built on inflated marketing figures. What should they do next?
"Actually, things aren't going well all over the world right now. The film and television industry in China is also experiencing a more and more severe downturn. It might be a little hard to say about the music industry, but the film and television industry is doing exceptionally well thanks to Netflix."

Teacher Yang also became serious.

“Your younger sister is pretty. She should study acting. Dad has a good relationship with Netflix, so there are many performance opportunities. You girl group members can only go further by transitioning into acting.”

"...I've studied acting, but I'm not very good at it."

Bae Joo-hyun said awkwardly.

My previous performance experience was not very good.

However, she was about to start filming a movie, but the bullying incident broke out, and she had to cancel all her work arrangements.

Fortunately, Xu Xing, who invested in the film, has indicated that filming can resume once she returns to South Korea.

“It’s great that you’ve dedicated your career to the stage. Dad will always support you.”

Teacher Yang's lectures became more and more engaging.

After last night, she finally understood why Xu Xing was so fond of Bae Joo-hyun. The visual impact of such a small figure was truly striking... Bae Joo-hyun had a cool and aloof demeanor on the outside, but Xu Xing loved the feeling of being able to control her completely.

If it weren't for the fact that Sun Man is a fan of Lim Yoona, Teacher Yang would have felt that Bae Joo-hyun's niche was even more secure than Lim Yoona's.

After comforting Bae Joo-hyun, Teacher Yang changed the subject.

"With this kind of news breaking now, this trainee probably has no chance of debuting."

"not necessarily."

Bae Joo-hyun shook her head.

She had heard that Yoo Jimin was the concept center for the next girl group.

With the official announcement that the new girl group is about to debut, SM Entertainment cannot simply remove the concept center and overturn the entire project.

“Probably not,” Xu Xing agreed. “Ryu Jimin already had a huge following before her debut. In the era of internet celebrities, that’s crucial. BTS and Irene, who are being criticized, are facing their lowest point in terms of public opinion since their debut. The rest of the criticized EXO and NCT seniors are all from their own companies.”

"Comparatively speaking, the part that praised me might be more serious. My reputation in South Korea is very bad now, and her remarks are simply blatantly pro-China and anti-foreign. But at the time of that chat log, my reputation in South Korea was still very good. And with the collapse of BTS, my reputation has recovered quite a bit."

"These chat logs are not a fatal stain on her reputation. In fact, many people may even find her behavior particularly authentic and invest in her beforehand. Moreover, at this point in time, SM Entertainment can also use public relations to portray it as a fabricated smear. SM Entertainment just announced the formation of a girl group and then encountered such an attack."

"Yes."

Bae Joo-hyun nodded.

Teacher Yang nodded emphatically.

"And my dad's strong support!"

Snapped!
Xu Xing slapped him as punishment.

"I told you, I don't know her!"

"……Oh."

Teacher Yang nodded, looking aggrieved.

Finally, Bae Joo-hyun laughed at her.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Trainee Liu Zhimin's chat logs have received far more attention than in her previous life.

Domestic netizens were already enjoying watching the entertainment industry in South Korea.

This period marked the peak of K-pop attention since the Korean Wave ban began and YG Entertainment suddenly announced in 18 that Heo Hyung and Kim Jisoo were dating.

South Korean netizens strongly agree with the "it's all over" theory.

Some people have linked this incident to the leaked verdict regarding BTS's alleged hoarding of music tracks, believing it to be a case of infighting and backstabbing among K-pop companies, expressing extreme disgust towards K-pop.

However, you can't get enough of this amusement in just one day.

Teacher Yang didn't stay for very long either.

A few days after Teacher Yang left, Xu Xing suddenly received a WeChat message from Ms. Liu Yifei.

【I am coming. 】

?

(End of this chapter)