The battle for traffic in Chinese entertainment

Chapter 508 His ambition is despicable!

I'll skip the long list of missed calls and text messages for now.

If there's anything truly important, they'll contact Sun Man. If Sun Man feels it's necessary to tell Xu Xing, she'll call Xu Xing's backup phone.

For example, I had dinner at Wang Fei's house last night, and Wu Zhenyu came to visit at noon today.

It mainly consists of WeChat messages that go "ding dong dong dong dong~~~~~".

【Lucky God! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 】

[Urgent! I need a chance to warm my dad's bed!!!]

[Even Hong Kong dramas can be pulled out of the coffin and revitalized!!!!]

[Dad, where are you? I'll kneel all the way to find you!!!]

[Daddy Daddy Daddy Daddy Daddy!!!]

[Daddy, Daddy~ You are my great tree!!! I will kneel at your feet for my entire life to watch the sunrise!!!]

[Dad, I want to play a corpse in the second season of "Childhood Games"! Nobody can take it from me!!!]

[I am Qin Shi Huang, the First Emperor of Qin. If you let me play a security guard in season two, I'll give you the throne!]

[I've prepared 18,000 ways to lick Daddy's lips, Daddy, let's test me!!!]

【Aaaaaaaahhhhhh!!! Is it too late for me to get my leg hair done??? Even getting rid of the bacteria on my leg hair is fine!!!】

【Are you really not considering keeping a male lover? Otherwise, I'll get a sex change!!!】

[Daddy, Daddy, Daddy! Am I even worthy to be your son?!!!!]

It was only when Xu Xing scanned this area that he realized something was wrong.

This is not a private WeChat account.

All the people calling him "Dad" are men...

Good!
I don't want a son!!!
Switch accounts.

[Kiss][Kiss][Kiss][Kiss]

[Hugs][Hugs][Hugs][Hugs][Hugs]

[Dad is so amazing! So ...

[Brother, brother~ How are you so amazing~ [spinning around]]

When will Dad organize a battle royale game on Lucky Star? [laughing and crying emoji]

I have time until the end of the year. [Dazed]

Good afternoon! I got praised by the teacher in my performance class this morning! [Smiling face] Keep up the good work this afternoon! [Striving face]

I bought something really daring...

Come back and fuck me~

[I was so scared by the blood that I wanted my dad to hold me while I looked at it!!! [Poor me][Poor me][Poor me]]

I've already ordered the green and red matching tracksuits, plus a face mask. Should I swap them? [smirk]

I've arrived in Dandong, why haven't you returned to the set yet? Should I tie myself up and wait for you to come back?

Which vixen in the port city has bewitched you? Is there anyone prettier than Baby over there?

Not really.

The vixens in Hong Kong are no good. Even Aunt Huo was so anxious that she personally took charge, but Xu Xing refused.

These WeChat posts look much more normal now!
right!

However, Xu Xing didn't have much time to reply to them all at the moment.

I selected a few people who wouldn't keep bothering Xu Xing for too long and replied to them first.

But today, all of them seemed hesitant to speak.

An hour had passed by the time Xu Xing closed WeChat.

Xu Xing finally had time to open Weibo and surf the internet.

The popularity of "Childhood Games" is truly explosive. It has been online for more than a day and has almost completely dominated the trending topics list.

#Xu Xing Leads the Revival of Hong Kong Dramas#
#Childhood Games Tops Netflix's Global Popularity Chart#
#Netflix says screenwriter Hsu Hsing is the most important person in "Childhood Games"#
#Wu Zhenyu thanks Xu Xing#
#Xu Xing Makes History Again#
#HongKongDramasAroundTheWorld#
#Wen Yongshan gained 10 million followers on Instagram overnight#
#Cheng Xiao and Xiao Shui were actually good friends#——I have to criticize Li Hua's trending topics. I'm speechless. What kind of idiotic keywords are these? The square is full of people criticizing Cheng Xiao for trying to ride on his coattails, and speculating that Xiao Shui was introduced to Cheng Xiao by Xu Xing. Some cynical netizens suspect that Xiao Shui was slept with by Xu Xing, while some optimistic netizens question whether Cheng Xiao is taking the opportunity to show off his relationship with Xu Xing.

#Xu Xing is suspected of being hidden under a mask#
#Childhood Games Sparks Global Binge-Watching Frenzy#
#The reason why Hsu Hsing didn't personally act in "Childhood Games"#
#Overseas drama fans have already started creating some fun#
and many more.

The popularity of "Childhood Games" has exploded.

Xu Xing also heard many people talking about this drama on the plane.

They were all talking animatedly, their faces beaming with pride.

Some talked about the plot, saying how good they were at mini-games and that they could definitely take home $5000 million if they went there.

There's a lot of discussion about the popularity of "Childhood Games" online, especially overseas. Friends in Europe and America are all watching it, and business partners are actively asking about it.

There were also those who marveled at how Hong Kong dramas, after twenty or thirty years, were able to conquer the world and regain their former glory, boasting about how glamorous the Hollywood of the East was back then.

Some passengers corrected that Hong Kong dramas weren't popular worldwide back then, and now they're making history; others emphasized that "Childhood Games" was produced by Xu Xing leading Zheng Rong Films, the strongest film and television company in mainland China, and only mainly used actors from Hong Kong.

However, the old man from Gangcheng countered that "Childhood Games" was more popular than Xu Xing's own drama, and that Xu Xing also owed his success to Gangcheng.

The old man's words immediately drew criticism from a large group of mainland passengers who accused him of disrespecting Xu Xing, being ungrateful to her, and mocking Hong Kong's arrogance, saying that the Hong Kong entertainment circle had long since faded away but was still dreaming.

The voices of some young women were particularly sharp.

As a result, a large number of passengers from Hong Kong and Macau angrily retorted.

Xu Xing heard noises behind him in first class and thought that terrorists had hijacked the plane.

I've never taken such a chaotic flight before.

It wasn't until just before takeoff that they quieted down temporarily thanks to the purser's persistent efforts, though a few troublemakers were still muttering under their breath.

The chief flight attendant even came to the first-class cabin to apologize.

But to be honest, the popularity of "Childhood Games" really exceeded Xu Xing's expectations.

Xu Xingneng understands why the industry is so enthusiastic.

For example, Nicholas Tse flew back to Hong Kong that same day, dragging along his reluctant Aunt Wang Fei, and Aunt Huo was also quite agitated; for example, a group of people were exaggerating their flattery on WeChat, something they hadn't done before, but this time it was particularly exaggerated.

Previously, it was widely believed that only dramas starring Hsu Hsing herself could become popular throughout Asia and even have a certain number of views in Europe and America, thanks to Hsu Hsing's own star power.

—This is also because Xu Xing's dramas are among the highest-quality productions in China, and Netflix always promotes them with great fanfare.

Chinese dramas are gaining popularity around the world, but other dramas still lag far behind Xu Xing's overseas popularity.

But now, suddenly a drama called "Childhood Games" has appeared, and its popularity overseas is so explosive that it is even more popular than the drama starring Xu Xing.

One drama series "overshadowed" Xu Xing's years of hard work in the US market.

Wu Zhenyu is about to become an international superstar.

This confirms the sour thoughts of many industry insiders: it's not necessary for a drama starring Hsu Hsing to conquer the world; in Europe and America, dramas starring nobody cares can also achieve great success.

Of course, despite their sour grapes attitude and sudden confidence, they also knew that the success of "Childhood Games" was not easy.

Let's compare it to "Line Walker 3," which just finished airing not long ago.

When "Line Walker 3" started filming in 19, Tencent and TVB collaborated on a big production, boasting an investment of 4 million. It was widely believed inside and outside the industry that Tencent was aiming to compete with Netflix and benchmark against "Childhood Games".

When filming started, even media press releases dared to boast that Tencent would use "Line Walker 3" to drive Netflix out of Hong Kong.

Before the official premiere, Netflix, on a whim, expressed its intention to purchase the overseas rights to "Line Walker 3" and easily acquired them.

Penguin didn't even leave WeTV for itself.

At the time, Hong Kong media touted that "Line Walker 3" was so popular that Netflix snatched its overseas rights for a sky-high price, with the price not lower than that of Hsu Hsing's "Signal".

Netflix actually paid HKD 5000 million for the product, but in order to attract viewers, it did not refute the Hong Kong media's "revelation".

Finally, when "Line Walker 3" premiered, it was a complete flop in both mainland China and overseas. Even as a TVB anniversary drama, it failed to make the top ten in Hong Kong's annual viewership ratings.

Netflix was made a fool of.

Therefore, even though Netflix already had a hit series on the same subject, "Alice in the Land of the Dying," before "Childhood Games" premiered, the industry was generally not optimistic about it.

Even the Hong Kong entertainment circle itself lacks confidence.

However, "Childhood Games" has become a hit in Europe and America as soon as it premiered.

Xu Xing's dramas are just that awesome!

Even if Hsu Hsing is just a screenwriter and doesn't act in the drama herself!

Hong Kong entertainment critics sarcastically remarked that "Childhood Games" was just a B-movie they had once watched, but they felt that "Line Walker 3" was too mild a criticism.

But I have to admit that the production quality of the two dramas is worlds apart.

The widespread rumors of a second season, along with Xu Xing's other scripts, are the reasons for the industry's fervor.

But online...

In fact, most netizens cannot see "Childhood Games", and many people do not know how to find the pirated version on the Macau Grand Lisboa website.

The Weibo comment section on the trending topics page is filled with requests for resources, email addresses, and cloud storage links.

However, with marketing accounts celebrating and Xu Xing's current immense influence, this explosive surge in popularity is precisely because...

Ok?
After randomly clicking on the #WenYongshanCryingUncontrollably# topic page, Xu Xing refreshed the trending topics and suddenly found that the trending topics list had become much "cleaner".

Originally, "Childhood Games" occupied nine out of the top ten trending topics, but now only one topic remains, ranking third.

#Childhood Games Tops Netflix's Global Popularity Chart#.

When you click on the live feed in the square, a huge number of question marks appear on the screen. Netizens are asking if they are seeing things, and why Weibo suddenly cleared the trending topic "Childhood Games".

This……

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.

Great news! The authorities have finally taken action and removed the trending topic "Childhood Games" from the search results!

So annoying!
A drama that can't be shown in China has been hyped up for so long, and it's still being hyped up!

It's still flooding Weibo with messages, dominating everyone's attention!
Following the banning of "Childhood Games"!
"It's actually true..." "Let's ban them, preferably ban Zheng Rong too."

"The ban has been lifted. However, it's difficult because not all of them have been removed; one clause remains."

"Kids on Douyin are already imitating it; it's too late to ban it. [Hehe]"

[Zheng Rong is truly despicable!]

There are countless people on Douyin (TikTok) asking for resources for "Childhood Games" and questioning why this show cannot be shown in China.

Especially the king oyster mushrooms, they were all indignant, cursing the domestic situation and wanting to go abroad.

This is Zheng Rong's real purpose in hyping up "Childhood Games" in China, to incite online skepticism towards the domestic market.

Trying to portray the situation in a positive light is merely a pawn for Netflix, an attempt to force Netflix to open up the domestic market.

[Without hesitation, we speculate with the utmost malice...]
"Is the anniversary of your execution approaching? Is your neck itchy again, King Oyster Mushroom?"

"I've always felt that the current popularity of 'Childhood Games' is a bit strange, but I can't quite put my finger on it. After reading your post, it all makes sense!"

"No wonder Zheng Rong has such a good relationship with Netflix and can get so many resources."

"It's not just Netflix. Some people have an alarming amount of resources in Europe and America."

"Is Zheng Rong the only one whose heart is despicable? Has the world-renowned superstar disappeared?"

"The sudden removal of the trending topic indicates that the higher-ups have taken notice..."

"Why is he the only one who can become a global superstar? [laughing and crying emoji]"

Do you know what the most absurd thing is?

The Global Times Weibo account just praised "Childhood Games" for leading Chinese-language dramas to the world stage.

At least twenty mainstream media outlets are praising Zheng Rong and my Sheng for helping Chinese-language dramas open the door to the world in recent years...
"They're all traitors. [Hehe]"

"Xing Sheng has ushered in a new era for Chinese dramas, I'm so moved I could cry!"

"Marketing 'Wolf Warrior,' profiting from patriotism, hyping up being suppressed by Europe and America... Finally, we've seen the concrete manifestation of the seemingly loyal but actually treacherous villains described in books. Cultural espionage is terrifying!"

Has Saint absconded?

I just watched Meng Ziyi's live stream last night. She was bragging that after "Childhood Games" was released, my phone was ringing off the hook and no one could reach me.

There were also reports in Hong Kong media last night that the whole of Hong Kong was looking for me, Saint, but I've vanished without a trace...
"ah????"

"No way..."

What big scandal has been uncovered?

"Holy crap! Now that you mention it..."

"Oh my God……"

"The time has come to test the loyalty of King Oyster Mushroom. If you don't rebel, you're not a King Oyster Mushroom!"

"My Saint is truly going to go down in history, the greatest cultural spy in five thousand years of history..."

"I'm speechless! What a ridiculously idiotic post!"

……

In the car.

"That's so idiotic!"

After reading the "featured posts" handed to him by Sun Man, Xu Xing couldn't hold back any longer.

Qu Mingzhen smiled.

"Actually, they're not particularly stupid. Their guesses aren't entirely wrong either."

"what?"

Xu Xing was very surprised.

Old Qu suddenly pulled out a Fubolai ID card...

Qu Mingzhen, who guessed what Xu Xing was thinking, rolled her eyes at the dramatic Xu Xing.

"We didn't think that way, and we didn't do that. But that's just us, not Netflix. This is fantastic news for Netflix. Not only because 'Childhood Games' itself has far exceeded expectations in its success, but also because it can use this opportunity to generate public opinion and try to open the door to the domestic market again."

“We are very familiar with the process after your previous works, such as ‘Signal’ and ‘Someday or One Day,’ were released online. Usually, the data, including the number of views, would not be available until the next day, and the initial buzz on overseas social media would not have fully developed before various press releases announcing the huge overseas hits would be released.”

"Netflix used too much promotional resources for the release of 'Childhood Games'. Moreover, in less than five hours, news broke that it had the best opening in Asia-Pacific history, surpassing 'Signal,' and there were even reports that American viewers were enjoying the show in the middle of the night."

"Almost every trending topic and news item on Chinese social media is emphasizing you and 'Childhood Games.' You didn't even act in it, yet they fabricated a trending topic suggesting you were involved. Their goal is to use your name to stir up public opinion online in China. There are still quite a few of your fans who believe you acted in it, but they can't see it in China."

"You told Manman before that Erika ran back to the United States early to avoid harassment from the Hong Kong entertainment circle. But actually, she should have been avoiding you. Erika has worked in Asia for many years, and she knows how sensitive Netflix's marketing strategy for 'Childhood Games' is and what kind of controversy it will cause in China."

"Our response was a bit slow. The public opinion monitoring department found that there were too many voices questioning why 'Childhood Games' couldn't be seen in China, and that many of your fans were venting their emotions before we reported it. We contacted platforms such as Weibo, Douyin, and Xiaohongshu to confirm that Netflix had invested a lot of money to promote 'Childhood Games' in China."

"Li Wenkai, who was in charge of publicity for Zhengrong, has been fired. He's less perceptive than even his junior employees. When various platforms were confirming the publicity plans for 'Childhood Games' with him, he actually thought Netflix was simply helping them market their international influence. Of course, that's just his side of the story, and I've already had the police investigate."

“In the lead-up to the release of ‘Childhood Games,’ he had a lot of dealings with Netflix. Tony even met with him when he came to China. I hope he’s bad, not stupid. If he’s really colluding with Netflix, I can legitimately send him to jail. If not, I can only blame myself for using such an idiot for so long.”

Qu Mingzhen finished speaking and sighed deeply.

Xu Xing thought about it with a serious expression.

"Have the higher-ups also expressed their dissatisfaction?"

"Not yet," Qu Mingzhen shook his head. "The increased influence of Chinese dramas overseas is something the higher-ups are happy to see. However, in cases like 'Childhood Games,' it's best to handle it quietly. But its popularity is just too high. Netflix is ​​deliberately hyping it up, but the feedback from viewers on overseas social media, including in Europe and America, shows that 'Childhood Games' has indeed become a global sensation."

"So, Zheng Rong is currently making urgent edits and will submit it for review as quickly as possible before it goes live on Tencent Video. I have already communicated and confirmed with all parties that there will be no more problems. Soon, the news that 'Childhood Games' will be available on Tencent Video will be leaked. After the official launch, each platform can control the hype."

"Fortunately, we were strong enough in front of Netflix back then and always held the initiative in 'Childhood Games'. Now we don't need to consider negotiating with Netflix and we can make the decisions ourselves."

Perhaps sensing the heavy atmosphere in the car, Qu Mingzhen began to smile as she spoke.

“Netflix tricked us this time, but the ‘Childhood Games’ IP is in our hands, and we have to make the second season. If they don’t want us to jump on Disney or Penguin’s bandwagon and want to repair their relationship with us, they have to apologize to us and make a commitment. Otherwise, we will release the second season on Disney+. Now Disney would be very happy to help us pay the breach of contract penalty.”

"Is there going to be a second season?"

Xu Xing was somewhat surprised.

Qu Mingzhen smiled and nodded.

"Why not do it if it's so successful? Didn't they say that the higher-ups have defined it as beneficial to expanding the influence of Chinese-language dramas overseas, and it will soon be officially launched in China?"

“Okay,” Xu Xing sighed, “then I’ll stay away from Erika from now on.”

“There’s no need,” Qu Mingzhen shook his head. “There aren’t so many one-size-fits-all approaches in business. This is the best time to make a profit. Erika’s immediate return to the US shows that she also didn’t know how to face you. After this, Netflix should completely give up its fantasies about entering the Chinese market. Partners like Erika are also easier to manage.”

"Our relationship with the higher-ups is incredibly strong right now. Just like this recent incident, we handled any problems exceptionally quickly and effectively. Even if a few more incidents like this happen, it won't affect us."

“Okay,” Xu Xing smiled, “Originally, I thought this was a good opportunity to jump ship from Netflix and collaborate with Tencent WeTV.”

"..."

Qu Mingzhen bit her lip and sighed.

“That’s what I was thinking too. But Murong isn’t willing, so we’ll just have to continue working with Netflix. She’s flown back from Shenzhen and is waiting at home. You should prepare yourself and think about what to say when you get back.”

"Sister Rong asked us where we were."

Sun Man interrupted.

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.

When Xu Xing returned, Yu Murong was in the study working on documents on his laptop.

Upon seeing Xu Xing, she closed her notebook, then asked Qu Mingzhen and Sun Man, who had followed her, to leave the study. After locking the door, she walked to the window away from the door and sat down in a chair.

At the same time, he gestured for Xu Xing to sit opposite him.

Xu Xing pulled over the chair opposite her and sat down next to her.

The chairs were placed a bit too close together. Yu Murong rolled her eyes at Xu Xing, then got up slightly and pulled the chair towards the window. Xu Xing immediately pulled the chair closer to her as well.

Yu Murong frowned, his eyes stern, and moved the chair to the wall.

Xu Xing still kept up with the alignment.

Snapped!
Yu Murong slammed his hand on the coffee table.

"What do you want to do?"

"I want to get close to Sister Rong!"

Xu Xing grinned shamelessly.

Yu Murong was speechless and got angry several times.

"I don't want to be close to you! Look at you, do you even look like a little brother?"

"How could it be gone?" Xu Xing retorted righteously. "If I'm not the younger brother, what am I?"

"He looks like a little thug!"

Yu Murong criticized him coldly.

"Even little rascals have older sisters!"

Xu Xing looked serious.

Yu Murong was even more speechless and got angry several more times.

But this time I'm speechless; I don't know what to say.

She is a lawyer, and she is indeed eloquent in public, but she relies on legal provisions as evidence.

What can be done when faced with such a rogue?
The scoundrel, grinning, pulled her to sit down and moved closer to her.

Just as Yu Murong was about to tell him to sit further away again, complaining that he was squeezing her to death, her hand was grabbed by the rogue Xu Xing.

Xu Xing sighed deeply.

"Hey Rong-jie, it doesn't matter who we work with, it's still a collaboration. You know I'm not that interested in developing my career in Hollywood; I'm happy being the king of Asia. Tencent is a huge company, so wouldn't it be great to take this opportunity to further your career?"

"Not good at all!"

Yu Murong said solemnly.

“Xu Xing, I rarely call you by your name. I want you to remember that I don’t like people using my family as leverage. And I never even considered becoming a vice president. What are they so delusional about? I told Qu Mingzhen not to mention it to you, but she still did. Xu Xing, I’m asking you now, will you listen to her or me?”

(End of this chapter)