The battle for traffic in Chinese entertainment

Chapter 528 My Friend
Erika also returned to the United States with Xu Xing.

Upon her return, she will be officially appointed as Netflix's President for the Asia-Pacific region.

It was as if, before taking office, she was given one last task: to make sure that Xu Xing came to the United States.

The second season of "Childhood Games" needs to be approved immediately, regardless of when filming will begin.

"You know, before Bajaaria, Holland was the second most powerful figure in Netflix's original content space after Sarandos, and she had been with Netflix for 18 years. From the moment Bajaaria was appointed as the head of international content, the two represented two different production philosophies and clashed fiercely within the company."

"Ultimately, we helped Bajaaria win this battle. Holland left, and Bajaaria was promoted to Chief Content Officer. So, thankfully, you can absolutely trust Bajaaria. Childhood Games is now Netflix's most important project, and you are the most important person."

Erika was still talking nonstop before boarding the plane.

Xu Xing smiled and nodded.

“I know, I must know. Erika, you’ve said it so many times. I’ve also emphasized it many times: I’m not the kind of person who would betray my partners. So, I really don’t need any surprises now. Son Ye-jin surprised me enough last night, and it was quite embarrassing. I really don’t need Bajaaria to prepare any surprises for us in America. Our partnership doesn’t need to be maintained like this.”

Before leaving Singapore last night, Erika still couldn't resist organizing a private dinner party, where she met Son Ye-jin, who had just publicly acknowledged her relationship.

There were actually many people at the dinner, such as Kim Min-young, the Korean content director who came with Son Ye-jin, Sakamoto Hirota, the Japanese content director, Wu Zhenyu, director Park Seo-chang, who were familiar with Heo Haeng, and Yoon Do-seon, the vice president of CJ Films, etc. It can be said that the place was full of distinguished guests.

But Erika still blatantly acted as a pimp.

Although it wasn't done in front of everyone, but simply by bringing Son Ye-jin to Xu Xing's presence, Xu Xing still feels incredibly embarrassed whenever she thinks about Son Ye-jin's surprised and scrutinizing gaze.

Xu Xing tried her best to show surprise and remain polite, even giving Erika a wink, but Erika kept talking. At the end of the banquet, Erika asked Xu Xing to see Son Ye-jin off, which Son immediately declined. Fortunately, Xu Xing also refused at the same time, showing her displeasure, thus managing to save face.

"Uh, I'm so sorry, I really apologize. I didn't understand the situation and I was too abrupt."

Erika quickly apologized again.

She admitted that she hadn't arranged things properly this time. She apologized to Xu Xing last night and explained that Jin Minying had given her incorrect information.

For someone like Xu Xing, who is always successful with women, this was a huge blow to his pride.

She understood Xu Xing's anger.

and so--

"Give me time, and I will definitely solve this problem."

"What problem are you trying to solve? This doesn't need to happen again, really."

Xu Xing emphasized this again.

Because Xu Xing had previously recommended that Erika buy "Crash Landing on You," Erika assumed that Xu Xing had feelings for Son Ye-jin. She made wild guesses and embarrassed Xu Xing.

Xu Xing did not deny that she admired Ms. Son Ye-jin, but she also respected her feelings.

Dispatch only revealed her relationship with Hyun Bin on New Year's Day this year, but the two had been dating since 19, or even earlier. "Crash Landing on You" was actually a publicly funded romance.

Ms. Son Ye-jin has a clear plan for her life. She said she would get married before the age of 40, and she did. After getting married, she had children and was not worried about affecting her career.

She's an artist who's genuinely not worried about not having any acting opportunities, so how could she possibly get into Erika's car?

Netflix is ​​indeed inviting her to star in the series "Thirty-Nine" and has introduced her to Hollywood film resources, but she can completely choose not to take the role.

Many Western female celebrities wouldn't mind having a romantic encounter even if they have a boyfriend or husband, but this is Asia, and Erika's black cab can only pick up girls like Bae Suzy at most.

Moreover, while Bae Suzy was hugging and twisting around with Heo Haeng, she repeatedly emphasized that it was precisely because Heo Haeng was she that she "made herself look like a promiscuous woman."

In other words, Xu Xing can handle what Erika can handle. She shouldn't mess with things she can't.

Now they're telling Xu Xing to absolutely trust Bajaaria, which sounds like they want Xu Xing to get into a black car arranged by Bajaaria.

What kind of nice car could that be?

The huge success of "Childhood Games" has truly expanded China's cultural influence in the world. Now, Xu Xing is very suspicious that his reckless trip to the United States and getting into an unlicensed taxi will leave him with evidence against him.

Even things like West Asia A, or Fopoble.

Therefore, Erika had already apologized repeatedly last night, and Hsu Hsing wanted to take this opportunity to make a fuss.

Hsu Hsing, who is going to the United States this time, will be an idol and role model that makes all the fans stand tall!

The episode that best protects DouDou's character!
Xu Xing made a serious statement.

Erika could only laugh awkwardly and apologize again, promising not to do anything reckless again.

In fact, the reason she set her sights on Son Ye-jin was not only because of "Crash Landing on You," which Heo Haeng had strongly recommended, but also because of Netflix's latest internal analysis of Heo Haeng, which suggests that Heo Haeng actually prefers women who have partners.

The conflict between Hsu Hsing and Chen Sicheng, the director who created the "Detective Chinatown" series, is a crucial issue when studying Hsu Hsing.

Netflix consulted several senior figures in China, who all confidently claimed that the conflict between the two stemmed from Xu Xing's covetousness of director Chen's wife. The "Detective Chinatown" universe was indeed on the verge of disintegration. The reason why the two did not take the opportunity to part ways when the reputation of "Detective Chinatown 3" declined after its release was because director Chen's ex-wife helped persuade Xu Xing.

In addition, multiple sources have revealed that Xu Xing's relationships with Fan Bingbing and Yang Mi all began before they broke up with their partners. Some people are also certain that Xu Xing has already won over Tang Yan, who worked with him on "Blossoms Shanghai," and that he brought that actress, whose acting skills are notoriously terrible, to Wang Jiawei's film crew.

There's also a heavyweight: Xu Xing even seduced Qu Mingzhen, the woman his sister had been with.

Erika also acted as a lookout for Xu Xing and Wen Yongshan. At that banquet, Xu Xing looked at Guo Biting with great interest, and last night, Xu Xing's first reaction upon seeing Son Ye-jin also showed a deep-seated expectation.

Xu Xingdu tacitly agreed that she had rehired Jia Jingwen.

and also……

Therefore, Erika believes that Xu Xing's current reaction is only because she messed up, rather than because Xu Xing really dislikes her.

But who told you to mess it up?

well! ! !
Erika is now contemplating killing Kim Min-young, but that woman has a good relationship with Qu Mingzhen... How can she let Xu Xing teach that stupid woman a lesson?

Erika was certain, Bajaaria was certain too, and Qu Mingzhen completely listened to Xu Xing, which is why Bajaaria ultimately kept her...

Erika's mind was racing with all sorts of thoughts the whole way, and Xu Xing didn't bother to pay any more attention to her.

Erika didn't leave until the plane landed in Los Angeles, after she had once again invited Hsu Hsing to Bajaaria's private party the day after tomorrow. She was preoccupied with her own thoughts. She needed to find a good reason to tell Bajaaria that Hsu Hsing, whose forehead was labeled "Perverted Devil" by Netflix, had refused her small gift.

—Xu Xing's main purpose for coming here was to attend the Grammy Awards ceremony and discuss the album's post-production. Meeting with Netflix executives and finalizing the second season of "Childhood Games" was just a side event. The Grammy Awards ceremony is on March 14th, and today is already March 12th. Xu Xing will be spending the next two days preparing for her performance at the awards ceremony.

After leaving the airport, Xu Xing went to the villa to rest. Not long after, John came to visit.

For Interscope, Hsu Hsing's debut English album is the label's most important album of the year. CEO John couldn't wait any longer; upon meeting Hsu Hsing, he immediately gave her an incredibly warm hug and showered her with exaggerated praise.

"Great Xing, the American music scene needs your salvation!"

It was a joke, but it also expressed admiration for the commercial success of Hsu Hsing's music.

After all, "Blinding Lights," released last June, is still in the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 nine months later, and there is no sign of it falling out of the top ten in the short term. Xu Xing's upcoming performance at the Grammy Awards will also have a promotional effect and stimulate the song's play count.

After the banter, John finally got down to business, asking about Hsu Hsing's album progress.

Although these topics have been discussed countless times in video calls, John still wants to reiterate how important they are to him.

After discussing the album, John adopted a somewhat cautious attitude.

“Xing, I know you just had a long flight and must be exhausted. But Taylor’s team wants you to participate in the recording tonight. There are only 50 hours left before the awards ceremony, and they are worried that there might be unexpected problems if you record tomorrow.”

The Grammy Awards were affected by the Los Angeles outbreak and were postponed from January 31 to March 14. Ultimately, they were held with zero audience members, and most performances were pre-recorded.

Hsu Hsing will be performing "Blinding Lights" and "Exile" in collaboration with Ms. Taylor.

Ms. Taylor will first perform "Cardigan" and "Willow" solo, then Hsu Hsing will come on stage, and the two will sing "Exile" together. After that, there will be a talk between the two of them, and finally Hsu Hsing will perform "Blinding Lights" solo.

This is a continuous performance. Hsu Hsing had pre-recorded "Bling Lights" while in Singapore, and Taylor had also recorded two other songs.

All that's left is "Exile".

Logically, tomorrow should be enough, as the awards ceremony doesn't start until the evening after tomorrow. But Taylor wanted to be on the safe side if it was recorded beforehand, which wouldn't be a problem.

Xu Xing is someone who likes to avoid accidents. She slept soundly on the plane and is now full of energy.

John breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Xu Xing nod.

Big-name singers have eccentric and unpredictable tempers, but thankfully, Xu Xing is still as composed and confident as when they first met. Actually, John initially found Xu Xing's inexplicable confidence annoying, but Xu Xing proved that he had the right foundation for that confidence.

When Xu Xing arrived at the recording studio after dinner, Ms. Taylor was staring blankly in the set-up performance scene.

She decorated the performance venue like a green woodland.

After her assistant informed her that Xu Xing had arrived, she apologized and walked over.

"Hey Xing, it's great to finally meet you! I'm so sorry, I just spaced out again."

“When I’m singing in the recording studio, I often suddenly forget to continue singing,” Hsu Hsing said with a smile, adding that she doesn’t mind. “The songs we write are not for others to listen to, but for ourselves.”

Yes, you're right!

Ms. Taylor's eyes lit up, and she soon smiled.

"But I remember you also said that music should be shared with everyone."

"We are the first to hear our music. Only by listening to ourselves can we 'share' it. No one is more important than ourselves, right?"

Xu Xing smiled.

Ms. Taylor nodded repeatedly, her smile becoming more natural and relaxed.

“That’s true. But, Xing, to be honest, I thought you were a very selfless person, the kind who would put the importance of others before your own. The Grammys were unfair to you, but you still came here for the music, performed, and increased their ratings in Asia. They should be ashamed to see you like that.”

Grammy's own daughter "sacrificed her own family for the greater good".

This is a Grammy Awards that's already in chaos before it even starts. Besides the postponement, the American music industry is vehemently criticizing the Grammys for being rigged.

Despite Hsu Hsing stealing several songs from his album *After Hour*, The Weeknd still achieved great success, yet still received zero nominations. He was the first to criticize, Drake voiced his support, Nicki Minaj joined in, Halsey accused the organizers of rigging the awards, and other singers revealed industry insider information about buying awards…

They also dragged in "Blinding Lights," a more prominent song that was still ignored by the Grammys, claiming that the Grammys discriminated against Asian music.

In fact, most American musicians dislike Hsu Hsing, but now, in order to diss the Grammys, they have started to speak up for Hsu Hsing, even starting to settle scores with her first song, "Love Yourself".

Overseas fans of baby's breath have been making accusations for a long time.

However, Xu Xing has remained silent. After the Grammys officially announced that Xu Xing would be performing, people both at home and abroad believed that Xu Xing was "begging" the Grammys for their only nomination for her, the Best Pop Collaboration Award.

But the debate only lasted a short while, and soon some voices suggested that Xu Xing's performance at the Grammys was an attempt to reverse the international prejudice against China on the issue of the pandemic.

This was indeed one of Xu Xing's goals.

Now, even in the chaotic United States, you can fly directly to China, but in China, you need to spend half a month transiting through a third country.

Xu Xing hadn't expected the Grammys to invite her to perform, especially since Trump had already left. But since she was invited, she decided to come.

"Actually, I also feel that it is unfair to me. I am not selfless, in fact, I am extremely selfish, because I do not expect others to change their prejudice against me. Only I am the most important."

Xu Xing shrugged indifferently.

Ms. Taylor was completely taken aback when Xu Xing said such a thing so calmly and casually.

She remained silent for a long while before finally speaking with emotion.

"Xing, you have surprised me greatly once again. I did not expect you to be so mature and calm. Perhaps this is why you have achieved such incredible success at such a young age!"

"Precocious? Everyone says that precocious people are boring."

Xu Xing laughed as she made a self-deprecating remark.

Ms. Taylor shook her head.

"You're the most interesting person I've ever met. Maybe that's the charm of cultural exchange?"

She said uncertainly, then smiled and extended her hand.

"Thank you, my friend. I must admit, you have inspired me a lot."

"You're welcome."

Xu Xing smiled and shook hands.

(End of this chapter)