Huayu: When the director changed his major

Chapter 321 The Paparazzi Are Here (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

Time passed by in busyness.

After finishing filming of "The Mermaid", Cheng Xi became busy with post-production and editing.

Then he took some time out to do the roadshow for "Mojin: The Lost Tomb" and accompanied Xiao Tiantian for a while.

I worked on Honor of Kings for a while, acquired 56 Video Network, and handled many company affairs.

I'm really tired.

After finishing all these things, I finally have some time to rest.

Just when Cheng Xi was happily preparing to take a week or two of rest.

A news report disrupted his rhythm:

According to Fengxing Studio, Director Cheng Xi has only attended three classes at the Film Academy this past semester, and most of his management students claim they've barely seen him.
The reporter also contacted the Academic Affairs Office of the Management Department of the Film Academy, but was told they had no comment.
We will continue to monitor the incident."

Cheng Xi was speechless when he saw the video content that Deng Jie displayed on the tablet.

The video quality is not clear, shaky, or partially dark.
There was also the sound of wind and students discussing after class, which sounded a bit noisy.

It should have been filmed secretly by a pinhole camera.

Judging from the content, it was probably a reporter from Fengxing Studio pretending to be a student from another department to inquire about Cheng Xi's situation.

"Hello, classmate. I'm from the acting department. I'd like to ask if Director Cheng is here. I'm a fan and would like to get his autograph."

"I rarely see Professor Cheng. I think he only came to class once."

"You know he's very busy. He's all over the news lately. How could he possibly attend school?"

"When school started, many female students from the acting department came to look for him every day, but they couldn't find him. He was like a dragon that was nowhere to be found."

"So he won't take the exam either?"

"Exam? I don't know. The exam hasn't started yet. I don't know if he will come."

"Don't even think about it, he definitely won't come."

"Shh, don't talk nonsense. Director Cheng is just busy. The exam will definitely come."

"You said you were from the acting department, but why do you look so unfamiliar? Which grade and class are you from?"

"."

Cheng Xi heard the last two sentences, which sounded very much like his roommate's voice.

The last sentence should be asked by Guan Shan when he found something wrong.

He was the one who spoke sweet words to Lao Cao when Cheng Xi first met his roommate.

The Yanjing accent is very recognizable the moment you hear it.

The video shot ended abruptly here.

Cheng Xi: "That's it?"

Deng Jie: “No more.”

Cheng Xi: "Is that why you guys rushed me over here for a PR meeting?"

Everyone: "."

At this moment, Li Wentao glanced at the public relations director Yao Qian, who understood and spoke:

Yao Qian: "Boss, this video about [Cheng Xi skipping classes for half a year] immediately became a trending topic within 30 minutes of being posted. Since it happened suddenly last night, Sunday, it took an hour for everyone to react and start suppressing the trending topic."

"It has been removed from trending searches on Weibo, Zhihu, Baidu, etc., but it is still in the top 100. However..."

Cheng Xi: "But what?"

Yao Qian: "Well, everyone who needs to see it has already seen it. According to the data, about 5% of netizens support you, most of whom are young people aged 15-25. 3% are opposed, and 2% are neutral and awaiting the true situation and your response."

"Wait a minute. I don't understand. I'm doing real work, so I took the day off. There's nothing wrong with that, right? And I'm not an entertainer!"

"Uh, Boss, you are now Zuibai Entertainment's best external business card. In fact, your influence is greater than that of most artists."

"Our PR department needs to conduct a risk assessment. Boss, have you followed the proper procedures every time you've been absent from class or asked for leave?"

Cheng Xi blinked. Yes, now his every word and action probably affects the outside world's evaluation of the company at all times.

After all, Zuibai Entertainment is highly tied to him, and even the company name is his original pen name.

This is more important and direct than Dong Ge to JD.

As for taking leave, I took it every time I asked for it at the beginning.

Later, I just called Lao Cao directly. Who would go to invite him every time? It’s not like before.

Now the college gives me the green light to do anything.

Seeing that the boss was silent, Li Wentao asked:

"Yao Qian, what are the official media saying now?"

"Official media outlets haven't commented on the situation yet, presumably waiting to verify the facts. However, we believe they will speak out sooner or later. After all, the boss is a role model for many young people, and he's been absent from so many classes."

Cheng Xi understood what the public relations department meant.

Li Wentao: "Do you have a response plan?"

Yao Qian: "Yes. First, we definitely need to reduce the hype, which we're still doing. Second, we need to get on the same page with the Film Academy and work with the management students. Third, we need to do public relations with the media to prevent the incident from escalating. Fourth, it's best for the boss to return to school immediately. While this might seem obvious, it's better than doing nothing."

Li Wentao: "Don't you need a response?"

Yao Qian: "The PR department's collective opinion is not to respond to the boss, because no matter how he responds, the public will find new angles to criticize him, and with his fame, it will trigger a new wave of gossip." "For example, how to get into graduate school, whether the necessary procedures are complete, what the evaluation criteria are, whether the leave request is honored. Furthermore, we looked through the Film Academy graduate student handbook, and it clearly states that leave cannot exceed 30% of the course load. I'm afraid this will also become a point of attack."

“Even my future graduation theses will be scrutinized under a magnifying glass.”

After Yao Qian finished speaking, Li Wentao rubbed his temples helplessly.

At this time, Cheng Xi's phone rang, interrupting Yao Qian's analysis.

Cheng Xi took a look and saw that it was Cao Jinnan.

"Cheng Xi, don't worry, the leave application procedures are definitely complete. As for your leave request, the hospital wants us to unify our explanation first."

"To be honest, my schedule is semi-public. Everyone can find out if they check it out. And with so many people in the class, the truth can't be hidden."

"But the wording can be a little vague. Just say that I requested leave in accordance with the regulations and that all the necessary procedures are in place. We'll handle the rest. What do you think?"

"Okay, Cheng Xi, well, the academy also wants you to come to the academy more often recently."

It seems that I have to go back to school soon.

Cheng Xi smiled and said:
"Okay, I see. Thank you, Lao Cao."

"Hey, I'm telling you these people are nosy. Let's just leave it at that for now. I'm getting fed up with all these reporters."

After hanging up the phone, Cheng Xi updated everyone on the situation.

Then he instructed:
"This isn't a big deal, at most I'll just drop out of graduate school. As for the public relations plan going forward, I'll follow the four points Yao Qian mentioned. Whether or not to respond is entirely up to me."

"And the most important point is, is the Fengxing Studio's actions a spontaneous act, or is there someone behind it pushing them? Wentao, please follow up on this."

Cheng Xi had of course heard of Fengxing Tianxia. As a bystander, he certainly knew Zhuo Wei's reputation as the king of paparazzi.

I didn't expect that this paparazzi would find me this time. What bad luck.

And he really hated exposing his private life like this, because Cheng Xi knew that many things about himself were not convenient to disclose.

Especially women.

Of course, I didn't use any tricks on the woman. It was all consensual.

At most, he could create a young and romantic character, but it wouldn't affect Cheng Xi's foundation.

But Cheng Xi really didn't want to be stared at wherever he went. This feeling made him very uncomfortable.

Regarding Zhuo Wei, I can only say that he is really brave. Does he think that he is young and easy to bully?

Cheng Xi thought to himself that it seemed that he had never established any authority in the entertainment industry, and that just showing kindness was not enough.

You have to use both kindness and force, only then will others obey you and be afraid of you.

Cheng Xi glanced at Wen Tao at this time, patted his shoulder, and said sternly:

"In addition to checking to see if there are people behind them, we also collect their previous revelations to help victims defend their rights, and we will follow up with legal affairs in full."

"Secondly, we must fight fire with fire. We must uncover their dirty laundry, from the individuals themselves, the establishment of their companies, their tax affairs, their work methods and content, to whether they are suspected of extortion."

"If we're going to fight, we'll hit them where it hurts, so that anyone who wants to cause trouble for Zuibai Entertainment in the future will see what will happen."

When everyone at the meeting heard the boss say this, they all knew that he was really angry.

Yao Qian, an employee who didn't know Cheng Xi very well, saw Cheng Xi's cruel eyes for the first time.

As for Li Wentao, Jin Xiaoluo, Deng Jie and others, they had long known how ruthless Cheng Xi was.

If you don’t fight, then don’t fight at all. But if you do fight, you must hold the weak spot.

"Okay, let's adjourn and go back to our work."

It was not until everyone had left that Cheng Xi realized that Yao Qian seemed to be looking at him, as if she had something to say to him.

So everyone was asked to leave first.

"What's wrong? Do you have something to tell me?"

"Boss, which one?"

Seeing Yao Qian's hesitant look, Cheng Xi waved his hand:
"Just tell me if you have anything to say. It's just the two of us here."

"All right, boss."

"Our risk assessment this time actually also includes your private life, boss. After all, your fame is comparable to that of a top star, so there are definitely people who are curious about your private life."

"So, you might need to be more careful next time. This document is a list of risks and emergency response strategies our department has provided to Zuibai Entertainment's artists. Boss, you can take a look at it when you have time."

Wow, this is where I'm pointing.

Do I look horny?

However, Cheng Xi now began to admire Yao Qian.

After all, most of the voices he hears in the company now are positive ones, and he feels that he is getting further and further away from ordinary employees.

Although Cheng Xi knew that this was an inevitable situation as the company grew bigger.

"Your name is Yao Qian, right? Your suggestions are very good. Keep working hard in the future. If there are any problems with the company or if I'm doing something wrong, feel free to point them out."

When Yao Qian heard this, her nervous expression relaxed and she even felt a little happy.

"Okay, Boss, that's all I'm suggesting. It's mainly for prevention, nothing else."

Cheng Xi looked at Yao Qian's slightly flushed face and nodded with a smile:
"I remember everything. Leave the materials here. I'll look at them and ask you if I don't understand anything."

"Okay, boss, I'm going to go out and do some work!"

(End of this chapter)