This director is vindictive.

Chapter 388 Chen Mo's "Double-Edged Sword" Lesson: First Let Jia Ling Argue About Fat and Thin, Then Take His Wife to Heaven
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the battle for box office supremacy during the Spring Festival began.

As expected, "Hot and Spicy" achieved the best screening schedule and box office results.

However, this also comes with huge controversy.

Chen Mo's prediction has come true.

Chen Mo previously said, "Jia Ling has lost weight, and the box office is booming!"

Although it was said privately, Liu Yifei brought it up at the premiere, which caused quite a bit of controversy.

Many people say that Chen Mo is using Yin Yang Jia Ling's marketing tactics.

The results of it?
After its release, "Hot Hot" did perform well at the box office, but its reputation was even more polarized than in its previous life.

"Someone who's richer than 99% of people, no matter how much they lose weight, can't recreate the feeling of a miserable life. And yet, she still wants to try to move us and make another killing? (At this box office rate, they should just remake it all, how satisfying that would be!)"

"The purpose of her making this film was not to talk about her weight loss at all. It was to tell you that no matter how bad, how much of a failure, or how terrible your life is, as long as you find something, even if it's just a small thing, and keep doing it, focusing on it, and doing it with all your might, you will win, even if it's just once."

"Chen Mo is absolutely right. Jia Ling has lost weight, and the box office is good. I really don't understand why those people are criticizing Chen Mo for being sarcastic and insinuating. Isn't what he said the truth?"

"The most speechless thing is that this is a weight loss movie, okay? But from the director to the main cast and crew, they all said during the promotion that they didn't want people to think of this movie as a weight loss movie. Please, it's not a weight loss movie, yet you kept saying things like 'lost 100 pounds' during the promotion?"

During the Lunar New Year, Chen Mo and the women unusually put aside their various engagements and gathered together.

The conversation naturally turned to the movie. After all, although Chen Mo didn't direct it and they didn't act in it, they at least showed their support.

Zhang Yuqi even made headlines for domestic violence because of the boxing video incident.

Liu Yifei further propelled Chen Mo to the center of public controversy.

"What do you think Jia Ling is thinking? It's such an obvious 'protest,' why does she keep talking about it?" Yang Mi asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Is it possible that she did this on purpose?" Liu Yifei asked, unusually astutely.

"Fairy Sister, what are your thoughts?" Yang Mi looked at Liu Yifei with some surprise, as she usually didn't have this kind of awareness.

"Didn't Chen Mo analyze this before? He said that the controversy and public opinion surrounding his previous remarks must have been fueled by the opposing company's publicity efforts. And didn't Chen Mo also say that if 'Hot and Spicy' didn't generate controversy, then the movie would lose its biggest selling point?" Liu Yifei analyzed with an air of authority.

“Look, this time, Jia Lingming knew that she was promoting her weight loss, but after the movie was released, she kept saying that this movie should not be regarded as a weight loss movie. She must know that it will cause controversy, but she still said it. Is she just trying to make the controversy even more intense?” Liu Yifei said, looking at Chen Mo.

Chen Mo smiled and said, "There's nothing wrong with that, so you should all learn from it. However, this kind of publicity model is a double-edged sword; once you use it, it's not good to use it again!"

"Director Chen, I have a film review here that I think is quite good. Could you interpret it and give your critique so that we can all broaden our horizons?" Zhao Liying suddenly said, picking up her tablet.

"Ahem, this film review was written by a well-known film critic and Weibo influencer. The content is as follows."
In many film and television works, apart from "Hot Hot", obese female characters are often stripped of their gender characteristics. They are often depicted as having a big appetite, not caring about their appearance, or even being unkempt. They play an inconspicuous role in interpersonal relationships and have almost no interaction with men.

When they develop feelings for a man, they often choose to secretly admire him.

However, one day, they will transform into fair-skinned, slender beauties, stunning everyone present.

In real life, obese women are often troubled by feelings of inferiority, worrying about being excluded and discriminated against in social situations. They may walk with their heads down and hunched over, always worried that other people's eyes are focused on them.

Their hearts are like being tightly clamped by a pair of pliers, yearning to be accepted yet fearing rejection.

In the early stages of the story, we can see the shadows of many girls in the character Du Leying.

In pursuit of their desired partners, these women are willing to sacrifice themselves, hoping to evoke pity in them. The motivation behind this behavior stems from a deep-seated inferiority complex; they attempt to gain validation and prove their worth by saving others.

"It's very well written! Come on, Director Chen, what are your thoughts?" Fan Binbin smiled and looked at Chen Mo.

All the women looked at Chen Mo, wanting to see how he would interpret things this time.

"You've all read quite a few of the 'Ghost Blows Out the Light' series of novels and film and television adaptations, haven't you?" Chen Mo asked with a smile instead of answering immediately.

Everyone nodded.

"This film review was probably written by a female film critic, right?" Chen Mo asked Zhao Liying with a smile.

"Ah? Yes!" Zhao Liying glanced at it and nodded.

"So, this is purely a matter of stance! This film review is actually nonsense!" Chen Mo said.

"Don't rush, listen to me. Look at the Iron Triangle in 'Ghost Blows Out the Light,' why is it that only Hu Bayi has a romantic storyline, while Fatty Wang doesn't?" Chen Mo asked with a smile.

"Wang Pangzi has a romantic subplot, right? Doesn't Ding Sitian have one?" Zhang Yuqi countered. Chen Mo replied calmly, "That's just unrequited love! That's Hu Bayi's first love!"

"Moreover, many works feature fat characters, but often the fat characters' romantic relationships either fail or involve unrequited love!"
That's why I said this movie review is utter nonsense! It has nothing to do with gender, it's only about obesity!
It is said that obese female characters are often stripped of their gender characteristics, that they often have a big appetite, do not care about dressing up or even being unkempt, play an inconspicuous role in interpersonal relationships, and have almost no interaction with men.

But the problem is, this has never been just about female characters, has it? Aren't male characters the same?
Even when it comes to unrequited love, overweight men are often more submissive!
So, this film review was only written for female viewers. I believe that most male viewers, like me, would think it's utter nonsense after reading it!

"Furthermore, there's another point. In my opinion, fat women and ordinary women are often considered to be high-potential stocks. They only need to lose weight, and even if they're not that pretty, they'll never lack suitors. That's why many people say that fat women are high-potential stocks."

But it's really different for fat men. In this world, let alone fat men, even men who aren't fat have a hard time turning their lives around, let alone fat men. So what if they successfully lose weight?

So, is it meaningful to discuss or debate this?

"Furthermore, when it comes to aesthetics, a group of people advocating for the acceptance of beauty in the plump is like saying that ugly people are always making a fuss!"

"Alright, let's not discuss this anymore! Let's talk about something else," Chen Mo said, shaking his head.

"Chen Mo! Our wedding promotional video is going to be released in a few days. How should we promote it?" Yang Mi asked.

"Uh..." Chen Mo was dumbfounded.

Actually, he and Yang Mi did a lot of publicity and promotion before their "Space Odyssey" themed wedding.

But with the movie about to be released, Chen Mo had actually forgotten about it for a while.

I wasn't prepared at all!

"You haven't forgotten, have you?" Yang Mi suddenly revealed a dangerous look.

The other women all looked at Chen Mo with amusement.

Chen Mo would certainly not admit that he had forgotten.

"How could that be? Actually, we've already done a lot of groundwork before the promotional campaign even started, so I've already come up with a promotional video for our wedding." Chen Mo blurted out.

"Are you really sure? But there are only a few days left! Is there enough time?" Yang Mi looked at Chen Mo suspiciously.

They were skeptical of Chen Mo's claim that he had thought everything through.

Okay, Chen Mo really hadn't thought it through.

So he's racking his brains right now.

Suddenly, Chen Mo had a flash of inspiration and feigned hesitation: "However."

Yang Mi narrowed her eyes, her fingers already pinching the soft flesh of Chen Mo's waist: "But what?"

Chen Mo, without changing his expression, grasped her wrist and pulled her into his arms: "However, I'm waiting for the public opinion surrounding 'Hot and Spicy' to reach its peak—haven't you noticed? Right now, the whole internet is discussing 'aesthetic diversity' and 'body image anxiety,' and then suddenly releasing our space wedding at this time..."

Fan Binbin suddenly clapped his hands and interrupted: "Goodness! You're trying to take advantage of the situation!"

She crossed her legs and pointed to the movie reviews still scrolling on the tablet, "When these people start arguing about the ultimate question of 'fat, thin, beautiful, and ugly,' we'll just throw out the ultimate human romance—on a cosmic scale, who cares about body measurements on Earth?"

Chen Mo smiled and opened his phone's photo album, scrolling through several concept images: a wedding dress floating in zero gravity, and a close-up of a nebula ring taken through a space capsule window.

"I've already thought of the headline for the press release—'While Jia Ling is still struggling with her weight, this group of people have already defied gravity.'"

"But wouldn't that make us seem like we're criticizing 'Hot and Spicy'?" Liu Yifei hesitated.

Yang Mi, however, didn't seem to care and said, "What? They're allowed to use our movie 'Hot and Spicy' for publicity, but we're not allowed to ride the wave? Besides, mutual back-scratching in business is mutually beneficial. The more controversial their movie is, the more attention our wedding will get. Once netizens are tired of arguing, we can cleanse their eyes with our space wedding photos—this traffic surge is even more precise than a space station docking. Right, Chen Mo?"

"Okay, there's really no need to be so direct. It's Valentine's Day, right? Everyone's forgotten about Tian Tian's 'Phoenix Brings Auspiciousness'? With this kind of ritual, there's no worry about not having people going on Valentine's Day!"

I suddenly realized that we don't need to step on it at all; netizens and fans will step on it for us themselves! Chen Mo suddenly laughed.

He really wasn't talking nonsense.

Back then, many people went to see "The Phoenix Brings Auspiciousness" because of its sense of ritual.

Since "Hot and Spicy" itself has benefited from the popularity of Chen Mo and his harem, as long as the news is released and there is a little guidance, it is not difficult for netizens to spontaneously think of the traffic-connecting points mentioned earlier.

(End of this chapter)