Huayu: Traffic is king

Chapter 223 Two explosions in one year, what level is that?
The concert went very smoothly, not only at the beginning but also throughout.

On July 17th, Gu Jingyi held three shows over two days in South Korea.

The response was overwhelming, with PANN trending on social media from the pre-concert hype to the end.

Gu Jingyi's cover of Jay Park's "Posture" was repeatedly mentioned, and fans' enthusiasm for the discussion was unprecedented.

The phrases "the perfect combination of face and body" and "Kpop's eternal pure original" were repeatedly mentioned, and the number of trending posts continued to rise.

Gu Jingyi, however, returned to China after the concert.

It was July 19th, less than 12 hours before the premiere of "Go Go Squid!"

The official Weibo account posted several teasers, including one to @GoGoSquid!: "#GoGoSquid# Of course, I, the little squid, have to share these 'heart-pounding moments' with you all! [Excited] The 'Tongyan Couple' @GuJingyi and @YangZi's sweet kiss team is assembling now! My dear, this summer, it has to be you! #GoGoSquid0719Premiere#, it can't be without you! [Please follow]~ Tomato TV, Blue TV, 271, Tencent Video, come on, sweetness is the way to go! [ok]"

@Go Go Squid! TV Series: "#Go Go Squid!# Promotional Ambassador Gun God @Gu Jingyi is starting his workday [shy emoji]~, and Prince Squid @Yang Zi are both 'masters' in their respective fields. One has won numerous awards with his composure and calmness, while the other has captured countless fans with his soft and cute charm. Please don't hold back your flowery words, come in and praise him to the skies [so cute emoji]! #Go Go Squid!0719Premiere#"

@Go Go Squid! TV series: "#GoGoSquid# Fight with all your might for what you love, with companions, fearless in the darkness [cheering]"

The official Weibo account posted a new post every hour to continuously generate buzz.

Right now, Gu Jingyi and Yang Zi are at an event together.

Since filming began, even leaked photos from the set of "Go Go Squid!" have been trending on social media.

After the trailer was released, it attracted a large number of fans of the actors and casual viewers who were waiting for the broadcast.

Gu Jingyi has an exceptionally good public image, while Yang Zi also has a large following among the general public.

In addition, the drama "Ashes of Love," in which she co-starred with Yang Zi, had just finished airing, and the drama's fans had not completely disappeared.

Gu Jingyi was busy with his new album, and his interactions with Yang Zi were still limited to when the TV series had just started airing.

Many fans of the couple are looking forward to their second collaboration, making their new drama "Go Go Squid!" highly anticipated.

In addition, there weren't many strong dramas airing during the 2019 summer season, and "The Untamed" was a BL adaptation. It inherently lacked national recognition and public appeal.

Looking at the entire genre of heterosexual romance dramas, only Yang Yang's "The King's Avatar" is a contender.

Before the new drama premiered, Gu Jingyi clashed with Yangyang's fans several times.

Without a doubt, it was a one-sided victory for the Jingfei faction.

With only a few hours left until Gu Jingyi's new drama premieres, fans of both sides are waiting for a "face-slapping" moment.

I heard your fans and Yangyang's family are fighting.

Upon arriving at the promotional venue, Yang Zi's first words were these.

Gu Jingyi nodded. "It's not a big problem. Everything is under control."

Before "You Are My Glory", Teacher Yangyang's position as the top star was somewhat unstable.

Tearing each other apart isn't scary; it's embarrassing for whoever fails to win.

How can a one-sided "massacre" be called a fight?

After chatting with Yang Zi for a while, it was time for the press conference to begin.

Today is the press conference for "Go Go Squid!", and with the success of "Ashes of Love" preceding it, both the producers and advertisers have high expectations for this second collaboration between two top-tier celebrities.

The initial live-stream promotion was replaced by an offline press conference.

The fans had been waiting anxiously for a long time, and the time finally arrived.

When Gu Jingyi lifted Yang Zi's skirt and the two walked onto the stage hand in hand.

"Unrivaled in the world, supreme in chess!"

"With all my heart, Zi is here because of you."

The fans' cheers were full of enthusiasm, and the two looked at each other and saw a mischievous glint in each other's eyes.

To be honest, these cheering slogans don't seem like anything special at first glance.

After hearing it so many times, it really started to feel a bit awkward.

"Ahhh, my CP is real!"

"Younger man/older woman, siblings, both strong, Mom, I've found a real couple!"

The CP fans blushed with excitement and cheered.

"Welcome our teachers, Mr. Gu and Ms. Yang. Please say hello to everyone."

The host started to cue and proceed with the program.

Gu Jingyi waved his hand casually, "Hello everyone, I am Gu Jingyi."

"Hello everyone, I'm Yang Zi," Yang Zi said with a smile.

"We are delighted that everyone is here at the press conference for the premiere of 'Go Go Squid!' Now, we will..."

The following activities were nothing special, just a series of very simple interactive activities.

For example, reading comments together, the 60-second eye contact challenge without falling in love, sharing first impressions of each other, and finally touching each other's faces.

In short, they are all artificial saccharin that has been standardized in the Chinese entertainment industry.

On the surface, Gu Jingyi looked at Yang Zi with tenderness and affection, but in reality, he felt nothing.

Even Yang Zi is becoming more commercially active; she is currently having a very close relationship with a top celebrity from this year's "BL drama 2.0".

Neither of them is the other's real partner; everything is just for business purposes.

Gu Jingyi certainly wouldn't create a "misogynistic" persona at this time, saying that Yang Zi is more suitable to play a mother or that she is too old.

The last "Huirou CP" who dared to do this has faded into obscurity and is no longer known.

Actors' fans are more tolerant; things like promoting a couple during a drama are an open secret between the fans of both sides.

The usually domineering concubines would never attack the woman at such a time.

They usually criticize Gu Jingyi for "accidentally" liking and then unliked her posts, for posting on the official Weibo account to express their feelings for Gu Jingyi but then deleting the posts, and for mentioning Gu Jingyi on variety shows to imply that they are very close and have a good relationship in private, calling them "freeloaders".

Gu Jingyi has been in the industry for so long that he is very familiar with the process of creating romantic pairings.

When asked a question like, "What kind of person do you think Tong Nian is?", Gu Jingyi replied directly, "Sister Zi is a warm, cheerful, and very likable person in private. When we were filming together before, we got along very well and became familiar with each other very quickly. She's like a glue that can fill the crew with laughter."

The question was asked of Tong Nian, and the answer was given by Yang Zi.

This is professionalism!
Give the CP fans some sweet moments and get them to generate data.

It leaves room for imagination, luring passersby into the trap.

It won't offend solo fans, because Gu Jingyi said it was purely a friendship.

There wasn't a single compliment about Yang Zi's looks or cuteness. All the comments used neutral terms and framed the topic as friendship.

In fact, the fans of Jingfei also scoffed at the pairing of Gu Jingyi and Yang Zi.

Gu Jingyi, who came from a talent show, has a large number of female fans and "toxic fans".

These people are telling them to ship Gu Jingyi as a couple, but it would be strange if they actually succeeded.

Even a female dog that happens to pass by, if it has a slightly close relationship with Gu Jingyi, will be the target of their insane jealousy behind her back.

These are top-tier fans.

Yang Zi is alright; the concubines don't reject her.

She can carry a drama without overshadowing her brother's performance. Off-screen, she's honest and upright, without causing trouble.

Her appearance is also very approachable, allowing fans to connect with her.

How could anyone bear to criticize her? Even the most radical female fans don't say a word against Yang Zi.

Yang Zi was also very good at engaging with the audience, answering the question, "What kind of person is Han Shangyan?"

Yang Zi answered Gu Jingyi directly, "Absolutely perfect. When I was reading the original novel, I pictured Gu Jingyi's face. I never expected that Gu Jingyi would actually play the role. He and Han Shangyan are really a perfect match."

In one area below, fans of the couple were screaming wildly, "Ahhh, we've got it for real!"

Great, that's the effect I wanted.

After the press conference, the two of them frequently trended on social media.

#Gu Jingyi's Comments on Yang Zi#, #Ashes of Love CP Second Collaboration#, #Two Top Stars Second Collaboration#, #Yang Zi's Comments on Gu Jingyi#
It occupied the top five spots in the top ten trending searches.

It was a perfect promotional event for the show, generating free publicity through interactive elements.

Many passersby commented, "Is Gu Jingyi and Yang Zi's new drama coming out? Please don't make it as heart-wrenching as Ashes of Love. Give us something sweet, I want to watch a sweet drama."

"Is it an esports theme? Please don't drastically alter it!"

"I'm a guy, and putting everything else aside, Gu Jingyi is genuinely handsome, unlike the typical delicate pretty boys on the market. His features are large and angular, the kind of striking good looks that fits the Chinese aesthetic."

Fans also started recommending the show in the comments section, praising it to death with phrases like "a worthwhile investment" and "a sweet romance drama."

However, the fans all avoided the keyword "e-sports".

As the last major hit drama to air on a satellite TV network, "Go Go Squid!" changed its e-sports competition to a cybersecurity information competition...

It was definitely a bit awkward…

However, its flaws do not detract from its overall appeal and do not affect the viewing experience of those who enjoy the show.

Gu Jingyi also read these online comments, and he did not object to creating a CP (couple pairing) with Yang Zi.

Even if they don't leave, the man will still attract the most fans when it comes to this kind of purification method.

Because almost all the viewers of the drama and the fans who follow celebrities are female.

Take "Ashes of Love" for example; Gu Jingyi attracted about 80% of the fans among the main creative team.

It's a vertical plunge into the pit, nothing more.

He and Yang Zi have a good relationship in private, and Gu Jingyi is not the kind of person who can make a comeback from obscurity.

He has a solid foundation and doesn't need to resort to a dramatic "purification" approach like the male lead in a certain drama, which broke off relations halfway through the series.

The drama "Ashes of Love" brought Gu Jingyi a comprehensive upgrade in his resources, and his jewelry endorsement changed from high-end Chopard to top luxury Van Cleef & Arpels.

These are all top-level titles: Global Brand Ambassador.

How can this not be considered a perk of a hugely popular drama?
Not to mention the number of new endorsements since "Ashes of Love" aired. The combined number of new endorsements announced by Zizi and Teacher Luo is less than half of Gu Jingyi's, even though Gu Jingyi's endorsement fee has soared to 1600 million yuan a year.

The premiere of "Intimacy" will further increase this number.

Gu Jingyi was looking forward to all of this.

An hour before the premiere of "Go Go Squid!", the production team invited their friends in the industry to post on Weibo to promote the show.

Like Gu Jingyi, he had a group of friends in the industry, including Dilraba, the eight members of Nine Percent, Ju Jingyi, SNH48 idols, and Shen Yue, who helped him get support.
Yang Zi, needless to say, is a social ox.

#Go Go Squid! The All-Star Lineup is Highly Anticipated#
#Looking forward to Go Go Squid!#
The time for the broadcast arrived quickly, and the fans all turned on their tablets, phones, and TV shows right on time.

This drama aired on two major satellite TV channels, Tomato TV and Zhejiang TV, while online streaming platforms included iQiyi and Tencent Video.

Generally, TV dramas are either exclusively broadcast by Tencent Video or iQiyi. For example, "The King's Avatar".

Either Tencent Video, iQiyi, and CCTV jointly broadcast the show, and the combined viewership is counted. For example, "Si Teng." However, "Intimate" has garnered significant attention from its inception to its premiere.

Anyone with a discerning eye knows about projects that are guaranteed to make money, so naturally everyone wants to get involved.

As Gu Jingyi's theme song began to play, the TV series started.

华测
Zhao Qinghuan had just finished a meeting. Instead of rushing back, she sat in her boss's chair waiting for the premiere results of "Go Go Squid!" to be released.

Since she had nothing better to do, she turned on a TV series to watch.

When Zhao Qinghuan saw Gu Jingyi appear with his hair slicked back, she muttered, "Tch, trying to look mature."

In reality, her eyes never left the screen. Although the plot was just a typical sweet romance drama, it still captivated her, a woman in her thirties who had only recently started watching.

Although the cybersecurity competition at the beginning left her speechless, the camera focused on Gu Jingyi, who was sitting on the bench, coldly throwing a towel.

The amazement in Zhao Qinghuan's eyes was almost overflowing.

As the ending theme song, "The Nameless," played, Zhao Qinghuan became even more certain: "This drama is bound to be a huge hit."

How bad could a show be that she can go from simply passing the time to becoming completely absorbed in?

After midnight, Zhao Qinghuan didn't rush home.

She is waiting for the data from yesterday's premiere to come out; the data is still being compiled.

An hour passed quickly, and I saw the data displayed on my phone screen.

Zhao Qinghuan smiled, "You didn't disappoint me after all."

The phone screen was dimly lit; Zhejiang TV's ratings were 1.205, and Hunan TV's were 1.13.
Breaking the 1 mark in two stages is already an extremely outstanding achievement.

In the internet age, even Hunan TV, the leading satellite TV station, considers a premiere episode breaking 1% a cause for celebration.

Not to mention other satellite TV channels, especially the usually low-profile Tomato TV.

Being able to rival Zhejiang TV, which is always second best, is enough to prove Gu Jingyi's strong ability to handle dramas.

At this moment, countless fans in every household must have turned on their TVs in their living rooms and bedrooms to boost Gu Jingyi's TV ratings.

To boost ratings for "Consort Jing," she won't just target one channel; doing so would allow satellite channels to steal Gu Jingyi's achievements.

To give a simple example, if a TV series premieres on Hunan TV and Zhejiang TV.

Generally speaking, Hunan TV's premiere ratings far exceed those of Zhejiang TV.

This is the inherent advantage that celebrity TV stations bring in by their own audience.

Therefore, when the premiere ratings of Tomato TV and Zhejiang TV were released, which were similar to each other, the ratings were already quite high.

This has once again stunned countless people in the industry; the level of fan cohesion is truly remarkable.

Although the online viewership data is not yet available, the premiere's viewership rating of over 1 on two channels already secures its place among the top three TV dramas this year.

Zhao Qinghuan was in a great mood and sent out round after round of red envelopes in the Huace group.

CTI's official Weibo account also updated its status, @CTIOfficialWeibo:

The drama "Go Go Squid!", starring our artist Gu Jingyi (@顾璟奕), achieved a viewership rating of over 1 on both channels during its premiere. Join us for a quiz to watch the show! We'll randomly select 10 fans from the comments to receive Gu Jingyi merchandise. Winners will be drawn on July 7.20th at 19 PM via @微博抽奖平台.

The moment this giveaway post was published on Weibo, it instantly ignited the enthusiasm of countless fans.

The number of likes and comments quickly exceeded 10,000, and fans also spontaneously photoshopped Gu Jingyi's selfies and achievements together to control the comments.

In the picture, Gu Jingyi sits in a chair, looking down at everyone with disdain. The accompanying text reads: "Two blockbuster dramas this year, the leading man in these dramas—Emperor Jingyi still needs to work hard to create even greater glory."

Some clueless passersby slowly typed a "?", and then began to speak up for Gu Jingyi:

"Really? I know Gu Jingyi has a lot of fans because of his career. But you don't have to be this harsh. Two hit dramas in one year. Even Yang Mi and Shi Shi in 2011 couldn't do that. Gu Jingyi is already very impressive."

"Fans, don't get too worked up. In this era of internet celebrities, this achievement is already at the level of a Ziwei star."

The fans of Jingfei were secretly delighted, but it was the rival fans who exposed them.

"Oh my god, Consort Jing really got away with it."

"Consort Jing really put on a big show!"

"666, do you believe Consort Jing is spurring Gu Jingyi on, or do you believe Gu Jingyi is Qin Shi Huang?"

"Pay attention, the key is two blockbuster dramas with top male leads in a year. Especially the top lead, that's what the fans of Jingfei want to emphasize. Does anyone not know Gu Jingyi's reputation as a 'super dad'?"

Fans and netizens had a great time discussing it, and Ms. Du from Yuehua broke several of her cups.

"Notify the publicity department to prepare a promotional campaign for 'Take You to the Top of the World' and Xiao Xiao's 'You Are Beautiful When You Smile'."

It's obvious that Ms. Du is applying a formula. She thinks that traffic plus e-sports are the key factors for a hit product.

However, they overlooked the fact that the success of Gu Jingyi, a top-tier celebrity, is never replicable.

Although "Go Go Squid!" has only been airing for one day, it has already become a hit.

The next day
Gu Jingyi woke up next to Liu Haolin; he had already joined the cast of "Little Red Flower".

As soon as he woke up, he quickly got dressed and hurriedly left the room.

There are still some promotional activities for "Go Go Squid!", which Gu Jingyi needs to complete in cooperation with Yang Zi.

Huace readily cooperated and arranged leave for Gu Jingyi directly.

The premiere rating of "Go Go Squid!" was above 1 on both channels despite being broadcast on two separate platforms.

Strictly speaking, its premiere performance was actually better than that of "Ashes of Love".

Gu Jingyi, who once again plays the male lead, undoubtedly reaped the greatest benefits.

Yang Zi's side was also very cooperative, and there was no disrespect for martial ethics in their attempts to extort the enemy.

Within the industry, it's generally accepted that any achievement within the top three is considered a real accomplishment, with the top-ranked achievement receiving the biggest bonus.

However, Yang Zi's casting as the second lead in "Go Go Squid!" is not a bad deal, because with Gu Jingyi's participation, the show is clearly more popular than "My Boyfriend is a Detective".

Gu Jingyi is also more handsome than him; his tall stature of 186cm makes his legs the only thing on screen.

The chemistry between the "cool and aloof Bking" and the "Squid Prince" is great, making drama fans swoon over their sweet moments.

After Gu Jingyi and Yang Zi finish working together on this project, they might collaborate on "Chang Xiang Si" next.

The role that made "Kenshiro" a huge star, the White-Haired Immortal, would also be a good fit for Gu Jingyi.

It doesn't matter if I'm not in the top billing, since I don't have many scenes anyway.

Gu Jingyi only made a "friendly appearance" or "special appearance".

The Weibo door-to-door campaign went smoothly, and afterwards the two of them did a duo issue of "EllE" together.

It's already July 20th, so of course it's the September issue.

It's too late for the August issue; given Gu Jingyi's status, it's impossible for him to be on the double cover of a regular monthly magazine.

Gu Jingyi only reluctantly agreed to the magazine's "Golden September" recommendation.

"Teacher Gu, lower your head a little more. Good, this angle is right, hold it, don't move!"

"3, 2, 1"

The cover shoot followed the same process as before, as simple as eating and drinking for Gu Jingyi.

On the contrary, Yang Zi seemed a bit reserved, after all, her fashion resources have always been very limited.

This collaboration with Gu Jingyi for the ELLE double issue is truly a testament to how Gu Jingyi has carried me.

After the shoot, the two had a meal with their team and then left in a hurry.

The huge success of "Go Go Squid!" has boosted the status of the actors.

Gu Jingyi has finally broken the "1500 million yuan per year" endorsement fee and is striving towards "1800 million yuan per year".

……

Two weeks have passed since "Go Go Squid!" premiered, and Gu Jingyi's "car window kiss" has unsurprisingly gone viral again.

The related terms have garnered over 100 million views, and upon closer inspection, even passersby are reporting on the flooding.

"Han Shangyan is so charming! Gu Jingyi is really something, how come some people are born to be husbands!"

"So handsome, so handsome! Gu Jingyi is a born king!"

"No one can defeat Gu Jingyi with this background music playing!"

"Han Shangyan has replaced Xu Feng as the most handsome male lead in my heart. Gu Jingyi is absolutely amazing, this drama's visuals are off the charts again!"

When Tian Xiwei, who came to visit the set of "Little Red Flower," solemnly read these comments aloud in Gu Jingyi's RV.

Gu Jingyi raised an eyebrow. "We don't have much time together. Are you sure you want to waste it on boring comments?"

"None of your business," Tian Xiwei said, narrowing her eyes unhappily. Noticing Gu Jingyi's slightly changed expression, she immediately backed down.

"You're getting more and more impatient with me... You weren't like this before..."

She spoke in a muffled voice, and Gu Jingyi only heard the first half of her sentence.

"Have it?"

"Never mind," Tian Xiwei said, glancing out the window.

Liu Haoli was sitting on a small stool, cheerfully alone.

"Do you like this type?"

Even after saying it, Tian Xiwei herself felt a pang of jealousy.

"This is a difficult question for me to answer because people's aesthetic sense is never fixed. It's like how I clearly liked glamorous and mature women from the beginning, but I still couldn't help being attracted to you."

Gu Jingyi's arm had somehow already wrapped around Tian Xiwei's waist, and the breath he was exhaling was brushing against her ear.

Her delicate earlobes quickly turned so red they were almost dripping blood.

"He'll just say a few things..."

Before Tian Xiwei could finish speaking, Gu Jingyi kissed her.

"I've only just... grasped the concept of how to... love someone. Oda... you should be more patient with me."

After the kiss, Gu Jingyi's breathing became slightly erratic. His Adam's apple bobbed up and down, making him look incredibly alluring.

Tian Xiwei's eyes suddenly darkened, and a surge of love overwhelmed her.

She grabbed Gu Jingyi by the collar and cursed in Sichuan-Chongqing dialect, "I think he's got a head full of gluttony but he's a complete idiot."

Seeing that Gu Jingyi was a little confused, she went straight for it.

Silly boy, if sweet words aren't enough, prove it to me with your actions. I want to confirm your love for me even more from your breathy, flustered breathing.

Before the tide came in, Xiao Tian, ​​sitting on Gu Jingyi's lap, closed her eyes and whispered to herself.

(End of this chapter)