This director lacks vision.

Chapter 347 Popularity and Controversy

At 7:11 p.m. on November 2, Zhang Yuxi returned home.

Since she debuted as a member of the 101 girl group, she has made a lot of money. She doesn't know anything about investing, so she bought several houses in Yanjing.

One of the apartments is quite large, a four-bedroom apartment of 168 square meters, where my parents and younger brother usually live together.

When Zhang Yuxi is on vacation, she sometimes comes back here to stay for a couple of days to feel at home.

Seeing her daughter return, Dong Shuanghua smiled and said, "My darling daughter is back! I've kept the food warm for you."

Seeing her mother about to go to the kitchen to get the dishes, Zhang Yuxi immediately stopped her: "No need, I've already eaten a low-fat meal, I don't dare to eat too much tonight."

As a girl group idol, Zhang Yuxi is very strict with her figure management.

She then asked, "Where are Dad and my brother?"

“Your brother signed up for a street dance class, and today is his first day. Your dad is responsible for picking him up and dropping him off.”

Hearing this, Zhang Yuxi felt a little envious of her younger brother's treatment.

She was a left-behind child, having grown up with her maternal grandmother until she was about ten years old when she returned to live with her parents.

She only found out when she was 14 that her parents had a younger brother, who was already 3 years old at the time.

These experiences fostered Zhang Yuxi's relatively independent personality, but also made her relationship with her family more distant, while she was closer to her mother.

Seeing her daughter's expression, Dong Shuanghua immediately changed the subject, saying, "Don't work too hard. Our family has enough to eat and wear now."

I'm truly blessed to have such a wonderful daughter like you, so caring and capable of earning money. I'm so lucky!

Hearing her mother's praise, Zhang Yuxi felt much better.

She said, "Even if I wanted to work hard next year, I wouldn't be able to. The work should be much easier from now on."

"What's wrong? Is something bothering you at work? Tell Mom, and I'll give you some advice."

"No, everything is fine. It's just that after our group went solo, everyone's workload decreased."

Zhang Yuxi gave a casual reply and went back to her room.

After closing the door, she lay down on the bed without any regard for her image, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Back in the 101 girl group, everyone did activities together. Although some members were more famous and some were less so, everyone's income was split equally.

The team as a whole shares the same goals and challenges.

Now that everyone has gone solo, the differences in their development are particularly noticeable.

As the "boss's wife," Naza holds company shares, giving her a very secure position.
Dilraba started appearing on variety shows to maintain her exposure and popularity;

Zhang Tianai's popularity soared even higher with the premiere of "My Love from the Star" on October 13th.

This drama is incredibly popular, generating a huge amount of buzz.

The male lead, Wang Jiaer, quickly became a top male star, with his number of female fans almost on par with Jiang Yifeng's.

Zhang Tianai has become incredibly popular, with endorsements and commercial deals coming in droves.

Hot Love was originally the female lead in the idol drama "Youth With You," and she was already very popular before.

The three women are now far ahead in their careers, completely outpacing their teammates.

Zhang Yuxi could accept this situation.

After all, when the first generation of the group was first formed, the three hot and sexy girls were the core, and their popularity was always the highest.

Yang Caiyu, however, got close to Liu Yifei and Jiang Yifeng by currying favor with her. Now she has great resources, not only playing a role in "Youth With You" but also starring in "My Sunshine".

Li Yitong also got involved with the boss, starring in the movie "The Witch" and the TV series "Zhu Xian".

Zhang Yuxi and He Na currently have the worst resources; they haven't had any good film or television roles yet and are still living off their past achievements.

To be honest, Zhang Yuxi was quite anxious.

Fengxing Media has a lot of resources, but there are also many female artists, so the competition is still fierce.

She was marginalized in the first generation of the group, and now the second generation has emerged. The company's new generation of actresses, such as Meng Ziyi, Jiang Peiyao, Tian Qianwei, and Song Zuer, are all developing rapidly, so the pressure on her is considerable.

The saying "beauties emerge in every generation" is especially true at Fengxing Media.

Zhang Yuxi is only 20 years old this year, which would be considered a rising star just starting her career in other companies.

However, at Fengxing Media, the youngest female artist is only thirteen or fourteen years old.

I already feel the pressure of being left behind at the age of 20.

Buzz~buzz~buzz~~
Zhang Yuxi's phone vibrated. She turned over, picked it up, and saw that it was a WeChat message from He Na.

[Daxi, Cai Ribbon and Cumin are spreading rumors again that you had plastic surgery. Did you see the trending topic?]

Cai Ribbon is a fan of Yang Caiyu.

After the members of the first generation of Produce 101 went solo, their solo fans became "enemies," treating their idols' former teammates as adversaries and launching various attacks and slanders.

Zhang Yuxi has very defined features. Although she is Han Chinese, her appearance is more exotic than that of Nazha and Dilraba. Although she has a natural face, she has always been suspected of having plastic surgery.

As for cumin, that's what Hanikezi's fans call it.

Hanikezi looks quite similar to Zhang Yuxi, and many casual viewers call Hanikezi "Little Zhang Yuxi".

This angered Hanikezi's fans, who frequently attacked Zhang Yuxi.

However, this time she trended on social media, but it was actually a publicity stunt arranged by the company to maintain Zhang Yuxi's exposure.

Not wanting to say it outright, she said to He Na, "I've seen it, I'm used to it. We're in the same boat. You're often questioned about having breast implants too."

He Na replied in a flash.

[Who can argue with that? People tend to ignore minor cosmetic procedures like Li Yitong's, but they seize on the two of us who are naturally beautiful and question us. This world is too surreal.]

I heard that the company is going to film a fantasy drama called Wu Xin: The Monster Killer, a wuxia drama called The Legend of the Condor Heroes, a workplace drama called Ode to Joy, and two idol dramas next year.

Are there any roles you'd like to play?

Upon seeing He Na's message, Zhang Yuxi pursed her lips and said, "You're wrong about that. We can't just play whatever role we want."

We only get the roles that others have left over. With so many dramas, I don't even know if I'll be able to land a lead role.

He Na: [...]

No, we absolutely must find a chance to win over the boss! Only then can we get better resources!

Among the members of the 101 generation group, only Zhang Yuxi and He Na have not yet had a relationship with Jiang Yifeng.

Although Jiang Yifeng didn't say anything, the company's senior executives would naturally treat them differently. When allocating resources, they would give priority to Rela Ai, Yang Caiyu, and Li Yitong.

When this topic came up, Zhang Yuxi perked up and typed: "Our previous attempts have all failed. Do you have any good ideas?"

I've come up with a way that's sure to work.

【Say it! 】

The success of our group is entirely due to the boss's packaging and production.

Now that we've gone solo, the girl group hasn't held a farewell ceremony.

I think we should hold a very formal farewell ceremony and invite the boss over to thank him in person.

The girl group expressed their gratitude, and we'll give them a push and seize the opportunity to enter the scene; the boss will definitely like that!
I copied this trick from the Crown Team, what do you think?

Zhang Yuxi hesitated for a moment. In her mind, the act of devotion meant one-on-one with the boss.

But given the circumstances, there was no room for restraint.

【I think it’s feasible! 】

Zhang Yuxi chatted with He Na for a while longer and finalized the general plan.

Seeing that it was 8 p.m., she finally opened Sohu Video to watch Hunting 2.

After clicking play, you can hear footsteps.

Four men, escorted by prison guards, sat down in the interrogation room.

The camera zooms in, giving a close-up of one of the men's faces.

His face was haggard and pale, and he looked weak, but suddenly he erupted in anger, shouting, "Injustice! I've been wronged!"

The other three joined in the commotion, claiming they were innocent, but all they got in return was a police baton.

The four men were attacked in the stomach and rolled on the ground in pain. As they rolled onto the metal sheets of the room, the scene smoothly transitioned to the metal sheets of a subway.

As the opening theme song "Cry For Me" plays, it's a melancholic piece that expresses the loneliness and vulnerability of modern people.

Liu Yifei, who plays Anxi, is sitting on the subway in Japan, and the scenes begin to interweave and flash.

"The bridge is on the other side of the bridge.
喜びがあなつのならあIf it is joy, it means the coming of summer
Feel the pain in the breeze
I can cry as much as I want now

Cry for me
Time goes by, though it never returns…

Zhang Yuxi turned on a quarter of the transparent bullet comments and saw that everyone was praising it.

"As expected, you can't skip the opening credits of Jiang Yifeng's TV series; this song is great!"

"Liu Yifei is so beautiful! She seems even more beautiful than before!"

"The song is very nice, but why is it the Japanese version? Isn't there a Chinese version?"

"Just hearing the opening theme song makes me want to cry!"

"If I've been wronged, please cry for me!"

……

Seeing the praise in the comments and looking at the beautiful and elegant Liu Yifei on her phone screen, Zhang Yuxi felt very envious.

She also wanted to be the lead actress in the films and television dramas produced by Jiang Yifeng.

After the opening credits, a line of bold text appeared on the screen: "The story of this drama is set in Japan and has nothing to do with China!"

Following the announcement of the armor-layered armor, the first episode of Hunting 2 began airing.

The plot moves very fast. After explaining Anxi's trip to Japan at the beginning, it leads to the case of the disappearance of Ayako, the daughter of the guesthouse owner Miyamoto.

After Miyamoto reported the incident to the police, the police remained passive and took no action.

Left with no other choice, he took Anxi's advice and began to use the power of the internet to find people.

They split into two groups: Anxi posted videos online, seeking help from netizens;

Miyamoto, on the other hand, contacted Ayako's online friends based on clues left on Ayako's Facebook account.

Seeing this part, Zhang Yuxi felt completely immersed in the story.

Although Facebook differs from domestic products like Weibo, the methods of using a computer interface, remote video, and various voice and text chats are the same.

The Hunt 2's camera focuses on the internet, giving viewers a very strong sense of immersion, as if they are investigating a case from the camera's first-person perspective.

Soon, the first clue pointed to four young men, including Kawai Yuji.

They had previously served time in prison for gang rape and other crimes, and after their release, they were very unfriendly to women, so Miyamoto suspected that these four men had kidnapped his daughter.

However, as the investigation deepened, Anxi and Miyamoto learned about the past of these four people.

In 2001, when the four were still middle school students, they were falsely accused by a woman named Inoue Koyokawa, who claimed that they had been the victims of a sword fight.

According to Xiaobaihe's testimony, she was assaulted at Gotemba Park, but there is evidence that during the time period she described the incident, Xiaobaihe was out meeting another man and was not at Gotemba Park.

What's even more outrageous is that Xiaobaihe said the time she was assaulted coincided with a typhoon and torrential rain, and the park's rest pavilion was under construction and fenced off.

The defense presented data on the rainfall during the heavy rain at the time, arguing that no one could have committed violence under such conditions.

But the prosecutor's words left Zhang Yuxi speechless.

"Although Gotemba City was hit by a typhoon that day, and the defense provided rainfall data from Gotemba Station and the city's weather station, however—"

Central Park, located more than 500 meters away from these sampling points, might not have received any rain at all during the typhoon!

This bizarre logic is beyond words, even more absurd than a Sichuan cuisine livestreamer playing soccer during a typhoon, yet female judge Takahashi Shoko accepted it!

Ultimately, Kawai Yuji and others were found guilty.

The four men appealed the verdict, but were ultimately found guilty.

More than a decade has passed, and they have gone from young teenagers to unemployed youths, spending all of their youth in lawsuits and prisons.

They endured countless scornful looks and humiliations, yet ultimately could not prove their innocence, and could only live like gloomy maggots.

After learning about the four young people's plight, Anxi and Miyamoto could only express their sympathy.

Anxi astutely discovered that the missing Cai Zi had been in contact with Xiao Baihe, and perhaps this Xiao Baihe who falsely accused others was a key figure.

So Anxi and Miyamoto continued their investigation of Xiaobaihe.

Ueda Taka, one of the four young men, also expressed his desire to join in and help.

Anxi realized that he wanted to investigate Xiaobaihe's background and clear his name.

But Anxi did not refuse, because she needed help to find someone, and besides, Anxi sympathized with the plight of Ueda Takaya and the other three, and wanted to help them.

This concludes the first episode of The Hunt.

The 61-minute episode revolves entirely around the main storyline of finding Ayako and unveils the first case, namely the famous miscarriage of justice in Japan—the Gotemba Incident.

The show is fast-paced and high-energy throughout, keeping viewers hooked.

Zhang Yuxi watched the first episode of Hunting, which was 61 minutes long, and thought that only one episode had been updated today. She didn't expect that there would be a second episode playing automatically.

Before the opening theme song, there is a man standing in the middle of a subway plaza, surrounded by some men.

He said with a firm gaze, "When faced with a false accusation from a woman, you must adhere to three principles!"

First, do not apologize; second, do not communicate with the other party; third, do not trust the police.

After saying that, he threw down the promotional materials in his hand and squeezed into a subway car.

The scene transitions smoothly back to Anxi taking the subway, and the opening theme song Cry for Me plays again.

The plot of the second episode is that everyone starts to investigate Xiao Baihe, and then they find out about a training institution called New Women.

This organization actually teaches women how to make obscene reports on the subway in order to earn a considerable income.

This also brought to light the rampant subway defamation cases in Japan, and three main principles were summarized.

At the end of this episode, Anxi, Miyamoto, and Ueda Takaya uncovered the organization behind the training institution—Entoil.

Leaving this cliffhanger, the second episode of Hunting 2 concluded.

Zhang Yuxi felt she hadn't had enough after reading it.

Although she is a woman, she is also a normal person and feels disgusted by certain disgusting groups.

Moreover, the female lead of this drama is An Qian, and Zhang Yuxi's perspective makes the viewing experience very immersive.

She really wanted to watch Hunting 2 in one go, to unravel the mystery of Ayako's disappearance, and also to see what other outrageous "hunts" were happening.

Many viewers think the same way.

With the foundation laid by the first season of Hunting, coupled with Jiang Yifeng's market appeal, Hunting 2 was a huge hit upon its premiere.

In just 3 hours, Sohu Video announced that the combined views of the two episodes of Hunting 2 had exceeded 100 million! This set a new viewing record!

Topics related to the TV series are extremely popular.

At that time in China, people were still unaware of the situation regarding the advance envoys from Japan.

Seeing the Gotemba incident in Japan, and the sheer number of subway defamation cases leading to the emergence of three principles, everyone finds it unbelievable.

But that's reality; the stories of the first two episodes of Hunting 2 are all based on real-life material.

Jiang Yifeng's filming techniques are very skillful. He uses methods such as online chatting to increase the audience's sense of immersion. He also uses a lot of first-person perspective shots, allowing the audience to sometimes identify with the character investigating the case and sometimes with the character being wronged, creating a very strong emotional pull.

After watching the show, everyone wanted to discuss it online.

Many people initially thought that the plot of Hunting 2 was fictional and necessary for the storyline.

But after the discussion, everyone realized that these were all things that had actually happened.

One can only admire Jiang Yifeng and the awesomeness of Hunting 2.

Unlike Marco Polo, Hunting 2 was a great success after its premiere, achieving both high viewership and positive reviews, with a large number of viewers liking and praising it.

However, this broadcast also caused a great deal of controversy.

These controversies mainly focus on two points:
First, the entire hunt is conducted in Japanese, including the character Anxi, who is voiced in Japanese, with no Chinese elements whatsoever.

Second, Jiang Yifeng is deliberately inciting conflict to gain traffic.

(End of this chapter)