Entertainment mogul: Starting his business with the internet

Chapter 195 is trending again.
At 10 p.m., in her bedroom at the Phoenix Mansion in Donghai, Liu Shishi was holding her cell phone and talking to her father.

"Don't worry, Comrade Liu, I can handle those little things online."

"Let Yi Yi handle this? No way! Things on Weibo will naturally calm down once the hype dies down."

"Alright, Dad. I won't say any more. You and Mom take good care of yourselves at home."

After hanging up the phone, Ms. Liu breathed a sigh of relief, a helpless smile appearing on her lips.

The old father was just worried and confused; there was no need for Mr. Song to step in and resolve such a trivial matter as fans arguing.

Fans arguing, making a fuss, and arguing can better unite the team's fighting spirit.

"Shishi, come quick! You're trending again!"

Suddenly, the anxious voice of Jiang Yuanyuan, the work assistant and executive agent, came from the side.

Liu Shishi's heart tightened, and she quickly went to the computer to check the Weibo trending topics list on the screen.

"9 Wang Jing Liu Shishi"

The trending topic caught Liu's eye, and she was slightly surprised: "Why is Sister Jing trending with me?"

I immediately sat down and clicked on the trending news to see the details.

The webpage quickly redirected, revealing that a blogger had posted a set of photos.

In the photo, Liu Shishi and Wang Jing are walking side by side in a shopping mall, arm in arm.

The two chatted and laughed, behaving intimately, clearly close friends.

The blogger also added: "Liu Shishi needs no introduction; she's the protagonist of the recent endorsement scandal."

The key figure is the woman beside her; she's no ordinary person. She is Wang Jing, the executive director and chief operating officer of Tenda Technology Group.

Wang Jing is the third most important person in the entire Tengda Group, and also the first general manager of Tengda Culture Company.

The close relationship between Liu and Wang is obvious to anyone with eyes to see.

So this is why Wang Jing is the only resource that Liu Shishi, a nobody with no acting skills, no looks, and no figure, was able to steal Liu Yifei's endorsement.

@SongCi v Boss Song, manage your subordinates well!

Upon reading this text, Liu Shishi's emotions erupted instantly. Her eyes widened in anger, and she felt as if her lungs were about to explode, with a raging fire burning in her chest.

She recognized the photos immediately; they were taken a few days earlier when she and Wang Jing went shopping together after she went to Tengda Group to shoot an endorsement advertisement.

Unexpectedly, she and Sister Jing were secretly photographed by someone with ulterior motives, and now the photos have been posted online, accompanied by such malicious speculation and attacks.

Unable to contain his anger, he shouted, "Hit fans! How dare they call me a nobody with no connections or resources? This is outrageous!"

Jiang Yuanyuan nodded in agreement: "Shishi, don't be angry. These little devils are really hateful, they actually slandered you like that."

Liu Shishi was so angry that her hands trembled as she shakily dragged the mouse, wanting to see the netizens' replies.

"So that's how it is. No wonder Liu Shishi has always been able to film dramas for Tengda Culture. It turns out she has a huge connection with the company."

"You can tell from the photos that Liu Shishi and Wang Jing have a really good relationship."

"The blogger went too far. Shishi is still very beautiful."

"That's hilarious. If someone has connections and influence, what's wrong with them getting the endorsement? What does this have to do with you, blogger?"

After reading a few comments, Liu Shishi's anger subsided slightly.

Apart from a few extreme haters who launched malicious attacks, most netizens are relatively rational, believing that endorsements are a matter of mutual consent, and since everyone is an adult, it is normal to use connections to get things done.

Miss Liu nodded in satisfaction: "That's more like it. The masses have discerning eyes. Dare to call me a nobody? Bah, you're blind!"

Many netizens browsed this trending news, and the comment section kept refreshing, with all sorts of bizarre comments emerging one after another.

Suddenly, one problem after another arose!
"Holy crap, Wang Luodan liked the blogger's post!"

"Wang Luodan is not an artist under Tengda Culture, so why would she support the blogger's viewpoint?"

"It's understandable. Liu Shishi is Tangren's top female star, but she's taking up Tengda's resources, so Tengda's artists are definitely not happy about it!"

Wang Luodan became a sensation after starring in "Struggle," and with the popularity she gained from previous dramas such as "My Old Classmate" and "With You," she is a rising star with 700,000 Weibo followers.

Her like instantly propelled the news to even greater heights, quickly climbing into the top five trending topics and closing in on "The Forbidden Kingdom," which was ranked fourth.

The blogger also seemed to be closely monitoring the comments section of their Weibo post. Seeing that Tengda Culture's leading lady had given them a thumbs up, they became even more enthusiastic and quickly updated their status again:
"It is clear that those who follow the right path receive much help, while those who stray from it receive little. Even the people within Tengda Group themselves couldn't stand by and watch."

Wang Jing, as a senior executive of Tengda Group, disregarded the company's interests and used her position to help Liu Shishi obtain resources and endorsements. I suggest Mr. Song, you clean house. @Songciv

"What is Wang Luodan thinking? She actually sided with an outsider to criticize Sister Jing!"

Liu Shishi was speechless, completely unable to understand Wang Luodan's behavior.

Although she enjoyed certain Tengda resources, it did not affect the interests of Wang Luodan and Lü Yi.

In the Zhenhua Trilogy, she and two other actresses under Tengda each starred in one of the series. Since they couldn't reprise their roles in the same series, the three of them weren't in competition.

As for the movie "First Love," it was a film specially commissioned for her by Mr. Song.

This is a matter between the couple, and it has nothing to do with Wang Luodan, an outsider. I can't understand why she has anything to be upset about.

"Shishi, has Wang Luodan gone mad? Doesn't she understand that by clicking 'like,' she's offending the real founder of Tengda Culture, the group's COO? Does she even want to stay in the company after this?"

Jiang Yuanyuan stared blankly at the screen, her face also filled with disbelief.

She was one of the earliest employees of Tengda Culture and witnessed firsthand how Wang Jing built the company from scratch, bit by bit.

Although Song Ci is the boss of Tengda Culture, he has long been a hands-off manager, while the person who truly built this company is Wang Jing.

She enjoys extremely high prestige at Tengda Culture, far surpassing that of any of the company's popular artists.

At that moment, the melodious ringtone of "The Wind Rises" rang out. Liu Shishi continued browsing netizens' comments while answering the phone.

"Hey, Sister K!"

On the other end of the phone, Cai Yinong's voice was calm and steady: "Shishi, are you looking at the trending topics on Weibo?"

Liu Shishi nodded slightly, her eyes filled with anger, and replied indignantly, "I saw it! It's infuriating!"

"Remember, for now, don't make any response on Weibo. Just pretend you don't know anything about this!"

Cai Yinong gave his concerned instructions, his tone carrying an undeniable firmness.

Liu Shishi looked unwilling: "But they are slandering me and Sister Jing, I don't want to tolerate it!" "It was originally just a small matter that netizens talked about over tea. Everyone knows that you and President Wang have a good relationship, and at most they will sigh that you are really a resource-rich person."

But Wang Luodan's "like" changes the nature of the conflict to one of internal strife within the Tengda Group. If an outsider likes this, wouldn't it only make Wang Jing more embarrassed and put her in a more passive position?

Cai Yi-nong's analysis was logical and well-founded, leaving no room for rebuttal.

Liu Shishi pouted, looking unhappy, but still reluctantly agreed: "Okay! I'll listen to you, Sister K."

Cai Yinong was still a little worried and emphasized again: "Don't make any rash statements. If you really want to post on Weibo, ask President Song first."

"I know!" Sister K's obstruction made Sister Yi a little impatient.

After ending the call, Liu Shishi looked frustrated. Not being able to confront those trolls on Weibo was truly frustrating.

Jiang Yuanyuan offered a suggestion: "Shishi, if you really want to post on Weibo, you can use a secondary account."

Miss Liu's eyes lit up, and she smiled and agreed, "That's a good idea!"

Just as I was about to log out of Weibo and register a new account, I discovered that things had changed.

Upon refreshing the page, I couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "Holy crap, Sister Jing actually left a comment! How awesome!"

On the screen was a prominent message: Wang Jing v: "It's none of your business as an outsider to comment on Tengda Group's affairs."

With Wang Jing's response, the matter's popularity reached its peak, topping the Weibo hot search list and attracting the attention of countless netizens.

"The big shot himself is involved. You really have influence, blogger. Don't panic, keep going."

"Haha, Wang Luodan unliked it! Looks like she's scared now."

"Hilarious! Wang Luodan posted a statement on her Weibo a minute ago, saying that she accidentally clicked the like button and she strongly condemned the blogger for spreading rumors."

"It's really funny. I knew it. Wang Luodan was so brave, but as soon as Wang Jing appeared, Wang Luodan immediately backed down. She changed her mind faster than flipping through a book."

"Watching the show and waiting to see how the blogger responds to Wang Jing?"

Some people were expecting the blogger to give a powerful rebuttal, but to the disappointment of netizens, the blogger did not make any move after a long wait, as if he had disappeared without a trace.

"Where's the owner? Come out quickly!"

"Let's all disperse. With a big shot like Wang Jing personally responding, the blogger is probably too cowardly to show their face!"

Jiang Yuanyuan stood close to the young master and witnessed the whole thing unfold. Seeing that the blogger hadn't shown up for a long time, she shook her head speechlessly.

"This kind of person only knows how to attract attention. I guess this farce will end soon."

Liu Shishi frowned slightly, "Sigh, although things are about to come to an end, I guess I'll never be able to get rid of the label of 'resource-backed celebrity'."

The following morning, an emergency meeting was being held in a conference room of Tengda Culture in the Zhongao Building in Beiping.

Zhang Zhao sat in the center, his face stern and gloomy, exuding a suffocating aura that made all the attendees afraid to even breathe.

Sitting on the left are Zhuang Liqi, Zeng Jia, and the company's three leading male artists, Qiao, Wang, and Chen.

On the right are Yu Xin, Yang Tianzhen, actress Wang Luodan, and Lü Yi, arranged in that order.

The crowd either lowered their heads to avoid Zhang Zhao's imposing gaze or calmly watched the company's top executive; the atmosphere in the meeting room was tense and solemn.

"Comrades, you all probably know about the trending topics on Weibo last night. Some people even participated in them personally."

Zhang Zhao's voice was deep and powerful, carrying a cold questioning tone, and his gaze was like a sharp sword, fixed on Wang Luodan.

Feeling the gaze that seemed to see right through her, Wang Luodan's back was already covered in a layer of cold sweat.

At this moment, I felt a pang of regret. Why did I impulsively like that last night? I was so impulsive.

"Wang Luodan!"

Zhang Zhao's emotionless call of name sent a shiver down Wang Luodan's spine. Her voice trembled slightly as she timidly replied, "I'm here."

"What were you doing last night? Why did you like someone else's post and question President Wang Jing?"

Wang Luodan looked bitter and stammered, saying in a low voice, "I accidentally slipped."

Zhang Zhao sneered, his tone filled with mockery and anger: "Slip of the hand! I think you've lost your brain!" His sharp words seemed to lower the temperature in the room even further.

Seeing Zhang Zhao's gloomy expression, Zeng Jia hesitated for a long time, but still forced himself to persuade him, "Mr. Zhang, please calm down. Luo Dan was just being careless, and he corrected the problem as soon as he discovered it."

It would have been better if Zeng Jia hadn't spoken, but once she opened her mouth, she was also attacked by Zhang Zhao.

"What kind of job is this artist management team? Your artists are acting recklessly online, making Tengda a laughing stock for the whole internet!"

Zeng Jia was scolded by the general manager, his face turned red, and he dared not say a word. He also felt resentful towards Wang Luodan, thinking that she had nothing better to do than cause trouble.

After venting his anger, it took Zhang Zhao a while to gradually calm down.

The rhythmic tapping of fingers on the conference table surface seemed to resonate in everyone's hearts, making them uneasy.

"This incident also serves as a reminder to me that from now on, all the company's artists' Weibo accounts should be handed over to the company for unified supervision by designated personnel."

Upon hearing this, Tengda's top executive, Qiao Zhengyu, reluctantly said, "President Zhang..."

Before he could finish speaking, Zhang Zhao waved his hand and emphasized in an unquestionable manner: "I'm not discussing this with you, I'm informing you to do as you're told."

There's no room for negotiation regarding the Weibo account. You can use the account normally, but what you post will be subject to company oversight.

Qiao Zhengyu exchanged a glance with the other artists from Tengda without making it obvious. Seeing that everyone was hanging their heads and dared not object, he could only sigh helplessly.

At this moment, Zhang Zhao was furious, and no one dared to be the first to offend him. The situation was beyond their control, and everyone was caught in the crossfire because of Wang Luodan.

After forcibly finalizing the decision to hand over the Weibo account to the company for supervision, Zhang Zhao paused briefly, and the meeting room became so quiet that only the soft breathing of the people could be heard.

After a long pause, he spoke again: "Some people have become famous and arrogant, forgetting where they're from!"

After his sharp gaze swept over everyone present, Zhang Zhao's tone became increasingly stern:

"Let me remind you all! Without the backing of Tengda Group, you are nothing."

"And since you're part of Tengda Culture, you're destined to be labeled as Mr. Wang. If Mr. Wang falls from grace, you won't benefit either."

Wherever there are people, there is a power struggle. Within a large group like Tengda Group, there are also undercurrents of power struggles, mainly between two factions led by Zhang Yong and Wang Jing.

Because Tengda Culture was founded by Wang Jing, the company is basically made up of her old team. So everyone at Tengda Culture is basically a member of the Wang faction.

Furthermore, the establishment of subsidiaries such as Southern Cinema Circuit and Tiangong Special Effects is also closely related to Wang Jing, so this group of people are undoubtedly the core force of the Wang faction.

(End of this chapter)