Chapter 74: Drama King
Just as the comments mentioned, the official trailer for Voice of the Dead gave off a completely different vibe, almost as if it were for another show.
The lighting was bright, and the sky was azure blue, unlike the scenes where a crime had occurred, in which the sky was always shrouded in darkness.
This version of the trailer focused on the interactions between Jiang Lin and Su Yang.
Jiang Lin stuck to his signature look of a T-shirt paired with jeans, occasionally switching it up with a Hawaiian-style shirt, looking every bit like a street loafer.
In contrast, Su Yang was always impeccably dressed in a neatly pressed shirt and trousers, his expression serious, as if he might pull out a gun from his waistband at any moment.
And yet, these two happened to be partners.
The show Voice of the Dead revolved around a duo of male leads. Once Lu Xu joined the cast, Tan Qi found out about this setup. Initially, she assumed the roles of Lu Xu and Shao Yao would follow the typical trope of starting out disliking each other and eventually becoming brothers through life-and-death trials. Instead—
These two were in perfect sync right from the start!
In the first scene of the trailer, when Jiang Lin furrowed his brows, Su Yang seemed to sense it immediately. Their eyes met for a split second, and in the next moment, Su Yang positioned himself flawlessly, blocking every possible escape route for the suspect.
“Leave it to you, partner.”
Their high-five was fleeting, but their trust in each other remained unwavering.
Jiang Lin’s words were never questioned by Su Yang. Even when their new superior dismissed the idea of “listening to voices of the dead” as absurd, Su Yang still carried out the tasks Jiang Lin entrusted to him.
In the second case, the crime scene was extremely complex. Su Yang was the first to stop Jiang Lin. “Let me handle this. Don’t go any further.”
Jiang Lin talked a lot, while Su Yang was more reserved. Yet, whether it was Jiang Lin’s chatter or the critical information he provided, both treated everything with the same level of serious analysis.
Tan Qi felt that the characters’ seamless chemistry must have been built upon the actors’ genuine rapport behind the scenes.
Whether it was at the crime scene or in the remote countryside where they went to investigate cases, these two always maintained their fixed positions—so that when Jiang Lin encountered danger, Su Yang could save him immediately.
Tan Qi was absolutely certain that Voice of the Dead production team had made no intentional efforts to add romantic undertones.
But the problem was, wasn’t this kind of mutual trust—entrusting their backs to each other with complete faith—a “super sweet” dynamic in itself?
What was most impressive was that, in just over two minutes of the trailer, the production team managed to create a sense of symmetry and continuity.
When their superior mocked Jiang Lin’s ability to “hear voices of the dead,” Su Yang stood before the desk, his shoulders tense and refusing to budge an inch.
He was a man of few words, with a naturally impassive expression, and rarely clashed with others. Yet, at that moment, the simmering anger in his eyes was unmistakable.
His stubbornness was solely for Jiang Lin.
And then came the final shot.
All the evidence pointed toward Su Yang—this case implicated him, and the killer had even altered their usual methods based on inside information.
But Jiang Lin’s tone remained unwavering: “It can’t be him.”
Jiang Lin, who usually appeared easygoing and careless, never taking anything too seriously—even when mocked by others—remained unfazed.
But in that moment, he was unrelenting.
His stubbornness, too, was solely for Su Yang.
When Jiang Lin was punched by the killer and pushed off the building, his gaze instinctively sought out Su Yang. Even though Su Yang was still on the ground below, as if guided by an unspoken connection, he returned Jiang Lin’s look.
Then—Jiang Lin realized that his back never hit the ground. Someone had caught him.
He entrusted his life and death to Su Yang without hesitation.
In the trailer, neither Jiang Lin nor Su Yang ever said the words “I trust you,” yet everything was conveyed without needing to be spoken.
Tan Qi only watched it once—and she was completely hooked.
The trailer clearly showcased the personalities of the two characters—one carefree, the other rigid. At their core, however, neither Jiang Lin nor Su Yang were the type to easily change for anyone.
Jiang Lin appeared casual and laid-back, yet even at the most brutal and terrifying crime scenes, or when working with the toughest officers, he still stuck to his flamboyant and colorful style of dressing.
He had his principles.
And the rare moments when Jiang Lin showed firmness were because of Su Yang.
Likewise, the rare moments when Su Yang showed anger were because of Jiang Lin.
[How could you not ship this??]
[Anyone who doesn’t get it has no taste!!]
[The husky + German shepherd combo is amazing!!!]
[…These two are just professional partners, a pure brotherly bond, but I’m sorry—my rotten mind won’t allow it!! I’ve tainted this world!]
[Lu Xu is perfect for Jiang Lin’s look—it feels so grounded, who gets it?]
[Sorry, I haven’t even noticed Lu Xu’s face yet; my attention is 100% on their interactions.]
[+1 +1 +1! And the fact that Lu Xu and Shao Yao are close in real life just makes me feel like their characters have real chemistry.]
The official trailer from Voice of the Dead’s social media account had 50% more views than the trailer released by Grape Film, and the comments section was dominated by endless remarks about “shipping.”
[Because the audience’s happiness is just that simple.]
[Grape’s trailer told me the plot of Voice of the Dead is intriguing. The official trailer told me it’s totally shippable. This is the perfect show!]
Voice of the Dead production team: “…”
The real intention of the trailer was to highlight Jiang Lin and Su Yang’s mutual cooperation and trust, but since the audience had their own interpretation, well—
They’d go with what the audience wanted.
Even though Jiang Lin and Su Yang’s interactions could honestly be boiled down to a single high-five and one life-saving moment.
But… they listened to the audience.
The audience was always right.
Even though the production team of Voice of the Dead had prepared themselves mentally, they were still surprised by the enthusiasm of the viewers. After all, two versions of the trailer had been released, which inevitably divided attention, making it likely for the viewership numbers to look unimpressive.
Yet, the result was that the combined view count for both trailers of Voice of the Dead was only slightly lower than that of The Path of Bones.
Lu Xu played a character in Voice of the Dead that was completely different from his past roles. He embodied a street loafer—laid-back and genuinely carefree, but not the kind of generic idler stereotype seen too often.
[Can’t wait for the new show to premiere!]
[Hehe, as long as Voice of the Dead doesn’t go up against a heavyweight like The Empress, its popularity should be decent, right?]
[Just trust in Lu Puppy. I used to think Shao Yao had no chemistry with anyone, but his pairing with Lu Puppy is actually… pretty fitting.]
Viewers quietly anticipated the release of Voice of the Dead, hoping it would become another hit for Lu Xu, with over 10,000 popularity score.
After all, Lu Xu only had one leading role in a hit drama, The Path of Bones, so his portfolio still felt a bit thin.
Most importantly, the timing was perfect. Voice of the Dead had no major competitors, and its plot seemed highly engaging.
There also didn’t seem to be any snarky detractors targeting Lu Xu this time—because he had already verbally obliterated all of them.
A true conqueror of opponents.
However, reality proved that anytime Lu Xu had a new drama about to air, the launch was never entirely smooth.
This time, the issue wasn’t with Lu Xu—it was with Shao Yao.
It was still the lingering fallout from Song of Southern Country.
After Song of Southern Country aired, Shao Yao’s reputation had taken quite a hit for a while. Recently, his public image had been recovering, partly because of his frequent interactions with Lu Xu, and partly because Lu Xu had mentioned in an interview that he greatly admired Shao Yao.
Apart from Shao Yao’s habit of openly liking Lu Xu’s social media posts, this endorsement from Lu Xu helped turn the tide for him.
Because Shao Yao was meticulous and hardworking, these were qualities every actor should possess.
Every word a celebrity said was often magnified infinitely.
When Lu Xu praised Shao Yao’s seriousness, it was interpreted by some as implying that Shao Yao’s overly strict attitude during the filming of Song of Southern Country had offended the male and female leads.
In truth, Lu Xu had no such intention.
But the male lead of Song of Southern Country, Yan Qichen, thought otherwise.
Especially since Yan Qichen’s reputation for being casual on set had been subtly criticized by more than one production team. However, his high popularity and the skillful handling by his management company meant few in the industry dared to cross him.
Lu Xu, on the other hand, was different. Everyone knew that Lu Xu’s sharp tongue was… extraordinary.
What Lu Xu had said was offhanded, not intentional, but Yan Qichen took it personally.
Adding to the fact that he already couldn’t stand Shao Yao, seeing Shao Yao about to ride the wave of Lu Xu’s growing popularity only made Yan Qichen even more dissatisfied.
Had Lu Xu known Yan Qichen or interacted with him, he would have recognized that Yan Qichen was a different breed of “diva” compared to Zhang Che, Gu Sinian, or Chen Ye.
Yan Qichen’s approach was…
One day, during a skincare brand’s live stream where he had been invited, the host mentioned that the night cream absorbed well and had a soothing fragrance that helped with sleep. When the camera turned back to Yan Qichen, his eyes were red and brimming with tears.
Host: “…”
“It must be because our product is so amazing that it moved Teacher Yan to tears, hahaha…”
Yan Qichen dabbed at his eyes and said, “It just reminded me of an experience I had before. At the time, I was filming a drama, and a co-star inexplicably said my acting wasn’t good. I was under so much pressure, and he even tried to direct my acting. I couldn’t sleep for nights on end.”
“I never thought that one day, being able to sleep would become a luxury. I was utterly exhausted.”
“At the time, I kept thinking—”
“’If only I had discovered our product back then’, right? Hahaha, it really works wonders,” the host quickly chimed in.
Yan Qichen: “…”
#Drama King#
Host: “…”
If looks could kill, she would have shredded Yan Qichen from head to toe, leaving him riddled with holes.
You’re here to sell products!!!
Drama King!!!
Fortunately, she was quick-witted and swiftly shifted the conversation back to the product. Otherwise, if such a major broadcasting mishap occurred, her company would definitely dock her salary, year-end bonus, and sales commissions.
Just as Yan Qichen seemed about to continue his story, the host stepped forward decisively. “Anyway, if you feel your skin is rough or your complexion dull, hurry and click on Link #2. There’s a promotion going on—buy one, get one free, plus a complimentary sleep mask!”
“Teacher Yan, you can grab a set too!”
Yan Qichen: “…”
His emotional tears dried up instantly. He still wanted to throw a few more barbs at Shao Yao, but he completely forgot his script.
The host practically ushered him out of the livestream room like she was appeasing a god.
However, Yan Qichen’s remarks didn’t escape the attention of online gossip accounts. With Voice of the Dead about to air, Shao Yao’s popularity was higher than usual.
[…Isn’t he talking about Shao Yao?]
[Who else could it be? Absolutely.]
[LMAO, the host for the D-brand night cream was truly a lifesaver. Yan Qichen totally froze up—I was cringing on his behalf.]
[Hahahaha, that ‘Teacher Yan, you can grab a set too’ line killed me! I laughed until I cried!]
[Yan Qichen going all out to diss Shao Yao vs. the hardworking host giving it her all for her job—who else feels the struggles of the working class?]
[I don’t get it. The brand spent millions inviting you here, and you think they want to hear you throw shade at Shao Yao?]
When Shao Yao saw the livestream clip, he couldn’t help but ask Lu Xu for advice: “How should I respond?”
Lu Xu taught him various ways to reply.
Shao Yao listened humbly and took the advice to heart.
Not long after the D-brand livestream ended, Shao Yao proactively reposted the brand’s official account:
[I’ll buy a set, haha.]
[…]
[Ahem, has Lu Puppy taught you bad habits?]
[That haha has so much personality.]
[If Teacher Yan doesn’t buy, Teacher Yan’s bad. If Teacher Shao buys, Teacher Shao’s good.]
