Royal Ch.30

Chapter 30: Re-edit

It’s standard practice in the industry for variety shows to undergo post-broadcast editing.

The entertainment world might be a playground for capital, but some things remain unpredictable — like public opinion, or a guest suddenly being involved in a criminal case.

A few years ago, Greenfruit had a lifestyle reality show that had just aired a new episode when one of the male guests suddenly landed himself in jail.

Disaster struck from the sky — the platform had no choice but to pull the episode and re-edit it.

In a grueling 48-hour crunch, the post-production team managed to make 53 visual replacements and audio mutes, saving the show from collapse.

So if Starlight wanted a re-edit? It was doable.

“But even if we re-edit it, can we guarantee the audience will come back? The re-edit won’t be cheap, and we’re already over budget.”

“So what do you suggest? Just let the first episode tank? Are you ready to look at the view count for Episode 2?”

“Survival shows have a built-in fanbase. If the later episodes are good, the numbers will pick up.”

“Don’t give me that crap. Let me ask you one thing — will Episode 2 get ten million views? If not, can you take responsibility?”

“…”

No one dared say they’d “take responsibility.”

The only thing they could say with certainty now was:

If they didn’t do damage control fast, every sponsor would bolt the moment they saw the real, stripped-down numbers from Episode 1.

And so, in the heavy silence, the team unanimously approved the proposal to re-edit the episode.

President Ma from Greenfruit’s platform tapped the table and said, “Since we’re re-editing, let’s make some noise about it. Let the viewers know this show is getting a re-cut.”

“But if we do this, the poor viewership numbers will be exposed…”

“It’s still better than the show flatlining completely.”

An emergency re-edit due to terrible viewership — that kind of thing had never happened in domestic entertainment before. It would definitely spark the audience’s curiosity.

But for the production team, this move was practically self-sacrifice in exchange for buzz, only highlighting how badly they had tangled themselves in their own web.

After all, the show originally planned to sacrifice Yue Zhaolin.

Now? The roles had reversed.

“…”

“The initial material filtering was already done before — the re-editing time can be compressed to under 72 hours,” someone said. The final cut would still need to go through review, which also required time.

“If we’re short on staff, then assign more. Budget the re-editing cost at five times the standard rate.”

—

On the other side.

The contestant coordinator brought Wei Huahao to an empty room to ask about the incident earlier. Wei Huahao glossed over the details.

He was starting to regret hitting Wei Lai—he shouldn’t have done it. Now, all he could think about was Yue Zhaolin telling him to withdraw from the competition.

‘That was just a harsh statement… it wouldn’t actually happen,’ Wei Huahao told himself.

But it felt like there was a hand inside his body, yanking his stomach downward.

Amid his uncontrollable panic, a staff member entered and handed him a phone.

A calm voice came through on the other end of the call: “Wei Huahao, pack your things and come out. The assistant is waiting for you at the back door.”

“Uncle… how did you…” Wei Huahao was stunned. He shot to his feet, looking in horror at the staff member’s calm face.

A realization dawned on him. “I’m not quitting the show! Why should Yue Zhaolin get to decide—”

“Because you’re stupid!”

A loud shout exploded from the phone.

Yue Zhaolin might not have had much screen time in the first episode, but he had Xingqiong backing him.

Wei Huahao had injured someone. If the injury turned out to be serious, the other party could press charges.

And if Wei Lai was the vindictive type and decided to expose that “the show is protecting a violent contestant,” would Starlight’s reputation survive? Would Guangying’s stock prices survive?

“Get out here, now!”

Wei Huahao hung up the phone. He didn’t dare look at the staff’s expression, and he didn’t even know how he ended up in the car.

As he came back to his senses, something suddenly caught his eye. “Stop the car! Stop the car!”

He leaned out the window and saw Silver Trade Cross Street—the busiest intersection in Haicheng. On all four giant screens around the intersection, it was Yue Zhaolin.

These kinds of ads were normally run in rotation with other commercials.

— But Xingqiong had used cold, hard cash to ensure that during the rotation, Yue Zhaolin would appear on all four screens at the same time.

When he clearly saw those four screens, a tidal wave of regret surged through Wei Huahao, swallowing up his rationality. “This… Xingqiong paid for this?”

The assistant in the front passenger seat turned back to glance at him, smiling. “Yes.”

“Xingqiong is promoting him this hard, so why…”

Wei Huahao couldn’t figure it out, but the defiant anger in his chest had already deflated.

Because he had completely offended Yue Zhaolin—and there was no antidote for regret.

Wei Huahao stared up at those massive screens, and a thought crept into his mind—he saw it, but the other trainees didn’t know yet.

‘If only someone else, just as clueless and reckless as he had been, would go and provoke Yue Zhaolin too…’ Wei Huahao thought maliciously.

—

At the same time, in the Starlight building.

Meng Yu had heard a rumor that Yue Zhaolin got into a fight with other trainees. He quietly told Chu Li he was going to the restroom and slipped out of the practice room.

The practice room for the Cold Lover team was diagonally across from Necktie’s.

Meng Yu glanced inside. Fu Xunying, Tan Shen, and Cen Chi were all there, along with a few unfamiliar contestant coordinators speaking with them.

But Yue Zhaolin wasn’t.

Meng Yu’s heart sank. He had been skeptical about the rumors at first, but now that something seemed off—it meant something had indeed happened.

With his thoughts racing, Meng Yu headed toward the end of the hallway. If there really had been a fight, then Yue Zhaolin…

Ding-dong.

Meng Yu looked up and saw Yue Zhaolin stepping out of the elevator.

Yue Zhaolin seemed to have taken a shower. The scent lingering on him was the lemon body wash the program provided for the trainees.

He had changed into a clean T-shirt, and there were no visible injuries on his exposed skin.

Yue Zhaolin also spotted Meng Yu looking at him—and raised his eyes to the ceiling.

Was there a camera here?

Meng Yu was momentarily stunned. When he realized what Yue Zhaolin was thinking, he let out a helpless laugh.

So in Yue Zhaolin’s eyes, he was nothing more than an opportunist?

Meng Yu blinked away his expression and asked with a smile, “I heard someone say you got into a fight with another trainee. You’re not hurt, are you?”

“Who did you hear that from?”

Seeing Yue Zhaolin’s expression, Meng Yu was caught off guard. “Wasn’t it true? You even changed your clothes…”

He had changed clothes because earlier, while helping Wei Lai in the restroom, he’d brushed against some dirty water on the floor, so he went back to the dorm to shower.

But Yue Zhaolin didn’t feel like explaining all that to Meng Yu—just denying the rumor was enough.

Meng Yu said, “Yue Zhaolin, I didn’t come to laugh at you. I…”

Yue Zhaolin cut in, “That down jacket—it was you who took it, wasn’t it? Looking back now, do you feel like it was all for nothing?”

Meng Yu’s pupils shrank.

Yue Zhaolin… knew.

To create an opportunity to interact with Yue Zhaolin, Meng Yu had sneakily hidden the down jacket that had his name on it in the waiting room.

But once the first performance’s song selections were made and Chu Li didn’t pick Yue Zhaolin, Meng Yu noticed something was off: why hadn’t Chu Li chosen such a popular contestant?

So after the song selection, Meng Yu quietly started getting closer to Chu Li. As for Yue Zhaolin, he didn’t avoid him, but didn’t go out of his way either.

Meng Yu was fully aware of how fake he was. He just never expected that Yue Zhaolin had known all along.

Yue Zhaolin glanced at the time. “I’m a bit busy, no time to watch a performance. I’ll get going.”

Yue Zhaolin was never subtle with Meng Yu—because they both knew what the other wanted. Their connection had started as a transaction and would end as one too.

So when Meng Yu leaned in with a concerned look, to Yue Zhaolin, it just seemed strange.

Rather than trying to figure out Meng Yu’s intentions, he might as well head back to the practice room and get in more training.

The first public performance was coming soon.

—

[Goose Gossip Group | Emperor Yue Ascends!!!]

—

[Original Post]

RT.

As we all know, where the money goes, love follows. Xingqiong really is preparing to crown Emperor Yue.

Haicheng has officially become Yue Zhaolin’s “Ita City.”

[1F] What does “Ita City” mean?

[2F] An otaku term?

Backpacks or bags decorated with character stickers, badges, and such—so much that it becomes obsessive—are called “Ita Bags.”

So “Ita City” probably means Haicheng is decked out with so much Yue Zhaolin merch that it’s overwhelming.

[3F] …That’s a vivid image.

I’m in Haicheng, and honestly, seeing Yue Zhaolin’s posters after work does lift my mood a little.

[5F] Has Xingqiong ever promoted anyone this hard before?

[8F] Nope. But judging from the title, Xingqiong’s really in love.

[10F] But what’s the deal with Yue Zhaolin exactly? The developments these past two days have been surreal—it’s kind of dizzying to follow.

[11F] Same here.

I was so sure this was all just hype. Having little screen time can also be a marketing tactic.

Hurt the fans a bit in episode one, then give more screen time in episode two—hasn’t it always been like that?

But now Starlight is really going to recut the first episode.

My reaction was just: huh??

[21F] First time seeing internal backend view count graphs—really eye-opening.

The drop on that chart was a cliff dive. It fell harder than the stocks I bought.

[23F] Did the hype backfire or something?

[28F] Who knows. But Starlight’s post-production team is definitely working overtime—more than one editor has posted rants about their bosses on their Moments.

I saw a few screenshots on Weibo, and the frustration in those words didn’t feel staged at all. As a fellow working soul, I relate deeply.

[38F] Starlight gives me serious “screw it, let it crash” energy right now.

Other variety shows—even if there’s nothing worth praising—will still find something to hype up. After all, you have to keep the sponsors, and the show has to look glamorous on the surface.

But Starlight? They’re openly talking about “recutting,” “low completion rates,” just airing it all out like that. Aren’t they afraid the sponsors will bail?

[41F] Looks like things are really bad—so bad they can’t cover it up. The production team had no choice but to try a desperate move, hoping the re-edit can revive it.

To be fair, the PR effect isn’t bad. Nothing like this has ever trended like that before.

But I still don’t understand why Starlight handled Episode 1 the way they did. Everyone knows giving Emperor Yue too much screen time will attract haters, but viewers want to see him! Even random passersby are curious!

[45F] The #1 trending topic is all random netizens yelling at Starlight for false advertising. I checked their profiles—seriously just regular people, not Yue Zhaolin fans.

Yue Zhaolin had so little screen time—why are random viewers this outraged too?

[55F] Because it was false advertising. That massive banner of Yue Zhaolin on Starlight’s main promo was obviously meant to lure in curious casual viewers.

The reason this season’s attention blew past the last one is because Emperor Yue funneled in a huge batch of people who normally don’t care about survival shows.

And then those people watched half an episode and only saw Yue Zhaolin for a few seconds.

Isn’t that just messing with people?

[57F] So now the top liked comment is:

“Is this show taking me for a fool like I’m Japanese or something?”

(Note: Refers to a meme implying being tricked or played, not literal nationality.)

[59F] I don’t get it anymore.

So is Emperor Yue actually being crowned or not?

[63F] I wasn’t sure before, but now there’s only one answer—Emperor Yue Ascends.

[69F] Actually…

I think Tide made a good point.

Starting from the music festival, the resources Xingqiong pushed didn’t just go to Emperor Yue—there was also Crown Prince Ying.

But all the fire from the public’s judgment focused solely on Yue Zhaolin. The Crown Prince got the perks too, but no one paid attention to him.

[70F] Wait, who came up with “Crown Prince Ying”? I crack up every time I see that name…

Emperor Yue and Crown Prince Ying? Suddenly there’s a whole generational gap. Got it—it’s a father and son storyline. 😂

[77F] There’s one even funnier:

Fu Xunying → Crown Prince Ying

Tide bestowed the title of “Prince Ying,” the giant baby prince who can’t stand on his own without Yue Zhaolin.

Cen Chi → initials CC

Tide named him “Brother Moocher” because he mooches screen time.

[85F] Tide is actually super witty, but also savage as hell HAHAHAHAHA!!!

[89F] Tide is basically like a mother tiger guarding her cub now—she’s tearing into everyone without mercy.

[94F] Do those two (Fu Xunying and Cen Chi) have fans? Can they fight back against Tide? I wanna watch the chaos!

[101F] Of course they have fans, but the idols themselves have already surrendered—what’s left for the fans to fight for?

[136F] Wait—they surrendered? How?

[141F] Photo from after work yesterday.

Crown Prince Ying was carrying Emperor Yue’s bag, and Brother Moocher was extra attentive—more than usual. It felt like… they were trying to soothe Emperor Yue.

[146F] Oh my god, solo fans must be having heart attacks.

They were just fighting tooth and nail with Tide, only to find out their idol is over there babying Tide’s idol.

I think they probably already saw the content of the first episode. That’s why they’re acting so attentive now.

Maybe they’re afraid Emperor Yue’s in a bad mood?

[149F] A completely dominant contestant; a production team that’s now on its knees because of poor viewership; and a company that’s finally realized it should support Emperor Yue.

This round is a complete victory for Tide. Morale is soaring, and the first public performance is coming—

I can’t imagine what that’s going to look like.

[152F] Judging by the vote ratios… is it possible the entire live audience will be made up of Tide? That would be another “new chapter in idol history.”

[157F] They’re not going to boo the other contestants, right?

[161F] Booing would be offline anti behavior—I don’t think Tide would do that.

They’ll probably just stay silent, watching the other trainees do awkward self-introductions and awkward dances with completely blank expressions.

…

Now that I’ve pictured that scenario—help. My secondhand embarrassment is acting up.

[164F] It’s okay. If no one cheers live, the sound system will play those canned cheering sound effects. They’ve done it before.

[167F] …That’s even more awkward.

[172F] Reading the posts above got me curious—what’s everyone’s impression of Tide?

[174F] United, fiercely protective, rich, and a high-quality fanbase overloaded with solo stans.

[178F] …Honestly, both Emperor Yue and his fans are pretty enviable. I keep wondering—what can my fave do to attract Tide-type fans?

[183F] My fave’s nose kinda looks like Emperor Yue’s. If he goes under the knife a few more times…

Think he could become a substitute for Tide sisters to snack on occasionally? 😅

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