December had already passed its midpoint.
Lin Zhaoyang's song, "Blooming Life," had not been officially released.
Despite this, it had remained on the trending list of short video platforms for several consecutive days.
The two songs that Ting Yu wrote for An Ye Tu had both topped the charts in their respective categories.
With these two tracks lost, it was highly likely that Ting Yu had achieved their twelfth consecutive championship. The public's attention was now focused on how many songs Ting Yu would release this month.
Although more than half the month had passed and Ting Yu had yet to make a move, everyone knew that the latter half of the month held the real highlights.
"Masked Singer" Episode Four.
Chen Rong's "Opera Storytelling."
And the highly anticipated theme song and插曲 for "The Legend of Sword and Fairy One."
Recently, the buzz surrounding "The Legend of Sword and Fairy" had been immense.
This was due to its approaching release date and the online discussions about Mango TV's rejection of the series.
It was widely known that Zhang Qingyun's "Asking Sword for Immortal," featured an all-star cast of popular idols.
It shared the same release window and genre as "The Legend of Sword and Fairy."
Not long ago, rumors surfaced that Mango TV had chosen "Asking Sword for Immortal" and rejected "The Legend of Sword and Fairy."
Although fans of "The Legend of Sword and Fairy" were upset, this was typical behavior for Mango TV, which often invited popular idols. They would invite whoever had the most popularity. Their decision to broadcast "Asking Sword for Immortal" in a prime time slot was therefore considered normal.
Initially, it was assumed that "The Legend of Sword and Fairy," unable to secure a broadcast on Mango TV, would find another satellite TV station. After all, a television broadcast was a crucial step for award nominations.
However, to everyone's surprise, the official Weibo account of "The Legend of Sword and Fairy"'s production team posted an announcement.
"After negotiation by the production team, 'The Legend of Sword and Fairy One' will be released online. Thank you for your support!"
The official announcement immediately sparked heated discussion among netizens.
"Although this is the first TV drama written by scriptwriter Jiangnan, it's perfectly qualified for a satellite broadcast. Any satellite channel would be better than an online drama."
"I don't understand the production team's decision. Jiangnan's book has such a large following; it should have no problem getting a satellite slot."
"Actually, online broadcasting isn't bad. If the drama is truly good, it can earn more than a satellite broadcast, as satellite broadcasts are typically bought out, while online dramas are priced based on viewership."
"Easier said than done. What kind of quality is needed to earn more than a TV station's buyout?"
"Even dramas starring current popular idols opt for guaranteed satellite broadcasts for safety. Most online dramas are low-budget productions."
"Sigh... The production team must have lost their minds, turning such a good drama into an online release."
Online dramas were not yet well-developed on Blue Star.
Although the public was accustomed to paying for content, they wouldn't spend money without exceptionally high quality.
In the public's eyes, online dramas were either low-budget productions that couldn't secure a TV slot or exceptionally high-quality productions confident enough to attract paying viewers.
However, "The Legend of Sword and Fairy" was not a low-budget production; it was a TV series with an investment of over a billion yuan, fully qualified for a satellite broadcast.
Even though Mango TV rejected it, they could have approached other TV stations, which would still have been better than an online release.
After all, there were numerous precedents. Previously, a TV drama featuring all popular young idols had attempted an online release and suffered dismal viewership. If they had sold it to a TV station at the market price at the time, they would have profited handsomely. However, their online broadcast not only failed to generate profit but resulted in significant losses.
With such a large following, if they still incurred losses, "The Legend of Sword and Fairy" was indeed in a precarious situation.
Online dramas on Blue Star required payment, unlike satellite broadcasts where TV stations bought the rights and then earned money from advertisers. Free access would always be the choice for the vast majority.
Following the online discussions, many people began to believe that "The Legend of Sword and Fairy" might suffer a complete loss.
Even fans of the novel had gone to Jiangnan's Weibo, enthusiastically reminding him.
However, Jiangnan had not responded at all.
Instead, he leveraged the attention to promote his new book.
"The new book will be released upon completion. Please support it."
This statement completely baffled netizens.
The entire cast and crew of "The Legend of Sword and Fairy" seemed extremely confident.
Did they truly believe that their drama's quality was so high that the majority of netizens would be willing to pay for it?
...
The fourth episode of "Masked Singer" was about to be recorded.
After the annual company event, Su Yu returned to Shuangqing to spend a few days with his parents before heading to Kyoto.
Zhang Xiaoqi went to Xinghui the day after that night. Su Yu had already given her his song, "A Diao."
It was a folk song, but Su Yu had given her the version by Angela Chang.
Compared to the original's calm, narrative folk style, Angela Chang's version possessed more emotional intensity.
The inspiration for life, the stubbornness and resilience, were deeply moving.
Zhang Xiaoqi's own experiences naturally imbued her with these emotions.
Since her debut, all her earnings had been managed by her mother. When she was hospitalized with heart disease, her mother refused to pay for her treatment.
After falling out with her parents, they had consistently slandered her, ruining her reputation.
It wasn't until her brother stood up for her and exposed her parents that Zhang Xiaoqi's reputation saw a slight improvement.
However, her parents did not relent. They even released photos of her when she was ill, falsely accusing her of drug use, forcing her to undergo blood tests to prove her innocence.
Despite her parents' false accusations and a friend's betrayal, she had not been defeated. Instead, she had persevered with remarkable strength.
Zhang Xiaoqi's life had been full of hardships, and the song "A Diao" was indeed a perfect fit for her.
...
"Susu, I'll wait for you at the venue. After the recording, we'll go to Luzhou together," Lin Yanyu said to Su Yu as she packed her belongings.
The "Opera Storytelling" event was being held in Luzhou. Chen Rong and Lin Zhaoyang had already departed yesterday.
Just like at the previous opera gala, for many years, whenever Chen Rong had an event, Lin Zhaoyang would make time to attend. Perhaps this was also the reason for their strong relationship over the years.
"Wife, do you have tickets?" Su Yu stepped forward, wrapped his arms around Lin Yanyu's waist, and buried his head in her hair.
He enjoyed the faint, pleasant scent of Lin Yanyu.
"Shen Qingfeng gave us some VIP tickets for the live audience. We have them for the next few episodes. For the episode where I perform, shall we invite Mom and Dad to watch live?" Lin Yanyu took out a stack of tickets from her bag.
If these tickets were sold to the public, they could fetch tens of thousands each. Su Yu was not surprised that Shen Qingfeng managed to get so many, as his company was the organizer of this event.
The Mom and Dad that Lin Yanyu referred to were naturally Su Yu's parents.
Now, like Su Yu, she had become very accustomed to calling his parents Mom and Dad.
"Okay, I'll pick them up then," Su Yu replied.
Su Yu's parents and relatives all enjoyed watching this program. Bringing them to the venue to experience it firsthand would be wonderful. They would surely be delighted upon hearing the news.
He had overlooked this matter, but Lin Yanyu had already made arrangements.
At that moment, Su Yu felt a sense of contentment, thinking, "Having such a wife, what more could a man ask for?"
"Let's go, we'll be late," Lin Yanyu said, gently swatting his hand as it started to wander.
"Oh, by the way, Xiao Gong mentioned he's going to Luzhou for a performance, and it seems Zhou Sisi is accompanying him. Give them two tickets for the storytelling event."
Su Yu suddenly remembered that Gong Juren had contacted him yesterday, saying he was going to Luzhou for a commercial performance. Furthermore, his otaku editor, Zhou Sisi, was also going to Luzhou to attend a literary gathering, and they were traveling together.
"Okay," Lin Yanyu replied.
Then, she pulled Su Yu towards the garage.
...