CHAPTER 30 PART 1-2

These days, netizens who liked to watch major variety shows were very sensitive to 'evil editing.' Editing that was too poorly edited and grafted together couldn't escape their eyes.

For the first episode of 'Studio Superstar', it wasn't known if it was too difficult to cut or if the show's staff really wasn't smart.

For example, in the rehearsal part, Xue Xiao's group of three was gasping one second. The next second, they had calmed down and walked to the corner. It always felt like there was something missing in the middle.

What was missing? Could it be that they explained why they were late?

For example, in the end, Shen Tingyan commented on Xue Xiao. From beginning to end, the camera was mainly on Shen Tingyan's side, and only two shots of nearly 0.3 seconds were given to Xue Xiao alone. Both times, he was in a daze. It was exactly the same and seemed to be copied and pasted.

Then why did the camera stay on the participants or gave a large shot of the entire stage when other groups received reviews?

Why was the camera so strange when it came to Xue Xiao?

Once someone in the discussion raised this point, the vast number of powerful netizens discovered other strange places with their microscope-scope eyes.

For example, parts of the performance of Fan Xue's group seemed to have been deleted. Meanwhile, the performances of other groups were obviously presented to the audience in view.

Su Shijin's comment was also very abrupt when it came to the review.

Could it be that Fan Xue's group was also cut evilly?

No no no, they were bad enough. They still needed evil editing?

So what was cut out from their group? Based on Su Shijin's extremely sarcastic expression and Fan Xue's weak face… If their group was cut, it wouldn't be something worse than what the audience had seen so far, right?

If the speculation of the netizens was really true, then the show's team had evil-edited Xue Xiao's group and reverse-edited Fan Xue's group?

The direction of the discussion stunned Fan Xue's fans.

They obviously came prepared, but they didn't expect netizens to go in a different direction from what they wanted… so they fought with netizens, and the whole hot search entry was full of quarrels.

Now in the age of the Internet… the noisier it was, the clearer the trend…

Xue Xiao started to gain fans.

It was booming and soaring.

From the original more than 100 fans to 1,000, 2,000, 5,000…

After pouring in, all of them were personally attacked by Fan Xue's fans, and they became more and more certain that Xue Xiao was targeted by the show. They even suspected that Xue Xiao was jointly bullied by the show's staff and Fan Xue. The netizens started to feel pity for him.

Who acted the best in the first episode? Xue Xiao's group.

Who was suspected of being criticized the worst in the first episode?

'Studio Superstar' used the banner of promoting a group of amateur actors. Then why did it need to suppress the potential of a small yet unknown actor for a strong, garbage star?

Didn't the show's staff know exactly what their audience came to see?

They noticed this show at the beginning due to the four mentors, but the four mentors couldn't support them watching the whole episode. They sincerely hoped to see some new stars from this show. New stars who were strong and willing to work hard but who lacked opportunities!

This was rather than continuing to be blinded by vulgar traffic!

Along with this, Zhao Dong and Jin Xiaochen also started to rise rapidly.

At this moment, everyone in the dormitory: "..."

Things seemed a bit serious, but they also didn't seem to be that serious.

Jin Xiaochen refreshed Xue Xiao's Weibo again and said, "Ah, Brother Xue has 10,000 fans."

Xue Xiao was a bit stunned.

At this time, Jiang Lianlian sent him a WeChat message from far away in the girls' dormitory.

"That hot search term between you and Fan Xue must've been bought by Fan Xue himself."

Jiang Lianlian was more aware of some hype methods in the entertainment industry than him. She reminded him, "It is good that netizens aren't being led by the nose now. He sent the topic to the hot search but gave you a wave of popularity. Don't respond. It might be annoying to be splashed with dirty water from the editing… But it is difficult for you to handle this matter yourself, unless you make up your mind to withdraw from the competition and completely break from the show's team. However, the current situation is completely unusual!"

Xue Xiao knew very well what Jiang Lianlian was worried about.

He replied, "Don't worry, I know. [Thank you.]."

Jiang Lianlian: "Ojbk."

The people in the four dormitories dispersed, leaving only Jin Xiaochen and Dou Mingjian.

Xue Xiao sat on the bed and swiped on his phone for a while… then he felt a bit of pain in his eyes and put it down.

He just put it down when Old Gao suddenly sent him a WeChat message.

It wasn't only Xue Xiao who received it. Zhao Dong and Jin Xiaochen also received it.

Old Gao: "Don't respond. Rehearse for the second round with peace of mind. I'm trying to deal with this."

Jin Xiaochen frowned. "What does this mean?"

Dou Mingjian leaned over to look at it and asked in surprise, "Could it be that Old Gao didn't know the episode would be released like this?"

Jin Xiaochen was stunned. "Huh? Could it be that they made a mistake?"

Zhou Dong pondered on it before shaking his head. "This wasn't a mistake. The episode was deliberately edited, so there must be someone among their staff who wants to edit it like this… But in this case, I feel that this person is standing on the opposite side of Old Gao and must be someone with a higher authority than him."

Jin Xiaochen frowned again. "Old Gao said he would deal with it… how can he deal with it? Can he update this episode with a different version?"

No one answered this question.

To be honest, they had never seen a variety show change the edited episode to clarify for a guest. After all, the replacement version had to be reviewed again, and this wasn't a very simple process.

Even if Xue Xiao and his group were really innocent… But was the capital in the entertainment industry filled with kind people who punished evil and promoted good?

How could Guantian's leaders go to such lengths as slapping themselves on the face for the sake of three amateurs?

No matter how he thought about it, Jin Xiaochen's guess was very whimsical.

Xue Xiao stared at this WeChat message for a long time before sighing and putting down his phone completely.

He went to the balcony and sat down.

Soon, the sound of scattered footsteps came. The five people in the dormitory actually rushed into the balcony and sat down on Xue Xiao's left and right sides.

Xue Xiao didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "What are you all doing here?"

"Accompanying you," Chang Yun stretched out his hand, grabbed Xue Xiao's shoulder and shook it twice. "You accompanied me the day before yesterday, and I will accompany you today."

Xue Xiao said, "My eyes hurt a bit when looking at the phone, so I came out to relax."

Zhao Dong placed his hands behind his back to support himself and looked up at the sky outside. "I really feel like I have entered the entertainment circle now. It is really dark… We might've gained fans, but why is it so wrong?"

Dou Mingjian opened his mouth, "It is normal. Not everyone wants to be black and red."

Jin Xiaochen was a bit nervous. "I'm just thinking right now. If Old Gao's struggle is unsuccessful, then the three of us later… In particular, Brother Xue. Will you continue to be edited evilly? If that is the case, is it really interesting to stay on this show?"

Dou Mingjian patted him. Jin Xiaochen knew that he had said something wrong and was embarrassed.

Xue Xiao smiled.

He was silent for a while before saying, "When I knew I was going to meet Fan Xue on this show, my master told me that opportunities and risks always coexist."

Zhao Dong and Jin Xiaochen were slightly startled.

Xue Xiao had also said this sentence on the day they conducted the live rehearsal for 'Praying Mantis'.

Jin Xiaochen murmured, "Brother Xue, you said that the risk is just a stone that you accidentally stepped on while walking on the road. This stone might be small, or it might be so big that it blocks the way. However, our goal is never to step on the stone hard but to find a way to keep moving forward."

"Yes." Xue Xiao looked at the blue sky outside the balcony, his voice gentle and calm. "That is what I thought until now."

The actors acted, and the audience watched.

How much effort the actor put in, and if they had any ulterior motives… He believed that the audience could see it.

His idea was ridiculed by many people as being naive. No matter how hard he tried, the editing would make it look bad. What could the audience see?

Still, Xue Xiao felt that as long as he persisted in working hard, to a certain extent… One day, there would be nothing that could hinder this hard work from being seen.

As long as this effort was seen by the world, they could continue to move forward.

The road would become wider and smoother.

Zhao Dong was slightly startled before saying, "…Indeed."

He thought about it and said, "Actually, we didn't lose in today's matter."

There were viewers who saw the truth and viewers who wanted to believe in them.

So what if the show planned to cut them out later?

Could all of their performances be cut? Could all their rehearsal tidbits be cut? Could the audience not see them at all?

It was impossible.

This was unless Guantian wanted the whole Internet to see their guilt and wanted their reputation to be overturned.

Or kick them out of the show? How to kick? Did they want the mentors to not issue them invitation cards or steal their votes to let them finish at the bottom in the public voting stage?

Forget the other three mentors. How could Shen Tingyan be so obedient? If there really was a popular vote and they could turn the tide to attract a large number of votes, how could Guantian steal it?

In the final analysis, since they could rely on sincerity and strength to break through the hand that tried to kill them once, they could break through a second or third time with sincerity and strength…

Xue Xiao turned his head and smiled at them. "In the matter of acting, I don't like to admit defeat."

Quitting the competition might seem chic, but it was actually admitting defeat.

Xue Xiao would never do such a thing. He was stubborn and liked to fight until the end.

"Brother Zhao, do you remember what you said on the night of the rehearsal?" Xue Xiao blinked.

Zhao Dong was stunned.

Jin Xiaochen had a good memory and immediately said, "No matter what this show will end up being made into, its starting point is actually sincere. For this, we must not let villains affect our mindset. We must focus on acting and stand up for those who give their sincerity behind this show!"

Xue Xiao nodded. "I was thinking. We have dreams. The person who first came up with the idea of this show also has dreams. But no one is a perfect person. Either their ability isn't enough, or their personality is too weak. There are all types of shortcomings… so there will always be bumps on the road."

"But I won't give up easily, you won't give up easily… that person won't give up easily either."

The wind raised Xue Xiao's black hair.

"I would like to believe that everyone is trying to overcome their shortcomings and find a way to walk this path," he said.

...

The vlog job given by the show still had to be completed.

At 4 o'clock in the afternoon, they took advantage of the fact that the sky wasn't completely dark to find some materials.

Gu Ling was the last to go.

Before leaving, he told Xue Xiao, who had been silent for most of the day, "Your acting is very good."

Xue Xiao raised his head with a bit of surprise.

Gu Ling said lightly, "You will be popular as long as you act well."

Xue Xiao was a bit flattered. "…Thank you."

Gu Ling nodded and left coolly.

Xue Xiao sat there in a slightly confused manner. After a long time, he scratched his head and got up to do his vlog homework.

PART 2

The quarrel on the Internet continued to escalate. Xue Xiao simply turned off his Weibo completely and didn't look at it.

Fortunately, his parents weren't people who loved to surf the Internet. They usually didn't like to open the barrage when watching online videos because it was too distracting… They only sent messages to him to work hard and pay attention to rest. It was a cliche, but it revealed the true feelings between family members.

Zhang Chengyu was different. The group of them couldn't help going to quarrel with netizens.

Xue Xiao repeatedly told them not to argue. Don't set themselves on fire!

The brothers and sisters told him, "We'll stick together. We aren't afraid!"

Xue Xiao: "…Maybe you will be popular one day?"

Brothers and sisters: "Thank you for your blessings. Thank you, thank you!"

Xue Xiao: "…I'm serious!"

They started to play dead.

It wasn't easy for Xue Xiao to speak up as the 'party' involved, but it was impossible for them to hold back. They would stay up late tonight to fight with the sunspots until the end!

There was also his childhood friend, Ye Xingxing. He sent a message after practicing songs with his band. "What is this show?"

…Xue Xiao really wanted to disconnect from the Internet, but he was busy until midnight before he could put down his phone!

At this time, he was already dizzy and unable to think about anything. He directly fell asleep.

—

No matter how much arguing there was on the Internet, everyone had to rehearse normally the next day.

Just starting with breakfast in the cafeteria, the whole atmosphere wasn't quite right.

Many people cautiously peeked at Xue Xiao, but what about the other party involved?

—Fan Xue directly called a sick leave.

It wasn't known if it was because he didn't dare to meet Xue Xiao or if he was angry because he spent money but failed to blacken Xue Xiao.

Jin Xiaochen rolled his eyes. "Leave him alone and practice your parts."

After breakfast, the group of people headed to Building 3.

As the days passed, the temperature rose every day.

It was only 8:30 in the morning, and the outside temperature was approaching 38 degrees.

Old Gao met Shen Tingyan on the way out of the camp and found that the latter was facing the sun, his handsome face containing a world-weary expression.

Shen Tingyan was still a bit sleepy. He bumped into his friend and casually asked, "Are you going to headquarters so early?"

Old Gao looked like he was in a hurry, and there was a folder under his arm. He definitely wasn't going back home.

Old Gao hurriedly nodded. He hesitated and asked, "…You didn't watch the first episode that went live yesterday?"

Shen Tingyan paused.

He was really busy yesterday and didn't watch it.

Old Gao told him, "…You had better not look at it."

"Why?" Shen Tingyan asked lazily. He had already taken out his phone to open the Guantian APP and clicked on the first episode.

He was just so rebellious.

Old Gao: "..."

Seeing Old Gao sighing, Shen Tingyan directly pulled the progress bar to the part related to him.

No matter how much Guantian didn't want to release all his words to the audience, they would never dare to cut all his words, let alone use editing to smear him.

Shen Tingyan knew very well that Old Gao's expression definitely wasn't because of him. This person would be speechless and angry because of something else.

He quickly found the part.

He sneered like it was absurd and pulled the progress bar forward again. After watching it, he looked up, and there was a sentence written on his face, 'What is the meaning?'

Old Gao hadn't slept all night, and his expression was ugly. "Didn't I tell you? Xue Xiao and their group had some problems during rehearsals. I thought I had solved it! I didn't expect that Zhang Luyang finally submitted this version for trial. This idiot actually did such a thing. I told him before that it is his business how he wants to edit the parts with Fan Xue, but Xue Xiao's group has already been tripped up, and they must not be edited viciously. The show can't do this type of thing!"

"I argued with him for a long time yesterday, and I figured it out. Fan Xue acted like that, and Zhang Luyang doesn't really want to praise him. He just feels that I always violate his will and doesn't take him seriously. He wants to give me some setbacks. He treats Fan Xue as his knife while Xue Xiao and the others are mine. He is really sick…"

Shen Tingyan once said, 'Don't treat the audience as fools."

Of course, this didn't mean that contemporary netizens were so independent in thinking or that they weren't easily led astray. It was just that in cases where the contrast was too stark, netizens were indeed not so stupid.

In fact, it was just as he said. The trend of public opinion on the Internet proved this. Zhang Luyang actually overturned a bit with this wave.

But it didn't have to be like this. Xue Xiao and the others could've appeared innocently in the eyes of the audience. Maybe their popularity wouldn't be so high without the help of the black hot search, but with the personalities of these people, how could they not be willing to proceed step by step?

Shen Tingyan's vision of seeing people and things was extremely precise. He rarely made mistakes in his judgment. He just didn't think that the internal struggle of 'Studio Superstar' would be so fierce and Old Gao would suffer a crushing defeat in this struggle. He couldn't even maintain the bottom line, and Xue Xiao and the others were also caught in this whirlpool.

Old Gao looked ashamed. "I plan to go back to headquarters to find the leader. This matter must not be left alone…"

Shen Tingyan put down his phone and said in an extremely light tone, "Then what? Your boss is so touched by you and agrees to let you send the 'correct version' for review and replacement? The truth will come out, and everyone will be happy?"

Old Gao was stuck.

Shen Tingyan put his hands in his trouser pockets. His sarcastic tone was very cool under the scorching temperature, making the hands and feet of the old master feel cold.

"You have been in this industry for so long. Don't you know the rules better than me?"

"Unless there is a broadcast accident or any artist who appears in this episode is officially banned, no platform will agree to change the edited version at will."

If the edited version wasn't replaced, then it was useless to say anything.

Even if he took a step back and the leaders explicitly promised Old Gao that they would never viciously edit other participants later, there was still the 'trophy' of the first episode. Zhang Luyang could make the decision without authorization, and the leaders could turn a blind eye. If they could close their eyes once, couldn't they do it a second or third time?

Old Gao knew that Shen Tingyan's words were true.

He became weak, powerless, and unwilling. The 30 year old stood in place like this, thoughts spinning around like a trapped bull. His eyes turned red.

Shen Tingyan looked at him coldly.

Old Gao said with red eyes, "But the show shouldn't be like this. If Zhang Luyang continues like this, everything will be ruined…"

"I should always try it, right? I can't just do nothing and let him mess around! I—"

"Gao Jianqi, there is one thing you don't seem to understand until now," Shen Tingyan interrupted him impatiently.

Old Gao was stunned and looked at him with tear-filled eyes.

"Do you feel that since you are in a circle of literature and art, you should be reasonable and talk well? You think you shouldn't act like a scoundrel. But can't you see clearly?"

"In this circle, there are scoundrels everywhere."

"Do you know why your leader likes Zhang Luyang?" Shen Tingyan cocked his head. "Because they are both the same. No matter whether it is immoral or not, it is best to attract traffic and make money."

"Do you know what your leader hates the most? It is just empty talk and a big truth that won't make money."

Shen Tingyan took a step forward.

He leaned down slightly.

Old Gao heard the cold and sarcastic voice of his friend beside him. "Do you know how to defeat scoundrels?"

"Be harder and crazier than them."

"As long as you back down a bit, they can force you to take another step back, one more step back, until you give up your house completely. You will become a homeless person, and they will become the new owner of the house."

"Gao Jianqi, do you want your house to be stolen?"

Old Gao froze.

At this moment, his phone vibrated.

It was a WeChat message sent by an employee, saying that the participants' vlog homework had been collected. One of the vlog videos needed to be watched by Old Gao himself…

Old Gao froze for a while. Slowly, his eyes darkened."

He gritted his teeth.

He said in a hoarse voice, "…I know. Go to the classroom."

Shen Tingyan straightened up and looked at him.

Old Gao turned around and went back to the office building.

He wasn't going to go to headquarters to find some terrible leader.

—

Shen Tingyan turned on the air conditioner when he arrived at the classroom.

The air conditioning slowly blew away the hot air in the whole room. It wasn't powerful, but it was better than nothing.

He lit a cigarette and leaned against the window.

His phone buzzed and vibrated. Fang Lei had sent him a message to remind him, "Yesterday, the show aired. You remember to send something to cooperate with the publicity. A nine grid photo or something…Nine grids aren't necessary. One grid is also fine! [Sweats]"

Shen Tingyan replied casually. Then he switched to his Weibo and casually looked through it.

In the middle of the night, a certain marketing account revealed the news that Xue Xiao had played a background actor in Fan Xue's crew. During this time, he flattered the director, and the director personally said he wanted to replace Fan Xue, the starring actor, for Xue Xiao.

The marketing account also sent a blurry photo of the set, in which the director was suspected of reprimanding Fan Xue. Fan Xue's entire body was very stiff.

The fans in the comment area controlled the comments. All of them felt sorry for their brother and scolded Xue Xiao for wanting to get the position, overthinking his capabilities.

The corners of Shen Tingyan's lips twitched.

Want to get that position?

That little light bulb who was stupid all day long and only thought about how to act well?

There was the sound of footsteps and talking from downstairs.

Shen Tingyan moved his phone and glanced down, just in time to see a large number of participants who came together.

The young man walked in the middle of the line, listening to the person on the side. Then he seemed to suddenly notice the gaze from above his head and raised his head blankly.

The golden morning light hit the young man's fair face.

The two of them looked at each other. Then the young man's eyes lit up. His eyebrows curved, and he revealed a smile that was brighter than the sun, as if there were no troubles.

Shen Tingyan gently exhaled a puff of smoke.

Perhaps he was afraid of being discovered by the people around him and causing a big battle, but Xue Xiao quietly fell a few steps behind.

Once he reached the end of the group, he waved excitedly at Shen Tingyan.

Sneaky sneaky, like some small animal… A little hamster? A bunny? He didn't know. It wasn't clear.

In any case, he was pretty cute.

There were noises from the trees, and a hot breeze was blowing.

It was coming again.

Shen Tingyan rubbed his phone with his left hand while placing his right hand against his chin. He looked down and thought—

It was the fragrance of flowers.

—

At noon, they were eating in the cafeteria when Jin Xiaochen's chopsticks suddenly dropped.

Zhao Dong asked him, "What for? You can't eat anymore?"

Jin Xiaochen quickly wiped his mouth and stared at his phone. "That's not it… F*k, did the show's staff go crazy?"

Everyone was taken aback.

Jin Xiaochen continued, "Or is Old Gao crazy?"