Chapter 133: Two Series

Chapter 133: Two Series

Among the three series, the first to be released was "Illusory Realm."

"Illusory Realm" stars Qiao Mengyao and is also Deyi Film and Television's flagship series this year. Although Qiao Mengyao experienced a setback with "The Empress," the success of her subsequent dramas has helped stabilize her momentum.

Those dramas were not historical dramas.

Qiao Mengyao is gradually considering a transformation, as for actresses like her, the older they get, the more they need to consider mature and realistic themes.

Historical romance dramas are not impossible to act in, but they cannot be the only focus.

In this context, she took on "Illusory Realm" because the script's quality is quite good.

Today's audience prefers clear-cut scripts.

If it's tragic, let it be tragic; if it's sweet, let it be sweet. The audience should not be subjected to unnecessary suffering. The creators can pursue their art, but they must not ignore the audience's feelings—otherwise, they will pay the price.

The first episode of "Illusory Realm" tells the story of Lu Yao, a mortal woman, falling in love with Xiao Shengyang, a celestial being who has reincarnated as a mortal. However, since Xiao Shengyang is a celestial being, he must return to the immortal realm. How could a mere mortal woman be a match for him, a celestial being?

Thus, Xiao Shengyang's followers in the immortal realm took it upon themselves to kill Lu Yao's daughter, and Lu Yao herself was severely injured, nearly dying, but she survived.

From then on, her goal was to use her mortal body to kill those lofty, noble immortals who looked down on the mortal world's suffering.

Even if it cost her everything.

In the earlier scenes, everyone could see the affection between Lu Yao and Xiao Shengyang—Lu Yao is not the typical cute and naive female lead often seen in romance dramas. By immortal standards, she isn't even considered beautiful, just an ordinary mortal woman, or rather, a married woman.

After marrying Xiao Shengyang, they lived in marital harmony and love. She wasn't a particularly worldly woman and never imagined her husband could be an immortal from the heavens.

She only wanted to live a warm and simple life.

She never reaped any benefits from his status as an immortal, yet she paid a price she never wanted to pay.

Those "immortals" did everything they could to belittle her, claiming she took advantage of Xiao Shengyang's fall to the mortal world and gave birth to an "abomination" that should never have existed.

"I married my husband, and it was not by force!"

Lu Yao's defense was met with even more cold mockery: "Not by force? Do you even know who Xiao Shengyang is?"

"My husband was just an ordinary scholar. After he was injured, we met, and with my parents' consent, we..."

Lu Yao tried to explain, but was met with a hateful slap: "Calling him 'husband'? Are you worthy?"

Even the immortals themselves dared not approach Xiao Shengyang, yet after falling to the mortal world, he married an ordinary village woman and had children. This made his rare mortal followers extremely jealous.

They would never blame Xiao Shengyang, only believing that Lu Yao seduced him. Now that Xiao Shengyang has returned to the immortal realm, his mortal connections must be severed.

"Illusory Realm" starts off by avoiding the common pitfalls of current idol dramas, such as excessive buildup and unnecessary foreshadowing, and goes straight to the point. Undoubtedly, this is a strong female-centric theme that Qiao Mengyao excels at.

Lu Yao's plight in the first two episodes leaves viewers gritting their teeth, wishing she could quickly achieve immortality and tear apart the faces of these so-called immortals.

But for a mortal, the path to immortality is long and fraught with challenges—it's not something that can be achieved by mere wishful thinking.

Yet—Lu Yao's gaze is too moving.

Under the dark hills, she lay alone on the ground. Rain fell, mixing with the blood and mud on her body, making her look as though she had just emerged from a nightmare.

But it wasn't a nightmare—it was the reality she faced.

The house where she and Xiao Shengyang lived in love, where their daughter was born and took her first steps, had been burned to ashes by a lightning strike. The ash and mud mingled together, and soon, all traces of the house would vanish.

Everyone had forgotten Xiao Shengyang, forgotten that he and she had a child. Only she would remember, even after three lifetimes.

Hatred filled the night, her eyes burned like flames, staying open for a long time.

She would not die!

She would dedicate her life to avenging this hatred!

"Incredible!!!!!"

"!!! The pace is lightning-fast!! I hope Lu Yao stands on her own and doesn't get dragged back into her ex-husband's drama!!"

"Although... I was disappointed once before with 'The Empress,' 'Illusory Realm' doesn't have those male actors who capitalize on the hype and then disrespect the female lead for her age. I believe Sister Qiao won't let me down."

"+1, a tough, resilient, and strong female lead is Qiao Mengyao's forte. That look Lu Yao gave to the sky later on was too painful to watch."

'Illusory Realm' was met with a wave of praise on its first day.

Unlike 'The Empress,' which claimed to focus on a 'strong female lead' but ended up centering on male characters, 'Illusory Realm' had a straightforward cast—female lead Qiao Mengyao, male lead Rong Xiu, and that's it.

Rong Xiu didn't even come from the idol drama world.

His position in the industry was somewhat similar to Shao Yao's—not hugely famous, but well-respected. In other words, he wasn't a big star.

But 'Illusory Realm' didn't need its male lead to be a big star; Qiao Mengyao was enough.

In recent years, dramas with both male and female leads as major stars naturally garnered a lot of attention, but the behind-the-scenes drama was just as intense—battles over billing, treatment, real-life couples clashing with fans, and fan wars over the leads' real-life relationships.

There were also cases where a drama became popular, the couple was promoted, only to quickly fall apart, or when a drama flopped, everyone began blaming each other and creating a spectacle.

In a way, 'The Empress' was the peak of all these disputes.

Having the male and female leads tearing into each other was bad enough, but 'The Empress' had multiple male leads, making the battles even fiercer, with each company pulling out all the stops.

In comparison, actors like Rong Xiu were a safer bet.

...

Many industry insiders were closely watching the premiere ratings of 'Illusory Realm.'

When 'Illusory Realm,' 'Chivalrous Fragrance,' and 'War Flames' all aired in the same time slot, many speculated that the competition between 'The Empress' and 'The Path of Bones' might repeat.

Although 'The Empress' and 'The Path of Bones' fought fiercely, they created a miracle of popularity for 'The Path of Bones'—if such a scenario repeated, the usually uneventful TV world might see another blockbuster hit.

For a TV world hungry for hits, this was clearly not a bad thing.

"It's out!"

"Wow! As expected of Qiao Mengyao, so strong! 'Illusory Realm' premiered with a heat index of 14,900!"

"Just a bit shy of 15,000! Impressive!!"

"Now let's see how 'War Flames' and 'Chivalrous Fragrance' perform!"

After the first episode of 'Illusory Realm' aired, Qiao Mengyao reposted five Weibo posts to promote the drama.

This was in stark contrast to her attitude when promoting 'The Empress.'

When "The Empress" bombed, none of the male leads managed to gain popularity, and the hype naturally died down. Although the male leads' agencies blamed the show's failure on Qiao Mengyao, the audience gradually saw through the situation.

Not to mention the significant cuts to the female lead's storyline in "The Empress," Qiao Mengyao herself was less invested in promoting it compared to her other projects—had she not seen through the production team's shady tactics, she wouldn't have been so indifferent as the female lead.

"Tsk tsk tsk, this just goes to show that actors know what's going on, right?"

"If the show is good, of course, they'll rush to promote it. If it's bad, the actors might not even want to acknowledge it as their work."

Qiao Mengyao's reposts weren't entirely because she loved "Illusory Realm" so much, but rather because her transitional project had far less buzz compared to "Illusory Realm."

It did receive good reviews, but its popularity didn't even reach 10,000, nowhere near the nearly 15,000+ debut heat of "Illusory Realm."

While Qiao Mengyao was in need of critical acclaim, she couldn't afford to give up on projects that could bring massive popularity.

She is indeed in the process of transitioning, but at the same time, she's tied up with numerous endorsement deals, which require sustained and stable popularity to maintain.

Being the female lead of "Illusory Realm," Qiao Mengyao naturally hopes that "Illusory Realm" will completely dominate the buzz of this season over "Chivalrous Fragrance" and "War Flames." However, she is also well aware that such a possibility is quite low.

In fact... she only dares to entertain the possibility of "Illusory Realm" slightly outperforming "Chivalrous Fragrance."

Lu Xu is definitely not an actor to be trifled with.

...

At Zheng Xiao's insistence, Lu Xu and Shao Yao, the two male leads of "Chivalrous Fragrance," specifically reposted the promo post for "War Flames."

"????? Are you two really that close?"

"Don't tell me you've forgotten you're competitors!"

"LOL, I’m dying to know Director Liu Chunfeng’s reaction. The two leads just blatantly betrayed him."

After Lu Xu and Shao Yao reposted, Zheng Xiao also left a [dog emoji] in both of their repost sections.

#Shocked, my co-star is smitten with me#

#Zheng Xiao, the drama world's heartthrob#

The "War Flames" official blog cheerfully chimed in, thanking Lu Xu and Shao Yao for their support of "War Flames."

Then... the "Illusory Realm" official blog actually reposted it too: "Not including me?"

"Bring me along!"

"So sweet!"

"So what’s the deal now? Aren’t you supposed to be competitors?"

"Come on, fight it out! Who wants to see this?!!!"

But then... whoever’s behind the "Illusory Realm" official blog cheekily replied, "Sorry, we're in love now."

Netizens: "..."

Deeply suspecting that Lu Xu's negative effect is too strong, both competing crews decided to fight fire with fire.

"After all... 'Watchmen,' 'Nine Turns Decree,' 'The Empress,' and 'The Swordsman' are calling."

"What is this, some kind of Lu Xu Victims Alliance?"

"You must be trying to kill me with laughter so you can inherit my Huabei (a Chinese credit service)."

After much thought, netizens felt that this statement wasn't entirely unreasonable.

So many examples have been given, each one grim.

Take "Watchmen" and "Nine Turns Decree," for instance. Before they aired, everyone in the industry was optimistic, with strong casts, high investments, and experienced, skilled actors. Yet, the final results were so disastrous that even their own creators wouldn’t recognize them.

Since dramas that try to undermine Lu Xu are doomed to fail, why not try a different approach and just get along?

Lu Xu himself: "..."

Great, society has reached peak harmony thanks to him.

Perfect.

He even thoughtfully asked his manager, "Are you buying a lottery ticket today? I can give you a little extra luck."

Xu Wen: "...Thank you for your kindness, but have you considered that with my financial situation, I might not need to buy lottery tickets?"

Lu Xu put on a look of disdain for the wealthy.

Xu Wen: "..."

Lu Xu is the real villainous rich guy here.

In any case, the three drama crews didn’t end up clashing.

Of course, aside from the crews' confidence in the quality of their dramas, it's also because the lead actors have moved past the stage of tearing down their rivals to boost their own fame.

Qiao Mengyao doesn't need extra popularity; she's already an A-list top-tier actress in the drama circle, and the male lead of "Illusory Realm," Rong Xiu, isn't the type to chase clout.

The same goes for "Chivalrous Fragrance." Lu Xu doesn't need to hype himself, and Shao Yao's career is on a steady upward trajectory. He also doesn't like to chase clout, especially since his agency is the weakest among the main actors in this season, making him not in a position to compete with the others.

Zheng Xiao taking on a drama like "War Flames" means he won't go down the path of desperate clout-chasing.

The audience for "War Flames" isn't the type that buys into hype and propaganda.

"Illusory Realm" was followed by "War Flames," with "Chivalrous Fragrance" airing last.

Of course, the airing times of the dramas weren't far apart, with "Chivalrous Fragrance" only being two or three days later than "War Flames."

Lu Xu and Shao Yao both watched "War Flames"—again, at Zheng Xiao’s urging.

"If I didn't insist, wouldn't you have watched it? What about the friendship where I snuck a ride on your bike?"

Lu Xu: "...I left a bad review."

"After that incident, I felt too guilty, so I decided to gift my friends, Puppy and Peony (nicknames for Lu Xu and Shao Yao), a new car."

Zheng Xiao has gifted Lu Xu and Shao Yao several cars over the years. In a way, Lu Xu is someone who’s all passion, no skill—his biking skills are even worse than his badminton skills, but he doesn't mind having an extra new car.

"War Flames" is a war drama that tells a true story from this country’s history.

The first and second episodes are naturally brutal, depicting the brutal massacres by the R army on this land. Every inch of land they passed through was left desolate.

In the early stages of the war, there were even rumors that the R army was unstoppable.

Fortunately, the people of this country didn't give up.

But the early stages of "War Flames" were indeed so brutal that they brought tears to the eyes of viewers. However, Lu Xu noticed that no one in the comments found this part of the plot too cruel, because the real history was even more brutal.

Like "Illusory Realm," "War Flames" has only aired the first two episodes, but the nature of the story has already been unveiled.

Zheng Xiao, playing Jiang Ziqiang, didn't appear until the end of the second episode.

At first glance, Lu Xu barely recognized him.

The last time he collaborated with Zheng Xiao was in "The Supreme," which was a long time ago. Since then, Lu Xu occasionally noticed when a drama starring Zheng Xiao aired, but he never paid serious attention to them.

—Until this "War Flames."

To be honest, after "The Supreme," Zheng Xiao didn't stick to period dramas. He tried urban dramas and even professional legal dramas, mostly appearing as a workplace elite. But in this "War Flames," he played a simple and sincere farm boy.

The background of the first episode is the R army's invasion of X area and their search house by house, demanding that the locals hand over the wounded. But the local farmers, even after being brutally beaten and having their chickens and ducks stolen by the R army, remained silent.

Zheng Xiao's character, Jiang Ziqiang, was one of them.

He was beaten but kept the information about the wounded hidden. Even with a gun to his head, he firmly insisted he knew nothing.

Influenced by the soldiers recuperating in Jiang Village, Jiang Ziqiang later embarked on the revolutionary path and became a medical soldier.

"How much did you lose?" Shao Yao asked in the group chat.

On screen, Jiang Ziqiang looked gaunt, clearly a farm boy who often went hungry. "War Flames" emphasized historical accuracy, so Jiang Ziqiang's character couldn't be rosy-cheeked and plump.

"I lost quite a bit," Zheng Xiao admitted. "I began shedding weight after accepting the role, but I'm not as thin as it appears. There's some makeup effect involved."

"I was initially quite worried about this drama, especially after learning that 'Illusory Realm' and 'Chivalrous Fragrance' were airing at the same time."

"Illusory Realm" and "Chivalrous Fragrance" are giants, while "War Flames" is the small fish caught in the middle, at risk of being crushed between the two shows.

However, after watching the first two episodes of "War Flames," Zheng Xiao felt a little more at ease.

If there's any chance to survive the competition against "Illusory Realm" and "Chivalrous Fragrance," it must lie in the exceptional quality of "War Flames."

Zheng Xiao hasn't given up hope.

Since the three shows belong to different genres, their audiences are naturally different. As long as the quality is good enough, "War Flames" will find its own audience.

In fact, the number of such viewers could be significant.

"It's really good."

After seeing Lu Xu's comment in the group chat, Zheng Xiao smiled quietly and replied, "Right?"

"Right." Shao Yao sent a thumbs-up emoji.

On his side of the screen, Zheng Xiao's expression relaxed even more. He couldn't help but voice his thoughts: "Actually... knowing that my competitors are you two, I feel more at ease."

Although... competing against the shows led by Lu Xu and Shao Yao, "War Flames" might not achieve the results he hopes for.

Zheng Xiao knows Lu Xu and Shao Yao well. Both are actors who are deeply committed to their craft. Even if "Chivalrous Fragrance" itself isn't of the highest quality, the two would undoubtedly deliver outstanding performances.

Moreover, "Chivalrous Fragrance" features the legendary pairing of Liu Chunfeng and Qin Yu in historical dramas.

Zheng Xiao has already prepared himself for the possibility that "War Flames" might not be as popular as "Chivalrous Fragrance."

But at the same time, "War Flames" won't face relentless criticism. As the lead actor, he won't be judged harshly on his acting, character, looks, or fashion sense.

Zheng Xiao actually went through something like this.

It was after the broadcast of "The Supreme," which gained some popularity, and he landed several leading roles, one of which he secured by beating out a highly popular competitor.

Then, he faced off against a drama starring that same competitor.

Looking back now, Zheng Xiao realizes that the aggressiveness of that competitor's fans was far less than that of Zhang Che's fans, but unfortunately, he wasn't as articulate as Lu Xu, nor had he trained under Lu Xu like Shao Yao.

As a result... he faced the most tragic moment of his acting career.

The time he secretly rode Lu Xu's mountain bike was portrayed as him being a thief, envious of the superior quality of Lu Xu's bike, so he took it and intentionally made Lu Xu chase after him.

Zheng Xiao: "..."

In reality, his bike was actually more expensive than Lu Xu's.

Yes, and they claimed he deliberately tried to piggyback on Lu Xu's fame. During "The Supreme," he didn't even make eye contact with Lu Xu, and even gave him the side-eye.

Zheng Xiao: "..."

He racked his brain eight hundred times before he remembered that he had a big sneeze due to a nasal allergy at that time.

Seriously! Genuine question!

Who can look graceful while sneezing three times in a row?

He had a real nose, not a fake one!

In short, he was really vilified to a tragic degree. He wore a wig during filming, and some said he was really bald, even when he played with his hair during a press conference, some claimed he was wearing a sturdy wig this time.

In Zheng Xiao's hometown dialect, 'show the sky' is slang for bald.

He was devastated!!!!

Since "War Flames" went up against "Chivalrous Fragrance," Zheng Xiao didn't have to worry about being vilified. Lu Xu and Shao Yao aren't the type to backstab; both care more about the performance itself, maintaining respect for the profession of acting.

Even if there is competition, Lu Xu and Shao Yao are the type to compete fairly.

When he acted in "The Supreme," Zheng Xiao was determined to become an actor who conquers the audience with his acting skills after seeing Lu Xu's dedication to performance.

Unfortunately, while Lu Xu had this mindset, and he also worked hard with this mindset, others might not think the same way.

The premiere ratings of "War Flames" were much lower than "Illusory Realm," but the data was much higher than what the "War Flames" crew had anticipated.

The first two episodes actually exceeded a heat index of 9000, reaching over 9300.

This result surprised the industry.

"Can 'War Flames' be this impressive?"

"9300, not bad, considering 'Illusory Realm' is also airing, 'Illusory Realm' had a heat index of over 13000 that day, 'War Flames' is doing quite well."

"In my impression, isn't this one of the better-performing dramas Zheng Xiao has starred in?"

The "War Flames" crew was also surprised.

Undoubtedly, among the three dramas aired in this slot, in terms of investment, genre, and main cast, "War Flames" was the weakest—it's actually hard to say which is colder between it and the historical drama "Chivalrous Fragrance."

But this outcome was unexpectedly good.

Of course, the "War Flames" crew quickly found the answer—

"The quality is excellent! It's very moving!"

"It's uncommon to see such harmony among shows airing at the same time. Since Lu Xu is backing the show, of course, I'll support it too."

"Haha, count me in for support."

Zheng Xiao was speechless.

Regardless, he was deeply thankful to Shao Yao and Lu Xu for promoting his show.

Even though they are good friends, in the entertainment industry, there are many friends who don't help promote each other's projects, especially since "War Flames" and "Chivalrous Fragrance" are competing in the same time slot.

Zheng Xiao saw some comments saying that Lu Xu and Shao Yao were promoting his show, and they should be cautious not to let "War Flames" outshine "Chivalrous Fragrance."

But these two didn't care at all, even stating that if "Chivalrous Fragrance" didn't do well, it must be due to the show's lack of quality.

Zheng Xiao was deeply moved and touched.

In his future acting career, Zheng Xiao also managed to be dignified and generous.

Because he had been helped by dignified and generous people.