That post was pretty much exactly what Fan Qing had expected.
It started with someone claiming to live near the filming location and posting several photos. Soon, a group of microscope-level forum girls appeared.
“…Maybe it’s just my imagination, but in these photos, doesn’t this newcomer named Jian Feiyang seem a little too eager to suck up to the veteran cast members?”
“+1. I mean, sure, but it’s pretty obvious. Didn’t the cameras catch Jing Yuan too? If I remember right, aren’t they from the same company—maybe even under the same manager? Jing Yuan is clearly polite without being servile. I honestly prefer that kind of attitude.”
“Same. Feels like the newbie just wants to climb too badly, so he overdid it?”
“LOL, who doesn’t want to climb? But you don’t have to make it that obvious.”
“Exactly. And doesn’t that just make Jing Yuan look like he doesn’t know how to socialize? That’s way too scheming.”
“+1. And wasn’t this spot only supposed to replace GJH? One person should’ve been enough. Instead they shoved two people in. With how this is turning out, it’s hard not to overthink it…”
“I’m genuinely curious—wasn’t Jing Yuan already enough? Why squeeze Jian Feiyang in too? On what grounds did he get in? I really don’t get it.”
“What grounds? Just look at how hard he’s sucking up to the veteran cast. Obviously he climbed up using… nonstandard methods. Honestly, I kind of feel bad for Jing Yuan now. Losing half the spot is one thing, but then getting suppressed on top of that? That’s rough.”
As expected.
Fan Qing took another sip of strong tea as he read the comments.
Every single move was within his expectations.
But it also confirmed something else—Jing Yuan didn’t have much left to work with.
Fan Qing remembered very clearly how Jing Yuan rose to the top in the original novel.
Like himself, Jing Yuan wasn’t someone who truly belonged to this world.
At the start, Jing Yuan had relied on his “foreknowledge” of the plot to get signed by the same manager as Nie Luo. From there, he gradually met and latched onto other useful people.
Jian Feishuo, for example.
Using those connections, he gathered resources into his own hands and climbed step by step to the very top of the industry.
Now, with Fan Qing’s butterfly effect flapping its wings, Nie Luo’s role was intact—and on top of that, even the variety show opportunity Jing Yuan had originally planned to take had inexplicably vanished.
No wonder Jing Yuan had agreed to accept the position arranged by Jian Feishuo.
It looked like Jing Yuan really didn’t have any suitable resources on hand right now—nor the plot-based foresight that once let him act with impunity.
So now that it had come to this, was Jing Yuan left with nothing but manipulating public opinion?
Fan Qing took another sip of tea.
If that was all, then his skill set was honestly pretty underwhelming.
Still… Jian Feishuo should be making a move about now, shouldn’t he?
Fan Qing set down his cup and refreshed the thread.
Unexpectedly, the post had taken a new turn—but not at all the one he’d anticipated.
The Jing Yuan who’d just been pitied moments ago was suddenly being torn apart by the crowd.
What was going on?
Fan Qing frowned in surprise.
Was Jian Feishuo really that fast?
No—this didn’t seem like something Jian Feishuo could pull off.
Fan Qing scrolled up rapidly, skimming at high speed and piecing things together. Realization hit almost instantly.
Nie Luo.
News from Nie Luo’s side had leaked.
“Seeing all of you pity Jing Yuan honestly makes me laugh out of sheer anger. A shameless white-lotus bitch like him deserves sympathy? Aren’t you curious why one person should’ve been enough, yet two got shoved in? Simple—the production team wanted Jian Feiyang from the start. Jing Yuan was the one who shamelessly forced his way in. And after performing like crap, he still has the nerve to steer the narrative here? Does he really think no one knows he teamed up with his manager to scam Nie Luo out of the Tomorrow slot? That’s an ugly look no matter how you slice it.”
“! It’s 3 a.m. and I just squatted on a huge melon. Sis upstairs clearly knows the inside story—please elaborate!”
“Holy crap? Tomorrow? Is it the Tomorrow I’m thinking of? Wait, I vaguely remember Jing Yuan’s fans bragging that he was going to be on that show. I thought they were just delusionally hyping him up!”
“Huh? So the production team didn’t want Jing Yuan at all? If that’s the case, isn’t the newbie kind of the victim here?”
The original exposer clearly came prepared. She dumped a whole stack of receipts, instantly stunning the gossip crowd into silence.
“First, a bit of background for everyone: Nie Luo, Jing Yuan, and this newbie on the show are all from the same company—and yes, under the same manager. Surprised?”
“Wait… seriously?”
“Hold on, Jing Yuan and Nie Luo share a manager? I thought someone as big as Nie Luo would have his own dedicated manager.”
“I think I know a bit about that. Nie Luo debuted as a child actor and signed a ten-year contract back then. He still has more than half a year left, apparently. The company never reassigned him a new manager—and even let that same manager take on Jing Yuan. That part really surprised me too.”
“That’s all the background you need. We’re not digging into that here. Let’s get back to what I mentioned earlier.”
“Okay, OP. Quietly pulling out a little stool and sitting down.jpg”
“Placing my perfect butt gently.”
“Here’s what happened. Didn’t rumors circulate a while ago that GJH had objections to Jing Yuan appearing on this show? I started paying attention to Jing Yuan’s movements then. I saw his fans hinting at it multiple times—screenshots included, feel free to grab them. I was confused at the time. Since when did Jing Yuan have the status to go on Tomorrow? To be honest, I have a cousin who knows some inside details. She told me the show was actually planning to invite Nie Luo, so I just treated the whole thing like clownery and watched from the sidelines.”
“Damn—this melon’s getting big. Let me slice it first.”
“I’ll roast the seeds.”
“I’ll go crack the sunflower seeds!”
“Then here comes the juicy part. According to my cousin, Nie Luo’s manager—who’s also Jing Yuan’s manager—was playing both sides. On one hand, he kept dangling the possibility that Nie Luo might accept the show. On the other, he subtly pushed Jing Yuan several times. The production team isn’t stupid. They already felt something was off. I mean, if you’re going to agree, then agree—how could Nie Luo’s schedule be such a mystery?”
“Uh… not that I don’t get it, but isn’t that also Nie Luo’s manager? Doing this feels kind of… ummm.”
“??? What kind of god-tier exposé is this? What’s wrong with Nie Luo’s manager? With Nie Luo’s status, shouldn’t he be treated like royalty? And instead he’s trying to siphon Nie Luo’s resources to Jing Yuan??? Huh??? I don’t get it, ladies—what kind of brain-dead move is this?”
“Emmm… well, to be fair, you guys must’ve heard some rumors, right? Nie Luo doesn’t really get along with the company or his manager behind the scenes. Plus, he only has a bit over half a year left on his contract. Negotiations probably fell apart, so the company and the manager might be holding some resentment.”
“??? What are you implying upstairs? What level is Nie Luo even at? The company locked him in for ten years back then—how much money has he made for them in that decade? And now he hasn’t even left yet, and they’re already pulling this kind of stunt? I don’t believe for a second they’re offering him any decent renewal terms.”
“Huh? Am I the only one who thinks this is fine? If Nie Luo doesn’t want it, and they’re under the same manager, giving it to Jing Yuan seems reasonable, no? Don’t let the benefits flow to outsiders.”
“That argument’s hilarious. Then why didn’t it flow to Jian Feiyang? Isn’t he also from the same company?”
At this point, the thread owner stepped in to steer the discussion.
“Let’s eat the melon rationally, okay. Bottom line is, Jing Yuan deliberately cleared his schedule to go on Tomorrow. Now that his schedule is empty, you should all understand why—when one person should’ve been enough—they still stuffed Jing Yuan in alongside a newcomer, right? Also, a reminder: didn’t some ‘fake-skin’ fans cause trouble over this slot before? Back then, certain fans swore up and down that their idol’s status was way too high to care about this opportunity. Now look at how that same someone is behaving—and how this post popped up right after filming wrapped today. Heh. I won’t spell it out. See for yourselves.”
“Holy crap! That reminder just hit me. Thinking about it now, it’s terrifying. I knew something felt off back then. That was obviously Jing Yuan’s fan, but later it got labeled as a fake-skin account. I even joked that people were playing Infernal Affairs at pro level these days—turns out I hadn’t fully eaten that melon at all!”
“Gross. Same here. I really thought GJH was the one stirring things up. Looking back, he’s a fixed cast member—if something happens, he just skips a few episodes. Why would he bother jumping around? Who would’ve thought someone was stepping on him to hype themselves up.”
“I’m officially turning from neutral to anti–Jing Yuan. Honestly, that newbie guy looks pretty sunny. I wonder how he performs on the show—hope he outshines Jing Yuan and disgusts him to death.”
Pats the clueless dog head of the commenter above.
“Think carefully—why do you think this post even exists? If that newbie weren’t outstanding at all… hehe.”
“…Damn. This industry is really a mess.”
“Seconded. This industry is really a mess.”
A mess?
Fan Qing stood up and heated himself a cup of milk.
This was only just the beginning.
Still, this twist genuinely surprised him.
Before Jian Feishuo even made a move, it was Nie Luo—completely unexpected—who struck first.
Nie Luo.
Just thinking of that name made Fan Qing press his tongue against his itchy canine teeth.
Merely rolling the name across his lips sent his imagination spiraling.
Powerful.
In body, and in methods.
This really was…
Fan Qing downed the warm milk in one go, his tongue lightly sweeping away the pale trace of milk at the corner of his lips.
This really did make him like him even more.