During this period, some people have been stirring up trouble, creating and spreading edits of Wang Can and several members of the original group, and promoting the topic of "a family should be together," treating Wang Can and the other members as a whole, which has attracted many of Wang Can's fans to vote for them.
Yingyuan Company acted very tactfully, so it didn't attract anyone's attention. Only Wang Can's fans complained a few times, but they were calmed down by the big fans.
Besides these, there were of course many other shady tactics, but Mingwei didn't think of them at the time.
Seeing all this, Mingwei was shocked. "President Shen, so you mean that ever since Yingyuan Company realized that Wang Can couldn't compete with Xia Shiyu for the center position, they quickly changed their strategy, conserved their strength, and distributed the resources originally intended for Wang Can to the subsequent members, ensuring they made it into the debut group?"
Mingwei thought she had finally gotten it right this time, but to her surprise, Shen Huai still shook his head.
Shen Huai looked at the screen. There was still a gap in the votes between Wang Can and Xia Shiyu, and with only two days until the finals, Xia Shiyu was practically guaranteed to win. Yingyuan Company seemed to have completely given up on Wang Can, using her future to pave the way for the other contestants, but Shen Huai always felt that Yingyuan Company's ambitions went far beyond what was currently apparent.
Shen Huai clasped his hands in front of his chest and slowly said, "I heard Producer Zhang say before that Yingyuan Company was one of the earliest companies in China to produce idol groups, and one of the few that was profitable. It's fair to say that Yingyuan is number one in the idol group industry. With such an illustrious track record, do you think they would be willing to just send someone to a debut position and give up the most eye-catching center position?"
Mingwei was stunned. "But, at this point, with such a large difference in votes, do they have something else going on?" She suddenly stopped talking, her face turning very pale.
Shen Huai knew she had already thought of it, so he stopped keeping her in suspense and said, "If they can't win on the field, they might resort to off-field tactics."
"Notify all departments to assemble. I'm afraid everyone will have to work overtime these next two days. The battle between us and Yingyuan has only just begun."
☆, Chapter 167
It was almost midnight, but the practice room of the "National Idol" program was still brightly lit. All four groups of contestants were seriously preparing for their performance in the final. After all, months of hard work would come down to this one moment.
Xia Shiyu's group perfectly executed the finishing pose, and the dance teacher nodded in satisfaction, "Okay, you can all take a break for a while."
Upon hearing these words, the girls, who had been full of energy, suddenly collapsed to the ground as if their spines had been removed.
Xia Shiyu raised her arm to wipe the sweat from her face, then picked up her water cup and took a small sip.
After months of intense training and diet control, she lost a lot of weight, which made her features appear more refined.
Seeing Xia Shiyu's face, which showed no signs of fatigue, one of her group members exclaimed with envy, "Sister Xia, you're simply amazing! How can you maintain such a high level of energy under such intense training? How do you do it? Can you share some secrets with us?"
As soon as she said that, everyone looked at Xia Shiyu, even the dance teacher was very curious.
Xia Shiyu chuckled. For her in her previous life, this kind of life was the norm before she debuted. She wasn't a superhero, but she knew very well that this was the only way for her to change her fate.
So even though it was incredibly painful, and she felt like she was dying every day, she gritted her teeth and persevered. Even after her debut and meteoric rise to fame, becoming a beloved queen of love songs, she always felt a sense of insecurity that prevented her from relaxing. Even though she no longer needed to dance on stage, she maintained the habit of practicing dance and learning new skills. She even felt guilty if she missed a practice day. Over time, her body adapted to this lifestyle, and she even carried it into her new body.
Although she couldn't tell her companions about these reasons, Xia Shiyu still had some tips for conserving energy, which she shared without reservation.
"Actually, it's not that difficult. It's just about using every spare moment to rest. After a short rest, you'll feel much better." Xia Shiyu thought for a moment and then added, "I've heard of a Da Vinci sleep method before. It's said that you only need to spend two hours a day sleeping. But it's okay for a short time. For me, it would be a bit difficult to do it for a long time."
As Xia Shiyu finished speaking, she seemed to feel a little regretful.
However, everyone was stunned. The member who had asked the question earlier said in disbelief, "Are you kidding me?"
Xia Shiyu said seriously, "I'm not joking, the Da Vinci sleep method really exists."
"No, no, no, I know about this sleep method. I mean, can you really fall asleep in all those fragmented moments of time?"
Before Xia Shiyu could speak, someone in the team timidly raised their hand, "I can testify, Sister Xia could sleep in such a noisy place during rehearsals."
Everyone
Sorry to bother you, goodbye.
The members started chatting about this topic, and the dance teacher didn't rush them. After all, it's important to have a balance between relaxation and stress, and they shouldn't be too tense.
Seeing this, Xia Shiyu decided to go back to her dormitory to get something, but she bumped into Wang Can as soon as she returned to the dormitory building.
Since their collaboration on "The Fall," their relationship has improved considerably. Although the rivalry remains, their meetings are no longer as tense as before. However, Wang Can still maintains a better relationship with his former members, so while their relationship isn't bad, it's not exactly good either.
When Xia Shiyu saw Wang Can, she raised her hand to greet her.
Wang Can seemed a little absent-minded. He forced a smile at her and went down the stairs on the other side.
Xia Shiyu looked at her back with some curiosity, since she wasn't heading towards the practice room.
However, Xia Shiyu didn't take it to heart. She took her things and went back to the practice room. It wasn't until 3 a.m. that they finished practicing and walked back to the dormitory, supporting each other.
Unexpectedly, the members from the practice room opposite also came out at the same time. The two sides smiled at each other. For the girls, although they were rivals, they were all young girls in their early twenties. After living and working together for so long, they gradually developed a mutual respect.
So, a group of girls chatted as they walked together toward the dormitory building.
But halfway there, someone belatedly realized, "Where's Wang Can from your group?"
Someone replied, "I don't know, many people disappeared around 11 o'clock. I wonder if they went back to sleep."
"I remember her being very hardworking. Is she feeling unwell?"
"No, she seems fine. Sigh, I don't know what's wrong with her lately; she gets really distracted. She even missed so much practice time tonight. I hope she doesn't drag us all down with her."
Their words also caught Xia Shiyu's attention.
In Xia Shiyu's memory, Wang Can was a very competitive girl, especially after the rankings were announced last time and she fell behind Xia Shiyu, she worked even harder than before. However, with the finals just around the corner, it was very unusual that Wang Can wasn't training in the practice room.
Xia Shiyu couldn't help but harbor a doubt in her mind.
The team members were fiercely competitive during the game, but the battles off the field were equally exciting.
Aside from the top three remaining firmly in the rankings, the rankings of the remaining contestants were extremely close and constantly changing. Many viewers who initially watched the show out of curiosity became obsessed with voting for their favorite contestants.
The contestants' fan clubs have come up with all sorts of creative and bizarre support slogans, making everyone seem to be caught in a voting vortex. Even though they know it's all designed by the production team to get them to vote, they have no way to escape this vortex.
Everyone was blinded by rage, determined to get their favorite girl into a debut position.
Amidst this chaotic battle, Yingyuan Company remained remarkably calm, yet beneath this calm facade, the rankings of its players continued to rise.
Yingyuan Company is well-versed in the operation of idols and has studied the voting rules long ago. All members' fan clubs are managed by the company, and all fan votes are strictly managed, which is why they have achieved such results today.
Yingyuan Company has spared no effort in this national idol campaign. Of course, it's not just for this limited-time group that's only been around for a year, but also to use this opportunity to make its own members famous and then use them to support the original group.
In Yingyuan Company's plan, Wang Can, who is strong enough, should be able to get the final center position, while the other contestants can also enter the debut positions under their control.
Everything was going smoothly, and everything was according to their plan.
But they didn't expect that the show would have a bug-like Xia Shiyu.
In terms of ability, Xia Shiyu and Wang Can are evenly matched. In terms of character, Xia Shiyu, who is sweet on the outside but silly on the inside, is more vivid than Wang Can, who is like a fairy. Not to mention, Xia Shiyu has Shen Huai and the behemoth Chenxing Company behind her.
However, Yingyuan Company had been planning for so long and was reluctant to let this most important link fail. If Wang Can couldn't get the center position and become the most eye-catching person, then even if the whole group was stuffed into the debut positions, it would be useless.
However, the British Yuan Company remained calm and seemed unconcerned about the matter.
Despite Shen Huai's warning, Morning Star remained on guard for several days without any sign of trouble. Even after Yao Xuetong re-entered the top ten with Morning Star's resource investment, Yingyuan Company did not react.
If it weren't for Shen Huai making the request, the employees of Chenxing Company would probably have been cursing under their breath. However, as the finals drew closer, more and more people in the company began to have doubts. Even Mingwei felt that the boss was being too nervous this time, and perhaps Yingyuan didn't dare to offend Chenxing, so she simply gave up.
However, Shen Huai remained steadfast amidst these objections.
Sure enough, the day before the final, news of a vote-rigging scandal involving Xia Shiyu broke on forums like Yusheng and Weibo.
The other party raised several points that were both reasonable and well-founded.
First, Shen Huai knew Zhang Li, the producer of the popular idol show. In order to promote Xia Shiyu, he gave her a lot of screen time, and the production team even cooperated to whitewash Xia Shiyu's image.
Secondly, the fact that someone of Ye Cang's status would become a mentor on a talent show like "National Idol" makes it obvious that the production team and Shen Huai must have made some kind of deal behind the scenes.
Third, in order to promote Xia Shiyu, her team even created the "lucky koi" persona for marketing purposes.
These half-true, half-false rumors brainwashed many people as soon as they appeared, and spread rapidly online through viral marketing.
Those who had doubted Shen Huai were now contradicting themselves. Ming Wei was stunned by the news online, almost wondering if Shen Huai had traveled back from the future, as everything was exactly as Shen Huai had predicted.
The current state of Morningstar is akin to knowing the exam questions before the exam even begins, and even having the standard answers in hand.
So one instruction after another was sent out, and eventually they were combined into messages in the network.
Some are trying to whitewash the situation, others are stirring up trouble, and still others are making jokes and memes, easily swaying public opinion.
Before Yingyuan Company could react, a Weibo post nearly plunged them into despair.
Some fans, stop stirring up trouble. It's not Xia Shiyu's fault your idol didn't make the debut spots. Look at how many people from Yingyuan Company actually made it, and those who worked tirelessly to vote. Haven't you considered that, given the current trend, when this group debuts, will it be a limited-time group of national idols, or just Yingyuan's own group within a group?
One stone stirs up a thousand waves.
Holy crap, this is terrifying to think about.
No wonder I found it strange before; these people weren't ranked very high in the earlier episodes, so how did their votes increase so quickly at the end?
I stayed up all night voting for these hardworking girls, not to revive some trashy group.
British cancer, get out of the entertainment industry!
Originally, Yingyuan Company was making a great show of things, almost completely pinning the blame for the voting scandal on Xia Shiyu. But unexpectedly, in just a few hours, the situation has reversed, and the blame has fallen on them instead.
While Ying Yuan's methods were somewhat despicable, they were still within the bounds of the rules. However, in most cases, it is one's self-interest, not one's judgment, that determines the decisions of the masses.
Compared to Xia Shiyu, who is at the top of the charts, Yingyuan Company is the biggest enemy for most fans of members struggling to debut. Even fans of members who have already made it into the debut positions worry that Yingyuan Company members, who occupy half of the debut positions, might affect their idols' resources, especially since these members of Yingyuan Company are known for sticking together on the show.
As a result, the topic of how to squeeze out the members of Yingyuan Company from the debut positions suddenly became a trending topic again.
Fans who were fighting like antagonists shook hands and made peace. You vote for my idol, I vote for your idol. Several contestants who had fallen out of the debut positions actually rose back up.
The British Yuan Company panicked, but no matter what they did, they couldn't change the overall situation.
Mingwei watched Yingyuan Company's futile struggles and felt a sense of relief.
We told you not to spread rumors and try to outsmart our CEO Shen. Do you even know how Huayu Entertainment went bankrupt?
☆, Chapter 168
After two weeks of intense voting, "Everybody's Idol" has finally come to its final battle.
Twenty-four hours before the competition began, "Everybody's Idol" hid all the votes for the contestants. However, this did not dampen the fans' enthusiasm for voting. At this crucial moment, the fans' enthusiasm for voting became even more frenzied.
On the Yusheng Forum, there was even a dedicated thread for predicting the contestants' rankings.
Weibo was flooded with various giveaways and creative fan support activities, making it feel like a massive party for everyone. The trending topics on Weibo were all about the nation's favorite idol.
"Idol" is a phenomenal variety show this year. These young women in their early twenties have set off the hottest fire this winter. Before this, probably no one could have imagined it.
Many people initially thought it was just a boring talent show, but as the show progressed, the girls' hard work touched many people. Too many people focus on the glamorous image of idols, but this show allowed the audience to see the sweat and tears behind the stage.
Moreover, with the popularity of Xia Shiyu's "Sinking", topics such as #IsIndependenceSexy# and #CanWomenAppreciateSexiness# have also sparked a lot of people's thinking.
Although this is just a talent show, it is no longer just a talent show. Many people have seen the independence, strength, and hard work of girls in this show.
Lin Ling originally watched an episode of "Everybody's Idol" out of boredom, but she never expected to become a fan of Xia Shiyu. She didn't even expect that she would enjoy the feeling of being a teenage fan again at the "advanced age of 30".