DTBS - Chapter 58
Chapter 58: Time to Bankrupt the Wangs
"...That's roughly the work process for today. However, CEO Tao, the business budgets for next year have all been submitted by each department, and the consolidation process is underway. If there are subsequent changes, each department will modify them themselves. The final approval requires your signature and seal. When do you think would be a good time for a meeting? We can go over the overall budget for each department for next year together." Zheng Liuyu stood to the side, reporting the latest work progress to Tao Qiuyun.
Just as Tao Qiuyun was about to speak, there was a knock on the office door. It was An Ningru, holding a folder, standing outside. Seeing the situation inside, she cautiously said, "CEO Tao? Should I... come back later?"
"No need, come in."
After speaking, Tao Qiuyun turned to look at Zheng Liuyu. "Secretary Zheng, please have a seat on the sofa for a bit. We'll discuss the budget later."
"Okay, CEO Tao." As the CEO's secretary, Zheng Liuyu naturally knew that the atmosphere team had an extra task recently.
Of course, they also got extra money...
CEO Tao, I can do it too!
I alone can outwork their entire team!
Please hire me to work for the CEO's wife!
"CEO Tao," An Ningru printed and organized the documents, handing them to Tao Qiuyun one by one. "The internet trolls who controlled and guided the comments last night have all been found. A total of five troll companies were involved, as well as the initial marketing account. Their funding sources and communication channels are all related to Sufeng."
"As for the trending topics on various social platforms, they were only bought at the very beginning. However, the subsequent online popularity is genuine. Miss Qin... her traffic is too massive."
It was her first time witnessing what it meant to be "explosively popular" across the entire internet. You know, Qin Qingshang hadn't even officially been a female lead yet, but she still became famous outside the circle. Relying on drama promotions and the IOM magazine, her followers surged to nearly sixty million, even surpassing the popularity of some traffic stars with seventy or eighty million followers. It was simply incredible!
Sufeng wanted to threaten her into renewing her contract and wouldn't promote her. CEO Tao was also a strange person who liked to see her wife make her own way and stubbornly refused to promote her either. This was entirely Qin Qingshang's own influence! It was conceivable that if she could stand firm this time, she might truly become a new legend in the industry in the future.
Tao Qiuyun lowered her eyes and flipped through the documents. On them were the information of the troll companies and the operators behind the marketing accounts.
She nodded. "Anything else? What's the situation online now?"
"Because you said there was no need to help Miss Qin control comments or drive traffic, the trending topics are still up," An Ningru replied, bracing herself.
Tao Qiuyun paused, frowning. "What's still up?"
"You should see for yourself," An Ningru handed her another printed screenshot of a Weibo post. "I'm afraid I can't explain it clearly."
If someone usually dared to speak to Tao Qiuyun like this at work, they would have been lectured by CEO Tao long ago.
But the situation was different this time. It was indeed more reassuring to see it with her own eyes.
Qin Qingshang had responded, explaining that the hotel police incident was due to a sasaeng fan picking the lock. The 《Fluttering Butterfly》 crew and staff also testified for her on Weibo, and even Ming Siwen publicly supported her online.
【Ming Siwen V: Rumors spread like wildfire, destroying reputations. Baseless rumors are truly terrifying [spit]】
【Warmth-loving Siwen: Sister, sister! You finally posted on Weibo! Long time no see!】
【Domestic Entertainment is Weird: Did Ming Siwen go to film a TV drama? I'm not the last one to know, right? Lowering her status, why?】
【I Ship Everything: Hehehe, she's speaking up for her!】
【Something's Off With Them: Could just be new drama CP promotion [thinking]】
【I Want to Eat Melon: What's going on? I heard their relationship wasn't good before.】
Regardless of how the solo fans and CP fans of both sides fought in the comments under this Weibo post, with Ming Siwen herself taking a side, her fans also joined in to help Qin Qingshang's fans attack. The Best Actress leading the charge caused the situation to instantly shift.
Ming Siwen's fans: First, let's kill the external enemies for Sister!
Qin Qingshang's fans: I'll gaga kill the rumor-mongers!
CP fans: Wuwuwu, the two big fan sisters are also so shippable!
Both sides' big fans: ...
What's wrong with you CP shippers! You prefer rival CPs, huh?
"So, isn't it getting better?" Tao Qiuyun was puzzled, looking up at the somewhat nervous An Ningru. "What trending topic is still up?"
"The one about the gray car owner has blown up," An Ningru wiped the sweat from her forehead and handed over the paper at the bottom. "It seems someone took a photo of you and Miss Qin going out to eat..."
"They photographed me?" Tao Qiuyun's hand paused in mid-air, a little surprised. "Which media outlet?"
"Not a media outlet, it was a netizen, and the photo is too blurry," An Ningru closed her eyes. "Actually, you can't see your face at all, CEO Tao. If I didn't know your schedule with Miss Qin, I wouldn't dare to confirm it was you."
After all, the difference in clothing style was too great.
Tao Qiuyun looked down...
Great, it was a photo from the day they went to West Wind Courtyard to eat. It wasn't taken by paparazzi, but by a restaurant customer.
The reason was that the blogger thought the figure and profile of the woman in sunglasses looked very similar to Qin Qingshang, so they took a photo on the spot and posted it on Weibo, which initially got no attention.
But as the gray car incident gained popularity, someone online said they had seen that car drive into the West Wind Courtyard parking lot. Immediately after, netizens who paid attention to details dug into the timeline and Weibo history, and quickly guessed that the woman in sunglasses was Qin Qingshang, and the woman in the hat standing next to her was naturally the mysterious gray car owner.
Tao Qiuyun: ...
These people are quite idle!
Qin Qingshang had clarified the hotel incident on her personal Weibo, but she didn't mention anything about getting into the gray car, leading to continuous speculation from netizens.
Since it was now revealed to be a woman, the previous rumors of pregnancy before marriage were no longer being pushed by marketing accounts. Instead, the direction shifted, bringing up hashtags like #QinQingshangUndergroundGirlfriend and #QinQingshangRelationship.
After this incident, they understood that this name meant traffic! They had to seize the opportunity to exploit it!
【Spitting Water: Before, they spread rumors about my sister being pregnant before marriage and having an abortion, and now they're silent? Spreading rumors costs nothing, just splashing dirty water on girls, linking everything to something yellow. Men are disgusting! Is your brain full of dicks?!】
【Shangshang Sister Sister: Please apologize to Qin Qingshang [smile]】
【I Don't Understand: No, is the girlfriend kept this secret? It's like a secret underground meeting. I don't believe it's a girlfriend!】
【I'm Here to Chew on Big Melon: Taking your girlfriend to eat at West Wind Courtyard, wuwuwu, so sweet. I also wish I had a sister who would take me to eat at West Wind Courtyard restaurant~】
【Definitely Not Blank Today: Can we rationally wait for an official response? We were already proven wrong before, now you're saying girlfriend, aren't you afraid of being proven wrong again?】
"Miss Qin has not made any response to this photo yet," An Ningru explained the current situation. "So the online popularity has been continuous. Everyone is guessing who the woman in the hat is, but currently, netizens have temporarily shifted their focus to people within the industry. After all, your attire at the time, CEO Tao, was very secretive, as if you were afraid of being seen. Oh, right, there's one more thing. The merchants took the opportunity to sell a lot of your matching hoodie and ripped jeans."
"They're quite good at making money," Tao Qiuyun chuckled in annoyance. She tidied up the documents and continued, "Alright, I know the situation now. Go tell Fuyao that since they signed the person, they have to make them feel secure. Now it's..."
The woman looked at her watch. "Ten twenty. By five PM, I want to see this matter suppressed. Not by removing the trending topic, but by shifting the netizens' discussion away from it."
"Yes, CEO Tao." An Ningru accepted the order.
"Huh?" Tao Zhuohua was confused when he received An Ningru's call. "My sister really said that?"
"Yes, CEO Tao said so. At five o'clock, I will organize and report the online situation to her. In other words, Young CEO Tao, you need to divert netizens' attention by three PM at the latest, four PM, to facilitate our information gathering."
"Alright, I understand. Fuyao will work hard!" Tao Zhuohua hung up the phone, sighing.
Just then, his office door was suddenly pushed open, and a huge figure burst in, panting and bouncing around.
It was a big dog, and on its back was a...
My little niece!
"Qinqin! Qinqin, be careful!" Tao Zhuohua hurriedly threw away his phone and stepped forward to try and rescue the little one. "How did you get kidnapped by a dog? Big Bold, you're really Big Bold!"
The kitty made her mount stop, smiling sweetly, "Qinqin came to play with Little Uncle~"
A bright smile instantly made Tao Zhuohua give up on lecturing. He immediately picked up the internal phone, told the secretary to buy fries, and then said with a smile, "Qinqin is so good! Does Qinqin want to play puzzles with Little Uncle? Don't worry, I've been practicing hard and won't fall asleep now."
After saying that, he suddenly remembered something terrifying. "Wait, Qinqin, tell Little Uncle, did you ride the dog out by yourself?"
Help! You rode a dog to my company, won't I be implicated?!
"No, Grandma brought Qinqin out." The little one blinked.
"Qinqin!" Xia Xianglu trotted to the door and walked into the office, sighing, "This dog runs really fast, I couldn't catch up. Four legs are indeed faster than two."
"Mom?!" Tao Zhuohua was shocked. "When did you return to the country?"
After saying that, he frowned again, his expression serious. "Forget it, whether you return or not doesn't have much to do with me, but how could you let Qinqin ride a dog out and not hold onto her? If my sister finds out about this..."
"I was holding onto her the whole time," Xia Xianglu sat on a chair and poured herself a glass of water. "She only rode the dog after we got into the company. Don't tell me, this dog is really amazing. How did it grow so big and strong? It's not a dog demon, is it?"
"Woof!" Woof is not a demon.
Tao Aiqin stroked the dog's head and said loudly, "Doggy is not a demon!"
Demons can speak human language, but Big Bold only barks.
System: "It's not an ordinary dog. Can an ordinary dog be a mount? It's the System Mall's delivery dog!"
Tao Aiqin: "Sys, who are we to each other? The System Mall is yours, and yours is mine. We're family, no need for formalities."
System was angry: "Who's family with you?!"
"Okay, okay," Xia Xianglu really liked Tao Aiqin and went forward to hug her. "Our little treasure says it's not, so it's not."
"Mom," Tao Zhuohua was puzzled. "Why did you bring Qinqin out? Do you need something from me?"
"Yes," Xia Xianglu sat on the sofa with the little kitty in her arms. "I saw the news online. Fuyao signed Qingshang, but why is this trending topic still there? Can't you handle it?"
"Mom, this matter is very complicated," Tao Zhuohua sat opposite her. "Actually, Fuyao only finalized the contract with Sister-in-law today and then signed it. Now there's a problem. Sister-in-law and my sister are secretly married, which makes it difficult to reveal the identity of the gray car owner."
"If we say they are friends, the most suitable method would be to take a photo together for netizens to see. Leaving aside whether Sister would be recognized, although the possibility of being recognized is relatively low, I don't think my sister's personality would agree."
"What you said makes sense," Xia Xianglu nodded. She understood her daughter somewhat. "With her personality, she'd probably say, 'Why should I show it to netizens?' That child has always been used to having the final say. Expecting her to explain to unrelated netizens is less likely than expecting her to become a player who dates one person and breaks up with the next."
"Exactly! And even if Sister agreed, Sister-in-law wouldn't agree either."
"What did Qingshang say?"
Xia Xianglu and Tao Aiqin's eyes lit up.
"Sister-in-law doesn't want my sister to be exposed to the public eye. She said to just let netizens guess about this matter. Anyway, she's an actress, not a traffic star, and dating won't affect her. Actually, I think besides being afraid of my sister's identity being exposed, she's more afraid of someone attacking Sister. After all, those netizens don't care who you are, they'll curse anything."
"How is Qiuqiu handling this matter, do you know?" Xia Xianglu asked him.
"My sister is so cool!" Tao Zhuohua got excited when he mentioned this. He sat up straight. "She went straight to my house and had Big Brother Hu drag me out of my sleep, telling me to go find trouble with Jiang Lihe and immediately terminate Sister-in-law's contract with Sufeng."
Xia Xianglu instantly felt heartache. "Wouldn't that mean paying a lot of money?"
"My sister said money is a small problem. The important thing now is to immediately cut ties with Sufeng. She will make Sufeng spit out all the money later."
"It's getting cold," Xia Xianglu put down the little cat in her arms, then walked to the window, looking into the distance, her tone deep, "Sufeng should go bankrupt."
After saying that, she looked excitedly at the scratching-headed Tao Zhuohua, thrilled, "Wasn't it? Wasn't it? Did Qiuqiu say that at the time? Was my tone accurate?"
"Clap clap clap—" The kitty applauded. "Grandma is great!"
"Qinbao is so good!" Xia Xianglu was very happy. Her granddaughter was so compatible with her. This must be the legendary generational inheritance.
"Uh... I'm very sorry to tell Mom, but no," Tao Zhuohua chuckled dryly, then his expression turned serious. "My sister said that Jiang Lihe was arrogant, and because Sufeng was in a superior position, he wantonly toyed with Sister-in-law like a mouse, and even incited netizens to harm her, making her endure undue verbal abuse and mental pressure, and even wanted to ruin her future."
"So, as the superior in the entire industry, she will give him a taste of his own medicine. She will also toy with Sufeng like a mouse, starting with the Jiang family, intervening from the periphery, slowly closing the net, letting Jiang Lihe, who is at the center, experience what it means to have the sky wide and the earth narrow, with nowhere to go."
Tao Zhuohua's eyes showed longing as he continued, "Sister is really cool! Little brother, I love her so much! I want to become someone like her too!"
"Congratulations to System 030's Host for achieving [Tianliang Wangpo] (A classic scene from novels, the domineering CEO's fit of anger for the female lead). Congratulations on witnessing the domineering CEO Tao Qiuyun getting revenge for the female lead and deciding to abolish a group. You have gained 100 points and one exquisite CG image. Don't be arrogant, keep up the good work!"
The Main System's notification suddenly sounded, startling Tao Aiqin and the System.
System: "This works too? But the male lead Jiang Lihe hasn't gone bankrupt yet?"
The System actually hoped Jiang Lihe would go bankrupt as soon as possible. After all, if the male lead went bankrupt, he probably wouldn't be able to have a happy ending with the female lead, and the mission progress bar would definitely be maxed out!
Tao Aiqin: "Why not? Tianliang Wangpo is just a phrase, it's definitely about intent, not action!"
The little kitty was very happy and eagerly clicked on the CG image.
She had just seen the figures of two people intertwined on the bed, but before she could see clearly, the image instantly disappeared.
Tao Aiqin: ?
System: ?
Soon, the Main System sent another image:
The woman sitting in the boss chair had a detached expression. She looked out the floor-to-ceiling window. The spacious office was exquisitely decorated, contrasting with the high-altitude night and the lights below, creating a sense of loneliness that couldn't be dispersed.
But Tao Aiqin wasn't paying attention to the cool and lonely beauty right now. Her mind was full of:
Damn! The Main System actually has spicy images!
Must!
She must get that CG image of them lying on the bed!
She swore on her hardcore gamer's pride, she would absolutely not leave this world without getting that CG!
Qinqin: Very good, System, you have successfully piqued my interest.
Comments
Post a Comment