He didn't make his own judgment on this matter. He was the host, his job was to hype up the topic, not to make a judgment before anything started. Doing so would only make viewers with different judgments lose interest and turn away before anything began. So, what he did was lay out all the recent materials related to the topic in front of him and lead into the next discussion.
"Roy Seasonstar has been quite hot recently. When talking with the young ladies and gentlemen around him, they all ask some related questions. When I can't answer, I can see them looking at me as if I'm an alien. It makes me feel like I've already disconnected from society." The host chuckled, self-deprecating.
But the viewers watching the TV all chuckled knowingly, feeling like what he said was quite relatable. When everyone is discussing something, it feels isolating not to be able to join the conversation.
The host then picked up an enlarged photo from the table, and it was none other than the one taken in the abandoned factory.
"You must be very familiar with this photo, right? Its presence has been noted in many media outlets. Thanks to it, some of our adventurous friends have discovered an interesting place for entertainment."
"Haha." Laughter erupted from the audience below the stage. They knew the host was joking about that abandoned factory. Since the photo came out, it has become popular, attracting people to visit for photos or exploration. Even a horror movie had chosen it as a shooting location.
This incident caused a stir when it was reported, so many people were aware of this amusing story.
Jimmy intentionally paused for a while before making a humorous expression of "I won't say more, or you'll come after me," and proudly continued, "You all know the story behind this photo. Do you want to know the story behind the photo itself?"
"Yes!" The audience below shouted in unison.
"I knew it. Let's take a look at the big screen!"
On the screens of millions of TVs, a video appeared. The recording was clear, not the blurry surveillance type but rather like a clear movie. The audience could distinctly see the familiar background of the abandoned factory in the photo.
In just a few seconds, a woman's figure appeared in the video. At this point, the sky outside wasn't completely dark, and the sunset illuminated the abandoned factory, allowing everyone to easily identify the woman as the actress who had recently become famous due to the scandal, Elisa.
"Is anyone here?" Her voice rang out clearly.
The scene shifted, and Roy's figure appeared on the other side.
Upon seeing Roy, Elisa excitedly walked towards him, but Roy didn't give her a chance to get close, warning her to stay away.
At this point, many people had already guessed what had happened before the photo was taken. Judging by Roy's expression, it didn't seem like he and Elisa had a close relationship. Why else would they meet in a place without anyone else, and why would he keep her at a distance as if he had seen something disgusting?
At this moment, most of the audience still thought the video was taken without their knowledge, as such things, although peculiar, weren't unheard of. In any case, it was a revelation, and who cared who took the video?
But the subsequent development of the video surprised everyone. Elisa claimed she was being threatened, forcing her to smear Roy.
Upon hearing this dialogue, the audience was in an uproar. No wonder this matter had been hot for so many days without cooling down; it turned out someone had been manipulating it all along. No wonder so many people were cursing Roy. He had actually been targeted by people who bought fake accounts to criticize him. Looking at it this way, Roy was quite pitiful. But who was scheming against him?
The audience, now firmly convinced of the television content, unknowingly shifted their focus from the scandal to the plot of framing, threats, and the puppet master behind the scenes.
And this was just the beginning; what happened next was truly astonishing for the viewers.
As Elisa continued to speak, she suddenly reached out towards Roy, and at the same time, a paparazzo, who had been hiding behind them and no one knew when he appeared, began snapping photos furiously. Before the two could react, he fled without looking back.
Immediately after, Elisa also ran away, leaving only Roy behind.
Host Jimmy paused the video there, then chuckled, holding up the photo in his hand. "Who would have thought this photo was taken in such a situation?"
"Really didn't expect it." "We were deceived!" "Damn paparazzi, I knew you couldn't trust their cameras!"
The deceived audience was angry. It seemed like such a conclusive photo, but it turned out it was taken in that kind of situation. It was too much; it was no different from being deceived by a scammer!
Jimmy grinned as he listened to the angry curses from the audience below the stage, then clapped his hands, redirecting everyone's attention back to him.
"In fact, this matter is not over just like this. You surely can't guess the subsequent developments."
"There are more developments?" The audience was surprised, whether they were in the studio or front of their TVs. They were curious about what the host meant. Weren't those all the events just now? Paparazzi took photos, the leading lady ran away, and only Roy remained. What more could there be?
Jimmy chuckled twice, raised his hand, and pointed to the big screen. "What happens next? Let's all witness it together."
On the big screen, the paused footage resumed.
Roy, left behind by Elisa, shrugged towards the direction of the camera and then waved. By this time, the audience had already guessed that the person taking the video was working with Roy.
"Roy is quite clever." "If he hadn't found someone to record it, he probably wouldn't have been able to clear himself till now." The audience didn't feel much resentment toward him; after all, he had been pitifully framed, both in the scandal and the criticism.
However, what happened next shocked everyone, leaving them with wide-open mouths.
In the video, as Roy faced several people assisting in the recording, he suddenly rubbed and pressed his face as if in a scene from a science fiction movie, then peeled off a layer— "skin"?
"Ah! Ah!" "Oh my God!" A wave of gasps erupted from the audience in the studio, who could hardly believe what they were witnessing with their own eyes.
Were their eyes playing tricks on them? Had the world suddenly become fantastical?