Ye Feifei stared blank-faced at the scene before her, so astonished she couldn't close her delicate little mouth for the longest time.
There were simply too many similar comments, so many that she concluded a large crowd of onlookers must have joined, leading to the current uncontrollable situation.
However, upon a closer look at the two newly aired episodes of "Rose Sea," especially the segment that netizens frequently mentioned where the male lead showed off his muscles, it had to be said the show did push the boundaries. Even though only the upper body was shown, that wasn't the point—the point was that from a distance, except for the male lead's somewhat stiff expression, there didn't seem to be any significant issues. But on a closer inspection, it really had a bit of a slideshow feel to it.
—Can I just say, anyone with just a rudimentary understanding could make this kind of high-level slideshow?!
Ye Feifei's face was full of embarrassment, yet as she watched the male lead continue to twist rigidly, she felt her secondhand embarrassment for watching such shows crushingly resurface. Where was the slightest desire to drool over her screen? She was ready to throw up all the instant noodles she had just eaten!
It truly was painful to watch!
Although the netizens' comments were indeed excessive, it had to be admitted that they had sharp eyes—the photo merging technique was really not all that great!
Sigh...
Ten thousand facepalms flashed by...
After calming down, Ye Feifei carefully reflected on the situation. Although she had been busy exchanging private messages with Shen Sirui recently and hadn't followed "Rose Sea" as closely as before, she could swear on her conscience that she had watched every part of the previous episodes, and she did so frame by frame.
Therefore, she could impartially say that based on what she had seen before, "Rose Sea," as the hottest modern IP of the moment, achieved a viewing and reputation explosion that was no fluke—it indeed had high production quality, with both looks and acting skills on point. But, what in the world happened with these two latest episodes?!
Yet, she couldn't help but continue to follow those "too distressing to bear" Weibo comments!
Ye Feifei opened the official Weibo page for "Rose Sea" with trembling fingers, only to see it flooded like a golden mountain. However, most of the people hurling abuse were fans of the original work, and their criticisms were incredibly harsh, no less severe than those from the Water Army and the onlookers:
The post-production team, come out, I promise I won't beat you to death!
Did the director eat shit? That muscle-showing segment, please tell me the male lead did it himself? Did he use a body double? Do you think the audience is blind?
[Eating melon][Eating melon][Eating melon]Body doubles are very expensive, they cost 50 a day! But that was obviously a slideshow...
Director and producer, come out, give me back my perfect male lead!
The one who destroyed "Rose Sea," eternal damnation! [Angry][Angry][Angry][Angry][Angry]…
Take it off the air, off the air, off the air... Those who agree, like this, push it to the top of the comments!!
...
Comments like these were everywhere, practically painting "Rose Sea" as a complete disaster!
However, what surprised Ye Feifei the most was that the photo cropping scandal was originally targeted at the scene where the male lead showed off his muscles in the bathroom, but as the comments grew, many people started pointing fingers at the female lead—Xia Yichu.
It must be said, Xia Yichu was definitely caught in the crossfire without any fault.
Ye Feifei had always been by Xia Yichu's side and knew that Xia Yichu hadn't started rising to prominence when filming "Rose Sea." She landed the role purely based on her solid acting skills over the years. Of course, Xia Yichu also revealed that the lead female role wasn't originally hers, but the previous candidate, Sally, fell through due to a dispute over the salary. Thus, she "picked it up," a key reason for their fiercely bad blood.
But no one could have imagined that this contemporary big IP would turn into the most profitable TV series of the moment.
Still, during filming, budget issues undoubtedly were a sore point for the production team. The rumored millions invested—where that money went, Xia Yichu had no idea.
But she was absolutely diligent, never asking for a stand-in, never absent nor taking leave. She knew this was an opportunity, as it was her first time as a leading lady in the entertainment industry and her first big IP project.
But that didn't mean others felt the same.
She spent another night half-awake in endless frustration and sadness.
Perhaps, those within this circle are always troubled. Ye Feifei felt that even as someone only half inside the industry, she was about to be outcast in the turbulent internet world.
A feeling of suffocation wafted in...
Nevertheless, the next day arrived, and the Sunshine rose punctually as always. With a face full of worries, Ye Feifei still arrived on time at Hongyu, having not slept at all, her thoughts in disarray. She didn't know how to comfort Xia Yichu, only saying, "Xiao Chu, stay calm. I know you're more wronged than Dou E, and this really has nothing to do with you, but you're still implicated. I don't even dare to look under your Weibo comments—it's easy to imagine, when the city gate catches fire, the fish in the moat suffer indeed a horrific fate!"
Ye Feifei let out a dispirited sigh, frowning as she looked at Xia Yichu.
Xia Yichu sighed, as if last night's internet nightmare had merged with her body, and she was already getting accustomed to her dire situation. Looking around and seeing that they were the only two in the room, she said, "The deep waters of the entertainment industry, what you see is always just the tip of the iceberg. The male lead, Wu Di, actually wasn't very interested in joining the series at first. Just like Sally, he's a top-tier star and thought the show was just another ordinary IP. The so-called 'super contemporary big IP' seemed a bit exaggerated at the time, so everyone suspected it was just hype. Therefore, with his status, he demanded extremely high and strict conditions from the production to make this collaboration happen, one of which was concerning explicit content! Wu Di isn't a sexy-type male star. Occasionally, he might have revealing photos, but they were always just hazy backgrounds or side shots. Plus, Wu Di has always been a fitness enthusiast, everyone in the circle knows his abs are strong and stunning, so they wanted him to show them off in the drama, which he refused!"
Ye Feifei's expression tensed slightly, then saw Xia Yichu continue, "But who would've thought, the production still so despicably pulled this stunt. But thinking about it, what kind of body double could have such perfect abs? Therefore, that bathroom scene wasn't done by a stand-in, but with photos! That means, the person showing off his muscles on TV wasn't Wu Di at all, not even the part of the photo below his neck was his. Whose photo it was, I'm unsure, I only know with the funds being tight, the final effect was indeed quite out of sync! But..."
Xia Yichu paused slightly, her eyebrows picking up with threads of scorn and chill, "Hmph... The production that came out of millions in investment, overall, wasn't crudely made, but the production's unbelievable vile taste was the real devil digging its own grave!"
After hearing what Xia Yichu had said, Ye Feifei couldn't help but shiver all over!