Chapter 136: Whatever Happened to Our Agreement?

Time flowed on, and before long it was time for the interview to begin. As the staff hurried to their respective stations, Liu Longhua, the show’s director, was naturally just as busy. While keeping an eye on everything from backstage, he also watched the computer screen in front of him.

It had taken him considerable effort to secure a simultaneous livestreaming slot on the Stardust platform. Whether the “Angel” interview program could make a name for itself would depend on this one broadcast.

“Director, the audience members we arranged make up less than a third of the seats. Isn’t that a little too risky?”

Seeing Sun Feng appear onstage, the assistant beside Liu Longhua spoke with evident concern.

Although Sun Feng was not hosting the program for the first time, this occasion was different. In the past, the audience below had consisted mostly of planted spectators. If anything went wrong, they could simply record the segment again or edit out the mistakes.

But this time, the program was being broadcast simultaneously on television and online. If something went wrong, they would be in serious trouble.

“Ahem… Well, you have to trust Little Sun’s abilities. A little difficulty won’t be enough to stump him. Besides, what is it that the audience wants?”

“Those usual tricks?”

“No! They want a genuine live broadcast! We have to innovate! We have to be different! That’s what brings ratings! That’s what draws an audience! Understand?”

Liu Longhua delivered this righteous explanation to his assistant, then turned his head aside beneath the assistant’s admiring gaze.

That was indeed what he believed. How could a small program like this attract viewers merely by interviewing famous personalities? Wouldn’t every other program do the same?

They needed something different—perhaps a clever host with only a few years of experience, a celebrity being put through an outrageous parody, and the question of what amusing things might happen when there was no chance to record the segment again.

Of course, to prevent the show from falling flat, he had originally planned to arrange a large number of planted spectators to keep the atmosphere lively. He had not expected so many people to be interested in attending the recording in person, however. Tempted by the offer of Huayuan, he had been forced to sell off a few of the seats reserved for the plants.

Well… truly only a few.

So Sun Feng could only fend for himself.

“Good day, ladies and gentlemen! You are watching the Angel interview program, sponsored by the Stardust platform, Dodo Cola, Fashion Apparel, Xingtong Freight…”

Onstage, Sun Feng held a card bearing an absurdly long list of sponsors. Even his professionally fixed smile twitched faintly.

Had the director gone completely mad with his hunger for money? How many sponsors were there?

No matter how dissatisfied he was, he was already standing onstage. It was hardly possible for him to climb down, drag the director out, and beat him.

Fortunately, the director had not yet descended to such shameless depths. Just as the audience below was about to start cursing, Sun Feng finally finished reading the list.

“…sponsors of the Angel interview program!”

At long last, the sponsorship announcements were over. A thin, scattered round of applause rose from the audience, leaving the entire venue painfully awkward. Nearly all those clapping were the hired plants. Not one genuine viewer applauded.

“Thank you all for your support and encouragement! I’m sure everyone knows about the incredibly popular Three Kingdoms parody videos that have been making waves recently. Today, we have invited…”

Even under such terrible conditions, Sun Feng put on a thick-skinned performance, forcing himself to make the venue seem lively as he carried on talking to himself as though he had not noticed the dead silence.

Inside, however, he was cursing the scheming director without pause. The man had not even arranged enough plants to keep the atmosphere going—there were fewer than a third of the audience! How was he supposed to host the show like this?

Wasn’t the director afraid that Sun Feng would be unable to get off the stage and end up ruining the entire program?

As he spoke, Sun Feng cast a discreet glance toward the director below, hoping Liu Longhua would quickly think of something. Instead, Liu Longhua returned a look that clearly said, “I have complete confidence in you.”

Sun Feng nearly cursed aloud.

Seeing that the show might descend into an awkward silence, even the staff watching from backstage began to panic. The only person who remained calm was Liu Longhua.

“What are you panicking about? Excellent. Just keep going!”

Excellent?

The backstage staff were instantly dumbfounded. How could this possibly be called excellent? They were all worried that Sun Feng would lose control of the atmosphere and cause some sort of disaster, yet Liu Longhua was actually saying everything was fine?

Of course it was fine.

Liu Longhua glanced at the computer on the table. The livestream chat was being flooded with comments. Clearly, the viewers found the awkwardness entertaining. A few scattered tips had even begun to appear, and the viewer count was steadily climbing.

[Hahaha… Did the atmosphere really fall flat? Don’t tell me they didn’t even prepare any plants?]

[They spent forever listing the sponsors. Did this director go completely insane over money?]

[This host is seriously tough! He’s been set up this badly and still hasn’t shown the slightest sign of panic!]

[Now this is a gutsy program—broadcasting live while throwing the host under the bus. I’m sold!]

…

Liu Longhua did not care whether Sun Feng was embarrassed onstage. Popularity and ratings were what mattered most!

“Now, let us welcome this episode’s guest, Tang Guoqiang, the actor who played the Chancellor!”

After delivering the necessary pleasantries, Sun Feng promptly shifted the subject to Tang Guoqiang, who was about to enter. The atmosphere in the venue immediately came alive, and the applause merged into a continuous roar.

“Clap, clap… clap-clap-clap…”

The spotlights suddenly blazed to life. Amid shouts of “Chancellor!” and “Zhuge the Piano Demon!” from below, Tang Guoqiang waved to the spectators on either side in acknowledgment before slowly making his way onto the stage.

Once the two men had taken their seats, Sun Feng—after being thoroughly sabotaged by the director—had lost all interest in asking meaningless questions. Ignoring Liu Longhua, who was frantically signaling to him from below, he opened with a bombshell.

“Mr. Tang, are you familiar with the Three Kingdoms videos that have recently become so popular?”

“Well, that… Of course I am.”

As a veteran actor, Tang Guoqiang possessed an indescribable steadiness in his speech. It was impossible for him not to have heard the title “Chancellor.” Even if he had not paid much attention to the Stardust platform in his daily life, his relatives and friends had certainly recommended it to him often enough. He had even recently filmed an advertisement related to it. It would have been difficult not to know about it.

Sun Feng had naturally looked into the situation beforehand, so he was not surprised by the answer. He had asked the question merely to bring the audience up to speed. What followed was the question he truly wanted to ask.

“Mr. Tang, quite a few people online have been arguing endlessly about these parody videos. What is your own opinion of them?”

Whether in the studio or watching through their screens, the audience unmistakably sat up straighter, waiting for Tang Guoqiang’s answer…

P.S. Many thanks to the readers Black-Robed Left Chancellor, Silent—Listening, Wolf Child 1006, Hearing Loneliness Spread, and Heart-Destroying Funeral Seal for their generous tips of 500 Qidian coins. Thanks as well to the readers A Riot of Blossoms and the Infinite Book Repository of the Administration Bureau for their tips of 100 Qidian coins. Let the flowers fly! Please recommend and collect the novel! Your author needs your support!