Chapter 2221 - 2224: In the Face of Absolute Power, Every Trick Is Laughable

Backstage in the production control room, the director watched as the live viewer count for the entire web feed kept jumping and had already broken a million; that wild joy was already written all over his face.

"Awesome! We're blowing up! A million watching live—this just broke every ratings record this station's ever had!"

Right then, he saw the host signaling to him, with one of Gong Ziyi's attendants standing off to the side.

He came out immediately.

"Young Master feels you guys need to spice things up a bit." Gong Ziyi's attendant glanced back, then turned his head and said seriously, "Humiliate that guy who wrote the song for Qian Ning."

Hearing that, the director panicked: "No way, absolutely not. The reason Qian Ning drew the last slot in today's draw is because there's a lot of attention on her right now, so she has to be the finale. Otherwise, once Qian Ning goes on, the audience will just scatter."

"Exactly because of that, you need to add drama." Gong Ziyi's attendant said, "Qian Ning's song is excellent, it's the most beautiful voice I've ever heard. But you've seen the situation: without any rigging, without any schemes, Miss Ai Ruoling has already crushed the whole field. Under these circumstances, Qian Ning, who doesn't have a perfect creative team behind her, is definitely going to lose. In a situation like that, if no one takes the fall, your grand finale tomorrow night in the prime-time slot won't have any pull anymore."

The director fell silent, then said, "This breaks the rules."

"Rules are dead, people are alive. You don't want nobody watching tomorrow's finale, do you? So just do what I said: humiliate the guy who wrote Qian Ning's song. If she loses"—he shifted his gaze to the host beside him, and Gong Ziyi's attendant said—"you announce on the spot that Ms. Qian Ning's new song will be custom-written for her by the team that wrote Ai Ruoling's song."

"What?" The host was stunned.

Gong Ziyi's attendant said, "That way, even if Qian Ning underperforms today, tomorrow's show will still be a draw."

As he spoke, Gong Ziyi's attendant pressed a few times on his phone and said, "Of course, working for Young Master, the biggest benefit isn't just fame and success; there's also something tangible. Five hundred thousand each as a welcome gift. Even if something goes wrong, Young Master will cover for you."

"This isn't really appropriate."

The director was anxious.

"I've already sent you the info on this songwriter. Get familiar with it quickly and then lay into him. Do it well, and I guarantee that next time you host any show, there'll be countless big-name stars lining up to give you face."

Gong Ziyi's attendant said in a tone that brooked no refusal.

"And you really don't need to worry. You're just, incidentally, introducing a musician, that's all. Even if your station leaders ask about it afterward, my Young Master can smooth it over for you. That's it, get out there!"

Backstage, Gong Ziyi's right-hand man was busily making tense arrangements.

Meanwhile, out front.

Seeing that he'd received Gong Ziyi's instructions, one of his attendants, head lowered, had gone backstage; Shen Qiang smiled and suddenly said, "Gong Ziyi, you've got one flaw that's really obvious—you just love playing petty tricks."

Gong Ziyi sneered, "Scared? Then admit defeat. Raise the white flag and I'll let you off this once."

Shen Qiang smiled, then turned his head, looking at Gong Ziyi seriously as he said calmly, "Smart people keep their mouths in their hearts. Idiots hang their hearts on their mouths. You're too eager to beat me, you don't want to miss any opportunity, so your moves are really not hard to guess."

Gong Ziyi raised a brow, put on a fake smile, and said, "Oh? Then go on, tell me. If you get it right, I'll reward you with candy."

Shen Qiang shook his head with a smile and said, "There you go again, trying to score these little verbal bargains. It's actually ridiculous. The noble young master of Abyss doesn't even understand that grabbing small gains means taking big losses. I don't even need to guess to know your guy went backstage to talk to the production team, trying to use the chance to humiliate me."

Gong Ziyi froze for a moment, then said in surprise, "What did you say?"

"Oscar owes you a little gold statuette." Shen Qiang smiled faintly and said, "You know perfectly well if I'm right or not."

Seeing the mocking look in Shen Qiang's eyes, Gong Ziyi's heart gave a jolt.

"No way. There's no way he figured out what I'm thinking. Did he hear it? Impossible. Sound transmission in secret can't be eavesdropped on."

Thinking this, Gong Ziyi smiled and said, "Shen Qiang, you're spouting nonsense again, trying to bait me? Not that easy. If you're scared, you can just leave now and then nothing happens, right?"

Looking at Shen Qiang, Gong Ziyi suddenly felt smug, wildly picturing Shen Qiang being forcibly dragged on stage by the host or being mercilessly interrogated, flustered and at a loss, which only made him even less willing to see Shen Qiang walk away. Instead, he mocked in all seriousness, "Fear makes people overthink, Shen Qiang. You've already lost."

Hearing that, Shen Qiang burst out laughing: "Gong Ziyi, people who don't know you will get fooled by your words, but I'm different. No one knows you better than your enemy. So you know that the more you tell me to leave, the more I'll stay. Likewise, I know that the more dirty tricks you play in the dark, the more you'll deny them out loud."

Gong Ziyi laughed and said, "Shen Qiang, stop thinking you're so clever. You don't know what I'm thinking, and you don't know what I'm doing. This kind of bluffing is childishly ridiculous."

At that, Zhang Shuheng, who'd been half-distracted, playing on his phone, suddenly cut in and said, "Shen Qiang, if you really guessed what he's doing, spell it out. If you nail it, I'll help you laugh at him."

Hearing this, Gong Ziyi sneered, "Zhang Shuheng, you're giving Shen Qiang way too much credit. He doesn't have that kind of ability."

Shen Qiang smiled and said, "Gong Ziyi, you're not just ordinarily arrogant. You and I both understand this is a talent show. Whether Ai Ruoling wins or Qian Ning wins, the leads are them. Even if our reputations take a hit, it's minimal."

Turning his head slightly to look at Gong Ziyi, Shen Qiang smiled and said, "Right now, Ai Ruoling's doing fairly well and getting praise from all sides. You already feel victory is in your grasp. So in this situation, of course you'll stop at nothing, use every means to push me out front, so everyone knows you're better than me in this area."

Gong Ziyi's heart skipped a beat, but he kept a smile on his face and said, "You really are a fantasist."

"If you weren't doing this, you wouldn't be that somewhat-clever opponent of mine, which would mean I've mistaken you for someone else." Shen Qiang smiled.

Gong Ziyi was silent for a moment, then laughed and said, "All right, Shen Qiang, I have to admit, you do know me very well. Yes, I was planning exactly that, you guessed right. I'm going to push you out there and let you be mocked. What can you do about it? At a time like this, walking away would be a good option, but the Shen Qiang I know isn't that much of a coward. So you can only obediently swallow this iron rod I'm shoving down your throat."

Hearing that, Shen Qiang burst out laughing again, then raised a brow and said, "Gong Ziyi, remember what I'm telling you: in the face of absolute Power, any scheme is laughable."