"People love a spectacle," Ye Zhi explained with a smile. "It's like if two families suddenly started arguing on the street, a crowd would definitely gather out of curiosity. Some shops with good service even provide chairs and snacks for passersby to enjoy the show.
So, for this kind of variety show, what the audience really wants to see isn't them loving each other, but rather them arguing or fighting on camera. The fiercer the fight, the better. That's why some variety shows, even if there's no conflict, will try to manufacture one. If they can't create it, they'll use editing to cut it in."
"So," Qi Xuan realized, "all the drama they're creating during the live broadcast is actually scripted?"
"There's definitely a script, but the fact that they're making such a mess of it has a lot to do with the poor quality of contestants the show selected," Ye Zhi said, feeling a bit speechless. "Most of these contestants are just minor internet celebrities with a bit of fame, and they have no awareness of maintaining their image when in front of the camera."
Qi Xuan nodded in agreement.
"Besides arguing, it seems the show's other trick is borderline content. Most men love to watch that kind of thing..." Suddenly, Ye Zhi asked casually, "What about you? Do you like it?"
Qi Xuan's heart skipped a beat. This was a death question! How should he answer?
If he said he didn't like it, would Ye Zhi think there was something wrong with him, or that he was hypocritical? If he said he liked it, would Ye Zhi label him as a lustful and greasy man?
"What do you think?" Qi Xuan considered it for a moment and ultimately kicked the ball back.
Ye Zhi blinked slightly, then smiled and waved her hand. "I was just asking casually. Thinking about it carefully, there's no need to ask such a question! You've long since risen above such low-level tastes. Asking this question is practically blasphemy against you."
Qi Xuan: ...
Wait, what kind of image did he have in Ye Zhi's mind? Was he even human? This was worse than Ye Zhi misunderstanding him!
Qi Xuan was still contemplating whether to explain himself when Ye Zhi had already returned to watching the show.
On the screen, after the contestants had been arguing for a while, a coach finally arrived and managed to calm their dispute.
Afterward, using the excuse of cultivating teamwork, the coach had them change into swimwear and head to the outdoor pool to organize a water polo match.
Who knew they would start arguing again during the team selection?
"Forget it, I'm not watching anymore," Ye Zhi said, rubbing her temples. "All this arguing is giving me a headache."
Qi Xuan let out a silent sigh of relief. He had finally heard the words he was waiting for!
"Do you know your enemy and yourself now?" he asked with a slight smile.
"Yes," Ye Zhi nodded. "I've figured it out. Ou Minghan's objective is very clear: he wants to attract viewers with suggestive content. Even when the contestants are having conflicts, it's all about finding ways to create physical contact between them, to tear off clothes and show off their figures, to provide 'benefits' to the audience. His show will be 'popular,' but only to a limited extent, because it's not high-class. Moreover..."
Ye Zhi's lips curved into a slight smile as she spoke with schadenfreude, "I recently received inside information. In response to the various chaos online, relevant authorities are planning to step in and regulate it. Ou Minghan should pray his show doesn't go too far, otherwise, it's highly likely to become the chicken used to warn the monkeys."
Qi Xuan looked at her approvingly. Although Ou Minghan had never been her match, Ye Zhi had not underestimated him. Instead, she had personally investigated before drawing her conclusion.
"Do you have any other movies you'd like to watch?" Qi Xuan suggested.
"No..." Suddenly, Ye Zhi's eyes lit up. "Why don't we play games together? With such a large screen, playing games must be amazing! By the way, how good are you at games?"
"I'm alright," Qi Xuan replied calmly.
Afterward, the two of them played games together, and Qi Xuan once again showed Ye Zhi what humility meant.
"My mom will definitely like you!" Ye Zhi said with emotion.
Qi Xuan's heart warmed. "Really?"
"Of course! Because you're so good at games!" Ye Zhi praised him without reservation.
Qi Xuan: ...
Alright, he had overthought it.
"Does your aunt also like playing games?" Qi Xuan asked in surprise.
"Yes, she's practically addicted to games now," Ye Zhi said with amusement. "She used to learn new recipes and cook for my dad. Now my dad cooks for her... Oh, right, my dad wanted to treat you to a meal before. Do you have time?"
Qi Xuan was a little stunned. Wait! Was this meeting the parents? This surprise came too quickly, and he couldn't quite process it.
However...
He didn't need to guess; he knew it wasn't what he was thinking. He figured the Ye family inviting him to a meal was just that – a meal, in the literal sense.
"I have time anytime," Qi Xuan said, letting out a quiet sigh before asking, "When would be a convenient time for me to visit?"
"How about next week when I go back to the Ye family's place? You can come with me," Ye Zhi suggested.
"Okay," Qi Xuan's lips curved slightly. "I'll follow your arrangements."
*
"Beauty Confrontation," relying on its suggestive live broadcast, achieved very good results on its opening day and also brought in a significant number of new users to Feilong Live.
Just as Ye Zhi had predicted, "Beauty Confrontation" became popular, but its discussion was limited to forums with a predominantly male user base. However, due to the varying skill levels and quality of the contestants, many people were complaining about the low quality of the show, while many others were discussing who was being catty, who was being scheming, and who was being pitiable.
Ou Minghan didn't care about any of that. In his opinion, whether it was praise or criticism, it all translated to popularity.
He immediately hired people to write a large number of promotional articles, hyping up "Beauty Confrontation" as the hottest variety show currently, and Feilong Live as the live streaming platform with the most users and highest activity.
This time, he had learned his lesson. In these promotional articles, he made no mention of Taoxun or T Live.
These articles were so pervasive that Zhan Ruoqing even called Ye Zhi specifically to complain about it.
"...The more they lack something, the more they like to show off. Doesn't Ou Minghan feel any shame when people write such flowery promotional articles for him?" Zhan Ruoqing was very speechless.
"Feilong Live's data is indeed looking quite good right now," Ye Zhi said with a smile. "Besides, Ou Minghan has suffered setbacks for so long, and finally, he has a business doing better than Taoxun, so of course, he has to boast about himself. Moreover, he only needs to create the appearance of Feilong Live and 'Beauty Confrontation' being a massive hit across the internet to attract sponsors!"
"So that's his real goal!" Zhan Ruoqing realized, and she said with some disdain, "But that variety show is really noisy and of low quality. Will there really be any gullible fools rushing to give him money?"