CHAPTER 96: CHAPTER 92: SONG RELEASE, ANGRY PRODUCTION TEAM

Li Chunhua was in her car when she received the news. She quickly unlocked her phone and looked at the latest Weibo post from the "The Sound of Nature" program, a mocking smile appearing on her face.

[Special Announcement: Due to Singer Xu Qingqiu’s accidental injury, which has rendered her unable to participate in the subsequent recordings of the program, she will be withdrawing from the competition in advance. The production team deeply regrets this and hopes that Teacher Xu will recover soon. Additionally, we thank all the fans for their support of the program.]

Beneath the announcement were various messages expressing surprise and concern for Xu Qingqiu. Of course, there were also plenty of detractors clapping their hands in glee.

Some people were deliberately guiding everyone to pay attention to the program itself, making one wonder if they were paid commentators hired by the production team.

News about Xu Qingqiu getting injured during the program’s recording had been completely suppressed. The production team was working hard to keep a lid on it, even going to the hospital to request confidentiality. Meanwhile, Xu Qingqiu’s side was also doing their best to prevent the incident from being exposed, so it hadn’t spread widely online yet.

At most, a few well-informed people had their suspicions. While some tried to expose the news, the platform quickly suppressed it.

Most netizens remained in the dark, truly believing it was just an accidental injury. According to the narrative put forth by the production team, it seemed as if the accident had nothing to do with them at all.

The "The Sound of Nature" production team breathed a sigh of relief at the current situation. Xu Qingqiu’s withdrawal from the competition was undoubtedly a sensational event, causing many of her fans and other casual observers to speak out.

The huge influx of traffic pushed the topics to the top of the trending lists: one was #XuQingqiuWithdraws, and the other was #XuQingqiuInjured.

In both instances, the production team appeared to play a thoroughly righteous role—striving to overcome difficulties, showing great concern, and offering heartfelt wishes. Everything looked so perfect.

This was all part of the plan designed by the production team from the start. They believed that as long as public opinion was properly guided, no matter how intense the public interest, it would ultimately be converted into attention for the program.

The latest episode would undoubtedly achieve high ratings, riding on the buzz from this event.

But this was merely their wishful thinking, as aside from the production team, another group was also waiting for this opportunity.

Seeing that the two topics had already hit the trending lists, Li Chunhua hurriedly took out her phone and made a call.

"The timing is about right. Release the material and stir up public opinion!"

After hanging up, Li Chunhua looked at the production team’s Weibo post and scoffed silently.

A big company with vast resources? Powerful enough to manipulate situations at will? And a nobody like me can’t afford to offend them? Well, if you’re willing to risk your own skin, you can even unseat the emperor! So what if we don’t collaborate in the future? Do they really think I’m such a pushover?

As time passed, amidst all the comments like "Everything’s fine," "The program is great," "Teacher Xu, get well soon," and "President Xu, take a good rest," countless messages with photos suddenly appeared.

"Shocking, is this the true story?"

"The full story of Xu Qingqiu’s injury!"

"Is ’The Sound of Nature’ a fair competition or does it disregard human life?"

"Was it an accident? Or was it a conspiracy?"

"Brothers, we’ve been deceived! Xu Qingqiu is seriously injured!"

"On-site photos! See them now before they’re gone!"

Comments and photos poured in, revealing everything from the accident scene to the hospital rescue efforts.

There were even videos showing the production team in a state of panic and disarray, the cold, desolate atmosphere of the hospital afterwards, and the solitary figure of a single producer from the program.

All this information pointed to two conclusions:

First, there was still no conclusion as to whether the incident was an accident; even if it was, the production team could not escape responsibility!

Second, the production team’s handling of Xu Qingqiu’s injury was far from the concern they publicly expressed; it was indifferent, even dismissive! Cold-blooded!

A flood of information and commentary instantly pushed the production team into the eye of the storm.

The bloody photos, the ghastly wound, the flustered staff members—all of it became irrefutable evidence that shattered everything the production team had previously claimed!

"Damn it! How can they be so inhuman?"

"She was so badly hurt; did no one help her?"

"This production team is utter trash! Is their equipment that bad? How could she even fall?"

"Equipment failure, I can understand; stage accidents happen. But doesn’t the production team have any first-aid measures? She was lying on the ground for ages, and they couldn’t even find a first-aid kit?"

"This is disgusting! Before, they were all hypocritically wishing her a speedy recovery. But after an accident happened on their program, they only sent one producer? Where was the director? Where was everyone else?"

"Forget everything else; just the fact that a huge star like Xu Qingqiu got injured, yet the program’s recording continued as usual—I have to say, I’m impressed. Is it audacity, or do they have powerful backing?"

In just a few short minutes, public opinion had completely reversed, and the intensity of the controversy instantly leaped to another level.

After all, where there’s no conflict, there’s no buzz, right? It was just an injury; besides the fans, who would really care?

But gossip is different. It was obvious that the young pop queen, Xu Qingqiu, was now feuding with the production team. Who wouldn’t rush to grab some popcorn and watch the drama unfold?!

"What is he trying to do?! Has he gone mad?"

At the production team’s headquarters, the chief director slammed the table, his face ashen with rage. Several producers sat nearby, their expressions equally grim.

One producer said to Lv, "Old Lv, you tell us what to do. You’re the one who stirred up this mess; how are we going to fix it now?"

Lv retorted, "What do you mean, I stirred it up? Were those resources given for free? Did I pocket the benefits? Oh, so when trouble arises, you just push all the blame onto me? What kind of logic is that? You want me to be the scapegoat before anything’s even sorted out?"

"Alright, alright," another producer interjected. "This isn’t the time for blaming each other. Let’s first discuss what to do."

A different producer then chimed in, "What else can we do? Isn’t she just some minor singer? Who gave her the nerve? Let’s blacklist her for three years. She’s young but has a huge temper. If we don’t teach her a lesson, she’ll think she can walk all over us!"

The chief director, now furious, snapped at the producer who had just spoken, "I’m asking what to do *now*! What damn good will blacklisting her do at this moment? Are we still going to record the program or not? I’m talking about how to solve the immediate problem!"

Lv then said calmly, "We’ll handle it as the situation dictates. What’s the big deal? If netizens raise doubts, we’ll just release the official account of what happened. At worst, we’ll be accused of neglecting a singer. If the cause of the accident can’t be definitively determined, then it’s not our responsibility."

...

While the production team was in an anxious discussion, Li Chunhua, feeling the time was ripe, picked up her phone again. First, she called the music platforms, and after coordinating with them, she then called Xu Qingqiu’s studio.

"Alright, Sister Hua. No problem on my end. I can do that."

Xu Qingqiu and Yiyi had been avidly following the drama online. It’s hard to describe how satisfying it was for them.

After all I’ve suffered, can’t I be a little willful for once?

Seeing the production team squirm certainly made her happy.

After receiving Sister Hua’s call, Xu Qingqiu quickly notified her operations team. The posters and promotional text, which had been prepared in advance, were immediately released.

[Dear fans and friends who have been waiting! The official versions of the songs "Morning bound for midnight" and "In the World" have been released! They are now available on all major music platforms. Welcome, everyone, to listen!]