Hence, for their daily meals, Hua Jin would order takeout and bring it back to the hotel to eat. That was the result. They also had to watch out for paparazzi posing as delivery men.
Some reporters would bribe the delivery men to shove their interview questions straight into the delivery packaging. Others would disguise themselves as delivery men delivering food and then when the door opened, they would try to squeeze their way in for an interview.
Some of the paparazzi were even more scary. One secretly fitted a listening device into a pen. Fortunately, Hua Jin was meticulous and noticed an extra pen. Upon disassembling it, he realized that it contained a recording device.
Liang Yin was completely terrified. It felt as if countless eyes were watching her, making her feel constantly on the edge.
She hadn’t realized being a star could be so painful. Apart from a packed schedule, they often couldn’t get a good rest. Outwardly, they looked glamorous and glorious. However, they actually had to fight the paparazzi all the time. This was almost like a spy movie! These paparazzi would have made excellent spies and agents in the wars throughout history.
The actor, however, was used to it. This kind of thing was common in this circle. He’d gotten used to it.
Liang Yin had not been sleeping well for the past few days. The production team had also stopped filming, and was discussing with the higher-ups whether Tang Yu should stay or leave.
On the Internet, in order to boycott Tang Yu, many netizens even announced that if Tang Yu’s role was not deleted or replaced, they would not watch it. Someone went to the extent of holding a vote in favor of Tang Yu’s withdrawal from the crew. 90 percent of the netizens voted that even if it was a television drama starring Hua Jin, as long as Tang Yu was in it, even if it was just one scene, they would firmly boycott it.
The production team and the investors panicked. What did all this mean? This was going to hit the ratings hard. After this incident, even if they were to continue filming, they did not know if television stations and websites would buy the show. Advertisers would probably pull out.
Generally speaking, the profitability of a television series depends mainly on the purchase price at the premiere, as well as the placement of advertisements. The cost of an ad placement depends on the cast and the ratings.
Normally, television dramas starring A-list actors are often packaged and sold to websites along with the advertisements. The profits, however, come from these.
If a pot of porridge is ruined because of a tiny bit of mouse dropping, the gains will not make up for the losses. The directing team had to weigh the pros and cons.
But here came the tricky part.
Tang Yu’s backer, the executive director of Sen Hai Entertainment Media, was also one of the investors of this show. If Tang Yu were to be replaced, it would not be too late to do a re-shoot. However, the fear was of offending Sen Hai. Divestment was a small matter, there was also the problem of breach of contract to consider.
Because of Tang Yu’s personal image, the production team’s filming was affected. It could be considered a breach of contract. But if the production team removed Tang Yu without Sen Hai’s permission, it would also be considered a breach of contract. Moreover, the penalty was very high.
Eventually, after a meeting, not to mention the production team, even Sen Hai’s management directly requested the removal of Tang Yu.
The higher-ups were infuriated. Sen Hai had originally invested heavily to promote Tang Yu, but in the end, such a thing happened. This was to control the damage that had been done. If they were to continue filming, it was possible that the 100 million yuan invested in this drama might be completely wasted.
